“Idiot, I’m your father……!”

Xi Lei stared at him as if seeing a ghost, and Ling Yi still had the urge to make fun of him during such a chaotic scene. 

“……’s adopted son. Didn’t expect that, did you?”

Xi Lei was very familiar with this face. Over the years, he could never get used to seeing it, nor could he get rid of it.

“A-aren’t you dead?”

“Not dead. Are you disappointed?” Ling Yi taunted him with a mixture of truth and falsehood: “I haven’t repaid Uncle Xi En for raising me yet. How could I die so easily?”

Xi Lei was already in a terrible mental state, and his brain instantly short-circuited when faced with such complex information.

As Ling Yi busied himself untying the knots, he just stood there dumbly.

“How long are you going to stand by and watch? If you don’t want to get caught, come and help!”

Xi Lei snapped back to his senses and hurried to help untie the ropes.

When the last knot was undone, the unconscious Xi En fell face-down and was caught in Xi Lei’s arms.

“Dad! Dad, wake up!”

His panicked voice trembled.

Blood flowed from Xi En’s head to cover his face, but the places not stained red were paper-white.

Xi Lei couldn’t detect breathing or a heartbeat, and his eyes reddened: “Dad!”

Ling Yi had already turned to look for a way out of the chaos: “Let’s get out of here first!”

“Dad is dying!” Xi Lei wailed.

“If you cry to death here, there will be no way to save him!”

“This is all your fault!”

Xi Lei lost control of his emotions: “If it weren’t for you, Dad wouldn’t have—”

His voice cut off abruptly. After he realized what he had said, Xi Lei’s face turned as pale as his dying father’s.

Ling Yi looked back at him, his eyes full of complicated emotions.

Against the chaotic background, he looked like a solitary person in the desolate wilderness.

Xi Lei even had a premonition that if he didn’t apologize at this very moment, he would lose any chance at being forgiven later.

Ling Yi turned around. He offered no accusations or rebuttals, and his voice was calmer than ever before.

“I’m going to take Uncle Xi En away from here now. If you don’t want to leave, just give him to me.”

Xi Lei was so stimulated by his calmness that his heart trembled: “I’m leaving!”

He bent down and put the dying Xi En on his back. When he stood back up, he found the entirety of Lu Hulun’s private troops in front of them.

Ling Yi stepped slightly to the left, shielding the Xi family father and son behind him.

“It turns out the Prime Minister’s prediction was correct. With this person as bait, the fish will definitely fall into the trap.”

Ling Yi stared down the leading officer, muscles tense under his clothes as he waited for the opponent to leave an opening.

The officer dismissed his overconfident behavior.

Behind him were a dozen well-trained, fully-armed soldiers. It would certainly be easy for them to take care of two unarmed youngsters, not to mention that they were carrying a half-dead burden.

“I advise you to put that person down and surrender.”

Xi Lei hollered: “Dream on! I won’t hand my dad over to you even if I die!”

The officer sighed, turning his head slightly to give instructions to those behind him.

“The Prime Minister has ordered that we capture him alive. It doesn’t matter what state he’s in, as long as he’s still breathing.”

“I’m afraid that’s not up to you.”

As that voice fell, Tang De and his guards inserted themselves between the two sides, forming an impenetrable barrier in front of Ling Yi and the others.

The officer recognized Tang De and asked unhappily: “Why are you here?”

“Excuse me, but I’ve been ordered to take everyone away safely and not leave anyone behind.”

“His Highness Oser has repeatedly wronged the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister’s patience is limited. Even his grandson is not permitted to do such things.”

Tang De pulled out his weapon and said: “I must take these people away today. Since we’re unable to reach a consensus, we might as well use the most primitive method to resolve this issue.”

The two sides were on the verge of conflict. Sparks flew, and the situation was about to ignite.

Ling Yi had no intention of participating, and turned back to urge Xi Lei: “Go!”

“You may go, but I advise you to choose your destination carefully.”

Ling Yi’s steps paused.

Tang De stood at the forefront without looking back, blocking the way with an imposing manner that said no one would get past him to Ling Yi.

“I’ve followed His Highness for quite some time, and this is the angriest I’ve ever seen him.”

Tang De himself wasn’t sure if his words were a threat for him to stay or a warning for him to run away.

“No matter which path you choose, there is no turning back.”

Ling Yi paused for half a second, then pulled Xi Lei up and said: “Follow me!”

Xi Lei didn’t hesitate to follow Ling Yi.

The officer was unwilling to let this duck he’d caught get away: “After them!”

Oser’s guards blocked their path, and Ling Yi’s figure quickly vanished into the rioting crowd.

“Was that man just now Captain Tang De?!”

Xi Lei followed Ling Yi, and asked this belated question while dodging left and right amongst the crowd.

All he could see was the back of Ling Yi’s head.

“So you’re not blind!”

Xi Lei didn’t understand: “Why would he save us?!”

Ling Yi led him out of the encirclement and straight to the black Soaring Eagle. He opened the door forcefully and said: “Get in!”

Before he was done speaking, a stray bullet flew over. Ling Yi reacted very quickly and pulled Xi Lei down into a squat.

The bullet hit the car window, shattering the glass.

“Get in the car! Quickly!” Ling Yi’s voice exploded in his ear along with the sound of gunshots.

The series of events happened so quickly that Xi Lei had no time to think about them one by one.

For example, where had this vehicle come from?

Why would His Highness Oser’s guard captain cover their retreat?

And more importantly, how had Ling Yi survived?

At that moment, he had no choice but to pick up Xi En and get into the back seat. Ling Yi leaped into the driver’s seat at the same time. He took off his hat and mask disguise, threw them into the passenger seat, and stepped hard on the accelerator.

The Soaring Eagle rushed to the center of the road, drifted out in a perfect arc, and zoomed forward at high speed.

The sound of gunfire continued, and Xi Lei leaned over the back seat to shield Xi En underneath him.

It wasn’t until they were getting farther and farther away from the Prime Minister’s residence that Xi Lei dared to raise his head and fasten the seatbelt for Xi En.

He was still in shock. Thinking back to the series of events that had just occurred, each was more incredible than the last.

Ling Yi pressed the accelerator to the floorboard, and wind rushed into the car through the shattered window. Xi Lei had to speak loudly to ensure that his voice reached the front seat.

“Ling Yi! You haven’t answered my question yet!”

Ling Yi tightened his grip on the steering wheel and sent a quick glance at the rearview mirror.

“What question?!”

“Captain Tang De! Why did Captain Tang De come to save us?!”

“Aren’t you always praising His Highness Oser? Maybe he was moved by your filial piety!”

Xi Lei had just considered joining forces with Ling Yi, but that idea was completely extinguished by his anger.

This person may be worth remembering when he was dead, but he was just annoying when he was alive.

“I worship His Highness Oser! He’s my spiritual idol!”

“He quantum sensed your worship and sent people to rescue you!”

Xi Lei was so angry that his teeth ached, but since he couldn’t beat him up, he asked another question: “Whose car is this?!”

“Mine!”

Xi Lei was incredulous. “How could you possibly own a car? And such an expensive one!”

“It’s a gift from my sponsor!”

This sounded even more incredible than the fact that Ling Yi was still alive.

“What nonsense is this? When did you get a sponsor?”

“I just found him not long ago!”

“What kind of sponsor would need someone like you? What can you do for him?!”

“Sleep with him!”

Xi Lei just about spat a mouthful of blood onto the car window: “Are you sick?!”

“Do you have medicine, ah?”

Their childish quarrel continued, just one among countless others, and Xi Lei found that he had missed their bickering. Although this annoying person was eating for free in their home, it was better than having one person on the verge of death and the other dead.

The scenery outside the window receded rapidly, and the road ahead became increasingly unfamiliar.

“This isn’t the way to the hospital!”

“Uncle Xi En is too badly injured. A regular hospital can’t save him!”

“Then where are you going if not to the hospital?!”

Ling Yi made a sharp turn, and Xi Lei was thrown from one side of the cabin to the other.

Ling Yi gave his answer: “The Royal Medical College!”

Xi Lei regained his balance and staggered to the middle back seat, asking not far behind Ling Yi’s ear: 

“Are you crazy?! How could you possibly get into the Royal Medical College?!”

Ling Yi was focused on the road ahead, and didn’t bother to explain: “I have my methods!”

Xi Lei insisted on getting to the bottom of this: “Even if you can get in, why would they treat Dad?”

“My sponsor also funds the doctors there!”

Xi Lei was stunned: “The doctors at the Royal Medical College also sleep with your sponsor?”

Screee—

Ling Yi slammed on the brakes. Xi Lei lost his balance and slammed headfirst into the front seat, then bounced back.

He covered his aching forehead, and when he opened his eyes, he saw that Ling Yi had turned around to stare at him.

Ling Yi was looking at him like he was some sort of dumb creature he’d never seen before: “Idiot!”

Xi Lei was about to curse back, but at the thought of this mysterious sponsor who was able to make the medical college help his grievously wounded father, he swallowed his anger in silence.

The medical college entrance was wide open, and the Soaring Eagle entered the underground parking lot unhindered.

Medical staff had been waiting there for some time, and immediately lifted Xi En onto a gurney. No one questioned their identities, as if they had been registered in advance.

Xi Lei ran a few steps behind the gurney before realizing that his presence was really redundant. Even if he followed, he wouldn’t be able to provide any professional medical help.

He stared in amazement as Xi En was pushed into the emergency room, and was numb for a while before he recalled the root cause of all of this.

“Hey! What’s going on with this sponsor you mentioned?”

Xi Lei had just finished speaking when he suddenly felt a buzzing sensation. His scalp went numb and the hair all over his body stood on end, his Alpha instincts on high alert.

That was an extremely aggressive barrier, created by an Alpha with much higher mental strength than his, intentionally releasing pheromones.

This was the first time in Xi Lei’s life that he had encountered such a strong oppressive force from his own kind, and he couldn’t help but adopt a defensive stance.

“Who is it? Where are they?!”

The crisp sound of leather shoes hitting the ground rang out at a regular pace, each step trodding on Xi Lei’s auditory neurons.

As he looked around for the force of the footsteps, he was surprised to see Ling Yi standing there motionlessly.

The overly strong pheromones were obviously having an effect on him as well. Ling Yi wore a solemn expression. His lips were tightly pursed, and his nails dug into his flesh.

But he didn’t have the defensive reaction of a normal Alpha. He lowered his shoulders, forcing himself to appear submissive.

The footsteps behind came closer and closer. Ling Yi didn’t need to look back. He knew who was coming by the unique smell of pheromones and Xi Lei’s increasingly complicated expression. 

He pulled up the corners of his mouth with difficulty, as if mocking Xi Lei, or perhaps mocking himself.

“Need I introduce you? Your spiritual idol, your dream man, your soulmate, and…..”

“…..My sponsor, the Crown Prince.”

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Chapter 8 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 10