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After leaving the medical hall, Gu Jiao got on Little San's carriage and went to Liu Yisheng's home.
Liu Yisheng's home was as impoverished as usual, but this time, Liu Yisheng wasn't sitting in the yard threshing rice as he often did.
Only the mute servant boy named Ah Nu and the other elderly nanny were working in the front yard—-—- one weaving baskets, the other threshing rice.
The two recognized Gu Jiao.
Gu Jiao asked, "Is Liu Yisheng home? I need to see him."
The elderly nanny was hard of hearing and couldn't hear well; it was Ah Nu who pointed to a room inside.
"Thank you." Gu Jiao expressed her gratitude and walked into the main room before turning into the small room Ah Nu had indicated.
It was a study and also Liu Yisheng's bedroom, similar in size to Xiao Liulang and Little Jing Kong's west room. The furnishings were extremely old and simple, with cabinets that had chipped paint and tables propped up with stones due to their legs being broken.
It was unknown whether some of these shabby furniture had been salvaged from outside or broken by intruders. Whatever the case, they all showed signs of wear and tear, with cracks everywhere.
Liu Yisheng, wearing a coarse linen robe, sat behind the desk, fully absorbed in reading a book.
Gu Jiao recognized the book as the one she had given him the last time.
He was actually reading it for real.
Gu Jiao didn't disturb him, leaning against the doorframe with her hands crossed over her chest.
Liu Yisheng was immersed in his sea of books and didn't notice Gu Jiao's arrival until the elderly nanny accidentally knocked over a stool outside, making a loud noise, which startled him into looking up.
Only then did he see Gu Jiao calmly leaning against the door, watching him.
Normally, staring at someone and being caught by the other party would make one feel embarrassed and make them subconsciously avert their gaze.
But not Gu Jiao.
She was extremely candid, raising an eyebrow and asking, "Am I disturbing you?"
"No... It wasn’t you." Liu Yisheng lowered his surprised gaze, opened the window beside him to look outside, and only when he confirmed that the nanny was okay did he feel at ease again.
"What brings you here?" Liu Yisheng closed the book, glancing somewhat uneasily around his room, as if checking for any untidy or unsightly things that shouldn't be seen by others.
Thankfully, there were none.
The nanny and Ah Nu had just tidied up this morning.
"You..." He hesitated for a moment, considering inviting her inside, but then felt it might not be appropriate. So he stood up and said, "Let's sit in the main room."
Gu Jiao nodded.
As a guest, she would follow the host’s lead and sit wherever he suggested.
Though Liu Yisheng had two servants in the house, one was elderly and hard of hearing, and the other couldn't speak, so he always personally attended to guests.
Of course, there had never been any other guests in his house. Gu Jiao was the only one.
Yuan Tang couldn't be considered a guest.
"Have a seat." Liu Yisheng pointed to a chair and said.
Gu Jiao sat down.
A white shadow dashed over, leaping onto Gu Jiao's legs. It was a plump and fluffy white cat, cutely curling up to let Gu Jiao stroke it.
Gu Jiao playfully poked the cat's soft belly with her fingertip and said with a smile, "You still remember me?"
This white cat was the same one that had almost frightened Xiao Liulang and caused Ning Wangfei to stumble. Yuan Tang managed to catch it in time, and since Yuan Tang saw that Gu Jiao liked the cat and the cat liked her too, he falsely claimed it was a stray and allowed Gu Jiao to take it home.
However, Gu Jiao didn't take it with her.
Of course, she had already guessed that it was Yuan Tang's cat, and she also made sure to expose the truth in front of Yuan Tang.
She thought Yuan Tang would take his cat back.
"You're still here." Gu Jiao chuckled, thoroughly enjoying petting the cat.
Observing how happy she looked playing with the cat, Liu Yisheng couldn't help but ask, "Since you like it so much, why didn't you take it with you?"
Her husband was afraid of cats.
That man, who feared nothing, not even death, happened to fear cats.
Gu Jiao didn't respond to his question but instead said, "No need, you take good care of it anyway." Pausing for a moment, she turned to him and asked, "Don't you like cats?"
Liu Yisheng lowered his gaze and replied, "No, I do like them. It can even catch mice. Since it came, there have been no mice in the house."
Gu Jiao playfully poked the cat's belly and said, "You're so capable, huh?"
The white cat meowed in a proud manner.
"Does it have a name?" Gu Jiao suddenly asked.
Liu Yisheng was taken aback.
It was just a cat; did it really need a name?
Gu Jiao didn't have much experience with pets, but seeing how Little Jing Kong named each of the seven chickens he raised, she subconsciously thought this white cat should have a name too.
Liu Yisheng's expression was a little embarrassed.
He had just said he liked keeping cats but actually hadn't given the cat a name.
His mind raced, and he said, "I, uh, thought of a few, but I don't know which one is good."
Gu Jiao looked at him and said, "Tell me about them."
Liu Yisheng hesitated, "..."
Then he had an idea and said, "How about you come up with a name? After all, it's your cat, and I'm just taking care of it temporarily."
"That works too." Gu Jiao nodded. After thinking for a moment, she said, "Let's call it Little Ten."
The family's divine beasts already numbered up to nine, and this one would be the tenth.
"Okay, let's call it Little Ten." Liu Yisheng had no objections.
"Are you here today to see Little Ten?" He asked as he stood up to pour water for Gu Jiao.
"I came to see you as well." Gu Jiao replied.
Liu Yisheng's hand trembled slightly and he accidentally spilled a drop of water on the table. He quickly wiped it away with a cloth, then placed the cup of water next to Gu Jiao, "You really have nothing better to do."
Gu Jiao took the basket from her back and pulled out several thick books from it, "Here."
Last time, she gave Liu Yisheng the Four Books. This time, she brought the Five Classics and two arithmetic books.
[T/N: Four Books: (the Great Learning, the Doctrine of the Mean, the Analects of Confucius, and Mencius)
Five Classics: (Book of Songs, Book of History, the Classic of Rites, Book of Changes, and the Spring and Autumn Annals)]
All the books had annotations, making them perfect for self-learning readers.
"You..." Liu Yisheng hesitated to speak.
Gu Jiao could almost guess what he wanted to say, and she cut in, "I know you can't afford to buy them, and I'm not giving you the books for free either. These are all Little Ten's food expenses. He's so chubby; it's clear he eats a lot."
The white cat meowed with a disgruntled expression.
Liu Yisheng sighed, "You'll regret it if you lose the bet."
Becoming a noble or a high-ranking official and whatnot, it was impossible for him in this lifetime.
After some internal struggle, Liu Yisheng decided to accept the books. However, he silently noted down the value of these books, and that he would repay her one day when he earned enough money.
Liu Yisheng caressed the covers of the books and said, "These books, I'll consider them as borrowed from you. I'll repay you when I make some money."
"Suit yourself." Gu Jiao said nonchalantly. A few books were nothing to her; she didn't lack that bit of money. But she didn't outright refuse to avoid hurting his overwhelming pride.
At that moment, Gu Jiao had no idea that many years later, Liu Yisheng would indeed repay her, but not with money.
One book, one city.
Eleven books were paid back with half a country.
"If there's anything you don't understand, you can ask me." Gu Jiao confidently offered when she saw Liu Yisheng flipping through the two arithmetic books.
"Oh, okay." Liu Yisheng humbly sought her advice and brought out a stack of draft essays from the room.
Gu Jiao remained composed and said with a straight face, "...Or you can also not ask me." contemporary romance
Liu Yisheng: "..."
Gu Jiao played with the cat again for a while. She almost got lost in it but managed to stop herself in the end.
"I actually came today for another matter." Gu Jiao said.
She nearly forgot her main reason for coming amid the cat-petting session. This cat's charm almost misled her, seriously!
"What is it?" Liu Yisheng asked.
"It's about Yuan Tang." Gu Jiao replied.
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