The discussions rose and fell like boiling water, bubbling with noise.
Someone couldn’t help sighing.
“A person like the Crown Prince… I wonder who will be worthy of her in the future.”
Who will be worthy?
A disciple laughed.
“It’s not a question of who’s worthy; it’s a question of who the Crown Prince would even deign to look at. I heard these past days in Xuanji City, she didn’t even spare a glance at our Holy Domain’s Young Master Yunlan. How many people in this world could catch her eye?”
An older, more experienced disciple shook his head and sighed.
“That’s the problem with being too outstanding. It’s lonely at the top. The Crown Prince probably won’t find anyone to stand shoulder to shoulder with her in this lifetime.”
Just as he finished, someone in the crowd muttered quietly.
“That’s not right. Haven’t you heard? The Crown Prince has been so delighted with that waste Chu Yuan these days that she’s forgotten to go home?”
Huh?
The Crown Prince and that waste?
Forgotten to go home???
Hearing this rumor, the air suddenly fell silent for a moment. Many of these disciples had been in seclusion or away on tasks and hadn’t heard about it. They were all curious.
“Chu Yuan? That collateral branch loser?”
“No way! How could the Crown Prince be involved with someone like that?”
“Shh! Keep your voice down! I saw the Crown Prince and Chu Yuan alone in a private room for a long time yesterday.”
“Really?!”
“How would I know! But think about it, the Crown Prince could have gone anywhere, yet she chose to come to our Chu estate. What does our Chu Clan have? Besides that Chu Yuan, is there anything worth the Crown Prince making a personal trip?”
The tone of the discussion began to change.
There was doubt, speculation, curiosity, and a sour feeling that was hard to describe.
After all, in their eyes, Chu Yuan was nothing but a waste scraping by in a broken-down collateral courtyard.
Facing the varied stares of his fellow disciples, Chu Yuan, who was at the back of the crowd, felt a prickling sensation on his back.
Just as he was about to use his Phantom Ethereal Dharma Robe to conceal his presence, someone spotted him first.
“Eh? Isn’t that Junior Brother Yuan?”
At those words, all eyes immediately focused on the ordinary-looking youth.
A busybody asked, “Oh? Waste, is what your senior brothers said true? Have you been having such a good time with the Crown Prince these days?”
Following the voice, the speaker was none other than Chu Linfeng.
This stirred up a buzz among the crowd.
“Junior Brother Yuan, is what Senior Brother Linfeng said true? You know the Crown Prince? Come on, tell us! Is Her Highness really as beautiful as the rumors say?”
“Oh my! I never thought you could climb so high. When you make it big, don’t forget us brothers!”
“Climb high? More like dumb luck! The Crown Prince is just amused for a while. Once she gets bored, won’t this waste just go back to his old self?”
Laughter and congratulations rose and fell. To Chu Yuan, they were like flies drawn to a stench, buzzing around him.
He was used to it. He just waved his hand awkwardly, with a tone of “come on, stop it” and helplessness.
“What are you all talking about? Those are all misunderstandings! Misunderstandings!”
Hearing the person in question deny it, the surrounding disciples let out a collective sigh of relief.
“That’s right! I knew it! How could the Crown Prince possibly take a liking to this waste?”
“Exactly! What kind of standards does Her Highness have? Could she ever fancy him?”
“Let’s go, let’s go. Don’t waste time. The Crown Prince is about to enter the gate. Why bother with that waste?”
The crowd receded like a tide, surging back toward the main gate.
No one spared another glance at Chu Yuan, as if he were just a stone on the roadside—kicked aside and forgotten.
Chu Yuan was relieved by this, but his smile turned bitter.
‘Having such a good time?’
‘The one having a good time isn’t me…’
Thinking this, he continued to follow along.
Outside the main gate, golden armor gleamed.
The imperial carriage stood still, the scent of aloeswood wafting faintly through the gaps in the curtain.
No one dared approach, yet no one wanted to leave.
A young collateral disciple squeezed to the very back of the crowd inside the estate, standing on tiptoes, straining to see the carriage outside.
He couldn’t see inside, only the golden phoenix pattern embroidered on the curtain, so vivid in the morning light it seemed ready to burst through.
His eyes were full of longing as he murmured to himself.
“If only I could see the legendary Crown Prince once…”
The senior brother beside him patted his shoulder and joked bitterly.
“And what would that do? The Crown Prince is a phoenix in the sky, and we are ants on the ground. Even if a phoenix glanced at an ant, the ant would still be an ant. You don’t think she’d fancy a nobody like you, do you?”
That struck a nerve with many disciples nearby.
Many lowered their heads into silence.
Just then, a low voice came from somewhere.
“Look! The Crown Prince is about to step down!”
Everyone’s eyes focused on the carriage outside the gate.
The morning breeze stirred the curtain, making it sway gently.
A slender, fair hand reached out from behind the curtain, fingertips like jade, knuckles distinct.
The disciples inside the estate belatedly knelt, holding their breath.
Ji Xuanyuan noticed that among the crowd, her junior brother was nowhere to be seen. She let out a soft sigh through her rosy lips, then stepped down.
“Young Master Chu, you need not stand on ceremony. I will be presiding over the Divine Hunt Grand Ceremony and wish to stay temporarily at the Chu estate. I hope this sudden visit is not an intrusion.”
Chu Yunlan straightened up, his smile warm and moist.
“Your Highness flatters me. Your presence brings honor to our humble abode. The entire Chu Clan is deeply honored.”
As he spoke, his gaze swept past the carriage to General Yin among the retinue, then over the rows of golden-armored guards, and he calculated silently in his heart.
‘Good, you’ve come! Since the Crown Prince loves clinging to that waste so much, don’t blame me when rumors start flying among the people!’
A trace of coldness flickered in Chu Yunlan’s ink-black eyes.
Ji Xuanyuan pretended not to see.
In fact, she didn’t care at all about the thoughts of this jumped-up clown.
As she was invited into the estate, Ji Xuanyuan stepped onto the stairs, and Chu Yunlan turned sideways to lead the way.
Along the way, Ji Xuanyuan’s gaze swept once more over the nearby Chu disciples, still searching for a trace of her junior brother.
Under that gaze, the disciples unconsciously straightened their backs, trying to appear taller in her line of sight. They whispered in confusion.
“What is the Crown Prince looking for?”
“I don’t know… Could she be choosing attendants?”
“If I were chosen by the Crown Prince, I’d rise to the heavens in a single step…”
Everyone whose eyes met that gaze felt their hearts race.
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