The competition between the two academies naturally drew much attention; cheers and groans could be heard from afar, echoing all the way to another nearby hilltop.

Adam Brooks was out enjoying the spring with his classmates, and from a distance, he saw the lively scene. A classmate laughed and said, “If I weren’t really uninterested in cuju, I’d go over and join the fun too.”

Adam Brooks’s expression was calm and indifferent. Dressed in blue, he was elegant and striking, with an air of aloofness and coldness between his brows—truly a jade-like figure, renowned as the most handsome man in the entire capital.

“Noisy,” Adam Brooks said. “What the upper class favors, those below are sure to follow.”

His classmate teased, “You should be glad that the current Emperor doesn’t fancy rare treasures, or else it would be another disaster for the common people.”

Adam Brooks looked coldly at the crowd in the distance. Ever since he passed the provincial exam as the top scorer seven years ago and traveled to study, he had seen many suffering people who couldn’t even get enough to eat, which only made him more disappointed in those in power. The current Emperor was neither meritorious nor incompetent, utterly unremarkable, letting powerful ministers bully him for years—there was really nothing about him that made Adam Brooks see him in a different light.

His classmate could tell what he was thinking just by looking at his expression. He smiled and leisurely continued their walk.

Though the Great Heng appeared peaceful on the surface, those with insight who could see the situation clearly knew that this peace wouldn’t last long.

Once the frail and sickly young Emperor died, internal and external troubles would arise, with wolves circling on all sides. At that time, any lofty pretext would do—the real contest would be over who had the most troops.

Even if the young Emperor was lucky enough not to die, could he really tame those hungry wolves with green eyes?

With what? His frail body?

*

This lively cuju match left the players drenched in sweat, and even the spectators were sweating profusely. More importantly, as soon as these young men left the field, palace eunuchs brought them bowls of steaming ginger soup. Upon learning that it was specially ordered by the Emperor, many poor students from humble backgrounds couldn’t help but tear up.

“Thank you, Your Majesty,” they said, downing the ginger soup in one go. Their whole bodies, inside and out, quickly warmed up. A few tall, burly youths even wiped at their reddened eyes and said in gruff voices, “The ginger soup is delicious.”

“Gentlemen, hurry and put on your coats,” the palace eunuch said kindly. “It’s still early spring, you mustn’t be careless.”

As the crowd gradually dispersed, Andrew Smith, Heir of the Smith Estate pinched his nose and drank a bowl of ginger soup, then shouted, “Refreshing!”

Handing the bowl to the eunuch, he slung his arm around Eric Carter’s shoulders and teased, “Little Eric, why aren’t you drinking yet? Don’t tell me you can’t bear to part with it?”

Eric Carter’s ears turned red, and he quickly drank it all in one gulp. “You never watch your mouth, always talking nonsense.”

As they were chatting, Marquis Smith’s young servant came running over. “Young master, the lord wants you to hurry over and go see the Emperor with him.”

Heir of Marquis Smith was taken aback. “See the Emperor?”

He immediately panicked. “I—I—I’m still wearing my cuju uniform.”

The servant urged, “Just throw on any coat for now, the lord is in a hurry.”

Heir of Marquis Smith quickly followed behind, heading off with Marquis Smith to the pavilion to meet the Emperor.

Brian Clark had just invited the heads of the two academies over for a conversation. Upon receiving the message, he said, “Let them in.”

Marquis Smith and his son bowed and said cautiously, “Your Majesty has just recovered, so I thought to come and pay my respects.”

Brian Clark smiled. “Why so formal with me? Sit.”

Marquis Smith sat upright and proper not far from him, his back straight, still tense.

How could he not be nervous? Those who never face the Emperor can never understand how they feel. The Emperor had ascended the throne young, and they thought that after more than ten years, they had figured out his character. Who would have thought that all their guesses were just part of the Emperor’s plan? How old was the Emperor, really? He only had his coming-of-age ceremony last year!

With his father seated, Heir of Marquis Smith didn’t dare sit. Brian Clark’s gaze fell on the young man who had kept his head down the whole time and said, “This must be Little Andrew. So you’ve grown this much.”

Marquis Smith said, “The boy is mischievous, and now that he’s grown, he gives me even more headaches.”

“Young people should be like that,” Brian Clark said with a smile. “Little Andrew, come sit by me.”

Andrew Smith nervously sat down beside the Emperor. Though it was beside him, there were still two people’s distance between them. He wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination, but after sitting down, Andrew Smith seemed to catch a faint fragrance at the tip of his nose.

The incense used in the palace was always of the finest quality, and the more he smelled it, the more entranced he became. Andrew Smith felt his whole body go soft, when he heard the Emperor teasing beside him, “I’ve heard many officials say that the Heir of Marquis Smith is quite handsome. It’s a pity your family doesn’t have a daughter of marriageable age, or else someone would have already tried to get ahead of the rest.”

Marquis Smith felt very proud, but Andrew Smith was so embarrassed he could hardly sit still. The Emperor was clearly teasing him on purpose, saying, “Little Andrew, look up and let me see what you look like now.”

Andrew Smith, stiff as a duck, suddenly jerked his head up, his young face flushing bright red. He even forgot to avert his eyes and looked straight at the Emperor.

The Emperor looked at him with slight surprise, while Andrew Smith stiffened his neck, his mind and chest both going blank.

Marquis Smith barked, “Andrew Smith!”