Need to know:

　　Abacus: is a calculating tool used primarily in parts of Asia for performing math processes. It is often constructed from bamboo with beads sliding on wires, but originally they were beans or stones moved in grooves in sand or on tablets of wood, stone, or metal. The abacus was in use centuries before the adoption of the written modern numeral system and is still widely used by merchants in this day and age. 

　　YES a new character and one that would be prevalent throughout the plot. I’m sure the Third Princess’s profile is floating around somewhere…but meh…!!

　　Ruo Yan is one hot bis.h.i.+e – he is actually considered quite handsome but because Feng Ming is exposed to so many attractive people. He believes Ruo Yan is average XD. 

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　　Forced into the tiger’s den, Feng Ming armed himself with courage and stepped with his best foot forwards to bite the bullet.

　　Upon entering the building and making his way into the inner chambers he was welcomed by warmth, the air inside was laced with a distinct smoky scent. It was the smell of aromatic incense. Feng Ming felt like he was visiting a Buddhist temple, the air was thick but the smell was rather pleasant. Listening carefully, Feng Ming caught the sound of a water flow hidden in his surroundings. It created a serene and calm atmosphere. He continued his way until he finally reached the inner sanctum.

　　His eyes rested on three individuals, sitting casually in the main room. An attractive woman sat in between two men, she was wearing a deep plum coloured dress, the design of her outfit was long and graceful. The cuffs of her sleeves were decorated by extremely detailed trims and patterns. Her cheeks were naturally a shade of peach blush and her eyes were as sharp and bright as lacquer.

　　There was no doubt in Feng Ming’s mind that she was the Third Princess, she was really living up to her rumoured beauty.  He was used to seeing pretty girls on television, none the less he had his fair share at admiring beauties from all over the world. However, she was a rare specimen in this ancient world; he nodded slightly in appreciation but didn’t feel embarra.s.sed about his eyes lingering on her.

　　The Princess’s personal attendants were standing to the side of the room, Fen Yan stood near her master. All of them were observing Feng Ming secretly and they were bewildered by the Prince’s calm composure and the fact that he didn’t intend to intrude.    

　　Official Xia was right on the money, the two men accompanying his Aunt were indeed the King Li, Ruo Yan and the math genius Master Dong.  

　　The trio sat around a sand pit, purposely installed for etching their discussions and calculations. Master Dong appeared quite brutish, grizzly and unkempt. The man had a big upturned pompous nose. Feng Ming never would have guessed the man was a genius if he had pa.s.sed him on the streets. 

　　The old man was holding a bamboo pole in his hand, and was occupied with drawing and discussing his work. The Third Princess was completely caught by the lecture, her head bobbed as she processed the information.

　　Looking at Rou Yan, Feng Ming figured the King was in his twenties, appearing mature Feng Ming guessed he was perhaps around twenty seven or eight. His appearance was nothing special, and at his waist was a very modest looking sword. If it wasn’t for Lie Er’s and Official Xia’s warnings, Feng Ming wouldn’t have felt Ruo Yan was much of a threat. To be honest, he really couldn’t see how the man was anything to be reckoned with.

　　The Prince continued to monitor the proceedings of the party he wasn’t really invited to, he didn’t want to ruin the happy atmosphere. He guessed that the moment he opened his mouth and interrupted the exchange of knowledge he would be immediately escorted out for his impertinence. It was cold outside and having to brace the chilly winter wind again wasn’t on his menu.

　　Knowing better, he resigned and chose to quietly wait in the sidelines. He found a seat and settled himself down.  From his location, he sat listening in and playing the role of the obedient and respectful youngster.

　　 Master’s Dong’s voice was very light and everything that left his mouth was professional jargon. Feng Ming barely even understood half the sentences that the man spoke. The prince basically continued to rot away in the shadows for almost an hour. Boredom was one of his worst enemies and this was a cruel. He cursed inwardly, his suffered in silence. Thinking to himself, he should have marched right in and announced himself to the Princess to save his current brain punis.h.i.+ng wait. But no, he wanted to look generous and caring, by not cras.h.i.+ng the cla.s.s only G.o.d knows how long he would have to wait until he gains an audience with his Aunt.

　　Ancient people were terrible at interpersonal management - it was obvious they placed little value on people’s precious time. Fan Jia and Xi Rei currently aren’t in the best part of their political buddy relations.h.i.+p. One would have thought matters of a Country would be more important that minor discussions about maths theorems.

　　In a rare moment, Master Dong finally came to a pause as he finished a long winded explanation. Seeing the man’s mouth finally shut for the first time, Feng Ming let out a heavy sigh.

　　The Prince gathered his wits and motioned to leave his perch believing now was the opportunity to finally greet the Princess.

　　Instead, he was shot down before even having his bottom off his seat.

　　The Princess pulled the scholar back into discussion, “Master Dong, the tools you’ve discussed appear naturally easy to use but being able to digest the reasoning behind them is a very complex process, on a national level it would take a lot of manpower to teach the basics.”

　　The old man replied, “Your Highess is correct, however, I have studied numerous math tools used for solving advance mathematics. Each has their pros and cons. Even if they are simple they might not be sufficiently precise, and some tools although accurate can be extremely complicated. This tool is now regularly used in the Li Palace, and has been proven time after time as the best candidate for solving complex problems that we have. It would take a month or two for the most talented to master the use.” 

　　Feng Ming rolled his eyes and groaned to himself, they were starting their talk again.

　　Unknown to Feng Ming, once he had entered the room Ruo Yan had paid very close attention to him. The King caught Feng Ming’s soft disgruntled sound and gave the boy a fleeting glance.