After that awkward moment, they all came downstairs, ready to leave. But Lìngxiāo had gone to the criminal record chamber for some reason—and didn't look close to whatever he had been searching for. The way his jaw tightened said an unsolved story.
And he didn't ask, both out of ego and that earlier embarrassment.
'Not my problem. Maybe it is about the Red Robe gûi matter..somehow. Though I don't find any connection here.'
Chóng Fēi just waited with the child in his arms at the waiting chamber downstairs. The cold stone hall was cold and much too silent.
There was almost nobody, since he had managed to send all the children to their parents safely.
Even Shà Shà. He hoped she would be fine—though he feared that his moonstone ring might make her a target for greedy people. But her family had grown much more stable than before, so they could handle it until Chóng Fēi sent any special help to her, including everyone.
The guards were not that many because..when Lìngxiāo was away, out of rage, he had gone alone to the guards for the explanation of their deeds. He was holding back his mouth—and blade—from any permanent harm, since those were all happening without his father's acknowledgment.
But they didn't give him the chance.
"Who are you talking to us, whore's son?"
"Just because you are going to own a throne does not mean you ALREADY own it to behave this way with us."
Some of them said the same thing in different ways. Censorless without purpose, and disrespectful with pure rage and jealousy—as if they deserved the throne instead.
Especially the curse wrapped around his mother's identity was the final blow. That was when he had truly lost his temper.
His mother wasn't only 'one of those stepmothers out there who had given birth, came, and gone.' She was the star he had never seen in the sky because it had already fallen when he was born. He didn't know the whole story. His father never told him. But it was said that she had some illness which couldn't be fixed—and they were actually married, and still..his father had moved to other women's beds.
But still, his father had told him, "If anyone speaks harshly about from whom you are born, but you know this has to do nothing with the present because it was based on for what you are right now—this is not where you should cut their fingers; you should cut THEIR NECK!"
And he did exactly that thing. Not like he blindly follows his father. It was just that the same mindset came from someone he found really close to his own blood, untouchable. It was right too, according to his own senses and mindset. But the way his father had framed his own unsteady, rageful words into something so powerful and majestic—he couldn't help but remember it forever.
Not only about his mother, but his father too.
Why would anyone even bother about who his father is and how his father is, if he is the one handling things? He would never allow it.
But the prison seemed to have gone half empty as his blade had moved that sharply. Only a few good guards were left. So he wondered if his father would still be angry here.
Lives were still lives.
People here were already struggling with populations. Women barely found men. Men barely found women. Children were barely born. And then crimes were unstoppable—yet everyone faithfully needed to be strict with naive children who had barely seen the world before doing any crime, or who had just unfortunately fallen into this trap.
Those mam deserved his blade.
He exhaled. The weight of everything was crashing over his shoulders, yet he barely found anyone equally mentally sharp—which somehow seemed only Lìngxiāo, who made things easy for him to pass that rule. His father might glare at him for changing rules, but he wouldn't if there was no reason or evidence which would speak to why he had done it. And he had it. So there wouldn't be any problem, as much as he could guess.
His thoughts returned to reality when that nameless child mumbled meaningless words and really focused on the badge of the clan marked 'official' as the heir—and then suddenly became too interested in the single stubborn lock of hair over his face.
"Ah, don't pull my hair. Play with the badge then." He gently scolded and then gave a second silver badge which was carved like a copy of that same one, since the one he was wearing was..much more important.
"Ba bad-gei..baai-d-gei." The boy mumbled, black eyes wide and shiny like black pearls as he stared at the badge in his hands.
Chóng Fēi watched him thoughtfully while tilting his thin yet roughly soft hair into a clean, casual loose ponytail by combing it with his fingers so that he wasn't looking too messy. The boy had just pulled it out, saying it was 'pulling' him from behind.
'This ten-year-old boy doesn't even know anything properly to do any crime, yet he was stumbled here?'
'What did he even do to be locked here? Those fools might not have even properly investigated it and thrown that innocent child into the prison cell.'
'They can't even give me a proper explanation of how they found him. Just sitting on a dead body while bloody, holding..a knife means he's the murderer?'
His eyes went hollow at that last question. This always reminded him of Xiǎo Lìng—who could never be that evil no matter what. He loved his father too much to do so. And yet what were they about to do with him that night he ended up kidnapped by the mountain gûi?
But he was angry at his own father too. Why had he saved his other cousin, who was actually a psycho and always obsessive since childhood?
Yet he didn't even listen to his words when he cried hard. His mind flashed back to that last night he had seen Xiǎo Lìng—but far.
[Flashback – 10 years ago]
"No, you have to listen to me! I had found him like this, isn't it?!" Chóng Fēi cried hard, clinging to his father's feet while he was so young that he came up to the height of his knees.
"FĒI. You are young. You cannot understand the weight of everything." His father breathed hot, controlling anger. He kept a hand over his head, trying to pull back from him without hurting.
"Take me with you at least!! I need to talk!" Chóng Fēi shook his head, still didn't let go. He refused to be locked in the room while the unwanted farewell ceremony seemed to be happening right downstairs.
"Whom will you talk to? Those are useless. The crowd is eating my head. You want to actually see my hair coming out of my skull?" His father groaned.
"No, it can never be that way! Mute shù fù is a good guy and Xiǎo is not that b-bad just because.." He swallowed hard.
His immature throat tightened with the fear of getting caught, as he was also behind that stealing matter—which now sounded really stupid of him already at that young age. He couldn't voice how much he was regretting every complaint which Xiǎo Lìng had just taken without complaints, just because he was more mature and responsible, just as his father.
"Because what..?" His father's eyes were focused and looked like he was actually clinging to a growling dragon. His patience thin as his gaze moved to the window of Chóng Fēi's room, where he could still hear the growling crowd.
"J-just because he had stolen some candies and shared with me! Does he look like a bad guy to you?!" Chóng Fēi quickly managed to say. His eyes a mess of tears and cheeks red, trying to plead without looking pathetic.
"A bad guy does not roam around with a tag of bad guy. Remember it. Things start small. But they get big like a rolling snowball. I had warned him. Yet he remains unchanged." His father said, all final, managed to firmly remove him from his legs by gripping his forearm.
Chóng Fēi felt like now his own selfishness was shorter than that only uncertified friend's whole life. His insides burning with all the lies he had kept buried inside. Small, but now it had turned big.
"HOW WOULD THERE BE ANY SNOWBALL IF THIS WASN'T EVEN ROLLED?!" He yelled, crying harder, breathless.
But unheard.
The door was already shut and locked so he couldn't run into the press. His father had already gone on his way to manage the judgment.
"NOU!! OPEN THE DOOR!!!" He banged over the door.
Guards talked among themselves. They even paused, walked over here. Yet they never helped.
"I'M ORDERING YOU!!" He yelled at the guards. Still not helpful.
"He-he's..I, Chóng Fēi's friend..!!" His voice high-pitched, trembling, ragged.
HIn helplessness he heavily leaded to the cold wood of the grand doors, slowly kneeled down hugging his own knees, curling into a ball.
[End of flashback]