CH 44

Yan Mingting saw the shock on his face that he tried his best to hide, and knew that he was right.

A courtesy name should have been chosen by his parents, elders, or perhaps His Holiness. But Zhao Yelan’s parents had died in his early years, and Zhao Xuan was the most likely to choose the courtesy name for him.

At first, when he heard the word “Mengting” from Zhao Xuan’s mouth, there was an indescribable familiarity, but after careful inspection, he noticed that Zhao Yelan’s reaction to this was not within the norm. It seemed that he was caught off guard when he heard this name, and his expression changed unexpectedly.

Later at the hunting grounds, he had asked the other party why Zhao Xuan had called him Mengting. 

Zhao Yelan said it was a courtesy name.

He called him that all the way, but every time he said it, Zhao Yelan was very annoyed. It wasn’t until they returned and he called “Mengting” in front of Housekeeper Qin that Zhao Yelan became furious, as if he didn’t want this name mentioned in front of outsiders.

So he didn’t speak it in front of others anymore, and only occasionally called him Mengting when they were alone together, just for fun between the two of them.

His name had been changed since childhood, and even though he became a noble official, there was no ancestral hall in Zhao Mansion to honor his ancestors……he had a vague guess, but he didn’t want to delve into how many stories were hidden behind the name Zhao Mengting.

He firmly believed that human nature was inherently good. If Zhao Yelan could be driven into the abyss step by step, the story behind it must be heart-wrenching. He didn’t want to investigate secretly, so as not to uncover that bloody scar again. The other party couldn’t bear it, and he may not be able to face it calmly.

As soon as the two of them returned to the General’s Mansion, they saw Housekeeper Qin and Gao Tan squatting on the steps, arguing endlessly.

Housekeeper Qin: “Why did Zhao-daren go to the brothel? It’s too outrageous, can’t he stay in the mansion honestly?”

“The brothel smells fragrant and savory, my lord will naturally like it.”

“You sure know how to talk to adults, kid, do you know what that place is?!”

“Of course I know, but I’m afraid you don’t. You’re too old to go.”

“Who are you looking down on! Who wasn’t powerful when he was young?! Back when I was messing around with girls, you didn’t even know how to breastfeed!”

“Old is old, I only hear boasting.”

“Believe it! I could tell my wife to have a third child now, how about you!”

“Of course I can’t, I don’t like your wife, I don’t want her to have my baby.”

“How can this be so!” Housekeeper Qin was so angry that his beard puffed up. He stood up to beat him but knew that he couldn’t, so he just postured and waited for him to admit his mistake.

At this time, someone grabbed his arm and he inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. He turned his head to see that it was the General, and quickly said to Gao Tan: “For the sake of the General, I won’t fight with you, brat!”

Xiao Gao ignored him, stepping forward to say aggrievedly: “My lord, you are back. You didn’t take me with you when you went out today, am I still your favorite Xiao Gao?”

The veins on Yan Mingting’s forehead twitched, and he let go of Housekeeper Qin’s arm: “Aren’t you going to beat him up? Go do it.”

“Ah, this……” Housekeeper Qin looked at him in shame. How could he beat him, ah!

Yan Mingting dragged Zhao Yelan back to the room, leaving the youth and the elder looking at each other.

Housekeeper Qin was in a dilemma for a moment. When he saw someone passing by, he hurriedly asked the person to grab his arm in a whisper, and shouted: “Xiao Gao, if someone hadn’t stopped me, today I would show you the meaning of ‘old but still vigorous.’ There is no one I dare not face!”

Zhao Yelan heard the two people’s bickering and simply closed the window and let them mess around.

Yan Mingting waited for a while and seeing that he had no intention of talking about today’s events, he had no choice but to order someone to boil water. He guessed that he would definitely want to wash away the filth, but the clothes……

“Whose clothes are you wearing?” Yan Mingting had never seen him wear this outfit. He had clearly changed it, but where? The brothel? Humph!

“I don’t know,” Zhao Yelan replied truthfully. “This is a spare from the brothel, it should be new.”

Ah!

Yan Mingting gave a bitter smile: “Spares from the brothel – doesn’t it usually bother you for others to touch your clothes? How can you wear spares from the brothel?”

“……Otherwise, do you think it would be more appropriate for me to come out covered in blood?”

Yan Mingting choked, and went to the kitchen to speed up the process of heating the water. He paced over and pulled away the servants in front of the stove, sat down by himself, picked up the firewood, and tossed it in.

Moments later, a cloud of smoke rose from the kitchen.

“Is it on fire?!” Housekeeper Qin detected the smell of smoke from a long distance away and hurried to the kitchen.

Zhao Yelan also rushed over when he heard this, and just outside the kitchen window, he saw servants pulling Yan Mingting out and coaxing him: “General, you can just stay in the room and wait, ba. The hot water will be ready soon, no matter how urgent it is, it can’t be rushed, ah. That isn’t how firewood is burned, you’ll set the General’s Mansion on fire.”

Yan Mingting looked back at them in embarrassment as they waved away the smoke. Some got into his throat and he coughed uncontrollably. At this moment, a pair of white jade boots appeared in front of him. He froze for a moment, then looked up at Zhao Yelan.

Zhao Yelan held out a brocade handkerchief. He awkwardly refused to take it, thinking that it would be over after a couple of coughs, and that there was no need to bother covering his mouth and nose.

Unexpectedly, the other party wiped his face.

He looked at him in surprise, and then saw that the piece of white fabric was stained black.

Yan Mingting’s expression was as dark as the bottom of a pot. The genuine bottom of a pot.

He immediately rushed to the nearby well and looked at himself in the moonlight. Somehow ash had smeared on his face, which really made his handsome appearance ugly!

Zhao Yelan was unable to restrain his smile: “Can you wipe it properly now?”

Yan Mingting fetched a basin of water and set it aside. He was just about to accept the handkerchief, but withdrew his hand and simply wrote himself off as hopeless and acted recklessly: “You wipe it for me.”

“Who is willing to spoil you?”

Yan Mingting tilted his face towards him, making it clear that he wanted him to wipe it: “Mengting, wipe it……Mengting!”

Zhao Yelan looked around and saw that everyone was busy in the kitchen and no one had noticed, so he gritted his teeth and crouched down to wet the handkerchief, then wiped his face viciously: “Is this what you said you wouldn’t investigate?”

“What’s the matter? I only called you, and that’s not enough? You are too domineering.” Yan Mingting dangled his legs, pleased with himself.

“I’m not as bad as you, scoundrel.”

After wiping the cold well water on his face from side to side, Yan Minting smiled at him, refreshed.

As soon as Housekeeper Qin came out after rescuing the kitchen, he saw the two of them flirting with each other by the well. He couldn’t understand, why did Zhao-daren leave the General at home to go look for wild flowers, ah? Was it really just for tea?

At night, Zhao Yelan lay on the bed with his eyes open in the dark, thinking about the day he would leave and what he would do. He suddenly heard Yan Mingting ask: “When you killed that man today, there was a Madam in the house.”

“Yes?”

“She looked pretty.”

“En.”

“She wasn’t frightened by you?” Yan Mingting asked tentatively, “Or, did you actually know each other a long time ago?”

It was only after Yan Mingting walked out of the brothel that he realized something was wrong. It was such a big brothel and the door was closed tightly, but he was able to enter with ease, as if they were expecting him. And Zhao Yelan, in front of a woman, on her territory, executed a person in such a slow manner. That woman’s expression did not change, as if she didn’t care at all. There was definitely a problem.

Zhao Yelan thought for a moment. Knowing that it was impossible to hide it, he simply confessed: “Yes, I know her.”

“How do you know each other?” Yan Mingting asked curiously. It couldn’t be because he was a regular customer could it?

Zhao Yelan didn’t answer. He closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep, and fortunately Yan Mingting didn’t ask any more questions.

Early the next morning, Li Yucheng came to visit and waited in the foyer for a while. Seeing Zhao Yelan coming out in his official uniform, he hurriedly stood up and asked: “Zhao-xiong, I was drunk yesterday, and I only realized when I woke up that Yan Mingting came to the brothel to look for you. Are you alright?”

“Is there something I can do for you?” Zhao Yelan walked toward the gate.

“Okay, forget it, then can you help this younger brother, ah?”

“That girl is not a good match for you, and you are not the only one waiting to redeem her. She is not absolutely loyal to you, so you should give up as soon as possible so as not to cause trouble. You can rest assured and wait for your father to arrange a marriage for you. Your father is the best person in the world to you.” After Zhao Yelan finished speaking, he got into the sedan chair and disappeared down the street.

Li Yucheng was stunned for a while, and then left in disappointment. He heard someone calling his name, and when he looked back, it was Yan Mingting returning from morning court.

“What are you doing sneaking around here?” Yan Mingting asked.

“Who’s sneaking around……” Li Yucheng muttered, about to run, but the other party grabbed him and pulled him over.

“Can you live in peace for two days, boy? You either gamble or whore all day long, are you deliberately trying to anger your father?” On the surface, Yan Mingting was teaching him a lesson for Li Jingyu, but in fact his teeth itched with hatred for this kid who tried to take Zhao Yelan to brothels several times. The more he thought about it, the angrier he became, and he simply boxed him twice with his fist.

“Otherwise what can I do? Wuwuwuwu, don’t hit.” Li Yucheng put his head in his hands. “My father never let me learn scholarly arts, and I’m not allowed to join the army. I also want to do something to make him happy!”

Yan Mingting understood Li Jinyu’s desire to protect him, but he did not agree with excessive safeguarding. No father would like his child to endure hardships, but some hardships must be experienced.

When people grew up, it was easy to go astray without something serious to do. Li Jinyu could protect him for a while, but he could not protect him forever.

Yan Mingting said: “Aren’t you good at eating, drinking, and having fun all day long? You should have some understanding of these trades, how about doing some business?”

“Ah, business……my father is the Prime Minister, if I become a merchant, will I hurt his credibility?”

As soon as these words were spoken, Yan Mingting patted his head hard: “Have you hurt his credibility less? If you don’t want to endure hardship, just say you don’t want to endure hardship. Make whatever excuses you want and get out of my way.”

Li Yucheng held his head and stepped aside. Seeing him enter the mansion, he at once stepped forward and stood at the gate to shout: “Yan Mingting, I’m sorry! I wronged you before, and I will seriously consider your suggestion!”

Yan Mingting turned his head and saw that he had run away: “Brat.”

In the Imperial Academy, Wang Guisheng was clearly being isolated. Only Ruan Xian occasionally took the time to converse with him, and he worked alone most of the time. When asking others for the classics he needed, their answers were exceedingly perfunctory.

After a few days, he was somewhat frustrated, so he came to a corner of the pavilion and sighed alone with a mixture of depression and loss. He was very disheartened by the current situation.

At this time, he saw that Zhao Yelan was alone by the window under the eaves not far away, bending over to pick up a brush and write something.

He got up and walked to the window, standing in place. Only then did he realize that he was drawing a map of the Xuan Dynasty. He was a little puzzled, but the other party spoke first: “What? Are you feeling wronged?”

“I don’t think I was wrong, obviously they are the ones who are too pedantic. Why should they refuse to face their own shortcomings?”

“This is the Imperial Academy. Just like you, they all came from a scholarly background. If you have pride, so do they. You think they are wrong and they also think you are wrong, why do you persist in the end? What is in it for you?”

“But if you blind your eyes, you will only stagnate and not think about making progress. If we don’t do practical things for the people, what meaning is there in being an official?”

“But you are only sixth-rank, a junior who has just entered the officialdom and is now trying to correct their shortcomings. Isn’t this too aggressive? Why should they listen to you, a little brat? You have no power over them, and no real ability to convince them. Can you carry out your so-called official morality just by opening your mouth?” Zhao Yelan didn’t want to talk too much with him, but needed to impress upon him the dangers of officialdom so that he would understand the truth of rigidity and change. “If you still want to blame others, just find a cool patch of shade and stay there, don’t bother me.”

Wang Guisheng pursed his lips and said after a long moment: “Then what do you think I should do?”

“Go and learn worldly wisdom from him, ba.” Zhao Yelan raised his chin in a certain direction.

Wang Guisheng looked over and saw that Ruan Xian was listening to the lectures of those old scholars. Whatever he said caused those old pedants to stroke their beards and smile, and then take the initiative to bring up some knowledge.

Zhao Yelan saw that he was finally willing to put down his pride and go to Ruan Xian for advice, and let out a sigh.

Of these two, one was tactful but lacked real talent and learning, so he placed the idea of prosperity on the people around him, urging everyone on so that there was a greater chance of ascending to the top together.

The other was too prideful and upright. He was ambitious and talented, but too solitary. One could not prosper in officialdom based solely on one’s own integrity.

The two of them were good partners who could learn from each other. If they could make use of their strengths and avoid their weaknesses, they would also be able to assist the Emperor in the future and help solve the big mess left behind by the previous Emperor.

After leaving the government office, he took his purse and made purchases all the way from the street to the end of the alley. Minji’s stuffed steamed buns, Huichunlou’s drunken shrimp, Jinxuan’s silk, street trinkets……he accidentally bought too much.

After returning to the mansion, he found a few servants to move things from the sedan chair.

“My lord, why did you suddenly buy so many things, ah?” Housekeeper Qin saw that there were all sorts of purchases, and also helped to carry them.

“Be careful.” The things in the bag fell, and Zhao Yelan picked them up. They happened to be two tanghulu that he had casually purchased on the street.

Housekeeper Qin turned back again, saw the tanghulu in his hand, and suddenly realized: “I see. My lord, this is a birthday gift for the General, right?”

Zhao Yelan paused: “Birthday?”

“Yes, ah, it will be the General’s birthday in six days.”

Zhao Yelan looked down at the tanghulu, clenched his fingers, and frowned slightly – would it be inauspicious to “die” right before his birthday?

Forget it, it wouldn’t be too late to wait these few days and “leave” after Yan Mingting’s birthday.

“Oh! General, will……you?” Housekeeper Qin seemed to have seen Yan Mingting appear at the gate just now, but he vanished in the blink of an eye.

Zhao Yelan stared at the gate together with him and said: “You must have the blurred vision of the elderly, ba.”

At the corner outside the gate, He Cuizhang whispered: “General, why are we hiding?”

“Nonsense, didn’t you hear what they said about birthday gifts?” Yan Mingting rubbed his hands, standing on tiptoe to look into the courtyard at the people coming in and out. “More likely than not, those are all congratulatory gifts prepared by Zhao Yelan. If I go out now, won’t I destroy his carefully prepared surprise?”

“It makes sense……let me see what he has prepared?” He Cuizhang also stood on tiptoe to look into the courtyard, and reported in a whisper: “He has two tanghulu in hand!”

Of course!

It absolutely must be a congratulatory gift for him. Yan Mingting inwardly made a fist.

He Cuizhang: “Oh! Xiao Gao asked for one.”

Damn Xiao Gao! !