Part 4
The unwilling haters typed in unison: [You say you aren’t, how do you prove it?]
Ning Yunyi saw this and scoffed, “Whether I am or not, why do I have to prove it to you?”
[Exactly. The streamer cooks; he’s not applying for a census. Does he have to recite his ancestry for eighteen generations to you?]
But clearly, the other side didn’t intend to let him go so easily, continuing to spam comments: [The streamer said before that these Ancient Blue Star ingredients were inherited heritage. Real or fake? Are these soils also inherited by you?]
Ning Yunyi: “Yes. Originally, I only inherited some mud and seeds. Because of certain reasons, I couldn’t bear for the cubs to endure forced training at such a young age, so I simply took my family to a desolate star where no one had ever set foot. I originally just wanted to try, but who knew I would grow countless Ancient Blue Star ingredients? I suppose it’s a blessing disguised as misfortune.”
Everyone in the livestream room was dumbfounded: Wtf, countless…
[Boohoo, can’t listen to this. My fragile little heart can’t take this.]
[Cruel, envious, helpless. While we can only smell the scent, the streamer has already eaten enough Ancient Blue Star cuisine and plans to switch to flowers. Boohoo.]
[ @StarStream, can you do your job? If you can’t let us taste it virtually, at least giving us a few more portions of the smell isn’t too much to ask, right?]
[I think the streamer did the right thing. Who wouldn’t ache for their own child? If my cub was only a few years old and I had the means to give him a better environment, why should I let my cub endure painful training to develop so-called potential at such a young age?]
Just then, having finally planted the seeds in the soil and washed his hands clean, Ning Xiaomiao ran over with a patter-patter. With a flick of his tail, he used his claws to cling to Ning Yunyi’s clothes and climbed onto his shoulder. The cartoon cat mimicked his expression and movements, staring wide-eyed at the camera lens and tilting his head: “Meow?”
The comments in the livestream room paused, hearts pounding from the impact. Too cute.
[Boohoo, let Auntie give you a kiss! Star Cub is so good!]
[Cub, does your family need servants? I don’t want wages, just provide meals!]
[Yes, yes, yes! I can even pay to work there!]
Soon, a golden-glowing comment flashed by. It was Lu Jia: [Can I bring my own brain to the streamer’s house to plant flowers? Helping plant ingredients is fine too. I’m very reliable @AncientResearchInstituteDirectorGu, my Master can prove it.]
Soon another golden light flashed: [Director Gu: Go away, do you know how to respect your teacher? Make way for Master. Next time there’s a quota, Master won’t forget you, but let Master go first.]
The crowd in the livestream room went numb, watching master and apprentice fight over a spot to be a servant.
[Hahaha fight! Keep fighting! I love to watch this!]
**[Oh my god, the Director of an Institute and his head disciple turning against each other, and the reason is fighting to be a servant! Is this the decline of morality or the distortion of human nature? Watch the grandmaster battle live at *]
[Hahaha, the person above understands Star Network trends.]
[Star Network: Report to headquarters after the stream, you’re hired.]
[Tsk tsk, if it had a golden glow I would have believed it. Don’t pretend up there.]
[Shaking you desperately: It’s real! It’s the official Star Network account! For real!]
With all this banter, the livestream room became lively. The black haters and water armies had no room to post at all and could only retreat in bitterness.
Ning Yunyi also started today’s livestream. He still prepared three dishes and one soup, while the other heavy dishes were stewed in advance to prevent people from figuring out how many people were in his family.
In today’s livestream, not only did Ning Yunyi not lose fans, but he gained two million in a single session. Even the cubs and the big cat gained a batch of fans.
When the livestream ended, Ning Yunyi couldn’t help but hug the little kitten and kiss his forehead: “Cub is so great!”
Sure enough, whether it was Ancient Blue Star or the Interstellar Era, who could resist fluff? He knew it.
Zong Hao, seeing the livestream end, had already jumped down from the shelf and was about to come over. Seeing Ning Yunyi kiss the little kitten, he silently took two steps back.
Ning Yunyi saw his small movement and laughed angrily: “What are you thinking? Do you still think you’re purely a fluffy animal like before? No, you are not.”
So, you have lost the qualification to be kissed.
Zong Hao: “…” How am I not me? I’m clearly still me.
In the afternoon, before Big Brother Ning went to the military department, he thought about it and told Ning Yunyi: “This morning, all unmarried men of General rank and above in our military department received an invitation from superiors. It says there’s a banquet at the palace tonight. I think… you might receive an invitation too.”
The situation in the palace was unstable. The Second Prince definitely couldn’t have accomplished the previous events alone, so there were certainly Second Prince’s people in the palace and even among the aristocratic families. Perhaps this banquet was another probe. Plus, specifically mentioning unmarried men gave Big Brother Ning the feeling that the other party’s motives were impure—switching from probing if Mr. Bai could “cure” to trying to win him over.
Ning Yunyi frowned. “Are you saying this banquet is actually a mixer? Maybe someone wants to take the opportunity to win me over through marriage?”
Big Brother Ning gave a confirmation sound. “The two stores in the Fourth Underground City have been too explosive these past few days. Perhaps they have their eyes on the immense profit involved.”
Moreover, these aristocratic families and even the royals prioritized marriage for benefits. With such a big piece of meat in front of them, who wouldn’t want a bite?
Ning Yunyi had a clearer picture and told Big Brother Ning not to worry. He turned his head to look at the big cat dozing in his nest.
Last night, the big cat had been worried Ning Yunyi would be affected by the online voices, so he had stayed by the door and hadn’t slept well.
Ning Yunyi looked at the big cat and thought of something. Marshal Zong was also in the military; Ichi would definitely be on the invitation list. So, since it was a mixer hosted by the palace… wouldn’t Marshal Zong also be on the invitation list?
Ning Yunyi glanced at the big cat and slowly sauntered past him, the corners of his mouth lifting uncontrollably with a sense of amusement at the impending drama.
Sure enough, by mid-afternoon, his account for [Bai Yanyu] received an invitation. It was a Royal Invitation issued directly from the palace: [We cordially invite Mr. Bai to attend a banquet at the palace at 8 PM tonight.]
At the bottom was a special royal emblem.
Zong Hao had just come out of his nest. Seeing Ning Yunyi lost in thought looking at his wristband, he walked over and squatted in front of him.
Ning Yunyi smiled at him and shook his wristband. “Do you know what I just received?”
Zong Hao looked over in confusion. “Meow?”
Ning Yunyi: “A palace invitation. I don’t know under whose name it was issued. Currently, His Majesty and the Empress are unconscious, the Third Prince is locked up, and the Second Prince’s whereabouts are unknown. That leaves only the Crown Prince… You say, inviting unmarried male officers of General rank and above is one thing, but why invite me, a widower?”
The confusion in Zong Hao’s eyes deepened. “??” What unmarried men?
Ning Yunyi stroked his chin. “I reckon there will be ladies from the nobility or aristocratic families too. Adding this together… this banquet wouldn’t happen to be… a matchmaking banquet, would it?”
Zong Hao: “……”
He suddenly had an ominous premonition. If Generals and above were invited, wouldn’t he be on the list too?
After speaking, Ning Yunyi treated it as a casual remark and ignored the big cat, going instead to the flower room to see Mother Ning and Ning Xiaomiao, who were obsessed with planting flowers.
Zong Hao, feeling complicated and worried, rubbed the center of his brow and eventually went back to lie in his nest. If Ning Yunyi went, he would go. That way, if anything happened, he could offer a warning or two, and his absence from the Ning family wouldn’t be discovered.
If Ning Yunyi didn’t go, he wouldn’t go either. Ichi should be able to react and decline upon receiving the news.
A mature subordinate should be able to guess his superior’s thoughts.
On the other side, Ichi was scratching his head in anxiety: No, I can’t.
He hadn’t even figured out what exactly the relationship was between the Marshal and Mr. Bai, or between the Marshal and Mr. Zong.
Ning Yunyi ate dinner very early that evening and coaxed the little cub to sleep early. Since the Ning home wasn’t far from the palace, he wasn’t in a rush to leave.
Big Brother Ning was also on the invitation list, so he planned to enter the palace with him.
Knowing about this, Professor Ning frowned, worried about his two sons. “What if they really force a marriage on you?”
At this critical juncture, the other party’s purpose was obviously not simple.
The Ning brothers were calm. “They can’t force us to agree. We’ll take it one step at a time.”
From the corner of his eye, Ning Yunyi couldn’t help glancing at a certain someone who seemed to be lying in the corner but actually had his ears perked up.
If anyone should be worried, it was probably Marshal Zong. At this banquet, they might not be the main characters; Marshal Zong would be.
With Zong Ling’s three branches of the family driven out, only Marshal Zong remained in the Zong family. People would go crazy trying to snatch him.
Although Ning Yunyi’s few stores were explosive, they couldn’t compare to the Zong family’s wealth, which rivaled nations.
Ning Yunyi and Big Brother Ning left the house. Only then did Zong Hao wander back to his room, jump out the window, and vanish into the darkness. Having already registered his iris, he passed through quickly and silently.
Almost simultaneously, a message that the big cat had left the Ning home was automatically sent to Ning Yunyi’s wristband. He glanced at it and raised an eyebrow: The big cat has deceived me for so long; it’s not too much to eat some melon and watch the drama, right?
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