"Sincerity is the way of heaven; sincerity is the way of man..."
"Hu Zhi is the handsomeness of Qi, and Qi is the filling of the body..."
Bai Yu'an was lying on the bed, squinting her eyes and looking out the window while she was sleepy. She could still hear a childish voice in her ears, following her father's steadfast words.
It's still dark outside, but it's only five o'clock in the morning, and my cousin is up so early to study outside the yard.
After burying herself in the quilt and closing her eyes for a while, A Tao came in from the outside and saw Bai Yu'an wrapped in the quilt, with only one long hair exposed and half of her face invisible.
Seeing that no one was awake, he quietly went to change the charcoal fire.
Originally, the charcoal fire should have been turned off at this time of year, but Bai Yu'an has been afraid of the cold since she was a child, so the charcoal fire in the small room was not turned off until nearly April.
After changing the charcoal fire and preparing to go out, I heard a faint voice from under the quilt: "A Tao."
The voice was lazy and hoarse with the sound of waking up. A Tao smiled and walked towards the bed.
Bai Yuan's face emerged from the quilt, her hair tangled on her fair cheeks, and her eyebrows looked a little tired.
Seeing Bai Yu'an like this, A Tao smiled and said, "Did Young Master be woken up by Young Master Yuan Qing?"
Stretching her legs under the quilt, Bai Yu'an felt a little lazy and sighed towards A Tao: "It's been a long time since I got up so early to study."
A Tao went to get some clothes, pulled Bai Yu'an to sit up, and said with a smile: "That's true."
"But if the master were by your side, I guess he wouldn't be so lazy."
Bai Yu'an matched A Tao's dressing and said in a low voice: "Father always gets up early. Even if he has nothing to do, he has to go to the Yamen early. He has to see everything in person."
"He has been used to being cautious all his life, but he is just tiring himself."
A Tao bent down and helped Bai Yuan button his collar: "I have a good reputation in Shuyang over the years. Isn't it because I am diligent?"
Bai Yu'an smiled. Her father often told her that hard work can make up for weakness, talk less and do more, but Bai Yu'an has always liked to be lazy since she was a child.
In the middle of winter, she was afraid of the cold and didn't want to endure hardship, so she pretended to be sick and lay down to read. Only now did she feel that her father's harsh treatment of her was not a way to sharpen her will.
After getting dressed and washing up, Bai Yu'an walked outside.
In the courtyard, Chang Jing was sitting on the stone bench opposite his father, shaking his head and reading along with his father.
Maybe he still doesn't know what is wrong in his head, so he follows the thought and asks for help from others.
Bai Yuan looked amused from the side and waved to Changjing.
Chang Jing glanced at his father carefully, and after receiving his father's nod, he rushed towards Bai Yu'an's arms.
Bai Yu'an touched Chang Jing's fingers, which were already red from the cold. She couldn't help but ask A Tao to get a hand stove to warm Chang Jing.
Bai Yuanqing came over, stopped A Tao and said, "If a man can't endure this little hardship, how can he achieve great things in the future?"
Bai Yu'an choked, took Chang Jing's hand and said to Bai Yuanqing: "It's not necessary for such a young child."
Bai Yuanqing insisted: "It's okay to let him suffer some hardships since he was a child, first bitter and then sweet. Don't develop a lazy temperament."
Bai Yu'an was speechless after saying this, so he had to ask Mother Chen to serve the food and lead Chang Jing to eat.
Bai Yu'an has been weak since she was a child because she has been taking medicine all year round. She has been protected like a delicate flower at home. She has never suffered any hardship, and she has never done anything other than studying.
Besides, Bai Yu'an's father would never let go of the only Miaomiao in the family, no matter how strict he was. If Bai Yu'an fell ill, he would lose half his life, so he was more anxious than anyone else.
Bai Yuanqing watched Bai Yu'an grow up. The tighter the family's protection, the weaker his body became, which can be regarded as a negative lesson learned.
While eating at the table, Bai Yuanqing couldn't help but said to Bai Yu'an: "Yu'an, you need to get up early and practice more in the future."
"This time I came to see you, you seem to be thinner than the past two years."
A Tao was laughing next to her. Her young master couldn't get up as soon as he arrived in Xiu Mu, let alone get up early to practice his body.
Bai Yu'an nodded in agreement and took another bite of the rice bun in his hand.
Bai Yuanqing saw that Bai Yu'an's bite was not as big as Chang Jing's bite, and he shook his head secretly in his heart.
After eating, a few people tidied up for a while before heading outside.
Chang Jing was so excited when he was sitting in the carriage that he kept lifting the curtain to look outside, screaming in surprise whenever he saw anything.
The head was fully extended outside. Bai Yuanqing frowned and impatiently pulled Chang Jing back to scold him.
Changjing was so aggrieved that he buried himself in Bai Yu'an's arms, asking Bai Yu'an to make the decision.
Bai Yu'an smiled warmly. Bai Yuanqing was more than ten years older than her. How could she interfere with her cousin's child discipline, so she had no choice but to ask A Tao to buy a bunch of candied haws and come over to coax him.
Changjing became quiet, Bai Yuanqing opened the curtain and looked outside for a few times, and then said to Bai Yu'an: "I can finally see the prosperity of the capital.
He said and smiled at Bai Yu'an: "Yu'an has been here for two years, are you used to it?"
Bai Yu'an smiled: "I'm used to it, but I still think Shuyang is good."
Bai Yuanqing was a little surprised: "Shuyang is no more than a small town, how can it compare to the capital city."
There are dignitaries everywhere in the capital, and Bai Yu'an is just an insignificant part of them.
What does the prosperity of the capital have to do with her?
Bai Yu'an just said: "I'm just used to it in Shuyang."
Bai Yuanqing nodded and said no more.
When the carriage arrived at the gate of Gongyuan, Bai Yuanqing got off the carriage, looked at the high door plaque on the stone pillar, and couldn't help but sigh: "I never thought that one day I would take the exam here."
Bai Yu'an stood next to Bai Yuanqing, looking at Bai Yuanqing's face with a sigh, and turned his head to look at the endless flow of people.
Suddenly Bai Yu'an felt someone hit him on the shoulder. When he looked back, he saw a man in Tsing Yi.
Bai Yu'an remembered him, and told him that he was Gong Yushu, an old friend, when he was at Ting Yuxuan's party last time.
"Master Bai, long time no see."
When Bai Yu'an saw the other party bowing to him with a smile on his face, he raised his hand in return.
Gong Yushu looked at Bai Yu'an and said with a smile: "Master Bai is on duty in the Imperial Academy. Do you know who the examiners are this year?"
Bai Yu'an looked at Gong Yushu. He was about the same height as herself, but his manners were gentle, which made her feel inexplicably familiar.
And although Gong Yushu has an ordinary appearance and smiles when he speaks, Bai Yu'an always feels something indescribable.
She thought about the meaning of Gong Yushu's question for a moment, and then said to Gong Yushu: "Who in the Imperial Academy will be the co-examiner for this year is decided by the cabinet and the Ministry of Rites. I don't know."
Gong Yushu smiled, took a step closer, and raised his hand to make a gesture of invitation: "I have something to say to Mr. Bai alone. Is Mr. Bai free now?"
There was a constant flow of people around him. Gong Yushu was a little close to Bai Yu'an, and the smell of the other person's body came over him. It was a stale smell.
Bai Yu'an calmly took a step back and refused: "I'm still busy with some things today, let's try another day."
Seeing Bai Yu'an retreat, Gong Yushu took a step forward and whispered into Bai Yu'an's ear: "Master Bai really doesn't want to leave with me?"
"Then Master Bai, don't regret it."
