I Transmigrated as Cannon Fodder, Only to be Desired by the Dragon King - Chapter 35

Chapter 35: Staying at the Dragon Palace — Little Black immediately took the hint, tugging at Shen Youqing…

When those words left his mouth, Feng Xiuyan hid a small selfish motive in the depths of his eyes.

The time they had just spent discussing names and eating together was so warm that it was becoming addictive. This feeling of close companionship was something he had never experienced in the thousands of years he’d spent in the Dragon Palace; it was like holding a bundle of fire against his chest—the longer he held it, the warmer it became.

He didn’t even dare to imagine: if Shen Youqing left now, would this Warming Hall revert to its former desolation?

Before Shen Youqing could respond, Feng Xiuyan discreetly shot a look at Little Black.

Little Black immediately took the hint. He tugged at Shen Youqing’s hem even harder, his eyes turning slightly red. “Daddy, stay for one night! The beds in the Warming Hall are really soft!”

Little Duckling nodded along, his tiny hand gently patting Shen Youqing’s arm, his voice as sweet as honey. “Don’t go, Daddy. Little Duckling wants to fold paper boats with Daddy tonight…”

Shen Youqing looked at the reluctant eyes of the two little ones, then glanced at the seawater outside—which looked incredibly cold—and couldn’t help but shiver.

Maybe I shouldn’t risk it. It’s not like staying a little longer matters. If I actually catch a cold and get sick, I’m the one who’s going to suffer. Why look for trouble?

He had completely forgotten that the spiritual barrier Feng Xiuyan had placed on him earlier was capable of shielding him from everything, including the cold.

After a brief internal struggle, Shen Youqing decided it was safer to stay the night. However, he still had some concerns. He scratched his head. “But my mother is still waiting for me to go back. I didn’t tell her I’d be staying over when I left this morning…”

“Don’t worry about that,” Feng Xiuyan interjected immediately. He summoned a sea servant standing outside, his voice steady. “Go to the Shen residence. Tell Madam Shen that Master Shen will be resting at the Dragon Palace tonight and will return tomorrow morning, so she doesn’t need to worry.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” The servant bowed and quickly retreated.

“Yay! Daddy’s not leaving!” The two little ones cheered instantly, lunging forward to hug Shen Youqing’s legs.

Feng Xiuyan stood to the side, watching Shen Youqing being swarmed and led toward the inner chambers. The smile in his eyes finally overflowed.

…

When the sea servant arrived at the Shen residence to deliver the news, Old Master Shen was sitting in the hall drinking tea. Upon hearing that his grandson was staying over at the Dragon Palace, his teacup “clattered” against the table edge. He blew at his mustache and glared. “That brat! He’s only visited a few times and he already dares to spend the night!”

Shen Father and Shen Mother exchanged a glance but didn’t speak. Privately, they felt their son was too naive; a meal and a few soft words from someone and he agreed to stay the night. He was truly too easy to coax.

Still, Shen Mother gently persuaded, “Father, don’t be angry. Qingqing and the Dragon King already have a marriage contract. They’ll be joined sooner or later. It’s normal to get closer now. Don’t worry yourself over it.”

Old Master Shen sighed heavily and set his teacup down, splashing tea all over the table. He walked toward his room with his hands behind his back, his silhouette looking more hunched than usual. He muttered to himself, “I’m not blaming Qingqing… I was the foolish one! If I hadn’t sent him to that mountain villa, would this have happened? I basically delivered my precious grandson to someone else’s doorstep…”

Shen Father and Mother watched his dejected back and sighed. Shen Father shook his head. “Father isn’t feeling well about this. Let him have some peace.”

…

Dragon Palace, Warming Hall

After washing up, Shen Youqing sat cross-legged on the edge of the bed drying his hair. He rubbed the towel casually through his locks while his gaze wandered over the room’s decor.

The decorations in the Dragon Palace were truly exquisite. Almost everything was crafted from crystal, accented with shells and pearls. Under the light of the night pearls, everything shimmered. There were no oil lamps here; instead, fist-sized night pearls hung from the ceiling, casting a warm glow that felt remarkably similar to modern fluorescent lights.

“Beautiful is an understatement, but it feels a bit lacking in… ‘life.’ Too cold and quiet,” he muttered.

Once his hair was mostly dry, he tossed the towel toward a rack at the foot of the bed. It didn’t catch and slid down to drape over the bedside, but he was too lazy to fix it. He simply fell backward onto the bed.

“I can’t sleep like this…” He stared at the night pearls on the ceiling and sighed. “If I knew I was staying, I would have grabbed two storybooks from my shelf this morning.” He clicked his tongue and patted the pillow. “Tsk, poor planning.”

Just as he was tossing and turning, trying to figure out how to kill time, a soft knock sounded at the door. Following it were the soft voices of the two little ones: “Daddy, are you asleep?”

Shen Youqing sat up immediately, slipped into his shoes, and ran to the door. He leaned down to open it. “Why aren’t you two asleep yet? It’s almost 10:00 PM (the hour of Hai).”

“We want to sleep with Daddy~” Little Black tugged his hem and swayed. Little Duckling huddled close as well, pulling his sleeve, his voice as soft as a marshmallow.

Shen Youqing laughed at their clinginess, intentionally teasing them. “You’re both so big now, and you still want Daddy to sleep with you? Did Feng Xiuyan sleep with you before?”

“N-no way!” Little Black’s face turned red as he argued back. “Father doesn’t sleep with us!”

“Mhm, Father is very busy,” Little Duckling added in a small voice, his little brows furrowing slightly. “He has so many things to handle every day. He only comes to see us at night, stays for a bit, and then leaves.”

“Oh? Really?” Shen Youqing was taken aback.

Feng Xiuyan had spent the entire day with them today—from leaving the house in the morning to dinner at night—and hadn’t mentioned being busy at all. He must have a mountain of paperwork waiting for him now, right?

“Yes, yes!” Little Black nodded vigorously, his little mouth rattling off. “Father has to go to the morning court before dawn. So many people go to the hall to discuss things with him, especially Uncle Gu Li! He always comes to talk to Father and stays in the study for a long time!”

Shen Youqing paused. He suddenly remembered that Feng Xiuyan had mentioned that the handsome guy who brought him to the Dragon Palace that day was named Gu Li.

“Little Black, are you saying that Uncle Gu Li often comes to find Feng Xiuyan?”

“Mhm!” Little Black’s head bobbed like a drum. “Uncle Gu Li even came to the Warming Hall to find Father yesterday, but Father wasn’t there~”

Shen Youqing was stunned. Just as he was about to ask more about Gu Li, Little Black pulled his hand into the room, and Little Duckling scurried in after them. “Daddy, get on the bed! We’ll tell you stories!”

Helpless against the two little dumplings, he sat on the bed and watched Little Black scramble up, making sure to leave room for Little Duckling.

Under the warm light of the night pearls, the two squeezed in on either side of him. Little Black started first, telling a story in a milky voice about a big fish eating a little fish he saw at the coral reef earlier. He clenched his little fists as he spoke, looking incredibly serious.

As the story went on, Little Duckling’s voice grew quieter. His head began to bob, eventually resting on Shen Youqing’s arm as he closed his eyes. Little Black tried to keep going, but his eyelids grew heavy. Finally, he let out a tiny yawn, leaned against Shen Youqing’s leg, and went still.

Shen Youqing gently touched their heads. He carefully moved Little Duckling onto the pillow and covered Little Black with the thin quilt. The quilt was made of silky shark-silk (Jiaoxiao), light as a cloud and perfect for the little ones.

Just as he adjusted his position, light footsteps approached from outside. A knock followed—much lighter than the children’s.

“Not asleep?” It was Feng Xiuyan’s voice, hushed and tender.

Shen Youqing moved quietly off the bed and cracked the door open. He saw Feng Xiuyan holding a jade bowl with faint steam rising from it. “Why are you here?”

“I was afraid you wouldn’t be used to the Dragon Palace beds, so I brought some soothing honey nectar.” Feng Xiuyan stepped inside. His gaze first swept over the two sleeping children, his brow furrowing almost imperceptibly. “Did they bother you while you were trying to sleep?”

“No,” Shen Youqing smiled. “They came to coax me to sleep, but I’m still awake and they managed to coax themselves to sleep first.”

Feng Xiuyan looked over. Little Black was sprawled out with an arm over Little Duckling, who was curled into a ball, his nose twitching slightly. He raised an eyebrow, retracted his gaze, and handed over the jade bowl. “It’s warm. Drink it to sleep better.”

“Thanks.” Shen Youqing took the bowl, his fingers touching the cool jade, and took a sip.

The scent of honey and the refreshing taste of lotus seeds slid down his throat, warming his stomach. It was milder than what he’d had during the day—less sweet, with a hint of calming herbal essence.

He leaned against the table and sipped slowly. Remembering Little Black’s words, he mentioned casually, “Little Black said Gu Li often comes to talk business with you?”

“Gu Li is the Chancellor who assists me,” Feng Xiuyan nodded, his fingertips unconsciously brushing his sleeve.

Shen Youqing finished a sip, a tiny drop of nectar clinging to his lip like a stray grain of sugar. Feng Xiuyan’s gaze fixed there involuntarily, and his voice dropped lower. “Clan matters, coordinating rainfall for the humans… I have to discuss all of it with him.”

“Oh, so he’s the Chancellor?” Shen Youqing realized. He scratched behind his ear, recalling Gu Li’s handsome and capable appearance. “He looks quite young for a Chancellor.” He then followed up, remembering Little Black’s comment about Feng Xiuyan being busy. “So, are you busy every day?”

Feng Xiuyan paused, his tone softening. “Sea clan matters are manageable. It’s mostly the various human provinces requesting rain. Especially with the droughts in the northern provinces lately; I have to monitor the cloud movements to ensure we don’t miss the planting season.”

“I see…” Shen Youqing suddenly remembered his month at the mountain villa. “Then what about when you were ‘Little White’ at the villa for a month? What happened to the places that needed rain?”

“For the less serious areas, I left them to Gu Li and Mo Ang to handle.”

Feng Xiuyan’s voice grew soft and melodic as he spoke of daily life—which fields needed water, which sea regions needed tidal adjustments to prevent tsunamis, how to control spiritual power based on cloud thickness… he even mentioned how they record the harvests after a rain.

Shen Youqing held the bowl and listened intently, but before long, his eyelids began to droop. His head started nodding, and yawn after yawn escaped him. He could barely hold the jade bowl. The sleepiness he hadn’t felt earlier was now surging forth, carried by the warmth of the nectar.

Feng Xiuyan stopped talking immediately. He looked at the boy’s drooping eyelids and whispered, “Tired?”

“Mhm…” Shen Youqing rubbed his eyes, a misty sleepiness blurring his gaze. His voice turned soft.

“Then go to sleep. I’ll head out.” Feng Xiuyan naturally reached out to take the empty bowl.

As Shen Youqing handed it to him and walked him to the door, he remembered one last thing. “Then don’t stay up too late working. Get some rest.”

Feng Xiuyan paused and looked back. A faint smile touched his lips, and his gaze was as soft as the night pearl’s light. “I know.”

The door closed softly. The room was silent save for the warm light and the shallow breathing of the two little ones. Shen Youqing touched the bed—the soft shark-silk was wonderfully warm. He carefully avoided the two dumplings and curled into the covers. With a faint scent of honey lingering at his nose, he soon fell into a deep sleep, his breathing synchronizing with the children’s.