Chapter 53: Laughing as I Watch the Human World's Fireworks

Zhu Gaoxu emerged from the Imperial Palace, carrying a small cloth bundle in his hand.

He was in no rush to head to the Ministry of Works, choosing instead to go to Wanhua Pavilion first.

Back in the Imperial Palace, after Lao Zhu finished that sentence, he had chased him out of the Study, telling him to go do whatever he pleased.

Zhu Gaoxu looked at the sky; it was already noon, so he took small steps toward Wanhua Pavilion.

The journey was silent, and Zhu Gaoxu arrived at Wanhua Pavilion once again.

By this time, Wanhua Pavilion had resumed business; although it wasn't as bustling at noon as it was at night, there were still plenty of people coming to drink and enjoy the company of courtesans.

It was the same Private Room as yesterday; he had already made arrangements with the procuress to host a banquet for three consecutive days, and today was only the second day.

This time, the procuress was noticeably more enthusiastic upon seeing Zhu Gaoxu, clearly having learned from yesterday's events that Zhu Gaoxu was truly not someone to be trifled with.

"Little Ancestor, would you like me to arrange for two girls to keep you company?"

Hearing this, Zhu Gaoxu hurriedly waved his hands and then said, "Call that girl named Linger from yesterday over for me."

Hearing this, the procuress chuckled and teased, "Oh my, my Little Ancestor, I didn't expect you to know how to start grooming them from a young age. Fine, I'll call her up to serve you in a moment. When she eventually makes her debut, you must show her plenty of support."

At the procuress's words, Zhu Gaoxu frowned; too lazy to retort, he walked quickly into yesterday's Private Room.

Before long, a table of wine and food was fully laid out, and at this moment, Linger was also brought in by the procuress.

"Linger, today you will serve our Little Ancestor here."

Having said that, she pushed Linger into the Private Room, then smiled and walked out.

Zhu Gaoxu did not have any other romantic feelings for Linger.

The key was that she was too young.

Regarding Linger, Zhu Gaoxu felt more of a sense of friendship.

It was laughable to say, but in his heart, Zhu Gaoxu was around thirty years old, yet he had transmigrated into the body of a four-year-old Zhu Gaoxu.

That wasn't even the most critical part.

The adults he could come into contact with were all driven by interests and were not pure.

On the contrary, his peers who were around his age were relatively purer and didn't have so many ulterior motives.

This was the sorrow of being in the royal family.

Through their interaction yesterday, he felt a sense of redemption.

Perhaps Linger felt the same; living in this world of red dust, the guests she encountered and the people around her all told her of the world's malice.

Therefore, upon seeing the rare peer that was Zhu Gaoxu, Linger also appeared very happy.

Zhu Gaoxu first pulled Linger to sit at the table, and looking at the spread of delicacies, Linger swallowed her saliva involuntarily.

She was born into a poor family and was later sold to this kind of place.

It was likely she had never eaten such a fine banquet in her life.

Smelling the fragrance of the food, Linger's stomach let out an uncontrollable "rumble."

Hearing the protest from her stomach, Linger's little face turned red instantly, and Zhu Gaoxu said at the right moment, "We are friends; I called you here just to eat together. Hurry up and use your chopsticks."

As he spoke, he picked up his chopsticks and placed a piece of meat onto the plate in front of Linger.

Hearing that she could also eat, Linger, who had long been starving, could no longer care about anything else and picked up her chopsticks to eat.

Seeing this, Zhu Gaoxu did not delay and began as well.

Just like that, the two little ones began to feast in the Private Room.

After a long while, both Zhu Gaoxu and Linger stopped, leaning back in their chairs, reaching out to rub their slightly protruding little bellies while looking at the mess on the table.

Both sides looked at each other simultaneously and then burst into laughter.

At this, Zhu Gaoxu seemed to think of something and took out the small cloth bundle he had brought from the Imperial Palace.

"I promised you yesterday I'd bring you something delicious. That was just the main meal; here are some snacks, try them when you get hungry again."

As he spoke, he opened the small cloth bundle, revealing several pieces of pastries arranged neatly.

These were the pastries Zhu Gaoxu had swiped from the Imperial Palace.

Things eaten by royalty were certainly extraordinary, emphasizing appearance, aroma, and taste.

The pastries were imprinted with various small animals; Linger looked at one of the lifelike cranes and couldn't help but touch it.

"Thank you."

"It's nothing. After tomorrow, I probably won't be coming back for a long time. I hope we have the chance to meet again in the future."

After Zhu Gaoxu finished this sentence, Linger was stunned, and the pastry she had just picked up fell to the ground.

Holding back the tears in her eyes, Linger nodded without saying a word.

Seeing this, Zhu Gaoxu touched Linger's head and said, "You must be strong. Life, in fact, still depends on yourself. I believe in you; even if you are trapped in chaos, you cannot give up on yourself."

Having said that, Zhu Gaoxu stood up and left the Private Room.

There was no help for it; he could barely save himself, so how could he save others?

Walking out of Wanhua Pavilion, Zhu Gaoxu headed toward the Ministry of Works.

Unknowingly, he had suddenly started to enjoy the feeling of walking.

Compared to the overly ostentatious Feudatory Prince Carriage, walking on the bustling streets of the Great Ming capital and watching the human warmth of the common people was actually quite nice.

The only pity was that he was too young and his legs were short; after walking for a long time, he finally arrived at the Ministry of Works office again.

Although he wasn't accompanied by Mao Xiang this time, and the guards at the gate had been replaced, no one blocked him.

Clearly, Yan Zhenzhi had given the word.