Echoes of My Heart Throughout the Court

“Done!”

“Yeah!”

Two hands clapped in the air.

Princess Xiangyang was elated. “I can play the huqin! I’ll play a song now!”

Xu Yanmiao cheered, “Great!”

And so, Princess Xiangyang hugged her beloved huqin and began plucking away at the strings, producing a lively melody.

Xu Yanmiao couldn’t play any instrument, but he knew how to create an atmosphere. He grabbed a wooden bucket with a lid and started drumming on it with his hands, making a resounding boom bang clang.

“Dong dong dong—”

“Lung lung lung—”

Princess Xiangyang played and laughed, then suddenly called out, “Xu Yaohai—”

She shouted, “Thank you—”

Xu Yanmiao was still pounding on the bucket when he heard her voice amid the noise. He barely caught her words and asked, “What? What did you say?”

Princess Xiangyang then raised her voice and shouted, “I—SAID—THANK—YOU—”

Thank you for not calling me childish just because I don’t want to get married.

Thank you for indulging my ‘nonsense.’

Xu Yanmiao shouted back, “NO—NEED—TO—THANK—ME—”

They were in the countryside, where the endless echoes of the huqin and drumbeats resonated against the blue sky, white clouds, green trees, blooming flowers, tender grass, and distant mountains. Streams of water trickled down the slopes, as if even joy had left its traces.

The old emperor, having learned of the situation from the Jinyiwei, couldn’t help but chuckle. “Those two little troublemakers really know how to amuse themselves.”

After the initial shock of Princess Xiangyang’s “romantic declaration,” the emperor quickly realized—

That little scoundrel, Gao Shengxian, didn’t really long for some kind of ‘pure love’ as she claimed.

She was just doing it to annoy her father!

And he didn’t even have to guess whose idea it was—this had Xu Yanmiao’s unorthodox scheming written all over it.

If any other official tried to play tricks on him like this, he’d make sure they paid a heavy price. But these two…

“Forget it.”

The emperor picked up his chopsticks and calmly ate his peanuts, one by one. These peanuts were salted and large, making a crisp crunch with each bite.

Then, he uncorked a bottle of aged liquor beside him and took a swig straight from it. After drinking, he sighed, “I’m not dying anytime soon anyway. My teeth can still handle peanuts for a few more years—let them play.”@@novelbin@@

—Besides, he was indeed a bit surprised.

His daughter seemed normal now, but what if she really turned into a love-struck fool in the future?

Might as well wait and see. No rush for a couple of years.

Still, those little brats dared to mess with their emperor father—they needed a little scare.

He pointed at a plate of peanuts and smiled at the Jinyiwei. “They must be exhausted and hungry after all that playing. Take this plate of peanuts and bestow it upon them.”

The Jinyiwei: “…”

If you weren’t the emperor, I’d have to ask—are you seriously telling me to leave the palace, go beyond the outer city, travel 20-30 miles just to deliver a plate of peanuts?

At least add a couple of pieces of meat to make it look more valuable!

After their fun, Xu Yanmiao wiped the sweat off his face with the back of his hand. The sun was blazing on the back of his head, making him long for a bath.

Just before heading home, a light bulb went off in his mind. Ding!

“Hey, Gao Xiang, I just thought of another way to up the stakes!”

Princess Xiangyang got excited immediately. “What is it?”

Xu Yanmiao pushed the bucket aside, his tone full of mischief. “Put on a white dress and walk around the palace at night. Contemplate the moon, brood over the flowers—”

“!!!”

Princess Xiangyang’s eyes lit up even more. “This is brilliant! I’ll go find my white dress right away!”

Xu Yanmiao continued, “And if you get caught, just say this—come, repeat after me: ‘Father, I wish for someone to watch the snow, the stars, and the moon with me, to discuss poetry and philosophy of life.’“

Princess Xiangyang immediately covered her teeth.

No matter how many times she heard that line, it still made her cringe.

But soon, her father would have to hear it!

Just thinking about it, she managed to put on an air of nonchalance and repeated with exaggerated serenity, “Father~ I wish for someone to watch the snow, the stars, and the moon with me, to discuss poetry and—“

She was abruptly interrupted by the arrival of the Jinyiwei.

Xu Yanmiao blinked. “Do you need something?”

The Jinyiwei commander presented a food box with perfect composure. “Your Highness, Lord Xu, His Majesty was concerned that you might be tired and hungry from all the music and commotion, so he ordered me to deliver this plate of peanuts.”

Princess Xiangyang: “…”

Xu Yanmiao: “…”

[Wait, wait a second—did we get exposed this fast?!]

The Jinyiwei commander finished his task, saluted, and left, leaving the two of them staring at each other.

Xu Yanmiao hesitated. “Maybe…”

Princess Xiangyang swallowed. “Actually…”

They looked at each other again, noticing the sweat stains on each other’s collars.

Princess Xiangyang gulped. “Actually, wandering the palace in white at midnight… doesn’t seem that necessary?”

Xu Yanmiao gave an innocent smile, eyes gleaming with pure sincerity. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Midnight wandering in white? Never heard of it.”

Princess Xiangyang paused, then grinned as brilliantly as a peach blossom in spring. “Right, right, right. I must have been talking nonsense.”

“Let’s go! Didn’t we come out to eat noodles? If we don’t hurry, the shop will be full!”

“Huh? Oh, oh! Right! Let’s go!”

Soon, the time arrived for the appointment of new scholars.

In the imperial examination system, the top-ranked (First-Class) scholars usually entered the Hanlin Academy, the Second-Class scholars were assigned positions in the capital or provinces, and the Third-Class scholars were typically given provincial posts.

However, this time was an exception.

The old emperor, perhaps having killed too many people recently, made an exception—allowing the top of the Second-Class scholars to also enter the Hanlin Academy. But aside from that, the rest of the Second-Class scholars were assigned their usual capital or provincial posts.

Gao He rubbed his red nose and wiped away his tears.

—The joy of finally making it ashore—who could understand it?

“It’s just a pity that I couldn’t get into the Hanlin Academy…”