The third prince’s birthday banquet arrived as scheduled.
The magnificent castle was brightly lit, and gorgeous ribbons gleamed brilliantly under the illumination of the lights. Graceful music drifted toward the entrance as gentlemen clad in elegant suits lightly held the hands of beautiful ladies, stepping onto the red carpet amid the loud congratulatory voices of the guards to walk into the resplendent castle.
[Chu Xunsheng raised his head to look at the pretty castle and the dignitaries around him adorned with precious jewelry, deeply feeling that he, wearing a washed-faded shirt and an ordinary black coat, was completely out of place here.]
[Looking somewhat self-conscious, he gathered the gift in his hands, took a deep breath, and only walked forward slowly after psyching himself up.]
[His spine was slightly curved, and the suit he had spent a small fortune to buy still looked cheap on him. This was the highest-grade store he could find on the streets outside the slums, but he did not know that brands like this were unworthy of even a passing glance from the little guards at the prince’s entrance.]
[Taking a deep breath, Chu Xunsheng said in a low voice to the somewhat impatient-looking guard: “I am the third prince’s teacher…”]
The system jumped up and clapped, “Wonderful! Little Chu’s acting skills have reached a whole new level!”
Chu Xunsheng raised his eyebrows in triumph, “Of course!”
The guard, however, remained unaware of the internal activities of the man-system pair. Looking at Chu Xunsheng’s glowing, handsome face, he found himself in a bit of a dilemma.
“Does milord have an invitation card?”
“Forgot to bring it.” Chu Xunsheng blinked.
The guard looked again at the handsome, noble-looking person before him, intending to ask his superior for help, when his eyes drifted and caught sight of a familiar logo.
None of the dignitaries around would ever go to the slums, and they probably had never seen this before, but he, a newly promoted little guard, knew it.
Wasn’t this the store he frequented himself? A cheap brand like this was something even he wouldn’t dare wear to such an important and noble occasion, which clearly showed that the person before him was just a poor ghost pretending to be an aristocrat!
Only then did the guard relax, letting out a contemptuous laugh, “Another poor ghost trying to fly high on the back of his looks, eh? Look at what kind of place this is!”
As he spoke, he gave Chu Xunsheng a fierce shove, “Scram, scram, scram! Get lost, how unlucky!”
Turning away, he hailed another approaching figure with utmost flattery, “Young Master Jiang, please, come right in!”
Chu Xunsheng slowly blinked, putting on an expression of extreme humiliation as he took a few steps back. Inside, however, blooming flowers of joy erupted; the plot-recognition machine seemed to immensely approve of his acting, instantly filling up the banquet-humiliation plot points.
To avoid any complications, make a quick getaway!
Yet a voice tinged with perplexity called out, “Teacher Chu?”
Stiffly turning around, Chu Xunsheng watched as Jiang Zhou walked over with a pleasantly surprised expression. The youth probably wanted to grab his hand, but for some reason pulled back halfway and grabbed a hem of his coat instead.
Jiang Zhou hadn’t originally wanted to attend the third prince’s birthday banquet, but his family talked him into being dragged here, leaving him feeling rather annoyed.
From afar, he had seen someone arguing and blocking the entrance, which only added to his impatience. He had intended to wave the person away with a single slap, but upon turning around and recognizing who it was, he forcibly reined in his strike power.
Teacher Chu had never worn this black coat before, but the garment fit his frame exceptionally well, outlining his slender and taut waist—the kind of screenshot that would unleash screams across the campus network if posted.
With a slight turn of his body, the starlight fell upon his face. His shirt wasn’t buttoned tightly to the top as usual; instead, the topmost button was undone, revealing a neck smooth as silk under the light and a pair of pretty collarbones.
Jiang Zhou inexplicably felt a dryness in his mouth, his Adam’s apple rolling unconsciously.
Yet Teacher Chu’s thin lips were slightly pursed, and his eyes revealed a rare trace of vulnerability, clutching at Jiang Zhou’s heart as if tearing it with discomfort.
Stepping forward quickly, Jiang Zhou grabbed the hem of the coat he had yearned for and asked in a low voice, “Is Teacher Chu here to attend the third prince’s birthday banquet as well?”
Coming here today really wasn’t a loss.
The guard stared in stupefaction at this scene. Naturally, he recognized Young Master Jiang. Was this poor ghost in cheap clothes actually the teacher to several noble personages?
He hurriedly bent down to beg Chu Xunsheng for forgiveness in a low voice. Catching sight of this, Jiang Zhou figured out what had happened. His brows darkened as he delivered a fierce kick that sent the guard flying, raging, “Dog trash, who gave you the nerve?”
Jiang Zhou applied a heavy amount of force. Lying on the ground, the guard felt as though several of his ribs had broken, but he dared not mind the pain, dropping to his knees to beg for mercy beneath the oppressive pressure radiating from Young Master Jiang.
Chu Xunsheng quickly signaled the system to pull up the progress bar. Seeing the maxed-out plot points, he let out a long sigh of relief, pulled on Jiang Zhou, and said softly, “It’s fine, let’s go inside.”
Tutti, looks like we’re going to be forced to work overtime.
Giving the guard one final vicious kick, Jiang Zhou followed closely behind Chu Xunsheng and said cautiously, “The third prince is the guest of honor tonight, so he probably won’t have time to mind Teacher Chu. How about I accompany teacher around for a bit?”
In the distance, he spotted Chen Ji and several other classmates standing behind a few dukes in the hall. Seeing him walk in together with Teacher Chu, they looked as though they were gnashing their teeth with hatred. Jiang Zhou raised an eyebrow, then boldly lifted his arm to hook it through Chu Xunsheng’s.
Lin Zhinian glared hatefully at Jiang Zhou, speaking with bitter resentment to Chen Ji, “When did he hook up with Teacher Chu?”
She was the deeply favored youngest daughter of a grand duke and also one of the most fanatical members of Teacher Chu’s fan club, responsible for producing most of the photos and videos floating around the campus network.
Chen Ji glanced at her, sneered, and remained silent.
Chu Xunsheng nodded slightly toward the two as a greeting.
He still retained some impression of Chen Ji. During his very first class, the moment he pushed open the door, he had spotted that young master lounging lazily with his foot propped up on the desk, single-handedly toying with a glass cup made of colored glaze.
It had been winter, and though the heaters in the classroom kept it warm, he must have brought in some of the outdoor chill and snow when he entered, causing everyone to turn around and look at him.
Only a few suppressed gasps could be heard.
Was it that cold? It wasn’t that bad!
Young Master Chen was dripping with nobility from head to toe, yet he dropped his colored glaze cup the moment he caught sight of him.
At the time, Chu Xunsheng’s heart ached fiercely. The glaze of that cup was exceptionally gorgeous, shining with iridescent light—to the poor little Chu, it was equivalent to a pile of gold coins. Shattered just like that, what a pity.
Later on, though, he stopped feeling pity, and instead seriously suspected that Young Master Chen had latched onto him because of that cup.
Every time class ended, Young Master Chen always had a mountain of questions to ask, sticking to Chu Xunsheng and refusing to let him leave, and whenever Chu Xunsheng got angry, he would look at him with those dewy puppy-dog eyes.
Completely impossible to refuse, right?!
With a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, Chu Xunsheng greeted the two of them before sizing up his surroundings.
Caring nothing about these people, Jiang Zhou felt a long-cherished wish finally fulfilled, his entire body instantly feeling relaxed and refreshed as every cell sang merrily. Just as he was about to speak, he caught sight of Teacher Chu’s eyes locking onto a figure slowly walking down the grand staircase.
Ji Yan was the protagonist of tonight and the focus of everyone’s attention at this moment. He wore attire exclusive to imperial princes, carrying an expression of casual indifference with his long silver hair bound up by a jade crown. He already possessed the imposing aura of an emperor, shaking onlookers so deeply they dared not look him in the eye.
Lowering his gaze, he crashed straight into a pair of slightly lifted eyes. Both of them froze slightly, their hearts experiencing a sudden flutter.
After a brief moment of quiet, the grand hall resumed its cheerful chatter, even livelier than before. Several dukes rushed forward to toast the third prince first, and even around Jiang Zhou’s area, a few medium-tier aristocrats gathered close.
Frowning slightly, Jiang Zhou prepared to decline, but Chu Xunsheng proactively released his arm, smiled to signal him to entertain his guests properly, and turned away to walk toward the garden.
Just as Jiang Zhou reached out to pull him back, a rush of enthusiastic people blocked his line of sight. Distractedly exchanging perfunctory pleasantries, he squeezed his way out of the crowd, only to find that Chu Xunsheng had already vanished.
He could only mutter a curse under his breath and continue dealing with the enthusiastic nobles.
Meanwhile, back with Chu Xunsheng, he didn’t know a single soul in the hall, and nobody knew him either, meaning naturally no one came to stop him. Unhindered, he reached the empty garden and finally let out a breath.
Tutti, so many people are terrifying, sob sob sob.
Compared to the boisterous laughter in the hall, the garden appeared quite desolate. The castle lights cast reflections across the water surface, making the shadows of the flowers on the lake look dyed with thick color. Fragrance permeated the air, and a gentle breeze brushed against his strands of hair, intoxicating the mind and making one lose oneself.
Picking up a bunch of pretty, unknown flowers dropped on the ground, Chu Xunsheng sat down on a garden bench and closed his eyes slightly, feeling the sound of the breeze rushing past his ears and experiencing a long-lost trace of relaxation.
“This garden is very beautiful. Does Teacher Chu like it?”
Turning his head, Chu Xunsheng came face to face with a pair of smiling eyes. He also hooked the corners of his lips, “The third prince’s garden is very beautiful. I like it very much.”
Ji Yan let out an ambiguous chuckle, slowly walking over to sit beside Chu Xunsheng, “Why aren’t you inside talking with everyone?”
Blinking, Chu Xunsheng didn’t answer directly, instead tossing a question back at him: “The third prince is the guest of honor at the banquet. Why did you come out as well?”
Without answering him either, Ji Yan looked at the pretty little flowers in Chu Xunsheng’s hand and said with a smile, “When I was very small, I knew that banquets like this did not belong to me.”
Pausing for a moment, he pointed at the flowers in Chu Xunsheng’s hand and added, “These are flowers I grew myself, and only one blossomed. How come you pulled them up?”
Looking with an innocent expression at the flowers in his hand, Chu Xunsheng then looked at the third prince’s expressionless face and accused:
“I picked them up from the ground…”
Watching his accusing expression, Ji Yan inexplicably let out a snort of laughter. He rarely smiled so openly. Looking at him, Chu Xunsheng was reminded of the classic line “The young master finally smiled” often found in old-school CEO romance novels, and instantly found himself amused as well.
The bright moonlight sprinkled over the third prince’s long silver hair, making him look like an elf—not the pretty kind found in forests, but rather a noble, aloof king of the silver-haired elves.
The system’s eyes turned into blooming peach blossoms as it whispered in Chu Xunsheng’s ear, “I like this beauty, capture him!”
With a smack, Chu Xunsheng knocked it on the forehead, “He’s an imperial prince, and we’re a malicious little cannon fodder. Are we doing the mission or not?”
The system nodded with a solemn expression, “Indeed, beauty misleads people. The mission comes first!”
Smiling, Chu Xunsheng ignored it and instead tucked the flowers from his hand into Ji Yan’s silver hair, gazing gently into those narrow, long eyes that still carried an authoritative majesty,
“Your Highness, happy birthday.”
Brilliant fireworks happened to explode into bloom at that exact moment. The dazzling light reflected into those flowing, smiling eyes, leaving Ji Yan slightly stunned.
After a long while, he softly asked, “Is this a gift for me? Flowers I grew myself?”
Startled for a moment, Chu Xunsheng replied, “Naturally not.”
Pulling out a small box from his inner pocket, he handed it to Ji Yan, “I made this myself.”
With that, he waved goodbye to Ji Yan and turned to leave.
Smiling and nodding, Ji Yan watched his figure depart before curiously opening the somewhat rustic box.
The next second, his gaze darkened. An intense wave of pressure and chill caused even the surrounding winds to halt their flow.
A pair of pretty nipple clamps hanging with little silver bells.