Dividing two stacks of memorials between the First Prince and Duke Jin’an, the Emperor continued reading the memorials on his own desk.
Inside the hall, court eunuchs moved carefully back and forth, serving tea with utmost caution.
As the New Year festival drew nearer day by day, the emperor’s brows only furrowed more tightly.
A prosperous nation, a strong military, robust citizens, joyful events in succession – all of it had served to dilute the unease created by the solar eclipse.
He never imagined that the hidden anxieties he should have been wary of still could not be avoided.
The heavens had issued another warning; a sudden catastrophe had struck.
Looking at these memorials: the sheer number of disaster victims, the vast areas affected – far beyond his expectations. Worse yet was the damned civil unrest.
“Right now, granaries along the four Maoping routes have been opened to release grain; sustaining the people through the winter is still manageable. But to last through spring and wait until the summer harvest… I fear it will be difficult.”
A low voice sounded beside his ear.
The Emperor nodded.
“Indeed. The key issue is that there is still civil unrest at this time,” he said, lifting his head to look at Duke Jin’an, who had sat down at some point without him noticing.
Duke Jin’an looked at him.
“Your Majesty has grown thinner,” he said.
The Emperor froze for a moment, then chuckled.
“You’ve finished reading?” he asked. Looking down, he saw the First Prince still poring over his memorials with the eunuchs assisting him. He had only finished a few, and there were still many piled before him. Noticing the Emperor’s gaze, his hands involuntarily sped up.
“I’m done,” Duke Jin’an said. “I am older, after all.”
The Emperor smiled and gestured with his hand; a nearby eunuch hurried to move Duke Jin’an’s memorials over.
The Emperor flipped through them one by one, slowly. A look of approval appeared on his face as he nodded.
“Your wording is concise and clear,” he said. “It shows you understand things well.”
“These matters are actually very simple,” Duke Jin’an replied.
“Simple?” The Emperor raised an eyebrow, smiling as he asked.
“Simple to understand, but difficult to carry out,” Duke Jin’an said, letting out a sigh. “Your Majesty truly has it hard.”
The Emperor smiled and handed him the memorial before him.
“Take a look at this. What do you think?” he asked.
Duke Jin’an received it.
A sudden clatter erupted on the other side. Both of them looked over and saw the First Prince rising to his feet; in his haste, he had jostled the desk, causing several memorials to tumble to the floor.
Two eunuchs hastily knelt to gather them up into their arms.
“Father, I have finished reading as well,” the First Prince said as he walked over.
The Emperor gave a brief hum of acknowledgment, gesturing for the eunuchs to set the memorials aside, and continued speaking with Duke Jin’an.
“Between quelling civil unrest and providing disaster relief, which is the greater priority?” he asked.
“Of course, we should suppress the rebellion first,” the First Prince interjected. “With civil unrest disrupting disaster relief efforts, we must first crack down harshly as a show of force, then provide relief to demonstrate the court’s benevolence.”
The Emperor glanced at him, smiled, and said nothing. Instead, he turned to Duke Jin’an.
“We must provide relief,” Duke Jin’an said. “The unrest stems from the disaster. Address the root cause, or else rioters will rise in droves across the realm. At that point, disaster relief will cost even more.”
The Emperor smiled again.
The First Prince grew somewhat tense, his gaze shifting anxiously between the two.
“Father…” he could not help calling out.
The Emperor raised his hand to stop him.
“Though you have many lessons, and you’ve only just taken over official duties, you must still attend court sessions,” he said to Duke Jin’an.
“Your Majesty, I am merely a royal kinsman,” Duke Jin’an replied with a smile.
“Even royal kinsmen must attend the grand morning court,” the Emperor said.
Duke Jin’an bowed and acknowledged the order.
“Go on, then. You have much to busy yourself with,” the Emperor said.
Duke Jin’an bowed again and withdrew.
Watching Duke Jin’an depart, the Emperor finally turned toward the First Prince.
Swept by the Emperor’s gaze, the First Prince’s spine stiffened involuntarily, and the hands resting on his knees clenched.
“When you review memorials, don’t show off with fancy rhetoric,” the Emperor said, taking up the memorials the First Prince had just finished reading. “You must understand: these ministers all clawed their way up through a decade of bitter study and examinations against thousands of others. Their learning is first-rate. If you try to compete with them by citing classics and showing literary flair, how could you possibly match them?”
The First Prince lowered his head awkwardly and murmured assent, while the Emperor’s voice continued beside his ear:
“…empty talk, saying nothing of substance… These ministers are cunning one and all. Once you reveal uncertainty before them, they’ll seize on it…”
“…They have literary talent, and they’re familiar with government affairs. Competing with them in word games – ten of you aren’t enough. So you must play to your strengths and avoid your weaknesses. Say what needs to be said. Use the simplest words to explain complex matters. Know what you’re asking, know what you want to know, know what you want done – and communicate it plainly and clearly.”
“Look at what Duke Jin’an wrote…”
The First Prince felt his ears ringing. He stared blankly as he accepted the memorials, his vision clearer yet somehow blurred, his mind in turmoil – so much so that when the Emperor questioned him again, he could no longer answer at all.
“You’ll be fourteen after the New Year! You’ve already established your own household! With so many tutors teaching you one after another, and attending court every single day – how is it that you’ve shown no improvement at all?”
Unable to suppress the irritation in his heart any longer, the Emperor slammed the memorial in his hand onto the desk with a sharp crack.
The First Prince trembled in fright, bowing his head low.
Meanwhile, in her palace, the Imperial Consort paced anxiously in circles after hearing the news. At last, someone hurried in from outside.
“Well? How is Prince Ping?” she asked urgently.
“Your Ladyship, His Highness has already returned to his residence,” the eunuch reported.
“Why didn’t you stop him?” the Consort snapped, eyebrows raised.
“We tried, but His Highness refused and rushed back,” the eunuch replied, lowering his head. Instinctively, he rubbed his arm.
They had blocked him too hastily; Prince Ping had snatched the riding whip and lashed him hard across the arm.
“He must have been wronged,” the Consort fretted all the more. “Quickly – send someone to check on him, see how he’s doing!”
Another eunuch acknowledged the order and flew out.
“His Majesty is too much – he’s still young. If he doesn’t understand, then teach him properly. Why scold him like that?” the Consort said through gritted teeth. “Prince Ping has always been clever; what is there he can’t learn with just a single lesson?”
“His Majesty is simply in a foul mood – the affairs of court are complicated,” the eunuch said softly in consolation.
“If he’s in a foul mood, it’s because those ministers didn’t do their jobs properly. What does that have to do with Prince Ping?” the Consort said, pacing back and forth. “I heard this was because of Duke Jin’an?”
“That’s not it. Duke Jin’an read memorials as well – he’s older, and His Majesty merely praised him twice before he left,” the eunuch replied.
“I knew it,” the Consort snorted. “That sly little fox – so long as he’s in front of His Majesty, Prince Ping will always be the one disliked.” She stopped pacing. “His Majesty even wants him to attend court?”
The eunuch lowered his head and answered, “Yes, Your Ladyship.”
“There’s no need for Your Ladyship to take it to heart. People only offer praise to outsiders – one saves the harsh words for one’s own,” he said with a placating smile. “His Majesty is strict with Prince Ping because he places great expectations on him. Your Ladyship should be pleased…”
Before he could finish, the Consort spat right in his face.
“Pleased, my ass!” she snapped, eyebrows shooting up. “And so he didn’t place expectations on him before? Why scold him today of all days? It’s because someone deliberately provoked his anger!”
The eunuch dared not speak further and lowered his head again. “Yes, Your Ladyship.”
“Does he think I don’t understand court politics?” the Consort barked. “People always say ‘criticize the deed, not the person’ – but affairs and the people involved are one and the same! How could they be separated? That sort of talk is nonsense!”
“Everyone has expectations; everyone has bias. If Duke Jin’an hadn’t performed so well today, would His Majesty have lost his temper so easily?”
She halted in place.
“I’ve said again and again: we cannot leave him right under His Majesty’s nose – yet no one listens.”
It wasn’t that no one listened – there simply was no way to drive him out.
The eunuch lowered his head, silently muttering in his heart.
“In the past, he could muddle through by playing the fool and winning a bit of favor, but look at him now – his ambitions have grown. He studies well, and now he’s even putting on airs as he begins meddling in court affairs…”
“Your Ladyship, even if he does all that, he’s still just a duke of the imperial clan. What can he get besides a few rewards?” another eunuch couldn’t help saying.
The Consort fell silent for a moment.
“He can make His Majesty grow weary of Prince Ping,” she said slowly.
Perhaps… no – not perhaps. This was likely his true aim. With Prince Qing present, he would lack for neither rewards nor protection. So why all this frantic maneuvering, sparing no effort?
Perhaps… he’s after Prince Ping’s life…
The Consort involuntarily shivered.
She recalled the year the Second Prince had his accident – the way Duke Jin’an had rushed over after hearing the news, and the flash of cold light in his eyes upon hearing the imperial doctor’s verdict.
That gaze had fallen on the First Prince like a venomous snake spotting its prey, lurking in the darkness, baring its fangs with a silent hiss – waiting to strike and kill in a single blow.
Everyone else failed to understand why she feared and loathed that seemingly useless, decorative duke. They didn’t know – didn’t know how the Second Prince had… But Duke Jin’an must know something…
He must know!
That fleeting, icy glint in his eyes had clung to her for years – clawing at her mind, spoiling her rest, robbing her of sleep.
He absolutely cannot be allowed to stay!
She couldn’t risk waiting until Prince Ping ascended the throne before dealing with him.
“Go. Tell the Chancellor he must not leave the capital alone – have him find a way to remove Prince Jing’an.”
The eunuch lowered his head, answered yes, and slowly withdrew.
At that moment, the eunuch sent by the Imperial Consort had just stepped into Prince Ping’s residence, but after announcing his purpose, he was stopped.
“His Highness has said that, having been reprimanded, he must apply himself all the more. He asks Her Ladyship not to worry,” the prince’s chief steward said.
“Then at least allow me to see His Highness, so I can report back to Her Ladyship,” the eunuch replied.
The look in the chief steward’s eyes made him distinctly uncomfortable.
There was a hint of arrogance in it.
Arrogance? In the palace, this man had been no more than a dog trailing behind him –yet now, outside the palace, he actually postured like a proper figure!
And he actually refused to let him see Prince Ping!
What was he playing at? Already trying to control access to the prince’s residence? Afraid others might share in His Highness’s favor?
As if anyone would look up to you!
For now, perhaps not – but once Prince Ping ascended the throne, the personal attendants of his household would become trusted confidants.
Old retainers from the heir’s residence – those were not easily replaced by anyone.
“Master Liu, His Highness calls for you,” a young eunuch hurriedly shouted from inside.
“Just right – let me go with you…” the Imperial Consort’s eunuch said quickly, lifting his foot to follow, but was blocked by Chief Steward Liu.
“His Highness already said he will not receive you. He’s in a foul mood. If you insist on provoking him now and end up getting beaten, will you go crying to Her Ladyship afterward, or swallow it alone?” Chief Steward Liu said with a frown, his tone mild but edged.
If he complained to the Consort – that would be sowing discord between mother and son.
Swallow it himself – that would be suffering in silence.
The eunuch froze for a moment. But… how could His Highness possibly hit someone?
Prince Ping was known for propriety and decorum – perhaps a bit pedantic, but always gentle in conduct.
A faint smile tugged at the corner of Chief Steward Liu’s mouth.
“People only ever see appearances,” he said in a low voice, patting the eunuch on the shoulder. “I won’t catch up with you today – His Highness needs me urgently. I don’t dare be slow.”
With that, he strode off quickly.
The eunuch called out twice and took a couple of hurried steps after him, but was blocked and had no choice but to give up.
“Sir, this way please,” the attendants of Prince Ping’s residence said politely.
The eunuch could only shake his head and head out. No sooner had he stepped out of the courtyard than he saw two men hurrying toward the back, carrying a tattered mat between them.
What was that?
He couldn’t help narrowing his eyes to look. With their hurried steps, a long lock of black hair slipped out from inside the ragged mat.
The eunuch shuddered violently, eyes widening in disbelief. Chief Steward Liu’s words echoed in his ears:
His Highness is in a bad mood today. If you insist on provoking him and end up getting beaten…
No… it couldn’t be… could it?
The eunuch couldn’t stop himself – he stepped forward.
“Sir.” Attendants from both sides stepped forward to block him, a warning in their posture. “This way, please.”
Looking at their predatory gazes, the eunuch swallowed hard.
This was Prince Ping’s residence – his own domain.
The eunuch lowered his eyes and hurried out.
“Please assure Her Ladyship not to worry. His Highness is fine,” Chief Steward Liu said at the doorway with a polite smile as he followed.
At that smile, a chill crept down the eunuch’s spine once more.
People only ever see the surface; who can tell what sort of heart lies beneath the skin?
His Highness Prince Ping… had already grown up…
The eunuch answered quickly, mounted his horse, and rode off at speed.
