Chapter 88

Chapter 88

Ever since arriving in Great Yu, Rong Tang had never personally prepared for the Spring Festival.

Firstly, due to his poor health; secondly, his limited energy; and thirdly, his status as the Crown Prince of Ning Xuan meant he never needed to bother with such tedious tasks.

But after moving back to Yong'an Alley, Rong Tang was full of enthusiasm. Every day, he got up early, dressed warmly, and waited in his room for Su Huaijing to knock on his door, asking which street market he'd like to visit to buy New Year goods.

It was a super interesting and fulfilling activity. Going to the market and bringing home a whole pig or sheep, then watching the cook skillfully portion and preserve it, deciding which cuts were suitable for which dishes, all while basking in the warm winter sun, made Rong Tang blissfully happy.

Su Huaijing watched from the side, his lips curving upwards involuntarily.

Tangtang was not typically a person of shallow interests. He came from a wealthy family and never knew hunger or craving. His enjoyment stemmed purely from finding it interesting, full of life, and a kind of anticipation that made life feel good.

Just like he always ate without worrying about the quantity.

As Su Huaijing pondered, his gaze unconsciously drifted down to Rong Tang's flat and smooth belly.

Tangtang ate so much every day, where did all that food go?

Perhaps the intensity of his gaze was too strong, or his questioning eyes too tangible, Rong Tang picked up on it, looked up at him, blinked in confusion, signaling his puzzlement.

The light scattered over his head, sparrows hopping around the yard, while the several civet cats kept in the house scattered, catching birds or eating their food, making the days comfortable and leisurely.

Su Huaijing chuckled and shook his head, swallowing the questions that would have earned him a glare from Rong Tang, and instead asked, "I heard someone selling rice wine at the alley's entrance when we came back. Would Tangtang like to buy some to drink?"

Rong Tang's eyes instantly lit up, "Yes, please!"

Su Huaijing's eyes and brows also curved, exuding tenderness beyond measure.

They spent six days like this, from the 23rd to the 29th of the twelfth lunar month.

Occasionally, Ke Hongxue would bring Mu Jingxu, who had just finished his shift, to their courtyard for meals. As the evening darkened, they would be too lazy to leave, eventually deciding to stay over.

In these days before the New Year, Rong Tang grew happier and more comfortable by the day, almost forgetting why he had traveled to this time and why he had been reborn against the flow of time again and again.

It wasn’t until the 29th of the twelfth lunar month that someone from Ning Xuan Wang's mansion came to fetch them. Rong Tang reluctantly boarded the carriage, and before leaving, he specifically went to the kitchen to remind the cook to save a pork knuckle for him to stew later.

As the cook was about to agree with a smile, Su Huaijing added from the side, "Please make sure to skim off the oil a few more times."

Young Master Rong's face fell, looking at his partner, "How can pork knuckle taste good without the oil?"

Su Huaijing took his hand, leading him towards the door, "If it's too oily, Tangtang will need to take medicine for it. Do you want to drink medicine?"

Rong Tang furrowed his brows, pondered for a moment, then turned back to add, "Listen to him, skim off some of the oil!"

The cook couldn’t help but laugh and cry at the same time, wondering when they would be able to return to this courtyard again, even worrying about how the pork knuckle should be eaten.

The young master they found for the lord seems quite childlike in nature.

But this is good, as it lacks the dark schemes and suspicions of a large household, and the lord's smile has become much more frequent over the past year.

However...

She glanced at the calendar hanging on the wall and sighed heavily.

They still have to return.

……

On the thirtieth day of the twelfth lunar month, everyone in Ning Xuan Wang's mansion rose before dawn.

They washed, performed rituals, set off firecrackers, listened to the elders' teachings, and received red envelope gifts.

Rong Tang had just collected his red envelope money from the elders and immediately handed it over to Su Huaijing. Even the eldest princess, who adored Su Huaijing the most, couldn't help but hold Rong Tang's hand and advise, "Keep some for yourself."

Rong Tang was startled, replying somewhat inexplicably, "But he's very smart with money. It grows in his hands."

Now in winter, Rong Tang saw the overflowing crowd at Shudao Pavilion during his trips to the street. People waiting for a table stood in the freezing cold, even along the long streets. Some nearby silk and preserved fruit shops entertained customers who went in to warm up, usually emerging with several trinkets in hand.

Rong Tang had seen merchants like Xingfeng being respectfully led to the back rooms of these shops, making it clear who the owner was.

Not to mention a gambling house like Yu Zhong Qiu.

Rong Tang almost wondered if there was any profitable business in Yu Jing City that Su Huaijing hadn't ventured into, apart from the brothels.

Perhaps even a brothel has opened!

Yet this man, so wealthy, had still resorted to petty tricks to win that bit of poker money from him when he first entered the manor, which was truly annoying!

Thinking this, Rong Tang turned his head and glared at Su Huaijing.

Su Huaijing, who was listening to Wang Xiuyu speak, paid partial attention to Rong Tang and, seeing his reaction, froze for a moment, raised his eyebrows, and inquired with his eyes what was wrong.

Rong Tang ignored him, and Princess Duanyi, seeing the couple's subtle interactions under her watch, felt a mix of emotions. Unable to say or do anything suitable, she half-genuinely sighed and handed a red envelope to Rong Tang, then watched as he naturally went to Su Huaijing’s side, smoothly opened his pocket, and threw the red envelope in.

The smooth sequence of actions even made Princess Duanyi wonder if her grandson found the gold and silver too heavy to carry, thus treating Su Huaijing like an attendant to carry his belongings.

Amused by her thought, the Princess shook her head and laughed, then instructed her maid to bring some century-old ginseng from her room to Tanghua Courtyard.

Since the money had already gone to Su Huaijing, sending medicinal herbs surely couldn't be wrong.

—This was a truth that Sheng Chengming had figured out half a year ago.

After all affairs in Ningxuan King's Manor were settled, before the sun reached its zenith, a messenger from the palace arrived to invite the Princess and Ningxuan King, along with their female family members and children, to a banquet at the palace.

Every year on the 30th day of the twelfth lunar month, the Emperor hosts a banquet for his officials, demonstrating the closeness between ruler and subjects.

And neither Ningxuan King nor Princess Duanyi could ever escape this meal.

The carriage left Níngxiān King's Mansion and proceeded leisurely, passing many carriages of official families along the way.

The court officials saw this as an honor, lifting their curtains to chat.

Róng Táng, feeling sleepy in the carriage, eventually couldn't bear the long journey and the constant inspections along the way. He pulled Róng Zhēng in and taught him to play poker, then the three of them started playing Dou Dizhu.

Rong Zheng didn't understand, "If there's no landlord in the village, where would the farmers without their own land go to earn a living?"

Rong Tang was momentarily baffled by the question, realizing some of the common sense ingrained in his mind didn't align with this world at all.

It was fine not to be in long-term contact, and it didn’t matter that he was always on edge in his previous lives.

But once he let his guard down, those close to him, who he spent his days and nights with, would always find flaws in the details he inadvertently revealed.

These flaws were almost entirely exposed to Su Huaijing.

Yet, the big antagonist, a man known for his suspicion and caution, had never once questioned him.

Rong Tang pondered about how he was afraid Su Huaijing would suspect and kill him when they first met in this life, and compared it to his current self, who didn't care at all. He wondered who had changed whom?

He changed Su Huaijing, but hadn't Su Huaijing also changed him?

Rong Tang twiddled his fingers, thinking about how to answer Rong Zheng's question, when Su Huaijing, seemingly nonchalantly as he picked up a card, said, "People need a monarch because the masses are uneducated and numerous crafts don't fit the needs of the many. But if one day, farmers who face the soil and back the sky can also recite and compose poetry, discuss the past and present, and the world's livelihood shifts to seeking skilled labor, then they might not even need an emperor, let alone a landlord to provide a living."

He spoke plainly and naturally. The carriage was moving slower than ever. Outside the window, officials in black hats talked to each other across their sedans about formalities. With Su Huaijing's words, everyone in the carriage was stunned.

Rong Zheng was shocked, unable to comprehend where Su Huaijing had learned such a concept.

Rong Tang was amazed at Su Huaijing's capacity for thought beyond his era, especially since Su Huaijing was of royal descent. How could he have such thoughts?

Su Huaijing urged them to pick up cards, glancing at Rong Tang as if he hadn’t said anything revolutionary.

Rong Zheng mechanically touched the cards, taking a long while to recover before hesitantly saying, "That's... impossible, isn't it?"

The monarch needs the people to consolidate his power, and don't the people need a monarch as the backbone of their faith?

The concept of education sounds simple, but even after hundreds of years since the founding of Great Yu, leading to a prosperous and strong nation, only about twenty to thirty percent of students truly receive enlightenment, and most of them are farmer's children who return to farming after completing elementary studies.

Not to mention the tuition fees paid to teachers, even basic stationery items like brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones are beyond the reach of ordinary families. To support a scholar, it often requires the hard work of three generations in the fields for decades.

The triennial imperial examinations seem to have many participants, but in reality, these candidates are just a drop in the ocean among countless commoners. Even in a prosperous city like the capital, half the population remains illiterate.

Su Huaijing spoke too easily of change, leaving Rong Zheng momentarily lost in thought, pondering the feasibility of his words. But after some reflection, he realized that it was an impossible dream, something that would be laughed at if mentioned to others.

Yet, Su Huaijing smiled and said, "Maybe it's not possible in ten or a hundred years, but what about a thousand, or ten thousand years?"

He had read numerous historical texts and seen much of the world. Although unable to predict the future in its entirety, he could glimpse a vague shadow of what might come.

His words were not entirely unachievable. The unique style of playing cards that Rong Tang brought, so different from those popular in Great Yu, might not be as absurd as it seemed.

Rong Zheng wanted to ask more, but Rong Tang interrupted him, "Your turn to play."

Su Huaijing glanced at Rong Tang, who was looking down at the cards in his hand, seemingly preoccupied with nothing else, his fingertips slightly whitened from the pressure.

Su Huaijing averted his gaze, continuing to play with them for a while. When the carriage stopped at the palace gate and after being inspected, they disembarked. Su Huaijing gently circled his fingers over Rong Tang's, soothing the faint soreness from the tight grip on the cards.

The weather was fine, the sun shining on the red and yellow palace walls, casting a bright glow.

Rows of people walked along the palace road, each moving with grave caution, dwarfed under the towering brick walls, as insignificant as grains of sand.

Su Huaijing asked casually, "Tangtang, that card game you played is quite novel. Why did you name it so?"

Rong Tang's heart sank, unsure how to respond, and remained silent with pursed lips.

Fortunately, Su Huaijing never really pressed him for answers. He smiled and offered an out, "Did you see it in a dream?"

Rong Tang hesitated for a moment, then nodded, "Yes."

Snow piled up on the palace walls. The buildings of Great Yu, the most flourishing and solemn, yet the most ancient and enduring, opened their gates wide, welcoming each guest with tolerance.

The golden dragons carved on the pavilions were majestic and solemn, overseeing the grandeur of the nation.

Sunlight reflected off the glazed tiles and onto a long-unseen friend in front of Sù Huáijǐng, who squinted and smiled softly, "How nice, when can I enter Táng Táng's dreams to have a look?"