Xie Qiao was really not pretending to be weak. She was born like this, and it was hard for her to hide that.
Her pale face looked even weaker under the scorching sun in the afternoon.
If she was under the sun while sitting, she should feel better at the moment.
The Yang energy in the afternoon was pretty strong.
"Get the rest to sit," said Zhao Xuanjing. He peeped at the snacks before him and added, "Serve them the snacks too."
As soon as that was said, the teachers around felt… rather confused.
"Why is Your Highness so…"
Generous today?
"Do you still think I wasn't warm enough in the past? Or do you think I used to bully the students?" Zhao Xuanjing asked coldly.
Xie Qiao heard that and felt this man seemed to have changed. When he had been near Floating Pavilion Town, his attitude did not seem to be this cold. He had been quite warm.
"No." The eyelids of the teacher who was next to him twitched. "Your Highness has always been caring toward the students in the academy. Everyone knows that."
The few teachers scoffed when they heard that.
Caring?
Yes, he did treat the Royal Academy students differently!
The Crown Prince was wise from a young age. He was talented and smart, and the emperor loved him. However, the Crown Prince had a terrible fate. He would always get into accidents. As he would have fewer accidents at the academy, he hardly lived at the East Palace. The academy was almost his other abode!
He had lived peacefully like that until he was 12.
Before turning 12, the Crown Prince had been a gentle and humble man.
However, a ferocious tiger had come out of nowhere when the imperial family had gone hunting one day. The Crown Prince may be young back then, but he had reacted fast. The tendons on his right arm had been destroyed, and he had been awarded the title of an Imperial Protector.
His right arm looked ordinary on the daily, but he could no longer carry heavy things.
Not only that, he would tremble when he held a brush.
He was indeed a cripple.
Since then, the Crown Prince's emotions had been rather unstable. Those teachers that he used to be close with were given the cold shoulder when they visited.
The Crown Prince had also beaten many people in the academy.
He had watched many student performances before, but he had never cared about those students standing down there.
Not only that, there were very few of them who would pass his assessment. Most of his comments were terms like—foolish, stupid, lowly, acceptable, and passable…
Although that was the truth, it was hurtful and humiliating.
Due to his identity, the students dared not hold grudges.
All of the teachers were thinking to themselves.
Could it be that there was a young lady from the Orchid Courtyard that the Crown Prince was fond of?
They shook their heads and rejected that thought as soon as it was formed. When the Crown Prince turned 13, the emperor had taken charge to pick a concubine for him. However, he had rejected all of them.
The emperor loved this son of his. He would listen to him on minor things such as this one.
A Crown Prince whose arm was crippled should have been dethroned. However, those who proposed to dethrone the Crown Prince before had long died.
The teachers thought about it.
The Crown Prince had recently solved a big case. Perhaps he was in a good mood.
That was right.
The few teachers heaved a sigh of relief.
There was a platform exclusively installed on the training field, and a few young ladies were done performing.
Xie Qiao could remember those dance forms perfectly after watching all of the performances.
"Next, Xia Yayun," the teacher said indifferently and orderly.
Xia Yayun lifted her chin slightly and walked as if she was stepping on clouds and stars. She even rolled her eyes at Xie Qiao before going up.
When she got onto the platform, she held a longsword and began swinging it. Her movements were pretty smooth, even though she was stuck at a few movements in between. Compared to the few before her, her performance was above average.