Chapter 18
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A howl came from behind, followed by the sound of galloping horses. Ling Rui, who had fallen to the bottom of the slope, lifted his dirty little face, only to see the horse’s hindquarters.
He looked extremely miserable at the moment. The new clothes Noble Consort Yi had dressed him in before leaving had been torn, and his clean and pretty little face was now dirty.
“Seventh Prince!”
As Ling Rui looked in the direction where the horse had run off, a chestnut horse rushed up to him.
The young man sitting on the horse was Ling Chen’s attendant, the second son of Fang Shilang, Fang Huaiyu.
Fang Huaiyu looked at the dirty little prince sitting on the ground, and his heart trembled. He dismounted and picked up the little prince, asking anxiously, “What happened to you?”
Just now, when the eldest prince hit his prey, it ran in this direction. He came to pick up the prey for the eldest prince and happened to hear the cry for help.
Upon arrival, he indeed saw the pitiful little prince.
Ling Rui recognized Fang Huaiyu.
As Fang Huaiyu held him, Ling Rui cried out, “Bad cousin chased me, I fell down, and he kept chasing me. He aimed his big bow at me.”
Thinking of the fear he had just experienced, tears welled up in his eyes, making his little face flush red.
Fang Huaiyu asked, “Where’s the instructor?”
Although there were few people in this area, there should have been an instructor watching. The little prince had been chased like this, and the instructor should have noticed and intervened.
“The instructor left after someone called for him.”
“Don’t cry, Your Highness. I’ll take you to find the eldest prince.”
Fang Huaiyu tried to take the little prince away, but the little prince pointed in a direction and refused to follow him. “Go over there.”
He wanted to go see.
Just now, he was too scared to see clearly the figure that rushed out. Now, sitting in Fang Huaiyu’s arms, his fearful emotions eased slightly, and the scene from before came to mind again.
In that scene, it seemed like it was Ah Wu who rushed out.
“Let’s go find the eldest prince first, and then we can go after. Okay?”
“Not okay.”
The standoff between the older and the younger continued unresolved. Unable to wait for his companion to return, Ling Chen rode over on horseback.
Seeing his elder brother arrive, Ling Rui, with red-rimmed eyes, twisted his small body and opened his arms towards his brother, calling out, “Big brother, hug!”
Ling Chen took him.
Fang Huaiyu quickly recounted the situation of the little prince to Ling Chen in a rapid tone. After he finished speaking, Ling Chen’s face suddenly darkened.
“Little Seven, which way did the horse that chased you go?” Ling Chen placed the child he was holding on the horse and let him sit face to face in front of him to protect him from the wind.
Ling Rui, with tears in his eyes, pointed in a direction.
After pointing, Ling Chen held him with one hand, held the reins with the other, and urged the horse to run, saying, “Hold on tight to older brother, Little Seven!”
The horse’s ride was very bumpy.
Ling Rui reached out and held Ling Chen tightly, afraid of falling off.
Following Ling Rui’s direction, Ling Chen ran all the way. He saw blood on the ground. The bright red blood dripped onto the ground, shocking to see.
He looked at the blood and sternly ordered Fang Huaiyu, who was following behind, “Call for help!”
The direction of the blood led to the area where students were not allowed to enter alone, an area where large beasts were kept and used by beast tamers for important occasions.
The area was surrounded, but now the sturdy fence had been broken. The blood on the fence had turned dark red.
Ling Chen slowed down and led the way in.
By the time he entered, all the beast tamers living inside had come out. A female beast tamer in green clothes was squatting on the ground, bandaging the person lying on the ground.
Ling Chen dismounted.
He walked over to the front, only to see the person lying on the ground, covered in wounds from being bitten, was indeed the injured Ling Xing pointed out by Ling Rui.
Ling Rui also saw Ling Xing.
He showed no sympathy for Ling Xing, who was covered in blood.
“It’s him.”
Ling Rui was still complaining to his big brother, “He chased me, and I fell and hurt myself badly.”
Ling Chen looked at the half-dead Ling Xing, frowned, and asked the beast tamer squatting on the ground, “What’s his condition now?”
The beast tamer looked up and replied, “He’s seriously injured, and I can’t treat him.”
The beast tamer only knew some simple wound treatments. For such serious injuries as Ling Xing’s, she couldn’t treat them at all.
“Get a few people to carry him out and wait for the imperial physician to treat him.”
After instructing people to carry Ling Xing away, Ling Chen followed.
While waiting for the imperial physician, others heard the news and came one after another.
After the headmaster of the hunting ground arrived, Ling Chen, looking at the injured Ling Xing on the ground, became stern. “Master, Ling Xing chased my seventh brother while riding a horse and aiming a bow at him. My seventh brother, being young, was frightened and ran away, falling several times while running away and getting injured all over.”
“Master, how should Ling Xing be dealt with?”
Causing trouble and bullying others in the hunting ground was a serious offense.
Now that Ling Chen was holding him accountable, the headmaster’s face turned serious as he spoke, “If what the Eldest Prince said is true, Ling Xing should be punished with a cane, expelled from the hunting ground, and not allowed to enter again.”
As he spoke, he glanced at Ling Xing on the ground. When he looked up again, he saw the pitiful little prince in Ling Chen’s arms.
The little prince’s eyelids were red from crying, his tender little face was dirty, and even his hair still had a few grass leaves on it.
At a glance, he had indeed fallen quite a few times to end up like this.
“Eldest Prince, forgive me for asking one more question. Since Ling Xing was chasing the Seventh Prince, why did he end up here, and why did he suffer such serious injuries?” The headmaster hesitated for a moment before asking.
Ling Chen held the child close to him, and on his usually gentle and polite face, there was a rare coldness.
“The wounds on his body look like they were caused by wild beasts. Perhaps he bullied the cubs, and even the wild beasts couldn’t stand it, so they rushed out and bit him.”
The instructor: “…”
Ling Chen felt that he made a reasonable point. He said coldly, “I remember some wild beasts have a habit of protecting their cubs. There have been records in folklore that wolf packs even adopt abandoned cubs. Our Seventh Brother is so small, if placed among the beasts, even the wild beasts can’t bear to harm him. But Ling Xing, instead, chased and bullied Seventh Brother.”
Ling Chen’s words were eloquent, and after a moment of silence, even the instructor repeated his words.
It’s just unknown whether this reason would be believed by Yong Wang.
“What you said, it’s all nonsense!”
Ling Xing, lying on the ground, endured the intense pain and refuted Ling Chen’s words.
Although what Ling Chen said matched exactly what had just happened…
But he was determined not to admit it.
With no patrol instructor present and no one seeing him chasing the little child, the injuries on the little child’s body could easily be blamed on himself.
It was his own mischief, his own falls!
Ling Xing had long planned to give the little child a good lesson, and everything was going according to his plan, except for the wild beast that rushed out, which was not part of his plan.
Just thinking about that strange wild beast that looked like a tiger but wasn’t, made him shiver all over.
Fortunately, that wild beast was injured, and someone found him in time. Otherwise, he had a feeling he would really die in the jaws of that beast!
“Master, in the hunting ground, there are such vicious beasts that injure people. You, you—” He gasped for breath, wanting to blame the master.
But Ling Chen interrupted him, “What does this have to do with the master! The so-called vicious beast you mentioned didn’t harm anyone else, only bit you. What’s the reason for that?!”
Ling Chen had never been so aggressive before.
Although he wasn’t close to Ling Xing, there was still some blood relationship between them, so he was usually polite to Ling Xing.
But this time was different.
With the little child in his arms, crying and trembling, Ling Chen almost wanted to kick Ling Xing a few more times in front of the child to vent his anger.
The headmaster saw that Ling Chen was very angry and quickly tried to placate him, letting him hold the little prince and rest for a while on the side.
Not long after.
The imperial physician rushed over, treated Ling Xing’s wounds, and then carried him like a zong zi to Yong Wang’s mansion.
Ling Xing was wrapped up and unable to move, but he was still conscious. He didn’t mention whether he was chasing the Seventh Prince, just gathering his strength, he said fiercely, “The beast that injured me, its size is like a tiger, with sharp teeth, and its fur has red and white patterns! Its back is injured, and after people arrived, it ran deep into the hunting ground!”
“Master, after you catch this beast, bring it to Yong Wang’s mansion for me. I want to skin it and pull out its tendons!”
“No way!”
The little child, who had finally calmed down in Ling Chen’s arms, heard Ling Xing’s words, and tears welled up in his red eyes again.
He heard it. The beast Ling Xing mentioned was his Ah Wu.
Ling Xing wanted to skin and pull the tendons out of his Ah Wu!
“Big brother.”
Ling Rui raised his tearful little face and hiccupped, “Don’t skin it!”
Ling Chen: “…”
Unable to bear it any longer, Ling Chen kicked Ling Xing again in front of the child, who had finally stabilized in his arms. “Saying such bloody and cruel words in front of a child! Ling Xing, how long do you want to scare Little Seven?!”
Ling Xing, who was already injured, felt even worse after being kicked, rolled his eyes, and fainted.
Ling Chen wasn’t worried when he saw him faint.
Seeing this, the headmaster signaled to the people carrying Ling Xing to quickly take him away.
If he wasn’t taken away soon, he was really afraid Ling Xing would die here.
Ling Xing was carried away, and Ling Rui looked at the depths of the hunting ground, struggling in Ling Chen’s arms to go down.
Ling Chen didn’t let go, and he whispered softly, “Little Seven, be good, big brother will take you back to the palace. We’ll change your clothes when we get back to the palace, and then let the imperial physician check your body.”
Ling Rui shook his head like a rattle.
He pointed ahead stubbornly, “Go in.”
Ling Chen naturally couldn’t take him in. The depths of the hunting ground were full of wild beasts. Even if there were indeed protective beasts, there were also ferocious beasts that would treat children as snacks.
He couldn’t take the risk of taking Little Seven in.
To appease Little Seven in his arms, Ling Chen also spoke to the beast tamer, “Protect the beast that protected Seventh Brother today when you find it, and don’t let anyone take it away. Remember?”
The beast tamer nodded and replied, “I remember.”
Even though Ling Chen had made this arrangement, Ling Rui still didn’t want to. He insisted on going in to find the beast. If he wasn’t allowed to find it, he would cling to Ling Chen’s neck, tears streaming down his cheeks.
Ling Chen’s hands were hot from the tears.
He looked at the others in the crowd, but there was no one who could comfort the child.
Little Six, who was most familiar with Ling Rui, was just here a moment ago, but now he it was unknow where he had gone. Ling Chen frowned and asked, “Where’s Little Six?”
“Big brother, I-I’m here!”
As soon as he finished asking, Ling Fu hurriedly ran over. Behind Ling Fu, there was another person that Ling Rui was more familiar with, Murong Xu.
Murong Xu saw his own family’s little pitiful as soon as he came.
He skillfully took the little pitiful from Ling Rui’s arms, without asking what happened just now. The chubby little one had already told him everything that had happened.
“Alright, stop crying.”
Murong Xu was the youngest son of the General’s Mansion. Although he had already completed his studies, occasional visits to the hunting ground were also allowed. He came today because he heard that the little prince had also come here.
He originally intended to take a look at the little one and leave.
Unexpectedly, the little one suffered so much grievance.
“Your Highness, the General’s Mansion is closer from here. Little Seven is frail and needs to see a doctor as soon as possible. Luckily, I have invited a physician to my mansion. After he sees the physician, I will personally escort him to the palace.”
After speaking to Ling Chen, Murong Xu turned his head and glanced at the little one.
He used an angle that only the little one could see and made a gesture with his lips.
The next moment.
The little one held back his tears, his little head tilted, and then he fainted.
Ling Chen: “…”
Murong Xu panicked, “Oh no, Little Seven fainted! Your Highness, I’ll take him away first, and I’ll personally see His Majesty later!”
Murong Xu carried the little child out.
Ling Fu looked at their departing figures, his chubby face slightly dumbfounded, “Isn’t Little Seven going back to the palace?”
He brought Murong Xu over to coax Little Seven back to the palace.
But how did Murong Xu carry Little Seven away!
Under Ling Fu’s stunned gaze, Murong Xu, with Ling Rui in his arms, left the hunting ground. After they walked away, he lowered his head and said, “I’ll come back later in the evening. If you want the beast that protected you, I’ll catch it for you.”
Hearing this, Ling Rui hugged his uncle tightly.
In less than half a cup of tea.
Ling Rui was brought into the General’s Mansion by Murong Xu. This was his first time in the General’s Mansion. After entering, he hugged Murong Xu, his little face timid.
“Ah Xu, who are you holding…”
“It’s Little Seven.”
After Murong Xu answered, facing the gazes of everyone in the room, he asked the head of the household, “Grandmother, has the physician who was sent to examine you left yet? Let him check on Little Seven.”
The people in the room naturally knew about the Seventh Prince.
They knew that the Seventh Prince was raised by their family’s Yi Er in the palace and was dearly loved. But at the same time, they also knew that Emperor Ling didn’t want to let go of Little Seven and let him be raised by their family.
“How did you bring the Seventh Prince back? And what happened to him?” Madam Murong reacted first. While sending a maid to fetch the physician, she approached her son and asked about the situation.
Murong Xu quickly recounted what happened in the hunting ground, then he took the child buried in his arms, who dared not greet anyone, to his own room.
Madam Murong and Old Madam Murong, along with the two unmarried young ladies in the family, exchanged glances and followed.
As soon as they entered, they saw the little child, who had been stripped naked, lying on the bed.
The soft little child sat on the bed, with bruises on several parts of his body from the falls. He had nowhere to hide, so he greeted everyone with a soft voice, “I-I’m Little Seven.”
All the ladies were stunned to hear this childish voice.
The young masters and misses of their Murong Mansion were all troublesome, each one a little tyrant since childhood.
But the child Murong Xu brought back was soft, timid, beautiful, and even knew how to act cute…
Although he was acting cute towards Murong Xu, they couldn’t help but feel a little overwhelmed, especially Madam Murong, who had been fierce all her life and had been on the battlefield. She was looking at the little child with increasingly bright eyes.
“Little Seven, I’m the grandmother of the Noble Consort. Has the Noble Consort told you about me?”
Ling Rui nodded obediently. His small body clung to Murong Xu, and his two little hands firmly held Murong Xu’s arms. Under the gaze of the people in the room, he looked at the old lady and said softly, “Great Grandmother.”
The old madam made a sound of surprise when she heard this title.
Madam Murong looked at the old madam, whose face was all smiles, and also spoke with a dignified expression, “Little Seven, I am the mother of the Noble Consort.”
Ling Rui nodded again and called softly, “Grandma.”
The two young ladies followed suit and said in unison, “I am the younger sister of the noble consort.”
Ling Rui blinked his eyes, gradually relaxing as he answered the questions. He tilted his head, leaned against Murong Xu’s arms, and continued, “Aunt.”
“Oh, it’s Aunt.”
The third miss couldn’t help herself and walked up, wanting to hold him, “Little Seven, can Aunt hold you for a moment?”
Ling Rui blushed, whispered softly, “I don’t have clothes.”
“It’s okay, Aunt will just hold you for a moment and then put you back.” The third miss smiled and reached out to Ling Rui.
Although Ling Rui was still embarrassed, after the third miss reached out her hand, he leaned out and let her hold him obediently.
The third miss held the child for the first time and felt like her heart was melting.
She held the little child and didn’t let go, “Little Seven, give Auntie a kiss.”
Ling Rui: “Muah.”
The third miss was kissed by the child on the cheek, and she felt like she was floating.
Madam Murong, Old Madam Murong, and the fourth miss looked on with envy. Madam Murong spoke up, “Little Three, quickly put Little Seven back. The physician is here, let the physician examine Little Seven.”
At Madam Murong’s command, the third miss reluctantly let go.
The physician who was waiting on the side came forward and carefully examined Ling Rui’s body, “Seventh Prince’s external injuries need more medication. In addition, Seventh Prince was frightened and may have symptoms under fear. You need to pay more attention to his condition. If anything goes wrong, seek medical attention immediately.”
“Yes, we’ll remember that.”
The old madam sent the physician away to rest, then found some clothes for the child and changed Ling Rui into them.
Ling Rui looked at these people, his little face full of closeness and trust.
The old madam was moved, asking, “Little Seven, are you not afraid of us? We haven’t taken care of you like the Noble Consort.”
“Not afraid.”
Ling Rui sat in Murong Xu’s arms, tilting his little face up, with not a hint of fear in his soft voice, he said, “Like Niang Niang, like uncle, like here.”
He liked the Noble Consort, so he also liked these family members.
In his heart, the Noble Consort was family, and the Noble Consort’s family were also his own.
The old madam’s heart trembled as she looked at this child, and she completely understood why her granddaughter couldn’t let go of this child.
With such a pure and sincere little child, full of affection, no one could resist.
“Good child, rest for a while. When you’re feeling better, I’ll come see you again.” The old madam ushered the people in the room away, not wanting them to disturb the child’s rest.
As soon as they left, Murong Xu, having listened to the child’s request, was about to go out to find the beast called Ah Wu for him.
No, the child said Ah Wu was a fierce beast.
“Uncle, take me with you.”
Ling Rui pulled on Murong Xu, wanting to go with him, “I can talk to Ah Wu too, Uncle, take me with you.”
“How will you talk to him?”
Murong Xu was changing his clothes and didn’t intend to take him.
Seeing Murong Xu about to leave, Ling Rui hurriedly came down to hug his legs, “I can talk to Ah Wu, I can talk to Ah Wu right now!”
As he said this, Ling Rui activated his foresight ability in front of Murong Xu. But before the foresight ability could last for three seconds, his wet eyes widened suddenly—
In the precognitive image, he saw arrows piercing through his uncle’s chest, and his uncle lying lifeless under the city tower.
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