Zhang Zhidong’s heart ached even more to hear it. Could any food he, Zhang Zhidong, bought possibly be bad? It was undoubtedly the finest in all of Shangjing City! He wouldn’t dare boast about his intellect at the Imperial College, but as for his palate, he was bold enough to sing its praises across the entire city.

"Spit it out right now!" Zhang Zhidong shook Liu Lingxing’s shoulders violently, as if that could actually make him disgorge the milk tea he had already swallowed.

Liu Lingxing’s head was spinning from the shaking, but he refused to back down, his mind working at top speed.

"You—you even brought a Jade Plum Shocking Snow Cake! Isn’t that the pastry only Mrs. Ming sells? Hmm, does that mean you bought this drink from Mrs. Ming? Where is her shop?"

Liu Lingxing wasn’t as much of a "foodie" as Zhang Zhidong. He had bought some plum blossom cake from Ming Lingyi’s little stall before the new year, and while he thought it was delicious, he wasn’t obsessed enough to want to eat it all the time. Thus, he naturally hadn’t been as thorough as Zhang Zhidong, who had specifically inquired about the shop’s location.

Just as Zhang Zhidong and Liu Lingxing were bickering, a sigh of profound satisfaction suddenly fell upon their ears.

"So fragrant! It glides over the tongue like silk, yet it’s so rich. This is milk, isn’t it? But milk isn’t this fragrant. This is delicious! There’s a hint of tea, but none of the leaves’ bitterness. Marvelous, simply marvelous!"

The moment he heard this, Zhang Zhidong stopped grappling with Liu Lingxing. In his haste to discipline Liu Lingxing, he had set the bamboo tube on the desk, and now... it had been drunk! EMPTY! By another shameless scoundrel just like Liu Lingxing!

"AHHHH! I’m going to kill you! I’ll kill you all!" Zhang Zhidong shrieked, on the verge of a complete meltdown.

After a chaotic scuffle, Zhang Zhidong, tugging at his crumpled student uniform and pouting, finally made Liu Lingxing sign and fingerprint a promise to buy him milk tea for ten consecutive days, only then letting the matter drop.

"Don’t be so stingy!" Liu Lingxing was in a great mood now that he knew the location of Ming Lingyi’s shop. Never mind buying milk tea for ten days—he had enough money to buy it for a whole month!

’The important thing is to share, right?’

Zhang Zhidong shot him a cold look. "This is a rare delicacy from Miss Ming’s shop! You can’t buy it anywhere else! You’d better go line up early tomorrow, lest you make the trip for nothing."

The aroma was so intoxicating that it caused the students of Class A to be far less focused in their studies than usual. Every one of them was already planning to take a trip to Huaided Fang after class to try this so-called milk tea at Miss Ming’s shop.

Li Yan had also arrived early at the Imperial College today.

The ordinary students at the Imperial College studied the Four Books and Five Classics, the Six Arts, and the ways of the courtier and the official. He, however, studied the way of the sovereign.

Therefore, even though they were all at the Imperial College, many of Li Yan’s courses were separate from those of his schoolmates.

Moreover, he was still too young and quite different from the students who were preparing for the spring civil service examinations.

But today, even though Li Yan wasn’t in Class A, he could hear the commotion coming from that direction.

Li Yan wasn’t particularly curious at first. But during the break after morning recitations, he was walking outside when he saw students from Yizhai, C Hall, and D Hall all running toward Class A in unison.

Before Li Yan could grab someone to ask what was happening, he overheard snippets of conversation carried on the wind—

"I heard Zhang Zhidong bought something called milk tea from Miss Ming’s shop. It has such an elegant name, something like ’Crimson-Kissed Melon · Red Date Milk Tea.’"

"That’s why I’m rushing over there now, to ask for the location of Miss Ming’s shop! I heard everyone in Class A went wild today, all scrambling for a cup of that milk tea."

"I still can’t forget the Jade Plum Shocking Snow Cake that Miss Ming sold at the Imperial College gate last time. This milk tea must be delicious too!"

"Hey, hey, who is this Miss Ming you’re all talking about?"

"You don’t know? Were you not in school last year? That Jade Plum Shocking Snow Cake was all the rage for quite some time. I bought some to take home, and even my mother said the flavor was truly one-of-a-kind. Unfortunately, Miss Ming closed her shop for the new year. Otherwise, my family would have definitely ordered Jade Plum Shocking Snow Cake from her for New Year’s Day."

When Li Yan heard this, he froze.

’Miss Ming?’

’Isn’t that his mother?’

Li Yan blinked. For the past few days, although his Imperial Father hadn’t left Kunning Palace, there wasn’t a trace of festive cheer in the entire palace. Everyone was on edge.

Although he missed Ming Lingyi terribly, he didn’t dare leave the palace as he pleased, for fear of attracting his Imperial Father’s attention.

Li Yan remembered his mother saying that she didn’t really want to see his Imperial Father.

’In that case, I have to help Mother hide.’

Now, hearing his schoolmates all around him saying they were going to his mother’s shop after class to buy milk tea, Li Yan’s eyes lit up.

’If that many people are going, it won’t be as obvious if I tag along.’

’But what is milk tea? I’m so curious.’

’I’ve never seen anything like it at Mother’s shop before.’

Li Yan casually stopped a student who was hurrying past. The latter was initially quite impatient, but upon seeing that the person who stopped him was the Crown Prince, he immediately bowed respectfully.

"Your Highness."

"After class today, are you all going to Mi—Miss Ming’s shop?" Li Yan asked.

The student nodded and grinned. "The items at Miss Ming’s shop sound so novel and interesting. Everyone wants to go have a taste, just for the novelty of it!"

Li Yan nodded. "How many people are going?"

"Well, I heard everyone from Class A is going. I’m from D Hall, and I think about half the people in our classroom are planning to go." After answering, the student seemed to recall something and scratched his head. "Wow, with so many people going to Miss Ming’s shop all at once... I wonder if she prepared enough milk tea? If we get there late, we might not get any, right?"

After his questions were answered, Li Yan let the student go.

The small boy clasped his hands behind his back and walked with a steady, measured gait from the courtyard near Class A back to the private courtyard where he took his lessons.

Along the way, Li Yan couldn’t help but ponder the student’s last muttered words.

’That’s right. Mother is so amazing; everything she makes is the best. If I get there late, won’t I miss out?’

At this thought, a gloomy expression fell over Li Yan’s little face.

’She’s my mother. What right do all these insignificant people have to taste my mother’s creations?’

’I just want to hide her away and not share her with anyone else.’

’This is so frustrating.’

This afternoon’s lesson was on rites and regulations, taught by the Minister of Rites, Wen Yunseng, an elderly man with a long, white beard.

Wen Yunseng felt the Crown Prince seemed a bit restless today, appearing rather absent-minded in class.

The old minister was a gentle, slow-tempered man. He decided he would have a good chat with the Crown Prince after class and ask if His Highness had run into any troubles recently.

But to his surprise, as soon as the bell signaling the end of class rang, the Little Crown Prince, who was usually the most composed of students, vanished in a flash.

The old minister, who had prepared a whole speech full of concern, was left speechless.

’Ah, to be young again!’