Lüdou lowered her head.
"I am sorry, Li Da's wife, I was wrong."
Li Da's wife crossed her arms over her chest.
"You were wrong? What were you wrong about? Could it be that what you two were just saying was a lie?"
Lüdou nodded.
"Yes, I shouldn't have spoken ill of you behind your back just now... No! I wasn't speaking ill of you!"
"I shouldn't have talked about you behind your back. It is my fault. If you want to punish someone, just punish me alone. It has nothing to do with Duoduo!"
Duoduo tugged at Lüdou's sleeve.
"Lüdou, Lüdou!"
Lüdou looked at Duoduo in confusion. Duoduo signaled to her that what she had just said was wrong.
Lüdou was a bit dazed.
"Li Da's wife, what we said just now was the truth!"
"The pastries you make are delicious! They are even better than those from Jixiang Bakery. They are the best pastries I have ever eaten."
Li Da's wife was amused.
She reached out and pinched Duoduo's cheek, and Duoduo's face instantly flushed red.
Li Da's wife hurriedly rubbed it, but the more she rubbed, the redder Duoduo's face became.
"You truly have the body of a young lady. This delicate skin turns red with just a light touch."
Duoduo rubbed her cheek and gave Li Da's wife a shy smile.
"You little child, you sure have a sweet mouth. How many pastries have you eaten to be able to claim these are the best?"
Li Da's wife's expression softened significantly.
Duoduo nodded earnestly. "They just are the best!"
Li Da's wife rubbed Duoduo's head.
"Alright, enough with the flattery. It is just a few pieces of pastry. I can make plenty more."
After she finished speaking, Li Da's wife looked Lüdou up and down.
"I was wondering why you were always hovering around me for no reason. So you were secretly trying to learn my skills!"
Lüdou trembled in fear. "Li Da's wife, I will never dare to do it again!"
Li Da's wife took Lüdou's hand and examined it carefully from top to bottom, left and right.
Then, she squeezed Lüdou's arm.
"Stealing skills is definitely not acceptable."
"Yes, I know I was wrong." Lüdou felt deeply ashamed.
"By stealing skills, you cannot learn the true essence. What you make will end up being a poor imitation."
"When that happens, it will ruin my reputation."
"I heard your embroidery is quite good. It just so happens that I need a handkerchief. Make one for me, and consider it your apprenticeship gift."
Lüdou kept her head down, completely unresponsive.
"Lüdou, kneel down quickly!"
Duoduo anxiously tugged at Lüdou's sleeve.
Only then did Lüdou come to her senses, and she dropped to her knees with a thud.
"Li Da's wife, do you really want to take me in as your apprentice?"
Li Da's wife waved her hand dismissively. "I regret it already!"
Lüdou hurriedly kowtowed three times to her.
"Master above, please accept a bow from your disciple!"
Li Da's wife waited for her to finish kowtowing before pulling her up.
"Let me make the ugly words clear upfront. I am a strict person. If you fail to meet my expectations, I will beat and scold you."
Lüdou's face was glowing with joy.
"I am not afraid! If this disciple does not do well, I will let Master beat and scold me as you please!"
Li Da's wife waved her hand. "Alright, just remember your apprenticeship gift."
"Oh, and before you complete your apprenticeship, you are not allowed to tell anyone that you are my disciple!"
"Yes, I understand!" Lüdou nodded vigorously.
Li Da's wife walked over to the stove and picked up a small bundle. After a moment of thought, she took out two pieces of pastry from it.
"Take these and try them. This is a new pastry I have been developing. See if it tastes good."
Duoduo and Lüdou both received them with both hands. "Thank you, Li Da's wife."
"Alright, I am leaving. You two go on with your work."
Li Da's wife had originally returned just to fetch the new pastries she had made.
Because she had just started making them, there were still many areas that needed improvement.
She was worried that if she left them in the kitchen, someone with ulterior motives might present them to the masters.
If the masters found them unpalatable, it would ruin her impression in their hearts.
Who would have thought that as soon as she reached the door, she would hear the two people inside discussing her.
She had originally intended to teach the two of them a lesson, but in a moment of impulse, she ended up taking in an apprentice.
Li Da's wife felt a bit regretful.
Li Da's wife left in a hurry, and Lüdou and Duoduo exchanged a smile.
Duoduo carefully took out a booklet from her bosom and handed it to Lüdou.
"This is the Three Character Classic that I was reciting to you just now. Open the pages, and I will recite it to you once more."
Lüdou carefully wiped her hands clean with her handkerchief before cautiously opening the book.
"Men at their birth, are naturally good..."
Duoduo's crisp voice rang out in the kitchen.
After Duoduo recited it once, Lüdou followed along and recited it a second time.
After a few times, Lüdou could basically recite it from memory.
"As you recite, look at the characters on the page. This way, after reciting it dozens of times, you will be able to recognize all the characters."
As Duoduo spoke, she casually pointed to one of the characters and pronounced it.
Lüdou read along according to the order she had just memorized, and sure enough, she was correct.
"Look, this character, this character, and this one here are all the same."
Lüdou looked and saw that it was indeed true.
Just by doing this, she was already able to recognize quite a few characters.
"That is wonderful! Duoduo, can I borrow this book for the night?"
Lüdou caressed the booklet affectionately.
"Of course. I borrowed this specifically for you to learn from."
"Once you have learned it, give it back to me. Just make absolutely sure not to damage it."
Duoduo held back and did not mention that she had borrowed the booklet from the Prince of Pingyang.
She was worried that if she said it, Lüdou would not dare to read it.
Lüdou carefully wrapped the booklet in her handkerchief and tucked it securely against her chest.
"Do not worry, I will definitely take good care of it!"
"When I finish reading it in a couple of days, I will return it to you!"
"Alright!"
Duoduo let out a small yawn.
"Lüdou, I am going back first. I have to get up early tomorrow morning for training."
"Training? What kind of training?" Lüdou asked with a curious face.
"Hmm, I do not know either." Duoduo also looked confused.
"I will tell you what the training is about after I go through it tomorrow."
"Okay, then I will walk you back."
Lüdou took Duoduo's hand, and the two walked out of the kitchen.
As soon as Duoduo returned to her room, she quickly washed up and fell asleep.
Fearing she might oversleep, she asked Lüdou to come and wake her up at the hour of Mao the next morning.
Lüdou agreed, as she had to wake up even earlier to prepare breakfast in the kitchen.
Lüdou returned to her room. The place she lived in had a large communal bed.
About a dozen maidservants lived in this single room.
Her spot on the bed was located right by the door.
Because this spot was near the door, many people came in and out.
In the winter, this bed space would be particularly cold.
And in the summer, it would be especially hot.
With so many people passing by, the spot was also quite dirty.
Therefore, this bed space had always been empty with no one wanting to sleep there.
Since Lüdou was the last to arrive, she was naturally pushed to this spot.
Lüdou carefully climbed into bed in the dark. Clutching the booklet against her chest, she fell asleep with a smile on her face.
In her dream, Lüdou saw that both she and Duoduo had ranked first in the imperial examination.
The two of them were dressed in red robes, wearing feathered hats, and draped in large red silk rosettes...
Suddenly, someone threw a brick at her!
