The Yue Prince's residence in Yankang Ward sat idle as always, basking lazily in the warm winter sun.
Meanwhile, in Xinghua Ward, the Yan brothers' modest household continued its orderly routine, each man quietly occupied with the work he deemed most important.
At the western gate of Chang'an, Li Chunfeng's face carried a faint flush as he waved farewell to friends, swaying slightly as he prepared to return to his small home in the city.
He planned to rest properly for the night. The ten days of New Year leave were ending tomorrow, and it would be time to resume official duties in earnest.
Yet just as Li Chunfeng's left foot was about to step through the city gate, he noticed a servant lingering outside, glancing around as if searching for someone.
This was a familiar face. Li Chunfeng clearly remembered him as a waiter from a restaurant in the Eastern Market. The food there was quite good, and Li Chunfeng was a regular patron. Still, seeing him loitering here was puzzling.
Thinking it harmless to greet him, Li Chunfeng raised his hand and called out,
"Ruan Yang'er. Who are you waiting for?"
What Li Chunfeng did not expect was the servant's face lighting up with delight the moment he saw him. Without answering, the man suddenly shouted at the top of his lungs,
"Commander. This is Li Chunfeng!"
Commander?
What had he done to draw the attention of a commander of the city's imperial guards?
Before Li Chunfeng could react, a pack of soldiers surged forward like wolves. Without explanation, they lifted him bodily and slung him across the back of a tall horse.
The commander mounted immediately, and the group galloped straight into the inner city.
Draped sideways over the horse's back, Li Chunfeng felt dizzy and disoriented. He sensed that they passed through the bustling streets of Chang'an before the surroundings abruptly grew quiet. Hearing the guard verify credentials at a checkpoint, he understood that they had entered the imperial city.
This was, in fact, the place where he had worked for years.
Although he had once been recommended by his friend Liu Wenjing to serve as a recording secretary in the Qin Prince's household, he lacked both battlefield talent and political brilliance. His reputation never rose.
After Liu Wenjing was executed in the first year of Wude on charges of treason, Li Chunfeng faded even further into obscurity.
It was only after the Xuanwu Gate Incident, when the Qin Prince became crown prince and later ascended the throne through abdication by the retired emperor, that Li Chunfeng sincerely hailed the new sovereign and finally found room to apply his skills. Through calendrical proposals, he was promoted to Doctor of the Bureau of Astronomy, studying astronomy, calendars, mathematics, and Daoist texts.
That shout at the city gate had instantly reminded him of his unjustly executed old friend Liu Wenjing. It was only now, realizing that he had entered the imperial city rather than the Court of Judicial Review, that his wildly pounding heart finally eased.
Even so, the fright left his legs weak, and in the end the mounted guard had to carry him inside.
From being draped over a horse, Li Chunfeng found himself slung over the commander's shoulder. His vision darkened, suggesting they had entered a room. He then heard the commander offer a one-handed salute.
"Duke Fang, Li Chunfeng has been brought."
"Junxian, no need for formalities. Since he is here, return to your duties."
Fang Xuanling looked at Li Chunfeng, whose face still carried traces of panic, and smiled helplessly. He personally poured a cup of hot tea and placed it in Li Chunfeng's hands, then deliberately brought up an everyday topic to calm this young man who would later be praised as a mathematical prodigy.
"Doctor Li, did you return home for the New Year?"
Li Chunfeng sat awkwardly on the folding chair, still unaccustomed to it. He nodded slowly.
"I am from Yong County. My home is less than a hundred li from Chang'an. With a good horse, it is half a day's ride."
Fang Xuanling nodded. That was perfectly reasonable. A doctor's stipend was not high, and during the New Year it was better to return home to greet one's parents than to remain cramped in a small Chang'an courtyard.
After viewing the light screen on the third day of the first month, the emperor had summoned Fang Xuanling and Du Ruhui every couple of days. The plan to establish a Mathematics Pavilion was already close to finalized.
The planning itself progressed smoothly. The problem was finding Tang-era mathematical talent, which gave Fang Xuanling quite a headache. After several turns, the matter ultimately landed in Li Junxian's hands.
Looking now at Li Chunfeng, who had been "invited" in the most straightforward manner possible, Fang Xuanling shifted the topic.
"It is said that although Doctor Li specializes in calendrical studies, your strength truly lies in mathematics?"
"Mathematics?" Li Chunfeng came to his senses a little. Though confused, he answered honestly.
"I dare not claim mastery. I only know a little."
"That will do." Fang Xuanling nodded with a warm smile. "His Majesty intends to establish a Mathematics Pavilion and has ordered that Doctor Li be transferred as Assistant Director. Allow me to congratulate you in advance."
Li Chunfeng clutched his hot tea and blinked. Every word Fang Xuanling spoke made sense, yet together they seemed incomprehensible.
He was doing just fine as a doctor. How had he suddenly become an assistant director?
Assistant director?
Fang Xuanling watched as the young man's blank expression slowly transformed, his eyebrows climbing higher and higher. Just as Fang Xuanling began to wonder how wide Li Chunfeng's eyes could grow, the young man appeared ready to leap up in excitement, forgetting that he was seated rather than kneeling.
With a loud thump, both man and chair toppled backward.
Even so, Li Chunfeng's excitement was impossible to hide.
Assistant director was a rank second only to director.
Although newly established, he knew that among current offices only the Lesser Treasury Assistant Director was junior fourth rank lower, while the Palace and Library assistant directors were junior fourth rank upper.
And his own position as Doctor of the Bureau of Astronomy?
Junior ninth rank lower.
In other words, if he agreed, by tomorrow his name would resound throughout Chang'an, having leapt twenty ranks in a single move.
Such favor instantly brought one phrase to Li Chunfeng's mind.
Unprecedented since the founding of Tang.
Yet it was precisely because of this thought that Li Chunfeng calmed down. He understood the emperor well enough to know that His Majesty was no blind or careless ruler.
He was not like Zhangsun Wuji, bound by marriage to the imperial family. Such favor meant corresponding responsibility. Could he truly shoulder it?
After letting his excitement surge once, Li Chunfeng voiced his concern.
"What exactly is this Mathematics Pavilion?"
Fang Xuanling answered without hesitation, clearly prepared.
"To study the calculations of the ancients and expand the mathematical path of Tang."
"To compute the geometry of the heavens above and the vastness of the seas below."
"To compile the new Zhenguan calendar and to assist officials in governance and the people."
Faced with Fang Xuanling's fluent explanation, Li Chunfeng had only one response.
"I fear I cannot bear such responsibility. I beg His Majesty to withdraw the decree."
Whoever wanted such a twenty-rank leap could have it. Li Chunfeng was certain he could not.
When he turned to leave, Fang Xuanling stopped him. Turning back, Li Chunfeng saw the duke smiling kindly.
"Doctor Li, remain seated. If you feel unfit, then tell me. Who do you believe could bear this responsibility?"
The establishment of the Mathematics Pavilion had been entrusted entirely to Fang Xuanling by the emperor. This proposal to elevate Li Chunfeng had been prepared with contingencies and an examination.
If Li Chunfeng had accepted on the spot, Fang Xuanling would have produced the test for immediate evaluation. After a year of intensive study at the Imperial Academy, Fang Xuanling's own mathematical ability was no longer weak.
If Li Chunfeng declined, as he now had, then he would be asked to recommend other mathematical talents to fill the pavilion.
After all, Fang Xuanling had heard that the young Li Chunfeng had an extensive circle of acquaintances. And as the Bureau of Astronomy belonged to the Nine Courts, overlapping yet independent from the Three Departments and Six Ministries, there were surely capable men unknown to him.
The proposal was reasonable. Li Chunfeng sat back down, and the first name he offered matched Fang Xuanling's own knowledge.
"In matters of mathematics, the foremost should be the Court Gentleman for Consultation and Assistant Director of Astronomy, Wang Xiaotong."
Li Chunfeng spoke with admiration, praising the man at length.
Fang Xuanling understood. Wang Xiaotong's devotion to mathematics dated back to the Sui dynasty. Even the editions of The Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Arts and Continued Methods that Fang Xuanling studied at the Imperial Academy used Wang Xiaotong's most accessible commentaries.
In truth, after discussion with the emperor, Wang Xiaotong had already been chosen as director of the Mathematics Pavilion.
Li Chunfeng went on to name several others, which Fang Xuanling carefully recorded. Once examined, all would become members of the pavilion.
As for unwillingness, it was impossible. Wang Xiaotong himself, despite extraordinary talent, was only seventh rank. Even entering the Imperial Academy would raise him only to sixth rank, never crossing the crucial fifth-rank threshold.
The Mathematics Pavilion, personally established by the emperor, granted offices beginning at the fifth rank. The compensation and status it offered even exceeded those of the Imperial Academy. How could it lack appeal?
After recording more than a dozen names, Li Chunfeng grew hesitant, his expression awkward.
"I also have a friend of my age. His mathematical ability far surpasses mine. He also understands music, literature, hydrology, and geography."
"Oh?" Fang Xuanling's interest was immediately piqued. "Who is he?"
Li Chunfeng answered without hesitation.
"Direct Scholar of Music Affairs at the Hongwen Hall, Lü Cai."
Though the title suggested music, Fang Xuanling still carefully recorded the name, trusting Li Chunfeng's reputation as a prodigy.
In the end, when Fang Xuanling offered Li Chunfeng the position of Doctor of the Mathematics Pavilion with a ten-rank promotion, there was no longer any reason to refuse.
Only one condition puzzled him.
"No indulgence in Huang-Lao studies?"
After the ten days of New Year leave ended, Chang'an returned to its usual rhythm, made even more prosperous by the victory over the Eastern Turks.
By mid-second month, a group of short-statured foreigners finally arrived at the gates of Chang'an.