Pats Little Shrike's Tail - Chapter 127

Chapter 127

In the study, which resembled a small library, Professor Hu had gathered quite a bit of material. These were all previously collected translation texts of Nüshu (Women’s Script), some issued by publishing houses, but most of them were handwritten transcripts.

Professor Hu had preserved these handwritten books very well. He even proudly showed off to Shen Qingyi, saying that he had spent a lot of time and effort collecting these precious manuscripts.

It was a pity that handwritten materials were becoming scarcer now, and publishers rarely printed such a niche literary style, making the collected texts incredibly valuable.

Fortunately, Professor Hu knew how to preserve books. Besides keeping the books dry for a long time, he had also scanned the texts and uploaded them to the cloud, so even if anything happened in the future, these precious manuscripts would not be lost.

Professor Hu, wearing reading glasses, sat at the mahogany desk. The sunlight from behind him streamed in, casting a black silhouette on the desktop.

He opened the manuscripts as if they were treasures, and smiled at Shen Qingyi, who was sitting opposite him: “Look at these, I collected all of these years ago. I wonder if they’ll be of any help to you.”

Shen Qingyi looked up, seeing Professor Hu’s smiling eyes, and lightly chuckled: “Professor Hu, you have so many collectibles.”

“Haha, these are things I’ve collected for half my life, so of course, there are quite a few,” Professor Hu said cheerfully, completely without the air of an old academic. Looking at the collection in his hands, he said with pleasure, “When you reach my age, you won’t have collected any less than me.”

Shen Qingyi did not deny it. Her study was already full of books, and she figured those few bookshelves would be insufficient in a few years.

It looked like she should start considering getting a small villa just to house her book collection.

Just as Shen Qingyi and Professor Hu were discussing the materials, there was a light knock on the study door. Hu Ai walked in, carrying a pot of tea, and asked the two people in the room: “The tea is ready. Would you like some pastries to go with it?”

Professor Hu pondered for a moment, then said, “I remember we just bought some Plum Blossom Shortbread a few days ago. Let Miss Shen try some.”

Hu Ai nodded, placed the teapot and tea set on the table, and went downstairs to fetch some tea snacks.

The villa was large, but it seemed only Professor Hu and Hu Ai lived there. Many rooms were empty, and unless guests visited, the house was always quiet and lonely.

After bringing up the tea snacks, Hu Ai poured a cup of tea for both Shen Qingyi and Professor Hu.

Shen Qingyi wasn’t good at appreciating tea. For her, tea was just something to switch to when she got tired of coffee, and she couldn’t distinguish between the quality of the various teas.

But Professor Hu seemed to love the freshly brewed Maojian tea. He blew on the steaming cup, took a sip, and looked satisfied.

“Ai Ai, your tea brewing skills are getting better and better.” Professor Hu put down his cup and smiled at his granddaughter: “Since you don’t have anything else to do at home, why don’t you tell Miss Shen about this Nüshu book?”

Hu Ai glanced at Shen Qingyi, then nodded to Professor Hu and said, “Alright, Grandpa.”

She walked over and sat in the chair across from Shen Qingyi, meeting her eyes.

“Miss Shen, you must already know a bit about Nüshu. It’s a script created by oppressed women centuries ago to regain the ability to communicate. Initially, it was spread through word of mouth in small circles, and even today, few people know about it.”

Hu Ai glanced at the damaged book placed nearby, her eyes flickering slightly. She paused for a long time before continuing: “I found this book by chance when I was at the Intangible Cultural Heritage institution. Its owner was a centenarian old woman, and when she gave it to me, it was already badly damaged.”

“The reason I want to restore it, besides fulfilling the elderly woman’s long-held wish, is that the script on it contains characters that are not recorded in existing Nüshu texts.” Hu Ai told Shen Qingyi: “Nüshu commonly uses only about six hundred characters, but this book already has fifty to sixty rare and obscure characters. If we can accurately translate these words, it will certainly be an important step forward for future Nüshu research.”

Shen Qingyi looked at Hu Ai upon hearing this and asked curiously, “Do you have professional translators? I can only help you with the restoration; I can’t translate.”

Hu Ai smiled slightly: “Don’t worry, the translation work can be left to me. I will also be involved in the restoration of this Nüshu book. If Miss Shen agrees, then we will have many opportunities to meet in the future.”

Many opportunities to meet in the future?

Shen Qingyi instinctively frowned when she heard this. She looked at the burgundy-haired woman sitting across from her and suddenly felt that the statement seemed to carry a deeper meaning.

Before she could fully process her thoughts, Professor Hu spoke.

“That’s right, Ai Ai majored in ancient text translation in college and is familiar with various scripts. She is also responsible for the Nüshu translation work. To pass on a culture, it cannot be achieved by just one or two people; it requires time and the efforts of many people to prevent it from being lost.”

Professor Hu put down the things in his hand and stood up from the chair. Hu Ai quickly moved to support him, but Professor Hu stopped her.

“I am getting old, and there are some things I am powerless to do.” Professor Hu looked at his granddaughter and Shen Qingyi, and said seriously, “Compared to this book, there will be many heavier burdens in the future. These require young people like you to take them on.”

Hu Ai said softly, “Grandpa, don’t talk like that.”

Professor Hu smiled gently and said to Shen Qingyi: “Miss Shen, please take this book back and repair it carefully. If there is anything you need my help with, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

Shen Qingyi also stood up from her chair and said to him, “Professor Hu, you are too kind.”

Professor Hu just smiled and said nothing.

Afterward, Shen Qingyi stayed in Professor Hu’s small library for another two hours before deciding to leave to avoid rush hour traffic.

Hu Ai was responsible for seeing Shen Qingyi out. Shen Qingyi stopped at the door, holding the bag containing the Nüshu book.

“Miss Hu, there’s no need to accompany me further. Go back and take care of your grandfather,” Shen Qingyi said, looking back at Hu Ai. “I will repair this book as quickly as possible, but I can’t guarantee the time.”

Hu Ai nodded and said calmly, “Since Grandpa entrusted this book to you, I am reassured. However, even though we have scanned pages, I will occasionally want to look at the book. You won’t mind, will you?”

“Of course not,” Shen Qingyi said. “I am only helping with a small favor. You are the key person for the translation of this book.”

Hu Ai smiled and paused for a long time before asking, “Did Miss Shan Ling not come with you today?”

Shen Qingyi’s expression slowly darkened upon hearing this. She said, “Xiao Ling went with a friend, so she didn’t come today.”

“Does she have friends in this city?” Hu Ai asked.

“Of course she has friends.” Shen Qingyi didn’t know why, but she really disliked Hu Ai asking about Shan Ling. She remembered that in the parking lot outside the antique store alley, Hu Ai’s eyes seemed to light up when she looked at Shan Ling. Asking about Shan Ling now made Shen Qingyi suspicious.

She looked at Hu Ai with displeasure and said deliberately, word by word, “Perhaps Miss Hu is still unclear, but I am already with Shan Ling. She is my girlfriend now.”

Hu Ai was momentarily stunned when she heard this, then smiled disbelievingly, saying, “You and she are not the same kind of people.”

“We do have many differences, but I don’t think that is the main problem,” Shen Qingyi looked at the red-haired woman across from her and said calmly, “She relies on me a lot, and I really like her. We are of one heart and have been through many things together.”

Hu Ai stood with her hands in her pockets, watching Shen Qingyi indifferently, her eyes practically screaming the words, ‘go on.’

Shen Qingyi was quite unhappy. She frowned and said, “I am happy that Miss Hu wants to be friends with Shan Ling. She is a very easygoing girl, and you will definitely like her too. However, that’s all it is. Our relationship is very strong, and it cannot tolerate a third person.”

Hu Ai chuckled softly after hearing this, as if in provocation, which made Shen Qingyi’s face turn green with annoyance as she glared at her.

“Miss Shen seems to have misunderstood,” Hu Ai said. “I just find Shan Ling very interesting. I haven’t considered what you are suggesting.”

Shen Qingyi stopped talking. After staring at Hu Ai for three or four seconds, she said angrily, “That’s for the best.”

Afterward, Shen Qingyi didn’t want to chat with Hu Ai any further. She turned and walked out of Bangshan Villa. After getting into her car, she still felt a surge of anger, and she drove off.

Hu Ai stood at the door, watching the car drive away, then chuckled softly with her hands in her pockets and turned to walk back inside.

Shan Ling was helping Nuo Nuo clean up the stall. This afternoon, they had taken some instant coffee to the streets to promote their business, handing out flyers and inviting passersby to add their store’s WeChat account.

Nuo Nuo called this “street promotion.” Shan Ling didn’t fully understand, but she figured since the coffee wasn’t selling anyway, it was better to do some advertising.

However, Shan Ling knew that Shen Qingyi had paid for all these coffees, so she didn’t dare to hand out too many, stopping after about a hundred or so.

Perhaps the afternoon promotion had worked, as they sold quite a bit as soon as they set up the stall again. Nuo Nuo was overjoyed, praising Shan Ling for her business acumen.

After moving all the coffee into the store, they left the tent, tables, and chairs outside. They weren’t valuable, so there was no need to lug them back inside laboriously.

The renovation workers had already left. Nuo Nuo locked the door and walked arm-in-arm with Shan Ling toward the subway.

“It’s all thanks to you today. If the manager found out we hit zero sales today, I would definitely be scolded.” Nuo Nuo was eating a lollipop and handed one to Shan Ling as well.

Shan Ling looked surprised at the sudden appearance of the lollipop and said in astonishment, “Nuo Nuo, how do you have every kind of snack? You’re like Doraemon.”

“Haha, really?” Nuo Nuo said happily, “You’re the first person to compliment me like that.”

“Mmm… this lychee flavor is delicious.”

“I know, right?”

Just as the two of them were discussing whether lychee, milk, or chocolate was the best-flavored lollipop, they saw a very familiar car slowly pull up by the roadside near the subway entrance.

Shan Ling immediately recognized it as Shen Qingyi’s car and quickly pulled Nuo Nuo to run over.

As soon as they reached the car, Shen Qingyi rolled down the window, looked at the two of them, and asked, “Finished work?”

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