Chapter 23: Business is Booming
"Huh? Dan-kun took off his mask!" Yuigahama's eyes lit up as she stared at Duan Shiji.
Duan Shiji froze on the spot, even his speech began to stammer: "Th-this isn't th-that surprising, right…"
"I've never seen Dan-kun without his mask before," Yuigahama said, clearly excited.
"Uh… r-really?"
On the other side, Yukinoshita frowned at the sight.
Could it be… a case of situational social anxiety? If so, then I still can't rule out the possibility that he has a social anxiety disorder…
"Alright, Yuigahama, it's really not something that surprising…" Thinking this, Yukinoshita quickly cut in to help him out.
Gratefully glancing at Yukinoshita, Duan Shiji buried his head and started eating…
After lunch, Duan Shiji tidied up the table and then slapped his Book of Han onto it.
"Huh? What's this?" Yuigahama leaned over again when she saw it.
Now that he had put his mask back on, Duan Shiji felt like both his physical and magical defenses were at max, so he didn't stammer anymore.
"It's the Book of Han. Wait a sec, Yuigahama-san, didn't the teacher go over this in class…" Duan Shiji said, showing her the cover.
"Huh? Ahaha? Really?" Yuigahama gave a dry laugh, trying to brush it off.
"The Book of Han was written by Ban Gu during the Eastern Han Dynasty. It records the history of the Western Han period and is China's first dynastic history. Along with the Records of the Grand Historian, Book of the Later Han, and Records of the Three Kingdoms, it's one of the Four Histories," Yukinoshita added, pressing her hand to her forehead.
"Ehehe~" Yuigahama laughed foolishly.
"That's mostly correct, but the Book of Han actually wasn't written by Ban Gu alone. It was completed by four people in total: Ban Biao, Ban Gu, Ban Zhao, and Ma Xu," Duan Shiji added.
"First, Ban Biao, who was Ban Gu's father, continued the Records of the Grand Historian, laying the foundation for Ban Gu's work. Ban Gu was imprisoned and died before he could finish it."
"So, the emperor ordered his sister Ban Zhao to continue the work and also assigned Ban Gu's student Ma Xu to write the Treatise on Astronomy. That's how the Book of Han was completed… Oh, and Ban Gu also had a famous younger brother named Ban Chao."
"Ugh… I think I'm getting dizzy…" Yuigahama was completely confused by the similar-sounding Ban family names.
"Hmm… pretty convoluted…" Even Yukinoshita found it a bit tough to follow.
Although Mandarin is a required subject, the Yamato people, as the largest ethnic minority, have slightly looser standards for Mandarin within their autonomous region.
But even so, getting confused by just a few names meant that Yuigahama's Mandarin was still in the "unqualified" range.
Compared to Yuigahama, Yukinoshita's Mandarin was clearly in the "qualified" range.
"Wait a sec, wait a sec—Ban Zhao is Ban Gu's sister, right? Girls in ancient times could write books?" Yuigahama suddenly asked.
"Daughters in the Han Dynasty could even inherit their fathers' noble titles. Why wouldn't they be allowed to write books? Back then, the oppression of women wasn't as harsh. It mainly worsened during the Song Dynasty when Neo-Confucianism started rising," Duan Shiji explained.
"Daughters in the Han Dynasty could inherit noble titles?" Yukinoshita tilted her head, looking puzzled.
"Of course they could. Though, only if there were no sons to inherit…"
…
As a result, Duan Shiji didn't manage to flip through much of his Book of Han before the lunch break ended. Most of the time was spent chatting with beautiful girls…
Not that he had anything to complain about. After all, who wouldn't want to talk with pretty girls?
Even so, Duan Shiji still hoped that there wouldn't be any requests in the afternoon, so he could happily read his Book of Han without worries.
But alas, things never go as planned…
Afternoon, Service Club…
Knock knock knock~
"Come in."
"Um, is this the Service Club?" A short-haired girl with brown hair and bright reddish-purple eyes peeked in, her voice soft and gentle.
"Yes. Do you have a request?" Of course, that question was answered by the club president, Yukinoshita.
"Yes, um…" Though she was in a somewhat unfamiliar environment, the girl seemed fairly composed.
"Ah, have a seat first," Yuigahama quickly pulled out the chair on the other side of the long table.
Ever since that cookie request, Yuigahama had practically moved in—showing up at the club every day after school.
"Ah, thank you," the girl said, sitting down.
"You're May 7th Huixiang from Class 2-C, right?" Yukinoshita really lived up to her reputation—she had practically memorized the entire school.
"Eh? Yukinoshita-san knows me?" May 7th Huixiang looked surprised.
"It's nothing. I just remember everyone's name," Yukinoshita brushed it off quickly and got to the point, "So, what brings you here today, May 7th-san?"
"Ah, it's like this—my cat went missing…" Talking about the issue, May 7th became serious.
"Cat?" Yukinoshita seemed to perk up at the word and listened attentively.
"Yes, here's a drawing of it…" May 7th handed over a paper with a drawing of the cat.
"Hmm, how big is it roughly?" Yukinoshita glanced at it and then asked.
Duan Shiji also took a look. The drawing was quite good, and there were clear notes below: mixed breed with Persian lineage, gray fur, sleepy temperament, and so on…
"About this big…" May 7th raised her hands to show the size.
"Okay… When did it go missing?" Yukinoshita asked, frowning a little. The chances of finding it were looking slim.
"About… a week ago, I think…" May 7th tilted her head, trying to recall.
"Where was the last place you saw it?"
"I'm not too sure. That day, some relatives came over, and after they left, it was just gone…"
"So there's a good chance it's still near your home…" Yukinoshita rubbed her chin in thought.
"Looks like we'll need to search around your neighborhood…" she concluded.
Knock knock knock~ Just as the two were about to discuss next steps, another knock came.
"Excuse me, is this the Service Club?" a male voice said.
"Yes, come in."
Business is surprisingly booming today… Duan Shiji silently complained, tucking his Book of Han back into his bag.
Clack~ The clubroom door opened and in walked a boy and a girl.
"Um, is Senior May 7th Huixiang here?" asked the boy with brown hair and dark green eyes.
"Huh? You're looking for me?" May 7th turned her head, puzzled.