Five Years After My Death, the Mad Emperor Still Summons My Spirit

Chapter 212: Chapter 212: Father and Son’s Mutual Dislike

Li Yan looked left and right, a little bewildered. His big, round eyes, so much like Ming Lingyi’s, were filled with confusion.

’Ah, was this something I wasn’t supposed to say?’

’So should I answer or not?’

’But this is Uncle’s question. It wouldn’t be right not to answer, would it?’

Since his father didn’t want to hear it, Li Yan thought for a moment. He squirmed his little body, trying to lean across the table toward Ming Chengyu. He even raised a chubby hand to the side of his mouth. "Then, Uncle..." he whispered. "Lean in a little closer. We’ll say it secretly, since Father doesn’t want to listen."

Li Yun: "..."

’I really had a foolish son with Ming Lingyi!’

’Does he really think I can’t hear his "secret whispers" with Ming Chengyu?’

He reached out and pulled away the hand Li Yan had placed by his mouth, looking at him coldly. "So foolish!"

Li Yan was still a little dazed, looking at his own father with those eyes so very similar to Ming Lingyi’s. "Didn’t you say you didn’t want to listen, Father?"

’What’s wrong with being secretive?!’

Li Yan couldn’t help but grumble to himself. ’My father is so difficult.’

Li Yun: "..."

Seeing this scene, Ming Chengyu couldn’t help but laugh out loud again.

"How is our Little Huachao so adorable?" The more Ming Chengyu looked at his nephew, the more he liked him, to the point that he wanted to take the boy with him to Jiangnan.

"Quick, tell Uncle. Between Lord Jiang and your father, who do you think is more handsome?"

The moment Ming Chengyu finished asking, Li Yan felt a rather stern, cold gaze fall upon him from his side.

He didn’t need to turn around to know that the gaze was definitely from his father.

Li Yan sighed helplessly. His small, bun-like face seemed to deflate quite a bit with that sigh.

"It’s my father, of course," Li Yan said seriously.

’My father is the real fool here. Of course I think he’s the best person in the world—though Mother still ranks ahead of him, naturally. As for anyone else, they could never compare to my own father.’

’He didn’t need to stare at me like that at all. I was going to choose him anyway, you know!’

"Aww," Ming Chengyu said at the answer. Though he spoke to Li Yan, his eyes were on the man beside him. "Our Little Huachao doesn’t have to say something he doesn’t mean. Uncle’s here. I’ll back you up."

"Ming Chengyu."

A slightly annoyed expression appeared on Li Yun’s face as he gave Ming Chengyu a warning look.

Ming Chengyu held up his hands. He fell silent, but his face might as well have had the words "coercion and bribery" written all over it.

Li Yun was thoroughly exasperated.

Even though his little cub had already chosen him, because of Ming Chengyu’s stunt, he couldn’t help but feel a little shaken.

The thought that Li Yan felt Jiang Yuchuan surpassed him in looks left a bad taste in Li Yun’s mouth.

’I want to spank this kid.’

The atmosphere at the table suddenly became a bit strange. When Ming Lingyi returned to the restaurant, she saw the three men of her family sitting together, staring blankly at each other without a word, and she had no idea what they were doing.

"What are you all doing?" Ming Lingyi asked as she walked over.

Li Yan was the first to spot her. The Little Bun hopped down cheerfully from his seat, completely forgetting the dignified composure expected of a Little Prince. "Mother!" he cried, rushing toward Ming Lingyi.

’It felt like I hadn’t seen Mother in forever.’

Ming Lingyi squatted down and caught the Little Bun who was rushing toward her.

"Well now, if it isn’t our Little Huachao?" Ming Lingyi said with a beaming smile. "Coming to the restaurant so late, why don’t you just stay the night? There’s still a room for you in the backyard. If you want to sleep with your uncle, that’s fine too."

Li Yan’s eyes lit up when he heard this.

However, this time he had left the palace with his father, so upon hearing his mother ask him to stay, he subconsciously looked back at his father.

Noticing the Little Bun’s gaze, Ming Lingyi also glanced at Li Yun.

When Li Yun heard Ming Lingyi’s words, a sour feeling crept into his heart.

’I’ve come to the restaurant so many times, but not once has Ming Lingyi ever invited me to stay over. But our little cub? Who knows how many times she’s asked him to stay.’

’How come the son gets treated better than the father? Is that even fair?’

"That’s not out of the question," Li Yun said. "But I wouldn’t be at ease with him here by himself."

Ming Lingyi: "???"

Ming Chengyu almost laughed out loud when he heard this. He shot a disdainful glance at the man across from him. "What is there to worry about with Huazhao here with us?"

"He’s my son, and he’s still so young. Of course I feel most at ease when I’m watching him myself," Li Yun replied calmly.

Li Yan stared blankly at his father. He opened his mouth, wanting to protest. ’Didn’t Father build me a Crown Prince Mansion outside the palace not long after I began my studies? He sent me to the Imperial College to study like any other student in Shangjing City. I was just surrounded by guards then, and Father wasn’t with me. He never said anything about me being too young, so what’s all this about now?’

But before the question could leave his lips, Li Yan was silenced by a sweeping glance from his father.

’I have so many questions!’

The corner of Ming Lingyi’s eye twitched. Li Yun’s words could only fool the clueless Little Bun. She looked up and glared at Li Yun. "Fine. If you want to stay, that’s not out of the question either."

Ming Chengyu glanced at Ming Lingyi.

"You can just sleep with your son," Ming Lingyi added, finishing what she hadn’t said.

Ming Chengyu lowered his head, pressing a fist to his mouth. He was afraid he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from laughing too loudly.

Li Yun: "..."

Similarly, after hearing what his mother had just said, the Little Bun Li Yan’s chubby little face instantly crumpled.

’I’m a grown-up of five! How can I still sleep with Father?!’

’I... I could sleep with Mother, at best. But not Father! Absolutely not!’

Li Yun’s expression was almost identical to the Little Bun’s.

Looking at them like this, the father and son were very much alike.

Yes, even their expressions of mutual disdain were identical.

Truly cut from the same cloth.

"That won’t be necessary," Li Yun said. "As long as I stay in the restaurant, it counts as watching over him."

Ming Lingyi raised an eyebrow. "We don’t have any spare rooms in the back."

’She hadn’t forgotten how Li Yun had tricked her into the palace not long ago. For a whole afternoon and into the night, he had worn her out until she’d passed out.’

’Sometimes, after you’ve eaten your fill, you don’t want to touch another bite for a good long while.’

’If Li Yun didn’t sleep in the same room as the Little Bun, she couldn’t guarantee he wouldn’t sneak into her room in the middle of the night.’

’And at that point, would she even be able to stop him?’