WHEN A DEMON PRINCE LOVES

Disciplinary Torture Chamber

Xu Bu tong didn't want to disturb his Dage that was running on the fields with bags filled with metal bars tied around his arms and thighs neither did he want to disturb his father who was shouting at the top of his voice in the name of instructing his Dage so Xu Bu tong decided to sit at a corner and began to practice taking in inner force almost immediately, the ability to take in inner force was based on luck, comprehension, and intuition, it wasn't something that could be taught hence the reason the General only handed the book to his second son with no instructions whatsoever, this Xu Bu tong understood.

After a while Xu Bu tong was getting bored and frustrated because no matter what he did he couldn't sense the mysterious inner force meanwhile at this instance in a garden at the imperial palace, seated on a wooden chair under a tree that provided shade was the nine years old crown prince Xiongwei and Shu Yiwen who stood like a guard dog beside him.

"Shu Yiwen it's been so long since Taizi had some fun, how about we sneak out of the palace, I will go to my manor while you go get me my newfound plaything, I heard that young mistress Xu Zhi haven't stepped out of the Xu manor since our last encounter" after saying his piece, the crown prince stood up and began to head towards his dwelling place in the palace, he planned to change his robe to one that wasn't so eye-catching and would not give away his status.

This wasn't the first time the crown prince will be sneaking out of the palace so he wasn't really bothered about being caught, as a resident of the imperial palace it wasn't allowed to just leave especially without the emperor's permission however he was going to do so anyway, at such a young age crown prince Xiongwei already had his own manor and a group of elite guards working under his command, to him his manor was more fun than the imperial palace where he had to deal with his parents treating him like a kid, especially his mother, he was a kid indeed but for someone like him who's mind was very matured,  been treated like he could break at any moment by his parents didn't sit well with him.

Shu Yiwen followed him from behind, "crown prince, can you not put me in such a difficult position, how do I go to General Xu's manor and just leave with his daughter" Shu Yiwen complained.

Crown prince Xiongwei stopped in his footsteps and turned sideways, he didn't look at Shu Yiwen directly, however, the young master felt an indescribable sense of fear that made him freeze in place "Will you like to take her place then?".

"I will go and get Xu Zhi immediately" Shu Yiwen quickly sprinted out of the palace, he didn't know how he was going to accomplish this task but he had to no matter what, just thinking about what will happen to him if he failed made him even more determined.

Shu Yiwen's carriage arrived in front of General Xu's manor, he had never been here before so he didn't know if he will be welcomed or not, however, he was certain he had to conduct himself properly and not be disrespectful in any way, after all, even his father who is a respected General like General Xu still highly respected the man.

Shu Yiwen's servant knocked on the gate and then stepped behind his young master when he heard sounds coming from the other end, as the gate opened, Shu Yiwen who was about to speak but had his words stuck in his throat, his eyes bulged out due to his shocked and surprised state, it took all the strength in him to still remain standing on both feet.

In front of Shu Yiwen was a huge bulky man, the man had huge muscles all over his body, his presence was strong and domineering, even as he opened the gate his body still covered the passageway in such a way that no one will be able to take a peep into the General's manor except the man chose to move aside.

Shu Yiwen wondered why such a person will be allowed to do this type of work, he should be on the battlefield instead, Shu Yiwen believed his true potential wasn't being used to the fullest if all he had to do was stand by the Xu family gate, just looking at him will make guests coming to visit General Xu manor run with their tales between their legs, Shu Yiwen wondered if maybe this was the Generals intention.

"Young master Shu Yiwen, why have you come?" Shu Yiwen was surprised yet again, he didn't even introduce himself yet the bulky looking man already knew who he was, though he should have expected this since he was the son of a General, it's not anything special for people having some kind of relations to the military to easily identify him.

Shu Yiwen forehead began to form beads of sweat as he thought of what will befall him if he was indeed able to take General Xu's daughter out and the crown prince did something to her, won't it be his neck that will be cut off once the General finds out, however, if he failed to accomplish the task given to him by his so-called friend, the crown prince, he didn't think his fate will be much different.

"Young master" the bulky man called out more loudly with such a deep voice that Shu Yiwen was shocked back to the present from wherever dimension his mind traveled to.

"I came to see young mistress Xu Zhi" Shu Yiwen nervously uttered, he didn't dare to look the man in the eye, after all, he was a young master asking to see a young mistress, boys, and girls who weren't related hardly ever mingled together except on special occasions. however, he so blatantly came here to ask for the eldest young mistress of the Xu manor, Yes, since Xu Zhi, the non-existent daughter of the Xu manor was the only and first girl outsiders believed the General had from his legitimate and only wife, then she was expected to be regarded as the eldest miss of the Xu Manor.

An unsettling silence loomed between Shu Yiwen and the bulky man for a while after he had asked to see their eldest miss, Shu Yiwen had expected he will soon be thrown out violently seeing as how the huge bulky man stared at him piercingly but to his surprise, the man suddenly said "then come in" he then moved to the side to create a space that Shu Yiwen could pass through.

Everyone in General Xu's manor has already been informed about the sudden twin siblings in the Xu family,  respectively made up of Xu Bu tong and his twin sister Xu Zhi who were obviously one and the same person, also they have all been instructed to act accordingly without giving anything away, the people inside General Xu's manor are personalities that General Xu could trust with his very own life so the General wasn't scared of any secret been leaked, General Xu manor was like an impenetrable fortress on its own not because of the tall walls filled with sharp thongs covering every part of it to give it an overbearing feeling but mostly because of the people that lived within.

Shu Yiwen was correctly really scared, it was like he was about to enter a slaughterhouse, though once he stepped in he was pleasantly surprised, seeing as how the outside appearance of the manor greatly differed from the inside, some of his guards wanted to follow him in but weren't given the chance "Your young master is safe in General Xu's manor" after saying that the bulky man ruthlessly shut the gate against their faces with a bang, Shu Yiwen nervously shook.

"Stop scaring the young master, bulky scorpion" the boy white scorpion, who had followed General Xu into the palace said.

Bulky scorpion looked at Shu Yiwen, his eyes contained a sense of ridicule," white scorpion did you see me scaring the kid in any way" he replied back and started walking away not bothering with Shu Yiwen anymore.

Shu Yiwen looked at the two weirdly; he thought "What's with the weird names?"

"Come with me, I will lead the way" white scorpion began to walk towards the direction of the Xu family's martial training ground when he got there, he just pointed to where Xu Bu tong was sitting in meditation and then white scorpion quickly found his way out of there too, to him Shu Yiwen should be grateful he had given him face, left with bulky scorpion he would have been left to wondered about to find the person he came to look for on his own, they were not scared he would venture into places he shouldn't and if he indeed was unlucky enough to do so then that is just his bad luck. The people of the Xu manor such weird people with eccentric behaviors.

Shu Yiwen could not believe that they didn't even bother to announce his presence. Wasn't that rude behavior? Shouldn't these servants be punished for treating a young master like this? Why is everyone he has met so far in General Xu's manor so uncultured? These kinds of questions swarm inside Shu Yiwen's brain until they made his little brain somewhat dizzy.

Shu Yiwen went to stand beside Xu Bu tong, he cleared his throat to get his attention but just like how Xu Bu tong father and brother hadn't paid Xu Bu tong any mind when he had arrived earlier at the training ground due to all their attention been directed on their task at hand, Xu Bu tong treated Shu Yiwen in the same light, he didn't even notice the boy was there.

Shu Yiwen decided to stand there and wait, however, he wasn't pleased with one bit, he was, after all, a noble young master, how could no one in the Xu manor treat him properly, he wasn't even offered a place to rest while he waited, or given tea, he definitely won't be coming here again if he could help it.

After waiting for not so long, Shu Yiwen couldn't withstand the boredom anymore so he decided to interrupt Xu Bu tong's cultivation time despite knowing full well that at a time like this it wasn't good to disturb a martial artist, especially one trying to take in inner force "Excuse me young mistress Xu Zhi can I have a word with you, it's of great importance" his voice was louder than usual so he had achieved his aim.

Xu Bu tong who had just tried to control a thin thread of inner force suddenly had to watch as it dispensed into thin air, he turned to scold the i***t that disrupted his cultivation time but on seeing it was the crown prince friend his frown turned into a smile "It's you, why are you here? Where is the crown prince?" he stretched his neck to see if maybe the crown prince was standing behind Shu Yiwen but he saw no one, as a result, his spirited mood immediately dampens.

Shu Yiwen on seeing Xu Bu tong's reaction thought it wouldn't be so hard to get this young mistress Xu Zhi to willing come out with him because he could see that Xu Bu tong really seems to admire the crown prince.

"The crown prince didn't come with me, nevertheless he sent me to come and get you, he even said that he thinks you two will make good friends so can you step out of the General's manor for a bit, Is this possible?" Shu Yiwen asked after uttering so many good things about the crown prince, he went as far as to flatter Xu Bu tong by saying the crown prince admired the young mistress Xu Zhi a lot, his words achieved desired effect seeing as how Xu Bu tong head had swollen due to it, even if he was usually a rational person and with the way, the crown prince treated him before there was no way he would have said such nice things about him, still he chose to foolishly believe in young master Shu Yiwen's words.

"If the crown prince wants to see this subject then I can only oblige, however, we need to leave before my father takes note," Xu Bu tong said and immediately proceeded to bring out his black and white mask, the very one he had got Fen Mi to purchase before, he put it on, then grabbed Shu Yiwen by the hand and began to drag him towards the direction of the gate, Shu Yiwen blushed on seeing how tightly his hands interlocked with that of a girl, this was the first time a girl held him like this, he also felt her hand was very tender unlike his if Shu Yiwen right now was told this person was not a girl but instead a boy, he absolutely won't believe, which boy at this age will have such soft hands, even if he didn't study martial arts it still shouldn't be this way, Shu Yiwen will probably not accept such a claim.

 Xu Bu tong was really too cute and presently could hardly be considered to be a boy with his thin frame and girly disguise, so such a reaction will probably be expected from anyone who sees him this way, perhaps only when he actually dresses like a male will there be absolute belief in such claims of him been male if they were any.

Shu Yiwen was also curious why Xu Bu tong had chosen to wear a mask but he didn't question him about it, He just felt that it was such a pity to hide such a nice face behind a mask, to him although this young mistress Xu Zhi wasn't heaven defiling beauty, she was still very nice to look at.

General Xu never really had guards permanently situated at his gate so it was relatively easy for Xu Bu tong to supposedly sneak out, however, he should have known better, not everything is as it seems in the Xu manor because even if the General's manor looked like it wasn't guarded, it could be considered as the most protected Manor in Qianqian empire, also from beginning to end the General was aware of the discussion between Shu Yiwen and his second son.

The General, as well as his men, were specialized in operating in the shadows thereby making them even more dangerous, they weren't only adept in spear techniques but also in concealment and poison, their opponents never stood a chance against them because they always died without even knowing what hit them, they worked and executed their skills just like a scorpion, on face value they could be taken for granted but once they attack you their enemy will only have yourself to blame.

General Xu who seem to only be concentrating on his first sons' training suddenly turned to a specific direction and make a hand gesture in the air, soon about three shadows swiftly headed towards the direction Xu Bu tong, their second young master of the General's manor who was currently taking on the persona of a girl took, General Xu had taken note of Shu Yiwen's presence, he even had an idea why the young lad was here but chose to act ignorant.

 General Xu won't be as acclaimed as he is now if he didn't know what his precious son was about to face in the crown prince hands, even if the emperor wasn't aware of his crown prince's hobbies at such a young age, General Xu was very aware of them and wanted his son to experience it firsthand so that he could give up on his delusions of being the crown prince future partner, if his son was just like any other normal five years old and he had made such declaration the General won't be bothered about it and take it as just a five-year-old rambling that will be forgotten once matured, however, he understood his second son well, and even at such a young age his second son was someone that once he had made a decision he will see through it to the very end and never back down, he did fight until he got what he wanted.

General Xu didn't have a problem with his son liking another man, it was somewhat common in Qianqian empire and since he wasn't the direct heir this was acceptable but General Xu had certain reservations.

General Xu might be willing to fight to the death in battle for the empire but he wasn't willing to be involved in the politics of the empire and if his son was to become the crown prince partner then there is no way he will be able to escape such a vile life, he really despised all the scheming and backbiting going on in the palace, General Xu couldn't see it in him to ignore his son's wishes and knew that if he grew up and was adamant in being with the crown prince he did do anything to fulfill his wishes, as long as it was what made his son happy.

After thinking of all this General Xu decided he might as well make his son see for himself what kind of person the crown prince truly is so that he did give up on whatever fairy tale delusions he has swimming in his head.

At such a young age the crown prince was already so cruel and vicious, so General Xu believed if Xu Bu tong experienced his cruelty for himself firsthand, then perhaps all his worries will come to an end, and just maybe as an added bonus his second son might even lose interest in a lot of things, especially in learning martial arts due to him been disappointed on realizing that the crown prince, isn't the hero he thought him to be.

It wasn't that General Xu didn't find the crown prince admirable and talented,  his cruel behavior was an attribute every prince aspiring for the throne must possess, it's just that the crown prince did his in excess and found pleasure in causing others to pain unnecessarily, this was something that didn't sit well with the General so how could he allow his precious son to get attached to such a person.

General Xu will later regret letting his son meet the crown prince on this day, he did regret it to no end because he wouldn't get the results he had expected to achieve.

Xu Bu tong and Shu Yiwen had finally arrived at the crown prince manor and has been led to where the crown prince was staying by a servant boy.

Everywhere they passed Xu Bu tong realized that they were only servant boys in this Manor, not a single girl was present, after seeing this he made some congestion, that perhaps the reason for this is that the crown prince doesn't trust females, this made him somewhat distressed since his present disguise was that of a female.

Crown prince Xiongwei presently stood at the edge of a wooden constructed simple pavilion, it had a pink roof with white stands, three wooden chairs both colored pink and white were place under the pavilion, in-between these chairs was a white wooden table, Xu Bu tong still wasn't very certain that the manor he just entered belonged to the crown prince if not he would have been shocked with this girly display after all the crown prince didn't look like the type that will like such girly cute color, also he had mocked Xu Bu tong just the other day for looking cute as a girl so the crown prince was supposed to dislike cute looking things right? And this pavilion was definitely the true definition of cute and pleasant to look at.

Although Xu Bu tong really liked what he was seeing he couldn't blatantly say it so as not to be mocked again but he couldn't deny that the design really fit this cherry blossom-filled garden, he admired the pink petals of the cherry blossom tree that were been swept around by the wind, flying in the sky and then subsequently falling all around them, the ground soil couldn't be seen because it was covered all over by such fresh pink petals.

The crown prince had his back facing Xu Bu tong and Shu Yiwen, his hand was crossed against each other and placed behind his back as he stared into the distant sky, he appeared to be mesmerized by something but no matter how long Xu Bu tong glance at the same location the crown prince eyes were locked on, he didn't see anything worth been that way for, however, he did find the view of the crown prince bewitching appearance tantalizing, just his strong back structures were enough to show his majestic bearing, for a nine-year-old, the crown prince appeared taller than most his age, his aura was majestic, dignified, strong and regal thereby instinctively drawing people to him.

"I brought her as promised" Shu Yiwen excitedly yelled, he felt really proud about accomplishing this mission so easily after all he didn't think the General will permit this in the first place, and even if in the end their actions weren't permitted he was able to still get out with the person he sorted after, there was another thing he was more excited about and that was the fact that he had officially handed over his position of been the crown prince punching bag, this felt so good.

"This humble servant greets the crown prince" Xu Bu tong uttered while curtsying in respect at the crown prince who still had his back to them.

"I have been expecting you," the crown prince said as he turned back to face the two people that had just arrived at his manor, he had a small smile playing on his lips which made Xu Bu tong little heart begin to beat badly, Xu Bu tong instinctively moved his right palm to his chest and murmured "What an uncomfortable feeling" it was strange and uncomfortable but he didn't dislike this feeling.

The crown prince broke Xu Bu tong from his revelry of such a sensation he has tagged as mysterious with his words, "Young mistress Xu Zhi I believe we started on a wrong note, can we be friends?" Crown prince Xiongwei's straightforwardly and abrupt request took Xu Bu tong by surprise, the crown prince had his killer mesmerizing smile on his gorgeous-looking nine-year-old face, a smile that did make anyone swoon. Xu Bu tong who had piratically no defenses put up against them stood no chance.

Shu Yiwen on hearing this cleared his throat in a suspicious way thereby earning himself a deadly glare from the crown prince, one second the crown prince was shooting daggers with his eyes at Shu Yiwen, and the next second, he was smiling sweetly at Xu Bu tong, it was like he could never hurt a fly. He was warm and cold, the warmness directed toward Xu Bu tong, and the coldness could only find Shu Yiwen as its target.

"Even if you didn't ask me I would have still worked hard to be your friend" Crown prince Xiongwei eyes twitched slightly as he heard Xu Bu tong response, In his mind, he was already thinking he would have preferred this young mistress working hard as she had stated, he only ask her to be his friend because he thought their earlier encounter would have made the young mistress Xu Zhi of General Xu manor wary of him nevertheless the crown prince believed this development was also within his scope of control and wasn't bad at all.

"Since we have established our relationship as friends how about you help this friend out" Crown prince Xiongwei could have easily forced Xu Bu tong to do anything for him without having to become friends in name, but he believed there was no fun in doing that also this Xu Zhi will be more obedient this way, the crown prince found pleasure in controlling people like this, making them his tool for his benefit without them even knowing. Things were better this way.

"What will you have me do?" Xu Bu tong innocently asked.

"It's something only you can do young mistress Xu Zhi, seeing as you have little inner force, also it will really help me in better executing my martial arts skills, it might even also increase my cultivation level" the crown prince gave Xu Bu tong a harmless, pitiful and cute look at the same time, this expression of his was a really deadly combination, his eyes could practically be read as you are my only hope.

"Oh" Xu Bu tong didn't understand what he meant but he felt really important and special due to the fact that only he could assist the crown prince with something he considered as very important.

"So, are you willing to always help me with the growth of my martial art?"

 Xu Bu tong didn't find anything out of place with this request so he quickly responded "Of course, I am"

"You won't ever back down right?" the crown asked.

"Taizi, I am a person who has always been taught to keep to their word, it's a promise, I will help you out" Xu Bu tong stood gallantly and then struck his chest, the crown prince chuckled lightly after seeing this, he was tempted into reminding this person before him that he was just a clueless little girl who didn't know anything, however, he wasn't so generous.

"Okay, then follow me" while they were having this conversation Shu Yiwen was just shaking his head from left to right, he couldn't believe the crown prince was so sly and cunning, now even if this young mistress experienced any hardships due to the crown prince actions she cannot blame anyone but herself and if she was to sustain any injury the crown prince could easily defend himself that he never forced her, also Shu Yiwen was his witness and will easily back his words, there was also the part where this girl had indirectly sold herself over to the crown prince for a lifetime. If the crown prince said to increase his cultivation, she was needed to jump inside fire wouldn't she be compelled to do so since she had promised to always help him with such matters? Shu Yiwen really pitied this young mistress Xu Zhi and prayed for her soul.

Xu Bu tong and Shu Yiwen closely followed the crown prince, Shu Yiwen kept wondering why the crown prince was going to this area of the manor, he turned to look at Xu Bu tong whose eyes seem to be sparkling with excitement, although his face was now hidden behind a mask, Shu Yiwen knew that this individual was excited from just seeing the eyes of this person.

When they eventually arrived at a huge black door the crown prince instead of opening it first turned back to face Xu Bu tong " I have been meaning to tell you this Xu Zhi, that mask you are putting on really suits you, It brings out your beautiful eyes and Taizi can assure you that you will be a looker by the time you are my age, all the young masters will definitely be after you like bees after honey" he didn't wait to be responded to and just turned around to pushed open the door, Xu Bu tong was too occupied with been pleased with himself for been complimented by the crown prince and being addressed so casually like they were already very familiar with each other to see the words that are intricately and beautifully written in red above the door the crown prince had just stepped into "Disciplinary Torture Chamber".

So what if the crown prince believed he was a girl right now, it doesn't matter since even in this disguise the crown prince clearly fancied him despite not trusting females based on Xu Bu tong's deduction after only seeing male servants were allowed to serve the crown prince since he arrived in this Manor, Xu Bu tong believed that it didn't matter what gender he was, the crown prince will still like him and chose to be his friend, Isn't this fate?

 Xu Bu tong will definitely wish he had paid more attention to his surrounding at this moment instead of having stupid thoughts and then cluelessly venturing into unknown territory by following the crown prince without so much as a second thought.

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