Chapter 27

Xu Wan found the little prince's habit of 'taking every opportunity to boast about himself and put her down' incredibly childish.

Steward Zhai wasn't giving Zong Jincheng face at all; there must be some secret he didn't want to be deeply investigated, which was why he left in such a hurry.

However, Xu Wan wasn't interested in any of that. The first rule of the workplace is not to meddle in matters that don't concern you. Her current priority was to educate the little prince.

Xu Wan ordered, "Cui Zhi, go and bring the food and drinks from our carriage, along with the clothes and fabrics. Oh, and take down the carriage curtain as well. I see this shed is so broken it doesn't even block the wind."

"Yes."

Cui Zhi quickly brought everything over and handed it to the two young masters.

The brothers were busy changing the bedding and finding a ladder to replace the carriage curtain on the shed, all without relying on others.

— The servants, under Xu Wan's indication, had retreated far away.

Zong Wenxiu, having endured hardships since childhood, took the dirty and tiring tasks ahead of Zong Jincheng.

Zong Jincheng, on the other hand, rolled up his sleeves and worked up a sweat. For the moment, he didn't care about the dirt and was even more enthusiastic than Zong Wenxiu, grunting as he carried the ladder.

Xu Wan raised an eyebrow, thinking: Could it be that Wenxiu's praise earlier injected some kind of adrenaline into this kid?

The shed was quickly repaired, and boys always had a knack for such things.

However, the carriage curtain was a luxurious green drape, which looked extremely out of place on the shabby roof.

Cui Zhi's mouth twitched as she reminded, "Madam, perhaps we should send someone tomorrow to replace it with something else for them. You and the two young masters will be taking the carriage back to the manor later, and without the curtain, it will be very cold."

Xu Wan was indeed someone who felt the cold easily. She was bundled up thickly for the outing, while the two young boys, being full of youthful energy, were much more resistant to the cold.

She smiled, "It's fine, I'll just wrap myself tighter in my fur cloak."

Xu Wan had a tough childhood in an orphanage, often going hungry and cold, but fortunately, there were many warm siblings around her, which gave her solace.

Zong Jincheng came down from the ladder, took a step back, and admired his work, very satisfied with himself and giving it a perfect score: "A! Top-notch A!"

Xu Wan: "……"

This kid is way too narcissistic!

He's acting out the whole show by himself!

Jing Zhe, seeing his own house repaired, repeatedly thanked them.

His sister also helped pour a few bowls of water, inviting them in to drink. Seeing this, Jing Zhe quickly stopped her, "Take it inside, they won't drink water from here."

His sister was scolded and took a step back, tears about to fall.

People in the slums often fell ill due to unclean water sources, but as they were of low birth, they couldn't find decent work outside and were trapped here generation after generation.

Zong Wenxiu knew this and wasn't too bothered, but his younger brother had been pampered since birth and might fall ill if he drank from here, so he also stepped up to stop it.

The little prince was about to say it was fine, but after glancing at the dirty rim of the bowl, he swallowed his words.

Forget it!

He'd better stick to being his precious young master!

While they were talking at the house door, Xu Wan was outside the street, arranging to return to the manor.

At that moment, the sound of horse hooves suddenly echoed through the street.

"Get out of the way! Move!"

"This street has fewer people! We can make as much mess as we want!"

"Whoosh! This Akhal-Teke horse sure runs fast!"

"Brothers, charge! Today, I must win first place!"

Several young masters in luxurious clothing recklessly galloped through the street, knocking over countless shabby stalls.

Debris flew everywhere, making the already impoverished street even worse, with cries of despair filling the air.

"They're back again! They're back again!"

"These noble sons are trying to drive us to death!"

"Heavenly Father! Are you not going to let us live?"

The cries of the poor went unanswered, only met with even more arrogant laughter from the young masters:

"Zhai Yao, why are you pulling that flagpole? It's so dirty!"

"It's fun, I'll throw it away right away, watch this!"

"Pfft—"

The thrown dirty flagpole flew from the sky and landed squarely on Jing Zhe's roof, piercing through—

The little prince's freshly placed carriage curtain...

It was ruined.

Zong Wenxiu's eyes widened.

Oh no!

His brother is definitely going to explode!

Xu Wan also doubted her eyes. In this entire capital, was there anyone who dared to confront the little prince like this?

The little prince: "?????"

What just flew by?

Who stuck a flagpole through his roof??

Who did it? Who did it???

Who the hell did it!

"Shunzi, draw your sword! I'm going to fight them today!" Zong Jincheng's eyes blazed with fury, his reason gone, as he struggled to break free and charge out.

"Young master, please slow down..." Shunzi hurriedly chased after him.

However, the other group was on horseback and had already disappeared, leaving only the shattered remains of the street.

Shunzi held back the furious Zong Jincheng, trembling as he reminded, "M-master, it seemed to be Zhai Yao and the other young masters... If you want an explanation, you can go back and ask..."

"Zhai Yao again?" Hearing the name for the second time that day, the enraged Zong Jincheng suddenly froze, almost doubting his ears, and asked uncertainly, "Are you sure it was them?"

In this vast capital, when it came to the most troublesome young masters that elders found headache-inducing, there were four.

Ranking first was Zong Jincheng of Yangyuan Marquis Manor, known for spending money like water and being the undisputed king of mischief and extravagance; second was Zhai Yao, the eldest son of Weiyuan Earl Manor, who was always involved in fights and frequently defied his elders.

"Is he the Zhai Yao who Steward Zhai mentioned, the one who wanted a three-year-old foot-washing maid and is listed alongside you as one of the four young playboys in the capital?" Xu Wan finally recalled the name.

The little prince clenched his fists and reiterated through gritted teeth, "Who wants to be listed alongside him as one of the four young playboys!"

This woman always gives him ridiculous nicknames!Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Xu Wan raised an eyebrow and said, "I remember now, the ledger mentioned you once spent two thousand taels to buy four Akhal-Teke horses and gave them to the three of them. Were those the horses we just saw? No wonder they ran so fast. What a fine horse!"

Zong Wenxiu: "……"

Those horses were actually a gift from his brother, and Akhal-Teke horses were known to be very expensive.

Scary, how extravagant.

The little prince was once again mocked by Xu Wan, his clenched fists itching to smash her head.

But he was too short to reach her.

Damn it!

He must eat more and grow taller!