The Palace was nice. Everything looked shiny and expensive. Manu had never thought he would be able to see such things up close. Mama always got him whatever he wanted but for some reason, she refused to move away from that little house at the very edge of QingHu. He didn’t mind. It was their small home and he loved staying there. Of course, on the days when Mama went on dangerous missions, he had stayed at old man Cin’s tavern. She never stayed away more than a week.

But now they lived in this extravagant Palace. Manu knew he did not have to come here, he knew his mother would have protected him regardless of what he chose. He really didn’t care much for staying in the Palace. What he really wanted was for his mama to live in luxury like all those noble ladies. He had always thought his mother would have been able to live like that if it had not been for him. She was smart, strong, and beautiful. There was no man in the world who would not accept her. She was only living like this for him, the boy she found on the streets and took in as her son.

And now, he found out that he was a Prince. And that he could give his mama a good life where she did not have to go on dangerous missions for Uncle Siwang to earn money. He knew it could be dangerous. After all, most nobles were a bunch rotten to the core. But he really wanted to try to give his mama a good life. And today, when he saw his mama all dressed up with servants at her beck and call, he felt so relieved! This was what his mama deserved. More than anyone. And if his being a good and proper Prince like the Emperor said could help her keep it, then he would gladly learn to be a proper Prince.

Right now, Manu was following the head maid Lian toward a more modest section within the Palace, where his lessons were supposed to start.

“Your tutor is inside,” she told him once they reached in front of a set of double doors. “Please go inside and remember to greet him by bowing.”

He nodded and stepped forward, opening the doors. The anxious frown on his face turned into a look of surprise when he saw a familiar person inside.

“Nice Uncle!” He grinned.

It was the uncle who let him ride on his horse during their journey back. He told him that his name was Chen Zhongqing. He was far nicer than his brother, Chen Yuming. That one was just rude.

“Good morning, Your Highness,” the man bowed. That felt strange. Manu was used to bowing to others. Having other people bow to him was just weird.

“Are you going to teach me, nice Uncle?”

“Yes,” he nodded. “And you must call me Teacher Chen, Your Highness.”

He nodded vigorously. “Okay, Teacher Chen!” He then tilted his head, a concerned frown marring his face. “Are you okay now? Does your wound hurt?”

The man looked surprised for a moment before he smiled at the boy. “It does not anymore, Your Highness, thanks to you.”

Manu couldn’t help but frown. “How is it thanks to me? I didn’t do anything. You got hurt because of me!”

Teacher Chen paused at that. “It’s a figure of speech,” he explained. “It is something we say to our superiors, meaning that we are well by their blessings and good graces.”

“Well, that’s stupid,” Manu huffed. “I can’t give you any blessing! And you got better because of good physicians, not because of me.”

The man chuckled. “I suppose you are right. Thank you for your insights, Your Highness. Now,” he proceeded before Manu could protest, “shall we start?”

He smiled and gestured for him to sit down. There was an assortment of books on the low table between them. Chen Zhonqqing opened the topmost one.

“Alright, let's get you started on the characters.”

He opened one of the books and Manu immediately recognized the writings in there.

“Oh, I know those!” He exclaimed.

Chen Zhonqqing looked up at him with surprise again. “You do?”

He nodded. “Yes! Mama taught me!”

That was even more of a surprise for Teacher Chen. “She did? Who taught her?”

Manu shrugged. “Mama said she taught herself.”

“Taught herself?” The man asked in disbelief.

“Yeah!” The boy nodded. “She’s amazing like that!”

“I… see.” Chen Zhongqing leaned forward a bit. “Do you know how to write them?”

“Yes!”

“Your mother taught you?”

Manu nodded vigorously. “Yes!”

Teacher Chen frowned and pulled out a long parchment scroll, opening it, laying it down in front of the child, and putting the books aside. “Show me. Write the first 10 characters of Xinyu.”

Manu looked at the inkpot beside him and took the brush out of it before writing the characters, not too slow but not too hasty either.

Teacher Chen took a good, long look at the characters and then sighed. “This will need some…. Work.”

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The characters were correct. But that was about it. They looked ugly, the ink was splotchy in some places, thick and thin where it shouldn’t be and there were ink stains splattered all around them. It was clear that even though the boy learned to write, he did not practice it correctly. He had no idea how to write properly with ink.

“Work?” Manu asked.

Chen Zhongqing nodded. “Yes. You are the Prince. Your calligraphy must be befitting of your station. It must be beautiful and elegant while exuding majesty. You will have to practice your calligraphy a lot, Your Highness.”

Manu wrinkled his nose. “That sounds like a lot of work.”

The man smiled. “Well, we better get to work then.”

Manu nodded and took the brush once again. The next two hours were spent meticulously practicing each character he was shown several times

“Well done. You are able to control your ink 6 times out of 10 now. I did not expect you to learn so quickly.”

Manu looked down at the calligraphy and frowned a bit. “This is … good?”

The writing in front of him was still ugly, shaky, and splotchy.

He felt a hand gently pet his head and looked up to see Teacher Chen smiling at him. “Yes, it is. Very good. You just started learning calligraphy today. The fact that you are able to write clearly without too many ink smudges on the first day is amazing. I’m sure you will be writing beautifully in no time if you keep practising.”

Manu stared at the man for a long time. “You’re just like my mama, Teacher Chen!”

The man looked at him in surprise and retracted his hand. “Really? How so?”

“Mama never yells at me for my mistakes! She always says that as long as I work hard, I’ll be able to do anything!”

The man paused. “Your mother loves you very much, doesn’t she?”

Manu nodded, smiling. “Yeah! She loves me and I love her!”

Then he looked down at the parchment in front of him, frowning. “We have only practised ten characters today. How many more days do we have to practise this?’

He liked learning to write but writing the same characters repetitively was boring.

Teacher Chen chuckled. “Well, we have only practised ten. There are about three thousand characters that you need to learn to write. It will take some time, no?”

Manu groaned loudly. Suddenly, he did not want to learn anymore. But … it was not like he had the option to do that. Since he was brought here as a Prince, he had to learn how to live like a Prince. Otherwise, his mama would have to face problems. Everyone would taunt her. He did not know much about Harem. But he knew his mother would have many enemies here. He was not about to let his mother get humiliated because of him, especially since he swore to himself that he would help his mama live a good, luxurious, and happy life.

“Well, I believe we can conclude here for today,” the man said. “I believe you have to go start your martial arts training after this?”

He nodded and then tilted his head in confusion. “How do you know?”

The man did not say anything. He just smiled and stood. “How about I escort you there?”

Still a bit confused, he nodded and stood. They walked out together. The maid fell in step behind them when Teacher Chen explained that he was escorting Manu. Manu walked with the man, once again admiring his beautiful and luxurious surroundings. Lian gave them instructions on which way to go and they ended up going to a beautiful, large, circular yard. It seemed to have everything required for training, different kinds of weapons, targets, and designated areas for sparring.

Before he could admire it all though, he heard a very familiar, very annoying voice.

“You’re here.”

Manu turned his head around to see who it was and then groaned again.

It was the man who had been annoying and trying to berate him the entire way back.

The younger Chen brother.

“Why is it you?” He asked, resisting the urge to stomp his foot. He was not going to act like a child.

“Trust me, bo … Your Highness. I have been asking myself that since His Majesty asked me to train you yesterday.”

“Young Master, please.” Teacher Chen sounded exasperated. He could understand.

“Ming’er, brother!” The younger one corrected him, as he always did. He then sighed before turning to Manu. “Your Highness, I shall be your martial instructor until you learn the basics. If you show promise, the Emperor might teach you himself.”

Manu tilted his head. Was that a good thing or a bad thing? He didn’t particularly like the Emperor since Mama didn’t like him either. But they were here due to the Emperor so he had to at least pretend to be a good son and like him. After a moment of thought, he shrugged. He was just going to do the best he could. The rest could come later.

Manu nodded. “Alright. Let’s do this.”

----------------------------------------

Two hours later found Manu exhausted and slightly aching. The man taught him basic stances and balances. He gave him a heavy wooden sword to learn to move and balance with first. Manu was used to running about and getting into fights. He was good at hiding and sneaking up on someone. He was good at dancing around someone and not getting caught. He was good at getting in and out of someone’s range. But he had never tried prolonged training with heavy objects before, so it was natural to be so exhausted.

“You have good form. And you’re quick to learn,” the man said, much to Manu’s surprise. “We will continue like this for now. Be sure to be on time tomorrow. Alright?”

Manu kept the wooden sword back on the rack and then nodded. “Alright, Chen Yuming!”

“You brat!” The man exclaimed. “I am your Master. Be respectful! Call me Master Chen!”

Manu wrinkled his nose at the thought of calling the man Master.

The man’s brow twitched. “Do you want the Emperor to know you are being disrespectful?”

Manu then sighed in exasperation, as if he was the adult dealing with a child. “Fine. Master Chen.”

“I don’t like your tone.”

Manu resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “Can I go now?”

“Alright, alright. Be here on time tomorrow.”

He ran out of the yard, Maid Lian struggling to keep up with him. Teacher Chen had already left long ago. He had memorized the way back so he did not need any instructions. He ran to where his mama was and saw her just outside their new house, admiring the flowers in her courtyard.

“Mama!” He called and ran to her, tackling her in a huge, tight hug. As always, she turned around and caught him, wrapping her arms around him.

“My boy,” she said softly. “How were your first lessons?”

Manu looked up at her. “They were good. The Chen brothers are teaching me. I don’t like the annoying one but still … he said I was doing well.”

“Oh?” His mama tilted her head curiously. Once again, it struck him how beautiful she was. “Alright, come inside. Why don’t I call for dinner and you can tell me all about it? How does that sound?”

Manu nodded. “Alright. But why are we having dinner so early? The sun has just set.”

“Did you forget?” She asked with a soft smile. “We have to go greet the Empress tomorrow early in the morning.”