After Xie Ning's rigorous deduction, he now knew he should go find Uncle Duck.
But what surfaced in his mind was a glistening, crispy-skinned roast duck with golden crackling skin. Just thinking about it made Xie Ning's mouth water.
The next second, his stomach let out a gurgling growl.
He was so hungry—he needed to find that roast duck quickly.
So Xie Ning slung his little schoolbag over his back and headed off to his left, walking and looking around as he went.
When he passed a wonton stall wafting fragrant steam, Xie Ning swallowed hard. No, Ningbao had to save his stomach for roast duck, so he kept walking.
Spotting a candied hawthorn vendor, Xie Ning's feet unconsciously followed the tempting gleam of the skewers and trailed after him, turning into a narrow alley.
But Xie Ning's legs were too short. After barely two steps, he lost sight of the vendor again.
Xie Ning looked down at his toes with a hint of disappointment, about to continue his search for roast duck, when the candied hawthorn vendor suddenly came rushing back, sprinting frantically with his skewers, brushing past Xie Ning as he fled.
Xie Ning's eyes had lit up, and he'd just been about to reach out and ask for a skewer, but the man was gone in a flash. He felt another small pang of disappointment.
He should have kept walking forward, but for some reason, Xie Ning stood still, glancing left and right.
Then he spotted an empty bamboo basket nearby, walked over, flipped it upside down, and covered himself with it.
Xie Ning crouched in the corner, his body completely enveloped by the basket. Through the tiny gaps, he took in everything happening outside.
He used to play hide-and-seek with his father all the time. He could always hide so well, without making a single sound, that his father could never find him.
When his father conceded defeat, Xie Ning would giggle and run out, begging for the prize he'd won from the game.
So now, Xie Ning treated this the same way—if he made any noise, he'd lose.
He clamped his hand tightly over his mouth, eyes wide open, carefully observing the situation outside.
This was an extremely cramped, narrow alley, barely wide enough for two people to pass side by side. Unless someone was taking a shortcut, no one would use this path.
So aside from a few birds, Xie Ning heard no other sounds. But he didn't move an inch because of that.
The next moment, he first heard the sounds of two people leaping across rooftops and scaling walls, one in front and one behind, accompanied by the clash of weapons. The two were fighting on top of the walls.
But soon, the one in front was losing ground. In a moment of panic, the one behind seized the opportunity and drove a blade into his shoulder. Instantly, blood soaked through his clothes. The man let out a muffled groan, his strength failing, and collapsed to the ground.
As luck would have it, he fell right in front of Xie Ning. His eyes widened even more. Seeing the man covered in blood, Xie Ning was terrified and pressed his hand even harder over his mouth.
The man behind followed closely, not letting his guard down. The tip of his blade pointed at the other's throat, his gaze icy, as if looking at a dead man.
"Why not just kill me now?" the man on the ground raised his head and spoke coldly, but the moment he opened his mouth, he coughed up blood, his breath growing faint.
The standing man clearly didn't want to talk to him. He showed no reaction to the words.
The next moment, several more men caught up, pressing the man on the ground down so he could not escape. He was already severely wounded, and being handled so roughly, he spat out blood again.
"Sir, we came late."
Shen Wang coldly sheathed his blade, pulling out a handkerchief from somewhere to meticulously wipe the blood off the edge.
His utterly indifferent demeanor enraged the man kneeling on the ground. He glared viciously at Shen Wang, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. "Don't waste your effort. I won't say a word!"
Hearing this, Shen Wang cast a sidelong glance at him.
The man on the ground thought he had hit a nerve, and a twisted grin spread across his face as he prepared to vent his fury.
But the next second, Shen Wang spoke: "Since you don't want to talk, then cut out your tongue. It's useless anyway."
"You!" The man's expression shifted, his face contorting. "Shen Wang, you'll die a horrible death!! You work for that dog emperor—how many in the capital are sick of you? How much longer do you think your good days will last?"
Before Shen Wang could react, his subordinate Xin Yi, face flushed with anger, deliberately tightened his grip, forcing the man to let out another muffled groan.
"How my days go is none of your concern." Shen Wang's expression remained unchanged, his tone flat.
By then, he had finished wiping his blade and reattached it to his waist.
Xin Yi asked, "Sir, what should we do with this man?"
After a moment of silence, Shen Wang glanced over and said, "In that case, no need to keep him."
The moment the words fell, Xin Yi prepared to strike, but Shen Wang raised a hand to stop him. Xin Yi looked at him, puzzled.
"Don't do it here. It'll make the ground a bloody mess." Shen Wang shot a disgusted look at the ground.
"Yes, sir!"
With that, Xin Yi nodded and, expressionless, grabbed the man by the collar, ready to move elsewhere to finish the job. The others followed closely behind as they left together.
In the end, only Shen Wang remained standing alone, unmoving.
"Come out."
His tone was calm, but without the coldness from before.
Xie Ning, still crouched inside the basket, had been frightened by the bloody scene just now. His eyes darted around, thinking he was well hidden—surely that wasn't directed at Ningbao, right?
Xie Ning's legs had gone numb, but he still didn't move.
"I'll count to three." The words were brief, but they made Xie Ning's heart tremble.
Having just witnessed the man's ruthless, icy demeanor, the fear in his heart had yet to fade. Xie Ning sniffled, and only then did he realize he was crying.
Wah wah wah.
So scary. Why was this man so fierce? Even fiercer than the villain in the bedtime stories his father told him.
Shen Wang's martial arts were superb, and his hearing was exceptional—naturally, he caught the faint sobbing. His expression cracked slightly, but he managed to maintain his composure. "Kid, come out nicely, and I won't hurt you."
To Xie Ning's ears, those words were no different from the big bad wolf—first wrapping itself in sheep's clothing to lure him in and lower his guard, then gobbling him up in one bite!
So he cried even harder.
Earlier, Shen Wang had to focus to hear the crying, but now he could pinpoint the person's location by sound alone.
He walked to the corner, looked down at the basket, and his shadow fell over it.
Xie Ning's sniffing paused mid-motion, thinking, oh no. He hadn't even gotten to eat roast duck yet, nor found his father, and now he was about to be eaten by a bad guy, boohoo.
Then, using the basket on his back as cover, he quietly shuffled forward, trying to move out of the other's line of sight.
In his mind, he desperately chanted, can't see me, can't see me.
But he overlooked the fact that he had been squatting for too long, and his feet had long gone numb. At the slightest movement, a dense tingling sensation spread from the soles of his feet all the way up his body. He lost control, and with a plop, he tumbled to the ground.
Part of the basket also fell off, now perched on his head, but his bottom was in trouble—exposed to the open air.
Shen Wang silently watched the commotion before him, "?"
Although his feet were numb and he couldn't walk, Xie Ning still didn't give up. He stuck his bottom out and crawled forward. Then, the next second, he felt his pants being hooked by the bad guy's fingers.
Xie Ning puffed up his cheeks, flipped over, and sat up, the basket now serving as his hat. "Don't pull at my pants, that's my privacy!"
Hearing this, Shen Wang showed a look of understanding and released his fingers.
"Then why were you peeking at me just now?" Shen Wang retorted.
Xie Ning was momentarily speechless, and his words even stuttered a bit, "You… you, clearly I was here first, and then you came over."
Just moments ago, his heart was filled with fear of the blood, but after his privacy was nearly exposed, Xie Ning looked at the man before him, his heart brimming with dissatisfaction, his cheeks puffed up like a pufferfish.
His father had told him that boys also need to be careful about their privacy and shouldn't be casually seen by others.
"Then why are you here?" Shen Wang continued to interrogate.
But Xie Ning could no longer hear him, because thinking of his father, he couldn't help but recall the words his father had once said.
"Your other father… he lives in the biggest and most luxurious house in the capital, and he speaks very fiercely. When you meet him, you'll surely be scared to tears. And he definitely wouldn't like a kid who can't even recite the multiplication tables. Alright… hurry up and do your homework, don't spend all day thinking about this and that. If you don't finish today, there'll be no roast duck for dinner tonight."
After saying that, Xie Qingci tapped his head with a book.
Xie Ning rubbed his head, and suddenly a flash of inspiration struck. His eyes lit up brightly, and he hugged Shen Wang's thigh, looking up and asking, "Uncle, is your house the biggest in the entire capital?"
"?"
Shen Wang had no idea why this kid, who just a second ago was both angry and crying, pitiful as could be, would suddenly hug his leg and ask such a strange question.
In his heart, he marveled at the child's ability to change expressions so quickly, while also enduring the discomfort, barely stopping himself from kicking out. Just moments ago, Xie Ning had basically rolled around on the ground, and now he was hugging his leg, getting his robes all dirty too.
Shen Wang was puzzled, his tone a bit uncertain as he nodded, "I suppose so."
The residence he currently lived in was bestowed by His Majesty, with three main halls and four courtyards. Across the entire court, it was indeed hard to find another official with a larger residence than his.
Then, the next second, he heard Xie Ning shout clearly and loudly, "Father!"
"?"
Xie Ning had it all figured out in his mind. Speaks fiercely, scared him to tears, lives in the biggest house in the capital.
Every single point matched up. The person before him was definitely the father he had been desperately searching for.
Just a moment ago, he had been puffing up like a blowfish, but now that he knew this man was his father, Xie Ning's expression changed instantly. "Father, I'm hungry~"
Shen Wang was still full of question marks. He looked down and saw that Xie Ning's eyes were still red-rimmed. His eyes were like grapes—big and bright—and when he looked at people, there was a natural coquettish quality to it.
All the words of refusal and objection got stuck in his throat. Shen Wang found that he couldn't say a single harsh word. Why bother arguing with a little child? He must have lost his head.
This must be some family's lost child.
Shen Wang thought to himself silently. It was getting dark now, and he couldn't just leave the child out on the street. He'd take him back to the residence first, and tomorrow he'd have someone search for his family.
With this in mind, Shen Wang scooped the child up and held him in his arms.
"Then come home with me first, and tomorrow…"
Before he could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by Xie Ning's joyful cheers. "Yay! Yay!"
The word "home" meant to Xie Ning that his father had acknowledged him and was willing to take him away. Along the way, Uncle Wen Qingyuan had been worried that his father might not recognize him, and Xie Ning's heart had been rising and falling with anxiety too.
He was so adorable—who wouldn't like him!
Xie Ning thought smugly to himself, and then immediately made a demand of his newly appointed father, Shen Wang, with complete confidence. "Father, I want to eat roast duck."