Lin Ruoli was seething with hatred inside, but she hurriedly bowed in apology to Chu Huaixu. "Crown Prince Brother, please don't be angry. Yu Youniang was just brought back to Yong'an Marquis Manor and hasn't learned any etiquette. She doesn't understand anything and didn't mean to offend you."
Her words sounded like she was explaining for Yu Youniang, but in reality, she was telling everyone present that Yu Youniang was an ignorant fool.
Although the people in this room were all quite young, due to their backgrounds and upbringing, each was already a little adult with complex thoughts.
Hearing Lin Ruoli's words, they immediately understood the implication. Many covered their mouths to stifle giggles, while others looked at Yu Youniang with schadenfreude.
Among them, Zhai Heming laughed the most heartily, his gaze toward Yu Youniang filled with malice.
How dare she question the Crown Prince to his face? Yu Youniang was definitely done for this time!
Although the Crown Prince was only eight years old, he had been designated as heir apparent from birth.
Even though they now studied together, the Crown Prince was the future ruler while they were his subjects—none would dare offend him casually.
Now that Yu Youniang had offended the Crown Prince, once he lost his temper, her bottom would be beaten black and blue!
Just as everyone was thinking different thoughts, they saw Chu Huaixu nod.
Chu Huaixu's face remained expressionless, but he answered Yu Youniang's earlier question.
"Yes, I was looking at you."
All the students, including Lin Ruoli, stared at Chu Huaixu in astonishment.
Beyond surprise, Lin Ruoli felt flustered and angry inside.
Why hadn't the Crown Prince gotten angry just now? Why did he answer Yu Youniang's question?
Upon hearing Chu Huaixu's reply, Yu Youniang's little face lit up with triumph, her eyebrows dancing animatedly. "See! I told you he was staring at me! Why were you staring at me? Do you think I'm very cute?"
Chu Huaixu's fingers twitched slightly as he restrained the urge to reach out, nodding seriously. "Yes, you are indeed very cute. What's your name?"
"Yu Youniang! I'm Youning. What's your name?"
"My surname is Chu, given name Huaixu."
"Oh!" Yu Youniang responded, then fell silent and turned around.
Was class about to start soon?
What would they learn in class?
Medicine or poison? Martial arts or military strategy?
Chu Huaixu watched the small figure with her back turned to him, gazing at her round back of the head, momentarily lost in thought.
Why did she just say "oh" and turn away?
Lin Ruoli watched Chu Huaixu's expression, her fingernails digging into her palms.
Crown Prince Brother was actually staring at this little country bumpkin!
Why?!
Crown Prince Brother had never stared at her like that!
Clearly, she was the chosen one, the destined Crown Princess!
Lin Ruoli's breathing gradually grew rapid, her expression nearly contorting.
Fortunately, at the last moment, she managed to compose herself and slowly turned around.
Though her face showed no expression, Lin Ruoli had only one thought in her heart: no one could take Crown Prince Brother from her. She was the chosen one, and she must drive Yu Youniang out of the Imperial Academy!
No! She must drive Yu Youniang and her mother out of the Marquis Manor, back to the countryside!
Just as Lin Ruoli was thinking this, Zhu Xue Zheng walked in holding a book.
Seeing Zhu Xue Zheng, everyone stood up and greeted him in unison.
Zhu Xue Zheng, around thirty years old, had an elegant and scholarly appearance, with a kind and gentle smile on his face. He nodded slightly, "Good day, everyone. Please take your seats! Open your books. Today, we will continue with the Great Learning. Turn to…"
Zhu Xue Zheng's voice was as gentle and composed as his demeanor.
He did not look at the book but sat upright at the front, reciting the content effortlessly.
The dry and tedious words and phrases seemed to transform into stories as he spoke, making listeners unconsciously settle down to hear him out.
Yu Youniang had never attended a class like this before and was immediately captivated.
At first, her eyes were wide open, fixed unblinkingly on Zhu Xue Zheng.
But gradually, his words drifted into Yu Youniang's ears like a lullaby, making her eyelids grow heavy.
Thump!
Though not a loud sound, it instantly caught everyone's attention.
Everyone turned to look and saw Yu Youniang sitting up straight, rubbing her forehead.
Her skin was as fair as porcelain, making the red mark from the bump particularly noticeable.
Zhu Xue Zheng had never seen a student fall asleep in his class before. He was both surprised and amused.
But seeing Yu Youniang's reddened forehead and her small hands rubbing it incessantly, he still asked with concern, "Did it hurt?"
Yu Youniang shook her head repeatedly, "No, no! Youning wasn't asleep!"
Zhu Xue Zheng was taken aback for a moment before bursting into laughter.
This little girl was truly innocent and adorable.
Although there were several children of the same age in the room, they had all been taught proper manners from a young age. Their every move and word was measured and precise—they would never fall asleep, let alone say something like this.
Zhu Xue Zheng was not angry. He simply smiled and nodded, "It's good that you weren't asleep. Now, pay attention to the lesson!"
Yu Youniang quickly straightened her back, sitting upright and replying crisply, "Youning understands!"
Zhu Xue Zheng resumed teaching, but this time, his gaze kept drifting involuntarily toward Yu Youniang.
Every time Yu Youniang felt her eyelids about to stick together, Zhu Xue Zheng would glance over, startling her into widening her eyes.
After repeating this countless times, Zhu Xue Zheng finally stopped, "Alright, that's all for today's lesson. Take a fifteen-minute break, and then we'll have the Large Character Class. You must be able to write and recite what you learned today. I will check tomorrow."
Lin Ruoli turned to look at Yu Youniang, "Do you even know what to recite? Falling asleep in class just now—you've truly embarrassed Yong'an Marquis Manor! Whether it's Grandfather, Grandmother, or Uncle, none of them would want to see you so unruly and lacking in ambition. You've really disappointed them!"
Zhai Heming sneered, "So what if you have the blood of Yong'an Marquis Manor? Once you've been left to fend for yourself like a wild chicken, you can never fly back to the branch and become a phoenix!"
"Wild chicken? Phoenix?" Yu Youniang repeated the two words, looking puzzled. "Why would anyone want to be an animal? Isn't it better to be a human?"
Lin Ruoli's face flushed with anger instantly, "Are you calling me an animal?"
"I didn't!" Yu Youniang looked utterly innocent, pointing a small finger at Zhai Heming. "He's the one who said it!"
Zhai Heming hurriedly looked at Lin Ruoli, waving his hands repeatedly to explain, "Li'er, that's not what I meant… You're a phoenix, not a beast… No… What I mean is…"
The more urgently Zhai Heming tried to explain, the more muddled his words became.
Seeing Lin Ruoli's expression grow increasingly unpleasant, Zhai Heming suddenly reached out toward Yu Youniang, aiming to strike her face.
But just as his hand was halfway through the air, someone grabbed his wrist.
Zhai Heming struggled with all his might, but his arm remained firmly in place.
This left him both humiliated and furious. "Who is it! Who dares to grab this Crown Prince!"
"It's me! Got a problem with that?"
The voice was utterly arrogant, tinged with a hint of nonchalance.
Zhai Heming recognized the speaker just by the voice and flew into a rage. "Huo Qingchen, let go of me!"
"Let you go?" Huo Qingchen's tone rose mockingly. "So you can go beat up a five-year-old girl? Zhai Heming, you're the Crown Prince of Chengyi Marquis Estate, yet you'd stoop to hitting a little girl? You've completely shamed the Chengyi Marquis Estate!"
Zhai Heming's face flushed red. "You don't know anything! Just now outside the Imperial Academy, she pinned me to the ground and beat me up!"
"And you have the nerve to say you were beaten up by a five-year-old girl? If I were you, I'd find a crack in the ground to crawl into!"
Zhai Heming wanted to retort but found himself at a loss for words.
At that moment, Huo Qingchen released Zhai Heming's hand and gave him a shove backward.
Zhai Heming stumbled back several steps, only stopping when his back hit a table.
Watching this scene, Yu Youniang immediately grew intrigued, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Huo Qingchen. "Wow! You're so strong!"
Huo Qingchen proudly lifted his chin. "Of course! I was born with divine strength! When I grow up, I'll definitely be a Peerless General—unstoppable, sweeping through thousands of troops!"