Chapter 52.2: Jealous Heart

Shen Jingshu did not care what everyone thought of her choosing these subjects but she did not think that Master Hui would be astonished, “You chose medical treatment?” When the course was first offered, Master Hui knew that it would not be very popular among these Confucius people but she did not think that among the few people who chose to study it, there would be Shen Jingshu.

She also thought that this child’s selections would be the same as many people. After all, her status was very high.

“En, Mom’s health is not good. I want to learn a bit so that I can heal her a little in the future.”

“Child, learning medicine is no joke.” Master Hui set up this course, naturally she had her own reasons.  But, it seemed that she attached great importance to medical skills.

“Master Hui, I know. You can rest assured that I am not kidding. I am serious about learning.”

“You will not learn medicine overnight, it may also be more difficult to learn than the other courses. With it being like this, do you still want to learn?”

“En, no matter what I will persevere. Master Hui can rest assured!” The young girl’s eyes were very resolute without the slightest impurities when Master Hui saw them she was surprised. A peculiar emotion streaked across her heart and she finally laughed, “Then alright. Since you have decided, then study hard. But I explained earlier that this medical treatment course will be personally taught by me.  I am very strict, if you don’t study well, you will not be able to pass when the time comes!” Shen Jingshu never would have anticipated that Master Hui would personally teach her, even more, she never would have thought that Master Hui actually knew medicine. “Master Hui…” because she was so surprised, Shen Jingshu was temporarily silent for a moment and didn’t know what to say.

“Is it very shocking? You didn’t think that I would be knowledgeable in medicine?”

“Previously I was still shocked as to why Master Hui would offer this course, I now understand it.” However, Shen Jingshu did not expect that Master Hui not only knew medicine, but that her medical expertise was so high. However, now that this course was offered, it was certainly not bad. She just did not know how much she could learn in the future!

“Then, why do you think I offered this course? ” Looking at this bright child in front of her, Master Hui had only thought that Shen Jingshu had an intelligent base, but now she discovered that this young girl’s thoughts were very meticulous and very bright. Maybe she could inherit her legacy in the future! Master Hui could not help but smile thinking of this possibility, she really did not think that she would be able to meet such a child that would make her have this kind of idea.  

“I can only guess and don’t know if I’m right. ”

“You say it so I can hear.”

“Master Hui’s medical skills are exceptional, surely you want to showcase what you have learned right? Now that you have opened a school, doesn’t Master Hui want people to inherit what you have learned?” After coming in contact with each other a few times, Shen Jingshu happened to learn that Master Hui was actually very knowledgeable in quite a few subjects. Otherwise, why would so many people want her to be their master? However, the students she accepted were all carefully selected. She had thought that these people might be too old-fashioned, but after seeing them today she could not help but say that all the students that  Master Hui selected were not lacking in talent!

Perhaps her talent was the worst, only, she did not know why Master Hui selected her.  

In fact, there was some doubt in her heart but Shen Jingshu did not ask. She was no longer the inquisitive child from before, she knew that it was better not knowing than knowing some things.   And some things, it was better to wait.

Master Hui certainly had her reasons for selecting people, although her foundation was the worst, Shen Jingshu did not believe that her talent was lacking. In her past life she did not work hard enough,  she believed that through her hard work in this life, she would certainly have a different outcome!

“You said a lot.  Now that you have chosen,  you must study hard. Otherwise, you can’t blame me if you can’t stay in school, do you understand?” Perhaps Master Hui’s words were somewhat strict, but Shen Jingshu knew that Master Hui only said it for her own good. Seeing everyone glancing at her with some misgivings, Shen Jingshu only smiled,  “I understand Master Hui.”

“En, then you get acquainted with the environment first and formally attend class tomorrow. I look forward to your performance!”

“I won’t let Master Hui be disappointed!” Shen Jingshu’s confident smile made her whole body look bright. She looked like a talented person, previously it was only because she was naughty that people ignored her appearance. Now that her personality and has changed and temperament had changed it was easy to recognize her brilliance, that was why Qi Xueyan had become more uneasy and more hostile towards her.

A woman’s heart was always keen, although Shen Jingshu had hidden very well, even if she hid her brilliance, where could she really hide it?

Some people who had just taken joy in Master Hui’s strictness towards Shen Jingshu’s a moment ago looked at Shen Jingshu’s smiling face now, and felt somewhat uncomfortable.  Some even seemed to be involuntarily looking at her, they all felt attracted to her, even Qi Xueyan looked at Shen Jingshu’s appearance. Seeing Master Hui’s satisfied expression, Qi Xueyan felt jealous.

Shen Jingshu, what are you relying on for Master Hui to treat you well? I worked hard for a long time to get Master Hui’s praise and approval, why is Master Hui only paying attention to you?  

Is it only because you are the prefectural magistrate’s daughter? Even Master Hui wants to fawn over you?

Yes, it must be!

But your status is only a bit higher than mine, besides that, how could you compare to me? Regarding talent and learning, how are you my opponent?

I will not let you surpass me!

Resentful in her heart, Qi Xueyan could not bear to see Shen Jingshu being valued by Master Hui, she quickly smiled as she walked up, “Master Hui, have you seen the courses I chose? I have been continuously working very hard these days,  I will study hard!” Because she had selected many courses just a moment ago, Qi Xueyan received praise from everyone, of course she wanted Master Hui’s praise now. However, she did not anticipate that Master Hui would only glance at her quietly with her brows slightly wrinkled. This kind of look made Qi Xueyan very uncomfortable, “Master Hui what’s wrong?”

Qi Xueyan was very unhappy about not receiving praise and only thought that Master Hui was biased, but she never would have thought that Master Hui would only say one sentence, “Young people should guard against pride and impatience. You can not show off everything and can not be greedy. You have chosen so many, I hope you will be very diligent and proficient. It is still better to concentrate on a few and become proficient.” Master Hui’s words undoubtedly showed that she did not agree with Qi Xueyan selecting so many courses because she believed that there was no way Qi Xueyan could succeed. Qi Xueyan was a hot-blooded junior, naturally she was not convinced, especially in front of Shen Jingshu, “Master Hui, I have always worked very hard and have always wanted to study well. To choose so many, I naturally have a reason, I believe I can do it!”

“Since you insist, then I hope you can do it!” Her eyes were somewhat disappointed. In fact, Master Hui actually still thought highly of Qi Xueyan and thought that this child was intelligent. However, now it seemed that Qi Xueyan’s vanity was still very heavy. Furthermore, she sometimes appeared a bit impatient and could not calm down. In contrast Shen Jingshu, although a bit younger than Qi Xueyan, her personality was not the same. Not only did she know what she wanted, she also knew what to choose. This kind of person would certainly be successful.

It seemed that she had misjudged Qi Xueyan, it was certainly possible for her to have achievements, but now…

Master Hui doubted if Qi Xueyan had the ability to take six courses. With Qi Xueyan studying hard and learning many different things,   it would be difficult to master everything. Qi Xueyan did not know how to choose, today was just to catch people’s attention and show up everyone. This type of person who gave up their long-term interests for short-term vanity were doomed to not be able to succeed. Even if they succeeded, it was only to pay for their so-called vanity!

Master Hui had always been very good at judging people, although Qi Xueyan was somewhat vain before, at least she still knew what was appropriate, today was the first time she had acted like this.

In the end, Master Hui did not understand what exactly made Qi Xueyan make such a reckless decision, however,  Master Hui was able to see Qi Xueyan’s weakness this time. She had warned her today and hoped that Qi Xueyan would listen and correct it. However, she never would have imagined that Qi Xueyan would be so stubborn, Master Hui’s heart was somewhat disappointed towards Qi Xueyan.

Had she misjudged this person? In the past, Master Hui focused on nurturing Qi Xueyan, but after today’s matter, Master Hui had to reassess.

……

Qi Xueyan naturally did not know Master Hui’s train of thought, but she used to be the student that Master Hui was fond of. Master Hui had always taken good care of her, which made Qi Xueyan feel very honored. But today, Shen Jingshu came and Master Hui’s attitude towards her changed immediately. Although Master Hui was not saying anything at the moment, didn’t her words from a moment ago disagree with her choosing so many subjects?

Pointing this out in front of so many people, wasn’t this not giving her face? Why did Master Hui think she would not do well? She clearly had some knowledge in these, how was it possible for her to do badly?

Although Qi Xueyan tried to cover up her very unhappy heart, her face still showed a little dissatisfaction, “Master Hui rest assured, I will work hard. I will not let you down nor will I let everyone down!” She looked down on her right? She must learn everything, then she would see how these people could look down on her!  

“En, I hope to see your progress!” Looking at the dissatisfaction on Qi Xueyan’s face, Master Hui knew that Qi Xueyan was determined to strive for superiority.  She was very disappointed and did not say much, she only turned around and left. Qi Xueyan watched at Master Hui act like this and her heart filled with anger, “Master Hui, take care!” Wasn’t she only a teacher? What’s so great about that? She would surely make the other person regret her actions towards her today!

Shen Jingshu looked at Qi Xueyan’s unresigned face and knew that Qi Xueyan’s ambition was high, she did not like other people looking down on her. However, in Shen Jingshu’s opinion, Qi Xueyan was certainly a bit reckless this time.  After all, Qi Xueyan was still young, she was still establishing her foundation. At this time, the most taboo thing was being too greedy, it was very easy to not learn anything.

It was only a pity that Qi Xueyan misunderstood Master Hui’s words of wisdom. However, Shen Jingshu did not plan to remind her because she knew that if she reminded her of it she would not obtain any benefits.  Instead, she complained,“Xueyan, there is nothing to do today, let’s go back!” She did not plan to say much as her and Qi Xueyan did not have a big relationship. Qi Xueyan had been very arrogant in the past life and it dragged her family’s blessing, she could not have such good fortune in this life!

“En, let’s go! “Smiling, Qi Xueyan’s eyes were very envious towards Shen Jingshu. In her opinion, Shen Jingshu was not as good as her in any respect, but Master Hui actually took the initiative to question Shen Jingshu today. Qi Xueyan’s heart was vigilant!

This won’t do, she would not let anyone surpass her!

Determined Qi Xueyan now regarded  Shen Jingshu as an opponent more and more. In the days that followed, she would certainly make Shen Jingshu stumble!

Shen Jingshu expected this but did not care!

In this life, she will not be foolish and be continuously bullied by the other person!

……

“Jingshu, I still have some things to do, I will not go with you.” At the door, Qi Xueyan deliberately stopped and did not wish to touch Shen Jingshu.

“Alright, I’ll see you tomorrow!” The other person did not want to touch her, she also did not want that, Shen Jingshu cheerfully left. When she returned, as expected, Dan Yuerong was already anxiously waiting for her. “Shu-er, how was your first day of school? Have you gotten accustomed to it? Are your classmates nice? Was Master Hui very strict?” Dan Yuerong was very worried as this was her daughter’s first time leaving home. In fact, she was more inclined to find a teacher to teach Shen Jingshu at home, but since Shen Jingshu had this desire, she was not willing to make her daughter unhappy.  

“Mom, there was nothing to do today, other than choosing courses that you were fond of.”

“Oh, really? What courses did Master Hui offer?” Dan Yuerong became interested when she heard Shen Jingshu’s words.

“A lot of them; there is the four arts: qin, go, calligraphy, painting, and dance, medical treatment… but I did not dare to choose so may, I only chose medical treatment and calligraphy.” Mentioning the affairs at school, Shen Jingshu was very happy. She was not studious in her past life which resulted in her not having this opportunity in the past life. However, in this life, she will substantially enrich herself and not allow herself to be that mediocre person who was easily manipulated in the past life!

“Calligraphy is not bad, but medical treatment…do you like it?” Dan Yuerong did not oppose Shen Jingshu learning medical treatment but she was curious about her daughter’s choice.

“Mom, I want to learn something useful. I can take care of myself later, take care of daddy and mom, and I can take care of younger brother. What do you think?”

“You this child…” When listening to her daughter say this, Dan Yuerong naturally did not say anything. She asked Shen Jingshu questions about her first day of school and she didn’t say anything. Only when she was alone with Shen Wenhua in the evening did Dan Yuerong express her doubts, “Wenhua, do you think Shu-er can learn medical treatment?” Didn’t the average woman learn qin, painting, and dance? Those would allow her to express herself and establish herself a reputation in the future. In addition, Da Chu’s customs were not so old-fashioned,  many women understand how to read and write as talented women tended to marry better. Dan Yuerong was also a talented woman, she was proficient in all of the four arts and dance. However, after she got married, she rarely performed.

“If Shu-er likes it than it is fine, the child is still young, let her choose what she likes. Not to mention, our Shen family’s daughter is not like other family’s daughters, how can we restrict her?”

“You, if you spoil her how would that be good in the future?”

“I  only have one daughter. If I do not spoil her, who will? What’s more, Shu-er is sensible now, we don’t have to interfere too much. If she is happy then good!”

“You’re right. She’s still young right now, it won’t be too late for her to study those things later.”

“Studying is good, but if she doesn’t like it, you can not be unwilling.”

“You, if you spoil her like this in the future, won’t other people laugh?”

“How could my, Shen Wenhua’s daughter, not know anything? Shu-er is loveable and clever, if she wants to learn something, what’s difficulties will she encounter? You shouldn’t worry about it, nature will take its course.” It had to be said, Shen Wenhua was indeed a good father, otherwise, how would Shen Jingshu have such freedom?

“Alright, I will listen to you!” Smiling, Dan Yuerong was not a person who liked to force her child. Shen Jingshu was sensible and clever, she had also become increasingly more affectionate towards this daughter, how could she be willing to restrict her?

If her daughter was happy, good. Her daughter was still young, there was still time if she wanted to learn in the future.

……

In this way, Dan Yuerong and Shen Wenhua did not interfere with Shen Jingshu’s course selections, nor did they say anything about what she chose. As a result, Shen Jingshu felt very gratified, if she were not born into this type of family, if she wanted to study medicine,  she was afraid that she would have to suffer many twists and turns. After all, it was very rare for women to learn medicine. Even more, she was a woman from a wealthy family, learning this, there would always be many people with opinions.

However, Shen Jingshu did not care, she still happily went to school as she did before. Every day she would carefully study her selected courses.  She had been practicing calligraphy for the past six months, therefore compared to her peers, her penmanship was much more firm and resolute. Of course she had accumulated this disposition from her past life, other people naturally were unable to match it. Therefore, she was not worried about calligraphy.  As for scholarly knowledge, she had read many books and did not feel it was hard. So even though she was studying three subjects on the surface, she spent most of her time in medicine.

After all, this was a brand new subject,  Shen Jingshu found it very strenuous at first, but she was willing to spend time. Therefore, she quickly went to buy a book on medical herbs, gradually, she also made progress. Master Hui could naturally sense it, on this day when class was over, Master Hui stayed behind and approached her,“Shen xiaojie, have you recently been learning pharmacology?”

“En, these are so unfamiliar so I bought several books because I wanted to understand a little.”

“Not bad, learning medicine without pharmacology is not enough. It’s a basic accumulation,  you take this book back study it well. Finish it within a month, will there be any problem?” The book Master Hui gave Shen Jingshu was “100 Herb Classic”, which described in detail the appearance medicinal effect of herbs.  To complete it within a month was burdensome, this was not an easy task for a beginner.

Shen Jingshu looked at the book Master Hui’s hand and saw a smile on the other person’s face, after thinking a bit, she finally took it. “Master Hui, I don’t know much about medicine and it will be hard to learn, but I will try my best!” Shen Jingshu was actually very smart, but she did not utilize this intelligence before. Now, she would use it for her benefit and also needed to slowly develop it.

“En, just tell me when you’re finished,  I’ll give you a test!”

“Good! Thank you Master Hui!” Shen Jingshu did not expect Hui Master to give her a book,  Shen Jingshu knew that this was an opportunity, a chance to learn to get even more opportunities.

Although Master Hui only taught basic medical knowledge in this course, Shen Jingshu knew that Master Hui knew more than this. Her goal was not this simple knowledge, therefore, she worked very hard these days to make Master Hui see her and notice her. Now that she had reached this goal, how could Shen Jingshu not be happy?

Laughing as she left, Shen Jingshu’s heart was quite excited, she believed that that the efforts of the the past few days had not been in vain. Shen Jingshu could not help but feel a little more sense of accomplishment, her heart was full of a fighting spirit but she did not anticipate that Qi Xueyan would be waiting for her that day. “Jingshu, why did you take so long to come out? I heard Master Hui asked you to stay behind, what did she say to you?” Qi Xueyan obviously came to inquire about news,  Shen Jingshu looked at the other person and immediately became vigilant, things had to be concealed well!

Qi Xueyan naturally did not notice Shen Jingshu’s actions, but she was very dissatisfied with Master Hui’s special treatment of Shen Jingshu these days, especially when she heard Master Hui ask Shen Jingshu to stay behind today. She certainly wanted to ask about it clearly, “Did anything good happen? I can see that you are happy, can you tell me? Good friends should share with each other! Jingshu, you will tell me, right?”