Psychological block? This was the first time Wang Qiqi had ever heard Huang Rong use that term, or perhaps she simply hadn't considered for days why she was so clumsy, making absolutely no progress—the reason might actually be this. In Qiqi's mind, she thought maybe fate didn't want her to be too perfect.

Although Wang Qiqi wasn't sure if Huang Rong’s reasoning was correct, she found it quite plausible. Why not give it a try? With this thought, Wang Qiqi continuously fed herself mental affirmations: Qiqi, you can do this. Remember, you are a capable child. There’s no reason you can't even manage the simplest scarf. You need to knit a long-overdue scarf for your parents, an affectionate one for Han Tao, and you still owe Bai Ge a debt—though she might prefer buying a nice ready-made one for herself.

After closing her eyes and performing the mental suggestions for a long time, feeling that her mindset had adjusted well, Wang Qiqi opened her eyes again and said to Huang Rong, "Auntie, thank you." Then she lowered her head and plunged back into the struggle with the yarn and knitting needles. Whether it was because she had finally grasped the feeling of knitting after studying for so long, or because the fear of knitting had lessened after the psychological workup, Wang Qiqi realized she had seemingly conquered the first major hurdle in knitting a scarf: casting on.

When Huang Rong saw Qiqi open her eyes to thank her again, she knew Qiqi would likely learn the cast-on that day. To be honest, Huang Rong had carefully observed Wang Qiqi’s casting-on process; her hand movements and technique were all correct. She genuinely couldn't understand why success eluded her despite everything being right, which is why she had tried saying what she did. The outcome proved that the child truly lacked confidence.

Not wanting to miss the supposed miracle of knitting happening, Huang Rong watched Wang Qiqi’s needles without blinking. As Qiqi’s movements grew more practiced, a smile slowly spread across Huang Rong's face. "Qiqi, I told you, you’re a smart child; there's no way you couldn't learn something this simple." A long row of stitches had already appeared on the previously bare needles. Although she didn't check if the cast-on was correct, Huang Rong's first instinct was that Qiqi must have succeeded this time. "Here, let me take a look and confirm."

Although Wang Qiqi was the one doing the work, all her focus had been on how to cast on, leaving no extraneous thoughts in her mind. When she heard Huang Rong’s words, Wang Qiqi snapped back to reality, realizing a row of stitches had actually formed on the needles. Wang Qiqi found it incredible. With a mix of excitement and apprehension, she handed the needles to Huang Rong.

Huang Rong examined them closely. "You've learned to cast on. Next, we’ll learn how to knit the scarf."

Hearing this, Wang Qiqi instantly felt the weather was wonderful, not hot at all. Her smile crinkled her eyes shut. "Okay, thank you, Auntie." If Huang Rong hadn't prompted her, she estimated it would have taken her another ten years to learn.

In the subsequent process of knitting stitches, Wang Qiqi felt the learning went incredibly smoothly, not difficult at all. Before long, she had actually knit a small section. Wang Qiqi proudly held the needles high to show Huang Rong her achievement. "It’s actually quite simple, isn't it? Hmph. This is my first piece. I’ll show it to Bai Ge later and let her know what she missed out on." (This child completely forgot the suffering she endured in previous days and the image of being equated with a fool in Huang Rong's eyes.) "Auntie, once I finish this one, teach me something slightly more challenging." She planned to give the second scarf to Bai Ge, and knit a highly complex one for Han Tao. Furthermore, she still needed to learn how to knit a sweater. Wang Qiqi was determined that the sweater she made wouldn't be worse than the one Shi Man made for Feng Xuanxiang. She would proudly show off her finished piece in front of Shi Man to properly provoke that person—even if Shi Man was the first to knit a sweater, the quality would be hers.

The greedy Wang Qiqi had completely forgotten that she was still just a beginner, and this was only the simplest style of scarf. She was already thinking about knitting a sweater. It must be said, Qiqi’s state of mind was simply excellent, so good that it left Huang Rong beside her speechless.

Hearing that Wang Qiqi had already planned out the distribution and difficulty levels for her next two scarves before even finishing the first one, Huang Rong was astonished. Well, however difficult a scarf might be, the difficulty lay only in the pattern variations; it couldn't get that hard. But the fact that Wang Qiqi intended to learn sweaters made Huang Rong feel this level of ambition was extraordinary. Although Qiqi had essentially mastered scarf knitting, the difficulty of sweaters was on an entirely different plane. Huang Rong thought Qiqi was simply daydreaming. "Qiqi, you can't get fat in one bite. Sweaters are much more difficult than scarves." However, Qiqi having such lofty goals was pleasantly surprising to Huang Rong. Considering the initial agreement, for every period Qiqi spent learning knitting from her, she had to teach her daughter English for the same duration. Seeing Qiqi progress so rapidly, Huang Rong had begun to regret the deal, thinking that at this pace, Qiqi would be done in a week at most. Then where would she find such a cheap and good tutor? Now, with the added commitment of learning sweaters, this was great news.

Wang Qiqi hadn't expected that the thoughts she pondered internally would spill out so foolishly. She could only offer a silly chuckle. "I thought scarf knitting was the pinnacle of my knitting education. I didn't expect there would be a day I'd knit a full sweater. Just thinking that I can create a sweater with a 'Mom's touch' makes me incredibly excited. Even if the style isn't as good as store-bought, these are all knit by me, stitch by stitch." Wang Qiqi was still thinking that since she had mastered this, she would focus more effort here, striving so that in the near future, her knitted sweaters could compare, or even surpass, those bought in stores or machine-made.

"And I worry about my dear little Yanxia too." Although Wang Qiqi hadn't interacted much with Feng Yanxia, she knew the girl was very sensible and well-behaved. "Actually, Auntie, Yanxia is very smart. It's just that she hasn't grasped the key points for learning English, leading to several poor test scores, which has made her afraid of the subject. Furthermore, even with the tutor you hired, her grades haven't improved, adding significant pressure for her." Wang Qiqi analyzed calmly. "I plan to take her out for a walk on the weekend." Perhaps to an English Corner, so she could hear how native speakers talk, letting her realize that the thing she feared wasn't something foreigners mastered inherently either. Recently, although Wang Qiqi’s teaching of Feng Yanxia followed the secret manual and yielded satisfactory reactions, Qiqi knew the curse in her heart hadn't been lifted.

Huang Rong certainly had no objections. Even though exams were approaching, staying cooped up at home wasn't good for her daughter's mindset either. "Oh, that would be too much trouble. Aren't you quite busy usually?" Huang Rong thought Qiqi was aiming to be a translator, so she must be busy; she had noticed the dark circles under Qiqi's eyes several times, which indicated how busy she must be.

"It's fine, I usually don't have much to do on weekends at home," Wang Qiqi replied with a smile. "I rarely go out; this is a good chance for me to stretch my legs." The weather in May was a bit warm, but the heat was bearable. By June, Wang Qiqi would rather hide at home.

Huang Rong looked at Wang Qiqi with confusion. "Don't you need to spend time with your boyfriend?" Wasn't he going abroad? Why wasn't the girl accompanying him? "It’s not just me saying it, Auntie, but when men are separated from you for too long, things inevitably happen, especially if he’s going abroad and you are too." Even the strongest affection can't withstand years apart.

Wang Qiqi appreciated Huang Rong's well-meaning concern. If Huang Rong hadn't found her somewhat acceptable, Qiqi was sure she wouldn't have been so talkative. "He studies computer science; he’s glued to his computer on weekends anyway. Besides, I’m going abroad to study with him next year, and he needs to check out schools in the US during his winter break."

Going abroad together? Huang Rong quickly glanced at Wang Qiqi, who was diligently focused on the yarn with her head down. Although she knew Qiqi’s family was well-off, she hadn't expected they would be going abroad. "Going abroad is great. I wonder if my Yanxia will have that fortune when she grows up." Studying abroad was such an eye-catching achievement, but the cost—Huang Rong could only sigh. Even though the shop business was good, after deducting household expenses, how much was left over? Otherwise, she wouldn't be pushing her daughter so hard to study well, just so she wouldn't have to pay sponsorship fees later.

Going abroad seemed like a source of pride then, just as international travel was an activity reserved for the wealthy. But in another seven or eight years, studying abroad would likely be quite commonplace. "Going abroad isn't necessarily better; the pressure abroad might not be lower, and there's more to learn than domestically." Wang Qiqi was just saying that; those set on going abroad wouldn't abandon their plans because of a few words from her, and those lacking the funds could only envy them.

Huang Rong only listened with half an ear to Qiqi’s words. She felt that regardless, obtaining a foreign university degree would lead to better job prospects than one from a domestic key university, likely with higher pay too. "When you return, your job prospects will surely be good."

Return? Good job? Wang Qiqi could only smile wryly. She couldn't exactly tell her that she was going abroad primarily to see foreign scenery, and that her greatest ambition in life was to become a traveler. If she said that out loud, Huang Rong would probably stop teaching her daughter immediately, or watch her with extreme vigilance, fearing she might corrupt the girl. "I hope so. Maybe I won't come back."

Huang Rong understood that too; wasn't the point of studying abroad often to settle down overseas permanently? She realized she had been foolish. Thinking about finding a job upon return was premature. If her daughter went abroad and established herself there, then she too could move abroad to retire later. With this thought, Huang Rong felt she had to work hard to earn money and manage the shop well; otherwise, where would her daughter get the funds for overseas study? She'd heard that foreign welfare systems were quite good, suitable for retirement. (To be continued)