Chapter 165

The words they spoke were of a similar sentiment to those before them.

It was nothing more than feeling that following Cheng Guang to search for the whereabouts of the Crown Prince would be a complete waste of time.

They would waste a period of time without any reward.

Cheng Guang wasn’t too surprised by this, just felt it was a bit of a shame.

Not a shame for himself.

But he felt sorry for those who had just rejected them.

Just now, the gears of their fate had begun to turn, but they actively stopped it.

“I gave you an opportunity, but you don’t make use of it.”

Cheng Guang sighed inwardly and his gaze then fell onto the last person.

If the last one, Xu Hongfei, also didn’t want to take on this task with him, then he would truly be alone.

This really screwed things up.

Cheng Guang even doubted whether the words he had said about letting them freely choose to stay or go were wrong and should not have been said.

Once spoken, those words, like spilled water, could not be taken back.

It didn’t matter if there was no one else; he couldn’t rely on the Bureau of the Lamp’s external personnel, so he could simply join a group of White Lantern Catchers if need be.

Cheng Guang stroked his chin, pondering this.

Just when Cheng Guang thought that Xu Hongfei, who had been skeptical from the start, would also refuse, leaving him to go solo, Xu Hongfei’s face showed a flash of struggle before he walked over to Cheng Guang and bowed earnestly.

“Princely Heir, if they do not wish to follow you, I, Xu Hongfei, am willing to follow you to the death!”

Cheng Guang was a bit surprised and let out a soft “huh” as he looked at Xu Hongfei.

Xu Hongfei, noticing Cheng Guang’s gaze, didn’t know what Cheng Guang was thinking, and with an unchanged expression, respectfully bowed his head.

“Princely Heir, the questions I asked earlier were not because I doubted that the Princely Heir could not complete the task, but rather to see how confident the Princely Heir was in the task, which is why I have been observing the Princely Heir since the beginning.”

“I noticed that the Princely Heir, from the very start, has never shown much panic on his face, even when facing my doubts and the departure of Chen Qing and the other four, the composure on the Princely Heir’s face has not changed one bit.”

“Therefore, I believe that the Princely Heir can complete the task, not simply take a risk.”

After Xu Hongfei finished speaking, Cheng Guang was a bit surprised.

This Xu Hongfei…

He is astute…

He even observed his head.

Having heard Xu Hongfei’s words, Cheng Guang started to wonder if Xu Hongfei was just trying to gauge how confident he was in finding the Crown Prince by deliberately saying what he said earlier to test him.

The test worked indeed, and at the same time, it led his other team members to leave.

Including Chen Qing, the four of them changed their faces instantly after hearing Xu Hongfei’s words.

Their expressions turned dark as iron.

They almost pointed at Xu Hongfei and cursed, “Are you for real, dog?”

Mostly because of what Xu Hongfei had said, they had little confidence in this mission, thinking that following the Princely Heir to find the Crown Prince would just be a waste of time.

And now, upon reflection…

It didn’t seem like such a waste of time.

In the midst of their contemplation, Chen Qing and the others suddenly realized, is the Princely Heir not just that, a Princely Heir? What kind of member could he not find?

Why bother with them, these auxiliary constables?

Moreover, the Princely Heir being who he is, wouldn’t likely want to undertake a mission out of the blue; there might be some internal intelligence.

Perhaps…

Director Cheng had already paved the way for the Princely Heir.

In the hearts of the four, speculations arose.

They now believed that Cheng Guang might indeed be able to complete the task, and the certainty was beyond their expectations.

But they could not be sure of a hundred percent certainty, at least there had to be more than half.

If the Princely Heir was absolutely sure of success, countless Gold Lantern Catchers would probably be begging to join the Princely Heir’s team, where would that leave them, the ones who could not even be counted as Black Lantern Catchers, but as external personnel?

And if they managed to complete the task with the Princely Heir and find the whereabouts of the Crown Prince, even if they couldn’t confront the Crown Prince, it could still earn them a great deal of merit.

That great merit could not only elevate them from auxiliary members of the Bureau of the Lamp to Black Lantern Catchers, but with a bit of boldness, perhaps even a promotion directly to White Lantern Catchers wouldn’t be impossible.

For Cheng Guang, such a leap in rank meant little.

But for Chen Qing and the others, it was akin to a sky-rocketing ascension.

With this realization…

Chen Qing and the others almost turned green with regret.

Damn it.

They had refused the Princely Heir too quickly!

Even though Cheng Guang said nothing at the moment, still smiling as he looked at them, that faint smile felt more painful than mockery.

The greatest opportunity of their lives had been squandered by them.

Only now did they come to a stark realization that even if they did not find the Crown Prince or complete the task with the Princely Heir, it wouldn’t really be bad at all.

Having the chance to join the Princely Heir on a mission was an opportunity in itself.

If they could hold on tight to the Princely Heir’s coattails during this period, wouldn’t that mean direct flight?

As they thought more about it, the expressions on the faces of Chen Qing and the others became instantly pitiful.

Especially the two women, whose eyes turned red in no time.

They soon looked like they were about to drop precious tears.

Cheng Guang, however, didn’t look at them much; they had left, and he wasn’t going to ask them back.