Chapter 96 Heartbeat

As they walked into the dining room, Lan Xi noticed the unusual atmosphere. She turned her gaze towards her husband, a surprised look on her face.

"What are you up to again?"

"..."

Ning Xiangtian narrowed his eyes, his gaze fixed on Ye Fan behind his daughter. "Nothing, just want to chat with Ye Fan."

He raised his eyebrows at Ye Fan. "So, are you interested in chatting?"

"It would be my honor to chat with Uncle Ning."

Ye Fan nodded slightly and whispered to the girl in front of him, "Xiao Xi, it's okay, let me talk to your uncle."

A look of surprise appeared in Ning Xi's eyes, and her lips moved slightly. "Are you stupid? My dad..."

"Don't worry."

His deep voice carried a hint of confidence.

Ning Xi pursed her lips and didn't say anything. She walked over and sat down on her father's left side, ready to intervene if anything happened.

This meal was definitely not going to be simple!

Ye Fan bowed slightly, pulled out a chair, and sat down. He looked directly at Ning Xiangtian and said calmly, "Uncle Ning, I'm not sure what you want to talk about."

"There are many topics we could discuss, but let's talk about literature today."

Ning Xiangtian's face was expressionless. He said faintly, "Literature has a captivating charm. I heard from Xiao Xi that you excel in all subjects. I wonder if you understand literature?"

Lan Xi raised her hand to her forehead, sighing inwardly.

Discussing literature with a high school student?

Only her husband could come up with such an idea!

Walking over to sit next to Ye Fan, Lan Xi discreetly glared at her husband, her eyes full of warning.

Ning Xiangtian's expression remained unchanged. He ignored his wife's warning. Even if he couldn't make Ye Fan leave today, he had to at least embarrass him!

Ning Xi bit her lip, her small hands clenching slightly under the table, her eyes filled with worry.

"I have a little understanding."

The corner of Ye Fan's mouth twitched slightly. "I wonder how Uncle wants to chat?"

Chat about literature? Then let's chat!

Ning Xiangtian's eyes flickered. He said nonchalantly, "Literature is inseparable from words. Among all the Chinese characters, which one do you find the most charming?"

"That's enough!"

Lan Xi interjected, her face cold, feeling a bit angry.

After all, Ye Fan was the tutor she had hired. She couldn't just stand by and watch him repeatedly make things difficult for her husband.

Ning Xiangtian glanced at his wife and said, "When men are talking, women should stay out of it."

"..."

Hearing this, Lan Xi sighed deeply.

Usually, Ning Xiangtian would indulge her no matter what she said, right or wrong. But if Ning Xiangtian had made up his mind, nothing she said would change it. After twenty years of marriage, she knew her husband's personality very well.

The atmosphere in the dining room made Ning Xi very nervous. She didn't even dare to breathe, her heart pounding.

Would they... start fighting?

The girl couldn't help but worry, feeling like crying at the same time. It was just tutoring, why did it feel like a battlefield...

"Among all the words in the world, the character 'qing' (love/emotion) is the most unique!"

Ye Fan sat upright, his calm and ambitious aura radiating naturally, making it easy to forget that he was just a high school student. Facing Ning Xiangtian, a man who had been in a position of power for a long time, he didn't show any weakness in the battle of auras.

He can be as strong as he wants, I am but a gentle breeze.

"Oh?" Ning Xiangtian lowered his head, his right hand tapping on the table. "And why is that?"

Ye Fan looked up slightly, his gaze shifting to Ning Xi. His eyes were filled with memories as he said in a deep and powerful voice, "'Qing' can hurt and heal. It encompasses joy, anger, sorrow, happiness, love, hate, and desire. It can make heroes bend their knees and women shed tears. It has vicissitudes, innocence, and beauty."

"This character is truly unique!"

Silence—

The dining room was completely silent.

Ning Xi's eyes were fixed on Ye Fan.

He was... very handsome just now!

Meeting Ye Fan's gaze, the girl's usual shyness faded, and her cheeks unconsciously dimpled, her smile radiant.

At this moment, she felt like...

A hint of joy flashed in Ye Fan's eyes. He could clearly sense the change in Ning Xi's gaze.

Planting willows unintentionally, yet enjoying their shade.

Ning Xiangtian and Lan Xi were both shocked. Ye Fan's words had stirred something deep within them.

"Clap, clap..."

After more than ten seconds of silence, Lan Xi clapped gently, her face full of admiration. "Well said! If I hadn't seen and heard it myself, it would be hard to believe that these words came from the mouth of a high school student."

Then, she emphasized again, "Truly well said!"

"You flatter me, Sister Lan."

Ye Fan looked away, not showing any pride. "Just a humble opinion, I hope you and Uncle Ning aren't laughing at me."

"Young people shouldn't be too modest. You should be proud when it's appropriate." Lan Xi smiled.

A flicker of guilt appeared in Ning Xiangtian's eyes. His answer wasn't the same as Ye Fan's. But after hearing Ye Fan's answer and thinking about his own, he instantly lost confidence.

"Ahem..."

"That answer... wasn't bad."

"Thank you, Uncle."

Ye Fan nodded, a faint smile on his face. "Uncle, do you have any other questions? Ask them all at once, I'll answer anything you want to know."

Ning Xiangtian's face twitched.

He had wanted to embarrass Ye Fan, but unexpectedly, not only was the boy not embarrassed, but he had also shone brilliantly.

This wouldn't do!

"The Six Dynasties, besides Song, Qi, Liang, and Chen, what are the other two?"

"Eastern Wu and Eastern Jin."

"The Six Ministries, History, Revenue, Rites, War..."

"Justice and Works."

"..."

Seeing Ning Xiangtian's silence, Ye Fan took the initiative to speak. "The Six Principles of Poetry: Fu, Bi, Xing, Feng, Ya, and Song."

"The Six Categories of Female Matchmakers: Mei, Wu, Ya, Qian, Yao, and Wen."

"The Six Classics: Classic of Poetry, Spring and Autumn Annals, Book of Documents, Book of Rites, Book of Changes, and Classic of Music."

"The Six Writings: Pictograms, Ideograms, Logograms, Phono-semantic Compounds, Mutually Explanatory Characters, and Rebus."

"The Six Grains..."

...

"The Six Arts: Ritual, Music, Archery, Charioteering, Calligraphy, and Mathematics."

Ten minutes later, Ye Fan stopped, his throat dry. He blinked at Ning Xi and asked with a smile, "Xiao Xi, can you pour me a glass of water?"

"Huh? ...Yes, of course!"

Ning Xi, who had been listening attentively, quickly came back to her senses and stood up to pour a glass of water, her eyes sparkling.

He was so amazing... no, he was too amazing!!!

"Thank you."

Ye Fan took the glass of water from Ning Xi and nodded politely at Ning Xiangtian. "Uncle Ning, why don't we stop here for today? If we continue, the food will get cold."

"..."

Ning Xiangtian's face darkened. At this moment, he was so frustrated that he almost vomited blood.

Answering, answering ahead of time, asking and answering his own questions...

This kid was too damn abnormal!

In this battle, he had been completely defeated.

Lan Xi couldn't stop laughing, her face still holding a trace of amazement. Her admiration for Ye Fan grew, and she rolled her eyes at her husband. "Alright, let's start eating."

...

After dinner, Ye Fan and Ning Xi returned to the study.

As soon as they entered, the girl locked the door and turned to face Ye Fan, her eyes sparkling with excitement, a faint blush on her fair face. "Wow, you were amazing!"

"You know, I was so worried..."

As she spoke, Ning Xi's face suddenly flushed red, her long eyelashes fluttering.

Ye Fan reached out and held Ning Xi's hand, his voice gentle. "Don't just stand there, sit down and let's talk."

Feeling the warmth from his hand, Ning Xi's face felt hot, but surprisingly, she didn't resist. She let Ye Fan pull her to sit down, countless stars seeming to twinkle in her eyes.

The girl didn't know what love was, but she knew that her heart...

Had been touched!

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