Ling Rui, lying on the table with nothing to do, could only daydream idly.
After thinking for a while and feeling it was a waste of time, he called for someone.
“Is anyone there?!”
Ling Rui shouted toward the door, “Could you bring me some paper and pens?”
After a moment of calling, someone really did bring him the requested supplies.
“Thank you.”
Ling Rui sat on the stool and thanked the person who brought him the paper.
He didn’t scribble randomly but continued writing.
Last night, unable to sleep, he had written many suggestions and plans for Wei Kingdom. Now, besides Wei Kingdom, he wanted to write about other things.
He wasn’t the kind of person to selflessly sacrifice himself. His life mattered to his parents, his siblings, his friends, and his lover.
So, even though he knew that building an altar and sacrificing himself could save the people of the world, he didn’t want to do it.
He wasn’t willing to sacrifice himself, but he still felt pity for the suffering people.
Right now, all he could do was try his best to think of ways to help them survive.
“Post-disaster reconstruction… crop planting… factory reopening…”
Ling Rui was thinking through every aspect.
His studies at Guan Shan Residence, combined with his experience in reforming Yanzhou, and the political influence from his eldest brother over the years, had filled his young mind with a wealth of knowledge.
He had thought deeply about the bigger picture of the world, and his insight was no less than anyone else’s.
Time passed slowly as Ling Rui scribbled furiously.
Occasionally, when he grew tired of writing, he would ask about Little Pingan.
Unfortunately, all he got was the reply, “Little Pingan is doing well.” Other than that, he knew nothing about where Little Pingan was or who had taken him in.
At first, he kept asking Teng Liang, but gradually, he stopped.
Wei Cong came to see him again after receiving the thick stack of papers Ling Rui had written.
When Ling Rui saw him, he didn’t even bother to stand.
“Young Wangye.”
Wei Cong greeted him and then sat down across from him.
The two locked eyes. Ling Rui sat slouched in his chair, speaking in a tired voice.
“You’ve locked me up for seven or eight days. Has the situation outside improved?”
His feet were chained, making movement uncomfortable, so he stayed still.
He obediently remained there, waiting for Wei Cong’s response.
Wei Cong was silent, his face as somber as ever, looking as worn as before.
Ling Rui couldn’t read any clues from his expression.
After a while, Wei Cong shook his head.
After shaking his head, he asked softly, “Young Wangye, can you only protect the Qi Dynasty?”
Ling Rui felt a pang of coldness inside as Wei Cong shook his head.
Though he had already suspected his abilities weren’t enough, facing the reality of his powerlessness still stung.
He pursed his lips and didn’t answer Wei Cong’s question.
The answer was obvious.
The Qi Dynasty hadn’t experienced any major disasters up until now.
Due to the suffering in other nations, Qi Dynasty had developed a strong sense of crisis and worked hard to increase grain production.
Now, Qi Dynasty’s food supplies were very abundant.
“Why? We are clearly dependent on the Qi Dynasty. Why is this still happening?”
Wei Cong muttered softly, “You can protect Qi Dynasty, so why can’t you protect our Wei Kingdom?”
Ling Rui: “…”
Ling Rui, with his keen hearing, picked up Wei Cong’s murmurs.
“Don’t lose hope.”
Ling Rui tried to comfort him. “None of us wanted things to turn out like this. Did you read what I wrote these past few days? Maybe it can help—”
“Young Wangye.”
Before Ling Rui could finish, Wei Cong interrupted him sharply.
The previously dejected Wei Cong now raised his head and stared straight at Ling Rui.
With a pause between each word, he asked, “Do you have any other way to stop these natural disasters?”
Ling Rui was stunned.
He could feel that Wei Cong was seeking a definite answer.
But honestly, he replied, “No.”
He was still very young for an auspicious beast, and he had no way to counter natural disasters.
As the words left his lips, something flickered in Wei Cong’s eyes.
“Maybe you haven’t been here long enough. Wait three more days.”
Finally, Wei Cong gave a timeframe.
Ling Rui nodded.
He’d already waited seven or eight days, so three more didn’t matter.
“Alright.”
Ling Rui responded, “If there’s still no result after three days, just let me go. I need to return to Qi Dynasty.”
Wei Cong gave no clear reply, but he left instructions for some pastries, books, and writing supplies to be delivered to Ling Rui before he left.
Ling Rui waved after him, “Goodbye! If you see Teng Liang, tell him to come see me.”
It was impossible for Teng Liang not to know that he was locked up.
But apart from the chains on his feet, everything else—his food, his treatment—was normal.
Thinking of Wei’s tragic situation, Ling Rui sighed softly in his heart—
If Teng Liang came to apologize, maybe he’d be willing to forgive him, out of their shared years as classmates.
Wei Cong heard Ling Rui’s last words but didn’t pass them on to Teng Liang after he left.
The “three days” he mentioned weren’t about waiting for Ling Rui to make a difference.
Those last three days were the agreed-upon time for him and other nations to take action.
They planned to hold the young wangye hostage, forcing Qi Dynasty and Great Qing to cede fertile land and cities to them, so they could move their people in.
Since relying on Qi Dynasty had proven useless, they decided to occupy Qi Dynasty themselves.
In preparation for this, Wei Cong had already publicly released everything Ling Rui had written during these days.
With Ling Rui’s works out there, no one would suspect he was in any danger at this moment.
And when people came to Wei to inquire about Ling Rui’s whereabouts, Wei Cong could fabricate a remote location.
The one who came to ask about Ling Rui was Ah Wu.
It was Teng Liang who sent Ah Wu away.
Considering that Ling Rui had previously run around with Dundun and Jiujie, accompanying them for quite some time, Ah Wu didn’t initially suspect anything.
However, when he arrived at Ling Rui’s “location” as quickly as possible, he found that Ling Rui wasn’t there.
Immediately, he sensed something was wrong.
Instead of calmly questioning Teng Liang, he prepared to confront him.
He went back, but this time, he didn’t even see Teng Liang.
At the same time, Wei Kingdom and multiple nations launched an attack on Qi Dynasty.
Although Ah Wu didn’t see Teng Liang, he heard the threats made by the armies’ commander.
“If Qi Dynasty and Great Qing don’t open their gates to welcome us, don’t blame us for killing Qi Dynasty’s beloved young wangye.”
Qi Dynasty’s young wangye was widely known to be adored by the royal family.
Wei Kingdom’s actions enraged Qi Dynasty from top to bottom.
Ling Chen sat on the dragon throne, his face dark with fury, and threw the report in his hand heavily to the ground.
“Ungrateful wolves!”
He cursed, “Ungrateful wolves who don’t know how to be grateful!”
The relief grain Qi Dynasty had sent to aid them had only fed these heartless wolves!
If he had known these people couldn’t be trusted, he would’ve heeded Ah Wu’s advice—
To strip these conquered nations of their rulers, and either kill or imprison their people, ensuring they were never treated well!
At the time, he thought such actions were too ruthless, but now he regretted his indecisiveness!
“Your Majesty, what should we do now? Are we really going to listen to them and cede land to exchange for the young wangye?”
One of the ministers, under immense pressure, dared to ask.
The situation was too dire, and even though Ling Chen was furious, the ministers couldn’t remain silent.
Qi Dynasty had worked hard to achieve its current strength and prosperity.
If they ceded land and allowed the rebels to move in, as they demanded, Qi Dynasty would be doomed!
“Your Majesty, the young wangye has contributed greatly to Qi Dynasty and given his heart and soul. If he knew the rebels were using him as leverage, he would never compromise!”
Another minister, though praising the young wangye, was subtly suggesting that the emperor should abandon him.
In their view, sacrificing one young wangye in exchange for half of Qi Dynasty’s land wasn’t worth it.
“Silence!”
Ling Chen’s expression was so cold it seemed like it could drip water. He glared at the ministers who spoke, his voice icy and severe: “Under this natural disaster, do you think Qi Dynasty has remained unharmed by mere chance?!”
“Let me tell you, Qi Dynasty is safe because of my younger brother, the young wangye, Ling Rui!”
“If he lives, Qi Dynasty lives.”
“If he dies, Qi Dynasty dies!”
Ling Chen’s words about Ling Rui’s protection were clear and firm.
The ministers standing below widened their eyes, wanting to question whether the emperor was lying to protect his brother. But seeing the emperor’s expression and recalling the rumors they’d heard, they ultimately remained silent.
After a moment of silence, a general stepped forward.
“Your Majesty, I am willing to lead troops into battle and rescue the young wangye!”
“Your Majesty, I am willing to fight as well!”
One by one, the generals knelt down. The civil officials, seeing the group of kneeling generals, said nothing.
In such a situation, civil officials were far less useful than military commanders.
Among the kneeling generals, the Murong family and the commanders they had supported all shared the same goal: to rescue the young lord.
The peaceful future Ling Rui had worked so hard to maintain suddenly crumbled.
He was still imprisoned, heavily guarded around the clock.
Ling Rui, realizing that he had missed the best opportunity to escape, was dumbfounded.
“This can’t be.”
It couldn’t be happening like this.
He had been trying so hard to change his fate!
And besides, in those other nations, there were still Dundun and Jiujiu…
Ling Rui firmly believed that his friends wouldn’t all turn against him.
And he wasn’t wrong. Dundun and the others didn’t intend to harm him. But unfortunately, like Ling Rui, they had been temporarily trapped.
When Ling Rui learned this, his mind buzzed with shock.
He sat there, muttering to himself, “Big Boss is definitely going to be furious.”
Their whole group of students had collectively failed.
Next time the Guan Shan Residence reopened for lessons, they’d surely be used as a negative example!
Thinking of their big boss’s scowl, Ling Rui hugged himself tightly.
Sigh.
With his big boss and Ah Wu still out there, there was no way he would face serious danger.
It’s just that, after everything settled, he’d probably get a scolding.
Realizing that he couldn’t escape now, Ling Rui relaxed and watched the chaos continue to unfold.
Meanwhile, in the capital of Qi Dynasty, the little nephews and nieces—unaware of their uncle’s predicament—started crying hysterically the moment they overheard news of his danger.
