The Crown Prince Ascends the Entertainment Throne - Chapter 12

Xiang Xu and Old Xu had reached an agreement: every day during the day, Xiang Xu would exercise at the park, eat noodles at the shop, and learn to speak under Old Xu’s guidance. In the evenings, he would spend his time practicing on Epoch of God’s Erosion.

Although he was determined to find a way to make money as soon as possible, he was physically weak and unable to speak clearly, so after five days, he still had not found a suitable opportunity.

However, his language skills were progressing rapidly. He could now hold daily conversations with Old Xu without issue, though he would occasionally slip into the formal expressions of the Yin Dynasty.

Whenever Xiang Xu came out with something strange, Old Xu would laugh heartily and say, “The meaning you expressed is correct. A few phrases are a bit too archaic, but most people would not mind. If you are just starting out, it is better to watch fewer period dramas and take it one step at a time. Of course, if you are interested in that, it does not really matter.”

Xiang Xu followed Old Xu’s advice and tried communicating with others. He found that, as Old Xu had said, people did not act shocked by his way of speaking; at most, they would chuckle and say, “You speak in such an interesting way.”

Xiang Xu slowly began to understand that the people of this world were surprisingly open and inclusive. If they encountered something they could not understand, they would simply invent a reason, attributing it to the person’s personality or some other cause, and convince themselves of it.

With this realization, Xiang Xu became much more confident in his expression. However, he felt it was necessary to strengthen his reading ability.

On the sixth day, Xiang Xu stuffed the bookstore vouchers into his pocket, put on his brightest light-yellow hoodie, fixed his hair, and headed out.

Appearing at the bookstore after nearly a week, the cashier recognized him immediately, her face lighting up with an incredibly radiant smile.

“Did the book from last time help you? What are you buying today?”

Xiang Xu knew that because he had not said a word the first two times, this lady still misunderstood him as a mute. Yesterday, he had told Old Xu about his bookstore situation to ask for advice on how to handle it.

Old Xu was enthusiastic and helpful. “If you go there often and do not want to lie to them, tell them you have a language disorder. But do not start off speaking so fluently. Slow down your pace and stutter occasionally to avoid scaring her. It is best to write down your situation on a note for her to read, as explaining it is troublesome. I will write it for you; you probably will not be able to write it clearly enough.”

Old Xu wrote it down with divine speed. Xiang Xu had checked the note against his dictionary the night before; Old Xu’s version was somewhat exaggerated. However, since Old Xu was a local and an elder, it was certainly written this way for stability. Moreover, Xiang Xu lacked the ability to delete the more pathetic parts himself. Trusting Old Xu and recognizing his own limitations, he took out the note and handed it to the cashier with both hands.

Even so, watching the cashier read the note line by line with a heavy expression made Xiang Xu feel incredibly anxious.

He saw the cashier reach the last line and take a deep, shaky breath.

Xiang Xu’s heart skipped a beat, and he almost expected to hear her reprimand him.

But instead, the woman let out a trembling sigh, sniffled, and wiped away the moisture from her eyes. Her voice was strained as she said, “So that is how it is. Xiao Zhou made you think of the past, so…”

Her voice cracked, and she could not continue.

Xiang Xu lowered his head, hiding his grimacing face, a sudden surge of guilt rising in his heart.

Is this really okay? Although she understands my special situation, am I not just taking advantage of her sympathy?

Believing she had touched upon a painful memory, the clerk forced a smile and changed the subject. “Did a senior in your family write this for you? Between the lines, I can feel their care. They are very concerned about you, are they not?”

Xiang Xu nodded and slowed his speaking pace. “Very concerned. Old Xu is a good person; he even teaches me how to speak.”

The clerk smiled. “That is wonderful! Your voice is very pleasant; you must keep working hard!”

The encouragement was entirely well-intentioned, but Xiang Xu could not help but feel like he was being treated like a small child.

Being treated like a child is better than being treated like a lunatic.

Xiang Xu was optimistic.

“What book are you looking for today?”

“A storybook with Pinyin.”

“Wow! You are already able to read storybooks!”

Xiang Xu desperately wanted to crawl into a hole in the ground. He did not feel quite as optimistic anymore.

Fortunately, the clerk did not dwell on the topic, leaning over to call “Sister Wen.”

“Coming, coming!” Sister Wen, who had been on the phone, pulled the receiver away and replied, then quickly pressed it back to her ear. “Okay, I will take him to find the book first.”

She hung up and floated over with a radiant expression. “I heard everything! Come, big sister will take you to find books today. What are you looking for? Oh, it is a storybook!”

After saying this, Sister Wen gave the cashier a wink, and the cashier nodded slightly in response.

Xiang Xu took note of all these expressions. However, Sister Wen’s “infant-teacher” tone of voice gave him another shock, occupying all his attention, and he quickly overlooked the slight weirdness of the situation.

Once he could communicate orally, their speed in finding books improved significantly. Soon, Xiang Xu selected a picture book with Pinyin and prepared to go to the counter to pay.

Sister Wen blocked his path. “Are you interested in science or educational books? We have many in the bookstore; I can introduce them to you.”

Because he was worried about not succeeding at the bookstore, Xiang Xu had arranged to meet Old Xu in the afternoon, meaning he had time to spare.

Moreover, he was genuinely interested in the books of this world, so he nodded.

Sister Wen’s smile deepened, and she happily led him to the other sections.

About half an hour passed. Although Sister Wen remained just as enthusiastic, Xiang Xu began to feel genuinely embarrassed.

They were running a business, and spending so much time on a customer who was not currently spending money felt like a waste.

“Thank you, but…” Seeing that he wanted to leave, Sister Wen interrupted before he could finish.

“It is no trouble at all. It is my honor to introduce you to these treasures of culture!”

Ten minutes later, Xiang Xu could not help but raise his hand. “Thank you, however—”

“Are you busy with something soon?”

Xiang Xu shook his head. “But…”

“Then there is no problem. Come, let me introduce you to this one. This one is quite incredible…”

Five minutes later, feeling thoroughly embarrassed, Xiang Xu’s student-like face turned bright red. He interjected during a pause in Sister Wen’s speech: “Thank you, I really must go.”

He spoke with incredible speed, showing no trace of a language disorder; it was a medical miracle.

“Well… this… this…” Sister Wen’s expression turned conflicted.

Watching her, Xiang Xu was now certain that Sister Wen was deliberately stalling for time to keep him there.

Realizing this, his shame vanished, replaced by calmness. He remembered he was supposed to be a person with a language disorder and said slowly: “Is something the matter?”

Sister Wen’s expression remained conflicted. Her beautiful eyebrows furrowed, and her gaze went over the railing toward the entrance on the first floor.

Only a few scattered customers were entering and exiting; the person she was looking for was nowhere to be seen.

She turned back, gave up the struggle, and looked at him earnestly.

“It is like this. The boss said he must come today to apologize to you in person, but he wanted to make it look like a coincidence. He did not want to create psychological pressure, as you might not be willing…”

Hearing this, Xiang Xu remembered that Sister Wen had mentioned her boss wanting to apologize to him.

He had dismissed it as polite talk, but given this display, could it be true?

Xiang Xu was surprised.

Although being framed that day had been frightening, it had not caused any real damage. Furthermore, the bookstore’s remedial measures—those green vouchers—were, though he was embarrassed to admit it, so valuable that he felt the injustice had been entirely worth it!

If such an opportunity were rare, he would not mind coming more often.

“You do not need to worry. The boss is a very kind person. He feels that a personal apology is the only way to be sincere.”

Do customers get treated this well in this shop?

Or is it because they are terrified that the clerk, Xiao Zhou, ruined the store’s reputation, and they are desperately trying to win him back?

But winning him back was not cost-effective. First, he had no money; second, in his current state, he could not help them promote the shop.

Xiang Xu was baffled. When he came to his senses, he realized Sister Wen was staring at him with such intense desperation that she might as well have burned holes through him.

If he did not agree, she would be in a difficult position.

“Okay.” Xiang Xu agreed. Regardless of the reason, he held an attitude of going with the flow.

“That is great!” A smile returned to Sister Wen’s face.

She led Xiang Xu through the bookshelves where there were no other customers, introducing him to the courage with which her boss had overcome opposition to build the bookstore, how much wealth and energy he had spent to build its reputation, and how much he had contributed to charity.

As she detailed her boss’s deeds, Xiang Xu’s mind quickly built an image of a dignified, capable, yet humanitarian businessman.

To be honest, although he knew there was some embellishment in Sister Wen’s words, the core facts should not be too far off. Combined with the fact that he was personally taking the time to come and apologize, Xiang Xu could not help but feel a sense of admiration for this boss.

“Pfft, pfft…” Suddenly, small gasps interrupted their conversation. Xiang Xu looked toward the sound and saw a young man hiding behind a bookshelf.

He was neither short nor tall and was dressed very fashionably. His style was different from the man in the suit that day; it was exaggerated and flashy, evident in his specially set hairstyle and a multi-colored tie-dyed shirt.

He wore sunglasses but could still wink at Sister Wen. Not even the shades could hide his devastating charm.

“Hard work, baby. You did a great job.”

Xiang Xu thought this was Sister Wen’s lover, but Sister Wen frowned and lowered her voice. “Boss! Why are you acting so sneakily!”

Bang. The image Xiang Xu had built in his mind shattered instantly.

The young man giggled. When he turned his face toward Xiang Xu, his smile froze, looking almost ingratiatingly stiff.

He reached up to pull his sunglasses down slightly. Xiang Xu looked into his eyes and suddenly froze.

Zhao Yan?!

He looked exactly like Xiang Xu’s old friend and cousin from the Yin Dynasty, Zhao Yan. However, Zhao Yan was too rigid and methodical; he would never dress so flashily, nor would he ever wink at a woman. Xiang Xu knew clearly that this young man was not him. Just as he was calming his heart, the man’s next sentence caused an even stronger tide to rise in his heart.

“Xiang Xu, do you not remember me?”