The Three Guards

Three guards stood frozen in an alleyway, a dispirited expression present on all of their faces. The gloomy atmosphere only served to intensify their feeling of failure...

"...Why are we standing here."

"There's a table right there."

Guard No. 3 stared at the table and the three chairs around it. He glanced back at the other two, and they nodded their heads.

.....

Three guards sat frozen in an alleyway, a dispirited expression present on all of their faces. The gloomy atmosphere only served to intensify their feeling of failure...

"...Why are we sitting here."

"Yeah, why did you drag this table to the alleyway?"

Guard No. 3 furrowed his brows.

.....

Three guards sat frozen in front of a restaurant, a dispirited expression present on all of their faces. The bright and bustling crowd around them did nothing to alleviate their feeling of failure...

"...Why are we sitting here."

"Can I get your order?"

Guard No. 3 pointed on a few items at the menu, the waiter taking notes.

.....

Three guards sat in front of a restaurant, a dispirited expression present on all of their faces. The bright and bustling crowd around them, as well as the delicious food that they had just finished, did nothing to alleviate their feeling of failure...

"...Why are we eating here."

"Here's the bill."

Guard No. 3 widened his eyes.

.....

Three guards stood frozen in an alleyway, a dispirited and tired expression on all of their faces. The gloomy atmosphere only served to intensify their feeling of failure, not to mention the city guards that had chased after them...

"...Why," he panted before continuing to speak, "...are we hiding here."

"There! Those three are the dine-and-dashers!"

Guard No. 3 widened his eyes.

.....

Three guards stood frozen in a prison cell, a dispirited expression present on all of their faces. The gloomy atmosphere, plus the angry officer that guarded their cell, only served to intensify their feeling of failure..

"...Why are we here."

"Let's escape."

Guard No. 3 smirked.

.....

Three guards walked slowly through the sidewalk, their expressions hidden by a cloth that masked their whole face. The bright and bustling crowd around them did nothing to alleviate their feeling of failure...

"...Why are we-"

"Stop talking! I have a plan. We split up, search for the young mistress and her friend, and rendezvous back at the Red Swan Restaurant. Understood?"

Guard No. 3 nodded his head in understanding.

.....

.....

While the three guards were indulged in their own shenanigans, Shi Wenyang and Han Ganxing visited the clothing area of the shopping district.

Han Ganxing had a hard time wrapping his head around what the difference between chartreuse and yellow-green was.

Overall, Shi Wenyang enjoyed the little escapade, while Han Ganxing needed to force a smile on the side.

Well, he did gain something from this. The images of Shi Wenyang's smile as she asked him which clothing was better were enough to last him for decades to come.

And, the dress that he picked looked extremely beautiful on her. Granted that in his eyes, everything looks beautiful on her... It was a pretty hard choice.

"So, where do we go next...?"

At this point, Shi Wenyang's reservations about holding Han Ganxing's hand were minor at most. She didn't have as much resistance to it as she did the first time.

Looking at the sky, Han Ganxing noticed that the sun was about to set.

"Let's go to a restaurant, the one you mentioned before."

Shi Wenyang nodded peacefully, not even bothering to hide the joy on her face.

Soon enough, the pair arrived in front of the Red Swan Restaurant, a new establishment that only opened about a week ago.

A waiter received them and led them to an unoccupied table.

Meanwhile, outside of the restaurant.

Three guards walked slowly towards the entrance, a dispirited expression present on all of their faces. The prospect of eating in this newly established restaurant did nothing to alleviate their feeling of failure.

Not one of them had found a trace of the two they were supposed to be guarding. They were already imagining the punishment they would receive once they returned to their respective residences.

"...What if they were kidnapped?"

Guard No. 3 furrowed his brows as he sliced the steak on his plate. As time passed, he got more aggressive.

"Come on, now. After eating, we need to look for them again. Not to mention our punishments, but for us to not find a single clue about their location likely means they're in a perilous situation... probably. As guards, if they get in trouble, it's our responsibility to get them out."

In his mind, Guard No. 2 thought, "The Han family guard is right. I'm really too selfish thinking of my own fate when the children could be in more danger than me!"

Beside him, Guard No. 3 solemnly nodded.

The three guards hurried to finish up their meals and stood up, anxious to resume their search. Suddenly, a waiter grabbed Guard No. 3's shoulder.

"Um, sirs, your bill."

Guard No. 3 widened his eyes.

At this moment, a city guard also barged in the restaurant. "There! The escapees!"

"E- escapees?" The turn of events flabbergasted the waiter. "That means... you lot don't have money?"

"They sure don't. They were arrested for dining-and-dashing in the first place!"

The three guards were startled. They didn't expect the city guard to just strut inside the restaurant to come looking for them!

The commotion attracted the attention of the other customers. The hadn't expected to see a scene like this.

Han Ganxing turned to look to see what the fuss was all about. Seeing the guards, he was shocked.

"Wenwen, aren't those two your guards? The other one's mine!"

Shi Wenyang, who planned on not paying attention, was also shocked as she checked the situation.

"...We better get out of here!"

Leaving some coins and paper bills on the table, Han Ganxing grabbed Shi Wenyang's hand once more, as if it was only natural. The two crouched as they sneaked out of the restaurant.

Han Ganxing kept a close watch on the gaze of the guards. If they were to be seen and caught, who knew what consequences they would experience later?

The guards' eyes swept across the area by coincidence. Han Ganxing's heart rate got faster as he hastened his steps, pulling Shi Wenyang along.

As soon as they got out, they went into a dark alleyway beside the restaurant. The quiet atmosphere enabled the two to regain their composure.

Han Ganxing glanced to see if Shi Wenyang was okay, when his gaze accidentally met hers.

Both of their heartbeats were in sync, equally exhilarated and nervous at the same time.

After staring for a while, Shi Wenyang broke the silence.

"...Pfft, hahaha!"

Looking at the other's disheveled face, they laughed.

While lost in their own laughter, three more figures filled the dark alleyway.

"Did we lose 'em?"

Guard No. 3 nodded his head.

At that moment, Han Ganxing stopped laughing and quickly looked behind him. Guard No. 3 had noticed that it suddenly turned quiet and also looked behind him.

The two's gazes met as well... with no romantic undertones.

.....

Evening, Han Mansion.

Han Ganxing lied on his bed, in complete bliss. The events of that day were too much for him; he could barely contain his urge to jump around the room.

Although the spanks on his butt by his father were a bit of a blight, it was an overall wonderful day for him.

He opened the system interface.

Affection: 59%

Han Ganxing drew a cold breath as he stared at the halfway filled bar.

An increase that high in just a day? I'm starting to worry if Shi Wenyang is that easy to please...

It seems like I only need to go on about 2 more dates with her before I capture her heart!

...Only 2 more dates?

Well, it's not like everything will disappear once I'm done, so I suppose I can enjoy a lot more dates with her afterwards!

At the thought of taking her out at least 100 more times, Han Ganxing couldn't help but giggle. He really was lovestruck.