In the spring of the nineteenth year of Guangcheng, the Imperial Tutor accused Crown Prince Ying Shen of forming factions for personal gain and plotting treason. The Emperor was furious, deposed the Crown Prince, and ordered him to drink poison. All those who had been close to Ying Shen were implicated-some had their properties confiscated, others were exiled. Even the once-illustrious Left Prime Minister Zhuge Wenyu faced repeated demotions, his official position lowered again and again, all his actual power stripped away.
In the summer of the nineteenth year of Guangcheng, Princess Chenyue, distressed by her elder brother’s misfortune, fell ill with anxiety and fear, and passed away at the end of summer at only eighteen years of age.
In the autumn of the nineteenth year of Guangcheng, Zhuge Wenyu spoke disrespectfully, confronted the Imperial Tutor, and repeatedly refused to change his ways. The Emperor, in consideration of his past contributions to the country, did not punish him severely but instead demoted him to be the magistrate of a small northern city, never to return to the capital.
In the winter of the nineteenth year of Guangcheng, the Emperor passed away. The young ninth prince, Ying Yi, ascended to the throne with the assistance of the Empress and the Imperial Tutor, and his reign was named Yinxi.
On the day Zhuge Wenyu departed for the northern city, the capital experienced its heaviest snowfall in twenty years.
In his early years, he had achieved the rare feat of winning the three highest imperial examinations, becoming the youngest top scholar of Da Xuan. He had devoted himself to teaching the princes and princesses, giving his all to ensure worthy successors for the country. Throughout his life, he had been upright and honest, yet he faced countless frame-ups and plots, which even implicated those around him.
He wanted to avenge his wrongfully killed friend and eliminate corrupt factions to restore integrity to the officialdom. So he carefully planned each step, gradually rising to a high position, supporting the ruler he approved of. In the end, however, he was still one move short, resulting in the loss of all his friends and family, a complete defeat.
On the day he left the capital, Zhuge Wenyu wore a deep gray cloak, standing beside the carriage, looking back at the city gate for a long time, allowing the swirling snow to whiten his temples.
“Sir, it’s time to depart,” said the servant, handing Zhuge Wenyu a hand warmer.
Zhuge Wenyu sighed silently, took one last look at the imperial city he had served for half his life, and lowered his head as he got into the carriage.
The carriage bumped along the small road heading north. The pure white snow was marked with tracks from hooves and wheels, so conspicuous yet quickly covered by the heavy snowfall, as if they had never existed.
“Cut-!”
Director Zhang stood up from his chair and clapped his hands:
“Very good! Let’s congratulate Teacher Jiang on completing his scenes!”
Jiang Nan’an got down from the carriage, and the staff immediately presented him with a large bouquet of flowers.
The completion of filming is always a lively affair. The main actors held flowers, interacted, and took photos as mementos. Finally, all the cast and crew took a large group photo together, with a red banner unfurled behind them that read “TV Drama ‘The Imperial Tutor’ Successfully Completed, May It Achieve High Ratings.”
This signified that Jiang Nan’an had bid farewell to another character, to the end of the story as far as he knew.
“Congratulations to Teacher Jiang on completing filming-”
After all the group photos were taken, the staff recording the wrap-up vlog turned off their equipment. Yan Jie appeared from somewhere, holding a red rose, and walked over to insert it into the bouquet in Jiang Nan’an’s arms.
“Thank you.”
Jiang Nan’an handed the flowers to Xiao Sun, sat down in a chair, and watched the crew pack up the props and equipment while resting and waiting for the makeup artist to call him.
It was June, and the weather was already somewhat stuffy. Although the studio was covered with artificial snow scenes that looked like a vast expanse of white, the temperature hadn’t dropped a bit despite the midwinter-like imagery.
Jiang Nan’an had taken off his cloak, but the layers of ancient costume still made him feel stifled. He held a small fan pointed at himself, making his long hair flutter.
“Would you like something to drink? I made some fruit and vegetable juice. Nutritious, low-calorie, and healthy.”
Yan Jie produced a thermos as if performing magic and poured a cup for Jiang Nan’an.
Jiang Nan’an didn’t like drinking beverages and was initially reluctant, but after Yan Jie’s strong recommendation, he hesitantly took a small sip.
Yan Jie truly had his own understanding of food and drink. The fruit and vegetable juice he made was neither too sweet nor too sour, refreshing and delicious. The temperature was just right, not too cold to harm the stomach, yet cool enough to relieve the heat and greasiness.
“…Another cup.” After tasting a small sip, Jiang Nan’an’s furrowed brows relaxed, and he immediately gulped down a cup, then pushed the cup toward Yan Jie:
“Thank you.”
“No need to thank me.” Yan Jie chuckled and refilled his cup:
“Is there a wrap party or something tonight? I was thinking of taking you out for something delicious, but I forgot about that, so it’ll have to be in a few days. By the way, do you have any plans after finishing this drama? When are you going back to Shanghai?”
“…” Jiang Nan’an didn’t answer immediately because he couldn’t.
He never remembered his own schedule clearly and could only look toward Xiao Sun.
Xiao Sun, receiving his signal for help, reluctantly reported to Yan Jie:
“Tomorrow afternoon’s flight back to Shanghai. Brother’s new drama just started airing yesterday, and there’s a press conference to attend in a few days. He’s busy!”
“‘Twelve Hours,’ right? The one you filmed with Liang Cheng?” Yan Jie had done his homework early.
Jiang Nan’an nodded, holding his juice.
He didn’t drink the second cup as quickly as the first. He sipped it slowly, his eyes fixed unblinkingly on the props being dismantled in the studio.
Seeing him watching so intently, Yan Jie didn’t disturb him, just watched him from the side. After a long while, he crouched down beside the chair, looked up at him, and asked gently:
“What’s wrong? What are you thinking about?”
Hearing Yan Jie’s voice, Jiang Nan’an came back to his senses.
He wasn’t used to discussing these things with people, but now, the person asking the question was Yan Jie.
So he thought for a moment and answered:
“Thinking about Zhuge Wenyu.”
“Oh-” Yan Jie nodded:
“The scene you just filmed, is that the last image of this drama?”
“Yes.”
“Is that Zhuge Wenyu’s ending?”
“In the drama, yes. In reality, no.”
“Oh? Then what happened to him in the end? My history isn’t great; I mostly slept through class. Can Teacher Jiang enlighten Little Spring?” Yan Jie smiled at him, revealing his sharp canine teeth.
“I have many questions, like, why is this drama called ‘The Imperial Tutor’? From the plot I’ve seen, Zhuge Wenyu only taught the crown prince, princes, and princesses, and the crown prince never ascended to the throne in the end, so how could he be called an imperial tutor?”
When this topic came up, Jiang Nan’an became animated.
He earnestly explained to Yan Jie:
“Well, not exactly. He did become an imperial tutor, but that was later. This drama covers the most tumultuous first half of his life, the story before he became the ‘Imperial Tutor,’ so strictly speaking, it’s more of a prequel.”
Jiang Nan’an asked while drinking his fruit and vegetable juice:
“Do you know Emperor Xianwen?”
“Of course, the one who was just put on the throne at the end, Ying Yi.”
“Yes, he ascended to the throne at a very young age and became a puppet emperor under the control of the Empress Dowager and the Imperial Tutor. But he was actually very clever, lying low for many years without showing his hand. Later, to fight against the Empress Dowager and the Imperial Tutor, he secretly sent someone to bring back Zhuge Wenyu. Zhuge Wenyu had already lost hope and didn’t plan to return to the imperial city to wade into troubled waters, but Ying Yi persistently invited him to come out of retirement-seven refusals and seven invitations. Seeing Ying Yi’s sincerity, he finally returned to the capital to help him.”
“Oh-” Yan Jie nodded:
“So, Emperor Xianwen Ying Yi became the most legendary emperor of the Xian Dynasty, and Zhuge Wenyu deserves some credit for that. The ’emperor’ in ‘Imperial Tutor’ refers not to the old emperor or Ying Shen, but to the future Ying Yi?”
“Mm.”
Yan Jie liked seeing Jiang Nan’an’s serious expression when talking about knowledge he enjoyed.
He unconsciously curved his lips into a smile and asked:
“So what were you thinking about Zhuge Wenyu?”
“I was thinking…” Jiang Nan’an paused slightly, thought for a moment, and then continued in a voice much softer than before:
“I stop here, and I can’t accompany him through those future stories.”
These words were like a small feather, gently stirring Yan Jie’s heart, creating ripples.
He’s just an actor, only able to accompany a character for a short time. In the future, Zhuge Wenyu would be Zhuge Wenyu, and Jiang Nan’an would be Jiang Nan’an, with whatever happens to one having nothing to do with the other.
So, was he empathizing with the character, thinking about the character’s future life, feeling sad that he couldn’t accompany the character through a complete lifetime?
Yan Jie really enjoyed this feeling of gradually understanding Jiang Nan’an bit by bit, like parting a cat’s thick fur to finally touch its soft, warm belly.
So, following this thread, he asked:
“Do you really like being an actor?”
“It’s okay,” Jiang Nan’an answered.
“Then can you tell me why you initially chose to become an actor?”
“…” When this question came up, Jiang Nan’an silently glanced at Yan Jie, then averted his gaze before saying:
“It’s a boring answer.”
“I want to hear it even if it’s boring.” Yan Jie crouched beside the chair, tugging at the wide sleeve of the costume:
“Tell me-please, Teacher Diao-this is Little Spring’s only wish in life-”
Jiang Nan’an was truly annoyed by him and quickly answered with two words:
“Good money.”
Such a plain and simple reason?
Yan Jie couldn’t help but laugh.
“And later? Later it wasn’t just for the money, right?”
“Mm.”
“Then why?”
“…”
This time, Jiang Nan’an was silent for a long time, so long that Yan Jie thought he wouldn’t answer the question and was about to change the subject when he finally heard him say:
“Experiencing other people’s lives this way is very interesting.”
Yan Jie raised an eyebrow slightly: “Oh?”
“Don’t you think so?”
Jiang Nan’an gently tugged at the corner of his lips, lowering his eyes, his fingertips tracing the embroidered patterns on his costume:
“Transforming yourself into other people, seeing other people’s stories and lives, you discover that different people have different ways of living.”
Hearing this, Yan Jie opened his mouth but couldn’t speak for a moment.
Finally, he asked:
“What about Jiang Nan’an?”
“Hmm?” Jiang Nan’an didn’t understand his meaning, but he didn’t have time to delve deeper. The makeup artist from the production came to find him, to take him to change clothes and remove his makeup and hair.
After removing the makeup, there was still the wrap party. Yan Jie, being an outsider, couldn’t very well tag along and was preparing to return to the hotel when Xiao Sun suddenly called out to him stiffly:
“Um… Brother Spring.”
“Hmm?” Yan Jie looked over: “What is it?”
As an assistant, Xiao Sun should have been sticking close to Jiang Nan’an, but now he deliberately stayed behind, probably having something specific to tell him.
Indeed, Xiao Sun cleared his throat:
“Sister Hong knows you’re here today and asked me to inform you that she wants to see you at seven o’clock. I’ll send you the location on WeChat.”
“Inform”?
That’s quite forceful.
Yan Jie understood immediately-Sister Hong had set a date to settle accounts with him.
He chuckled and nodded: “Alright, I’ll definitely be there on time, won’t flee from punishment. Please assure her of that.”
After saying this, he was about to leave the studio when Xiao Sun called out to him again after just a few steps.
Looking back, he saw the young man with an awkward expression.
Previously, Xiao Sun had been quite friendly toward him, but ever since learning about his relationship with Jiang Nan’an, Xiao Sun hadn’t been very welcoming.
Yan Jie understood-seeing one’s precious cabbage being taken, this was the expected reaction.
“What is it?” he asked.
Xiao Sun looked at him, then at the thermos in his hand, as if he had been building up his courage for a long time, and finally said unnaturally:
“I admit you’re very good at coaxing my brother to drink beverages… so could you tell me the recipe for the fruit and vegetable juice? I want to make it for him too.”
“?”
Well, well.
Someone’s trying to take over his job.
–
Qi Hong had arranged to meet Yan Jie at a café near the hotel. Yan Jie deliberately arrived early, hoping to make a good impression on Sister Hong by showing his punctuality, but he was still a step behind.
When he arrived, Qi Hong was already there, working on her laptop.
“Oh, sorry I’m late.”
Yan Jie sat down across from her.
Qi Hong glanced at her watch: “You’re not late.”
She closed her laptop and pushed the drink menu on the table toward him: “What would you like to drink?”
“An iced Americano is fine.” Yan Jie handed the menu back to the server, then looked at Qi Hong and got straight to the point:
“Sister Hong must have something to discuss with me? Actually, I’ve been wanting to talk to you too, but never found the opportunity. This is quite fortunate.”
Qi Hong hadn’t expected him to take the initiative, and was slightly taken aback:
“Then you go first.”
“I’ll be direct then.”
Yan Jie cleared his throat and said:
“I wanted to discuss with you whether we could let Jiang Nan’an be someone else less often? Not in acting, but in daily life, when interacting with people or facing fans. Could you let him be himself more?”
“?” Qi Hong raised an eyebrow:
“Don’t you know what Jiang Nan’an’s style of speaking and acting is like? You should be well aware of how low his emotional intelligence is, how harsh his words can be, and how little he considers consequences. You should also understand how much cyberbullying he would face if the media wrote articles about these traits. He’s a public figure-it’s normal to adopt a different persona when your personality isn’t suitable for the public. That’s the rule of the entertainment industry.”
“Yes, it’s normal, but I don’t think this rule suits him.”
“Oh? Tell me why.”
“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but his way of thinking is different from normal people. I’m not saying he’s abnormal, just a bit special. He has his own logic, and this logic is very strong, so he tries to reason through everything in his own way and can easily get stuck on details. I know you’re thinking about his career, but you may have overlooked that having him pretend to be someone else year after year creates an illusion for him. It makes him feel that ‘Jiang Nan’an’ is terrible, annoying, and unlikable, which is why he needs to use another identity and personality when interacting with strangers.
“I was just chatting with him in the studio. I asked him why he became an actor, and he said it’s interesting to become someone else and experience different lives, to discover different ways of living. When I heard this, what I understood was that he finds life as Jiang Nan’an very dull, which is why he’s so keen on portraying others.”
Yan Jie frowned slightly, unusually serious:
“I don’t know what he’s been through, and he doesn’t want to tell me, so I can’t intervene with the root cause. But you should be very clear about the reasons for his personality, so I really hope you can guide him in this aspect, help him build a sense of self-worth, rather than continuing this vicious cycle that makes him further diminish himself and pretend to be others. His personality has some issues, and I want to help him heal, but I can’t do it alone. I need the help of people around him, especially you. After all, he doesn’t have many close acquaintances, and you, Sister Hong, are probably one of the most important and trusted people in his life.”
Listening to his words, Qi Hong slowly leaned back in her chair, crossed her arms, and examined him, her expression gradually becoming serious.
After a long silence, she finally said:
“But you should know, I’m just his manager. For me, the most important things are his career and future. Other matters are not within my responsibilities.”
Yan Jie shrugged, smiled at her, and answered naturally:
“You’re also like his big sister, aren’t you? Otherwise, you wouldn’t have called me here to intimidate me because of his relationship with me, right?… Anyway, I’ve said what I wanted to say. Sister, you can do whatever you want with me. Little Spring can die without regrets. Just remember to tell my baby that I loved him until death.”
“.” Qi Hong rolled her eyes without answering him.
She took a sip of coffee, as if to emphasize something:
“He is my artist.”
Yan Jie nodded and naturally responded:
“He is my lover.”
#
(advanced chapters available on kofi)
L……. Lo… Lover?????? 🤯🤯
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