Blossom

Dou Zhao felt she had been worrying unnecessarily these past few days.

Ji Yong rose at mao hour (5-7 am) and rested only at hai hour (9-11 pm) each day. He spent his time either reading or writing, occasionally strolling around the courtyard of Crane Longevity Hall without ever stepping beyond its gates, let alone causing any trouble.

Perhaps it was precisely this dedication to scholarship that had allowed him to pass the provincial examination with top honors at such a young age?

Speculating thus, Dou Zhao repeatedly instructed Su Xin to pay special attention to Ji Yong's daily needs, ensuring he had a comfortable environment conducive to his studies.

Ji Yong soon noticed the improved treatment and began making demands: "I don't like chicken skin. Remove it all when preparing chicken dishes." Or provocatively: "Why does this cabbage still have stems?"

These were minor matters, and Su Xin accommodated them all.

One day, Ji Yong went to Source of Dharma Temple, fan in hand.

Dou Zhao found this quite strange.

With a frown, Su Xin explained: "Young Master Ji said the Ghost Festival is approaching, and he wants to discuss Buddhist doctrines with Abbot Tuyin."

"A change of scenery might do him good!" Dou Zhao laughed. "Since when did he have such leisure time?"

The young maid assigned to attend Ji Yong blurted out thoughtlessly: "Young Master has been studying Buddhist scriptures daily in his room. He says this visit to Source of Dharma Temple will leave Abbot Tuyin speechless and compel him to renounce monastic life!"

Make Abbot Tuyin renounce his vows?

Dou Zhao was stunned. "Hasn't he been studying the Four Books and Five Classics these days?"

The maid couldn't tell the difference, only knowing Ji Yong spent hours bent over his desk: "Often muttering something about mantras and great liberation."

Dou Zhao was furious and ordered Su Xin: "From now on, he eats whatever we eat. Are there any skinless hens available?"

Su Xin too felt indignant, believing he had betrayed their goodwill.

Yet Ji Yong ended up staying at Source of Dharma Temple. Rumor had it his daily debates with Abbot Tuyin attracted abbots from nearby temples—Sacred Longevity Temple, Relic Temple, Chongyin Temple, Hongji Temple, even Great Square Temple from neighboring Lingbi County—turning the monastery as lively as a temple fair. The Dou family's meal arrangements became irrelevant to him.

Could this fellow really be Master Yuantong? Dou Zhao couldn't help wondering.

Before taking monastic vows, he'd try to make abbots renounce theirs; after becoming a monk, he'd attempt to convert the Emperor. This perfectly matched his character.

She just didn't know who had persuaded him to ordain in his previous life.

Or perhaps she simply hadn't been aware.

For a troublemaker like him, the Ji family would likely keep his affairs strictly confidential!

She received a letter from Chen Qushui.

He wrote that Ji Yong had shown exceptional intelligence since childhood, reading ten lines at a glance—unmatched in Yixing, earning him the reputation of a child prodigy. The Ji family placed great hopes on him, indulging him thoroughly at every turn, allowing him to grow up smoothly until now. His only peculiarity was extraordinary mischievousness—while other children might climb trees for bird nests or catch fish in streams, after reading Classic of Mountains and Seas he'd attempt to climb Tiantai Mountain; studying Memorial on the Parting Expedition inspired him to build wooden oxen and gliding horses; hearing about Xu Fu taking five hundred youths to seek immortals at Penglai, he started alchemy experiments at home, nearly blowing up the Ji residence.

He was only nine years old at the time.Old Master Ji couldn't bear to beat him, yet scolding proved ineffective. Caught in a dilemma, he had no choice but to confine Ji Yong to the house, striking a three-part agreement with him: if Ji Yong could pass the Presented Scholar examinations, he would be free to do as he pleased thereafter. But until that achievement, he must follow the conventional path of studying, writing, and pursuing scholarly work at home without stepping out.

Ji Yong readily agreed. Within three years, he attained the rank of Recommended Man. Though still proud, he had grown considerably more steady. Only then did Old Master Ji feel at ease allowing him to travel with guards and pages, hoping exposure to the joys and sorrows of mortal life would cultivate compassion in his heart...

Do whatever he wants!

Dou Zhao felt sweat bead on her forehead.

Did Old Master Ji truly understand what kind of promise he had made to Ji Yong?

※※※※※

News that Song Mo had won a pair of geese from Dong Qi using a mixed-five hand quickly spread throughout the Capital.

When Jiang Shi entered the Hall of Cultivating Will, Song Mo was practicing archery.

His posture was as straight as a pine, his hands steady as stone. Drawing the arrow, nocking it, releasing—each movement was powerful and fluid, executed in one continuous motion.

Jiang Shi couldn't help but exclaim softly, her gaze drawn to the bow in her son's hands.

The bow's body was pitch black, its design ancient and unadorned, the material unidentifiable. Thick sinew wrapped around the limbs, yet the string was fine as a hair, gleaming with a muted luster that marked it as no ordinary weapon.

"You've brought out Shooting Sun, the bow your uncle gave you?" Her eyes traced the bow's curves as if seeing her late brother's face, her voice softening. "Didn't you always say this bow was too conspicuous?"

Song Mo drew a fletched arrow from the gold-inlaid quiver. With a resonant twang, it struck the bullseye before he slowly lowered the bow. "This bow feels more natural... I need to ensure complete control. This one gives me greater certainty."

What did he mean by complete control?

Jiang Shi hesitated, about to inquire further when she saw Song Mo hand the bow to attendant Chen Tao and accept a towel from Chen He. Wiping his sweat, he asked, "What brings you here? Are you feeling better today?" He glanced around. "Where's Tianen? Didn't he say he'd accompany you?"

"I'm not that fragile," Jiang Shi replied. "It was just exhaustion. After Imperial Physician Yang's medicine and these days of rest, I'm fully recovered."

Song Mo guided his mother to sit at the stone table beneath the old locust tree.

"Tianen is at school." Accepting the tea her son poured, Jiang Shi smiled. "I'm perfectly fine—no need to disrupt his studies for me." Then, recalling her purpose, her expression grew hesitant.

Song Mo waited patiently, watching his mother with a gentle smile.

After careful consideration, Jiang Shi broached the subject tactfully: "I heard when Zhang Zongyao inherited his family title, the Zhangs hired the Guanglian Troupe for opera performances?"

Song Mo laughed outright. "Mother, you're asking about my wager with Dong Qi, aren't you? Don't worry—I know my limits." His smile faded gradually. "If I excel in both civil and martial arts, earning courtwide praise, His Majesty would lose sleep over it. But if I appear incompetent in everything, he'd consider me worthless. Walking this middle path is truly the world's most difficult task."

Jiang Shi fell into thoughtful silence.

Song Mo sat quietly beside her, sipping his tea.

The wind rustled through the treetops.

Song Mo's thoughts drifted far away.He recalled what Chen He had told him a few days prior: "Mr. Chen is investigating Wang Xingyi, the Governor of Yunnan."

Wang Xingyi was the father of Dou Zhao's stepmother. Why would he be investigating Wang Xingyi?

Should he thoroughly investigate Dou Zhao as well?

The thought had barely surfaced before he suppressed it.

The essence of friendship lies in mutual understanding. If he were to investigate Dou Zhao, what would that make their relationship?

Yet why was the idea so tempting?

Feeling uneasy, he took a sip of tea but somehow choked on it, coughing violently.

"Be careful," Jiang Shi patted her son's back, her heart aching. "Are you practicing archery for the upcoming Autumn Hunt?"

Every year, the Emperor held a hunt in autumn, where noble families selected sons over fifteen to accompany him. The Emperor used this opportunity to assess their horsemanship and archery, thereby identifying talents for promotion.

Song Mo had been granted a hereditary fourth-rank Vice Commissioner position just days after his birth. He began participating in the spring and autumn hunts before he could even walk, though it wasn't until the spring of his ninth year that he truly started hunting and shooting.

During his first Autumn Hunt, he placed second in horsemanship and fifth in archery, ranking first among the noble youths. He was the youngest participant and achieved the best results among noble descendants in decades.

The Emperor was overjoyed, believing the nobility had worthy successors, and rewarded him with a small fifty-acre farmstead.

His performance overshadowed even the top three winners.

For the next two years, he claimed first place both times.

Emperor Taizong's decree—the Emperor's uncle, Prince Yu, once drunkenly muttered in front of the Emperor, "I think the Duke of Yingguo's heir shouldn't be allowed to compete in these hunts anymore, lest he dampen the morale of the other youths."

The Emperor, also quite drunk, burst into laughter upon hearing this. He then tore off a Hetian jade pendant from his waist and tossed it to Song Mo, saying, "Song Mo, crush them all beneath you!" He then proclaimed loudly to the assembled nobles and officials, "Whoever surpasses Song Mo will be rewarded with a deputy Commander position in the Golden Guard."

Hearing his mother's question, Song Mo nodded solemnly. "We won’t know how the Emperor truly feels about our family until we test the waters."

Jiang Shi's eyes instantly welled up with tears. "It's all my fault for dragging you into this!" Her voice carried a barely detectable sob.

"Mother, how can you say such things?" Song Mo quickly embraced her shoulders. "You only see my struggles now, but have you forgotten the glory my eldest uncle brought me? Not to mention this bow, or Feidu, or the guards by my side..."

Jiang Shi felt deeply comforted.

"Mother, you must never speak like this again," Song Mo said softly to her. "With Third Uncle here, the Jiang Family will rise again within ten years at most. We must encourage our uncles and help them return to court, not utter such disheartening words."

Jiang Shi nodded heavily, but tears continued to stream down her face.

※※※※※

After the Mid-Autumn Festival, the wind carried a biting chill.

This year's Autumn Hunt was held in Huailai.

By the time Song Mo and his party arrived, the Emperor's personal guards had already set up the camps.

The Crown Prince approached, sneezing. "Tianci, how are you this year? Do you need me to find you a better bow?"He was twelve years older than Song Mo, tall and slender with a fair complexion, sporting thick eyebrows and a high-bridged nose just like the Emperor. Every autumn, he suffered from constant sneezing, which only worsened at the hunting grounds. The Autumn Hunt was no pleasure for him—it was pure torment.

To Song Mo, his temperament seemed rather gentle, more like a schoolteacher than a Crown Prince.

Accompanying the Crown Prince was his cousin, Shen Qing, the sixteen-year-old heir of the Marquess of Huichang.

He teased Song Mo, "A deputy commander of the Golden Guard—worth fifty thousand taels of silver!"

After the Emperor declared, "Whoever defeats Song Mo shall be rewarded with the position of deputy commander of the Golden Guard," they had privately joked about bribing Song Mo to lose to them during the Autumn Hunt...

Song Mo laughed. "Beating me is easy, but the problem is, I'm not the only one on the field!"

Shen Qing deflated.

The Crown Prince chuckled and said to Song Mo, "Don't mind him. He's been racking his brains these days trying to figure out how to earn a ranking in the Autumn Hunt. If it were that simple, why would you all even joke about paying fifty thousand taels for Song Mo to lose..." Just then, someone approached slowly and bowed respectfully to the Crown Prince. "Your Highness!"