Protection Means Only Being Looked Down On

For three whole days, they had nothing but water to drink. Just as Little Dumpling sighed, "The dignified imperial heir, not killed by enemies, but about to starve himself to death," Zed finally appeared...

Zed led nine of the Eighteen Riders deep into the mausoleum to hunt for food, and actually managed to find a river.

The river must have been fed by a live stream. The water was crystal clear, and there were plenty of fish and shrimp swimming about.

This time, Zed brought nine of the Eighteen Riders with him. Ignoring the shrimp that wouldn’t fill anyone up, he ordered the Riders to catch fish and bring them ashore. After the ten of them grilled and ate dozens of fish to their fill, they went back into the water to catch more...

Fresh fish wouldn’t keep in this weather, so while the Eighteen Riders caught the fish, Zed took charge of cleaning and cooking them.

Once they’d filled all the packs they brought, and refilled with clean water, Zed’s group headed back...

When Zed and his team arrived, Little Dumpling’s group nearly teared up: "You finally made it."

A whole day had passed, and the fish Zed brought had long since lost their fragrance. But to Little Dumpling and the others, this fish tasted better than any dish made by imperial chefs. Each person grabbed a fish, not caring that it was still cold, and started gnawing away...

Little Dumpling, Shane Wang, and the others could still pretend to be refined, but Max Zhai and his crew couldn’t hold back. They clutched their fish and tore into it like refugees who’d never eaten their fill. Max Zhai ate so fast he didn’t notice the bones and got one stuck in his throat, making Shane Wang and the others laugh uncontrollably...

Well, you couldn’t really blame them for being ungracious. After starving for days, learning there was food—how could they not be happy?

Only after eating their fill did they have the strength to keep moving forward.

Once the worst of the hunger passed, Tyler Cui slowed his eating, taking small bites and reminding Max Zhai and the others not to eat too quickly, lest they end up with stomachaches.

"Got it." Everyone cooperated—they knew Tyler Cui was looking out for them. Even Max Zhai and his crew unconsciously slowed down. As for the Snow Wolf...

Whimper, whimper...

This bunch was so mean, actually offering it fish—have you ever seen a wolf eat fish?

At first, Snow Wolf didn’t dare make a sound. Only after Little Dumpling was almost done eating did it nudge him: begging to be fed.

"You..." Little Dumpling couldn’t help but laugh at Snow Wolf’s pitiful expression. He picked up a fish, carefully deboned it, and fed it to the wolf.

Snow Wolf was starving too—it opened its mouth and swallowed the fish whole. Such a small fish couldn’t even fill the gap between its teeth...

Snow Wolf ate so quickly that Little Dumpling couldn’t even eat himself, and couldn’t even keep up with feeding the wolf.

Miles Lan, seeing this, quickly finished his own fish and timidly approached Little Dumpling. "Your Highness, I—I’ll help you..."

Miles Lan was still a little shy, stammering when he spoke. He rarely said a word, trying to minimize his own presence—especially these last few days, when he stuck with the Eighteen Riders, eating as little as possible to save food.

He was afraid... afraid that Your Highness would abandon him for being useless, so he never dared to eat much.

"It’s fine, you eat first." In truth, Little Dumpling was wary of Miles Lan, but he had no intention of letting him die.

After all, they were relatives by blood. He’d grown up with both parents and a well-behaved little sister. Even if he wasn’t the soft-hearted type, he wouldn’t kill the innocent.

At the very least, he wouldn’t kill Miles Lan for no reason.

"I—I’m full." Miles Lan kept his head down. Having lived in the imperial mausoleum since birth, he was both curious and scared of the outside world; when it came to strangers, he instinctively recoiled...

Little Dumpling glanced over and realized Miles Lan had only eaten one fish—nowhere near enough to be full, just enough not to starve...

This kid was way too considerate.

No, that wasn’t right—the other boy was actually older than him. Not only could he not call him ‘kid,’ he should technically call him ‘brother.’ But facing someone even more timid than himself, he just couldn’t bring himself to say ‘brother’—using his name was already giving enough respect.

"Eat two more, then help me feed Snow Wolf." Little Dumpling tossed two fish into Miles Lan’s hands, not allowing him to refuse.

Miles Lan clutched the fish, a little lost, his ink-black eyes tinged with red...

From the day he was born, he’d never once had enough to eat. Even his own mother never cared whether he was full; he’d gotten used to it. But...

Suddenly one day, a boy actually noticed his situation. He couldn’t describe how that felt...

Hmm. If he had to put it into words with his limited vocabulary, it was kind of like the urge to pee...

After eating and drinking their fill, Little Dumpling’s group finally felt alive again. But...

"What now? I really don’t want to move." Max Zhai flopped onto the ground, too lazy to even budge...

"Ugh, my stomach hurts a little." Shane Wang, always the frail one, was the first to feel uncomfortable.

Actually, after starving for so long, it’s best to eat something liquid. But they didn’t have the means for that—just being able to gnaw on fish was already a blessing...

"No worries, I’ve got medicine prepared by Princess Lily. Just take one pill each and you’ll be fine." One of the Eighteen Riders took out the pills and handed one to each person.

Shane Wang swallowed his without a second thought...

"Why does this medicine taste so bloody?" Liam Fuller wrinkled his nose, only for Snow Wolf to let out a howl: Disgusting! How dare you insult it.

"Am I wrong?" Liam Fuller held the pill, hesitating to swallow it—the bloody taste was just too strong.

Little Dumpling patted Snow Wolf’s head. "You’re not wrong—the pills are made with Snow Wolf’s blood."

After eating the Immortal Flesh Fungus, Snow Wolf would live much longer than ordinary wolves. Its blood could even save lives in a pinch.

If Zed hadn’t found food in time, Little Dumpling would have had the Eighteen Riders bring out the pills today—at least to help everyone hold on a bit longer.

"Snow Wolf’s blood? Fine, I’ll take it..." Liam Fuller didn’t know how good it was, but seeing how intelligent and fierce Snow Wolf was after all these years, it clearly wasn’t ordinary.

The others thought the same—and sure enough, after swallowing the pill, they felt warmth spread through their bodies. Even the stomachaches from eating cold food eased up considerably.

Miles Lan hesitated for a moment, then took his pill too.

He wasn’t being stingy—he just felt that such precious medicine shouldn’t be wasted on him. But since Your Highness didn’t say anything, he didn’t dare speak up either...

There was no need to mention how effective the pills were. After resting for an hour, everyone was fine—except Shane Wang, who was still a bit weak. Little Dumpling told him to ride on Snow Wolf’s back, but he stubbornly refused...

A real man isn’t that fragile!

Too proud for his own good!

Little Dumpling didn’t bother with him. After checking the time and confirming they could still reach the next destination by nightfall if they took it slow, he told everyone to get ready to move. If they made it to the river Zed mentioned, they could at least restock on food for a bit.

Little Dumpling had no idea that not long after they left, the Black Riders fought their way in and found the place where they’d camped before.

The Black Riders had orders to check on their situation and only intervene if necessary. Seeing that Little Dumpling’s group seemed to be getting by, they hid themselves and gathered intel on their condition...

Once they confirmed everyone was safe—just running low on food and water—the Black Riders left all their rations and water behind, then...

—slipped away without saying a word.

Doing a good deed without leaving a name—now that’s a true hero.

It was two days later that Little Dumpling and the Eighteen Riders finally found those supplies. They’d been so carefully buried, it didn’t even look like they were meant for them...

Max Zhai and the others were too naive, thinking they’d just gotten lucky and found rations left by earlier visitors. But Little Dumpling knew the truth: his parents had been worried about him all along, secretly sending people to watch from behind and help out whenever he was in danger—without leaving a trace...

Little Dumpling’s nose tingled—he was moved, but also felt pretty useless.

Father was right. All these years, his foster father had protected him so well that he’d never really faced hardship; when danger came, he still had to rely on his parents.

"Your Highness, the Emperor and Empress care about you." Tyler Cui, Shane Wang, and Liam Fuller were all sharp enough to see this was the Emperor’s doing.

Other than the Emperor and Empress, only they had ever entered the mausoleum—no way those rations came from anyone else.

"Mm." Little Dumpling quickly shook off his disappointment, answering in a deliberately mature tone: "Father and Mother are the people I respect most. Nothing in this world can defeat them."

His weakness was his own business. His shortcomings... only he needed to know.

Father, Mother, I’ll get stronger. I won’t live under your wings forever—one day, I’ll be the one protecting you!

Prince Nolan and Serena Feng only relaxed once they knew Little Dumpling was just suffering from a lack of food, not anything worse.

"Hopefully this experience will teach Little Dumpling a lesson." Serena Feng sighed...

Little Dumpling was too proud, though he had every right to be. Compared to his peers—or even most adults—he was miles ahead. But...

Some things just can’t be solved by skill alone. This ordeal should be enough for Little Dumpling to realize he still has shortcomings.

"Little Dumpling did great. He was perfectly prepared, and barring accidents, could have come out unscathed." This time, Prince Nolan spoke up for him.

In the same situation, even he might not have done better than Little Dumpling.

Last time at the mausoleum, if Serena Feng hadn’t been there, he and the Eighteen Riders would have starved. Without her Smart Med-Pack, they probably wouldn’t have survived at all.

Little Dumpling’s biggest mistake this time was not having Serena Feng and her Smart Med-Pack with him. But...

Is there anyone else in the world like Serena Feng—or anything as miraculous as her Smart Med-Pack?

No...

So, in the future, Little Dumpling will just have to put up with his dad’s teasing: Shame on you—the mighty imperial heir, almost starving yourself to death. If word gets out, I’ll lose face...

And poor Little Dumpling, he couldn’t even argue, because...

His dad got out alive without any help, but he relied on outside aid.

Waaah... it’s just not fair!