Su Heng entered just then and wanted to say something. He thought that Tao Sheng already had a coachman and attendants. If Ji Yanming was worried, he could just assign two more attendants, and there was no need to go through so much trouble.

But Ji Yanming seemed to know what Su Heng was thinking. When he glanced at Su Heng, he felt a chill run through him, as if he might get into trouble if he said anything more.

Su Heng quickly realized that Ji Yanming was not someone easy to deal with. The more he said, the more mistakes he could make. It wouldn’t be worth it if Ji Yanming held a grudge, so he swallowed his words silently.

Life is hard; it’s important to stay safe.

_

In the same dynasty, when a colleague changes departments, they usually visit the new department to invite colleagues for a meal. This is also a way to save face for the transferred colleague, showing they are popular in their previous department.

Because of this, two colleagues from the same department, Mr. Yu and Mr. Zhu, came to see Tao Sheng, and she was very happy.

The two gentlemen sat down and drank tea with her for a while before mentioning how they hadn’t heard her play the qin since she changed departments. They missed her and wondered if she could play a song for them.

Hearing this, Su Heng looked at Tao Sheng with hope.

Since she joined the Ministry of Rites, Tao Sheng had been busy with work. Although Su Heng always wanted to hear her play, he didn’t want to ask because he thought it might be too much for her.

Now, Tao Sheng’s zither music was like a treat for guests, just like tea and snacks. It wasn’t unreasonable for guests to ask the host for a good performance.

Su Heng hoped he could hear her play.

In the past, people always accused him of freeloading, and now he even wanted to enjoy her music for free.

Just as Tao Sheng took out the qin to play, a fat official from the Ministry of Rites suddenly appeared and asked, “I heard that Lady Luo’s qin playing is very impressive and can sharpen the mind. That’s why you all came here to listen to her, right?”

Mr. Zhu and Mr. Yu exchanged quick glances.

They loved and understood music, unlike those who simply followed trends to hear Tao Sheng play.

They appreciated her for her talent, not for any selfish reasons.

Mr. Yu responded coldly, saying, “If you don’t understand, don’t listen. It would be a waste for someone like you to hear Lord Luo play.”

Mr. Zhu added that if one listened with such a utilitarian mindset, it would be better not to listen at all, as any music heard that way would just become dull and unpleasant.

Su Heng felt a bit scared. Although the two gentlemen were addressing the elderly official, their words could easily apply to him as well.

He silently confessed his shortcomings.

He realized he was too focused on gaining something. In the future, he wanted to be like Mr. Yu and Mr. Zhu, someone who truly appreciates Tao Sheng’s music.

After seeing the two gentlemen off, Su Heng suddenly remembered that his car was temporarily borrowed by his cousin, who lived with him today. Before leaving work, he found Tao Sheng and asked if he could go back with her.

Ever since Tao Sheng started going to and from work at the same time as Ji Yanming, she had switched to using the biggest car in the family. Whether she carried one person or two, it was the same. Helping others is a traditional virtue of the Chinese nation, so Tao Sheng immediately agreed to Su Heng’s request.

After Su Heng got into the car, he smiled at Tao Sheng and said, “Actually, I’ve seen the route. Our two houses are very close, so it works out perfectly. If your cousin has something to do, you don’t have to trouble yourself to drop me off every day. I can go with you.”

Su Heng was quite talkative. After listening to him all day at work, Tao Sheng just wanted to rest her ears when it was time to leave. Facing Su Heng’s proposal, she quickly declined, saying, “Don’t bother me, Mr. Su. I’m fine as is.”

Su Heng said, “Oh,” in disappointment. “It’s no trouble. To be honest, I’m a bit afraid of the dark. I truly want to go with Grand Master Luo…” 

Before Su Heng finished speaking, he heard Ji Yanming suddenly say indifferently, “Master Su, have you heard of the Jiangyang Bandit?” 

Su Heng was already afraid of the dark. Now that it was winter and getting dark early, he felt a chill down his spine. “What did Lord Ji say?”

In Su Heng’s frightened eyes, Ji Yanming slowly recited a few passages about the bandit’s crimes. His intonation and vivid description made it feel as if they were actually facing the bandit. 

Tao Sheng thought Ji Yanming had a talent for storytelling.

Su Heng was holding his head and trembling. He thought about how his home was two alleys farther from Ji’s house and that he would have to walk back soon. He wished he could stay in the car forever.

Seeing Su Heng’s miserable condition, Tao Sheng didn’t abandon him. Instead, she took a detour to drop him off at home.

Ji Yanming initially wanted to scare Su Heng to prevent him from trying to get back with Tao Sheng’s car without him. However, he learned the next day that not only could Su Heng no longer ride with Tao Sheng, but he was also sick and unable to work with her.

Tao Sheng didn’t expect Su Heng to be so fragile. He looked like a very energetic young man, but he got frightened easily.

While it was fine for Su Heng to recuperate at home, this job originally required two people, making it a bit challenging for Tao Sheng to handle alone.

The Ministry of Rites’s offerings to heaven and earth are only a part of the New Year’s activities. From the Little New Year to the fifteenth day of the first lunar month ^[1]refers to the Lantern Festival., there are constant banquets of all sizes. This is the busiest time for palace music, singing, and dancing institutions, and they simply cannot spare anyone. So now that Su Heng has fallen ill, the Imperial Music Bureau cannot find a registered official of his level to help Tao Sheng.

Tao Sheng can adjust the music and select the score by herself, but she still hopes for someone skilled at playing the zither to assist her.

Finally, Lord Qiu, the Imperial Music Director, provided Tao Sheng with two candidates. One was Lord Shi Guanshi, who was idle all day and had decent zither skills but was only passable. The other was a eunuch who worked at the Imperial Music Bureau. He had some musical talent and had learned a lot from his time there.

Tao Sheng didn’t want to choose either Lord Shi or the elderly eunuch.

Now, Ji Yanming had gotten used to coming over to have lunch with Tao Sheng every day. During lunch, she shared this situation with him and asked for his advice.

Ji Yanming’s silver chopsticks paused in mid-air for a moment, and after thinking, he told Tao Sheng, “Actually, you don’t have to choose either of them. I’ll take Su Heng’s place.”

Now it was Tao Sheng’s turn to be surprised. “Cousin can also play the zither?”

Ji Yanming nodded. “Of course.”

The Six Arts of a Gentleman ^[2]which are traditional skills that include music, archery, calligraphy, mathematics, ethics, and ritual. were originally compulsory courses in school, and zither playing is one of the most important.

Tao Sheng soon discovered the joy of listening to Ji Yanming play the zither.

Her cousin’s zither playing was just like him: clear and clean, without any unnecessary embellishments. Although his technique was slightly less refined than Su Heng’s, it was still pleasant to listen to.

Plus, her cousin was more handsome than Su Heng, had nice hands, and didn’t talk too much nonsense. It was truly a pleasure to work with him.

Cousin Ji also had a very good work attitude: “Since Su Heng is ill and can’t work right now, just tell me to handle his part of the work.”

Tao Sheng was grateful but also a little worried about taking up his time. “Will this affect you?”

“It won’t affect anything,” Ji Yanming said.

As a newcomer in the Hanlin Academy, he was indeed busy. He had to deal with various requests, temporary overtime, and even go to the palace to stand guard at night. Later, he was transferred to the Ministry of Justice to go on business trips, leaving him so busy that he hardly had a chance to breathe.

Although it was close to the New Year, and the Hanlin Academy was supposed to be busy, he was seconded to the Ministry of Rites and had become one of the least busy people.

“I’m glad I could help you.”

Facing such a sincere Ji Yanming, Tao Sheng felt warm in her heart.

She had to admit that this cousin wasn’t as ruthless and cold-blooded as described in the original text. In fact, he was a very good person.

Although the original text depicts Ji Yanming as living alone without ever finding love, Tao Sheng herself wasn’t opposed to starting a family with someone she loved.

If Ji Yanming were truly to end up alone like in the book, with no one to rely on in his later years, Tao Sheng would be willing to let her children help him in his old age, share in his happiness, and alleviate his sorrow and loneliness.

What a touching relationship between cousins!

Tao Sheng was moved by herself.