Thirteen Princess Rose! Encountering Xue Qinghe

"Are you certain this is the residence of the Thirteenth Princess?"

The Imperial City!

In front of a certain manor in a remote area of the southern city.

Su Changge stepped down from the carriage and pointed at the manor, which was roughly the same size as the courtyard he had rented, his tone laced with surprise.

According to the kingdom's rules, once a prince or princess of the royal family came of age, they were required to move out of the palace.

However, the kingdom's treasury usually allocated a specific sum of money for these princes and princesses to build or purchase a residence and cultivate their own guards.

Yet, the manor before him probably couldn't even compare to the residences of the wealthy merchants in the Imperial City, let alone those of the high nobility.

"Yes, Lord Su Changge, the Thirteenth Princess lives here."

The Musket Cavalryman beside him nodded heavily; to confirm the accuracy of the intelligence, he had crouched outside for an entire night.

"It seems our Thirteenth Princess is even less favored than the rumors suggest."

After sighing, the smile on Su Changge's face grew even wider.

Being unfavored is a good thing.

Adding flowers to a brocade is nowhere near as valuable as providing charcoal in the snow.

Shaking the distracting thoughts from his mind, Su Changge knocked heavily on the gate of the Thirteenth Princess's manor.

"Please, inform her that Su Changge of the Murong Earldom from the Southern Territory has come to pay a visit."

When Su Changge entered the manor, besides the Thirteenth Princess Rose, who had just turned seventeen, there were two men present.

The young man in the lead had a face as handsome as jade and an extraordinary bearing.

His entire body was shrouded in the noble aura of royalty and imperial authority.

The other person was cloaked in a black robe; at first glance, he appeared like an old man on the verge of death, but upon a second look, he felt like an abyss, nearly swallowing his soul whole.

In an instant, Su Changge's martial soul roared, and his nerves tightened to the limit.

Even Zhao Wuji, a Soul Saint, could not produce such an extreme, suffocating sense of danger!

A Soul Douluo? Or perhaps... a Titled Douluo!?

Taking a deep breath, Su Changge suppressed the fear in his heart.

He had underestimated the people of this world.

He had not expected that in this Imperial City, there would be someone with the same... level of audacity as himself.

"Su Changge of the Murong Earldom greets the Thirteenth Princess!"

Su Changge withdrew his gaze and performed a noble salute toward Rose.

"I wonder what business Lord Su has with me?"

The Thirteenth Princess returned the salute, responding in a gentle tone.

She looked naive and worldly-innocent, a perfect little white flower.

Easy to handle!

"That is not urgent. May I ask who these two distinguished guests are!?"

Su Changge did not rush to state his purpose, instead turning his head to look at the young man and the black-robed elder.

He did not yet know if these two were friends or foes; if he spoke too freely, wouldn't he be trapping himself?

Besides!

With more people around, it would be difficult to hoodwink a pure and ignorant little white flower.

"My name is Xue Qinghe, I come from Tiandou Imperial City, and this is my attendant."

Before Rose could speak, the young man in the lead stated his identity directly, his eyes fixed on Su Changge, carrying a hint of curiosity.

"Xue Qinghe!?"

"Tiandou Imperial City!"

"You are Qian..."

Su Changge felt as if he had been struck by a thousand bolts of lightning. If his left hand hadn't been fast enough to cover his mouth, the name "Qian Renxue" would have slipped out.

No wonder!

No wonder he had seen at a glance that these two were not simple.

Damn it, Qian Renxue was actually targeting the Thirteenth Princess.

Then... who was that black-robed elder?

Pufferfish Douluo? Or Snake Spear Douluo?

With Titled Douluos appearing, this high-stakes game was beyond his ability to play.

"Cough... long time no see, long time no see!"

With a dry chuckle, Su Changge suppressed the trembling in his heart and quickly turned to the Thirteenth Princess. "Um... Your Highness Rose, I just remembered I have some urgent matters to attend to at home, so I won't impose any longer. Let us... let us meet another day."

Having said that, Su Changge turned to slip away.

However, the old man in the black robe seemed to see right through him; his figure flickered like a ghost, blocking Su Changge's path.

His scarlet eyes flashed, radiating endless pressure.

"Now, look here... what is the meaning of this?"

Su Changge's body stiffened as he turned his head to look at Xue Qinghe.

"Interesting... Lord Su seems to recognize me?"

Xue Qinghe let out a soft laugh, his eyes filled with amusement as he walked toward Su Changge.

Seeing Xue Qinghe closing in step by step, Su Changge's legs went weak, and he dropped to his knees.

"Su Changge of the Murong Earldom pays his respects to Your Highness the Crown Prince!!!"

"Crown Prince?"

Hearing how Su Changge addressed Xue Qinghe, the Thirteenth Princess didn't react for a moment.

As a naive, sheltered girl, she hadn't even figured out the affairs of the royal city, let alone paid attention to the big shots of the Heaven Dou Imperial City!

"Su Changge! I'm starting to get interested in you."

Xue Qinghe said this with deep meaning before turning his gaze to the Thirteenth Princess.

"Your Highness Rose, I truly apologize. I concealed my identity when we first met."

"Now, let me reintroduce myself: I am the Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire."

After a flurry of chaotic commotion, Su Changge and Rose sat obediently before Xue Qinghe.

Su Changge, in particular, leaned forward and sat bolt upright, the word "obedient" practically carved onto his forehead.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, I appreciate your kindness, but I truly have no desire to contend for the throne... Besides, I am different from my eldest brother or my seventh sister."

"They have deep-rooted foundations in the royal city and throughout the entire kingdom. Even if you exhausted your efforts to push me onto the throne, I might not be able to hold it for long, and by then... I would only drag the Crown Prince down with me."

Facing everyone's gaze, the Thirteenth Princess's cheeks flushed, her expression timid.

Had they not heard it with their own ears, no one would believe that someone would actually refuse the throne.

The throne! The seat of supreme power in the kingdom.

For the vast majority of people, even just sitting on that throne for a single day would be worth sacrificing their lives.

"Your Highness Rose, rest assured. Once you ascend the throne, with my support, even if the entire kingdom were to rebel, they could not shake your position."

"I will push you to the top, and I will clear away all hidden dangers for you!"

"And in return, you need only offer me your loyalty..."

In the corner of his eye, Su Changge watched as Xue Qinghe spent a full half-hour trying to persuade Rose to join the war for the throne.

But in the end, it was all for nothing.

"Pfft..."

Watching Xue Qinghe's expression gradually turn sour, Su Changge couldn't help but let out a laugh.

"What are you laughing at!?"

"Are you happy to see me thwarted?"

Xue Qinghe clearly didn't have the same patience for Su Changge as he did for Rose.

He slammed a palm onto the table in front of him, and the solid, carved wood instantly shattered into pieces.

At the same time, that black-robed figure appeared behind Su Changge like a ghost once more.

It seemed that if Xue Qinghe gave the order, those withered, wooden hands would pierce right through Su Changge's skull.

"No... Your Highness the Crown Prince, I wasn't laughing, I really wasn't."

Su Changge was terrified.

"Are you implying that I misheard, that I'm suffering from auditory hallucinations?"

"No, that's not it, I did laugh, but I didn't mean—"

"Su Changge, you have some nerve, daring to toy with me!!!"

Su Changge suddenly realized that when a woman disguises herself as a man, she is absolutely more unreasonable than any woman.

When you encounter a beautiful, unreasonable woman, you can use charm, sweet talk, or money.

But when you encounter a woman disguised as a man, none of those methods work.

That mental barrier—it just couldn't be crossed.

It really couldn't be crossed!