Yun Ye had been sitting by the window for a long time. Outside the window, the moon was approaching fullness. The cold, clear moonlight spilling onto his body made him appear especially lonely. In the distant future, there had once been an equally stubborn, innocent, yet passionate woman who loved him.

Yun Ye could clearly describe her appearance using the most beautiful language, remembering every single moment spent together with her. Even her most disheveled, most unkempt appearance seemed so perfect in Yun Ye’s eyes. They had experienced the most unfortunate days together—even living in an abandoned, dilapidated house felt as sweet as spring. Their impoverished life had not torn them apart, yet they were forcibly separated at the two ends of a thousand years by a wormhole. How many times during midnight dreams did Yun Ye wake with tears streaming down his face, covering his mouth with a blanket to muffle his sobs?

He had not the slightest attachment to aristocratic life in the Tang dynasty. If he could go back, he could abandon everything here without hesitation and throw himself into his wife’s warm embrace. Even if he had to work every day until exhausted like a dog, even if he had to go home and cook every day, even if he had to face his wife’s nagging every day, he would gladly accept it all.

But he could not go back! What despair this was. When he saw Li Anlan again, even though her face was veiled and her graceful bearing would not arouse in Yun Ye any desire to look at her twice. It was just that mischievous wind lifting her veil—just one glimpse overlapped with that most beautiful face in his heart. He was so excited he wanted to shout loudly, wanted to cry loudly, wanted to immediately embrace her in his arms, wanted to pour out his pain to her. A thousand words reached his lips and transformed into one phrase: “Wife!”

Li Anlan perhaps did not understand the meaning of these two characters for wife, but she understood the emotions these two characters contained. In her view, this kind of emotion was blasphemy against herself. So she heavily stomped down on Yun Ye’s foot, reminding him that she was not a vessel to carry that kind of emotion. She was the proud Li Anlan.

A sleepless night. Yun Ye could hardly wait for dawn. The night watchmen on the bell tower and drum tower seemed to have all died—it had been so long yet they still had not struck the drum for the fourth watch. He longed for daybreak, longed to see again that face that haunted his dreams.

Plunging his face into ice-cold, bone-piercing ice water, his pores suddenly contracted. His face hurt with a burning pain as if on fire. This was exactly the effect he wanted.

Cheng Chumo was howling, painfully banging his head against a pillar with loud thuds. The fourth watch! The chickens had not even crowed yet! The stars were still sleeping in the sky! Ever since being dragged by Yun Ye from his warm quilt, he had suicidal tendencies. Last night he ran to console Jiuyi and did not return home until nearly the second watch. He was caught by his mother and scolded for a long time. He had just fallen asleep when his brother dragged him up. Continuing like this, Little Cheng felt it would be better to be dead.

“Brother, do you truly want to become a prince consort? And a prince consort without a princess at that?”

“Bullshit! Who likes being a prince consort? The one I want to marry is Li Anlan. Whose family’s prince consort would I become?” Yun Ye flatly denied it.

“But isn’t my sister-in-law His Majesty’s daughter? If you want to marry her, she’ll have a title—a princess title. How are you not a prince consort then?” Cheng Chumo’s logic was somewhat confused.

“What if I said that Li Anlan was destined by heaven to marry me? Would you believe it?”

“I believe it. Whatever woman you set your sights on, I believe she definitely cannot escape from your palm.”

Yun Ye affirmed the correctness of Cheng Chumo’s words and praised Little Cheng’s wise insight, provoking Liu Jinbao who was carrying two food boxes beside them to curl his lip in disdain. His bottom received two more kicks—one foot from Yun Ye, one foot from Little Cheng.

The sky was pitch black. Dawn was the darkest time. Yun Ye did not care. Little Cheng chewed on a chicken drumstick in his mouth, saying his body was extremely weak and needed nourishment—not afraid the darkness would make him stuff the drumstick up his nose.

Unexpectedly, someone was already waiting before the palace gates. Not very old, just in his thirties, wearing a short beard. He had not put on official robes but wore a gauze hat with two soft hat wings drooping behind his head. His hands were clasped behind him in his sleeves, pacing in the empty space before the palace gates. Two attendants followed far behind serving him.

Seeing Yun Ye and Cheng Chumo riding horses over, he stopped his steps. Yun Ye and Cheng Chumo exchanged a glance—they did not recognize him, but anyone waiting for an audience before the palace gates so early in the morning must certainly be an important figure. It would not do to be rude. They jumped down from their horses and walked quickly forward.

“This one is Marquis Lantian, Yun Ye. May I know how to address this lord?”

“This official is Court Gentleman for Consultation Dou Zhong. I did not know I was meeting Marquis Yun face to face—forgive my rudeness, forgive my rudeness.” This sixth-rank official with a face full of vicissitudes did not know what matter brought him to wait at the palace gates so early in the morning, nor what urgent business it was. With a mindset of staying out of others’ affairs, after exchanging greetings with this Court Gentleman for Consultation, he stood to the side waiting for the palace gates to open.

Before long, the sound of boots came shuffling. A shrill eunuch voice called out, “His Majesty has decreed—summon Court Gentleman for Consultation Dou Zhong for an audience.” Dou Zhong begged pardon from Yun Ye and Cheng Chumo, then hastily followed the eunuch into the palace.

Yun Ye always felt as if something was about to happen. After thinking left and right without remembering, he stopped dwelling on it, even feeling he was worrying too much.

A five-tael silver ingot finally pried open the mouth of the palace attendant at Tingtao Pavilion. Li Anlan lived right behind Tingtao Pavilion, attended only by a little palace maid called Lingdang. Her days were extremely hard. The one who had served Yun Ye’s meal yesterday was Lingdang. Thinking of the missing chicken drumstick, Yun Ye thanked heaven for its ingenious arrangement. Coming with food boxes today was simply too farsighted. He would leave one basket for Li Chengqian and his younger siblings—the other basket would naturally be sent to Li Anlan. Li Chengqian’s could be discussed later.

Today’s lecturer was Senior Consultant to the Crown Prince Wang Gui, versed in Confucian learning and proficient in the hundred schools of thought. He had authored ‘History of Liang’ in sixty-one volumes. He exposed the Liang dynasty’s founder Xiao Yan completely. Today he spoke of how Xiao Yan enjoyed Buddhist teachings and to raise funds, sold himself into Buddhism, having his subjects raise money to redeem him. He warned the imperial princes that if they became obsessed with religious teachings, they would starve to death. He described the brutal political struggles vividly, especially Xiao Yan’s death by starvation at Terrace City—he spoke of it with incomparable misery, as if he himself were that regretful Emperor Wu of Liang. For some unknown reason, he stood right beside Yun Ye to lecture. His surging saliva sprayed down onto Yun Ye’s head, giving him the impulse to open an umbrella.

After instructing the imperial princes to write their reflections, he sat across from Yun Ye’s low table, using those bright, piercing eyes to stare at Yun Ye, watching until his heart felt hairy.

“May I know what teachings the teacher has? This student will listen respectfully with washed ears.” Yun Ye could not bear it anymore. Over there Cheng Chumo was sleeping with snores rising everywhere and you do not care, yet I, a good student listening carefully—what are you looking at?

“Last night at Teacher Song’s residence, this old man heard a wonderfully ingenious elementary text called ‘Three Character Classic.’ Reading it flows smoothly from the mouth; hearing it is like a waterfall cascading down a mountain. Various allusions and marvelous stories emerge endlessly, leaving this old man sighing in admiration. I also heard there are two more parts. May this old man have a look?”

There was truly nothing to say to the old teacher. Readily pulling out improved versions of ‘Hundred Family Surnames’ and ‘Disciple Regulations’ from his bosom, he offered them with both hands, only hoping the old gentleman would quickly leave a distance of one zhang from him. Last night my sister specially used incense to scent these clothes! If they get splashed with saliva, my clothes will have been scented in vain.

Yun Ye smiled bitterly in his heart. These people were like flies smelling the scent of rotten meat, swarming over. Last night Song Lian’s son ran to his house wanting these two manuscripts—he gave them. He mobilized the entire family to copy twenty sets and sent them one by one to the homes of familiar bigwigs, declaring they were untransmitted secrets used by an unworldly expert to educate disciples. They received unanimous praise from all the princes and dukes. Many valuable paintings and calligraphy pieces were added to the house—all return gifts from various families.

Taking advantage of the old teacher reading ‘Hundred Family Surnames’ until swaying his head, Yun Ye used the bathroom escape excuse to leave the study hall early and came to the dining hall. That little palace maid with double buns was arranging dishes. Watching the fish sashimi on the low tables, she drooled while muttering to herself, “Can’t eat anymore, will be discovered. Can’t eat anymore, will be discovered.”

“Aha! You’re stealing food! Return my chicken drumstick!” Yun Ye suddenly jumped out, scaring the little palace maid into squealing and repeatedly saying, “I didn’t, I didn’t! I only tasted it!” Tears were frightened out of her. Turning back to see it was Yun Ye, her mouth trembled and she burst into loud crying.

This made Yun Ye feel uncomfortable all over. He hastily tried to persuade her, “You didn’t—I was the one who stole and ate it, look.” Saying this, he grabbed a piece of fish sashimi and stuffed it in his mouth. Not bad—extremely fresh and tender. He grabbed another plateful and handed it to the little palace maid. “I’m treating you to eat—it doesn’t count as stealing. From now on, whatever you want to eat, it was all eaten by me. Is that acceptable?”

The little palace maid was still just a child after all and could not withstand Yun Ye’s temptation. Plus the fish sashimi was extremely delicious, so she took it and stuffed it in her mouth. Her small mouth instantly eliminated the plateful of fish sashimi completely. What an appetite—she did not even use the sauce.