He Has Such a Big Face

Guiyun Academy.

"Is he truly unwilling to come?"

Inside the spacious study, Mr. Yue Ming sat upright before the desk, slight anger showing in his expression as he said in a displeased tone:

"The status of a matrilocal son-in-law to the marquis's mansion is indeed hard to present in polite society, but since old man I have already invited him to attend the poetry gathering, I naturally will protect him."

"Moreover, old man I have frequent correspondence with Master Juyi, how could I leave his student feeling embarrassed?"

Standing in the lower position, Li Huaigu shook his head, "Teacher, student has already tried his best to persuade him, but alas... but alas, Brother Qingzhou's attitude is resolute."

"He also said that the poetry gathering will inevitably bring up this imperial examination, and since his elder brother Yunfan is the Zhuangyuan, by then someone will inevitably compare the two brothers."

Hearing this, Mr. Yue Ming paused, his expression softening as he pinched his beard and said, "If so, it is indeed old man I who failed to consider things thoroughly."

Observing his expression, Li Huaigu thought for a moment and asked, "Teacher, student has one matter he does not understand, why are you so insistent on inviting Brother Qingzhou to come?"

As he spoke, seemingly worried that Mr. Yue Ming would misunderstand, he continued, "If it is because of the previous affair of 'forcibly seizing Yunniang', student has already made things clear at the yamen, this matter has nothing to do with Brother Qingzhou, and his doing so arose from good intentions."

"Good intentions?" Recalling that affair of "forcibly seizing a woman", Mr. Yue Ming's aged face grew stern.

"Fanggui, do you truly think so?"

"By the orders of parents and the words of matchmakers, even if your mother's methods were somewhat excessive, she was also doing it for your consideration."

"Do not look at how true and deep your affection with Yunniang is at this moment, the days ahead may not necessarily be good."

Li Huaigu smiled bitterly and nodded in assent.

He understood all the reasoning, but he was unwilling, nor would he abandon Yunniang.

Just as Chen Yi had written on the slip of paper for him, some things done might bring future regret, but not doing them would leave him with lifelong regret.

If he followed his mother's arrangements and married a woman of matched social status or wealthy background, he would never be happy for the rest of his life.

Mr. Yue Ming naturally saw through his thoughts, waving his hand to dismiss those matters of romantic attachment, and instead said:

"Old man I asked that Chen Yi to come mainly for a calligraphy copybook."

"What calligraphy copybook could earn teacher such attention?"

Li Huaigu naturally knew that apart from intensive study of scholarship, teacher was especially skilled at the way of calligraphy, often appreciating calligraphy works together with several academy teachers.

And to be valued so much by teacher that he did not hesitate to issue a personal invitation, he figured Brother Qingzhou must definitely have a calligraphy copybook written by a master in his hands.

Mr. Yue Ming said with a wistful sigh, "Ode to Marquis Xiao, I do not know where Chen Yi found a calligraphy grandmaster to write it, those characters exude a youthful radiance."

Li Huaigu's spirit stirred, "Artistic conception manifesting on its own? There are not many grandmasters with this kind of calligraphy in the Great Wei Dynasty."

Recalling that fleeting glimpse of the calligraphy copybook, Mr. Yue Ming's turbid eyes welled with a trace of eagerness.

"That is not ordinary calligraphy at all, but a brand-new script clearly distinct from the Wei Qing Style."

Li Huaigu was dumbfounded: "A new script? A calligraphy copybook of a new script with artistic conception manifesting on its own?"

Do not blame him for being startled, for if this matter were true, it would be enough to shake the entire Great Wei Dynasty.

One must know that in the two hundred years since the founding of Great Wei, it was not as if no one had broken new ground to write new scripts, but they were always inferior to the maturity of the Wei Qing script.

Not to mention a new script with artistic conception manifesting on its own, even copybooks that could catch the eyes of calligraphy masters were extremely rare.

Mr. Yue Ming was equally clear on this point, sighing, "Yet such a supreme treasure is in Chen Yi's hands, it is simply a waste of heavenly things."

"What makes old man I most annoyed is that his maidservant even argued with me, saying those characters came from Chen Yi's own hand."

"Ridiculous, utterly ridiculous!"

Li Huaigu laughed despite himself, not expecting that teacher, who was always stern and unsmiling, would actually bicker with a maidservant, which showed his fondness for that calligraphy copybook.

Yet at the same time, a trace of doubt also arose in his heart.

Although he and Chen Yi had little contact, he could tell that Chen Yi was not the sort of person to make groundless claims.

Abruptly thinking of something, Li Huaigu hastily retrieved an item from his inner breast pocket, opened it, and glanced at it.

The more he looked, the stranger his expression became, until finally even his hands trembled slightly.

Mr. Yue Ming noticed his unusual state, "Fanggui, is something amiss?"

"Yes, teacher, no... this."

For a moment Li Huaigu could not speak clearly, and neglecting to maintain the etiquette between teacher and student, he walked forward and placed the piece of paper in his hands before him.

"Teacher, please look at these characters."

Mr. Yue Ming glanced at the palm-sized piece of Yunsong paper with torn edges, his brow furrowing slightly.

Yet out of trust for Li Huaigu, he suppressed his temper, took the paper, and looked at it closely, muttering to himself:

"Flowers when to be plucked must be plucked straightway, wait not till flowers are gone and empty..."

Before he could finish reciting, Mr. Yue Ming bounded to his feet, looking at the characters on the paper with a mixture of surprise and delight, his eyes darting up and down, left and right, evidently reading the copybook stroke by stroke.

After a long while.

Mr. Yue Ming smacked his lips, letting out a sigh akin to supreme comfort.

"Fine characters, they should have come from the same person's hand as the Ode to Marquis Xiao calligraphy copybook old man I saw earlier."

As he spoke, he looked at Li Huaigu and asked, "Fanggui, whose characters are these?"

Confirming his inner guess, Li Huaigu said with hard-to-suppress excitement, "Teacher, these characters were precisely written earlier by Brother Qingzhou!"

"Indeed?"

"Student does not dare to deceive teacher."

Mr. Yue Ming stared at him for a moment before withdrawing his gaze, slowly sitting back down, his focus fixed on the handwriting in his hands.

"Earlier it was old man I who was wrong, and I wronged that maidservant."

"And Chen Yi... thinking back, it was that old fellow Juyi who had sharp discernment, concluding early on that his calligraphy possessed spiritual energy."

Li Huaigu consoled him, "Teacher need not dwell on it, after all Brother Qingzhou only recently arrived in Shuzhou, and moreover his actions do not follow conventional principles, hence..."

Mr. Yue Ming raised a hand to cut him off, saying, "Wrong is wrong. Whether it was old man I jumping to conclusions or stubbornly clinging to ritual laws, in the end it was old man I's mistake."

Li Huaigu pressed his lips together, not daring to advise him further.

After a long silence.

Li Huaigu tentatively began, "Teacher, how about I go ask Brother Qingzhou for a calligraphy copybook?"

"You?"

Mr. Yue Ming shook his head, "Forget it, since this matter originated because of old man I, then old man I shall handle it myself."

"Then this poetry gathering..."

"Proceeds as scheduled, consider it as me welcoming you and washing away the dust of your journey."

"Thank you for your trouble, teacher."

Before long, Li Huaigu emerged from Guiyun Academy and, seeing Yunxiang waiting under a tree not far away, could not help letting out a long breath.

Yunxiang asked in surprise, "Li Lang, did Mr. Yue Ming scold you?"

Li Huaigu shook his head, "Not teacher, but Brother Qingzhou."

"Teacher scolded him?"

"Scolded? No, from now on teacher will not only refrain from scolding him, he might even personally call upon him at his residence..."

Chen Yi had no idea how "shameless" the person he called the "shameless old man" truly was.

After declining the poetry gathering at Guiyun Academy, he remained as he had been.

Aside from holing up in the study taking nary a step out the front or back gates, he would occasionally take Xiao Die out to stroll around and join in the bustling activities of the estate, acquiring fortune.

At other times if there was business, Xiao Die or Su Zhenyue would naturally come to seek him out.

If there was nothing... it was best if there was nothing forever.

The two young misses of the Xiao family had returned, Xiao Wuge had moved back to Jiaxing Garden, and Zhang Heng had sworn to never come again; Chunhe Garden instead grew even livelier than before.

In these past few days Chen Yi had met so many people following Lady Xiao Jinghong, engaging in polite pleasantries and gentle, modest etiquette, that his body felt practically stiff.

Those generals with military backgrounds were fine; at most they looked down on him, muttered "frail and delicate" to his face, and left it at that.

As for the young ladies and young lords born of aristocratic clans and powerful lineages, their speech wound round and round in circles, making one feel thoroughly uncomfortable.

Fortunately, Xiao Jinghong maintained a calm composure throughout.

"The capable bear more labor, let Madam go deal with them."

Chen Yi lay on the recliner, flipping through Four Diagnostic Records with one hand while cross-referencing the Medical Canon in his mind.

Right at that moment, Xiao Die pushed open the main hall door, ushering Liu Si'er inside.

"Fourth Brother, the son-in-law is right inside."

Liu Si'er cupped his hands in a bow, then walked into the study, "Son-in-law."

Hearing the sound, Chen Yi put down the medical book, looked him up and down, and asked with a smile, "Fourth Brother has business?"

Come to think of it, he had not seen Liu Si'er for quite some days, presumably because Xiao Jinghong had returned to the manor, causing this "hidden guard" not to dare approach Chunhe Garden.

Coupled with "another person taking charge" as mentioned in the secret letter, Chen Yi had observed no clues lately and could only temporarily conceal the matter without acting.

"Just now someone dropped off a name card for the son-in-law at the porter's lodge, I brought it over for you on my way."

With a natural expression, Liu Si'er placed the red-lacquered hard paper on the desk, bowed deeply, and said, "Son-in-law, if there is nothing else, I shall take my leave first."

Chen Yi uttered an acknowledgement, watching him walk away before picking up the name card to read it.

[My younger brother Qingzhou, several months have passed, this elder brother misses you dearly.

Whenever I think of you traveling ten thousand li to enter the Xiao family as a matrilocal son-in-law, this elder brother's heart aches, fearing you might not eat well or sleep well within the Xiao family.

As it happens, this elder brother has achieved the rank of Zhuangyuan, and by command of His Majesty, I am appointed to the Shu Prefecture Surveillance Department. Tomorrow morning, I eagerly hope we may converse at the North City Official Road -- Chen Yunfan.]

Having finished reading, Chen Yi raised an eyebrow, "Elder Brother, Chen Yunfan?"

He wants me to go out and welcome him? Ha, he has such a big face.