The Captivating Crown Prince

Chapter 16 — Top Gongzi Huan Mo Che

The early morning sunlight spilled over the Crown Prince’s residence like a layer of gold. Chief Hai had already dealt with the mess left over by the previous night’s fight. The injured guards were also being taken care of in the rear court. That place had always been vacant, so they decided to place the bodyguards there. It could be considered their dwelling. Moreover, the rear courtyard was the furthest away from the front, there would be less chances to disturb the crown prince from there. Shang Wuxin couldn’t help but feel quite satisfied at Chief Hai’s considerate way of handling things.

“Crown Prince!” Wu Wei and Wu Ju both stood at the bedroom’s entrance. Earlier today, Wu Wei had come back and had heard about the previous night’s unrest, causing her to blame herself. She wanted to handle her side tasks as soon as possible. As the crown prince’s personal maid, she ought to take care of his everyday life. If anything had happened to him last night, she wouldn’t have been able to wash away the guilt even if she died ten thousand times.

Since the two of them didn’t get a reply, they moved to stand outside the bedroom. After waiting for a long time, they finally heard a voice coming from inside and respectfully walked in. Wu Wei started combing the crown prince’s hair and arranging his clothing while Wu Ju tidied up the room.

“Why did you come here after returning, instead of resting up?” Shang Wuxin asked as she glanced at the mirror’s reflection of Wu Wei combing her hair. When it came to her own people, she had a much more lenient heart. Not to mention how highly she thought of the ones who were devoted and useful.

Looking at the crown prince’s fine black hair, Wu Wei couldn’t help but sigh with emotion. Compared to him, all the palace’s consorts and princesses were much inferior. Listening to his thoughtful words, she said, “This servant isn’t tired. Being able to wait upon You is this servant’s greatest fortune.”

Shang Wuxin didn’t have much else to say. Since Wu Wei was so willing to serve her, she regarded her as very competent maid. Glancing at Wu Ju, who was in the middle of putting the bed in order, she said, “You got injured last night. Go out and train with Wu Wei a little later, so you’ll be able to protect yourself better in the future and become This Prince’s strength.”

“Many thanks, Crown Prince!” Wu Ju happily replied.

Watching these two, a hint of warmth flowed in Shang Wuxin’s heart. Their ages weren’t much older than her own. She was worried that if she kept being distant, the two maids would be apprehensive whenever they faced her. Although it was a good thing to be feared, being feared too much was only a burden. In addition, she intended to nurture the two of them, to become her left and right hand. Therefore, they didn’t only need skill, but also self-confidence and genuine loyalty. Though that wasn’t something that could be attained in only a short time.

“You’ve come so early today; is something the matter?” Shang Wuxin asked. Since the two of them were her very own personal maids, they resided in the same courtyard so they could serve in front of her sleeping quarters at any time. However, she didn’t like having people standing outside her room while she was sleeping, so she made them go rest at night.

“Crown Prince, young master Huan Mo Che arrived to the residence to tutor You in writing. Crown Prince ought to receive the guest,” Wu Wei stated. Even if she knew that the crown prince didn’t keep the two mentors within his view, and she also believed he was quite intelligent and didn’t have a need for any mentors, it was, after all, the Emperor’s decree. Moreover, young master Huan’s motive to suddenly volunteer as a tutor for the crown prince was too suspicious. But no matter what, they shouldn’t rashly offend young master Huan.

“Oh? He showed up unexpectedly early.” Due to the toxin in her body since birth, even if her martial arts was outstanding, she couldn’t avoid easily tiring out.. Furthermore, she was originally the type to pay attention to her resting time and had a hard time getting out of bed, so she usually woke up late. Since the two maids had shown up outside her sleeping quarters, she was roused comparatively early, but she didn’t expect the so called top gongzi1 of the capital to have shown up at such an early time in the morning. What could be the reason for his urgent arrival?

“Since he came, let Chief Hai entertain him.” Shang Wuxin stared at her own tied up hair, then at her androgynous facial features. Since she had recently started sleeping without the bind around her chest, her breasts had also slowly began to grow. It was rather troublesome.

“But…” Wu Wei looked at the crown prince and said with some intent, “Young master Huan has been waiting for You in the Great Hall, saying he wanted to instruct You in writing. Chief Hai was unable to convince him nor drive him out of the residence, so he could only let him wait in the Great Hall.”

Now mentioning that, Wu Wei also found it quite strange. Who didn’t know that the young master Huan was difficult to deal with, not even giving face to the princes and princesses. Yet why did it seem like he wanted to cooperate with the crown prince now?

“Should this servant make young master Huan leave?” Wu Wei asked.

Shang Wuxin took a look at her own neatly arranged clothes, then said with a smile, “I’m afraid you simply won’t be able to make him leave.” A person who wasn’t in any official position, yet he could make the nobles and the officials follow him, as well as have the princes and princesses fighting over his favor. How would Wu Wei ever be able to get rid of such a person?

Shang Wuxin unhurriedly strolled into the vast Great Hall of the Crown Prince’s residence, at once noticing the young master waiting in the room. He was dressed in light blue clothes, his silky black hair loosely draped over his shoulders with a single jade hairpin binding it. As he was leisurely sampling the tea, holding the cup with both hands, he presented a simple and elegant yet tranquil image. This man with such a conduct definitely deserved the title of ‘Capital’s top gongzi’. It was exactly this type of countenance that made others feel at ease. But unfortunately, Shang Wuxin disliked Huan Mo Che at a glance. Not for any other reason, but because he had a pair of striking peach blossom eyes on that neat-looking face of his, making his appearance all the more intense.

Shang Wuxin also recognized him as the man she had met eyes with that day on the street.

Huan Mo Che realized that someone had come in, and put down the tea to stand up, “Greeting the Crown Prince!” No matter how popular he was in the capital, he didn’t hold an actual government post. At meeting the crown prince, he was still required to salute.

“Be at ease.” Shang Wuxin walked up to the seat of honor and no longer looked down at Huan Mo Che.

On the other hand, Huan Mo Che raised his head slightly to study the crown prince. That day only their eyes had met, but they had been too far apart and the crown prince had been sitting in his carriage; thus, Huan Mo Che hadn’t been able to clearly see his face. As he now took a careful glimpse, he couldn’t help but blink in shock. The crown prince was dressed in a light purple brocade robe. Whenever the edges of the robe fluttered as he walked, they would draw an elegant arc. A jade hairpin held his hair together without any unnecessary accessories. He was incomparably graceful with an innate noble aura. No flowery clothes or precious stones could match him; covering up his appearance, they would only seem lacking and inappropriate. His pair of sharp black eyes were like a deep abyss.

Ever since Huan Mo Che had seen those pair of eyes, they kept invading his mind. So when he heard that the emperor wanted to find mentors for the crown prince, completely outside of his own expectations, he had agreed to do it. Now that he had seen the eyes of the crown prince, Huan Mo Che’s heart started to warm.