A Beautiful Duchess with a Dark Heart – Chapter 79

Chapter 79: Settling Two at Once

Wen Yu finished watching the love drama and walked back.  

She happened to meet Xiao Ji, who was running towards her.  

The chubby girl had a mysterious look on her face: “That person” is here.  

Upon hearing this, Wen Yu was very happy.  

Of course, before this, she had already inquired about the location of the Qi family and headed straight there.  

Sure enough, she saw the Qi family sitting there, and the little girl Yuanyuan was also present, but she didn’t see Madam Qi or “that person.”  

She was about to search carefully… 

“Sister Yu!” 

She turned her head and exclaimed, “Ah! Little Sister!” 

It was Zhang Jinqing, standing beside Zhang Weiqing. Both of them were smiling at Wen Yu.

“Where is Madam Zhang?” 

“She’s over there talking! Sister Yu, come and help me paint!” Zhang Jinqing pleaded softly.  

By the pond, there was a table with paper, ink, and paints, provided for the guests who were interested in painting.  

“Okay! I’ll paint Little Sister!” 

Since she was already here, Wen Yu wasn’t in a hurry. She gently rolled up her sleeves and stood by the table.  

Zhang Jinqing stood by the pond, pretending to look at the fish, trying hard to appear beautiful, but her movements were stiff… 

Zhang Weiqing giggled beside her… 

The little girl Yuanyuan’s eyes were sharp, and she spotted Wen Yu after a while. Without saying a word, she ran over.  

The maids and nurses were startled and followed behind her.  

“Sister! Sister!” 

Wen Yu didn’t stop writing and turned to glance at Yuanyuan, “Oh, it’s little Yuanyuan. Where’s the little rabbit?” 

“Its name is Tuan Tuan, it has a name!” The little girl felt indignant for Tuan Tuan.  

“Okay, where’s little Tuan Tuan!?” Wen Yu didn’t look at her, asking as she painted.  

“My aunt wouldn’t let me bring it! I’m so worried! Tuan Tuan is so cute, it eats so much, its mouth never stops, just like this…” 

She pursed her little lips to imitate it.  

Wen Yu glanced at her and burst into laughter.  

Zhang Jinqing was unhappy, “Yuanyuan, don’t make trouble… Sister Yu is painting me!” 

“Who are you? How do you know my name is Yuanyuan?” 

“I guessed!” Zhang Jinqing teased her.  

“What are you painting? Let me see… Huh?!” Yuanyuan looked seriously.  

“Ah! Sister, can you paint Yuanyuan later?” 

“Okay! After I finish painting Little Sister, I’ll paint you!” 

Yuanyuan waited impatiently. As soon as Wen Yu finished, she immediately ran to where Zhang Jinqing was standing and struck a pose… 

“Paint me, paint me!” 

✿✿✿ 

Madam Qi was so angry with Du Liu that she was dizzy. She walked forward, stumbling.  

She really didn’t expect that she had trusted Du Liu so much and given her most precious son to her as a son-in-law.  

Yet it was another mistake!

Thinking back to her maiden days, her parents were loving, her brothers were harmonious, and as the only daughter, she was treasured by her parents.  

When had she ever had any worries? 

Why was it so difficult after she got married? 

Thinking about the recent events, she felt a surge of resentment in her heart.  

She arrived at the teahouse reserved by the Qi family and found that Yuanyuan, the nurses, and several maids were all missing. Startled, she quickly inquired.  

A cousin-in-law said, “Isn’t she over there? Feeding the fish by the pond!” 

Worried that Yuanyuan might fall into the pond, she quickened her pace.  

However, she found Yuanyuan standing by the pond, posing, her little neck stiff, standing there motionless. She didn’t know what she was doing.  

“What is Yuanyuan doing?” she asked the maid Chunxiang, who was standing there.  

“Madam, Miss Wen wants to paint our Miss Yuanyuan!” 

“Miss Wen?!” 

She saw Wen Yu smiling and standing in front of the table, washing her brush. A girl beside her picked up the painting from the table, held it by the corners, and handed it to a little girl, softly instructing, “Hold it by both sides, don’t move yet. Wait for it to dry before looking at it.” 

Then she turned around, picked up a piece of paper, spread it on the table, and pressed it down with a paperweight. Her movements were simple yet efficient, revealing her competence! 

“Yuanyuan, just be natural, don’t be so nervous!” Wen Yu teased Yuanyuan.  

Madam Qi looked at Yuanyuan’s strange posture and couldn’t help but laugh. The previous depression and frustration vanished.  

Wen Yu heard the laughter and turned around: “Madam Qi!” She quickly curtsied.  

The girl beside her also curtsied and greeted, “Greetings, Madam.” 

Madam Qi said, “Carry on, I’ll just watch from the side.” 

Wen Yu smiled and didn’t act pretentious. She noticed that in the basket carried by the little monk beside her, there were steamed buns for the women to feed the fish.  

“Little Master, please give this little girl some steamed buns.” 

The little monk obediently responded and took half a steamed bun and handed it to Yuanyuan.  

“Yuanyuan, just stand there and break the steamed bun to feed the fish. Don’t think about me painting you.” 

Yuanyuan was very happy. She took the steamed bun, broke off a small piece, and threw it into the pond.  

A splash of water, fish came to grab the food, Yuanyuan saw it and giggled.

✿✿✿ 

Wen Yu didn’t say anything more, she squinted for a while, and then began to paint.  

Madam Qi saw that today Wen Yu was wearing a hairstyle that young girls loved. However, her hair was thick and long, so it looked exceptionally beautiful when styled. She only used a few small Eastern pearl hairpins and two small silver chains with Eastern pearl earrings, which swayed gently beside her cheeks.  

The pearls weren’t particularly valuable, but they suited her very well.  

Two beautiful long eyebrows, a pair of calm, large eyes, and when she lowered her eyelids, her thick eyelashes concealed her brilliance.  

She wore a green high-collared, cinched-waist shirt and skirt with a subtle plum blossom pattern. The style was very simple, but the material was quite good, with a soft sheen.  

The whole person was like a narcissus on a winter desk, quiet and sweet… 

She had to paint, so she exposed a small section of her fair wrist, wearing a jade bracelet.  

The way she held the brush… 

She was painting Yuanyuan, but she didn’t realize that she herself was a painting!

Madam Qi’s hand couldn’t help but move slightly.  

The girl beside her, who was assisting her, helped choose colors and tidy up the brushes. It seemed that she had done this kind of thing many times before.  

A person beside Madam Qi whispered to her, “This girl is Magistrate Zhang’s niece… Zhang Weiqing. You met her once a few days ago.” 

“Oh?! Really? But how come I don’t remember?” Madam Qi wondered.  

“There were more than ten girls at that time, you might not have noticed… This girl is graceful and generous. The Zhang family has an excellent family tradition, if they hadn’t offended someone in their early years, they would have been promoted long ago.” 

Madam Qi looked more carefully: Zhang Weiqing had delicate features, a slender figure, and a sparkle in her eyes.  

She had a calm demeanor and efficient movements. She anticipated what Wen Yu would need and prepared accordingly, without disturbing her.  

The whole person was gentle and decisive, without stealing the limelight.  

Hmm, very good.  

Speaking of people, you have to get to know them to judge them. Just looking at Qin Lianyue, one would think that the legendary Xi Shi was nothing more than that. But what kind of person was she?! 

Wen Yu had already mixed some colors on a few small plates.  

She began to paint, first using a thick brush, dipped in a very light color, and in a few strokes, she faintly outlined the pond and Yuanyuan’s figure.  

Then she began to fill in the details.  

Each stroke was light and fast, very confident, without any hesitation or slowness.  

Sometimes she used an ink brush, sometimes a color brush.  

She painted for a while with swift strokes and dots, then turned to look, and silly Yuanyuan giggled happily.  

Then she changed colors and brushes.  

Her painting style was very unconventional, not delicate, and even a little messy.  

“Oh, there’s such a painting method?” Some girls gathered around.  

“Yeah, so fast?!” 

Madam Qi herself was a good painter and had a considerable appreciation for art.  

Because although she was born into a military family, her mother came from the Wei family of Lingnan, a family of calligraphy and painting masters for hundreds of years.  

In her early years, her father saved her mother for some reason, fell in love with her at first sight, and shamelessly pursued her hand in marriage… Otherwise, with the status of their two families, marriage would have been impossible!

Her mother was a talented painter and enjoyed fame for her works.  

Her father loved his wife and collected many of her paintings.  

When she was young, her mother taught her personally… Unfortunately, she had limited talent. And her brothers, like their father, loved martial arts… 

So, there was no inheritance… Sigh.  

However, although Madam Qi’s painting skills were average, after more than ten years of immersion, she had developed a discerning eye.  

As soon as she saw Miss Wen, she knew: she hadn’t received guidance from a famous teacher, and her painting skills and techniques were not refined.  

At first, it felt messy, and she couldn’t understand what she was doing.  

But gradually, the outline of the pond appeared, the hair appeared, and with another stroke, Yuanyuan’s apple-like little face also emerged… 

The whole picture began to become clear.  

This painting method was too casual, it couldn’t be taught.  

If her mother saw it, she didn’t know whether she would appreciate it or criticize it… 

Madam Qi felt a pang of sadness… It was a pity that her mother had passed away… 

Just in the short while she was feeling sad, the painting of a little girl standing by the pond feeding fish was almost finished.  

She saw a little girl in pink clothes, with an innocent and sweet smile on her face, throwing a piece of steamed bun with her small hand. A plump koi fish with a white body and red floral pattern, flicked its tail vigorously out of the water, opening its mouth to catch the steamed bun.  

The little girl’s raised small hand was also wearing a carved gold bracelet.  

The whole picture was lively and vivid.  

The person and the fish seemed to be interacting.  

Madam Qi couldn’t help but ask softly, “Miss, your painting method is quite unusual. Who is your teacher?” 

Wen Yu smiled and replied, “Madam, when I was young, my family invited several teachers to teach me painting. There were teachers from all over, north, south, east, and west. I learned from all of them, but I didn’t learn well from any of them. I just combined them all in my own way and painted for my own enjoyment. It’s not fit for elegant company.” 

“Hmm, to be able to take the strengths of each school and use them for your own purpose, at such a young age, that’s remarkable!” 

“You flatter me, Madam. It’s just a pastime for a young girl.” 

“The essence of calligraphy and painting lies in expressing emotions, so there’s no need to be constrained by elegance or vulgarity. When I was young, I also studied painting for more than ten years, but I was limited by my talent… Haha.” 

“Madam is too modest. But I wonder… Could you give me some pointers?” 

Madam Qi was in a good mood and didn’t decline, “I haven’t painted for many years, let me try.” 

The people beside her quickly helped her straighten her clothes.  

She picked up the brush, her heart settling down: If there were no surprises, it would be these two!