Chapter 21
“Didn’t sleep well last night?”
In the living room downstairs, Meng Zhan looked at Shi Xiaowang’s slightly red eyes.
“…Mm.”
Shi Xiaowang rubbed his eyes and smiled a little.
“Maybe I was just too tired.”
“Don’t rub them. Anyway, you don’t have much going on these days—just rest more.”
As he spoke, Meng Zhan took out a few packets of seeds.
“I came today to bring you these.”
“So many?”
Shi Xiaowang’s eyes widened at the mountain of seed packets on the table.
“Yup.”
Meng Zhan grinned.
“Didn’t you tell His Majesty you wanted to research crop cultivation? I brought a little of every crop seed I could find at the institute. Have fun experimenting.”
Shi Xiaowang smiled.
“Thank you, Teacher Meng.”
“Ah, what’s there to thank me for? If you can revive large-scale agriculture, I’ll gladly give you my position as director.”
Meng Zhan waved his hand dismissively.
While they talked, the lion padded over. Seeing him, Meng Zhan raised a hand in greeting.
“Yo, did you just wake up too?”
The lion ignored him, looking only at Shi Xiaowang.
Shi Xiaowang turned his head slightly, glanced at him, and said nothing.
He admitted that upstairs, when he had ignored Jian Da Meow, part of it was out of petty spite.
He was leaving soon anyway, and he couldn’t take Jian Da Meow with him—so maybe it was better to start keeping some distance now, to make parting easier.
But…
Shi Xiaowang stole another glance at the lion.
Would treating him this coldly make Jian Da Meow sad? After all, he didn’t know anything.
Shi Xiaowang bit his lip, his heart tangled with mixed feelings.
Jian Mo couldn’t read his mind, but he could tell Shi Xiaowang was in a bad mood.
When he came downstairs, he had more or less guessed why the boy suddenly stopped paying attention to the lion.
Maybe for Shi Xiaowang, it was a kind of emotional preparation before saying goodbye.
He stopped a few steps away from him, not daring to come any closer.
Jian Mo understood—but that didn’t make the sense of loss any weaker.
Meng Zhan’s gaze shifted back and forth between the two.
Something was off. The atmosphere was definitely wrong.
Normally, even if Shi Xiaowang didn’t hug and pet the lion, Jian Da Meow would take the initiative to stick close to him.
This was the first time Meng Zhan had ever seen them act so distant.
“Did you two… fight?”
Meng Zhan couldn’t resist his gossiping heart and squinted suspiciously.
“No.”
Shi Xiaowang denied it immediately, then tried to act casual.
“Who could possibly fight with a lion?”
“Ah… right…”
Meng Zhan drew out the word, then glanced meaningfully at Jian Mo.
What did you do to him, huh?
“Teacher Meng.”
“Hm?”
Before he could get a good look at Jian Mo’s expression, Shi Xiaowang called him back.
“If I want to grow crops, I’ll need a large plot of land. Would planting them at the research institute be possible?”
“Of course. Don’t worry about that—the institute has plenty of space. And your project is top priority right now. Even if we run out of room, I’ll find you some.”
Shi Xiaowang smiled.
“Then I’ll trouble you, Teacher Meng. Also… once we start planting, I’d like to follow the process personally, to make sure the first batch grows healthily. So, if possible… could I stay at the institute? Just something simple would be fine.”
Meng Zhan froze, looking anxiously at Jian Mo.
Bro, seriously? What are you doing? If you don’t coax him now, your spouse’s packing up to leave!
Jian Mo finally gave him a look—a brief one, but the meaning was clear.
Let him do what he wants.
Meng Zhan: …
I shouldn’t have come today…
“Teacher Meng?”
Shi Xiaowang called again when Meng Zhan didn’t respond.
“Ah!”
Meng Zhan snapped out of it, forcing a laugh.
“Alright then, I’ll head back for now. I’ll get a room ready for you at the institute. Once it’s done, I’ll contact you.”
“Okay.”
Shi Xiaowang nodded obediently.
After chatting a bit more, Meng Zhan made a quick exit.
He didn’t like dog food (public displays of affection), but awkward couple quarrels were even worse—innocent bystanders always suffered!
At the door, he met Uncle Ye and exchanged one last helpless glance.
What’s going on?
Uncle Ye looked just as puzzled.
No idea… They were fine earlier…
After Meng Zhan left, Shi Xiaowang went to the greenhouse.
He’d been busy lately and hadn’t streamed much.
Before, to fully record the rose’s growth process, he had kept the live stream running 24/7—even when he wasn’t on camera.
Now that everyone had witnessed the little rose’s entire journey, there wasn’t much reason to stay live all the time.
So when he suddenly went live again, everyone was pleasantly surprised.
Some congratulated him on receiving the lifetime honor, some asked about the rose, some praised his outfit from yesterday, others wanted to know what kind of flower he’d plant next.
All sorts of comments flooded in.
Maybe because the chat was so lively, Shi Xiaowang’s heavy mood lightened a little. He smiled and greeted everyone.
“As for what I’ll plant next, I’m still thinking. Any flowers you guys want to see?”
[Honestly, I don’t even remember what flowers exist anymore…]
[I think we learned about some in schoolbooks, with pictures too, but I’ve forgotten them all.]
[Anything’s fine! We haven’t seen any real flowers anyway. Whatever you grow, we’ll love it!]
“Alright then, I’ll decide later.”
Shi Xiaowang said.
[What’s Little Duke doing today? Not planting new flowers?]
“What, you guys don’t like our little rose anymore? Already looking forward to something new?”
He raised an eyebrow playfully.
[No way! Our little rose is the most beautiful!]
[We’re just curious about new flowers, but our favorite will always be little rose! Who doesn’t love their first baby?]
“Mm.”
Shi Xiaowang nodded, smiling.
“Little Rose says it believes none of you.”
On camera, Shi Xiaowang looked no different—still bright and cheerful, still joking as always.
From the sofa by the window, Jian Mo watched the live stream and sighed.
Logically, he knew there was nothing wrong. Shi Xiaowang was a soft-hearted, sentimental person. Of course he’d feel sad about leaving. He needed space and time to process his emotions.
But for some reason, Jian Mo felt unusually restless.
He was upset that Shi Xiaowang was unhappy—and frustrated by his own sense of loss.
He wanted to go over and say, Don’t leave. Just stay here.
But he knew he shouldn’t interfere with Shi Xiaowang’s choices.
[What’s going on with you and Little Duke? Should I even bother getting a room ready for him or not? You two are making this really hard for me. Explain yourself so I can decide what to do!]
Meng Zhan’s message popped up suddenly.
Jian Mo hesitated, then decided to tell the truth.
[I asked when he planned to return to the Duke’s estate. Maybe that made him upset.]
Meng Zhan stared at the screen for a long time, frowning so hard his features almost twisted together.
[You want him to leave? Why??]
That line made Jian Mo instinctively frown.
[Of course not. I never wanted that. I just thought maybe he’d want some independence. After all, when he first came to me, it was out of desperation.]
Seeing that reply, Meng Zhan went from dumbfounded to amused.
[And what did Little Duke say?]
[He said he’d think about it.]
After watching yesterday’s award ceremony live stream, even a fool could tell something was going on between these two—yet somehow, they still hadn’t figured it out themselves.
They both wanted the best for each other. They both liked each other. But that was as far as it went.
[Alright, got it. I’ll prepare the room for him. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure he’s comfortable.]
But this kind of thing—better not say too much about it.
Meng Zhan replied in high spirits.
Jian Mo read the message, feeling inexplicably dejected, but still politely replied:
[Alright. Thanks.]
He even thanked me, Meng Zhan thought, grinning wider.
There was nothing more entertaining than watching a friend be confused by love.
Since he wasn’t feeling great, Shi Xiaowang didn’t stream for long. After a quick goodbye to everyone, he turned it off.
He sat quietly for a while, staring at the little rose, when a new message came in from Meng Zhan:
[Your room’s ready. Let me know anytime you want to move in, and I’ll have someone pick you up.]
[Got it. Thank you, Teacher Meng.]
[Not at all, not at all. My pleasure.]
Shi Xiaowang stayed in the flower house a bit longer, then stood up to go back inside.
He needed to pack.
As soon as he stepped through the door, his eyes met the lion’s.
Jian Da Meow seemed to have been waiting for him there—but when he saw him, he hesitated, ears drooping slightly, looking pitiful.
They stared at each other for a long while before Shi Xiaowang sighed softly, smiled helplessly, and reached out to pat the lion’s head.
“Sorry. I shouldn’t have taken my mood out on you. I need to pack up now, so I can’t play with you.”
Jian Mo watched his back as he went upstairs and suddenly realized something—
Shi Xiaowang wasn’t just sad.
He was angry.
In his room, Shi Xiaowang looked around, unsure what to pack. After a moment of hesitation, he sent Jian Mo a message:
[Teacher Meng found me a room at the research institute. I’ll be moving there soon, so you won’t need to look after the Duke’s estate for now.]
Reading the message, the lion turned toward his room and ran upstairs.
He had thought Shi Xiaowang’s melancholy was just temporary, that he’d be fine after some time. But that was only his assumption.
He needed to understand what Shi Xiaowang was really feeling.
Shi Xiaowang had been down the whole day. Jian Mo didn’t want that to continue.
Even if he really had to leave, it shouldn’t be in anger.
Inside the room, Shi Xiaowang sat on the carpet, leaning against the sofa, staring blankly at the small wooden box of seeds in his arms.
He felt lost.
The grandeur of the investiture ceremony, the Federation’s love and admiration for him—all of it, in truth, belonged to the Duke, not to him. He was only pretending to be that person.
Here, he was like a drifting duckweed—never truly grounded.
At the Marshal’s mansion, Uncle Ye, Jian Da Meow, and Jian Mo had all become like pieces of driftwood, forming a temporary harbor that made him feel safe, even at home.
He had already come to think of this place as home… but suddenly it felt like waking from a dream, realizing he was still just a guest.
When the lion finally stepped in front of him, Shi Xiaowang snapped out of his daze.
Seeing the concern in those eyes, Shi Xiaowang couldn’t hold back anymore.
With reddened eyes, he threw his arms around the lion and choked out,
“Da Meow… I’m going to be alone again. Your master doesn’t want me anymore. I won’t have a home anymore…”
The lion froze completely in his embrace.
