The Scheming Ex-Husband's Courtship-Chapter 535 - 471 Study Hard

Chapter 535: Chapter 471 Study Hard
Mu Chenxi had only seen Luo Shangqing’s writing on the blackboard, which was quite pleasing to the eye, with strong, flowing strokes. But when he wrote during class, it was very quick and not particularly careful, and he mostly spoke or used PPTs. So, she knew his handwriting was good but had no idea that it had reached the level of calligraphy.
"Come, Shangqing, show your disciple here," Teacher Yuan handed over the writing brush and personally spread out a piece of xuan paper for him.
Luo Shangqing did not hold back; he rolled up his shirt sleeves, revealing a section of his toned forearm. His hands, when writing on the blackboard, had often fascinated Mu Chenxi. Now seeing his professional pen-holding posture, his slender body slightly bent like a bow due to writing, and the literary aura emanating from his whole being, the destructiveness was comparable to an atomic bomb.
"Professor Luo, can you give me this piece of writing once it’s done?" Mu Chenxi had her own little schemes. Someone like Luo Shangqing who would become the second Teacher Yuan—preserving his calligraphy now might fetch a good price in the future.
Luo Shangqing was preparing to start writing. Seeing her looking at him with puppy-dog eyes, he couldn’t help but smile wryly: "Okay."
Mu Chenxi had seen the calligraphy and paintings collected by Mu Kaihua, most of which had phrases like "Diligence leads to the path of heaven," "Serenity achieves distance," and "Striving for perfection." Now, watching Luo Shangqing’s unfettered and flowing writing, she was immediately filled with strong anticipation. But when Luo Shangqing set down his brush and looked down to admire his work, Mu Chenxi’s lips twitched twice—he indeed wrote four characters, but it was "study hard."
"Once the ink dries, you can take it," Luo Shangqing was quite generous.
Mu Chenxi thanked him but secretly made a face. Was she expected to frame the phrase "study hard" and hang it on the wall to annoy herself day after day?
After another pot of tea at Teacher Yuan’s home, seeing that Teacher Yuan seemed a bit tired, Luo Shangqing prepared to leave. Mu Chenxi was so bored that she almost started counting her toes for fun, but perked up immediately upon hearing they were leaving.
Teacher Yuan warmly saw them down the stairs and talked to Luo Shangqing about some academic matters. Finally, he cautioned him, "I’m confident handing this project to you, but still, be very careful."
Luo Shangqing nodded: "Teacher, I’ll come to visit again someday."
They said goodbye, and Luo Shangqing went to fetch the car. Mu Chenxi was about to follow, when Teacher Yuan suddenly said with a chuckle, "Girl, I haven’t even asked for your name yet?"
Mu Chenxi promptly responded crisply, "Teacher Yuan, my name is Mu Chenxi, ’Mu’ with the three water radicals, ’Chen’ from Chenxi, and ’Xi’ from Chenxi."
"Chenxi?" Teacher Yuan savored the name, "Chenxi means the morning sun, warm and bright. Wang Shaoshi once wrote, ’The dawn carries brilliance, and all things lay witness,’— you have a good name."
Mu Chenxi scratched her head, somewhat embarrassed: "I don’t dare to think of my name in such grand terms; I just feel that it’s because I was born in the morning, so I’m called Chenxi."
Upon hearing this, Teacher Yuan burst into laughter. After the laughter subsided, he suddenly looked towards the direction Luo Shangqing had left with a meaningful tone, "Girl, this is the first time your teacher has brought a student here, you must be his favorite pupil, right?"
Mu Chenxi didn’t dare to accept the title of "favorite pupil." Not only was she far from being one, she had been nothing but a hindrance. Just as she wondered how to respond, Luo Shangqing honked the horn twice to urge her on.
In a hurry, Mu Chenxi waved to Teacher Yuan: "Teacher Yuan, I wish you good health. I have to go now, goodbye."
"Go on, go on," Teacher Yuan smiled and watched her climb into Luo Shangqing’s car, shaking his head gently as the vehicle disappeared, sighing repeatedly, "Has my disciple finally decided to open the city gates?"
~
Luo Shangqing drove Mu Chenxi to her apartment complex, easily finding his way after just one previous visit.
Mu Chenxi carefully held the piece of calligraphy, feeling happy yet inevitably scoffing inside. Who on earth gives out "study hard" as a gift to someone? So tacky, excessively tacky.
"Thank you, Professor Luo." Mu Chenxi was eager to get out of the car.
"Mm," Luo Shangqing leaned back in his seat, nodding leisurely.
As Mu Chenxi walked around the car, ready to enter her building, he suddenly rolled down the window and asked, "What are your plans for the winter vacation?"
Mu Chenxi turned around and answered without thinking: "I have plans to go to the north to see the ice lanterns with Xinyu and others."
"To see the ice lanterns? Aren’t you afraid of the cold?" Here in Aus City, she bundled herself up like a cocoon every day.
"I’m going to buy a down jacket and leggings in the next two days. Xinyu said wearing more can ward off the cold."
Luo Shangqing uttered an "oh" and, without saying anything more, waved indifferently and drove off.
Mu Chenxi watched his car drive away, quietly sighing to herself.
"Ah, Chenxi, got a boyfriend?" Auntie Zhang, a neighbor carrying trash, walked out of the building and asked with a face full of curiosity.
Chenxi waved her hands hastily: "Auntie Zhang, he’s not my boyfriend, he’s just...". She wanted to say he’s her teacher, but it seemed a bit odd for a teacher and student to be so close, so she quickly changed her words: "He’s my cousin."
"Oh, is that so? I thought you got yourself a boyfriend."
"Auntie Zhang, shush!" Chenxi took her by the shoulders, bargaining in a pleasing manner: "You can’t say it out loud, my mom won’t let me date while I’m in school, she’ll scold me if she finds out."
"What’s the big deal with that? Your mom is quite open-minded, isn’t she? She doesn’t usually interfere with your studies, Fangfang at my house is quite envious of you."
Chenxi could only force a dry laugh. While Luo Meijuan was liberal about her studies, she still had some objections about dating during school, believing love affairs in student life to be too immature, and that they inevitably end in heartbreak, considering it a waste of time and emotion.
As soon as Chenxi got home, while changing her slippers, the conversation between Luo Meijuan and Mu Kaihua echoed from the living room; it was rare for the always-busy Mu Kaihua to be at home.
"Xixi is back, huh?" Mu Kaihua smiled and waved, "Jumping all over the place as soon as the holiday starts, making it so hard for daddy to get a glimpse of you."
Chenxi walked over, sat next to him, and hugged his neck affectionately: "Here, you’re looking at me now. Has your daughter gotten prettier?"
Mu Kaihua scrutinized her in jest and nodded affirmatively: "Always so beautiful."
"Oh, don’t talk nonsense." Luo Meijuan brought out a suitcase from the room: "Your daughter got her looks from you, thankfully she got my dimples, otherwise you could lose her in a crowd and never find her."
Chenxi swung her fist playfully: "Mom, am I really your child? Who else would undersell their own daughter like this? Dad’s better, he appreciates beauty, hmph."
"That’s right, my daughter is the most beautiful in the world." Mu Kaihua ruffled Chenxi’s hair.
"Mom, what are you packing in the suitcase?" Chenxi asked while peeling an orange from the coffee table.
Luo Meijuan, folding clothes and putting a freshly ironed shirt into the suitcase, replied: "We’re going back to your dad’s hometown. Your uncle has suffered a stroke and is in the hospital; he might not make it."
"Ah? A stroke? Don’t I need to go back?" Mu Kaihua’s farmhouse was in a remote rural area which required a train transfer and a bus ride from Aus City. Since birth, Chenxi had never been back. She’s heard she has an uncle, two aunts, and her grandparents were no longer around. Moreover, in recent years, with the Mu Family’s wealth, the uncle and aunts borrowed quite a bit of money from them. Borrowing money wasn’t the issue; the problem was they never repaid the debt, which led to quarrels between Luo Meijuan and Mu Kaihua. However, Mu Kaihua valued familial ties, so after arguing, Luo Meijuan came to understand his temperament, and any anger eventually passed.
"Why would you go back? It’s both cold and remote there. For this sort of thing, it’s better for us adults to handle it. You just stay at home and take good care of Kong Tai and keep the house clean. Don’t make it look like a dog’s den like you always do with your bedroom." Luo Meijuan pointed towards the kitchen: "I’ve made dumplings for you and put them in the freezer. The takeaway numbers are posted on the table, and the money is in the usual place in the drawer. Take it if you need it, and oh, don’t forget to buy cat food for Kong Tai."
"How long will you be gone?"
"At least five days. If he doesn’t pull through, we’ll have to take care of the aftermath, which could take a week."
Chenxi felt a mix of nervousness and anticipation about living alone for the first time; without her parents, life might become a chaotic mess, but at least she’d enjoy freedom without restrictions.
Luo Meijuan and Mu Kaihua had already booked their train tickets, and after having dinner together, the two of them took a taxi and left.
Left with an abruptly empty house, Chenxi first felt bewildered for a moment, then burst into joyful hops on the couch. With Luo Meijuan gone, she could watch movies and anime at will, not having to sit through those tedious melodramatic national dramas with her mother, stay up late indulging in online chats and games without anyone urging her to sleep.
With these thoughts, Chenxi was full of anticipation for the upcoming week.
After watching TV for a while, Chenxi suddenly remembered the calligraphy she brought back from Mr. Yuan, so she went back to her room and spread the rice paper on her bed.
Luo Shangqing’s writing was that particularly beautiful semi-cursive script, every stroke strong and powerful enough to show through the paper, yet it didn’t lose its grace and ease, especially his signature at the end which Chenxi found more and more endearing. They say, when you like someone, just seeing their name can bring a smile to your face, and wherever you see a character related to their name, you think of them.
"Meow." Kong Tai suddenly jumped up from the floor, its chubby paws pressing down on the rice paper.
Chenxi yelled out in panic: "Damn Kong Tai, you ruined my writing, I’ll skin you and use your fur as a cushion."
Frightened, Kong Tai quickly withdrew its paws with an innocent meow.
Chenxi carefully put the writing away like a treasure, planning to have it framed someday; although seeing it on her wall was bittersweet, it was, after all, the handwriting of her crush, and gazing at it daily was good for soothing lovesickness.
Who would have guessed, the first day of what Chenxi thought would be carefree living brought a significant problem.