Chapter 27

  Last night I was on duty until dawn, and although I had a nap in the morning, I still felt tired. I didn't dare sleep more during the day for fear of being tired at night and having a hard time tomorrow. Leaning against the bed, I casually picked up a book written by Tian Yiheng of the Ming Dynasty, "Brewing Spring Small Products", and read it carefully under the lamp.

  The books on the table are basically all about tea, and I now consider this a serious job, with food, accommodation, salary and benefits. The only drawback is that there is not enough freedom, and the rules are very strict, with physical punishment for any mistakes, even threatening one's life. However, three years have also allowed me to figure out some of the unwritten rules. In the midst of all these rules, I am searching for freedom. With a mindset of doing my best since I've started, although I'm a late starter, now in the palace, if it involves tea-related issues, I'm afraid no one dares to look down on me. Currently reading:

  "Nowadays people recommend tea with fruit, which is close to the common taste. Even if it's a good one, it can damage the true flavor and should be removed. Moreover, when using fruit, you must use a spoon, like gold or silver, which is not suitable for mountain dwellers, and copper also produces a fishy smell, all of which are unacceptable. As for the old saying that northerners mix with butter and salt, and Sichuan people add white salt, these are barbaric drinks and should not be blamed."

  Wang Xi asked in a low voice outside the door, "Is sister inside?" I straightened up and asked, "Since the lamp is lit, of course she's inside. What's the matter?" Wang Xi replied, "My master wants sister to go over there." After hearing this, I quickly put down my book, smoothed out my hair in front of the mirror, tidied up my clothes, blew out the lamp, and went outside with him.

  Wang Xi saw me coming out, hastily bowed and said: "Master Wan has become addicted to something that Westerners taught him, my master has tried several times to ask if he wants to pass on the recipe, but Master Wan just responded with a perfunctory 'yes' without any movement. It's already too late. My master says please ask Miss to think of a way."

  I smiled wryly, thinking that it's indeed "the capable ones bear more labor". I recall that when I first entered the palace half a year ago, one evening while on duty in the warm pavilion. Kangxi was reviewing memorials until deep into the night. It wasn't the first time this had happened, but for several days now, Kangxi had been staying up late to handle official documents for three or four consecutive nights. The eunuch Li Dequan by his side already had his eyebrows furrowed together in worry about His Majesty's health, yet he didn't dare speak out of turn. He could only stand by with a long face.

  I was also naive at the time, thinking that being an emperor for thousands of years wasn't easy to do. On the one hand, I secretly measured Kangxi. After all, he had already passed fifty, and after several nights of staying up late, he still had to get up early in the morning to attend court, his face showing a bit of fatigue and haggardness. I don't know if I was possessed by a ghost at the time, or what, but suddenly my eyes felt a little sour, thinking of how I often saw my father, who taught high school, still preparing lessons and grading assignments under the lamp late at night. Sometimes when my mother got anxious, she would directly turn off the desk lamp and force my father to go to bed. Kangxi probably didn't have such a wife.

  Thinking and thinking, I don't know what's going on, my head is dizzy, and I suddenly say: "It's late, let's rest first! Otherwise, we'll be exhausted and delay things." As soon as the words came out, in the quiet room, everyone looked at me with shocked faces, and a frightened atmosphere floated around. I also immediately reacted, oh no, I've made a big mistake! Hurriedly kowtowing on the ground. Li Dequan's face was stern, just about to scold me, when he heard Kangxi sighing, smiling slightly: "My tenth sister used to always tell me to rest before she left the palace!" He tilted his head, lost in thought for a moment, then gently shook his head and said to Li Dequan: "Put these documents away, let's take a rest today!" Li Dequan listened, with joy on his face, hastily responding loudly: "Yes!" Hurriedly attending to Kangxi as he stood up.

  When Kangxi walked past me, he took a look at me kneeling on the ground and said, "Get up!" I kowtowed and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty!" and stood up. Kangxi sized me up and smiled at Li Dequan, saying, "Isn't this Ma Er Tai Jia's 'Desperate Thirteen Sister'?" Li Dequan hastily replied that it was indeed her. Kangxi didn't say anything else and left directly. It wasn't until then that I realized my back was already soaked through - I was so scared to death! I thought to myself, really thanks to that Tenth Princess whom I had never met before, it seemed like Kangxi loved her dearly. But thinking about how even though he liked her so much, he still married her off to the distant north of the desert, my heart couldn't help but feel a chill.

  After that incident, Li Dequan seemed to have taken me as a 'lucky general' and used me whenever similar things happened. Fortunately, although I had to rack my brains every time and take risks, I was always able to achieve some effect. Wang Xi stood aside and whispered, "Sister, go in yourself!" I nodded and walked lightly into the house.

  As soon as I walked into the house, I saw Li Dequan standing beside Kangxi nodding slightly at me. I also nodded my head slightly and quietly approached Kangxi, pretending to change the tea water, picked up the teacup, quickly glanced at the geometry problem Kangxi was doing, and slowly retreated.

  He entered the tea house, brewing tea while thinking that the topic wasn't difficult after all. The Kangxi Emperor had just misplaced an auxiliary line. Geometry proof questions were always like this - once you got stuck in a corner, it would take some time to react. If he didn't do it now and saw the question again tomorrow, he would surely lament how foolish he was yesterday for not thinking of simply adjusting the auxiliary line.

  It can be imagined that I couldn't go forward and tell him how to add auxiliary lines, nor how to prove this question. After all, I wasn't taught mathematics by Jesuits like Verbiest, Zhang Cheng, or Xu Dashou from Portugal. If Kangxi asked me how I knew how to do it, what would I say?

  He gently placed the tea on the table, composed himself, and called out in a soft voice: "Your Majesty!" Kangxi didn't lift his head, just gave a casual "uh-huh". I paused for a moment before continuing: "I'm afraid those foreigners won't dare to explain geometry problems to Your Majesty again." Kangxi gave another "uh-huh" without looking up, still engrossed in the problem. A little while later, he suddenly lifted his head and looked at me, and I hastily bowed my head, speaking softly: "They teach these things to Your Majesty thinking they are good for you, but if Your Majesty becomes so preoccupied that you neglect your meals and harm your body, won't they be held responsible?" After a pause, seeing Kangxi still hadn't reacted, I added: "Besides, didn't those foreigners say that sometimes taking a moment to calm one's mind can make it easier to solve these geometry problems?" Finishing speaking, my heart was racing with anxiety, and I was sweating. A little while later, Kangxi put down his brush, stood up, stretched his waist, and said: "Li Dequan! You're at it again!" Li Dequan hastily smiled and bowed, saying: "Your humble servant is truly worried about Your Majesty's health." Kangxi chuckled and said: "Alright! Prepare the meal!" Li Dequan quickly responded with a "yes" and hurriedly walked to the door to instruct Wang Xi.

  Kangxi looked down at me and said, "You're getting bolder and bolder, letting Li Dequan manipulate you." I quickly knelt down on the ground, "I'm also worried about Your Majesty's health." After finishing speaking, I hastily kowtowed. Kangxi said, "Get up!" I quickly stood up. He then said, "You're quite careful, having served by my side several times, you've remembered all these words." I hurriedly replied, "It was just that at the time it sounded fresh, so I paid attention." Kangxi didn't pay any more attention to me, and while walking out, he casually said, "If everyone in the Qing dynasty had this kind of freshness, why worry about not receiving tributes from all directions?" After finishing speaking, he had already walked out of the room. I also let out a sigh, thinking that it's not easy to change. For thousands of years, China has been vast and rich, with the idea of being the center of the world. To truly accept new things is absolutely not something that can be changed just because an emperor is interested. It must go through painful struggles, almost becoming a slave to a ruined nation, before truly realizing that we need to learn from the outside world. Kangxi was not only lonely because he was called "isolated and solitary", but also because he understood too much, his eyes saw too far ahead, making him lonely. Since ancient times, wise men have been lonely, let alone being an emperor!