Echoes of My Heart Throughout the Court

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The old emperor chose Gao Yao as the crown prince’s heir, and it certainly wasn’t just because little Bai Ze paid attention to the child.

“You ask me why I chose Yao’er?”

“The questions he asked were also quite deliberate. Maritime expansion is bound to be a policy that we father and son will support in the coming decades. His question about whether the cultures of foreign lands should be considered heretical was a subtle way of expressing his support for maritime trade.”

The old emperor thought for a moment and added, “Even though he supports maritime expansion, he doesn’t pander to foreigners. In his heart, he still holds Hua Xia as the supreme civilization.”

The Crown Prince said, “But he’s only ten. No one knows what he’ll become in the future.”

A typical concern—look at the previous heir to the crown. Before his incident, wasn’t he also widely regarded as the perfect successor in court? It was only when something went wrong that people realized he had mental issues.

The old emperor rolled his eyes. “Enough, no matter who you choose, that worry will always exist. In one of the previous dynasties, someone pretended to be a virtuous prince for thirty years. After being made crown prince, he was praised across court and country, but once he became emperor, his true nature showed—arrogant, incompetent, and he directly led the nation to ruin.”

The Crown Prince chuckled awkwardly. “That’s true.”

The old emperor said, “While I’m still healthy, choosing the crown prince’s heir now means I can still guide him for a few more years. Once you take the throne, let him assist you in governing, so you won’t have to handle everything yourself.”

Coming from a workaholic emperor, this was an incredibly rare sentiment.

The Crown Prince’s eyes turned red. “Father, I…”

The old emperor glared at him. “I’m already sixty-seven. Don’t tell me you want me to depose the Crown Prince now? Think about your old man’s age—do you think I can still take that kind of blow?”

The Crown Prince continued chuckling awkwardly. “Father, that’s not what I meant. I just wanted to say that ancient people also lived into their seventies and eighties. You’ve always been strong and healthy—you’re bound to live to a hundred.”

The old emperor gave a slight smile. “You think I don’t want to live to a hundred? But how many people actually live that long? That kind of talk is nice to hear, but don’t take it too seriously.”

He continued, “What pleases me most about Yao’er is that he’s willing to show his intention to get close to Xu Yanmiao. That puts my mind at ease.”

If it ever came to the tragic point where the white-haired had to bury the black-haired—if the Crown Prince never ascended, and the throne went straight to the heir—at least he wouldn’t have to worry that the heir would be small-minded and incapable of accepting Xu Yanmiao.

The Crown Prince said straightforwardly, “I’ll go back and give Yao’er a clear message—he should interact more with Xu Yanmiao. If possible, he should take him as a teacher.”

So, under the scorching noon sun, Xu Yanmiao saw the new crown prince’s heir standing respectfully at the entrance of his house.

“…” Xu Yanmiao nearly couldn’t laugh. “Your Highness, what brings you here?”

[No way, no way—he’s already trying to win over ministers? You just became heir to the crown!]

The heir couldn’t hear his thoughts—but the other ministers in town could.

“This really is a bit too fast,” one minister muttered quietly.

Although His Majesty tacitly allowed the Crown Prince and the heir to build their own power bases, he himself was extremely power-hungry. The heir appearing this eager would probably make a bad impression in His Majesty’s eyes.

—Could this be another person who looks good on the outside but is rotten on the inside?

[Huh? The Crown Prince sent the heir here?]

[And he wants to take me as his teacher???]

The ministers: “!!!”

The Crown Prince was protecting little Bai Ze, ensuring he would become a senior statesman through three reigns. With the status of a teacher, even the emperor would hesitate to touch him for fear of public backlash.

What an enviable treatment.

The ministers were secretly seething with envy, though they knew they couldn’t compare with the kind of treatment Xu Yanmiao received.

Still, even if they couldn’t match that, wouldn’t it be nice to get half of that? We want a real, effective imperial pardon too!

But Xu Yanmiao was miserable: [What could I possibly teach? Being an emperor doesn’t require advanced math. The current arithmetic lessons are enough. As for the rest… I can’t exactly teach him cybersecurity, can I? He wouldn’t even use it.]

The ministers were growing anxious.

Just teach anything! No one expects you to actually train him in the way of emperorship!

[Other than that, all I’ve got is dragon-slaying techniques. Practiced the right way, it’s dragon-slaying; practiced the wrong way, it’s stirring up public resentment to reinforce imperial power and class privilege…]

[Huh? What was that sound?]

While Xu Yanmiao was spiraling into wild thoughts, a loud bang came from the neighboring house. Thinking of the elderly lady who lived there, he immediately panicked: “Your Highness, please wait a moment!”

Without caring about ceremony, he dashed next door, knocking anxiously and shouting, “Granny! Are you okay? Did you fall?”

Moments later, the door opened. The old lady stood there, completely fine. “No worries, my son was just practicing with a big stone axe and accidentally flung it.”

[Practicing with a stone axe at noon? That’s some free time… isn’t it hot?!]

Xu Lang sighed, but reassured by the granny’s safety, returned to his own house.

Meanwhile, the granny turned back inside and hurried to the courtyard. “What’s the matter with you today? How did you lose grip of the axe? Did you hurt yourself?”

Her son—the Assistant Commander of the Left Army—was sitting on the ground in silence, seemingly deep in thought. On closer inspection, his hand was digging into the soil, veins bulging as if he were enduring something.

The old lady didn’t understand what was happening with her son. She simply sighed, came closer, and gently lifted his hand. Using a handkerchief, she carefully cleaned the dirt from under his fingernails.

“You’ve become such an important official, with more and more burdens in your heart. I can’t help you anymore, only clean your nails. That way at least your hands won’t look dirty.”

Feeling her gentle movements, the Assistant Commander’s tense body slowly relaxed.

Xu Yanmiao declined the Crown Price Heir’s request to be his teacher, openly admitting he had nothing to offer.

[I can’t actually teach him the dark version of dragon-slaying. The old emperor treats me well, but this really crosses the line.]

As for the proper version… honestly, Xu Yanmiao didn’t think the Great Xia had the right environment for it. Practiced the wrong way, it could throw the entire empire into chaos. Better to let the times evolve naturally. Once productivity rose, monarchy would be swept away by the times regardless—no amount of genius could stop that.

[Still, I could at least teach them how to make three-year and five-year plans.]

Xu Yanmiao hurried back into his room, pulled out a sheet of paper, and said, “I’m not very capable—this is all I can offer. Just some basic stuff. Your Highness can take it and read it yourself. As for becoming your teacher, please don’t mention it again.”

[What emperor would tolerate having a master constantly looming over him? The Crown Prince may have meant well, but this move wasn’t right.]

The Crown Prince didn’t respond.

Not because he was upset at being called out, but because Xu Yanmiao had mentioned the “dark version” of the dragon-slaying technique.

If the dark version strengthened imperial power… then wouldn’t the proper version be…

He sat in his chair, sweating and panting, too afraid to think further.

The Heavenly Emperor issued an edict: due to illness, court was suspended for three days.

Empress Dou asked the imperial physician, “What’s wrong with His Majesty?”

Why had he suddenly lost his appetite, become listless, short of breath, and chest-tightened?

—Due to the distance, those in the inner palace couldn’t hear Xu Yanmiao’s inner thoughts.

After a full diagnostic process, the physician concluded: “Worry has hurt his spleen. His Majesty is overthinking.”

Empress Dou nodded slightly. “Leave us. Go prepare medicine carefully for His Majesty.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” Three or five physicians bowed and exited. Two stayed in the side hall on standby, while the rest returned to the Imperial Medical Institute to prepare medicine.

Once everyone had left, Empress Dou turned to her husband: “What’s really going on?”

The old emperor looked disheveled, bloodshot eyes wide, wheezing, veins bulging on his temples, muscles twitching slightly. His gaze flickered between suspicion and closeness—like he was wrestling with life-and-death decisions.

She had never seen him like this.

This state continued for three days.

On the fourth day, just before dawn, the emperor finally sat up with effort and shook his wife awake. “Empress, I’m alright now.”

Empress Dou got up, calmly propped up his pillows, sent away the palace attendants, and poured him water. Watching him drink, she asked gently: “What happened? You have to tell me. We’re husband and wife—we’ll face it together.”

The emperor exhaled deeply and didn’t explain, only said: “Empress, let me ask you a question. What if there’s someone who might pose a threat to your country and reign… but he’s kind-hearted, and might never act on it for his whole life…”

Empress Dou smiled: “You already know your answer, don’t you?”

The emperor paused—then suddenly cursed viciously: “That brat better not betray my trust. If he does, even in death I won’t let him go!”

Empress Dou smiled at him.

The emperor coughed awkwardly: “Still, the kid has a conscience. Empress, come look at this three- and five-year plan. I spent so long scheming to get it, thought I wouldn’t succeed—but the brat just handed it straight to the Crown Prince. Hah! My care for him wasn’t wasted!”

Empress Dou blinked, listened to how he’d schemed, and gave him face by not saying aloud: So why didn’t you just ask? Why go through all that trouble?

On the fourth day, morning court resumed as usual.

The turmoil of the past three days in the capital—the hidden guards, the locked doors, the restive barracks, the tense security—all melted away like spring snow.

Xu Yanmiao was shocked: “Lian Lang, why are your eyes so swollen?”

‘Isn’t it because of you—careless with your words… no, your inner thoughts. I cried for three days!’

Lian Hang puffed and only gave a half-truth: “My stomach was bloated these days. Couldn’t sleep well.”

Seeing his friend’s concerned gaze, Lian Hang opened his mouth but only sighed after a few breaths: “Xu Lang, I heard the Crown Price Heir wanted to take you as his teacher…”

Xu Yanmiao: “Yes, I refused.”

Lian Hang: “Why? Isn’t that a good thing?”

Xu Yanmiao looked around and lowered his voice: “Anything involving the royal family is never a good thing. Respecting teachers is fine for ordinary folks, but in the royal family, teachers get killed casually! I trust the Crown Prince’s character, but the Crown Price Heir is only ten—who knows what he’ll become…”

Lian Hang gave him a light kick.

Xu Yanmiao immediately shut up with full understanding.

At that moment, Lian Hang cupped his hands: “Your Highness.”

Xu Yanmiao, having just finished gossiping about the prince’s son, turned around a bit awkwardly: “Greetings, Your Highness.”

The Crown Prince didn’t bring up the matter of becoming a teacher. He just smiled and said: “Xu Lang, do you remember my old promise to take you to Jiangnan? Shall we go in a few days?”

Xu Yanmiao’s eyes lit up: “Yes!”

He had long wanted to travel, but between safety concerns and strict leave policies for capital officials, he had shelved the idea.

Jiangnan had many places, so…

“Which prefecture does Your Highness plan to visit?”

The Crown Prince smiled: “The place where I had my leg broken.”

“To Changzhou.”

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