The sound of galloping hooves echoed.

From the lush, verdant meadows of the outer suburbs, a group of young men rode in on horseback. One of them lazily tugged at his reins, his gaze falling upon the long bridge ahead. With just one glance, he caught sight of Ji Changran and Shen Xuefeng standing together.

At the sight, he jeered, “Ah, what did I say? His Third Highness brought us this way just to catch a glimpse of his little study companion.”

This young man was the same one who had been chatting idly with Ji Wu at the teahouse the other day—his name was Chi Qing.

Naturally, he had another identity: the heir of the Prince of Changyang of the State of Qi. Officially, he had arrived in the imperial capital as part of a diplomatic delegation to offer birthday congratulations to the Emperor of Gan.

It was rather pitiful, really. He and Yin Lan had tried multiple times to invite Ji Wu out for an excursion, only to be rebuffed each time. It wasn’t until yesterday—when they brought along a few more peers—that Ji Wu, showing great “mercy,” finally agreed.

They’d thought their persistence had finally paid off, that sincerity could move even stone. But now, seeing this scene, it was clear Ji Wu had no real interest in enjoying the spring scenery of the countryside. It wasn’t until a servant from the Shen household was spotted that he’d shown any reaction.

“Master Shen is here today as well?” Yin Lan turned his horse and rode up alongside Chi Qing, speaking with curiosity. “Heir Chi, didn’t you tell me that Master Shen is the Third Prince’s study companion? Why is he walking with the First Prince now?”

Ji Wu, riding at the front, tightened his grip subtly on the reins at those words. A shadow of emotion—dark and hard to notice—flashed across his cold, stern features.

“You’d better not say that kind of thing if you want to stay on his good side,” warned Chi Qing, who knew Ji Wu’s true nature all too well. “Just remember this—Master Shen has absolutely nothing to do with the Crown Prince. I’m only telling you this for your own good.”

Yin Lan nodded thoughtfully, then flicked his whip, pretending to chase after Ji Wu. “Then let’s go quickly! I want to get to know this Young Master Shen too!”

Not far away, Shen Xuefeng had no idea that his every move was already being clearly observed by the others. At that moment, all he wanted was to find a suitable excuse to reject Ji Changran.

What would be the best way to say it?

If the rejection was too direct, would it anger him?

Perhaps the heavens took pity on him—just as he was feeling troubled, he suddenly heard Fan Qinghe and his companions calling from behind.

“Xuefeng, what are you doing here? Here’s some fish food, go ahead and use it to feed them…”

Young Lord Fan, holding a small, delicate blue-and-white porcelain bowl in his hands, hadn’t walked more than a few steps before noticing there was someone else under Shen Xuefeng’s umbrella. When he looked more closely, his expression immediately turned serious.

“Greetings, Your Highness.” He hid the porcelain bowl behind his back with one hand and bowed.

The other fellow students from the Academy of Letters also began to follow suit in offering their greetings.

Ji Changran felt a sharp throbbing at his temple. Seeing this, he quickly raised a hand to stop them. “That’s enough—no need for formalities. Today, there’s no distinction between rank or station.”

Several of the boys dropped the formalities and, as usual, eagerly came up to engage him in flattery, surrounding Ji Changran completely.

It was then that Shen Xuefeng took the opportunity to quietly slip out from under the umbrella, placing a small oil-paper bag into Fan Qinghe’s hands and taking the little porcelain bowl from him.

“I’ll just use your fish food to feed them, then.”

“Hey… Xuefeng,” Fan Qinghe called after him, a bit exasperated when he saw him leave without even looking back. He opened the oil-paper bag and discovered it, too, was filled with fish food—making him even more puzzled.

Still standing under the blue umbrella, Ji Changran kept smiling and chatting with everyone, but inwardly, his temper had already flared.

Shen Xuefeng had passed the fish food he gave him to Fan Qinghe without a word and simply left—avoiding him like he was some kind of plague.

Ji Changran frowned deeply, completely unable to understand.

What on earth had he done wrong for Shen Xuefeng to be so averse to him?

In the dream, the two of them had clicked instantly, supported each other for many years, sharing a profound bond with no doubts between them. Yet back in the real world, the situation was completely different.

Why?

Holding the fish food, Shen Xuefeng found a quiet spot. He gently pinched a few pellets and tossed them into the river.

Clusters of red carp leapt from the water, sending up glistening droplets as they jostled to gobble the food.

“No pushing, no fighting—there’s enough for every fish,” he threw in a few more, visibly more relaxed now. “You’re all brothers and sisters, so no fighting at the surface.”

Of course, the fish couldn’t understand a word he said. They just continued to compete for food, and more and more koi began to gather around where Shen Xuefeng stood.

After feeding them for a while, he was quite pleased and glanced toward the fishing boats anchored in the middle of the river, murmuring with envy to himself:

“Sigh, if I’d agreed to go boating with His Highness earlier, maybe I’d already be on one of those boats by now.”

Just then, a teasing voice called from above his head:

“Oh? Then why didn’t you agree?”

“Hmph, obviously because I’d never go with him!” Shen Xuefeng answered righteously.

As soon as the words left his mouth, he suddenly snapped to attention and clamped a hand over his mouth. He turned his head.

A tall figure had silently appeared beside him. That person curled his lips into a cold, mocking smile, eyes fixed on him with a wicked gleam.

“Then tell me—why not?”

Ji Wu’s face was startlingly real, and Shen Xuefeng blinked, unable to hide the surprise in his eyes.

“Your Highness, you really came,” he said, instinctively craning his neck to peer behind Ji Wu. “Did you come alone?”

Seeing that his attention was elsewhere, Ji Wu asked coolly in return, “Is there someone else you were hoping to see?”

“That’s not what I meant,” Shen Xuefeng said, quickly latching onto his arm with a fawning expression. “Of course I wanted to see Your Highness the most.”

He glanced around quickly. Not seeing anyone familiar, he assumed Ji Wu had broken away from the group to find him. This thought made him soften.

“If no one is accompanying Your Highness on this outing, then let it just be the two of us. What do you think?”

Bathed in sunlight, Shen Xuefeng looked up, squinting to try to read Ji Wu’s expression—but the light was too harsh, and he completely missed the dark look in Ji Wu’s eyes.

“All right,” came the reply.

Ji Wu leaned down slightly and asked in an unhurried tone, “Where would Xuefeng like to go?”

Shen Xuefeng thought for a moment. He didn’t want to stay too close to the royal family—none of them had shown Ji Wu a kind face. So he boldly suggested, “It’d be best to go somewhere no one knows us. If that’s not possible, it’s fine too. I’ll just stroll along the river with Your Highness.”

Ji Wu naturally had no objections.

The two of them headed toward the area under the bridge. Shen Xuefeng noticed that Ji Changran and his group were still nearby chatting, so he quietly tugged at Ji Wu’s sleeve.

“Your Highness, let’s go the other way.”

But Ji Wu replied calmly and without inflection, “We’re going this way.”

On the narrow path, the two groups inevitably ran into each other. The moment Ji Changran saw Ji Wu, the gentle smile on his lips froze instantly.

His gaze shifted slightly—and when he saw Shen Xuefeng behind Ji Wu, looking quite cheerful, a surge of jealousy rose in his chest.

Ji Wu didn’t avoid him. As he passed Ji Changran, he suddenly stopped.

Fan Qinghe and the others were momentarily stunned when they saw him. Times had changed—they could no longer treat Ji Wu as if he didn’t exist. They all quickly and obediently bowed and greeted him.

During all their polite greetings, Ji Wu ignored every single person. He stepped past Fan Qinghe, who was in front, and stopped in front of Ji Changran.

In front of everyone, Ji Wu smiled kindly at the older brother who had punished him so harshly in the past and said, “Xuefeng’s umbrella is still with you, brother. He’s always afraid of the sun—may I ask you to return it?”