Chapter Sixty-One: Li Chengqian

Watching Li Gaoming stride out of the Mo Estate with a dignified bearing, Cheng Chumo felt a lump rise in his throat. How long had it been since his friend had carried himself with such confidence? With these shoes, although Li Gaoming’s leg ailment was not truly cured, as long as he did not run, his gait appeared no different from an ordinary person’s. No longer would he endure the strange looks of others; the weight that had pressed upon him was now swept away.

“Thank you, Mo Dun! You have no idea how great a deed you’ve done or how much you’ve helped!” Cheng Chumo exclaimed excitedly, his gaze filled with inexplicable emotion as he looked at Mo Dun.

“He carries too much on his shoulders, too heavy a burden. He shouldn’t have to endure any further pointless criticism,” Mo Dun sighed.

The three—Qin Huaiyu and his companions—were startled by Mo Dun’s words, staring at him as if they’d seen a ghost. They stammered, “You… you… know his identity?”

Mo Dun glared at them irritably. “His surname is Li, he has a leg ailment, he wants to learn arithmetic, and Cheng Chumo himself brought him here. Tell me, do you think I know who he is?”

Cheng Chumo lowered his head in embarrassment, feeling sorry for having concealed Li Gaoming’s identity. After all, bringing someone of unknown status into the Mo Estate was disrespectful to Mo Dun, yet Mo Dun had already guessed Li Gaoming’s identity.

“You really should have told me sooner, instead of making me feel guilty all this time!” Cheng Chumo retorted, trying to shift the blame.

“You knew who he was, yet you still had him distribute flyers!” Qin Huaiyu exclaimed, pointing at Mo Dun.

“So what? He didn’t reveal his status. Friends help each other, as they should. Just as I gave him shoes, he helped me with advertisements—acts done for each other without expectation of reward. What does it matter?” Mo Dun replied indifferently.

How broad your heart is! Qin Huaiyu and the others were left speechless.

Zu Mingjun watched the four as if they were speaking in riddles, but being shrewd, he remained silent. Yet a vague suspicion began to stir in his heart. If his guess was correct, then Li Gaoming’s identity was truly extraordinary.

On the carriage, Li Gaoming gazed excitedly at the shoes on his feet. His leg ailment had always been his greatest worry, troubling him for years. Now, the solution was so simple—his troubles had been swept away.

“The scion of the Mo family truly lives up to his reputation! Not only does he excel in arithmetic, but his knowledge extends so widely,” Li Gaoming’s spirit soared, feeling that his decision to seek instruction at the Mo Estate was undoubtedly the right one.

The carriage rolled through bustling Chang’an, passing into the quieter northern city, until it finally arrived at the foot of the Imperial Palace.

“Halt!” The palace guards shouted, weapons raised in caution.

The inconspicuous coachman produced a token and tossed it to the palace guards.

One guard caught the token, his face instantly turning pale with alarm. With a signal, all guards lowered their weapons and bowed.

The carriage passed straight through the palace gates, stopping only at the Eastern Palace. There, rows of palace maids and eunuchs awaited in perfect order. As Li Gaoming stepped down, they hurriedly bowed.

“Welcome, Your Highness!”

Li Gaoming rose proudly, striding into the Eastern Palace. His name was Li Gaoming, but Gaoming was merely his courtesy name. He was, in truth, the Crown Prince, Li Chengqian, courtesy name Gaoming.

Li Chengqian entered the Eastern Palace as any ordinary man would, and the kneeling maids and eunuchs failed to notice that he, the Crown Prince, could now walk as others did.

Within the Eastern Palace—

Li Chengqian bent over his desk, writing swiftly. He compiled what he had learned at the Mo Estate: Arabic numerals, the multiplication table, and the methods of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

After a long contemplation, he picked up a memorial, detailing the significance and practical uses of Arabic numerals and the multiplication table, as well as their benefits for the future of the Tang Dynasty.

Once finished, Li Chengqian set out from the Eastern Palace toward the inner court, knowing that at this hour, Emperor Taizong and Empress Zhangsun would be together.

“Your Highness!” Outside the Chengde Hall, Li Chengqian indeed found Pang De waiting.

Seeing Li Chengqian walk in as normal, Pang De’s jaw dropped in astonishment. He stammered, “Your Highness, you…”

Li Chengqian nodded slightly and, without explanation, smiled. “Father and Mother are inside, correct?”

“Yes, yes! Please, Your Highness, enter! The Emperor will surely be overjoyed at this news!” Pang De spoke incoherently.

He had watched Li Chengqian grow up, and now, seeing him walk normally again, his heart was equally stirred.

As the Crown Prince, Li Chengqian did not need to announce himself when visiting his mother’s quarters. He stepped right inside.

Within the hall, Emperor Taizong was playing chess with Empress Zhangsun. Victory seemed close, yet his pieces inexplicably dwindled. Glancing at Empress Zhangsun’s mischievous smile, he shook his head in resignation—playing chess with a woman, it seemed he would never win.

“Gaoming is here!”

Catching sight of Li Chengqian entering, Taizong quickly rose, mixing up the chessboard in the process.

“Greetings, Father and Mother!” Li Chengqian bowed and entered.

Empress Zhangsun cast a reproachful look at Taizong, no longer carrying the solemn dignity of the mother of the nation. In front of her husband and son, she shed her thick mask.

“Gaoming, come here, sit with your mother. Your father was just cheating at chess!” she teased.

Taizong shook his head helplessly—it was clearly her who broke the rules. Li Gaoming smiled, moving to Empress Zhangsun’s side.

Seeing Li Chengqian walk steadily, Empress Zhangsun was stunned, her voice trembling, “Gaoming! Your leg…”

Taizong, noticing her loss of composure, finally realized what was different about Li Chengqian. He had sensed something odd earlier, and now saw that Li Chengqian’s gait had returned to normal.

“Gaoming, what’s happened?” He knew Li Chengqian had left the palace only briefly, and returned seemingly cured.

“Gaoming, which divine physician treated my son’s leg? I shall reward them most generously!” Taizong exclaimed in delight.

Li Chengqian had been healthy as a child, but after an accident, his leg became permanently afflicted. As the Crown Prince, a disability was a grave burden—how could a crippled man ascend the throne? Thus, Li Chengqian had always been the subject of criticism, bearing immense pressure, which even affected his demeanor.

Yet what father would not wish for his child’s health? Seeing Li Chengqian suddenly walk normally, Taizong’s joy was unbounded.

Li Chengqian smiled bitterly, “Father, Mother, you misunderstand. My leg is not healed.”

“Then how can you walk so well?” Empress Zhangsun, eyes red, pulled him close.

“It is because of the shoes Mo Dun gifted me.” Li Chengqian revealed the secret of his unremarkable boots.

The shoes, common in later ages and designed to discreetly compensate for leg length, had perfectly resolved his issue.

“So that’s it!” Taizong’s emotions surged, tinged with regret. If only his son’s leg could truly be healed—how wonderful that would be.

“At least Gaoming can walk normally now,” Empress Zhangsun said, satisfied.

“So Mo Dun truly is a blessing to me—bringing not only printing, but also masking Gaoming’s ailment,” Taizong said joyfully.

Empress Zhangsun, full of affection, drew Li Chengqian close and questioned him in detail about his experiences at the Mo Estate.

“Tianzu numerals, multiplication tables?” Taizong examined the memorial Li Chengqian presented, nodding repeatedly in excitement.

Tianzhu was not far from Tang, and during the Sui Dynasty, Tianzhu people had served at court. Taizong had heard of their numerals, but never imagined they would be developed so far by the Mo family.

“Excellent, excellent!” Taizong nodded with satisfaction.

“Gaoming, since you have already learned these new methods, you shall teach your imperial brothers this new arithmetic,” Taizong instructed.

“Yes, Father!” Li Chengqian replied.

Taizong nodded in approval, observing that since Li Chengqian had regained normal movement, his entire demeanor had become more composed and expansive.

Leaving the Chengde Hall, Li Chengqian exhaled deeply. His leg ailment had threatened his position as Crown Prince, and the pressure he endured was unimaginable. Today, that burden had finally been lifted.

Regaining normal movement was but the first step; more importantly, the words Mo Dun spoke to him before parting had filled him with immense hope.

“In ancient times, sickness meant resignation to fate. Yet now, the recipes for treating all manner of ailments in the Tang are countless, and many illnesses once incurable are now easily healed. Medicine is ever advancing. Perhaps in a hundred, or a few hundred years, your leg ailment may be effortlessly cured.”

“Perhaps it will take a century, or several, but you need not worry. In Mo Village, there is a divine physician, a descendant of Hua Tuo, specializing in trauma. The next plan for Mo Village is to gather outstanding orthopedic doctors to study bone injuries. Perhaps in ten years, eight years, progress will be made; even if not, it will benefit future generations.”

Li Chengqian’s heart was suddenly enlightened, excitement surging within him.

Yes! With his status, he could summon any number of skilled physicians. He resolved to help Mo Village accelerate this process. Now that he could walk normally, if medicine advanced further, perhaps his leg could be truly cured. In any case, a wait of ten years or eight was well within his reach.

Mo Dun could never have guessed how his words would spur the growth of medical science. Before long, across from the Mo Skills Exhibition beside the Imperial Academy, a grand medical hall opened its doors, eventually earning the name of the sanctuary of medicine.