"Young Master Beichen and Young Master Zeming are indeed worthy of being His Highness the Crown Prince's study companions; even their horsemanship is so outstanding!"

"Even if they weren't the Crown Prince's study companions, they would still be among the best of their generation!"

"Isn't there someone running ahead of them? Who is he?" Ye Jingchen heard the discussion and, without any hesitation, went over to ask.

“You don’t even recognize Zhang Zhe? Who are you from? You look so unfamiliar to me.” One of the children asked in confusion.

“My younger brother is a bit shy around strangers. We haven’t left the house these past few days to take care of him. You haven’t met us before, so of course you find us unfamiliar,” Ye Jingchen said without changing his expression.

"Brother..." Ye Jinghe called out timidly, slowly moving himself behind Ye Jingchen.

Xie Chang'an: ......

Why didn't he realize before that the little madman had such a talent for acting?

"Baby, don't be afraid, they're not bad people!" Ye Jingchen quickly knelt down to comfort Ye Jinghe.

The key point is that even when he squatted down, he didn't forget to pull Xie Chang'an along, causing him to stumble.

Xie Chang'an took a deep breath, barely suppressing his anger.

"Your two younger brothers are so cute! If I had such cute younger brothers, I would want to hide them away!" Another child looked at Xie Chang'an and Ye Jinghe with shining eyes, his hand itching to reach for Xie Chang'an.

"No—my younger brother has a bad temper and he'll hit people!" Ye Jingchen saw through his intention and quickly stopped him.

The child chuckled and withdrew his hand, pretending to be nonchalant, but Xie Chang'an gave Ye Jingchen a cold glance upon hearing this.

"Hiss—such a young age, yet such terrifying eyes!" The child gasped, still shaken.

"Whose son is Zhang Zhe? Is he famous?" Ye Jingchen asked with a smile, steering the conversation back to the child who came in first place.

In just a short while, the gap between the top three and the bottom six widened significantly. Zhang Zhe, on the other hand, maintained a horse's length distance from Wu Zemin, as if he was trying his best, or perhaps doing it on purpose.

It was a bit far away, and Ye Jingchen's eyesight was limited, so he couldn't see it very clearly.

"Chang'an, what do you think?" he asked casually.

Before Xie Chang'an could even offer his opinion, Ye Jinghe stared at his brother in shock, completely forgetting his usual 'shy' persona.

When did my brother become so close to Xie Chang'an?

"Baby—what do you think?" Xie Chang'an deliberately used the same term Ye Jingchen had used to address Ye Jinghe to disgust him.

How old are you? Why do you still keep calling me "baby" all the time? Isn't that disgusting?

Ye Jinghe was disgusted by the address and snorted at Xie Chang'an.

"Did you take the wrong medicine?" Ye Jingchen looked at Xie Chang'an in shock.

"You've never even heard of Zhang Zhe? Are you from out of town?" the child asked in surprise.

“His father is the infamous Living Yama—” a kid next to him interjected with an exaggerated expression.

"Zhang Li, Minister of Justice".

Having successfully disgusted Ye Jinghe, Xie Chang'an was in a good mood and mercifully reminded him.

"You're amazing! You actually dared to call the King of Hell by his name!" a child exclaimed.

"Keep your voice down, don't let Zhang Zhe hear you!" his companion whispered nervously.

Ye Jingchen had heard the name Zhang Li, the Minister of Justice, from Xie Chang'an. He was the head of a poor family and deeply favored by the emperor. However, Ye Jingchen wondered if Xie Chang'an had some kind of leverage over him. Zhang Li had been involved in several of Xie Chang'an's schemes and had played a key role in each one.

Ye Jingchen only needed to know who he was and did not intend to make direct contact with him at the moment, so he did not ask any further questions.

The first wave of the race was coming to an end, with Zhang Zhe reaching the finish line first, followed by Wu Zemin and Gu Beichen.

A group of children surrounded them and showered them with praise, naturally targeting Wu Zemin and Gu Beichen. No one approached Zhang Zhe within three feet of him.

The second round of matches is about to begin, and this time, Ye Jingchen will also be on the field.

"You two, don't wander off, especially you—" Ye Jingchen looked at Xie Chang'an, "You're not allowed to leave. You have to take the lead in the next round of the competition." Ye Jingchen said to Ye Jinghe and Xie Chang'an.

"Brother, I will always watch over you!" Ye Jinghe said obediently.

He might just be able to win first place!

Even if he doesn't get first place, he should at least be second.

Xie Chang'an was finally free. He crossed his arms, snorted coldly, and ignored Ye Jingchen.

Ye Jingming also planned to go on stage, and Ye Jingyu took the initiative to lead Ye Jingyu over to find Ye Jinghe.

"Jingyu is such a good boy, he's very responsible as an older brother!" Ye Jingchen patted his head and praised him.

"Don't worry, big brother, I'll take good care of my younger brothers!" Ye Jingyu said, feeling dizzy from being patted on the head and praised.

Ye Jingchen then casually touched Ye Jingyu and Ye Jinghe. When it was Xie Chang'an's turn, he thought for a moment and held back. He still needed Xie Chang'an to get first place later, so he decided not to provoke him.

"Jingming, keep it up!" Ye Jingchen patted Ye Jingming on the shoulder again, encouraging him.

The two brothers chose their horses together. Yun Shu also made her choice and, seizing the opportunity, spurred her horse to take the spot on Ye Jingchen's other side, winking and grinning at him.

As soon as the race began, Ye Jingchen focused intently on galloping on his horse.

Although it's not fair for an adult like him to compete with a bunch of kids, and even if he wins, it's not very honorable, it would be even more shameful if he loses!

Ultimately, it was the soul within his body that prevailed. In this race, he was in the lead, with Ye Jingming just a little behind. Yun Shu came in third, a bit far from the two of them, but the fourth-place finisher was even further away from Yun Shu.

"Little fatty, you've improved quite a bit since becoming the Crown Prince's study companion. Your horsemanship is actually quite good now!"

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!