This world surprised Yan Liang greatly, even more so than his own identity.
In the previous world, he served as an official for nearly ten years, thoroughly studying history books, with particular interest in the era of Emperor Renzong of Song. Historical records mention Bao Zheng and Pang Ji, but not Zhan Zhao or Pang Yu.
But they exist in this world.
Yan Liang glanced at the book in front of him and found the names of Zhan Zhao and Pang Yu. Although it was only mentioned briefly, it was of great significance to Yan Liang.
...but it can only be considered significant.
Yan Liang felt heartbroken, and thinking about his identity made him feel like he was about to have a heart attack.
He successfully rose from an oppressed class to the oppressor class.
His identity this time is Zhao Huan, the son of Emperor Huizong of Song.
Nearly a century had passed since the reign of Emperor Renzong of Song, so his friends must have been no longer alive.
Yan Liang sighed.
He was just a little bit away... If he could just go one more step, he could see his friends again.
The system popped up to comfort him: "There are plenty of fish in the sea... Even if you meet them, you can't acknowledge them."
It felt obligated to comfort its distressed host, yet it couldn't understand why the host still wanted to see their friends when they knew they couldn't recognize each other.
Yan Liang was even more depressed.
—Yes, the contract explicitly states that we cannot bring it up ourselves.
In the previous world, Wang Lianhua recognized him but did not ask any questions. He was quick to accept things because he had accidentally gone to another world before, and Yan Liang was the one who sent him back. Naturally, he vaguely knew about Yan Liang's differences.
In the eyes of his other friends, Yan Liang was just a charlatan.
Yan Liang was not discouraged by this incident. After the sadness, he was still a good man. While recuperating, he sorted out the current situation of the Song Dynasty.
It was almost exactly as he had read in history books—his cheap father was obsessed with music, chess, calligraphy, painting, and beautiful women; treacherous officials held sway in the court; and the Jurchens were eyeing him covetously from the outside—a situation that made him extremely worried.
The system suggested to him: "You can choose to become the emperor, or fake your death."
Yan Liang smiled silently and said nothing.
Zhao Huan had no great ambitions... which was quite rare for a prince; he just wanted to be a lazy bum.
Yan Liang's "salted fish" is the kind that wanders around aimlessly, occasionally causes trouble, and sometimes flips over to sunbathe; but Zhao Huan's "salted fish" is a truly salted fish, the kind that's too lazy to even flip over.
Despite his seemingly indifferent attitude, Zhao Huan fell into a pond shortly after being named crown prince, caught a cold, and subsequently died.
Yan Liang is now using the excuse of recuperating to peacefully slack off—Zhao Huan is not favored by his father. To put it nicely, he is dignified and composed; to put it bluntly, he is dull and taciturn. But in order not to be completely disliked by his father, he studies harder than anyone else.
Just because he studies hard doesn't mean his father will become closer to him.
Zhao Huan was too dull and completely failed to know how to please others. Zhao Ji sometimes treated those ministers who flattered him and sent him gifts more intimately than he treated his eldest son.
Yan Liang recuperated at his residence for a few days until he recovered from his cold, then went to the palace to pay his respects to his adoptive father.
The Eastern Palace was far from the Emperor's study, and Yan Liang had to travel through most of the imperial city to reach the study.
Paying respects to someone is neither simple nor difficult; it's just troublesome.
Zhao Ji exuded the air of a cultured middle-aged man. When Yan Liang looked at him, he didn't feel like he was facing an emperor, but rather like an artist.
Yan Liang was looking at Zhao Ji, and Zhao Ji was also looking at him.
Emperor Huizong felt that his son, after recovering from his illness, remained as taciturn as ever, but had undergone some inexplicable changes.
He looked Yan Liang up and down and said, "Has the Crown Prince lost some weight?"
Yan Liang replied respectfully, "There are some."
Zhao Ji thought for a moment and said, "Go back and eat more."
Yan Liang almost laughed at these down-to-earth words and replied, "Yes."
Afterwards, Zhao Ji talked about some other things. He considered himself a caring father at this time, and seeing the Crown Prince's flattered expression, he nodded in satisfaction.
Taking advantage of the moment when the emperor was in a good mood, Yan Liang subtly expressed his desire to move out of the palace—Zhao Huan originally lived outside the palace, but moved into the Eastern Palace after being made crown prince—Zhao Ji frowned slightly, waiting for Yan Liang to continue.
Yan Liang first expressed his surprise, excitement, and gratitude at being named Crown Prince, and praised Zhao Ji extensively. He then said that since he had become Crown Prince, he should naturally share the burdens of his father, the Emperor. Living outside the palace would allow him to get closer to the people's lives, experience the scenery of the capital, and also help his father find some novel trinkets in the capital, while ensuring that his studies would not be neglected.
Yan Liang's skill of speaking to people in a human language and to ghosts in a ghost language is always effective, especially since he has spoken to Zhao Ji's heart.
He would be criticized by people in the court if he received a gift from some ministers, and he had to sneak out of the palace if he wanted to leave occasionally. Being an emperor was really frustrating.
Emperor Huizong of Zhao had a heart that yearned for freedom. Seeing Yan Liang's earnest words and sincere feelings, he thought that if his son was filial to his father, the officials might not say anything... They might only praise the crown prince for his filial piety.
An unconventional emperor is naturally capable of making unconventional decisions, and Zhao Ji readily agreed with a wave of his hand.
He usually disliked the Crown Prince because of his dullness and slowness, and preferred his talented third son to his eldest son. But what the Crown Prince said today suited him perfectly, and Zhao Ji found the Crown Prince much more agreeable.
"It's good that you have this intention, but don't be too playful. Once you become the crown prince, don't let me down."
Emperor Huizong spoke his admonitions in a solemn manner, completely unaware that he was the least qualified person to say such things.
Yan Liang respectfully agreed, and only took his leave after Zhao Ji had nothing more to say and waved for him to leave.
When Zhao Ji happened to look up and see the Crown Prince's back, he felt that the prince's figure was elegant and even a bit charming.
He thought to himself that it was strange. The Crown Prince was clearly still the same Crown Prince, so why did his illness and weight loss remind him of those martial arts figures?
But his back view is quite handsome; no wonder he's his son.
Emperor Huizong thought with satisfaction.
*
The Crown Prince moved into the Eastern Palace in just over three months, and after recovering from his illness, he met with the Emperor and then moved out of the Eastern Palace. This left the court officials somewhat confused, and they couldn't help but wonder if the Emperor disliked the Crown Prince and wanted to back out.
The day after the Crown Prince moved out of the Eastern Palace, Emperor Huizong of Song explained the reasons for the Crown Prince's departure during the morning court session, dispelling the doubts of the court officials about whether the emperor disliked the Crown Prince.
The emperor's main point was that his crown prince cared about the people and voluntarily moved out of the Eastern Palace to be closer to their lives. He did not show any dissatisfaction in his words. Of course, he did not reveal his own thoughts, but simply praised the crown prince.
Even if a crown prince who "loves the people" was not favored before, was dull and uninteresting, and violated etiquette, since the emperor praised him and the crown prince moved out, the court officials could only follow suit and praise him as well.
Before becoming the crown prince, Zhao Huan was the Prince of Ding, and he had a residence outside the imperial city. When Yan Liang moved out of the palace, he moved there.
While the imperial city was full of constraints, Yan Liang had much more freedom in the Crown Prince's residence. He completed his daily lessons with the Grand Tutor and the martial arts instructor, and spent the rest of his time doing as he pleased.
Yan Liang found some free time, sternly refused the guards' offer to follow him, and ran out of the mansion to start wandering around Bianliang City.
Yan Liang went to the Kaifeng government office. Looking at the familiar scene, he stood for a while in the distance before turning and leaving.
The Pang family mansion of that year also had its plaque changed, and it was bestowed upon someone else by Emperor Huizong.
The Imperial Cat and the Brocade-haired Rat are no longer in the martial arts world; what circulates in the capital are martial arts celebrities that Yan Liang has never heard of.
Returning to the same place, everything has changed.
Yan Liang gazed at the former Pang residence, recalling his last meeting with Pang Yu.
He was unable to say goodbye until the very end.
The former Pang family mansion has become the current Divine Power Marquis's mansion. Yan Liang stared at those four big characters, feeling a pang of sadness in his heart.
A strange gray-clad youth stood in the distance, gazing at the Divine Marquis's Mansion. This puzzled the two guards of the manor. However, the youth simply stood motionless in the distance, seemingly not intending to cause trouble. They memorized the youth's appearance, waiting for their master to return before making any decisions.
The gray-clad youth stood for a moment, then turned and left. At the same time, a luxurious carriage approached from the front of the youth, with three charioteers, each dressed in fine clothes. It was the carriage of Fang Yingkan, the young master of the Divine Power Marquis's mansion.
The three men holding the reins glanced warily at Yan Liang, who was walking straight toward them, only to see the gray-clad youth walk past them without even looking at them.
The young marquis inside the carriage noticed the commotion outside. He casually lifted the curtain and looked out, just in time to meet the profile of a stranger. The stranger's eyebrows and eyes inexplicably carried a sense of sorrow, and his expression was wistful.
Upon returning to the manor, the two guards reported to Fang Yingkan that the gray-clad youth had been standing not far from the manor, gazing at it. Fang Yingkan seemed thoughtful, recalling the faint sorrow on the youth's face, and a sense of interest arose in his heart.
—If someone came seeking revenge, they should be filled with hatred. Why does that young man look so sorrowful?
Fang Yingkan was not surprised that the people seeking revenge came to find him, but the young man arrived at the Divine Power Marquis's residence with a sorrowful expression and showed no reaction to Fang Yingkan's carriage—this showed that the gray-clad youth did not care about the Divine Power Marquis.
Judging from the fact that he kept staring at the plaque, it's more accurate to say that he cared about the Marquis of Shentong's residence.
interesting.
*
Yan Liang, whose behavior was considered amusing by the young marquis, was walking down a bustling street. The lively atmosphere pulled him out of his indescribable mood.
Even though I've accepted that my friends might not be alive anymore, I still feel sad when I actually feel it.
Yan Liang sighed in the crowd.
The system panel suddenly popped up in front of him, displaying the latest mission:
[Mission: Rescue the cat.]
[Description: There is an abandoned kitten in the alley ahead of you. Please take it home.]
The system tasted the host's new emotions and was disgusted. It specially issued a task to comfort the poor host and hope to cheer him up.
Yan Liang blinked, sensing the care from the system.
Following the system's instructions, he found the kitten curled up in a corner of the alley, its eyes still closed.
The little guy was a white cat, with a weak meow and trembling.
Yan Liang's heart softened, and he gently picked it up and took it home.
System: [What name are you going to give it?]
Yan Liang thought for a moment: "The little guy is all white, so let's call it Big Snow."
system:【……】
It thought that after years of literary cultivation, the host's taste should have improved, but the naming skills were still as...tacky as ever.
Author's Note: New world, new look, this time I'm getting a cat!
Petting cats, drinking tea, and incidentally taking care of an elderly person (×)
Retirement might be a bit difficult.
I also did some research, and it seems very difficult for princes in ancient times to leave the palace… Just consider this me making things up, as long as it flows smoothly, OTZ. Thanks to the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants between 2020-03-07 19:50:09 and 2020-03-09 14:42:14!
Thank you to the little angel who threw the landmine: Poetry and Wine in Youth (1);
Thank you to the little angels who watered with nutrient solution: Mo 65 bottles; Yin Shiyu 10 bottles; Ying Yingling 5 bottles;
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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