Xie Shaoling just picked up Xie Chang'an and swung him around a few times out of curiosity, then tossed him back into his seat.

Ye Jingchen secretly estimated that although Xie Chang'an was thinner and shorter than him, he was much better at fighting. If Xie Shaoling could easily lift Xie Chang'an, he could definitely lift him just as easily.

Fortunately, he also has the status of the crown prince, so Xie Shaoling shouldn't have the guts to offend him.

"Now that you've finished listening to the story, you should go back to the palace!" Xie Chang'an said to Ye Jingchen with a cold face as he sat down, straightening his clothes that his father had torn.

"Little Chang'an, how can you be so cold to His Highness the Crown Prince? Be careful your friendship doesn't fall apart!" Xie Shaoling teased.

"We never had a friendship to begin with, so there's no question of it being broken!" Xie Chang'an said irritably.

Ye Jingchen smiled and did not refute.

He and Xie Chang'an can hardly be considered friends now; they can only be described as allies.

As for what kind of relationship they will develop into in the future, that depends on how far their cooperation goes.

However, he still thought highly of Xie Chang'an.

After all, he had liked the protagonist Xie Chang'an ever since he started reading the novel.

But then again, Xie Chang'an in the novel is incredibly cunning and patient, a master of feigning weakness to outsmart everyone in the capital. Now, well…

In terms of scheming, they certainly are. The Jiang family probably still doesn't know who's plotting against them. Even if they could guess it's the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, they would have absolutely no way to find any evidence against them.

But when it comes to forbearance and showing weakness—

Xie Chang'an had such a bad temper in front of him; the word "forbearance" was completely unrelated to him.

As for showing weakness, that's utter nonsense!

He outruns them all every morning during his jog, he's very high-profile!

Not to mention his archery skills, which left everyone else in the dust, completely disregarding whether he would crush the fragile hearts of ordinary people like them!

The protagonist's personality is so out of character that he's starting to doubt the credibility of the novel he's reading!

"Uncle Xie, Brother Chang'an, I really should return to the palace. Farewell!" Ye Jingchen glanced at Xie Chang'an, who had a cold face, stood up, and cupped his hands in greeting to him and Xie Shaoling.

Hearing that annoying address, Xie Chang'an's expression turned even colder.

"Your Highness, we'll meet again someday!" Xie Shaoling waved enthusiastically.

"Chenxi, let's go." Ye Jingchen said to Chenxi, who had been standing behind him as a background figure, and the two left the private room one after the other.

"This child is truly interesting!" Xie Shaoling remarked as he watched Ye Jingchen and his servant leave the teahouse.

Xie Chang'an scoffed inwardly. Judging from Ye Jingchen's behavior and style, the soul hidden in the young body might be an old man over fifty. Who knows who is calling whom a 'child'!

It would have been better if he hadn't thought about it that way. The thought that the person who was calling him "Brother Chang'an" so affectionately was probably an old man over fifty years old made Xie Chang'an's face turn even uglier.

No, I must find out exactly how old Ye Jingchen is another day!

If he really was an old man, he would absolutely not allow Ye Jingchen to call him that again!

"Little Chang'an, you should learn more from His Highness the Crown Prince. Look at him, he's much more like a child than you!" Xie Shaoling saw Xie Chang'an's indifferent little face, reached out and patted his head, and said earnestly.

Xie Chang'an stiffened upon understanding his father's unspoken meaning.

Although he didn't try to hide it too much from the old lady and his father in order to have more manpower, it was one thing for them to know, but it would be another if he made it clear.

He is not ready to tell them everything yet.

He didn't want the old lady and his father to know about the tragic fate of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion in his previous life, nor did he want them to know about the choices he made in his previous life.

After all, he eventually became the 'traitor' they hated the most!

Fortunately, the father only said that and then changed the subject.

"Alright, it's time for us to head back home for dinner. If we get back late, my dear mother and grandmother will start nagging me again!"

"He's no ordinary man; don't let your guard down," Xie Chang'an couldn't help but remind his father.

"That's your business, you know it yourself. But—" Xie Shaoling changed the subject, "Since he's on our side, wouldn't more trust make cooperation easier?"

Xie Chang'an understood this principle, but everything he had now was too precious to him, so how could he dare to be careless?

Seeing Xie Chang'an lost in thought again, Xie Shaoling couldn't help but pat his head again.

"I've heard that children who overthink things don't grow tall. Do you think I should tell the kitchen to make you more brain-boosting soup every day? Otherwise, if you're too short, the soldiers in the army might not be able to trust you!" Xie Shaoling joked.

Xie Chang'an slapped away the hand that was patting his head and said irritably, "Don't keep patting my head, or I won't grow taller!"

"If I never grow taller in the future, it will definitely be because of you!" Xie Chang'an added angrily.

If he had met Ye Jingchen sooner and formed an alliance with him sooner, he would never have let his father return to the capital!

He does nothing productive all day, just torments us and treats us like a joke. What use is he?!

When Xie and his son returned to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion amidst their bickering, Ye Jingchen had already returned to the East Palace.

After removing his disguise and leaving the bedchamber, he went to find Ye Jinghe first.

Besides bringing Ye Jinghe pastries, Ye Jingchen also bought him a small toy during this trip out of the palace.

He believes that every child's childhood should include playing with toys to be considered complete.

Given that Ye Jinghe was very intelligent, Ye Jingchen specially bought him a toy suitable for intelligent people to play with—the Nine Linked Rings.

With this toy, Ye Jing would never feel bored even if he were alone.

"The fun of playing with this toy lies in unraveling it all. Only the smartest and most patient people can unravel it. Of course, let me clarify first, I don't know how to unravel it, but Xiao Jing is so smart, I believe you can definitely do it!"

Ye Jinghe looked at the toy in his hand—

He himself had no concept of what toys were; it was his older brother who said that all children should have toys, and that he should have what other children had.

He wasn't really interested in the so-called toys, after all, he was busy with his studies, exercise, and supervising and motivating others, and didn't have much free time.

But since this toy was a gift from his older brother, its significance is certainly different.

His brother said that only the smartest person could solve all the puzzles. Although Ye Jinghe didn't think he was as smart as his brother, he still wanted to try. If he could solve them, his brother would surely be very happy.

After all, my brother has always liked smart kids.