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"You...you scoundrel!"

A burly giant sauntered through the packed street while pointing at a veiled gentleman with a refined posture standing under an umbrella. Crowds eagerly gathered as the hot gossip made way that the finest dancer in the land had found beef with a brute.

"You have spent time with my wife! Pay the consequences, you pretty boy!", yelled the commoner.

Repressing a chuckle, Master Lyu took out his fan, and waved it calmly in front of his face. Sighing, he said, "I have no recollection of what you are referring to, mister. Would it be convenient for you to elaborate on your assumption?"

"Yesterday, at the festival, you danced and my wife was there! You spent time with her even though you are not her groom!", he claimed, still pointing at the Prime Minister's Son.

Closing his fan, he said, "If every woman I danced in front of could claim I had been with her, the whole kingdom would be part of my harem."

Growling, the commoner charged at the handsome dancer, only for Lyu Biming to sidestep and miss his hands so that the poor husband ended up crashing into a water barrel.

The bystanders laughed, amused at his current suffering. Perhaps his anger had risen from some misunderstanding, but in this world, men that were not a member of the woman's family could not interact with a married, or even single, woman.

As it was, Lyu Biming was no stranger to baseless accusations, but he still grimaced at the scene he had inadvertently caused. Now, the wife of the poor fool came over, attempting to appease her husband by patting him on the back and stating that Lyu Biming had never touched her or made inappropriate moves to her in any way. However, even that was counterproductive to a jealous man's ears.

Clicking his tongue, he motioned for his servant holding his umbrella to retrieve his sword he used for sword dances. Growing up as the son of court official and a royal, he knew his way around the weapon, as well as always using a real sword during sword dances lest his safety be in danger.

However, any hint of fight breaking out was squashed the minute a tall man in red-black attire showed up, pressing hard on the affected peasant's shoulder.

"I believe Mister that you should get back to your wife and enjoy the rest of your day," he remarked, a dagger hidden in his sleeve should the man not back down.

The man gulped at his intimidating tone, took his wife by the hand, and ran, onlookers laughing as he made his escape.

"You are lucky he did not go to court," exclaimed the mystery man as he grabbed Lyu Biming's wrist tightly.

"So should I thank you or tell you I had it handled and you ruined it...Conqueror."

The Conqueror smiled, showing his pearly whites as he unsheathed his dagger, twirled it around while saying, "You need to watch your words more carefully in the future, Lyu Biming. Others do not know when you are jesting."

"You watched the whole encounter?", Lyu Biming asked rhetorically, inferring the ruler had been watching from the sidelines this whole time.

"No. I happened to be strolling by, and you caused quite a commotion to occur. Were it other...more violent men, you would already be dead by now."

"Thanks for the consideration. I'll keep that in mind," he sarcastically quipped.

"Just a bit of insight," he replied, hiding the ornate dagger once again.

The sovereign turned, but the dancer called out, "Are you not going to ask me if it's true or not?"

Facing his intellectual rival, he remarked, "Someone as awe-inspiring and of such a prodigious nature as you would not put his reputation at stake by committing a deplorable act..."

"A lot of confidence in me, I see."

"At least not one that could be find out easily," he cheekily added, grinning at his comeback.

"You!", Lyu Biming started, ready to smack the Conqueror at the mere insinuation.

Raising his arms up in the air as he walked backwards away from the other man, he said, "Plentiful beauties by your side, why choose his wife?"

"Could ask the same of you, Sovereign. With your prolific concubines," he answered back.

Muttering, "They're only five, I swear...", he leaned in closely, whispering one last thing.

"I look forward to using your services in the future."

Lyu Biming looked up in shock as the young sovereign yelled on his way back to the palace, "See you at the next court session."

Passerby looked on confused, most had never seen the Conqueror in their life so how were they to know this was the ruler of their kingdom walking among them, shouting in the street like a street vendor?

The servant of Lyu Biming scrambled after his master as the head dance academy owner peered after the Conqueror. Gathering courage, he asked the one question that had been weighing on his mind for weeks.

"Why did the Education Minister stand up for you back then, sire? At the court, I mean."

Lyu Biming sighed and shut his fan, having given up looking for an enemy. "For a man, beauty is not a gift, but a hindrance. Smarts is valued less than brute strength. As someone in possession of both, he cannot let a fellow man be depreciated for his talents. It opens up the floor for people to devalue people like us in the future."

"Unlike the Conqueror?"

"No, the Conqueror is quick-witted," he piped.

"The bloody, ruthless..."

"Do not be deceived. A man of many scars, he still only kills when necessary."

"But he takes joy in it..."

"And? Just because you take pleasure in something does not mean you partake in it all the time." He chuckled after voicing that thought. There were many flaws he observed in the military commander-turned-sovereign, however ruthlessness was not one of them.

"Still..."

Annoyed, he snapped, "At least the Minister of Education knows his place, unlike you."

"Yes, Master," he quipped, raising the umbrella higher.

Eyeing the palace in the distance, the Prime Minister's Son smiled, touching the token by his side and remembering a certain beauty in particular.

Perhaps this had all worked out for the best, it would give him a great excuse to show up at court. One that his father could not argue against.

Near the palace, a young woman, the Shogun's daughter, spotted her bodyguard strolling with a group of other men and scowled. Snapping, she called a servant and asked for the name of that rascal.

"Why, Mistress...that is the Prince who is enrolled at the Academy," she answered.

"The Prince?"

"The Sixteenth Prince, younger brother to the Conqueror."

Learning that her 'bodyguard' during the journey here was actually her betrothed, a flush of embarrassment rapidly spread on her pale cheeks. Resolute to make him pay for the misunderstanding, she strode up to the peers, and slapped the Sixteenth Prince.

"You!", he cried out, pointing at the Japanese Shogun's Daughter.

"What are you going to do about it? Tell your brother? Do you think he might actually make me go back to Japan if you do?", she said with her broken Chinese.

Glancing at his best friend, a young party-going noble known as the Noble Scholar as he was still far versed in literary works out all of those at the academy save the teachers, he looked at his bride again, and said, "You think I won't dare?"

"See if being a prince changes my treatment of you, it doesn't!", she stated, stomping her foot and leaving in a huff.

The Noble Scholar started, "Is that your future wife..."

"Don't even think about it."

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Author's note: I wrote this chapter to illustrate two things in particular.One-the dynamic between the rivals, the Conqueror and Lyu Biming. Two-interactions of the secondary couple when she finds out he's the Prince.

And for all those wondering why Lyu Biming is not aggrieved at having to dance in front of court again...remember the words the Conqueror said...and that maybe...he has an ulterior motive to show up in court besides just 'feeling like it'. (I was going to add the bit of conversation where he insinuated why, or who, it could be, but felt this was a more fitting end.)