The two walked among the red walls and blue tiles of the imperial city, keeping their voices barely audible.
"His Majesty has only just passed. No one has the time or mind to deal with that old dog Qi Zongbi." Eunuch Yue snorted. "We can let him live a few more days.
"I am just a servant. I cannot judge whether Qi Zongbi is guilty or innocent," said Eunuch Yue, walking ahead with his gaze fixed on the blue stone slabs beneath his feet. "If His Majesty deemed him worthy of death, then I believe he deserves to die."
Su Yi, walking behind, was silent for a moment, unsure whether to agree with these words. After a while, he softly said, "I fear at this critical moment... we still can’t move against Minister Qi."
Eunuch Yue paused midstep, then continued walking. "Indeed."
Su Yi looked at the figure walking ahead and hesitated before he said, "Minister Qi now holds military power away from our influence at the border, and commands over eighty percent of the country’s forces... Not only can we not act against him, but I’m afraid we may even need to appease him—"
Su Yi stopped speaking just in time, for he noticed that Eunuch Yue had clenched his duster tightly.
"Qi Zongbi, you old dog!" Eunuch Yue practically spat out the words through gritted teeth. "One day, your head will roll!"
Silence fell between them as they walked forward. As they neared the Grand Academy Hall, they stopped in unison.
Su Yi raised his head. "Eunuch Yue, I have a few questions. May I ask for your guidance."
Eunuch Yue spread his hands, "Grand Tutor Su, please feel free to ask. I shall answer as best as I can."
"Perhaps my questions are a bit presumptuous, but they are too important to ignore. I have just two questions." Su Yi furrowed his brow slightly and rubbed his hands together before looking seriously at Eunuch Yue.
"First, when will the news of our defeat at the border be made public?
"And second... when will the Crown Prince ascend to the throne?"
A bitter smile appeared on Eunuch Yue’s face. "You've thought of these questions as well, Grand Tutor?"
Su Yi nodded. "The Emperor’s passing has already thrown the entire nation into mourning. If news of a defeat at the border and a large-scale invasion by Northern Qiang were to spread now, it could disturb the people’s morale... I fear the news can’t be kept under wraps for long. It’s been three days since the information emerged, so it’s likely close to reaching the capital by now."
"Does Grand Tutor Su have any strategy?" Eunuch Yue asked, looking at him.
Su Yi shook his head and admitted, "I wouldn’t call it a sound strategy, but it’s the necessary course of action. Before the news reaches the capital, the Crown Prince should ascend to stabilize the situation.
"It is inevitable that news should spread, but as long as someone occupies the throne, the people will have an anchor of support. At that time, there will undoubtedly be rumors and attempts to disturb the public mind, and that will require your Eastern Depot to keep a close watch, Eunuch Yue."
Eunuch Yue shook his duster, took two steps back, and suddenly bowed deeply to Su Yi. Startled, Su Yi quickly reached out to help him up.
"Eunuch Yue, what are you doing?" Su Yi exclaimed.
Eunuch Yue straightened up, staring intently into Su Yi’s eyes. "Grand Tutor Su deserves my respect."
Su Yi was somewhat flustered, unsure where to put his hands or feet.
Eunuch Yue continued, "When His Majesty was alive, he often mentioned you, Grand Tutor Su... He said that you possess remarkable literary talent and a noble spirit, that you are a rare talent for the ages. Having you as the Crown Prince’s teacher is a blessing for our Ruen Dynasty. It’s evident that the Crown Prince holds you in high regard as well..."
"Is... is that so?" Su Yi murmured, his mind filled with the image of the mischievous child.
Eunuch Yue rarely smiled. "How could it not be? Last night, when I spoke to His Highness about his ascension, can you guess what he said? He actually said he would agree to take the throne, but only if you, Sir Su, were made the Internal Prime Minister to assist him... When I asked him about Senior Fan, he said he would let Senior Fan retire peacefully and hand the position over to you. Haha..."
Su Yi awkwardly chuckled along.
"Grand Tutor Su." Eunuch Yue suddenly narrowed his eyes, glancing at Su Yi. "Don’t actually want to become the Internal Prime Minister, do you?"
Su Yi waved his hand with a bitter smile, "Eunuch Yue, you must be joking. I have enough self-awareness to know my limits. Even if I were able to take that position, I'm afraid that I’d be devoured without a trace as soon as I did."
"You’re a wise man, Grand Tutor." Eunuch Yue sighed lightly. "This enormous court may appear calm... but in truth, it’s a den of wolves."
Eunuch Yue raised his head and gave Su Yi a smile. "Sometimes I feel that, in this court, being a eunuch is actually the easier path."
Su Yi smiled back but said nothing more.
"Please, Grand Tutor, His Highness has likely been waiting for a while." Eunuch Yue bowed slightly and gently withdrew.
Su Yi watched as Eunuch Yue departed, and only when the eunech had completely vanished did he step into the Grand Academy Hall.
The hall was quiet, with all the windows closed, the light dim, and no one had come to light a lamp.
In the center of the hall lay a large pile of objects. From a distance, Su Yi couldn’t make out what it was, so he approached slowly. When he got closer, he realized the pile, standing taller than a person, was made up entirely of books from the Grand Academy Hall.
Frowning, Su Yi quickly walked over, picked up a book at random, and flipped through it, finding nothing unusual.
"Teacher..." a voice suddenly came from below.
Su Yi was startled and quickly looked down, only to realize that Chen Xun was lying on top of the pile of books. He hadn’t noticed the boy before.
"What, what are you doing?" Su Yi instinctively wanted to scold him but softened his tone. "Why are you lying here? Why didn’t you ask someone to light a lamp?"
"Teacher, I don’t want to read anymore..." Chen Xun’s voice was muffled, as though his nose was stuffed.
Su Yi squatted down and looked at him. "Why is that?"
"Because" Chen Xun raised his head from the shadows, and Su Yi noticed that his eyes were swollen. He stared at Su Yi with red eyes. "Because... Teacher, you lied to me."
Su Yi was surprised. "What... how did I lie to you?"
Chen Xun clutched tightly to Su Yi’s trousers. "You said... ‘In books, there are houses of gold, beauties as fair as jade, and stores of grain’... You said that if I read well, I could accomplish many things... You told me this, didn’t you, Teacher?"
Su Yi involuntarily swallowed and nodded. "Yes, I said that."
Chen Xun suddenly pushed Su Yi to the ground. "So what!"
"Can a book bring back my father?!" Chen Xun grabbed a book by his side and threw it at Su Yi. "Tell me! Tell me! What’s the use of all these books?!"
One book after another struck Su Yi as he crouched on the ground with his head lowered. He neither dodged nor avoided the barrage of books.
After a long while, perhaps exhausted, Chen Xun stopped throwing books and buried his head in his knees, sobbing.
"Tell me... sob... tell me... what’s the point of reading... sob..." Chen Xun clutched a book tightly in his hands, the cover crumpled in his grip. "I... sob... I’m going to burn all these books..."
The sound of footsteps echoed as Su Yi quietly stood up and walked over to the distraught Crown Prince. Su Yi sat down beside the child, and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"I’m sorry... there is no book that can save your father..." Su Yi said softly, sighing, "But... books can save the lives of many others."
Chen Xun raised his head, his eyes glistening.
Su Yi looked down at the vulnerable child beside him. "This is also what your father wanted... In this country, there are still many people who need you to save them."