Chapter 22

  When I woke up in the morning, it was already late. I still lay in bed and didn't want to get up. My eyes gazed at the top of the canopy, thinking about what happened last night with Thirteen outside...

  He rode his horse, wandering back and forth in the quiet alley, finally stopping in front of a delicate siheyuan gate. The old servant who opened the door saw him and hurried to greet him, smiling and saying: "Thirteen Master didn't send someone to say something first? Miss is currently seeing guests! I'll go inform Miss right away, let her hurry up and send someone over." Thirteen said: "No need, today I just borrowed this place to drink with friends, you can just prepare a table of wine and dishes!" The old woman secretly glanced at me, saw my elegant clothes, and quickly lowered her head in response.

  Thirteen was very familiar with this siheyuan, leading me into a room that was decorated in an extremely simple and elegant style. The room had only a few pieces of huanghuali wood furniture, with no other decorations to be seen, except for a white porcelain vase on the windowsill with a few stalks of green bamboo casually inserted into it. I looked around the room, and then sat down with Thirteen. He smiled and asked, "Do you know the lady of the house?" He smiled and said, "When I'm feeling frustrated, I often come here to drink a few cups of wine and chat with her." I nodded my head, thinking that the girl who lived here must be a high-class courtesan, someone that ordinary people would never get to meet.

  Before long, the old woman brought in two maids with wine and dishes. After everything was set out properly, they withdrew. It wasn't until then that I and Thirteen began to drink and eat.

  After a few cups of wine, the two men gradually became more talkative. From trivial matters in the palace to interesting stories from ancient times, from the vast deserts of the north to the misty rain of Jiangnan, from discussing poetry and prose to talking about sages past and present. In the end, they discovered that both were admirers of Ji Kang and Ruan Ji, already feeling a deep connection, now even more so, regretting not having met earlier. My heart was even more excited than ever.

  In China's ideological and cultural development over the past few years, the Three Cardinal Guides and Five Constant Virtues of Confucianism have been like a huge net, tightly binding independent individuals to the political and cultural hegemony centered on imperial power, thus unable to develop complete individualism. However, Ji Kang, who lived in a chaotic era, can be said to be an exception, like a flash of lightning illuminating the dark night sky, brief but brilliant. In his famous work "Letter to Shan Juyuan Breaking Off Relations", he expounded on his belief that human nature is truly equal. He "did not follow Tang or Wu, but was thin on Zhou and Confucius", believing that the sages revered by Confucianism were only a class of people's values, and should not be required to be emulated by all. The happiness of individuals can only be understood by themselves, and individuals have the right to pursue their own recognized happiness. It can be said that Ji Kang's ideas and modern society's equality, freedom, and individualism have many commonalities.

  I had long known that Thirteen was unconventional, but I never expected him to admire Ji Kang, especially as a member of the royal family at the pinnacle of the ruling class. This unexpected delight from heaven and the feeling that someone in this ancient society finally understood my inner thoughts made me ecstatic, and I couldn't help but engage in lofty discussions. He probably didn't expect to meet a woman like me in an era dominated by Confucian culture, where even men rarely dared to question Confucian thought. With three parts surprise, three parts admiration, and three parts joy, he chatted with me enthusiastically.

  I still remember when I was getting excited, I held up my wine cup and said: "Actually, there's another very important reason why I like Ji Kang so much." He thought I had some extraordinary theory, and he listened carefully with rapt attention. With a smile on my face and half-closed eyes, I said: "In ancient Chinese history, there were many beautiful men, such as Song Yu and Pan An, but they all had a hint of feminine beauty. But Ji Kang was different, he was masculine, healthy, like a tall and straight fir tree under the golden sunlight." After finishing speaking, I couldn't help but let out a deep sigh, with an expression of infinite longing. The more 13 heard, the wider his eyes became, and after listening to me finish, he looked at my expression for half a day without making a sound, finally sighing: "A true elegant scholar is indeed carefree!"

  It's undeniable that when I first started interacting with the Thirteenth, I had ulterior motives. After all, on the surface, I was on the side of the Eighth Master, and my sister was even the concubine of the Eighth Prince, while history showed that the Fourth Master and the Thirteenth ultimately won this war. Although I couldn't change history, I could try to leave a way out for myself. However, after our later heartfelt conversations, I really came to think of him as my kindred spirit. Who would have thought that everyone is born equal in essence? Who would have thought that even the emperor doesn't have the right to make everyone follow his orders? Although the Thirteenth only questioned and doubted the existing cultural system because he admired Xi Kang, it was already enough to surprise me.

  Still basking in the joy of finding a kindred spirit last night, a maid outside the window called out: "Miss, the Beilei master has sent someone to summon you." I listened and hastily sat up, feeling somewhat anxious. After tidying up, I followed the eunuch waiting outside.

  I reached the door of the study, Li Fu stood at the entrance, pushed open the door for me and let me in. He stayed outside and closed the door. With a "click" sound of closing the door, my heart which had been calm for half a day finally started racing wildly.

  Eighth Brother stood in a moon-white long gown, standing beside a half-person-high celadon vase, with over ten scrolls of calligraphy and painting inserted casually inside the vase. Hearing me come in, he didn't react, still looking out the window with an elegant posture. From my angle, I could only see his profile. The sunlight passing through the six-sided lattice window shone on his face, mottled and unclear, unable to discern his expression.

  I don't know what Thirteen said last night, nor do I know what he's thinking in his heart. I didn't dare make a sound and could only stand still at the door. After half a day, he turned around, with a smile on his face, and asked: "What did you do with Thirteen yesterday?" I thought for a moment and asked: "Didn't Thirteen tell you?" He said: "I'm asking you now!" My heart was in disarray, but after careful consideration, I felt that although yesterday's actions were somewhat out of line, there was nothing that couldn't be spoken of to others. So, I calmly gazed into his eyes and said: "Thirteen took me to a place to drink wine."

  He listened to my words without any reaction, still with that eternal smile on his face, only his eyes fixed on mine, as if trying to see through them directly into the depths of my heart. I calmly met his gaze for a while, but eventually felt a bit embarrassed and had to turn back, pretending to look for a seat to sit down, walking out of his line of sight. As soon as I sat down, he said in a soft voice: "Come here!" I looked up at him with a questioning expression, and he smiled warmly, still speaking softly: "Come here!"

  I was certain he was serious, so I slowly stood up, hung my head in shame, and shuffled over to him. When I got within three steps of him, I stopped and looked down at the water-milled stone floor beneath my feet.

  He let out a barely audible sigh and said softly, "Am I that scary?" As he spoke, he took two steps closer.

  I found that every time I stood close to him, I felt a sense of oppression and my heart was racing. My mind was completely muddled and I couldn't think clearly. He gently grasped my hand, and I subconsciously pulled it back. He tightened his grip and said, "Don't move!" From his pocket, he took out a jade bangle with a crystal clear green exterior and a thin red line resembling blood in the middle, and put it on my wrist.

  He slowly pushed the handcuffs onto my wrist. Then he let go of my hand, walked back to the table and sat down. He distanced himself from me, and I felt my mind clearing up again. I started thinking, what's going on here? Didn't I come here for a lecture? As I was pondering, I heard him say in a soft voice: "The official from the Ministry of Justice, Yao, is still coming over. You can go back first!"

  I let out a dazed "oh!" and backed out of the room. Li Fu, who was waiting outside the door, hastily bowed to me in greeting, but I was too preoccupied with my own thoughts to pay him any mind, and simply walked away.

  After I got back, my sister saw that I was dazed and probably thought that I had been lectured by Eighth Brother. She smiled slightly and said faintly: "It's time to set some rules." I didn't make a sound and went back to my own room.

  At dinner that night, my sister saw the bangle on my wrist and was taken aback. "Where did it come from?" she asked. I was startled and didn't know how to respond. Just as I was at a loss for words, my sister nodded and said, "Thirteen is really generous! This is a rare Phoenix Blood Jade." It seems that my sister had misunderstood. Anyway, I couldn't explain the situation, so I just let Thirteen take the credit.

  After finishing the meal, I had drunk half a cup of tea. My sister suddenly said, "Since some things are fundamentally beyond our control, it's better to never think about them." I held my tea and was stunned, thinking for a long time, not knowing how to respond. In the end, I replied vaguely, "I'll take good care of myself."