The commoners gathered, all wanting to know if Wu Tian would accept the little girl as his disciple.
"Please," the girl’s parents begged, forsaking their royal dignity to kowtow before Wu Tian. "Take our daughter."
Such a scene was truly difficult to refuse, but Wu Tian remained indifferent. He suddenly turned to Rui’er. "You’re only eight, but what a performance. Truly a fine performance!"
Rui’er, however, looked completely clueless. "Big Brother, what are you talking about? I don’t understand."
Wu Tian’s tone grew frigid. "Do you really think your act works on me?"
His voice was so chilling it made one’s blood run cold. Upon hearing his words, Rui’er couldn’t help but tremble before immediately bursting into tears.
Seeing their only remaining daughter cry, her parents kowtowed with even greater fervor, their foreheads striking the ground hard.
"Mr. Wu Tian, I hope you don’t misunderstand."
"Yes, we’re her parents! We saw that she had lost all appetite, so we decided to bring her to you, hoping you would take her as your disciple."
The couple spoke over each other, each desperate to defend their daughter, Rui’er.
"What exactly are you pretending at?" Wu Tian said nothing, but the little one in his arms leaped down. She strode up to Rui’er and slapped her across the face.
SLAP!
With the resounding crack, Rui’er’s cheek swelled up, red and bruised. She immediately began to wail again.
Ordinarily, the bystanders would have sided with Rui’er and condemned Wu Tian for this. But after the incident with the Zhang family, the people near the Royal Palace had learned an important lesson: not to let themselves be used.
The crowd’s unusual reaction alarmed Rui’er. She had been certain they would stand by her no matter what, but now she realized something was wrong.
"Do you have any idea that you’re digging your own grave?" the little one stared coldly at Rui’er, her wide eyes glittering with disdain. There’s only room for one special kid around here, and that’s me. That’s more than enough. How can you be such a good actress?
Rui’er continued to stare blankly at the little one. "Little sister, I don’t know what you’re talking about. I don’t understand."
"Still pretending? Fine, don’t blame me for what happens next," the little one sneered. My dad’s a grown-up, so of course he wouldn’t lower himself to argue with an eight-year-old girl. But I’m completely different. A four-year-old bullying an eight-year-old isn’t shameful; in fact, it’s something to be proud of.
Immediately, the little one slapped her again. "Still faking it? I’ll teach you to fake it! I’ll beat you until you can’t pretend anymore!"
"AH!"
"AH!"
One slap landed after another until Rui’er’s face swelled up like a pig’s head. Still, she cried out, "I... I really don’t know what you’re talking about!"
She sobbed as she spoke, creating the perfect image of a poor, bullied lamb, with the little one as a cruel devil. The commoners watching the scene were stunned. The little one’s ferocity made them question reality. Can a child really be that fierce? The other children in the crowd were so terrified they lost control of their bowels.
"It seems you plan to keep this up. How shameless," the little one said in a cold voice, looking at Rui’er’s act. "Back in my hometown, we’d call a girl like you a two-faced bitch."
Though small, the little one projected an immense authority. She stared directly at Rui’er, causing the older girl to freeze, unsure of what to say.
Just then, Rui’er’s father, the king, and her mother, the queen, came to their senses. They rushed over and cradled Rui’er protectively in their arms. With tears of righteous indignation, her father shouted, "Why did you hit our daughter? She’s all we have left! She’s kind and gentle, so why would you attack her? You owe us an explanation!"
Rui’er’s father demanded an explanation, expecting Wu Tian and the little one to give his daughter justice. If you don’t want to take a disciple, fine! But was there any need to accuse my daughter of faking it? Was there any need to strike her?
Wu Tian gave them an indifferent glance. "You think your daughter is kind? You’re wrong. Everything you believe is wrong."
"Wrong?" Rui’er’s father and mother were puzzled. "What exactly is wrong?"
"Father, Mother, I don’t want to be a disciple anymore! Let’s just leave this place quickly." A flicker of panic crossed Rui’er’s eyes. She was afraid her true nature would be exposed, especially in front of her parents.
"Rui’er, we can’t leave! I intend to hear this Wu Tian explain every last detail," her father declared, his trust in her absolute. He was determined to confront Wu Tian to the bitter end.
Rui’er’s mother nodded in agreement. "Yes, I also want to hear what he has to say."
"Well..." Rui’er lowered her head, her heart pounding. She had no idea how much Wu Tian knew.
Wu Tian nodded and said bluntly, "Your eldest son was not killed by your second son."
"What?" Her parents were stunned. The king stammered, "How can that be? Our second son committed suicide out of guilt."
Wu Tian shook his head. "Guilt? He was murdered, too. The person who killed your second son is the same one who killed your eldest. The murderer is your daughter."
Upon hearing these words, Rui’er’s parents swayed in shock, their faces filled with horror. They turned to look at Rui’er in utter disbelief. How could this be? How could our sweet Rui’er have killed her eldest brother and then caused the death of her second?
"Believe it or not," Wu Tian said casually. Without another glance at anyone, he took the little one and walked away. He hoped Rui’er wouldn’t bother him again. It was so annoying.
After Wu Tian left, the king finally let out a breath and fixed his gaze on his daughter. "Tell me. What is all of this about?"
"I... I was framed!" At this point, Rui’er could only deny everything, resorting to her innate talent for creating a scene with tears and threats.
「Inside the Xiuyuan Royal Palace」
Wu Tian carried the little one back to his loft. Outside, he saw a familiar face: Yang Ziwei.
Since the little one was now president of the Array Master Guild’s branch and Yang Ziwei was vice president, he normally wouldn’t come here. Wu Tian walked up the stairs, still holding the child.
"You don’t show up for no reason. So, what’s happened this time?"
Yang Ziwei, who had been hesitating, immediately nodded with a look of relief now that Wu Tian had brought it up. He gave a wry smile. "That rival of mine... ever since he found out the president of the guild branch I founded is a child, he’s started targeting me again."
The little one looked displeased. What’s wrong with me being the president?
"Spit it out, old man," she said. "How is your rival planning to target me this time?"