As soon as little Rui’er ran outside, Han Yunxi and Long Feiye chased after him. Outside, they heard a little girl giggling and the sound of flying darts. Xu Donglin had set up guard in this teahouse so it was unlikely he wouldn’t have reported a disturbance.
What’s going on?
Little Rui’er simply stood ahead of them, seemingly very sensitive to the sound of the little girl’s laughter. Typically speaking, he was at an age where he should be making friends. But little Rui’er was different. He not only disliked playing with children of the same age, but especially detested playing with girls. Han Yunxi recalled when Rui’er had first learned to walk, a few madames had brought their granddaughters and daughters to the palace to visit. No matter whether they were babies, toddlers, or slightly older girls, he avoided them all.
Little Rui’er only liked playing with adults. If he wasn’t clinging to his mother, then it was with Xu Donglin and the rest. Whenever he visited Gu Beiyue, he always grabbed Lil Thing by the ear and used all his strength to throw it out the window before pestering Gu Beiyue to spend time with him.
After standing for awhile, little Rui’er ran out of the courtyard and to a walkway on the right. Han Yunxi and Long Feiye naturally followed, but they soon saw Manager Wu standing with his hands covered in darts and blood on his face. He yelled for help as he ran towards them.
Little Rui’er was exceptionally calm! He didn’t even glance at Manager Wu as the man ran past, but simply keep running ahead. He seemed to be curious and unhappy, his eyebrows creased. Despite his young age, his brows had a heroic slant that made people aware he was no ordinary child.
Long Feiye was even more curious upon seeing the weapons embedded in Manager Wu’s hands. He stopped chasing after Rui’er, causing Han Yunxi to pause and study the manager as well. They could recognize it as Tang Clan weapons at a glance! No wonder Xu Donglin hadn’t moved to act. But when did the Tang Clan start acting against the teahouse’s people?
Even if they did, with the shadow guards here, Long Feiye and Han Yunxi didn’t worry about Rui’er. The two of them were in no rush to catch up to their son.
—
Lil Rui’er ran very fast and soon appeared on the “scene of the crime.” Tang Li had just finished knocking two pageboys to the ground and Tang Tang was clapping and praising him while laughing out loud. She was a noisy child and the teahouse extremely quiet, so her endless giggles seemed even louder than usual. There was an irresistible charm to her voice.
Abruptly, little Tang Tang stopped laughing, while Tang Li and Ning Jing gave a start.
They saw a little child. He looked to be about a year and a half old[1] and was nearly as tall as little Tang Tang. He stood in the walkway and treated the pageboys as air, seeming completely fearless. Both of his hands were clasped behind his back as he looked up at them. His eyes were even prettier than little Tang Tang’s, the pupils dark and deep. His eyelashes were long and dense. His ignorant yet icy gaze couldn’t help making one adore him even as they wanted to laugh at him.
This child…
“Rui’er?” Ning Jing blurted out.
When they first met little Rui’er, he was only a newborn who knew how to cry or laugh! A child grew quickly in the first year of his life, changing his features greatly. This was a vast difference from the baby Rui’er they met before, but Ning Jing still recognized him at a glance.
Tang Li had no memory of the past, but he couldn’t help but ask, “You’re Xuanyuan Rui?” This child was too similar to his big brother, especially those heroic brows.
“Rui’er? Why are you here?” Ning Jing grew curious.
Little Rui’er didn’t know them at all. Currently, he had ignored Tang Li and Ning Jing completely to focus on little Tang Tang. She had long noticed this little brother’s staring and loomed at him from above in her daddy’s arms. Gradually, her face stiffened because she could sense his gaze was unkind!
Who is he?
What’s he doing here?
“Rui’er, are you Rui’er? Where’s your father and mother?” Ning Jing asked as she approached him.
“Mother!” Little Rui’er cried out, refusing to let her go.
“Tang Tang, this is Rui’er, a little brother,” Ning Jing hastily explained.
Rui’er only glanced at Ning Jing before ignoring her as before. Ning Jing couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. It’s no wonder he’s Long Feiye’s son. That ice-cold, aloof attitude is a carbon copy of his personality.
If he already gave off such an air when he was young, then who could imagine what he’d be like in the future? Still, Ning Jing walked forward and knelt down–only for little Rui’er to back away expressionlessly without a word.
“Heh!” Tang Li set down little Tang Tang and laughed out loud. “It’s my big brother’s seed, no doubt! Hahah, my big brother was just like him when he was little!”
Tang Li naturally couldn’t recall what Long Feiye was like at one, but he remember his personality at five years old. The young Long Feiye always avoided others and hated people getting close to him. When he grew older, he stopped backing away because others would naturally keep their distance from him.
“Brat, your daddy wasn’t close to anyone when he was young, only me! You have to call me uncle! Come on, I’ll carry you! Where are your parents? Let’s go find them!” Tang Li said as he reached out his arms for Rui’er, but the little gave him no face and kept backing away.
Tang Li didn’t give up and stepped forward again, planning to coax the child, but little Tang Tang suddenly started screaming from the sidelines. “Ahhh….AHHHHHHH!”
Mother can hold other people, but not daddy! Daddy belongs to me alone!
Rui’er’s forehead creased tighter at her screams. He suddenly avoided Tang Li’s arms and ran past him to stop in front of the girl. Not expecting this, Tang Tang prepared to avoid him, but Rui’er crashed right into her and sent her toppling. Now her screams grew louder while little Rui’er straddled her, balled up a handkerchief, and stuffed it into her mouth.
Tang Li and Ning Jing gaped at first, not knowing how to react. Rui’er movements seemed smoth, but now he was sprawled all over little Tang Tang. He had to struggle free before climbing to his feet. Patting his hands, he declared in a childish voice and stern expession, “Noisy!”
Ning Jing and Tang Li slowly recovered their wits. Tang Li immediately picked up his daughter and took out her gag, then checked her head and other places for injuries. “Does it hurt anywhere? Tell daddy where it hurts? Here? Your head? Does that hurt?”
Perhaps little Tang Tang had been scared silly, but she didn’t speak. Her lips were pursed into a line as she looked at little Rui’er.
“Daughter, say something? Where does it hurt?” Tang Li panicked.
Ning Jing only creased her brows at her daughter’s expression and said nothing. Although she doted on her, it wasn’t to the point of spoiling her like Tang Li did. Whenever Tang Tang fell down, Ning Jing would always let her get up by herself. Even if she was hurt or injured, the little girl had to stand up first before her mother held her. Tang Li was different. As soon as Tang Tang tumbled, he would swoop down and pick up her to check if she was injured.
But when little Tang Tang still didn’t cry after a while, Ning Jing began to worry too. This little girl was never timid usually, so why was she quiet now?
“Tang Tang, does it hurt anywhere? Say something!” Ning Jing exclaimed.
Little Rui’er stood on the sidelines, staring at Tang Tang as well. His face was stern since he hated noise.
“It, it doesn’t hurt…it…” little Tang Tang tried her best to speak, but she finally couldn’t take it anymore. Squeezing her eyes shut, she clenched her hands into fists and used all the strength in her body to shriek. “Ahhh….ahhhHHHHHH..AHHHHHHHHHHH!”
In a flash, little Rui’er’s jade-like features cracked. He covered his ears with is hands and ran off like a streak of smoke.
Too terrifying!
He didn’t run long before crashing into his mother.
“What’s wrong?” Han Yunxi picked up little Rui’er, who nestled against her shoulder while covering his ears. His lips were tightly pursed and his expression both fierce and somewhat pitiful.
Long Feiye looked at him for a while before saying coldly, “Enough, don’t tire out your mother. Down!”
Seeing that little Rui’er didn’t understand, Long Feiye pursed his lips and added, “If you don’t get off, imperial father will carry you.”
Those words were tried and tested to work every time. Little Rui’er immediately slipped out of his mother’s grasp and obediently stood on one side. Long Feiye still had no idea why his son disliked being carried by him, but it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. At the very least, he could threaten his son with carrying to make him as docile as a bunny.
“Darling Rui, why were you running? Who did you run into?” As a mother, Han Yunxi was quite sensitive to her son. She could sense that Rui’er was afraid. She and Long Feiye had busied themselves for months before finding some spare days to relax. They had gotten lazy, so even if the sky was falling, they maintained their languid attitudes.
If this was any other day, she and Long Feiye would run over to see what was the matter straight away. Long Feiye was already walking ahead, while Han Yunxi took little Rui’er’s hand and prepared to follow. Instead, they saw an almost two-year-old girl come peltering down the walkway, running like the wind.
This was none other than little Tang Tang. Long Feiye abruptly halted, while Ning Jing and Tang Li sped up their pace from a distance. Tang Li was the fastest one of all, soon outspeeding little Tang Tang to dash in front of Long Feiye. He almost knocked the other man over in his haste.
Han Yunxi and Long Feiye were both surprised. Although they knew the Tang Clan was here, they never expected its members to be Tang Li and Ning Jing themselves.
Long Feiye backed away and stared at Tang Li with knitted brows, but Tang Li only gave a foolish grin and cried, “Big bro, sister-in-law!”
1. Reminder that Rui’er looks older than other children his age! He isn’t even one yet.
