When Deng Yi walked in, he saw this scene.
Chu Zhao and Xiao Yu were examining robes together, palace maids and attendants crowding around, holding various jewels and hairpins in their hands. Amidst this dazzling brilliance, Xie Yanfang in his official robes was carefully selecting, or gazing intently, even picking things up to compare against their temples—
“Just now Scholar Huang came to tell me that His Majesty wanted to end class early today. I thought something had happened, but it turns out His Majesty did it to see Lord Xie,” Deng Yi said. “This official can understand His Majesty’s feelings, but Lord Xie—”
He looked at Xie Yanfang standing surrounded by palace maids and jewels.
“Lord Xie returns after a long absence and hurries into the palace just to lead His Majesty and the Empress in extravagant dressing?”
“This official cannot understand.”
Xie Yanfang held up a jeweled flower with a smile: “The Grand Tutor can understand it as—having experienced the life and death of relatives, I’ve seen through worldly matters and decided to enjoy life while I can.”
Deng Yi didn’t find his joke funny, but still smiled obligingly: “With such words, Old Master Xie should send you to keep vigil before Old Master Xie’s spirit.”
Xie Yanfang didn’t find his words offensive either and laughed heartily.
Xiao Yu didn’t understand what the Grand Tutor and Xie Yanfang were saying, but he wouldn’t assume that because they were smiling, they were happy.
His expression showed not the slightest unease, even carrying a smile with a touch of indifference.
He sat on the high dragon throne. Most of the time he couldn’t understand what the officials in court were saying, but this didn’t matter.
He was the Emperor.
He didn’t need to understand what everyone said.
“Grand Tutor, you’ve wrongly blamed Lord Xie,” Chu Zhao said with a smile. “It’s not because he came that His Majesty skipped class.”
She put her arm around Xiao Yu’s shoulder.
“It was this palace who invited His Majesty to go flower-viewing together, and it was also this palace who asked Lord Xie to help select clothes and accessories.”
Deng Yi said: “Although the Empress doesn’t need to attend classes, you also know the principle that diligence leads to mastery while play leads to waste.”
Chu Zhao smiled: “Grand Tutor, just once—it won’t lead to waste.”
“Empress, in autumn you had him moon-gazing, in winter watching lanterns, and two months ago hunting. This isn’t the first time things have gone to waste, is it?” Deng Yi asked with a frown.
Although Deng Yi didn’t personally teach His Majesty, he supervised the Emperor’s studies. As the dynasty gradually stabilized, the Emperor also experienced the Grand Tutor’s strictness.
Strict with the Emperor, even stricter with the scholars teaching the Emperor—this past year, the Emperor’s teachers had all been replaced once.
Xiao Yu was a child after all and felt somewhat anxious facing the Grand Tutor. The Grand Tutor wasn’t like other officials who revered the Emperor. The Grand Tutor had once said he was appointed by the Late Emperor to assist the new Emperor.
Meaning this new Emperor couldn’t do anything to him? Xiao Yu had this thought, though he’d never thought about doing anything to anyone.
Besides fear, he also didn’t want Chu Zhao to be scolded. Changing teachers was nothing—he didn’t care about these teachers either. Whoever taught him was the same, as long as the Grand Tutor was happy. But supposedly—the Grand Tutor had the power to depose an Empress.
“Grand Tutor, it was I—” He was about to admit fault.
Before he finished speaking, Chu Zhao pulled him into her embrace.
“Grand Tutor,” Chu Zhao called out. “A whole year is so long, and we’ve only played four or five times. That’s too little. His Majesty is still a child.”
Deng Yi said: “The Emperor is not a child.”
“The Emperor is also a child,” Chu Zhao didn’t back down. “A person can only be a child once in their lifetime. If they don’t relax now, how will they endure in the future?”
Deng Yi frowned: “What kind of twisted logic is that?”
Xie Yanfang watched them argue, listening with a smile without speaking.
Xiao Yu leaned in Chu Zhao’s embrace, listening to the two argue. Seeing the Grand Tutor frown, he no longer felt anxious and couldn’t help laughing softly.
Once he laughed, Chu Zhao laughed even more.
“Grand Tutor—” she said. “Let him play now. When he’s played enough and grown up, even if you let him play, he won’t be interested. His Majesty will be a diligent emperor. The Grand Tutor can rest assured.”
Deng Yi wouldn’t argue with her childishness, only saying: “As long as the Empress is assured.”
Chu Zhao pushed Xiao Yu with her hand: “The Grand Tutor has agreed. Your Majesty, quickly tell the Grand Tutor.”
Xiao Yu straightened up and said to Deng Yi: “Grand Tutor, after the flower viewing, I will write an essay and ten pages of calligraphy to submit to the scholars.”
“This is combining education with entertainment, isn’t it?” Chu Zhao said from the side. “Grand Tutor, don’t stay cooped up in the hall today either. Come with me and His Majesty to the flower-viewing banquet.”
Deng Yi said: “Thank you, Empress. When this official was young, I enjoyed flowers all over the mountains and plains enough. Now I have no interest.”
This returned her earlier words to her. Chu Zhao laughed heartily, then looked at Xie Yanfang: “Third Young Master, will you come with us?”
Xie Yanfang smiled: “I’m different from Lord Deng. I still love flower-viewing to this day. I’ve already seen flowers all along the road on my way back, so I won’t disturb His Majesty and the Empress.”
Chu Zhao looked regretful: “Without Lord Xie, the flower-viewing banquet will be missing its most beautiful scenery.”
Xie Yanfang laughed and bowed to Chu Zhao, thanking her for the teasing.
Chu Zhao and Xiao Yu went to the imperial garden’s flower-viewing banquet, while Deng Yi and Xie Yanfang walked together toward the front court.
Having not seen each other for over half a year, the two seemed somewhat estranged.
“Lord Xie, please accept my condolences,” Deng Yi spoke first.
Xie Yanfang expressed thanks, then said: “Grand Tutor has worked hard.”
Deng Yi smiled, looking at Xie Yanfang: “Lord Xie has also worked hard while away from court. With family matters to attend to, Lord Xie still took care of the Hezhou old grain case. If not for Lord Xie’s help, the grain merchant Zheng family wouldn’t have handed over the account books so quickly, nor would the corrupt officials throughout Hezhou’s government offices have been rooted out so smoothly.”
The old grain case was uncovered after last year’s flood disaster. The disaster relief grain in Hezhou had been replaced with old moldy grain, causing hundreds of people who didn’t die in the flood to die from illnesses caused by moldy grain and from starvation.
But this matter wasn’t easy to investigate. The local government claimed the grain became moldy from flood dampness. They colluded up and down to hide evidence. It wasn’t until the Hezhou prominent family and grain merchant Zheng family saw the error of their ways and produced years of secret account books of dealings with officials that everything came to light.
The reason the Zheng family was willing to relent and produce evidence was because of persuasion by the Xie family.
The common people didn’t know about this, but the court did. When Xie Yanfang traveled urgently in disguise to Hezhou, Deng Yi knew immediately.
Although he didn’t know what Xie Yanfang said to Old Master Zheng, after Xie Yanfang left, Old Master Zheng dug up the hidden account books from the ancestral home, then holding the account books, committed suicide before the court’s imperial envoy.
Xie Yanfang didn’t deny it, but also didn’t say much, only sighing: “Old Master Zheng and my grandfather were old friends. My grandfather spoke words from the heart to him as one about to die, and Old Master Zheng can be considered to have awakened.”
Words from the heart? There was probably some other deal involved. Deng Yi gave a cold smile.
Xie Yanfang didn’t say more to Deng Yi. At this time they reached the front court where quite a few officials were waiting. Seeing Xie Yanfang, they all happily came forward.
“My lord, you’ve returned.”
“Have you seen His Majesty and the Empress? Quickly, the ministry has many matters awaiting your decision.”
Talking and laughing, they clustered around Xie Yanfang and left.
Deng Yi stood before the hall watching them go.
“This Xie Yanfang has finally returned,” an official said. “He really made you take the blame, my lord.”
Mentioning this, another official became angry: “He clearly grabbed the disaster relief assignment, yet spread rumors that he was avoiding the Grand Tutor, acting as if he were being ostracized in court.”
“Also, Old Master Xie’s death was too timely,” an official said quietly. “I think Lord Xie wasn’t tired from attending his illness at home, but tired from receiving months of continuous condolence visits.”
The Xie family remained silent in the capital. To this day, no family or clan elders had come to the capital. But using their status as the Emperor’s maternal family, they established themselves in Dongyang. Without everyone’s eyes watching, the mountains are high and the emperor far—it was actually relaxed and comfortable.
“His absence from court doesn’t affect his status. Instead, while away, he took the opportunity to win over quite a few followers,” another person said in a low voice.
“Exactly.” The first official to speak thought of something. “Grand Tutor, you should have kept Xie Yanfang and asked him—where are the tens of thousands of shi of grain that disappeared from the Zheng family of Hezhou?”
Deng Yi smiled slightly: “Ask? If Lord Xie doesn’t want to speak, who in the world can make him talk?”