The noble girl is beautiful.

Since Ji Zhuo would be inspecting her work the next day, Shen Yourong hurriedly practiced her calligraphy after school.
It was the height of summer, and an ice vessel was placed beside her desk. She focused intently, her wrist poised high, and after writing ten sheets of large characters, her hair was slightly damp.
Hua Mei and Du Juan each served her tea and wiped her hands. She took a sip of the tea, the chilled plum at the bottom of the cup adding a slightly sour taste.
She spread out all the practice calligraphy sheets from the past few days on the table, forming a thick stack.
She thought to herself that this finally showed some sign of diligent practice.
The next day, She arrived at the classroom right on time again, but this time she miscalculated and ran into Ji Zhuo at the entrance of Fu Yao Pavilion.
Today, he was wearing a wide-sleeved robe and holding a rare golden-threaded sandalwood fan, which gave him a slightly more dashing and carefree appearance compared to his usual mature and steady demeanor.
She greeted him at the door, “Good day, Master.”
He fanned himself and said, “You always arrive just on time, why are you late today?”
Shen Yourong thought to herself that she wasn’t late, but perhaps he was early. However, she bowed her head respectfully and replied, “I acknowledge my mistake. I will come earlier next time.”
Ji Zhuo pointed his fan towards the door and said, “Go on in.”
She quickly entered the room and had just taken her seat when he leisurely walked in. He sat at the head of the room and announced that there would be a break the next day, and no lessons this morning.
Instead, they could ask him about any unresolved questions from the past few days.
After speaking, he called out to her, “Miss, come with me.”
She took her thick stack of practice sheets and followed him behind the screen.
He flipped through her calligraphy sheets, examining them one by one.
On the flower stand by the window was a pot of gardenias, the leaves a vibrant green, though small insects had landed on the flower buds. Shen Yourong stared at the insects on the buds, lost in thought.
Ji Zhuo set down the stack of papers and tapped his folding fan against his palm, “Miss, do you think I am easily fooled?”
She snapped back to reality to find him gazing at her with calm, deep eyes, “Writing ten sheets of large characters in one day, doesn’t your hand ache?”
She opened her mouth but didn’t expect him to see through her at a glance.
She felt a bit embarrassed; She had always managed to handle things impeccably. For things she liked, she put in extra effort, and the results were never bad.
For things she didn’t like, she could convincingly pretend to have tried hard but failed to get results. Either way, no one ever had a reason to criticize her.
She admitted her mistake readily, “I know I was wrong, I won’t dare to do it again next time.”
“Admitting mistakes so quickly,” he looked at her, leaning casually against the grand teacher’s chair, quite helpless, “You seem clever enough in other areas, how come you just can’t get calligraphy? From now on, bring your calligraphy sheets here every day, I’ll supervise your practice in the classroom.”
She quickly replied, “Yes.”
He waved his hand, and She took her stack of calligraphy sheets and left.
Back at her seat, she flipped through each page, finding no difference. She couldn’t figure out how he noticed, and so accurately at that, that she had made up ten sheets yesterday.
The morning passed quickly, and at the end of class, Ji Zhuo announced that there would be a break tomorrow, and they didn’t have to come to school.
Shen Qingyan cheered quietly, causing Ji Chengyao to laugh as well.
Perhaps thanks to the blessing of the weather, it started raining in the morning on the day of the break, washing away the summer heat. Shen Yourong, dressed in light sleepwear, opened the window and watched the rain fall on the grass and trees in the courtyard.
The swing under the soap tree quietly got drenched, and a few little maids chatted and laughed by the wall.
She ordered someone to roll up the embroidered soft curtain at the door, letting the cool breeze blow into the room.
Du Juan and Hua Mei attended to her as she did her hair. Suddenly, there was a commotion at the courtyard gate.
It turned out to be Shen Qingyan, who had come early, dragging Shen Qinghan along to find Shen Yourong, saying they wanted to go see the wild ducks.
“Where would there be wild ducks in the garden?” Shen Yourong asked, sitting at the dressing table, as Shen Qingyan and Shen Qinghan sat down on the couch.
Shen Yourong glanced at Shen Qingyan and noticed that today she was wearing a crimson floral brocade dress with a frosty blouse. In her hair was a magnolia hairpin, making her look radiant.
“Is that the hairpin I gave you?” She asked.
Shen Qingyan shook her fan, “Yes, it is.”
“It doesn’t look like it,” Shen Yourong said. “The ones I gave you were inlaid with jadeite, but this one looks like it’s made of jade, with excellent quality.”
Shen Qinghan also looked at Shen Qingyan’s hair when she heard this. She just shook her fan and said, “If we’re talking about good quality, nothing compares to what elder sister has.”
Du Juan was currently putting several small pearl-inlaid plum blossom hairpins into Shen Yourong’s hair, along with a double-stranded gold hairpin inlaid with jade and gems.
Her white jade earrings, though not lavish, were meticulously crafted and rare. Even Shen Qinghan, who didn’t care much for gold and silver, found them beautiful.
Shen Yourong changed into a lake-blue shirt behind the screen and came out, saying, “Let’s go, let’s go see the wild ducks.”
Outside, the rain was light and drizzly. The maidservants held umbrellas, and a group of about a dozen people walked to the lakeside.
Sure enough, they saw several wild ducks playing on the lake, leisurely and content. A duck swam lazily by, causing the lotus leaves and flowers to part like rippling waves.
Shen Qingyan had some snacks in her pouch, which she crumbled and fed to the ducks. The ducks, unafraid of people, came right up to the lakeside to take the crumbs from her hand.
Shen Qinghan stood far away and said, “Be careful not to fall.”
Shen Qingyan shouted, “Second Sister, come and play too. These lotus flowers are so beautiful, pick some and put them in a vase when we go back.”
Shen Qinghan laughed, “You pick them for me, pick the good ones.”
Shen Qingyan lifted her skirt and picked a few lotus leaves and flowers. Seeing this, the little maids followed suit, causing quite a bit of damage to the lotus flowers near the shore.
After playing for a while, they walked to the stone pavilion beside the artificial mountain. Shen Yourong said, “This place is nice, let’s have lunch here.”
The maids laid mats on the stone benches, and each served their respective young ladies while they tidied up their clothes.
Shen Qinghan held the lotus flowers and said, “I heard that master is very strict with elder Sister, making her practice two big characters every day.”
“Is my handwriting bad?” Shen Yourong asked, “he said my writing is too rigid, so I need to practice more.”
“Don’t be upset, elder sister. His teaching is for your own good,” Shen Qingyan replied with a smile.
Elegantly, Shen Yourong continued, “I wouldn’t be upset. He is so handsome.”
Her words elicited laughter from the maidservants.
“I love beauty. Regardless of gender, I always take a second glance at passersby.
He is exceptionally handsome and graceful.
When I saw him at the academy, I was stunned!” Shen Qingyan teased, and Shen Yourong playfully scolded her.
Shen Qingyan continued, “In my opinion, he is even more handsome than elder brother.”
“What about the Fourth Prince?” Shen Yourong asked in return. “What do you think of him?”
Shen Qingyan paused before replying, “Well, he’s handsome too, noble and dazzling. But compared to him, Master is more restrained.”
Shen Qinghan sipped her tea and remarked, “Girls from every household always talk about men. Sister, as the eldest, you’re also indulging in this nonsense with the third miss.”
Both Shen Yourong and Shen Qingyan chuckled.
Shortly after, a servant came over, saying that it was raining heavily outside, and it wasn’t suitable for the ladies to sit in the pavilion for too long, so it was better to move to another place for breakfast.
Since Shen Qinghan’s courtyard was nearby, Shen Yourong and a few other sisters went there to have their meal together.
As they left cheerfully, no one noticed a makeshift grass hut erected behind the artificial hill by the pond. Ji Zhuo, dressed in white, was fishing by the lake, exuding an aura of simplicity and elegance, as if he belonged in a painting.
In the dimness of his eyes, there was a faint indifference, unlike the amiable demeanor he displayed in the academy.
His expression was detached and cold, but his exceptional features disguised a hint of compassion for the world.
Chang Ming, seeing his silence, quickly brought up the main topic: “I heard that the Fourth Prince has ordered a jade hairpin with a jade orchid at Zhu Yu Pavilion. I suspect it’s the one the Third Miss wears on her head.
Our Fourth Prince is not close to Miss Shen from the Shen family, but seems to have a fiery relationship with the Third Miss.”
Ji Zhuo, indifferent, remarked, “He lacks insight.”
Chang Ming suggested, “Should we remind Duke Qi to intervene and sell him a favor?”
Ji Zhuo, gazing at the rippling surface of the lake, replied calmly, “Both the eldest and the third Miss are daughters of Duke Qi’s household. To Duke Qi, there’s no difference.”
Suddenly, the fishing rod beside him twitched. He pulled it up, revealing a small silver fish breaking through the water.
After unhooking the fish, he continued, “Besides, it’s too early to jump to conclusions. Let’s wait and see how things unfold.”