Is Everyone Else's Eldest Disciple Like This? | Chapter 27 | Attracting the Crowds | Novela.app

The sky had already broken into dawn, the morning light faint and shimmering. Ming Zhu had rarely enjoyed such a good night's sleep. When he woke, he was still in a daze, sitting on the bed for a long while before his senses finally returned. From outside came the soft clinking of plates and dishes, accompanied by the fragrance of pastries and savory food drifting through the window. Ming Zhu casually threw on a robe. With his hair a tangled mess and his appearance utterly disheveled, he pushed open the door—daring to step out in such an unkempt state only because he was likely still half-asleep, mistaking this place for Rizhao Mountain. Thus, as soon as he opened the door and looked up while scratching his head, he was met with a room full of young maidens with jade-like faces and youthful grace. Dressed in white, their postures were soft and elegant; some were arranging dishes, others were carrying basins of water. Every movement exuded the cloying, sweet femininity that Ming Zhu loved most. Ming Zhu: "..." Before he could even react, the girls all spotted him. They stopped their movements in unison and bowed slightly. "Young Master Ming Zhu." Even in such a bedraggled state, Ming Zhu didn't feel the slightest bit of bashfulness. He smoothly curved his lips into a smile and said, "Yo, you're all up quite early." Several maidens covered their mouths and giggled, approaching him with the grace of wind-blown snow. "The Little Young Master instructed us to help Young Master Ming Zhu wash and change." Ming Zhu’s eyes crinkled into crescents as he replied repeatedly, "Sure, sure, sure. Change, change, change." When Shen Hongchuan finished preparing for their departure and pushed the door open, he saw that Ming Zhu had already changed his clothes and bound his hair. He was currently sitting at the table, smiling radiantly as a beautiful, elegant maiden fed him pastries. His face was practically blooming with joy. Shen Hongchuan: "..." Ming Zhu leaned toward the maiden's ear and whispered something shamelessly flirtatious. A faint blush crept onto the girl's fair face, and she said with a hint of feigned anger, "Young Master!" Ming Zhu burst into loud laughter. Shen Hongchuan cleared his throat. The maidens hurried to salute him. He stepped forward quickly and gave a casual wave of his hand. "All of you may leave. Your services are no longer required here." If they didn't leave now, there was no telling how long this meal would last. Once everyone was dismissed, Shen Hongchuan sat down beside Ming Zhu. With a faint smile, he asked, "Senior Brother, are you satisfied with this food?" Ming Zhu pushed the pastries aside, a trace of disdain appearing between his brows. Now that there were no "warm fragrances and soft jades" to feed him, he instantly lost interest. "I'm done. Let's go to Wenfeng Tower." Shen Hongchuan quickly pulled him back. "Don't be like that. It's still early. Sit a while longer." Only then did Ming Zhu sit back down. He glanced idly at the table full of exquisite pastries, then seemed to remember something. He looked at Shen Hongchuan thoughtfully and said, "Hongchuan, I have a question for you. You must answer me truthfully, without a single word of falsehood." Shen Hongchuan replied, "Hongchuan has said it before: I will never deceive Senior Brother." His tone was so sincere that he almost raised his hand to swear an oath to prove his devotion. Ming Zhu looked at him seriously and asked, "Have I gotten fat?" Shen Hongchuan: "..." Ming Zhu stood up from his stool and spread his arms slightly, spinning twice in front of Shen Hongchuan. His robes fluttered, and the gold-threaded begonias embroidered on his wide sleeves and hem seemed almost ready to take flight. "Look at me. Have I gotten fat? My waist? My shoulders? Or my legs?" Shen Hongchuan: "..." Ming Zhu pinched his own cheek and frowned. "Could it be my face? It shouldn't be; I don't see any difference. Well, Hongchuan? You tell me." Ming Zhu’s spare clothes were all kept in Zhou Fuxue’s storage chain. Shen Hongchuan hadn't bothered to retrieve them, instead having several sets of clothes made for him overnight. At this moment, Ming Zhu was dressed in flame-red robes. The collar, sleeves, and hem were all embroidered with large patches of enchanting begonias in gold thread, looking extravagant and magnificent. With his broad shoulders, narrow waist, and tall, slender figure, his grace was like the clouds and moon—how could he possibly be considered fat? Shen Hongchuan looked him up and down for a long time before saying, "Fat? Why would Senior Brother think he's fat? If you ask me, Senior Brother is still too thin, no different from seven years ago. You should eat more good food to put on some meat." Ming Zhu was half-convinced. "...Is that so?" Shen Hongchuan’s eyes darkened for a moment. Ming Zhu had a mild temperament; unless it was something major, he usually believed whatever others told him. To put it kindly, he was easygoing; to put it bluntly, he was indolent. Having grown up by his side, Shen Hongchuan had never been questioned or doubted by him like this—even over such a trivial matter. Shen Hongchuan grabbed Ming Zhu’s sleeve and pulled him closer, casually adjusting the jade pendant at his waist. With a teasing smile on his face, he said, "Does Senior Brother not even believe me?" Ming Zhu didn't notice the malevolence unique to demonic cultivators swirling in Shen Hongchuan’s eyes. He turned and popped a few pastries into his mouth, saying indistinctly, "As long as I'm not fat, I'm relieved. When we get back from Wenfeng Tower, we must find a place to have a proper feast." Shen Hongchuan’s fingers tapped idly on the table as he said softly, "Alright." The two of them finished their meal hurriedly. When they stepped out of the residence, Lu Qingkong and Zhou Fuxue had already been waiting for quite some time. Seeing them emerge, Zhou Fuxue immediately went to meet them. "Senior Brother." Ming Zhu gave a "yo." "You're quite early." Shen Hongchuan stood behind him, dressed in blue robes with patterns and ornaments identical to those on Ming Zhu’s. He wore a half-mask on his face and held his sleeves with an elegant air. Lu Qingkong looked at Ming Zhu’s flamboyant, crowd-attracting attire and frowned. "You're letting him go out like that? Shuoyu City is so crowded; aren't you afraid he'll be eaten alive?" Shen Hongchuan replied, "We're just going to Wenfeng Tower. It's only a short carriage ride away. Who would have the chance to see him?" Lu Qingkong’s expression turned sour. "Do you really think that, on his first visit to Shuoyu City, he'll sit obediently in a carriage?" Sure enough, as soon as he finished speaking, Ming Zhu turned to Shen Hongchuan. "Hongchuan, it looks like the begonias are all in bloom. Let's walk there while enjoying the flowers." Shen Hongchuan: "..." Lu Qingkong said, "See?" Shen Hongchuan nodded to Ming Zhu and smiled. "Sure." Lu Qingkong hurriedly said, "Are you crazy?" Shen Hongchuan replied with confidence, "No need to worry. In Shuoyu City, no one dares to provoke a member of the Shen family. As long as I'm watching from the side, no one will be reckless enough to actively bother him." Lu Qingkong said gloomily, "That's not what I'm talking about." "Hmm?" Lu Qingkong pointed to the side. "I'm not saying others will provoke him, but that he..." Shen Hongchuan followed his gaze and saw that, at some point, a group of men had gathered around Ming Zhu at the bottom of the stone steps. Ming Zhu was standing before them with a beaming smile. He pressed a finger to his lips and then flicked it outward, like a courtesan throwing flowers. The men, captivated by his beauty, let out low murmurs of excitement. Zhou Fuxue was beside him, desperately pulling at Ming Zhu. "Senior Brother, Senior Brother! Those are all men!" Shen Hongchuan: "..." Lu Qingkong gloomily finished his sentence: "...but that he will actively provoke others." Shen Hongchuan: "..." Ming Zhu: "Hahahaha!" Zhou Fuxue: "Senior Brother—!" Unable to bear it any longer, Shen Hongchuan walked down the steps in a few quick strides. He ripped the mask off his own face and slapped it onto Ming Zhu’s devastatingly beautiful face. At the same time, he turned his head slightly, his blood-red demonic pupils sweeping over the crowd with a cold glare. The onlookers instantly scattered like startled birds. Ming Zhu said with great regret, "Aww, don't do that. I wasn't finished playing yet." Shen Hongchuan leaned into his ear and whispered, "Do you still want to go to Wenfeng Tower or not?" Ming Zhu immediately behaved. Wenfeng Tower was located at the end of Shuoyu City’s main street. It was a towering structure that reached into the clouds. All the intelligence jade tokens, books, and dossiers of the Five Continents—anything related to information—circulated through this place. It was said that the thirty-five stories of Wenfeng Tower remained brightly lit throughout the night, all year round. The lamps on the tower had never been extinguished over the years, and people came and went even in the dead of night. Over time, Wenfeng Tower also became known as the "Evernight Tower," serving as one of Shuoyu City’s primary landmarks. Ming Zhu followed Shen Hongchuan the whole way. Since he couldn't flirt around while wearing the mask, he resorted to messing with the begonias along the road. In a short time, his hair bun was stuffed with clusters of vivid, crimson flower branches, looking incredibly flamboyant. Both Zhou Fuxue and Lu Qingkong felt embarrassed. They stayed a good distance away from him to avoid the complicated stares of passersby, pretending they didn't know the man. Shen Hongchuan, however, was different. He had inherited Ming Zhu’s thick skin. Even as passersby pointed and whispered, his expression remained unchanged. He even helped Ming Zhu pick which flowers had the most petals and which angle looked best—it was utterly maddening. Since Shen Hongchuan’s arrival, the relationship between Lu Qingkong and Zhou Fuxue was no longer as tense as before. It seemed they now had someone they despised even more to look down upon together, so the two had formed an unspoken united front, and their words were no longer as thorny or caustic. Lu Qingkong watched the two people ahead of them pulling and tugging at each other. He leaned toward Zhou Fuxue and whispered, "Back when Seventh Senior Brother was still at Rizhao Mountain, he lived in Wenxian Residence, which was very close to where Eldest Senior Brother lived. Their relationship was always very good. I heard many fellow disciples whispering that the two of them were..." He lowered his voice and swallowed the last two words. Zhou Fuxue didn't hear them clearly, but he could guess what they were. He raised an eyebrow slightly. "And in reality?" Lu Qingkong answered very quickly, "The rumors were naturally false. In reality, Seventh Senior Brother is just not quite normal." Zhou Fuxue had already realized that. He curled his lips into a cold, stingy sneer. "When he was sent to Rizhao Mountain