Just like eight years ago, when he waited for Lüdi, Ruyi would never return again.

1390 AD

Yingtian Prefecture, Jurong County, Diliu Slope

Li Dingyuan was carried in the arms of his head maid Pipa, drowsily passing through the Duke’s mansion gardens to arrive at Xuanyuan, where his grandfather lived. Though going to pay respects to his grandfather before fully awakening was improper etiquette, Li Dingyuan had always been favored, so naturally no one dared criticize him.

Li Dingyuan was only ten years old this year. Though he didn’t understand much about worldly affairs, he knew his grandfather was tremendously accomplished. The first person below the Ming Dynasty emperor was his grandfather Li Shanchang, who previously held the position of Left Chancellor, head of all officials. Using the phrase “below one person, above ten thousand” to describe his grandfather was most fitting.

Li Dingyuan didn’t understand court affairs, but he knew his grandfather had nine sons, fifteen grandsons, and twelve granddaughters, yet loved only him most. Otherwise, grandfather didn’t dote on anyone – even his second uncle who married a princess didn’t receive any special treatment from grandfather. Except for second uncle’s family living in the Princess Manor, all other uncles and cousins lived at the Li family main residence in Jiujiang, Jiangxi. Only he alone was raised at grandfather’s side.

Gathering all favor and love upon himself, Li Dingyuan, apart from feeling somewhat troubled by rarely seeing his parents, complacently enjoyed the so-called corrupt life of a dandy. Even his daily morning greetings to grandfather were half-asleep formalities.

His grandfather lived in an authentic Duke’s mansion, with halls built to first and second rank official standards – five bays and nine rafters, magnificently imposing. Li Dingyuan slightly opened his eyes and was immediately hurt by sunlight reflecting off the glazed roof tiles, lazily closing them again.

After walking a bit further, feeling Pipa’s breathing deliberately lighten, Li Dingyuan smelled the rich fragrance of calming incense and knew they had entered grandfather’s study. He rubbed his eyes, planning to act spoiled with grandfather as usual – grandfather would helplessly take him into his arms, and even when he pulled grandfather’s beard, grandfather would indulgently let him make mischief.

But today that familiar warm embrace didn’t appear as expected. Li Dingyuan confusedly opened his eyes to find his grandfather with a gloomy expression, hand gripping a copper-red glazed tea cup, sitting in a yellow rosewood four-cornered official hat chair, staring at him with a stern gaze.

“Look at your disgraceful appearance! What kind of behavior is this!”

Li Shanchang was a veteran who had fought alongside Zhu Yuanzhang since the thirteenth year of Emperor Shun of Yuan’s Zhizheng reign. Though his work was like Xiao He beside Liu Bang of Han – handling internal affairs and military administration – despite retiring from officialdom twenty-two years ago to protect himself wisely, his authority remained undiminished. Usually before his beloved grandson, he deliberately restrained his fierce aura, but now he had no mind to hide it. That oppressive威压 was like a tsunami, overwhelming Li Dingyuan.

Pipa, holding Li Dingyuan, was also affected, trembling all over in fright, nearly unable to hold the thirteenth young master, instinctively kneeling to the ground.

Due to the head maid’s kneeling, Li Dingyuan naturally stood on the ground. He wasn’t frightened by his grandfather’s change of face, tidying his clothes by himself and arranging himself neatly before stepping forward several paces to kneel properly before Li Shanchang and bow while greeting him.

Li Dingyuan was familiar with this etiquette. Whenever there were holidays or festivals, he had to meet those uncles and cousins, performing this routine once daily with each person. Though he had never done it so seriously before, having watched so many times, he could learn to do it presentably. Li Shanchang’s special regard for Li Dingyuan wasn’t just because he was particularly cute – grandfather preferred his clever mind, feeling this child most resembled himself. So when naming him, he didn’t follow the rule of grass radical single characters, insisting on giving him an imposing name.

Li Dingyuan obediently finished kowtowing and didn’t get up, kneeling straight before Li Shanchang, looking up at him innocently.

Li Shanchang looked at his grandson’s tender face with those bright black and white eyes, and soon surrendered. His built-up momentum flowed away like a breached Yellow River, completely drained. He sighed, pulled the child up, touched his forehead lovingly: “Yuan’er, grandfather is in a bad mood today. Did you hurt yourself anywhere? Grandfather heard a ‘thud’ sound.”

Li Shanchang, who in others’ eyes was truly uncompromising Duke Xuan – whenever his face darkened, trembling people would kneel in droves – if those people saw this scene of the chief minister acting humble and small, their eyeballs would probably fall to the ground.

Li Dingyuan’s big eyes rolled, inwardly scorning that grandfather was probably feeling irritated again. A few days ago he tormented the guards around him, now he was starting to torment him? This wouldn’t do – tomorrow he should call fourth brother and sixth brother over to share the suffering, since they lived right next door at the Princess Manor anyway.

Li Shanchang understood this little one extremely thoroughly. Just seeing his expression, he knew what this little rascal was thinking, spitting: “Thinking of going to harm Little Four and Little Six again?” For other grandsons, Li Shanchang always called them by their birth order directly, and couldn’t even remember some grandsons’ names. So for Li Dingyuan, he was indeed extraordinarily different.

Li Dingyuan’s fourth and sixth brothers were actually cousins, called Li Fang and Li Mao, both sons of his second son Li Qi and Princess Lin’an. Both were thirteen or fourteen-year-old youths this year – how could they bother with ten-year-old Li Dingyuan? Their mother Princess Lin’an was Zhu Yuanzhang’s eldest daughter. Li Shanchang had previously felt especially secure about this princess daughter-in-law, thinking that no matter how cruelly Zhu Yuanzhang harmed meritorious officials and veterans, he absolutely couldn’t move against in-laws. So he was quite close to those two grandsons too. Of course, that closeness was still different from his relationship with Li Dingyuan.

Li Shanchang rubbed the child’s slightly red forehead, his heart softening further, gentling his voice: “It’s all grandfather’s fault. What does Yuan’er want? Grandfather will compensate you.”

His words contained indescribable tenderness and pain, but it was extremely well hidden.

Li Dingyuan was speechless inside, silently calling out “as expected!” Grandfather was always shameless! Just liked using things to coax him happy! But after some scheming, he decided to try: “Grandfather! I want that bronze box!”

That bronze box was the treasure Li Dingyuan had been yearning for. He had tried acting spoiled and throwing tantrums countless times before, but grandfather would only let him look at it, never loosening up to give it to him. Other treasures he could have whatever he wanted, but over time, this bronze box had become Li Dingyuan’s obsession. He didn’t know if he truly liked that bronze box or was just being stubborn.

“Fine.”

“Grandfather, if you’re reluctant then forget it… Eh? Grandfather, you agreed?”

Li Dingyuan was dumbstruck.

“Konghou, go get that bronze box for Yuan’er.” The child’s rare surprised expression pleased Li Shanchang. With a wave of his hand, someone immediately went to the study to fetch the bronze box and place it in Li Shanchang’s hands.

Li Dingyuan stared at his long-desired bronze box, unable to look away. This bronze box wasn’t ordinary – though only palm-sized, the exquisite carved patterns and heavy patina showed its considerable age. The box’s lid was made of glass, and under the green semi-transparent glass cover, one could vaguely see a white jade ruyi fixed inside the bronze box. What Li Dingyuan was obsessed with was that this bronze box simply couldn’t be opened! The glass lid was completely sealed. If one wanted to hold that small ruyi and play with it, one could only smash that priceless glass lid.

Even Li Dingyuan, who treated money like dirt, knew he absolutely couldn’t do such a thing to destroy treasures. He never understood why someone would seal a white jade ruyi in a bronze box. Was there some mechanism to open this box? But everywhere else was seamlessly tight. Each time Li Dingyuan played with it, he returned empty-handed, only increasing his curiosity about opening it.

When grandfather personally placed this bronze box in his arms, Li Dingyuan wasn’t as ecstatic as he had imagined. Instead, he moved his gaze from the bronze box to grandfather’s face, asking with unprecedented seriousness: “Grandfather, what happened?”

The loving expression on Li Shanchang’s face stiffened momentarily, then he smiled: “Nothing’s wrong. It’s just that grandfather has been busy lately. How about Yuan’er goes to play at Tangshan Villa for a few days? This bronze box can stay with you temporarily these days, but when you return, grandfather still has to take it back.”

Li Dingyuan puffed out his chubby cheeks, unwillingly hugging the bronze box tightly. He knew grandfather hadn’t told him the truth, but he also knew that though grandfather doted on him, he would never allow him to contradict decisions already made.

Li Shanchang lovingly patted the child’s head, quietly instructing beside him: “Lüdi, I’m entrusting Yuan’er to you.” A lean young man immediately knelt down.

Li Dingyuan was startled when the young man responded and then got up to carry him. Wouldn’t his head maid Pipa go with him? Only Lüdi would accompany him? Though he knew this Lüdi held a very high position around grandfather, the whole thing felt indescribably strange.