Chapter 291

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Protagonist:

Lin Xiyu

"You wish."

Lin Xiyu pressed him down with one hand: "It's late at night, don't cause trouble. If you really scare him into a nervous breakdown, we'll have to spend money to treat his illness."

"Wife, you can't be like this......."

Guben's tone carried resentment: "Too soft-hearted, easy to be bullied."

"You only just realized?"

Lin Xiyu laughed and scolded: "It's precisely because I'm too soft-hearted that I've forgiven you again and again, and let you bully me."

"Put that way, I'm truly lucky."

Guben didn't get angry but laughed instead, taking the chance to pull her into his arms: "Wife is beautiful and kind-hearted. How many good deeds must I have done in my past life, how much great fortune must I have accumulated, to be able to marry such a good wife."

"What a pity......"

Lin Xiyu thought of the evil Li Ang had done, and her good mood vanished: "Good people get no reward. All kinds of stifling things, I'm the one who encounters them."

"Wife, your luck will turn......"

Guben deliberately coaxed her to be happy, pinching his fingers and calculating with an air of composure: "Believe me, your good luck is coming soon. Who knows, one day a discerning patron might appreciate you and carry you to soaring success."

"I'll borrow your auspicious words."

Lin Xiyu didn't believe it in her heart at all, but not wanting to spoil his mood, she still pretended to be very happy and smiled.

At this moment, neither of the couple expected that a certain someone truly had the potential to be a charlatan.

Guben's words came true. Two days later, truly uplifting good news came from the Youth Palace.

——

"Really? They gave another City-level Intangible Cultural Heritage Inheritor quota? I can apply too?!"

When Lin Xiyu received the call from the Youth Palace person in charge, she was holding Dabao and strolling under the Pomegranate Tree. In her excitement, she nearly dropped the child on the ground.

Dabao was so frightened his little heart trembled, and he clung tight to his mother's neck, not daring to let go.

"This was specially approved by the leaders above......."

The Youth Palace person in charge was genuinely happy for her: "They saw the works you cut, and believe you have great potential, already possessing the qualifications to become a City-level Inheritor."

"Works?"

Lin Xiyu was a bit bewildered: "Didn't I not submit any materials? Where did the works come from?"

"Of course you have them......"

The Youth Palace person in charge smiled and prompted her: "When you went abroad for the exchange, the piece you cut on the spot when faced with a reporter's difficult questions — that is the best proof. The leader responsible for the selection was present and witnessed the whole process, and praised you highly."

"Ah?"

Lin Xiyu realized belatedly: "There were judges in the exchange delegation too? I actually didn't know......"

"Whether you knew or not doesn't matter. The key is performing well......"

The Youth Palace person in charge laughed and teased her: "Fools have fool's luck. See, good fortune has arrived."

"Let Sister Hu laugh at me."

Lin Xiyu's ear roots grew hot from her teasing: "Put that way, I really have fulfilled that saying about fools having fool's luck......"

"Enough talk. You hurry up and prepare another set of application materials for City-level Inheritor, and submit them together with the works."

The Youth Palace person in charge steered the conversation back, not wanting to delay her time further: "This selection process is relatively fast. Results can come out before the Gregorian New Year."

"Okay okay, thank you Sister Hu......"

Lin Xiyu was grateful to the utmost. After the other party hung up the phone, for a long while she still hadn't recovered from the enormous joy of this stunning turnaround.

"What did I say......"

Guben waved his hand before his wife's eyes, quite smugly blowing his own trumpet: "Your good luck is coming. This time you believe it, right? Your husband is just this divine — can calculate with pinched fingers."

"Divine Charlatan, this little woman pays her respects."

Lin Xiyu, holding Dabao, bowed with clasped hands.

"Hahaha."

Guben was amused by his beloved wife's rare humor, laughing heartily.

——

Lin Xiyu had never imagined she would truly have such good luck, leaping from a District-level Intangible Cultural Heritage Inheritor to a City-level Intangible Cultural Heritage Inheritor.

The twists and turns of the application process perfectly embodied that saying: the road winds and the path turns, willows dark and flowers bright.

The Portrait of Beauties was one she had practiced cutting until she was proficient; she could cut out a perfect piece in no time at all.

She reorganized the application materials and delivered them to the Cultural and Tourism Bureau that very afternoon.

This round of evaluation, just as the Youth Palace person in charge said, progressed very quickly. In less than a month there were results.

Lin Xiyu was successfully elected City-level Intangible Cultural Heritage Inheritor.

Li Ang also relied on his unique creativity — a series of paper-cuttings of the 108 heroes from Shui Hu Zhuan — and was selected as a District-level Intangible Cultural Heritage Inheritor.

On the day the selection results were publicly announced, Wang Lei and Zhang Jie both came to the Old House to express congratulations to Senior Sister.

As for the other fellow disciple, when the two mentioned him they still had lingering anger, to the extent that they even had reservations about the selection results.

"Forget it. Let this matter pass."

Lin Xiyu, meeting a happy event, felt refreshed in spirit, and was instead more open-minded than the two: "Inheriting traditional folk art requires more people to participate. Setting aside personal grievances, his creativity is still quite good. Being able to cut out all 108 heroes of Shui Hu Zhuan and pass the selection smoothly also counts as not disgracing Grandma Hu's reputation."

"As long as he can persist and not give up halfway, making his due contribution to the inheritance of paper-cutting art, I don't want to quarrel with him anymore either. As long as he doesn't come provoke me again, I'll treat this as if it never happened. In front of outsiders, there's no need to say much. As long as surface appearances can be maintained, that's enough."

——

"Senior Sister is magnanimous......"

Wang Lei stopped nitpicking, admiring her from the bottom of his heart: "Being able to tolerate others, on this point I really can't compare."

"It would be best if Senior Sister can forgive him."

Zhang Jie's eyes also brightened, she let out a long, heavy breath of relief: "Hu Nainai's spirit in heaven would also be very comforted."

"I just didn't want her old self to not find peace even after entering the earth, that's why I wanted to suppress this matter......"

Lin Xiyu had her own considerations: "Of her old self's disciples, only us four remain in the local area now. If we don't unite, and word gets out of fellow disciples stabbing each other in the back, letting inheritors of other projects find out, wouldn't that make us a laughingstock."

"If this matter spreads, it sounds bad......"

Zhang Jie felt the same: "Our face is a small matter; if it affects Hu Nainai's reputation, that would be a sin."

"We think this way......."

Wang Lei still couldn't swallow his anger: "Just afraid that kid Li Ang won't repent, seeing Senior Sister's rank higher than his, envy jealousy hate, and stir up trouble again."

"He won't have another chance."

Lin Xiyu had already planned her future: "On Saturday I'll tell Hu Jie I'm not going to the Youth Palace anymore. Guben specially reserved a classroom for me at the training center, I'll hold classes and accept disciples there, teaching children to learn paper-cutting."

"Why should you be the one not to go?"

Wang Lei felt indignant on her behalf: "The person at fault is him; the one who should leave is him. If you leave, what if he badmouths again, says bad things about you, the Youth Palace people don't know the inside story, get instigated by a few words from him, mistakenly think that after becoming an inheritor your mindset changed, you don't want to continue doing public welfare anymore, then what? Words are fearsome, Senior Sister you must think carefully."

"I think Brother Lei is right......."

Zhang Jie nodded in agreement: "I also think Senior Sister you shouldn't avoid him. We haven't done anything against our conscience, we should straighten our spines and confront him head-on with righteous confidence."

"On Saturday I'll go with Senior Sister......."

Wang Lei wanted to back Senior Sister up, rolled up a sleeve, domineering aura leaking out: "If he's willing to leave on his own then fine. If he dares to act unreasonably, insists on staying to be an eyesore, I'll definitely give him another slap in the face."

"I'll go too......"

Zhang Jie didn't want to fall behind Senior Brother, also declared her stance: "With the two of us as witnesses, even if he wants to badmouth, no one will believe him."

"Thank you all, having you all is so great, Senior Sister likes you all so so so much."

Lin Xiyu's eyes flashed with emotion, she opened her arms and gave Zhang Jie a hug.

Wang Lei hehe'd happily, just wanted to sidle over and also get some of the glory, when a figure rudely blocked him.

"Want a hug?"

Guben gave him a sidelong glance: "I can substitute for your Senior Sister, fulfill your dream......"

"Uh."

Wang Lei was embarrassed, a few beads of cold sweat dripped down his nape.

"Pfft, hahahaha......"

Zhang Jie couldn't hold back, laughed until she sprayed.

Lin Xiyu smiled helplessly, tacitly allowing her kid's dad's black-bellied little scheme.

——

Youth Palace.

Saturday morning, Wang Lei and Zhang Jie wholeheartedly wanting to back Senior Sister up, indeed waited at the Youth Palace doorway at the agreed time.

Lin Xiyu was held up by the babies when leaving home, couldn't get away, arrived a bit late.

When the three entered the Youth Palace, Li Ang had already arrived. Staff members seeing him couldn't help but exchange polite compliments, expressing congratulations.

Li Ang found it very gratifying. After being flattered a few sentences, he couldn't help but get a bit carried away. Arriving at the classroom, he couldn't resist boasting to the children.

The children were innocent and pure, two eyes flashing with admiring little stars, surrounding him clapping and cheering.

"Tsk......"

Wang Lei pushed open the door and saw this scene, sneered disdainfully: "A mere district-level inheritor, what's so amazing? Senior Sister is already a city-level inheritor."

Li Ang's smile stiffened. He looked back at the newcomers, a trace of guilt flashing in his eyes.

"Teacher Lin is a city-level inheritor?"

"Is city-level higher than district-level?"

"Does this even need asking?"

"It's definitely way more awesome than district-level."

"Wow, so awesome!"

"Teacher Lin is more amazing than Teacher Li......"

The children's reaction was clearly opposite to his. Their gazes toward Lin Xiyu grew even more eager.

"Before you asked me, did I want to accept disciples......"

Lin Xiyu glanced at Li Ang, walked into the classroom at a leisurely pace: "Originally I had no such plan. Now I've changed my mind."

"Teacher Lin, you want to accept disciples?"

Chen Xiang was the first to show delight, rushed over.

"Yes......"

Lin Xiyu waited until he came close, affectionately patted his head: "Teacher plans to accept a few disciples to her liking. Any who want to sign up, come to Teacher's side."

"Me me me......"

"I want to sign up......"

The children vied to be first, raising little hands and crowding toward her.

Li Ang's side instantly had no one left. His embarrassed, dumbfounded expression looked truly somewhat laughable.

"All the students want to sign up......"

Lin Xiyu was very gratified. She had the children return to their seats first, used a competition format to set questions and assess, selecting on the spot the children with the best skills.

She has been doing public welfare activities at the Youth Palace for a very long time, and knows every child in the class very well; she could pick a disciple to her liking with her eyes closed.

The public selection was merely to highlight fairness and impartiality, so the other children would be convinced in their hearts and accept it.

——

The assessment content was "Carp Delivering Blessings."

This pattern has a certain difficulty for children; Lin Xiyu had taught it before, and children who studied earnestly could cut it out from memory.

A slight commotion rose in the classroom; some children wore bitter faces the moment they heard the topic, and wails rang out continuously.

"No talking during the competition!"

Wang Lei, acting in his capacity as martial uncle, served as a judge to maintain order.

He had a lean face, wore glasses, and when not smiling gave people a very serious feeling.

The wails stopped abruptly.

The children looked at him with some fear, not daring to make a commotion again.

——

The assessment went smoothly, and the selection results were largely as Lin Xiyu had anticipated.

Out of thirty-some children, fewer than ten managed to persist to the end and produce finished works.

Chen Xiang performed the most outstandingly; the lines of his cut pattern were smooth, with the highest aesthetic appeal — for a 9-year-old child, it was near perfect.

The other six children were slightly inferior; scissors left traces of mistakes in different places.

"It's these seven children."

Lin Xiyu ignored Li Ang's suddenly changed expression and announced the result right in front of him.

"Senior Sister..."

Li Ang flew into a rage: "What do you mean by this?"

These seven children, apart from Chen Xiang, were all his disciples; just before Lin Xiyu's party of three entered, he had still been feeling very good about himself, showing off to his disciples that he had already become an Intangible Cultural Heritage Inheritor.

"Accepting disciples..."

Lin Xiyu sneered: "Isn't this obvious? You've been in the classroom the whole time, and only now come to ask me — don't you feel weird yourself?"

"I know you're accepting disciples..."

Li Ang pointed at the six children among them, his face turning iron-green: "But these few, during the period you went abroad for exchange, already explicitly agreed to take me as master — they are my disciples."

"Is that so?"

Lin Xiyu ignored Li Ang's provocation, lowered her eyes, and looked at the six children.

"Uh."

The children's little gazes trembled; they were too embarrassed to meet her eyes.

"Regardless of before..."

Lin Xiyu had not the slightest intention of blaming them; contrary to everyone's expectations, she announced in a high-profile manner: "As long as you want to take me as master, I will agree."

"I want to!"

"I want to too!"

The children's little eyes brightened, all revealing happy expressions.

"Senior Sister..."

Li Ang just wanted to rush over and question her, but Wang Lei grabbed him and blocked him between the two of them.

"Do you think you're qualified to teach them?"

Zhang Jie, her heart siding with Senior Sister, spoke up for her: "For a teacher, character is more important than skill; even if Senior Sister isn't a City-level Inheritor, she is still more suitable to teach these children than you."

"Those words make sense..."

Wang Lei cooperated with her seamlessly, smoothly adding: "The nation's flowers — they can't be led astray by you."

"You two..."

Li Ang was rendered speechless by the senior brother and sister's antiphonal retort.

"From now on, you'd better not come to the Youth Palace anymore..."

Wang Lei, seeing the timing had arrived, spoke the true purpose he and Senior Sister had specially come here for today: "Senior Sister, out of consideration for our shared sect, was too embarrassed to drive you out; the bad guys, we two will play. You yourself should understand — some things have already happened, and there is no room for maneuver left. Senior Sister not exposing you has already given you face; you should not continue to shamelessly cling on."