Did The Young Prince’s Kingdom Get Destroyed Today? Chapter 145

After exchanging greetings, the kids finally calmed down.

Dun Dun handed Little Seven some flowers and a few gifts. “These are flowers and some supplements we bought for your dad. We hope he gets better soon.”

“Thank you!”

The little one hugged the flowers, deeply touched.

The Chief Examiner pressed his temples, walked over, and plucked a few chrysanthemums from the bouquet. After doing so, he said coldly, “Alright, if you’re going to see the patient, just go in. I’m leaving.”

The little one nodded and watched the Chief Examiner leave.

It was only then that the other kids noticed the Chief Examiner. They looked at him, hesitating on whether they should greet him.

But before they could decide, the Chief Examiner had already left.

Once he was gone, they all quickly shifted their attention back, no longer concerned with greeting him.

The little one, carrying the gifts, pushed open the door to the room.

His dad was staying in a slightly secluded spot, but the environment there was quite nice, with plenty of entertainment facilities. His dad seemed to be doing alright here.

“Daddy, my friends came to visit me.”

Little Seven placed the flowers on the table by his dad’s bedside, and the gifts on another table.

He pulled his friends over and introduced them to his dad.

Emperor Ling, seeing so many children, was somewhat surprised.

He knew of this group of kids, but before meeting them today, he hadn’t had a particularly favorable impression of them.

After all, he always felt that apart from his own The little one, no other child sent to Guan Shan Residence could be that well-behaved.

But now, seeing them in person, these kids seemed rather polite.

The children greeted Emperor Ling politely, and he asked them a few simple questions as a senior.

Emperor Ling’s questions were all fairly ordinary, and the kids responded accordingly.

There wasn’t much to talk about between adults and children, so after a few words, Emperor Ling let them go off to play on their own.

Soon, Emperor Ling would be moved to a special room for isolation and observation. At that time, even the little one wouldn’t be allowed in.

So, the little one cherished every moment with his dad.

He played with his friends outside for a little while, then returned to spend more time with his dad.

When the little one came back, Emperor Ling pinched his chubby little face and asked, “All your friends are here. Why don’t you play with them more? Isn’t it boring staying with me?”

“No, it’s not boring.”

The little one shook his head and snuggled closer to his dad. “Daddy, let’s play chess together.”

“Alright, do you want to play Gobang or Go this time?”

“Let’s play both!”

There were many things to do in the hospital room, but what entertained Emperor Ling the most was his little Little Seven.

Time passed bit by bit.

The little one’s laughter and the sound of him playing with his dad echoed outside the room.

Ah Wu stood at the doorway, watching as the little one smiled brightly at his dad. His brow furrowed.

Emperor Ling was already becoming an outcast.

But his Zai Zai still loved this father dearly.

Once Emperor Ling returned to the Qi Dynasty and faced off against the Eldest Prince and the Fourth Prince, it would definitely not be a peaceful scene.

At that point, the royal family would surely be thrown into turmoil.

Ah Wu was already wondering how the little one would handle things when that day came.

He thought about it for a long time but found no solution.

The little one loved both his dad and his brothers. If forced to choose, he’d undoubtedly want both sides.

“Forget it.”

Ah Wu turned around with an impassive expression. He decided to just wait and see how things unfolded in the Qi Dynasty.

For two days straight, the little one stayed by his dad’s side in the hospital room.

After two days, Emperor Ling had to go into isolation treatment, and the little onen had to return to school.

Now that all the students had arrived, it was time to start classes. As usual, the first class of the term began with a general assembly.

This time, everyone could bring their own stools.

The little one sat on his stool, listening carefully to the Chief Examiner at first, but after a while, someone tugged at his arm.

“Little Seven, want some sunflower seeds?”

“Little Seven, do you want some popping candy?”

“Little Seven, do you want some stir-fried noodles?”

Perhaps it had been too long since they last attended school, but the students were visibly bolder now. They kept sneaking snacks to Little Seven.

Like a group of little hamsters, the kids secretly munched on their snacks.

Standing on the platform, the Chief Examiner scanned the room with a cold look, taking in all their little actions.

Narrowing his eyes, the Chief Examiner immediately decided to add two more classes to their schedule, along with extra training sessions before the school term officially began.

“Hey, don’t you all think the Chief Examiner and the teachers have been much more lenient with us lately? I think their attitude has softened a lot these past couple of days.”

“I think so too. Do you think we’ve been gone too long, and they’ve been missing us?”

This speculation from the children made Zhai Bai twitch his mouth. “Why do you all have such warm expectations for them?”

Although Zhai Bai also snacked on sunflower seeds and treats, he was the last to join in. He only sighed and joined them after seeing that even the little one couldn’t resist the temptation.

“There’s a saying: it’s the calm before the storm.”

“The teachers may be smiling at us now, but the more they smile, the more danger I think we’re in.”

The teachers at Guan Shan Residence were not known for their gentleness.

Zhai Bai’s words came true not long after. Their new courses and assignments were completely different from what they had experienced before.

After class, when the little one returned to the Chief Examiner’s home in the evening, his little face was utterly downcast.

“Uncle Lian Qing.”

Seeing Lian Qing lying on the sofa by the window resting, the little one didn’t even take off his backpack. He threw himself, backpack and all, into Lian Qing’s arms.

“Ouch—”

Lian Qing winced. “Did you fill your backpack with bricks? It’s killing me!”

The little one laid there, completely still.

Lian Qing had no choice but to take off his backpack for him.

After tossing the little one’s backpack aside, the little one kicked off his shoes and nestled himself into Lian Qing’s arms.

Seeing him looking so down, Lian Qing asked, “What happened? Did someone hit you at school?”

“No way.”

The little one was incredibly popular, and there wasn’t anyone at school who would want to hit him.

Burying his chubby face in Lian Qing’s arms, he mumbled, “I think I might be a little dumb.”

Lian Qing: “…”

Lian Qing didn’t know how the little one came to this conclusion, but he played along. “My little dummy, tell me what’s going on.”

The little one’s face was tense, showing clear signs of unhappiness.

Seeing how tightly the little one was scrunching his face, Lian Qing couldn’t resist and reached out to rub his cheeks.

The little one: “!”

Already in a bad mood, the little one became even more upset when his face was rubbed.

“Uncle Lian Qing, you’re mean!!!”

The little one, his face now squished, angrily dodged Lian Qing’s hand.

As he dodged, he began to wrestle with Lian Qing.

The big and small figures tussled on the sofa, and in the end, they both tumbled off.

Unfortunately, as they fell, both of them knocked their heads.

“Ouch.”

“Waaah.”

The bigger one held his head in pain, while the smaller one laid on his back, crying.

The Chief Examiner had just returned and walked in to witness this scene. He quickly stepped forward to help them both up.

The little one wrapped his arms around the Chief Examiner’s neck and started complaining, “Uncle Lian Qing bullied me!”

The Chief Examiner: “…”

The Chief Examiner sighed, “Stop crying. I’ll get you a drink in a minute.”

The little one was a master at tattling. Right now, he was complaining about Lian Qing to the Chief Examiner, and when he didn’t get his noodles or drink later, he would tearfully complain to Lian Qing about the Chief Examiner.

Both the Chief Examiner and Lian Qing had become quite adept at comforting this little tattletale.

This time, though, the little one was genuinely a bit upset.

However, it wasn’t because Uncle Lian Qing had bullied him. It was because of something that happened to him.

After dinner, the little one didn’t go back to his own room to sleep with Ah Wu. Instead, he grabbed his little pillow and went to the Chief Examiner’s room.

The Chief Examiner wasn’t particularly welcoming to the little one coming to his bed.

“Go back to your room. Don’t you love your little room?”

“I do.”

The little one said he loved his room, all while stubbornly climbing into the Chief Examiner’s bed.

Wearing his pajamas, the Chief Examiner looked down at him and continued, “If you sleep here, it’ll be too cramped. Go back to your own bed.”

“No.”

The little one refused to cooperate. He sniffled and was determined to stay.

Last time he stayed at Guan Shan Residence, he often went to Lian Qing at night to chat. Now, he wanted to do the same again.

“I want to sleep with Uncle Lian Qing. You go sleep with Ah Wu.”

The Chief Examiner: “?”

The Chief Examiner, thinking of Ah Wu’s sour face, didn’t want to face it before bedtime either.

“Alright, enough already.”

Seeing the stalemate between the two, Lian Qing reached out and pulled the little one into his arms.

“Let’s all sleep together. Little Seven, what do you want to talk about?”

Thus, the late-night conversations between the little one and Lian Qing resumed.

The Chief Examiner laid next to them, eyes closed, listening.

The room was already dark, and in the pitch black, the little one began to talk about the problems he encountered during class.

In this new set of courses, the teachers were focusing on developing their special talents. For example, those interested in military affairs were given in-depth instruction on that subject.

For the more ambitious students, the teachers offered guidance as well.

The students who came here all had their own goals. Some had very simple goals—just to survive.

Others sought revenge.

And still others wanted to make a name for themselves.

The teachers’ lessons were genuinely helpful for these students.

However, the little one hadn’t yet found a specific goal for himself.

Compared to the other students, the little one felt like a fool.

After hearing him out, Lian Qing’s eyes flickered.

“Real dummies don’t even realize they’re dummies. You still have hope.”

Lian Qing knew the little one in his arms had a clever mind. His current struggles in class were just a temporary bump in the road for his sharp little brain.

He slowly guided the little one, asking him what kind of person he wanted to become in the future.

They talked about the future, about what he most wanted to do.

As they chatted, the little one, who had been feeling lost, suddenly found his direction.

“I want to be someone useful,” he said.

The little one thought back to the practical classes he had attended and the things he had learned. His past lessons, like a small seed, had quietly sprouted in his heart.

And now, he had found that little sprout.

“I want to make life a bit better for the common people, and I want my eldest auntie to stop having to fight wars all the time.”

After hearing this, Lian Qing asked him, “Do you want to become the emperor?”

“No, I don’t.”

The little one had no desire to be emperor. He said, “I just want to do those things, but I don’t want to be emperor.”

Becoming an emperor was a huge responsibility, and it came with a heavy burden. The little one didn’t want that.

Lian Qing acknowledged, “I see. You want to do meaningful things, but you don’t want to be emperor.”

“Since that’s the case, you should learn a variety of things.”

Lian Qing offered guidance on what the little one should study.

As they continued talking, the little one started to understand more and more.

Sure enough, late-night chats were important.

The little one wasn’t confused anymore, and his mood improved.

“Uncle Lian Qing, you’re so good!”

Feeling much better, the little one hugged Uncle Lian Qing and rubbed his soft little face against him.

Lian Qing actually liked the little one’s soft cheeks and enjoyed giving them a squeeze now and then.

Just as the big and little ones were about to start their playful rubbing and squeezing, the Chief Examiner’s cold voice interrupted from beside them, “It’s late. Why aren’t you asleep yet?”

The little one blinked his eyes and stuck out his little bottom, turning his back to the Chief Examiner.

Thinking the Chief Examiner couldn’t see, he mouthed silently to Lian Qing, “Uncle Lian Qing, will you come sleep in my room?”

The little one was trying to get Uncle Lian Qing to sleep in his room.

Even though he didn’t make a sound, his bottom still got a little smack.

The little one jumped in surprise and glared at the Chief Examiner. “But I didn’t even say anything!”

“There’s no way you’d stay this quiet.”

The Chief Examiner knew him too well. There’s a saying: when kids are unusually quiet, they’re up to no good.

This little one, who had been so obediently silent just now, was definitely planning something mischievous.

With the two adults and the little one all in the same bed, it took quite a while before they finally settled down and fell asleep.

The next day.

When the little one went to class again, he finally had a smooth day.

Between their busy lessons, the kids, as always, found little moments to play together.

Whenever they played, the little one was always the center of attention.

In the past, they played with the little one because he was warm and comforting, like a little sun that unexpectedly shone into the dark corners of their hearts.

But over the last two years—

The little one had not only been their little sun but had also literally saved their lives.

Before they parted ways the last time, the fortunes the little one had told them ended up saving them at critical moments.

“Little Seven.”

While playing, someone brought up his fortune-telling skills: “How do you read fortunes so accurately? Did you learn from a master?”

“Mm.”

The little one hesitated for a moment and answered vaguely, “I like fortune-telling, and I’m just good at it.”

After he said that, Dun Dun suddenly had an idea.

“Little Seven, since your fortune-telling is so accurate, have you ever read the fortunes of the teachers and the Big Boss?”

The kids were curious about the fortunes of their elders, especially after their own fortunes had come true.

“Yeah, you should read the adults’ fortunes! The strict teacher says he’ll never get married, Little Seven, can you tell if he’ll ever find a wife?”

With the kids urging him on, the little one hesitated, but then nodded. “Okay, I’ll read their fortunes.”

Zhang San said he wanted to get rich, the strict teacher said he wouldn’t marry, and there was also the Big Boss and Uncle Lian Qing…

The little one counted on his fingers, deciding to read everyone’s fortunes.

As it happened, it was now the end of the school day.

Holding Ah Wu’s hand, the little one first stopped by Zhang San’s office. He walked over and grabbed Zhang San’s hand to take a look.

“Uncle Zhang San, you should work hard to earn money. Don’t just think about suddenly becoming rich.”

Uncle Zhang San’s future, it seemed, still didn’t involve wealth.

Zhang San: “?”

Before Zhang San could respond, the little one was whisked away by Ah Wu.

As he was being led away, Ah Wu scolded him a little, telling him not to mess around with fortune-telling.

But the little one covered his ears and didn’t listen at all.

When he got home, he immediately ran over to Lian Qing on his short legs and gave him a reading.

As he did, the little one’s chubby face trembled.