Extra 3-17: Interpenetrating Daily Life (Part 1)

Tao Sheng opened her eyes and stared at the unfamiliar room and layout, feeling completely confused.

Last night was the children’s sixth birthday, but since age is usually counted by virtual age ^[1]refers to a traditional way of calculating age, where a person is considered one year old at birth., Qing’er and Yu’er had now entered the stage of being seven-year-old little adults.

After the children’s birthday party, Ji Yanming returned to the cabinet ^[2]which is a government office or workspace. for urgent matters. Tao Sheng played with the excited children for a while before returning to her room and falling asleep… She never expected to wake up the next day to such a scene.

Tao Sheng stood up and saw the jade and pink crystal peach ornaments on the table. Looking around, she realized she was in an unfamiliar but strangely familiar environment and guessed where she was.

If she remembered correctly, Luo Xin had given her this ornament on her birthday. Tao Sheng found the design a bit exaggerated, but Ji Yanming liked it and displayed it in his office.

So, she was probably in Ji Yanming’s cabinet now.

But since Ji Yanming had come to work last night, why was she here now?

Tao Sheng noticed the mirror on the table.

The mirror was a “glass mirror,” a popular item in Beijing recently. It had excellent reflective abilities compared to the traditional bronze mirrors.

These mirrors were originally imported from the West, but once the Ministry of Science and Technology mastered the technique, they began producing them locally. Almost every household in Beijing that could afford it had one.

It was clear that Lord Ji had a prestigious status, and even the mirrors in his ordinary dormitory were of the highest quality.

Tao Sheng walked up to the mirror, looked at her reflection, and was stunned.

Among the young men she had spent her days with, who else could it be but Ji Yanming?

This meant that not only had she traveled through a book once before, but now she had traveled through time and space to become Ji Yanming.

Though she didn’t know where the real Ji Yanming had gone, Tao Sheng had a strong feeling that they were destined to be husband and wife, even in different forms.

Tao Sheng was told to go home, so she quickly returned, only to see herself eating with her two children. Her aunt, Su Jia, was there too, eagerly adding food to her meal as always. However, she felt more and more uneasy and quickly ate half a bowl of rice before heading back to the study.

Tao Sheng followed her own steps. She opened the study door and made eye contact with the “Tao Sheng” inside. She barely said the word “you” before the other person understood and softly called her name: “Shengsheng?”

Although Ji Yanming had never time-traveled before, he had seen similar stories in books. Smart as he was, he quickly realized what was happening.

“Is this really happening?” Tao Sheng wondered, seeing Ji Yanming’s reaction and becoming sure they were experiencing a mutual swap of identities.

She sat in a chair, feeling lost. “So… what do we do now?”

Clearly, this was beyond their control. Ji Yanming calmly said, “For now, we just go along with it.”

After all, telling anyone about such a bizarre event would make people think it was a joke. Tao Sheng held a high position as a second-rank minister in the Ministry of Investigation, not just an ordinary housewife. She had completed major tasks the night before and didn’t face any pressing challenges. So, it was manageable for her to work in Ji Yanming’s place at the yamen for a few days.

For now, they decided to keep things as they were.

Tao Sheng, stepping into Ji Yanming’s shoes, entered his workplace. Everyone greeted her with bright smiles, but their enthusiasm felt different from what she was used to in the Gewu Department. It lacked sincerity and seemed more like flattery.

Once she sat down, the clerk brought tea. “This is new tea from the Inner Court, brewed with rainwater. Please try it.”

As Tao Sheng reached for the tea, the clerk stared at her intently. She paused and asked, “Could you not stare at me like that?”

Another older clerk entered, slapped the younger man on the neck, and said, “I told you to take care of Master Ji, but not like this. Go handle the tea in the warehouse.”

The young clerk apologized and left. The older one reassured Tao Sheng, “That young man is new here, not very sharp. Please have your tea.”

Tao Sheng picked up the cup again, but noticed the older clerk was still watching her. Clearly, he was waiting for her reaction to the tea. She had no doubt if she frowned, he would immediately take it away and replace it.

She sipped the tea and nodded, “The tea is brewed well, but you don’t need to stay. I’ll call if I need anything.”

Fortunately, Ji Yanming usually preferred not to have people serving him, so the clerk left happily without pressing further.

Tao Sheng had been in the study room many times before but usually only to bring food or warm clothes. Now, she had time to browse through the official documents.

Marrying Ji Yanming had been the right decision, she thought, feeling a renewed affection as she read his carefully written reports. She had always liked him, and now she seemed to like him even more.

Although she just sent out the document, people kept coming in with reports. There was also a regular meeting in the afternoon chaired by her uncle Luo Ming, allowing her to meet many people in Ji Yanming’s role.

Tao Sheng quickly noticed that everyone treated Ji Yanming with extreme caution, almost fear. Even a casual glance from him could be read in multiple ways, and any comment could be interpreted with countless layers of meaning.

It was not easy for workers these days.

After the meeting, Luo Ming came to talk to Tao Sheng. Noticing his swollen face, she asked, “Did you go out drinking again during your day off?”

“Yes,” Luo Ming replied. “Your aunt went to visit family, so I invited some friends for a drink.”

Tao Sheng looked closely at Luo Ming’s face, realizing he must have drunk too much.

Luo Ming didn’t seem to care and asked Tao Sheng about her day off. She truthfully said she stayed home, read to the children, and dried some books.

Luo Ming sighed, “It’s so boring staying at home. When spring comes, let’s go hunting. Thanks to you, that Fei Tian from the Ministry of War hasn’t dared to challenge us after you beat him last time.”

Tao Sheng: … 

Ji Yanming secretly worked out when Tao Sheng wasn’t looking. No wonder he was so energetic when he came back at night!

_ 

At the same time, Ji Yanming arrived at the Gewu Department and noticed that his subordinates were treating him differently. They showed him genuine enthusiasm and affection, a kind of look he had never experienced before in his career. 

Thinking of how popular Tao Sheng was, Ji Yanming couldn’t help but smile.

Since he was already there, Ji Yanming decided to make the most of it. He visited various departments to get a general understanding of things and then went back to the study to read Tao Sheng’s notes.

Ji Yanming could never have imagined that Tao Sheng had so many creative ideas and forward-thinking concepts. It was as if she could build a world in perfect harmony. 

Although Tao Sheng had discussed many of these things with him before, the notes were much more detailed. After reading them, Ji Yanming understood Tao Sheng better and admired her even more.

Just as he was about to leave the office, Ji Yanming received a call from Xiao Ze.

After hearing Xiao Ze’s instructions, Ji Yanming frowned. If he went to the Xuanzheng Hall now, he would miss his time at home. This was probably why Tao Sheng often came home late. 

But even knowing the reason, Ji Yanming had no choice. He had to go.

It would be fine for him to refuse the Emperor’s invitation when he was busy, but since he was now in Tao Sheng’s position, he had to be careful about appearances.

As soon as Ji Yanming stepped into the Xuanzheng Hall, the first person he saw was the enthusiastic Xiao Ze. 

“Xiao Tao, come and sit down. I have good news for you today,” Xiao Ze said with joy. “Last time, you said you liked the Linyuan Iron-eating Beast ^[3]which is another name for a panda.. This time, they sent two more from Sichuan. I asked them to keep one for you.”

Ji Yanming knew that Tao Sheng liked the animal, but she also said that liking something didn’t mean you should own it. She felt it wasn’t appropriate to keep such a rare animal at home.

Respecting Tao Sheng’s views, Ji Yanming said, “Thank you, Your Majesty, but it might be a bit troublesome to keep such a rare animal at home…”

Before he could finish, Xiao Ze interrupted, “As long as you like it, you don’t need to worry. I’ve arranged everything. I noticed you rarely visited the garden I gave you, so I’ll place the iron-eating beast there and add some flowers, birds, and a sense of artistic beauty. I’ll also hire people to take care of it.”

Xiao Ze continued, “Didn’t you always say you liked Western-style gardens? I like them too, but the Ministry of Works refuses to accept it and can’t build them well. Luckily, Lord Zhang has traveled a lot overseas. I’ll ask him to help design the garden.”

What Xiao Ze said was true. Ji Yanming remembered that Tao Sheng had always wanted a garden with both Chinese and Western styles. 

In the end, Ji Yanming agreed.

After chatting a bit more, Ji Yanming noticed that Xiao Ze’s demeanor when talking to Tao Sheng alone was very different from when he spoke to him. When there were no other officials around, Xiao Ze became more enthusiastic and relaxed when talking to Tao Sheng. Even when Ji Yanming tried to leave, Xiao Ze insisted he stay.

“I heard Xiao Ji is very busy lately, so I doubt I’ll be home early. Since there’s nothing urgent, why don’t you stay and chat? By the way, I have a new music score here from the King of Wei in Jiang State. He said it was composed by a famous scholar there. Can you play it and see how it compares to our Great Zhou’s music?”

Ji Yanming couldn’t refuse, so he played the score. After years with Tao Sheng, he was familiar with the zither, but he wasn’t an expert and worried it might affect Tao Sheng’s reputation. After playing, Ji Yanming told Xiao Ze that he had been too busy with work to practice and felt rusty.

Xiao Ze replied, “This ‘Song of Snow’ is supposed to have that cool, sharp feeling. Your playing was perfect. No need to be modest.”

Ji Yanming: …

Tao Sheng had always said she was better at composing than playing, but everyone thought her playing was heavenly and that she was just being modest.

From Xiao Ze’s reaction, maybe there was some truth to Tao Sheng’s words.