What kind of ridiculous order was this?
I was supposed to convince one of them to change their university application?
You, the girl's biological father and my fake father-in-law, won't persuade your own daughter and the future son-in-law whose marriage prospects may have just begun to take shape, so you're asking me to do it?
"Pfft..."
Seeing Xu Yan's face look as though someone had stuffed him into a wicker cage and dunked him in water for three whole days, Wu Ergui fought back a laugh and nudged Xu Yan in the side with his elbow.
"Marquis of Xiyang, don't just stand there like a fool. Hurry up and accept the order and thank His Majesty! I still have to go back and report."
"Uncle Wu, this job is really... too much. Could you..."
Before Xu Yan could finish, the king of changing faces, Wu Ergui, had instantly put on his battle face.
He looked at Xu Yan coldly and started making things up.
"The Marquis of Xiyang, His Majesty also said: 'Princess Yiyang is no spring chicken. If she finds out you've been coming in late and leaving early, slacking off at work, and occasionally helping yourself to things from the imperial palace...'"
"No, that's going too far! How is His Majesty still tattling to my parents?" Xu Yan wailed, then muttered, "If my family... If they find out, they'll come all the way from our fief with the family law in hand to beat me."
"But, Uncle Wu—no, Heavenly Envoy Wu! If I can't do this job, I just can't! Tattling to my parents won't help! Why don't you ask His Majesty to find someone else..."
"His Majesty also said, if the Duke of Xiyang finds out that the coral tree he gave me for my birthday last year never reached me, but was instead taken by..." Before Wu Ergui could finish, Xu Yan had already grabbed his hand tightly, his eyes filled with determination.
"Being able to ease His Majesty's burdens is an honor for this subject. When you return, please tell His Majesty not to worry. I'll spare no effort, even at the cost of my life, and see this through to the end!"
"Good." Wu Ergui yanked his hand out of Xu Yan's painful grip and said with a fake smile, "The Marquis of Xiyang is loyal and devoted to the country. Truly, he's a pillar of our Sun Moon Empire! I'll return at once and report the Marquis's wholehearted loyalty to His Majesty."
"Go on with your business. There's no need to see me out."
As soon as he finished speaking, Wu Ergui melted into a breeze that swept past, vanishing silently into the shadows as if he had never been there at all. Left alone, Xu Yan stood where he was, his mind blown, and banged his head against the wall. "I can't believe this! What kind of mess is this?"
After brutally bullying the wall with his head for ten minutes and finally accepting the bleak reality, Xu Yan began walking back with a heavy heart. This time, though, the laughter and chatter on the street and the delicious food all seemed bleak to him.
The joys and sorrows of different people were never the same. Right now, all he could feel was how noisy everything around him was.
'Old Qian, what happened to him? Why did he come back from taking a leak looking so awful?'
The Rakshasa Phantom, possessing Qian Yuhan and wolfing down Ke Family Cuisine, stirred in thought and asked Qian Yuhan.
'Uh...'
Qian Yuhan wasn't sure about something so private. But judging by Xu Yan's awful expression, the problem was probably quite serious. He thought it over for a moment, then replied with a hint of... pity.
'Maybe... maybe he's discovered he has some kind of special problem?'
'A special problem? Oh! I get it.' The Rakshasa Phantom scratched his head as if only half understanding, put down the half-eaten Ke Family Meal, and started rummaging through the Storage Soul Tool.
Xu Yan: "?!" Hm? What was he doing?
After a good deal of rummaging, "Qian Yuhan, Rakshasa Edition" pulled out a box from the Storage Soul Tool and solemnly pressed it into Xu Yan's hands. "I have no way to repay your kindness in treating me to a meal. There are some medicinal herbs inside. I think they might be able to help you."
Help me?
(⊙o⊙) What?
What medicinal herbs could make the emperor change his mind? Was this the legendary elixir of immortality?
What use would that clueless old geezer, already that old, have for something so precious? You should keep it for yourself and eat it!
Completely baffled, Xu Yan looked at "Qian Yuhan," then at the box in his hands.
In the end, his overwhelming curiosity swept away his helplessness and indignation. Under the bemused gazes of the passersby, he decided to see what kind of good stuff was inside.
Click—
As Xu Yan gently opened the lid, the instant he saw the medicinal herbs inside, his face visibly turned red.
Bang—
He slammed the lid shut, his back teeth grinding audibly.
What was this kid trying to say? Was he mocking him?
Damn it, was there a single herb in that box meant for anything normal?
He was so mad!
Xu Yan had wanted to fling the box back and tell Qian Yuhan righteously that he was in the prime of his life, strong and healthy, and had no use for this stuff whatsoever. But...
Then again, the herbs in the box were indeed of excellent quality and age. They'd probably be nice to steep in tea or liquor.
So, with an intensely awkward feeling, Xu Yan silently put the things away, his face still burning.
And this just so happened to confirm Qian Yuhan's experienced, veteran guess—
In Qian Yuhan's view, a perfectly healthy, normal person like himself would surely burst out laughing in anger after opening the box, then declare righteously that he was perfectly fine and had nothing wrong with him.
Then, despite protesting, he'd say something like: "Well, since you've already given them to me, it'd be rude to refuse. I'll just have to accept them."
Xu Yan's reaction was clearly wrong!
The poor kid. He was so young, and his condition was already this serious!
At that moment, the look Qian Yuhan gave Xu Yan was no longer pitying in a mild way. It was unmistakably full of compassion.
"?"
Noticing the pity in Qian Yuhan's eyes, Xu Yan's hard-won blush flared up again.
No, what was with that pity in your eyes? You actually believed it! Damn it! This time, it really was like yellow mud falling into his pants—whether it was that or not, it looked like it was!
"I'm perfectly fine!"
With people coming and going all around them, Xu Yan feared gossip might spread, so he resisted the urge to curse and sent Qian Yuhan a quiet voice transmission.
"Mm, yes, yes, I know." Qian Yuhan, back in control of his body, nodded very seriously, as if he'd really taken Xu Yan's words to heart—if you ignored the pity still filling his eyes.
"!!!" You don't know a damn thing!
Xu Yan was furious. Several times, he nearly threw aside his dignity as a man and challenged Qian Yuhan to a duel.
But the moment he angrily stood up—
His brain, back on top of its game, reminded him of one bleak fact.
This was Bright Capital. He couldn't use large-scale Soul Tools.
Under this handicap, it was likely that this kid—who was theoretically only a Soul Ancestor, but could kill three Evil Soul Masters at the Soul Douluo level—would pin him to the ground and rub him into the dirt.
Before you continue