TCPUAAV Chapter 38

 

Because of the joy of reuniting, the little ones played and messed around until late before heading upstairs to rest.

 

Normally, the little dragon and the little fox disliked sleeping alone in their rooms. They would curl up together on the soft cushions in the living room. But tonight, with Snowball back, they refused to sleep in the living room. The three little ones confidently took over their dad’s bed once again.

 

The three cubs sprawled across most of the bed, shoving and pulling at each other until they became a tangled heap.

 

Rong Heng was trapped in the middle.

 

His back was pressed against the synthetic scales of the young mermaid; his arms cradled the dragon cub, whose underdeveloped dragon horns poked against his soft abdomen; meanwhile, the nine-tailed fox cub rested her tiny head on his front paw.

 

The three little ones surrounded him tightly, leaving no space to escape.

 

The warmth of their bodies seeped into him. Rong Heng lowered his gaze, his eyes slowly sweeping over the cubs, resisting the urge to shove them all off the bed.

 

Forget it.

 

Why should he bother arguing with a bunch of little ones?

 

That night, everyone slept soundly—Rong Heng included.

 

He had a deep, restful dream. By the time he woke up, he couldn’t recall its specifics, but the warmth and brightness lingered in his memory, like standing in the middle of a spring meadow.

 

Gentle sunlight, soft breezes, and a world flourishing with vibrant life—it was as though everything in the dream was bursting with energy and growth.

 

The next morning, as the cubs prepared for school, Dares arrived at the repair shop. He was there to pick up Rong Heng—just as they had agreed. Rong Heng was only staying at the shop for one night. Early the next morning, Dares would come to take him away.

 

The little ones had no idea that Snowball would be leaving so soon.

 

When they saw the unfamiliar man trying to take Snowball away, the little dragon cub was the first to react, lunging forward to hug him tightly. He spat out a small flame toward Dares and growled fiercely, “Snowball is ours! You can’t take him!”

 

The little fox spread her arms wide to block Dares, baring her sharp little teeth. Even the usually gentle-natured mermaid cub had a serious look on his face.

 

But the mermaid remembered Ruan Shiqing’s advice: when faced with a problem, think first before acting.

 

Realizing they stood no chance against Dares, who was clearly much stronger, the young mermaid pulled in 09 for backup.

 

“09 is amazing!” the little mermaid thought. “There’s no way he’ll let Snowball get taken!”

 

Dares, who had been forced to come pick up his boss: “…”

 

Who on earth was he supposed to complain to about this?

 

Not daring to make any sudden moves, Dares raised his hands in surrender to show the cubs he meant no harm. All he could do was send Ruan Shiqing a desperate look for help.

 

When Ruan Shiqing finally came out, he smiled helplessly. He picked up the cubs one by one, calming and comforting them as he explained the situation.

 

“Isn’t Snowball part of our family?” the little dragon pouted, his usually perky wings drooping with sadness.

 

“Snowball has his own home.” Ruan Shiqing held the dejected cub in his arms, gently ruffling his head.

 

Nota sprawled on his lap, muttering, “But Snowball is so amazing. Can’t he just come live with us?”

 

“Of course not,” Ruan Shiqing chuckled at their innocent words. Though he wasn’t sure how the little fox had gotten the impression that Snowball was so “amazing,” he still found their comments amusing. “His family would be sad if he didn’t go back. But if he’s still on B3024 in the future, we can always invite him over as a guest.”

 

“A guest?”

 

Hearing this word, Rong Heng subconsciously glanced at him.

 

Only guests are invited into someone’s home.

 

Yet just last night, they had told him, “Welcome home.”

 

Suddenly, a sense of discomfort rose in his chest.

 

He was the one who had arrived first, but now, in the end, he was just a guest?

 

Ruan Shiqing, unaware of his thoughts, continued to soothe the cubs. After reassuring them, he asked 09 to escort them to school.

 

Although reluctant to part with Snowball, the cubs were obedient and well-mannered. After saying their goodbyes to Rong Heng, they followed 09 to school.

 

“Apologies. The little ones can be a bit immature,” Ruan Shiqing said apologetically.

 

Dares waved off the concern with a smile. “I never thought that our little young master would one day bond with the cubs of these ancient noble families.”

 

After all, the crown prince had always looked down on the other three ancient clans.

 

Because of the immense strength of the Ymir bloodline and the prince’s esteemed status, the other three clans had all proposed marriage alliances once the prince reached his growth phase. But to him, the dragons were crude and clumsy, the merfolk were frivolous and irresponsible, and the nine-tailed foxes were vain and shallow. He had rejected them all outright.

 

Who would’ve thought that, while marriage alliances had failed, he’d end up becoming sworn brothers with their cubs instead?

 

Heh heh heh heh.

 

The irony was enough to make Dares laugh like a pig—though he kept his expression composed and professional as he bid farewell to Ruan Shiqing.

 

Today, too, was a day for diligently earning Master Ruan’s favor.

 

When Rong Heng returned to the Fragrance Tower Manor, his mood was heavy.

 

Dares lingered around, attempting to suggest someone else handle the transport of the energy blasters to Yanji. But when he noticed Rong Heng’s dark expression, he immediately abandoned the idea and quietly went to supervise the warehouse.

 

This left Rong Heng alone in the lounge, idly toying with his communicator.

 

In truth, much of the work over the next while could be delegated to others. There was no pressing need for him to leave B3024.

 

So… should he go back?

 

For the first time, Rong Heng found himself uncertain.

 

There were still many things he needed to do. He couldn’t possibly stay by the boy’s side like a dependent cub for too long. Even if he returned now, he would inevitably have to leave again someday.

 

But if he didn’t go back…

 

The word “guest” felt like a thorn, constantly pricking at his heart. It seemed to remind him: if you don’t go back now, you might never be able to return.

 

But why did he feel like he needed to go back?

 

Rong Heng pinched the bridge of his nose, unable to come up with an answer.

 

After a long period of hesitation, he reluctantly added Ruan Shiqing’s contact information. His slender fingers hovered over the call button for a long time before finally pressing it.

 

The call took a while to connect. When it did, the virtual image displayed Ruan Shiqing’s back in the workshop.

 

Just as Rong Heng had guessed, he was busy working.

 

“Mr. Rong?” Ruan Shiqing’s voice was as calm and warm as ever.

 

It seemed the young man hadn’t expected a call from him. He looked a bit surprised. “Is something the matter?”

 

Rong Heng silently stared at him for a long moment, deliberating. In the end, he decided to follow his instincts.

 

“Sorry to bother you. Dares has already brought Snowball back home.”

 

Ruan Shiqing let out a soft “oh.” Seeing that Rong Heng didn’t elaborate, he smiled and asked, “How is he doing?”

 

“Not very well.”

 

Rong Heng exhaled slowly and half-truthfully said, “Our mother passed away a long time ago, and our father doesn’t pay much attention to him. The situation at home is rather complicated, and I don’t have much time to look after him…”

 

Hearing this, Ruan Shiqing’s brows furrowed slightly.

 

No wonder it had taken so long for them to come pick up Snowball.

 

“So… I’d like to ask if you could take care of him for a little while longer.” Rong Heng finally voiced the request that had been weighing on his heart. His pulse quickened as soon as the words were out.

 

He nervously licked his lips, unable to pinpoint how he felt at the moment.

 

But the faint pressure in his chest, the one that had lingered there since morning, suddenly seemed to dissipate completely.

 

Ruan Shiqing was briefly stunned. At first, he seemed incredulous, but then his expression lit up with delight. “Of course! When Mr. Dares came to take Snowball this morning, the little ones at home were reluctant to see him go. If you’re short on time or energy, I’d be more than happy to look after him for as long as you need.”

 

Rong Heng pressed his lips together, a faint smile tugging at the corners. “Thank you.”

 

His response was sparse and restrained.

 

In truth, Rong Heng was already quite familiar with the boy. They had met during their most difficult times, and he knew nearly everything about him. Yet when speaking face-to-face, Rong Heng still didn’t know how to interact with him.

 

The cold detachment reserved for enemies or the authoritative sternness used with subordinates were entirely unsuitable for Ruan Shiqing.

 

Someone as gentle and kind as this boy deserved to be treated differently—special.

 

But “gentle” was a word that had been stripped from Rong Heng’s life for more than twenty years. Even the tone he used with Ruan Shiqing now was stiff and overly polite.

 

He made an effort to soften his voice. “Then… I’ll have Dares bring Snowball back tomorrow. Let’s stay in touch?”

 

“Sure,” Ruan Shiqing nodded, adding Rong Heng’s contact number to his whitelist. “Don’t worry. I’ll take good care of Snowball. If you ever want to see him, feel free to contact me anytime.”

 

Rong Heng gave a small nod, only to find himself at a loss for words again.

 

Ruan Shiqing, however, started rambling on, saying reassuring things to ease his mind. Rong Heng barely registered anything he said. It wasn’t until Ruan Shiqing mentioned ending the call that Rong Heng snapped out of it and awkwardly said goodbye.

 

When the call disconnected, Rong Heng collapsed onto the sofa, rubbing his temples. In a low voice, he asked Noah, “Did I do poorly?”

 

Noah was blunt as ever. “If the maximum score is 100, I’d say you scored 60. You weren’t charming or particularly graceful, but at least you were polite and didn’t upset Mr. Ruan.”

 

Seizing the opportunity, she began bringing up old grievances. “I’ve long recommended that you work on your emotional intelligence. You should strive to be an elegant and composed gentleman, instead of letting your temper worsen to the point where you can’t even maintain a single friend outside of work.”

 

Rong Heng: “…”

 

“Got it. Thanks,” he replied flatly, shutting off the smart system without a change in expression.

 

In Rong Heng’s opinion, he had already taken the first step toward befriending Ruan Shiqing. It wasn’t as bad as Noah made it sound.

 

But Noah’s holographic form reappeared from the room’s central control system. Her voice was filled with a sense of “I told you so.”

 

“You see? What did I say? You need emotional management. Hard truths may be unpleasant, but avoiding the problem won’t help you at all.”

 

“…”

 

Rong Heng pretended not to hear her and shut off the control system again.

 

This time, his thoughts had already drifted to tomorrow. Specifically, what kind of gift he should send with Dares when he brought Snowball back.

 

 

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I can’t believe Rong Rong is getting lectured by an AI about his EQ lmao

 

Also… he’s so cute… ;_; I love him so much

 

Thanks for reading!

For every three ko-fis, I will upload a bonus chapter~