“No.”
Ge Nianlan’s mouth fell open at the clean rejection. “But Father, I’m going to be turning eleven!”
“Most children of the Palace Master won’t be leaving Black Mane Palace until they’re thirteen,” Ge Jinsheng said. The rustling of paper filled the silence in the room. He glanced at Ge Nianlan, “Except for guardian accompanied events.”
“Then, you can just come with us!” Ge Nianlan said.
“I won’t be.”
“Why!?”
“Because your birthday week may be the happiest week of the year for you, but for your father, it is one of the busiest,” Ge Jinsheng said. “Haven’t you spent every year perfectly fine in Black Mane Palace anyway? And, this year, you get to play with the disciples and you even have a new friend. It will be lively enough.”
Guan Yongqin nodded. “Young Lord, this is all for your own safety. If you leave Black Mane Palace during such a crowded time, Ling Tong and the other guards will have a hard time protecting you.”
“I’m not trying to go into the city because I’m being childish,” Ge Nianlan said. He looked at Ge Jinsheng and Guan Yongqin’s back and forth before he slightly raised his voice. “Could you at least listen to my explanation?”
Ge Jinsheng glanced at him. He finally sighed and put the paperwork down. “Alright. What is your explanation?”
“I want to get Luo-gege and Zheng-jiejie together,” Ge Nianlan said.
“They’re already engaged.”
“That’s different! They want to break their engagement,” Ge Nianlan said. He felt a bit bad about revealing his good friends’ secrets, but if he didn’t then they would never get together. He took a deep breath. “Zheng-jiejie doesn’t want to marry Luo-gege because she doesn’t want to follow her parents’ decree. Luo-gege feels guilty that Zheng-jiejie has to go through with it because her parents feel like they should be granting his parent’s last wishes. But Luo-gege really likes Zheng-jiejie! And Zheng-jiejie tolerates Luo-gege more than others, so that probably means she doesn’t mind him, right? But Zheng-jiejie just ignores Luo-gege right now. If they break the engagement off when things are like this, I’m afraid they’ll have a hard time even becoming friends!”
Ge Nianlan looked between Ge Jinsheng and Guan Yongqin. He put his hands together pleadingly. “So, I really need this. Huai Zhen and I have a perfect plan. We get them to go to that large tree by the lake, and then we keep them there, surrounded by couples, until they talk to each other.”
Seeing that the two adults were still unresponsive, Ge Nianlan pouted.
“Father, this is about the future of two of your son’s most trusted subordinates. Can’t you just let me do this?” Ge Nianlan said.
Guan Yongqin slowly took her gaze away from Ge Nianlan and softly cleared her throat. “Your Excellency, I believe that we should still—”
“Alright.”
“—keep the Young Lord…pardon?”
“Alright, you win,” Ge Jinsheng said. “However, I have one condition.”
Ge Nianlan’s eyes widened. “What? I agree! I don’t care. I just agree!”
Ge Jinsheng’s lips twitched in amusement. “I will be accompanying you.”
“…Um…but…Father, you’re really tall and handsome. If you come with us, then I’m afraid Zheng-jiejie might be too distracted,” Ge Nianlan awkwardly mumbled.
Ge Jinsheng chuckled. “I’ll hide away until your plan succeeds. Afterwards, the three of us can walk around the festival together.”
Ge Nianlan’s eyes widened briefly.
Wait…wasn’t this also perfect? On one hand, he’ll get Luo Qianwu and Zheng Yuying to talk things out; on the other, he can get Ge Jinsheng and Huai Zhen to spend time together! The better their feelings were now, the easier they could get along when they finally reunite as father and son!
Ge Nianlan immediately nodded. “Deal! I agree! Thank you, Father.”
“Mn. Then, you may leave.”
“Thank you!” Ge Nianlan excitedly shouted. He bowed quickly to Ge Jinsheng, then to Guan Yongqin, and half walked, half sprinted out the door.
Guan Yongqin frowned. She glanced at Ge Jinsheng. “You spoil him.”
“He’s my only son. What else can I do?” Ge Jinsheng said.
“If you continue to spoil him, he will grow crooked and then no one will be able to control him,” Guan Yongqin warned.
“Do you really think that?”
“Of course.”
“Well, I think that he should be allowed to do whatever he wants right now, because he will have limited freedom when he is older,” Ge Jinsheng said.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“Your Excellency, you cannot spoil him just because you feel bad that he has no mother.”
Xf Alcrtfcu rlifcais gfjv atgbeut atf qjqfgr ecali Xejc Tbcudlc rlutfv.
“…P bnfgrafqqfv. Zs jqbibulfr, Tbeg Szmfiifcms.”
“Ktja rbc bo wlcf tjr yffc atgbeut j ugfja vfji,” Xf Alcrtfcu rjlv. “P atlcx la lr bxjs ab ifa tlw vb ktjafnfg tf kjcar ktlif P jw ralii jgbecv ab qgbafma tlw. Coafg jii, la kjr tlr bkc ojatfg ktb ygbeuta tjgw eqbc tlw aklmf.”
Guan Yongqin pursed her lips. “Your Excellency, it was not your fault.”
“Yongqin,” Ge Jinsheng met her gaze. “As a parent, even if your child trips and falls, you will think it was your fault.”
“But did you really have to go along with his antics this time?” Guan Yongqin asked.
“Why not?” Ge Jinsheng chuckled. “It’s endearing that he is trying to play matchmaker. He is very romantic, just like his father.”
Guan Yongqin’s expression soured as she recalled the old days. She shuddered and started to sort through the pile that Ge Jinsheng had already gone through.
“Remember how I courted Lanying?” Ge Jinsheng asked wistfully.
“Those are days I yearn to forget, Your Excellency.”
Ge Jinsheng looked at her in surprise. “Why is that?”
“You don’t know how painful it is to be the single one stuck between two lovebirds,” Guan Yongqin said as she gathered the scrolls. She glanced at Ge Jinsheng. “Your poems made me have goosebumps every time, Your Excellency.”
Ge Jinsheng frowned as Guan Yongqin made her leave. “But they were sweet, weren’t they?”
“I don’t like sweets,” Guan Yongqin said.
The doors opened and closed, leaving Ge Jinsheng to sit alone in his study. He turned back to the pile of paperwork he had with a shake of his head.
“Some people just don’t understand romance.”
“Young L—Master, don’t run!”
The girl’s warning rang through the bustling streets, following the two boys as the wove through the crowds. Huai Zhen glanced behind them and tugged at Ge Nianlan’s hand.
“This wasn’t part of the plan, was it?” Huai Zhen said hesitantly.
“They’ll be fine,” Ge Nianlan said. He grinned. “I just want to tire them out so they don’t have any energy to argue with me later!”
Huai Zhen let out a soft sigh, but followed Ge Nianlan anyway. Three months of running laps around the training arena did little to improve Ge Nianlan’s enjoyment of martial arts, but it definitely gave him great stamina.
“Young Master!” Zheng Yuying shouted again. She turned to Luo Qianwu. “Qianwu, go grab them!”
“They’ll be fine,” Luo Qianwu said. “Lord Ling is watching them as well.”
Zheng Yuying thought about it and breathed a sigh of relief. She patted her chest. “You’re right. I totally forgot about that.”
Luo Qianwu smiled slightly and held out his hand. “We should hold hands too so that we won’t lose each other. I’m willing to bet that the Young Master is going to be waiting at the end of the street for us.”
Zheng Yuying glanced at Luo Qianwu’s hand. She was about to reject him when another wave of people pushed her forward. She tripped over her own feet and nearly fell, but a steady hand grabbed her and pulled her back up. Her face flushed as she took Luo Qianwu’s hand.
“Okay, let’s go.”
Luo Qianwu suppressed his laughter and guided Zheng Yuying through the surging crowd.
Zheng Yuying glanced at him.
When they were younger, he was always much shorter than her. Now that they were teenagers, he was taller than her by half a head. Not only that, but because of his daily training, his shoulders had grown very broad. While she had also gained muscle, she did not compare to Luo Qianwu, who had to train like a demon in order to succeed as the Wolf Saint.
Her fingers shifted slightly in his hand.
His hand used to be small and soft, but now it was big and callused. How long had it been since they had even gotten this close?
“Zheng-jiejie! Luo-gege! You two took so long!”
The voice of the young lord snapped Zheng Yuying out of her thoughts. She huffed as she released Luo Qianwu and stomped over to them.
“Are you two serious? How could you run off like that?” Zheng Yuying asked. “Do you know how dangerous that was?”
Ge Nianlan swung his feet back and forth. “We would have been fine if you two were just faster. Right, A-Huai?”
“Don’t drag me into this,” Huai Zhen said with a disapproving glance to the boy.
Ge Nianlan slowly closed his mouth. He glanced at the other two and grinned. “If anything happened, at the very worst, at least Gugu will lead you to us!”
Ge Nianlan pointed up and Zheng Yuying and Luo Qianwu finally noticed the small black bird, hovering just out of view. They both sighed in unison.
“Young Master, don’t run off like that again,” Luo Qianwu said.
If even Luo Qianwu said so, then Ge Nianlan couldn’t talk back, now could he?
So, for the remainder of the trip, until evening, Ge Nianlan stuck closely to Zheng Yuying and Luo Qianwu to the point that the two teenagers started to wonder what he was up to.
As the sun was beginning to set, the group had settled in a restaurant for dinner. Ge Nianlan looked over the balcony, his feet kicking slightly as he ate food that was a little too deep fried. His eyes flickered everywhere, for any sign of Ge Jinsheng. But just like Ling Tong, he was very good at blending in with the shadows and the crowd. The great Devil Lord was nowhere to be seen.
“After this, we should head back,” Zheng Yuying suggested.
Ge Nianlan paused and looked at her. “We can’t!”
“What?”
“There’s still the fireworks show,” Ge Nianlan said with a sigh. “It signifies the beginning of the celebration. I always watch it from the window of my bedroom, but I want to see it up close this time.”
Zheng Yuying wanted to protect, but under Ge Nianlan’s sparkling gaze, she finally gave in with a short sigh.
“And before that, we need to go to that big tree!” Ge Nianlan said as he pointed to where the largest crowd was gathered. “I want to make wishes too.”
“But Young Lord, it’s too dangerous to go to such a crowded place,” Luo Qianwu frowned.
“But because it’s so crowded, there are many guards stationed around. You could say it’s one of the safer areas of the festival,” Ge Nianlan said. “Besides, I have you two and Ling Tong. What could go wrong?”
Luo Qianwu and Zheng Yuying glanced at each other.
Ge Nianlan saw that they were still being stubborn and lightly poked Huai Zhen. Huai Zhen glanced at Ge Nianlan’s twitching eyes blankly for a moment before he finally cleared his throat.
Luo Qianwu and Zheng Yuying looked at him.
“I…want to make a wish too…” Huai Zhen shyly mumbled.
Luo Qianwu’s mouth opened wordlessly. Zheng Yuying frowned and let out a long sigh.
“Fine, fine. If even Young Master Huai wants to go, then we’ll go. But you guys have to stick close to us, got it?”
“Got it!” Ge Nianlan said with a definitive nod.
Once the group finished dinner, they made their way over to the tree.
The moment they arrived, they could already tell that they would have to wait a very long time before they could get a hold of any of the papers or boats. There were people who sat off to the side, writing on the red slips of papers, or simply crouched on the ground. Despite the crowd and the tediousness of the situation, everyone had a smile on their faces as they tossed the orange in their hands and waited for their turn to throw their wish onto the tree.
Huai Zhen looked around curiously. “Why the oranges though?”
“Do you not have this in the Yunheng Region?” Zheng Yuying asked.
“I’m not sure. I haven’t been out of Yunkong Pavilion,” Huai Zhen said sheepishly.
“Oh, well, that’s fine!” Zheng Yuying said. She pointed to the red paper being tied to the oranges. “So, you write your wish onto the red or gold slip of paper, then tie it to an orange and toss it up to the tree. Although it doesn’t really matter what color string or which paper you use, there are still legends attached to them.”
“What sort of legends?” Huai Zhen asked.
“People who made a wish about romance usually use red string and write on red paper,” Luo Qianwu explained. “If it’s something about money, then they use the gold string and write on gold paper. If it’s about family, they use gold string and red paper. If it’s about career, then they use red string with gold paper. If it’s anything else, people use the uncolored string with either paper.”
Huai Zhen let out a low hum. “I see. Then…why the orange?”
“It has a good meaning, doesn’t it?” Luo Qianwu said with a smile.
“Also, you have to aim super high!” Zheng Yuying said. She pointed to the top of the tree. “The legend says that the higher you throw it, the better your chances will be of it coming true!”
Huai Zhen smiled to himself. “It’s a nice tradition.”
“Let’s try,” Ge Nianlan said. He winked at Huai Zhen and turned to Luo Qianwu and Zheng Yuying. “You two get the materials for the Wishing Tree. A-Huai and I will go to the lake.”
“Wait, we’re splitting up?” Luo Qianwu asked. “We shouldn’t do that.”
“It’s fine. Ling Tong is with us. Ling Tong!”
Ling Tong appeared immediately beside Ge Nianlan.
“You see?” Ge Nianlan said.
Luo Qianwu and Zheng Yuying glanced at each other.
“You aren’t underestimating the Python Saint, are you?” Ge Nianlan asked.
“Of course not!” Zheng Yuying quickly said.
“Good. Then, you two stand together in line,” Ge Nianlan said. “Don’t think about sneaking off!”
The children and Ling Tong ran off, leaving Zheng Yuying and Luo Qianwu by themselves.
The two glanced at each other awkwardly.
Luo Qianwu cleared his throat. “Then, shall we get in line?”
“Yeah, let’s do that,” Zheng Yuying said, her voice trailing off.
Luo Qianwu tried to walk in one direction while Zheng Yuying attempted to walk in the other. Both got in each other’s way until, finally, an elderly person not too far away from them sighed.
“Young people love messing around these days, don’t they?”
“Why not just pick a direction and walk!” another teased.
Luo Qianwu’s face flushed. He glanced at Zheng Yuying, but before he could ask, she gripped his hand and pulled him in one direction.
“This way. There’s way less people over here,” Zheng Yuying said.
Luo Qianwu stared at his hand in hers and hummed softly. His face grew even redder, but for a distinctly different reason this time.
Not too far away, three people and a puppet jing crouched in the shrubbery and watched in silence.
Ge Nianlan clicked his tongue and shifted his position, making Sigu have to move as well. “What was that? How can they be so awkward with each other?”
“It shows that they’re very conscious of one another,” Huai Zhen explained.
“Is that so?” Ge Nianlan’s eyes brightened. “Does that mean that there’s a chance?”
“Miss Zheng never expressed her dislike of Young Master Luo,” Ge Jinsheng pointed out. “I think as long as they talk out their differences, they’ll be fine.”
Ge Nianlan sighed. “If only I could hear what they were saying!”
“You could if you wanted to,” Ge Jinsheng said.
Ge Nianlan looked at Ge Jinsheng with wide eyes. “How?”
“I could project what I’m hearing to you two,” Ge Jinsheng said with a soft smile.
“Can you? A-Huai, do you want to hear too?” Ge Nianlan asked.
Huai Zhen glanced at Ge Jinsheng, who gave him a reassuring nod. “If Your Excellency doesn’t mind.”
Ge Jinsheng sat on the ground and concentrated his energy before gently pressing his palms against the boys’ backs.
Ge Nianlan’s eyes widened. His senses were temporarily blocked then, like an opening dam, he was flooded by new, clearer sounds. Suddenly, he could hear the buzzing of a fly that he had swatted away not too long ago, and he could hear the soft waves of the lake, further away from them. He blinked in confusion until he got used to it. He glanced at Huai Zhen, who seemed to have also come down from the shock.
“If it’s too much, just tell me,” Ge Jinsheng said.
Ge Nianlan shook his head.
It was amazing! So this was the level of a Devil Lord!
YES! Quality time with father/ father in law!🥰
YESS!!! thanks for reading!
Ge Jinsheng joining in on the shenanigans haha
Thanks for the chapter ^^
he may be old now, but he still remembers the thrilling romance of his youth 🥺 thanks for reading!
kissing Ge Jinsheng gently on the forehead (๑˃ᴗ˂) im love him
he’s a softie frfr thanks for reading!
J.The demon lord joining this ride makes me laugh a lot.
J.I’m too scared when he finds out that NianNian is not his son (I’m not looking forward to that moment at all.) I don’t know why but NianNian might disappear when it does.
Thanks for the chapter ✨
hehe thanks for reading!!!
Thanks for the chapter
Thanks for reading!