On the day of the ball, the king sent his attendants to wait at the entrance of the palace, waiting to welcome the various nobles who arrived one after another.

Countless balls have been held in the royal palaces by kings, but never has there ever been a ball with the words "Please bring a young lady who has entered the social world" written on the invitation card like this one.

Although the invitation did not clearly state the purpose of the ball, who could not guess that the ball was held precisely so that the prince could take the opportunity to choose the princess.

Everyone knows it. Regardless of whether they have daughters or sisters of marriageable age, every family that receives the invitation has at least one young "female companion" by their side when they rush to the palace to attend a ball.

The Count of Manifik and his party stepped down from the two carriages, and each of them was accompanied by a girl, who were the two daughters of the Countess.

The Countess's ex-husband was nothing more than a fairly wealthy ordinary farmer, and if she hadn't been married to the Earl of Manifik, she might never have had the chance to set foot in the royal palace for the rest of her life.

It was her first time at the palace.

Magnificent stone statues are placed at will, and large and colorful oil paintings are painted on the vaults, and carved dark patterns abound.

The oppressive effect of this magnificent palace almost suffocated the countess, although she still seemed to smile so gracefully.

The eldest daughter, Charlotte, looked around and asked with some concern, "Father, will Cinderella come?"

Count Manifik frowned, "She shouldn't come." "More than Cinderella, he needs to think about how to use her to hook up with Earl Grant, who has been in the limelight lately and deserves to befriend.

It's fine not to mention Cinderella, but once she is mentioned, the countess can't maintain her expression. She gritted her teeth and said, "God knows what kind of tricks that dirty embryo/man used to envelop Brian's heart!"

Growing up, her brother hardly disagreed with her, and although he became a little more tempered after becoming an earl, he never disobeyed her will in major matters. If it weren't for Cinderella's trickery and bewitching Brian, how could he have taken her away all of a sudden!

"As long as she dares to appear in front of me again, I can make her dare not go out to meet people again. The Countess's tone changed, and she added, "Don't worry, Charlotte, Brian doesn't live in the royal city, so he won't be able to receive invitations, and in that case, Cinderella won't be able to come to the ball." Even if he had received an invitation, he would not have brought her to the palace. You and Katie can rest assured. ”

The Countess is well aware of Brian's nature, and when he was willing to take Cinderella away, he must have taken a fancy to her appearance under Cinderella's deliberate seduction. How could he, who is extremely good-looking, be willing to give up his lover to the prince?

The two girls laughed.

After a while, Cinderella's saves had been forgotten by them, and they began to look forward to the arrival of the prince.

Unfortunately, Qiao Heng, who was considered unlikely by the countess, had already been led to the palace by the king's chamberlain two days ago.

The prince who followed the king's arrangement to accompany Qiao Heng was really a little restless.

Qiao Heng held a handwritten version of the Latin Bible that he had just taken from the king's bookshelf, and looked at it page by page, his face was not obvious, but he was a little bored in his heart.

Every time Count Grant turned the page, the prince couldn't help but look at him.

Perhaps the young earl had finally gotten tired of the prince's gaze, or perhaps he wondered if the prince had something to say to himself, so he looked away from the Bible, lifted his eyes, and looked at him with determination.

The prince was caught by him as he looked at the Count, and he coughed lightly in embarrassment, and quickly withdrew his gaze in disguise.

"Count Grant, you haven't been to the palace for a long time, and my father misses you very much. ”

Qiao Heng said: "I miss His Majesty very much. There was a hint of melancholy in his eyes.

The prince knew that Count Grant did not live in the royal city, and it was very difficult to get back and forth. He seemed to have heard from his father that day that he should have the earl's manor in the east of the royal city repaired and given to Earl Grant, so that he could move directly to the city to live.

If this is true, I don't know how many people will be so jealous that they will go crazy.

He asked, "Will the Count attend tonight's ball?"

Qiao Heng joked: "You can't let Your Majesty's invitation be invalidated." ”

"Father, he will be very happy. "I won't disturb the Earl's reading," said the Prince, "for the Count will do as he pleases." ”

He stood up, walked to the window, stood for a moment, asked the maid to bring her sketchboard, and drew a sketch of it.

It's just that I don't know why, but at the end of his painting, a shadowy girl appeared on the white paper that should have been a simple landscape painting. The prince subconsciously glanced at Count Grant, and when he saw that he did not look at him, he quietly breathed a sigh of relief, and then hurriedly picked up the piece of drawing paper and threw it aside.

Yesterday he had only heard Count Grant call the girl "Ella".

Every time he thought of this name, the prince couldn't help but repeat it in his heart several times.

The girl named Ella knew at first glance that she was very close to Count Grant, and he wanted to ask Count Grant if he could introduce her to him, but he never dared to speak.

The prince probably didn't realize that he was actually afraid of the young Earl Grant.

Even though Earl Grant was more like a well-born nobleman of good birth than any nobleman he had ever met, the young earl had never behaved in any rude manner in front of him, nor had he uttered a word that did not conform to the norm, but he could not let go of that guard in his heart.

This vigilance was so unwarranted that the prince did not yet realize this strange vigilance in his heart, and only felt that he was always uncomfortable with Earl Grant.

How could Qiao Heng not notice the prince's gaze towards him, he closed the book and threw it on the table on the side, he sat on the sofa leisurely, looking at the prince who was painting.

Few people know that it was he who taught the prince's fencing skills, which everyone admired. He didn't bother to let anyone else know about it. When the king mentioned it casually, he took the commission.

He hadn't seen the prince for a year or two, and the young man who had been taught fencing didn't seem to have changed much.

The young man who is now standing in front of the drawing board can be said to be completely in line with every imagination that people have about the identity holder of the "prince".

He has sun-like blonde hair, eyes as blue as the sky, fair skin, a sturdy figure, and a royal haughty and graceful gestures.

He has a broad and cheerful personality, and his speech is very attractive, with a little bit of youthfulness that is unique to him when he has just left his youth and entered his youth. He treats people modestly, often with a little pity for the weak, and there are a few indelible weaknesses in his nature, but what he presents to everyone is always the side of heroism and dedication.

He advocates fairness and pursues justice, and he seems to be a person who is close to perfection, and even if he wants to discredit his glory, he will not be able to do it.

It's like a ...... The opposite of oneself is the zài.

One side is blessed by light, but the other side is only blessed with the shade of the mire.

It's a funny feeling, like looking at another life that you might have, a life that is the opposite of yourself.