Chapter Eighty-Seven: The Art of Crushing with Praise!

Phoenix gently swirled her red wine glass, her gaze drifting carelessly over Chen Fenglei, who stood behind her father serving them.

The old man kept his eyes lowered, a faint, indifferent smile on his face, as if he hadn't heard a word of the father and daughter’s conversation.

"What role is he playing in all this?" Phoenix wondered to herself.

As the grand steward of this palace, nothing escaped his notice, and no one could bypass him. Was he a participant, or merely a bystander?

"Has someone been talking to you?" Phoenix asked with a smile. "Who is so bored that they enjoy whispering behind people's backs?"

"Hahaha, I’m just being cautious. With so many brilliant young talents in Phoenix City, if you were to choose some wild boy from the Old Earth, think about it—how could I, as your father, feel at ease?"

"Dad, I haven't even thought about such things." Phoenix set down her glass and looked at Zhong Daolong earnestly. "You know as well as I do that Tang Fei and Fatty are friends I met on the Old Earth; they are also my saviors. It was only with your permission and consent that I was able to bring them to New Star. If you hadn't stood up for your daughter, I wouldn't even have been able to repay them properly."

"Now that they are on New Star, I can't just ignore them to avoid suspicion, can I? They are strangers here, without a single relative or friend. If I don't help them get settled, how will they live? What will they do?"

"If that were the case, wouldn't bringing them to New Star be harming them instead of helping? They only know how to hunt and mine... Phoenix City has no place for their particular skills."

"That’s why I thought to beg Dean Shang to give them a chance to enroll, so they could learn a trade in school."

"After graduation, whether they go to work for a corporate group or start a small business with their own money... at least they’ll have a path forward, right? This way, they can settle down on New Star for generations to come and live a simple, stable, and happy life."

"That is all your daughter can do for them. How did this turn into some sort of romantic entanglement?"

"Alright, alright, don't get so worked up." Zhong Daolong raised his glass, gesturing for Phoenix to join him for a drink.

After they clinked glasses, Zhong Daolong downed his wine and said, "I don't mean to blame you; I just want you to know that public opinion is a fearsome thing. You are the princess of our Phoenix Empire, the most watched young lady in Phoenix City... It’s only natural that some unpleasant rumors would emerge."

"I have said that I will not interfere with your freedom. But you must also think of your reputation and the dignity of the Imperial family. Once this matter is over and your two friends from the Old Earth are settled, you must learn to keep a proper distance from them."

"I know you want to repay them, but think about it: you brought them out of that wretched, god-forsaken place, bought them a house, a car, and arranged their schooling—you have already done more than enough, haven't you?"

"Yes, I will be more careful in the future," Phoenix said, bowing her head.

She knew her father too well. If he was willing to bring this up openly, it meant he had already made up his mind. If she argued or resisted, he wouldn't do anything to her, but Tang Fei and Fatty would be in danger.

She would play along for now and find another way later.

"Good. I'm not asking you to cut ties with them completely, but things like what happened today..." Zhong Daolong looked at Phoenix, saying, "Being maliciously exploited by those with ulterior motives, binding you two together, even hyping up scandals... it causes great harm to the dignity of the Imperial family."

"Even if one is born into an Imperial family, one cannot simply do whatever one pleases. Often, we lead lives much harder than others because we have so many rules to follow and so much decorum to maintain."

Phoenix looked up at Zhong Daolong and said, "Dad, I understand. I will definitely be mindful of my boundaries from now on."

***

Zhong Daolong was very satisfied with Phoenix’s response. "Come, let’s drink. It’s been a long time since we sat down together like this. I know your tolerance isn't bad; let’s drink until we’re both drunk today."

"Fine, I’ll drink with you until I’m drunk, Dad," Phoenix said boldly.

She felt a strange, inexplicable desire to drink as well.

Phoenix didn't get truly drunk. When she returned to her Phoenix Pavilion, she was still at least thirty percent sober. As she sat on the sofa, her little Bichon Frisé, Qiuqiu, rushed over, hugging her calf and trying desperately to jump up.

Phoenix picked up Qiuqiu and held her, saying, "You little thing, why aren't you asleep yet?"

"She was asleep, but when she heard your voice, she jumped out of her kennel," the maid, Xiaohuan, said.

She smelled the alcohol on Phoenix and added, "Miss, let me fetch you some hangover cure."

"Alright, thank you," Phoenix said.

"Oh, Miss, why are you always so polite to us? It is only right that we serve you," Xiaohuan said with a smile.

She was the envy of many for being able to serve the princess in the palace. Even her parents often bragged to outsiders that their daughter worked for Her Highness.

Xiaohuan brought the decoction, and after Phoenix drank it, she immediately felt refreshed. The headache vanished, and the discomfort in her body faded.

With the current high level of technological advancement, the medical and pharmaceutical industries had reached great heights. Issues like sobering up, which required little sophisticated tech, had long been solved by pharmacologists.

Once she was sober, her sleepiness also faded.

Phoenix hesitated for a moment before placing a video call to Sheng Xinhuai. "Asleep yet? Want to chat for a while?"

"You call at this hour? What if I had a few muscular, fresh-faced hunks in my room?" Sheng Xinhuai appeared on screen, wearing red silk pajamas, her long hair disheveled, looking alluring and languid.

"I know you too well. You talk tough, but I bet you haven't seen a man in years, have you?"

"My parents gave me life, but Xiuxue is the one who knows me. You guessed right—my body is practically growing moss. If you're that desperate, why don't we try it with each other?"

"Pah! I don't want to try anything with you. I’m calling you about something serious."

"About your little boyfriend, I assume?" Sheng Xinhuai held her phone, walked over to pour herself a whiskey, and continued talking while sipping it.

"How did you know?"

"Aside from matters of the heart that you can't handle, when would you ever need my advice for anything else? So, has the secret been exposed? Or are you pregnant?"

"Nothing good ever comes out of your mouth," Phoenix spat, disgusted. "My father asked me home for dinner tonight and demanded that I keep my distance from Tang Fei in the future."

***

"Isn't this what we were worried about from the start? What? Were you still holding onto some fantasy?"

"It’s not that... I just feel like this conversation came a bit too early." Phoenix’s expression was grave as she said earnestly, "They only arrived on New Star a few days ago. Why is my father already worrying about this? Why pull me back specifically for an unofficial talk?"

"It probably has to do with the assessment today," Sheng Xinhuai said.

"The assessment? You watched it?"

"Of course. I’ve been keeping an eye on your little boyfriend."

"Besides, the whole thing caused such a stir, how could I not watch the spectacle? The name 'Tang Fei' is like thunder in the Imperial First Military Academy right now. I heard quite a few students from other schools even ran over to get a look at this 'Light of the Old Earth'."

"Light of the Old Earth?" Phoenix was stunned.

When did Tang Fei get such a nickname?

"Don't you know? A young refugee from the Old Earth, who earned the right to citizenship on New Star after saving the Imperial Princess of the Phoenix Empire, was framed by the Shen family during the entrance exam at the Imperial First Military Academy. With a piece of black mud, he broke the Shen family’s 'Ghost’s Sorrow' technique. Despite losing an arm, he hacked out a miracle with a spirit that feared no death and ancient martial arts techniques that were unpredictable to gods and ghosts alike, ultimately using a mid-grade Qi-mastery level to defeat a Tongyou-level opponent..."

"I heard the head of the Shen family was furious after this, sending the despicable Shen Qingping to guard the Ghost Mountains, while the 'Light of the Old Earth,' Tang Fei, is living a blissful, unashamed life with the Phoenix Princess..."

"Well? Doesn't that sound like a story? It has a hero saving a beauty, a zero-to-hero underdog arc, brilliant wit, 'my fate is up to me,' and a fairytale ending where the boy and the princess are together. Isn't it intoxicating? Isn't it highly viral?"

Phoenix felt a chill in her heart. She said in a low voice, "Did you make this up, or is this what people are saying outside?"

Sheng Xinhuai saw Phoenix’s somber expression, took a large gulp of whiskey, and asked, "What? Realizing how scary it is now?"

"This is a 'killing with praise'." Phoenix’s eyes were fierce as she said angrily, "They want to nip Tang Fei in the bud."

A boy from the Old Earth who had just arrived on New Star—wasn't he as fragile as a newborn baby? Faced with such rumors and slander, what could he possibly do?

"Exactly," Sheng Xinhuai said with a smile. "The sharpest sword is no match for a few rumors. If your little friend were a loser, they might just step on him a few times, spit on him, and move on."

"But he was just too eye-catching. So, they’ve shone every spotlight on him, showered him with all the praise, and built a high stage beneath his feet—whether he wanted it or not. But what is our 'Light of the Old Earth' to do now?"

"In this story, he has offended the Royal Family—after all, the Imperial family would never let their little princess marry a boy from the Old Earth; even an ambiguous relationship is unacceptable... He has offended the Shen family; in this story, the Shen family is the big demon king, the first dragon slain by the hero. No matter how magnanimous the Shen family claims to be, no matter how gentle and refined they appear on the surface..."

"Never forget how they sat on the throne of the Empire's First Noble House."

"The nineteenth-day massacre, where heads rolled—that was all the work of their Shen family army."