“Your Highness, this painting indeed exists. It was stored here many years ago, but at the moment we cannot find its entry in the registers. Please forgive us. We’ll call more people to help search…”
The young eunuch spoke respectfully, not daring to show any negligence. Yan Chi casually waved his hand, “No need. I’ll look around myself. The ‘Hundred Herbs Chart’ is worth thousands of gold, but if we can’t find it, I can take a few other paintings instead.”
The young eunuch nodded repeatedly, “Yes, yes, yes…”
Yan Chi acknowledged this and continued, “Very well, you continue searching the registers. I’ll just browse around.”
Searching through the library would naturally be slower than checking the registers. Hearing this, the young eunuch immediately withdrew to look through the books.
After the young eunuch left, Yan Chi glanced at Bai Feng and immediately headed toward one of the repositories. The Xuan Ji Pavilion had twelve repositories, and although the collection of books, paintings, and documents was as vast as an ocean, it maintained order. One section specifically stored imperial calligraphy and paintings from successive dynasties, mostly their poetry and paintings, along with many copies. Especially Emperor Wen from several decades ago, who had excelled in painting and calligraphy. It was said that every five days, a new painting would emerge from his hand. Initially stored in the Imperial Study, they were later moved to the Xuan Ji Pavilion when space ran out. After Emperor Wen’s passing, the previous emperor’s works became even more precious, so later generations collected all the paintings and calligraphy and stored them away, occasionally bestowing them as rewards to officials.
Yan Chi entered the repository filled with paintings and calligraphy. Seeing the shelves packed with works, his brows immediately furrowed, but time was of the essence. He immediately began searching. The imperial works were arranged by reign titles, and compared to others, Yan Huai’s paintings were few, so Yan Chi found them quickly. He first opened them one by one for a quick scan, but they were merely landscapes, flowers, birds, and portraits, nothing special. Remembering Qin Wan’s words, Yan Chi’s heart stirred and he looked at the signatures and seals, but after examining them thoroughly, he found nothing unusual…
Yan Chi wasn’t skilled in analyzing paintings and seals, lacking the detailed discernment needed. Thinking of Consort Jin’s expertise in this area, he decided it would be best to take these paintings back to Prince Rui’s mansion. However, to take Yan Huai’s paintings out normally would require some pretext. Yan Chi’s thoughts stirred, and he put down the paintings and walked toward the exit. Just as he reached the doorway, he encountered Yan Li holding two paintings. Yan Li smiled, “Seventh Brother, I haven’t found the ‘Hundred Herbs Chart’ yet, but I found these two paintings ‘Thousand Autumns Gazing at the Moon’ and ‘Immortal by the River.’ Take a look, Seventh Brother, do you like them? I’ll ask Grandmother Empress later to give them to you as wedding gifts.”
Yan Chi nodded, “I like them, naturally.”
Yan Li grinned, extremely satisfied, and handed the two paintings to Lu Yun beside him, “Hold these, hold these. I’ll talk to Grandmother Empress later.”
Lu Yun took the paintings, and Yan Chi, who had been heading out, couldn’t help but look at Lu Yun twice. Could the Fu family’s child who entered Prince Gong’s mansion be Lu Yun? And Yan Li probably never imagined that the guard who grew up with him might be his cousin…
Yan Chi withdrew his gaze and left the repository, returning to where the palace servants were. The eunuchs immediately approached when they saw him, “Your Highness, do you have any instructions?”
Yan Chi said, “Searching room by room is too troublesome. Bring out the registers, I’ll select a few different paintings. Any with good meaning will do.”
Yan Li hurriedly asked, “Not searching anymore, Seventh Brother? The ‘Hundred Herbs Chart’ would indeed be more suitable.”
Yan Chi shook his head, “It’s taking too much time…”
Yan Li nodded and didn’t say more, just sat aside drinking tea with nothing to do. Two young eunuchs brought over about ten registers and laid them out, “Your Highness, these are all of them. Please make your selections, and we’ll retrieve them for you.”
The registered paintings indicated their storage locations, making selection much more convenient.
Yan Chi casually picked up two registers to look through but made no selections. When he got to the third register, he finally pointed out two paintings. He quickly moved on to other registers, flipping through several without finding anything to his liking. When Yan Chi picked up the bottom register, the young eunuch hesitantly said, “Your Highness, these are His Majesty’s paintings, you…”
Yan Chi’s brows furrowed slightly, and after a moment’s thought, he said, “I recall His Majesty hasn’t bestowed any gifts yet. Wouldn’t choosing a couple of paintings save His Majesty the trouble?”
The young eunuch, knowing Yan Chi was selecting betrothal gifts for his wedding, smiled and said, “Of course. Your Highness, please select. These paintings were stored here years ago, and His Majesty occasionally bestows them upon officials. Now with your wedding to the Princess, His Majesty will surely grant whatever you choose.”
Yan Chi nodded, and Yan Li came over saying, “Seventh Brother, why choose His Majesty’s paintings?” He glanced at the young eunuch.
The young eunuch understood and stepped back, and Yan Li immediately lowered his voice, “His Majesty’s painting skills aren’t that remarkable.”
Yan Chi smiled at this, “But how would it look if the betrothal gifts didn’t include His Majesty’s bestowment?”
Yan Li thought for a moment and understood, then joined Yan Chi in looking. Soon Yan Li pointed at two paintings, “This ‘Butterflies in Love with Flowers’ and this ‘Autumn Evening Ascending High’ are both good. I remember that ‘Autumn Evening Ascending High’ is copied from Yuan Da Qian’s work. Yuan Da Qian painted himself and his wife gazing into the distance during the Autumn Evening Festival. It has both grandeur and sentiment, suitable for a wedding gift.”
Yan Chi had only intended to make casual selections, and since Yan Li helped choose, he naturally wouldn’t refuse. So Yan Chi pointed to these two paintings for the young eunuch to retrieve. After indicating these two, Yan Chi selected two more, then sat with Yan Li waiting while the young eunuchs went to fetch them.
Yan Li smiled and asked, “With your wedding approaching, Seventh Brother, are you feeling happy?”
Yan Chi gave him a meaningful look, “Grandmother Empress has been worried about your marriage.”
The teasing expression disappeared from Yan Li’s face as he snorted and lounged lazily in his chair, “My heart belongs to Feng Qi Tower… Besides, everyone knows my personality. Which young lady in the capital would want me? Any family with a bit of pride wouldn’t marry their daughter to me…”
Yan Li spoke matter-of-factly, feeling no shame at all. Hearing this, Yan Chi shook his head, “You know this, but now that you’ve entered the Ministry of Personnel and started doing proper work, things are different from before. People can accept you – after all, you are a prince of Great Zhou.”
Yan Li sighed, “That’s still difficult. I want to find someone I like too…”
Yan Chi had nothing more to say. Though Yan Li appeared unrestrained and free-spirited, when he didn’t want something, truly no one could force him. Yan Chi knew this well and said no more.
Before long, the young eunuchs presented the six paintings. Yan Chi had Bai Feng take them, and together with Yan Li, returned to Shou Kang Palace.
Yan Chi had gone quickly and returned quickly. By now, Qin Wan had gone to accompany Yan Sui to play and was not with the Empress Dowager.
The Empress Dowager was quite disappointed that Yan Chi hadn’t found the ‘Hundred Herbs Chart’, but seeing him take six paintings at once, she couldn’t help but tease him, “These six paintings are even more valuable than one ‘Hundred Herbs Chart’. Why did you pick two of the Emperor’s paintings?”
Yan Li giggled, “Seventh Brother wants His Majesty’s bestowment to lead the way.”
The Empress Dowager laughed, “But these two paintings are too modest. It’s not time yet – there will be more bestowments later.”
Yan Chi seemed unconcerned about these matters, “It’s fine as long as the proper etiquette is observed. She’s been buying paintings with Yue Ning these past few days. Now with these, she won’t have to worry for a while.”
The Empress Dowager laughed helplessly, “So that’s why you suddenly became interested in paintings. I know she was buying paintings to show filial respect to me and the Grand Princess. Now you’re taking my things to give to her, so she can present them back to me as gifts? I don’t lose any treasures but still receive her goodwill. You’ve thought this through!”
Everyone in the room burst into laughter, but Yan Chi remained unbothered by the teasing. The Empress Dowager, feeling that bestowments shouldn’t be limited to paintings and calligraphy, had Matron Chen select many more treasures, giving them all to Yan Chi at once. After bestowing gifts on Yan Chi, she felt she couldn’t neglect Qin Wan and prepared another set of treasures to send to her. In this back and forth, the Empress Dowager’s treasures, collected over many years, flowed out like water, leaving Yan Li both pained and envious.
The Empress Dowager took this opportunity to say, “Are you envious? When you get married, I’ll bestow just as generously. But you need to hurry up. Your Seventh Brother sought his marriage. If you wait for Grandmother Empress to arrange one for you, well, Grandmother Empress could certainly do that…”
Yan Li was terrified and quickly begged for mercy, “Please spare me for now! Your grandson still wants to be filial to you for a few more years. I’ve heard that princesses are quite formidable after marriage. Where would I find time to be filial to you then?”
The Empress Dowager cheerfully bantered with Yan Li, who skillfully deflected. Soon, Qin Wan and Yan Sui returned. As soon as Yan Li saw Yan Sui, he picked him up and headed outside, hurriedly escaping. The Empress Dowager watched Yan Li’s retreating figure and sighed, “Ah, still such a child.”
Yan Chi reassured her, “Don’t worry, perhaps he’ll change in a year or two.”
The Empress Dowager snorted, “I see he’s just not taking it seriously. His mother doesn’t even manage him.”
At the mention of Prince Gong’s wife, Yan Chi naturally didn’t dare join the Empress Dowager in complaining about elders, so he didn’t respond. The Empress Dowager sighed, “Never mind, never mind. Mother and son have had their hardships. His mother was always detached by nature, even more so now. We can’t count on her – we can only hope Yan Li grows up soon.”
Outside the main hall, Yan Li held Yan Sui and asked, “Where did you go just now? Did the Princess buy you this mechanical bird?”
Yan Sui, sitting in Yan Li’s arms, showed rare relaxation and contentment, a faint smile on his lips. He nodded, “She bought it for me. We just went to the Imperial Garden.”
Yan Li smiled, “You and Qin Wan have such a good relationship. I see you’re getting more and more attached to her.”
Yan Sui mumbled softly, “She’s good to me.”
Yan Li snorted, “Then who’s better to you, me or her?”
Yan Sui seemed stumped by this question, hesitating. Seeing this, Yan Li reached for Yan Sui’s ticklish spots. This made Yan Sui burst into laughter, his small body squirming in Yan Li’s arms. Servants in the distance turned to look at the commotion.
“Both… both are good…”
“What? You must choose one, you must!”
“You… you’re better… you’re better…”
Yan Sui was laughed breathless, his little face flushed red. Only then did Yan Li stop. Yan Sui caught his breath, still smiling. In the distance, Matron Su watched with contentment. Qin Wan, coming out of the main hall, heard this and couldn’t help but smile wryly, thinking Yan Li was just like a child himself.
Matron Su hurriedly came forward, “Princess, please don’t mind. The Prince is just teasing the Ninth Prince.”
Qin Wan wouldn’t mind such things, “I know. Our Prince Gong is childlike too, but only he can tease Yan Sui like this. It’s a good thing.”
Although Qin Wan also played with Yan Sui, she wasn’t as uninhibited as Yan Li. But Yan Li was different – when playing, he became the king of children, and perhaps Yan Sui’s withdrawn, introverted nature needed exactly this kind of influence.
Matron Su nodded, “Yes, the Prince and the Ninth Prince truly have a special bond. The Prince has always been best to the Ninth Prince.”
Qin Wan had heard this from Yan Sui himself, but she still wanted to hear Matron Su’s account, so she raised an eyebrow, “Always?”
Matron Su nodded, “Yes, back when this servant was serving the Empress Dowager, Consort Jin would bring the Ninth Prince here and meet the Prince. The Prince would always play with the Ninth Prince when he saw him. Over time, the Ninth Prince not only stopped fearing the Prince but became very dependent on him. The Ninth Prince rarely spoke since childhood, and though Consort Jin was gentle and refined, and very kind to the Ninth Prince, she was strict with rules and requirements. The Ninth Prince was somewhat afraid of Consort Jin.”
These were things Qin Wan hadn’t known. She turned to look at them – Yan Sui sat in Yan Li’s arms, both wearing bright smiles. At that moment, Qin Wan suddenly noticed their features seemed somewhat similar, and she once again marveled at the strength of royal bloodlines.
Meanwhile, Yan Li was teasing Yan Sui, “Well, tell me, how is Qin Wan good to you? These little toys – how many have I bought you before? Have you forgotten riding on my shoulders to fly kites? And that wooden wheeled cart I made for you to ride – forgotten that too?”
Yan Sui giggled softly, “She… she’s just very good to me…”
“Hey, you little ingrate! I think you’ve decided she’s the best to you in the whole world!”
Yan Sui played with the mechanical bird, his little head swaying, short legs swinging slightly, all his defenses down. He suddenly said softly, “She helps me hide things… and helps me raise little birds… and Mother’s case…”
Yan Sui was speaking casually but suddenly realized something was wrong and quickly stopped. Yan Li, lounging lazily against the backrest, snorted, “What? What else? Why did you stop? What things did she help you hide? Why haven’t you broken this habit of hiding things?”
Yan Sui snorted, but hesitation flashed in his eyes. Yan Li was so good to him – could he tell him?
After thinking for a while, Yan Sui remembered Qin Wan’s instructions and didn’t dare say more, only saying quietly, “Those are all things Mother gave me.”
Yan Li sighed and pinched Yan Sui’s cheek, “Alright, what else do you want? I’ll bring it in for you next time. Want to eat candied hawthorns?”
Yan Sui’s eyes brightened, and he began quietly discussing with Yan Li…