Li Mei could feel her legs trembling because of so much running, but she was only half way done. She couldn't give up just yet!
That's why, she gritted her teeth and continued down the path, running as if it were her last day on Earth and only by running could she save herself. Despite how much her legs trembled, she continued onward.
At one point, she even forgot how many rounds she ran for, but she ran like hell. Seeing her determination, even Zhang Wei felt a trace of pity in his heart to make the man run along the running track more than he should have said.
Honestly, only five rounds were enough to test the strength, but the third prince ordered him to do so. How could he refuse. Even now, after making the man run so much, the prince's heart still remained hardened as a steel.
Zhang Wei hesitated for a while and finally opened his mouth, "Your Highness… Should we stop him….? He looks like he's about to die running."
"Humph!" Cao Haoran also felt like he had gone overboard. Seeing the 'man' running far and wide, even managing to cross his own limits. "Alright. Stop him."
"Cadet Li Chen, you can stop."
Li Mei felt like she heard something, but she couldn't hear it carefully because of all the running she did. Her entire body felt dizzy to the point that she couldn't even hear anything. Her ears buzzed as air passed by them, making her unable to stop by and hear anything else.
Zhang Wei frowned when he failed to earn a reply. He looked at the young 'man' running and realized something wrong.
This person seemed to really be on his wit's end. Otherwise, why would he run so far and wide?
But before he could react, Cao Haoran had already rushed toward the young 'man' and stopped him. Seeing the young 'man' falling to the ground, the prince directly scooped up Li Chen into his arms.
Zhang Wei sighed.
It seemed the youth had pushed himself too much.
On the other side, Cao Haoran, who was holding the young man in his arms, felt his heart sinking seeing Li Chen falling unconscious. Despite being a man, the youth's body felt soft and gentle in his arms.
His eyes softened for a while as his grip on the girl's arms tightened. Thankfully, Li Mei was prepared beforehand and had already covered up her chest with layers and layers of clothes to make her breasts seem flat.
Thus, even though the man carried her back in his arms, he couldn't tell whether she was a boy or a girl. Honestly, he didn't even doubt the 'man's' identity in the first place. The only thing he felt in his heart was a mix o complicated emotions that swirled in his heart crazily.
At first, all he felt was sympathy. Then that emotion transformed into a trace of desire that burned in his heart the moment he held the 'man' in his arms. Then, he also started to feel worried for 'him' because the body of this youth was too weak and light.
Just how could this person run so fast with this kind of body?!
Cao Haoran sighed and walked back to his palace with the young man in his arms. At this time, every single person out there witnessed such a scene and was dumbfounded to the point that even the even the eunches stopped and stared at the scene with widened eyes.
The image of this third prince was so down in the palace that even none of them had thought this person would some day bring another man in his arms. Cao Haoran was seen as a spoilt and rude prince who could kill anyone he wanted and who had cruelty written deep in his bones.
Whenever he would see an eunch making a mistake, the best case scenario would be letting the eunch go and kicking him out of his job. The worst case scenario would be to torture the man to death. Several such events had happened already in the past, making everyone stay at arms length.
So how could such a person carry someone else in his arms so gentle as if he were some kind of romanti hero or something. The man looked so responsible and serious while carring another person…. It almost looked as if the person whom they were seeing pass by the corridor wasn't Cao Haoran in the first place!
Damn it, how could things change to such an extent?!
They couldn't believe their eyes at all!
Unfortunately, none of them could stop the man and ask him face to face. Even when the Emperor heard about it, his face turned green, but he said nothing. He thought for a while and sighed, waving his hand.
"If he wants to be with a man, let him be. It's not like I can control him in any way."
Thus, even the officials were deemed helpless at this point, not knowing what and how to reply.
On the other side, Cao Haoran didn't think he had created such a big chaos back across the entire palace. He finally reached his palace and directly went to the house he had given to the youth. The moment he entered the place, the servants quickly cleared the way, but seeing that they weren't doing anything, he frowned and looked at everyone else with utter displeasure.
"What are you guys doing?!" Cao Haoran glared at the servant at the front. "Do you guys really want to be punished that bad? I'll surely fulfil this desire of yours soon!"
The head servant fell on his knees, trembling. He couldn't handle the pressure he coming from the man's aura, directly hitting him head-on. The head servant's lower lips trembled as he stuttered, "M-Master….. Didn't you order us not to help her...?"
Cao Haoran's entrie face turned dark upon hearing those words. He gently placed the 'man' in his arms on the bed inside the chamber and walked out with a cold expression on his face. He grabbed the head servant's collar and said, "Since you like to give so many excuses, you are fired and you can give excuses to others on why you aren't working all your life."
The head servant trembled as his face paled even more. "Master! Please forgive me!"
"You have realized your mistake?"
"Yes." The old man gritted his teeth and said, "I shouldn't have ignored young master…."
"Wrong." Cao Haoran pushed the man back and said, "You shouldn't have ignored me like this. I have nothing to do with what you do with him. But when I'm here, I want every single one of you serving me day and night. But for him, no one even cooks him food, mind you."
"But…. Master….. Young master isn't in any situation to help us…." The head servant looked at the 'man' sleeping on the side and hesitated before speaking, "He will die if we continue…."
"Then continue as you see fit. Keep him alive."