Chapter 75 The Substitute Chapter: The Imperial Palace
The New Year's banquet came quickly.
Even though Xie Changyu was reluctant to attend the palace banquet, he still had to obediently follow his parents in the carriage to the solemn and grand palace.
There are a lot of people.
But each of them behaved politely and calmly made their way to their assigned spots.
It was still quite bright outside, so to keep everyone entertained, in accordance with the usual rules of palace banquets, the young noblemen and ladies could participate in some small activities before the formal banquet began.
Xie Changyu wasn't really keen on moving; he had just sat down. But when he glanced around, he realized that all the guys around his age were gone; they had all run off to play.
His eyelashes trembled slightly, and he pursed his lips in thought.
It's too boring staying with these old guys, he'd better go out for some fresh air.
Fu Jing had never been seen, but Xie Changyu didn't care. Whether he was there or not didn't affect him.
Because it was a formal occasion, Xie Changyu was dressed rather elaborately today, with a thick cloak over her close-fitting clothes. When she stood up, the cloak completely concealed her hands, preventing any cold wind from blowing in.
His tall, slender figure was not conspicuous in the hall at the moment. The palace maids filed in to serve tea and wine to the officials and their families, serving them with keen observation.
After saying goodbye to his parents, Xie Changyu quietly left the main hall.
As soon as I stepped outside.
A gust of cold wind hit him, and he hissed softly, thinking to himself how cold it was. He frowned, then steeled himself and walked outside.
The farther he got from the main hall, the closer he felt the noise.
Those guys were over there. Xie Changyu hadn't even arrived yet when he heard a voice that sounded incredibly familiar.
It even made me feel a little nauseous.
"Hey, you're such a coward! You don't even dare to approach the person you like. You're such a disgrace to me."
Xie Changyu took a few more steps forward and saw Pei Zilie's extremely arrogant face. He was holding someone's shoulder with one hand, and his face was full of blatant mockery.
Suddenly, Pei Zilie's eyes shifted, and his gaze became fixed on Xie Changyu, staring straight at him without any attempt to hide it.
Such gazes were so obvious that even the young men surrounding Pei Zilie noticed them, and then several questioning glances turned towards Xie Changyu.
After realizing who it was, the group's eyes lit up with understanding. They exchanged glances, and then one of them reacted first.
"Xie Changyu! Aren't you cold over there? Come over here, it's warm here!" The speaker was the young master of Minister Lin's family, the same person Pei Zilie had just teased.
It's strange, though. Although everyone knows that Pei Zilie and Xie Changyu have always been at odds, no one around him ever harbors any ill will towards Xie Changyu because of this. I wonder if they've sensed something.
Xie Changyu pursed his lips. Of course he knew it was cold here. He wasn't stupid. Did he need them to call him?
He walked over, completely ignoring the very direct gaze, and said to the guy who had just called him, "Lin Er, do you have a girl you like?"
It was just making conversation, purely for gossip.
Xie Changyu finally got into a warm place and took off the heavy clothes he was wearing. He tossed his hair back, then reached for a handful of fruit on the table and started eating...
When asked this question, the man named Lin Er blushed slightly for some reason and stammered, "That's not true, Your Highness has misunderstood."
He opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but a voice from the side interrupted him, "What do you mean, Xie Changyu? Are you ignoring me?"
Pei Zilie pushed aside everyone around him, then stood in front of Xie Changyu. His handsome face was full of dissatisfaction at being ignored. He looked down at Xie Changyu, who was sitting there, with his arms crossed.
This was their first meeting since that day. After that incident, Pei Zilie was too embarrassed and incredulous to see this guy, avoiding him in every place. When he heard that Xie Changyu would also be attending the palace banquet, he felt resistant.
But he still came in the end. He was prepared to ignore the guy completely, but when he saw that the guy was ignoring him, he couldn't suppress his anger.
In an instant, all other emotions were thrown to the back of my mind, leaving only a deep, neglected anger.
Xie Changyu looked up at the guy who was looking down on him just because he was standing there. His eyes narrowed slightly, and he was dissatisfied. Naturally, his words were also barbed. "Tsk, how could I dare to ignore you, young master? This is the palace."
The most powerful person in the palace was this guy's backer, so he still restrained himself a bit.
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Author's note: Updates have resumed.
This chapter is a bit short because I was getting into the flow and I've forgotten some of the plot details. Now, let's get into the story.
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