Chapter 116.2 : The Concerns Held in Grand Tutor Liu’s Heart
Seeing Liu Min in such a state of stupefaction, the Crown Prince waved his hand in front of Liu Min’s face and asked, “Grand Tutor, Grand Tutor?”
Liu Min came back to his senses and being unable to restrain himself, grabbed hold of the Crown Prince and asked impatiently, “Your Highness, where on earth did you get this calligraphy from, and who did it?”
Liu Min was the Crown Prince’s Grand Tutor, and he had known Liu Min for such a long time, but he had never seen Liu Min lose control in such a manner before. Finding this somewhat peculiar, he quickly asked, “Why is Grand Tutor so excited? Could it be possible that it has something to do with these characters?”
Liu Min’s heart thumped wildly. He knew he could not give anything away to the Crown Prince, so he adopted an ashamed expression and said, “This official saw that this calligraphy possessed considerable vigour and reflected much strength of character, and so was somewhat astonished. This calligraphy deserves to be called ‘distinguished’ to the degree that when this official saw it, this ‘literary fanatic’ was overcome by sentiment momentarily and forgot myself. Would Your Highness please punish me.”
The Crown Prince thought for a while, and felt relieved. These scholars were always just that little bit odd and fantastical; since Liu Min was the zhuangyuan, he was normally excited whenever he saw good calligraphy. Thus, for him to react this way on seeing this gem was pardonable. He accepted Liu Min’s words without hesitation and said, with a smile, “Grand Tutor, this is your true temperament.”
It was not surprising that the Crown Prince would so readily believe Liu Min, for he had an excellent reputation within the imperial court and was fundamentally an upstanding person. Moreover, not even the smallest whisper of a shameful secret had been attached to him. Meeting such a noble and virtuous person, aloof from politics and material pursuits, the Crown Prince had nothing to say, and naturally, also had no reason to doubt him.
Liu Min saw that the Crown Prince believed him and felt the weight on his heart lighten slightly. This was his first ever lie and his back was covered in a layer of perspiration. However, his curiosity regarding the calligraphy warred against and finally defeated his fear of the consequences, and he probed cautiously, “Your Highness, who did write these characters?”
The Crown Prince laughed heartily and said, “Who does the Grand Tutor think?”
Liu Min turned the question over in his mind briefly before replying, “This calligraphy is distinguished and unrestrained, and the characters are straightforward yet there is also a sharpness about them. It should be . . . They must have been written by a nobleman.” In actuality, this opinion was a little biased. The brushstrokes were full and smooth, yet while implying a certain sharpness made with a forceful hand, the calligraphy was not really all that clear. On the contrary, the characters seemed a bit complicated and mysterious. However, the Crown Prince naturally did not see any of this, and Liu Min was not going to divulge his thoughts.
The Crown Prince shook his head and said, “This time, Grand Tutor is in error. These characters were not written by a nobleman, but by a woman.”
Liu Min looked at him somewhat blankly as he responded, “A woman?”
That person was not a man? Was it really a woman?
“Yes, indeed,” the Crown Prince patted his shoulder and said. “Grand Tutor will definitely not be able to guess who this person is. It is none other than Imperial Grandmother’s favourite, the person who has returned to the capital this year, Hong’an Junzhu.”
These words were earth-shattering. The Crown Prince had no idea of the extent to which his words had shaken Liu Min’s world. Jiang Ruan, Hong’an Junzhu – of course Liu Min knew who she was. On the day that the Empress Dowager had returned to the capital, that young lady had been completely clad in red, splendid enough to overturn the heavens, stunningly beautiful, and of a bearing so graceful she seemed to have been made by heaven. Liu Min remembered that scene so clearly, but in reality, it was not the first time he had seen Jiang Ruan. Three years ago at the palace banquet, he had also witnessed Jiang Ruan standing in the middle of the hall with straightened spine, neither servile nor overbearing, refusing Imperial Consort Chen’s offer of a marital arrangement with the royal family. When he had gained the distinction of being the zhuangyuan and was in a happy mood, flushed with success, he had finally learned about the Jiang family’s di daughter and her miserable existence. But… but, he had never imagined that this woman would be the mysterious person whom he considered his confidant!
It was actually her, it was actually her!
Liu Min could not accurately describe just what he was feeling, he only knew that he felt some form of conflict, as well as a sense of shock. That politically astute person, who could connect with his thoughts and frame of mind so well, was actually a woman. What’s more, it was someone who was in such close proximity to him.
The Crown Prince said, teasingly, “Grand Tutor, what kind of expression is this? Could it be that you have been bowled over by this gem of calligraphy from Hong’an Junzhu? Bengong has been wondering all this time, in this world, what kind of woman would be able to move you? From what I’ve seen today, it only takes some well-written characters to catch Grand Tutor’s eye. If Grand Tutor so admires Hong’an Junzhu, wouldn’t it be good for bengong to say a few words to the Empress Dowager, and confer a marital arrangement on you both?”
Ordinarily, Liu Min would definitely have been indignant at the Crown Prince’s carelessly spewed words. However, today, he had been shocked to his core, and was in no mood to think carefully about the significance of what the Crown Prince had said. He was completely absorbed in his own rumination.
On seeing Liu Min like this, the Crown Prince felt that this was simply the reaction of a ‘literary fanatic’ who had seen a calligraphy gem and was unconsciously craving opportunities to look at it further. Thus, he said, “Forget it, bengong will not converse with you any more. Since Grand Tutor is bengong’s teacher, bengong will give you some advice out of the goodness of my heart: if you admire Hong’an Junzhu, you better make a move early, as bengong’s various brothers are keeping her in their sights*, waiting for a chance to pounce on her. Also, since Grand Tutor likes this piece of calligraphy so much, bengong will do you a little favour and send it to you.” Having said thus, he brushed off the transfixed Liu Min and left with a big smile.
* 虎视眈眈 (hǔshìdāndān) – to glare like a tiger watching his prey (idiom)/ to eye covetously.
* * *
When Jiang Ruan returned to Ci Ning Palace, she read for a while before feeling somewhat tired. With Tian Zhu and Yang gugu occupied, Jiang Ruan took Lu Zhu with her to the imperial garden for a stroll. They had just reached the garden when they heard a rather agitated voice calling out, “Hong’an Junzhu, please stop!”
Jiang Ruan was startled. She turned and saw, not far away, a young man in green robes, clean-cut and aloof. He looked more like an ordinary scholar than an appointee to the imperial court.
On seeing that she had turned her head, a peculiar expression flashed across Liu Min’s eyes. He walked forward a few steps, once again adopting the etiquette of a scholar and leaving an appropriate distance between himself and Jiang Ruan. He looked at her and said, “I heard that in the past, wise men governed the nation by emphasising honour, morals and customs, and the nation flourished. When these wise men departed, the nation declined. Therefore, the right way to govern a nation is by honour, morals and customs. However, others say that, while all these sentiments are good, they are not effective in controlling and managing the people. Balance must be achieved by means of law and order that all people adhere to so that the nation can experience prosperity and stability. This person is a foolish child who is still perplexed by this despite much thought, and I seek my gracious lord’s opinion(i.e. which do you believe works better and why).”
These words were exactly what the mysterious person had written in the first letter at that time. This question, asked in a seemingly careless manner, had entirely changed Liu Min’s destiny.
Jiang Ruan smiled faintly as she gazed attentively at the young man before her. Just as in her previous life, he had become a first-rank government official, and was favoured by the Emperor. However, in this life, he had been spared much frustration and dashed hopes, for his rise to the top had been meteoric.
He had achieved all this himself. Liu Min was upstanding and honest, possessed genuine talent, and had a real affinity for learning; the Emperor loved to favour people like him. She returned his courteous greeting and said, politely but coolly, “Grand Tutor Liu, it seems you have asked the wrong person this question.”
Liu Min stared at the slightly smiling young lady in front of him. From the time he had discovered that mysterious person was a woman, his mind had been in terrible turmoil. On the other hand, Jiang Ruan’s expression showed no sign of befuddlement, there was only balance and tranquility. Although she had calmly refuted his question, Liu Min knew that it was her, that person was Jiang Ruan without the shadow of a doubt.
He had several questions he wanted to ask Jiang Ruan, such as, how had she known what question was on the top grade imperial examination at that time, and why had she helped him? And, more importantly, why had her correspondence stopped after that time? If the Crown Prince had not inadvertently shown him that gem of calligraphy, perhaps he would have remained in the dark forever, and he would never have had the opportunity to find out that he and his confidant were so near each other.
Jiang Ruan saw that he did not know what to say, so she continued, “If there’s nothing else, Grand Tutor Liu, this junzhu will take my leave first.” She then turned and left, but as soon as she did so, her arm was seized tightly. Liu Min had thrown decorum to the wind and grabbed her arm.
Lu Zhu was greatly alarmed. She looked all around them frantically and gratefully noticed that there was no one else in the imperial garden at this time. Lu Zhu said, anxiously, “How can you be so rude? Quickly, release our Miss.”
However, Liu Min held on tightly and looked at Jiang Ruan with misgiving. Finally, he asked, hoarsely, “It’s . . . . you?”
The answer was obvious. Jiang Ruan said, “It’s me.”
Another indecipherable expression flashed in Liu Min’s eyes. He drew in a short breath before asking, in a resolute tone, “Why help me?”
Why help him? How could she say that it was because of what had happened in her previous life? Jiang Ruan frowned and said, “It was not you I was helping, I was helping the zhuangyuan of the Great Jin dynasty. If it wasn’t you, it would have been someone else.”
If it wasn’t him, it would have been someone else? Liu Min felt slightly dispirited, and an inexplicable mix of emotions surged up in his heart: disappointment, anger, regret, grievance, all woven together, causing him to tighten his hold on her arm even more, until Jiang Ruan winced unconsciously.
Then, a faint voice was heard behind them, a little cold, as if harbouring some kind of inexpressible fury.
“Release her.”