The Glory After Rebirth [ɇÇ”Ÿä¹‹Å°Šè£] Chapter 391- 393

Chapter 391: Zhao Jiusi’s and Zhao Turui’s Decisions

If Yuwen Jin was to get into the top three in the Imperial Martial Arts Examination (IMAE), he would have to put more effort into practice. Given that he couldn’t even defeat Jiang Yu in the kung fu competition a while ago, Ling Zhang was quite worried that he would be flattened in IMAE.

“I haven’t told my grandfather about my decision to take IMAE yet. I want to talk with my cousin about it first and see what he’s got to say. If he agrees, it’ll be a lot easier for me to convince my grandfather. And then…” Yuwen Jin let out a giggle before he continued, “Then I’ll ask my cousin to let me learn from Brother San for some time.”

Brother San? The others had no idea who Brother San was and all looked at him, their faces etched with confusion.

Ling Zhang, however, knew very well whom Yuwen Jin was referring to by saying the name ‘Brother San’. It was Qi San, the commander of the Shadow Battalion at Yuwen Tong’s command. But his awareness of this was also the reason why he was surprised. By making these remarks, Yuwen Jin had almost made it clear that he would go to the Shadow Battalion. Though having never been to that place, Ling Zhang had a shrewd idea what the training was like in there. If Yuwen Jin did go there, would he be able to walk out of it in one piece?

“Are you sure you want to do that? This is no laughing matter,” said Ling Zhang, looking at him, his eyebrows contracting.

Yuwen Jin stopped smiling and inclined his head with a very earnest expression on his face. “I’m sure. I know it’d be very difficult for me to get into the top three in IMAE if I don’t do that, given my average kung fu skills. I have to get into the top three.”

The others, though unaware of who the ‘Brother San’ Yuwen Jin had just mentioned was, could tell from the grave looks on his and Ling Zhang’s faces, that this matter was not something to be taken lightly.

“Who’s Brother San? Is it dangerous to learn kung fu from him?” inquired Ji Feng.

Yuwen Jin replied, “I can’t tell you that, but it’s not dangerous, and I have to do it.”

Ji Feng and the others exchanged glances and then shifted their gaze to Ling Zhang in unison.

Ling Zhang said, “I cannot tell you guys that either.” Then he turned to Yuwen Jin and continued, “If you’ve made up your mind, I won’t try to stop you. You may talk to Yuwen Tong about it.”

Yuwen Jin bobbed his head. “I understand.”

Seeing this, the others were somewhat apprehensive, but they also came to realize that it’d probably be best if they stayed out of this matter, so they didn’t persist with their questioning.

“No matter what, now that you’ve made a decision, you should just go for it. We look forward to seeing you win the title ‘the Number One Warrior’ in IMAE!”

Though they couldn’t get any more information about that person, they still felt it their duty to give Yuwen Jin some words of encouragement.

Yuwen Jin said, “I will, and when I do…”

Yuwen Jin flicked Jiang Yu a glance and added, “Humph, I’ll have another competition with you!”

Jiang Yu raised no objections.

After they finished talking about the matter of Yuwen Jin and some others, Ling Zhang looked at Zhao Jiusi and Zhao Turui. “What about you guys?” he asked.

A moment ago, when Ji Feng had been telling him about their plans, he hadn’t mentioned anything about Zhao Jiusi or Zhao Turui, which struck Ling Zhang as fairly baffling.

“We also have our own plans, which is also the very reason why we’re paying you this visit. Can we have a word with you in private later?” said Zhao Jiusi seriously.

Ling Zhang was somewhat surprised, but at the sight of the earnest expressions in the two brothers’ eyes, he came to understand something and replied with a nod, “Okay.”

At that moment, Jiang Yu, who had been listening quietly all along, also raised his head to look at the two brothers.

Ji Feng’s, Xie Qing’s, Yuwen Jin’s and Tao Yi’s faces all registered bemusement. After a few moments, as they saw that both the two brothers showed no inclination to disclose any details, the bemused expressions on their faces were replaced by thoughtful ones.

Yuwen Jin and the others, who could tell that Zhao Jiusi and Zhao Turui had something to talk with Ling Zhang about, didn’t linger for long. After chatting with the three of them for another few moments, they all rose to their feet and took their leave. Before leaving, Tao Yi secretly had a word with Ling Zhang.

“After the imperial examination scheduled for next spring is over, my teacher and Lord Pei might request permission to go back to their hometowns to live out their lives in retirement.”

Next spring? Ling Zhang gave it some thought. “Did any of the two old lords mention it to His Majesty?”

Tao Yi shook his head. “The two of them only talked about this confidentially and haven’t told anybody else. I’m telling you this only because I want to keep you posted. My teacher and Lord Pei are both in their declining years. They’ve meaning to leave for quite some time, for they’re somewhat guilty about the downfall of the former imperial household, but the new dynasty has just begun, and they fear that if they leave at this point in time, there might be some unfavorable rumors that will affect the registration for the imperial examination next year, so they plan to wait until the exam is over to leave.”

Ling Zhang came to understand, feeling that the two old lords were kind-hearted, that Yuwen Tong’s being respectful to them all this time paid off. “I’ll talk to His Majesty about this. The two old lords may expect to be summoned later.”

Tao Yi gave a nod. “I’ll tell this to my teacher. By the way, my mother will come here to keep your aunt company in the afternoon. I should’ve told you this earlier. I nearly forgot. You should have someone inform your aunt of it.”

Ling Zhang smiled, “Okay. Be sure to thank your mother for coming here so often to keep my aunt company lately.”

Tao Yi said, “There are few people my mother could have a chat with in this city. The two of them could use each other’s company. The Zhao brothers seem to have something they want to talk to you about, so I’ll leave you guys to it. I’ll drop by again in a day or two.”

Ling Zhang nodded. “All right.”

After seeing Tao Yi and Yuwen Jin and the others off, Ling Zhang started to double back.

He had a shrewd idea of what the Zhao brothers had meant a moment ago. They both were friends with him, and they knew each other well. The Zhao family were among those who had rendered meritorious service during the process of assisting Yuwen Tong to take the throne. Zhao Zheng could be counted as one of Yuwen Tong’s henchmen, and Ling Zhang believed the Zhao brothers were trustworthy. Zhao Jiusi was well adjusted, and Zhao Turui had a great sense of propriety. Both of them were quite able, and he’d be glad If the two of them really wanted to be his advisors. However, he’d have to talk with them first to find out whether or not this was the purpose of their visit.

After returning to his courtyard house, Ling Zhang entered the living room. The Zhao brothers rose to their feet.

“Young Master, I’ll go and see if there’s anything I could help Butler Xia with,” said Jiang Yu.

Ling Zhang gave an inclination of the head.

When Jiang Yu had taken his leave, Zhao Jiusi, Zhao Turui and Ling Zhang were the only ones left in the room.

“What is it that you guys want to talk with me in private about?” asked Ling Zhang.

Zhao Jiusi smiled, “I think you’ve guessed it already. My brother and I have no intention of sitting the imperial examination. I wonder if you could take us in.”

Zhao Turui also gave an embarrassed smile. “We know that you turned a lot of people down, and we don’t dare put you in a difficult position, so we figured maybe we should privately ask you your opinion first. If you think we’re competent, we’ll serve you as Jiang Yu does.”

‘I knew it,’ thought Ling Zhang. The truth of his speculation confirmed, Ling Zhang said, “You need to think this through. Given your talents, passing the imperial examination definitely wouldn’t be a problem for either of you. If you guys take the exam, you’ll become officials and have quite good career prospects. If you serve me, others might think that you’re ruining your own future. Will you be able to handle the malicious gossip?”

“We’ve made our decisions and psyched ourselves up for everything we might be faced with. Rumors and other people’s opinions won’t affect our determination. If you let us stay, there’ll be only one thing we have to do, and that’s serving you. We won’t bother with anything else,” responded Zhao Jiusi.

“That’s right. We’ve made up our minds,” agreed Zhao Turui.

Ling Zhang kept silent for a brief moment before he said, “May I ask why you decided to come to me instead of taking the exam? Is this an arrangement made by your family? Did they force you into doing this?”

Zhao Jiusi answered, “No. Don’t misunderstand us. Our family didn’t force us to do anything. We made this decision of our own volition.”

“We’d talked this through with our elders before we came here earlier this day. At first my uncle and my father did disagree, but we convinced them afterward,” said Zhao Turui.

Ling Zhang looked at them. “Convinced them how?”

Zhao Turui exchanged a glance with Zhao Jiusi, and the latter replied, “A cousin of ours has volunteered to go to a provincial town. We both have every confidence in his abilities, and we believe that barring accidents, he will climb up the hierarchy step by step, find his way into the imperial court and take the place of our uncle. A family member of ours has already taken this path and I have no intention to become the icing on the cake, so I think maybe I should do something that I want to do, though it might sound a little willful. You’re the future empress and also my friend, and currently Jiang Yu is the only adviser you have, so I figured that there’d be a lot of things you could use my help with, that I’d be able to put my mind to good use. Therefore, after hearing about what Jiang Yu did, I made the same decision almost without hesitation. As for my brother…”

Ling Zhang shifted his gaze to Zhao Turui, who awkwardly scratched his neck and said, “You might not know about this, but I’m really into commerce.”

Ling Zhang was astonished. “You’re into commerce?”

Eyes brightening, Zhao Turui gave a bob of the head and replied, “Yeah! But previously my parents didn’t like the idea of me doing business and kept telling me to pursue a career in the government, so I had no choice but to keep it to myself all this time. I know that you have some stores, and you once said that you wanted to open stores in all cities around the country. If you still want to do that, would you please let me help you?”

Ling Zhang was at a loss for what to say. Zhao Turui was dealing him a wild card.

Zhao Jiusi on the side said in an embarrassed tone of voice, “Turui is into commerce, but the idea strikes our elders as rather unpromising. He knows that you won’t give up your commercial aspirations, and he’d like to offer you some help if you still want to do something about it. By doing that, he’ll also be sort of fulfilling his dream.”

Ling Zhang pulled a wry face and said to Zhao Turui, “You said that your parents didn’t like the idea. How did you convince them to give you the permission to go into business with me?”

Zhao Turui answered, “I just told them that I came here to volunteer to be your adviser. None of them know anything about my plan to go into business. I didn’t even tell my uncle. My brother and I are the only ones aware of it in my family.”

Ling Zhang came to realize that Zhao Turui intended to use him to cover his tracks and hoodwink his parents so that he could fulfill his desire to do business.

“I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I’ve transferred all the stores to my father, and I don’t see myself spending much time on business in the future,” said Ling Zhang.

Predictably, disappointment registered on Zhao Turui’s face. “Didn’t you say that you wanted to open stores in every city in this country? You–You’re going to give up just like this?”

Ling Zhang replied, “Well, apart from anything else, my identity is different now. Even if I still have that idea in my mind, it’ll be very difficult to put it into action.”

Zhao Turui’s face crumpled up. “Come on, don’t give up. I can help you.”

Ling Zhang shook his head. “Sorry, but even I myself haven’t thought it through yet. There’s really nothing I could do to help you.”

His business plan involved the establishment of an intelligence network, which was something only those he trusted complete would be privy to. For the moment Ling Zhang wouldn’t let anybody except his father participate in any of these matters, and neither would he disclose it to anybody unless he had to, not even Zhao Turui, despite the fact that they were friends.

Zhao Turui still wanted to say something but was stopped by Zhao Jiusi, who said, “Don’t worry. Although Ling Zhang has no intention of going into business, I’m sure there’s another way for you to realize your dream. We’ll think about it and figure something out after we get back. You can’t force Ling Zhang to go into business, right?”

With a dispirited look, Zhao Turui replied, “Okay.”

Chapter 392: Heady Consecutive Nights Out

What Zhao Turui wanted was quite simple – doing business without his elders’ knowledge. He had come to visit Ling Zhang because he’d believed that Ling Zhang could help make his dream come true. He had no ulterior motives, which was a fact Ling Zhang was fully aware of.

“Actually there’s no need for you to be anxious about it. As the saying goes, ‘Nothing forcibly done is going to be agreeable.’ You should talk with you elders about it. They might not necessarily be unable to understand you. Even if I take you in as my adviser, you’ll still have to sit the imperial examination. No matter what, the exam is something you cannot avoid,” said Ling Zhang.

Zhao Turui and Zhao Jiusi were both astonished. “Sitting the imperial examination?”

Ling Zhang inclined his head. “After I become the empress, I’ll have to rank my advisers, and they’ll have to have either scholarly honor or some other achievements. Otherwise ranking them will be difficult, which will in turn make it inconvenient for them to perform the tasks I assign them.”

Zhao Jiusi gave it some thought and said with a nod, “You’ve got a point.”

Zhao Turui appeared vexed. It was not that he was afraid of taking the exam, but that once he took the exam, his parents would have more reasons to stop him from pursuing a career in business.

Zhao Jiusi patted his shoulder. “Ling Zhang is right. Nothing forcibly done is going to be agreeable. Compared with going to such trouble as to seek help from Ling Zhang, being honest with our parents would be a much better choice.”

“That’s right,” commented Ling Zhang.

Zhao Turui had no alternative but to accept their advice.

As regards Zhao Jiusi…

“Have you really made up your mind?” Ling Zhang inquired of him.

Zhao Jiusi earnestly gave a bob of the head. “I’ve talked this through with my family. If you agree to take me in, I’ll move out of my parents’ house and find somewhere else to live, and I’ll have only one identity – your adviser.”

Zhao Jiusi had done some careful thinking before making these remarks. Unlike Zhao Turui, he had a very definite goal.

Ling Zhang was well acquainted with Zhao Jiusi and knew very well what kind of person he was, so he naturally could understand what he meant.

“Finding somewhere else to live isn’t necessary for the moment. I’ll get you a place to live if you don’t mind,” said Ling Zhang.

Zhao Jiusi brightened up at these words of Ling Zhang’s which suggested that he had agreed. “Okay. I’ll comply with your arrangement.”

Feeling that he needed to talk with Yuwen Tong about this matter, Ling Zhang planned to tell Yuwen Tong at night. After a while, he summoned Jiang Yu and informed him that he needed to take the imperial examination.

Jiang Yu raised no objection. Passing the exam wouldn’t be a problem for him.

Also, Jiang Yu was not surprised that Zhao Jiusi had become his associate, making no other reply to it than an inclination of the head.

Knowing that he would be working with Jiang Yu, Zhao Jiusi started making overtures to Jiang Yu. “It’s a pleasure to work with you, Brother Jiang.”

“You’re too polite, Childe Zhao. We are colleagues now. If there’s anything you need my help with, all you have to do is ask,” said Jiang Yu.

Their conversation was just an exchange of courtesies, but it was a normal thing, given the current circumstances.

Zhao Jiusi and Zhao Turui didn’t stay for long. They took their leave after another few moments. Zhao Jiusi would come to the Ling Mansion to “take office” in two days.

Ling Zhang planned to relieve Jiang Yu and Zhao Jiusi of all the trivial matters after the wedding ceremony so that the two of them could focus on making preparations for the exam. He valued the abilities of both of them, so he naturally hoped they would pass the examination. It would be an opportunity to prove themselves as well as to do him proud, so this matter must not be taken lightly.

…

At night, Yuwen Tong sneaked out of the imperial palace. Ling Zhang was sitting in the corridor of his courtyard house, waiting for him.

On this day, Yuwen Tong arrived a little late. Ling Zhang was worried that if it had been something thorny that kept him.

“It was a pressing matter that I had to deal with.” Yuwen Tong told him what had kept him and then added, “It’s been settled.”

Ling Zhang cast him an appraising look and asked, “Are you hungry? Did you come here immediately after getting out of the consultation hall? Did you get something to eat first?”

Yuwen Tong shook his head. “I was anxious to come here to see you. You have anything to eat here?”

Ling Zhang looked at him resignedly. “Don’t do this again. You need to eat something after working so late. Go inside and take a bath. I’ll go and get you some food.”

Yuwen Tong held him and gave him a kiss before walking into the house. Ling Zhang looked left and right. It was after seeing that those who should disappear had all disappeared that the flush over his cheeks ebbed away, and with that he hastened out of the courtyard house, heading for the kitchen.

Ling Zhang was entering the house with some food when Yuwen Tong walked out of the bathroom after the bath.

“It’s short notice, so I just cooked some vegetable. I also got you some noodle,” said Ling Zhang, carrying the food inside. There was a large bowl of noodle, an appetizing vegetarian dish and a dish of braised pork with soy sauce.

The foods were simple, but they were tastier than the choicest delicacy, and it didn’t take an imperial chef to cook them. Yuwen Tong wolfed down the large bowl of noodle with loud slurps, along with the appetizer and the braised pork.

While Yuwen Tong was eating, Ling Zhang went into the bathroom, folded Yuwen Tong’s clothes, handed them to Yao Yi who was on guard duty outside the courtyard house, and told him to have someone deliver them back to the imperial palace. Since Ling Zhang had been keeping Yuwen Tong’s visits back from his family, these clothes had to be sent back to the palace to be washed. Also, Ling Zhang didn’t trust his family servants enough to let them wash Yuwen Tong’s clothes.

“Earlier this day Yuwen Jin and some others paid me a visit.” Ling Zhang returned, sat down, and related to Yuwen Tong what he had talked about with Yuwen Jin and the others during the day, with an emphasis on the matter of Zhao Jiusi.

After hearing it, Yuwen Tong said, “If you think he’ll prove helpful, keep him. What with Zhao Zheng and his son, it’d be very difficult for other members of the Zhao family to distinguish themselves. Since he’s willing to take another path, I won’t raise any objections, as long as he promises he’d stay loyal to you. Tomorrow I’ll summon him to the palace. Given that you plan to have them take the exam, you must have quite high expectations of them, so I’ll act as a gatekeeper for you.”

Ling Zhang was okay with this. In all likelihood, in the future he would have to rely on Zhao Jiusi and Jiang Yu to handle some important tasks, so he could never be too careful about this issue.

After finishing discussing this matter, Yuwen Tong didn’t feel like talking about any other serious business. The only thing he wanted to do was hold Ling Zhang in his arms and relaxedly enjoy the starscape and the moonscape.

Ling Zhang asked him, “By the way, someone of the Ministry of Rites has shown you the detailed wedding plan, I suppose?”

The matter of the wedding ceremony, however, was an exception. At the mention of it, Yuwen Tong immediately perked up. “Yes. He told me that I should rehearse it. I think I’ll have the time to do that the day after tomorrow. I want you to go back to the palace and do a dry run with me.”

Ling Zhang almost dissolved into chuckle at these words. “After we enter the palace, there will be specially-assigned officials guiding us till the end. You really think it necessary to rehearse that part?”

Yuwen Tong said, “I do, because our wedding must be grand and impressive.”

Of course, the most important reason was that he wanted to have Ling Zhang stay in the palace keeping him company for a day. Recently he had only been able to see Ling Zhang by night, which made him feel that he and Ling Zhang were like the Cowherd and the Weaving Maid (In a Chinese legend who, once a happy couple, become stars separated by the Milky Way. They can meet only once in a year when magpies fly together to form a bridge over the Milky Way.) The daytime felt so long and he couldn’t have complete peace of mind when Ling Zhang wasn’t in sight.

Naturally Ling Zhang could tell what he was thinking about. He twisted his head around to look at Yuwen Tong and asked, “Just one day?”

“Two!” Yuwen Tong decisively corrected himself.

Ling Zhang chuckled, “One. I have other business to attend to.”

Yuwen Tong, “…”

Ling Zhang turned around to hug him. “Don’t be like this. The wedding ceremony is very close. Show some patience.”

Yuwen Tong tightened his embrace. “I’ve lost count of the number of times you’ve said this.”

But Yuwen Tong still felt that time was going too slow.

He shifted Ling Zhang’s sitting position. The two of them were on a wooden couch under a big tree in the courtyard. Yuwen Tong perched on the edge of it, Ling Zhang straddling his thighs face to face with him. With one arm wrapped around Ling Zhang’s waist, Yuwen Tong slowly stroked the side of Ling Zhang and vaguely asked, “You had a kung fu competition with Miao Shiba today?”

“Yeah,” answered Ling Zhang, somewhat distracted by the stroking. A certain part of the side of his waist was quite sensitive, which Yuwen Tong’s hand was caressing in circles. The two of them had been together for quite some time, so they both had an intimate knowledge of the sensitive areas of each other’s bodies.

“How did you feel?” asked Yuwen Tong absent-mindedly, still stroking him.

“Not bad. I last longer than the last time. Today was mainly about the competition between Jiang Yu and Yuwen Jin. They’ve agreed to wipe the slate clean, at least for the moment. I hope they’ll gradually dispel their prejudices over time,” said Ling Zhang, his voice becoming faintly quavery. Yuwen Tong’s hand was so “bold” that his waist almost went limp for the kneading.

Yuwen Tong gave a chuckle at Ling Zhang’s bodily response, his fingers continuing to massage him with varied force. “Jiang Yu has learned how to keep things in perspective. It’s Yuwen Jin who concerns me. Did he overreact earlier today?”

Ling Zhang said, “Apart from anything else he’s your cousin. You should place more trust in him.”

Then he gave Yuwen Tong an account of how Yuwen Jin had behaved during the day and remarked, “He also conducted himself pretty well today. Though he lost, he was quite gracious in defeat. There was no hard feelings.”

When he’d said this, his waist went completely limp, because Yuwen Tong had archly given him a sudden light pinch after he finished speaking. Ling Zhang’s waist shuddered and with that he weakly leaned onto Yuwen Tong.

Yuwen Tong buried him bodily in his embrace, planted a sideward kiss on his cheek and said, “That was an improvement of some sort. I’ll pay him a compliment in a few days.”

Talking about the matter of Yuwen Jin going into the palace, Ling Zhang recalled a fairly important affair, hastily held Yuwen Tong’s shoulders and sat up from his embrace. “Incidentally, there’s yet another thing.”

A faint flicker flitted across Yuwen Tong’s eyes, not very happy about Ling Zhang freeing himself from his arms. “What is it?”

“Yuwen Jin said that he wanted to to learn kung fu from Qi San. It seems that he plans to pay a visit to the Shadow Battalion to prepare himself for the Imperial Martial Arts Examination (IMAE) scheduled for next spring. Have you heard of it?” said Ling Zhang.

Yuwen Tong nodded. “Yes, I have. My granduncle mentioned it to me once. Yuwen Jin is not meant for college, and his kung fu is just average. If he is to pass next year’s IMAE, he’ll have to put in some good hard work. I promised my granduncle I’d let Yuwen Jin go to the Shadow Battalion to receive training.”

Ling Zhang asked, “Do you think he’ll be able to tough it out?”

As far as he knew, the training methods they adopted in the Shadow Battalion were quite inhumane. Would Yuwen Jin be able to endure it?

Yuwen Tong said, “He’ll have to tough it out, if he wants to see his name on the list of successful candidates. If he couldn’t even handle that, he’ll never pass IMAE, and he’ll have to kiss his dream of becoming a military officer goodbye.”

There was a brief moment of silence before Ling Zhang broke it. “You’re right. Since this is his own choice, he’ll have to figure things out on his own.”

Seeing he had nothing else to say, Yuwen Tong pulled him back into his embrace, scooped him up instantly and made towards the doors of the house.

Ling Zhang had got used to this kind of behavior of Yuwen Tong’s, but in the instant he was lifted bodily up, he was momentarily dazzled and reflexively held Yuwen Tong tight.

“Now it’s time for us to do what we’ve got to do,” said Yuwen Tong, entering the house and closing the doors behind him.

The guards on duty, who had also got used to the emperor’s coming out here to have fun with Ling Zhang every night, sensibly walked a few paces further away, making sure nobody approached this courtyard house.

Chapter 393: A Return Trip to the Palace- A Rehearsal

The next day, Yuwen Tong, as usual, got up before daybreak, preparing to go back to the imperial palace for the court meeting.

Ling Zhang also woke up. After dreamily recalling what Tao Yi had told him the day before, he hastened to inform Yuwen Tong of it.

Yuwen Tong said, “I see. I’ll summon the two old men and talk with them about it in a day or two. You may go back to sleep.”

Ling Zhang shook his head and sat up. “Recently I’ve been sleeping late on a daily basis. I need to stop it, or my family will find out that you’ve been coming here to sleep over every night.”

“Your maternal grandfather and Ji Yanlai have definitely found out about my sleepovers some time ago.”

“I know, but my paternal grandfather and my uncle haven’t.”

Ling Zhang struggled to his feet, giving a big yawn before standing straight, making his lack of sleep manifest.

Seeing this, Yuwen Tong had him sit down, brought Ling Zhang’s clothes over, dressed him and then helped him wash his face.

The moment his face came into contact with the cool water, every trace of his drowsiness was gone.

Ling Zhang took the towel from Yuwen Tong’s hand, toweled his face and then went to gargle by himself.

Yuwen Tong looked at the color of the sky to gauge the time and then said, “I need to get back to the palace. You may make an excuse and come back here to catch up on your sleep later if you still feel sleepy.”

Ling Zhang inclined his head, his face still covered by the towel. “Just go straight away, or you’ll be late for the court meeting.”

Yuwen Tong walked over and gave him a hug and a kiss before leaving.

…

In the morning, Zhao Jiusi was summoned to the palace. Before long, news quickly spread through the capital city that a childe of the Zhao family had made the same decision as Jiang Yu’s and become Ling Zhang’s adviser.

Members of the various forces in the capital city, who had been trying to help their sons or nephews get into Ling Zhang’s think tank, all appeared distressed at the news. It was common knowledge that first come, first served. Previously Jiang Yu had already taken the first seat, and now Zhao Jiusi had taken the second. The later one got on board, the fewer opportunities he would be able to get to prove his abilities to Ling Zhang. However, even so, they still found it difficult to make up their minds to send the most intelligent young members of their families to be Ling Zhang’s advisers.

The wedding ceremony hadn’t been held yet, so they were uncertain about how the situation might develop. More importantly, Ling Zhang was a man, which meant he was unable to bear children. In their sight, the emperor would sooner or later take a woman in as his concubine and have her bear him a son, so it was inadvisable to side with Ling Zhang so soon.

“Zhao Zheng rendered meritorious service by assisting His Majesty in coming to power and was very much in His Majesty’s confidence. Though Zhao Jiusi is not Zhao Zheng’s son, he’s an important member of the Zhao family. Why did Zhao Zheng send Zhao Jiusi to be Ling Zhang’s adviser?”

This was a mystery to many people in the capital city. In their eyes, this decision of the Zhao family’s was very baffling.

However, Zhao Zheng and other members of the Zhao family refused to breathe a word of the reason to anybody, no matter how hard they tried to nose it out, which gave rise to a fair deal of speculations.

Thus, the capital city was cloaked in a shroud of secrecy before Ling Zhang’s and Yuwen Tong’s wedding ceremony.

Zhao Jiusi, after his audience with Yuwen Tong, immediately went to the Ling Mansion to see Ling Zhang.

“Young Master,” Zhao Jiusi called, officially changing the form of address.

Hearing Zhao Jiusi call him this for the first time, Ling Zhang felt a little weird, but even so, he didn’t show anything on his face. Since Zhao Jiusi had become his adviser, they were now not only former college classmates but also superior and subordinate. In order for things to work out between the two of them, he must adjust himself to this change in the form of address.

However…

“We went to college together, so you may call me by my name when there’s nobody else around,” said Ling Zhang.

Zhao Jiusi said, “I’ll never forget our friendship as fellow students, but even if I don’t change the form of address now, after you marry His Majesty, I’ll still have to change it.”

Since Zhao Jiusi had made it very clear, Ling Zhang made no more remarks in this regard.

“You’ve just got started, so I’d like you to make the acquaintance of the others working for me first. There won’t be much for you to do before my wedding, so you may come here more often to get to know Jiang Yu and the others. Also, you may wait until after the wedding ceremony to go to the palace to see me if you like,” said Ling Zhang.

Zhao Jiusi merely gave a smile, showing no inclination to wait until after the wedding ceremony to go to the palace, seeming to plan to come to the Ling Mansion on a frequent basis to get more acquainted with Jiang Yu, Wang Dashan and the others.

Ling Zhang didn’t try to dissuade him and had Jiang Yu take Zhao Jiusi to make the acquaintance of Wang Dashan and the others. Previously Wang Dashan and the other bodyguards had stayed by Ling Zhang’s side quite often, so they were familiar to Zhao Jiusi, though most of their names were unknown to the latter.

After Jiang Yu led Zhao Jiusi away, Ling Zhang gave this matter a lot of thought. Considering Zhao Jiusi and Jiang Yu had their respective talents and abilities, it was inappropriate for him to have them stay in the same place. From the vantage point of the present, the right thing to do was have Zhao Jiusi and Jiang Yu return home to prepare themselves for the exam after the wedding ceremony, and wait until they passed the exam to make a decision.

…

Zhao Jiusi had the intention of establishing good relationships with Jiang Yu, Wang Dashan and the others, so he naturally fit in very soon.

For two consecutive days, he went to the Ling Mansion early in the morning and didn’t leave until dark. It seemed that he had indeed begun to see himself as Ling Zhang’s adviser.

Ling Zhang, however, was brought into the imperial palace by Yuwen Tong. The other night he had agreed to go to the palace to keep Yuwen Tong company for a day and rehearse what they’d have to do during the wedding ceremony.

Yuwen Tong had met Lord Hu and Lord Pei earlier the day Ling Zhang went into the imperial palace.

“How did it go? Are they sure they want to return to their hometowns to live out their lives in retirement after the imperial examination next spring?” inquired Ling Zhang.

Yuwen Tong replied with an inclination of the head. “They’ve made up their minds.”

Yuwen Tong didn’t feel it regrettable that the two old lords were going to leave. Firstly, Lord Hu and Lord Pei were indeed in their declining years; secondly, the main reason why Yuwen Tong had previously roped them in was because he’d wanted to capitalize on their leverage in the literati so as to pacify the literati and college students. Currently the two old lords were fairly cooperative, which was why Yuwen Tong wouldn’t make things difficult for them.

“But I’ll put them in charge of the imperial examination next spring. It’ll be the last thing I have them do for me, and it’ll also be the first and only thing they do for the Great Wen,” added Yuwen Tong.

Ling Zhang was amazed. “They’re both of advanced years. Will they be able to handle the workload?”

Yuwen Tong said, “Though at their advanced ages, they’re actually still robust. They’re suffering from minor presbyopia, but their minds are still clear, so they’ll be fine. Besides, I’m putting them in charge only because I need them to lend their weight to the exam. They won’t have to do everything personally.”

Ling Zhang inclined his head. Since Yuwen Tong had already had everything planned out, he said no more.

The imperial palace was tumultuous. With the Infinite Fortune Palace as the center, all palaces nearby had been quickly revamped and redecorated, looking much more lively. Also, it was autumn and flowers in their prime were making the place a blaze of color. The warm sunshine and the festoon adorning every building in sight was enough to brighten everybody’s day.

Ling Zhang looked at the festooned palaces, amazed by the fact that they had changed so much during his short absence.

“Were it not for the short notice, we would be able to directly move into the new imperial bedchamber. Given the current circumstances, I could only have them do some simple revamp and reconstruction within their capabilities. I’m sorry you’ll have to put up with this,” said Yuwen Tong.

Ling Zhang was amused by these words. “Put up with this? Every inch of the imperial palace is stamped with luxury. Besides, it’s not those stuff that I’m marrying you for. Actually, I think the Infinite Fortune Palace is good enough.”

Holding Ling Zhang’s hand, Yuwen Tong made towards the Infinite Fortune Palace. “That’s why I made compromises to marry you sooner.”

Compared with anything else, marrying Ling Zhang was of greater importance, because it would save him sneaking out of the palace by night like a burglar. Also, it’d spare him the ordeal of missing Ling Zhang so much during the day that he could barely eat.

“Your Majesty! Childe Ling!” called an official of the Ministry of Rites, hurrying up to them from behind.

Ling Zhang and Yuwen Tong came to a halt and turned around to look at him. “What’s wrong?”

The official was the newly appointed Assistant Minister of Rites. He was a quite poised and worldly-wise man, but now his face was wet with sweat from the strenuous running. “Your Majesty, Childe Ling, you’re going in the wrong way. The rehearsal of the wedding ceremony is supposed to start from the hall in the front, not the Infinite Fortune Palace.”

This poor newly appointed Assistant Minister of Rites had waited in the hall for quite a long time. After being informed that the emperor and the future empress had been going in the wrong direction, he had run to this place in great haste, which was why he was all sweaty.

Flushing slightly, Ling Zhang hurriedly pivoted around, let out a little cough and said, “We just came here for a walk. We’ll go there right away.”

Yuwen Tong also turned around. “Let’s go.”

The Assistant Minister of Rites’ face crumpled up as he saw the two of them striding towards the great hall with flying feet. How did they come to walk so fast?! Not daring waste any time, the Assistant Minister of Rites, who had just broken out in a sweat for running, hastened to trot forward to catch up with them.

Ling Zhang was somewhat confused when he perceived Yuwen Tong was walking faster than usual. His confusion deepened as he noticed the Assistant Minister of Rites who was panting heavily trying to follow them. Yuwen Tong definitely knew that the Assistant Minister of Rites was having trouble keeping pace with them. Why was he still walking so fast?

“What’s wrong?” Ling Zhang couldn’t help but ask.

Yuwen Tong slowed down a little bit and replied, “Nothing.”

Ling Zhang looked incredulously at him, but seeing Yuwen Tong had slowed down and the official had finally caught up with them, he didn’t give it any more thought.

Yuwen Tong inwardly gave a little snort as he observed that the insensible Assistant Minister of Rites had finally caught up with them. Just now they’d been so close to the Infinite Fortune Palace, and he’d been within an inch of getting into the imperial bedchamber and hiding Ling Zhang in there when this guy had suddenly shown up. It was not like the wedding ceremony was tomorrow. What was the hurry?

Unaware that the emperor was inwardly criticizing him, the newly appointed Assistant Minister of Rites, after wiping the sweat from his forehead, could finally stop trotting and follow the two masters at a normal pace. “Your Majesty, Childe Ling, on the wedding day, a guard of honor will directly escort Childe Ling into the inner city, and the carriage will stop in front of the great hall. Your Majesty are supposed to guide Childe Ling up the stairs in front of the great hall and then offer sacrifices to the gods. After the officials pay their respects to you by getting down on their knees, an important part of the ceremony will be considered finished.”

Ling Zhang had personally made some changes to the main parts of the wedding plan, so he naturally knew about this step. It was some specific courtesies that the two of them would have to familiarize themselves with. “What am I supposed to do specifically after I stop in front of the great hall?”

The Assistant Minister of Rites hastened to lead Ling Zhang and Yuwen Tong around the great hall, heading for the stairs in front of it. While walking, he replied, “Childe Ling, what you are supposed to do is…”

He related a lot of details without pausing. Ling Zhang tried to memorize them while listening, but he still felt he was in over his head. When they reached the gateway of the great hall, he saw a lot of people waiting and asked, “There are so many steps. What if I forget some of them?”

The Assistant Minister of Rites responded, “Don’t worry, Childe Ling. I’ll be by your side and cue you on that day. Right now you may acquaint yourself with the process first, so that you’ll be able to handle it with more ease when the time comes.”