Great Progress

As he spoke, he stood up, walked to the table, picked up a book, looked at it, and exclaimed in surprise, "It really is!"

He then looked at the paintings hanging on the wall. "The colors in the paintings are brighter now."

"This medicine..." He turned to look at Zhao Ruxi, "Is it really that amazing?"

Zhao Ruxi: "..."

Although she expected that the pills would have some effect on Kang Shilin, she did not expect the effect to be so obvious. Kang Shilin immediately noticed the changes in his body.

Kang Shilin is over seventy years old. Although he is in better health than the average elderly person and usually looks quite energetic, his eyesight is still good enough when he is writing or painting.

But he was getting old, and his eyesight suffered from presbyopia or cataracts.

Once you take the Recovery Pill and your eyes recover, won't the improvement be obvious?

Zhao Ruxi asked, "Besides your eyes, Master, do you feel anything else? For example, that your body has become stronger, your hands and feet are lighter, your mind is clearer, and so on."

Hearing her say that, Kang Shilin also became expectant. He stood up, took a few steps, waved his arm, and said with delight, "I usually use a pen a lot, and my wrist is always a little sore. But it doesn't seem to hurt anymore."

As he spoke, he rotated his wrist and nodded, "It really doesn't hurt anymore."

He then moved around a bit more. "My body feels lighter and stronger than before, but it's not very noticeable."

At this point, he couldn't hold back any longer and asked Zhao Ruxi curiously, "What kind of medicine is this? How is it so miraculous?"

"I heard it's made from several hundred-year-old Ganoderma lucidum and old ginseng, but I don't know for sure," Zhao Ruxi said. "My hands and feet used to be a bit cold, and I had a lot of energy, but after taking this, it improved a lot."

Kang Shilin had only heard her say that besides the one she had taken herself, this was the only one left. When she said this, he had no idea that the effect would be so significant.

Hearing this now, I have very mixed feelings.

"Silly girl, this medicine is so good, why did you give it to me? You could have offered it to the Emperor, the Crown Prince, or even given it to yourself." He sighed, his eyes welling up with tears.

Zhao Ruxi ate it herself, which shows she knew it was a good thing.

She didn't offer it to the Emperor or the Crown Prince, but she kept him in her thoughts. Maybe the Crown Prince gave her the medicine, and she secretly hid it to save for him.

He's a worthless old man, he's lived to be over seventy, that's enough for him, why should she waste something so precious on him?

"I want my master to live a long, long life, and stay with me forever," Zhao Ruxi said earnestly.

"As for the Emperor and the Crown Prince, they are in good health. We can always get more medicine if we find it again."

Zhao Ruxi winked at Kang Shilin as she spoke, "Besides, Master only got this pill because he trusts me. If you don't take it, even the best medicine will be useless, right?"

"You silly girl..." Kang Shilin blinked her teary eyes and didn't say anything more.

He'd already taken the medicine; saying anything more would be melodramatic. Anyway, he knew this girl was good to him.

"Grandpa, the boiled water is here." Kang An's voice came from the doorway, and then he walked in carrying a tray with a glass of water on it.

Kang Shilin waved to him, and when he approached, he picked up the glass of water, felt that the temperature was just right, and gulped it down.

After finishing his drink, he wiped his mouth, stood up, and said, "I want to paint a picture."

His wrist no longer hurt, his eyesight was brighter, and he could see colors more clearly than before. He felt that his paintings were about to take another big leap forward.

"Let me lay out the paper for you," Zhao Ruxi said quickly.

Kang Shilin wasn't trying to create anything with his painting; he just wanted to see if his use of color was significantly different from before. He immediately mixed some colors and casually drew on the paper for a while.

After using up all the paint, he placed the original painting on top of the new one for comparison, then laughed heartily, "Heaven has shown mercy!"

As he laughed, tears streamed down his face, and he choked up, unable to speak.

Before taking Zhao Ruxi as his apprentice, his painting skills had stagnated for many years.

He thought he would never improve his painting skills again, but after taking Zhao Ruxi as his apprentice and being influenced by Zhao Ruxi's painting style, he broke through the constraints in his style and made a qualitative leap.

Recently, Zhao Ruxi's bold use of color has given him new insights. Now his eyesight is clearer than before, allowing him to apply these insights more freely and skillfully.

Rather than saying that he took Zhao Ruxi as his apprentice and taught Zhao Ruxi to paint, it would be more accurate to say that Zhao Ruxi made him who he is.

With such disciples, what more could one ask for?

Kang An served Kang Shilin throughout his life and was well aware of Kang Shilin's struggles with painting skills.

Although he didn't know what had just happened to make Kang Shilin so overjoyed and eager to start painting, and so excited after finishing, he knew that Kang Shilin must have made great progress in his painting skills, and that this progress was brought about by Zhao Ruxi.

He wiped away a tear, feeling deeply grateful to Zhao Ruxi.

Just then, a hand patted Kang An on the shoulder, startling Kang An.

He turned his head and met Wu Huaisi's eyes.

Wu Huaisi gestured for him to be quiet, then waved and turned to leave. Kang An quickly followed him out.

"What's wrong with Master?" Wu Huaisi asked as soon as they went outside.

When Wu Zong was about to return, he and Gong Cheng both sent servants to the city gate to welcome him. Only after the servants reported that Wu Zong had entered the city did he meet Gong Cheng at the yamen and then go to Kang Shilin's place.

Wu Zong and Xiao Ruotong need to go back to the Wu family to see their elders before they come here.

Upon entering, they heard that Zhao Ruxi had arrived early. The master and apprentice were in the study, and Kang Shilin seemed to be painting. So, he and Gong Cheng didn't dare to make a sound and quietly entered the study, wanting to see their master's painting process.

Unexpectedly, as soon as I went in, I saw my master put down his brush, pick up an old painting to compare with the new work, and then he looked up and laughed and cried at the same time, his emotions running high.

He and Gong Cheng were both curious and worried, afraid that they might startle Kang Shilin and embarrass him if they suddenly made a sound, so they called Kang An out to ask him questions.

Kang An wasn't entirely sure either, but he still shared what he had seen.

Gong Cheng said, "It seems that Junior Sister has made a new breakthrough in painting, which has influenced Master and greatly improved Master's painting skills. That's why Master is so excited."

Wu Huaisi nodded. "That must be it."

He then remarked with emotion, "Everyone says that Master is a peerless genius in painting, but his eye for choosing disciples is even better than his painting skills. I used to think that was just flattery. But ever since Master took on his junior sister, I've come to truly believe it, and I often feel this way."

Gong Cheng wholeheartedly agreed.

"Hey, Senior Brother, Second Senior Brother, what are you doing standing in the courtyard?" a familiar voice rang out.

Wu Huaisi and Gong Cheng turned around and saw Wu Zong holding a child in his arms, with Xiao Ruotong following behind. The two walked in from outside the courtyard gate.