Chapter Fifteen: Wu Donghan

  Just a few days before Chu Hao crossed over, the young prince had made a bet with him and his dog legged friend, agreeing to meet in ten days at the largest wine tower in the capital, Ju Yun Lou, for a grand showdown of the wealthy class.

  This gamble is also very simple, it's fighting crickets.

  In the capital city, fighting crickets is also a fashionable leisure activity among the royal and noble people, more popular than poetry recitals, tea parties, or flower appreciation gatherings.

  The stakes of the bet between Xiaowangye and the young prince were gold, but in reality, it was a matter of face for both parties. So at that time, the crown prince agreed without hesitation.

  In the past, both sides had made bets, but Xiao Wangye's side had lost more often than won, losing face completely. So, the young master vowed to take advantage of this opportunity to turn things around and regain his pride.

  It just so happens that today is exactly the deadline of ten days.

  Thinking of these things, Chu Hao suddenly felt a mix of emotions, secretly thinking that the first battle he fought after crossing over was actually about fighting crickets? It's really embarrassing for the Xiu Dao realm and the crossers.

  However, having occupied this excellent body of the young master, if he didn't do something for him, it would seem unjustifiable. Since this little prince was so eager to be abused, Chu Hao wouldn't disappoint him.

  When he saw Chu Hao not speaking, the little emperor's eyes flashed with a hint of mockery: "What, did big brother really forget? I remember last time big brother was still boasting to me about how fierce his General Shocks-the-World was?"

  Of course I'm more fierce, my world-renowned divine gun is definitely more fierce than your silver gun wax head.

  Chu Hao thought to himself with a bad premonition, "Hehe, Xiao Wang naturally hasn't forgotten, look, I was just about to head out, didn't expect the young prince to personally come and remind Xiao Wang. As the older brother of the emperor, it's truly embarrassing!"

  "Is that so?" The young prince looked at Chu Hao, who had a sleepy face, and was somewhat annoyed: "The imperial brother and Chen Gongzi have been waiting for the emperor in the Cloud Gathering Pavilion for an hour. If he doesn't come to call the emperor now, I'm afraid they will have to wait until tomorrow!"

  "Not at all, Little Wang will come even if he's had dinner!" Chu Hao shamelessly replied. After teasing the little prince for half a day, he finally said to Xiao Si: "Quickly go and bring over Little Wang's 'Shaking General'!"

  The young prince curled his lip, looking at Chu Hao's sloppy appearance, and said lightly: "Brother, you'd better tidy up your clothes before coming back. Today, I've specially invited Mr. Wu Donghan as the judge, so let's not linger too long. I'll take my leave first!"

  As he spoke, without waiting for Chu Hao's response, he swung his long sleeve and followed the guard at the door out.

  "Hey, you little brat, what are you doing?! You're a prince, but you have no manners!" Chu Hao couldn't stand people being arrogant, especially when they were more arrogant than him. However, this young prince did have the capital to be arrogant - he was actually at the 9th level of Bone Refining, something that had never appeared in the memories of this world's previous owner.

  Is that kid intentionally hiding in front of the former crown prince? Playing dumb and pretending to be a pig to eat a tiger?

  Chu Hao had a thought flash through his mind, but he couldn't grasp it. However, regarding the matter of himself being assassinated five days ago, most officials in the capital should have known about it by now. After all, several days ago, Prince Chu Yunfei joined forces with several generals from the Ministry of War and put pressure on General Zou Jia, who was in charge of defending the city, on the imperial court, causing a stir.

  At this time, Xiao Si walked over with a Qingwa carved flower porcelain. Chu Hao took it and carefully opened the lid, sealing the top with his internal force, and examined it closely.

  In this quiet, serene ceramic tile, a cricket about the length of a thumb was quietly hiding. When it felt the lid open, it let out a few high-pitched chirps, unwilling to be silent.

  Its head is slightly larger, presenting a dark cyan color. Although the bamboo tube is pitch black, its whole body is flowing with a faint luster. Its tentacles are very long, like the general's helmet tassels, leaning on both sides of the body. Its compound eyes seem to be mixed with dark yellow, motionless on the green tile, but full of overbearing aura.

  Chu Hao didn't know the breed or quality of the cricket, but as soon as he saw it, he knew it was no ordinary insect. The title "General" suited it quite well! No wonder the young master had spent 300 taels of gold to buy it back then.

  But it's only three hundred taels, and yet buying a trinket with gold is really extravagant.

  After all, summer insects die in winter, and there are only two seasons to live.

  Chu Hao thought of the failure to refine the equipment in the morning, and his heart felt a little uncomfortable. However, if he could vent this anger on the young prince later, it wouldn't be bad either. So, with a smile, he used the hot grass of Qingwa Ci to tease the tail of the frog, his words full of temptation:

  "General Earth-Shaker", if you can help me, the king, get rid of that useless prince's "Wind and Cloud Cheap Person" today, I'll feed you high-quality millet every day, marry a thousand beautiful women for you, and let you be the groom every night.

  "Little Fourth hastily said, 'Young Master Wang, have you forgotten? Fighting crickets cannot be mated. They must maintain a strong desire and will to fight in order to defeat their opponents; otherwise, they will become lazy and refuse to battle.'"

  "Is that so? Who said that? As a man, as a male insect, without the nourishment of the opposite sex, one will become lazy and not fight!" Chu Hao looked at Xiao Si with a glance, and suddenly his eyes lit up, heh heh, and smiled.

  After messing around for more than half a day, Chu Hao specially changed into a set of clothes, roughly tidied up his hair, and then had Xiao Si carry the porcelain basin as they walked out of the Wang Fu together.

  Xiao Si still had some misgivings, "Young Master Wang, should we call upon Chu Mo, the commander?"

  Chu Hao glanced at the four guards beside him, all of whom were either Bone Refining or Skin Tempering experts. Although the events of five days ago had made him somewhat wary, he thought that nothing out of the ordinary could happen in the capital city. He shook his head and said, "No need, let's just go like this!"

  As the largest wine house in Beijing, Juyun Building was naturally built not far from the rich district of Beijing, at the end of Zhuque Street. Since Chu Hao didn't have the habit of taking a sedan chair, he followed Xiao Si, looking at the ancient and charming scenery around him, slowly moving towards his destination.

  As he walked out of Zhuque Avenue, the scenery suddenly became clear and bright. The bustling street was filled with people coming and going, teahouses, wine shops, and stores stood in great numbers. This place was different from the quietness of the rich district, giving Chu Hao a kind of dizzy sense of belonging for the first time.

  In about fifteen minutes, the three golden characters of Juyun Building appeared before our eyes. Under the building, several horse-drawn carriages were parked, one of which was obviously from the imperial family.

  The shopkeeper led a group of people to the third floor with a bow and a nod, recognizing Chu Hao as the spoiled young master.

  "The Crown Prince is really making us wait!"

  As soon as he went upstairs, a joyful voice with a hint of resentment came over. Chu Hao looked around and saw that the large third-floor hall had only about ten people, while at the staircase entrance, several expressionless guards stood still.

  The speaker was a young man in white clothes, about the same age as Chu Hao. This person was recognized by Chu Hao as Sun Haoran, the son of General Sun Yue of the Military Department, and also one of the most intimate noble sons in the capital with him.

  Chu Hao smiled faintly and swept his gaze past, and there were indeed many people inside. Except for the young prince who was sitting upright by the window without getting up, all the others were young masters from notable families in the capital. There was Chen Ruofan, the son of a high-ranking official, Fan Decheng, the nephew of the Minister of War, and Nangong Jie, the grandson of the Grand Councilor... each with an impressive background.

  However, the most eye-catching ones are Sun Haoran and another young man wearing a Confucian robe standing beside the little prince.

  That young man had an extraordinary temperament, standing beside the little prince, but still emitting a kind of proud aura, and even towards Chu Hao, he only glanced at him with eyes that showed no ripples or reverence.

  This person's demeanor gives people a feeling as if it were a beautiful jade of crystal clarity and elegance!

  Chu Hao's face broke into a smile as he walked forward, saying: "I presume this is the Mr. Wu Donghan who my imperial brother has been talking about day and night? I've long heard of your great reputation, Mr. Wu, and now that we meet in person, you are indeed a dragon among men. It's an honor to make your acquaintance."

  To say, Wu Donghan was just the top scorer in this year's spring imperial examination, neither the second nor the first, but his reputation had completely overshadowed the other two, becoming the empire's focus on the new literary star.

  The reason is none other than Wu Donghan, who is 21 years old this year and is the eldest grandson of Old Master Wu.

  Wu Donghan was born into a scholarly family in Jinling City, the Wu family had flourished for hundreds of years and was very influential. His father, Wu Lao Ye Zi, was also a prominent figure who had made significant contributions to the empire alongside the previous emperor. Although he resigned from his position as prime minister twenty years ago due to the succession crisis and returned to his hometown, resulting in no one from the family holding any official positions in the empire, his reputation and influence did not diminish but instead rose even higher because of this.

  He is secretly known as the number one scholar of the empire!

  Wu Lao Ye Zi was a prominent figure in the empire, with many officials and scholars looking up to him. He was once mentioned alongside Sun Gu, a renowned general from the Wei Yuan Wang Ye faction, as the empire's "one literary and one martial" figures. Although both have retreated from the public eye, their reputations remain unshakeable.

  Wu Donghan may have only been a visiting flower this time, but he won out in terms of youth and background. It's just unknown how this kid managed to get mixed up with the young prince, not to mention that several other princes were dissatisfied, and Chu Hao was also extremely puzzled.

  "The two words 'Mr.' are really not worthy of me, I am just a humble student, how can I deserve such praise from the young master!" Wu Donghan bowed slightly and said: "I haven't paid my respects to the young master yet, it's really impolite. Student Wu Donghan, at your service." His voice was very low, Chu Hao had been paying attention to his expression, but found no ripples.

  This person remains calm in the face of fortune and misfortune, a true character.

  Chu Hao sighed inwardly and smiled: "No need for more courtesy, today's duel, let the gentleman be a witness."

  "I don't dare, I don't dare." Wu Donghan replied humbly as usual, but this time when he spoke, his eyes inadvertently glanced at the young prince.