Everyone’s breathing stopped, showing a look of shock.
Obviously, it was unexpected that the Crown Prince, who has always been arrogant and domineering, would give the auspicious lotus flowers that symbolize good luck and national prosperity to the young gentleman of the Wei Kingdom, who had just swept the entire venue in the cultural examination project.
Jiang Yun lowered his eyes and stared at the layered and leisurely blooming blue lotus flower, stunned.
“Hold onto it ah.”
“This thing has a blessing meaning. Gu will give you the best blessing in the world. May you be free from sickness and disease and have peace and joy in your life.”
Sui Heng smiled, his eyes as bright as the fierce spring sun.
Jiang Yun once again felt the familiar yet unfamiliar tremor from the depths of his cold soul.
He reached out and took the twelve petals of the freshly scented flower. He looked up and met him eyes-to-eyes, revealing a faint smile.
“Thank you so much.”
His voice is light, like a gentle breeze, like the flowing clouds.
In Sui Heng’s ears, it was no different from a thunderbolt.
The young gentleman’s held the flower in his palm with both hands, his fingers are like jade, his green robe is hanging down, and his eyelashes appear delicate and beautiful, just like the flowers.
Sui Heng stared at Jiang Yun’s light lips blankly and smiled lightly.
He could barely resist picking the person up. He told him, “Gu is willing to give you all the beautiful things in the world.”
After a moment of silence due to extreme surprise, the crowd suddenly erupted into thunderous cheers and applause.
The good thing was given to a beauty.
There is nothing more romantic than this in the world.
Some people couldn’t help but speculate about the relationship between the Crown Prince and this young gentleman from the Wei Kingdom.
Seeing that his young master’s face had lost its blood color for a moment, the servant stood behind Yan Qi angrily said, “This lotus flower should obviously be the Young Master’s, but His Highness the Crown Prince gave it to that Chu Yan. The Crown Prince clearly humiliated the Young Master in public!”
The servants were not only dissatisfied.
Since that Chu Yan stole his young master’s limelight on the first day and took the top spot in the genre of articles, those literati and scholars have all started to revolve around him, and competing to ask him questions about the articles. They have no eyes for his young master anymore. They even slander his young master for his aloof personality, saying that he is not as easy to get along with as Chu Yan as well.
The servant cannot forget how these people used to flatter his young master!
Today, as well, after they entered, he saw a large group of literati gathered around Chu Yan. They had a strong friendship with Chu Yan, but none of them took the initiative to salute his young master along the way.
Everyone was busy trying to please Chu Yan, even the Crown Prince!
“This Chu Yan must be a reincarnation of a vixen!”
The servant couldn’t help but exclaim in anger.
Yan Qi didn’t speak, but his face turned even paler, his lips pursed deeper, and his fists, which were hidden inside his sleeves, were clenched tightly.
When the crowd was cheering and excited, only one person in the room expressed disdain.
Jimo Qingyu, dressed in a blue robe, still accompanied by his eldest disciple Zhao Yan, stood from a distance to observe the situation inside the venue.
The moment he saw Sui Heng walking through the crowd and handing the flower to Jiang Yun in public, he hummed softly and turned his face away with a look of disgust.
“Appealing to the public for favor, breaking customs, and corrupting the public!”
Jimo Qingyu coldly commented.
Zhao Yan thought this scene was quite romantic; after all, one was a martial arts champion with a strong spirit and youthful charm, and the other was a literary champion with a beautiful and elegant appearance, like a celestial being.
In Zhao Yan’s view, such a beautiful scene is worth recording with the best painting.
In fact, there are indeed artists who are doing this. The grand event and the banquet are rare, and this year’s Spring Banquet has been full of surprises, with too many heart wrenching and unexpected moments.
Perhaps there will be new talents born in the next generation, but who can say for sure.
The Spring Banquet has been held for so many years, and cultural projects have always been in the possession of the Yan family’s disciples. It was not until this year that a Chu Yan was born.
They are eager to record every stunning moment for future generations to appreciate and remember.
Empress Yan sat on the high platform, looking at her son, who was as ostentatious as a peacock in the field, rolled her eyes once again and turned her face away. She said to Qin momo, “If he promotes a little concubine in public like this, which noblewoman will still be willing to marry him as the Crown Princess in the future?”
Qin momo didn’t say anything.
Because Qin momo also thinks that this scene is quite beautiful.
Moreover, the young gentleman has an elegant and beautiful demeanor, as beautiful as a jade. He has a more imperial temperament than most noble men and women in the Sui capital city.
After the morning competition ended, Jiang Yun still rode back to the palace with Shi Fang in a carriage.
Jiang Yun sat quietly in the carriage with the lotus flower on his lap.
Sitting on the side, Shi Fang looked even happier and more excited than Jiang Yun.
He remembered the rumors on the field before and couldn’t help but defend his Highness. “Five years ago, His Highness didn’t give the prize to Young Master Yan Qi intentionally, but because His Highness was busy training troops that year and happened to forget to give a birthday gift to Young Master Yan Qi. So, he has an idea to make up for it by taking advantage of the prize.”
Shi Fang continued, “If it were the Young Master, His Highness would never forget the Young Master’s birthday.”
Jiang Yun played with the petals of the lotus flower with his fingertips, and after a moment of silence, he suddenly looked up and asked, “What exactly happened at the Spring Banquet three years ago?”
Shi Fang hesitated for a moment.
Because this matter is on the scales of his Highness, but this is not a hidden secret in the Sui capital either, it’s just that no one dares mention it.
But just because he didn’t mention it, he also couldn’t stop others from talking. Instead of letting the young gentleman listen to some true and false versions from the crowd that didn’t match the real situation, it was better for him to speak.
Shi Fang whispered, “Then if this subordinate tells the Young Master, the Young Master can’t tell His Highness.”
Jiang Yun nodded.
Shi Fang sighed with maturity and said, “Young Master, you may not know that Prime Minister Yan was once the Crown Prince’s Grand Tutor. To be precise, shortly after His Highness was born, he became His Highness’s teacher under the leadership of the Empress.”
Jiang Yun was slightly surprised.
He has indeed never heard of this matter.
Shi Fang continued, “The Yan family was a very big family in the Sui capital. The Empress and Minister Yan did not come from the same lineage. The Empress was a martial artist General, but most of her brothers and father died in battle, there were not many descendants left. Therefore, the Empress’s original family did not have much power in the court, and there were very few who even entered the court for official positions. They only had two cousins who relied on their ancestors’ military achievements to make a living. They spent all their time fighting and causing trouble, they could not provide any assistance to the Empress, they even needed the Empress to come forward to wipe their buttocks as well.”
“The Empress accompanied His Majesty to the battlefield and suffered fundamental injuries that year. And only had one prince, which is His Highness, while Lan Guifei in the palace had abundant offspring and a strong family influence. The Empress had no choice but to attach herself to another line of the Yan family, so she begged His Majesty to allow His Highness to worship the Right Prime Minister as an apprentice. In the first few years, the Right Prime Minister worked very hard, and His Highness also respected the Yan family. In order to enhance the relationship between the two families, the Empress decided to have the eldest grandson of the Yan family, Young Master Yan Qi, enter the palace as His Highness’s accompanying reader. But as His Highness grew up, Prime Minister Yan began to slowly reveal his other side.”
“Which side?”
Shi Fang said, “Prime Minister Yan is a man with a strong sense of control, and he doesn’t like His Highness to have too many ideas of his own, he relies on his position as the Grand Tutor to make His Highness act according to his will in everything. When His Highness was young and ignorant, he naturally obeyed him. But as His Highness gained more knowledge and came into contact with more court officials, how could he be willing to be at his mercy all the time? Moreover, His Highness was born with an untamed nature. So the conflict between Prime Minister Yan and His Highness grew deeper and more intense, sometimes to the point of outright argument at the Book Banquet. This contradiction reached its peak at the Spring Banquet three years ago. At that time, His Highness had already taken the initiative to ask His Majesty to go and train in the military for several years already, and shortly before the Spring Festival Banquet, three small northern countries united to invade the Sui’s border. When the military news reached the Sui capital, the court was divided into two factions: those who were in favor of war and those who were in favor of peace. While Prime Minister Yan advocate of peace strongly, His Highness feels that retreat is not an option and war should be waged. This is the first time His Highness has openly opposed Prime Minister Yan in court. Prime Minister Yan doesn’t show it on his face, but he was extremely angry in his heart. However, Prime Minister Yan is in charge of grain and money, and if his Highness wants to fight, he must have the Yan family’s support. His Highness took the initiative to visit Prime Minister Yan and wanted to reconcile with him. After considering the matter for a night, Prime Minister Yan made a deal with His Highness: As long as His Highness can win the first prize in all the literary categories at the Spring Banquet, he will agree to support His Highness in war.”
“For His Highness, although it may be a bit difficult, it is not entirely impossible because Young Master Yan Qi has always been on his side. Young Master Yan Qi also promised to recruit outstanding disciples of the Yan family who are good at the six arts to help His Highness win as well. His Highness knew that this battle was an excellent opportunity for him to maintain a stable foothold in the court. He also recruited outstanding literati and scholars through various channels, and he even sent General Xu to search outside the Sui capital. His Highness stayed up for several days without rest, finally waiting for the Spring Banquet to arrive. But no one expected that on the day of the competition, Young Master Yan Qi claimed to be sick and didn’t come out, and all the Yan family’s disciples who had originally agreed to fight for the Crown Prince’s Mansion chose to abstain. Even the literati recruited by General Xu were afraid of the Yan family’s influence and dared not represent the Crown Prince’s Mansion in battle. His Highness… suffered a complete defeat and lost face. Yan Bing never intended to compete fairly with His Highness from the beginning. He just wanted to use this method to tell His Highness that he could never get rid of the Yan family, if he lost the Yan’s support, he would have nothing.”
Jiang Yun was taken aback and asked, “What happened later?”
“Later on, His Highness persisted in leading his troops on the expedition and issued a military order in front of His Majesty and all the courtiers, refusing to return. The Empress was so anxious that she burst into tears, but she was unable to stop His Highness. The battle was extremely difficult because Prime Minister Yan deliberately made things difficult and delayed resupplying the front line with food and supplies. His Highness and his soldiers were trapped in the snow-capped mountains of the northern border for seven days, almost starved to death. Fortunately, in the end, His Highness won and took advantage of the great victory at the northern border to establish the Qinglang Battalion, incorporating all three small countries into the territory of the Sui Empire. In the court, no one dares to comment on His Highness’s decision anymore.”
Although there were only a few words left, Jiang Yun understood that winning such a difficult and arduous battle without financial support would be tragic and unimaginable to outsiders.
At this moment, someone suddenly appeared ahead and said, “May I ask if Young Master Chu Yan is in the carriage?”
Shi Fang poked his head out and saw that it was a servant of the Yan family, named Qing Tan. He couldn’t help but frown and ask, “What’s the matter?”
Qing Tan looked into the carriage and said arrogantly, “Our Young Master wants to invite Young Master Chu Yan to the tea house by Qushui for a chat.”
Shi Fang wanted to immediately refuse.
Jiang Yun said, “It’s alright, let’s go take a look.”
**
This is a tea house near the water, with only aristocratic officials coming in and out and a few ordinary scholars.
Jiang Yun followed the Yan family’s servant to the private room on the second floor. Yan Qi, who was dressed in a crimson robe, stood by the window, holding a cup of tea in his hand, and was already waiting.
Upon hearing the commotion, he turned around and looked at Jiang Yun, saying, “I’m sorry for taking the liberty of inviting Young Master Chu here.”
Jiang Yun ignored his false courtesy and directly asked, “Is there anything?”
After Yan Qi sat back down at the tea table, he asked Jiang Yun to sit across from him.
He smiled slightly and said, “I know that Young Master Chu must be very happy in his heart. His Highness was able to personally deliver that lotus flower to you. But five years ago, he did the same thing to me.”
Jiang Yun looked at him quietly.
Yan Qi said, “He just took this opportunity to humiliate me because he resented me for what happened before. If the Young Master takes it seriously, it would be a big mistake.”
“He can give it to you this year and will give it to others next year, continuing to humiliate me.”
Jiang Yun did not comment on this matter but asked, “Is there really no guilt about what happened three years ago in Yan daren’s heart?”
Yan Qi was taken aback, seemingly unaware that Jiang Yun would know the inside story.
But in just a moment, he regained his composure and smiled faintly, saying, “He even tell you that?”
“That’s right, three years ago, I’d wronged him, but I couldn’t help it, it’s for his own good. I am the eldest grandson of the Yan family, and I cannot go against the family’s will at any time. His Highness is the same, he should not try to get rid of the Yan family. He clearly needs the Yan family’s support but he stubbornly refuses to admit this fact.”
Jiang Yun then asked again, “Three years ago, you promised to fight for him, was it just a temporary measure?”
Yan Qi shook his head. “Of course not.”
“At first, I genuinely wanted to help him, but later on, my grandfather convinced me. In that situation, fighting against the Yan family was not beneficial. Even if he could win the competition, my grandfather would not provide him with support in terms of food, clothing, money, or grain anyway. In the end, he would still fail. Even if he didn’t lose in the end, wasn’t he still close to dying in the north?”
“Everything I do is for his good, but he doesn’t appreciate it at all.”
Yan Qi tightly grasped the tea cup, his usual elegance fading from his eyes, revealing unwillingness and inequality.
Jiang Yun looked at him and said, “You’re pissed off, angry, and upset just because he doesn’t appreciate you. Have you ever thought that, perhaps, he doesn’t care about whether or not he could win in that Spring Banquet, or whether or not he can win the battle in the northern region. He just needed a chance to prove himself. And you never understood him.”
Upon hearing the news, Sui Heng had already come to the door of the private room with a sullen face. But when he heard these words, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.
