Pure: I have officially picked up this novel! Yay!

Translated by Pure

Edited by Ling, Leilaz, and cookiecrunch

Chapter 1: Wyverns in the Sky (1)

In the seventh year of Emperor Jing Long’s reign, the country had been kept in an orderly peace.

Early in the morning, Tang Tianyuan was on his way  to the Imperial Hanlin Academy as usual. Summer had arrived and the days had grown  long. The sun had already peaked out half of its head when he got out, and its bright, red glowing light was like a heated hand gently caressing the world.

If you asked him, how was he watching the sun?

Well, it was because he was standing on top of a wall...

No, Tang Tianyuan did not have any special hobbies, although he used to love going through the main entrance. But now, looking towards the east... as he expected... it was crowded by multiple carriages.

Some were simple, while others were luxurious. One carriage had a pink tassel hanging on it and was decorated with flowers as if it wasn’t obvious enough that a woman was inside it.

In fact, all of these carriages were occupied by women.

Tang Tianyuan placed his hands behind his back. Although he was standing on a wall, his elegance and poise was not reduced. Silently, he raised his gaze to the sun, which was partially covered by passing clouds. The breeze blew and the ends of his robe fluttered, carrying with it the scent of an unknown flower. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Feeling slightly better after taking in the floral fragrance, his mouth bent into a small arc. But with a fleeting thought, that small arc was quickly withdrawn.

Two years ago, when Tang Tianyuan was twenty years old, he had earned the title ‘Tan Hua’ in the imperial exams. Needless to say, he was proud of this achievement.

According to the usual practice, the top three scorers — Zhuang Yuan (First place), Bang Yan (Second place), and Tan Hua (Third place) — were to parade in the streets together. It was said that the Zhuang Yuan’s name would become well-known throughout the land, but this time the Tan Hua had stolen the Zhuang Yuan’s limelight. There was one simple reason for this: the Tan Hua was the best-looking out of the three.

Tang Tianyuan was originally already quite attractive, and because his appearance gave him a touch of heroic spirit, he would always stand out no matter which crowd he was in. The Zhuang Yuan was a middle-aged bearded man, while the Bang Yan was a tan man with flat features. So, when the two men stood next to Tang Tianyuan, the contrast made him look more handsome.

At the same time, Tang Tianyuan was discussed enthusiastically by the common people, and his family background was deeply etched onto their minds. After all, his father was the Chief Minister of the Royal Government.

The Chief Minister of the Royal Government wielded power comparable to that of a nation’s prime minister. He held great power, and there was only one man more powerful than him. Even though Tang Tianyuan had this kind of father, he still managed to work hard and earnestly pass the imperial civil service examination. It showed that he was eager to learn and very self-motivated. In comparison to the other sons of powerful families, who spent their days watching cockfights, hunting, and going to drinking parties with female entertainers, Tang Tianyuan’s image was unfathomably bright.

His appearance was good, as was his family background, and so was his character. And on top of that, he still had the talent to keep on improving. He was simply the ultimate dream husband for girls.

Fortunately for these girls, Tang Tianyuan had yet to take a wife.

As a result, the number of matchmakers arriving at Tang Tianyuan’s residence gradually increased. This wasn’t necessarily a bad thing because when a man got married, only the woman he chose as his wife would need to move in[1]. But ever since who knows when, a group of fangirls started gathering at the Tang Residence in order to see Tang Tianyuan’s heroic appearance whenever he went out. They all sat in carriages, hiding their faces from view, and only when Tang Tianyuan passed would they pull the curtain and take a look, flashing their youthful and sweet smiles.

And every time, Tang Tianyuan would bow his head and furiously walk past them at a hastened pace, pretending to be ignorant. But some girls were even more brazen, and whenever Tang Tianyuan passed by, they would purposely throw their handkerchiefs and purses in front of him. In those moments, he could only pretend to be blind.

Originally, he thought that this was just a temporary craze and that after a while, it would all be peaceful and quiet again.

However, he soon discovered that he was far too naive.

The carriages in front of the Tang Residence's entrance only kept increasing, their composition became more intricate, girls from brothels would come to look at him, and even the back door was no longer safe. Eventually, a few shameless girls, fed up with only staring at him from afar, began leaving their carriages to molest him.

They were definitely taking liberties, not just with their coquettish words, but also by reaching out and feeling his face. The pitiful Tang Tianyuan had lived for over twenty years, and yet he had never touched a woman, so these actions made him extremely embarrassed. However, it was also hard to report this to the authorities. He was a big man, and arguing with women would reflect poorly on him . He could only hide far away, and if that didn’t work, he would just climb over the walls.

In fact, no matter how incredibly striking Tang Tianyuan was, he couldn't have caused such a bizarre situation on his own. There was another reason for Tang Tianyuan’s growing popularity and admirers.

Thinking about it, Tang Tianyuan felt even more powerless. He genuinely didn’t want to mention it.

Tang Tianyuan, who stood atop the wall, was momentarily distressed before he quickly gathered himself and jumped down, taking the backroads to the Imperial Hanlin Academy. His home wasn’t far away, and neither riding a horse nor sitting in a carriage seemed appealing to him. 

Facing the Imperial Hanlin Academy was a bookstore. It hadn’t even opened yet , but there was already a long queue of people gathered at the door, probably wishing to frenetically buy something that had limited stock. Tang Tianyuan looked over the crowd with curiosity and was surprised to see his former classmate and current colleague, Brother Bang Yan, at the forefront.

Tang Tianyuan walked over and greeted Bang Yan. 

Bang Yan was eating baozi[2], and when he saw Tang Tianyuan, he asked him cheerfully if he wanted to eat one as well. Tang Tianyuan shook his head before asking, “What are you guys lining up here for?” 

“A good book!” Bang Yan’s eyes glowed, “It is Miao Miao Sheng’s newest book, <Records of the Suppression of Tang Feilong>.” The name of the book was a bit tricky, like a tongue twister, so Bang Yan spoke the name with great difficulty, spraying out quite a bit of saliva during the attempt. 

Tang Tianyuan fished out a handkerchief and as he wiped his face, with a clenched jaw and narrowed eyes, he said.  

“Miao. Miao. Sheng.”

His voice coming through his gritted teeth was drowned out by the discussions of the surrounding people. Bang Yan’s thoughts were only about the baozi and the book, and didn’t realize Tang Tianyuan’s abnormality, “Actually, one can also buy this book at other places, but today, this bookstore is selling an exclusive poem version! The title page of the book will include a poem personally written by Miao Miao Sheng, and even has his personal stamp! The whole capital was only issued a limited amount, so except for this bookstore, you won’t find this version anywhere else……… Do you want one?” 

The door of the bookstore finally opened as he spoke, probably because the number of people lined up outside was too great. The shop assistant only pointed at a table near the entrance, upon which laid stacks of new-looking books. The few words on the cover were so striking that Tang Tianyuan couldn’t help but take a closer look, <Records of the Suppression of Tang Feilong>.

There was an uproar amongst the crowd. The person behind them in the line overheard their conversation and his expression turned bad as he looked at Tang Tianyuan, “You want to cut in line? Tang Tianyuan, even though we know that you’re Tang Feilong, you still can’t cut in line.” 

“I’m not cutting in line, you guys go on.” Tang Tianyuan turned his head, wishing to walk away. 

.

.

.

Footnotes:

[1] The raws translated something to this: “This wasn't a problem as when a man comes of age, he will take a wife. And when a woman comes of age, she'll have to marry out.” It's just saying that because Tang Tianyuan is of age, it wasn't necessarily a bad thing for him to have so many matchmakers at his door.

[2] Baozi- stuffed steamed bun.

Index Next