They didn't dare to meet Prince Jin's gaze directly!
People in the palace all said Prince Jin had a powerful aura and few could guess his thoughts. Now, it seemed, one wouldn't even dare to look at Prince Jin for long before they'd already lost the courage to look at him again!
"A walk," Zhan Tianye stopped, and the small snake, which had been visible moments before, had vanished.
A subtle unease that had been lingering in his heart suddenly felt heavy.
Or perhaps it was as if something had been lost.
An impulse surged within him to kill the guards blocking his path.
The guards suddenly felt a chill pervading their bodies, as if the temperature had plummeted, their clothes suddenly insufficient for warmth.
What was happening? Why did Prince Jin suddenly seem so terrifying?
"Then your subordinates shall not disturb Prince Jin."
One guard, quick-witted, immediately signaled to the others to leave upon hearing Zhan Tianye's words.
If they wanted to know Prince Jin's whereabouts, they could simply watch him from the shadows.
They must never appear before Prince Jin; his single glance could make one tremble with fear!
Watching the guards disappear from sight, Zhan Tianye in the deep night seemed to exude an even greater sense of loneliness and coldness.
Soon.
The small snake returned to Yun Xiao Jing.
The three little ones yawned, they hadn't slept, they didn't dare to sleep.
Because they were waiting for the small snake to return.
This time, they had prepared so thoroughly, even enlisting the help of the little mice and the small snake, they were sure their father would come looking for them!
Perhaps their father was right behind the small snake.
So, the moment they saw the small snake return, the three little ones, barely dressed, pushed open the door and ran out.
"Daddy!"
The three little ones' eyes sparkled, filled with anticipation as they looked ahead.
The combined cry of "Daddy" from three voices startled Yun Shu, who was about to fall asleep, and Yun Changfeng, who had already lain down.
It also excited Jing Heng, Qiu Lu, and A Cha, and the others.
A group of people threw on clothes and rushed out to assess the situation.
Upon arriving, Yun Shu's first reaction was that the three children were dreaming. She immediately embraced them, "Are you dreaming?"
She spoke in a gentle, soothing tone.
They had all called out "Daddy" at the same time; was it a dream of their father? Or...
Yun Shu's gaze flickered.
"Why the sudden dream?" Yun Changfeng also squatted down.
Qin Yiqing, woken from a light sleep, yawned, "Could it be, 'daytime thoughts lead to nighttime dreams'?"
The children were still young. Although they appeared more intelligent and cunning than one another, and most people would be at a disadvantage against them, they were still children not yet six years old.
Therefore, it was perfectly normal for them to miss their father.
Qin Yiqing's words cast a silence over everyone.
For three children to have such a synchronized thought in the middle of the night, calling out for their father, there could be no other explanation than that they missed him dearly.
But their father...
"Daddy is coming soon!" Zhan Xiaofeng exclaimed excitedly.
He clutched Yun Shu's hand tightly, "Mother, Daddy is coming to find us!"
"Ay! Look at this child, he misses his father so much he's gone mad!" Qin Yiqing's mouth twitched. She couldn't bear to see it and mentally cursed Zhan Tianye.
Could anything be more important than Yun Shu and the children?
Yun Shu's back stiffened slightly. Her tone remained gentle as she soothed them, "It's late, shouldn't you go to sleep now?"
"Mother, Daddy is really coming to find us!" Zhan Xiaoli said to Yun Shu with utmost seriousness.
Although Yun Xiao Jing didn't say anything, his eyes were fixed in the distance. He really wanted to see his father too!
Yun Changfeng furrowed his brows, "You are dreaming, it's not real. Come, go back to your rooms with your maternal grandfather to sleep."
He hadn't harbored much resentment towards Prince Ye before, but now he felt Prince Ye was truly troublesome.
Looking at these three children, they seemed more pitiful with each passing moment.
"It's not a dream!" Zhan Xiaoli and Zhan Xiaofeng vehemently denied almost in unison.
Daddy was coming!
It wasn't a dream!
"Can you tell Mother exactly how you are so sure Daddy is coming?" Yun Shu asked them patiently.
It wasn't possible for three children to have the same dream for no reason.
Unless it wasn't a dream.
However, she was certain Zhan Tianye wouldn't come. Not only did Zhan Tianye not know their hiding place yet, but she also had other suspicions about Zhan Tianye.
These suspicions made it impossible for Zhan Tianye to come and see the children.
Yun Xiao Jing hugged his arms, looking into the distance. Seeing no sign of his father, he pouted, "I sent Little Snake to deliver a message to Daddy! Little Snake can find Daddy. Daddy must have seen the letter."
"You sent Little Snake to find your father?" Qin Yiqing was so surprised her eyes nearly popped out.
"Mother, we already know Daddy is in the palace, so Little Snake can find Daddy in the palace. Daddy must have seen the letter," Zhan Xiaoli said very earnestly.
Zhan Xiaofeng's expectant little face fell as he saw no one arriving, and his little nose turned red, "Mother, doesn't Daddy want us anymore? Little Snake already delivered the message, and he still hasn't come. Does he not want us anymore?"
So it turned out Xiao Jing was right.
Daddy really didn't want them anymore.
He and Xiao Li had so firmly believed Daddy wouldn't abandon them.
Yun Shu's heart ached with a dull pain. Seeing them sad, how could she, their mother, not feel it?
She smiled and said, "No, your father is busy with something and cannot get away. When the time comes, when all the difficulties surrounding him are resolved, he will return to your side."
The sight of the three children's sadness brought a pang to those watching.
Everyone fell silent.
Qiu Lu secretly resolved within himself: he had to find an opportunity to enter the palace! He must speak with His Highness and see how pitiful Xiao Li and the others were.
Under Yun Shu's comfort, the three little ones, unable to resist the pull of sleep, returned to their rooms with the disappointment of their father not coming, and under Yun Shu's slowly spoken stories, they closed their eyes and drifted into dreams.
After they were sound asleep, Yun Shu walked out of the room.
As she stepped out, she saw Yun Changfeng wiping his eyes.
She pretended not to notice.
Yun Changfeng blinked a few times, looking up at the sky, "The weather has suddenly turned cold. Look at how sharp the wind is at night, it's almost blinding my eyes."
Yun Shu smiled faintly, "Winter is coming."
Seeing that Yun Shu hadn't noticed him wiping away a tear, Yun Changfeng felt relieved and said softly, "Shu'er, Xiao Li and the others sent Little Snake into the palace with a message. Did their message perhaps not reach Prince Ye?"