The Minister: Cold by Day, Hot by Night-Chapter 94: Quite Hard to Bring Up

Zhi Wan was unaware of the little incident that had just occurred outside.

She got up, dressed, and washed.

After a simple meal, she learned that Ouyang Zhenzhu had come looking for her earlier. She left her cabin, intending to find her in her room.

Nanny Fang followed behind her, looking like she wanted to say something but was holding back.

Shuang’er noticed and said with a smile, "Nanny, is there something you wish to say to Miss?"

Zhi Wan overheard and turned to look at Nanny Fang. "Nanny Fang, what is it you want to tell me?"

Nanny Fang hesitated.

After all, the matter from just now was rather embarrassing to bring up.

’How could a young lady like Miss Ouyang carry that kind of booklet?’

’It’s utterly mortifying.’

She wanted to give the Miss a warning, but she didn’t know how to begin.

Zhi Wan could see her hesitation and softened her voice. "Nanny, whatever you have to say, please don’t hold back."

Looking at her innocent and well-behaved demeanor, Nanny Fang decided to speak up. It was better to warn her, lest she be led astray by Miss Ouyang.

"Miss, when Miss Ouyang came looking for you just now, she brought some... unseemly booklets. When you go to her room later, if she asks you to look at them, you must not. Don’t let them sully your eyes."

Zhi Wan froze.

’Unseemly booklets?’

A moment’s thought was all it took for her to realize what they were. She mentally chided Ouyang Zhenzhu for being so careless as to let Nanny Fang see them.

She gave a light cough and agreed, "I understand."

’In her heart, she didn’t think the picture albums were unseemly at all. But it was true that they couldn’t be displayed openly. After all, people of this era were conservative and would find them shameful.’

’Still, I’ll have to be more careful in the future. I absolutely cannot let Nanny Fang see the pictures I’ve drawn.’

Seeing that Zhi Wan had taken her words to heart, Nanny Fang finally relaxed.

’The Miss has always been obedient and well-behaved, completely unlike Miss Ouyang. Now that I’ve warned her, she will surely avoid Miss Ouyang’s improper behavior.’

’Her Ladyship told me to accompany and look after the Miss, so I must do my utmost to watch over her well.’

When they arrived outside Ouyang Zhenzhu’s cabin, Zhi Wan saw Ouyang Zhenzhu’s personal maid, Xi’er, standing there and asked, "Where is your miss?"

Xi’er curtsied to her. "She’s inside. Please go on in, Miss Zhi."

Zhi Wan nodded. Seeing Nanny Fang about to follow her in, she feared Ouyang Zhenzhu might be looking at something scandalous at that very moment and would be caught. She quickly said, "Nanny Fang, you’ve been busy all day. I don’t need you to attend to me here. Why don’t you and Shuang’er take a walk on the deck? The scenery along the way is quite nice; you can enjoy the view."

Hearing this, Shuang’er immediately linked arms with Nanny Fang. "Nanny, there’s nothing for us to do here for Miss. Let’s go for that walk. Xi’er, you should come with us too."

Xi’er was getting bored just standing there, so she happily agreed. "Alright!"

Nanny Fang was pulled away by the two maids, one on each side.

Zhi Wan smiled and pushed the door open, entering the cabin.

Hearing someone enter, Ouyang Zhenzhu immediately stuffed the picture album she was reading under her quilt. When she turned and saw it was Zhi Wan, she let out a breath of relief. "It’s you! You scared me to death."

Zhi Wan saw her furtive movement and thought, ’Good thing I sent Nanny Fang away. If she had seen that, there would have been another storm.’

She sat down in a chair and said, feigning confusion, "Why are you so jumpy?"

"You have no idea! I was carrying these picture albums over to find you, hoping we could enjoy them together. But who would have thought I’d run right into Nanny Fang and Mr. Lu? I was careless and dropped the albums on the ground, and they saw everything." Recalling the incident still made Ouyang Zhenzhu feel deeply embarrassed and mortified, and the words tumbled out in a rush. "I’m a nervous wreck now."

’She made up her mind. For the time being, she’d better avoid seeing Nanny Fang and Mr. Lu to save herself the embarrassment.’

After hearing her story, Zhi Wan was stunned. "My cousin saw them too?"

"Yes! That’s why I feel so mortified." Ouyang Zhenzhu nodded, her expression grave.

Zhi Wan was speechless.

She had thought only Nanny Fang saw them. She never imagined her cousin was there as well.

’Her cousin had always been a stickler for rules and etiquette. She couldn’t even imagine the look on his face when he saw those kinds of booklets.’ 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

’Just thinking about it was embarrassing enough.’

"Zhenzhu, you have to be more careful next time. Keep those booklets hidden away and don’t let my cousin and the others see them again," Zhi Wan warned, unable to put her mind at ease.

Seeing how serious she was, Ouyang Zhenzhu grew nervous as well. "What? Is your cousin really going to throw me off the ship over something like this?"

"It’s not impossible," Zhi Wan replied, nodding with a grave look.

Ouyang Zhenzhu immediately tensed up and promised, "I’ll definitely be careful next time! I won’t carry the booklets around to find you anymore. We can look at them together after you’ve come to my room."

Seeing that her friend had gotten the message, Zhi Wan finally relaxed. She sat down beside her, threw back the quilt, and pulled out all the storybooks and picture albums hidden inside.

"You brought so many storybooks and albums with you on this trip." Zhi Wan looked at the pile before her, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

Ouyang Zhenzhu giggled. "How else am I supposed to pass the time if I don’t bring them?"

"Good point," Zhi Wan agreed with a nod.

After picking through the pile, she chose a storybook and began to read.

Ouyang Zhenzhu picked up the picture album she hadn’t finished earlier, and they sat side-by-side, continuing to read.

After flipping through the album for a while, Ouyang Zhenzhu suddenly looked up. "Wanwan, I feel like this art style looks a bit like yours."

Zhi Wan paused in her reading and looked down at the picture album in her friend’s hands.

She had already noticed the art in that album. It was indeed her work. Ouyang Zhenzhu must have bought it from He Xu Bookstore.

She was hesitating, debating whether to tell Zhenzhu that she was the artist, when Zhenzhu said, "I guess the art style for this kind of thing is probably all pretty similar. But Wanwan, you draw so beautifully. Didn’t you say last time that you wanted to sell your art to a bookstore? How come I haven’t seen you do anything about it?"

"I... I’m still thinking about it," Zhi Wan said, her gaze flickering guiltily.

’It’s better not to reveal that I’m drawing for the bookstore just yet.’

’After all, she was even hiding it from her aunt. If Zhenzhu let it slip, it would be troublesome.’

Fortunately, Ouyang Zhenzhu’s attention was focused on the picture album, so she didn’t press the matter.

The two of them stayed in the cabin for half the day, only going out to the deck for some fresh air in the evening.

The golden sun sank in the west, its afterglow casting a shimmering, scale-like pattern upon the river’s heart. Two white egrets skimmed the surface with their wingtips, sending out layers of ripples.

Zhi Wan and Ouyang Zhenzhu were mesmerized by the sight before them.

"It’s beautiful!" Ouyang Zhenzhu exclaimed after a long moment.

"Yes," Zhi Wan murmured in agreement, her gaze fixed on the distance, unwilling to look away.

"You two little ladies, if you’re done admiring the view, come and get something to eat."

Just then, a teasing voice rang out.