Yun Shou knew he must relay the Emperor’s words to his father without missing a single word. Although when he spoke the last sentence, he noticed his father’s face clearly twitched, he still insisted on finishing what he had to say.
“You brat, this is a warning! His Majesty’s health has deteriorated severely these past two years. According to Daoist Sun, His Majesty’s blood and vital energy are extremely vigorous. If a young person had such a pulse, it would definitely be a good thing, but for His Majesty, it’s a bad thing. This vigorous blood energy is actually all propped up by those medications. It doesn’t matter if a young person has a nosebleed in the morning, but when an elderly person exhibits such symptoms, it’s life-threatening—especially since he also suffers from wind illness.”
“So he pays great attention to these matters and never allows himself to become overly exhausted. But if things continue this way, problems will arise sooner or later. Father estimates His Majesty’s body has already been severely damaged. The fact that he hasn’t fathered a single prince or princess these past years speaks volumes.”
“Just keep these matters in your heart. Serve well in the palace. In our family, you’re actually a hostage. His Majesty no longer has the ambition and vigor of his early years, which is why he transferred you from the Ministry of War to become a captain in the Qianniu Guard. Human nature is like this—now His Majesty can only use those fierce tiger-wolf medicines to maintain his imposing imperial authority.”
“So don’t provoke him. Go along with him. Say whatever sounds pleasant. What he needs most right now is comfort, not loyalty. Look at some of the people recently promoted—three of them received accelerated promotions simply because they wrote well, and every one of those articles praised His Majesty’s sagacity and martial prowess.”
“Xu Jingzong was very skilled at writing such things in the early years, and Li Yifu is also a master of this literary style. Do you know why the two of them no longer write such articles now?”
Yun Shou replied, “Could it be that even they care about saving face?”
“You’ll never see something like face on Xu Jingzong and Li Yifu. They are pure political animals. They’re considering the future. Once a new emperor ascends the throne, those sycophantic literati, regardless of whether they have talent, will be labeled as having advanced through flattery and will never have a chance to rise again. They’re unwilling to exchange brief glory for future obscurity. Those who plan to walk a long road are all like this. You watch—once His Majesty knows his days are numbered, Father will certainly be stripped of office by His Majesty. Only after Chengqian succeeds to the throne will Father have the possibility of returning. This is called ‘grace emanating from above.’ However, Father doesn’t plan to come back. In the future, the Yun family will depend on you brothers for support. To put Chengqian’s mind at ease, I can’t go far away either. I can only be a teacher at Yushan Academy.”
“Father has already arranged the Yun family’s future affairs. I’m not worried about you three brothers. The only one I worry about is Xiao Mu. This child’s temperament is changeable and her judgment is easily swayed. She hasn’t inherited her mother’s resilience or Father’s intelligence. Right now, she’s the one who worries Father most.”
Yun Shou said with a smile, “Father is overthinking it. Although Xiao Mu has many faults, she’s naturally very kind. Great-grandfather has been giving her detailed instruction these days, so she’ll surely make great progress.”
Yun Ye shook his head and said, “A few days ago, Master Yuanzhang invited me to lecture at the academy. I estimate he’s already detected something wrong with the court. The old master has weathered many storms, and his eyes have never misjudged anyone. In Father’s dispute with Zhangsun Wuji, one of us will have to yield. Father is already tilting all public affairs toward the Zhangsun faction. After all, aside from the Ministry of War, there’s nothing that can’t be given up.”
“At this time, you must watch over Xiao Mu carefully. Nothing can happen at this juncture. Li Xiang is not a good match. Father has discovered he’s following Li Zhi’s old path. This is a dangerous signal. From now on, don’t have any dealings with Li Xiang. It’s very dangerous. Li Huairen is a cautionary example.”
Yun Shou said in astonishment, “What basis does he have? At least Li Zhi had Jinyang as a foundation. What does he have? The Zhangsun family surely wouldn’t dare to defy all decency again like last time, would they? Playing such a trick once is already too much—they’d do it again?”
Yun Ye curled his lips and said, “As long as a method works, they’ll keep using it. Just look at fishermen—they can always catch more or less fish. The Zhangsun family are the fishermen, and the Li family’s sons are the fish in the river. There will always be greedy ones who want to bite the bait. Last time it was Li Zhi. This time it very likely could be Li Xiang!”
“I’m well aware of what abilities he has. Besides, the one inheriting the throne is the Crown Prince, not him. Isn’t he making his move a bit too early?”
Yun Ye patted his son’s shoulder and said, “Ever since the Li Zhi incident, after painful reflection, Father won’t hesitate to think the worst of human nature. Don’t worry, I’ve already told the Crown Prince to keep an eye on his son.”
Seeing that the father and son’s conversation had ended, Xinyue walked in from outside with a smile and said, “There are only three days until the Mid-Autumn Festival. Our family has many joyous occasions this year. How about celebrating lively?”
Yun Ye smiled and said, “If you hadn’t mentioned it, I’d almost forgotten. Are the Mid-Autumn Festival rewards for the household prepared? This year I need to personally deliver gifts to some elders. For the old hands at the distillery, double their share this year. If any are willing to go to Yuezhou or Yongzhou, just let them go. Also, I plan to send Xiao Mu to Yuezhou to stay for a while. She’s no longer suitable to remain in Chang’an.”
“Because of Li Xiang?”
“Yes. I don’t know if that silly girl has awakened from her empress dream yet. Also, tell Xiao Wu that if she dares bewitch Xiao Mu again, I’ll break her legs!”
Xinyue looked at her husband’s face in puzzlement. This was the first time her husband had truly become angry with Xiao Wu.
At dinner time, Yun Mu didn’t come out. She stayed alone in her boudoir, carefully pondering the words her brother had spoken. In the end, she smiled bitterly, undid her hair, took out her guqin, and began tuning it. How long had it been since she’d touched this thing?
“Return, oh return! Let me cease friendship and cut off wandering. The world differs from me—where would I seek by driving my carriage again? I delight in the affectionate words of relatives, find joy in music and books to dispel worries. The farmers tell me spring has arrived, and there will be work in the western fields. Some command covered carriages, others paddle solitary boats. Following winding paths to seek valleys, traversing rugged routes through hills. Trees flourish luxuriantly toward prosperity, springs trickle and begin to flow. I rejoice that all things gain their season, but lament that my life is nearing its end.”
Yun Ye had just finished eating and was taking a walk in the courtyard when he suddenly heard his daughter singing this “Return, Oh Return!” He couldn’t help but be startled with alarm. How could someone so young have such thoughts? That was Tao Yuanming’s work—was it something a young woman should be singing?
He hurried upstairs and saw his daughter singing, completely absorbed, tears streaming down her face. He had wanted to go up and scold her, but suddenly his mind turned and he opened his mouth to sing: “One is an immortal flower from the celestial garden.”
“One is flawless beautiful jade.”
“If one says…”
“How many teardrops can there be in one’s eyes?”
“How can they endure flowing from autumn through winter’s end,”
“From spring through summer…”
Seeing that his daughter’s attention had been diverted to him, Yun Ye deliberately sang the last few lines exaggeratedly twice more before finally ending the entire song with an aria.
Yun Mu burst out laughing. Only then did Yun Ye approach his daughter. He took out his handkerchief to help wipe away her tears and patted her little face, saying, “Did Father sing well? Much better than Tao Yuanming! How can a grumpy old man compare with a pair of lovelorn young people? Even with lines as carefree as ‘clouds emerge from peaks without intention, birds return when tired of flying,’ it still doesn’t tug at the heartstrings like the emotional threads between young men and women. Do you like it? If you do, I’ll spread the word that my daughter wrote it.”
Yun Mu nodded and said, “This song is extremely beautiful, but your daughter doesn’t want this fame. Our Yun family has strict household standards. If your daughter sang such a song, people would think there were problems with our family’s reputation. Father, you don’t need to worry. Your daughter just had some idle thoughts. You don’t need to worry about Li Xiang. That person hasn’t even entered your daughter’s heart. I just felt somewhat wronged.”
After speaking, she buried herself in Yun Ye’s embrace and cried loudly. What her second brother Yun Shou had told her today had placed an extremely heavy burden on her heart.
“Your second brother is a fool. Father told him to hint at things indirectly, but he just talked nonsense and hurt my daughter’s heart. Father will beat him later. You should now keep your eyes wide open and see if there are any outstanding good young men in Chang’an. If there aren’t any in Chang’an, then look in Yuezhou. If there still aren’t any, then look in Yongzhou. We must find a good husband for my daughter.”
Yun Mu raised her tear-stained face and asked her father, “People from the imperial family won’t do, will they?”
“It’s not that they won’t do—it’s that Father hasn’t found a good one. Your Uncle Qing Que is the best person, but anyone who’s a good person in the imperial family will suffer losses, so we won’t marry into the imperial family.”
“Xiao Wu said that if I married any imperial prince, that prince could become emperor. Is that true?”
“She’s deceiving you. Xiao Wu has learned bad habits now and always wants to control the realm. That’s her ideal, not yours. You’re a pure, good child, not like Xiao Wu who’s had a man’s heart and ambition since childhood. However, she can’t become empress now because Father has betrothed her to Xiao Jie, so she can only incite you to become empress.”
Yun Ye talked with his daughter for a long time and told many stories. It wasn’t until the moon rose overhead that Yun Mu fell asleep in her father’s arms listening to stories.
“That wastrel who loved getting into women’s company finally shaved his head…”
Seeing his daughter had fallen asleep, Yun Ye stopped telling stories. He gently picked up his daughter, placed her on the bed, tucked her in, and then tiptoed out. Unexpectedly, Yun Mu said softly from behind, “You’re the best father in the world!”
Yun Ye chuckled and walked out, closing the door behind him with a heart full of happiness. Receiving recognition from one’s own children was more satisfying to Yun Ye than receiving the Emperor’s recognition.
After leaving the embroidery building, Yun Ye heaved a long sigh. Being a father these days was becoming increasingly difficult. It really was a matter of age. In the past, he could hold Xinyue and watch the moon all night without his back or waist aching. Now, after holding his child for just a while, he was already exhausted. Without realizing it, he had actually declined to this extent.