Ling Rui had decided to stir up trouble outside, but before leaving, he had to discuss his plans with his older brother.
And, of course, he had to spend more time with his father and mother before he left.
Leaving wasn’t something one could do on a whim—there was a lot of preparation involved.
When Ling Chen learned of his plans, he wasn’t entirely on board. “Little Seven, isn’t it better to stay in the capital? If you’re bored here, I can assign you some work to keep you busy.”
“Big Brother, I don’t want to stay here,” Ling Rui replied honestly. “I want to go out into the world.”
“The outside world is unstable, Little Seven,” Ling Chen cautioned.
“I know,” Ling Rui responded, his small face resolute. “Big Brother, I’m not a child anymore. Don’t underestimate me.”
Ling Chen gently patted his head, trying to reassure him. “I’m not underestimating you. I’m just worried.”
“Big Brother, I’ll be fine. And besides, my safety is nothing compared to the future of Qi Dynasty. I want to secure that future,” Ling Rui said, his tone firm.
Even if it meant facing danger, he was determined to fight for a bright future for Qi Dynasty.
Ling Rui then shared his vision of Qi Dynasty’s future with Ling Chen, using the guise of fortune-telling. If he had said this in the past, Ling Chen might have laughed it off, thinking it was nonsense.
But ever since Ling Rui had correctly predicted the “Empress,” Ling Chen, even if incredulous, couldn’t help but take his words seriously.
Ling Rui explained that the royal heirs would be harmed and that Qi Dynasty would be attacked by surrounding nations.
After thinking for a long time, Ling Chen finally spoke, “If what you’re saying is true, then there must be a traitor within Qi Dynasty.”
After all, not just anyone could get close to the royal heirs, and their safety had always been a top priority. If they were being harmed, it was likely the work of an insider.
“Little Seven, if you’ve truly made up your mind to leave, I won’t stop you.”
“Big Brother, I’ve decided.”
The two brothers locked eyes, and Ling Chen gently patted Ling Rui on the shoulder, giving in. “Alright, go. But if you run into any trouble, remember to come to me.”
They both shared the same concern for Qi Dynasty’s future, and for now, they were aligned in their goals.
“Big Brother, I’ll tell Father and Mother that I’m going on a trip. Don’t spill the beans.”
“Got it,” Ling Chen agreed.
When Ling Rui had attended school at Guan Shan Residence, he’d made many friends. These friends, though not highly favored, were princes and princesses from other countries.
Ling Rui planned to visit them when he traveled abroad!
Ling Chen would handle the traitors, while Ling Rui would deal with the external threats. Each had their task, and neither would be idle.
After a few days of preparation in the palace, the day of Ling Rui’s departure arrived.
Before leaving, he said his goodbyes to the adults and went to see Pingping and Anan.
“Little darlings, wait for Uncle to come back, okay?”
Ling Rui hugged the two babies, kissing their chubby cheeks and little hands.
Although the babies usually didn’t like being kissed, except by their mother, they made an exception for their handsome uncle. They raised their chubby faces and giggled, letting their uncle kiss them again.
After a while of cuddling, Ling Rui steeled his heart and prepared to leave.
“Fourth Sister-in-law, I have to go now. When I return, I’ll come to see Pingping and Anan again.”
“Alright,” the Fourth Wangfei replied, handing him a few items she had prepared for his journey. “You might need these while you’re away.”
“Thank you, Fourth Sister-in-law.”
As they bid farewell, the two babies sensed something was wrong. Anan, who couldn’t walk yet, began to babble, while Pingping, the little troublemaker, crawled over, his serious chubby face pressing against Ling Rui. He wrapped his chubby arms around Ling Rui’s leg like a lotus root.
“Susu, don’t go!”
Pingping held onto his uncle’s leg, his small face stern, and his baby voice filled with determination.
“If Susu leaves, baby will cry!”
Ling Rui: “…”
The Fourth Wangfei: “…”
The Fourth Wangfei coughed, bending down to pick up Pingping. “Pingping, no fussing.”
But Pingping’s chubby little hands clung tightly to Ling Rui, even biting down, clearly using all his strength.
The Fourth Wangfei couldn’t pull him off and glanced at Ling Rui.
Seeing this, Ling Rui picked up the baby who was stubbornly holding onto him, gave him a kiss, and tried to comfort him, “Baby, Uncle is going out to buy you some toys. Can you be good?”
“No!”
“Uncle will buy you some milk cakes, your favorite sweet milk cakes, right?”
“No!”
Pingping was proving to be quite difficult. He firmly buried his little head into his uncle’s chest, refusing to budge.
Ling Rui felt warmth in his heart at the baby’s clinginess, but at the same time, it was a tricky situation to solve.
After being stuck with Pingping for a while, the Fourth Wangfei finally couldn’t stand it any longer.
“Little Seven, give him to me.”
As soon as she spoke, she reached out to take Pingping from Ling Rui.
Pingping wriggled his chubby body, refusing to be taken by his mother.
The Fourth Wangfei, having tried coaxing him for quite some time, had run out of patience. Seeing her son’s resistance, she raised her hand and smacked his chubby little bottom.
Ling Rui was stunned.
Pingping, however, didn’t freeze. Realizing that his mother was serious about hitting him, he quickly wrapped his arms around Ling Rui’s neck, seeking his uncle’s protection.
“No one can save you today!” the Fourth Wangfei said, her voice firm. “No one can help you!”
Though she appeared gentle, anyone who knew that she had spent years on the battlefield with her husband would realize that her gentleness did not equate to weakness.
Initially, she had wanted to maintain a composed image in front of her brother-in-law, but her son had pushed her past her limit.
Right in front of Ling Rui, she forcefully pulled her son over. Despite Pingping’s loud wails, she delivered a series of spanks.
Ling Rui watched, speechless.
He even remembered how he used to get spanked as a child too.
After a thorough scolding from his mother, Pingping, the little troublemaker, cried so hard he almost passed out.
Anan, who had also wanted to make a fuss earlier, immediately became well-behaved after seeing her brother get punished.
“Little Seven, you can leave now. I won’t see you off,” the Fourth Wangfei said, holding the sobbing Pingping.
Ling Rui quickly agreed, “Alright, Fourth Sister-in-law, no need to send me off. I can go by myself.”
As Ling Rui strode off, he could still hear Pingping’s crying from afar.
“Sigh.”
Ling Rui touched his own bottom, relieved that he was grown up now and didn’t have to worry about being spanked anymore.
After saying his goodbyes to everyone in the capital, Ling Rui opened his map and confirmed his first destination—Dundun’s house!
The group of friends from Guan Shan Residence had kept in touch after graduation.
Ling Rui and Dundun had stayed connected, and just recently, Dundun had even sent him a package of local specialties.
And Dundun’s home wasn’t far from Ah Wu either.
While visiting Dundun, Ling Rui could also stop by to see Ah Wu!
The thought of seeing Ah Wu again made Ling Rui’s heart race a little faster.
How strange. He had grown up with Ah Wu, and knew every detail of his face and personality. But ever since falling in love, whenever he thought of Ah Wu’s face, his heart would bubble with excitement.
The feeling of being in love was truly magical!
Ling Rui didn’t bring too many people with him on this journey. Ideally, he hadn’t wanted to bring anyone, but the palace wouldn’t feel at ease if he traveled alone.
In the end, he compromised by taking a few people with him for part of the way.
Once they’d accompanied him for a while, Ling Rui sent some of his belongings ahead to Dundun’s place and transformed into his small beast form. With only a small bundle tied to his back, he set off lightly on his journey.
When Ling Chen found out that Ling Rui had ditched his escorts, he was furious. But before he could act on it, the guards delivered a letter from Ling Rui in time.
After reading the letter, Ling Chen’s anger subsided, though he still frowned.
“How reckless. Traveling alone without help, how does he plan to manage food and drink?”
Ling Chen had seen his younger brother’s small beast form before. In his eyes, the tiny creature, if left to fend for itself on the road, would seem terribly pitiful.
But there wasn’t much Ling Chen could do. He couldn’t just send someone to catch the little dumpling.
“Forget it. Let him be,” Ling Chen said, giving up on the idea of interfering.
The small beast scurried along, sprinting as fast as he could. Though he couldn’t outrun Ah Wu, who was several times larger, he was still much faster than a horse.
In the small bundle on his back, Ling Rui had packed some dried meat.
When he was hungry, he ate the meat; when he was thirsty, he found water.
After enduring the hardships of traveling in the wilderness, the little beast finally arrived at the gates of Dundun’s city.
He caught his reflection in the water and noticed he was a bit dirty. So, he quickly gave himself a bath, washing off all the dirt from his fur.
After getting cleaned up, Ling Rui tied his small bundle back on and didn’t enter through the city gates. Instead, he squeezed through a small hole hidden by grass under the gate.
Going through the gates would require identification, and Ling Rui wasn’t sure if he would get detained.
Once inside the city, he transformed back into his human form.
He had written to Dundun before his arrival and arranged a time to meet.
Since it wasn’t yet time for their meeting, Ling Rui wasn’t in a rush. He checked into an inn and familiarized himself with his surroundings.
Dundun’s country was a small one.
Dundun hadn’t become an emperor, but in the past two years, he had been following the reform strategies Ling Rui had used in Yanzhou, trying to implement changes.
However, Dundun’s results weren’t as successful as Ling Rui’s.
Ling Rui waited for two days before finally meeting him.
As luck would have it, when they met, Ah Wu happened to be arriving to find his “cub” as well.
Ah Wu had a way of tracking down Ling Rui’s movements.
Ling Rui hadn’t planned on hiding from him anyway. This time, he had come out specifically to reunite with Ah Wu.
At this moment, Ah Wu hadn’t arrived yet, and Ling Rui spotted Dundun first.
Dundun was a bit older than Ling Rui. Despite his name suggesting a sturdy build, the stress from the past few years had made him a bit thin.
There was a lingering sadness in his eyes, which only faded when he saw Ling Rui, replaced by a look of joy.
“Little Seven, you’re here!”
“Dundun, I’ve arrived!”
Having not seen each other face-to-face in a long time, they looked at one another with excitement before eagerly hugging.
“Little Seven, I missed you so much!”
“Dundun, I missed you too!”
Since childhood, Ling Rui had a habit of showering his friends with compliments, so naturally, they all learned to express their fondness and longing when seeing him.
After a tight hug, they finally let go.
They had so much to talk about. Though they often exchanged letters, it wasn’t as convenient as speaking in person.
So, they happily decided, “Let’s sleep together tonight!”
This way, they could chat the whole night!
