ASFTB 34: Kindergarten of Sky City

When these words left the man’s mouth, Jian Chengxi almost wanted to find a hole to crawl into right then and there!

Li Lingfeng stepped inside, seemingly leisurely glancing around at the decor of the room before his gaze finally landed on Jian Chengxi, wearing a thoughtful expression.

Jian Chengxi quickly said, “This really has nothing to do with me, I…”

Feeling a bit anxious, he tried to walk over to explain, but because it was his first time in this room, he didn’t notice the position of the bed. With one step, he unexpectedly tripped on the step at the foot of the bed—

“Ah!”

His entire body lost its balance.

Jian Chengxi’s leg bent, then he lurched forward, a sharp pain shooting from his ankle where he had collided, and he was about to fall to the ground!

At that moment, a large pair of hands reached out, gripping him firmly and preventing the tragedy of him hitting the floor. Due to the change in angle and force, Jian Chengxi was instead pulled onto the bed. The soft mattress had a high rebound, and he let out a light breath, his eyes widening as he stared at the man who was supporting himself in front of him.

Li Lingfeng’s hand was still resting on his wrist.

It was an incredibly slender wrist, with skin as smooth as polished jade, as beautiful as the finest silk.

On the other hand, his own palm was rough and calloused, weathered by years of battles and the harsh winds and sands, a deep golden brown that formed a stark contrast.

Jian Chengxi tried to pull his hand back. “Loosen up…”

For some inexplicable reason—

Li Lingfeng’s gaze darkened.

A surge of violence rose within him, as if he wanted to forcefully take control, to destroy, to leave his own marks on this beautiful thing.

Unconsciously, he tightened his grip, and darkness seeped into his heart.

Jian Chengxi’s eyes were red-rimmed, his voice trembling with a hint of tears. “Don’t…!”

It was a soft, fragile sound, like that of a helpless little kitten.

Li Lingfeng suddenly snapped back to his senses, looking at his young wife. His voice was low and hoarse as he spoke, “Why are you crying?”

So, you don’t want me to touch you. 

An endless coldness spread wildly in his eyes.

Jian Chengxi’s ankle throbbed where it had hit the bedpost, the pain burning sharply. Tears like dewdrops slid from the corner of his eyes and onto the bed. He muttered softly, “I hurt my foot, my leg hurts.”

Li Lingfeng: “What?”

Jian Chengxi, sniffling, repeated, “My leg… my leg hit something.”

“…”

Li Lingfeng slowly got up. On the battlefield, even if his own leg were broken, he wouldn’t even frown. He had originally thought that bumping his leg wouldn’t be a big deal, but when he looked down, he was shocked to see that Jian Chengxi’s calf was severely swollen and red, a large area of inflammation on his fair skin, which was alarming to the eye!

The general’s brows furrowed tightly, “How did it get this bad?”

Jian Chengxi pulled the blanket over his face, choking on his words as he said, “I don’t know. It’s been like this for a long time.”

Li Lingfeng reached out and grasped his ankle.

Jian Chengxi cried out in distress, “No, no, no… Be gentle, it hurts!”

Li Lingfeng stood up, walked over to a nearby cabinet, and took out some anti-swelling ointment. He then squatted down beside him and said, “Bear with it.”

Jian Chengxi trembled all over, weakly saying, “Can we not apply the medicine?”

Li Lingfeng’s face remained expressionless, “No.”

Jian Chengxi, with red eyes, said, “But it hurts too much. When I was injured before and didn’t apply any medicine, it got better after a while.”

Li Lingfeng adopted the imposing tone of a general speaking to his soldiers, “Only weak people are afraid of pain. Are you that kind of person?”

Jian Chengxi, unable to stop his tears due to the pain, immediately nodded frantically, his voice choked with sobs, “I am, I am, I really am.”

Li Lingfeng: “…”

When Li Suisui and Li Chen finished tidying up the room and went to find their Daddy, they heard the sounds of anguished cries coming from the master bedroom.

“Pain, pain, pain, be gentler, be gentler.”

“Endure it.”

Jian Chengxi’s voice, filled with sobs, came through, “You’re pressing so hard, how can I possibly endure it?”

“Don’t avoid it, just one last time.”

“Wuwuwu, I don’t believe you unless you swear.”

“… I swear.”

For once, the usually cold and emotionless Father surprisingly showed a rare hint of helplessness in his tone.

Li Suisui and Li Chen exchanged a glance.

It’s over.

Daddy is making a new little brother or sister with Father.

Later that evening, Jian Chengxi lay down for a while and then bounced back to his usual lively self. Not to mention, the doctor’s medicine really worked—although it had hurt when Li Lingfeng was massaging him, now the swelling had completely gone down, he was fully healed.

Jian Chengxi, full of energy, went to take a shower.

When he returned to the children’s room, he noticed the two kids looking at him with strange expressions.

Jian Chengxi, feeling suspicious, asked, “What are you two staring at your Daddy for?”

Li Suisui sat on the edge of the bed, her small, delicate figure looking especially cute. She lifted her little face and said, “Daddy, are Suisui and Gege going to have a new little brother or sister?”

Jian Chengxi’s eyes widened as he quickly walked over. “Who told you that?”

Li Suisui and Li Chen exchanged a glance.

The little girl’s voice was crisp as she said, “Suisui heard the sound outside the door.”

!!!!!

Are kids nowadays this mature?

Jian Chengxi quickly said, “No, that’s not it. Your Father was just applying medicine to me because I hurt my leg.”

Li Chen and Li Suisui both looked over. After Jian Chengxi put in a lot of effort to explain, the two kids seemed to reluctantly believe his story, nodding in agreement to clear up the misunderstanding.

Jian Chengxi sat down beside them, casually joking, “Do you want a little brother or sister?”

Li Suisui nodded eagerly, “I do.”

Jian Chengxi asked in confusion, “Why?”

“If I have a little sister, then Suisui can be a queen with her. We can make sunglasses together, and we’ll definitely achieve our dreams faster and become even more amazing,” Li Suisui said with a smile. “Then we’ll both be powerful women!”

Li Chen also nodded lightly, “Mm, that’s right.”

Jian Chengxi: “…”

He imagined what it would be like if they had twins.

Heh.

Having more would be trouble.

The thought of four little devils causing chaos together made his scalp tingle with fear!

In the evening, after finally settling the two kids, Jian Chengxi yawned as he returned to the bedroom.

Li Lingfeng was reviewing military documents. When he saw Jian Chengxi come back, he whispered, “Are they both asleep?”

Jian Chengxi nodded, “They’re both asleep. Have you washed up yet?”

The lights in the room returned to normal and the doctor’s things were all put away.

Li Lingfeng spoke up, “You rest. I’ll go to the study to continue handling things.”

Although it was Jian Chengxi’s first time sleeping with him and he felt nervous, seeing Li Lingfeng about to leave, he couldn’t help but speak up, “You… you haven’t slept for two days, aren’t you going to rest?”

Li Lingfeng stood up. The tall and handsome man didn’t quite blend with the warm tones of the room. His voice was cold as he said, “I’m used to it.”

Jian Chengxi’s eyes were full of concern. “Being used to it doesn’t make it okay. How long has it been since you last slept? You can’t keep pushing yourself like this. What will you do if you wear yourself out?”

His little wife started his soft, worried rambling.

“Work will never be finished but health is the foundation of everything,” Jian Chengxi said, looking like an old cadre. “You can’t just rely on being young to overwork yourself. When you get older, you’ll regret it.”

Li Lingfeng replied in a deep voice, “I won’t have the chance to grow old.”

Jian Chengxi snorted lightly, “General, are you that narcissistic?”

“I won’t live to see that day.”

The man’s cold voice fell and the room suddenly sank into a heavy silence.

Li Lingfeng was well aware that with such intense mental and physical strain, there might come a day in the future when his mental strength could break down completely.

How could he live to grow old?

So, he wouldn’t rest and wouldn’t sleep. He had to make sure that his wife and children were taken care of before he left.

Jian Chengxi’s angry voice rang out, “Don’t talk nonsense!”

Li Lingfeng paused for a moment and looked at him.

After Jian Chengxi had calmed down from his own anger, he met Li Lingfeng’s cold gaze and quickly came to his senses. He couldn’t understand why he had gotten so upset for a moment, as if it was a subconscious reaction from deep within his soul.

This is bad.

He really had forgotten the pain once the wound healed—how did he end up raising his voice at this living hell of a man?

Jian Chengxi swallowed hard and said quietly, “What I meant was, who curses themselves like that? General, don’t curse yourself. For the sake of our children, you need to live well. Both kids are very well-behaved, and they’ll definitely have great futures. If something happens to you, imagine how heartbroken the kids would be.”

Li Lingfeng looked at his pale and delicate face like white jade under the soft light.

The man spoke in a low voice, “If I die, what will you do?”

Jian Chengxi was stunned for a moment, then looked up at him, hesitating slightly before replying, “I… I will take good care of the kids by myself, raise them to adulthood?”

Li Lingfeng slowly continued, “As far as I know, welfare benefits can’t be reapplied. If I die now, you probably won’t be able to apply for them again.”

A sorrowful expression appeared on Jian Chengxi’s pale face, and he excitedly sat up. “Without you, General, this family won’t be complete. How can I handle it alone? The kids won’t be happy without their Father. You should go wash up quickly and get some rest early—sleeping well is important for your health. You absolutely can’t have any accidents!”

Li Lingfeng: “…”

Later that night—

When Li Lingfeng came out of the bathroom, he found Jian Chengxi already fast asleep, clutching the blanket.

He walked over to the bedside and saw that Jian Chengxi’s sleeping posture was a bit off. His long, fair legs were exposed, and he was lying in a sprawling position, just a tiny bit away from rolling off the bed. If he fell, the delicate little thing would definitely cry again.

Li Lingfeng let out a helpless sigh.

Li Lingfeng gently moved him toward the center of the bed and covered him with the blanket.

Jian Chengxi frowned unhappily, muttering something before turning over and falling back asleep.

Li Lingfeng lay down by the edge of the bed, watching his little wife. His thoughts slowly drifted back to the conversation he and Jian Chengxi had just had—

It wasn’t that he couldn’t sleep.

It was that he simply couldn’t.

Since childhood, his spiritual power had been far beyond that of ordinary beastmen. The intense concentration of energy ravaged his nerves, and because of that, the only way he could cope was through endless battles, through sheer force, through ever more brutal means of release.

On the Zerg’s territory, ordinary people would have lost their minds long ago. It was only because of his extraordinary mental power that he was able to lead the army and carve a bloody path out.

The moment he closed his eyes, it was endless torment.

He simply couldn’t sleep normally, as if it were a curse.

He had once thought his whole life would be spent in darkness. The wife who had betrayed him had changed so much, becoming gentle and understanding. Their child was healthy and adorable. Just when he had given up hope, Heaven played a grand joke on him and handed him back a complete family.

As he was thinking this, Jian Chengxi’s fair little face looked peaceful and tender in sleep, even murmuring as if speaking in a dream.

Li Ling leaned closer and heard—

“Welfare baby, welfare baby…”

“Don’t go…”

Li Lingfeng: “…”

Obedient? Yeah right.

Forget it, forget it

Even if the ending could not be changed, these happy and joyful days were already a gift from heaven.

He would live well.

Even if his days were numbered.

The next day.

Jian Chengxi woke up in shock from his sleep.

He had another dream, and this time, it was still a dream from another world. He dreamt that his child was being bullied, and he saw many other things. Just as he tried to recall them, he realized that he couldn’t move.

Jian Chengxi slowly opened his eyes.

Bright sunlight streamed in from outside, and the room became very warm.

And his whole body was curled up in a warm and broad chest. He could still hear the strong heartbeat in his ears. He quietly lifted his head and found himself staring at Li Lingfeng’s smooth jawline, with the air around his nose filled with the man’s masculine scent.

!!!

How had he ended up sleeping in someone else’s arms!!

Jian Chengxi’s whole body tensed up. He wanted to quietly shift away, but his strength was too weak—he couldn’t break free of the man’s arms at all.

Slowly…

Bit by bit, he moved…

Jian Chengxi carefully inched away, but just as he was about to succeed, a strong hand tightened around him again.

Li Lingfeng’s deep voice sounded above his head, “Awake?”

Jian Chengxi’s eyes widened. He quickly nodded, then stammered, “I—I… we, you… how did I end up sleeping in your arms?”

What he had really wanted to say was whether Li Lingfeng had taken advantage of him while he was asleep.

Who would have thought the man would reply so calmly, “During the night you kept tossing and turning restlessly. You nearly rolled off the bed several times. If I hadn’t held on to you, you might have ended up sleeping on the floor.”

Jian Chengxi: “…”

How utterly embarrassing.

So it was his own fault—he should practically be grateful that Li Lingfeng had pulled him into his arms.

But words like thank you for holding me while I slept were something Jian Chengxi simply couldn’t bring himself to say. All he could do was get up and say, “Suisui and Xiao Chen should be awake soon. I’ll go check on them, and prepare breakfast while I’m at it. General, you should get up too.”

Li Lingfeng didn’t expose his embarrassment and only gave a faint nod.

Jian Chengxi fled like the wind and Li Lingfeng’s gaze followed his retreating figure until he disappeared.

The man’s eyes were shadowed and deep.

Slowly sitting up, he glanced at the spot beside him where Jian Chengxi had just been. It still held a trace of warmth. Placing his broad hand there, he could almost feel his wife’s presence lingering.

In the earlier years of his life, he had almost never been able to sleep soundly, at peace.

No matter how much medicine he took or how many doctors he saw, even the most capable angel military doctors could not cure him.

But just last night—

He experienced the first sleep of his life without the torment of mental power.

His little wife turned out to be his best medicine.

After breakfast.

Li Lingfeng had to leave for the palace to attend to military affairs while Jian Chengxi prepared to take the children to their new school, to get familiar with the kindergarten in Sky City—the place where they would be living from now on.

It was different from the night view of yesterday.

This time it was broad daylight, and they could see the appearance of Sky City even more clearly.

Countless floating islands of every size dotted the skies, with airships weaving among them, lively and bustling.

On each floating island stood towering buildings and people of all kinds coming and going—angels flying through the air, towering giants walking along the roads, and even all sorts of magical beasts. Here, it was both free and flourishing.

Li Suisui stood at the glass window and pointed into the distance. “Daddy, look!”

Jian Chengxi followed his gaze. Their destination, the floating island school, was vast and magnificent.

The driver explained, “This school is the best in the entire imperial capital. Back in the day, both the Emperor and the Princess graduated from here. Many of the children of nobles and ministers also study at Aikeding School, because it has the finest teachers and the most outstanding educational resources in the whole empire. The children who graduate from here all have bright futures. This time, because the General rendered great service, you were granted admission slots.”

Jian Chengxi was overjoyed. “Is that so? That’s wonderful.”

The airship came to a stop at the school’s main gate.

After getting off with Li Chen and Li Suisui, Jian Chengxi finally saw the other students.

This time, they had come to apply for admission slots, not to formally start school yet. The main purpose was to look around the campus. Only upon arriving did they truly experience what a noble school was like.

A dolphin-shaped fountain sprayed water high into the air.

A rainbow stretched across the sky.

The kindergarten students coming and going were dressed in neat, beautiful uniforms, stepping out of luxurious cars. The classrooms were bright and spotless, and the teaching equipment was so advanced that Jian Chengxi had never even seen the like back in the underground city.

The director who received him smiled and said, “Hello, we’ve already reviewed the admission applications for your two children. The financial verification has passed. They can officially start school in about three days. Here is the checklist of things you’ll need to prepare for enrollment.”

Jian Chengxi accepted it. He hadn’t expected that a prestigious school would even have such an enrollment checklist.

He picked up the list and began to read:

Two sets of uniforms – 1,500 coins

Student handbook and textbooks – 600 coins

Two family-grade companion beasts

…

The further down he read, the more outrageous the items became.

Jian Chengxi’s hand trembled slightly as he held the list. Forcing a smile, he asked, “Excuse me, are all of these things what we’re expected to prepare?”

The director smiled and said, “You can pay the fees for the uniforms and handbook at the academic office. As for the companion beasts, you can buy them at the market. The rest should be prepared according to the requirements.”

Jian Chengxi hesitated. “These prices…”

The director replied, “These are only the basics. Tuition and other fees are separate.”

Jian Chengxi cursed inwardly.

In the underground city, a year’s tuition wasn’t even 200 coins, but here in Sky City it was practically daylight robbery.

The director blinked and asked, “Is there some problem?”

Jian Chengxi glanced sideways at the two children sitting on the sofa not far away and sighed inwardly. Education was the one thing he could never skimp on—no matter how hard it was, he could never let his children go without schooling. “No.”

In truth, the director had already seen through Jian Chengxi’s embarrassment.

He knew this family came from the underground city—lowborn, defective.

It was obvious at a glance that they were ignorant.

Normally, when ordinary families came, the school wouldn’t even hand out a checklist. But when Jian Chengxi arrived, he had deliberately given him one, just to watch him make a fool of himself over money.

He hadn’t expected the man to actually endure it.

The director kept his smile as he said, “We also provide a trial-study service. The children can spend half a day in the classroom to get accustomed and follow along with our teaching.”

Jian Chengxi asked, “They can join the class and start learning right now?”

The director nodded and said, “That’s right.”

A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth, tinged with a hint of scorn for the poor and a sense of superiority, “If you feel out of place, you can make adjustments early. After all, the children at our school are all very talented and capable.”

Unlike the defective children you brought this time.

He silently added that thought in his heart.

Jian Chengxi, unaware of it, simply looked over at Li Suisui and Li Chen. Walking up to them, he asked, “Suisui, Xiao Chen, do you want to try out the classes first?”

Both children nodded.

Jian Chengxi then said to the director, “Then let us try.”

The director was secretly delighted. He hadn’t expected them to actually agree. What he hated most was seeing these lowborn people linger where they didn’t belong—if he could make them see the gap and retreat on their own, all the better. “Follow me.”

…

Leaving the director’s office, Jian Chengxi led the two children into the teaching area.

The classrooms here are very spacious and bright, and although the children are young, they all seem well-behaved and sensible. The teacher lecturing at the front also looks quite cultured.

The director waved his hand.

The teacher came out from inside, asking in confusion, “This is?”

The director spoke with a tone full of superiority, “Assign these two children to different kindergarten classes for a trial. They’re from the underground city and haven’t gone to school before.”

The teacher was surprised. “From the underground city?”

Jian Chengxi felt a little uncomfortable, but still spoke politely, “Teacher, our children are transfer students. They’re still very young, only a little over three years old. I’ll trouble you to take care of them.”

The teacher hesitated. “The material we teach here might be different from what’s taught in the underground city. Our lessons can be a bit more advanced. You’ll need to be mentally prepared—if the children can’t keep up, there’s nothing we can do.”

A trace of sadness welled up in Jian Chengxi’s heart, and for a moment he even regretted choosing this school. But since they were already here, he could only try. “Please, let them both try for the morning. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll think of another way myself.”

The teacher could only nod.

When sending the two children inside, Jian Chengxi felt a bit worried. He patted their heads and said, “Listen carefully in class, all right? Get along well with your classmates. If there’s something you don’t understand, just make a note of it—don’t force yourselves…”

Li Chen and Li Suisui, however, seemed far more relaxed than he was.

Both children nodded.

Jian Chengxi sighed as he watched the children go in, his worry impossible to hide.

As time slowly passed, though he knew the class was made up of toddlers, he couldn’t help but fret over the teaching gap in Sky City, worrying that his children might run into difficulties.

When the trial class was nearly over, the director, feeling rather smug, said, “Mr. Jian, you needn’t worry. These things are perfectly normal. Come along with me. Although your children can’t compare with our other students, their progress can still be made up for with diligent effort. Our teachers treat every child equally…”

The two of them walked back to the teaching corridor.

Through the glass, they could only see the teacher’s face, looking utterly dejected.

The director brought the teacher out and said,
“What’s wrong? How was today’s lesson?”

Jian Chengxi immediately asked with concern, “Teacher, how are my children doing? Are they not adjusting well?”

The teacher, however, looked as if they were questioning life itself, and turned to Jian Chengxi, saying, “Were your children really studying in the underground city before, and never attended any other institutions?”

Jian Chengxi asked in confusion, “Yes, that’s right. Why?”

“Your daughter was in our biology class. The teacher was teaching how to use a potion to calm a rabbit with spiritual energy mania. But your daughter—somehow she made her own potion. While the other children were still struggling to catch the rabbits, she just splashed hers once, and ended up knocking all the rabbits out cold with poison!”

Jian Chengxi: “…S-she just wanted to help.”

The teacher’s face had turned pale with frustration.

Jian Chengxi quickly changed the subject and said, “What about Xiao Chen? He’s a quiet child, he should be well-behaved.”

It would’ve been better if he hadn’t mentioned it at all. At those words, the teacher’s expression instantly darkened, “In another class on mechanical theory, the teacher handed each child a model to introduce. While the other kids were still competing to see who could recognize the most parts and the teacher was just praising their cleverness, your son went ahead and disassembled the entire mecha model in front of everyone. Then, he put it back together again!”

“That’s not even the worst part. He even glanced at the class monitor, who hadn’t even managed to open the mecha box, and said, ‘So dumb.’” The teacher spoke with righteous indignation, “As a result, the class monitor burst into tears on the spot, and the other kids who hadn’t finished assembling theirs also started crying. They still haven’t calmed down!!”

Jian Chengxi: “…”