"How to govern with strictness yet lead with kindness?" This was the assignment Mr. Shang had given Xiao Youcheng, who pondered it for a long time without making progress. Just as his thoughts grew tangled, Lu Chao's cheerful voice broke through.
"Yukang!! Two new classmates have arrived at our academy!"
At this, Xiao Youcheng paused, letting ink drip from his brush before crumpling the paper on his desk.
A few days prior, he had received a letter from his uncle—his cousin Zhou Qingyuan must have arrived. But who was the other one?
The moment Xiao Youcheng stepped out of his room, his gaze swept over Zhou Qingyuan and Chen Ning'an.
Zhou Qingyuan looked up, meeting his eyes directly. Xiao Youcheng gave a slight nod before turning to the dark-skinned boy beside him.
"Yukang, this is Zhou Qingyuan, and this is Chen Ning'an. Master brought them back today."
Chen Ning'an? So, from the Chen family.
Xiao Youcheng wondered which son of Prefect Chen this was. He shot Chen Ning'an a faintly mocking glance, causing the boy to lower his head nervously.
Chen Ning'an trembled slightly, recalling his father's instructions before his departure.
After the introductions, Lu Chao gestured grandly toward a row of rooms.
"Our academy has plenty of space—pick whichever you like!"
Zhou Qingyuan chose the room closest to Xiao Youcheng, while Chen Ning'an opted for the farthest corner. Seeing that Xiao Youcheng had no objections, the two went to settle in.
Lu Chao followed Xiao Youcheng into the study, glancing around before asking with curiosity,
"Is that Zhou Qingyuan from the Zhou family?"
Xiao Youcheng smiled and nodded. "Sharp as ever. Qingyuan is my uncle’s third son—not the brightest, but reliable enough."
Thinking of his other cousins from the Zhou family, Xiao Youcheng hesitated. It seemed their ancestors had blessed them with just one sensible descendant.
"And Chen Ning'an?"
Xiao Youcheng lowered his voice. "The newly appointed prefect of Yingchuan is surnamed Chen. I just don’t know which son this is."
The Chen family was a prominent clan from Taiyuan. During Emperor Taizu’s reign, the second son of the Chen family married Princess Changle, the emperor’s youngest daughter. Princess Changle, sharing blood with the current emperor, was deeply favored.
She had two children: Chen Yun and Roujia, both raised alongside the imperial princes—old acquaintances of Xiao Youcheng.
From what he knew, Princess Changle had her sights set on the Crown Prince, hoping for an imperial marriage decree. Roujia, however, favored the Second Prince—Xiao Youcheng’s dear elder brother.
Lu Chao mused, "He looks tall and sturdy, but his courage seems lacking. His fine robe looks lavish, but the sleeves are too short—probably not a favored son."
Xiao Youcheng scoffed.
"The Chen family has grand ambitions. Why would Mr. Chen send a capable son to keep watch over a discarded prince like me? No doubt he’s a lesser son, assigned to spy on me."
Prefect Chen and the Chen family’s imperial son-in-law were brothers.
That explained everything.
Lu Chao gave Xiao Youcheng a sympathetic look.
"You’re just here to study, and they still can’t relax."
The old emperor was too paranoid. What could a handful of students possibly do—raise an army and rebel?
"Mr. Lu! Someone’s looking for you!"
A voice called from afar.
"That’s Wu Yao."
Lu Chao pushed open the door to see Wu Yao panting in the courtyard.
Spotting Lu Chao, Wu Yao exhaled in relief.
"Mr. Lu, someone’s waiting for you at the foot of the mountain—claims to be family and seems in a hurry."
Lu Chao’s heart lurched, thinking of Lady Lu, seven months pregnant. Fearing the worst, he sprinted downhill.
Xiao Youcheng, noticing his distress, followed.
At the mountain’s base, Lu Chao saw Lu Yuanyi holding a horse’s reins, scanning the area.
Hearing Lu Chao’s footsteps, Lu Yuanyi waved urgently.
"Chao! Over here!"
Before Lu Chao could catch his breath, Lu Yuanyi delivered the news.
"Chao, Father’s been injured!"
"What?!"
The shock made Lu Chao exclaim.
"Don’t panic. Aunt Zhou sent word, but Elder Brother intercepted it. Uncle Dacheng hasn’t written yet, so it’s likely not life-threatening. But something’s happened in Yuxi County—we need to hurry. Elder Brother sent me to fetch you. I’ll explain on the way."
Lu Yuanyi patted the horse’s neck and adjusted the reins.
"Elder Brother and I agreed not to tell Mother—she’s due soon, and the news might distress her. With the family in this state, he must stay to manage things. So, we’ll split up: he’ll guard the household, and you and I will go to Father."
Lu Chao nodded and vaulted onto the horse.
"Let’s go!"
Lu Yuanyi hesitated. "Shouldn’t we ask the master for leave?"
Lu Chao smacked his forehead, remembering. He pulled out a charcoal pencil, scribbled a note, and whistled.
Soon, a blue-green bird swooped down.
Lu Chao tied the note to its claw, fed it a corn kernel, and patted its back.
"Little Red, off you go!"
The bird vanished in a flash.
Lu Yuanyi gaped.
"You’ve only been here a short while, and you’ve already trained a messenger bird? It’s clearly blue—why call it Little Red?"
Lu Chao grinned. "Blame my master."
Who understood the old man’s quirks? A blue bird named Little Red.
"Good Chao~"
Lu Chao shook his head, dashing his brother’s hopes.
"Not likely anytime soon. I’ve only learned to summon it."
Lu Yuanyi winked. "Learn more, then get one for your Second Brother."
Lu Chao thumped his chest. "Sure, sure."
As they prepared to leave, hoofbeats approached.
"Wait!"
Lu Chao turned to see Xiao Youcheng galloping toward them on his chestnut horse.
"Huh? Is Young Master Zhou coming too? Is he also the Third Prince’s study companion?"
Lu Chao chuckled awkwardly.
"Ah, yes, he’s also a companion."
Xiao Youcheng reined in his horse.
"Chao, Master is worried. He asked me to go with you."
Lu Chao gave him a skeptical look but didn’t expose the lie.
Little Red probably hadn’t even reached Mr. Shang yet.
"Ahem, Mr. Shang agreed. He gave me an assignment I haven’t started. Hearing about Yuxi, he allowed me to accompany you."
"Are you allowed to go?"
Lu Chao eyed him with concern. A prince confined to his fief leaving without permission—wasn’t that a capital offense?
"It’s fine. Yuxi is still under Yingchuan’s jurisdiction. Besides, according to Mr. Shang, the issue involves road construction—it needs urgent resolution."
The road project funds bore Xiao Youcheng’s seal, after all.
Clip-clop! Clip-clop!
Lu Yuanyi, watching the two whisper, turned to see two more horses approaching.
"Yukang! We’re coming with you!"
Lu Yuanyi rubbed his temples at the growing party. His little brother had quite the circle.
"No time to waste—let’s move!"
Prince Kang's study companions had all followed along. If they didn’t leave soon, he feared Prince Kang might join them as well—what a spectacle that would be.
With a flick of his wrist, the whip cracked, and the horse let out a sharp whinny, kicking up a cloud of dust. The young men galloped off toward Yuxi County, their spirits high and hearts unburdened.
