209: Chapter 209 The Challenge of the Poetry Medal?

Early the next morning, the dawn was just breaking.

The Dining Hall of the Zhenguo Marquis Mansion was filled with an alluring fragrance.

Freshly steamed soup dumplings were emitting plumes of white steam, accompanied by two plates of exquisite pickles and two bowls of thick lily and lotus seed porridge.

Chen Shanzhi sat at the round table, peeling a salted duck egg in a leisurely manner.

Sitting opposite him was his aunt, Chen Rou.

Her oval face showed almost no traces of time; instead, it added a touch of the mature charm of a woman in her prime.

She was dressed in moon-white loungewear, gazing at her precious nephew with doting eyes.

"Eat more. You suffered such heavy injuries a few days ago; although you've woken up, your Origin Qi hasn't fully recovered yet."

As Chen Rou spoke, she pushed a small plate of peeled shrimp toward Chen Shanzhi, her tone so gentle it could almost drip water.

"Don't worry, Aunt. My body is sturdy; even the King of Hell would have to take a detour if he saw me."

Chen Shanzhi grinned and was just about to pop a shrimp into his mouth.

A burst of cheerful footsteps sounded from outside the Dining Hall, accompanied by a crisp, childish voice.

"Big Brother! Big Brother!"

Chen Shanzhi looked up and saw a little girl who looked like she was carved from jade.

Like a little sparrow just out of its cage, she spread her little arms and ran in from the courtyard, her short legs moving at full speed.

It was Yaya.

As soon as the little girl rushed into the Dining Hall, she dove straight into Chen Shanzhi's arms.

Her two chubby little hands hugged his thigh tightly, and she looked up with a flushed little face, her eyes smiling into two slits.

"Big Brother, Yaya missed you so much!"

"You little clingy thing, run slower, don't trip."

Chen Shanzhi smiled helplessly, dotingly reached out to ruffle her slightly messy little head, and casually grabbed a soup dumpling from the table, stuffing it into her mouth.

"Mmm... delicious!" Yaya chewed indistinctly, her little face full of satisfaction.

"Aunt Rou, good morning! Wow, there are actually soup dumplings today; this young lady won't be polite!"

Following closely behind was Jiang Feiyu, dressed in a martial outfit and looking heroic and spirited.

After Chen Shanzhi's diligent healing over the past few days, her little face was much rosier now.

The previous sickly paleness had long since been swept away, and she had returned to her usual lively and spirited self.

After all, she had been here many times, so Jiang Feiyu skipped the pleasantries.

Familiar and at ease, she went straight to the dining table, greeted Chen Rou, grabbed her chopsticks, and began to wolf down the food without any of the poise of a young lady of a noble house.

Chen Rou covered her mouth and chuckled, clearly fond of Jiang Feiyu's carefree nature, and hurriedly instructed the maid nearby to add a bowl of hot porridge for her.

Chen Shanzhi also smiled, and just as he was about to withdraw his gaze, his breath hitched slightly when he saw the figure who walked into the Dining Hall last.

The person who entered was naturally Palace Master Su Jianqing of Four Seas Academy.

However, this expert ranked eleventh on the immortal stele heaven rank was dressed very alluringly today.

She wore a deep purple silk dress with a high slit, the hem swaying gently with her footsteps.

The glimpses of fair, smooth skin on her inner thighs stood out starkly against the extremely eye-catching black.

And on those straight, rounded long legs, she was still wearing a pair of black ice-silk stockings as thin as cicada wings.

They wrapped around her plump, slender, and perfectly shaped jade legs, extending all the way from her ankles deep into her dress.

As she walked, the curve at the junction of her thighs and calves was outlined in a full, voluptuous manner, exuding the plumpness and fatal sexiness unique to a mature, beautiful woman.

As a Martial Artist who entered the Dao through poetry, Su Jianqing's appearance was inherently possessed of an intellectual beauty.

But this combination of a dress and black stockings forced a contrasting, extreme charm and seductiveness into her dignified, intellectual aura.

Chen Shanzhi's wandering eyes inadvertently followed those black-stockinged legs all the way up, and he whistled silently in his heart.

Tsk tsk, I couldn't tell; this Palace Master, who is usually so high and mighty, actually understands men's thoughts so well in private.

Su Jianqing did not seem to notice Chen Shanzhi's somewhat aggressive gaze.

She walked past Chen Shanzhi with elegant steps, bringing with her a faint, refined scent of ink and the unique fragrance of a mature, beautiful woman.

"Sister Chen Rou, sorry to disturb you."

Su Jianqing bowed slightly to Chen Rou with a gentle smile. Upon meeting, the two top-tier beauties held hands very familiarly and huddled together to chat softly.

After a moment, Su Jianqing turned around and sat elegantly in the chair next to Chen Shanzhi.

She turned her body slightly, and one beautiful leg, encased in black ice-silk stockings, rested naturally over the other, crossing her legs elegantly.

The tight black stockings became even more taut with her movement.

The arch of her foot was outlined in an extremely alluring curve, and a delicate little shoe hung from her toe, swaying in mid-air, almost brushing against Chen Shanzhi's trouser leg.

"Heir Chen, after you finish breakfast and finish healing Feiyu's injuries, come with me to the Academy."

Su Jianqing looked at Chen Shanzhi and said calmly.

"Go to the Academy?"

Chen Shanzhi blinked in confusion, his gaze sweeping over her black-stockinged legs without a trace, before asking:

"Palace Master, what kind of massive matter requires you to personally make a trip early in the morning to take This Heir there?"

Hearing Chen Shanzhi's question, Su Jianqing's face turned cold: "What 'old lady'?"

Chen Shanzhi immediately realized that he had been too busy looking at her legs and had made a slip of the tongue, so he quickly laughed it off:

"What old lady? Palace Master, you must have misheard. I said 'pulling someone up'—I'm thanking you for pulling this student ashore."

Hearing Chen Shanzhi's nonsense, Su Jianqing snorted coldly but didn't bother arguing with him.

But thinking of what was to come, in her eyes, which were like autumn water.

A rare flash of... something similar to the helplessness and resentment typical of corporate slaves forced to work overtime early in the morning in her past life.

Su Jianqing sighed softly and gave Chen Shanzhi an annoyed roll of her eyes:

"His Highness the Heir, you must be very forgetful for a person of your status, right? You... are still holding our Academy's poetry medal."

"poetry medal?" Chen Shanzhi was stunned.

"Correct."

Su Jianqing gave a light snort, her originally gentle and dignified face showing a hint of gritted teeth:

"According to the Academy's rules, any student who holds a medal for any subject.

At the end of every month, they must accept challenges from the top students of that subject from other classes during the Academy's end-of-month settlement, to determine who will hold the medal next."

"Previously, because the His Highness the Heir was unconscious, the poetry class challenge was put on hold."

"Now that the Heir has woken up and is full of vigor, the challenge... naturally must continue."