The moment Qian Yuhan stepped through the gates of Princess Mansion, a refreshing scent of grass and trees drifted toward him. He followed the fragrance with his eyes and saw pavilions and towers, intricately carved beams and painted rafters, artificial hills and flowing water, and winding paths through bamboo groves beneath white walls and red tiles.
It wasn't as grand and magnificent as the Sun Moon Imperial Palace, but it was still exquisite and beautiful.
Even setting aside the elegant decor, the sheer size of the grounds—far exceeding those of all the surrounding estates belonging to the imperial relatives—made it fair to call her the old emperor's most cherished darling.
"How is it? Doesn't it make your eyes light up? And this is nothing. What you're seeing isn't even one-twentieth of the entire Princess Mansion."
Xu Yan had no idea which little kitchen he'd found a plate of pastries in, but he held them in one hand and ate as he spoke, his voice dripping with sour envy. It was as though...he was using the pastries to press down the sour bile rising in his stomach.
"Forget you. Even I, a marquis, was startled the first time I came here. This is nothing like a normal princess's residence! Compared to this mansion, even the old estates of some princes seem rather shabby."
"It's pretty nice."
As someone who had truly seen the wider world, Qian Yuhan gave a perfectly fair assessment.
You're really laying it on thick, kid!
Apart from the imperial palace, where else could you find a residence more imposing than Princess Mansion?
Xu Yan pursed his lips and grumbled silently to himself. But his expression remained unchanged. He wiped the pastry crumbs from the corner of his mouth, clapped his hands, and said,
"The princess won't be up for a while. Since we've got time to kill, why don't I show you around the outer courtyards?"
Qian Yuhan: "..." Do we really have to tour the grounds? Why does it feel like you're just like one of those characters in a formulaic story, always either taking me out to eat or leading me around for a stroll?
As an experienced cultivator from a great Soul Tool nation, shouldn't you be showing me the wonders of Soul Tools, the importance of cultivation, and the advances in Soul Guidance Technology every now and then?
That was what Qian Yuhan thought, and that was what he said.
Hearing Qian Yuhan's bewildered question, Xu Yan lowered his head in shame...
Not a chance. Xu Yan folded his arms across his chest and declared righteously,
"Teaching you is the academy instructors' job, not mine! I'm just a poor marquis with a tiny salary. You want me to guard that unruly princess while moonlighting as your teacher on a meager marquis's stipend? Don't you think that's a little too exploitative of the nobility?"
"Fine."
With things put that plainly, what else could Qian Yuhan say?
He could only nod in resignation and silently pray that the Sun-Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy would start classes soon, so he could urge the Rakshasa Phantom to learn more.
And so, under the guidance of professional tour guide Xu Yan, Qian Yuhan was dragged through the outer courtyards of Princess Mansion. Just as he thought the dull morning might finally be over, Xu Yan—now a mastermind of brilliant ideas—came up with another bold proposal. "Want to take a look at her Small Soul Beast Garden?"
Qian Yuhan: "?!" Why can't you just stop?
Rakshasa Phantom: "?!" Wait, what kind of family is this? They keep Soul Beasts at home? Qian Renxue didn't keep Soul Beasts in the palace when she was disguised as the crown prince! Oh, she's a princess of the Sun Moon Empire? Never mind, then!
Without waiting for Qian Yuhan to agree, Xu Yan cheerfully walked up to a door someone had deliberately painted black and marked in bold red with the six characters, "Danger: Soul Beasts!" He slammed it open with one palm, then turned to show Qian Yuhan what was inside—
Xu Tianzhen, dressed in a loose, pale-yellow silk nightgown, her hair loose and tousled, sat barefoot and cross-legged atop a gray tortoise twice the size of a millstone, dozing off.
She held a crude wooden fishing rod. A bright red carrot dangled from the line at its tip.
The enormous tortoise stared at the carrot just beyond its reach and slowly crawled across a flat patch of grass, carrying Xu Tianzhen along.
"Xu Yan?!"
The moment she saw Xu Yan appear at the entrance to her pet garden, Xu Tianzhen—already wary from past experience—let out a shrill squeal.
Completely unconcerned that she wasn't wearing shoes, she leapt off the giant tortoise and charged toward Xu Yan.
"Who said you could come snooping around my pet garden, Your Highness? Are you trying to steal one of my rabbits again and roast it for a drink?" Xu Tianzhen hopped toward him, reaching to grab his collar. But the enormous difference in their heights meant that no matter how hard she jumped, she was always just that tiny, tantalizing distance away.
"Your Highness, calm down." Xu Yan dodged the hopping Xu Tianzhen, wearing a mocking smile. "We have a guest."
"So what if we have a guest? Don't think you can get away with a beating just because we have company!" Xu Tianzhen pouted, grabbed the fishing rod with the carrot tied to it, and raised it as if to strike. Xu Yan let out a strange laugh and rolled aside like a bear that had stolen honey and was being chased by bees.
Only after Xu Yan, whose enormous frame took up a great deal of space, had rolled himself to the other side did Qian Yuhan finally emerge from behind his bulky body and "see daylight again."
"Oh! You're here too?!"
Xu Tianzhen hadn't expected to run into her future fiancé, whom she had already picked out in advance—and she was in this disheveled state, too.
In the face of such acute embarrassment, she didn't know whether to keep the fishing rod raised or lower it.
After a long silence, she tossed the rod aside, stiffly raised a hand to the back of her head, and pretended to tidy her wildly tangled hair.
"Uh...yeah."
Qian Yuhan stared at the bird's nest of hair on Xu Tianzhen's head. The corner of his eye twitched, and he could only nod in reply.
Honestly, he hadn't expected Xu Yan's confident claim—"The princess usually sleeps until noon. I'll show you around the outer grounds first"—to be less reliable than the vine the Rakshasa Phantom used for cosplaying as a teru teru bōzu when bored.
You might ask why Qian Yuhan hadn't used his spiritual power to scout ahead.
Come on, what kind of gentleman goes to someone's house and immediately uses his spiritual power to peer into a young woman's bedroom?
Anyone who'd do that would be a shameless lecher and a dirty thief!
A gentleman wouldn't do that. At least, he shouldn't.
As he thought this, Qian Yuhan couldn't help sneaking a bewildered glance toward Xu Yan, the man responsible for all of this. But all he saw was Xu Yan's feignedly serious face, and the sly, fleeting grin that clearly said, "The plan worked."
"Old Qian, I see it now. That shameless old man is trying to play matchmaker for you two! How afraid are they in the Sun Moon Empire that you'll run off?"
The quick-witted Rakshasa Phantom had already seen through everything. It planted its hands on its hips, leaned against the nearby wall, and muttered under its breath.
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