Chapter 6: Father Used Regular Script

After Li Fu placed Yun’er on the couch, he sat quietly for a moment before beginning to curiously look around.

It was his first time in Li Fu’s study, and the room was arranged with a refined elegance.

Inside the study, there was an inner arched doorway, nicknamed the Moon Gate, because its shape resembled a full moon’s circular opening. On either side extended corridors with flying eaves adorned with colorful paintings, enhancing the antique and tranquil atmosphere.

Yun’er touched his little head. His young brain was becoming sharper by the day. Just now, as he gazed at the Moon Gate, strange bits of knowledge spontaneously surfaced in his mind.

This must be the brilliance of a university child, he thought. It was a pity he couldn’t talk yet; otherwise, he would have asked his mother and father to shower him with praise.

Having glanced around, Yun’er lost interest in the room’s structure and instead became curious about Li Fu’s desk and the books there.

Li Fu had many documents to handle and often worked overtime. He had moved his desk in front of the empty couch in the study. Originally, there was a chair, but sitting stiffly caused him back pain.

Sitting on the couch was softer, and sometimes he could even recline a little, making paperwork easier to manage.

This arrangement also made it convenient to accommodate the child.

After placing Yun’er beside him, Li Fu kept an eye on the boy to prevent any accidents. Yet before long, he was surprised to see Yun’er begin crawling on the couch with a few soft pats.

He assumed Yun’er’s energy was high after sleeping all afternoon.

Just as Li Fu was about to summon a maid to take the child away, Yun’er, with clear intent, crawled straight toward the desk.

Though the old Taoist priest said Yun’er’s fortune was average, after spending time with him, Li Fu felt the boy showed signs of precociousness.

Fortune is a mysterious thing. Some people show signs from birth; others only reveal it after certain life events.

As Yun’er’s father, Li Fu naturally hoped for his son’s success.

So, he didn’t call the maid but instead watched expectantly to see what Yun’er would do.

Unaware of Li Fu’s thoughts, Yun’er reached the desk but couldn’t climb up due to the gap between the couch and desk. Li Fu sat on the couch while working, and Yun’er was too small to manage the distance.

He could only prop himself up with both hands to sit partially upright, then look longingly at the brush, ink, paper, and inkstone on the desk.

“Yun’er wants to look at the documents?” Li Fu smiled and picked up the little bundle, placing him on his lap.

Yun’er was calm, so Li Fu held him with one hand and opened the paperwork with the other.

Now Yun’er could lean over the desk.

He was amazed by the documents; the calligraphy was exquisite. Each character was distinct and pleasing to the eye. What’s more, it was written with a brush, yet looked clearer than if written with a pen.

For some reason, a memory suddenly flashed in Yun’er’s mind: an old professor once showed him an ancient top scholar’s exam paper, which had beautiful handwriting without a single mistake. He hadn’t expected his father to be so skilled as well.

This sudden recollection startled Yun’er briefly, but he was used to these strange memories. They came and went like the unpredictable cries of his brother Yige’er; he couldn’t control or predict them.

Yun’er didn’t dwell on it and silently praised Li Fu in his heart.

Li Fu occasionally glanced down and seeing Yun’er’s focused gaze, couldn’t help but laugh: “Yun’er, do you understand what you’re reading?”

Yun’er covered his mouth with his small hand, shaking his head repeatedly. It was unclear whether he was playing or genuinely understood.

Yun’er thought to himself that his father was being too harsh.

He was only a few months old—how could he be expected to understand those characters? It was too difficult for such a little child.

Li Fu’s question was just casual. Yun’er showed signs of early intelligence, but he wasn’t a born sage. No one expected him to grasp much yet.

After handling most of the paperwork while holding Yun’er, Li Fu’s hands grew tired.

Yun’er didn’t fuss, but he was heavy and solid. Holding him for so long caused numbness and soreness. Then he noticed Yun’er was getting sleepy, his head nodding almost to the desk.

At this age, most of the time was spent sleeping.

Li Fu put down his pen, carefully lifted Yun’er from the study, and handed him to a maid to take to Nurse Xin. He himself stayed behind to read a little longer.

Unaware he had been carried out, Yun’er dreamed again.

This time, he was in a spacious, bright classroom. A young man sat by the window, basking in the sunshine, with an old professor teaching him alone.

Recently, many bamboo slips were excavated from the tomb of the Summer Emperor. Among them were records of systematic “laws and statutes,” which the professor said might be the earliest legal prototypes of the Xia Kingdom.

The texts were all in pictographs, so the professor mainly taught the history of Chinese script evolution from primitive to modern times.

As the professor spoke, the blackboard displayed scripts from various historical stages: oracle bone script, bronze inscriptions, small seal script, clerical script, and then regular script...

Suddenly, in the dream, Yun’er happily exclaimed—this was regular script, and its form closely resembled his father’s handwriting.

So his father wrote in regular script!

Now he knew. When he could speak, he would loudly tell his father, “This is regular script! How dare you ask if I understand it?”

He was a remarkable university child.

Nurse Xin, watching Yun’er sleep, noticed his little hands happily waving and tapping the thin blanket over his belly.

Then Yun’er began to smile with his eyes closed; his two tiny front teeth gleamed white in the dim light of the oil lamp.

“What sweet dreams are you having, Yun’er?” Nurse Xin asked, gently patting his belly.

Yun’er seemed to wake from the laughter, opening his eyes briefly before smiling with his “ai ya” sounds again. It must have been a wonderful dream. After a while, he turned over and dozed off once more.

Early the next morning, Yun’er woke bright and early. Upon opening his eyes, he still recalled the professor’s lesson on regular script, though the rest had faded from memory. The dream had been interrupted before the lesson finished, and there were more scripts to learn after regular script.

But it didn’t matter—he already knew regular script.

Not only that, for some reason, Yun’er felt he vaguely recognized some of the characters Li Fu had written last night. Though the complex ones were unfamiliar, he seemed able to read the simpler strokes.

Thinking this over made Yun’er more joyful.

Nurse Xin noticed him still smiling as she dressed him.

“Yun’er, tell me, what are you so happy about?” she teased the little boy.

Yun’er’s dark, bright eyes looked at Nurse Xin. Though silent, his gaze was lively and utterly endearing.

Unable to resist, Nurse Xin scooped up the little bundle and gave him a big kiss.

“Yun’er, it’s time for breakfast. Let’s eat and then keep having fun.” After dressing herself, she carried Yun’er to the front hall.

There, Bu Shi was already holding Yige’er.

Yige’er had gone to bed early last night but also woke early and had been fussing for a while. Bu Shi felt weary but relaxed upon seeing Yun’er arrive.

Though she sometimes scolded Yige’er for being forgetful and always clinging to Yun’er, Yun’er was the only one who could manage Yige’er’s stubbornness.

Once Yun’er started eating his baby meal, Yige’er settled down and imitated him.

After breakfast, while the morning air was still cool, Nurse Xin and Bu Shi found a place to do some needlework as usual. The two boys played on a mat spread with kudzu cloth.

Yun’er glanced at Yige’er beside him, who always seemed a bit slow-witted.

But it didn’t matter—Yun’er still considered him one of his own.

Yun’er patted Yige’er’s head and practiced crawling with him for a while, then began working on walking. However, today he didn’t practice walking for long; instead, he used a small fish-shaped pouch as bait, leading Yige’er to the edge of the kudzu mat.

That was the farthest spot from Nurse Xin and Bu Shi.

Seeing Yige’er gleefully staring at the pouch, Yun’er immediately handed it over. Then he bowed his head, practicing sounds and teaching Yige’er at the same time.

Nurse Xin and Bu Shi noticed the two boys sitting back-to-back, heads bent, shoulders occasionally moving, but couldn’t tell what they were doing.

Now and then, Yun’er made “ai ya” sounds, and Yige’er imitated them.

They didn’t seem to be quarreling—perhaps it was some secret play only the two children understood.

Since there was no trouble, Nurse Xin and Bu Shi left them alone, only occasionally glancing up to keep the boys within sight.

After a long time, Yun’er’s throat grew sore, and he finally stopped.

Feeling it was enough for today, Yun’er patted Yige’er’s head and signaled for him to crawl back. The fish pouch was soaked in drool and discarded.

Yun’er didn’t want it anymore.

Back by Nurse Xin’s side, Yun’er gathered the toys that had been scattered around him into his arms, signaling Nurse Xin to pack them up.

This surprised Nurse Xin and Bu Shi. Usually, Yun’er showed little interest in toys, but after playing with Yige’er, he always collected all the toys for himself.

At first, Bu Shi thought Yun’er might grow up to be possessive.

But then they noticed that whenever Yun’er played with Yige’er, he would give him one toy at a time, rarely more.

Yige’er seemed used to this and didn’t grab toys from the mat but waited patiently for Yun’er’s share.

They were like brothers who had somehow switched roles.