In the morning, the various households had just sent their young masters to the Palace School. Not even four hours later, the ladies of the inner chambers received news from the front courtyards: the young masters were back.
“Why so early today?”
“It’s not even noon. Could something have happened to Xu’er that caused…”
Just the thought of such a possibility made the ladies feel faint with worry. The situation was much the same across all the mansions. Some households even alarmed the Old Madames, who, wearing expressions as if their grandsons had “pierced the heavens and caused a catastrophe,” sent sons or grandsons who could move about the front yards to the masters’ government offices to inquire about what exactly had transpired.
Everyone feared the worst.
After all, it had been two years since His Majesty opened the Palace School, and this was the first time their children had been sent out so quickly.
As the young masters emerged from the palace and entered their respective gates, they usually went first to the inner chambers to pay their respects to their elders. Today, however, they were met by servants from their grandmothers’ or mothers’ sides as soon as they reached the inner quarters, all of whom looked anxious and distressed.
After a bout of chaotic commotion, the young masters finally managed to explain what had happened in Chongming Hall.
“I wouldn’t dare speak nonsense. It truly was Xu Duofu who hit Tian Wenhe first. Later, His Majesty sent a Eunuch to investigate, and that Eunuch was very biased toward Xu Duofu, so he just told us to come back.” This was from one of the more straightforward boys.
“…Mother, Eunuch Zhao asked several times. I feel there’s something fishy about this. Usually, I don’t play with Tian Wenhe. Du Chong is the one close to him. This fight had nothing to do with me, so please don’t worry.” This was from a slightly clever one.
“I don’t know! I heard there was a fight. Xu Duofu was beaten down and fainted by Tian Wenhe. I didn’t see it myself, but when I went over to look, Xu Duofu was already unconscious. It was terrifying. His Majesty issued an oral decree for us to return.” This was from a muddled one who didn’t understand the situation.
“When Eunuch Zhao was asking, I remembered Grandmother’s words and didn’t dare stand out at the Palace School. Everyone was afraid to speak; the atmosphere was very strange. Later, it was Li Ang who spoke up, and he even mentioned what happened four days ago…”
“What happened four days ago?”
Du Chong was filled with worry. Four days ago, he had been the most vocal critic, and he had felt quite satisfied at the time. Now…
His father would be back from the office any moment.
Compared to the officials’ residences, the mansions of the imperial kin were not as jumpy. They also asked their children what had happened, but the imperial scions had mostly just watched the excitement without getting involved. Once the families heard their children’s accounts, the matter was dropped.
“Still, Li Ang is Princess Changping’s most beloved grandson. Why is he sucking up to a eunuch’s son?”
“Why else? When the Great Ancestor was alive, Princess Changping was greatly favored. To have a Prince’s daughter titled a Princess was rare. Now, it can only be said that His Majesty treats the imperial kin as if they don’t exist.”
“No matter how much things have changed, royal blood still flows in his veins. To debase himself now by flattering a castrate’s son… Hmph, Third Son, don’t you go playing with Li Ang anymore. Stay away from him.”
“I know, Father.”
The Great Ancestor, Zhong Yu, had three sons. Back when the Great Ancestor overthrew the previous dynasty and led the uprising, all three sons followed their father and achieved great military distinction. The only tragedy was the Great Ancestor’s eldest son, who died in battle saving his father. At the time, this event had incited the army’s fury, leading to an unstoppable momentum.
The following year, the fifty-five-year-old Great Ancestor ascended the throne, changing the dynastic name to Sheng and the era name to Tianyuan.
The Great Ancestor grieved most for his eldest son, posthumously titling him the Prince of Qianyang and exceptionally titling his only daughter as Princess Changping. She was Li Ang’s grandmother.
Due to the Great Ancestor’s regard, the lineage of the Prince of Qianyang flourished during the Tianyuan and Minghe eras.
Unfortunately, the good times did not last.
The Great Ancestor reigned for eleven years before passing the throne to his third son, Zhong Moukai, who took the era name Minghe. In the twenty-first year of the Minghe Emperor’s reign, he encountered assassins and became too ill to manage state affairs, passing the throne to the son of his Noble Consort, Zhong Rui, and titling himself the Retired Emperor. The first thing the new Emperor did upon ascending was to begin weakening the regional lords. Naturally, the son of the former Empress, Zhong Cheng, then “upheld justice” and marched to Shengdu to “save his father.”
At that time, Wuzhou mobilized its troops. The new Emperor called the King of Wuzhou a rebellious subject and a traitor seeking to usurp power. The King of Wuzhou, Zhong Cheng, naturally could not accept such a reputation. He wrote a manifesto against the traitor, detailing Zhong Rui’s crimes, implying that his father, the Minghe Emperor, was in his prime when he was pointlessly assassinated, and that it was Zhong Rui who had orchestrated the assassination and then imprisoned their father. Such an animalistic brute was not a brother he, Zhong Cheng, recognized. He exposed it that day so the people of the world would utterly despise Zhong Rui’s actions.
To seize power, one always needs a banner of justice to wave.
As for why the Minghe Emperor didn’t come out to clarify things—he had been paralyzed since the assassination and later fell into a deep coma.
The winner takes all. If the King of Wuzhou, Zhong Cheng, won and ascended the throne, then the manifesto he wrote would be accepted as truth—that he indeed went to Shengdu to save his father. If he lost, he would be a rebellious traitor.
Zhong Cheng won. It was the mandate of heaven, and he became the Ningwu Emperor.
Zhong Rui lost, having been Emperor for only four years.
The Sheng Dynasty had seen four emperors, though only forty years had passed since its founding.
Returning to the point, the Ningwu Emperor’s manifesto was meant for the public’s eyes. Not a single clever person among the imperial kin believed it. This was because the Minghe Emperor had once executed the entire Zhao family, claiming they were rebelling, but the evidence had been flimsy and the act sudden. According to royal secrets, the former Empress had been gifted a cup of poisoned wine back then.
Zhong Cheng’s mother’s surname was Zhao.
The Zhao family of Hedong was one of the four great general clans that had followed the Great Ancestor in conquering the land.
When the Great Ancestor passed away in the eleventh year of the dynasty, he worried that the four general clans held too much military power. His third son, the Minghe Emperor, plotted for years and, with a ruthless heart that disregarded his bond with his primary wife, drove the leading Zhao family to destruction.
Then the Minghe Emperor became Retired Emperor, and the new Emperor’s first act was to weaken the regional lords.
The methods of father and son were truly cut from the same cloth.
Therefore, the Ningwu Emperor could not be close to the current imperial kin at all. His maternal grandfather’s entire direct bloodline was gone. The current imperial kin were all peripheral relatives. Any who had jumped high to kick the Zhao family while they were down, as well as the close brothers of the “traitor” Zhong Rui, had been dealt with after the Ningwu Emperor ascended the throne.
Vengeance was taken where it was owed.
The current imperial kin were all sensible and lived in obscurity.
Every new sovereign brings his own courtiers. Some were unwilling to give up and still wanted to seek a future for their descendants; they couldn’t truly let themselves decline until they had nothing but a noble title. In terms of bloodline, Princess Changping was a cousin to the current Emperor, but she was twenty years older than him, and they weren’t close, having never spent much time together.
Back then, she had risked her old face to personally beg for the grace of the Palace School for her grandson.
At the Princess’s Mansion:
“Grandmother, should I not have spoken?” Li Ang had been raised by his grandmother.
Princess Changping smiled slightly, the fine lines at the corners of her eyes looking very peaceful. She didn’t offer words of comfort but instead spoke of something else: “Before His Majesty was ten years old, he was the legitimate son born of the Central Palace, of noble status. Then everything changed in an instant. The Empress passed away, and His Majesty went from being a celestial scion to the most disliked prince in the Cold Palace, with no mother to protect him.”
“The outsiders all talk about what a castrate Xu Xiaoman is, but for a small eunuch to be able to protect His Majesty and keep him alive until they reached Wuzhou—”
“Grandmother, did Xu Xiaoman protect him like that because he knew His Majesty would become the Emperor?” Li Ang spoke up impatiently, then his face immediately took on an “am I stupid” expression.
He had asked a foolish question.
Princess Changping didn’t mock her grandson, saying seriously, “The Cold Palace is a place where, without someone to protect you, a single rainstorm can take your life. At that time, Xu Xiaoman was only thirteen years old. Most likely, he truly had a kind heart.”
The eunuchs in the palace were the most prone to fawning on the high and trampling the low.
A little eunuch protecting a fallen prince—the hardships involved and the bond formed between the two were not things outsiders could speak of or understand.
“It doesn’t matter what people outside say. You didn’t lie, either.” Princess Changping knew why her grandson had stood up today; he wanted to gain some of His Majesty’s favor. There was no shame in that, but she was reminding him now so his expectations wouldn’t be too high, fearing his hopes would be dashed.
So many years had passed. The little prince and the little eunuch had grown up. One became the Emperor, and the other was still a eunuch. As for her grandson’s words, if Zhao Erxi didn’t mention them when relaying the message, or if His Majesty didn’t care—after all, how could a quarrel between children sway the positions of court officials?
“Just focus on your studies. Your grandmother is still here at the mansion,” Princess Changping said with a smile.
Li Ang nodded in understanding, but in his heart, he hoped to grow up quickly and shoulder the burdens of the mansion so his grandmother wouldn’t have to struggle so hard alone.
In the Taiji Palace, within the Eastern Depot.
Xu Xiaoman accompanied the kid for a while. He still had important business to attend to; Ming Yi had been captured, but evidence was still needed—
“Dad, you go do your work. I’m fine.” Xu Duofu’s eyes were still red from his crying fit. He felt quite embarrassed now, not knowing why he had cried earlier, and kept telling himself: I’m only nine now, a real kid. There’s no shame in crying.
Xu Xiaoman looked at the kid seriously.
Xu Duofu held the little rabbit and little tiger his dad had woven for him, pressing them against his cheeks. Cutely, he said, “Dad, I’m not afraid. I have the tiger and rabbit you made to protect me.”
“…Alright,” Xu Xiaoman agreed.
Xu Duofu had been nestled in his father’s arms—he had plunged into them uncontrollably while crying—and now he wanted to roll out onto the couch. Seeing this, Xu Xiaoman playfully teased his son by making a motion to throw him out, but in reality, he gently placed him on the couch and tucked him in.
“When Dad is finished with work, I’ll take you out of the palace to play.”
Xu Duofu was stunned!
My dear, wonderful dad!
Xu Xiaoman left the Eastern Depot but didn’t head toward Youyemen. He looked up at the sky and made his way toward Xuanzheng Hall. From a distance, Zhao Erxi saw the Nine Thousand Years and hurried to send his disciple, Xiao Luzi, inside to announce him while he personally waited.
“Greetings to Master Xu,” Zhao Erxi bowed.
Xu Xiaoman said, “Good day to you, Chief Eunuch Zhao.”
The two flattered each other; they were old acquaintances. Xiao Luzi came out of the hall, bowed, and said, “Master Xu, His Majesty invites you in.”
Xu Xiaoman stopped joking with Zhao Erxi.
Zhong Cheng was sitting on a couch in the side hall. Surprisingly, he wasn’t looking at memorials. When Xu Xiaoman entered the inner hall, an official was just coming out. The official’s rank wasn’t high, and he couldn’t hide the excitement in his eyes when he saw Xu Xiaoman. He bowed very respectfully and immediately withdrew.
“Who was that just now? He looked strangely familiar,” Xu Xiaoman asked, his mind trying to place the face.
Zhong Cheng said, “Li Tong—” Knowing Xiaoman hadn’t remembered, the Ningwu Emperor personally explained to his eunuch, “The second son of Princess Changping. Formerly the Archivist of the Taiping Bureau, of the Seventh Rank.”
The Taiping Bureau was not a Buddhist temple but an office responsible for certain legal and administrative matters regarding the imperial kin.
An Archivist’s job was organizing documents; it was a “clear-water” job in a “clear-water” office.
Xu Xiaoman also remembered why the face was familiar, but he looked at Zhong Cheng and forced himself to hold back his words. This, in turn, amused Zhong Cheng. This man was straightforward; if he could hold back his words for him, he truly loved the Emperor.
“His mother and I are cousins; perhaps there’s some resemblance,” Zhong Cheng said of his own accord.
Xu Xiaoman: …
“You’re not angry anymore?”
“Zhong Moukai is dead. Zhong Rui is dead. Besides, my cousin is the daughter of my eldest uncle. Why would I be angry?” Zhong Cheng said.
Xu Xiaoman thought: You’re being generous now. In the past, whenever you mentioned that beast of a father of yours, you’d drag me into bed for endless rounds, saying you were in pain— His gaze became suspicious. Could it be he was intentionally tricking me into bed back then?
What the Ningwu Emperor’s precious eunuch thought was written all over his face.
So Zhong Cheng asked, “You didn’t like it?”
“…” Xu Xiaoman reminisced for a moment and felt quite happy, but he changed the subject. He didn’t have time for that now; he didn’t want to stir Zhong Cheng up into one of his “episodes” where they’d go at it forever.
“Duoduo just had a big cry. I’ve comforted him. I’ll be busy these next two days, so you help me keep an eye on him. Make sure he eats and sleeps well.” Fearing Zhong Cheng wouldn’t agree since the man was very prone to jealousy, Xu Xiaoman quickly offered a sweetener: “When I’m done being busy, I’ll go to your palace and sleep there for three days.”
Zhong Cheng: “…” He almost agreed too quickly.
“Fine.”
Xu Xiaoman felt he had made a profit. He still had to go to the interrogation room, but as he was leaving, he asked casually, “Why did Li Tong come over? Did some lord of the imperial kin commit a major crime?” Zhong Cheng didn’t like those “relatives.” If someone had gotten into big trouble, he would be happy for Zhong Cheng.
The Ningwu Emperor spoke in a regretful tone, “Those imperial kin haven’t committed any crimes.” He added, “Ming Yi has been arrested, leaving a vacancy in the Ministry of Revenue. I’ve transferred Li Tong there. His talent is mediocre, but fortunately, he is loyal and useful to me.” Most importantly, he was obedient. With a bit of pressure, he would know this transfer was because of Xiaoman.
Xu Xiaoman: ?
Huh?
From a Seventh Rank position in a clerk’s office to a Fifth Rank position in a proper and lucrative ministry in one leap.
The author has something to say:
Li Ang: In a word, my dad got promoted! (Zhong Cheng knows Duoduo is his and Xiaoman’s child)