The Crown Prince's Guard

chapter 5: The Return

It's not because he's chatty. She can't seem to bear the thought of having a child with a woman she barely knows and loves. Because of his stubbornness to surrender, he knew that it was only a matter of time before the King finally made up his own mind to decide on his future wife for him. But for now, she just wanted to postpone her marriage for as long as possible.

A loud shout coming from within the manor sounded suddenly. Zhang Wei's head snapped towards the origin of the voice, his face turning into a worried expression. Li Xun gently pushed him into the manor.

"Rather than trying to play cupid here, why don't you persuade your little baby? It's three o'clock in the afternoon and he's probably hungry." When his cousin hesitated, Li Xun immediately convinced him.

"Don't worry about the formalities, I'll go out on my own."

"Thank you for your kind gesture, Your Majesty." Half perplexed, Zhang Wei hurriedly bowed to him before rushing back to his house.

Being a new father was a difficult task, and Li Xun could not help but admire how his cute friend seemed to grow older and become more responsible after becoming the head of the family.

As he slowly walked out of the manor, his bodyguards fell behind him closely. Ling Yao, a childhood friend as well as his most trusted bodyguard whom he had always kept by his side, leaned towards him and whispered.

"Your Majesty, I have received word from the palace that you have a guest."

"A guest? Who?" He had a hunch but he didn't want to get too hopeful. After all, a month had passed since their last meeting. But that didn't stop him from asking his bodyguards just in case.

When Ling Yao described the appearance of that person, the prince could not help but smile growing on his face. With a wide grin, he quickened his pace and returned to the palace. Obviously he was very happy and wanted to meet his special guest. His guess is right and he'll make new friends.

Long'Er stood in the middle of the market, mesmerized by the state-of-the-art infrastructure and the many shophouses that lined the bustling streets. When he first arrived, he was surprised by the crowd of people crowded in the place.

Shopkeepers scream loudly about the price of their products. A pair of men pulled the wagon and told the people to get out of the way. The others passed by him, no matter if they hit his shoulder in the process. No matter their rudeness, he was too busy studying structures, objects and people that looked foreign but were quite attractive to him. Now that he was surrounded by so many strangers, he started to feel overwhelmed and a little scared.

For God's sake, did he make the mistake of coming to the capital? After her mother's convincing persuasion, she took a month to gather up courage and prepare her belongings for a long stay in the capital. The idea of retreating this time and returning to his house was a bit tempting, but could he really do that? Disappointing her mother was the last thing she wanted to do.

He continues his quest to search the royal palace. Finding it was not difficult - it was located in the middle of the capital, surrounded by a high stone wall. The palace guards were stationed at the majestic gate to maintain security, inspecting everyone thoroughly to make sure they were not carrying weapons and had been given permission to enter.

He walked over to one of the guards, whose eyes were flashing suspiciously. He looked at his appearance from head to toe, observing the sword he had stored by his side. She was dressed in unfeminine clothes with her hair tied back tied in a tight ponytail. From his appearance, anyone would have thought he was a man.

"Who are you?" he demanded threateningly.

"My name is Long'Er, and I have an appointment with Li Xun" he replied. The guard snorted at him.

"A brash fool, you dare to call His Majesty by his name?"

His - what?

"I'll give you a chance, see how you don't seem to be from around here. But say his name again and you'll be punished with twenty blows, you hear me?" the guard warned strongly.

"Stay here, I'll be back after confirming something."

After muttering a few words to his fellow acquaintances, the guard disappeared behind the gate. Leaving behind the extremely confused Long'Er, who was trying to let his words seep into his mind.

Judging from how well trained Li Xun was in battle and the layer of armor he wore during their last meeting, he had thought that he was just one of the high-ranking generals in the palace. Little did he know that he belonged to the royal family and would become the future ruler of this country.

"Come on," he gestured for her to follow him, before re-entering.

He followed her, crossing the gate that would lead her to the beautiful and grandest royal palace that everyone was talking about. As rumors circulated, the building stands majestic and there is a charming garden with various kinds of fragrant flowers. Servants and eunuchs were everywhere, quickly going around to fulfill whatever task they had to do. The guards took him to the waiting room and ordered him to stay until further instructions before he left him alone.

He said he took the opportunity to observe the fully furnished rooms. Picking up one of the small pieces of woodcrafts that were on the wrought iron table, he inspected and admired the perfectly carved work of the dragon.

Even a fresh vase of flowers looked beautiful and expensive which only he dared to admire from afar. His attention turned to another object - a large sphere with many small dots on its surface. He recognized what it was, but this was his first time seeing it rather than hearing it.

"It's a Terrestrial World," a voice spoke from behind him.

"Map of our planet." He jumped up a little, before turning around slowly to meet the man.

His mind was so engrossed in studying those things that he did not hear the prince enter. Once again, he was fascinated by his extremely handsome looks. He was wearing an elegant blue robe with crow hair flowing down his back like a silver river of twilight. His face was glowing, his flawless skin was shining brightly. She is very beautiful and dignified. Is this the look of the one chosen by heaven? A slight smile fell on the corner of her lips as she watched him.

"Did my appearance captivate you?" she flirts.

"Well, you look so different from our first meeting that I could barely recognize you" he said honestly.

"You really look like a prince now."

"Oh." He looked at her shyly.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you at the beginning. I thought you'd find him eventually." Obviously not.

"If I do, I won't be reprimanded" he murmured. He raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"What's? By who? The guards? Should I dismiss them from their duties and send them back home for being rude to the person who saved my life?"

"Of course not!" Long'Er protested, and she ended up laughing.

"I was just kidding. But I'm glad you didn't act differently even after knowing the roots of my birth" she said happily.

"Oh" he answered.

Since he lived in a rural area, he had never met nobles before and was not used to calling people formally.

"Do you want me to be formal?"

"No." Li Xun ignored his words. He wants her to feel comfortable with him.

"You can let go of the formalities when we're alone" he said, nodding his head in agreement. Rubbing his hands together excitedly, he looked at her excitedly.

"Come, I'll take you around the palace."