Chapter 85: The Palace Feast

Chapter 85: The Palace Feast

The surveillance footage shown in the news was crystal clear.

However, the camera angle was nearly a blind spot, and one could only vaguely make out the chaos in the passageway, with glimpses of explosions.

Mainly, all other surveillance cameras capable of clearly capturing the perpetrator's image were destroyed before they could record the person. According to the surveillance defense procedures, it is speculated that the person who blew up the surveillance had a spiritual pool level of at least double S.

Someone did what Xu Qingran had been thinking about for a long time, and he couldn't help but look a bit longer.

It was probably a spacecraft attempting to enter the cross-camp passageway, and its owner was unwilling to comply with the cross-camp prohibition.

With his own strength, he knocked out over a dozen guards at the checkpoint passageway at that time, and then used a spiritual attack to blast open the closed station door, making a grand exit.

In the end, the surveillance only captured a silhouette of a common, mass-produced spacecraft.

"It is reported that the space station guards who witnessed the attacker's true appearance that day are still in a coma, and the hospital is currently intensifying treatment efforts, hoping to obtain clues from their mouths as soon as possible."

The attacker was incredibly formidable.

He had an intimate knowledge of all city and jurisdictional surveillance. They nearly exhausted all surveillance resources in the entire Sirius system, but could only barely make out a blurry silhouette of the spacecraft, so they suspected it was a Type I spiritual pool, with a level as high as double S, indicating a super high IQ spiritualist.

Xu Qingran, however, couldn't do such a precise job of breaking through.

He would simply beat up anyone who got in his way.

Thinking about it, this doesn't seem to be a bad idea.

—After all, there are precedents, so one more violator shouldn't be a big deal, right?

Xu Qingran thought about Shen Tingyu not being home these days.

So he sent him a message asking, "When are you finishing up?"

Shen Tingyu probably took about a minute to reply.

Just two simple words: "Soon."

Xu Qingran stared at the curt two-word reply, frowning deeply, thinking about what kind of witty remark to reply with.

"Host, check out the camera."

"Who are you talking to? You look so serious."

"Probably handling work stuff!"

The white dog just wandered in from outside.

Having no concept of such live-streaming tools on small planets, it walked into the kitchen and found this magical thing that could float text, went over and sniffed it. In its icy eyes, there was a trace of confusion.

The barrage ran even faster.

"Big dog!!"

"Wow! The little lunatic actually has a dog now!"

"Such a beautiful and noble breed, my goodness! It looks like a wolf dog in shape, but its fur is longer, I don't think I've seen this breed before."

The white dog only observed for a short while before roughly guessing the function of the small planet.

Instantly lost interest in it.

Meanwhile, the communicator hanging in Xu Qingran's living room suddenly rang.

He needed to put down his phone, wash his hands, and go over to answer it.

It was an unknown caller.

The speaker was a young woman, with very standard pronunciation and a serious tone: "Hello, may I speak to Colonel Xu Qingran of the Silver Dragon Battalion?"

"Speaking," Xu Qingran replied.

The young woman continued, "I am the secretary of the Empire's Administrative Minister. You have received an invitation from the palace, hoping you can attend a luncheon at the palace in two days."

"Due to the short notice, we couldn't send a formal invitation."

"So, in addition to notifying you, we need to confirm your attendance."

This invitation came out of the blue.

Xu Qingran thought for a moment and asked her, "Is this luncheon of the same nature as the previous invitations sent by the palace to officials from both battalions?"

The other party replied, "No, it is not."

"Due to the current situation between the Empire's two battalions, the palace has temporarily separated arrangements and receptions for personnel from each battalion. The luncheon Colonel Xu is invited to is only for personnel from the Silver Dragon Battalion. The specific attendees cannot be disclosed, please understand."

Xu Qingran asked again, "May I know who invited me?"

Could it be Mu Ziyu?

"Colonel Xu, you were invited in the name of His Majesty."

This answer was unexpected, and Xu Qingran was stunned for a few seconds.

"I understand," he finally replied after a while, "I will attend, thank you for the notification."

"Alright, we'll record your confirmation here... Your information has been added to the list of permitted personnel, and you'll only need to pass a soul scan to enter the palace on the day."

After the formal conversation, they ended the call.

Xu Qingran glanced at the time, returned to the kitchen, and before finishing today's cooking, he told his live stream viewers, "That's all for today's broadcast, goodbye."

The screen was filled with: ???

He only picked a few simple ingredients to cook and ate them with rice to satisfy his hunger.

The rest was given to the white dog.

Then he went upstairs to wash up, changed into clean and fresh new clothes, and went out with the white dog.

The Celestial Serpent and the Celestial Deity are very close to each other.

If you drive fast, you can arrive in time for lunch two days later.

When Xu Qingran headed to the Celestial Deity system, the forum was routinely discussing his live stream.

—As a celebrity of the Empire, it is quite common to have a dedicated discussion thread for each live stream.

However, today's thread not only discussed Xu Qingran himself but also his new pet.

In the thread, someone was teasing:

"So beautiful, so beautiful, it looks like it would feel great to pet."

"The eyes are blue too, though blue eyes aren't uncommon in other pet dogs, but somehow it reminds me of General Shen, what's up with that? Hahaha."

"Is this the legendary—since I can't have you, I'll find a stand-in that resembles you? (What am I saying)"

During the chat, someone suddenly mentioned:

"By the way, was that the dog Young Master Xu adopted when he went to Tianlong? This reminds me of something that happened a long time ago."

Xu Qingran's posts always get a lot of traffic, and both fans and casual browsers love to jump in.

Among these people, there happened to be fans of Feng Yao. They still remember that many months ago, Feng Yao went to the southern continent to find her second sister and opened a live broadcast in the middle of the night at the seaside of East City to show them the pitch-dark scenery.

That day, the live broadcast camera accidentally captured two very blurry figures in the distance, and no idea what they were up to.

If I remember correctly, there seemed to be a large white dog beside them, and its size looked very similar to Xu Qingran's white dog. And everyone knows that Xu Qingran was just assigned to work in the southern continent at that time—

So someone started speculating wildly:

"Could it really be such a coincidence that the people in Feng Yao's live broadcast were Young Master Xu?"

"Ah, I was lucky enough to watch that live broadcast too! But we all thought it was a couple on a date, which pretty much rules out Colonel Xu, right?"

"Hard to tell, Shen Tianyi is still so young, it's normal for Young Master Xu to be more interested in people closer in age."

"Uh, in that case, wouldn't Xu Qingran be violating his engagement with the Shen family?"

"Here they come, the haters sure have a nose for this stuff! I knew it, you always manage to find something to criticize from a strange angle, you must love him more deeply than us fans, huh?"

Thus, a post that should have been discussed for an afternoon and then ended, the floors were piling up faster and faster.

They had already started assuming that person was Xu Qingran, guessing who his partner would be. Round and round, it actually came back to Shen Tingyu.

"Wasn't Shen Tingyu having conflicts with the Golden Wing management at that time, and was in a missing phase?"

"Oh ho, then guess his so-called vacation and private itinerary was actually going to the southern continent to find Young Master Xu!!"

"...Enough, you guys are really exaggerating! You should have seen the soul matching data released by the empire, right? The little lunatic and your Golden Wing's Shen Tingyu is 0.01%! Really, give me a break, stop thinking that everyone related to him is from your Golden Wing, don't even think about targeting our colonel!"

"Exactly, even if I have to accept Young Master Xu finding a new love, I can only accept it if the object is from the Silver Dragon!"

"Pfft, isn't this what you guys started first? Making it seem like our Golden Wing is so desperate!"

As expected, they started arguing again.

Xu Qingran's fans were really watching nervously.

"Please stop making up stories, soon those moral educators will come out to criticize our little lunatic again, stop giving him a bad reputation!"

"Although, but, doesn't Young Master Xu have enough scandals? He's the least afraid of scandals in the entire empire, right? He always manages to slap the haters in the face."

"The engagement has been verified and publicly announced, how can he still slap them in the face? Anyway, this topic is indeed quite sensitive..."

In these critical times.

The management of the Star Horizon forum, which has always been relatively free in terms of speech, quickly locked the post, and the matter was temporarily over.

Xu Qingran was completely unaware of this.

He arrived at Queen's Star on the morning of the banquet, following the official designated route towards the palace.

The Kayan Empire was a rather wealthy nation.

The palace grounds covered the entire area of the city, with all the dragon and phoenix statues crafted with exquisite skill, lifelike and ingeniously designed. Precious and luxurious materials like gold, silver, gemstones, and crystals adorned every building, seemingly without regard for cost.

The palace gate guards verified his identity and allowed him entry.

After he entered, they notified the reception staff inside. Just as he parked his aircraft under the guidance of the internal guards and got out of the vehicle, he saw a figure who looked like a butler, waiting outside for a long time.

"Colonel Xu, this way, please."

The person slightly bowed and pointed towards an ornate carriage. The retro luxury combined with modern technology made for a very unique design.

Visitors' vehicles were restricted to the palace's outermost areas.

To go deeper into the palace, one had to take their special palace car.

The car moved swiftly.

Yet, it still took over an hour to reach the banquet venue.

As the car entered the garden, Xu Qingran noticed another palace car pulling up outside the hall.

The door opened, and out came Mu Ziyu.

Today, he sported a light gray suit, his hair neatly combed, presenting a more subdued and polished appearance than usual. He was also carrying a small bag, with the logo and name of a prestigious domestic jewelry brand printed on it.

Mu Ziyu, seldom invited back to the palace, appeared less than thrilled.

He looked weary, with pronounced dark circles under his eyes, suggesting a late night. His personal butler shut the car door behind him, and without a backward glance, he ascended the stairs, stifling a yawn.

After a few steps, hearing another car approach, he glanced back.

His eyes, dull with boredom and sleepiness, suddenly widened in shock at the sight of the person exiting the car. His expression turned to one of utter shock, as if witnessing an alien invasion, and all traces of sleepiness disappeared.

Xu Qingran walked up to Mu Ziyu with calm composure.

Noticing Mu Ziyu's stunned silence, Xu Qingran snapped his fingers before his eyes.

Mu Ziyu quickly regained his composure.

At the sight of Xu Qingran, his body seemed to ache anew.

—After all, their last encounter had left him nursing injuries for months.

"...Wait, Xu Qingran, what are you doing here?" Mu Ziyu's tone was incredulous.

"I was invited," Xu Qingran replied.

Xu Qingran mused that palace banquets typically catered to the elite.

As a newly promoted colonel in the general battalion, his inclusion among the guests was indeed unexpected.

However, Mu Ziyu's expression of astonishment upon hearing his answer was even more exaggerated than he had expected: "How is that possible?!"

Xu Qingran was about to say that perhaps the King of Kayan had a keen eye for talent when he heard Mu Ziyu exclaim, "Today's banquet is an internal gathering for the royal family and relatives, attended only by the royal kin of the Silver Dragon Battalion. You—you received an invitation?!"

Xu Qingran was taken aback.

It was an answer he never expected.

Mu Ziyu looked at him differently, his eyes filled with suspicion and surprise, "You're not my father's secret love child, are you?"

Xu Qingran: "..."

He asked his system in his head, "Is that true?"

System: "...Sadly, you really are Xu Yan's biological son!"

Mu Ziyu, however, found the idea increasingly plausible: "Damn, no wonder you were so cocky before, saying you'd take my spot as commander!"

"So you knew about this all along!"

There were many maids and guards around the palace.

But they seemed to have perfected the art of minding their own business. No matter how outrageous Mu Ziyu's words were, they remained expressionless and unflinching, as if they hadn't heard a thing.

Xu Qingran gave Mu Ziyu a light tap on the head and said, "With that kind of imagination, you should be a writer!"

The tap was light, but Mu Ziyu, already scarred by Xu Qingran, instinctively covered his head, his eyes brimming with grievance: "Then why are you here?"

"I'm not sure," Xu Qingran replied. "Your dad had someone invite me."

He wondered what the King of the Kayan Empire was like. Did he notice that Xu Qingran had been picking on his son a bit too much lately, and so called him here to give him a warning?

Hearing this, Mu Ziyu looked even more shocked.

"Oh, my dear third brother, you... huh? Xu Qingran??"

A somewhat flamboyant female voice called out from the other end of the corridor outside the hall.

Mu Yesha walked in, wearing sparkling silver stilettos and a purple strapless mini dress, her once wavy hair now straightened.

She removed her sunglasses, her fox-like eyes wide with surprise.

She asked a question much like Mu Ziyu's: "What are you doing here?"

Xu Qingran didn't know how to explain, so he just said, "Maybe we'll find out once we go in?"

"Alright, honestly, I don't really care," Mu Yesha said, folding her sunglasses and tapping them lightly in her palm. "Having another familiar face is a plus. I hate these family gatherings; I'm not close with those relatives anyway."

So, Xu Qingran, who was supposed to be escorted by palace staff, just walked into the grand building with Mu Ziyu and Mu Yesha.

Inside the hall, aside from the main area, all the corridors were lined with red carpets, and the ceilings were decorated with various chandeliers, each one uniquely designed. Even the pillars they passed were so polished they seemed to gleam.

Every corner of the corridors they passed through had a security checkpoint.

Rumor had it that if someone not on the palace's visitor list passed through these gates, the first two times would set off an alarm. The third time, it would trigger a mechanism, instantly killing the person with a high-temperature laser beam in 0.01 seconds.

It wasn't until Xu Qingran passed through without triggering any alarms that Mu Ziyu finally believed his words.

The banquet hall was nearly the size of an auditorium.

Unsurprisingly, it was a traditional long table with chairs arranged in two rows.

When Xu Qingran entered with them, the dining hall was already filled with many people.

Most of them were nobles he had never met before. These people were familiar with Mu Yesha and Mu Ziyu, so all eyes were on him, the unexpected outsider, with looks of surprise and astonishment.

In this place, there were even more blue-eyed people.

But none of them caught his attention like Shen Tingyu's did.

Xu Qingran stayed calm.

He was used to being stared at.

He glanced at the main seat, which was empty.

The king hadn't taken his seat yet.

The seating at the dining table followed a specific order.

The seats closest to the main seat were for the king's wives. After the wives, seats were assigned to his children by age and seniority. Men sat on the left, women on the right.

Next came the king's siblings and their families, followed by other relatives.

It was quite specific.

Xu Qingran quietly observed, thinking he'd probably be seated farthest from the king.

This would definitely be a power move.

Just then, a maid from the dining room approached him.

She politely said, "Colonel Xu, your seat is here. Please follow me."

Then, somewhat confused, Xu Qingran followed her as she led him closer to the main seat.

Finally, she stopped beside Mu Ziyu, who looked hesitant and shocked, and said, "This is your seat."

Mu Ziyu: "Huh?"

Xu Qingran: "..."

Mu Yesha, sitting across from them, looked surprised too.

Instead, the dining room fell into an eerie silence, all previous chatter gone.

Clearly, everyone else was stunned too.

Xu Qingran kept a straight face and sat down calmly.

Mu Ziyu leaned in, gritting his teeth and whispering, "...You still deny you're my father's illegitimate child?!"

Across from them, Mu Yesha rested her chin on her hand, giving him a meaningful half-smile, as if she shared Mu Ziyu's suspicion.

—Perhaps everyone in the dining room thought the same.

Xu Qingran: "..."

At this point, any further explanation seemed futile, so he chose to remain silent.

He asked the system in his heart, "What's going on?"

The system: "...Intentional? Just to make you socially embarrassed in this reverse way?" Xu Qingran: "Then his plan is wrong."

He had no idea what "social death" even meant.

Outside, a few more people entered the dining room.

Laughter and chatter shattered the room's quiet.

Xu Qingran shot a glance, his eyebrow quirking slightly.

It was Mu Ningluo, her husband Feng Jin, and her daughters.

Mu Ningluo led the way, arm in arm with a stunning girl who wasn't part of her family. She was the same girl Xu Qingran had spotted at P's bakery, cozying up to Feng Jin.

They took seats directly across from Xu Qingran.

The girl's role was unclear, but she sat beside Mu Yesha, with Mu Ningluo on her other side.

Mu Ningluo's laughter died as she caught Xu Qingran's enigmatic stare, her face contorting in alarm.

She blurted out, "What are you doing here?!"

After asking, she looked at Mu Ziyu beside him.

Her shock deepened.

Her outburst snapped Feng Jin, Feng Yuan, and Feng Yao's attention to Xu Qingran.

Feng Jin and Feng Yuan eyed him appraisingly, while Feng Yao mirrored Mu Ziyu's initial reaction.

Xu Qingran smirked, "Your brother's the one who invited me. Got a problem? Take it up with him."

Mu Ningluo froze, then paled as the realization hit her.

Not long after, Mu Ziyu's mother also entered.

Though nearing fifty, she retained a youthful grace and charm. An exquisite pearl necklace adorned her neck, exuding elegance. She glanced at Xu Qingran as she passed, unfazed by his presence unlike the others.

Seated beside Mu Ziyu, she gave his shoulder a gentle pat. "Ayu, it's not every day you meet Miss Pei. Got nothing to say?"

Mu Ziyu rose, presenting the gift to the girl across from him. "Your birthday's around the corner. Here's an early present—hope you like it."

The girl who'd entered with Mu Ningluo accepted the gift.

With impeccable grace, she stood, her eyes shining. "Thank you, Third Prince. I'll cherish anything from you."

Mu Ziyu gave a curt nod, resuming his seat with uncharacteristic calm.

Xu Qingran's gaze flicked to Feng Jin, who was engrossed in his phone, his face as stern as a CEO's. But Xu Qingran caught Feng Jin's slight frown at Miss Pei's words.

Xu Qingran stifled a laugh.

Across from him, Mu Ningluo sneered, "My brother's losing his marbles, inviting riffraff and sullying the palace."

Feng Yao piped up, "Mom, why so harsh? Sister Huaiyu's the Third Prince's fiancée—hardly random."

The girl shifted uncomfortably, clutching Mu Ziyu's gift.

Mu Ningluo's face reddened as she snapped, "You asking for it? I wasn't talking about Huaiyu!"

Feng Yao blinked innocently, "Well, I didn't know that!"

"I don't see any odd or out-of-place people around our dining table. It's just that my sister has finished interacting with the Third Prince, and I thought you were throwing shade at her."

"You—!"

"Alright, stop arguing." Feng Jin, who had remained silent since entering, finally couldn't help but frown and scold.

Mu Ningluo's somewhat sharp and overbearing voice was giving Feng Jin a headache.

He rubbed his forehead, a flicker of annoyance in his eyes: "Is it really the time to make a scene at a palace dinner?"

This remark was clearly directed at Mu Ningluo.

But Mu Ningluo wouldn't let it go, glancing sideways at Xu Qingran across the table: "What if I just keep going?"

"He's just a minor colonel from a faction, why does he deserve to sit at this table and dine with us?"

The jab in this statement was quite obvious.

Xu Qingran's lips twitched, about to speak.

From across the dining room, a deep, commanding voice rang out: "Because I personally invited him to the palace."

All eyes turned to the man slowly entering through the door.

Instantly, everyone stood up, watching him make his way to the main seat.

The standing figures blocked Xu Qingran's line of sight, temporarily obscuring the speaker's appearance.

But he guessed it was the King of Kayan.

Mu Ziyu shot a sideways glance and noticed that Xu Qingran was still sitting calmly in his chair.

He quickly tugged at his sleeve, his face animated as he whispered a warning: "Xu Qingran, don't push it. It's fine with me, but my father is the supreme commander of the empire. You should at least show a little respect, huh?"

Xu Qingran's fingers lightly tapped on the dining table a few times.

He hadn't encountered such a monarchical system in the apocalypse, but Mu Ziyu was right—at least he wasn't asked to kneel—so showing respect was appropriate.

Moreover, this king had just defended him against Mu Ningluo's words.

Xu Qingran dutifully stood up.

Just then, the legendary figure finally came into view.

His appearance was unexpected.

He was dressed simply, as if he had just thrown something on and come over.

He looked about fifty, but his mental state seemed as frail as someone in their seventies or eighties, his face pale, his eyes slightly sunken, with darker circles under them than even Mu Ziyu.

When he turned his head to look at Xu Qingran, their eyes met.

Blue, exactly like Shen Tingyu's deep blue. But his eyes were muddy and dull, heavy and filled with exhaustion.

It suddenly became clear why the Kayan Empire let the two camps' commanders and management run wild.

The King of Kayan was named Mu Mingrui.

After slowly walking to the main seat and sitting down, he said to the defiant Mu Ningluo: "I've long heard of Colonel Xu's deeds and past. The reforms in the Tianlong system that Silver Dragon failed to handle were also his doing."

"I've been wanting to meet him for a long time, and I also have some things to discuss with him, so I took the opportunity to invite him over for a meal today."

Mu Ningluo then asked, "If that's the case, shouldn't he, as a regular guest, be sitting at the far end of the table? Why can he sit with Ziyu?"

Mu Mingrui, however, had no intention of answering this question again. He glanced at the varied expressions around the dining table and said, "Everyone, please sit down. Let's start serving the food."

With all this fuss, Mu Ningluo ended up being the one who couldn't back down.

She shot a resentful glare at Xu Qingran and sat down, embarrassed.

Xu Qingran ignored her.

He casually asked Mu Ziyu, who was sitting beside him, "Who is the girl you just gave a gift to?"

Mu Ziyu was surprised, amazed that Xu Qingran didn't know her identity.

"She's from the Pei family, a prominent Silver Dragon family, Pei Huaiyu," he paused, then whispered, "My fiancée."

Xu Qingran finally turned to look directly at Mu Ziyu.

He silently glanced at the top of Mu Ziyu's head, as if imagining a vast green prairie there.

The system chimed in with a gossipy tone: "Wow."

When Mu Ziyu told him this, his expression didn't show any joy or sweetness, but rather a hint of gloom.

Xu Qingran asked, "Don't you like her?"

At this question, Mu Ziyu was startled and glanced around.

He noticed his mother was talking to another woman, and Pei Huaiyu was also chatting and laughing with Mu Ningluo's relatives, their attention wasn't on them, so he relaxed a bit.

Then he whispered, "This arranged marriage isn't about whether I like her or not."

"And when I met Miss Pei before, I did have a pretty good impression of her."

It was probably what people call a mutual soul attraction.

Xu Qingran asked curiously, "Have you tested your soul compatibility? What's the score?"

Mu Ziyu: "About 78 percent."

Xu Qingran: "Oh, that's not a great score."

"Call off the engagement."

Mu Ziyu: "?"

For some reason, he found Xu Qingran's righteous tone amusing. "No, why do you think you can make decisions for me?"

"Besides, your opinion doesn't matter," Mu Ziyu's voice was muffled.

Actually, he quite enjoyed his current life as a single man.

Maintaining the engagement with Pei Huaiyu was also his mother's arrangement, to bolster the confidence of Silver Dragon's supporters in him becoming the future king.

Just like Mu Ziyue of Golden Wing, who is in his thirties and still hasn't married.

It's not that he doesn't want to.

He is quite a womanizer, with many women he fancies, but it's as if he is destined to be unlucky in marriage. Every girl who becomes engaged to him dies unexpectedly soon after. The rumors are widespread, and fewer and fewer people dare to be with him. All the highly compatible matches he had have been lost, which is a point of criticism about him to this day.

"If my opinion doesn't matter, can't you speak for yourself?" Xu Qingran retorted.

"Do you like her or not? Do you want to get married or not? Aren't you clear about it yourself? If you don't really want this relationship, find a way to resolve it yourself."

As they chatted, the maid served the main course.

It was a fish steak, perfectly grilled with a fragrant sauce.

Mu Ziyu didn't speak.

He slowly picked up his knife and fork, his mind wandering.

Honestly, Pei Huaiyu really matches his ideal type.

Being with her is quite comfortable; she is very gentle and caring, never looking down on his immaturity or preferences like others do. However, when this relationship is based on responsibility and pressure, he can't fully engage.

In his heart, there is an unconscious barrier of resistance.

Moreover, even though they respect each other and share some common interests, they still can't blend into each other's worlds. Their relationship is polite but still quite distant and formal.

Mu Ziyu often wonders if he is too picky.

He just hopes to have someone who is spiritually connected to him, with whom he can talk about anything, and who makes him feel at ease being himself.

"Of course, if you insist, you can proceed."

Xu Qingran's indifferent voice reached his ears again: "Just don't blame me for not warning you if something goes wrong."

Mu Ziyu was puzzled: "What could happen?"

Is it his imagination? Why does he always feel that Xu Qingran's words have hidden meanings.

But Xu Qingran didn't pursue the topic. After glancing at the people across the table, he suddenly asked: "Your fiancée, is she close with the Feng family?"

"Sort of," Mu Ziyu replied. "Her mother and Aunt Ningluo have been close friends since childhood, and they've always had a good relationship."

Pei Huaiyu is also the only daughter of Mu Ningluo's childhood friend.

So since childhood, every time Pei Huaiyu's mother met with Mu Ningluo, she would bring her along to play with her daughter at home. Strictly speaking, Mu Ningluo and her husband have watched her grow up and are very close to her, almost treating her like their own daughter.

If it weren't for Feng Wei's eccentric personality, being four or five years younger than Pei Huaiyu and their souls being particularly incompatible, Mu Ningluo would have wanted to bring Pei Huaiyu into their home as a daughter-in-law.

Hearing this, Xu Qingran couldn't help but laugh.

His tone was meaningful: "You don't have to become a daughter-in-law to be taken home."

But this Mu Ningluo is quite interesting.

She is very fond of other people's daughters while being critical of her own three daughters.

Mu Ziyu didn't catch the deeper meaning in his words: "What? Even if she were a goddaughter, you can't really take someone else's child, can you?"

Xu Qingran lowered his head to eat and didn't respond.

Sitting across from Mu Ziyu, Mu Yesha put a piece of fish in her mouth and smiled at the two who were 'chatting happily'.

—Oh my, her annoying brother has become much cuter after being educated by Xu Qingran, and just looking at them, they really seem like a harmonious pair of brothers.

Xu Qingran then focused entirely on his meal, eating with a sense of reverence.

Until the conversation between Mu Ningluo and Pei Huaiyu from across the table caught his attention.

"Are you going to the Poseidon system next week?" Mu Ningluo asked.

Pei Huaiyu nodded gently: "Harps is hosting a fashion show on Pomegranate Star next week, and since I contributed to this season's designs, I need to be there."

Mu Ningluo thought for a moment, then turned to Feng Jin and said, "Aren’t you heading to Pomegranate for work next week too?"

"Huaiyu doesn’t have anyone at home to go with her, and her mother is traveling with her husband during this time. Why not let her ride along with you? That way, I won’t have to worry, and her mom won’t blame me for not looking out for her when she gets back."

Feng Jin frowned again, his face darkening.

He clearly found it bothersome.

Pei Huaiyu, quick to read the room, immediately said, "It’s okay, I can go by myself."

"I’m an adult now; I can handle driving myself just fine. I won’t trouble Uncle Feng!"

Mu Ningluo patted her hand and shut it down firmly: "No trouble at all! He’s got a driver and an assistant—it’s not like he’s doing the driving himself. What’s the big deal? Don’t worry about him; your Uncle Feng’s always like this."

"Anyway, it’s decided."

"Next week, you’ll ride with him to Pomegranate, and I’ll feel better knowing your uncle’s keeping an eye on you."

Suddenly, someone at the table let out a laugh.

Mu Ningluo frowned and turned to see Xu Qingran across the table, clutching his cup, tears nearly streaming from his eyes from laughter.

Mu Ningluo, visibly annoyed, glared at him and asked, "What are you laughing at?"

"Such poor table manners—how uncivilized."

Xu Qingran, still in good spirits, brushed off her tone and simply replied, "Oh, nothing. Just saw something hilarious and couldn’t hold it in."

Mu Ningluo met his amused gaze and felt inexplicably insulted.

She snapped, "Are you saying I’m a joke?!"

Mu Ziyu, about to defend Xu Qingran, had barely opened his mouth when the man beside him casually said, "Oh? Was I that obvious?"

Mu Ziyu: "..."

The meal ended on a decidedly sour note.

Mu Ningluo, for once dropping her usual royal composure, grabbed a water glass, ready to toss it at Xu Qingran. But in her anger, she didn’t hold it well, and before she could throw it, she spilled it.

And it spilled on Feng Jin beside her.

Feng Jin’s patience was almost at its limit, his face as dark as a pot.

Then Mu Ningluo started crying and complaining to Mu Mingrui at the head of the table about Xu Qingran’s rudeness.

The noisy commotion gave Mu Mingrui, whose health was already not great, a headache.

Finally, he waved a hand, stood up, and left the table early, clearly uninterested in getting involved, and didn’t even bother having the guards reprimand Xu Qingran.

Feng Jin probably felt embarrassed and left the dining room shortly after Mu Mingrui walked out. Mu Ningluo, after a moment of shock, chased after him, while Pei Huaiyu, full of concern, hurriedly followed. Only Feng Yuan remained indifferent, continuing to eat as if it were none of her business.

Feng Yao, from a short distance away, gave Xu Qingran a thumbs-up gesture.

"...Xu Qingran, you're really something," Mu Ziyu said, exasperated.

Xu Qingran, however, accepted it as a compliment: "Thank you for the praise."

Mu Ziyu was speechless.

Their meal was also coming to an end.

Not long after the king left to rest, Xu Qingran and the others in the room also finished eating.

Then, someone from outside the hall walked up to him and whispered, "Colonel Xu, His Majesty requests your presence if you're ready."

Xu Qingran pushed back his chair, stood up, and followed the person to Mu Mingrui's study.

When he arrived, the door was open.

The space inside was very spacious, several times larger than Shen Tingyu's study.

Mu Mingrui wasn't at his rosewood desk but was sitting on the guest sofa, resting his head on one hand with his eyes slightly closed.

Hearing the noise, he opened his eyes and gestured to the sofa across from him: "Please, have a seat."

The door closed behind Xu Qingran as he entered.

Inside the room, it was just the two of them.

As soon as Xu Qingran sat down, he noticed Mu Mingrui looking at him with more energy than he had shown in the dining room.

After a moment, Mu Mingrui spoke slowly: "Xu Qingran, I've heard about you from Shen Tingyu."