Royal Engagement: The Honeymoon Chronicles

The Chief Aide

GQ CHINA

King's Shadow. The Butler. The Doorman. The Bridge.

Just few of the names attached to Teng Lao, the Crown Prince's Chief Aide.

In this month's special presentation of GQ China, we will talk to the two men constantly seen behind the Prince and the Consort that will one day rule China as King and King's Consort.

The Chief Aide and the Bodyguard.

First, the Chief Aide. Teng Lao is as familiar to us as the Crown Prince. Understandable because the twenty six year old aide is never far from the Prince he serves. At times, he is two feet behind the Crown Prince, but most of the time he stood beside his Next King.

But as much as he is exposed to the public, Teng Lao is a staunchly private person. Only too glad to let his Prince take the spotlight, Lao, as he is called by the people close to him, is content to work behind the Prince as his support. He might be as good looking and as smart as the Crown Prince but  Lao desired to be at the backstage manning the props for the Prince who is the star of the Royal Family.

Having said all that, it's truly hard to get the usually quiet Chief Aide to sit for an interview. It's even acceptable to say that it's rare that Lao accepts an offer to speak his mind.

So it's truly an honor for GQ China to have Teng Lao to sit with us inside a cafe to get interviewed.

For someone so quiet and seems unintrusive, Lao's impact on the Royal Family is something that cannot be measured.

Interviewer: Thank you for allowing us some of your time.

Teng Lao: No. Thank you for expressing your interest to interview me. I don't know if I will be fun to be interviewed like Wang Qing and Dayu but I will do my best to answer all your questions.

Interviewer: You call them Wang Qing and Dayu?

Teng Lao: In private settings. When I feel comfortable, I do call them by their first names. But we have protocols when we are in public and with companies so I follow the rules and calls them my Prince and my Consort.

Interviewer: You grew up with the Crown Prince. Like you literally grew up and stayed with him from diaper days until now. Correct?

Teng Lao: (nodding) I did. Unlike Dayu who moved away when he was nine, in my case, all my life, the Palace served as my home.

Interviewer: How did that happen?

Teng Lao: Well, my mother got pregnant with me and my father was not ready to take the responsibility so my mother was left to carry and give birth to me alone. She raised me until I was one when she got into an accident. Someone called her brother, my Uncle, who is my closest blood relative aside from my father, to take care of me. My uncle happened to be Teng ShouWei...

Interviewer: The current King's Chief Aide.

Teng Lao: (nodding) Correct. My Uncle is King Lei's Chief Aide.

Interviewer: And did you aspire to be the Crown Prince's Chief Aide from the start?

Teng Lao: (frowning) No. I think when we were young, I know that Qing is the Prince, but I don't see myself as his servant. While growing up I saw myself as his friend and playmate so serving him was something I don't seriously consider until I finished high school.