Listening to songs in the pleasure quarters, nothing was more intoxicating than a haven of soft embraces.
The two returned together.
"The first time I laid eyes on you, I could tell you were no good."
"You really know how to put on an act."
Xu Sanshi grumbled.
Chu Qing paid him no mind. A man remained a youth until the day he died, and he was still a youth to begin with.
Children in the Douluo World matured early, both in appearance and in mind.
"Right back at you."
He spoke lazily and comfortably.
They returned to An Yi Xuan, and at eight that evening, the two families entered the palace together.
By the time they arrived, a scattering of court nobles had already come with their children.
Although the imperial family was hosting the banquet, it was much more casual and relaxed, because the masters of today's gathering were not the Dou Ling Emperor, but the young scions of prominent families.
The circle of the rich and powerful consisted of more or less the same people. Tonight was meant to let the younger generation get to know one another.
The two families sat down nearby. Chu Qing watched the graceful swan dance on the adjacent stage with interest. The dancers were so skilled that they truly seemed like swans fluttering on the verge of flight.
The dancers had practiced for countless days and nights for this evening, leaving untold amounts of sweat on the stage.
Yet now that the night had finally arrived, they were mere background scenery that few people noticed.
Xu Sanshi leaned over and whispered:
"You've got good taste. If you ask me, every one of those dancers is prettier than those spoiled young ladies with their crooked-melon, cracked-date faces."
Chu Qing nodded in agreement and kindly reminded him:
"With the cultivation of the people here, quite a few of them should be able to hear our conversation clearly."
"You'd better be careful. There are bound to be a few narrow-minded ones."
The two boys' parents heard them more clearly than anyone. Feeling a slight headache coming on, they looked at one another and smiled wryly.
Quite a few people did look their way, most with displeasure in their eyes, though they could hardly make a scene.
Xu Sanshi's father sent a voice transmission to Xue Lingxun:
"Xun'er, if they still won't accept us, we'll return to the Mysterious Nether Sect."
"Father is about to retire anyway. Once I become sect master and break through to Titled Douluo, we won't come back even if they beg us."
Xue Lingxun nodded and called Xu Sanshi to order.
"Sanshi, never mind your manners for a moment; at the very least, don't let your mouth run unchecked."
"I understand, Mother."
Xu Sanshi put on a serious expression, but mere seconds later, his gaze was drawn back to the swan dancers. All he could think was how white, slender, and long they were.
The Dou Ling Emperor knew that Xue Lingxun and Xue Lingyi had both brought their children, and he rejoiced from the bottom of his heart behind the screen.
What had happened back then had been an accident to some extent. He had not known about Xue Lingxun and Xu Sanshi's father beforehand either. After all, the Mysterious Nether Sect had always kept itself hidden from the world. Who could have guessed that the two had long been in love?
And when Heavenly Sun Douluo had personally come to propose the marriage on his grandson's behalf, he could hardly say he needed to go back and ask Xue Lingxun first.
He naturally gave the marriage his blessing in his heart, but outwardly, he had been obliged to give Heavenly Sun Douluo an answer.
He had long heard of Xu Sanshi's talent in secret, and he hoped to resolve the old grievances tonight.
As for Chu Qing, he was the only person in the entire Dou Ling Imperial Family who knew about him. Chu Qing was a genius he was even more eager to meet in person than Xu Sanshi.
But there were still relatively few people outside, so it was not yet appropriate for him to go out.
He could only wait with mounting anticipation.
Outsiders were outsiders, after all. He had long harbored considerable resentment toward Heavenly Sun Douluo, but Dou Ling was weak, and Heavenly Sun Douluo was the foremost of Dou Ling's Titled Douluo.
There was nothing he could do.
Xu Sanshi and Chu Qing, however, were different.
These two rising geniuses had Dou Ling Imperial Family blood flowing in their veins. In time, they could be nurtured into a true Hand of National Protection.
He even hoped that Chu Qing's mutated Sky Azure Bull Emperor Python Martial Soul could be brought into the imperial family and become an inherited Martial Soul like the Swan.
He understood the pain of the Dou Ling Imperial Family all too well, having lived with it from his days as a prince until now.
The mere thought filled him with excitement, and he ordered an attendant:
"It's about time. Send a carriage to invite Heavenly Sun Douluo and his great-granddaughter."
"At once."
The attendant went to carry out the order.
More and more people arrived at the banquet, and after about half an hour, most of the guests were present.
The two lords from distant Luo'an and Tianhe Province, the father and son Xue Kui and Xue Leng, strode in with Mad Lion Douluo and their party, ostentatious in their bearing as they surveyed the room with contempt.
Their gazes lingered on Chu Qing's table for a few extra seconds before they went straight to the seats at the front.
Chu Jiazheng explained to Chu Qing through a voice transmission:
"Xue Kui and Xue Leng are accustomed to throwing their weight around. In their own territory, they're like local emperors. Keep your distance from them as much as you can in the future, and don't stir up unnecessary trouble."
Chu Qing nodded. He naturally knew that Xue Kui and Xue Leng were even worse pieces of work.
As soon as the two lords arrived, someone reported it to the Dou Ling Emperor.
The Dou Ling Emperor clenched his fists in hatred and said:
"Pay them no mind."
The people from the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect were seated next to Xue Kui and Xue Leng.
As the Dou Ling Empire's national protector sect, the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect was naturally invited to banquets like this every time. But the sect rarely chose marriage partners here; those who came were merely paying their respects.
In recent years, however, Xue Leng had grown increasingly arrogant, and he felt that they were now qualified.
He had married Mad Lion Douluo's daughter, and their son Xue Shi had inherited the Flame Mad Lion Martial Soul. At only twelve years old, he was already a Two-Ring Soul Grandmaster.
Without asking whether the other party was willing, he could not help thinking that if his son married into the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, who would sit on the Dou Ling throne in a few years was anyone's guess.
He had already secured the support of half the White Tiger Duke's Mansion in secret, and they had agreed to send troops to support each other if they rose up.
He fixed his gaze on Ning Tian, who was as lovely as a glazed porcelain treasure.
Wu Feng, who was with her, noticed the greasy man nearby and immediately tugged warily at her grandmother's sleeve.
Ning Tian's protector, a powerhouse at the Titled Douluo level, naturally looked down on Xue Leng's family. Hot-tempered as she was, she swept her gaze past Xue Leng and looked straight at Mad Lion Douluo.
"Mad Lion Douluo, it seems to me that the longer you live, the more muddle-headed you become."
"Old Dragon Lady, what did you say?"
Mad Lion Douluo immediately flew into a rage.
One had the Red Dragon Martial Soul, the other the Flame Mad Lion Martial Soul. The anger of the two Titled Douluo alone made the atmosphere at the gathering turn hot and stifling in an instant.
Naturally, not everyone was willing to show deference to Xue Kui and Xue Leng.
Wu Feng's grandmother, who feared them not at all and had a fierce temper, was one such person. She looked at Xue Shi with disdain and said:
"What did I say?"
"I said people should know their own limits. From now on, keep that little cur of a grandson of yours away from our young sect master and my granddaughter."
"He isn't worthy. Come back and talk when he has half the ability of the Spirit Rhinoceros Sect's young sect master."
She had drawn their hostility onto Chu Qing.
The sect had sent her here with a task, but she had raised both the young sect master Ning Tian and Wu Feng together. She could scarcely tell which one was her own granddaughter anymore.
Even though she had heard that the Spirit Rhinoceros Sect had produced a once-in-an-era genius with the Sky Azure Bull Python Martial Soul, she had never seen him with her own eyes. He still wanted to see for himself just how capable the boy was, to make the sect master consider a marriage alliance before even meeting him.
Chu Qing, who had been comfortably watching the show, was startled when he heard this.
He was sitting so far away, so how had the fire still managed to spread to him?
Xu Sanshi, however, burst out laughing. He had originally thought he would be the one targeted for trouble tonight. Only after Xue Lingxun lightly smacked him on the head did he quiet down, though he continued to laugh to himself.
Chu Qing also thought to himself that this was not how things should be, but Xue Leng and his party had already turned to look at him as one, their gazes hostile.
They did not recognize Chu Qing, but they knew Princess Xue Lingyi well.