Artemisia scoparia
After looking at the clepsydra, the six- or seven-year-old Hua Zhi touched her bun and turned to look at the several maids who were taller than her, "Have you brought food and drinks?"
Xiao Nianqiu lifted the bamboo basket and lifted the cloth veil, "Look, young lady, there is no smell, so no one will notice it."
Xiao Huazhi nodded with satisfaction. Even if one does something bad, one must have the awareness of doing bad things and not leave any handle for others to catch.
Thinking of the wonderful smelling library, little Hua Zhi's heart was filled with joy. She wished she could stay there forever and never come out. Unfortunately, that was not possible. She was the eldest daughter of the Hua family, who was well-behaved, taciturn and had no special features. She couldn't stand out too much. Thinking of this character setting for herself, Hua Zhi felt a little regretful. In fact, it was also possible to be a nerdy girl.
Little Yingchun and Little Baoxia were left behind to provide cover. Little Yingchun solemnly warned the timid Fudong, "The young lady forgets everything when she reads. You must take good care of her, okay?"
Xiao Fudong pursed his lips and nodded repeatedly.
Little Yingchun looked at Little Nianqiu again, "Be smart, you didn't notice it until others were right in front of you."
"Yes, I know."
Xiao Hua Zhi watched the interaction of the maids with a smile, and did not say anything. In fact, this was not a big deal. If she was really discovered, she could find an excuse to get away with it. But it would be better if she was not discovered. She was the most inconspicuous eldest girl in the Hua family!
The master and his two servants arrived at the library in a familiar way. Xiao Huazhi had already figured it out, except for the days off, the men in the family would either go to court or go to school at this time, and those who didn't need to do either would also go out and would not stay idle at home, let alone come to the library. Such a big library belonged to her most of the day.
Xiao Huazhi's eyes were full of sparkling light. This day was so happy!
Xiao Nianqiu pushed open the door of the library and looked inside. After making sure that no one was in a hurry, he let the young lady in. Xiao Fudong hurriedly followed. Xiao Nianqiu closed the door again and went to the other end of the corridor. He took out the rag hidden there and wiped the column, keeping an eye on all directions and keeping an eye on the young lady.
This was not the first time she had done such a thing, so she was not as nervous as before. While keeping watch, she wrote words on the porch column with her fingers. Yesterday, the young lady taught them ten words, and she still didn't know them very well, so she took this opportunity to practice.
Little Nianqiu was a little sad. She was the dumbest among the four sisters. Her three sisters had learned it but she hadn't. She had to work harder.
Little Nianqiu, who had studied hard until very late last night, fell asleep leaning against the pillar at some point, and did not see that the middle-aged Mr. Hua, who was dressed in a scholar's uniform and looked very gentle and elegant, was walking towards them with his hands behind his back at the other end of the corridor.
Butler Xu, who was following beside him, was about to scold the little maid when he saw her like this, but Lord Hua waved his hand, looked at her with a smile and walked away. It was normal for a child of such a young age, and in a family with such strict rules as theirs, to feel sleepy. There was nothing wrong in letting her rest for a while.
When they arrived outside the library, Lord Hua stopped the butler from following him and pushed the door open and walked in. When he looked up, he was stunned. How come the girl who was sitting against the bookshelf with a book in her hands and had a satisfied look on her face, as if a rice bug had fallen into a rice jar, looked like the one from the old family
Xiao Fudong also saw the person who pushed the door open, and was so scared that she quickly stood in front of the young lady to block the person behind her. Xiao Huazhi, whose light was blocked, pushed her away in dissatisfaction, "Move aside, move aside."
"Miss… "
Xiao Huazhi didn't even raise her head, "I'm not hungry, nor thirsty."
Xiao Fudong was about to cry. Didn’t she always look for the lady to give her food
Master Hua smiled with interest and glanced at the little maidservant lightly. He saw that the little maidservant was obviously shaking but still standing in front of the master. Then he thought of the little maidservant Hua Yi who was dozing off outside and smiling deeply. This was really... interesting.
Walking closer quietly and pushing aside the staggering little maid, Hua Yi was looking at his eldest granddaughter with lively eyes and brows. He reached out and took the book from her hand, watching her raise her head in confusion, be stunned for a moment, then lower her head to greet her respectfully, with a gentle expression, just as he had seen her before.
He flipped through the book in his hand, and found it was a biography of folk characters. It must have its merits to be put in the Hua family library. He had read this book in the past. The characters in it were not court officials or famous people, but some unknown people in the folk who had their own unique skills. He did not expect that the eldest granddaughter, who was rich since birth, would be so happy to read it.
Sitting on the floor with his back to the bookshelf, Hua Yizheng pointed to the person opposite him and said, "Sit down and talk."
Several thoughts flashed through Xiao Huazhi's mind, and finally she summed it up with one sentence: If the enemy comes, we will fight him; if the water comes, we will flood it with the earth.
So she really sat opposite him, still appearing to be well behaved, but also appearing less well behaved because she was sitting on the floor.
"Like reading?"
"yes."
"Do you come here often?"
Xiao Huazhi pondered for a moment and said, "Several times."
Hua Yizheng nodded, raised the book in his hand and changed the subject without asking further questions, "Do you find it fun?"
"yes."
"Tell me about it."
Xiao Huazhi replied with reservation, "They are very powerful."
"Oh? You think people who can't read and have no achievements are powerful?"
"yes."
"What's so great about it?"
At that time, Xiao Huazhi didn't know her grandfather very well. She was worried that her grandfather would think that these books should not be placed in the library and would take them all away. She behaved cautiously as a six-year-old should, "They can't read, but we can't do what they can do."
"That makes sense." Hua Yizheng smiled and suddenly changed the subject, "Do you know all the characters?"
"Yes." After a pause, Xiao Huazhi added, "I know some of them."
"Can you write?"
“It’s not well written.”
Every word he said was reserved. Hua Yi, surrounded by the scent of ink, took a long breath of relief and exhaled silently. Every few generations, there would always be a brilliant person in the Hua family, but compared to their exposed brilliance, he was more pleased by the eldest granddaughter's concealment of her shortcomings. There is no shortage of smart people in the world, but what is lacking is people who can hide their intelligence.
After handing the book over, Hua Yizheng stood up, took a few books from another bookshelf, and left slowly.
Xiao Huazhi and Xiao Fudong, who was sweating with fear, looked at each other. They didn't understand what their grandfather meant for a moment, so she stopped going for a few days.
But the library was a treasure house with great attraction to her. When she saw that her grandfather treated her no differently and there was no change at home, she could not wait and went there secretly after the holiday. After a few days without any trouble, she returned to normal. She even felt a little bold in her heart. She realized that her grandfather would not expose her on this matter, so when she saw her grandfather again, she had the mentality of sharing secrets with her grandfather.
PS: It has been a bit delayed. I have been sick since I finished writing the main text, and I just can’t find the feeling. Let me recall my childhood to try to find the feeling.