C74 The Young Mistress’s English Tutoring~
English review starts with memorizing vocabulary……
It’s too late.
As they say, if the foundation is not solid, the earth will shake and the mountains will quake. It’s like if the Aki Fuji Onsen Inn, as an onsen inn, definitely needs to have an onsen! (Clap~ Clap~)
However, the current situation with Shion is that the onsen inn doesn’t even have an onsen yet, and the guests are already waiting at the door. If the door isn’t opened soon, the guests will complain!
So, Rie decided to skip the ‘heat water to make an onsen’ stage for Shion and move directly to the ‘open the door to greet guests’ stage. In other words, ‘cramming at the last minute.’
Rie leaned close to Shion, bending over to explain various techniques in detail. ‘Shion, look at the keywords mentioned in the question stem; mark them and then find them in the passage…… Look, you found it, mark it here.’ Rie used both hands, one pointing at the keywords in the question stem, the other at the relevant part in the passage.
‘Then, you can match them and see what the passage is saying about this point. I think even if you can’t read the entire text, reading just these few sentences is manageable.’ Rie adjusted a few loose strands of hair from her bun, her long red hair drifting onto the practice workbook.
‘Yes~’ Shion nodded, looking at the problem while inhaling a pleasant, floral fragrance from Rie. It was the scent of flowers, different from the incense used at the inn’s front desk, a pure, herbaceous fragrance without the harshness of cheap perfumes.
‘Good, now try the next question on your own.’ Rie softly said, pointing to the next problem.
Shion took a deep breath, focusing on the question. After memorizing its content, she looked back into the passage. Although reading in English was still stilted, the intense review over the past few days meant Shion was no longer intimidated by English passages. This method of intense review seemed to be somewhat effective.
Although she didn’t want to do it again.
But after the weekend, she would have to continue.
Shion picked up her pen and carefully searched through, finally choosing what she thought was the correct answer.
‘A…… is it?’ Shion asked hesitantly.
‘That’s right! Shion, you’re amazing.’ Rie reached out, gently stroking Shion’s hair. ‘It looks like my teaching over the past few days hasn’t been in vain. But if your speed could be a bit faster, that would be even better, since the exam time is only two periods.’
Rie’s hand was soft, and the way she stroked Shion’s hair had an inexplicable charm, drawing one in with its warmth.
‘Shion, push a little harder, and finish this practice test. After that, you can rest.’ Rie handed Shion a practice test, encouraging her from the side.
Shion nodded, took the test, and began writing.
Who knows how much time had passed, but it felt like a long time. Shion, sitting at the desk, meticulously completed a practice test for the first time in a long while. Although her English skills were truly lacking, this time, she persevered, tackling each question one by one using Rie’s methods. Even for questions she didn’t understand, scratching her head helped her come up with some ideas, though only a few.
Rie sat beside Shion, giving her space. Midway, she tiptoed out of the room to handle some inn business, as the weekend was indeed the peak time for the onsen inn to receive guests.
After timing it, Rie pushed open the small room’s door. As she opened it, Rie’s alarm went off, signaling the end of the mock exam.
Hearing the alarm, Shion finally collapsed onto the desk, completely exhausted. Had Rie arrived a few minutes later, she might have only found two ‘shells’ on the bamboo chair.
‘Shion, you’ve worked hard.’ Rie walked over to Shion, placing the tray she had just brought in. The tray was also bamboo, with two glass cups holding fresh orange juice, garnished with two small green leaves.
Rie placed a glass of orange juice in front of Shion and patted her shoulder. ‘Shion, take a break. I brought you some juice.’
At the sight of food, Shion sat up, her eyes shining as she looked at the orange juice. In this, she and Ayane were a bit alike. Shion took the orange juice Rie offered and sipped it lightly.
It was a bit sour, but it was definitely fresh-squeezed, and delicious!
Rie adjusted her yukata, sitting elegantly beside Shion. Her posture was exquisitely refined, radiating the bearing of a young lady. She took out the answer sheet for the practice test and carefully checked it.
From initial frowns to slight relaxation.
‘Shion, what was your English score on the entrance exam……’ Rie suddenly asked, causing Shion to choke on her orange juice.
‘Cough, cough, cough……’ At the mention of scores, Shion couldn’t help but cough. Rie patted her back, ‘Are you okay, Shion?’
‘Um, my entrance exam English score…… it was, it was…… probably around thirty points?’ Shion said, blushing. ‘My grades are really, really bad.’
Hearing this, Rie wasn’t sure whether to sigh in relief or draw in a cold breath. Shion’s score was indeed a bit…… tricky.
However, at least it had improved now.
Rie took out the practice test Shion had just done, showing her the graded results. The page was marked with numerous red checks for incorrect answers, but there were also some red circles for correct ones.
‘Fifty marks. Although it’s still ten points below the passing grade, considering Shion’s entrance exam score of around thirty, I think there’s been significant progress.’ Rie said, ‘But Shion still needs to keep working hard! This score still isn’t enough to reach the top hundred in the grade.’
……At least compared to her past self, this was a huge improvement? Shion thought. She didn’t know whether to cry or laugh, but progress was progress!
Rie stood up, taking a soft beige yukata with delicate pink cherry blossoms embroidered on it from a nearby cabinet, as if custom-made for Shion. Even a glance told you the size would fit Shion perfectly, allowing her to wear it comfortably.
‘We’ve been studying for a long time today. Shion, would you like to change into a yukata and experience our inn’s onsen? It’s free!’