It was also from that night onward that the man would bring some food with him every time he came to Fengluanxuan.
One day it was flower cakes, the next day braised duck, the day after that cherry pilaf, and the day after that roasted lamb chops…
The delicacies he brought never repeated themselves.
Jiang Qingke couldn’t help but suspect, “You wouldn’t happen to be a chef from the imperial kitchen, would you?”
A low chuckle echoed through the hall.
But he neither admitted nor denied it.
He remained silent about his identity.
“Just so I’ll share your bed and bear Li Xuanyao’s children, you really are going to great lengths.”
After finishing the chilled curd from the ice bowl, Jiang Qingke couldn’t resist teasing the man.
“But to be honest, your sincerity is commendable. Keep it up.”
Since she had been addressing him as “hey,” “ah,” and “you” all along, Jiang Qingke found it inconvenient and made another suggestion.
“Since you won’t tell me your name, I’ll give you one. That way, it’ll be easier to call you.”
The man wrote the character “good” on her arm.
“We only meet at night, and I’ve never seen your face…”
Jiang Qingke pondered for a moment, then said, “How about Ye Yan?”
Ye Yan took Jiang Qingke’s hand and wrote the character “good” in her palm, then wrote two more characters.
Jiang Qingke read them out one by one.
“Gui.”
“Ming.”
Jiang Qingke answered generously, “Manman.”
At the mention of her birth name, homesickness and longing for her family inevitably welled up in her heart.
Combined with the circumstances she found herself in after marrying into the Donggong, Jiang Qingke couldn’t help but feel melancholy.
Her mother had hoped she would have a life of completeness and smoothness in all things, which was why she had given her the birth name “Manman.”
But in her eighteen years of life, it seemed there were few things that had been truly complete.
As if talking to herself, Jiang Qingke sighed, “Unfortunately, water overflows when full, and the moon wanes when full. My birth name is too full.”
The hall fell silent for a moment.
Ye Yan suddenly wrote two more characters in her palm.
“Xiaoman?” Jiang Qingke read it out once.
She pondered Ye Yan’s intention and asked uncertainly, “You mean… you want me to change my birth name to Xiaoman?”
The character “yes” landed ticklishly in Jiang Qingke’s palm, followed by the character “summer.”
Jiang Qingke suddenly recalled a saying.
A stubborn heart suddenly softened at one corner.
She liked the birth name Xiaoman.
“Xiaoman not yet full, the summer days still long?” she said.
A muffled chuckle escaped Ye Yan’s throat, and then he wrote the character “clever” in Jiang Qingke’s palm.
Jiang Qingke understood immediately, knowing he was praising her.
“Of course. Someone as clever and beautiful as me is hard to find even with a lantern. The Crown Prince was blessed eight lifetimes over to marry me, because marrying me is equivalent to marrying the hundreds of thousands of Jiang family troops of Xiyan.”
Just then, hurried footsteps sounded from outside the hall.
After a few soft and indistinct voices, Eunuch Cao knocked and entered, striding quickly to stand before the two of them.
In the dim hall, Eunuch Cao leaned close to Ye Yan’s ear and spoke in a low voice.
His voice was too low for Jiang Qingke to hear clearly.
Whatever it was, Ye Yan immediately rose to his feet upon hearing it.
Jiang Qingke wanted to ask what was going on and reached out to grab his sleeve.
But Ye Yan left in such haste that she only caught the corner of his robe.
Even that corner slipped through her fingers like quicksand, smoothly pulling away.
“Eunuch Cao, what has happened?” Jiang Qingke asked urgently.
But Eunuch Cao only gave a perfunctory reply before hurrying after Ye Yan with quick, mincing steps.
Jiang Qingke tore off the silk ribbon from her eyes, only to catch a glimpse of the corner of Ye Yan’s robe disappearing at the hall’s entrance.
The footsteps outside the hall were urgent.
The sound of the hall door closing was also harsh on the ears.
An inexplicable sense of loneliness welled up in her heart. Jiang Qingke picked up the whip beside her and lashed at the air in frustration.
“Every single one of you deserves a lashing!”
“Why should I care about someone so inconsequential?”
…
For seven consecutive days, Ye Yan did not return to Fengluanxuan.
By all rights, Jiang Qingke should have been pleased, but her heart felt strangely empty.
She simply assumed that Ye Yan had gotten her into the habit of eating late-night snacks, and with no one bringing her food at night, she was just having trouble adjusting.
But when the tenth day arrived and Ye Yan still hadn’t appeared, Jiang Qingke began to wonder.
The Donggong and Li Xuanyao’s side had been peaceful these past few days, so it could only be something personal to Ye Yan.
Could something major have happened in Ye Yan’s family?
Thinking that they had at least shared the intimacy of husband and wife, it was only natural for her to show some concern.
So, during the day, Jiang Qingke brought her maidservant Xiqing and made her way to Li Xuanyao’s study, hoping to glean some information through indirect questioning.
It was late spring, and the peonies and roses in the study’s courtyard were in full bloom—a riot of purple and red, with splendid spring colors as far as the eye could see.
The thrushes and parrots in the birdcages under the corridor chattered noisily.
The birdsong and floral fragrance complemented the scholarly atmosphere of the study perfectly.
“Your Highness, this servant greets the Crown Princess. May the Crown Princess be at peace.”
Eunuch Cao had sharp eyes. The moment he spotted Jiang Qingke, he came bustling over with his horsetail whisk in hand.
“Is the Crown Princess here to see His Highness?”
Jiang Qingke replied, “Nothing much, really. I just noticed the weather was nice and thought I’d take a stroll. I happened to wander this way, so I figured I’d stop by His Highness’s study, perhaps share a cup of tea and have a chat.”
“What a pity,” Eunuch Cao said with an apologetic bow. “The Grand Tutor is currently instructing His Highness.”
Jiang Qingke glanced toward the study.
Through the wide-open door, she could make out the scene inside.
She saw a man with a jade hairpin holding his hair in place, dressed in a dark green robe, holding a feather fan. He stood behind a sheer silk screen, speaking eloquently to Li Xuanyao, who was on the other side.
Any man with a certain presence around Li Xuanyao could potentially be Ye Yan.
And so, Jiang Qingke took a closer look.
The man had a face as fair as jade, features as delicate as a painting, and carried himself with refined elegance—the quintessential bearing of a scholarly official.
However, his hairpin was pale green, his outer robe dark green, his inner garments grass green, and his sash a watery green. Dressed head to toe in green, standing there, he looked like a bamboo stalk.
Come to think of it, he did give off a somewhat similar impression to Ye Yan.
Composed and reserved, unhurried and unflustered.
“And what is this bamboo Grand Tutor’s surname?” Jiang Qingke asked casually.
Eunuch Cao was momentarily taken aback, then glanced back toward the study and smiled knowingly. “Reporting to the Crown Princess, the Grand Tutor’s surname is Bai, given name Yin.”
Jiang Qingke gazed at the bamboo in the study and murmured the name to herself.
“Bai Yin.”
Bai Yin seemed to sense her attention. As he paced and spoke, he turned his head to look at her.
Their eyes met across the distance. Bai Yin bowed politely to Jiang Qingke with a cupped-fist salute, then withdrew his gaze and continued his lecture to Li Xuanyao.
“So young, and already a Grand Tutor?” Jiang Qingke asked.
Eunuch Cao replied, “The Grand Tutor was exceptionally bright as a child, well-read and possessed of a photographic memory—a rare prodigy. At fifteen, he passed the imperial examinations with distinction, earning the rank of Tanhua. That he now holds the position of Grand Tutor is hardly surprising.”
Jiang Qingke nodded thoughtfully.
Bai Yin was a civil official—surely he wouldn’t wield swords or spears.
Ye Yan, on the other hand, had thin calluses on both hands, the mark of one accustomed to bows, arrows, blades, and spears. And with a scar across his chest, he was most likely of martial background.
Moreover, scholars had their principles. Bai Yin was the teacher of both the Emperor and the Crown Prince—committing an act as improper and morally reprehensible as taking someone’s place in bed… that shouldn’t be within his character.
The likelihood of Bai Yin being Ye Yan was slim.