Billionaire's Long Journey of Chasing His Love-Chapter 697 - 589: I Didn’t Help the Wrong Person! (Part 1)_2
The little raindrop cooperated and covered her face.
Sang Yu grinned triumphantly, reached out and grabbed Aunt Ai Ni’s hand again. Before Ai Ni could slap her, she started wailing and "crying" loudly.
Sang Yu blinked her eyes and looked at Aunt Ai Ni with disdain, "Fake!"
Ai Ni burst out laughing, "She called me out, said my acting was fake."
Hahaha... The whole family burst into laughter.
...
Early the next morning, King William of Laman arrived with his eldest son and eldest daughter-in-law.
It was the first time Compton and Gladys had come to the Duke’s residence. The couple was clearly not very talkative. Compton, the eldest brother, even seemed a bit stubborn. Yi Luowa thought to herself, no wonder it took Connie’s father so long to establish him as the crown prince.
William, upon seeing his grandson, held him in his arms and chuckled for a long time. "This little guy is so small, I’m afraid to hold him."
Tong Yao laughed and said, "If you’re afraid, let Long Che hold him. Long Che has got the hang of it."
King William shook his head with a smile, "He’ll have plenty of chances to hold him in the future. Let me hold him a little longer."
Long Che smiled, "He’s all yours to hold. Even when we eat, don’t put him down."
"Then I won’t eat!" William joked as he looked at Long Che.
Long Che raised his eyebrows slightly, "Why didn’t the second brother come? Don’t tell me he’s still mad at me."
William was momentarily stunned, then laughed, "Why would he be mad at you? The second brother caught a cold and was afraid of infecting the child. Once he’s better, he’ll come."
Long Che chuckled, turning his head toward Tong Airui, "Didn’t you say you had something to discuss with Compton?"
Compton looked at Tong Airui, "What a coincidence. I also have something to discuss with you."
"Then... let’s talk in the study." Tong Airui stood up.
The two walked into the study one after the other. After Tong Airui closed the door, he smiled, "You go first. Let’s see if we’re thinking about the same issue."
There was a purpose to Tong Airui’s tactic. He wanted to see if Compton could demonstrate the sharpness needed to be a competent king. If he couldn’t even show this level of insight, Laman’s future might truly be in jeopardy.
Compton let out a wry smile, "This matter... I couldn’t discuss it with anyone else, afraid they’d laugh at me, most of all not with my father. Since I was a child, he’s always thought that the second brother was..."
Compton trailed off mid-sentence but then continued after a long pause, "I’ve really envied the closeness in your family. Sometimes, I wonder, if you and Ai Nuo were swapped with me and Lucian, what would you have done?"
Tong Airui smiled, "And what do you think we would have done?"
"Isn’t it obvious? It certainly wouldn’t have been like us. Actually, the bond between the three of us siblings was just like the bond between you three. I don’t know when, but that feeling started to fade."
"You should know better than I when things began to change."
Compton gave a helpless smile, "It must have been when I married Gladys. Coming from a commoner family, she’s the first commoner queen in Laman’s history. My father argued with me endlessly about it. He said that if I insisted on marrying Gladys, he’d pass the throne to Lucian instead."
Tong Airui raised his eyebrows slightly, motioning for him to continue.
Compton furrowed his brow, "At the time, I didn’t take it seriously. But not long after I got married, the second brother confirmed his relationship with Celia. Celia’s father is the commander of Laman’s army, and he was the only one who supported my father’s succession to the throne. That’s when I realized that I was slowly losing my hold on the throne."
Tong Airui chuckled and asked, "Did you ever fight for the throne?"
"I never had the chance. Since the second brother got engaged to Celia, my father has seen me less and less favorably. For all foreign affairs events, he always took the second brother along. Sometimes I got angry and argued with him."
"And the result of the arguments was that you and your father grew more distant."
Compton nodded, "You’re absolutely right. This time, becoming the crown prince, I know you and Uncle have helped me a great deal. Although I haven’t expressed my gratitude, that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate it. I’m not good at expressing myself, and occasionally I can be stubborn. But I will remember this kindness deeply, and in the future, no matter what you need, as long as I can help, I’ll do my best."
Tong Airui patted Compton on the shoulder with a smile, "What kindness? Your aunt is my aunt. Your sister is my sister-in-law. Talking about kindness doesn’t quite feel right, does it? I’m connected to both you and Lucian in this way!"
Compton couldn’t help but laugh, visibly relaxing all at once.
Tong Airui continued with a smile, "Let’s not talk about kindness. To be honest, I have my own reasons for doing what I did. My grandfather, two uncles, and several cousins are all Lamanese. I can’t stand the thought of someone unfit sitting on the throne, barking orders at them—especially that Celia. She went too far last time she visited."
"I’ve heard about that too. Airui, I have an even bigger headache to share with you. After Celia went back, I don’t know what she said to Lucian, but his attitude toward her made a complete one-eighty. That very night, the two of them went to Celia’s father’s place. We were already on the plane, and they still hadn’t returned."
"What do you make of Lucian’s sudden behavior?"
"Celia’s father controls the army. If they want to..." Compton made a upward motion with the back of his hand.
Tong Airui smiled slightly, "Do you mean to tell me your people haven’t uncovered anything?"
"Lucian is guarding against me. How could he let me find anything? Although we haven’t uncovered much of value, connecting the small clues, I think they might be planning something."
Compton finished speaking and gave Tong Airui a steady look.
Tong Airui smiled lightly, "So are you just going to stand by and watch?"
"I have no military authority. If a coup occurs, I’ll be at their mercy."
"Do you think I, Ai Nuo, my uncles, or your uncle-in-law would just stand by and watch?"
Compton’s eyes filled with hope as he looked at Tong Airui, his lips trembling slightly. "Airui..."
"Your father didn’t want to come this time, but Connie pleaded with him to. Connie knew how hard it was for him to leave his duties to come here, and she still insisted. That was my idea. With the palace in Laman left vacant, it’s the perfect time for Lucian and Celia to stir up trouble."
"Perfect time?" Compton was startled, then suddenly understood, "I see now. If they take action at this point, they won’t be ready. That makes them easy to defeat."
"Let’s speak plainly. Tell me your plan!"
"I only have the royal guards. I told them before coming here—if Lucian makes a move, fight to the death to hold them off until I get back. Airui, I’m not just here to see Connie this time. I came hoping you could help me."
"Of course, I will help. My people are already in Laman. They’ve reported back that Lucian’s father-in-law has made a move—two divisions!"
Compton froze. "Airui, if this can be resolved without force, let’s not resort to violence. If it comes to fighting, the common people will suffer, and my father’s reputation will be ruined."
Tong Airui was touched, "Compton, I didn’t help the wrong person! You care about the people, about your parents; this is a blessing for the Lamanese people!"
Compton sighed deeply, "Regardless of anything else, he’s still my father. Airui, tell me your plan, and let’s discuss."
