On the spaceship.
‘Handyman’ Zhan Xi was in the room of the Imperial Crown Prince, sorting out the things he had brought over.
“Ling Qi, can we see Ningning when we get there?”
Zhan Xi squatted on the ground, checking the things he had brought over temporarily. “I brought him some clothes; I don’t know if these clothes will be enough.”
Huo Lin, hearing this, looked down. “Ningning had clothes when he left. Uncle Zhan, I think we should bring more food.”
As Huo Lin’s words fell, Ling Qi, who had been silent on the side, spoke up, “Time was short; I didn’t bring much food, just prepared a little temporarily.”
Huo Lin looked at what Ling Qi referred to as “a little” and saw that it was a whole big box.
The three of them stayed in the room for quite some time. When Huo Lin finally came out, Zhan Xi and Ling Qi didn’t follow.
Zhan Xi and Ling Qi were studying the route of their child.
“Ancient Earth ruins.”
These few words not only captured the interest of the little child, but also intrigued Zhan Xi and Ling Qi. The two adults were researching together, “Where did Ningning learn about this winter camp at the ancient Earth ruins?”
Ling Qi shook his head. “I don’t know.”
The ancient Earth era was long gone, far removed from the current age. However, the culture left behind from that period still astonished people from the interstellar era.
Interstellar people were very fascinated and eager to explore and study everything about ancient Earth.
“Forget it, we’re not going to the ancient Earth ruins for anything. We’re just going to see Ningning.”
Even though Zhan Xi almost blacked out when the final grades of the little child came out.
However, time and distance were magical things. After several days without seeing the little child, Zhan Xi once again found himself thinking about their little child.
So what if he got a low score?
Scores and grades didn’t represent everything. After the child returned from the winter camp, they could send him to the palace for extra lessons.
Even if the child scored poorly, he was still their beloved child!
Under this self-brainwashing, Zhan Xi really started looking forward to meeting the little child.
The spaceship would take a long time to land.
***
Meanwhile, in the forest.
Several children were in a frantic escape, and while Wagner was carrying Lele on his back, he accidentally slipped.
At the moment he slipped, he promptly protected Lele. Lele didn’t fall much, but he ended up dizzy from the fall.
“Wagner, are you okay?”
“I’m fine!”
Ningning watched as Wagner got up and carried Lele on his back, continuing to run.
He looked at Savi beside him and asked, “Savi, can you still hold on?!”
Savi had a few blood marks on his face; he was provoked by this group of bugs and now, when he looked at the bugs, his eyes were filled with a murderous intent.
“I can hold on.”
Savi gritted his teeth. “I’ll kill them all!”
The little child was more rational than Savi. He glanced at Wagner’s knees, then at Lele. In a serious tone, he said, “We can’t continue to engage with them! We need to take Lele and leave quickly.”
Seeing Savi in trouble, the little child, busy killing Zergs, hurriedly ran over and gave him a kick. “Hurry up and run, or else you’ll be eaten by the bugs!”
After calming down Savi, the little child then carried Lele from Wagner’s back onto his own.
Wagner’s lower leg was injured, and he couldn’t carry Lele any longer.
“Ningning, I can carry him.”
Wagner was still stubborn, intending to continue carrying Lele.
But the little child didn’t let him. “Wagner, your mental strength is strong. Use it to fend them off.”
Wagner, Marshal Twain’s only son, inherited Twain’s high-level mental strength. However, he wasn’t very proficient in using his high-level mental strength yet.
After returning to the Federal Kindergarten, Wagner received a private lesson from his father - how to use mental strength skillfully and turn it into an attacking force.
His father patiently taught him, and Wagner had already mastered this lesson.
He switched roles with Ningning, who was killing Zergs. Ningning was responsible for finding the way, while Wagner, along with Savi, used mental strength to intercept the bugs.
They ran for who knew how long.
Perhaps they were lucky, or perhaps the little child found a good path, but they actually managed to run out of the forest.
Fortunately, there were no disturbances outside.
After the four children came out, they sat down on the ground.
They looked at the forest ahead, exchanging glances, and finally, Wagner, with a milky voice, asked, “Did the other kids and the teachers not come out?”
All was quiet around them, no sign of any other children, and no sight of the teachers. It seemed as if in the vast expanse of the world, only the four little children remained.
Savi, always with a stern face, was now trembling as he looked at his hands.
Lele also sat on the ground, one of his hands tightly held by Ningning.
“Dad Ningning, it’s Lele who caused trouble.”
Lele had cried too much; now he could hardly make a sound. “The bugs want to catch Lele. It’s Lele who caused trouble.”
The other kids and the teachers were not the bugs’ target originally.
He was.
Lele was both terrified and self-blaming, overwhelmed by too many emotions. As a timid and shy child, he was completely incapable of digesting these feelings.
“Let, let Lele go back.”
Lele looked at the frightening forest. Even though his small body was trembling with fear, he still said, “Lele will go back and bring the teacher and the other kids back.”
“No.”
Ningning and Wagner said in unison, “You can’t go back.”
They had finally managed to escape; how could they possibly go back?!
Lele let go of Dad Ningning’s finger, wiped away the tears streaming down his cheeks, and for the first time, he learned to refuse Dad Ningning’s words.
“Lele wants to go back.”
Lele stubbornly said, “If Lele doesn’t go back, the bugs will come to find Lele.”
In his previous dreams, there were always green-eyed bugs. Those bugs were looking for him, wanting to take him away.
Mom always told him that these were just nightmares, and as long as he woke up, he wouldn’t dream about them again.
But now, he was very clear in his heart—Mom lied to him.
He wasn’t dreaming.
The bugs were really looking for him, and if he didn’t go back, Dad Ningning, Dad Wagner, and Brother Savi would all be implicated because of Lele.
He really liked Dad Ningning, also liked Dad Wagner, and kind of liked Brother Savi.
He didn’t want them to be caught by the bugs.
Ningning looked at Lele, who seemed to be defiant, and his brows furrowed.
“Lele.”
Lele looked at his dad.
Ningning, with a serious expression on his chubby face, was also looking at Lele. The two children stared at each other. Finally, Ningning spoke. “Do you know what happens in our family if a child doesn’t behave?”
Lele was momentarily stunned, and the next second, he shook his head. He hadn’t gone home with Dad Ningning, nor had he met Grandpa Zhan Xi.
He didn’t know what would happen to a child who didn’t behave.
Ningning looked at him and solemnly announced the answer, “They get a spanking!”
