Chapter Forty: Courtesy Begets Reciprocity (Part One)
The Seventh Prince heard Long Lin One’s voice, steadied himself, and replied, “Come in.” Long Lin One pushed the door open, stood by it, and reported, “Your Highness, I investigated along the way. The Qin and Su families have indeed dispatched their death warriors.”
The Seventh Prince snorted coldly. “The Qin family is understandable, but the Su family is courting disaster.”
Long Lin One’s face showed no emotion. “I was unable to prevent it. The Su family’s warriors split into two teams; one encountered the Qin family’s men, and the other has vanished without a trace.”
The Seventh Prince reassured him, “You’re only one person, it’s impossible to be everywhere at once. It’s not your fault.”
Long Lin One replied, “I’ll take more men and continue the search.”
“Go ahead.”
The Seventh Prince lingered for a while longer, then rose and walked to the door of Tao Ming’s room. He listened intently for a moment, but no sound came from within, so he turned and went to the first room on the left.
He set up a ward to isolate himself, then took out a plan submitted by the officials of the Heavenly Words Bureau. It contained detailed schedules of when each official would arrive at certain locations for their grand gatherings. He also produced a map of the Wei River, comparing the two. On the route from Qiluo Town to Yunxian City, he found a small town closer to Yunxian City called Xin Feng Town, where a Heavenly Words gathering was scheduled for nine o’clock the following day.
He committed the details of Xin Feng Town to memory, put away the plan and map, lifted the ward, and left the room.
At the carriage door, he asked casually, “How far are we from Yunxian City?”
A guard immediately responded, “Your Highness, the carriage moves slowly. We are still more than halfway from Yunxian City.”
The Seventh Prince glanced at the sky and asked, “Can we reach Yunxian City before nightfall?”
The guard replied, “It’s quite far. We won’t make it by dark.”
The Seventh Prince frowned. “Traveling at night is difficult. Are there suitable places ahead to spend the night?”
The guard answered, “Further ahead are the towns of Hexi and Xin Feng.”
The Seventh Prince’s expression remained unchanged. “Which is closer to Yunxian City?”
The guard replied, “Xin Feng Town.”
The Seventh Prince paused briefly before instructing, “Do your best to reach Xin Feng Town before dark. The closer to Yunxian City, the safer we’ll be.”
“As you command.”
Guards promptly relayed the order up and down the caravan.
The Seventh Prince looked at the sky, returned to the low table, and sat down to continue fiddling with the teacup.
...
Tao Ming had not closed her eyes all this time. Her chest felt blocked, her mind a jumble, as she lay on her mat staring at the ceiling in a daze.
By the time Softy woke up, an hour and a half had passed, and soon after, Glutinous awoke as well.
Since they were awake, the three could hardly stay shut in the room any longer. Tao Ming carefully reminded the two little ones of a few things, then took each by the hand and stepped outside, immediately spotting the Seventh Prince still seated at the low table, playing with his cup.
The three sat across from him as if nothing were amiss. The Seventh Prince looked up and asked, “Hungry, aren’t you?”
Tao Ming truly was famished. Softy and Glutinous had at least eaten some pastries, but she herself hadn’t eaten since breakfast. She knew now was not the time to antagonize the Seventh Prince, so she forced herself to reply softly, “Yes, I’m hungry.”
Softy and Glutinous chimed in together, “I’m hungry too!”
The Seventh Prince looked them over again and remarked, “How is it that after a nap, your tempers are much improved?”
Tao Ming smiled, “I’m still adjusting to the time difference. When I’m tired, I get cranky.”
The Seventh Prince frowned. “Time difference? What’s that?”
Glutinous: “...”
Tao Ming: “...”
That was exactly what Glutinous had said before!
Seeing Tao Ming’s silence, the Seventh Prince didn’t press her, but set down his cup and said, “Let’s eat, then.” He called out to the door, “Serve the meal.”
Someone answered outside, and soon six charming maids entered, each carrying a food box. They set the dishes and utensils on the low table and withdrew.
She handed the two little ones their learning chopsticks; they tasted the food and quickly began eating, obviously finding it to their liking.
Tao Ming watched the maids closely from the moment the first entered until the last departed.
The Seventh Prince chuckled, “Are you interested in them?”
Tao Ming replied in frustration, “I’ve noticed my face blindness is getting worse. Those six maids all look almost identical to me.”
The Seventh Prince thought to himself, they really do look alike—after all, they’re sisters, three pairs of twins, though none of that showed on their faces.
He recalled what Tao Ming had said and asked, “What is face blindness?”
Tao Ming looked troubled. “Face blindness means I can’t recognize people. I could never tell my uncles and aunts apart.”
The Seventh Prince pointed to his own face. “So you can’t recognize my handsome face either?”
Tao Ming’s heart skipped; why was the Seventh Prince suddenly so glib?
Well, whatever comes, she thought, she’d deal with it.
She looked at him carefully and nodded.
The Seventh Prince pointed at the two little ones. “Can you tell them apart?”
Tao Ming followed his gesture. It was obvious: the one on the left, exuding the aura of a mafia boss, was Softy; the one on the right, sweet and adorable, was Glutinous. Their temperaments were completely different!
“Of course I can tell!”
The Seventh Prince leaned in closer. “In your eyes, do I look handsome?”
Tao Ming blinked and answered, “I can only tell you’re a man.”
The Seventh Prince, visibly dissatisfied, snorted softly. “I am graceful and dashing, yet you can’t see it!”
Tao Ming’s lips twitched. She thought, I can certainly see the thickness of your skin.
She responded, “I’m going to eat now,” and ignored him.
After a few bites, she heard the Seventh Prince say, “Aren’t you afraid I might poison the food?”
Tao Ming rolled her eyes and kept eating.
If he wanted to poison her, it wouldn’t be at a time like this, with so many people around.
The Seventh Prince continued, “Well, I couldn’t bear to poison you anyway. Do you know you’re quite good-looking?”
Tao Ming nearly choked, a mouthful of rice stuck in her throat. She quickly drank some water to wash it down. Coughing, she said, “Look at those two—I’m a mother. Is it appropriate for you to tease me?”
“Why not? I am your cousin!” The Seventh Prince poured her another glass and handed it over.
Tao Ming frowned, speaking earnestly, “I think your intelligence might be lacking. Maybe you need some walnuts for a boost. Uh, does Wei River have walnuts?”
The Seventh Prince paused, then replied, “I know what walnuts are, but what is intelligence?”
Tao Ming grinned, “It’s something I have that you don’t.”
The Seventh Prince looked at her smile, realization dawning. “Why do I feel like you’re insulting me?”
So what if I am? You don’t understand anyway!
Having insulted the Seventh Prince in a roundabout way, Tao Ming found the food even tastier.
While eating, she noticed he hadn’t touched his chopsticks. “Why aren’t you eating? Surely you haven’t really poisoned it?”
The Seventh Prince propped his head in his hand and stared at her. “Watching you, I don’t feel hungry.”
Tao Ming glared at him. “Where I come from, ‘just seeing you fills me up’ is an insult!”
“Courtesy demands reciprocity. Likewise for you and me.”
Tao Ming snorted and focused on her meal, ignoring him.
The Seventh Prince, seeing Tao Ming truly pay him no mind, smiled and picked up his chopsticks, his mood exceedingly cheerful.
Softy whispered to Glutinous, “Why do I feel that man is so strange?”
“He is a little strange.”
“His smile is odd.”
“Exactly.”
...