Chapter 57

Last time when they went to the Federation for fun, the amusement park traumatized the little child but he was very eager to visit the zoo. He thought all the animals in the zoo were so cute!

Of course, the cutest of all was the black-and-white rolling beast cub.

The rolling beast cub even drank milk from a basin!

Similarly, the little child, who also liked to drink milk, was astonished upon seeing the rolling beast’s milk basin.

He made a promise with his dad that if he improved in the next exam, his dad would accompany him to see the rolling beast! But now that the rolling beast was gone, their agreement was no longer valid.

“Wagner, when can you find the rolling beast?”

The little child still longed to go to the zoo. He looked at Wagner with anticipation and said, “Uncle Twain is so capable, he will definitely find it!”

Wagner: “...”

Wagner hesitated and said, “My dad is not responsible for finding the rolling beast.”

Seeing the disappointment in the chubby little child’s eyes, Wagner tried to make up for it and said, “Other officers from the Federation will search for it. Once they catch the person who stole the rolling beast, they will go to jail!”

The little child nodded seriously. “Hmm! Lock up the bad guys!”

The topics of the two children jump around so quickly that adults couldn’t keep up. In the blink of an eye, they started discussing kindergartens, specifically the Federation’s kindergarten and the Empire’s kindergarten, trying to figure out which one was better.

The little child firmly supported the Empire. He earnestly said, “The Empire is better!”

The Emperor and the Crown Prince of the Empire were the best!

Wagner immediately noticed his biased opinion and asked sharply, “If Brother Caesar is the Federation’s Crown Prince and Uncle Lu is not the Emperor, which one do you think is better?”

The little child: “...”

The little child fell silent.

In his heart, he silently thought, wherever there was his brother, that’s the best place!

Two little children had so much to say that they continued chatting all the way to the doorstep of Ningning’s home. They still hadn’t stopped. At this time, Wagner should be going to bed.

Zhan Xi parked the car and took the communicator from the console. “Wagner, we’re home. You should go to sleep early and chat with Ningning later tomorrow.”

“Okay, Uncle Zhan, goodnight, Ningning.”

Wagner obediently said goodnight, waved his little hand, and went to sleep.

The little child, held by his father, was full of energy when chatting with Wagner just a moment ago. But now, as they arrived home, his head tilted in his father’s arms, and the little child appeared completely exhausted.

Zhan Xi looked at the drama king little child and didn’t feel like talking.

He turned on the lights in the house and was a bit puzzled while doing so. “Ling Qi, did you sleep early today? Ningning and I have returned.”

The room was pitch dark, and Zhan Xi assumed that Ling Qi was sleeping, so he didn’t turn on the lights. But after turning them on, he discovered that there was no one in the room at all.

The little child in his arms didn’t see Uncle Ling Qi either and was also puzzled. “Where’s Uncle Ling Qi?”

Zhan Xi placed the little child on the bed and called Ling Qi.

The phone rang twice before Ling Qi picked up. “Zhan Xi, I’ll be back in a while.”

Zhan Xi furrowed his brows, remained silent for a few seconds, and then spoke in a low voice. “Send me the address. I’ll come to pick you up now. Just wait for me.”

He hung up the phone and looked at the little child on the bed.

He gently poked the chubby face of the little child and whispered, “Uncle Ling Qi hasn’t come home yet. Dad is going to pick him up. Ningning, are you okay sleeping alone at home?”

The little child looked at his father and honestly said, “Ningning might be a little scared.”

Zhan Xi hesitated.

The little child continued, “Dad, go pick up Uncle Ling Qi! Ningning can call his big brother!”

Zhan Xi: “...”

That works too.

It’s just that the little prince won’t be able to sleep peacefully because of the child from his family.

Zhan Xi hurriedly left, and the little child called his older brother, asking the other to accompany him as he slept.

Except for the voice from the communication device, everything around was quiet and peaceful.

The little child changed into his pajamas by himself. He wore them loosely, with the buttons done up wrongly. At first glance, he looked adorably silly.

“Brother, Ningning wants to sleep.”

With his eyes closed, the little child hugged a big stuffed toy and murmured a sentence before falling asleep.

Huo Lin listened to his breathing and softly said, “Hmm, go to sleep.”

Although the two children, big and small, were separated by a screen, just listening to each other’s breathing made them feel at ease.

Just as Huo Lin was also about to go to sleep, the little child on the other end of the communication device, suddenly woke up.

“Brother, there’s a sound in the yard! Dad and Uncle Ling Qi are back!”

The little child said and got out of bed. He put on his bunny slippers and excitedly ran outside.

Huo Lin calculated the time and felt it was not right.

Uncle Zhan had just gone out for less than ten minutes to pick someone up. It shouldn’t be that fast.

He called out to the little child “Ningning, wait a moment.”

When the little child heard his brother’s voice, he turned back and picked up the communication device.

He held the device tightly and walked outside. “Brother, Dad and Uncle Ling Qi are back, but there are no lights!”

Huo Lin: “...”

The commotion in the yard couldn’t possibly be Uncle Zhan and Uncle Ling Qi.

He wanted to remind him again, but the little child didn’t need his reminder. He perked up his little ears and sensed that something was amiss.

The little child pressed against the door crack and nervously said, “Brother, there are sounds outside.”

It didn’t sound like the footsteps of dad and uncle!

The unfamiliar sounds in the yard, along with the gradually approaching noises, made the little child so nervous that he dared not even breathe.

He tiptoed to get his small sword, which was given to him by Uncle Twain. Uncle Twain said to keep the sword to protect himself!

The majestic little sword gave the little child courage.

Standing behind the door, the little child held the sword in one hand and the communication device in the other.

“Squeak, squeak!“

‘Ningning, are you home?’

The slightly familiar squeaking made the little child, who was holding the sword, enter into contemplation. Soon after, a pile of jumbled sounds followed.

“Meow~“

“Woof woof!“

“Squawk~“

Among the lively noises, the last sound caused a sudden surge of emotions in the little child’s heart.

He peeked through the crack in the door and looked outside again.

This time, he saw a group of stray animals, their paws pressing against two dirty and unidentified creatures as if escorting them.

The little child quickly opened the door.

The door opened.

The little child looked at these unexpected visitors in utter confusion and asked, “How did you all get in?”

The mouse being held by the paws squeaked, ‘We crawled in through a hole.’

After wandering for so many days, the little mouse finally found a meal ticket. It wanted to wave its small paw to greet them, but being held down, it couldn’t move its paw at all.

Other stray animals gathered around him, making whimpering sounds and gesturing while communicating with the chubby little child who opened the door.

Huo Lin, who was silently listening, raised an eyebrow in confusion.

What were they all fussing about?

Huo Lin couldn’t understand what these stray animals were doing.

He didn’t understand, but the chubby little child sitting on the doorstep seemed to understand the intentions of the stray animals. He looked at the small animal held in its paws and began to doubt himself, saying, “I don’t have any pets at home.”

There was a small cat in the palace, but he couldn’t catch it even if he wanted to keep it.

After the chubby little child finished speaking, the stray animals collectively paused.

However, soon after, the chubby little child went back inside and brought out his own snack bag. He distributed his snacks and pastries to the stray animals one by one, saying, “Here, take them and let them go.”

The chubby little child paid off the small mouse’s debts, and the stray animals happily carried away the food.

The little mouse and the filthy little rolling beast cub stayed behind. The two small creatures stared at the chubby little child with their clear eyes, expressing a strong sense of reliance and trust.

“Hey, aren’t you leaving?”

The chubby little child didn’t recognize these two small animals at all. They approached him, rubbing and snuggling against him, even dirtying his pajama pants.

Unable to sleep due to the disturbance, the little child softened his heart when he saw they were unwilling to leave and said, “Come inside, I’ll give you a nice bath!”

Upon hearing this, the little mouse actually followed him inside.

Before long...

The chubby little child filled a large basin with water that his father used for washing clothes. He tested the water temperature, ensuring it was neither too hot nor too cold, just right for bathing.

“You two, sit nicely. I’ll wash you with a brush!”

The chubby little child rolled up his sleeves, took a brush, and sat on a small stool, washing the two dirty creatures. He himself usually had his father bathe him, so he had no experience in bathing others.

“Close your eyes!”

The basin was filled with bubbles, and the little child was covered in a lot of them.

The little mouse and the rolling beast sitting in the basin kept their eyes tightly shut as the little child brushed them slowly.

They didn’t know how long they had been brushed.

The little child looked at the two clean little creatures in the basin and was dumbfounded.

He touched the little mouse, then touched the rolling beast, and said in a daze, “You look like the little chubby mouse and the rolling beast in the Federation Zoo.”

The two named creatures remained silent for a few seconds, then handed him a card, which had the emblem of the Federation Zoo on it.

The little child, sitting on a stool, plopped down to the floor after seeing the card.

With an anxious expression on his chubby face, he looked at the little creatures in his basin and stammered, “H-how are you here? Is someone trying to catch you?!”

The mouse wearing a disguise shook his head frankly.

He pointed at the child in front of him and squeaked softly, ‘No one caught us. We came to seek refuge with you!’

The chubby child, who understood the meaning of the small mouse, went blank.

After all the confusion, it turned out that the bad guy was himself!

In a panic, the accidentally-turned-bad-guy child rushed out to make a phone call to Wagner. He wanted to ask Wagner how long the rolling beast would be kept in custody!

But at this late hour, Wagner was fast asleep with his father and couldn’t answer the phone at all.

Just as the little child hesitated whether to ask his brother or not, the yard finally lit up, and at the same time, his father and Uncle Ling Qi’s voices echoed.

“Dad!”

Upon seeing his savior, the child, about to run outside, suddenly remembered something and turned back to the bathroom. He used a towel to dry the two little creatures still sitting in the basin, then led them outside together.

He went to the doorstep, leaving the two little beasts behind.

“Daddy! Uncle Ling Qi!” The little child dashed over and hugged Zhan Xi’s thigh, rubbing his chubby face against it.

After rubbing against his father, the little child turned to look at Ling Qi. “What’s wrong with Uncle Ling Qi?”

Ling Qi’s cheeks were red, his head tilted against Zhan Xi’s neck.

Zhan Xi lowered his voice. “Uncle Ling Qi doesn’t feel well today, Ningning, can you move aside a bit? Daddy will carry Ling Qi into the room, okay?”

“Okay!”

The little child said and released his father’s leg. He trotted behind his father, anxiously watching as his father carried Uncle Ling Qi back into the room. He was very worried. “Is Uncle Ling Qi sick?”

“Uncle Ling Qi had a little alcohol. You go back to the bedroom first, I’ll be there in a moment.”

Zhan Xi wanted to send the little child away, but the little child followed him stubbornly, not wanting to leave. Not only did the little child not want to leave, he also wanted to take care of Uncle Ling Qi by himself!

Zhan Xi was busy taking care of the child and looking after Ling Qi at the same time, making him busy for a while.

After finishing the chores, the big and small ones finally returned to their own room.

At the doorway, Zhan Xi pushed the door open and suddenly heard a thud from outside.

His expression changed slightly. He quickly scooped up the little child into his arms and felt for the dagger tucked at his waist, his tone fierce. “Who’s inside?!”

The little child, held in his embrace, replied softly, lacking confidence. “It’s, it’s little mouse and rolling beast, they came to find me.”

Zhan Xi: “?”

Zhan Xi didn’t know about this little mouse, but he vaguely knew about the rolling beast, which seemed to have another notorious name: [The Beast That Breaks Through Prison Walls].

His expression continued to change, “Ningning, how did you manage to get the rolling beast?”

Their family had only just begun to lift themselves out of poverty, and they were far from being able to afford the luxurious conditions required to raise a rolling beast! Unless it was sent to the palace...

The little child kept his head down and remained silent.

The cleaned up rolling beast cub was round and chubby, with a pair of moist eyes that could easily melt one’s heart.

The little child didn’t say anything, but deep down, he really wanted to raise the rolling beast.

Zhan Xi was getting a headache.

He hadn’t even taken care of the older one in the next room, and now this smaller one in his arms had brought him new troubles.

Both the big one and the small one seemed determined not to let him have a moment of peace.

“You little rascal.”

Helplessly, Zhan Xi stepped into the room and closed the door. “You’re truly impressive. Other families raise cats and dogs, but our family has jumped straight to raising a rolling beast.”

It was too late, and Zhan Xi couldn’t properly accommodate these two little fellows who had come to seek refuge. He could only make a makeshift bed on the floor with a blanket, allowing the two exhausted little creatures to get a good sleep.

Before going to bed, he washed a basket of apples for them.

The little child lay on his own small bed, looking at the two little creatures beside his bed leg. With his father around, he was no longer afraid of going to the police station!

Having overcome the initial fear, the little child now looked at his two new friends with great joy in his heart.

He greeted the two little creatures in a soft voice, “Fatty, Rolling, you should sleep early. Tomorrow, I’ll buy you some spicy strips.”

Occasionally, there would be itinerant vendors near the school gate, and they would sell the children’s favorite snacks: spicy strips!

It was said that during the ancient Earth era, spicy strips were popular among children. Even after so many years, they were still highly sought after!

The little child looked at two adorable little creatures and couldn’t bear to go to sleep.

Zhan Xi glanced at the time and ruthlessly suppressed Ningning, who wanted to sneak away and play: “Go to sleep. It’s already two o’clock. If you don’t sleep, you’ll fall over.”

Ningning looked sadly at the rolling beast munching on an apple. Eventually, under his father’s watchful eye, he obediently closed his eyes.

Zhan Xi watched him fall asleep and then got up and went next door.

The still-awake rolling beast and the little fat mouse sat on the ground. After Zhan Xi left, the little fat mouse propped himself up and reached his paw towards the little child’s bed.

Ningning’s bed was padded, and the padding tightly wrapped the Phoenix Feather Stone underneath.

The little fat mouse didn’t see the Phoenix Feather Stone, but he twitched his nose as if he had caught a familiar scent. He murmured, ‘So familiar.’

Just like this little child in front of him, from the very first moment, he felt both familiar and fond of him.

The little fatty mouse stayed by the bed for a while before sitting back down next to the rolling beast. He declined the apple offered by the rolling beast, lowered his head, and seemed lost in thought.

The next day.

As usual, Ningning, in a grumpy mood, wanted to continue lying in bed. Zhan Xi placed the rolling beast right in front of him and said, “Ningning, get up obediently. If you get up, you can play with the rolling beast.”

Zai Zai: “...”

Ningning was caught!

With the rolling beast’s call to wake up, Ningning rubbed his eyes and stubbornly climbed out of his small bed. “Rolling, hug me!”

The rolling beast looked at the little child and was about to jump off the bed when the little fat mouse poked it.

Beastmen had a suppressing effect on ordinary beasts, and this suppression came from their bloodline.

The ordinary little rolling beast couldn’t resist this suppression at all. It stiffened its small body, and in the next second, it obediently let the little child embrace it.

Upon waking up from a hangover, Ling Qi was taken aback when he saw two little creatures in their home.

The little child didn’t rush to show him the new additions; instead, he held up his small hand, which had been freshly wrapped in bandages that morning, and looked at him pitifully.

Ling Qi: “...”

As expected, Ling Qi bent down and picked up the little child, comforting him.

Zhan Xi watched helplessly as the energetic little child, who had been rolling and jumping around, became so weak in front of Ling Qi that he couldn’t even hold a water cup. He couldn’t bear to see it.

After the little child had enough of Ling Qi’s pampering and received his promise of “making two more plates of cookies,” the chubby hands were finally able to lift the cup again.

“Ningning, are you done playing? We’re going to Uncle Lulu’s place.”

Zhan Xi rewrapped the tricycle, making it so tightly wrapped that no one outside could see what was inside. He planned to use the tricycle to transport the two little creatures to the palace.

Holding the rolling beast in one hand and the chubby mouse in the other, Ling Qi understood Zhan Xi’s intention, and his grip on them tightened even more.

“Wuwuwu, Ningning doesn’t want to go.”

Upon hearing this, Zhan Xi casually replied, “Alright then, you stay here, and Daddy will take them over.”

The little child became even more unwilling: “They don’t want to go either!”

Zhan Xi: “That’s not possible.”

Zhan Xi: “Ningning, be obedient.”

Under his father’s coercion, the final occupants of the tricycle were a child and two little animals. The three little ones clung to each other and didn’t want to separate, making for an amusing scene.

Zhan Xi cleared his throat and said, with his fist against his lips, “Alright, let’s go.”

Their home didn’t have the means to raise a rolling beast, but the palace might.

As soon as the little child arrived at the palace, he spotted Ludwig, who had just come out of the study, and the little child rushed over and hugged Ludwig’s leg.

“Uncle Lulu!”

Ningning humbly pleaded, “Can you help Ningning take care of Rolling?”

Ludwig: “?”

Before Ludwig could fully understand the situation, Ningning continued humbly, “Ningning can’t afford to take care of Rolling. Uncle Lulu, please help Ningning take care of Rolling. Ningning will work hard and earn money to buy apples for Rolling!”

“Ningning will also be grateful to Uncle Lulu!”

Through observation, Ningning had already noticed that Rolling could eat more than Fatty. He could barely support Fatty, but he really can’t support Rolling!

Ludwig became interested this time and asked, “How do you plan to thank me?”

Ningning had already figured it out on his way here. With a serious expression on his chubby face, he started counting on his fingers for Ludwig, “Ningning will feed Uncle Lulu, do the laundry, and play with Uncle Lulu...”

He counted a lot, and it was evident that he had thought of these things very seriously.

Unfortunately, Ludwig remained unmoved. “Uncle Lulu doesn’t need to be fed, and there’s a washing machine for the laundry... I have too much work and no time to play.”

Ludwig completely rejected everything Ningning could do, and after the rejection, he intentionally asked again, “Ningning, how do you plan to thank Uncle?”

Ningning’s chubby face froze.

He grabbed onto Uncle Lulu’s pant leg in a state of confusion and shame, saying, “Ningning still needs to think about it.”

Ningning sat on Ludwig’s feet, still pondering, when Huo Lin approached. Huo Lin, who stayed up late with Ningning last night, had a somewhat pale complexion.

***

The author has something to say:

Ningning: Useless little Ningning QAQ

 

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