Chapter Nine: Riding the Favorable Wind

Li Fu was not the first scholar to pass from the first trial to the second, but now he was the first to enter the final curtain.

Before the lanterns, many scholars still pondered the riddles inscribed upon them. When they saw Li Fu lift the second curtain and step inside, surprise spread across their faces.

“Where is this scholar from? How did he advance to the last round so quickly?”

“He's certainly not from the Eastern Capital. There are only a handful of notable scholars here, and I've never heard of him before.”

“I've been racking my brains for two incense sticks’ worth of time and failed, yet he solved eight riddles in such a short span. Comparing oneself to others is truly maddening!”

Those who noticed Li Fu began to discuss him. There were certainly lantern riddle experts in Chaoyang Hall, and a few managed to solve six or seven, but none displayed the effortless confidence Li Fu did as he strode toward the last trial.

Li Fu paid them no mind. He lifted the third curtain, and three doors appeared before him. There was no scholar supervisor in sight.

“Could it be I’ve advanced too quickly?” Li Fu murmured, gazing at the empty hall before him.

The Lantern Festival Imperial Examination was a grand event in the Tang Dynasty; it was unlikely the Scholar Supervision would make such a mistake. This round surely held some secret. Yet, inside the three rooms, only a single table with brush and ink was set, nothing else.

Just as Li Fu pondered, a renowned scholar emerged from a side door, holding a scroll of yellow silk.

“You are Li Fu?” the scholar asked, glancing at Li Fu’s waist badge.

“Yes, sir,” Li Fu replied with a bow.

“Come with me,” the scholar commanded, leading Li Fu into the central room.

“You have come this far; your name will surely be among the top ten on this year’s Lantern Festival Imperial Examination list. The precise ranking will be determined by the Grand Chancellor. Here is your exam question. Once you’ve finished, you may leave Chaoyang Hall and await the results.” The scholar placed the yellow silk upon the table, then exited, closing the door behind him.

“Beating the drum and drinking fine wine, singing sword songs by the Yi River’s edge. Passing through the Prince of Yan, forging bonds with the children of the Eastern Capital.”

Li Fu unrolled the yellow silk, and his expression changed dramatically.

This poem was the very one that hung in the thatched cottage of Dao Xiang Village! For over ten years, since Li Fu could remember, it had always been suspended there. When Li Fu was young and learning to read, he asked his teacher about its meaning, but the teacher said it was an unfinished poem. Now, it appeared as the final question of the Lantern Festival Imperial Examination!

Just before his departure, his teacher had taken down that dusty poem and added four lines. Then, with a long sigh, he set it aside. In all his years, Li Fu had never seen his teacher so sorrowful.

“Teacher, who are you really?” Li Fu looked southward, toward Dao Xiang Village. Last night, his teacher’s letter said: “After the Lantern Festival Imperial Examination, someone will escort you to the Great Ancestral Temple. When you meet the Wine Master, hand over the ‘National Strategy’ personally. Do not mention your teacher. If the Wine Master insists, simply say: ‘When the hundred flowers fade, only the green lotus blooms alone.’”

From the letter, it was clear his teacher and the Wine Master were acquainted, and moreover, his teacher was not from Liang Prefecture. Not only that, but he also warned Li Fu to be cautious of the Shangguan family...

“Youth bears bold ambition, fierce and resolute by nature. When the long wind rises, look east, and never betray your promise.”

Four more lines in his teacher’s hand appeared on the yellow silk, written the night before Li Fu’s journey.

Li Fu did not know his teacher’s purpose in sending him to the Eastern Capital, but it surely related to his origins. It was highly likely Li Fu had a connection with some great figure in the capital. For Li Fu to catch their attention, he had to make a name for himself in the Lantern Festival Imperial Examination. Though his teacher never said it outright, Li Fu, having grown up beside him, understood his intentions well enough.

...

...

In just a brief moment, a freshly inked yellow silk appeared in the eastern side hall of the Taiji Palace. Dim candlelight flickered atop the altar in the center; a gust of wind entered as the doors opened, extinguishing several flames. Before the altar, a middle-aged man in brocade robes stood respectfully to the side. Upon a cushion sat an elderly man, sparse white hair bound with a white silk scarf, clad in plain scholar’s robes.

“Greetings, Teacher,” the middle-aged man bowed respectfully to the old man.

“Sit,” the elder said calmly, eyes closed.

The middle-aged man glanced at the cushion, hesitated, then sat behind the elder.

“He still cannot let go, can he?” As soon as the middle-aged man sat, the elder opened his eyes. Though his tone was mild, his gaze pierced deep, as if seeing through to the heart.

“Teacher, you know?” the man asked, surprised.

“Today is the Lantern Festival Imperial Examination; instead of being in Chaoyang Hall, you’ve come to the Great Ancestral Temple. I imagine you have news of him.” The elder stood, his withered hands relighting each candle extinguished by the wind. The flickering light could not fully illuminate the hall, but the elder insisted on lighting every one.

“You see clearly, Teacher. My senior brother’s nature is indeed more carefree. Besides, he and the Prince of Yan were close, and you know what happened back then.”

The middle-aged man paused, then spoke again.

“Foolish child, foolish child! Tell me, how is that boy now?” The elder asked softly after a moment.

The middle-aged man did not answer immediately; instead, he respectfully handed over the freshly inked yellow silk.

“Teacher, please look,” he said.

The elder stood, gazed at the verses on the silk, and fell silent.

“Du Zhi, do you know why your senior brother would not rest until he claimed first place in both trials of the Lantern Festival Imperial Examination?”

Du Zhi was none other than the current Grand Chancellor, one of the Three Dukes of Tang. The middle-aged man before the elder was the esteemed Grand Chancellor himself.

The Grand Chancellor was momentarily stunned, but replied, “My senior brother’s talent far surpassed mine and all the scholars of his time. His dual triumph was deserved.”

The elder folded his hands into his sleeves, looked at Taizong, and nodded slightly. “You are correct; that child was indeed extraordinary—perhaps even the likes of Lord Changsun and Lord Wei could not match him. But there is something you have forgotten...”

“Please enlighten me, Teacher.”

“His obsession ran too deep. He believed he could foresee every strategy, but how many flawless plans truly exist in this world? The heartlessness of kings cannot be spoken of in just a generation or two.”

The Grand Chancellor was shaken to his core.

“Go now. See how far your senior brother has brought that child,” the elder sighed, slowly closing his eyes and resuming his seat atop the cushion.

...

...

Li Fu stepped out from Chaoyang Hall. The noon sun bathed his face, its warmth flowing through his meridians and filling his body. Even the cold winter wind seemed gentler. Seeing a familiar figure beneath the distant gallery, Li Fu walked toward it.