"I heard you were ill a few days ago—has your health improved?" Li Chengzhen put on a concerned expression.
He understood Yang Xuanji's significance.
Yang Xuanji was a man of profound learning, a revered scholar with an unyielding temperament and a fierce hatred for injustice. In the eyes of court officials and common folk alike, he was a towering figure, a great Confucian scholar destined to be recorded in history.
Li Chengzhen wanted to become Yang Xuanji's student. He could endure the scholar's arrogance and rudeness because his uncle and the empress dowager had told him that having Yang Xuanji as his tutor would bolster his reputation.
A scholar of such stature would earn him greater trust from both the court and the people.
Yang Xuanji clasped his hands in polite greeting, his tone neither submissive nor overbearing as he addressed Li Chengzhen. "Thank you for your concern, Second Highness. This old man has recovered and is well."
At twelve years old, Li Chengzhen was no longer the naive child he once was after years in the palace.
With a face full of remorse, he said to Yang Xuanji, "My eighth brother is young and ignorant. Having been raised outside the palace for three years after his birth, he knows neither palace etiquette nor respect for teachers. The other day, he offended you. I apologize on his behalf."
Li Chengzhen deliberately brought up the misdeeds of his eighth brother, Li Chengtai.
Yang Xuanji's aged face turned stern as he stroked his beard. "The Eighth Prince is young but exceptionally bright. This old man has long intended to petition the Emperor to become his tutor. However, I caught a chill a few days ago and missed the opportunity."
Li Chengzhen's mind went blank.
For a moment, he couldn't process the words.
"Master Yang," he asked, "then why have you come to the palace today...?"
Yang Xuanji huffed, stroking his beard. "To request the Emperor's decree to teach the Eighth Prince the principles of scholarship and virtue! That Zhang Fenghua is still wet behind the ears, and that Zheng fellow is a cripple—how could they compare to this old man?"
With that, Yang Xuanji bid Li Chengzhen farewell and hurried off toward Chang'an Palace. Under the bright sky, the seventy-year-old scholar walked with such vigor that his eagerness was unmistakable.
Li Chengzhen stood frozen in place, as if doused from head to toe with icy water.
Jealousy, resentment, bitterness, and grievance exploded in his heart, making his head buzz.
His uncle, who had been observing the scene, approached and patted his nephew's shoulder. "Don’t take it to heart. The tutors assigned to you are also highly learned."
Li Chengzhen's uncle was the empress's elder brother and the current head of the Tantai family. His visit to the palace today was ostensibly to check on the "ailing" empress, but in truth, he was there to pressure Tantai Yinxue to vie for the Emperor's favor.
Clenching his fists, Li Chengzhen said, "Uncle, how am I inferior to Li Chengtai? He’s only four years old! Yang Xuanji would rather teach a four-year-old than be my tutor!"
The Tantai patriarch frowned, equally baffled.
Could it be that the Eighth Prince was truly a prodigy?
Shaking his head, he reassured Li Chengzhen, "Don’t overthink it. Shen Xiuming, the brother of Consort Chen, is Yang Xuanji’s student. Perhaps the old man agreed to teach the Eighth Prince out of regard for Shen Xiuming."
Li Chengzhen mulled over the connection, and some of his jealousy dissipated.
Gritting his teeth, he muttered, "Yang Xuanji claims to be a man of integrity, but I see him as a hypocrite—already colluding with Consort Chen."
The Tantai patriarch pondered gravely. "Consort Chen’s rising influence is indeed a threat."
With General Shen backing her and three children—a daughter and two sons—she was a formidable adversary who needed to be eliminated.
"Work hard, my boy," the uncle urged. "Excel above all the princes. The Tantai family will spare no effort to support you."
Li Chengzhen glanced at his uncle and nodded obediently. "I understand. I won’t disappoint you."
The Tantai patriarch felt reassured, thinking how easily children could be placated. The family currently favored Li Chengzhen only because he was their sole male descendant in the imperial line.
Two days prior, the Emperor had summoned Tantai Yinxue to his chambers and later bestowed lavish gifts. Once she bore a son, Li Chengzhen would no longer be of use.
As they walked toward the palace gates, Li Chengzhen maintained a docile expression, but inside, flames of fury raged.
How hypocritical of Uncle, he thought.
He claimed the family would support him, yet the empress remained confined in Kunning Palace, and they had already sent a beautiful new woman into the Emperor’s bed. Clearly, the family had abandoned the empress—and soon, they would abandon him too.
Li Chengzhen tightened his sleeves, his heart burning with a fire so intense he wanted to reduce the family, the palace, his father, his mother, and all his brothers to ashes.
---
News of Yang Xuanji’s audience with the Emperor spread quickly.
It was said he had argued vehemently, citing classics and historical precedents, insisting with unshakable resolve to become the Eighth Prince’s tutor.
He had even dragged his aged body to the Imperial Academy to challenge Grand Tutor Zhang and Scholar Zheng in scholarly debate.
In the end, Emperor Li Yuanjing decreed that Yang Xuanji, Grand Tutor Zhang, and Scholar Zheng would all serve as Li Chengtai’s tutors.
The palace rumor that "the Eighth Prince angered Yang Xuanji into illness" was thus debunked.
The Eighth Prince’s brilliance had three esteemed scholars vying to teach him—a rare honor indeed.
---
In Yongning Palace, Shen Wei reclined on a rattan chair by the pavilion, her face covered in a special beauty mask, her hands holding the palace’s "performance evaluation records."
The palace teemed with idle servants, so Shen Wei had introduced a modern "performance review" system. Each servant’s duties were clearly outlined—daily, monthly, and yearly tasks.
They recorded completed work in logbooks, akin to modern timesheets. Three days before wages were distributed, female officials skilled in accounting calculated payments based on performance.
Good work earned wages; poor work led to deductions. Generous bonuses were awarded to top performers, fostering motivation and competition.
This simple management system revitalized the stagnant, bureaucratic palace.
"Madam," Cai Lian entered the pavilion, "Yang Xuanji has begun tutoring the Eighth Prince. Driven by pride, he teaches with great diligence."
Shen Wei set down the evaluation records, her lips curving. "As long as he teaches well. Ensure the servants attending Chengtai and Chengyou are meticulous. The children are still young—they mustn’t overwork themselves."
Children needed balance—study and play, discipline and freedom.
Cai Lian nodded. "Their meals and clothing are handled only by our trusted people. Guards watch over them during playtime."
Children were fragile; even a gust of wind could harm them. Protection was paramount against unseen dangers.
Rubbing her temples, Shen Wei added, "Have Princess Le You and the others attend lectures at the Imperial Academy. The three tutors are all erudite—it will benefit the girls to learn from them."
