Venerable Demon King & The Doting Immortal (QT)
Chapter 340: What Baby?

Chapter 340: What Baby?

Mei added, "Yep, it’s the body pill—" Before Mei could finish her sentence, Xiang Yu had already sat up and covered their mouths.

"I am just hungover, don’t talk nonsense," Xiang Yu said, his voice firm.

Han Xin’s lips twitched as he repressed a smile. He pushed the nutrient supplement packs towards Xiang Yu and said, "If it’s the hangover, then this will cure it. You can have this one now and the other one later."

Xiang Yu took the nutrient supplement packs and tore one open, drinking it through a straw like a juice packet. His eyes shone, and he said, "Thanks, it’s helping."

Han Xin watched Xiang Yu drinking, his cheeks puffing up, and he absentmindedly said, "It’s no problem, just drink slowly."

Lian and Mei, who were watching this unfold, covered their mouths and stifled their smiles. They wanted to giggle but couldn’t do it here. Xiang Yu didn’t notice their little actions. He was busy studying the pack. It still tasted like sawdust, but it always tasted better when Han Xin bought it for him than when he got it from the steward.

Just then, the lecturer walked in with hurried steps, almost late. "My apologies for being late," he said as he tapped on the floating screen, pulling up the lecture notes.

The room settled into a quiet focus. Suddenly, the lecturer spotted Xiang Yu seated at the back of the class and felt an inexplicable itch to address him. Xiang Yu had his head down, fiddling with a hangover nutrient supplement pack, the most common brand.

The lecturer said, "Your Highness, you seem very interested in that hangover nutrient supplement. Had a rough night drinking?"

The lecturer was just making small talk, and the entire class was into it. They glanced back, while others whispered to each other. Xiang Yu, suddenly the centre of attention, arched his brow before saying, "I thought I could handle it, but I was wrong."

The lecturer stifled a smile and pretended to be busy tapping on the floating screen before remarking, "Well, at least your baby was there to take care of you."

Xiang Yu’s eyes widened. He had an expression like his secret was exposed. He didn’t dare look at Han Xin, whose gaze was burrowing into his skin. Xiang Yu knew that training videos were sometimes used to lecture others, especially when he had improved so much, so maybe this was why the lecturer knew about his hallucination in the simulation. What took him by surprise was that the entire class made an "ohhh" sound, as if they all knew about it.

Xiang Yu said, "What baby?"

One brave classmate said, "His Highness doesn’t admit it. Could he be in unrequited love?"

The entire class exploded in laughter and whispers. Xiang Yu said, "Fuck," under his breath. He turned and whispered to Lian and Mei, "How do they know?"

Lian and Mei shrugged their shoulders. They weren’t on the forums like that, so they had no idea. They were busy training in the simulation last night and had no clue what was going on.

The lecturer said, "Okay, okay, enough teasing. Let’s get back to the lecture." He immediately became serious, as if he wasn’t the one who had just started this.

Meanwhile, Xiang Yu finally couldn’t resist turning his head to meet Han Xin’s gaze. Han Xin looked at him with an indifferent expression, but his eyes held a lot of meaning. He typed in a chat interface with Xiang Yu, asking, "Who is this baby?"

Han Xin pointed at his floating screen, and Xiang Yu silently mouthed, "Oh." He opened the notification, and the words made his muscles stiffen. He closed the chat without replying, and Han Xin gently tapped the table, wondering if Xiang Yu would ever admit it.

For the rest of the class, Xiang Yu felt as if his behind was on fire, the hard wooden chair beneath him offering no respite. His mind was a whirlwind of thoughts, each one more frantic than the last. Han Xin’s presence beside him was overwhelming.

It was as though his side profile was tingling, pricked with invisible pins and needles, every nerve ending hyper-aware of the proximity. Xiang Yu’s heart pounded in his chest, a relentless drumbeat that echoed in his ears. He dared not turn his head again, afraid that even the slightest movement would further expose him.

The fear of exposure gnawed at him, a persistent anxiety that made it difficult to focus on the lesson. He could feel Han Xin’s gaze occasionally flicker towards him, each glance sending a jolt of electricity through his body. The classroom around him faded into the background, the droning voice of the lecturer a distant hum. All that existed in Xiang Yu’s world was the man sitting next to him, the object of his unrequited affection.

He stole a quick glance at Han Xin, his heart skipping a beat as he took in the sharp lines of his profile, the way his dark hair fell just so over his forehead. Xiang Yu’s thoughts were a chaotic mix of longing and fear. What if Han Xin had noticed the way he looked at him? What if his secret was already out and Han Xin knew that he was the baby he was referring to? The possibility was both thrilling and terrifying.

Han Xin and he had bad blood right now, and if he knew the truth, wouldn’t Han Xin despise him? He shifted uncomfortably in his seat, trying to quell the restless energy that coursed through him. Xiang Yu thought he should at least wait until Han Xin liked him a little. At least the rejection would be less brutal.

While Xiang Yu felt like he was in a hot seat, the Imperial Lord was addressing state matters with his three royal advisors. He looked at his son’s training video that had broken StarNet. Imperial Lord Xiang was surprised at his son’s improvement, but when he saw him hallucinating and fawning over this "baby" person, his eyes narrowed dangerously.

One of the royal advisors, clad in a green and gold robe, bowed and said, "Your Majesty, this could be a problem."

The advisor, wearing white and blue, added, "Yes, Your Majesty. The royal envoy from the Federation has already arrived, and if we want to propose marriage for peace, this video would be a big problem. It should be erased from StarNet."

The other royal advisor, dressed in red and black, said, "I agree with the others, but if Your Majesty takes the video down, it will spring up again like a pest. The best way is to push the narrative that the Crown Prince is in love with Princess Sienna of the Federation."