The Crown Prince Ascends the Entertainment Throne - Chapter 11

“You little rascal!” The elderly man leaned in with a sense of overwhelming pressure. “What did you do to my granddaughter?”

Seeing those eyes, which seemed capable of shooting lasers, locked firmly onto him, Xiang Xu widened his eyes, his mind racing.

Oh no! It must be because today’s bookstore experience went too smoothly, and I let my guard down!

Having a child teach him Pinyin might be considered a form of “bullying” in this world, or even illegal. He simply did not know the rules here. Because the task was so trivial and the little girl herself had suggested it, he had relaxed too quickly.

She suggested it herself, so is she trying to frame me? No, he was reluctant to believe a child would frame someone. While such things were possible, he did not want to jump to that conclusion just because of the current situation. He preferred to believe this was simply a misunderstanding.

With that, Xiang Xu forced himself to remain calm.

Seeing the boy’s expression suddenly turn peaceful, the old man narrowed his eyes, a flicker of doubt crossing his face. Xiang Xu placed the cards he was holding between them, causing the old man to step back and maintain a safe distance.

Xiang Xu pointed to the girl and said, “Teach me Pinyin.”

Fortunately, the girl had said similar things before, so Xiang Xu was fairly certain that phrasing was acceptable.

The doubt in the old man’s eyes deepened. He muttered in disbelief, “Huanhuan? Teach you? Pinyin?”

Xiang Xu nodded. It was the simple truth.

“Then why is Huanhuan angry?”

Xiang Xu shook his head, indicating he did not know.

Given that reaction, the old man could see that the boy had some trouble expressing himself, so he turned to ask his granddaughter, who had not yet started elementary school.

Huanhuan was excited. She recounted how she had tried to teach Xiang Xu, how he had flipped through the pages at lightning speed, and how he had failed to appreciate her kindness. Although her sentences were often jumbled and she kept repeating her complaints, she was clearly far better at expressing herself than Xiang Xu.

To get a fuller picture, the old man asked several clarifying questions, such as “Did you offer to teach him yourself, or did he force you?” and “Did he do anything else?”

A few minutes later, the old man understood the full story. Even with his granddaughter’s childish embellishments, he realized the entire situation was just her throwing a tantrum. He then straightened his face, and without scolding her, spent a few minutes explaining the logic of the situation so the girl would realize her mistake.

“Brother, I am sorry…” the little girl apologized, wiping away her tears.

Xiang Xu had not really blamed her, so he smiled and patted her head.

The old man’s previously taut face broke into a smile. He apologized again: “I am sorry, young man. I truly misunderstood the situation.”

He protected his granddaughter, and upon learning of the misunderstanding, he reasoned with her gently instead of scolding or yelling. Furthermore, he was willing to lower himself to apologize to a stranger. A face filled with overwhelming pressure, the complete opposite of this old man’s, flashed through Xiang Xu’s mind; he pushed it away and looked at this spirited grandfather, feeling a sense of genuine affinity for him.

Xiang Xu smiled and shook his head. It was a bit frightening, but it is fine.

The old man’s gaze grew even more apologetic. He hesitated for a moment, looking Xiang Xu over several times, before finally asking, “Young man, if I am being offensive, I apologize in advance. Do you have a slight language impairment?”

Language impairment? Does that mean the inability to speak well?

Xiang Xu’s eyes rounded. He shook his head, then nodded.

“You do not need to be shy. Not everyone is born perfect,” the old man said with a magnanimous smile. “But you must have suffered a great deal because of this. You are so thin.”

As he spoke, he looked at Xiang Xu with an expression of pity.

Xiang Xu had indeed suffered because of the language barrier, but he felt that his thinness was more likely due to poverty.

“Huanhuan’s teaching methods are a bit off. If you do not mind, I can teach you. After all, besides practicing Tai Chi after retirement, I do not have much to do.”

The old man sat on the chair beside him and began to speak to himself:

“Today is Wednesday. With your situation, finding a job must be difficult. I heard you say a few words just now, and your voice has a decent foundation. My disciples are all so busy they do not even visit me, a bunch of ingrates. I only offered because you seem like a good person, and you did not get angry when Huanhuan wronged you. Fine, Old Hu and the others are always saying I like to teach others, but he is the same! Anyway, I am bored and scared of being idle.”

He rambled on. Although Xiang Xu only half-understood what he was saying, he could tell the old man truly wanted to help. Having someone willing to teach him would be far more efficient than studying in the dark, but because he had been “wronged” a few times in the previous days, he remained somewhat guarded.

“My grandson is about your age, but he does not want to learn from me,” the old man’s expression looked a little lonely. “Speaking of which, he has not come back to see me for half a year.”

“Brother, say yes quickly! Grandfather is amazing!” Huanhuan chimed in from the side. “And I am going to elementary school soon. Mom said that after I go to school, Grandfather will be alone and will cry.”

“Bah! You little rascal! I cannot wait for you to go to school!” The old man laughed and scolded her before turning back. “So, young man, are you willing to learn from an old man like me? If you are worried, we can study in this park. I come here to practice Tai Chi every day, so it will be convenient.”

Since things had reached this point, Xiang Xu nodded firmly. His face flushed slightly as he squeezed out his name: “Xiang Xu.”

“A good name!” Names with such archaic flair were quite popular among elderly men who pursued refinement. “Just call me Old Xu.”

Xiang Xu nodded and called out “Old Xu.” He did not know that this form of address might be considered impolite for an elder, but since Old Xu had suggested it, he used it. He was baffled as to why Old Xu burst into laughter after he said it.

“Alright, Xiang Xu. Come, read your textbook for Old Xu.” Old Xu pointed to the children’s Pinyin cards in his hand.

Referred to as a “textbook,” these cards suddenly seemed much higher-end.

Old Xu was much more detailed and strict than Huanhuan; he would not let a single mistake pass. “The foundation must be solid!” Old Xu said, and Xiang Xu agreed wholeheartedly.

He did not know how much time had passed, but Huanhuan had already gone off to play with her scooter, finding the progress too slow. Old Xu suddenly smiled: “You have great patience. You will accomplish things. My disciples always complained about the pace when they first started.”

Although he was chiding his disciples, Xiang Xu could only see the affection Old Xu had for them on his smiling face. Xiang Xu’s heart felt a warmth wash over him.

“To have such patience at your age, you must have suffered a great deal in your childhood.” Old Xu’s expression became sympathetic again.

Does human-inflicted suffering count? Xiang Xu’s earliest memories were all about being punished by his imperial father to copy scriptures in the archive. He did not remember what he had done wrong specifically, but he remembered crying loudly; he could still recite those hundreds of scriptures he had copied back then. Although it had been a painful experience, thinking about it now made him feel a strange sense of nostalgia.

“It is alright. With your temperament, you will not suffer anymore in the future,” Old Xu consoled him.

His words caused Xiang Xu to pause in a daze.

…

When Xiang Ji returned home, she saw her younger brother sticking to the door frame like a piece of decoration. When he saw her, he revealed a smile.

This smile made Xiang Ji’s heart pound with fright: “What happened?”

Xiang Xu beamed: “Thank you, Sister.”

After saying that, while Xiang Ji was still in a daze, he nodded slightly and entered his room.

Xiang Ji’s fingertips went cold and trembled; the strap of her bag slipped from her hand and hit the floor with a “thud.”

After thanking his sister, Xiang Xu felt a sense of relief, smoothing out the lingering sense of emptiness that had been stirred up that afternoon. He walked over to the computer and continued playing the boss fight he had left off on.

The Era of Divine Corrosion was a game that tested one’s mechanics to the limit. This was the highest-difficulty dungeon, and Xiang Xu’s zero-investment gear was garbage. Attacking the monster felt like scraping a wall, and if the boss touched him once, he was dead.

Xiang Xu’s technique was not bad, but the moment he became conscious of playing, his hands would stutter, and he would be pinned to the ground by the monster. He had not yet fully adapted to that state of “man-machine integration.” With the monster down to its last bit of health, he got excited and used a small skill instead of his dodge.

“Victory and defeat are common in war. Please try again, hero.” The prompt sounded for the umpteenth time. Xiang Xu closed the game, deciding to let himself off the hook for the day.

As soon as the game closed, a message popped up. It was from the friend named “Unhappy If Not Scolded for a Day,” asking when he could help with the paid-service gaming.

Xiang Xu knew that if he replied, the other person would ask more questions, and there were many things he could not explain clearly, so he pretended not to see it.

After exploring the keyboard for a while using the Pinyin book and dictionary, Xiang Xu pushed the keyboard drawer back in, lay back on the bed, and started fiddling with the device called a “phone.” He had observed carefully on the road today and learned its name, how to turn it on, and even how to charge it.

Xiang Xu felt that things had gone more smoothly today than he could have imagined: buying books, learning Pinyin, and understanding the phone. It was so smooth he wanted to shout to the heavens, though he refrained to avoid disturbing the neighbors.

He unplugged the phone from the charging cable and pressed a raised bar on the side. The screen did not light up as he had hoped. After a pause, he tried long-pressing, short-pressing, and double-tapping. He tried every bar on the side, but the phone remained dark.

Xiang Xu grabbed the phone and inspected it carefully. Finally, he discovered a crack as long as a fingernail on the left side of the device.

Well, naturally, not everything can go perfectly.

Xiang Xu was not discouraged, just a bit helpless. However, for such an important item, someone must be able to repair it. I just do not know the cost.

Xiang Xu checked his wallet. After clarifying the currency system at the noodle shop, he had immediately counted his savings. He had 281 yuan left. He ate two meals a day, two bowls per meal, meaning he could only last another ten days at most.

Xiang Xu made up his mind. Within these ten days, he had to find a way to earn money.