When Shen Fei reached the gates of the Sacred Family estate, the guards had already spotted him from afar.
Both guards were familiar faces in the family. They had served the Sacred Family for over a decade, watched Shen Fei grow from a boy into a young man, and seen how he used to lower his head to avoid their eyes whenever he came and went, hurrying through the side gate.
But today was different. Today, the young man approaching the main gates held his back perfectly straight and walked with unhurried steps. He neither yielded nor dodged, simply making his way toward the main entrance.
Both guards straightened their backs at once and tightened their grips on their spear shafts.
Instinctively, they wanted to salute him, but hesitated for a moment. In the end, as Shen Fei reached the gates, they lowered their heads together, bowed, and called out, "Eldest young master."
Shen Fei did not stop. He merely turned his head and nodded to them before stepping over the threshold.
Once he had gone some distance, the two guards exchanged a glance, each seeing the same thought in the other's eyes: from today onward, they might have to change that title of "eldest young master."
Shen Fei followed the main path through the Front Courtyard.
The servants and guards in the courtyard reacted differently when they saw him.
The younger servants were still unclear on what exactly had happened last night. They only knew that the eldest young master looked completely different today. Every step he took was steady, his gaze remained level, and he avoided no one's eyes. He seemed like an entirely different person from the eldest legitimate son who had always hurried through the covered corridors with his head lowered.
They hesitated. Some lowered their