Madam Sun was also well aware of her own child’s situation, so although she was somewhat disappointed, she didn’t press the matter.

It seemed she planned to find other connections. In any case, she was determined to get her child into the academy.

The reason was simple.

The emergence of a student who had achieved Minor Success in the Calligraphy Dao at Guiyun Academy today was simply too shocking.

The more discerning scholars were, the more clearly they understood the difficulty of mastering the Calligraphy Dao.

Natural talent, hard work, Opportunity, and the guidance of a master teacher—not a single one could be missing.

Clearly, in the eyes of the Noble Families who had pieced together the situation in such a short time, Chen Yi was the very embodiment of that "Opportunity" and "master teacher."

No one wanted to miss an opportunity like this.

Even if the chance was only one in a hundred, or even one in ten thousand.

As for the final guest, the young lady of the Wan Family, Miss Wan Rourou.

She, on the other hand, seemed to have come just for a casual visit, merely echoing Xiao Wan’er’s words the entire time.

When Chen Yi’s name came up, she never mentioned whether any of her own family members were studying at Guiyun Academy.

She only offered a few words of praise for Mr. Qingzhou’s great talent, remarking that while there had been many teachers of Calligraphy throughout history, teachers of the Calligraphy Dao were exceedingly rare.

It was almost as if she had come specifically to play the supporting role for the Xiao Family.

However, Chen Yi knew Wan Rourou must have had a purpose for visiting the Xiao Family this time.

He suspected it had something to do with the "murderer" responsible for Liu Jing’s death, whom the Imprisonment Department had just found.

After all, the culprit was a Guard from the Wan Family’s Nianlin Hall.

With this in mind, Chen Yi couldn’t help but glance at Wan Rourou a few more times, waiting to see when she would reveal her purpose.

But he didn’t get a chance to hear from Wan Rourou. Instead, he received a reproachful glare from Xiao Wan’er, who had noticed his unusual gaze.

Chen Yi knew she had misunderstood and reined himself in.

’You’re the patient. Whatever you say goes.’

Thus, the host and guests were all pleased.

As evening approached, Madam Zhang and Madam Sun left one after the other. Both had gained something from the visit, so they were naturally in high spirits.

And surprisingly, Wan Rourou also took her leave.

From start to finish, she never uttered a single word about Nianlin Hall or Guiyun Academy.

This left Chen Yi’s suspicions unfounded.

After seeing all the guests off, Xiao Wan’er didn’t return to Jiaxing Garden, but came back to Spring Lotus Garden instead.

While instructing Xiaodie and Cui’er to prepare dinner, she fixed her bright, beautiful eyes on Chen Yi.

Once Xiaodie and the others were gone.

Chen Yi met Xiao Wan’er’s gaze, glanced down at his clothes, and asked with a smile,

"Is something wrong?"

Hearing this, Xiao Wan’er didn’t answer. She simply sat at the stone table in the pavilion, sizing him up as if meeting him for the very first time.

Chen Yi raised an eyebrow. He had a few suspicions, so he smiled and sat down beside her.

"What happened at the academy was just an accident."

"It’s true that I taught them the Calligraphy Dao, but the first class was just a general overview, meant only to introduce them to the entry-level path."

"I was just as surprised as anyone when a student suddenly achieved Minor Success in the Calligraphy Dao. It’s also a bit of a headache. We’ll be having a lot more visitors like the ones today."

"And over at the academy, Mr. Yue Ming, the others, the students... I doubt they’ll let me have a moment’s peace either."

When he was done, however, Xiao Wan’er didn’t follow up on that topic. Instead, she asked,

"Why were you staring at Miss Wan?"

"Er..."

Chen Yi paused, then it dawned on him. "So that’s why you were staring at me? You were mulling that over?"

Xiao Wan’er’s pretty face flushed, but she forced herself to keep a stern expression. "Who was staring at you?"

"We had guests earlier. It’s not proper for you to be staring at Rourou like that."

"If word gets out, people might think... they might think that you and my sister aren’t getting along."

Chen Yi broke into a laugh. He said nothing, simply staring at her.

One second, two seconds, three seconds passed...

Xiao Wan’er shot him a glare, her face flushing an even deeper red as she turned away. She stubbornly kept muttering about how improper it was.

Then, she began to explain with painstaking earnestness:

"Miss Wan is a bit older than me. The reason she’s still unmarried isn’t because she was never betrothed."

"It’s because her fiancé, the Young Master of the Wang Family, passed away from an illness ten years ago. That’s why she..."

At this, Xiao Wan’er caught Chen Yi’s teasing smile out of the corner of her eye and couldn’t help but chide, "Are you even listening to me?"

Chen Yi smiled and nodded. "Of course I’m listening. It’s just..."

He paused, a mischievous glint in his eye, and changed the subject. "It’s just... ’A fair maiden is a gentleman’s desire,’ and I..."

Before he could finish, Xiao Wan’er whipped her head around to stare right at him, her voice urgent. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"How can you say something like that out loud?"

"What ’fair maiden’? What ’gentleman’s desire’? I forbid it!"

When she saw the clear mischief in Chen Yi’s eyes, Xiao Wan’er realized she’d been had, and her face turned an even brighter shade of crimson.

Even her eyes were slightly bloodshot.

’It’s either from embarrassment or anger,’ he guessed.

Chen Yi couldn’t be sure which, so he dropped the teasing mood, his smile fading as he began to explain.

"I happened to run into some men from the Imprisonment Department outside the estate gates earlier."

"They said the Imprisonment Department has already found the man who murdered Liu Jing. His identity? A Guard from Nianlin Hall."

"I also heard them say Nianlin Hall is a Wan Family business. That’s why when I saw Miss Wan Rourou, I couldn’t help but stare a little."

After listening to his explanation, Xiao Wan’er finally understood.

But the conversation they’d just had was still echoing in her mind.

And it wasn’t just Chen Yi’s teasing; it was her own overreaction that stood out more.

It was mostly shyness, embarrassment, humiliation...

Humiliation, which eventually curdled into a bit of anger.

Not at Chen Yi, but at herself for her momentary lapse in composure.

Xiao Wan’er stopped thinking about it. After a moment of silence, she turned away, rose from her seat, and walked out of the pavilion, calling back over her shoulder without turning around,