The First Prince of the Ming Dynasty

Tang Yin was ordered to take a bath, change into clean clothes, and then ride in a carriage with Gongsun Jin to Xinghua Tower.

"What is this for?" Tang Yin asked as he walked.

Gongsun Jin smiled and said, "You will now be under the young master's command. He will explain the specifics to you."

The implication is that Prince Ning is now too lazy to bother with you. You've fallen into the hands of our Prince's young master, and from now on you're just a pawn in his game, someone he can manipulate as he pleases.

Tang Yin looked very depressed.

He would feel very frustrated to be suddenly controlled by a child, yet he would find it difficult to break free.

When he arrived at Xinghua Tower and got off the carriage, a group of scholars dressed in academic robes came to greet him from afar.

"Isn't that Tang Bohu? A literary master!"

"Mr. Tang..."

The crowd wanted to swarm around him, as if they were chasing after an idol.

Tang Yin was also made very uncomfortable.

He was thinking, "Why didn't I realize I had such great charm before? How did I suddenly become so famous?"

He wanted to reach out and greet the group, but then he suddenly remembered that he had been pretending to be crazy and had done many indecent things. He felt ashamed and embarrassed, and even wanted to avoid the group.

Fortunately, the guards from the Prince's Mansion at Xinghua Tower helped him temporarily resolve the awkward situation by stopping everyone.

"Mr. Tang's reputation is as good as ever," Gongsun Jin complimented from the side.

But that smile made Tang Yin very uncomfortable.

He was thinking, "Is your face so distorted because you're jealous of my talent and fame? If you're so capable, you can pass the imperial examination like me and achieve something in poetry and painting!"

……

……

In front of Xinghua Tower.

When Zhu Yi came out, he greeted Tang Yin with a cupped-hand salute.

Tang Yin hurriedly returned the greeting.

With his life in their hands, he had to put on an act, right? After all, intellectuals are fickle; they'll flatter you today and run away tomorrow. Where will you find me then?

I had previously considered feigning madness to achieve a "good ending" and have you send me away voluntarily. Now, I have no choice but to take a different approach. Didn't the sages of the past already summarize a series of ingenious strategies such as "shedding one's skin like a cicada"? I won't feel ashamed to use them.

"Did you feel the enthusiasm of the people outside, Master Tang?" Zhu Yi asked with a smile.

Tang Yin frowned and asked, "Did you find all of those?"

Zhu Yi said, "I have no such intention. They came to visit us on their own initiative because they heard you were coming today. Master Tang is quite famous now."

Tang Yin said with a dark face, "My condition has not improved yet, and I am not able to handle the affairs of the Prince's Mansion. Please do not be too harsh on me, young master."

In other words, I promised to stop pretending to be crazy for the time being, but that doesn't mean I have to wholeheartedly serve you now.

I am completely uncooperative right now. Calling me here won't do any good. I won't even use your palace as a front to entertain those sycophantic scholars.

Are all the scholars around Nanchang so lacking in integrity? It's not like I've only just heard of them. Is it because I feigned madness that I'm more famous now?

"Who gave you permission to handle matters within the Prince's residence?" Zhu Yi rolled his eyes. "It was my mother who heard your condition had improved and wanted to see you so she could be at ease. If it weren't for filial piety, do you think you would have had the chance to get out of this situation?"

Tang Yin instantly felt utterly humiliated.

It turned out that it was the woman's protection that gave him the opportunity to escape that hellish place.

Gongsun Jin smiled and said, "Young Master, I won't bother you any longer."

"Mr. Gongsun, you've had a long day. Mr. Tang, please." Zhu Yi said "please," but he simply walked ahead, giving Tang Yin the impression that he didn't care whether Tang Yin followed him or not.

Tang Yin hesitated for a moment, but when he saw Gongsun Jin's mischievous look, he still had no choice but to follow Zhu Yi into Xinghua Tower.

……

……

The second floor of Xinghualou.

From the window, you can see the peach blossoms planted outside.

Lou Suzhen arrived early in the morning. To welcome her teacher, she even had fine tea and drawing paper prepared, as if she was waiting for Tang Yin to come and depict the scenery of peach blossoms in full bloom outside.

This was, after all, Tang Yin's first peach blossom season after arriving in Nanchang.

"Mother, the person has arrived." Zhu Yi walked up, went around the screen, and bowed to his adoptive mother.

Lou Suzhen stood up upon hearing this.

When she saw Tang Yin, who was dressed in a clean and tidy long gown, her face first showed a hint of delight, followed by a touch of guilt.

It seems that the Ning Prince's Mansion's decision to keep Tang Yin tied up in Nanchang was a great injustice to him.

But even Lou Suzhen herself wasn't entirely clear on what exactly happened behind the scenes.

"Greetings, Your Highness." Tang Yin bowed helplessly.

He had been feigning madness for two months, and this was the first time he had spoken seriously to Lou Suzhen during those two months.

Lou Suzhen said happily, "The servants below say that your condition has improved and you have even composed poems. I had some doubts at first, but seeing you like this, it seems that everything is over."

They didn't say your condition had improved, they just said "everything is over," which shows that some things are truly understood without being said.

"Before...indeed...the illness was recurring..." Tang Yin suddenly felt that he had gone from being eloquent to being a fool.

He felt ashamed to lie to a female student who had been kind to him.

However, he immediately realized something: how could he have "written poems"? I just came out of that godforsaken place today, when did I ever write any poems?

After Lou Suzhen finished speaking, she immediately had the lady-in-waiting bring out the poem she had personally inscribed and showed it to Tang Yin: "Betting on books to pass the time with the fragrance of spilled tea, at the time it seemed so ordinary. Your sentiments are truly exemplary, a model for scholars throughout history, and I admire you greatly."

"Ahem!"

Even though Tang Yin had made ample preparations in his mind, he was still so shocked by what he saw that he coughed repeatedly.

He then turned his gaze to Zhu Yi, who had a forced smile on his face.

He was terrified.

What exactly is going on?

Didn't you write those lyrics? You even claimed they came from some worthless lyricist from a later dynasty? How did they become my work?

Zhu Yi said, "Mother, I think Mr. Tang's best poem is 'Linjiang Xian,' which is being circulated among the scholars in Nanchang. You don't know, when Mr. Tang appeared in front of Nanhu Lake just now, all those scholars who saw him from afar wanted to curry favor with him. They are very eager to befriend Mr. Tang."

Tang Yin was taken aback.

Is that poem "Linjiangxian" mine too?

He suddenly remembered that when he met Zhu Yi in the private prison a few days earlier, Zhu Yi had vaguely mentioned this matter, but he hadn't taken it to heart at the time.

He was also puzzled... Could this be a tactic by the Prince of Ning to win me over and befriend me? Was he handing over the title that originally belonged to his son to me?

Lou Suzhen said with a hint of admiration, "Sir, your illness has been a blessing in disguise, allowing you to create such a masterpiece. You will surely be remembered in history. Sir, please come and have some tea, and we can also admire the peach blossoms outside. Didn't you say before that you wanted to appreciate the peach blossoms of Nanchang? How are they different from those of Suzhou?"

Tang Yin was extremely anxious and uneasy.

I used a name that wasn't mine, and it was forced upon me by certain people who knew the truth. How can I have a clear conscience?

How can I be worthy of the title of "a virtuous and upright person"?

"Prepare more tea." Lou Suzhen then went to arrange for the female officials to bring Tang Yin some more local specialties so that he could stay in Nanchang with peace of mind.

Zhu Yi leaned closer and whispered to Tang Yin, "Master Tang, why don't you listen to my mother and make two paintings first? Look, the brushes and paper are all ready. Once you've finished them, I'll find a place to bury them. Maybe I'll wake up hundreds of years later and make a fortune or something?"

Tang Yin glared at Zhu Yi, intending to ask what was going on, but Lou Suzhen had already returned.

After that, Tang Yin completely lost the mood to drink tea and admire peach blossoms.

His frustrated heart was filled with only one thought: to escape as soon as possible, or to find a place to find Zhu Yi and get some answers.

With his shrewdness, he could naturally consider that the other party might not be showing goodwill towards him, but rather that he might be being used. He just didn't understand the trick to it yet.