Jiang Yunshu stood in the main courtyard of the Yun Residence.
Looking to her left, she could catch a glimpse of a corner of Concubine Qiao’s Courtyard. To her right lay Nanhua Hall, where the little children Xie Lin had brought back were being cared for, and beyond that was Peifeng Academy, where the slightly older children were receiving their early education.
The clear sound of children reading aloud drifted on the breeze, and Jiang Yunshu occasionally caught a phrase or two. Curiosity stirred within her as she gazed toward Peifeng Academy.
Xie Lin approached from behind and said to her, “My lady, shall we go with me to take a look at Peifeng Academy?”
Jiang Yunshu nodded. Her curiosity only deepened—why had Xie Lin “picked up” so many children?
Stepping into Peifeng Academy, Jiang Yunshu looked around. She had never before set foot in an ancient-style academy, and Peifeng was exactly as she had imagined such a place to be.
The academy’s buildings were elegant and refined, and the courtyard was dotted with pines and cypresses.
Jiang Yunshu and Xie Lin strolled slowly to a window of the classroom, which was wide open.
The teacher inside caught sight of Xie Lin and gave him a slight nod before returning to instruct the little ones in their reading.
Jiang Yunshu was momentarily taken aback. Since coming to Xie Lin’s side, she had noticed how others treated him with either servile deference or cautious wariness. This was the first time she had seen someone behave so casually around him.
She couldn’t help but glance several more times at the teacher inside.
The teacher was an elderly man, but he looked energetic and youthful, his hair white as cranes’ feathers.
Under Xie Lin’s watchful gaze, the old teacher appeared calm and relaxed.
Jiang Yunshu found herself stealing another look, then another, and yet another.
Xie Lin chuckled softly, “What are you looking at?”
Lowering her voice, Jiang Yunshu replied, “I… I feel like I recognize this teacher…”
Xie Lin said, “My lady, have you never met Grand Tutor Xu before?”
Jiang Yunshu froze. “Grand Tutor Xu? Which Grand Tutor Xu?”
“There is only one Grand Tutor in the Great Qi Dynasty, and only one surnamed Xu,” Xie Lin answered.
Jiang Yunshu was completely stunned. She glanced once at Grand Tutor Xu, then back at Xie Lin, then again at Grand Tutor Xu, and once more at Xie Lin.
Her expression made Xie Lin laugh. “What are you doing?”
Jiang Yunshu said, “Dreaming…”
She truly felt like she was dreaming!
Why was Grand Tutor Xu here, at the Yun Residence, teaching this group of little toddlers whom Xie Lin had brought back?
Grand Tutor Xu was the former emperor’s tutor, a man of vast learning and the foremost figure among the literati.
The Grand Tutor, who taught the emperor’s lessons, was now here instructing a group of two- or three-year-olds who could barely sit still without wobbling… It was like a renowned academic coming to be a kindergarten teacher!
And wasn’t it said that Grand Tutor Xu and the Nine Thousand-Year-Old Lord were sworn enemies?
In the court, only Grand Tutor Xu, leader of the literati faction, could stand toe-to-toe with the troublemaker Xie Lin.
So why was Grand Tutor Xu here, teaching the little children Xie Lin had taken in?
Why, after their brief nod of greeting, did the two men treat each other with such quiet familiarity?
Why was Grand Tutor Xu the one person Jiang Yunshu had ever seen so at ease in Xie Lin’s presence?
Jiang Yunshu looked at Xie Lin. “So all the rumors outside are false? You and Grand Tutor Xu aren’t at odds at all. In fact, you two have a good relationship?”
Xie Lin smiled. “Good, not exactly…” But the rumors certainly couldn’t be taken at face value.
“In the court, only when you have enemies do you have allies,” Xie Lin said.
Jiang Yunshu paused for a moment and immediately understood. It was just like Xie Lin choosing Duan Jinxing as bait; Grand Tutor Xu was the target Xie Lin had selected. Or rather, Grand Tutor Xu and Xie Lin had each picked the other as their target.
Suddenly, she recalled the imperial examination. Grand Tutor Xu had appointed Duan Jinxing as the top scholar.
She had originally thought that Grand Tutor Xu and Xie Lin were bitter enemies. Since Grand Tutor Xu was in charge of the examination and Xie Lin couldn’t interfere, that was why Duan Jinxing became the top scholar.
But now...
Jiang Yunshu asked, “Did Grand Tutor Xu want Duan Jinxing to be the top scholar? Did you know this in advance?”
Xie Lin smiled as he looked at Jiang Yunshu. “Isn’t it amusing for the top scholar to become a horse caretaker?”
Jiang Yunshu nodded, now having a clearer understanding of the complicated relationship between Xie Lin and Grand Tutor Xu—both rivals and allies at once.
What puzzled her most was this: why would Grand Tutor Xu, the imperial tutor, be needed to enlighten these toddlers just two or three years old?
Suddenly, an absurd thought surfaced in Jiang Yunshu’s mind.
Why were these little children being tutored by Grand Tutor Xu? Why wasn’t Xie Lin rushing to find out who was harming them, but instead had brought her straight to the Yun Residence? And right after arriving, he took her to see these toddlers...
Jiang Yunshu had initially believed that Xie Lin’s move to bring them to the Yun Residence was a brilliant strategy to cut off the source of their troubles. No matter who was behind it, they wouldn’t be able to strike again here, and they could investigate at their own pace.
But now, another idea occurred to her—was this really the only reason Xie Lin moved them to the Yun Residence?
Could it be that these little toddlers were the real reason they relocated here?
What had made the Nine Thousand-Year-Old Lord suddenly switch careers and open a kindergarten?
If her guess was right...
Jiang Yunshu looked at Xie Lin’s face and let out a quiet breath.
Xie Lin seemed to see through her thoughts. A faint smile flickered in his eyes as he said, “For tonight’s Mid-Autumn banquet, bring along these children who can feed themselves.”
“So it’s convenient for the lady to see which child she favors.”
Jiang Yunshu couldn’t quite grasp what Xie Lin meant.
“Whether they please me or not... does it really matter?”
Xie Lin smiled again. “Of course, that’s the most important thing.”
-
If it hadn’t been for Xie Lin’s reminder, Jiang Yunshu might have completely forgotten that today was the Mid-Autumn Festival.
She had been preparing for this festival for a long time, but after everything that happened yesterday—learning about Xie Lin’s background, a death, and the late-night palace search—the events of this day and night felt like a whole month had passed, and she had almost lost track of the date.
“Ah, tonight we’ll have crab!” The Mid-Autumn banquet must have crab.
Startled by her own excitement, Jiang Yunshu couldn’t help but raise her voice.
A little boy by the window quickly looked up at them, then hurriedly turned back around. He sat up straight, his tiny back perfectly erect, his eyes fixed unwaveringly on Grand Tutor Xu at the front.
Jiang Yunshu couldn’t help but smile. The boy’s expression reminded her vividly of the time in her previous life when she had accidentally seen the stern headmaster inspecting the school from outside the window.
The boy in front of him turned around, trying to speak to him. The little boy nervously signaled him to be quiet: “Shh...”
At that moment, the boy in front also caught sight of Xie Lin and Jiang Yunshu outside the window. Startled, he quickly turned back around.
After a while, the little boy sitting in front couldn’t help but poke the child ahead of him, quietly whispering that there was someone outside the window.
Word spread quickly—from one to two, two to four—and soon all the little toddlers in the room knew about Xie Lin and Jiang Yunshu’s presence.
These boys were clearly only two or three years old, but looking at them, Jiang Yunshu was reminded of her own school days in her previous life. If any classmate happened to spot the head instructor outside the back window, the news would spread through the entire class in no time.
Watching the little toddlers sitting so neatly and attentively, Jiang Yunshu sighed, “They’re surprisingly mature for their age.”
Modern two- or three-year-olds certainly aren’t this well-behaved or precocious.
“Were these children all carefully selected by the Chief Steward?” Jiang Yunshu asked, testing the waters.
Xie Lin nodded. “They were chosen for their appearance.”
Jiang Yunshu was a bit surprised. No wonder she, who wasn’t particularly fond of kids, had found these little ones quite adorable just now. It turned out every child was rather good-looking—at least neat and delicate in features.
“The Chief Steward only picked them based on looks, not temperament?” Jiang Yunshu found that hard to believe.
Xie Lin glanced at her. “They know who they depend on to survive, and who provides for their lives now.”
Xie Lin didn’t understand why Jiang Yunshu thought these kids were so mature and sensible. At the same age, under their “adoptive father,” Xie Lin and his “brothers” had been far more mature and sensible than these toddlers.
“When you were two or three, Empress, were you really carefree?” Xie Lin raised an eyebrow. Given that Jiang Yunshu had grown up under her father and his legitimate wife, he really didn’t know how she ended up with such a personality.
Jiang Yunshu quickly replied, “I was much more mature than they are at that age!” After all, she was a transmigrator, not in the same league as these real little brats.
Xie Lin looked her up and down and shook his head. “You wouldn’t think so.”
Jiang Yunshu was a moment slow to catch on—was he saying she still seemed childish now?
Xie Lin’s thoughts drifted away. He wondered what Jiang Yunshu had been like at two or three years old—living under her father and his legitimate wife must have been incredibly difficult.
Perhaps it was precisely because she never had a carefree childhood that she now, as an adult, was compensating for it by sometimes acting like a child herself...
He gently took Jiang Yunshu’s hand.
Jiang Yunshu glared at Xie Lin, not understanding why he suddenly wanted to hold hands.
“This is the academy; the children are all in class…” If anyone saw them holding hands outside the window, what would they think?
Xie Lin chuckled softly. “It doesn’t matter.” The children inside already knew they were standing outside the window—no one dared to look back.
As soon as Xie Lin finished speaking, Grand Tutor Xu announced that today’s classes would be dismissed early.
The children filed out in an orderly fashion, passing by Xie Lin and Jiang Yunshu one by one, each politely bowing to them.
It was Jiang Yunshu’s first time seeing such a large group of well-behaved children—none of them were little troublemakers—and she felt quite out of place.
At the evening banquet, these children sat at the same table as Jiang Yunshu, and she was even more impressed by how mature kids were in ancient times.
In an age when even children nowadays struggle to use chopsticks properly, these little ones displayed remarkable manners at the table.
Before Xie Lin and Jiang Yunshu moved their chopsticks, not a single child dared to start eating.
Only after Xie Lin announced the beginning of the feast did the children cautiously begin to pick up their chopsticks.
Jiang Yunshu could feel their restraint and hesitation. The children didn’t understand why Xie Lin and Jiang Yunshu had suddenly come to live at the Yun Residence, nor why they were dining together.
At their age, they couldn’t grasp what the Mid-Autumn Festival was all about. They only knew that many things were different from usual—for example, they had never used such a large table before, let alone seen such an abundant spread of dishes…
The children were all nervous, but beneath some of their anxiety hid a spark of excitement.
Jiang Yunshu understood perfectly; she herself was delighted to see so much delicious food! After all, they were just children.
“Bang!” An overly excited child accidentally knocked over his own dish.
The food spilled onto his clothes and stained the clothes of the child sitting next to him.
The child who knocked over the dish was terrified, his lips trembling as tears threatened to fall.
The child beside him quickly covered his mouth and, with a handkerchief, swiftly wiped the stains off both their clothes. Then, he pulled the clumsy child down to kneel together and apologize.
“Please forgive us, Madam. Please forgive us,” they said in unison.
Jiang Yunshu was startled and hurriedly told them to stand up.
She looked at the two little boys before her. The one who had been dragged into trouble was the very first boy in the academy who had turned back and noticed Jiang Yunshu and Xie Lin earlier that day.
So young, yet so composed when faced with trouble. Instead of blaming his companion, he pulled him down to kneel and apologize together.
Jiang Yunshu asked gently, “What’s your name?”
The little boy blinked nervously. Jiang Yunshu then noticed that he had a pair of charming peach blossom eyes, quite similar to her own.
“My name is Yuancheng, Madam,” he replied.
Jiang Yunshu was taken aback. “Your family name is Yuán?”
Yuancheng shook his head. “Madam, my name is Yuancheng, but I don’t have a family name yet…”
None of these children had families or surnames.
The administrator had told them that only after passing certain trials would they be granted surnames.
And among them, the most outstanding one would be bestowed a very special surname…
Yuancheng guessed it would be the honored surname of Xie, granted by the administrator.
But today, seeing the lady again—so beautiful and kind—Yuancheng secretly wished that he could be given her surname.
=
That year’s Mid-Autumn feast, Jiang Yunshu attended two dinners. First, she dined with Xie Lin for the evening meal, then later had supper with Concubine Qiao.
After Xie Lin left, the children visibly relaxed. The little ones, having eaten their fill and with bedtime approaching, began to grow sleepy, yawning one after another.
Concubine Qiao often visited these little ones. Her presence was familiar and comforting to them.
Seeing the children yawning and some even tearing up, Concubine Qiao felt a pang of sympathy and suggested to Jiang Yunshu, “Shall we let the children go back to sleep now?”
Jiang Yunshu gently shook her head in response to Concubine Qiao.
In such a relaxed yet drowsy atmosphere, the true nature of each child became all the more apparent through their every move.
Although these expectations were undoubtedly harsh for children as young as two or three, Jiang Yunshu couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy. Yet, she wasn’t looking for an innocent and carefree child—she sought one with potential, a talent that could be shaped.
When he grew up, the weight of great responsibilities would rest heavily upon his shoulders.
Jiang Yunshu looked around, and her favorite among the children was still Yuancheng. Yuancheng was already very sleepy, his peach blossom-shaped eyes shimmering with moisture, yet he fought hard to stay awake, keeping his eyes wide open.
Not only did he restrain his own movements, but he also looked out for the other children around him.
When Yuancheng noticed a child nearby nodding off, he gently poked him to keep him alert. He even carefully pushed the utensils on the table a little closer, so that if the child did doze off, he wouldn’t accidentally knock anything over.
In Jiang Yunshu’s eyes, Yuancheng was like an older brother among this group of children. He cared for and looked after the others, and in return, the other children adored and trusted him.
