"Fifth Prince, open your mouth!"

Hongjing kept his mouth tightly shut, turned his face to the side, and no matter how Hongtao coaxed him, he just wouldn't open his mouth or eat.

Seeing this, Hongtao had no choice but to put down the spoon she was holding and turn to Jiaming helplessly, saying, "Master, the Fifth Prince still won't eat."

Jiaming glanced at Hongjing's half-eaten bowl of rice and frowned, saying, "He's probably not hungry yet because he hasn't digested what he ate earlier. Just leave him alone and feed him when he gets hungry."

Hongtao nodded. "This servant understands."

Neither of the two people talking to each other paid any attention to Hongjing, while Hongxuan was focused on his rice bowl, working hard to get the food that Jiaming had put on him, and didn't give Hongjing the slightest bit of attention either.

So we didn't see Hongjing staring wide-eyed in disbelief.

After saying that, Jiaming turned her attention back to her son Hongxuan, whom she hadn't seen for a long time and who had just returned. "Come on, Xuan'er, what do you want to eat? Tell your mother and I'll get it for you."

"I'm angry!" Hongjing couldn't help but slap the armrest of the chair with his little hand.

Ouch! That hurts!

Hearing the sound, Jiaming turned her head to look at Hongjing and saw him groaning in pain over his hand.

"What's wrong with him?" Jiaming asked Hongtao.

Hongtao immediately recounted what had just happened: "Fifth Prince accidentally swung his hand onto the armrest of the chair."

Upon hearing this, Jiaming turned her gaze back to Hongjing's aching hand and asked in a low voice, "Does it still hurt?"

Mother has noticed me, Mother hasn't ignored me, Mother still likes me... Hongjing shook his little head with a smile as a series of memories flashed through his mind.

Seeing his condition, Jiaming figured he was alright. After a pause, she instructed Hongtao, "You should take him back to the outer room. He's not hungry anyway. Give him whatever he wants to play with. That way, you won't have to worry about him hurting himself while making a fuss at the dining table."

Hongjing's smiling expression froze, his small mouth slightly agape in shock!

Shouldn't her mother be holding her and comforting her? This has happened before.

Or perhaps, gently pat the top of your head and whisper something to yourself? There have been times like this before.

...Now there's nothing left, so I'm leaving.

The little guy lowered his head, his expression suddenly becoming a bit dejected.

So, he missed Jiaming's shifting gaze, and no one noticed his unease.

Having received Jiaming's instructions, Hongtao quickly put down the bowl in her hand and replied, "This servant will take the Fifth Prince away right away."

After saying that, she moved closer to Hongjing and picked him up.

When he was hugged, Hongjing instinctively struggled.

Seeing this, Hongxuan hurriedly said, thinking he was comforting him, "Fifth brother, be good. You go back to the outer room with Aunt Hongtao to play first. I'll come and keep you company after I finish lunch."

Who wants your company?!

If Hongjing were more articulate, he would have said this without hesitation.

The little guy isn't so happy with his "Guoguo" these days. It's because as soon as he came back, he took up his mother's attention and made her ignore him.

Sulking, Hongjing reluctantly brought his face close to Hongtao's neck, not wanting to see the person who made him feel so upset.

Then, once again, he concealed his discomfort.

"Be good!" Still oblivious and carefree, Jiaming patted Hongjing's fluffy head. In the past, she would linger and stroke it for a long time, but now she gave it a perfunctory rub and moved her hand away. Then she said to Hongtao, "That's enough. Take him away!"

This attitude made Hongjing grit his few remaining teeth.

As he left, Hongjing was held face-to-face by Hongtao, and he could only watch the lively scene at the dining table. His mother, who had always been so good to him, had transferred all that kindness to "Guoguo".

"Here, sweet and sour pork ribs, keep eating!" Jiaming picked up a piece of rice for Hongxuan, then quickly ate a mouthful of rice and a bite of vegetables herself. She then picked up another piece of rice for Hongxuan, "Hmm, chopped chili fish head, it tastes pretty good too, here you go."

Hongjing felt a mix of emotions at that moment: a tightness in his chest and a sour feeling in his heart.

After lunch, Hongxuan went to the outer room to find Hongjing first. Jiaming still had some small matters to attend to, so she planned to go over after she finished.

Upon entering the outer room, Hongxuan went straight to Hongjing, who was sitting on a mat, fiddling with a small abacus in one hand and seemingly playing with something else in the other.

"Fifth brother, what are you playing with? Puzzle? Building blocks? Or something else? Fourth brother will play with you." After saying that, Hongxuan stood in front of Hongjing, then squatted down to sit and play with his younger brother.

Unexpectedly, Hongjing, who was holding his little abacus, turned around and faced away from Hongxuan.

Hongxuan was a little confused. "Brother, what's wrong? Why are you treating me like this?"

Confused and determined to find out, Hongxuan crouched down and shifted his position, coming to stand in front of Hongjing once more.

Unexpectedly, the other person turned around again, their backside facing him.

Frustrated and unwilling to give up, Hongxuan went to Hongjing again, but Hongjing just turned his back to him and acted sullenly.

Why? Hongxuan remained dumbfounded.

My younger brother used to welcome me back, calling me "Guoguo" and kissing me all the time. How could he have changed his mind so quickly and stopped liking me?

Just as Hongxuan was racking his brains over Hongjing's challenge to him, a sound came from the doorway.

His gaze swept towards the doorway and he discovered that it was his own mother who had come in.

Hongxuan's eyes lit up instantly, and he looked at Jiaming with pleading eyes.

Fine Tea: ? ? ?

Meeting his mother's questioning gaze, Hongxuan explained in a low voice, "My younger brother suddenly stopped talking to me for some reason."

Fine Tea: ? ? ?

Previously, Hongjing had been extremely enthusiastic towards Hongxuan, especially since Hongxuan had given him gifts, satisfying his greed, and even gave Xuan'er a kiss.

Not understanding why Hongjing's attitude had changed so drastically, Jiaming immediately went to Hongjing, squatted down and asked the little guy softly, "Jing'er, didn't you keep asking for 'Guoguo' before? Your brother is back now and even gave you a gift. He's been so good to you. Why are you suddenly ignoring your 'Guoguo'?"

Hongjing lowered his head, pretending not to hear or understand, and continued playing with his abacus.

Jiaming glanced at Hongxuan, then turned her gaze back to Hongjing and asked again.

When Hongjing was asked the question, he felt a lump in his throat and a tightness in his chest when he thought of those lively and warm scenes from before. He couldn't help but pout, then turned his head away, leaving Jiaming and Hongxuan with the same treatment, their backs turned to him.

Jiaming was confused. What was going on? Why was he ignoring her too?

Stunned, she looked at Hongxuan, who shrugged, indicating that he didn't understand either.

There was nothing she could do but hope to get the reason from Hongjing. She reached out and turned Hongjing back around, asking, "Good boy, tell your mother. If you don't tell me, how will your mother know why you're unhappy?"