…pulling Ji Ziran behind him while uttering a single word: “Careful.”
He narrowed his pale-golden eyes. He was intimately familiar with this scent it was a place where magical monsters gathered, yet dared not approach, with flowers blooming that emitted this exact fragrance. No one knew what lay right in the center of it all. Not even him.
However, Ji Ziyu knew that this scent was perilous, signaling impending danger.
Yet Ji Ziran poked his head out from behind him, leaning against his shoulder as he said, “Xiaoyu, I can sense that the little white dragon is right inside.”
If Ji Ziran could see, he would undoubtedly notice Ji Ziyu’s still somewhat baby-faced cheeks twitching slightly, even though his tone remained as icy as ever: “We can’t go in. It’s too dangerous.”
Ji Ziran adjusted his position to make himself lean more comfortably: “Dangerous?”
Ji Ziyu turned his head sideways to look at him, only to see that round, chubby little face of his pressed against his shoulder, making the flesh on his cheek look exceptionally delicate and tender. His dark eyes were enormous, occupying a good third of his entire face, while his eyelashes were pitch-black, long, and exceptionally prominent as Ji Ziran blinked them wide open~~~
Ji Ziyu found himself reflecting with rare sentiment: Who on earth said that black hair isn’t good-looking?
“Xiaoyu?” Ji Ziran turned his head, wanting to prompt Ji Ziyu, who had fallen silent once more. However—
“Nhn?” Feeling a strange sensation, he rubbed his chubby lips: What was that cold, soft thing he had just brushed against?
Ji Ziyu’s face felt cool to the touch Ji Ziran had accidentally smeared saliva all over his cheek. Yet he didn’t react much; after all, back when they were even smaller, getting a daily dose of Ji Ziran’s drool was practically a routine occurrence…
=0=, Ji Zixin maintained this exact expression, utterly unable to close her jaw! The scene just now was so bizarre yet strangely harmonious! The twins—one icy cold, the other somewhat clingy! The 17th Prince and the 18th Prince really do share an extraordinarily close bond, awww~~~
“Mn, dangerous,” Ji Ziyu offered a rare explanation. “My intuition tells me so.”
Ji Ziran chuckled, reaching out to poke Ji Ziyu’s cheek right on the spot where he had just nibbled, leaving a fingertip smeared with saliva. Contemplating for a moment, he wiped the sticky residue clean against the hem of Ji Ziyu’s robe while solemnly declaring, “My intuition tells me there isn’t a shred of danger.”
Behind them, Ji Zixin felt a knot of tension in her chest: Are they having a disagreement? Was what I saw just now an optical illusion or something?
Chapter 030: The Good Show is About to Begin
Ji Ziyu glanced at Ji Ziran, and the hand that had been blocking him slowly retracted.
He grabbed his hand: “Together.”
Ji Ziran squeezed the hand intertwined with his, pressing his lips together in a smile: Xiaoyu always looks dark-faced and cold-hearted, but he’s actually really gentle! It’s just that he’s terrible at expressing it.
Following closely behind the two of them, Ji Zixin desperately tried to make herself as small as possible. Both younger brothers were so well-behaved, yet they radiated an aura that made it feel as though no one else could possibly wedge themselves between them!
“Whoa!!” Stepping carefully through the boundary barrier at the entrance with Ji Ziran in tow, Ji Ziyu was suddenly interrupted as a round, tumbling object dropped straight down and bonked Ji Ziran right on the forehead.
Reaching up, Ji Ziran grabbed the creature clinging to his forehead and gave it a shake: “What on earth is this thing?”
It felt barely any larger than his fist, round and chubby all over.
Glancing over, Ji Ziyu immediately spotted the little creature hanging by its wings while clutching desperately onto Ji Ziran’s finger.
“Goo-qiu goo-qiu!” The creature raised its head and squeaked a few times.
Only then did Ji Ziyu get a clear look at it: this was a newly hatched baby white dragon.
It was extraordinarily chubby, with a round belly, a round head, and short little arms and legs. Its eyes were huge, and atop its head sat a pair of horns roughly the size of a fingernail. Its wings were clutched in Ji Ziran’s grip, while its tail anxiously curled around Ji Ziran’s finger, tipped with a tiny triangular spade. Its skin possessed a fleshy, tender pinkish hue.
Noticing Ji Ziyu scrutinizing it, the little thing nimbly scrambled up Ji Ziran’s arm and climbed right onto his shoulder. It reached out to grab Ji Ziran’s hair, nuzzling affectionately against him while emitting soft, cooing burbling noises.
Feeling his fingers somewhat blankly, Ji Ziran touched them in astonishment: “What is this? Why is it all sticky?”
“A dragon,” Ji Ziyu replied with concise force.
Ji Zixin chimed in kindly from behind in a soft voice: “It looks like it just crawled out of an egg; it’s still covered in birth fluid.”
“Goo-qiu goo-qiu~” Ji Ziran tried to catch the little fellow on his shoulder, only for it to deftly dodge out of the way. Wriggling back and forth, the little dragon found the coziest spot amidst Ji Ziran’s hair and gently exhaled a breath.
Instinctively, Ji Ziran reached out to scratch the little fellow, accidentally brushing against a spot that felt wonderfully soft.
“So this is a baby dragon?” Ji Ziran marvelled, “Why is it so tiny?”
Recalling his knowledge, Ji Ziyu noted, “Dragons have exceptionally slow growth rates to begin with, so newborns naturally aren’t very large.”
However Ji Ziyu frowned. How come I recall records stating that newly hatched baby dragons are supposed to be in their true draconian forms, and easily the size of an infant?
Ji Zixin showed immense fascination toward this baby dragon. Being a young girl, she naturally adored such cute, exquisite, and wonderfully plump creature comforts.
Sensing Ji Zixin’s fondness for the little dragon, Ji Ziran wanted to invite her over for a closer look. However, before he could even gesture for her to approach, the sound of commotion rang out from outside.
Tucking himself closer to Ji Ziyu, Ji Ziran tugged at his clothes: “Is someone coming?”
The little dragon grew tense as well, shooting like a streak into the folds of Ji Ziran’s garments just as the barrier behind them dissipated entirely. Vanishing right along with it was the breathtaking, multicolored crystal stone wall that had greeted them moments before.
Upon laying eyes on the three princes standing there safe and sound, the guards were clearly astonished, their expressions deeply unnatural. After all, out at the mouth of the cave, the 16th Prince was currently hovering on the brink of death. It had taken them tremendous effort just to spare the 16th Prince from the agonizing pain of having his skin peeled away where it had frozen fused with the ice and snow.
Furthermore, the 16th Prince had explicitly claimed that his elder sister and younger brothers had already met with misfortune.
Had it not been for the captain of the guards insisting on conducting a thorough search of the surrounding area, they might well have turned back to report their mission complete long ago.
The captain of the guards, Lister, found himself in quite a dilemma. Initially, he had assumed the other princes had perished. Regardless of circumstances, recovering their remains was mandatory. Later on, upon witnessing the utter devastation wreaked upon the valley outside, Lister held virtually zero hope that the princes could still be alive. To his utter shock, one of his guards had actually managed to locate the 16th Prince alive!
While breathing a sigh of relief, he had simultaneously gasped in horror. The state of the 16th Prince could no longer be described as merely tragic!
Consequently, after hearing Ji Ziran’s account, Lister had deduced that the odds of survival for the 15th Princess and the two young, chubby twins were virtually nine-to-one against.
Yet policy dictated recovering bodies especially since Grand Eunuch Huaide had issued explicit instructions emphasizing the utmost importance of the 18th Prince’s status. Moreover… Lister had once received a kindness from Xueyi Wright, so naturally, he wished to locate them if possible. As for whether they would be dead or alive upon discovery, that would simply be up to fate.
As they marched onward and caught the sounds ahead, they had indeed experienced a wave of joyful surprise. Lister even harbored fleeting suspicions as to why the 16th Prince had spun such a tale! Feeling a surge of indignation on behalf of the three princes, they finally reached the end of the cave and rounded the final bend.
However, upon laying eyes on the three princes whose condition was immeasurably better than the 16th Prince’s Lister’s conviction wavered once more: Could it be that the 16th Prince was actually the one who…
Shaking his head, he reminded himself that these weren’t matters for a mere captain like Lister to ponder. He hastily ordered his men to fetch warm garments, intending to carry the young princes back to the palace with all possible haste.
Yet when it came time to pick up Ji Ziyu, the boy’s blatant rejection left the guards in quite a predicament.
“I can walk by myself.” Ji Ziyu radiated such an icy aura that the surrounding guards felt the ambient temperature plummet instantly!
Seeing the standoff, Ji Ziran patted the guard holding him. “Put me down.”
The guard, who had been feeling rather nervous about carrying the legendary Black Child Prince anyway, hastily set him down upon hearing the request.
Without missing a beat, Ji Ziran accurately located Ji Ziyu’s position, strode over, grabbed his hand, and puffed out his chubby little face with solemn earnestness: “Unfilial! Mother… Royal Mother must be worried sick about us!”
The “What business is it of mine?” that had been sitting on the tip of Ji Ziyu’s tongue vanished the moment he caught the wave of worry shining in Ji Ziran’s eyes.
It wasn’t just Xueyi Wright who would worry about the two of them; Ji Ziran was worrying about her too!
Consequently, Ji Ziyu gestured toward Lister, silently signaling: You take over.
Exchanging glances, Lister reacted swiftly. Scooping up Ji Ziyu in one arm, he picked up Ji Ziran with the other. For him, carrying two little buns was an effortless task.
“Your Majesty, Lister has returned,” Huaide murmured, lowering his gaze as if the decadent, licentious scene strewn across the bedchamber simply did not exist.
Ji Aotian loosened his embrace around King Yue, flipped back the blanket draped over his waist, and stepped out stark naked: “Oh?”
Fulfilling his duties faithfully, Huaide reported, “All four princes are safe and sound, except… except perhaps for the 16th Prince, who might be facing some complications.”
“Little Sixteenth…” Ji Aotian chuckled softly. “As long as he’s not dead.”
Huaide couldn’t quite decipher the true meaning behind the Emperor’s chuckle, so he simply pressed on: “The 15th Princess developed a high fever on the journey back and has already been sent back to Consort Min’s quarters. As for the 17th and 18th Princes… upon hearing that Consort Xue had coughed up blood after their return, they headed straight to Zhexue Palace.”
Ji Aotian leisurely donned his robes, displaying a noncommittal attitude toward Huaide’s report: “Heard that? Heh… How is it that I never realized so many people in the palace had so much idle time on their hands for gossiping? My sons have barely been back for a few moments, yet the news travels with such immaculate precision.”
Huaide hurriedly lowered his head. “It is a failure of this servant’s administration! Please punish me, Your Majesty!”
With a gentle shake…