After flirting with the aloof prince, the concubine ran away pregnant.

Yunxi held the few newly made mugwort pills as if they were precious treasures, and left the side room with light steps.

The gentle smile on Afu's face vanished the moment the curtain fell.

These past few days, while recovering from her injuries, she had some free time, so she called Yunxi over every day and taught her how to process mugwort and blend spices.

Yunxi studied diligently, and now the incense balls she makes are seven or eight parts similar in appearance and aroma.

Luo Qiyuan must have already grasped the situation.

Afu wasn't worried.

The recipe for this mugwort incense is authentic, and the aroma it produces is correct.

However, if dried orange peel is smoked with mint leaves for a long time, it will develop a very faint astringent taste.

This astringent taste is undetectable to ordinary people, but it is easily noticed by Xie Xun, who has a keen sense of smell.

She simply didn't remind Yunxi of this point.

If Tao Yao wants to learn her superficial skills, then she will give them to her. As for what lies beneath those skills, that's up to Tao Yao to see if she has the ability to discern it.

Bai Zhi brought in a bowl of freshly brewed medicine and bumped into Yun Xi leaving excitedly. She put the bowl down on the table, leaned over, and whispered, "Sister, is she here to learn incense making again?"

"Hmm," Afu responded, took the medicine bowl, and gently stirred it with a spoon.

"There's news about Granny Wang's matter." Bai Zhi lowered her voice, her expression somewhat strange.

"I went to get your medicine today, and I overheard the maids at Ci'an Hospital gossiping that Granny Wang suffered some kind of fright a few days ago and is now acting like a hysteriac, constantly clamoring to go back to the countryside."

Afu blew on the medicine in the spoon, then paused: "Hysteria?"

"That's right," Bai Zhi said, pursing her lips. "I heard that her daughter, who was sold off in the small kitchen, has also disappeared, which is why she's gone crazy."

Afu swallowed the warm medicine, the bitter taste spreading from the back of her tongue all the way to her heart.

She put down her bowl and looked up at Bai Zhi: "An old woman who has worked in the Marquis's mansion for over ten years, whose daughter was sold and who lost her respectable job, doesn't react by begging her master for mercy, but instead insists on going back to the countryside?"

This is completely illogical.

Granny Wang was Granny Wen's confidante; even if she lost power, she shouldn't have fallen to such a state.

Unless, she is hiding some secret, a secret that makes her afraid to stay in the Marquis's mansion any longer, or that she will be silenced.

After a moment of contemplation, Afu took out ten taels of silver from a small box by the bedside, wrapped it in a handkerchief, and stuffed it into Baizhi's hand.

"Take this and go find Changsong," she instructed. "Ask him to find out where those maids who were sold from the small kitchen a few days ago have gone. Especially Wang Pozi's daughter; try to redeem her."

Bai Zhi's eyes widened: "Redeem it? Sister, that will cost a lot of money..."

"You don't need to worry about the money," Afu interrupted her. "Just go and do it. Keep it a secret, don't let anyone else know."

Seeing Afu's serious expression, Baizhi nodded heavily: "Don't worry, sister, I'll go right away."

She paused, then asked with some worry, "So... are we still going to see Granny Wang tomorrow?"

"Why not see her?" Afu tapped her fingertips lightly on the table twice, her gaze calm. "Tomorrow, we'll go and meet this 'mad' old woman, Wang Po."

Bai Zhi accepted the assignment, pocketed the money, and left.

As evening fell, Afu was sitting by the window reading the book "The Hundred Family Surnames" when Changsong's voice rang out from outside the door.

"Miss Afu, the young master requests your presence."

Afu put down her book and rubbed her slightly sore knees. Xie Xun hadn't asked her to serve him for the past few days, and she thought she could take a few more days off.

"The young master said that once the young lady's injuries have healed, she should go to the study. Learning and calligraphy are not things that can be accomplished in a day, so the young lady should be more self-disciplined," Changsong relayed from outside the door, his tone carrying a faint smile.

As a former student who had fought her way up from a province known for its intense college entrance exams, Afu felt a pang of guilt upon hearing these familiar words of encouragement to study.

It has indeed been quite a few days since the last time I learned to write.

She and Xie Xun were always either sick or busy with something, working only sporadically and showing no signs of being a proper teacher.

She replied, "I'll change my clothes and then I'll go."

The study of Se-an-in still carried that crisp, clean scent of pine.

Xie Xun was sitting behind his desk reviewing official documents when he heard footsteps. Without looking up, he simply pointed to the desk next to him and said, "Write down those few characters I taught you last time so I can see them."

That tone was exactly like that of a teacher checking students' homework.

Afu inwardly grumbled, but outwardly dared not be negligent. She walked to the small desk prepared especially for her, ground ink, laid out paper, and dipped her brush in ink.

She had practiced writing the characters "Zhao, Qian, Sun, Li" in private. The strokes weren't hard to remember, and she could write them quite well.

However, she didn't control her strength well, and the characters she wrote were only clear and rounded, lacking structure.

She had just finished writing the last character "Li" when Xie Xun appeared behind her without her noticing.

He leaned down and glanced at the words on the paper, but didn't say anything. Afu felt a little nervous under his gaze.

"The brushstrokes are not executed properly," he commented after a long pause.

The next moment, his hand covered hers holding the pen. His warm palm enveloped her slightly cool hand, and his long, strong fingers gently adjusted her grip on the pen.

"Use your wrist, not your fingertips." His voice was right next to her ear, his deep voice carrying a warm breath, brushing against her earlobe and stirring a slight shiver.

Afu's heart skipped a beat, and her body stiffened slightly.

Xie Xun seemed oblivious, holding her hand and rewriting those four words on the paper.

His movements were slow; every stroke, turn, and pause carried a steady and fluid power.

"See that? This is where you should mention it, this is where you should pause." He explained in a low voice as he wrote.

Afu had no mind to read the words; all her senses were focused on the warm body behind her and the deep voice in her ear.

The man's crisp pine scent enveloped her completely, making her heart race.

This person... doesn't he dislike contact with women?

Xie Xun loosened his grip and took a half step back. "Write it again."

After Afu copied his strokes, the characters immediately looked stronger.

Xie Xun looked at the line of writing on the paper that showed a significant improvement, and a clear sense of accomplishment appeared in his eyes.

Afu couldn't help but reveal a hint of smugness on her face.

Xie Xun's gaze swept across the bookshelf, and he randomly picked out a book, which was the Analects of Confucius.

He became interested and handed the book to Afu: "Since you have talent, you shouldn't waste it."

"From today onwards, in addition to practicing calligraphy, I will also give you some memorization assignments."