LC chapter 51

That spring was especially warm. Shortly after the first lunar month, the lake at Shichahai had already thawed. For the royal mansion, this was a sign of spring’s arrival—after all, the young prince had just recovered from a serious illness, which was worth celebrating.

Lin Ruan got up early. Uncle Tong had placed him in the side chamber next to the western warm pavilion, where he lived alone with no one to talk to.

After he washed up, Uncle Tong came to call him to serve the young prince breakfast.

Lin Ruan answered and followed him. He was small and didn’t eat much. At eight or nine years old, he only reached Uncle Tong’s waist — a whole head shorter than the young prince.

The young prince sat on a round stool. His face was pale and his expression was calm—far too calm for a boy his age—giving him a cool, distant aura. It was as if everyone else lived in spring while he remained in winter.

Lin Ruan entered, lifted his robe, and knelt, performing an awkward salute.

Zhan Xi glanced at him briefly. “Rise.”

Lin Ruan stood up, and Shi Ning pulled him over to stand beside Zhan Xi.

Lin Ruan had been called over, but he wasn’t there to serve. He hadn’t learned how to pay proper respects or attend to someone up close.

A few young attendants carried in red lacquered food boxes and laid out the breakfast spread. Shi Ning served Zhan Xi, who only took a few bites. When Shi Ning tried to persuade him to eat more, Zhan Xi waved his hand. He didn’t speak at all.

Lin Ruan stood quietly behind Zhan Xi with his head lowered and stared at the patterns on the carpet.

After wiping his hands with a cloth, Zhan Xi looked at Lin Ruan. Silent like a decoration. He motioned for Lin Ruan to come closer.

Lin Ruan didn’t react at first, but then Shi Ning nudged him. Flustered, he called out, “Master.”

Zhan Xi looked at him. Lin Ruan’s complexion was much better than when they first met. Clearly, he wasn’t being mistreated in the mansion. However, the panic in his eyes hadn’t lessened at all.

“Have you eaten?” Zhan Xi asked.

Lin Ruan shook his head. Zhan Xi pointed to the table. “It’s yours. Go ahead and eat.”

Instinctively, Lin Ruan glanced at Uncle Tong, with whom he interacted the most in the entire mansion.

“Why are you looking at him?” Zhan Xi said indifferently. “You only need to listen to me.”

Uncle Tong said nothing, so Lin Ruan slowly sat by the table. Not having learned the etiquette of dining with a master, he looked terribly stiff.

Zhan Xi didn’t eat, but he didn’t leave either. Propping his head on his hand, he watched Lin Ruan. Maybe he just wanted someone to put on a show for him. Lin Ruan didn’t know what he was thinking.

After eating enough, Lin Ruan put down his chopsticks and said he was full.

Zhan Xi casually took off a jade pendant from around his neck and tossed it to Lin Ruan. “A reward for you.”

Lin Ruan caught the pendant and looked at Zhan Xi, feeling a bit lost. He didn’t know why Zhan Xi gave him the pendant. Was it because he ate the meal or because he obeyed him?

Zhan Xi stood up and left while Tong Bo took Lin Ruan to learn the rules. He stood in the courtyard with a bowl on his head, his neck and back forming a straight line, unable to move.

They said that if you trained like this long enough, you could develop a graceful posture, like the old palace maids who stood perfectly straight even in their white-haired years.

Lin Ruan’s shoulders had gone numb. His mind wandered as he thought of Zhan Xi’s back when he stepped out of the room — the young noble whose robe sleeves fluttered elegantly.

He wondered if Zhan Xi had ever balanced a bowl like this.

By late afternoon, Lin Ruan had finished his lessons and went to the kitchen to get food. On his way past the grass by the pond, he saw a group of boys around his age who were born and raised in the prince’s residence. Lin Ruan turned to leave, but two quick boys blocked his way.

They surrounded him. The leader was slightly younger than Shi Ning and was dressed in silk, likely the son of one of the stewards.

“I heard the young master rewarded you with a jade pendant today,” the boy said. “Hand it over.”

Lin Ruan pressed his lips together. “It was given to me by the young master. If I lose it, I won’t be able to explain myself.”

Another boy snorted. “Are you trying to use the young master’s name to pressure us? Look at yourself. What kind of trash are you to think you deserve his reward?”

Lin Ruan stayed silent, as he always tried to avoid conflict. These were just boys, but their parents were stewards and servants of the residence. Meanwhile, Lin Ruan… had no one to speak for him.

A few boys rushed forward and tugged at Lin Ruan’s clothes. The jade pendant fell from his lapel. One of the boys picked it up and handed it to the leader. Lin Ruan reached for it, but he was shorter than the others. The leader gave him a malicious look and threw the pendant far away.

“Only people from the mud deserve something like this!”

Zhan Xi watched the commotion on the grass from the fake mountain near the pond. Having just recovered from a serious illness, he couldn’t stand the wind and still wore a white cloak.

He looked at the scene as if watching a dull play, his expression bored and distant.

Lin Ruan was pushed and bullied until he pushed one of the boys to the ground in anger. Zhan Xi’s interest was slightly piqued, and he looked at Lin Ruan briefly.

Of course, one boy couldn’t fight a group. Zhan Xi glanced at Shi Ning, who immediately went over. The group stopped as soon as they saw Shi Ning and split into two sides. Lin Ruan was on his own and looked pitiful.

Shi Ning scolded the boys and drove them away. As they left, one of them stepped on the jade pendant and kicked it viciously; it rolled into the pond.

Lin Ruan, still kneeling in the grass searching for something, didn’t notice.

“So stupid,” Zhan Xi sneered softly.

Everyone left, but Lin Ruan kept searching. On the wide grassy patch, he felt around inch by inch, completely absorbed.

Zhan Xi didn’t leave either. He stood by the fake mountain and looked at Lin Ruan. Then he pulled off another jade pendant from his own clothes.

Two pieces—identical, forming a pair. Zhan Xi looked at the pendant in his hand and tossed it onto the grass. It disappeared into the green.

He stopped looking at Lin Ruan and turned to leave.

Lin Ruan searched until dark and finally found the pendant. He wiped it clean and tucked it back into his lapel. Though it was a casual gift from Zhan Xi, Lin Ruan treasured it as a true gift.

At the same time, he realized something: in this prince’s residence, he needed a protector. The young prince whose fate matched his own was his only choice.

—

This was Lin Ruan’s first time at an auction. Most of the people around him were blue-eyed, blonde Europeans, with only a few Asian faces scattered among them. The lights shone on the auction stage where a woman in a black dress gave her introduction.

Lin Ruan sat beside Zhan Xi. He wasn’t interested in the items on stage, but rather the desserts that came with the drinks.

After the woman finished her introduction, the bidding began. Zhan Xi casually raised his paddle a few times, showing no intent to win any specific item.

A sapphire sold for thirty-six thousand pounds. The next item was a Linglong jade pendant.

“This jade pendant comes from an Eastern noble family,” the woman said. Lin Ruan looked at it, frowning.

Later, fearing he would cause more trouble, Lin Ruan stopped wearing the pendant and put it away. When he left the prince’s residence in a hurry, he wasn’t sure if he had left it behind or lost it somewhere.

“This jade pendant looks familiar,” Lin Ruan said.

“You want it?” Zhan Xi glanced at him. Lin Ruan was still in a daze, so Zhan Xi raised his paddle and bought it. There was only one piece left of the pair of pendants, and it wasn’t expensive — about the same price as the sapphire.

After that, Zhan Xi purchased an oil painting for a much higher price. That was the real reason for their visit. He planned to use it to make connections with the Lancaster family, the powerful owners of the auction house.

When the auction ended, the staff brought Zhan Xi his purchases. Holding the jade pendant, Zhan Xi finally remembered something.

Lin Ruan asked, “Do you think this is the one you gave me back then?”

“I gave you both — who knows which one this is?” Zhan Xi looked at him with a hint of amusement.

Lin Ruan didn’t know the whole story at the time. He only learned it when Zhan Xi told him.

“You were too stupid back then. Take Shi Ning, for example. He’s always the one doing the bullying, never the other way around.” Zhan Xi tapped Lin Ruan’s forehead. “But it’s a good thing you weren’t completely hopeless—you knew to come find me.”

Lin Ruan snorted. “So you saw me being bullied and didn’t bother to help?”

Zhan Xi raised his eyebrows. “At that time, you and I weren’t that close yet.”

“So what?” Lin Ruan looked at Zhan Xi, clearly not planning to be reasonable.

Zhan Xi raised his eyebrows again. “All right then. I’ll apologize. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have stood by and watched while my little consort was wronged.”

“After all,” Zhan Xi smiled and said, “I didn’t know back then that I’d end up liking that silly kid so much.”

Be a little kinder to people — you never know, they might become your partner someday.

~END~

Acargoreng: And that’s the end of the story 💕

I was really hoping to see Zhan Xi and Lin Ruan’s wedding, but it seems the author decided to stop here 😭

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