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Chapter 281 – My Son Has Facial Paralysis (part 12)
The eldest prince didn’t have high requirements for Jiang Hewen. As long as the person was good-looking, it didn’t matter what kind of character he had.
County Prince Kang thought more. “Tomorrow, let your consort go to the general’s house to meet the eldest princess! She is the empress dowager’s adopted daughter after all, and in terms of seniority, she is your aunt. You should talk to her about Wanyi’s matters.”
The eldest prince glanced at County Prince Kang. “Prince father, why did Wanyi choose Jiang Hewen? Was that what the empress dowager wanted? The reason why the empress dowager did this was because Wanyi is a little outrageous. She also didn’t want Jiang Hewen to pester Eldest Princess Hengyang again. The eldest princess should know deep down that this was not necessary.”
“Since you know, you should understand how much the empress dowager and His Majesty love the eldest princess. Having a good relationship with her will only benefit us and won’t do any harm! Didn’t you also read the military book left by General Li? Did it not help you?” County Prince Kang couldn’t stop worrying.
The prince said calmly, “I heard that Mr. Xue admires General Li’s loyalty, and the bravery and the selflessness of the eldest princess. He intends to take Li Chen, the adopted son of the eldest princess, as his apprentice. I plan to take Heng’er to try my luck. If Mr. Xue can also take a liking to Heng’er and accept him as an apprentice, I will be relieved.”
“Is the Mr. Xue you are referring to Xue Nanshan?” County Prince Kang’s eyes turned red with excitement. That was Xue Nanshan, a renowned scholar in the world with the name of Nanwang Beixue! It was an honor to be accepted as an apprentice by Mr. Xue!
“Are you sure? No, Heng’er is smart and clever, so it should be fine. Why didn’t you say it earlier? If you said it sooner, I would have invited a few more great scholars to come back and teach Heng’er in advance. When are you going? Is it too late now?” County Prince Kang paced back and forth excitedly, and was talking to himself.
The eldest prince regretted it a little. He just said it casually, trying to stall for time. He didn’t expect that the old man would take it seriously. Those who could be accepted by Xue Nanshan were all people who had an opportunity to meet with Xue Nanshan. Even with Li Chen, Xue Nanshan had taken the initiative to accept him as a disciple, and his intention was similar to the meaning of the imperial court’s proclamation of Mrs. Li as the eldest princess. No matter how knowledgeable Xue Nanshan was, he was just a layman.
How old was Heng’er? How could Xue Nanshan like Heng’er if he saw him? Moreover, His Majesty had intended to ask Xue Nanshan to continue to teach several princes, but Xue Nanshan refused, proclaiming that he was too old. In fact, the scholar did not want to have anything to do with the imperial family, so how could they fight to have Heng’er as a disciple?
“Hey, don’t leave. What day is it, and how did you arrange it? Tell me quickly. Let’s discuss it!” County Prince Kang quickly chased his son when he saw that his son was leaving.
Over there, Li Su looked at the old man in front of her and hesitated. “Mr. Xue, do you really want to accept my family’s Chen’er as your apprentice? He is still young and has no talent for reading…” Besides, he was obviously more interested in martial arts.
Xue Nanshan stroked his beard and smiled. “Talent is second. Character is the most important thing.” He put his name, Xue Nanshan, on the golden signboard outside. Many people flocked to it. But the reaction of this mother and son was different.
However, Xue Nanshan’s regard for the mother and son was higher because of this.
After hearing what Xue Nanshan said, Li Su turned to look at Li Chen. “Chen’er, what do you think?”
Li Zhong’s face was flushed with excitement. Seeing that Li Chen didn’t speak, he quietly moved behind Li Chen, poked him with his finger, and whispered in Li Chen’s ear, “I heard that Mr. Xue’s house has a lot of books. There are many ancient military books that have been lost for a long time.”
Li Chen’s eyes suddenly lit up and he looked at Xue Nanshan.
Although Xue Nanshan was old, he had clear eyes and ears. Although Li Zhong’s voice was small, he heard it too. Seeing Li Chen looking at him, he nodded. “Yes, I have millions of books in my house. Many of them are military books.”
Li Chen immediately bowed his hands without hesitation and said, “Master!”
Xue Nanshan stroked his beard and smiled. Li Chen agreed, and the next events went much smoother. Xue Nanshan and Li Su discussed the day of the apprenticeship ceremony.
Xue Nanshan was old and did not intend to accept any more apprentices, but he admired the loyalty and bravery of the Li family. He also admired Li Su’s heart as a woman which was better than many men, so he decided to make an exception and accept Li Chen as a disciple.
Li Chen didn’t care about whether the door was closed or not. What he cared about was whether he would follow Xue Nanshan and leave his mother’s side in the future.
When he asked this question, Xue Nanshan smiled. “In addition to accepting you as an apprentice, there is one more important thing I need to do upon entering the capital. It is to compile the history books of the previous dynasty, which is time-consuming and labour intensive. I will not leave the capital for a few years. Therefore…”
Before Xue Nanshan finished speaking, Li Chen knew what he meant. Li Chen was relieved and there was a smile in his eyes.
Li Su was afraid that Xue Nanshan felt that Li Chen was too attached to his mother, so she quickly explained, “Mr. Xue, don’t mind this. This child has a poor background, so…”
Xue Nanshan smiled warmly. “It is human nature for a child to be attached to his mother.”
Seeing this, Li Su smiled. “Thank you, Mr. Xue.”
“I heard that Eldest Princess is sorting out Eldest Princess’ mother’s poems before her death. I wonder if this old man would be lucky enough to see them?” Xue Nanshan said again.
“Ah?” Li Su was a little surprised. She had read her mother’s poems, but even with her literary accomplishment, she could tell that her mother’s poems were not very good. They were about the family, the country, and the world, so the style of poetry was magnanimous and unlike the work of a woman.
Xue Nanshan didn’t explain. He just smiled and looked at Li Su.
Li Su was a little stunned. “Okay, Mr. Xue, wait a moment.” She got up and went to the study.
Xue Nanshan took a sip from the teacup and looked out the window. It was as if he saw that bright spring many years ago. A girl in purple walked quietly to him, holding a few poems. “Mr. Xue, I wrote this poem. Can you take a look at it for me?”
Before he could take the poem, the poem was snatched by the girl’s father, who had been his friend for many years. The girls’ father tore it up. He glared at the girl sternly. “Every family’s girls do needlework. Who will read your poems? Don’t embarrass yourself. Return!”
Xue Nanshan still remembered the tears in the girl’s eyes. “I will definitely find someone who is willing to appreciate my poems!” After speaking, the girl turned and ran away.
“Nanshan, that little girl is naughty. I have let you see a joke.” Xue Nanshan couldn’t remember exactly what his friend said at that time.
In a flash, so many years had passed. The girl died at the border with her husband, and her daughter had grown up so much.
Time flew by!
Just when Xue Nanshan reminisced, Li Su had already taken out most of the poems and handed them over to him.
Xue Nanshan took the poems and read them one by one. He read them very carefully.
After reading them, Xue Nanshan put the poems down. “Your late mother’s poems… The literary talent is the second most important, while the structure is the most important. It talks about the nation bemoaning the state of the world and pitying the fate of mankind. It is much better than the poems written by ordinary men. If the poems are finished in the future, this old man asks the eldest princess to send them to this old man.”
Li Su quickly said, “Yes, thank you, Mr. Xue, for your praise.”
After Xue Nanshan left, Li Su was very puzzled. “Does Xue Nanshan know my mother?”
Li Zhong blinked, bewildered. He didn’t know!
The madam’s maternal home was far away in the southwest, and the madam’s parents were gone. There was only one half-brother, and they did not have a close relationship. Since the madam’s marriage to the general, the two families had almost cut off contact. The madam’s former servants were let go by the madam because they couldn’t stand the bitter cold at the border.
So, they didn’t know about these things.
“Forget it. Don’t think about it. It’s fine as long as Mr. Xue holds no malice.” Li Su also felt that she thought too much. Xue Nanshan was 70 this year, and her mother had only been 38. Xue Nanshan was old enough to be her grandfather! Even if Xue Nanshan really knew her mother, they were probably old friends or something.
Like this, Xue Nanshan took Li Chen by his side and gave him instructions in person. He led his disciples to compile the history books of the previous dynasties.
Xue Nanshan was worthy of being a great scholar in the world. His teaching methods were flexible and changeable, and he paid attention to teaching students according to their aptitude. Li Chen’s interest in learning was aroused little by little. It didn’t take long for him to trust this master wholeheartedly.
Li Su was also very satisfied with the result. It seemed that there were no bad students, only bad teachers!
On the side of Prince Kang’s mansion, because Xue Nanshan made it clear that Li Chen was a closed-door disciple, County Prince Kang did not have the face to ask Xue Nanshan to take his eldest grandson as a disciple.
The most important thing was that Princess Wanyi had done something wrong again.
She missed her deceased husband and drank too much. As a result, she accidentally fell off the steps and broke her leg.
The negotiated wedding date had to be postponed.
If one couldn’t get married for a day, one would always worry. For Jiang Hewen, there were many dreams in the night.
Therefore, with the acquiescence of County Prince Kang, Jiang Hewen began to frequent the hospital where County Princess Wany was recuperating. He took care of her and was attentive.
“County Princess, Young Master Jiang is here.”
Hearing the maid’s report, County Princess Wanyi rolled her eyes impatiently. “Why is he here again? He comes every day. He may not be annoyed, but I am!”
The eldest prince peeled the tangerine, took a piece, and stuffed it into his younger sister’s mouth. “Be content. It’s better to have someone with a heart than a heartless one.”
“It is not necessary for me to pay attention to him! If it wasn’t for the empress dowager, I would be too lazy to pay attention to him. Others shouldn’t push me!” Princess Wanyi swallowed the tangerine and said impatiently.
“Isn’t it that your behaviour is publicly known and criticised? Wasn’t it, for the sake of the imperial family’s face, the empress dowager instructed you to find someone to marry so as to hide from public eye? You should also pay attention to yourself. Don’t let those people move around freely. This Jiang Hewen looks pretty good, so you should use him!” The eldest prince handed another tangerine to County Princess Wanyi, but she shook her head, expressing that she didn’t want to eat any more.
“Forget it, invite him in!” County Princess Wanyi said angrily.
Jiang Hewen came in with a few boxes of cakes. The eldest prince got up when he saw this. “Since someone is here to visit you, I’ll go first.”
Jiang Hewen stood to the side respectfully. The eldest prince patted his shoulder and then left without waiting for Jiang Hewen to speak.
Jiang Hewen was a little disappointed. He wondered if he thought too much. He always felt that this uncle seemed a little distant from him and was not affectionate enough. This was not acceptable. There are still many places where he would need to rely on him in the future.
“How is County Princess feeling better today? You said that you wanted to eat the sweet-scented osmanthus cake and white jade cake made by Master from Orchid Pavilion Lane, but unfortunately the master left Orchid Pavilion Lane. I found the master yesterday and asked him to make sweet-scented osmanthus cakes and white jade cakes so that County Princess can try them and compare them to the ones in County Princess’ memory.” Jiang Hewen put down the snack box in his hand and smiled.
County Princess Wanyi just said something casually that day, but Jiang Hewen really managed to find the master and asked him to make snacks. Him taking the words of County Princess Wanyi to heart like this could be considered very attentive.
However, County Princess Wanyi, as the most favored County Princess of Prince Kang’s mansion, has been surrounded by many servants since childhood. How many people had racked their brains and tried their best for her words. She was used to this kind of life, so Jiang Hewen’s move did not move County Princess Wanyi much.