DDT - Chapter 87

Chapter 87: Female Ghost × Little Pitiful One (17)

Perhaps it was because she had Chi Junluo's company for the latter half of the night, but Yi Shuhan slept very sweetly. The next morning, she woke up early, even before the hospital's morning alarm rang. Blinking in the darkness, the anticipation of dawn filled Yi Shuhan with excitement. It had been a long time since she had looked forward to anything—or anyone—so eagerly!

During the night, Chi Junluo had received the painter's memories, which the Heavenly Dao had filtered several times. After absorbing them, it was as if the skill had become her own instinct. Chi Junluo thought to herself that whatever she pictured in her mind, she could now render with her hand. With such a wealth of theoretical knowledge and practical memory, teaching a child at the peak of her learning ability should be no problem at all.

Chi Junluo hugged the girl in her arms, and without even realizing it herself, a faint smile crept onto her lips.

She was also very much looking forward to their time together.

Perhaps because she had woken up too early, or perhaps due to her excitement, Yi Shuhan felt that time was passing incredibly slowly. Without a watch or a phone in the windowless Room No. 1, she had no concept of time. She had no idea how long had passed—so long that she started counting sheep out of boredom.

Her eyes were wide open in the darkness. For a moment, the phrase "a day feels like a year" came to mind. No, right now it felt more like a minute felt like a year.

After what felt like an eternity, Yi Shuhan and Chi Junluo finally heard the wake-up bell.

With an excited spring in her step, Yi Shuhan waited for Chi Junluo to cling to her back before happily heading out to wash up.

The washroom was particularly crowded in the early morning. Yi Shuhan accidentally bumped into an older woman. Just as she was about to apologize, the woman looked as if she had seen a ghost, so frightened that she dropped her toothpaste on the floor.

Yi Shuhan: ???

Ignoring the woman's terrified expression, Yi Shuhan cheerfully finished washing up and went to get breakfast.

Breakfast was a bowl of vegetable congee and a basket of small steamed buns. As Yi Shuhan was burying her head in her food, she thought she heard the sound of someone swallowing saliva beside her ear.

"Chi Chi, do you want to eat?" Yi Shuhan paused for a moment and asked softly.

Chi Junluo clearly hadn't expected Yi Shuhan to ask such a question. She had been a ghost in this world for quite some time now, and she truly hadn't had a single drop of water or a bite of food.

She actually, damn it, missed human food! Even if it was just a bowl of vegetable congee and some ordinary steamed buns!

Chi Junluo didn't respond for a long time. A hint of a smile appeared in Yi Shuhan's eyes. "Chi Chi, I heard you swallow~"

"No, I didn't," Chi Junluo felt a little flustered and quickly denied it.

Yi Shuhan didn't press the issue. She secretly made up her mind to find a chance to ask that little boy, Shi Qi. From what he had said last time, he seemed quite experienced when it came to ghosts. Perhaps he knew a way to feed Chi Chi.

After leisurely finishing her breakfast, Yi Shuhan eagerly took Chi Junluo to the library. It was still too early, and the library hadn't opened yet. After waiting for about half an hour, the nurse in charge of the library finally sauntered over.

The nurse glanced at Yi Shuhan, took out a key, and opened the door. The library hadn't been aired out yet, and the air inside was stuffy.

After getting a notebook and pencil from the nurse, Yi Shuhan specifically found a distant corner to sit down.

Spreading the lined notebook open on the table, Yi Shuhan picked up the pencil and glanced around. Seeing that no one was paying attention to her, she happily began to communicate with Chi Junluo.

In the unseen world, Yi Shuhan felt a cool hand gently rest on her right hand, holding it tenderly.

The pressure was just right, not too light and not too heavy. Chi Junluo guided Yi Shuhan's hand to sketch a beautiful outline on the blank page, then began to draw neat, orderly lines of varying lengths.

The tip of the pencil rustled against the paper. With the memories of a master painter, Chi Junluo taught Yi Shuhan with absolute clarity.

At first, Chi Junluo taught Yi Shuhan to draw the most basic geometric objects, using a somewhat thick book as a reference. First, she sketched the basic shape, then taught Yi Shuhan how to distinguish between light and shadow, and finally showed her how to use simple, dense lines of different lengths to express the shading of each surface.

Perhaps it was thanks to the master's skill, or perhaps Yi Shuhan herself had some innate talent, but the first drawing, created under Chi Junluo's hand-over-hand guidance, came to life on the page.

Without giving Yi Shuhan time to marvel, Chi Junluo had her switch from a single book to a stack of books. This time, she didn't hold her hand, instead letting Yi Shuhan feel it out for herself.

Perhaps some people truly are gifted. Although it took Yi Shuhan a bit longer, she managed to neatly outline the stack of books. After keenly identifying the light and shadow relationships, and with Chi Junluo's reminders and guidance, the basic shading and shadows quickly took form under her hand.

Chi Junluo didn't hold back her praise. For a beginner with no foundation to draw something like this on their first try was, one could say, very "nice."

For the next few hours, Chi Junluo found all sorts of geometric objects for Yi Shuhan to draw as references. Soon, Yi Shuhan had learned how to analyze the perspective of various objects.

The pseudo-painter, Teacher Chi Junluo, was very satisfied with the performance of her genius student, Yi Shuhan. A student who could grasp concepts so quickly and apply them was truly rare.

Time flew by as the two were lost in their own sweet world. Soon, it was time for lunch. With Chi Junluo on her back, Yi Shuhan quickly wolfed down her meal in the cafeteria and then hurried back to the library.

Today, Chi Junluo was teaching Yi Shuhan basic sketching and quick sketching. Because the library had limited materials, there was no way to teach her how to use watercolors or paints for the time being.

In the afternoon, after another hour of practicing still life, Chi Junluo boldly decided to teach Yi Shuhan how to do a quick sketch of the nurse at the library entrance.

After explaining the basic points, just like in the morning, Chi Junluo first held Yi Shuhan's hand to draw the initial lines, then explained the basic proportions of the five facial features. Soon, the nurse's outline appeared on the paper.

Yi Shuhan's eyes sparkled, and the corners of her mouth curled up unconsciously, her face filled with an excitement and happiness she herself hadn't noticed.

With the master's experience, Chi Junluo's strokes were divine. With a few quick movements, a complete sketch of the nurse was presented on the page.

"Chi Chi, you're amazing!"

Yi Shuhan turned her head, her smiling eyes curving as she praised her.

Only a few centimeters separated the two faces. The proximity made Chi Junluo blush slightly. She suddenly realized that her interactions with Yi Shuhan were far too intimate.

Well, it was all the fault of the Power of the Heavenly Dao. It had nothing to do with her, Chi Junluo. Attributing the excessive intimacy to the necessary collection of the Heavenly Dao's power, Chi Junluo didn't dwell on it.

She turned to a new page, released Yi Shuhan's hand, and let her try to get a feel for it herself. With Chi Junluo's detailed explanation and her own considerable talent, Yi Shuhan's first attempt at drawing a person was quite impressive.

Although she still had trouble with the facial features, Yi Shuhan did a decent job with the nurse's basic outline, hair, and clothes. The various folds, subtle shading, and shadows were all drawn very well.

She praised Yi Shuhan without reservation, which actually made Yi Shuhan blush.

She had never expected to have such a talent for drawing, something she had never tried before. After all, in her small county town, there were no places that specifically taught art. Even if there were, her family's financial situation would have made it impossible for her to attend.

Yi Shuhan was very grateful to Chi Junluo for opening such a novel door for her. Immersed in their activity, neither the girl nor the ghost noticed how quickly time was passing.

Outside, the sun was already setting in the west, and the sky was turning a grayish-red. The nurse turned on the lights in the library.

The sudden brightness of the room finally caught their attention. At this hour, the cafeteria was about to close. Yi Shuhan gathered the drawings and hid them on her person, returned the pencil and notebook to the shelf by the door, then slipped out of the library and ran toward the dining hall.

After using her brain all afternoon, her eyes were a little blurry. Yi Shuhan jogged to the cafeteria. Fortunately, there was still some food left, though it was a bit cold.

Not minding that, Yi Shuhan got her food and walked toward the corner where she usually sat. To her surprise, she saw the little boy, Shi Qi, sitting there, slowly and methodically eating his dinner.

During the day, Yi Shuhan had been thinking about finding some time to look for him. She hadn't expected to run into him at dinner.

"Shi Qi!" Yi Shuhan walked over and greeted him. The little boy looked up, and seeing the young woman he had met once before, his eyes curved into a smile as he replied, "Hello, Sister!"

Then he looked at Yi Shuhan's shoulder. "Hello, Sister Chi~"

Chi Junluo smiled in response to Shi Qi. Yi Shuhan decided to sit down opposite him.

The two ate in silence as the dining hall gradually emptied. Seeing that Shi Qi had finished his meal and was about to return his tray, Yi Shuhan suddenly turned her head. "Chi Chi, why don't you go back first? I'm going to take a shower at the bathhouse before I head back."

Chi Junluo was a little surprised by Yi Shuhan's sudden decision to shower, but she didn't think much of it. She never followed Yi Shuhan when she went to bathe. After all, following a young girl to watch her bathe was not only impolite, but also a bit creepy.

So, Chi Junluo whispered a few words of caution in Yi Shuhan's ear, then let go. The powerful suction from Room No. 1 pulled at her, and with a thrilling whoosh, she was back in her old spot in the blink of an eye.

Across from Yi Shuhan, Shi Qi's eyes were wide as he stared at the young woman.

Then he heard Yi Shuhan ask, "Shi Qi, do you know how a ghost can eat?"

Shi Qi's eyes widened even more in surprise. "Sister Shuhan, are you trying to send food to Sister Chi?"

Yi Shuhan nodded seriously. From a distance, one could only see two small heads huddled together, whispering about something.

Chi Junluo waited in Room No. 1 for a long time before she saw Yi Shuhan push the door open and walk in, her hair still wet. Habitually clinging to Yi Shuhan's back, Chi Junluo nuzzled her head into the crook of Yi Shuhan's neck and sighed contentedly, "Shuhan, you smell so good."

Perhaps it was the special atmosphere of Room No. 1, but Yi Shuhan could actually feel a fluffy head rubbing against her neck. The ticklish sensation was mixed with some unknown emotion. Yi Shuhan froze for a moment before saying with a laugh, "What do you think I am, the Fragrant Concubine? It's just the smell of my shampoo and body wash."

As Yi Shuhan was joking with Chi Junluo, the door was suddenly pushed open from the outside.

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