Chapter 23: Ink and Paper

The next day, Chao Rongtian, who went to bed early and got up early, got up as soon as it was dawn. In order to avoid trouble, Chao Rong got dressed and went downstairs to the bathhouse to get toiletries.

Chao Rong took toiletries from the shelves outside the bathhouse and went to the stone platform outside the bathhouse to brush his teeth.

There is a two-meter aisle between the hall and the bathhouse, and the aisle is not on the wooden platform, but directly on the blue brick floor. At the end of the aisle, there is a wooden façade that connects the two rooms to the left and right. There are two round holes in the wooden wall, one high and one low, and half-meter-long bamboo pipes stretch out from the left and right, and the mouth of the pipe is about the same size as the mouth of the cup, and they are all stuffed with wooden stoppers.

Under the bamboo pipe on the left is a large water tank with a lid, and the bottom of the tank is surrounded by turquoise moss. Under the bamboo pipe on the right is a platform made of stone, and a large groove has been dug into the countertop, leaving more than enough space for toiletries.

The groove forms a pool, one side of the bottom is chiseled diagonally through a hole, and the bamboo pipe is fixed through it to form a good drainage outlet, and the other end is half a foot above the ground, and the drainage ditch paved with green tiles below extends to the outside of the wooden wall.

Chao Rong pulled out the wooden cork of the bamboo pipe on the top of the pool, and a trickle of water gushed out of the bamboo and splashed on Chao Rong's hand.

Chao Rong took a glass of water to brush his teeth and stuffed it back into the wooden stopper.

Two years ago, Yun Niang was afraid of going to the well to fetch water, so she and Yunxin went up the mountain to cut bamboo, and took the spring water from the back mountain to live. The clear spring in the back mountain does not dry up all year round, providing water for Yun Niang and Yunxin's family all year round.

The mountain spring was soaked in the cold, and Chao Rong's hands were red from the cold, she carefully avoided the gauze and washed her face, packed up her things and put them back in their place, and went to the kitchen.

However, before he reached the kitchen door, he was arrested by Yun Niang.

Chao Rong, who returned to the room again, was eager to hit the wall.

Chao Rong sat silently for a long time, and the thoughts born yesterday came to his mind again. Her eyes lit up, and she instantly came to her senses, walked out of the room, and walked to Yun Niang's room with ease.

Yun Niang's room is next door to Chaorong, downstairs is the hall, her door is open in the south, and there is a small balcony outside, connecting the terrace at Mu Changying's door. There are two roads leading to her room, one is to go up from the stairs in the hall, and the other is to turn left from Mu Changying's room and go around directly.

Yun Niang's door was never locked, Chao Rong entered the house and closed the door with his backhand.

The layout of the room is roughly the same as Mu Changying's, except that there is an extra cubicle.

Roughly swept the scenery in the house, walked straight to the cubicle, and easily found what she wanted—pen, ink, paper, and inkstone.

Inside the compartment are cabinets with stands, tables and chairs, with books on the shelves, stationery and candlesticks on the tables. In one corner of the compartment is a small spinning wheel with silk threads on wheels, and on a low table next to it are tools for embroidery.

The table and chair in front of Chao Rong are very different from those in her room, the table is half a meter high, and there is a thick square cushion in front of the table, and the side of the cushion is a semi-circular independent armrest, and you can lean on it as long as you sit down.

Mu Changying walked through half of the houses in Xinghua Village and found that none of them had table and chair facilities like those in Yun Niang's room.

What's even more strange is that there has been ink in the plum blossom inkstone on Yun Niang's desk for many years, but Mu Changying has never seen her write. Yun Niang has never taught Mu Changying to write or learn, as if Mu Changying, who is dissolute and loves freedom by nature, does not say it, she does not mention it, and there is a tendency to indulge Mu Changying's free development.

Therefore, Mu Changying is still illiterate and can't read half of the big characters.

Regarding Yun Niang's behavior of not restraining Mu Changying's nature, Chao Rong was both envious and speechless.