Qiu Xinran stood in the small courtyard, bow drawn, holding the posture for nearly the length of a stick of incense. Her hands trembled like sieved chaff, and her eyes flicked to the incense burner nearby, nearly burned out. She let her shoulders sag slightly.
The young man sitting in the shade of a tree sipped his tea, and without looking up, as if he had eyes on top of his head, reminded her, “Straighten your arm. Let it down, then start over.”
The girl in the courtyard stiffened, gritted her teeth, and pulled her arm straight again.
The courtyard was utterly silent, broken only by the crisp sound of his teacup lid tapping the rim. The autumn sun shone warmly, perfect for an afternoon nap. Qiu Xinran wondered how on earth she had ended up here, drawing a bow.
The story began a few days earlier—
Somehow, Li Hanru’s mounted archery at the training field reached the Empress Dowager’s ears. The story went that the Seventh Princess had accidentally collided with palace staff at the edge of the field, nearly throwing herself off her horse. The Empress Dowager was alarmed. When Consort Chen visited Fukang Palace the next day, the Empress even mentioned it.
The Seventh Princess would come of age next year, and Consort Chen was in the midst of finding a husband for her, worried that the girl’s usual behavior was too unrestrained—hardly fitting the image of a proper lady. After returning to her chamber, she summoned Li Hanyi and Li Hanru, scolding them thoroughly. Li Hanyi was reprimanded most harshly: he had no sense of responsibility as an older brother, and not only did he neglect his own studies, he dragged his sister along for horse-riding and archery—utterly inappropriate!
The siblings likely argued a little, but it was clear from their temperaments that their mother wasn’t someone to mess with. She even picked up a disciplinary whip. After causing a bit of chaos in the palace, both sides took a step back. Consort Chen’s intention was: she could no longer control Li Hanyi, but Li Hanru was to stay in the palace in quiet reflection for the next few days, not wandering around.
The next day, when Li Hanyi came sulking like a burnt-bottomed pot to find her, Qiu Xinran thought he was there to cancel the contest. She relaxed slightly—only to hear him say, “The contest can’t just be called off. We’ll just change the method.”
Li Hanyi was insistent: “There’s no other girl in the palace as skilled in mounted archery and around your age. So you cannot team up with Zheng Yuanwu!”
Qiu Xinran frowned. “Then what do you suggest?”
“Since our skills are roughly equal, we’ll find two others of similar skill,” Li Hanyi said, pausing for effect before generously suggesting two candidates: “Xia Xiuyan and Zhou Xianyi. You choose first.”
“….”
In the academy, competition for first place in mounted archery was fierce, but last place was consistent, usually Zhou Xianyi. Occasionally, if Xia Xiuyan hadn’t feigned illness one day, it would have been him.
Qiu Xinran asked, “Have both been asked already? Do they agree?”
“Don’t worry about that,” Li Hanyi waved his hand. “Just pick one.”
She hesitated, thinking deeply, then said, “Then… I choose Zhou Xianyi.” But seeing the stormy expression on Li Hanyi’s face, she paused and corrected herself, “…maybe Xia Xiuyan then.”
Li Hanyi’s expression instantly cleared, satisfied: “Good. It’s settled. You with Xia Xiuyan, I with Zhou Xianyi. Let the autumn hunt decide the winner.” With that, he strode off.
At first, Qiu Xinran felt a bit lucky. Based on her understanding of Xia Xiuyan, once he decided not to interfere, he surely wouldn’t back out later. Yet reality proved her understanding of him was shallow. Once Xia Xiuyan agreed, Zhou Xianyi naturally had to comply.
Not long after, Qiu Xinran met him at the academy. As they walked back together, the little chubby boy complained, “Xinran, why didn’t you pick me?”
“I wanted to at first…” Qiu Xinran sighed. “But how could I compete with the Second Prince?”
Hearing that Li Hanyi had actively chosen her, Zhou Xianyi seemed pleased, but soon sulked again. “But the Second Prince is too strict. He’s even stricter than our instructor.”
Qiu Xinran could easily imagine Li Hanyi’s temper during practice and sympathized. “Oh, I know how that feels…”
She meant “fellow sufferers,” but Zhou Xianyi misunderstood. Eyes widening, he gasped, “You were strict with Xia Xiuyan too?”
Qiu Xinran froze—she realized others assumed she taught Xia Xiuyan, not the other way around. She struggled to recall: “Not exactly strict… just no food if tasks weren’t done, redo failures from scratch, double practice if you tried to slack, dragging out the time until midnight if needed…”
Zhou Xianyi was dumbstruck. After a while, he whispered, “You dared treat the Second Prince like that? You’re amazing!” Suddenly, he appreciated Li Hanyi—at least the Second Prince wouldn’t have the patience to withhold meals or stay until midnight.
“Good thing you didn’t pick me,” Zhou Xianyi said, relieved, whispering, “That was way too harsh.”
Qiu Xinran nodded in agreement. “You’re right.”
Not far away, a carriage stopped outside the palace gate. The occupants lifted the curtain and, seeing the two approaching slowly, tapped impatiently on the side of the carriage.
Qiu Xinran sighed, said goodbye to Zhou Xianyi, and hurried to the carriage.
Xia Xiuyan sat inside, looking slightly displeased. Qiu Xinran sat primly beside him, trying to be polite. “Have you eaten, Your Highness?”
“No,” the boy replied coldly.
“Perfect—I haven’t either!” she said cheerfully, undeterred.
Xia Xiuyan glanced at her, noticing her hands propped on the seat, looking ahead through the curtain. The carriage soon left the palace and passed through the bustling streets. It was lunchtime; the smell of cooking drifted from the nearby restaurants. The young boy murmured to himself, “I wonder what Aunt Zhang cooked today.”
He chuckled softly, then closed his eyes again.
The old Princess’s residence in Yishan Ward was a somewhat dilapidated old house. Small by comparison with other royal relatives’ homes, it seemed rundown. Only Xia Xiuyan lived there, with two elderly attendants, Aunt Zhang and Uncle Liu, his close aide Gao Yang, and a few servants.
With such a large house and no one managing him strictly, Qiu Xinran thought it was the life of a fairy. Even Xia Xiuyan might prefer it to the palace.
She hopped from the carriage, outpacing Xia Xiuyan. Stepping into the courtyard, the smell of food hit her. Uncle Liu was sweeping leaves and smiled, “Qiu Sichen is here.”
“Hello, Uncle Liu!” Qiu Xinran greeted cheerfully. “What smells so good today?”
At that moment, Aunt Zhang carried in dishes. Hearing Qiu Xinran, she laughed, “Every time you say the food smells good—are you just flattering me?”
“No way!” Qiu Xinran squinted and smiled. “I always finish every dish you cook.”
Xia Xiuyan walked in slowly, as if he were the guest. Aunt Zhang and Uncle Liu, loyal servants who raised him, treated Qiu Xinran warmly. The house lacked the strict master-servant etiquette of a normal residence.
Qiu Xinran, young and sweet, quickly called them “Uncle Liu” and “Aunt Zhang.” They began to treat her as Xia Xiuyan’s friend.
Aunt Zhang had cooked stir-fried duck with fresh ginger. Xia Xiuyan quietly ate an extra half bowl of rice, but couldn’t match Qiu Xinran—she cleaned the table, nearly bursting from overeating.
Watching her, Xia Xiuyan asked, “Don’t your people avoid meat?”
Qiu Xinran thought a moment. “Depends on the sect. Some do, some don’t. My master’s sect avoids it.”
“Your master avoids it, but you don’t?”
“I’m not a fully ordained disciple,” she said matter-of-factly. She sipped soup, eyes narrowed like a contented cat.
Xia Xiuyan paused. “Aren’t you a Daoist?”
Qiu Xinran explained: “Many of my masters are Daoists, but disciples choose whether to join fully. To travel and read fortunes, it helps to have a name—people trust you more.” She touched her nose vaguely, then coughed lightly. “Think of me as an uninitiated Daoist disciple.”
Xia Xiuyan smirked. “Your sect knows how to be… flexible.”
Qiu Xinran pretended not to understand. He added, “But at the hunting ground, words alone won’t fool anyone.”
Seeing she had finished eating, he stood and said coldly, “Enough. Come to the backyard.”
Qiu Xinran sighed silently.
Just as Xia Xiuyan stepped out, Aunt Zhang led the servants to clear the dishes. Seeing that Qiu Xinran had truly cleaned the table, she gasped.
“Of course!” Qiu Xinran replied sweetly. “Your cooking rivals even the palace chefs!”
Aunt Zhang beamed, proud: “I learned from the palace chefs when I served the princess years ago. Tell me what you like, and I’ll cook it tomorrow.”
Qiu Xinran was delighted but modest: “No need. I’ll just eat what Your Highness eats.”
Aunt Zhang laughed warmly. “The young master grew up with strict rules, only tasting a few bites each time. Seeing you enjoy your meal makes him eat more, and it makes me happy too!”