On the following morning, Wen Xinya moved to the Mo Family home with her luggage.
Uncle Zhang, Mother He, and Mother Jiang were thrilled to hear that she would be moving into the Mo Family home.
Wen Xinya instinctively looked around and asked, “Where’s Grampy? Why don’t I see him?”
At this timing, Old Mr. Mo would usually be sitting by the coffee table drinking some tea or fiddling with the chessboard.
Uncle Zhang smiled and said, “Old Zhong is in the study with Old Mr. Mo.”
Old Mr. Mo had been treasuring the paintings and calligraphy pieces that Wen Xinya gave him. He would take them out and scrutinize them in awe every day. He would even show off to his friends. Recently, many of his friends, including Old Mr. Zhong, had shown their admiration for the pieces.
In high spirits, Wen Xinya asked, “Is Grandpa Zhong here? I’ll go upstairs and take a look.”
As soon as she finished speaking, she headed upstairs to see Old Mr. Zhong whom she had not met in a long time.
Wen Xinya arrived at the study to see that the door was slightly ajar. She subconsciously peeked inside through the gap…
“Lass, you’re always so stealthy when you’re here. Gentlemen should not be sneaky. Where have your manners gone?” Old Mr. Mo chided sternly, though he still sounded affectionate.
Wen Xinya stuck her tongue out, thinking to herself that she might as well open the door of the study since she had already been exposed. She retorted. “You can’t say that, Grampy. I was just worried that I’d disturb you.”
Old Mr. Mo glanced at Old Mr. Zhong resignedly. “Look, look, she’s learned to become so sharp-tongued.”
Wen Xinya frantically smiled at Old Mr. Zhong and said, “Hello, Grandpa Zhong!”
Old Mr. Zhong smiled and nodded at Wen Xinya before turning to look at Old Mr. Mo. “You have such a pretty, sensible and well-mannered granddaughter. Yet, you’re still so discontented. You really don’t know how blessed you are.”
As soon as he finished speaking, he winked at Wen Xinya.
Wen Xinya responded with a huge grin.
Old Mr. Mo gazed at his granddaughter, feeling amused that she had colluded with Old Mr. Zhong.
Old Mr. Zhong said bitterly, “Do you know that we haven’t had a female heir for three generations? I’m so envious of you for having such an obedient and thoughtful granddaughter.”
He was indeed telling the truth. Although all of the Zhong Family’s offspring were rather outstanding, like Zhong Rufeng, daughters were still more favorable at the end of the day.
Old Mr. Mo glanced at Wen Xinya, who appeared smug after receiving a compliment. He said calmly, “If you keep praising her, she’s going to become so arrogant.”
Old Mr. Zhong burst into laughter.
Wen Xinya insisted. “Grampy, you shouldn’t criticize your granddaughter like that.”
Old Mr. Mo glared at her and chastised. “Rude girl. Don’t you see that your Grandpa Zhong is still here.”
Wen Xinya pouted and said indignantly, “Grandpa Zhong is not an outsider.”
Pleased with her words, Old Mr. Zhong laughed out loud and remarked, “I like how candid Xinya is. It’s rare for people your age to be so genuine.”
Wen Xinya secretly grimaced at Old Mr. Mo smugly after seeing that she had a supporter.
Old Mr. Mo placed a hand on his forehead and asked, “By the way, what brings you here today?”
Old Mr. Mo had been paying attention to the news about the Wen Corporation’s entertainment city lately. Of course… the focus was on Wen Xinya. He knew that she was rather busy lately and supposedly did not have enough time to go to the Mo Family home.
Wen Xinya giggled and said, “Grandpa has agreed to let me stay in the Mo Family home for a short while, so I’m here.”
She did not inform Old Mr. Mo of the matter because she wanted to give him a surprise.
Just like she had expected, Old Mr. Mo smiled and said, “It’s time you catch up with the lessons that you’ve put on hold for your final examinations. It’s rare that your Grandpa Zhong is here. Write some words for him. Let’s see if your calligraphy has improved.”
Old Mr. Zhong smiled and said, “I’ll punish you if you don’t meet my expectations.”
Wen Xinya walked towards the desk in an elegant manner. She looked confident, radiant and energetic. The smile on her face was evidence of her confidence. Clearly… she had improved tremendously in calligraphy.
Wen Xinya picked up the brush and began writing the opening paragraph of the first volume of the Book Of Conspiracy written by Zhang Juzheng, the prime minister during the Ming Dynasty.
She stood before the desk and lowered her head with a slight frown on her face. Her beautiful brows were like strokes of willow, charming, gentle, quaint and pale.
Old Mr. Zhong nodded while watching her.
About ten minutes later, Wen Xinya handed the finished piece to Old Mr. Zhong.
Impressed by her calligraphy, Old Mr. Zhong praised. “The words that you wrote previously had strong and harsh strokes, whereas the ones that you just wrote have a rigorous structure and sharp strokes.”
Wen Xinya smiled.
Old Mr. Zhong handed the piece to Old Mr. Mo, who scrutinized it before saying with a slight frown, “The words may be well written, but her personality lacks something. The structure of her words is rigorous, but they lack peace. They’re too menacing and murderous. The Mao writing style emphasizes on an upright personality. It takes a pure heart to write a good piece of calligraphy.”
Old Mr. Mo was certain that she had witnessed societal standards that were completely different from that of China during her trip to Russia. He also knew that she had been involved in a scuffle and hence, received a culture shock and was affected.
Old Mr. Mo’s words gave Wen Xinya a great shock. Just as she was feeling smug about Old Mr. Zhong’s compliment, Old Mr. Mo had already deciphered from her calligraphy that she had become a little jaded after experiencing those events in Russia.
Old Mr. Mo said calmly, “If you harbor those thoughts, I won’t teach you the theory of conspiracy even though you’re my granddaughter.”
The theory of conspiracy was unethical!
It was subjective, however.
He who has a kind heart is upright.
He who harbors ill intentions is unethical.
Si Yiyan’s father was one of the most upright people Old Mr. Mo had ever met, which was the reason he was willing to teach the talented Si Yiyan. He was impressed by how brilliant and principled Si Yiyan was. Not to mention, he also believed in Buddhism.
On the other hand, he had never seen Wen Xinya as one of his students, for he felt that not teaching her was actually good for her. He felt that she needed to lead a life that he was not destined to control. He merely taught her a thing or two so that she could protect herself.
Wen Xinya said, “Grampy, I know. I’ll take the lessons that you teach me and nurture my character.”
Old Mr. Mo nodded, feeling heartened.
