Something suddenly flashed through Ning Xuan’s mind, startling him into stillness.
With his own status so lowly and insignificant, Feng Xuanyi—as a dignified imperial prince—could have crushed him to death with nothing more than a gesture or even a sneeze. Yet somehow Feng Xuanyi had actually allowed him the opportunity to make a move, and not only that, he had somehow succeeded.
What did that mean?!
A word he had never dared touch before exploded violently in his mind, leaving Ning Xuan completely unable to process it.
“Hey, how long are you planning to stay spaced out like this?” Yi Xuan had somehow approached silently without Ning Xuan noticing. Seeing Ning Xuan alternately smiling and looking like he wanted to cry, Yi Xuan could not help shuddering in disgust. “Go clean yourself up, then you can head back and eat.”
Almost instinctively, Ning Xuan grabbed Yi Xuan’s wrist. His eyes sparkled with desperate hope, bright enough to dazzle. Swallowing nervously, he stammered, “Um… last night… did you all maybe…”
Before he could finish, Yi Xuan hurriedly waved both hands with an innocent expression. “We absolutely wouldn’t dare listen to that sort of thing.” But seeing Ning Xuan’s contradictory mix of hope and panic, Yi Xuan’s mischievous side immediately surfaced. His dark eyes gleamed round and bright. “Even if we did happen to hear things like ‘Don’t!’ or ‘Go away!’ or some quiet sobbing, we’d naturally pretend we heard nothing at all. That’s the basic survival rule around here, understand? Since you’re still technically my apprentice for now, I’ll pass on a few final lessons. Though honestly, judging from how things are going, you probably won’t need them much longer.”
After sighing dramatically and leaving Ning Xuan with a look that clearly said good luck to you, Yi Xuan casually patted his backside and walked away.
Watching Yi Xuan deliberately hinting at things while pretending not to, Ning Xuan’s previously vague suspicions immediately solidified into certainty. But the sympathetic, pitying look Yi Xuan gave him before leaving instantly ignited Ning Xuan’s temper.
If not for the tiny fragment of rationality still restraining him—and the knowledge that family scandals should not be aired publicly—he would already have leapt up and grabbed Yi Xuan by the collar while loudly declaring his innocence:
The one pinned underneath crying “No!” and “Go away!” last night while holding back tears was your tall, mighty, imposing prince who only looks dignified!
What Ning Xuan failed to realize, however, was that at some point he had already unconsciously categorized everything related to Feng Xuanyi as “family scandal.” And without even noticing, he had automatically grouped himself and Feng Xuanyi together on the same side, while everyone else had become “outsiders.”
Ning Xuan’s room.
Sitting before a breakfast table that was not extravagant but certainly not shabby either, Ning Xuan glared resentfully at the food. He viciously tore off a bite of steamed bun and chewed so hard his teeth audibly ground together with sharp crack crack sounds.
After all, although he had seen porn before (strictly by accident while walking past someone else watching it), and although he had dated girls before (though those relationships had always leaned more toward affectionate older-sister energy than anything romantic), at most he had only ever reached the stage of holding hands and walking home together.
Strictly speaking, even his first kiss had been “stolen” by Feng Xuanyi—though Feng Xuanyi stubbornly insisted it had been mutually consensual.
But as a man, and especially concerning the most important “first time” in a man’s life—a moment significant enough to go down in history, a world-shaking event worthy of being recorded for future generations—
He had forgotten the entire thing completely!!
He did not remember the process. He did not remember how it happened. Most importantly, he did not even remember what it had felt like!
How was he supposed to live with that?!
If he had taken advantage of Feng Xuanyi, then he felt incredibly wronged, because he had not enjoyed any of it at all. Or perhaps he had enjoyed it and simply forgotten…
But if he had not taken advantage of Feng Xuanyi, then Feng Xuanyi was the truly tragic one. After all, these things required participation from both sides. A prince of the imperial court had actually lowered himself enough to let Ning Xuan have his way with him, yet Ning Xuan was now shamelessly refusing to admit responsibility.
Wasn’t that basically courting death?
Operating under the principle that “what goes around comes around,” and considering that he hadalready harbored more than a tiny bit of attraction toward Feng Xuanyi beforehand—well, honestly, not just a tiny bit, but quite a lot—
And that explained why every interaction with Feng Xuanyi sent him spiraling into those bizarre “maiden mode” emotional episodes.
So now, after gritting his teeth and swallowing the final bite of steamed bun, Ning Xuan gulped down an entire bowl of soy milk in one go. Then he slammed the bowl heavily onto the table, clenched one fist, struck the table with the other hand, and shot to his feet with absolute determination.
A real man took responsibility for his actions!
So what if it had been a one-night stand? So what if the partner involved happened to be someone he really liked?!
Since everything that should and should not have happened had already happened, and since Feng Xuanyi had not responded with hysterics or emotional blackmail, then clearly Ning Xuan still had a chance!
He was absolutely going to take responsibility for this.
From now on, he would devote himself fully to pursuing his beloved—no, wait, pursuing his man.
A wife was meant to be pampered. A spouse was meant to be cherished.
Especially when the person in question already liked him back and also happened to be an elite tall-rich-handsome diamond bachelor!
If he still hesitated at a moment like this, then he would truly be scum.
Alone in his room, Ning Xuan stared at the table full of devastated leftovers and grinned sinisterly.
“Feng Xuanyi, since this young master is gracious enough to pursue you wholeheartedly now, then you might as well stop resisting and obediently throw yourself into my embrace!”
Now that he had made up his mind, Ning Xuan stopped wavering immediately. He quickly summoned the servants beneath him to clean the room before hurrying off to gather information.
At this point, it was worth mentioning that because Ning Xuan had been transferred to Feng Xuanyi’s personal service, his status had risen dramatically. Among the manor’s servants, he was now considered an influential figure. He even had groups of middle- and lower-ranked attendants serving beneath him.
Even among servants, rank distinctions were strict. Lower-ranked attendants could be ordered to serve higher-ranked ones. And if the master favored someone enough, then with a single command, even servants of equal rank would still have to serve that person.
Of course, for Feng Xuanyi’s close attendants, opportunities like these naturally came easier thanks to proximity.
“Brother Yi Xuan— Brother Yi Xuan!”
Separated by the long corridor, Ning Xuan spotted Yi Xuan carrying a teapot from far away. Completely forgetting himself, he immediately started shouting at full volume.
Naturally, with Ning Xuan now holding the status of one of the prince’s personal attendants, and with neither the prince nor the steward nearby, shouting like this technically was not a major offense.
Unfortunately, the same could not be said for the other servants busily moving through the corridor.
Within the prince’s manor, social hierarchy was rigidly enforced. No matter how unwilling someone felt, unless they had backing from a powerful master, they still had to bow respectfully and greet higher-ranking servants properly in public.
As soon as Ning Xuan shouted, the attendants along the corridor instantly split apart to clear a path for him. Heads lowered respectfully, several eager flatterers even called out formal greetings in hopes of currying favor.
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