"But," Grandma Chen stamped her foot. "This old servant can't bear to hear the poor young master crying so piteously..."
"Mr. Pei made it clear when he came the day before yesterday. He said that only by working together with him can we urge Cousin Jingbai to study hard," Li Wanming said with a gentle smile and a soft tone. "If you refuse to listen and drive Mr. Pei away on the first day, how will you explain it to Second Aunt when she comes back?"
Grandma Chen's face turned pale and then red, her expression changing constantly. It was obvious that she was very hesitant.
On the one hand, she heard Xiao Jingbai crying strangely inside and had an intuition that something was wrong. On the other hand, she knew that Pei Yanqi had a noble status, and he might very well be the last teacher that Mrs. Kang could invite for Xiao Jingbai...
So she didn't dare to act rashly no matter what. She just paced anxiously in front of the door, like an ant on a hot pan.
But Li Wanming gave an order. "Qinglan, go and bring a chair for Mr. Pei. Let's accompany Cousin Jingbai and calm our hearts together."
...
The sun climbed higher and higher, and the cicadas chirped continuously in the yard.
Xiao Jingbai's cries inside the room rose and fell. Sometimes they were like the wailing of a pig being slaughtered, and sometimes like the screeching of a saw cutting wood. Grandma Chen was so frightened that her heart skipped a beat, and she almost wrung the handkerchief in her hand to pieces.
Li Wanming, however, became even more leisurely. She even had someone carry in an ice basin and prepare iced plum soup to relieve the heat for Pei Yanqi.
The two of them sat side by side on the rattan chairs in the courtyard, sipping tea and chatting slowly. Behind them stood Qinglan, Grandma Chen, and a group of maids and servants, more than a dozen people in total. They all listened to Xiao Jingbai's howling in the room.
After about half an hour, the noise in the room gradually died down, leaving only a faint sobbing sound, like a mouse with its mouth covered.
A moment later, Pei Yanqi slowly got up and pulled out the ruler hanging on the door.
The door opened, and Xiao Jingbai was seen slumped on the ground in front of the door, his face covered in snot and tears.
His eyes were swollen like two ripe walnuts, and his throat made a "ho-ho" sound, like a fledgling bird choked by pepper.
The servants on the ground were also lying in disarray, each looking as pale as an eggplant beaten by frost.
Pei Yanqi ignored them. He stepped over them and walked straight to the table. He lifted the lid of the inlaid-gold incense burner.
There was a faint glow under the yellow powder remaining in the burner. He picked up a little and rubbed it between his fingertips, a meaningful smile curving his lips.
"Sunflower moss, also known as foreign mustard, is yellow in color, bitter in taste, and slightly cold. Boiled with horseshoe, it has the effect of moistening the intestines and promoting defecation. But..." He paused and turned to look at the little devil in a sorry state on the ground. "I didn't know that there was such a refined hobby of using sunflower moss as incense in the Prince Ning's Mansion."
Xiao Jingbai opened his mouth, but only let out a hoarse "ho-ho" sound. His throat felt as if it had been burned by fire.
Pei Yanqi spread out the Cheng Tang paper on the table. He glanced at Xiao Jingbai indifferently and said with a faint smile, "Second Young Master was very calm today. After you're cleaned up, come to the study quickly. We haven't started today's class yet."
A towering rage instantly welled up in Xiao Jingbai's heart. He wished he could devour Pei Yanqi alive!
But unfortunately, his vision was now just a narrow slit, and he couldn't see clearly. He could only be carried out by the servants like a lump of cotton.
Grandma Chen was so anxious that she shed tears. While using the handkerchief to wipe the sweat off his face, she whispered urgently, "Hurry! Go and get the rapeseed oil!"
The maids brought the rapeseed oil in a hurry. Grandma Chen carefully applied it to Xiao Jingbai's eyelids. As soon as the warm and smooth oil touched his skin, the burning sensation in his eyes was greatly reduced.
After a while, Xiao Jingbai was able to open his eyes. After drinking a bowl of cool tea, his throat also felt much more comfortable.
He looked at Pei Yanqi, who was calm and composed in the study, and secretly gritted his teeth. "Pei! Just you wait! You still want to have class today? I'll show you what the true words of the sages are!"
...
The sun was scorching hot, and the cicadas' chirping became even more noisy.
Li Wanming simply had the rattan chairs carried in and sat behind to watch Xiao Jingbai's class.
Grandma Chen wanted to remind Pei Yanqi to take a look at the "Chunhua Ge Tie" placed on the nearby bookcase. However, because Li Wanming was here, she didn't dare to speak up. She could only stand behind aggrievedly.
"What are the Seven Celestial Bodies?" Pei Yanqi asked.
"The Seven Needles?" Xiao Jingbai had regained his energy by now. He deliberately crossed one leg on the table and carelessly scratched his ear. "Are they the needles used by the Seven Fairies to embroider clothes?"
"What are the Three Powers?"
Xiao Jingbai flicked his fingers and looked at Pei Yanqi provocatively. "I don't know. I only know that the dog I used to raise was named Wangcai!"
"What is a rainbow?"
"What the hell?" Xiao Jingbai laughed exaggeratedly. "Could it be that you bought your title of Number One Scholar? Why do you always say things that are hard to understand?"
...
Li Wanming shook her head as she listened from behind.
Some people are really determined to seek their own doom. There's no stopping them.
Xiao Jingbai probably thought that all scholars loved knowledge and couldn't stand anyone insulting their classic books. He thought he could drive Pei Yanqi away by doing this.
However, he didn't know that Pei Yanqi was a tough guy who could even subdue Fang Zhi and Lü Songyuan!
Even those two devils didn't dare to misbehave in front of Pei Yanqi, let alone a little rascal like him who didn't know his own limitations.
Moreover, Li Wanming had already discussed with Pei Yanqi a few days ago. As long as they could find a way to get Mrs. Kang out of the way, Xiao Jingbai would be completely at his disposal.
Whether to beat or punish him, it was all up to Pei Yanqi. She would clear all the obstacles in the mansion for him.
Li Wanming sighed in her heart. "Alas, little rascal. If I were you, I would kneel down and beg for mercy quickly. Maybe you could suffer less.
But you're still stubbornly going against Scholar Pei. Aren't you just seeking your own death?"
She couldn't help but cover half of her face with her round fan. She couldn't even bear to watch anymore.
"The sun, the moon, and the five planets are called the Seven Celestial Bodies; heaven, earth, and man are called the Three Powers," Pei Yanqi's voice was as calm as water. "A rainbow is called a 'dixiong', which is the impure qi of heaven and earth; the toad in the moon is the essence of the bright moon... These are the sentences from 'The Young Scholar's Anthology, Volume One'."
He paused, his eyes sweeping over Xiao Jingbai, and then said lightly, "In our dynasty, children usually start their enlightenment with 'The Three-Character Classic', 'The Thousand-Character Essay', 'The Young Scholar's Anthology', and 'The Extended Collection of Wise Sayings'. Usually, children start their enlightenment at the age of four to six.
But Second Young Master is already twelve years old and still doesn't know the Seven Celestial Bodies or the Three Powers. Such shallow knowledge is really astonishing... Princess Consort!"
Pei Yanqi turned his head, his expression cold and stern. "If Second Young Master can't copy 'The Young Scholar's Anthology, Volume One' ten times this morning, don't give him lunch today."
"On what grounds?!" Xiao Jingbai was shocked and suddenly stood up. "On what grounds do you not let me eat?"
It was almost noon at this time. Copying 'The Young Scholar's Anthology' ten times would take at least two hours. Wouldn't that mean going hungry for lunch today?
Pei Yanqi looked calm. "Twenty times."