The Silly Alchemist

Ye Lang had once realised there was a flaw to this solution: what if she'd fainted from hunger? And if she did, she wouldn't be able to eat the pills! 

At that moment, Ye Lang decided that she could not be left alone. Someone HAD to be by her side, always!

After giving Zhen Xiaoyan a pill, Ye Lang carried her on his back and went back to the classroom. She would wake up sooner or later. It was just a small pill, not a magic medicine from the heavens!

“Fatty, I promise I’ll make it hard for them to even cry!!” 

Ye Lang had previously only wanted to teach Moya a lesson, maybe hurt him a little. However, after what just happened, it was no longer that simple...

Ye Lang walked a very long distance to bring Zhen Xiaoyan home. She had already woken up, and when she did, she was confused as to why Ye Lang was carrying her back home.

Ye Lang only told her to get a friend, or servants to follow her to and from school. He would pay for their wages. 

Zhen Xiaoyan seemed to understand…

The next day, Ye Lang began putting his plan into action. Step one was to put on makeup, so people wouldn’t be able to recognize him. Next, he was to learn a secret technique from the martial arts treasury.

He was no expert in the field, but he had to try!

“Ye Lanyu, where 's Ye Lang?”, asked the seventh princess. She was curious- why did Ye Lanyu arrive without him?

"He told me he wasn't felling so well, he's not coming today," replied Ye Lanyu. 

Worried about being seen, Ye Lang didn’t go to school. He told Ye Lanyu that he wasn’t feeling well to skip class.

“Is he alright? What happened to him?” The seventh princess grew frantic.

“He’s fine, he’s fine. He’s just feeling tired, and a little rest is all he needs,” Ye Lanyu said calmly, as she had already examined Ye Lang’s condition.

“I think I should see him…” the seventh princess started making her way to see him when she was stopped by Ye Lanyu.

“There’s no need for that, he said he was going to leave to do something once he feels better.”

“Huh? Is he trying to find excuses to skip school? To buy things at the auctioneer again?” the seventh princess was suspicious. She was almost correct though.

“It’s hard to tell, but we should let him be,” said Ye Lanyu.

Ye Lang appeared at school looking like a new emo boy. He stood at the main doorway as everyone walked passed him. 

He resembled a rich boy with a mischievous demeanour, and no one was able to recognize him- at least not with his new appearance.

Ye Lang felt confident in his disguise. He believed even his own mother would not be able to recognize him!

Only…

“Ye Lang, what are you doing here?” Zhen Xiaoyan asked him.

“...” Ye Lang remained silent, then frantically looked left and right, as if he was searching for this ‘Ye Lang’ person.

“What are you doing, putting on a silly costume and pretending to not know me?”

“I’m sorry, miss, but I think you have the wrong person!” Ye Lang said in a different voice in an attempt to make it unrecognizable.

Zhen Xiaoyan was shocked and began to wonder if she had mistaken him for Ye Lang. 

“Stop pretending, I know it’s you! I would still be able to recognize you even if you were a pile of ash!” exclaimed Zhen Xiaoyan angrily. 

“... Hey, fatty. How are you still able to recognize me in this disguise? And even then, you should be smarter and not call me out when I’m dressed like this! Whatever I do, pretend not to know me!” Ye Lang whispered.

“You… I’m sorry, sir. I must’ve mistaken you for someone else!” Zhen Xiaoyan might not understand Ye Lang’s motive, but she respected him enough to not poke her nose into his business anymore.

Luckily for Ye Lang, the people who passed did not pay much attention to him, or his plan would have been foiled!

What he did not understand though, was how Zhen Xiaoyan recognised him, even in his best disguise!

Even Xiaoyan wouldn't be able to answer his question. He was just... Ye Lang. 

Ye Lang soon grew speechless when more and more people were able to recognize him…

“You idiot, what do you think you’re doing? I thought you were at home?” Ye Lanyu saw him and exposed him in an instant.

“Ye Lang, what game are you playing? Is this for a play?” the seventh princess saw him as well.

“Fuck!” Ye Lang didn't understand how his plan failed so horribly. How did they recognise him so quickly? Never mind that, he was running out of time, and he had to push things into action.

“All of you must pretend to not know me, alright? No matter what I do, just step aside, okay?” Ye Lang said helplessly.

Since Zhen Xiaoyan was able to recognize him instantly, Ye Lanyu and the seventh princess were just as capable!

If he had known it would be that way, he would’ve just told Ye Lanyu. Maybe it was fate to suddenly see Ye Lanyu and the seventh princess by the door, for him to explain himself to them.

“Seventh princess, as I was saying…” Ye Lanyu and the seventh princess continued to chat among themselves, pretending they'd never met Ye Lang. 

Compared to Zhen Xiaoyan, they adapted much faster. They were so good no one was able to pinpoint what they were doing before.

While they talked, they glanced at Ye Lang every now and then, wondering what was he going to do next.

After some time, Ye Lang still had not made a move. It was almost as if he was waiting for someone. The three girls had also been waiting just as long, and if they stayed any longer, suspicions would arise. They very badly wanted to know what would happen next though!

Their prayers were answered soon enough. The people Ye Lang has been waiting for finally arrived, and they were… Moya and Sha Lan, walking back from school as they always did!

“This is bad... Is he going to kill them?” Zhen Xiaoyan was worried. Ye Lang did not want people to know his whereabouts and what he was doing... While this was just an assumption, Zhen Xiaoyan still wondered if Ye Lang wanted to kill them.

She wanted to stop him but remembered what Ye Lang had said and took a step back. All she could do was watch from the sidelines…

She saw Ye Lang make his way to Moya and Sha Lan, hold up his hand, and…

SLAP!

Ye Lang’s slapped Sha Lan across the face, hard and loud. Everyone nearby stopped what they were doing. All eyes were on Ye Lang, Moya and Sha Lan.