34 Results in the "Uncategorized" category

It was utterly unbelievable! The Crown Prince was not yet thirty years of age, right in the prime of his life. Ye Mian and his friends had considered the elderly Empress Dowager, the Empress who was perennially bedridden, and they had even tremblingly thought of His Imperial Majesty himself—yet they had overlooked the young heir apparent of the Eastern Palace. The Crown Prince’s health…

For several consecutive days, Ye Mian reported to work at the Hanlin Academy like clockwork. The coursework at the Shuchang Academy was not a bit lighter than that at the Guozixue. Aside from refining his mastery of the classical canons and histories, he also had to learn the composition of official court documents—handling various genres such as edicts, proclamations, memorials, judicial verdicts, and policy…

Grand Princess’s Estate, Inner Palace. The hall was deathly silent. The attendants all stood against the walls with panicked expressions. The parrot on the perch, usually the most talkative creature, had been holding it in for an entire evening. Just as it opened its beak, a maid nearby hurriedly shushed it and waved her hand. The parrot, seemingly possessing human-like understanding, actually swallowed its…

Wen Xun’s teasing that the two of them were like “newlyweds enjoying a brief separation” was not entirely wrong. Whenever the two of them exchanged a glance, their eyes seemed to trail with threads of longing. Wen Xun’s round face flushed a deep red; he buried his head to finish dinner with them, refused to even drink his tea, and then fled as if…

Ye Mian sat astride Zhuang Xu’s lap, mischievously pinching the soft flesh of his cheeks and pulling outward. He sounded sour and sarcastic: “The Prince of Rongnan is quite high and mighty! Barely back in the capital and you already have me kowtowing to you!” “Hiss, you little scoundrel!” Zhuang Xu shook his head, hugging him with one arm while using the other to…

The hour of Yin (3:00 to 5:00 AM) had just begun, and the sky was still dark. Inside Yaohui Pavilion, however, the lanterns were already ablaze. A houseful of maidservants and matrons were busy helping Ye Mian wash his face, change his robes, attach his pouches, and pack his snack boxes. The scene was bustling and vibrant. Ye Mian himself was full of spirit.…

The next morning at dawn. The sun rose, and the morning drums on the Chengtian Gate struck right on time. As the ninth beat faded, the echoes, wrapped in golden morning light, slowly drifted down. Carriages and merchants waiting outside the city poured in one after another. Inside the inner city, the breakfast stalls were already bustling with steam and the sound of vendors…

The Huawu Gate is the west gate of the Imperial Palace. The plaza in front of it is heavily guarded by the Imperial Guards, and ordinary citizens are usually forbidden from approaching it. Today, however, being the day of the internal military examination, the guards in the plaza were withdrawn, making it exceptionally lively. Apart from the military examinees, there were also commoners here…

The night was as dark as spilled ink. The capital remained under a strict curfew, casting a profound silence over the four wildernesses, broken only by the sporadic, distant barking of dogs. Overhead, the stars were exceptionally sparse, flickering feebly in the void. The carriage from the Bihua Pavilion traveled along the cobblestone road at an unhurried pace, the rhythmic crunch of its wheels…

On the specific calendar days of each month, the entire Ye household was required to accompany the Old Great-Madam for a vegetarian feast. The moment the welcoming ceremony for the Third Prince concluded, Ye Mian rushed back home in a flurry. Vice-Minister Ye arrived half an hour later than Ye Mian. Once he was back, Old Great-Madam Ye instructed the maids to layout the…