Chapter 163
When the emperor heard this, a faint smile appeared on his face.
Chief Physician Lin had just examined him and said that it was not an illness, merely a matter of the mind.
Since it was not an illness, then he did not need to feel inferior in front of that little beauty.
It was simply that he had been too unable to let go of Pingwu. Sometimes, it was truly difficult for a person to step out of longing for another.
Thinking about it, what Chief Physician Lin had said did make sense. Perhaps he really should forget him and begin anew.
It had been more than twenty years. Even if he had committed a grave mistake back then, that mistake had tormented him for over twenty years—surely it should be time to let it pass.
If Pingwu had awareness in the afterlife, he would also forgive him.
He sighed softly, removed the Daoling jade pendant set in gold from his waist, and slowly placed it into a jade casket.
The love of his life had always been Pingwu.
After his death, he would still be buried together with Pingwu at the Three Lives Tomb.
When he reached the underworld, he would personally apologize to him then.
After putting away the jade casket, the emperor went to keep his appointment with Zong Yuan.
Zong Yuan had peeled a small dish of lotus seeds. As he ate the seeds, he drank green plum wine.
The beautiful youth’s every gesture exuded a kind of longing sweetness. He poured a cup of green plum wine for the emperor and said, “This cup is for Your Majesty, in admiration of Your Majesty’s noble and upright character.”
The emperor took the cup of clear, sweet plum wine and asked, “Oh? Why does little Zong Yuan say that?”
Zong Yuan smiled sweetly and said, “Zong Yuan knew from childhood that Your Majesty was a gentleman of integrity. I thought it was merely exaggerated praise, but I never expected it to be true.”
The emperor laughed cheerfully and said, “Oh? And how can you tell?”
Zong Yuan personally peeled a lotus seed and fed it into the emperor’s mouth, saying, “Last time, Zong Yuan… encountered a small accident. I thought I would surely lose my chastity to Your Majesty. Yet when I awoke, I was still untouched. Tell me, how many men in this world could restrain themselves from the effects of an aphrodisiac incense? Your Majesty is not only a gentleman, but also an admirable hero.”
A few words from the little beauty made the emperor feel light and elated.
He laughed heartily, took the cup of green plum wine Zong Yuan handed him, and drank it all in one go, even showing a trace of bold heroism.
Zong Yuan poured him another full cup, smiled at him coyly, and said, “Your Majesty, do you not like Zong Yuan?”
The emperor asked in confusion, “Why would little Zong Yuan think that?”
Zong Yuan bit his lower lip and said, “Otherwise, why would Your Majesty not touch Zong Yuan even when Zong Yuan was in heat?”
The emperor felt somewhat guilty, yet still patted his shoulder and said, “You are still young, still just a child. I cannot do such a thing to you. Palace rules require concubines to attend the bedchamber only after reaching eighteen. Wait a little longer.”
Zong Yuan harbored doubts. He felt that the emperor did not seem like such a virtuous man.
What adulthood? That Mr. Yin had been only seventeen or eighteen when he became pregnant.
Moreover, in Great Zhao, adulthood was not determined by age.
Once a Xiao Langjun had experienced his first heat, he was considered an adult; it was the same for women.
However, no matter what excuse the other party gave, Zong Yuan would not take it to heart. As long as he accomplished what needed to be done and achieved his goal, the matter would be settled.
He smiled and said, “Whatever Your Majesty says, Zong Yuan will do. I will definitely be obedient and listen well.”
The emperor smiled and patted his shoulder, saying, “Ah, you must be a gift Heaven sent to me. You and him… are truly too alike.”
Zong Yuan asked, “Oh? Is it that late empress whom Your Majesty deeply loved? Was he also as obedient as Zong Yuan?”
Memories once again filled the emperor’s eyes as he said, “Gentle, tender, considerate—there was no one better than him in this world.”
Zong Yuan puffed out his lips and said, “I don’t believe it! Zong Yuan will definitely do even better than him and make Your Majesty more and more satisfied with me!”
The emperor liked this little boy more and more. He laughed warmly and said, “Alright, I believe little Zong Yuan.”
After several cups of wine, the Emperor gradually grew drowsy and ended up leaning against the couch, falling asleep.
There was still a look of triumph in Zongyuan’s eyes. He looked at the groggy Emperor and muttered in a low voice, “Stop pretending to be a gentleman. You have dozens of people in your harem—don’t tell me every single one of them had to wait until eighteen?”
In any case, he did not believe it.
So he simply sat there, waiting for the medicine to take effect.
An hour later, Zong Yuan himself ended up falling asleep.
He did not know when the Emperor had left. All Zong Yuan knew was that when he woke up, there was a blanket draped over him, and sleeping like that had left his whole body sore and uncomfortable.
This Emperor was really careless. Weren’t you supposed to like me? And yet you just left me sleeping sprawled over the table?
At the very least, you could have carried me to the bed!
Of course, that was not the main point. The real issue was… he had clearly drugged that damned Emperor, so why did the damned Emperor still not fall for it?
Just how strong was his willpower?
Zong Yuan pressed his fingers against his temples, feeling a headache coming on.
Why? Why?
He truly could not figure it out.
Was the Emperor of Great Zhao immune to all poisons? Did he possess some extraordinary constitution? Or was the Emperor of Great Zhao actually a hidden master living in seclusion?
Zong Yuan was on the verge of going crazy. Mission after mission had failed, and his delicate little face scrunched tightly together.
The little celestial boy instantly turned into a bitter melon, slumping there and grabbing at his own hair.
When Aunt Liu entered and saw him looking utterly despondent, she asked, “Is something bothering you, young master?”
Zong Yuan’s eyes shifted slightly, and he said, “I want to leave the palace.”
Aunt Liu replied, “His Majesty has not restricted your freedom. However, if you wish to go out, you must bring a guard escort. This servant will go prepare a carriage for you at once. After informing His Majesty, you may leave the palace.”
Zong Yuan waved his hand, signaling for her to hurry.
Aunt Liu went out to pass along the message before preparing the carriage for him.
Zong Yuan changed into a white brocade robe. Already strikingly beautiful, the little celestial boy looked even more dazzling.
He was going to see Lu Hanzhi. He wanted to find out exactly what kind of person he was—someone capable of doing something so utterly insane.
Although for now he would follow Sister Wan’er’s instructions, not act rashly, and not expose his identity.
The person he had once been had already died—burned to death in the flames.
Moreover, his status as an adopted son had never been known to anyone in the capital.
His relationship with Zong Gan had always been one of cooperation. The skills he had learned, both internal and external, were all for the sake of avenging his parents.
As Zong Yuan sat in the carriage, there was no trace left of softness or coquettishness on his tightly drawn little face.
Over the past few days, Lu Hanzhi had been rather busy—busy with student recruitment.
To be honest, recruitment was truly difficult.
This was because Lu Hanzhi accepted students regardless of gender, background, or wealth, and he charged no fees.
Even with such generous conditions, only a few dozen people came to apply.
The school buildings he planned to construct could accommodate over a thousand students, yet he had only recruited a few dozen.
And among those few dozen, most were children of employees under Han Ji.
It had to be said that the ideological awareness of Han Ji’s employees was clearly much higher than that of ordinary commoners, because nine young girls came forward to enroll.
These girls ranged from seven to eleven years old, which truly caught Lu Hanzhi completely by surprise.
Seeing Lu Hanzhi sucking in air through his teeth in frustration, Yuwen Jue said, “Hanzhi, I actually have an idea. Why not ask Father for an imperial inscription? Even with the gold-lettered reputation of Prince An’s Wang Fei, the common people still won’t accept this kind of educational model. But if there’s the appeal of a royal academy, it might have some effect.”
Lu Hanzhi gave Yuwen Jue a thumbs-up and said, “Second Sister-in-law is absolutely right.”
After all, in this era, one still had to abide by the unspoken rules of the time.
People had lived according to this system for centuries. If you suddenly introduced a new set of rules, resistance was inevitable.
People of this age only held reverence for the Emperor and for the gods.
Under heaven, all land belonged to the sovereign. As long as the ruler of this era made an endorsement, ordinary people would naturally flock to it.
Lu Hanzhi asked, “Is it easy to obtain an imperial inscription from His Majesty?”
Yuwen Jue thought for a moment and said, “Leave it to Mother Concubine. She’ll definitely have a way.”
Imperial Noble Concubine Rong now held an unrivaled position within the palace.
It was said that the one in the Cold Palace had become somewhat unhinged, possibly having been frightened during the coup.
The Emperor still had some conscience. He reassigned several palace maids and eunuchs to Lihen Hall and even allowed the Crown Prince to enter the palace to visit her.
However, for reasons unknown, the Empress kept driving the Crown Prince away, telling him to go as far away as possible.
Once favored above all others in the harem, the Empress had now fallen to such a state, leaving people sighing in regret.
The Crown Prince had also invited Sacred-Handed Lin to examine the Empress. The diagnosis was that there was nothing physically wrong—it was an illness of the heart.
A sickness of the heart required medicine for the heart, and the Crown Prince was advised to speak with her more.
This left the Crown Prince feeling helpless, because the Empress did not want to speak with him at all and only urged him to leave quickly.
Leave where?
The Empress never said. She only clutched his hand and said someone wanted to kill him, urging him to leave as soon as possible.
The maids in the Cold Palace all said the Empress had gone mad, yet no one understood the hidden meaning in her words.
Meanwhile, no matter what Imperial Noble Concubine Rong said to the Emperor now, he would listen to at least some of it.
Let alone merely asking him to inscribe a few words—it was naturally easy to obtain.
Those words were quite simple: “Capital Hanzhi Academy.”
The addition of the two characters “Hanzhi” had been suggested by Yuwen Jue.
He felt that if they were going to establish a school, it should have its own distinctive character.
The appeal of a royal academy was necessary, but Lu Hanzhi’s own gold-lettered reputation was also essential—perhaps it could even go down in history.
Lu Hanzhi, however, had no desire to be remembered for all eternity and even felt that having his name in the school’s title carried a rather knockoff-like vibe.
But then he thought about his own era, which also had institutions like Sun Yat-sen University or Xinghai Conservatory of Music—top-tier schools all the same.
Still, being placed on the same level as those great figures made him feel rather embarrassed.
However, since the characters had already been requested, Lu Hanzhi could not very well say anything more. He could only have them mounted and hung prominently in the center of the teaching building.
To be honest, although the Emperor’s character was not exactly admirable, his calligraphy was quite good.
The strokes were bold and vigorous, full of imposing momentum.
The main building of Lu Hanzhi’s school had not yet been completed, and there were still many fine details that needed decoration.
The other areas had already begun to take shape as well. The dormitory zone and the administrative area had both started laying their foundations.
This school had already cost Lu Hanzhi more than a hundred thousand taels of silver.
By the time it was completed, it was estimated that it would cost at least five hundred thousand taels.
Fortunately, he had money and was not yet strapped for cash.
But if he kept spending at this rate, even a wealthy landlord would eventually run out of reserves.
He needed to think of a way to create more income streams.
However, before Lu Hanzhi could figure out what kind of business to pursue, an unexpected visitor arrived at his doorstep.
When that carriage slowly stopped in front of his construction site, it carried an air utterly out of place amid the mess and chaos everywhere.
Lu Hanzhi initially thought that some noble young lady had come to inspect the school, and he was even worrying that the site was such a mess—what if a delicate Young Lady took one look and disapproved?
He felt extremely nervous.
Just as Lu Hanzhi was feeling tense, a refined figure in white stepped down from behind the gauze curtain.
Seeing that peacock-display sort of presence, Lu Hanzhi immediately knew who it was.
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