A group of adults had high expectations for the Imperial Military Kindergarten, which was renowned across the galaxy for its excellence. Their little child had been attending the kindergarten for a semester, and they believed that the child had already become a cultured little being.
However, now it seemed that the child’s cultural knowledge wasn’t as extensive as they had hoped.
The adults had mixed feelings. If the children weren’t present, they would have turned to Zhan Xi to ask how the child was being educated.
Under the adults’ gazes, the little child looked at his dad and Uncle Ling Qi with sparkling eyes. “Dad, Uncle Ling Qi, I’ve finished speaking!”
It was time to give the little child a red envelope!
Neither adult wanted to give a red envelope, but since it was the New Year, they couldn’t skip giving New Year’s money.
In the end, Ling Qi took a deep breath and handed over a red envelope. “Ningning, this is your New Year’s money. In the coming year, Uncle Ling Qi hopes you will study well.”
The little child: “...”
The little child shook his head, feeling like he hadn’t really listened.
Zhan Xi, with a stern face, also gave a red envelope and said, “Ningning, when we return to White Mist Star, you still have to go to the palace for tutoring.”
After receiving the red envelope, the little child climbed up from the blanket, looked at his dad, and then slowly said, “I’m smart, I don’t need tutoring.”
He had already had enough tutoring at the palace.
After the little child finished receiving the red envelope, it was Lele’s turn to ask for one. Lele simply repeated the little child’s blessing words. After he repeated them, the adults didn’t make things difficult for him and handed him a red envelope as well.
Both little children received thick red envelopes.
After getting their red envelopes, everyone planned to watch a movie together and stay up late to welcome the New Year.
Of course, not everyone had to stay up. Those who had to patrol the next day were exempted from staying up late, otherwise, they would be too sleepy during their patrols.
Patrolling was a serious task and could not be taken lightly.
They stayed up until past midnight, and the two children among the adults started yawning. The little child was holding a star device, still connected to a call with his older brother.
After collecting all the red envelopes, the little child used the star device to call his uncle, aunt, Uncle Lulu, Aunt Ai Wei, and his brother.
His uncle said he had already prepared New Year’s money for him.
The stingy aunt was not stingy when it came to giving New Year’s money. The red envelope he prepared for the little child not only contained a thick stack of money but also a newly made little gold lock.
Adults still take the tradition of giving New Year’s money to children very seriously.
Besides the uncle and aunt, other adults who were not around the child also prepared New Year’s money for him, saying that he could come and get it later.
The little child suddenly became rich overnight and was overjoyed.
“Zhan Xi, go hold Ningning.”
Ling Qi saw that the little child had already fallen asleep in Zhan Rao’s arms, so he raised his hand and nudged Zhan Xi, saying, “Put him to sleep inside the house.”
Although there was a fire outside, it was still not as warm as inside the house.
One child was sleeping in Zhan Rao’s arms, and the other was sleeping in Duo Bi’s arms, both already sound asleep. They were still young and could easily catch a cold if they fell asleep outside.
“You should go to sleep too,” Zhan Xi said softly. “I’ll keep watch.”
Ling Qi had been sleeping a lot these days and wasn’t sleepy at the moment. He continued cracking sunflower seeds, watching as Zhan Xi took the two children inside without moving himself.
Just as Zhan Xi left, someone asked Ling Qi, “Ling Qi, you and Zhan Xi have been living on White Mist Star for so long, have you thought about finding a partner?”
White Mist Star was the capital of the Empire, and there must be many excellent people there.
Neither Zhan Xi nor Ling Qi were married, so people wondered if they would want to find a partner after moving there.
Ling Qi, hearing the question, replied calmly, “I don’t have any plans for that at the moment. Zhan Xi has just set up a new junkyard and has a lot of work to do every day. He probably doesn’t have the time to think about it either.”
Hearing this, the others dropped the topic of gossip.
Time passed slowly.
After sending the two children back, Zhan Xi didn’t wake them up to take a bath. It was cold at night, and their house didn’t have heating. If they bathed now, they could easily catch a chill.
He changed the little children into pajamas and tucked them into bed, using a warm, wet towel to wipe them down.
After wiping them down, Zhan Xi looked at the children, who looked like little angels when they were asleep. He couldn’t help but bend down and kiss their soft, chubby cheeks.
Even though the little child annoyed him countless times a day, he still loved him dearly.
“Little one, may you be safe and sound in the new year, and may everything go smoothly.”
Zhan Xi said this and then kissed the little child’s cheek.
At this moment, the soft little child felt like no amount of kissing would be enough.
After cuddling with the child for a while in the room, Zhan Xi took a thick cotton blanket and returned to the place where they were staying up for the New Year. He draped the blanket over Ling Qi, then turned his head and started chatting with Zhan Rao.
They talked about the resources of the barren planet and the Zergs that occasionally harassed them.
Zhan Rao glanced in the direction of the Zerg nest, his brows slightly furrowed. “If only these Zergs could be eradicated at the root. Also, have you asked An Nuo? I feel that the times when the Zergs appear most frequently always coincide with Ningning’s presence.”
During the months Ningning was away at school, the Zergs noticeably quieted down.
But as soon as Ningning returned, the Zergs immediately started acting up again: “The Zergs here aren’t very strong, so Ningning attracting some Zergs isn’t a big deal. But if he attracts Zergs outside, Zhan Xi, that could be dangerous.”
Zhan Xi responded with a hum and said, “I’ll have a good talk with An Nuo again. Previously, An Nuo mentioned that they have a naturally antagonistic relationship with the Zergs.”
Zhan Xi continued, comforting Zhan Rao: “Eldest brother, you don’t need to worry too much. There are no Zergs on White Mist Star, Ningning is very safe there.”
White Mist Star was indeed very safe, but the little child couldn’t stay on White Mist Star forever.
Zhan Rao thought for a moment and then asked: “How is Ningning doing with his combat training and mecha practice?”
The child had no offensive mental power, so in case of danger, he would have to rely on his fists or a mecha.
Mentioning these two practical courses, Zhan Xi’s face finally showed a bit of relaxation.
He smiled: “Ningning passed both courses. When I picked him up, the teacher told me that Ningning is working very hard in these two courses.”
Don’t be fooled by the fact that their child was the chubbiest in the class, when it comes to combat training, the chubby little child was quite impressive.
As they chatted about trivial matters, another group was also staying up.
In the middle of the night, just as they expected, another wave of Zergs nearly broke through the defense.
Zhan Xi went over in person and helped everyone drive the Zergs back.
And even in his sleep, the little child wasn’t idle. His healing-type mental power sprouted, soothing and healing each of the adults who had just exhausted their mental power.
The little child’s mental power comforted everyone, calming them down. They closed their eyes, enjoying this moment of comfort.
The adults on the barren planet initially all had severe mental power issues, and before the little child came to the barren planet, many people had died.
