Yi You One

Yi You had once imagined her beloved.

Father said she was most like him. Whether others believed it or not, Yi You had felt proud, happy, wistful, and also doubtful about it. The first thing she doubted was that she truly lacked Father's talent for poetry. Not to mention comparing herself to her two older sisters, she always got even the most basic tones wrong.

But her rote memorization was excellent. She remembered the poems and essays she had read clearly, as well as people and events.

The first poem she read was "Qing Yu An," written by Father and taught to her by Father. After she finished reading it, Father did not tell her about the story of Zong Zhongwu. Instead, he asked her, "Yi You, what do you think this is about?"

*Suddenly turning around, that person is in the dimly lit place.*

Yi You stared at the last line and said crisply, "It's about Father meeting a beautiful woman he likes on the road."

Father laughed uncontrollably, tears almost coming out of his eyes. Finally, he shook his head without explaining and took her to find other amusements with great enthusiasm.

Yi You later understood the true meaning of this poem, but she still couldn't help but think of that sentence: *Suddenly turning around, that person is in the dimly lit place.*

She thought, it would have been better if she hadn't turned around then.

*Suddenly turning around, that person is in the dimly lit place.*

...She would still turn around.

*

Zhang Shi One

He had met several of the Emperor's princesses and princes long ago. Apart from being deeply impressed by the Emperor's "parenting methods" and his own father's strange expression, he had forgotten everything else.

--The term "parenting methods" was later brought up by Yi You, who said that the Emperor had used the term. By that time, he was already very familiar with Yi You.

Zhang Shi truly got to know Yi You during a political debate at the Imperial Academy. He had always been among the most renowned figures in the academy, not only because of his father, Zhang Jun. Just as Han Yanzhi was widely supported, it wasn't only because of his father, Han Shizhong, or because he had been betrothed to a princess.

The political debate at the Imperial Academy was extremely lively, but he happened to have an upset stomach that day. Feeling listless, he decided not to go and hid in the back, writing and calculating using the formulas on the official gazette. Perhaps because he was feeling depressed, he got stuck on a step and couldn't figure it out for a long time. Suddenly, a voice came from behind him: "Affine coordinate system is needed here."

He was momentarily stunned. Following the suggestion, he suddenly understood. However, when he turned around to thank the person, he found that it was a young girl, with a group of guards following at a distance of ten or so steps.

"I've met you before, Zhang... Zhang Jingfu (Zhang Shi's courtesy name)," the girl said with a slight smile. "Why aren't you participating in the political debate at the Imperial Academy like the other students?"

The Emperor's eldest and second daughters were already married. Only the third daughter, Zhao Yi You, was currently by his side and spoiled to the point of being allowed to go wherever she pleased. Zhang Shi guessed that what she was about to say was "Zhang Qing," but somehow the words changed at the last moment into his courtesy name.

Physical discomfort, he offered as his reason.

Yi You nodded, looked at the pie beside his inkstone, and smiled again, "Since you're not feeling well, then don't eat the pie dipped in ink."

Zhang Shi lowered his head and looked at the pie he had bitten halfway, which he had unknowingly stained with a lot of black ink. For the first time, he understood what it meant to be so embarrassed that he wanted to disappear.

The girl in front of him still had a smile in her eyes, and the gaze she cast was like a force in original learning, a vector with direction.

*

Han Yanzhi One

Han Yanzhi felt like he was always missing something compared to others.

He expressed this feeling during the Lantern Festival when Yi You was gazing afar at Xi Niang, who thought she was cleverly running off to meet her lover. She didn't hear him clearly, her eyes still following Xi Niang's figure, and only asked vaguely, "What?"

Han Yanzhi's gaze returned from Yi You's cheek, swept to the couple Fo You and Shen You, and repeated himself. Yi You withdrew her gaze, followed his line of sight to see her eldest sister and her husband whispering to each other, and her second sister and her husband standing silently side by side. She smiled and said, "Is someone bringing up the eldest sister's husband again?"

This was an old topic. Among the sons of the military officials, princes, and dukes, none could compare to Yue Yun in terms of military prowess. Even if Han Yanzhi held positions in the Ministry of War and the Privy Council and received excellent evaluations, he always felt somewhat inferior to Yue Yun. Since he was inferior in military strategy, and also a young Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination), he always felt like he was slightly inferior to Zhang Shi. Clearly, Zhang Shi's career was not as good as his in order to avoid suspicion because his father was the Grand Councilor, yet he studied original learning and became a giant in that field day by day.

But Han Yanzhi looked at the eldest princess and Yue Yun and shook his head. That wasn't what he was talking about.

--Actually, at the moment he spoke, even he himself didn't understand what he wanted to say.

Han Yanzhi didn't know what the other two brothers-in-law were thinking, but what he hadn't told Yi You or his father was that he was initially very resistant to this marriage that had been destined since his birth. The reason was that he prided himself on his literary and martial talents. There was a folk saying: "Marrying a princess brings officialdom without trouble." This wasn't the most annoying thing. The current dynasty was different from the past, and marrying a princess was like cutting off one's career. Even if the ancestors recognized by the Emperor were not to be followed, he didn't know if he would be able to enter the Secret Pavilion in the future, and whether he would enter the Secret Pavilion based on his identity as the eldest son of Prince Qin and the princess's husband, or on his own reputation and achievements.

Later, he went through many positions, including a military official stationed on the border and a local official who cared for the people. He began to realize that he was actually very lucky: if he had been born a generation earlier, he would have had to personally brave arrows and stones like his father, relying on the bravery of a general to barely gain a foothold against the Jin soldiers. Or, like countless imperial relatives, he would forever be marked with the shame of the Jingkang Incident. And if Yi You were a little more spoiled, like countless of the most beloved princesses of previous dynasties, using her noble status to bully the lowly and her imperial power to deceive her subjects, he might have rebelled like countless rebellious imperial consorts in this dynasty, going all out to make a fuss through public opinion and remonstrating officials.

Qin Prince Han Shizhong's rascality and flamboyance were well-known, but he, Han Yanzhi, didn't have the experience of crawling and rolling with *a group of soldiers in the Western Army like his father. His licentiousness was restrained within, wrapped in a thin layer of Confucianism's reserved and elegant veneer.

When he was listed on the Golden榜 (list of successful candidates), he wasn't yet married. After the Qionglin Banquet (banquet for new Jinshi), the Emperor brought Yi You directly to his door. That wasn't his first meeting with Yi You, but it was the first time Yi You entered the Qin Prince Han family's residence. Han Yanzhi was half-pushed and half-guided by the Emperor to take Yi You to "familiarize" herself, and after familiarizing herself with the place, they entered his study. Yi You looked at the *Zizhi Tongjian* (Comprehensive Mirror to Aid in Governance) bestowed by the Emperor on his desk and smiled. She had given it to him.

She asked, "Where have you read to?"

Han Yanzhi had already finished reading it, but he didn't know if it was because he was happy and then depressed after becoming a *Jinshi*, but at this moment, facing this "destined" person, he blurted out: "*Tang Ji Forty*."

*Tang Ji Forty* contains: Guo Nuan once argued with Princess Shengping, saying, "My father did not become emperor because he was too lazy."

Yi You seemed not to understand and lightly skipped over the question, but she clearly did understand. She asked again, "My father uses Prince Qin as his backbone, what should I use you as, Imperial Consort?"

Han Yanzhi seemed to be startled by the straightforward "Imperial Consort" and even more confused by the question. He didn't answer for a long time.

"Should it be my heart?"

Yi You curled her lips, bent her eyes, and said softly. But only when she said such straightforward and bold words did she not have a smile in her eyes, nor did she have the amorous blush of a young girl on her cheeks.

*

Yi You Two

When she taught Xi Niang poetry, Xi Niang frowned at Bai Letian.

Yi You was puzzled and asked Xi Niang why she was so repulsed. Xi Niang pointed to "Ying Di Yin Ping: Zhi Yin Ben Ye" (Drawing Silver from the Well Bottom: To Stop Illicit Love) and said, "Why does this poem have such good lines but such a title?"

*Zhi Yin Ben Ye*. Yi You smiled. This was the term that young children in the age of longing were most disgusted with. She asked, "What do you want?"

Xi Niang hummed for a long time before whispering, "I don't think the words of parents and matchmakers are necessarily good... If it doesn't start in chaos, it doesn't necessarily end in abandonment. Otherwise, why would there be the poem 'Mang' in the *Book of Songs*? Besides, can this kind of thing be stopped?"

Yi You looked at the line of poetry her daughter was pointing at, *On the wall, on the horse, they gaze at each other from afar. At first sight of you, my intestines are broken.*

*At first sight of you, my intestines are broken*.

When she first read this sentence, she was about the same age as Xi Niang now. At that time, what she liked most was to read these lingering words. Yi You had copied this line of poetry neatly on a flower note, stroke by stroke, dried the ink, and carefully sandwiched it in the new book of original learning arithmetic that Father had ordered to be revised. The Imperial Academy was very close to the Imperial Palace, and the "frivolous" Father always indulged his children in entering and leaving the palace. Yi You used the excuse of asking for advice, strolled into the Imperial Academy with her people, and found Zhang Shi in the place where books were stored.

She stood silently behind Zhang Shi for a while, and as always, suddenly announced the answer she had obtained long ago: "The limit of the function obtained in the end for this question is one."

Zhang Shi sighed and turned to look at her helplessly, in a state of anger that he wanted to get angry but couldn't. He glanced behind her, and there was no one there, so he asked, "Where are the guards following you?"

"Downstairs."

After Yi You said this, she became inexplicably nervous. When she was nervous, she pursed her lips and couldn't help but smile, the corners of her lips slightly raised in an arc. After a long while, Zhang Shi hesitated to speak, got up, bowed to her, and asked, "What did the princess bring this time?"

Yi You wanted to tease him for not asking "Where's Han Ziwen (Han Yanzhi's courtesy name)?", but these four words felt like thorns stuck in her heart. She didn't dare to pull them out, paused, and just handed over the book.

The page with the flower note sandwiched in it was turned to immediately. Yi You watched Zhang Shi's gaze stop on it, but then he seemed to be burned and suddenly withdrew it, landing on the reassuring question. He read the question for an unprecedentedly long time, and for a time, the silence was only filled with shallow and long breaths, and even the bustle of the birds outside the window seemed to be separated by a layer, and could not be heard clearly.

Hearing thunder in silence, Yi You recalled what Father had said unintentionally. She listened to her heartbeat with thrilling and incomparable joy, listening to the sound of breathing, the breathing sound was subtle and lingering, intertwined to the point that it was indistinguishable from each other.

"Is there only this question?" Zhang Shi asked her after a long while, but did not look up. Yi You did not notice the question he was pointing to, only looked at his fingertips pressing on the flower note, using strength, slightly turning bluish-white.

"Two questions," Yi You said, "One that you can explain now, and the other... Can you give me your handwritten manuscript? I'll take it back and look at it."

So Zhang Shi picked a question and explained it in detail. To be honest, his voice was not as low and mellow as Han Yanzhi's, but it was not too high or too low, just touching Yi You's heartbeat. She had felt this way the first time she heard his voice.

That time was also a political debate at the Imperial Academy, but she only came to find Father near the end. At that time, the students were scattering in twos and threes. She tried to avoid them, but suddenly heard a voice spiritedly discussing the content of the debate, and it was clearly still a young man.

She stopped to listen for a long time. The same quietness, the world seemed to only have that young man's spirited discussion. When Father came over, it suddenly became noisy. Yi You realized that she didn't know how long she had been listening, and she hadn't even noticed when the students started bowing.

Father nodded casually, focusing his attention on his little daughter. He asked her what she had heard. Yi You paused, turned back, and glanced at the young man who was bowing his head with the same voice. Father's voice was filled with joy, and he said that this was Zhang Qing's eldest son, Zhang Shi.

Zhang Shi, Zhang Jingfu.

"Jingfu," Yi You asked, after Zhang Shi finished speaking, a question that had nothing to do with the matter, "When it comes to the word 'first meeting', I think Letian's line is good, but not good enough to be called the best. Do you have a better poem in your bag, Jingfu?"

Zhang Shi didn't ask her how she thought of poetry from the original learning formula, but remained silent for a long time, long enough for Yi You to feel like it was probably hundreds of thousands of years, before he said, "Yes, Du Fan Chuan's 'Meeting Friends'."

*Meeting you for the first time is like returning to an old friend. The moon is new on the horizon, and I miss you most day and night.*

...However, such a line of poetry is for meeting friends, and can only be for meeting friends.

Yi You didn't say this comment that popped up for no reason. She still had a smile and nodded as if she had suddenly understood. Zhang Shi rarely had a question. He asked, "Why does the princess think the 'wall' lines are not good?"

"It's not that the lines are not good, it's that the matter and emotions described in this are not good."

Yi You stopped smiling. If the ministers who had followed the Emperor since the Battle of Bagong Mountain saw this expression, they would definitely say that this expression was ninety percent similar to the Emperor's puppet-like appearance, the same without joy or sorrow, and the same firm without waves.

"'Broken intestines' is such a painful word, and the end of this poem is so unbearable. If it were me, I would not let this emotion end like this." Yi You said, "A little uncontrollably emotional is all... A hundred years of spring and autumn, establishing merit, establishing virtue, establishing words, is it just a matter of love?"

Zhang Shi nodded slightly, neither denying nor agreeing. Yi You only heard him seem to take a long breath, and then slowly exhale it.

*

Zhang Shi Two

Zhang Shi had very few people he could have a good conversation with.

Han Yanzhi counted as one. He was a great oddity. No one expected that the Qin Prince, who used to spout "The Master said" and "ignorant child" all the time, would have such an eldest son. But what he didn't expect was that both of these couples were people who could argue with him head-on.

After that day, Yi You often came to the Imperial Academy, openly and legitimately, avoiding people only as if so as not to disturb them. Sometimes Han Yanzhi was there, sometimes Han Yanzhi wasn't there. The matters discussed were mostly original learning, and sometimes current affairs and people's livelihood.

Only not about love and romance, and rarely thought about love and romance.

Unlike Han Yanzhi, Yi You may have been used to the fact that most people would not argue with what she said, so she preferred to ask questions. Asking about original learning questions was fine, but when she asked about other things, she could always grasp the most tricky and yet most profound points, hitting the nail on the head.

He remembered one time when the topic somehow turned to the Emperor and the princes and military officials. Han Yanzhi was also there. Yi You asked, and no one answered for a long time. Zhang Shi remembered her gaze drifting over leisurely, jokingly opening his mouth: "Imperial Consort doesn't speak, but what face are you putting on, Jingfu?"

He keenly noticed that Han Yanzhi's ever-calculating expression was lifted by this sudden address, and that his own expression had probably changed as well, but it just so happened that it wasn't facing Han Yanzhi. He couldn't see it himself, but he was very clear about it.

Zhang Shi knew that this was a small joke, and it could also be said to be a small, unknown provocation in the dark. Imperial Consort, what an intimate nickname, like his proper Jingfu, called out openly.

Imperial Consort, Imperial Consort. Jingfu.

Imperial Consort, Imperial Consort.

The sharpness and edge that he inherited from his father were immediately aroused. After speaking, he realized that the eldest son of Prince Qin was sitting next to him. But Zhang Shi was not embarrassed, but looked extremely impolitely and offensively at Yi You's eyes, which were exactly the same as the Emperor's, until Yi You took the lead in avoiding him.

Zhang Shi thought this time was long, but it was actually only a moment. Yi You's gaze fell on Han Yanzhi, who was next to her, and she heard him continue to judge in his low and mellow voice: "Jingfu is spirited and high-spirited, but he is also inevitably bookish."

Zhang Shi retorted: "Are you sure Han Ziwen that you are not biased? Are you sure that you are not bookish? Is there not even a little bit of insatiable greed, self-pride, and not knowing it?!"

Han Yanzhi seemed stunned. Zhang Shi had already reacted after speaking, and after a few moments of silence, he said calmly: "I misspoke just now."

Yi You and Han Yanzhi changed the subject and continued, while he didn't say anything, and couldn't say anything anymore. It wasn't until he returned home that his father told him that he was going to get engaged to the Yuwen family, and he didn't say anything. Early the next morning, he told Han Yanzhi about this, not avoiding the crowd at the Imperial Academy, and was greeted with cheers and congratulations.

He smiled slightly, returning the greeting and thanking them like a dignified gentleman in poetry, while thinking nonchalantly: Yi You probably knows about it by the end of the day.

Sure enough, Yi You didn't leave the palace that afternoon, but sent someone to deliver a new imperial book, related to original learning. The person who delivered the book was quick-witted, saying that the princess said that she would definitely send a congratulatory gift for the wedding, and this book was just a token of her heart, and to repay the fees for the many drafts of questions in the past.

This was determined not to return the handwritten manuscripts of the original learning questions he had written. But it didn't matter, because those were written for others to see anyway, and it was said that the Yuwen family, who was about to marry, was good at poetry and books, but did not know anything about original learning.

*

Han Yanzhi Two

To be honest, if only talking about daily interactions, Han Yanzhi might really feel that he and Yi You were just an ordinary couple. He might not be able to say the four words "deeply in love," but it would be no exaggeration to say that they were even more "harmonious" than an ordinary couple.

This was probably because they had never been angry or upset.

After getting along, he realized that Yi You was very calm, completely different from the way she used to be in the Imperial Academy, asking questions aggressively. He couldn't say he was happy at the wedding, he only felt nervous and annoyed. From discussing the marriage to personally welcoming her, the red tape and the guests like clouds wore him down until he was only left with fatigue and annoyance.

After the marriage was discussed and settled, Prince Qin's mansion held a grand banquet to celebrate, and all the Blue Bridge love tokens were used at the banquet. High-ranking civil and military officials entered the hall, and all kinds of people, from students of the Imperial Academy and military academies to personal soldiers and old subordinates, came from outside. Han Yanzhi heard some students watching the excitement and complaining that "when drunk, one should stop, with dignified bearing," and was about to tactfully say a few words when he saw the eldest son of Grand Councilor Zhang also drinking cup after cup, as if vowing not to stop until he was drunk.

He found it rare, knowing that Zhang Shi's wedding was also coming up. So he patted the man's shoulder and asked in a low voice: "I've never seen you drunk before, why don't you save it for your own banquet, and come here to get drunk?"

"Whether I was sober or drunk before, I don't know," Zhang Shi was clearly deeply drunk, closed his eyes, put his head on the table, and did not forget to add the second half of the sentence before snoring, "--I won't be drunk in the future."

Han Yanzhi stared at him for a long time, slowly put away his smile, and didn't say anything.

This was just a trivial matter, and Han Yanzhi only remembered it again more than ten years later. When this scene appeared in his mind, even he himself was surprised, not expecting it to be so profound, still as if it were right in front of him.

He remembered it because it was rare for Yi You to be upset.

--Actually, it couldn't be considered upset, but as soon as the words came out, Yi You's expression visibly sank, as if she didn't quite agree with the marriage between Xi Niang and Zhang Shi's son. But she didn't say why, just asked him: "Did Zhang Jingfu also agree?"

"Yes."

Yi You didn't fail to notice the scene at the Lantern Festival, and even that scene was what she signaled to Han Yanzhi. After a long time, her expression softened, and she sighed half wistfully, and said softly: "It's best if Xi Niang likes it."

That scene suddenly surfaced in his mind, but it was more than just this scene.

Han Yanzhi suddenly remembered when he was in the Imperial Academy, discussing so-called moral behavior, discussing the actions and the intentions. He forgot what he said at the time, and he forgot what Zhang Shi said, he only remembered Yi You's gaze shifting from him to Zhang Shi, like a knife cutting out a mark. What she said was: "Discussing the actions and not the intentions, I have nothing that I can't tell others when discussing the actions."

Han Yanzhi also remembered that Yi You rarely wrote poetry, saying that she lacked this quick talent, and later she rarely discussed poetry, only talking about it when instructing her children. One time when she was telling Xi Niang about *Jing Nu*, she greatly disdained "because you and the Madam lack morality, so I present the method of the red pipe," but happily agreed with Xi Niang's statement of "narrating emotion."

Han Yanzhi casually mentioned her words to Zhang Shi, thinking that he would criticize them, but unexpectedly, Zhang Shi was silent for a long time, and slowly said that giving someone something was inherently obscure and difficult to understand.

Han Yanzhi laughed and joked that Zhang Shi's manuscript that he had given to Yi You was still at home, and Yi You often took it out and used it when teaching the children, and he had seen it more than once, so this could also be considered giving someone something.

Zhang Shi also smiled. Han Yanzhi didn't look closely at the time, but now that he thought about it carefully, the smile in his eyes was vaguely similar to Yi You's approving smile.

Yi You Three

After the news of Zhang Shi and Yuwen's engagement came, it was only a few days until the first month. As the New Year approached, everyone was so busy that they were turned upside down. Yi You rarely stayed in the palace and didn't go out again, and Consort Pan was even a little unaccustomed to it for a while.

The next time she saw Zhang Shi was on the fifteenth day of the first month. On the fifteenth day of the first month, the flower market was as bright as day, with fish and dragons dancing all night. According to common sense, Yi You had to accompany the Emperor, but she rarely made a request to the Emperor on this day. She had been bored for a while, and she wanted to go to the Lantern Festival.

The Emperor agreed, standing upstairs and looking out from afar as his daughter led her people and melted into the crowd of laughter and joy.

Yi You didn't bring many guards, but it was impossible not to bring any. The group was dressed in ornate clothes, smiling and signaling when they met officials they recognized, bowing and making greetings, and when they met ordinary common people, they were just regarded as the daughters of wealthy families who were used to being surrounded by people. She stood upstairs and looked down at the capital, the accustomed sight of ribbons of light, and when she was in the bustling crowd, it was the enlarged and colorful lanterns, a myriad of red dust in her eyes.

Yi You should have missed Zhang Shi.

But the *flower-like and moon-like lantern next to her was too big and too bright, and the light and shadow were cast on people. Yi You only glanced lightly out of the corner of her eye and caught a fleeting figure. She suddenly turned her head, wanting to call out but afraid that he wouldn't hear, so she hurriedly squeezed through the crowd, barely grabbing the corner of his sleeve.

Two huge lanterns separated a bit of space as a dividing line, and the person she was looking for was standing in the shadows of this gap.

Yi You let go of her hand, stared at the person in a daze for a few breaths, and said: "Congratulations."

Congratulations for what? Congratulations on a happy event? Congratulations on the New Year? Yi You herself didn't realize what she was congratulating, but she heard the person say: "Congratulations to the Princess too."

...What are you congratulating me on?

Yi You didn't ask, and she didn't know what to say for a long time. After a moment, she asked again: "What month are you getting married in?"

"...Around March, probably."

March, ah, she heard that there were peach blossoms in Zhang Xiang's residence, and the peach blossoms would probably bloom at that time. *The peach tree is young and elegant, brilliantly blooming. This young lady is going to her new home, it is fitting for her family.*

That's great.

Yi You couldn't say the word "great". She had never seen the peach blossoms that only existed in words. She looked up at the city tower where the Emperor was standing, but couldn't see clearly. She looked to the left and right behind her, and the guards protecting the princess were vaguely visible in the light. She wanted to hug the lover who had stirred up such waves in her heart, as she had imagined countless times, and she wanted to recite "Spring Banquet" to him on this New Year's holiday, but in the end she didn't do anything, just gave a curtsy.

Yi You turned around and finally left the dimly lit place.

--The End--

Private Notes:

1. Yi You's daughter's nickname is Xi Niang, taken from "On the fifteenth day, the beautiful Xi Niang is called, with a slanted moth inserted into her cloud-like temples." Song people also have poems like this, which is said to be the Liao people's way of calling a beauty.

2. According to scholarly research, Han Shizhong's eldest son in history is suspected to be "Han Liang", but Han Shizhong specially asked Ya Di to name him in the text, suspecting that Ya Di would not give such a name, so Han Yanzhi is used as Yi You's Imperial Consort. According to the text and history, Zhang Shi and Han Yanzhi are both younger than Yi You. Therefore, Yi You in this article likes younger men.

3. The Zhang and Han families both have houses in Jingyuan, and it is estimated that no matter how the capital is moved, both families will definitely have properties in the first ring of the capital. Han Yanzhi and Zhang Shi are both famous "ignorant children" in history, so they are arranged to be classmates and close friends at the Imperial Academy here. Then, Zhang Shi's career is only so-so, but he is a great master of Neo-Confucianism, here he is a great master of original learning, and Han Yanzhi is both civil and military, so this will not be changed.