In the small kitchen.
Song Shiyu frowned as she ate the meal Pei Qinhuai had cooked.
It could be summed up in two words: terrible.
It truly wasn’t as satisfying as the food she made herself.
Pei Jin’an and Pei Jinxi, the brother and sister, also ate cautiously at the side.
It was somewhat different from their usual behavior.
Song Shiyu glanced at them, and they immediately exchanged looks, acting extremely obedient.
Although she didn’t know why, it made things easier for her.
After finishing the meal, Song Shiyu was just about to stand up to wash the dishes when Pei Jinxi quickly stepped forward. “I’ll do it.”
Song Shiyu: “???”
It was rare for these two children to be this well-behaved.
After stepping outside, night had already fallen.
The autumn wind blew in gusts, rustling the surrounding leaves.
Once darkness set in, the otherwise normal scenery began to look eerie.
Song Shiyu glanced around, feeling as though those shadowy areas were hiding terrifying monsters.
Hiss—
She began to feel scared again.
Living in a rural village with sparse population and no bright city lights, it was natural for someone from the modern city to feel fear.
Moreover, she had transmigrated directly into a novel, was unfamiliar with her surroundings, and had no one she could truly trust, which made her even more frightened.
Smack! Smack!
Song Shiyu calmly patted her own cheeks.
She couldn’t allow herself to be afraid anymore. After all… she had strength now.
Although she thought so, after looking around a bit longer, she still felt uneasy.
And worse yet, when she returned to her room intending to light more candles, she discovered that she had forgotten to buy any. The entire room only had a candle thinner than her thumb left.
It would probably burn out in less than half an hour.
Rubbing her arms, which had broken out in goosebumps, Song Shiyu finally picked up a book and entered Pei Qinhuai’s study.
Being stared at by one adult and two children, she could only smile awkwardly.
“I… I came to borrow some light.”
“The candle in my room burned out. I forgot to buy new ones…”
Only then did Pei Jinxi understand what her Third Uncle meant earlier about Second Miss Song not having candles in her room.
Sneaking a glance at her Third Uncle’s calm expression, Pei Jinxi chose to pretend she didn’t notice anything.
Since she had already entered the room, Song Shiyu was no longer as restrained as before. Wanting to make herself comfortable, she went to a corner, spread out her bedding, and sat down to read.
This time, she had rented quite a few books.
Her main goal was to figure out how advanced this ancient world really was.
She also took out the books recommended by the scholar that the shop assistant had called Mr. Yu.
At first, she struggled to read them, but after gradually understanding the content, Song Shiyu widened her eyes.
The Zhoubi Suanjing was already this advanced?
The Hetu and Luoshu were actually foundational theories for high-level astronomy and mathematics?
Wait! Was there anything in Tiangong Kaiwu that couldn’t be manufactured? Even agricultural tools were so advanced?
Oh, my charming ancestors!
What kind of enormous treasure have you left behind?!
Song Shiyu read while sighing in admiration, feeling as though her nine years of compulsory education had been wasted.
She had learned many subjects but only memorized book titles.
If she had studied these mathematical classics earlier, her math skills would definitely have improved even further.
While Song Shiyu was reading with great interest, Pei Qinhuai suddenly approached, holding the drawings she had made yesterday.
“Second Miss Song.” The handsome young man raised the drawings, smiling slightly. “The two of them want to hear another story.”
Song Shiyu came back to her senses.
“They finished writing their characters?”
Pei Qinhuai nodded. “Yes.”
Song Shiyu sighed in admiration.
These two children were indeed impressive.
They didn’t need much supervision to complete their homework at night.
They were far better than the mischievous children in the modern world she had seen, who cried and shouted to avoid doing homework.
Song Shiyu stood up.
She first fetched her brush, sketched some simple outlines, and then carefully added details.
In just a few strokes, she drew a man in luxurious clothing crawling out from under a table, his face filled with terror as he shouted.
Pei Jin’an and Pei Jinxi watched with fascination, their eyes filled with wonder.
But today, they didn’t dare to directly ask Song Shiyu what was going on.
Instead, Song Shiyu took the initiative to explain.
“Today, we’re going to talk about Havoc in Heaven.”
As she spoke, Song Shiyu drew a steep mountain. At the base of the mountain, a filthy, disheveled monkey sat trapped, its eyes vacant.
The monkey stared at a peach tree in the distance, where only a few fruits hung sparsely.
Under the tree stood a young child with twin buns, bending down to pick up fallen peaches.
As soon as Song Shiyu laid out the two drawings, they immediately captured the attention of all three Pei family members.
Pei Qinhuai glanced at them, his gaze deep.
Song Shiyu’s drawings carried a unique charm.
They naturally conveyed a childlike innocence while displaying solid artistic skill. They were truly rare to see.
“Very well drawn,” Pei Qinhuai couldn’t help praising.
Song Shiyu raised an eyebrow. “Not bad. Acceptable.”
After all, she hadn’t colored them yet.
In the modern world, she had studied art. Back then, she spent a long time preparing for the college entrance exams and had worked very hard.
Even if her skill wasn’t the very best, it was at least good enough to impress others.
She had studied for several years and continued practicing privately to maintain her ability.
In sketching and traditional Chinese painting, even her teachers had praised her strong foundation.
Since the two children were relatively well-behaved today, Song Shiyu found storytelling much easier.
Before long, both the adult and child began to grow sleepy. Though they wanted to keep listening, they couldn’t resist the overwhelming drowsiness and soon fell asleep halfway through the story.
After Pei Jin’an and Pei Jinxi fell asleep, Song Shiyu returned to her bedding, preparing to sleep.
Just as she sat down, Pei Qinhuai’s voice suddenly came from beside her.
“You seem… different from before.”
Song Shiyu paused slightly, raising her eyes calmly to look at him.
When Pei Qinhuai suddenly met her gaze, his heart stirred, but he quickly spoke again. “I thought… you didn’t know martial arts.”
Song Shiyu was stunned for a moment. “I don’t.”
Pei Qinhuai: “…I saw you chopping firewood in the backyard today.”
Song Shiyu suddenly understood. “Oh. You saw that?”
Then she straightened her posture and answered seriously, “I was surprised too that I’m actually this strong.”
Pei Qinhuai: “…”
Song Shiyu sighed. “But I don’t think I know martial arts.”
As she spoke, she lowered her head to look at her hands and tilted her head slightly. “At least, I don’t feel like I possess particularly powerful skills.”