Doctor Lu Always Wants To Steal My Baby! Chapter 5

Chapter 5: The Second Day of the Reunion

At this moment, He Chen was dealing with Chu Yunqi, who had just woken up from a hangover.

Yesterday, Chu Yunqi had tried to sleep on an empty stomach for a while, but ultimately couldn’t. He had ordered food and wine, and only went to sleep after eating and drinking his fill.

“What kind of swill did you give me? It was so strong! Are you doing this on purpose?” Chu Yunqi sat on the guest sofa in He Chen’s office, his face full of displeasure as he questioned him.

“Didn’t Your Highness want grape wine? I specifically had them search the stores for it. It was seized from a pirate den, and I heard it’s a specialty of some planet called Ti-something. We don’t usually drink it; we only brought it out to entertain Your Highness.”

“Tim Star.” Chu Yunqi realized something, and his expression changed: No wonder it tasted so good, making him want more after the first sip. The wine was wonderful because of its flavor, but it—

Chu Yunqi clutched his stomach. But it made a person pass that gas, continuously, and it wouldn’t stop for four or five days.

Was this He Chen doing it on purpose?

“Your Highness, was the wine good? What’s the market price per bottle? We captured a whole case, and the military said we didn’t have to hand it over, so we were thinking of selling it to subsidize military expenses. Of course—” He Chen paused, adopting an understanding look, “If Your Highness likes it, we won’t sell it. I’ll have them check how many bottles are left in the store and send them all with Your Highness when you leave.”

“It’s rare for you to have something decent; you should keep it for yourself.” Seeing his ignorant and honest look, which didn’t seem fake, Chu Yunqi snorted and temporarily suppressed his suspicion. He lifted his head, narrowed his eyes, and scanned He Chen’s office:

No potted plants, no calligraphy or paintings, and the desk and chair were made of the most common synthetic materials, completely lacking the prestige a Captain should have. Also, his gaze returned to He Chen, who was sitting behind the desk—

“What are you wearing?”

“My military uniform,” He Chen replied, looking innocent.

“It’s faded white. Where is the one you wore yesterday?”

“That one is new. I only wear it for important occasions like welcoming Your Highness.”

“You are thoughtful.” Chu Yunqi was somewhat satisfied. In his view, this cheap cousin was sensible, not as cunning as his Imperial Mother had claimed—otherwise, he wouldn’t have been exiled by the military to this godforsaken place.

But while he was sensible, he was also too shabby.

Chu Yunqi glanced at He Chen again, confirming that nothing on him, from head to toe, was valuable. The only things that shone were his few alloy prosthetic fingers.

Chu Yunqi was utterly disgusted. He took off the expensive antique watch on his wrist. “Take this. You are from the He family, after all. Don’t embarrass me and Imperial Mother.”

Seeing this guy acting like a complete idiot, yet casually taking off a watch worth a set of A-class battle armor, He Chen blinked.

He had no intention of accepting the antique watch. Instead, he showed the smart terminal on his own wrist, boasting, “Why is Your Highness wearing such an outdated thing? Mine is a fifth-generation terminal. I can check the time however I want.”

“You wouldn’t understand!” It was too embarrassing. He was, after all, only recognized by the He family later in life, and was rumored to have wandered in the slums as a child. No wonder he couldn’t recognize anything good.

But being small-minded was fine too. Chu Yunqi stood up and forcefully placed the watch on He Chen’s desk, his expression arrogant. “Keep it. I’m going to be Leyan’s godfather. We’ll be even closer relatives now.”

Close relatives, my foot. He Chen forced a smile. “Your Highness is quite young. What made you think of becoming Leyan’s godfather?”

Who wanted to? His Imperial Mother forced him. Chu Yunqi held his nose and said, “Leyan and I have a connection.”

“Whether you have a connection or not, we’ll have to ask Leyan first.”

He Chen reached out and fiddled with the antique watch face. It was cool to the touch, which helped calm the inner fire.

“What do you mean?” Chu Yunqi looked up. “What does a child know about connections? He Chen, just say what you mean. I hate beating around the bush.”

Before coming, his Imperial Mother had warned him that things might not go smoothly, but Chu Yunqi didn’t believe it. The He family was his maternal family, and he was one of his Imperial Father’s only two heirs—although he was the third prince, the eldest had died young, leaving only the second prince above him—who else would the He family support if not him?

Even if he didn’t become He Leyan’s godfather, He Leyan would inevitably be used by him when he grew up.

It was just that his Imperial Mother insisted, coupled with the fact that his Imperial Father liked to play the role of “loving the people like his own children” and “sharing joy with the people,” valuing “public opinion” highly. That’s why he patiently indulged He Leyan, who was widely popular and had significant “public opinion.”

“With me as his godfather, Leyan won’t lose out, and neither will you.” Chu Yunqi looked down at He Chen, highly dissatisfied with his lack of gratitude.

“It is naturally Leyan’s good fortune to have Your Highness as his godfather.” He Chen was unhurried. “But inviting a godfather is primarily to help children stabilize their mental strength during their developmental period. Your Highness is a dragon among men and probably doesn’t have time for such tedious matters. Furthermore—”

He Chen looked troubled.

“Furthermore what?” Chu Yunqi frowned.

“Furthermore, I originally intended to ask my elder brother to be Leyan’s godfather.”

Elder brother? “He Siyuan?”

As Chu Yunqi asked, he saw He Chen nod and couldn’t help but sneer. “You really don’t value yourself.”

“Do you think that by making He Siyuan the godfather, Aunt will think highly of you?”

“It’s useless. He Siyuan is Aunt’s treasure; you are just a weed she accidentally grew. No matter what you do, a weed is still a weed. Haven’t you figured that out after all these years?”

Chu Yunqi had a seemingly harmless baby face, but when he was sarcastic, he was anything but “harmless.” He Chen turned his head, the tendons in his neck tightening. He looked like he had been hit where it hurt, yet had to endure it.

“It’s not for that.” After a moment of silence, He Chen defended himself in a low voice. “My elder brother cares deeply about Leyan. Knowing Leyan was coming to the base, he prepared many things for him. I didn’t have money to renovate the house, so I relied entirely on my elder brother’s assistance.”

“You’re a Captain, and you don’t have money to renovate a house?” Chu Yunqi looked at He Chen suspiciously.

“I can’t help it. Allocations are fixed. We have many space pirates here, and our weapons wear out quickly. All the money is saved for that,” He Chen explained.

That might actually be true. Chu Yunqi recalled the dilapidated shuttle he had taken on the way here.

Chu Yunqi’s hungover brain started working. “Renovating a house is nothing. Leyan will be staying here long-term. Just a house isn’t enough; you need to build a playground too!”

He Chen listened, pondered for a moment, and agreed wholeheartedly. “Your Highness is right. The books say that for a child this age, play space is very important.”

As he spoke, he seemed to make a difficult decision, gritting his teeth. “Then I’ll talk to my elder brother again—”

“Talk to him about what?!” Chu Yunqi grew anxious. “I’ll pay for it!”

“Really?” He Chen looked up, seemingly unable to believe it. “This is space; the cost is higher than on the ground. Building a playground will cost a lot of money.”

Country bumpkin, how much could it cost? If He Siyuan could afford it, could he not?

“For Leyan’s sake, any cost is worth it,” Chu Yunqi said dismissively.

“Thank you, Your Highness!” He Chen suddenly saluted, the movement sharp and decisive, carrying a fierce, iron-blooded aura that startled Chu Yunqi. Fortunately, in the next instant, that aura dissipated as if it were an illusion.

Chu Yunqi steadied himself. Speaking of the shuttle, he recalled the unpleasantness on the journey. “I am willing to reward you, but how will you deal with Ning Tian?”

“Deal with him?” He Chen sat back in his chair, narrowing his eyes.

“He’s just a small Captain, but he was very impolite to me. Not only did he fail to use honorifics, but he also shot me daggers with his eyes.”

“That happened?” He Chen mused. “This must be punished. How dare he shoot daggers at Your Highness!”

He said the words seriously, but Chu Yunqi felt something was off.

He glared at He Chen, annoyed. “Just tell me how you’ll punish him!”

“I’ll strip him of his current rank and punish him by making him look after the child for me!”

As He Chen spoke, he signed his name with bold strokes on the documents on his desk.

He wasn’t lying. From this moment on, Ning Tian’s original rank was indeed revoked. However, simultaneously with the revocation, he was promoted to Captain of the Guard, his military rank rising from Captain to Major—the highest position He Chen could promote within his authority.

“That’s it?” Demotion was technically a punishment, but Chu Yunqi felt he hadn’t vented enough anger and was dissatisfied. For some reason, the thought of Ning Tian’s cold face made his teeth itch.

“What else does Your Highness wish?”

In his resentment, Chu Yunqi heard He Chen ask.

“Beat him up.” Chu Yunqi said subconsciously. After saying it, he was startled himself, feeling awkward, yet also… somewhat excited, his pores seeming to open and tremble.

But soon, his open pores felt a chilling coldness.

Chu Yunqi instinctively looked up. He Chen’s expression was no different from before, still carrying a slight smile:

“Your Highness, don’t worry. He failed to execute his mission effectively, so I already beat him.”

Outside the door, a group of three—two adults and one child—stopped.

Wen Yi, holding He Leyan’s hand, looked back at Ning Tian.

Ning Tian was expressionless, standing ramrod straight.

The Commander must have a reason for lying. It was a small matter, and Ning Tian didn’t pry, cooperating unconditionally.

But while he didn’t pry, He Leyan frowned slightly, pressing closer to Wen Yi.

Wen Yi immediately noticed. He patted He Leyan’s shoulder to reassure him, then raised his hand to knock on He Chen’s office door. Just then, the conversation inside resumed:

“You really beat him?”

“Naturally.”

“Then why isn’t his face bruised?”

“I have a secret technique. I can hit people without leaving bruises.”

“Nonsense.”

“It’s true. Ning Tian will be following Leyan and might appear in live streams. Bruises would be hard to explain. But I guarantee I made him hurt, very much.”

“Really? Did he cry?”

Silence fell inside the room for a moment, followed by He Chen’s carefree voice: “Yes, he cried. Snot ran all over his face.”

Ning Tian’s eyes widened. His face, which wouldn’t show emotion even if the sky fell, changed.

Wen Yi couldn’t help but smile slightly. He looked down at He Leyan, intending to explain something, but saw the child’s face was tightly strained, his eyes both timid and angry, staring at the door—

Because He Chen’s voice came from inside again, sounding eerie:

“If Your Highness truly doesn’t believe me, you can try it yourself. I am best at making people hurt internally. No matter how much pain there is inside, the exterior will be absolutely flawless.”

…”Commander He!” Wen Yi knocked open He Chen’s door without further ado.