Thrown out of the house, the wet nurse enters the noble household and becomes a person of high statu

In the sweltering heat of midsummer, the sun beats down relentlessly.

The circular courtyard, enclosed by seven houses, isolates the area from the outside world's noise, creating a tranquil haven.

Liu Wenying stood under the shade of the tree, eager to try. Three zhang away from her was a straw target.

She has always believed that having many skills is never a bad thing, and after learning riding, she became very graceful.

However, he lacked archery skills. If he could master archery, he could draw the bow and nock an arrow on horseback with ease and grace.

If you want to learn something, you naturally need to find a teacher. After thinking it over, Lu Ye was the only one in the academy who was best at archery.

He was a hunter in his youth, born in the mountains and raised in the forest. His skills were honed through wind, frost, rain, snow, and life-or-death battles, and he never used any fancy tricks or empty moves.

She asked for his advice, and Lu Ye, who was usually taciturn, readily agreed without hesitation.

He was determined to impart all his knowledge to her, teaching her all the archery skills he had ever practiced in actual combat.

The day begins with a gentle breeze and bright summer sunshine.

"Hold the bow firmly, with the web of your left hand supporting it, and use three fingers of your right hand to pluck the string—index finger on top, middle finger on the bottom, and ring finger for support."

As he spoke, he demonstrated, and Liu Wenying tried to hold the bow like him, but her fingers just wouldn't obey her, and the bow trembled slightly in her hand.

"It's too tight." Lu Ye walked to her side and placed his large hand on the back of her hand.

He helped her adjust the position of her fingers, pressing his thumb against the web of her hand and correcting the angle little by little.

"You can't hold a bow as tightly as possible. You have to imagine you're holding a bird. If you hold it too tightly, you'll crush it; if you hold it too loosely, it will fly away."

Liu Wenying tried to relax her fingers, and her posture became more stable.

She glanced at him and saw his focused expression; his dark gold eyes seemed to swirl, almost drawing her attention away.

Liu Wenying barely managed to compose herself and asked, "...And then?"

"Then draw the bow, nock the arrow, pull the string, and raise the bow. Remember, your eye, the arrowhead, and the bullseye must be in a straight line."

Lu Ye took an arrow from his quiver and handed it to her. The arrow had grayish-brown feathers and a straight shaft.

Liu Wenying took the arrow, nocked the fletching onto the bowstring, and pulled the bowstring taut.

The bowstring was only partially drawn before it could no longer be pulled.

The bow belonged to Lu Ye; it had a mulberry wood core and a cow horn tip. It was quite difficult for not only her to draw, but also for other ordinary men to pull it.

"I'll help you."

Lu Ye wrapped his arms around her from behind, his chest pressed against her back, his arms wrapped around her body, and he held her right hand that was pulling the strings.

With his other hand, he supported her left arm to help her maintain her upright posture.

The position almost completely enveloped her, and his body heat radiated through the thin summer clothes, burning intensely.

"Keep your back straight and shoulders relaxed, and use your back muscles to generate power, not your arms."

He slowly pulled her arm back, the bowstring gradually unfurling.

"Look at the bullseye."

There was a red circle in the middle of the straw target three zhang away. The sunlight was dazzling, and the target swayed slightly in the line of sight.

"put!"

The two released their grips at the same time, and with a whoosh, the arrow pierced the air and embedded itself on the edge of the straw target.

The arrow left the bowstring, and the bow bounced back, making Liu Wenying's arm go numb. But seeing that the arrow had not hit the bullseye, she was still somewhat discouraged.

"It's way off course..."

"It's already very good if you can hit the target on your first try. When I first started learning, my first arrow missed the target by five or six feet."

Unexpectedly, Lu Ye could miss the target so dramatically. Liu Wenying was amused by him, took the arrow he handed her, and nocked it again.

This time she learned her lesson and first stretched her shoulders, recalling the key points he had just taught her.

The bowstring was drawn back, much more smoothly than before.

She held her breath, aimed, and released.

The arrow struck the target, an inch closer to the bullseye.

Lu Ye raised an eyebrow. "You learn very quickly."

"You taught me well, try again!"

One, two, three... the straw target was gradually filled with arrows, and some were already close to the bullseye.

Lu Ye stood beside her the whole time, occasionally speaking up to correct her.

Sometimes he would reach out to help her adjust her posture or support her waist.

After shooting countless arrows, Liu Wenying finally hit the bullseye with one arrow.

The arrow trembled slightly on the target, the bullseye was pierced, revealing the pale yellow of the straw behind it.

She paused for a moment, then cheered, "I won!"

Lu Ye smiled and nodded, "Good aim."

"It's all thanks to Master's excellent teaching, Master Lu. Do I have some talent?"

Liu Wenying looked up at him, her eyes curving into crescents.

Especially when she called him Master Lu, with a mix of joke and intimacy, Lu Ye's Adam's apple bobbed, and he hummed in response.

As the sun began to set, the cicadas' chirping gradually subsided.

When Liu Wenying put down the bow, she realized that her arm was so sore that she couldn't lift it.

The area between my thumb and forefinger was rubbed raw and red, and my palms were burning with pain.

She couldn't bite off more than she could chew, but she still greedily practiced for a long time.

"Thank you so much, Master Lu. If it weren't for your guidance, I'm afraid I wouldn't have had such a smooth experience."

Lu Ye was putting the arrows back into his quiver one by one when Liu Wenying walked to the well and scooped up a ladle of cold water to wash her hands.

After putting away all the arrows, Lu Ye smiled and said to her, "You're talented; you learn quickly."

Her temples were damp with sweat and clung to her cheeks, which were flushed red from the heat, like ripe peaches. Lu Ye didn't look at her for long and quickly looked away.

As the two were talking, Ling'er came over from the kitchen carrying a tray.

On the tray were two celadon bowls, filled with snow-white crispy cakes, topped with honey and sprinkled with crushed nuts, emitting wisps of cool air.

"Master, Brother Lu, come and have some crispy mountain to cool off in the summer heat."

Ling'er placed the tray on the stone table in the courtyard and set out two cups of tea.

Having finished everything, she left without disturbing the two of them.

Liu Wenying's eyes lit up, and she quickly walked over, sat down, picked up a small silver spoon, scooped a spoonful, and put it in her mouth.

The cool, sweet taste melts on the tongue, dispelling the body's heat.

She squinted her eyes contentedly, like a satisfied cat: "Delicious!"

Lu Ye sat down opposite her, but didn't touch his own bowl, only picked up his teacup and drank.

Why aren't you eating?

Liu Wenying scooped up another spoonful and asked vaguely.

"The crispy mountain is expensive, so I'll just have tea. If Wenying likes it, she can have two servings."

"No way! Eating two portions will easily upset my stomach. Besides, you've been teaching me all day, so you're the one who's worked hard and you should eat more."

Lu Ye shook his head: "I don't like sweets."

Liu Wenying didn't believe it. "You're lying. You ate three or four pieces of the peach blossom cake I made for everyone last time."

Lu Ye's ears turned slightly red after being exposed, but he still insisted, "That's different."

"What's the difference?"

She simply picked up her spoon, scooped up a full spoonful, and held it to his lips, saying, "Here, have a taste."

Lu Ye froze as he looked at the silver spoon being offered to his lips.

The spoon is piled high with snow-white, crispy syrup, and honey drips down the rim.

More importantly, she had just used the spoon, and there was still a little bit of her lipstick on the rim, a light pink color.

The lump on his throat twitched, and he clenched his teeth, not opening his mouth.

"Open your mouth, it's really delicious, I'm not kidding."

Liu Wenying extended the spoon forward, the spoon almost touching his lips.

Lu Ye still didn't move.

"Lu Ye?" She tilted her head and moved the spoon closer.

She looked dejected, as if he had committed a mistake by not eating.

"I……"

His tightly pursed lips finally parted, and Liu Wenying, quick as a flash, stuffed the spoon into his mouth.

The cool, sweet, and juicy pastry melts on your tongue, with the sweetness of honey and the aroma of nuts.

There was also a faint trace of her scent.

…………