Once the guard saw who had spoken, the smile on his face instantly turned respectful. He immediately bowed slightly to the newcomer, his voice becoming solemn and restrained.
"Greetings, Your Highness."
Xue Qinghe wore plain white casual clothes and had brought no attendants. With a gentle smile of just the right warmth on his face, he gave the bowing guard a slight nod in acknowledgment.
A barely perceptible flicker of interest passed through Xue Qinghe's eyes as he addressed the blond boy politely and amiably.
"Since you recognize me, might I have the honor of knowing your name?"
"This king's name is Jing Shanshan."
"Haha, all right, King Jing Shanshan. I heard that you wished to enter the Heaven Dou Empire Court Etiquette Academy. Would you like someone to show you around?"
"Mm."
Xue Qinghe raised a hand in an impeccably elegant gesture of invitation.
The moment Xue Qinghe appeared in view, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger in Jing Shanshan's arms became restless.
It no longer lay quietly against Jing Shanshan's shoulder. Its fur stood on end as it hissed threateningly at Xue Qinghe, looking as though there was something about him that it utterly loathed.
Jing Shanshan showed little reaction. He merely stroked the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's fur and silently followed Xue Qinghe with an unhurried gait.
The gatekeeper stood beside the entrance, bowing even lower than he had when greeting visitors earlier.
He secretly raised his eyes to steal a glance at Jing Shanshan's retreating figure, then quickly lowered them again, his palms slick with cold sweat.
The impatience and contempt he had shown while barring the boy's way had long since vanished. Now, only one thought kept turning over in his mind.
Judging by the situation, Xue Qinghe and that child had only just met.
Prince Xue Qinghe had most likely brought the child into the academy because he had spotted something novel and wanted to get acquainted.
But the child was beside Xue Qinghe now. If he mentioned what had happened earlier in front of the prince... even if the gatekeeper had only been conscientiously carrying out his duties.
He was still afraid of someone speaking ill of him and making him wear tight shoes!
When that happened, his days of earning a living here would be over.
The more the gatekeeper thought about it, the more frightened he grew, his calves trembling. Unable to resist another glance, he caught sight of the back of Jing Shanshan's head disappearing through the entrance, without so much as a look in his direction.
His heart eased slightly, only to tighten again.
Would that child make him wear tight shoes somewhere he could not see...?
The interior of the Moonlight Pavilion was even more refined and dignified than its exterior suggested.
The hall was spacious, its curtains half drawn and its light soft. Everywhere held a perfectly measured elegance polished by discipline, making even the hostility in one's heart ease a little at the sight.
Stroking the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, whose fur was no longer bristling as badly as before, Jing Shanshan nodded in approval as he surveyed his surroundings.
The more he looked, the more he appreciated it, pondering whether he might someday decorate his own territory in a similar style.
Along the way, many nobles took the initiative to approach Xue Qinghe and greet him elegantly when they saw him. Their gazes inevitably held a measure of curiosity when they turned toward Jing Shanshan.
Over this period, Jing Shanshan had encountered quite a few nobles and members of other royal families.
The nobles of the Heaven Dou Empire were rather different from what he had imagined.
He had originally thought nobles would each have their own distinctive traits, a group exuding the lofty presence of those in power. Yet judging by those he had encountered today, nearly every noble seemed to have been carved from someone's template. Apart from elegance, they had no other qualities at all, leaving little he could use for reference or comparison.
He felt a little disappointed, and his disappointment in the Heaven Dou Empire Court Etiquette Academy deepened.
"Who founded this academy?"
Jing Shanshan asked casually as he stroked the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's fur.
"The person who founded this academy is called Tang Yuehua."
Jing Shanshan looked at Xue Qinghe's back, a hint of surprise in his voice.
"Tang Yuehua? Her surname isn't Xue? The Moonlight Pavilion holds such a high position in the Heaven Dou Empire, yet it wasn't established by your Heaven Dou Imperial Family?"
Xue Qinghe slowly shook his head, answering plainly and calmly.
"No. Both the Moonlight Pavilion's founding and its achievements today could be said to revolve around Tang Yuehua's abilities. Anyone else could never have brought the Moonlight Pavilion to its current standing within just a few decades of its founding."
"This king wants to meet her!"
A spark of interest stirred in Jing Shanshan.
"Nowadays, Tang Yuehua rarely appears to manage affairs, and she seldom spends time at the academy."
The meaning was clear: Tang Yuehua was not at the academy at present, so Jing Shanshan could not meet her even if he wanted to.
Jing Shanshan showed no frustration at all. He nodded in agreement without asking why.
After establishing a faction, a ruler could not handle every matter personally. They only needed to set the right course, and there would naturally be people below to meet the targets.
Jing Shanshan set aside the idle chatter and got straight to the point.
"What do you want with me?"
Xue Qinghe smiled. Faced with this sudden question, he answered without the slightest ripple in his tone.
"I saw someone interesting at the entrance and wanted to get acquainted."
Without stopping, Jing Shanshan tilted his head to glance at Xue Qinghe.
"I don't like talking to people who go around in circles."
Jing Shanshan's words were blunt and impolite.
Xue Qinghe did not get angry. He merely turned his face and quietly watched Jing Shanshan for a long time.
His gaze was not particularly sharp. It was as though he were scrutinizing and weighing something.
After a long while, rather than answering Jing Shanshan's question immediately, Xue Qinghe motioned for him to keep following.
The two made several turns into a secluded corridor. At its end stood an exquisite door, which looked like the bedroom door of someone of exalted status.
Xue Qinghe pushed the door open first and gestured for Jing Shanshan to enter.
No one was inside. The furnishings were simple: a desk piled with numerous files, along with a soft leather sofa for receiving guests.
Once they entered the bedroom, Xue Qinghe shut the door and windows. Those inside could not hear a single sound from outside, and those outside likewise could not hear the slightest movement within.
Xue Qinghe stood by the window, looking down at the people coming and going below. With the light behind him, he tossed out a question.
"Do you know who I am?"
Jing Shanshan casually chose a sofa and sat down, answering without hesitation.
"The Heaven Dou Empire's prince, Xue Qinghe."
Xue Qinghe did not respond immediately. He turned to look at Jing Shanshan for a while, as though confirming something, or waiting for something.
Finally, Xue Qinghe's expression suddenly changed, and he slowly asked about something else that seemed eight bamboo poles removed from the present matter.
"Are you certain that the person from the future in the Martial Soul is Qian Renxue?"
Jing Shanshan was in no hurry to answer. His fingers still rested on the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's fur, stroking it again and again.
The tiger had been hissing at Xue Qinghe for quite some time, but Jing Shanshan did not stop it, merely acting as though he had not noticed. He raised his eyes toward Xue Qinghe, backlit by the window, and leisurely tossed the question back.
"What do you think?"
Not long before, Jing Shanshan had communicated mentally with the Shadow Doll Puppet Qian Renxue and confirmed that she had already spoken with Xue Qinghe. She simply had not returned to his side yet because her business was still unfinished.
Since that was the case, whether he answered this question made little difference. Xue Qinghe ought to know in his own heart whether it was true or false.