The Emperor's Beloved: My Ancestor is the Crown Prince?

In mid-September of the eleventh year of the Zhenguan era, autumn was deepening in Chang'an, but the study of the Prince of Wei's mansion was warm and cozy.

Li Tai was hunched over his desk, organizing the outline of the "Kuodi Zhi" (Records of the Land), his desk piled high with maps and geographical records of various prefectures and counties. Since the day his father reprimanded him for being forced to stay home and reflect on his mistakes, he had turned his attention to scholarly compilation, and in the past few days he had found some peace amidst the vast sea of ​​books.

"Your Highness, Miss Yiyi has arrived," a servant announced softly from outside the door.

Li Tai paused, his pen still, and looked up in surprise. Why was that child at the Prince of Wei's residence?

He got up and straightened his robes. Before he even reached the door, he heard the sound of footsteps approaching. Little Qingyi, carrying a bamboo food box almost half her height, wobbled across the threshold, her face flushed and her forehead glistening with sweat.

"Brother King Wei!" Her eyes sparkled. "Yiyi brought you something nice!"

Li Tai hurriedly stepped forward and took the food box, finding it quite heavy: "Why are you carrying it yourself? Just let a servant carry it."

"Because I'm going to give it to Brother Prince Wei myself!" Xiao Qingyi tilted her head back, her smile as bright as the autumn sun. "Auntie the Empress said that Brother Prince Wei has been working hard compiling a book lately, so he needs to catch up on his studies!"

Li Tai was amused by her and led her to sit on the couch by the window. The food box was opened, revealing several layers: the top layer contained several exquisite pastries, the middle layer was a mixture of assorted fruit and vegetable crisps carefully wrapped in oil paper, and the bottom layer was not food at all, but a rectangular flat wooden box.

Xiao Qingyi carefully opened the wooden box—inside were not the candy toys she usually carried, but a set of peculiar things: several slender, strange "pens" with nibs of various colors, a small metal clip that could be opened and closed, and several stacks of neatly cut, colorful pieces of paper.

"This is..." Li Tai picked up a pen curiously. The pen body was made of some kind of smooth material, and the pen tip was as thin as a needle. With a light press, it could extend and retract.

"Brother said this is called a 'highlighter'!" Xiao Qingyi came over, picked up a yellow pen, and lightly drew a line on the edge of the map that Li Tai had spread out—a bright fluorescent yellow line appeared on the paper, which was particularly eye-catching under the candlelight.

She then picked up the small metal clip and demonstrated how to clip together several sheets of paper: "This is called a 'binding clip.' It can be used to clip important papers together so they don't get messy!"

Finally, there are those small, colorful pieces of paper, smooth on one side and sticky on the other, so they can be stuck to the pages of a book. "These are 'sticky notes.' Write down anything that comes to mind and stick it here; you'll see it right away next time!"

Li Tai tried them one by one, a look of surprise flashing in his eyes. Each of these seemingly simple little items was extremely practical. The highlighter pen, in particular, made clear and eye-catching marks on the map; the sticky notes were an excellent tool for organizing his thoughts—he needed to record and mark things frequently while compiling the "Kuodi Zhi" (a geographical gazetteer).

"Are these all stationery items from your hometown?" he asked softly.

Xiao Qingyi nodded vigorously: "Yes! Brother said that Brother Wei Wang needs lots and lots of paper and pens to compile his book, and these might be useful!"

As she spoke, she took out a small cloth bag from her bosom, which revealed an even smaller wooden box inside. Inside the box were dozens of silver needles as thin as hair, each tip gleaming with a cold light, along with a small magnifying glass.

"This is also for my brother, the Prince of Wei!" she said earnestly. "My brother said that his eyes get tired from reading so many small characters. This magnifying glass can make the small characters bigger! These needles... are for picking up pages. My brother said that in ancient times, the pages of books sometimes got stuck together."

Li Tai picked up the small magnifying glass—made of crystal and set in a brass frame, it felt quite heavy. He tried using it to read the small print on the map, and it became much clearer. The silver needles were even more exquisite, with sharp points; they were indeed excellent tools for organizing ancient books.

"Your brother... is very thoughtful." A warm feeling welled up in Li Tai's heart. These gifts were not expensive, but each one was thoughtful and practical, clearly the result of careful consideration.

"Because Brother King Wei is doing something very important!" Xiao Qingyi's eyes lit up. "Brother said that compiling books allows many people to know things they didn't know before, which is an incredibly amazing thing!"

Looking at the child's innocent smile, Li Tai felt most of the pent-up emotions dissipate. He suddenly asked, "Yiyi, do you think editing books is a meaningful thing?"

Xiao Qingyi nodded vigorously: "It's meaningful! My brother said that books are... are..." She tried hard to recall her brother's words, "They are the carriers of civilization! Yes, that's it! They allow knowledge to be passed down, so that future generations can also see it!"

"The carrier of civilization..." Li Tai repeated the word, his gaze becoming profound. "Well said. The 'Kuodi Zhi' compiled by Brother Tai is meant to let future generations know how magnificent the mountains and rivers were and how abundant the resources were during the Zhenguan era of the Tang Dynasty."

"That Prince Wei is doing something amazing!" Xiao Qingyi clapped her hands and exclaimed, "Just like the Crown Prince made salt available to more people, Prince Wei is making more people aware of how wonderful the Tang Dynasty is!"

These words, though simple, sent a jolt through Li Tai's heart.

These days he's been immersed in disappointment and resentment, forgetting that compiling the "Kuodi Zhi" is itself a momentous event worthy of being recorded in history. Why always compare yourself to others? Everyone has their own path to walk.

"Yiyi is right," he said softly, his tone filled with relief. "Brother Prince Wei will compile this book well."

Little Qingyi smiled happily, then remembered something: "Oh right, Brother Wei Wang, Yiyi learned a new game at kindergarten today!"

"What game?"

"It's called 'Find a Friend'!" She stood up, cleared her throat, and sang in her childish voice, "Finding, finding, finding a friend, found a good friend, salute and shake hands, you are my good friend—"

She sang and gestured, saluting and shaking hands, looking earnest and adorable. After finishing the song, she held out her little hand: "Brother King Wei, we're good friends now!"

Li Tai paused for a moment, then smiled. He reached out and shook her hand: "Okay, we're good friends."

An autumn breeze rustled through the window, carrying the scent of ginkgo leaves in the courtyard. Inside the study, two figures, one tall and one short, sat facing each other. Li Tai continued organizing his manuscripts, while Xiao Qingyi leaned over the desk, doodling with a highlighter on the margins of a map. She drew a small sun, a few clouds, and below the clouds, a tiny figure in a dress.

"This is Yiyi!" she said, pointing to the little figure. Then she drew another little figure in a robe in the other corner of the map. "This is Brother King Wei! We're reading under the clouds!"

Looking at the childlike painting, Li Tai suddenly got up and walked to the bookshelf, taking down a long sandalwood box. Inside, instead of gold and silver jewelry, was a rare and complete set of fossilized seashells—dozens of palm-sized shells embedded in a bluish-gray stone slab, their textures clear and their shapes varied. Most remarkably, each shell was perfectly preserved, with even the finest details clearly visible.

"These are 'shells in stone' that were presented as tribute from Shandong two years ago." Li Tai placed the wooden box in front of Xiao Qingyi. "It is said that they are seashells from the seabed millions of years ago, which were buried in the mountains due to tectonic shifts and eventually turned into stone. Look, the patterns on these seashells are still clearly visible."

Little Qingyi opened her eyes wide and gently touched the cool, stone-like seashells with her small hands: "Were they... alive before?"

"Millions of years ago, they opened and closed in the sea, swallowing and spitting out seawater," Li Tai said gently. "Now, though they have turned into stone, they have preserved this most beautiful form. It's like compiling a book—recording what is now and leaving it for people a thousand years from now to read."

He then took a thin scroll of silk from the bookshelf, unfolded it, and found the poem "Deer Cry" from the "Minor Odes" section of the Book of Songs, copied in neat small regular script, with elegant and dignified handwriting.

"This was copied by my brother, the Prince of Wei, some time ago." He rolled up the silk scroll and handed it to Xiao Qingyi. "Yiyi is learning to write now, so I'm giving this to you. Don't rush your writing, just strive for neatness and seriousness. Each character is a seed; plant it, and one day it will blossom and bear fruit."

Xiao Qingyi took the silk scroll, its surface soft and light to the touch. Although she couldn't read the words, she could feel the solemn sentiment behind it. She looked down at the fossilized seashells, then suddenly looked up and asked, "Brother Wei Wang, can Yiyi take a few seashells to kindergarten? To show the other children what the seabed looked like millions of years ago!"

Li Tai smiled: "Of course. You choose a few pieces."

Xiao Qingyi carefully selected three of the most complete seashell fossils and wrapped them gently in a handkerchief. She then looked at the scroll and said earnestly, "Yiyi will definitely study writing hard, and when I've finished writing, I'll also copy a poem to give to Brother Wei Wang!"

"Okay." Li Tai smiled. "Brother will wait."

The two talked for a while longer, and then Xiao Qingyi started rubbing her eyes—she had gotten up early today and played all morning, so she was feeling sleepy.

Li Tai had a servant bring a thin blanket and spread it out on the couch by the window to make a simple sleeping area. Xiao Qingyi lay down, holding the scroll and the handkerchief wrapped with the seashell fossil, and quickly fell asleep. Her long eyelashes cast small shadows on her cheeks, and her breathing was even and soft.

Li Tai continued organizing the manuscript, occasionally glancing up at her sleeping child. Sunlight streamed in through the window, casting a warm golden glow on her. At that moment, the study was quiet and peaceful, with only the rustling of turning pages and the child's even breathing.

He suddenly realized that this kind of time was also very good.

After an unknown amount of time, Xiao Qingyi woke up. She sat up, rubbing her eyes groggily, and saw Li Tai still working at his desk. She asked softly, "Brother Prince Wei, did Yiyi sleep for a long time?"

"Not long." Li Tai put down his pen, walked over and tidied her slightly messy hair. "Shouldn't you go back now? Your brother, the Crown Prince, will worry if it gets any later."

"Mmm!" Xiao Qingyi nodded, picked up the silk scroll and the seashell fossil, walked to the door, then turned back, "Brother King Wei, Yiyi will come to play with you again next time!"

"Okay," Li Tai smiled. "You're welcome anytime."

Watching the small figure disappear at the end of the corridor, Li Tai returned to his desk, his gaze falling on the painting Xiao Qingyi had drawn on the edge of the map—a little person wearing a skirt and a little person wearing a robe, under the clouds, with a book drawn next to them.

He picked up his brush and wrote two lines of small characters in the blank space next to the painting:

"Children doodle under the clouds, and stone shells silently bear witness to the vicissitudes of life."

"Why strive for a bright future? Let's be guides on the mountain of books."

After finishing writing, he gently blew the ink dry and carefully put the map away.

Outside the window, the autumn sun shines brightly.

---

Meanwhile, in the Eastern Palace, Li Chengqian had just returned from the Ministry of Works and was discussing the specifics of flood control in Jiangnan with several officials. Seeing Xiao Qingyi skipping in carrying a silk scroll and a handkerchief, he was somewhat surprised: "Yiyi, what are these…?"

"It was a gift from Brother King Wei!" Xiao Qingyi unfolded the silk scroll as if presenting a treasure, then opened the handkerchief to reveal the fossilized seashells inside. "Brother King Wei said these seashells are from the seabed millions of years ago! And this character, it was written by Brother King Wei, it's so beautifully written!"

Li Chengqian took the silk scroll and unfolded it. The handwriting was indeed neat and elegant, clearly the work of a master. The seashell fossils were even rarer; Qingque had actually given them to Yiyi…

He looked into his sister's bright eyes and suddenly understood something.

"Brother King Wei is also very good to you," he said gently.

"Yes!" Xiao Qingyi nodded vigorously. "Brother Wei Wang even taught Yiyi to recognize maps, telling her where the mountains and rivers are. Brother Wei Wang knows so much!"

Li Chengqian smiled and patted her head: "Then Yiyi should learn from Brother Prince Wei."

"Yes!" Xiao Qingyi nodded vigorously, then remembered something, "Oh right, Crown Prince, Prince Wei is compiling a very impressive book called... called 'Kuo Di Zhi' (Records of the Land), saying he wants to let everyone know how wonderful the Tang Dynasty is!"

A complex expression flashed in Li Chengqian's eyes, which ultimately turned into a soft sigh: "That's very good."

Perhaps, this is better for everyone.

As night fell, Xiao Qingyi had to go home. Holding the silk scroll, the fossilized seashells, and all the gifts she had received that day, she waved goodbye to Li Chengqian.

Inside the Lizheng Hall, Empress Zhangsun was listening to a palace maid report on the events at Prince Wei's residence that day. When she heard that Li Tai had given Yiyi his treasured fossilized seashells and the silk scroll he had copied in his youth, a smile of satisfaction appeared in the Empress's eyes.

"That child Qingque," she whispered to Li Shimin beside her, "has finally understood what is truly worth cherishing."

Li Shimin was toying with the jade rabbit cup when he heard this and looked up: "Something truly worth treasuring?"

"It's not gold, silver, pearls, or jade, nor power or status," Empress Zhangsun said softly. "It's the passing down of knowledge, the exchange of pure hearts, and the intention to leave beautiful things for future generations."

Li Shimin paused for a moment and slowly nodded: "Yes. Of all my sons, Qingque is the most talented. It is good for the country and for himself that he can focus on his studies."

He looked out the window at the moonlight and suddenly remembered what Xiao Qingyi had said that day—"Brother Wei Wang is doing something very impressive."

Perhaps, unintentionally, the child has facilitated another good deed.

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