“That was something Emperor Ling of Han did, not me! You bastard!” Li Chengqian’s throat emitted a roar like a tiger—he looked quite angry.

“That’s what they’re saying on the streets. How can it be false? They also say that Your Highness the Crown Prince has a certain level of research into the yin-yang union of heaven and earth, and has received the true teachings of the Plain Girl, directly pursuing the ancient Yellow Emperor in matters of the bedchamber. Don’t hide it—I’ve been quite dissatisfied with my own bedchamber affairs lately. If you have any good methods, teach me a couple.”

“Hmph, hmph, hmph! There is a method—swallow three tiger penises raw every day, and I guarantee you’ll be full of vigor and vitality!”

Yun Ye cupped his hands to show he had been taught, then brought his mouth close to Li Chengqian’s ear and said softly: “How come you haven’t been supplemented to death?”

Hearing this, Li Chengqian immediately burst into laughter, and Yun Ye laughed along with him. The mood that had been very depressed just moments ago suddenly felt much more cheerful.

The small tavern had nothing special in the way of dishes—just some green vegetables and wild greens. The salted meat hanging on the wall, steamed and chopped into pieces then cooked together with potatoes, was considered a delicacy. The wine couldn’t compare with the Yun family’s fine wine either, but the two unfortunate men didn’t care about any of this, drinking cup after cup of the filtered rice wine.

“Ah Shou is about to go to the North Sea. Shouldn’t you send Yanrong back home? What does it mean for my daughter to keep living at your house?” Li Chengqian spat out the wine dregs from his mouth and said to Yun Ye.

Yun Ye nodded and said: “These past two years, these children have grown up and each has their own thoughts. Although the environment at your home isn’t good, Yanrong is your daughter after all and really should go back to keep you company. Otherwise, your days will be too desolate.”

“Staying in the position of Crown Prince makes me a target. I just don’t know who keeps shooting arrows at me this time. They’re all my own brothers. If I strike hard, people will say I don’t understand filial piety and brotherly love. If I don’t strike, they’ll think I’m weak and can be bullied. I can’t pour out my troubles to Father Emperor and Mother Empress either, because if I do that, people will think Li Chengqian has no backbone, no courage, and can’t even handle such small matters. In short, it’s very difficult.”

Yun Ye smiled and drained a cup of wine with Li Chengqian. He was just venting his bitterness in front of himself. In reality, his subordinates had long since begun counterattacking. Du Chuke stood all day with a smile on Zhuque Avenue, with a wooden cabinet beside him that had an opening in it. On a banner were written the words “Crown Prince Self-Reflection Office—welcoming people from all corners of the world to criticize the Crown Prince’s shortcomings.”

It sounded like a joke, but it was precisely the deterrent force hidden behind these jokes that made such groundless talk increasingly rare. After all, the Crown Prince was one of the most powerful people under heaven.

“Tomorrow I plan to go to that wooden cabinet of yours and criticize some of your faults. I’ve decided to start from the first time I met you. How about that? The salacious scenes at the Xinghua Ward Opera House will be the key content of my criticism. What do you think?”

Li Chengqian lowered his head and drank three cups of wine in succession, threw the cup on the table, and let out a long sigh saying: “If I could return to that era, I’d be willing to pay any price. But look—can we still go back now?”

“Qing Que and little Ke don’t compete with me, so no one can win against me. For my convenience, Qing Que has practically hidden himself in the shadows—not appearing before people unless absolutely necessary. Little Ke has made himself fat and lazy, self-exiling himself to the distant Yuezhou. This is their respect for me as their elder brother, their affection for me.”

“But look at what I’ve done. The Eastern Palace is a complete mess. No wonder people seize on this point and attack me relentlessly. Xiang’er, Xiang’er…”

When Li Chengqian got to this point, his eyes began to turn red, and he choked up, almost unable to speak.

“Yanrong will go back. I heard she learned a lot about managing a household from my wife. She probably also learned quite a bit about using a hay cutter to chop people’s thighs. Look at how well she handled Shou’er’s journey this time. Shou’er gave that singing girl from Mingyue Tower a pearl and thoroughly resolved the matter, quietly defusing his own difficulty.”

“When Yanrong returns to the Eastern Palace, why don’t you hand over household matters to our daughter? Hehe, let’s see how she handles those messy affairs of yours. Although Xiang’er seems decadent, I’m telling you, he has never given up his studies at the academy.”

“Who says children can’t make mistakes? Making one warm-hearted foolish mistake will only make people feel comfortable. To save his own mother, splitting a mountain open with an ax wouldn’t be strange. What’s wrong with speaking directly before the Emperor?”

“Isn’t Mount Hua now split into pieces precisely because of a child looking for his mother? How can this matter make you so upset? A sixteen-year-old boy—discipline him a bit, find him a good teacher, and any possibility could emerge.”

Yun Ye took a bite of the potato and salted meat, found the taste too poor, and spat it out. After rinsing his mouth with clear water, he looked at Li Chengqian with contempt and said: “When you and I were brawling together in Longxi back then, were you any better than that child?”

Li Chengqian raised his head, sniffled, and said: “You bastard, you’re talking without any pain. If you have the ability, betroth Xiao Mu to Xiang’er, then I’ll believe what you’re saying.”

Yun Ye looked at Li Chengqian strangely and said: “My daughter’s husband can only be a peerless talent. Your son won’t do. I heard he spends all day soaking at Mingyue Tower, having an unclear relationship with a singing girl. You shouldn’t have such beautiful dreams. I can’t even get past my own standards, let alone my daughter who has eyes on top of her head.”

Li Chengqian wanted to pounce over and strangle Yun Ye to death. Gritting his teeth, he said: “Could it be that the dignified Prince Hengshan isn’t worthy of your concubine-born daughter?”

“Which of my family’s children is concubine-born? They’re all born by me. Am I someone else’s concubine?” Yun Ye’s eyes immediately widened. Normally, people could say anything about him, but when it came to his children, they were all precious treasures. What nonsense about legitimate and concubine-born. Yun Shou would inherit the family business because he was the eldest. If Na Rimu’s or Lingdang’s child were the eldest, as long as they were suitable, they would equally be the heir.

Because of this matter, Yun Shou was so distressed he almost wanted to shout. If he weren’t the eldest son, he could do whatever he wanted like Yun Huan.

“Your family has no distinction between legitimate and concubine-born? What if your second son wants your title? How would you handle the hierarchical order and proper relationships?”

“My title will only go to the most useless child in the family, because this title can guarantee him a lifetime of safety, prevent him from falling into poverty, and allow him to live a prosperous life. Of course, he won’t become the family head. The Yun family head won’t necessarily be the Marquis of Lantian—maybe it’ll be some other marquis or earl.”

After hearing Yun Ye’s words, Li Chengqian almost jumped up. He asked Yun Ye in a daze: “The one with your title might not necessarily be the family head?”

“That’s right. The child with no prospects needs the most care. A promising child wouldn’t look up to this broken title. To be honest, this title hasn’t contributed enough money and grain to my family to cover what I reward my servants.”

“Look clearly—people all over the world give face to the Yun family because of the person Yun Ye, not because of that Marquis of Lantian thing. That thing is only useful when standing in court attendance. What use is it the rest of the time?”

“Believe it or not, if I weren’t constrained by this Marquis of Lantian title, I would definitely live ten or a hundred times better than now. Whether going to the North Sea to herd sheep, going to the South Sea to fish for whales, or even founding a kingdom overseas, I could do it all. It’s only because I can’t let go of this land that gave birth to me and raised me that I live so frustratingly. Now I have to exert great effort to restrain myself even when going to Yushan Academy.”

Li Chengqian was dazed for quite a while, then gave a thumbs up and said: “You’re a capable person. Official positions and titles are indeed a constraint on you. Su Weidao once told me that the Marquis of Lantian, Yun Ye, is like a giant kun fish, but helplessly dwelling in shallow water, able only to cry out in vain.”

“I thought he was just speaking figuratively, making a comparison. I didn’t expect this to be true. Your daughter truly isn’t worthy of Li Xiang. But let’s bring the conversation back—with your daughter being like that, you probably can’t find a man worthy enough to match her, can you?”

Yun Ye patted Li Chengqian’s shoulder and said: “What do you mean by ‘worthy’? Are you talking about money, power, or ethereal talent? If there’s a shepherd boy whom my daughter takes a fancy to and likes, just because his shepherd’s tune sounds nice and my daughter wants to herd sheep with him, I’ll agree too. We’ve already lived this generation so tediously—let’s not make the children suffer anymore.”

“As long as they live out their lifetime happily, I think it’s worthwhile. Right now, that’s what I think. From now on, I’ll never again find trouble or discomfort for myself. Because what could be given to the Great Tang has already been given. From now on, I’ll just rest on my laurels and live off past achievements. I’ve calculated—eating off them for two or three generations won’t be a problem.”

Li Chengqian patted his dizzy head and said with difficulty: “I’m only now discovering that your ideas are very strange. Why didn’t I notice this before? Since the Yun family will only marry people they like or marry to people they like, why didn’t you oppose Shou’er and Yanrong’s marriage back then? Also, your eldest disciple married Xiao An, your sister married Xiao You, and none of your family’s daughters seem to have married too poorly. This seems somewhat inconsistent with what you just said?”

“I asked Shou’er about his marriage. He said he liked her, so naturally I had nothing to say.”

“I just want to ask one question: How old was your Shou’er at that time?”

“Three years old. What about it? The men of the Yun family are just this decisive with their word!”

“Shameless!”

The two men didn’t eat much food, but they drank a full two large jars of wine. Although it was all rice wine, drinking too much would still make one’s head spin. Li Chengqian’s mood was no longer as depressed as it had been at the start, and Yun Ye’s mood had also improved considerably. Men—when they invite friends to drink, it’s not because they want to ask for advice. They just want to dispel the depression in their hearts. They were all well-informed, battle-tested heroes. Who needed others to give them advice? Which one of them wasn’t crystal clear about what they would do in the future? Saying a few bawdy words, joking around a couple of times, cursing a few people who deserved cursing—this was how they seasoned their lives.

This was what friends were for.

The drinking session lasted until dusk. When they had risen in the morning, there was a rosy dawn—by logic it should have rained, but the sky remained brilliantly, brilliantly blue all day long. By evening, the sunset glow appeared again, extremely similar to the morning’s rosy dawn. Who could tell whether this was early morning or dusk? In the verdant fields, Yun Ye walked ahead with his hands behind his back, and Wang Cai followed behind, nodding his head with each step. Li Chengqian, standing outside the grass shelter seeing them off, suddenly discovered that this picture was very beautiful.