Fictive Kinship

By the time he returned to Prince Hui's Estate, it was already evening.

A steward of the estate spotted Chu Danqing returning and immediately came forward to greet him.

"Master Chu, you've finally returned." The steward said as soon as he arrived, "The Old Imperial Consort and Madam Lu have been looking for you all this time."

Chu Danqing truly had not expected that a single trip out would turn him into a master.

And the change in attitude before and after was far too great.

When they had met before, the man had worn the look of someone strictly conducting official business. Now, he looked as though he had seen his own father.

As for the title "Master," Chu Danqing knew it meant the eldest among the younger generation of the household.

But it still sounded strange to his ears.

Quite a few people seated at the flowing banquet outside the estate looked over. After all, this estate steward was no ordinary person on most days.

Yet he was treating an unfamiliar young man with such respect. It was indeed a rare sight.

Thus, every one of them committed Chu Danqing's appearance to memory.

Although they could not enter the estate, they were no ordinary people either.

At the very least, they were wealthy householders and merchants, the sort for whom even Fan An was not qualified to sit at the banquet.

"What do they want with me?" Chu Danqing casually asked as he followed the steward into the estate.

"How could this lowly one know? I imagine it must be something important." How could the steward possibly know? He had merely received orders to bring Chu Danqing over the moment he returned.

As for asking around? Did he have a death wish?

How could a mere steward dare