Ling Rui heard the crow’s cry. Irritated by the noise, he got out of bed and shut the doors and windows tightly.
Ping An slept soundly and wasn’t disturbed in the slightest.
Seeing how late it was, Ling Rui finally laid down, trying to summon some sleep.
Next to him, Ping An, small and tiny, was sleeping. As she slept, her little hand reached out to grab Ling Rui’s clothes, and her body moved closer to him.
Ling Rui noticed this, so he gently patted her back and whispered softly, “Be good, Ping An, sleep well.”
Back at the palace, Ling Rui had soothed Ping Ping and An An to sleep many times.
So, taking care of children wasn’t unfamiliar to him.
The long, steady breathing of the child was surprisingly calming, and as Ling Rui listened to it, he slowly began to feel drowsy.
With one arm around Ping An, he unknowingly drifted off to sleep.
In the middle of the night, the securely closed door and window were skillfully opened.
A figure in black nightwear stood by Ling Rui’s bedside.
The faint scent of smoke had already filled the room.
Ling Rui, inhaling the smoke, remained in a deep sleep, completely unaware of the person standing right in front of him.
The figure reached out and checked Ling Rui’s breathing. The next second, after confirming that Ling Rui had fallen for their trick, they wasted no time. Swiftly, they grabbed him and started to pull him out of bed.
Midway through, the figure noticed Ping An’s small hand.
Ping An’s tiny hand was tightly clutching Ling Rui’s clothes.
Another man in black saw this and immediately took a knife to cut through the fabric so that Ping An’s hand wouldn’t be a hindrance.
“Hurry up,” he whispered urgently to his companion.
“I know.”
The companion, spurred on, moved quickly and efficiently, pulling Ling Rui out of the room and hoisting him over his shoulder.
The black-clad men, having succeeded, quickly disappeared into the dark room.
No one knew how much time passed before the darkness in the room slowly gave way to the light filtering through the windows.
On the bed, the little girl Ping An rubbed her eyes and woke up.
The first thing she did upon waking was call out for Ling Rui.
“Big brother,” she called.
Although Ling Rui had told her to call him uncle, Ping An still felt that calling him big brother suited him more.
Her big brother didn’t look that old, and he was very good-looking. Ping An liked calling him brother.
“Big brother.”
Receiving no response, Ping An sat up and called out again.
She called several times, but there was no answer.
In the end, Ping An grew anxious.
She got out of bed, her bare feet touching the floor as she searched the small room. After searching the room, she opened the door and ran outside to look for him.
“Big brother, where are you?!”
Her young, innocent voice echoed through the courtyard, laced with panic and fear that anyone could hear.
“Ping An, you’re awake.”
Finally, an old man appeared in front of her. “The big brother you’re looking for asked me to take care of you.”
“Come on, let’s go have breakfast.”
The old man bent down, extending his hand to Ping An.
Ping An blinked, her black eyes glistening with tears that she tried hard to hold back.
“Did big brother leave?”
“Yes, he left. He went home.”
“Will he come back? Will he come to see Ping An again?”
“I don’t know.”
The old man took Ping An by the hand and led her out of the courtyard. Outside, a carriage was already waiting.
“Ping An, I’m going to take you to a new place. You won’t go hungry there.”
“I want to see big brother again.”
Ping An was too small. Her body was small, and her courage was even smaller.
So when she was lifted into the carriage, she only dared to quietly voice her request.
“Your big brother is very busy. He doesn’t have time to visit you.”
The old man rejected her request. He sat with Ping An in the carriage and handed her a piece of bread.
“Eat up, we’re leaving.”
As the old man spoke, he drew the curtain of the carriage closed.
The curtain blocked Ping An’s view, and holding the bread in her hands, she stared longingly at the small window of the carriage.
The window was tightly covered, and she didn’t dare open it.
Soon, the carriage set off, leaving only a trail of dust behind.
Listening to the sound of the horse’s hooves, Ping An’s round eyes welled with tears. She didn’t know if she would ever see her big brother again.
Perhaps she never would.
While Ping An thought longingly of Ling Rui, the man himself was slowly opening his eyes in a dimly lit place.
As he awoke, he immediately felt the dryness and soreness in his throat.
Breathing in the sedative smoke last night had caused some discomfort.
“Ping An.”
He called Ping An’s name first, but after realizing that something wasn’t right, he called out again in a deeper voice, “Teng Liang.”
Teng Liang lived next door. If something had happened, Teng Liang should have noticed.
Moreover, this was Teng Liang’s territory. Ling Rui trusted him, trusted him to provide protection, which is why he hadn’t been on guard.
But after the second call, it wasn’t Teng Liang who appeared. Instead, it was a middle-aged stranger.
The man had an ordinary appearance, the kind of person you wouldn’t notice in a crowd.
When he approached Ling Rui, he respectfully bowed.
“Who are you?” Ling Rui asked.
“I am the Prime Minister of the Wei Kingdom, Wei Cong,” the man introduced himself in a calm, steady voice, as if he were just making small talk. “Your Highness, there’s no need to worry. I mean you no harm. I brought you here to discuss something important.”
Ling Rui: “…”
Ling Rui didn’t say a word, but his expression clearly said, Do you really think I believe you?
What kind of good person would kidnap him in the middle of the night?
“Where is Teng Liang? I want to see him.”
“The Fourth Wangye isn’t here. No matter how much you call for him, he won’t appear.”
Wei Cong distanced Teng Liang from the situation. He had a table of breakfast dishes brought in and set before Ling Rui.
“Young Wangye, please eat. If the food doesn’t suit your taste, I’ll have something different prepared next time.”
Wei Cong didn’t bind Ling Rui’s hands, but his feet were shackled with iron chains.
Ling Rui assessed the situation and figured escaping would be difficult.
He glanced at Wei Cong, then at the food, and finally scooted forward to start eating.
Wei Cong didn’t touch the food. There wasn’t much, and he was reluctant to eat it himself.
“Young Wangye, you’ve seen the current state of the Wei Kingdom.”
“All I ask is one thing—that the people of the Wei Kingdom are given a way to survive.”
“Before, everyone said that if we aligned ourselves with the Qi Dynasty, we could escape the disasters. So, our kingdom followed suit.”
When Wei Cong spoke of this, his deep voice paused for a moment.
He had been one of the first to agree to align with the Qi Dynasty. He had served as an official for many years, known for his integrity, often called the ‘hard bone’ of the Wei Kingdom.
But when the other kingdoms faced calamities, he stood with Teng Liang, and together they pushed for aligning with Qi.
As long as it meant the survival of his people, he would do whatever it took.
After all, hadn’t the Qi Dynasty itself once depended on the Great Qing?
Everyone was well aware of the Qi Dynasty’s current strength and status among the nations.
A temporary alliance, in exchange for the survival of Wei, was a deal Wei Cong deemed worthwhile.
At first, the Wei Kingdom fared better after aligning with Qi, but slowly, their situation worsened again.
Too many nations had aligned with Qi, and it seemed Qi was unable to protect them all.
“Your Highness, we aligned ourselves with Qi, but look at the situation now.”
“For the sake of the Wei Kingdom, I ask you to stay here and protect us.”
Wei Cong’s final words sent a chill through Ling Rui.
Everyone had come to believe that Qi was blessed by auspicious signs. Yet the fact that Ling Rui himself was the source of that blessing was a secret he had never revealed.
How did Wei Cong know?!
“Even if I stay here, I am still a citizen of Qi Dynasty.”
Ling Rui pressed his lips together and continued, “Keeping me here won’t help you.”
After advising Wei Cong, Ling Rui offered him a way out: “On the contrary, if you release me, given my relationship with Teng Liang, I will bring relief supplies to your people.”
“Relief supplies won’t solve the root problem.”
Wei Cong saw the situation clearly: “The Wei Kingdom cannot rely on Qi Dynasty’s aid forever.”
“Young Wangye, just stay here for now. Whether it will help or not, we’ll know in time.”
Wei Cong spoke at length with Ling Rui, seemingly trying to appeal to his emotions.
Once he had said all he needed to, he didn’t linger.
Before leaving, Ling Rui called after him, “I can cooperate and stay here for a while, but if time proves that my staying won’t help, will you let me go?”
He thought of the little Ping An he had just saved. For the countless “little Ping An’s” here, he felt compassion.
If staying would truly help, there was no need to imprison him; he would stay willingly.
But what if it didn’t help?
Ling Rui’s question made Wei Cong pause, but he didn’t answer. He strode out of the room.
Ling Rui watched his retreating figure and puffed out his cheeks in frustration.
Outside the dim room, Wei Cong looked up at the bright sky and let out a long sigh.
One of his subordinates approached and quietly reported, “Lord, we found this in the young Wangye’s room.”
Wei Cong took the papers his subordinate handed him.
On them was Ling Rui’s handwriting, offering suggestions on how to manage the refugees and ways to ensure they had enough to eat.
The pages were filled with dense writing.
Wei Cong silently read through them. After a long pause, he closed his eyes briefly and murmured, “Young Wangye, it is our Wei Kingdom that has wronged you.”
He could only hope that the Young Wangye’s presence would help lift the curse on the Wei Kingdom.
Otherwise, even he wouldn’t be able to guarantee Ling Rui’s safety.
The Qi Dynasty and Great Qing remained untouched by disasters, while other nations continued to suffer. The stark contrast was hard to bear—how could the other countries accept it?
Kidnapping the Young Wangye had not been Wei Kingdom’s idea alone.
In the dark room, Ling Rui had no idea what Wei Cong was thinking. He laid slumped over the table, feeling heavy-hearted.
Over the years, he had foreseen many things and changed the fates of many people.
But as for the future of the Qi Dynasty, the future of the entire world, he suddenly wasn’t sure if he had succeeded in altering it.
“Ah Wu.”
Feeling down, Ling Rui quietly called out Ah Wu’s name.
“When will you come find me…”
He wanted Ah Wu to come but also didn’t want him to.
With Ah Wu’s bad temper, if he found out Ling Rui was imprisoned, he’d probably beat Teng Liang to death.
“Never mind, I’ll wait a bit longer.”
Ling Rui muttered to himself, “Let’s see if this little Auspicious beast is actually useful or not.”
The lifespan of a Auspicious beast was typically very long, and the older they were, the stronger their powers.
Based on the lifespan of the auspicious beast, he is still very, very young.
Such a young auspicious beast—how much can he really accomplish? It’s hard to say for sure.
If his abilities aren’t enough, he’d have no choice but to rely on sacrificial ceremonies.
But both his father and Ah Wu have long forbidden him from using that trick.
