With Prince Nolan and Serena Feng back, Rory was finally liberated. Although he didn’t hand over all the government affairs to Prince Nolan, still...
At least now he didn’t have to stay up late. Whenever he felt tired, he could snuggle into Serena Feng’s arms and act spoiled with his mother, saying he was exhausted and didn’t want to read any more memorials...
With Prince Nolan back, not only Rory but also Felix Fuller and Holden Cui found themselves much less busy. Prince Nolan handled state affairs with veteran efficiency—Rory’s natural intelligence couldn’t close that gap. What took Rory an hour, Prince Nolan could finish in the time it takes for a stick of incense to burn. And all of this...
...were things Rory still had to learn.
"Prince Nolan is back—I can finally get a good night’s sleep," Felix Fuller yawned, his steps unsteady. Clearly, he’d been sticking with Rory through all the chaos.
"Mm. Tonight we can rest early," Holden Cui replied, looking even more miserable. Unlike Felix, he lacked Felix’s martial foundation and could only tough it out physically, but...
After staying tense for so long, once Prince Nolan returned, Holden Cui’s body finally relaxed—and, tragically, he fell ill.
Tyler Cui had just finished writing his hundred-thousand-word self-reflection essay and was about to beg his father to let him out for some fresh air, but now that his father was sick, how could he just run off?
Helpless, Tyler Cui could only send a letter to Max Zhai and the others, telling them he couldn’t make it and they should go have fun without him.
"Fun? We’re going to do something big!" Max Zhai was the first to object after receiving the letter.
They’d received word that a cell of the remnants of the Three Kingdoms was hiding just outside the Capital. The boys wanted to test their skills and see if they could catch them—how did that become ‘playing’ in Tyler Cui’s ears?
"How about we wait until everyone’s here before we act? Rory and Tyler Cui aren’t coming, it’s just the few of us," Liam Fuller protested, refusing to admit he was afraid of trouble—he just, he just...
...didn’t want to cause problems and make his parents worry.
Yes, that was it—he had to be a good boy.
"What are we waiting for? There’s enough of us. If Tyler Cui doesn’t come, so be it. As for Rory? How could we let him take on something so risky? We’ll handle it ourselves and let Rory take the credit," Si Xiaocheng slapped Liam Fuller’s shoulder...
Si Xiaocheng was strong—his slap nearly knocked Liam Fuller over.
"Hey, can’t you go a little easier? You know you’re strong," Liam Fuller was close to tears. He was just following his father’s advice to avoid danger—was that so wrong?
"You’re too weak, like a skinny chicken—worse than Shane Wang," Si Xiaocheng didn’t think he’d done anything wrong and gave another slap. Liam Fuller staggered but managed not to fall.
But being called out didn’t make Shane Wang happy. His face was serious: "I actually think Liam Fuller has a point. The ones who can really fight here are Max Zhai, Liam Fuller, Evan Yu, and Si Xiaocheng. The four of you may be tough, but you’re still just kids. If we really go up against them, we might not win."
"Who said we have to fight? We just need to catch them. Rory always says that if we don’t have enough muscle, we use our heads. You and Liam Fuller are smart—come up with a plan and we’ll follow your lead." Max Zhai, in a rare moment of self-awareness, threw up his hands and pushed the trouble onto someone else.
Shane Wang’s brow furrowed. "We really don’t have enough people. No matter how I try to arrange it, it doesn’t work."
"We can add my personal guards. Will that be enough?" Max Zhai said generously, and once he spoke up, Evan Yu and Si Xiaocheng couldn’t argue.
"My family's Divine Arrow Battalion has a group of kids about my age—handpicked by my father for me. I can call them out," Si Xiaocheng puffed out his chest, looking proud.
Evan Yu scoffed, "What’s so great about that? My father picked out my personal guards before I was even born." Too bad his family didn’t have a Divine Arrow Battalion.
"Now we’ve got enough people, right? If not, Liam Fuller can just steal his dad’s command token. The inspectors at the Imperial Inspection Bureau are all experts—my dad says they used to be Bloodcloak Guard, every one of them a killer at interrogation." At the critical moment, Max Zhai pushed the trouble onto Liam Fuller again.
Surrounded by a bunch of hot-blooded idiots, the cunning Liam Fuller was under a lot of pressure.
Ugh, I hate you guys...
Is this how you’re supposed to put things—so bluntly?
How am I supposed to refuse?
Liam Fuller wore a miserable expression. Seeing this, Max Zhai and Si Xiaocheng immediately got annoyed, flanking him left and right and lifting him up: "What, you’re not happy?"
"Of course not," Liam Fuller didn’t dare say no, answering meekly.
He always said it—he hated people who only used their fists and not their brains. Boo hoo... with one punch, he didn’t need to say anything at all.
"That’s more like it. I knew you were a loyal brother," Si Xiaocheng punched Liam Fuller in the chest, making him stagger. Before he could say anything, Si Xiaocheng sneered, "You’re really too weak—even weaker than Shane Wang. Shane Wang can at least take a beating."
Ah... pfft. Liam Fuller nearly spat out blood.
Did I come here just to get beaten up?
Liam Fuller was on the verge of tears. Shane Wang gave him a sympathetic look, but thinking of his own skinny frame, firmly sided with Si Xiaocheng...
With the majority overruling the minority, Max Zhai and the others officially launched their first operation.
The five boys agreed not to tell any of the adults at home. Even Tyler Cui, who was at home caring for his sick father, pretended to know nothing and secretly kept in touch, helping however he could. But...
Their actions might fool the busy, trusting adults at home, but they couldn’t fool Rory—or rather, they couldn’t fool Zed.
The adults were busy with important matters and trusted the boys, barely restricting them. But...
After half a year living with them, Rory knew these six rascals weren’t nearly as obedient or well-behaved as they looked. They were mischievous—just good at pretending otherwise.
Of course, someone like Max Zhai didn’t even bother pretending. As for his father, Dominic Zhai, he couldn’t control himself, let alone his son.
Max Zhai’s mother wanted to step in, but every time she opened her mouth, Dominic Zhai would just say, "What do women know!"
Max Zhai’s mother, raised as a proper lady, really didn’t know how to raise a son, so she handed the responsibility over to Dominic Zhai.
With things like this, Max Zhai naturally ran wild. Today’s whole plan was his idea—and the information came from him, too.
So how did Max Zhai get his information?
That wasn’t something Rory needed to worry about. He was sure his imperial father would use this opportunity to put Uncle Zhai to work.
"Poor kids..." Rory sighed, then called Zed over and whispered in his ear.
Zed’s usually expressionless face broke into a faint smile at Rory’s words.
"Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it."
With that, Zed took his leave...