AEKMEM chapter 28

“Big Brother is hiding here with the Crown Princess and is truly living a leisurely and carefree life.”

Chu Heng had just mentioned the second prince, Chu Feiyu, who unexpectedly came looking for him.

When An Qiao heard this person call Chu Heng “big brother,” he knew this person must be Chu Feiyu, the second prince that Chu Heng had just mentioned.

An Qiao glanced at Chu Feiyu discreetly; a hint of doubt flashed in his icy blue eyes.

That’s it?

As Chu Heng’s half-brother, Chu Feiyu is far inferior to him.

He’s barely average looking, and he doesn’t have Chu Heng’s beautiful, deep rose-colored eyes.

His combat skills are even worse. He’s utterly helpless against Chu Heng.

As for his demeanor, he appears elegant and refined and seems easy to get along with. Upon closer inspection, however, one senses deep-seated hypocrisy and affectation.

In fact, most people in the empire consider Chu Feiyu quite handsome; only An Qiao, with his extreme preference for good looks and discerning taste, finds him average.

It wasn’t just a discerning eye, though. To others, it might seem bizarre that someone found those blood-red eyes beautiful. Those eyes represented bloodshed and violence and inspired fear, making people afraid to look directly at them.

While most in the empire feared those eyes, they also lamented how unfortunate their crown prince was to possess such bloodthirsty eyes.

As for Chu Feiyu’s combat prowess, although he had only just barely reached 2S-rank, he was already exceptionally outstanding among the younger generation as a 2S-rank beastman.

An Qiao’s expression remained indifferent as he withdrew his scrutinizing gaze.

Chu Heng’s gaze suddenly turned cold as he looked at Chu Feiyu. A half-smile played on his lips. “You’re not as carefree as I am, Xiao Er. I just saw the second young master of the Jun family, whom you admire, catch up with Major General Zhou. Did he come to the banquet for you, his suitor, or to see Major General Zhou?”

Chu Heng’s words implied that Chu Feiyu was green with envy yet still dared to meddle.¹In Chinese culture, “wearing a green hat” (戴绿帽子) means a man has been cheated on. So green in this line is a humorous/metaphorical way of saying: He’s being cuckolded.

Moreover, the way he addressed him as “Xiao Er”²“小二 (Xiao Er)” — Literally: “Little Two.” But commonly used in ancient settings to call a waiter in an inn or tavern. sounded less like he was calling his second brother and more like he was calling an old-time tavern waiter.

An Qiao couldn’t help but click his tongue inwardly.

It’s not good to hit someone in the face, and Chu Heng’s words were extremely insulting.

It seems that the rumors about the terrible relationship between Chu Heng and the Second Prince are true.

He learned some things about Chu Heng from Song Leran, who loved gossip.

He learned that shortly after Chu Heng was born, he was abducted from Capital Star by star pirates due to the collapse of his parents’ relationship. This resulted in Chu Heng becoming an “orphan.” A prince of the empire had to grow up on a chaotic garbage planet. He only gained admission to the empire’s first military academy on the capital planet at age sixteen due to his exceptional talent and martial prowess. The emperor recognized him.

The First Prince’s recognition and outstanding talent made the Second Prince’s position as the empire’s heir apparent illegitimate.

The Second Prince’s origins were already somewhat controversial.

After Chu Heng’s disappearance, Chu Zhengming and Chu Heng’s mother, He Yun, whose relationship was already nearly broken, divorced. Not long after, the current empress married Chu Zhengming while she was heavily pregnant. She gave birth to the Second Prince, who was only half a year younger than Chu Heng.

Of course, in the empire, where martial strength was valued, background wasn’t everything. If one had enough talent, strength, military merit, and a decent character, one could gain influence in the military, even if one was born on a Garbage Star.

However, aside from the controversy surrounding his birth, the Second Prince’s martial prowess was slightly inferior to that of the First Prince, Chu Heng. At that time, Chu Heng’s black dragon bloodline had not yet undergone its second awakening. Many powerful figures in the capital had invested heavily in the Second Prince, so they continued to support him.

From being recognized by the emperor at sixteen to being severely injured and nearly crippled at eighteen, before his fortunate second awakening as a beastman and becoming the most talented beastman in the empire’s history, Chu Heng was always alone.

To be precise, ever since he was kidnapped by space pirates and stranded on a chaotic garbage planet, he had been alone.

Although Emperor Chu Zhengming, Chu Heng’s biological father, felt guilty toward him, he wouldn’t interfere in the struggle for imperial succession. They were both his sons, and he naturally wouldn’t favor one over the other.

However, not helping either side was already the greatest help. The Second Prince had long been raised as the Empire’s heir, supported by the Empress and the Mo family. In terms of resources and connections, he far surpassed Chu Heng.

Chu Heng’s mother, He Yun, remarried and had a son shortly after divorcing his father, Chu Zhengming. Her younger son was only a little over a year younger than Chu Heng. She had raised him with great effort and love, so he was naturally far more important to her than her older son, whom she had lost as a child and barely spent time with.

An Qiao sighed inwardly. Chu Heng, a prince, was orphaned at a young age and sent to a chaotic garbage planet. Even after being taken back, he was unloved by his parents and constantly schemed against by the Second Prince’s faction. He was severely injured and nearly crippled but then experienced a second awakening, reverting to his ancestral powers and turning the tables. It was truly remarkable that he had come this far without turning to the dark side.

Being mocked, Chu Feiyu gritted his teeth in hatred, but he remained elegant and polite on the surface, smiling appropriately. “Big Brother truly has unique vision, choosing such a beautiful, delicate, gentle, and obedient Crown Princess so early.”

This was a veiled insult to Chu Heng, implying that he was blind to have chosen An Qiao, who was beautiful but powerless and dependent on others.

An Qiao: “…”

An Qiao: “???”

Delicate, gentle, and obedient—was that describing him?!

Believe it or not, this Elf King will smash you to pieces right here and now!

An Qiao felt his dignity as the Elf King had been insulted.

It was a blatant insult!

Chu Heng was amused and exasperated that Chu Feiyu dared to mock An Qiao.

Calling An Qiao “delicate” was because his injuries made him appear pale and sickly. Otherwise, Chu Heng wouldn’t have considered him a “sickly little thing,” fearing that slight provocation would kill him.

In truth, however, An Qiao only appeared weak. As an elf, his abilities were unfathomable. Even Chu Heng didn’t know how powerful he truly was. An Qiao’s idol statue weighed eight tons. If you insulted him to his face, would Chu Feiyu want to be beaten?

As for Chu Feiyu describing An Qiao as “gentle and obedient,” Chu Heng was speechless.

Gentle? Absolutely not. Obedient? Even more impossible.

Chu Heng felt a subtle unease. Compared to An Qiao, the “Crown Princess,” he, the Crown Prince, seemed far more “gentle and obedient” in their interactions.

He was about to retaliate against Chu Feiyu for mocking An Qiao.

Just then, Zhou Xiaoran reappeared like a persistent ghost.

Zhou Xiaoran glanced at An Qiao, but, as before, his gaze was blocked by the possessive Chu Heng.

Interrupted time and again, Chu Heng was extremely dissatisfied.

Before he could speak, Zhou Xiaoran turned to him, a strange schadenfreude lurking in his eyes. “Chu Heng, you probably don’t know, but the person next to you isn’t An Qiao!”

He shouted almost wildly, “I have evidence to prove he’s not An Qiao!”

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• 1
  In Chinese culture, “wearing a green hat” (戴绿帽子) means a man has been cheated on. So green in this line is a humorous/metaphorical way of saying: He’s being cuckolded.
• 2
  “小二 (Xiao Er)” — Literally: “Little Two.” But commonly used in ancient settings to call a waiter in an inn or tavern.