Chapter 922: Judging the Princess by Her Vegetables
Some drinkers who knew about Xuan Yuan Po’s experiences in the capital years ago murmured a few words, and only then did people learn that Xuan Yuan Po’s right arm had been injured and appeared to be crippled.
“A cripple like him spouting nonsense, and you actually believe it? And a master of the Tianhai family… might as well say it’s Tianhai Shengxue!”
The drunkard shouted, reeking of alcohol, and with a *ptooey*, spat right in front of Xuan Yuan Po’s feet.
Xuan Yuan Po remained silent, saying nothing, and didn’t retaliate. He awkwardly used his right hand to take the wine flasks hanging from his left arm and set them one by one on the table.
Seeing that he ignored him, the drunkard grew even angrier, cursing incessantly, his words becoming more and more vile.
Some of the other drinkers joined in the jeering, mocking and laughing at Xuan Yuan Po without pause.
Xuan Yuan Po still paid no attention. After placing the flasks, he turned around to head back.
The drunkard suddenly stood up and shouted, “Hey, bear cub, stop right there.”
Xuan Yuan Po halted and looked over.
The drunkard let out a burp and slurred, “You really went to the capital?”
Xuan Yuan Po nodded.
The drunkard pressed on, “And you were really classmates with His Holiness the Pope?”
Xuan Yuan Po thought for a moment, then corrected him, “At the very beginning, he and I were both students. Later, he became the Dean, and I became the Steward.”
Hearing this, the drunkard burst into loud laughter, and many other drinkers joined in, finding the claim utterly absurd.
The drunkard pointed at his right arm and sneered, “Look at his hand—it’s useless, no strength at all. He’s only fit to wash dishes, and he says he was the Steward of the National Academy? That’s the National Academy! If you had that kind of skill, would you still be here washing dishes?”
The Great Zhou capital was far too distant from the demon world, and the specifics of many events there rarely reached the little taverns of White Emperor City. But no matter which tavern’s patrons, no matter how much they drank, they all knew of the National Academy.
Their most beloved and revered Princess had once been a student there, and her teacher was now His Holiness the Pope.
If Xuan Yuan Po had truly stayed at the National Academy and even served as its Steward, how could he now be washing dishes in a grimy little tavern like this?
In a corner, at one table, a few drinkers frowned at each other, exchanging puzzled glances. These men were low-ranking stewards of the Red River Trading Company, who had once traveled with a caravan to the capital and knew Xuan Yuan Po wasn’t lying. They just couldn’t understand why he had fallen to such a state.
“After His Holiness the Pope left the capital, he never showed up again. He’s probably too busy dealing with his own troubles to care about him.”
“What about the Princess?”
“Those are old stories from years ago. Why would the nobility remember something so long ago? Besides… I heard Xuan Yuan Po left the capital before the incident at the Heavenly Book Mausoleum. Judging by the timing, he saw the tide turning and got out, which is basically running away. How could he have the face to see the Princess?”
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The tavern owner, seeing the situation growing more chaotic, sternly scolded Xuan Yuan Po a few times and sent him back to the kitchen.
Xuan Yuan Po showed no reaction. He picked up a basin of dirty dishes, went outside, and continued washing in silence.
Being mocked, ridiculed, and called a cripple—scenes like this had played out many times over the past three years. He never responded, not out of numbness or a dull personality, but because he knew he wasn’t a cripple, and he didn’t see this as a descent into ruin.
Back then, when his right arm was crippled by Tianhai Ya’er, he had voluntarily left the Star Picking Academy and gone to wash dishes at a night market stall on the streets of the capital. Now he was just returning to his old trade.
He remembered clearly what Chen Changsheng had said back then: earning a living through honest labor was nothing to be ashamed of—it was something honorable.
Nor was it that he had left the National Academy before the Heavenly Book Mausoleum incident and felt too ashamed to face his old acquaintances there, like Her Highness Luo Luo.
When he left the National Academy back then, it took him only seventeen days to run from the capital back to White Emperor City—eighty thousand miles of dust and dirt, which had wasted him away until he was barely human, his mountain-like frame reduced to a bamboo pole. That wasn’t running away; he knew Chen Changsheng was about to die, and he wanted to seek help.
What he hadn’t expected was that even with the seal Her Highness Luo Luo had specially left for him, he still couldn’t enter the palace. The next morning, he went to the hillside outside White Emperor City to find Jin Yulü, only to discover that the demon general’s estate was surrounded by palace guards, and the woods were crawling with hidden eyes.
Xuan Yuan Po had no way out. Fortunately, it wasn’t long before he heard the aftermath of the events in the capital.
The Heavenly Sea Holy Empress was dead. Chen Changsheng was alive. The National Academy still stood. Chen Changsheng had even become His Holiness the Pope. Then Chen Changsheng left the capital, and there was no news of him after that.
For Xuan Yuan Po, he could have returned to the National Academy in the capital or gone back to his own tribe. Either would have been a fine choice.
But he chose to stay in White Emperor City.
Because it was clear that something was happening here.
He still hadn’t seen Her Highness Luo Luo, nor had he seen Jin Yulü.
And so, he lived quietly in White Emperor City for three years, gradually becoming an object of ridicule, gradually being forgotten.
But he never forgot why he was staying here.
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In the dead of night, the tavern finally emptied.
Xuan Yuan Po finished his hard labor, washed his body clean with cold water, changed into clean clothes, and walked to Xiao Family Lane outside the back gate of the palace. He greeted the steward of the vegetable market familiarly and began another job—delivering vegetables to the palace.
The palace was, of course, heavily guarded. Deliveries could only go as far as the outer city’s steward’s office; there was no way inside.
Xuan Yuan Po hadn’t saved enough money to bribe the guards, nor was he clever enough to curry favor with any noble, so he couldn’t get accurate news from inside the palace. But he could use a simple method to achieve his goal, just as he had for the past two years.
The Vegetable Steward’s Office kept a daily list of vegetables used. Every day, he would carefully read it three times and then record it again at home.
He knew very well what vegetables Her Highness Luo Luo liked best—those dishes often came from the distant human world and stood out clearly on the menu.
He remembered this so clearly because he had been the logistics steward of the National Academy. From the very beginning, all the meals at the National Academy were cooked by him.
Through those menus, he could confirm whether Her Highness Luo Luo was in the palace, whether she was safe, and how she was feeling.
Yes, that was why he stayed in White Emperor City.
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As usual, Xuan Yuan Po finished reviewing the menu and the quantities of vegetables allocated, confirming that Her Highness Luo Luo was fine, but his brow furrowed.
In the deep winter, snow-red greens were at their crispest. The half-basket of snow-red greens sent into the palace two days ago was one of Her Highness Luo Luo’s favorite dishes back then, whether stir-fried plain or in broth. By all logic, today should have been a restocking day—so why wasn’t it on the list?
Was Her Highness Luo Luo in a bad mood? Had something happened?
Just as Xuan Yuan Po was about to risk making inquiries, news quickly spread from the palace and soon swept through all of White Emperor City. It would likely reach the entire continent before long, because it was clearly a message deliberately released by some high-ranking figure in the palace.
Her Highness Luo Luo was going to be married.
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(I’m about to write about my Luo Luo, so I’m a bit nervous. Just one chapter today.)