Like a Family of Three

Grace also eyed him and teased, "Your Majesty, you look so different! You seem three or four years younger! Ha! Your skin is flawless now—the crow's feet are gone!"

"Thanks to you, for bringing me that big bottle of Youthful Grace Balm."

"Haha! Works wonders, doesn't it?" Grace laughed. "I've got plenty more where that came from!"

She raised her hand and presented the grand gift hamper: a beautiful double-luck embroidered brocade pouch.

Inside were more than a dozen kinds of elixir pills she had specially refined for him.

"What are all these?" Henry Tuoba opened the pouch and took out the little bottles and jars inside.

"These are custom-made magical medicines, personally refined for you by Grace Zhu, Chief Alchemist of the Eastern Alliance!" Grace said smugly.

"You give me a bag of medicine for New Year's?" Henry Tuoba looked troubled. "Should I thank you or not?"

"Every single one of these is something others would beg for but never get!" Grace said. "And they're exactly what you need for your current cultivation stage."

"Really?"

"If you don't want it, I'll just take it back," Grace teased, pretending to snatch the pouch away.

But Henry Tuoba quickly hid it behind his back. "Who ever takes back a gift after giving it away?"

Grace smiled and said to him, "There's also a small bottle of medicine in there—for Prime Minister Quentin Shaw."

"You even made something for him?" Henry Tuoba rummaged through the pouch and found a bottle labeled 'Quentin Shaw.'

Then he asked her, "What's inside this one?"

"Ahem, it's also custom-made for him—a potent healing medicine. He recently had Nanny send me a message about it, so Your Majesty, could you please deliver it to him for me?"

"A healing medicine? What's wrong with him?"

"It's nothing serious..." Grace replied awkwardly. "Just please help me deliver it to him."

"Alright!" Henry Tuoba said, and then he pulled out a heavy gift hamper and thumped it onto the table. "This one's for you."

"Wow! What's inside?" Grace's face lit up with delight.

"Go ahead, open it!"

Grace opened it, and inside was Celestial Spirit Jade! All together, there must've been thirty or forty pounds of it, in bits and pieces!

"Whoa! So much Celestial Spirit Jade?" Grace exclaimed. "Where did you get all this?"

"It was confiscated from the Azure Dragon Nation," Henry Tuoba replied. "I've already conquered them."

"Wow, my emperor is amazing!"

Just then, Ray popped out, jumped onto the Spirit Jade, grabbed a piece, and started crunching away.

Henry Tuoba stared at him, utterly shocked. "What the...?"

"That's Ray!" Grace said. "I needed those high-grade Spirit Jades for him."

"Ray? Which Ray?"

"My son!" Grace said. "He's been reborn! Only now he's a little dragon."

"It really is Ray..." Henry Tuoba looked at him with a strange expression. "Do you still recognize me, Ray?"

"Of course, Uncle Tuoba," Ray said. "You're a good person—Ray likes you."

As he spoke, Ray nuzzled Henry Tuoba's hand with his head.

Henry Tuoba, overwhelmed, reached out and touched Ray's little horns, looking utterly astonished.

...

This was the scene Evan Xiao walked in on.

His son was being awfully close with Henry Tuoba.

Grace watched from the side, smiling softly.

It looked just like a happy family of three.

...

Evan Xiao's gaze turned icy cold. He was about to walk away.

"Father!" Ray spotted him and immediately leaped onto him.

Evan Xiao had no choice but to step forward.

"The Crown Prince has arrived! Greetings, Your Highness!" Henry Tuoba knelt in salute.