Chapter Forty-Five: First Encounter with Li Chengqian

Before long, the servants carried over the tea leaves. Li Yi opened a bag, grabbed a handful, and took a deep sniff. “Hmm! Not bad! This aroma... seems to be Da Hong Pao! How extravagant! Wait—this is Maojian? And Longjing as well? Goodness, these are all fine teas!”

Excited, Li Yi opened each bag in turn, and in the end found five or six varieties. Rubbing his hands together with anticipation, he embarked on the grand endeavor of roasting tea.

He heated the pan, added the leaves, and began to stir-fry. The first batch was ruined in no time, but Li Yi wasn’t discouraged; he summarized his mistakes and started on the second batch, then the third, the fourth. At last, after who knows how much tea had been wasted, he finally succeeded!

Gazing at the curled tea leaves before him, Li Yi leapt with joy. With this first success under his belt, his movements grew practiced and sure. He then taught Aunt Han how to roast tea, while Bingyu took charge of recording the temperature and strength required in the process. They all worked busily into the night, and finally produced about ten pounds of tea. Looking at their handiwork, Li Yi felt a surge of poetic inspiration. He was about to speak, but catching sight of Bingyu not far off, he forcibly swallowed the verses that had sprung to his lips.

They tidied up, ate dinner, and then Li Yi took Bingyu with him to the Jiang residence—he still had to give those little rascals their evening lesson!

At dawn the next day, Li Yi rose punctually, led the children in morning exercises, assigned them the tasks for the fourth day of their “hell week,” and then returned to the Li residence with Bingyu. Only after being fussed over by Red Whisk and the Lady Cui did Li Yi finally set out with his books and the meeting gift he had prepared for Li Chengqian, making his way straight to the Eastern Palace at Daxing Palace.

As for Li Chengqian, Li Yi did not know much; he only knew that Li Chengqian seemed to be a troubled youth, supposedly driven to psychological extremes by his father, Old Li the Second. It was said that later, Li Chengqian became enamored with Turkic culture, often dressing as a Turk and imitating their speech and manners, even holding a funeral for himself in the Turkic style. This infuriated Old Li the Second. Though he changed for a while, it wasn’t long before he developed another eccentricity—pampering a male favorite. According to unofficial accounts, this favorite was called “Chengxin.” In the end, Old Li the Second had him eliminated as well. As a child, Li Chengqian had injured his leg while playing, which aroused Li Shimin’s dislike—after all, a crippled emperor would undermine the majesty of the Tang dynasty! To make things worse, Li Tai, whom Li Shimin favored, vied with Li Chengqian for attention. This series of problems led to father and son turning against each other, resulting in a tragedy rivaling the one at Xuanwu Gate. Apparently, Li Chengqian also came to a bad end. Sigh! Thinking of this, Li Yi couldn’t help but criticize Old Li the Second. For all his strengths, he was hopelessly weak when it came to handling sons, brothers, and educating his children—no, not just weak, but utterly inept! Who knew what kind of person Li Chengqian was at present? If there was still hope, Li Yi wouldn’t mind helping him out. The biggest issue was that Li Chengqian was too tightly controlled, and with the rebelliousness of adolescence, it would be strange if he didn’t act out! But if Li Chengqian had already gone off the rails... At this, Li Yi felt a chill run down his spine. Heaven forbid—if that were the case, the only option would be to run for his life! He would rather die than lose his virtue!

With his thoughts running wild, Li Yi unconsciously made his way to the Chongwen Hall of the Eastern Palace, where Li Chengqian attended lessons, using the token provided by Old Li the Second.

Announced by the guards, Li Yi was allowed to enter the hall. Inside, he found it unusually spacious; only a young man and an elderly gentleman were engaged in teaching and learning, with a few palace maids and eunuchs present. Li Yi glanced at the elderly man—he bore an air of refined erudition, detached from the mundane, his plain attire unable to conceal his distinguished demeanor. The young man, presumably Old Li’s son, was none other than the ill-fated crown prince, Li Chengqian. On closer inspection, Li Yi saw that his eyes were clear, his smile gentle, and his legs appeared perfectly sound. It seemed that none of the tragedies had yet unfolded—there was still hope!

Li Yi looked at Li Chengqian, and Li Chengqian, in turn, was observing Li Yi. Lately, he had often heard this name, mostly from his father and mother. Li Chengqian was very curious to meet someone about his own age who enjoyed such favor from the emperor. He himself had never once received such praise from his father—not even once!

The scholarly elder, noticing Li Yi’s sudden appearance disrupting his lesson, looked slightly displeased.

“Student Li Yi, courtesy name Wen Yong, greets Your Highness the Crown Prince and pays respects to the venerable master,” Li Yi said first.

The elderly gentleman’s face remained impassive. “I am Kong Yingda. Are you the jade-kirin Wen Yong who invented punctuation and composed ‘Jade Table—New Year’s Eve’? Hmm! Judging from your bearing, it seems you possess some talent. Still, to be late on your first day does not bode well!”

On hearing the man’s name, Li Yi immediately stood at attention—not out of fear, but out of reverence for the sage Confucius. Whatever his descendants might be, Confucius himself was a sage beyond reproach. “So the venerable master is a descendant of the sage; I was remiss just now, and beg your pardon.”

Kong Yingda’s brow relaxed a little. At least the young man knew to respect sages—such a person couldn’t be all bad. “Hmm! I am but an unworthy descendant of my ancestor, nothing more. Now, let us address your tardiness.”

Li Yi frowned. “Please forgive me, venerable master. Though I have been busy, late is late, and I accept my punishment.”

Seeing Li Yi’s willingness to admit fault, Kong Yingda finally allowed a faint smile. “Good! Since you acknowledge your mistake, I am satisfied. His Majesty also instructed me that you may come and go as you please, but I believe there must be rules in all things. Since you are here, tardiness cannot be excused. Therefore, your punishment is to write an essay on a topic of your choosing to submit upon your return. That will allow me to judge your abilities.”

Li Yi could only give a wry smile. He had offered compliments, spoken kind words, and even had the emperor’s support, yet this old stick-in-the-mud had still meted out punishment with the lightest of words. No wonder he gave even Old Li the Second headaches—he was the very definition of intransigence. Writing an essay was no trouble, but the real issue was that it had to be submitted in person. Unlike in later times, he couldn’t simply skip class and have someone turn it in for him. If he wanted to hand in his work, he’d have to attend class—and couldn’t be late. Li Yi was already thinking about skipping tomorrow; perhaps the old man had done this on purpose!

But no amount of grumbling would help. Since Kong Yingda had spoken, Li Yi had to comply. He bowed in acknowledgment, then walked over to Li Chengqian’s side. Li Chengqian immediately gestured to the seat next to him, inviting him to sit. Anyone else might have hesitated, but Li Yi didn’t care about such formalities. He’d sat wherever he pleased even in Old Li the Second’s presence—why not here? Flashing a toothy grin of thanks at Li Chengqian, he sat down without hesitation.