Chapter 51

Lian Cheng thought his younger brother was belittling himself and shook his head, saying, "You're very good, very good."

Lian Xiusheng said, "If I'm so good, why doesn't Third Brother like me?"

"Of course I like you. How could I not? In the whole family, aside from Mother, you're my favorite." Lian Cheng said cheerfully. "Today at the flower appreciation banquet, I was thinking of you."

Lian Xiusheng gave a faint smile and asked what Third Brother was thinking about him.

Lian Cheng said, "When the girls were in full bloom, I thought about Sixth Brother's marriage prospects. If you'd be willing to marry on the same lucky day as me, I might just go along with their wishes."

Lian Xiusheng stopped smiling. "Until my mission is done, I won't consider marriage."

Lian Cheng immediately grew alert. "What great mission are you trying to accomplish? Can I know a thing or two?"

Seeing the other remain silent, Lian Cheng moved closer, trying his best to appear intimidating. "I know you harbor a family grudge and blood feud in your heart. I'm willing to help you."

"No, that's not necessary." Lian Xiusheng refused swiftly. "I don't want to implicate Third Brother."

Lian Cheng was momentarily stunned, wanting to grab the other by the collar and demand, "You don't want to implicate me, but do you think this is socialism?"

Lian Xiusheng stared at Third Brother in front of him. He knew himself—he wasn't just after his brother's looks, though there was some of that, but not much. Every time he got pulled into an abyss he couldn't escape, it was because of Third Brother's liveliness and vitality. If Third Brother was a little fish, he was a dead pond. If Third Brother was a little bird, he was a withered tree. He was nourished by Third Brother's vitality, and once he tasted it, he couldn't bear to let go.

He was dying to know what went on in Third Brother's head every day, why he always made such adorable and amusing expressions. But he also knew Third Brother well enough—if Third Brother looked like a seductive enchantress or a bodhisattva, it surely meant his mind was completely empty.

Lian Cheng was also watching Lian Xiusheng and asked what he was looking at. "Don't tell me you're smitten with me again."

Lian Xiusheng said helplessly, "No, that's not true. Rest assured, Third Brother."

"Has Third Brother been in touch with that young Master Xia lately?" Lian Xiusheng suddenly asked.

Lian Cheng shook his head. "Not today. He sent a letter a month ago, asking if I was well and saying he was fine. Since he grew up in the auxiliary capital, I'm not too worried about him. But he's bound to have a rift with his family now."

Lian Xiusheng didn't want to hear Third Brother talk about how he got along with others, so he picked and chose, saying, "If anything involves imperial wood, remember to tell me promptly."

"What about imperial wood?"

Lian Xiusheng paused, thinking it wouldn't hurt to tell Third Brother. "The construction of Xie Lu Hall is the most important matter to His Majesty. However, the procurement of imperial wood exhausts the people and drains the treasury, and many officials of various ranks take advantage of it for personal gain. His Majesty deeply cherishes the memory of his deceased elder brother, Crown Prince Jiao, and is quite nostalgic, so he would rather kill the wrong person than let the guilty go..."

Lian Cheng couldn't bear to listen to the other's pretense any longer. He lunged forward, grabbing Lian Xiusheng's collar with both hands and pressing nose to nose, demanding, "Do you really believe he cherished and respected Crown Prince Jiao? Everyone else believes it—why would you?"

"Whether His Majesty truly cherished Crown Prince Jiao or not, I don't care. I just take the emperor's word for it. That's what a loyal subject does." Lian Xiusheng gently grasped Third Brother's wrists and moved them away, but couldn't bear to put distance between them.

Good. So young, and already having such insight. No wonder he was destined to be the great traitor, Lian Cheng thought. With this kind of ambition, even without a blood feud, it would only be a matter of time before Lian Xiusheng stood above everyone else but the emperor.

Lian Cheng found a chair and sat down. "He didn't bring up imperial wood. But this Xie Lu Hall—does it really have to be built?"

Since ancient times, building imperial halls was a massive undertaking. Qiongtai, Zhanghua, Epang, Lingtai—every one of them was a massive project that drained the people. Xie Lu Hall had been under construction for nearly a year, and the human and material resources expended were incalculable. From what Lian Cheng had read, Crown Prince Jiao revered Mencius above all, who said, "The people are the most important; the state is secondary; the sovereign is the least." which made him unpopular with many monarchs. Lian Cheng couldn't believe Crown Prince Jiao would ever approve of the emperor draining the treasury over his memory.

Thinking this, Lian Cheng suddenly sat up straight. He got it. The emperor was doing it on purpose—to tarnish Crown Prince Jiao's legacy in history. In the future, whenever historians wrote about Crown Prince Jiao, they could never avoid mentioning that someone had built this extravagant project to commemorate him, exhausting the people.

Meanwhile, kill some officials or commoners, guilty or not—Crown Prince Jiao would end up taking the blame.

What a vicious emperor. What a cunning younger brother.

Fortunately, his brother wasn't like that. Sad as he was, Lian Cheng couldn't help feeling relieved.

"What's Third Brother thinking?" Lian Xiusheng saw the other spacing out again and wanted to know.

"You haven't answered me yet." Lian Cheng reacted quickly.

"Yes, it has to be built, no question." Lian Xiusheng said.

Lian Cheng slumped into the large armchair, sprawled out inelegantly, arms and legs splayed, muttering, "The situation is treacherous. I feel really uneasy."

Lian Xiusheng's gaze wandered over the fair, slender nape of Lian Cheng's neck as he replied, "So Third Brother must tell me everything, then."

Lian Cheng suddenly lifted his head. "Shouldn't it be 'be careful about everything'?"

"Being careful about everything is not as good as telling me everything."

"..."

After the flower appreciation banquet, Lian Cheng faced some teasing in his yamen. It wasn't malicious, but it was quite explicit. Since Lian Cheng was still an eighteen-year-old boy at heart, he avoided those old hands. Lou Lan called him in and scolded him again, saying he was slack and lacked decorum. Lian Cheng thought they were both commissioners, so he didn't bother listening; instead, he scolded Lou Lan back. Lou Lan couldn't argue with him and was left fuming. Lian Cheng then asked him to stop targeting me over the grudges of the older generation.

-

The two commissioners nearly came to blows, and the whole Imperial Guard Office knew about it. For this reason, a commissioner who had never shown himself before Lian Cheng brought a food box to make peace with him. Qin Tianzhu had a smile on his face and a humble demeanor, but Lian Cheng had been warned by Lian Pu before taking office that this one was bad.

So Lian Cheng treated the drinking with him as mere socializing. Amidst the toasting, he even wrangled two jars of Jinhua wine from him, which he took home and shared with his brothers.

Qin Tianzhu thought he had won over this little profligate, only to find that the other remained lukewarm toward him, just asking for food and drink. He finally realized what was going on and immediately reported to Meng Chong. Meng Chong threw a teacup at him. "You secretly give him food and drink, and he just treats you as a source of goodies. When he runs out, he comes to mooch off you. How is that any different from a stray cat or dog on the street? And you call that cunning?"

Qin Tianzhu couldn't argue his way out. Two days later, he was swindled out of two more jars of wine by Lian Cheng without even realizing it. After returning home from the yamen, he got a good scolding and a beating from his wife, who told him to stop playing tricks on others—he'd never get it right anyway.

The invitation to the horseback polo party for the Lian brothers and sisters was delivered to Zhang Ailian. She took it and read it, understanding clearly. "Lan Xue has always been frail. She doesn't like noisy, chaotic occasions. This time it's strange—she personally wrote the invitation inviting my children."

Qing Zhu was confused. "Isn't this invitation written by her mother, Madam Jin? How does Madam know it's from Miss Lan Xue?"

Zhang Ailian smiled. "You don't know. This is Lan Xue's handwriting. Among the capital's children, her calligraphy could rank at the top, even among the young masters."

Qing Zhu's face lit up. "Miss Lan Xue's intention is..."

Zhang Ailian was half pleased and half worried. "I'm afraid she has the intention, but Minzi isn't interested."

Qing Zhu comforted her softly. "The young master just hasn't woken up yet. Perhaps after a few contacts and getting familiar, things will fall into place naturally."

Zhang Ailian had little hope. "He's had plenty of contact with men and women over the years. He's probably like his father—just isn't wired that way."

The invitation wasn't sent to Lian Cheng, so naturally, he didn't know. He was focused on practicing his sword, spending most of his time after the yamen with Qiu Fang.

Lian Xiusheng was efficient in his work and favored by the emperor. He would come home every day after noon and occasionally visit Penglai Pavilion to check on the masons' progress. Sometimes he would ask Huqiu where Third Brother was. Huqiu would look at the sun and say it was still early before the young master left the yamen. Later, Lian Xiusheng wrote a memorial suggesting ways to make each department's official business more efficient, but it would take time to implement.

When his work was done, Lian Xiusheng, Jin Cai, and Man Cai gathered in the outer courtyard of Penglai Pavilion, commenting on the newly transplanted flowers and trees. Jin Cai said he still liked peonies—they were grand. Man Cai said they were vulgar and preferred lotus flowers instead. Lian Xiusheng absentmindedly pinched the garden balsam and asked the two how their relationship was now.

Jin Cai held his hands together, expressionless and silent. Man Cai jumped up, his face turning pink. "Young master, how improper! Must you pry into our private affairs?"

"Just asking. You don't have to answer." Jin Cai looked coldly at Man Cai. "A few days ago, you moved out of my room. Why did you take my gold and silver things?"

"Those were rewards from the young master to me. When did they become yours?"

"The young master rewarded them to me. I gave them to you to make it sound nice. I sweet-talked you. Give them back to me later."

Man Cai pretended to cry. "No need for later. I'll return them now!" He took leave of his young master, saying he'd go get them, and dragged Jin Cai away.

Lian Xiusheng had no awareness that he had started a quarrel. He felt a bit envious of the two, but then lost interest. If Man Cai abandoned Jin Cai, there would truly be no way to reconcile.

But with Third Brother, it was different. Even if they couldn't be husband and wife, they were still brothers. Alive or dead, they were on the same page of the family tree. Third Brother's wife would only gain an empty title. Meanwhile, their spirit tablets would be placed side by side. For thousands of years to come, whenever there were offerings, they would share the incense offerings.

As he was indulging in these thoughts about the future, footsteps came from the flagstone path outside the gate. Lian Xiusheng recognized that they weren't from either of these courtyards. He finally let go of the garden balsam in the corner and walked to the gate. There stood a young maidservant he didn't recognize. Seeing the celestial being in his moon-white robe before her, she stopped, her face flushed, and held out the food box in her hand. "My young lady made this with her own hands and sent it for Third Brother and Sixth Brother to taste."

Lian Xiusheng accepted the food box but his tone was doubtful. "Which household are you from?"

"The Ma family of Xilian Hutong."

"Did you also come to the mansion's flower-viewing banquet the other day?"

The maid nodded.

Lian Xiusheng gave a faint smile and said, "Thank you for making the trip. My third brother has not yet returned from the yamen. When he returns home, I will convey your young lady's regards."

The maid was dazed by Lian Xiusheng's bearing. In the capital, there were countless handsome young masters, but one as strikingly handsome as Young Lord Lian, almost inhumanly so, was nearly unheard of. She had only heard of the spectacle when Young Lord Lian rode through the streets on the day he became the top scholar, and thought those who spoke of it were exaggerating like something out of a storybook. But seeing him in person today, she had no choice but to believe. But she could only admire and let it go. She bowed and took her leave.

Lian Xiusheng carried the food box back into the courtyard but did not enter the house. Instead, he chose a smooth stone by the pond and sat down. He opened the box and saw a plate of delicate rice cakes. He picked up the top one, broke it apart, and brought it to his nose to sniff. The aroma was quite good. If his third brother were to marry the Ma girl, he would certainly enjoy delicious food in the future, and third brother loves good food.

Thinking thus, Lian Xiusheng tossed the broken cake in his hand into the pond. The leisurely carps in the pond immediately turned over and churned the water as they scrambled for the food.

Lian Xiusheng, naturally elegant and gentle, even soothed the carps, saying, "Why fight? There's more where that came from."

A plate of rice cakes was not much, but it was exquisite. Each time Lian Xiusheng picked up a piece, he broke it and fed it to the carps. When only the last piece remained in his hand, he finally saw what he was looking for.

He still submerged the cake into the green pond water, but this time a small strip of paper appeared in his hand, rolled into a tube. He unrolled it and saw a line of extremely beautiful fine ornamental script: "My heart yearns for you; I envy only the coupled fish, not the immortals."

Lian Xiusheng lowered his eyes, his expression unchanged for a long time. He recalled the Ma girl's appearance in his mind. At a refined gathering, he had seen her from afar once. Though frail, she was not lacking in demeanor or talent. Thus, Lian Xiusheng had no doubt that if he let things take their course, the likelihood of his third brother and this girl harmonizing like lute and zither was great.

However, he did not think his third brother was a lascivious or shallow person; it was just that this girl was indeed extraordinary. Lian Xiusheng believed he didn't need to be prejudiced against others due to his own feelings. He had never liked belittling opponents, for those who looked down on others often fall prey to others.

Therefore, Lian Xiusheng did not throw the note into the water, as he did not want anyone passing by to jump into the pond to retrieve it for no reason. He personally burned the note and even disposed of the ashes himself.

After finishing all that, Lian Cheng returned from the yamen. Seeing the carps in the pond unusually lively today, he leaned over to tease them for a while before swaggering into the house.