A Gentleman Cannot, At Least Should Not

As soon as he stepped through the gates of the Princess Mansion, a refreshing scent of grass and trees greeted him. Qian Yuhan looked toward the source of the fragrance, seeing white walls and vermilion tiles framing pavilions, carved beams, painted rafters, rockeries, flowing water, and secluded bamboo paths.

Although it lacked the grand magnificence of the Sun-Moon Imperial Palace, it was still exquisite and opulent.

Even ignoring the refined decor, the sheer scale of the grounds—far exceeding that of any other imperial relative's residence—made it clear that she was indeed the apple of the old Emperor's eye.

"How about it? Does it catch your eye? And this is just the beginning; what you see here isn't even one-twentieth of the entire Princess Mansion."

Xu Yan appeared from some small kitchen, holding a stack of snacks. He ate as he spoke, his tone laced with sour envy, as if he were trying to suppress the rising bile in his stomach with the pastries:

"Don't feel bad; even I, a Marquis, was shocked when I first came to this courtyard. This is hardly the standard specification for a normal princess's residence! Even the ancestral homes of some princes look a bit shabby compared to this place."

"It is indeed quite nice."

As someone who had truly seen the world, Qian Yuhan gave a very objective evaluation.

Keep pretending, kid!

Aside from the Imperial Palace, where else could you find a residence more imposing than this?

Xu Yan curled his lips, grumbling silently in his heart. On the surface, however, he remained unchanged. He wiped the pastry crumbs from the corners of his mouth and clapped his hands.

"The Princess hasn't woken up yet, and since we have time to kill, why don't I take you for a stroll around the outer courtyards?"

Qian Yuhan: "..." Must we really tour this garden? Why do you feel like one of those programmed characters from a script, doing nothing but taking me to eat or dragging me on walks?

As a senior practitioner from a great power of Soul Tools, shouldn't you be showing me the mysteries of Soul Tools, the importance of cultivation, and the progress of soul-guided technology from time to time?

Qian Yuhan thought this, and he said exactly that.

Hearing Qian Yuhan's puzzled words, Xu Yan lowered his head in shame...

As if! Xu Yan crossed his arms and said righteously:

"Teaching you knowledge is the job of the academy instructors, not mine! I'm just a pitiful Marquis with a meager salary. You want me to act as a bodyguard for that unruly princess while moonlighting as your teacher on a pittance of a salary? Don't you think that's a bit too exploitative of the nobility?"

"Fine."

Since it had come to this, what else could Qian Yuhan say?

He could only nod in resignation, silently praying that the Sun-Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy would start classes soon so he could urge the Rakshasa Phantom to learn something useful.

And so, under the guidance of the professional tour guide Xu Yan, Qian Yuhan was forced to finish touring the outer courtyards. Just as he thought this boring morning might finally be over, Xu Yan—having transitioned from tour guide to mastermind—came up with a bold idea: "Do you want to go see her Small Soul Beast Garden?"

Qian Yuhan: "?!" Is there no end to this man?

Rakshasa Phantom: "?!" Wait, what kind of household is this? Keeping soul beasts at home? Even when Qian Renxue was disguising herself as the Crown Prince, she didn't keep soul beasts in the palace! Oh, right, Sun Moon Empire princess, never mind then!

Without waiting for Qian Yuhan's consent, Xu Yan walked cheerfully to a door that had been deliberately painted black, with the six characters 'Soul Beast Danger: Caution!' scrawled in red. He kicked it open and turned to show Qian Yuhan the scene inside—

Xu Tianzhen, wearing a loose beige silk nightgown with her hair disheveled, was sitting cross-legged and barefoot on the back of a gray turtle two sizes larger than a millstone, dozing off.

In her hand, she held a crude wooden fishing rod, and a bright red radish was tied to the end of the line.

The giant turtle simply stared at the unreachable radish, carrying Xu Tianzhen as it crawled slowly across a flat patch of grass.

"Xu Yan?!"

Seeing Xu Yan suddenly appear at the entrance of her pet garden, Xu Tianzhen, having learned from past experiences, let out a sharp, piercing shriek.

Ignoring the fact that she wasn't wearing shoes, she jumped off the giant turtle's back and charged toward Xu Yan with a menacing aura.

"Who gave you permission to wander into my pet garden! Are you trying to steal my rabbits to roast for your drinks again!" Xu Tianzhen hopped forward, trying to grab Xu Yan by the collar, but due to their significant height difference, no matter how hard she jumped, she remained just out of reach.

"Princess, calm down." Xu Yan dodged Xu Tianzhen's frantic lunges, a smirk playing on his lips. "We have a guest."

"So what if we have a guest? Don't think I won't beat you just because someone is watching!" Xu Tianzhen pouted, grabbing the fishing rod with the radish to use as a weapon. Xu Yan let out a strange laugh and rolled to the side like a bear that had stolen honey and was being chased by bees.

Once the bulky Xu Yan, who occupied a significant amount of space due to his size, rolled to the other side, Qian Yuhan—previously blocked by his massive frame—was finally revealed to the light of day.

"Eh! You're here too!?"

Xu Tianzhen hadn't expected her pre-arranged future consort to be there, especially while she was in such a disheveled state.

In this moment of extreme embarrassment, she didn't know whether to raise or lower the fishing rod she had brandished.

After a long silence, she tossed the rod to the side and stiffly raised her hand to touch the back of her head, pretending to tidy her messy hair.

"Uh... yeah."

Focusing on the bird's nest of hair atop Xu Tianzhen's head, Qian Yuhan's eye twitched, and he could only nod in response.

Honestly, he hadn't expected Xu Yan's confident claim—'The Princess usually sleeps until noon, I'll take you for a walk in the outer circle first'—to be less reliable than the vine the Rakshasa Phantom used to cosplay as a sun-doll when bored.

What, you ask why Qian Yuhan didn't use his spiritual power to scout ahead?

Please, what kind of gentleman's first act when visiting someone's home is to use spiritual power to peek into a young lady's private chambers?

Anyone who would do such a thing is nothing but a lecherous pervert!

A gentleman wouldn't do it, or at least, he shouldn't.

Thinking this, Qian Yuhan couldn't help but cast a suspicious glance at the "fully responsible" Xu Yan, only to see a fleeting, mischievous smirk on the man's feigned serious face—a smirk that clearly spelled out: 'Mission accomplished.'

Old Qian, I've finally figured it out. That unscrupulous old guy is deliberately setting you two up! Just how afraid are they in the Sun Moon Empire that you might run away?

The witty Rakshasa Phantom had already seen through everything; she stood with her hands on her hips, leaning against the wall and whispering.