Cultivating Immortality, Starting from Childhood Sweethearts-Chapter 456 - These Silver Chopsticks Have Already Been Bent by You.

Wu Yanhan walked toward the main table at the center of the Xu residence.

The main table could only seat ten people, all of whom were key figures from the Xu and Qin households. People like Xu Pangda and Xu Yi could only sit at the adjacent tables.

“Greetings, Prince Qin.”

When the people at the main table saw Wu Yanhan, they stood up once again and saluted her.

Wu Yanhan returned the greeting with a cupped fist, then glanced at the empty seat beside Xu Ming and, without hesitation, seated herself next to him.

“I heard you invited Mr. Cao?” Wu Yanhan poured herself a cup of tea and asked Xu Ming in a low voice.

“News travels fast, doesn’t it?” Xu Ming smiled at Wu Yanhan.

“I ran into Mr. Cao on my way in,” Wu Yanhan explained.

“I see.” Xu Ming nodded.

“Does your Xu household have anything that would attract the attention of those remnants of the former dynasty?” Wu Yanhan pondered but couldn’t think of a reason why the other party would stir up trouble here.

“I have no idea.” Xu Ming chuckled. “Just taking precautions, that’s all.”

Wu Yanhan said nothing more, simply taking a sip of her tea.

Before long, the banquet began. The Xu family’s matriarch stepped onto the high platform at the front, thanking the guests for attending before recounting the deeds of Duke Xu and Duke Qin from years past.

To Xu Ming, the flow of the Xu family’s banquet was no different from the New Year celebrations and gala events he had attended in his past life.

The structure was always the same: important people would give speeches, then performances would begin, and everyone would eat and drink while enjoying the entertainment.

The only difference was—

In his past life, when giving gifts on Blue Star, the gifts weren’t publicly announced.

But in Wu Kingdom, as a sign of respect for the guests, gifts were announced twice—once when the guests arrived and again after the performances, when the matriarch would sit at the front and formally receive the guests’ congratulations.

Xu Ming strongly suspected that this tradition existed to prevent guests from giving cheap gifts.

After all, if a guest’s gift was too meager, having it announced twice would surely be embarrassing.

Xu Ming and Wu Yanhan continued chatting casually, all the while remaining alert to their surroundings.

If those remnants loyal to Prince Shan were planning something, this would be the moment to act.

After all, although a banquet was also being held at the Qin household, no truly important figures were present there.

While Xu Ming and Wu Yanhan remained on high alert, others seemed far more relaxed—especially Xu Zheng.

For this grand banquet, Xu Zheng had been running around tirelessly, primarily to oversee the performances.

He had even spent a fortune hiring the top courtesans from the major brothels in Wudu to rehearse and select ten performances.

In addition to them, talented women from the Jiaosi Bureau would also take the stage.

The most striking thing, however, was that Xu Zheng had arranged for a special new performance—a reenactment of the poetry duel between scholars of Qi and Wu that took place when Qi’s delegation visited Wu Kingdom years ago.

That historic banquet had been recorded in the annals of history.

It was during that event that Xu Ming, a gifted scholar, first entered the public eye. More importantly, the event led to significant reforms in Wu Kingdom, including the right of illegitimate sons to participate in imperial examinations and claim a portion of inheritance.

One could even say that banquet marked the rise of Prime Minister Xiao, propelling him into the high-stakes political arena.

More than a decade had passed since then, and Wu Kingdom had undergone tremendous positive changes.

As Xu Ming watched the performers on stage impersonating him and his peers, occasionally singing short verses, he couldn’t help but twitch his eyebrows.

He understood his father’s intentions—

The old man simply wanted him to shine again, to be the centerpiece of this banquet.

But the problem was, even if his father hadn’t arranged this performance, no one would dare ignore him anyway.

And did his father even realize who was sitting next to him?

Did he know what kind of relationship he had with the person sitting right beside him?

Did he have any idea that there had been persistent rumors about him and Zhu Cici?

If not for the fact that his father was grinning so happily over there—wearing that classic “wastrel husband” silly smile—Xu Ming would have seriously suspected that his old man was deliberately trying to set him up!

Xu Ming stole a glance to the side.

Sure enough.

Wu Yanhan’s gaze was fixed on the stage, watching as “Little Xu Ming” composed poetry while “Little Zhu Cici” blushed shyly. Her brows were already slightly furrowed.

Wu Yanhan had an exceptionally fair complexion.

But for some reason, at this moment, Xu Ming felt like her face looked rather dark.

In fact, Xu Ming had no doubt that if Wu Yanhan stood up in the next second, she might just punch the stage and tear it down entirely.

“This recent mission to Beihai (North Sea)—I heard that Miss Zhu was there as well. Did Commander Xu happen to meet her?” Wu Yanhan set down her teacup and smiled at Xu Ming.

Xu Ming picked up a piece of fresh perch from Jiangnan and placed it in Wu Yanhan’s bowl. “I did see her.”

“You didn’t take the chance to reminisce?” Wu Yanhan’s smile remained unchanged. “I heard that Miss Zhu has been waiting for you all this time.”

Xu Ming could practically smell the jealousy in the air.

“Miss Zhu and I did chat about childhood memories,” he explained, “but it was just casual reminiscing.”

“Nothing more?” Wu Yanhan took a bite of the perch, seeming to forgive him—just a little.

Xu Ming nodded. “Nothing more.”

Wu Yanhan set down her chopsticks and continued, “She must be very beautiful, then? After all, she ranks higher than me on the Beauty List.”

“How could that be!” Xu Ming looked incredibly serious as he spoke. “Yanhan, you know as well as I do that the top ten rankings on the Beauty List are practically tied. And in my eyes, you’re even more beautiful than Cici!”

Xu Ming had one firm principle: Whoever asked was always the most beautiful!

“Hmph.”

Wu Yanhan let out a cold snort, then glanced toward the chicken soup in the distance. “I want a bowl of soup.”

“I’ll get it for you.” Xu Ming stood up and personally served Wu Yanhan a bowl of chicken soup.

Naturally, the people around them were listening to their conversation.

Wang Feng pursed her lips, holding back a smile.

So the once proud and untouchable top scholar actually had this side to him in front of the princess.

But no one thought any less of Xu Ming.

On the contrary, quite a few people were smiling indulgently, as if a faint sweetness was spreading across the dining table.

At another table, a young girl watched Xu Ming and Wu Yanhan’s intimate exchange—the way he even stood up to serve her soup—and her eyes narrowed slightly.

“Your Highness...” Liu Feng called out softly.

“What?” The girl’s tone was sharp.

Liu Feng glanced at the girl’s right hand. “Your silver chopsticks... they’re already bent.”

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