"Your Imperial Majesty." I addressed the emperor in his throne hall as I curtsied.

"At ease, Peiyang Niang Niang." The emperor said.

I stood up and waited to see what the emperor was going to tell me. I had been ushered to meet the emperor first thing when I entered the palace so here I stood now.

"Don't be nervous. I just asked for your presence here to let you know what I'm expecting you to contribute to the crown prince's education."

"Of course, Your Imperial Majesty."

"The crown prince's lessons are held separately from the other princes and nobles. While the other princes and nobles are educated by one teacher, the crown prince would be in a separate class with twenty teachers who will be there to educate him."

"Twenty?" I blurted out, and then realized I would be breaking royal protocol if I didn't address the emperor so I quickly curtsied and added, "Your Imperial Majesty."

The emperor laughed benevolently. "Yes, twenty. It had been that way for years. Even I was educated with that education system. It might seem like a lot but it's to ensure that the crown prince ends up as a well-rounded person before taking up the mantle of becoming the head of the country."

I nodded.

"However, I would also like for the crown prince to mingle with the other princes and children of other nobles whom he will eventually work with in the future. And that's where you come in. After the crown prince's lesson, your class starts. It would be a time when all of the young men learn about whatever that's not in the books. About how to carry themselves as a person, how to befriend someone with true intentions, and most importantly, how to be a decent person."

So I was right, the emperor probably just wanted me to teach some manners.

I curtsied. "Understood, Your Imperial Majesty."

"So I'll leave it up to you on how you would like to structure your classes."

I nodded. "Your Imperial Majesty, may  I know how many students I would be having in my class?"

The emperor thought about it. "Around six or seven,"

"Then may I take the boys out for our first class today, Your Imperial Majesty?"

My question made the emperor pause. But he recovered pretty quickly. "Of course. I'll ask my men to arrange for security. Where will you be taking them to?"

"I'm not too sure yet, Your Imperial Majesty. I just know that I'd like to conduct my classes outside of the palace walls. With your permission, of course."

"Oh? So this is not a one-time thing?" The muscle in between his eyebrows tightened.

"You mentioned that you'd like for the crown prince to mingle with the other boys, Your Imperial Majesty. Mingling goes both ways. If the other boys are reluctant to open up, the crown prince wouldn't be able to mingle. And if we are conducting the classes within the boundaries of these walls, do you think that they would lower their guard down for a sincere interaction?"

The emperor mulled over what I had said. "Alright then. You have my permission to conduct your classes outside."

"Thank you, Your Imperial Majesty."

"Off you go then. I think the crown prince's lesson is almost ending."

"Of course, Your Imperial Majesty." I curtsied again before leaving the throne hall.

Then I was ushered to the courtyard where the crown prince's lessons were conducted. When I arrived at the edge of the courtyard, I saw five boys waiting with a couple of guards dispersed among them. Four of them were teenage boys, and one of them looked to be about ten years old.

All of the boys bowed when they saw me. One of them, I reckon was the oldest among them, stepped out and addressed me. He had on a mischievous grin which told me all I need to know about his personality.

"Peiyang Niang Niang. I'm Prince Ruiyang." He introduced himself with a bright smile on his face.

I curtsied. "Nice to meet you, Prince Ruiyang. How old are you?"

"I'm fifteen. Just a year younger than the crown prince."

Prince Ruiyang then pulled one of the other boys to his side. "This is my brother, Prince Huiwen."

Prince Huiwen was the most reserved among the boys.

"He's fifteen like me."

"Oh? Are you twins?"

"Nah. We just have different mothers. And that's Prince Pingliu. He's ten" He pointed at the young boy.

"Hello. Nice to meet you Peiyang Niang Niang." Prince Pingliu greeted me timidly.

I smiled kindly at the young boy. "Nice to meet you, Prince Pingliu."

"Then, that's Sheng, who's the son of the finance minister, and Zhiwei, who's the son of the head of the astronomy department. Both of their fathers are the crown prince's teachers. They are probably both in there with the crown prince now."

Both Sheng and Zhiwei bowed to me when Prince Ruiyang introduced them to me. It was obvious that they were keeping themselves at a distance out of formalities. 

And so we waited for the crown prince together. It took longer than I expected. Minutes passed and by the time we realized it, half an hour was already over. When I wondered if I should step in to ask about what was going on, a royal messenger beat me to it and passed by me urgently, and entered the courtyard. And in just a few seconds, a man came rushing out.

"That's the military minister, he's also one of the crown prince's teachers." Prince Ruiyang whispered to me and I nodded at the information.

When the middle-aged military minister saw the princes and the noble children, he halted in his steps. "What are all of you doing here?"

Prince Ruiyang was the one who answered. "We're waiting for the crown prince for our lesson with Peiyang Niang Niang."

Prince Ruiyang pulled me to his side at the end of his sentence.

The military minister stared at me incredulously and then addressed Sheng and Zhiwei. "You boys need to head home with your fathers when they come out. There's another war coming. His Imperial Majesty just decreed for another military expansion, this time towards the west."

My heart sank.