Chapter 3 Martial Arts Lesson: Young Master Fu, it's almost time.

As soon as Wei Baocheng left, Fu Mingzi chased away the eunuch who was serving her, and then breathed a sigh of relief. She lay down on the couch, and the anxiety in her heart finally surfaced at this moment.

Although he was a playboy, he knew his place. Today, he was serving as the Fifth Prince's study companion. Although it was indeed somewhat inappropriate for the Fu family to be in this position, the Fifth Prince was being far too kind to him. Not to mention Wei Baocheng, the Fifth Prince's entourage, who were practically taking care of him in every way.

No matter how down on his luck the Fifth Prince is, he is still a son of the dragon and a grandson of the phoenix. Judging from his character, he doesn't seem like the kind of person who would scheme for power. As a powerless second-generation rich kid, even if the Fu family is extremely powerful, it's impossible for the Fifth Prince to bow down and fawn over me.

Was he so kind to me simply because he was a good person?

Fu Mingzi couldn't figure it out, so she simply stopped thinking about it, pretending nothing had happened.

Anyway, if the sky falls, someone will be there to hold it up; if something happens, someone will be clever to solve it. Who does he think he is? Eat when you want, sleep when you want, have a beautiful woman by your side, eat and drink well, what more could you want?

**

Wei Baocheng left the small courtyard and followed the corridor into Zhou Xiaoyan's study. When he entered, Zhou Xiaoyan was reading a book, and he put the book down when he saw him come in.

"Are you settled in?" Zhou Xiaoyan asked in a flat tone.

Wei Baocheng felt a sudden jolt in his heart. He had followed this man for so long, but he had never seen him care about such a trivial matter.

"I've settled in properly," Wei Baocheng said with a smile. "Young Master Fu has already retired for the night."

"That's good." Zhou Xiaoyan picked up the book again and looked down at it.

Wei Baocheng felt uneasy, suddenly unsure of what this lord was thinking. After thinking for a moment, he finally tentatively asked, "Your Highness, the martial arts class this afternoon will be quite demanding. Won't you take a rest?"

"No need," Zhou Xiaoyan said coldly. "You may leave."

Wei Baocheng could tell from the tone that the man was displeased, so he didn't dare to persuade him any further and hurriedly left.

As soon as he went out, his apprentice Xiao Huazi was waiting at the door. When he saw him come out, he greeted him with a smile: "Master, it's midday, you should go and rest. I'll keep watch over things here for you."

These serving eunuchs usually had a place to rest in the side room of the main hall, but only those of Wei Baocheng's status had a place to lie down.

“No need.” Wei Baocheng’s expression was complicated: “Our master is quite different from before, so you should all be on your guard.”

Upon hearing this, Xiao Huazi chimed in, "Who says otherwise? The Fifth Prince never used to eat fish, but yesterday he suddenly said he wanted to eat fish. I had to go to great lengths to get one from those snobs in the Imperial Kitchen. Now he doesn't even take a lunch break anymore. It's really strange."

"Shut up!" Wei Baocheng snapped, his previously amiable face now showing a hint of sternness. "How dare you criticize your master? If you're unwilling, then get out."

Xiao Hua was startled and quickly knelt down, slapping himself across the face: "It was Xiao Hua who spoke out of turn, Master, please don't be angry."

Looking at Xiao Huazi's face, which was red from being slapped, Wei Baocheng said coldly after a long while, "That's enough. Be more careful in the future. You should know what you should and shouldn't say. Get out of here."

Xiao Hua felt uneasy, sensing that Wei Baocheng's words had a hidden meaning, but he dared not disobey and retreated hesitantly.

Watching Xiao Huazi leave, Wei Baocheng finally snorted coldly: "Useless piece of trash, another stupid idiot."

How the Fifth Prince behaves is not something these people can discuss, and besides...

This wasn't the Fifth Prince's strangest behavior.

Wei Baocheng's eyes flickered slightly. He turned around, went into the side room to make a cup of tea, and carefully carried it back to the study.

**

Fu Mingzi had rested for less than half an hour when a eunuch knocked on the window: "Young Master Fu, it's almost time."

Fu Mingzi was half asleep when she was called out like that, and she felt angry. She was about to yell back when she realized her situation and immediately became alert.

This isn't at the Fu family's residence, but in the palace.

Fu Mingzi turned over and sat up, rubbed her face with her hands, and then replied, "Come in."

Xiao Yunzi then pushed open the door and came in to help Fu Mingzi change clothes and wash her face.

Fu Mingzi, while stretching out his arms and letting others serve him, asked absentmindedly, "Has Your Highness gotten up?"

Xiao Yunzi paused, then smiled and said, "His Highness has been reading all afternoon and is currently waiting in the main hall."

Fu Mingzi was startled and broke out in a cold sweat. He wouldn't dare to even think about making the prince wait, no matter how arrogant he was.

"You should have woken me up sooner. How could you keep His Highness waiting?" Fu Mingzi frowned, brushed Xiao Yunzi aside, and tried to dress herself.

Xiao Yunzi looked distressed, unsure whether to move forward or backward.

"His Highness had instructed that the young master should sleep for half an hour before waking him."

Fu Mingzi hurriedly fastened her belt, feeling uneasy. What did Zhou Xiaoyan mean by this? Why was he being so nice to her? Fu Mingzi felt flustered.

"Let's go, don't keep His Highness waiting." Fu Mingzi brushed aside Xiao Yunzi, who was still trying to help him tie his belt, and walked out.

Although Fu Mingzi was a lustful man, he was not stupid. No matter how handsome Zhou Xiaoyan was, he couldn't resist his status. Even if he had many lewd thoughts in his mind, he wouldn't dare to touch him, let alone now that the beauty was actually showing him kindness.

Did he really fall for him too?

Fu Mingzi walked briskly, lost in thought.

Although he was indeed handsome and dashing, his overly attentive manner after only one meeting made him feel uneasy.

Fu Mingzi hurriedly entered the main hall and saw Zhou Xiaoyan sitting in the main seat, holding a teacup in his hand. His eyes were lowered, and only his long eyelashes cast a small shadow on his fair and jade-like face. His slender neck was like white porcelain in the sunlight, gleaming with a warm light.

Fu Mingzi's originally impatient mood suddenly flared up when he saw this scene. He stood outside the door, his Adam's apple bobbing, feeling an unbearable heat in his mouth, and his mind and eyes were instantly filled with filthy and shameful fantasies.

"Why don't you come in?" Zhou Xiaoyan looked up at Fu Mingzi outside the door, his eyes filled with doubt.

Fu Mingzi finally came to his senses. Looking at Zhou Xiaoyan's alluring face, he swallowed a few times, finally calming himself down. His expression became much calmer, and he stepped into the main hall.

"I am sorry to have troubled Your Highness to wait so long. It was my rudeness." Fu Mingzi bowed in a perfunctory manner, but his eyes were fixed on Zhou Xiaoyan's hand resting on his knee.

Those hands were slender, fair, long, and delicate, revealing only a glimpse of smooth white skin on the wrists, which stirred the heart.

Zhou Xiaoyan looked at Fu Mingzi and frowned slightly, saying in a low voice, "Who served her so carelessly? Her clothes weren't even tied properly." After speaking, he turned his cold eyes to Xiao Yunzi behind Fu Mingzi.

Xiao Yunzi turned pale with fright and knelt down on the ground with a thud.

Fu Mingzi blushed and hurriedly apologized: "Your Highness, it's not his fault. I was afraid that Your Highness would wait too long, so I came in a hurry. Please forgive my disheveled appearance."

Zhou Xiaoyan was taken aback and looked at Fu Mingzi. He saw that Fu Mingzi looked embarrassed and seemed to remember something. He pursed his lips slightly and his tone was a little gentler than before: "It's still early, what's the rush?"

After saying that, he looked at Xiao Yunzi, but his eyes became much colder: "Hurry up and tidy up Young Master Fu's clothes."

Xiao Yunzi was quite frightened and quickly got up to help Fu Mingzi adjust her belt.

Standing in the hall, being stared at like this, Fu Mingzi couldn't help but blush slightly, her usually thick-skinned face turning red. Really, she should have dressed properly before coming out.

After Fu Mingzi had straightened her clothes, she followed Zhou Xiaoyan to the training ground.

When they arrived, several other princes had already arrived one after another. They were the second to last to arrive. Apart from the young Ninth Prince, everyone else had arrived, including Commander Yang, who taught them martial arts.

Commander Yang was the commander of the Imperial Guards, but he was also an acquaintance of Fu Mingzi, because he had once been under the command of the old Duke Jingguo. Later, due to the recommendation of the Duke Jingguo, he entered the palace and became the commander of the Imperial Guards.

When Commander Yang saw Fu Mingzi, he simply nodded slightly to him and did not say anything more.

Fu Mingzi understood Commander Yang's concerns. This was the palace, and every word and action was under the Emperor's watchful eye. It was best for them, as officials from outside the capital, to be cautious.

After another quarter of an hour, the Ninth Prince finally arrived, swaying along with his eunuch tutor. He was already late, but Commander Yang seemed oblivious and did not reprimand him. Instead, he began to teach him directly.

Seeing this, Fu Mingzi had a pretty good idea of ​​what was going on.

The princes' martial arts training consisted only of horseback archery.

From the fourth prince downwards, the princes' horsemanship and archery skills were mediocre, with only the eighth prince standing out. However, the eighth prince was taciturn and not particularly noticeable.

This is understandable. Although the Eighth Prince is said to be the son of Consort Jia, he is actually the son of a palace maid. The palace maid died in childbirth, so the old emperor placed him under Consort Jia's care. However, his birth certificate has never been changed, so his status is not legitimate. There is a lot of gossip in the palace, so the Eighth Prince naturally doesn't have much confidence.

As for the other princes, the fourth prince and the eighth prince were born to the same palace maid. However, the fourth prince was not as lucky as the eighth prince. He was not adopted by a high-ranking imperial concubine, and his birth mother was not favored. He was just a beauty. Therefore, the fourth prince was always kind and approachable and had a gentle demeanor towards everyone. So, although he was born the lowest, he had some human touch among the princes. He was not particularly outstanding in riding and archery and was ranked after the eighth prince.

The sixth and seventh princes, born to Consort Xia and Consort Ye respectively, were of noble birth. However, their maternal families were both civil officials, and they were influenced by their families, resulting in poor horsemanship and archery skills. Both of them were at the bottom of the class.

As for the Ninth Prince, he was the most favored among the princes, and therefore acted the most flamboyantly. At a young age, he was surrounded by attendants, with four or five eunuchs serving him. His tutor, Luo Xing, flattered him endlessly, boasting loudly every time he shot an arrow, as if the Ninth Prince were the reincarnation of Hou Yi, unparalleled in the world.

The Ninth Prince was quite used to these flatteries, and although he only ranked fourth in riding and archery, he was full of arrogance.

Fu Mingzi found it amusing, and while fiddling with the bowstring, he didn't release an arrow.

Zhou Xiaoyan shot all the arrows in his quiver, ranking third, only ahead of the youngest prince, the Ninth Prince. However, he remained calm and composed as he returned to his seat.

Fu Mingzi stepped forward with a handkerchief, which Zhou Xiaoyan took and used to wipe the sweat from his forehead. He then looked up at Fu Mingzi and asked, "Why didn't you fire a single arrow, Fu Qing?"

Fu Mingzi smiled and said, "If I were to draw my bow, I fear the princes' beards would not look good."

Zhou Xiaoyan was taken aback, not expecting him to say such a thing.

A note from the author:

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