But since I had already started talking, I couldn’t back out now.

“I’ve always been dull, and honestly, I didn’t feel much when I heard Lord Luo’s music that day. I thought it was good, but I couldn’t explain why. It was only after Lord Luo left that I felt strong and my illness improved. She is truly a zither player valued by the emperor; she is different.”

Next, the King of Chu spoke. He quickly shared that before, he struggled to think clearly, but after hearing Tao Sheng’s music, he felt much clearer and was better at completing his tasks.

Ji Yanming finally understood why the emperor had called him: this was Tao Sheng’s fan meeting. People who often listened to her music spoke with more authority and shared a common language.

In this friendly atmosphere, Ji Yanming spoke up. He had heard his cousin’s zither playing many times. While it might not seem effective at first, it worked wonders during critical moments. So, what the emperor, His Highness, and General Fu said made sense.

When the King of Chu heard this, he looked at Ji Yanming in surprise.

He knew Ji Yanming had no other brothers or sisters. Although Tao Sheng was just a cousin, she felt like a sister to him.

Ji Yanming had protected Tao Sheng well over the years. After her music became famous because of him, he rarely mentioned her playing for him and stopped exaggerating the effects of her music.

This time, when the emperor brought up this topic, Ji Yanming didn’t dampen the excitement; he seemed to fuel it instead.

Something was off, and the King of Chu sensed Ji Yanming was up to something.

_

After half a month of training, Tao Sheng began her teaching job at the Imperial College.

The students at the Imperial College were young boys from wealthy families. For them, the college served both to learn and to enhance their resumes.

These boys were usually handsome and charming. Many had heard the rumors about Tao Sheng and were eager to attend her etiquette and music classes.

On the first day of her class, the room was packed with students. Even those who couldn’t get a seat crowded around the windows to listen to her play the zither.

Some students even agreed it didn’t matter if they didn’t have a seat; just hearing her zither music would improve their skills and help them succeed in literature and martial arts, bringing honor to their families.

Because of this, Tao Sheng, who was supposed to teach only one class, ended up with three classes on her first day.

Ji Yanming had a rare chance to pick up Tao Sheng today. When he saw her, he asked, “How was your first day at the Imperial College?”

Tao Sheng held the gifts the students had brought, and with her teaching assistant’s help, she safely put them in the car. She waved to the students outside, signaling them to go back and rest. When she turned around and saw her cousin’s kind face, her mood lifted unexpectedly.

“Fine.”

Ji Yanming looked at the young men running after the car to say goodbye and remarked, “They are all quite young.”

Tao Sheng sensed some jealousy in Ji Yanming’s words and laughed: “You’re young too. Even though they’re all students, many of them are older than you…”

Ji Yanming stopped talking, looking unconsoled.

Wanting to change the topic, Tao Sheng quickly asked, “My cousin has been leaving early and returning late lately. He’s always being summoned by the emperor. What’s happening in the court?”

Ji Yanming sighed, “It’s true.”

About two weeks ago, news came from the Ling Kingdom that a spy was caught in the royal capital. The emperor sent people to investigate and found that this spy had another identity and resembled an official sent by the emperor to the Western Regions for a secret mission.

Ling State’s action was a clear challenge to the Great Zhou. The emperor decided to send envoys to the northwestern countries to understand Ling State’s intentions.

Prince Huan, who is well-respected among the nobles, has been chosen as the chief envoy. The emperor struggled to find a suitable deputy envoy but eventually selected Ji Yanming after he embarrassed the Ling Kingdom delegation at a New Year’s Eve banquet. This was partly to keep the Ling Kingdom in check.

Ji Yanming is now worried about Prince Rui’s intentions. He thought it would be better to delay this mission until Tao Sheng was more established in the emperor’s favor. However, the emperor plans to appoint him as an envoy soon, so Ji Yanming needs to solve this problem quickly.

Prince Rui knows that now is not the right time to challenge the emperor. The more the court watches Tao Sheng, the more cautious he has to be about revealing his ambitions.

Prince Rui wants to wait longer. Even if he can’t get Tao Sheng, he doesn’t want to expose himself too soon. Ji Yanming needs to act quickly so the emperor can deal with Prince Rui.

_

Just two days later, the King of Chu learned that Princess Rui had visited Ji’s residence several times to try to recruit people for Prince Rui.

The King of Chu was very surprised.

He has very few options left, and losing either Ji Yanming or Tao Sheng would greatly hurt his chances of a comeback.

The King of Chu was at home today, discussing with his two advisors whether to plant soybeans or wheat this year. After hearing the news, he stopped reading about farming and rushed to Ji’s house to talk.

Tao Sheng had gone to the government office early that morning and wasn’t home. Ji Yanming was at home today, so he welcomed the King of Chu with fiery eyes and a furious expression.

When the King of Chu first heard the news, he was very angry. But seeing Ji Yanming’s calm face, he began to settle down.

Ji Yanming poured a cup of tea for the King of Chu: “Your Highness, have a cup of tea to calm down.”

The King of Chu drank the tea and then sat down with his hands crossed over his chest.

Ji Yanming was surprised: “Your Highness?”

Now, when he comes to Ji’s house, Ji Yanming serves him tea. If he joins Prince Rui, he doubts he would be treated this way in the future.

The King of Chu felt heartache even though he crossed his arms.

At that moment, an attendant came to report that Wenyuan Hou Shen Yu had come to Ji’s residence, saying he wanted to see the King of Chu.

Tao Sheng has been quite popular in the capital lately, and Shen Yu has heard many things about her.

People have been talking about the special effects of Tao Sheng’s zither playing, but Shen Yu didn’t think much of it. At his age, he didn’t want to be a general or a prime minister, and he wasn’t interested in fighting battles, so he didn’t care about those mysterious effects.

Later, he heard that Tao Sheng made a lot of money by investing in Zhang’s business, and this got him thinking.

Normally, unmarried children like Tao Sheng don’t separate from the family property. In this case, Tao Sheng is still considered part of the family, so the money she earns belongs to the Shen family.

But if she continues to refuse to return home, when she gets married, she’ll have to take that money to her husband’s family.

This thought made Shen Yu even more unwilling, and he decided he had to find a way to meet Tao Sheng and persuade her to come back home.

However, Tao Sheng had told the gatekeeper not to let anyone in. Shen Yu had been trying to see her for days without success. When he saw the King of Chu arriving at Ji’s house, he suddenly had an idea.

The King of Chu is a guest and a prince. If he says he wants to see the King of Chu and asks the King’s attendants to report for him, he can enter the house under the pretense of visiting the King.

Shen Yu was impressed with his cleverness and found that his plan worked better than he expected. After getting permission from the King of Chu, he confidently walked in with the palace attendants.