Father

Under the cover of night, Kang De and Nixiyasi stood watching from afar.

Gazing at that rare moment of warmth.

The husband was going to work the night shift, and the wife took their three children to see him off. It was both a farewell and a family walk together. The five of them shared delicious ice cream, strolling slowly, surrounded by the sweetness of the food and the peaceful tranquility, with smiles on everyone's faces.

Not long ago, this family had nothing to do with "walks," "sweetness," or "leisure."

As the breadwinner, the husband had to work at the docks for at least fourteen hours a day, doing heavy physical labor, sometimes even longer. He unloaded and moved cargo in the rough, dirty, and smelly docks, enduring the foreman's insults, beatings, and orders, earning meager wages—wages earned with countless drops of sweat and toil, which were not enough to feed the family.

Because he has three children to raise.

His wife had to take on a sewing and mending business to supplement the family income, and sometimes she also had to help out at a grocery store. His eldest son was also working as a maid. In another year or two, when he grew up, he would also have to work at the docks like his father. The future seemed predictable, just like the past twenty or thirty years.

Eternal lifelessness, eternal darkness, eternal toil and stagnation.

They struggled to make a living, barely managing to survive. Any misfortune could instantly destroy this impoverished family. Plagues, wars, natural disasters—the malice from the world was like the most terrifying demons, capable of destroying the family's daily toil with a mere flick of their claws.

Sometimes, this man would think.

For example, after putting heavy cargo into the warehouse, he rubbed his aching back, stepped through the dirty water on the ground, walked out of the stuffy cargo hold, and stared blankly at the distant waves. That day-to-day scene was destined from the moment he followed his father to this dock, surrounded by profanities, curses, and the stench of the sea.

Just like his life.

He would wonder if something was wrong with the world.

He felt as if his life was destined for hard labor, hunger, and fear. He wanted to know why, he didn't even know the meaning of life, he couldn't understand why his life was like this, he just felt that his life shouldn't be like this.

But this was merely an instinctive surprise and hesitation.

He was illiterate, he was slow-witted, and his understanding of the world was limited to the neighborhood he lived in and the docks where he was staying. He couldn't even clearly describe his current situation and confusion, nor could he say what his life should be like. He was like an ox, toiling away numbly and painfully as it plowed the fields with the lash of the whip, unable to express the pain, doubts, and anxieties he felt.

Barring unforeseen circumstances, he will spend the rest of his life in this indescribable pain and confusion.

His sons and grandsons will follow in his footsteps.

But an accident still happened.

A Cathayan named Kang De appeared in the city and answered his questions.

Tell him that his life shouldn't be like that, but like this—working eight hours a day, earning a living through hard work. That living pays out of a few silver coins that can only buy him a meager amount of salted fish and black bread to barely fill his stomach, but work points. These work points can be exchanged for food, desserts, instant noodles, candy, and other luxuries that he never dared to dream of at the Friendship Store and Supply Cooperative. If all the work points he earns each day are exchanged for bread, it can feed his family of five for three days straight until they are stuffed.

They were no longer forced to do hard labor, but were called workers, with their own identities, badges, and ranks. As long as they worked hard and performed well, they could be promoted and receive more treatment and benefits. They could attend school for free to learn to read and write and to make a living. There were priests and healers to provide free medical care. No beatings or scoldings were allowed—the wicked foreman was hanged in front of him.

This is the life he deserves.

His Highness Kang De made this life a reality and gave it to him.

The changes that occurred in just over ten days felt as blissful as a dream.

The man stood under the streetlight, gazing at his wife and children. His wife wore a long-lost gentle smile, and the children no longer complained of hunger; their lips even bore traces of ice cream.

He saw his youngest son raise his head, look at his father, and speak in a childish voice.

"Dad," the little child said, "I want to be a worker when I grow up!"

If it had been a month earlier, hearing his son say such things would have only made the man feel more and more miserable. Selling his labor at the docks, earning a meager wage amidst the stench, would only have made him, as a father, feel miserable and sorrowful... this painful cycle.

But now, he smiled and stroked the child's head, "Good."

Grow up quickly.

Hurry up... and truly live.

The innocent child squinted his eyes and smiled shyly.

In his memory, his father was a silent and terrifying figure. He would disappear after waking up every morning, and when he returned at night, he would fall asleep immediately after dinner. His rough, stone-like face and deafening snoring were almost all he remembered about his father. His only feeling towards his father was fear.

But now everything is different.

This little child had never been to school, and the slum lacked any moral education. He couldn't understand that his father worked day and night to support them, nor did he know what "gratitude" was. No one taught him, and his father never complained to them. He had no real understanding of any of this.

Until suddenly there was more food at home, until a smile appeared on his father's face, until he received delicious treats from his father's rough, large hands—milk candy, chocolate, jelly, sausages...

It wasn't until he described the taste of those delicacies to his playmates, and until he told them that his father worked at the docks, that he began to truly grasp the image of his father for the first time, seeing the envious looks in his playmates' eyes.

Until the ice cream left a lingering fragrance on his lips and teeth that night, until he saw that tall auntie smiling broadly and calling his father "Comrade Worker," at that moment, "Comrade Worker" was given a real form.

This sacred title is forever linked to the cool sweetness of ice cream, and it will permeate this child's future life, becoming a part of his soul and an eternal light.

"I'll leave it here."

The man said to his wife, "Go straight down this road, turn right at the second intersection, and you'll be back in our neighborhood. Don't be afraid, it's safe at night."

The woman responded gently, smoothed the wrinkles in her husband's clothes, and said goodbye.

The man gently kissed his wife's cheek, then kissed his two younger sons, hugged his eldest son, and patted him on the shoulder. "Protect Mom and your little brother."

"I will, Father." The son, only a head shorter than his father, was in his prime, with a sparse beard, but his mindset was much more mature than his peers. "Soon, I will be working with you."

"No, my son, you cannot be a worker."

His father's response was a refusal and denial. The boy stared at his father in surprise, while his father's hand on his shoulder was steady and strong, just like his gaze, revealing an unwavering determination.

He said, "You can stay at home and don't need to go out to work. I can earn the food myself. Make sure you have enough to eat every day. I'll ask Trick to come and teach you. That's all you have to do."

"--Until His Highness Kang De summons and expands his army, I need my eldest son, who is well-fed, strong, and bravely trained by retired veterans, to step forward immediately to serve and be loyal to His Highness. That's the only thing I need you to do, do you understand?"

The boy hesitated for a moment, then shouted without hesitation, "Understood, I will, Father!"

The man patted his son's shoulder with satisfaction. This boy, who had just grown up, probably didn't understand... There would never be another nobleman like Prince Kang De. Whether it was to repay the prince's kindness and gifts or to protect their current life, he had to send his son into the army.

If that day ever comes, he will not hesitate to go to the battlefield.

Because there will never be another nobleman like His Highness Kang De.

He watched his wife and children walk down a side road, brightly lit and illuminating their way home. The man did not go to the dock, but stood there, watching them go.

Then he turned his head.

Looking at the two cloaked figures who had been following the family of five, he neither went forward to question them nor called out to them from afar. Instead, he remained silent and stood under the lamp.

Like a silent mountain.

Kang De let out a soft breath. "Let's go."

The family of five was chatting at a normal volume, but Kang De and Nixiyasi, being superhumans with amazing hearing, heard the entire conversation from beginning to end.

Seeing that Nixiyasi beside him was not moving, he casually grabbed her arm and pulled her around.

The admiral's daughter then realized something, and her tone became somewhat complicated. "Aren't you going to talk to him for a bit?"

Kang De asked casually, "What are you talking about?"

Reveal your identity, engage in friendly conversation, offer words of comfort and concern, and then watch as the other person becomes tearfully grateful, at a loss for words, and practically begs for mercy...

This behavior is just as disgusting as that of Kangxi.

Nixiyasi said softly, "After all, you gave them the life they have now, they..."

"No," Kang De shook his head, "This wasn't a reward from me; they earned it with their own hands."

The admiral's daughter was stunned for a while before whispering, "Mr. Kang De, this is strange."

"Is that so?" Kang De said casually. "I think the world is strange... everything is strange."

Nixiyasi was momentarily dazed, staring at Kang De's retreating figure, speechless.

Kang De glanced one last time at the mother and children who had disappeared down another fork in the road, then pressed the communicator on his ear. "Horus."

"Father, is something the matter?"

Kang De raised an eyebrow and said, "Boom?"

He seemed to hear some noise that did not belong to Horus.

"There are some technical issues here—anything else?"

"There's something I need you to implement: increase street-level projects and deploy drone patrols."

"Sure, but why? If it's for security and counterintelligence work, the security system comprised of cameras, big data, and rapid response riot police has already been initially established. There's no need for drone patrols; the surveillance system scans the city 24/7, and security forces will arrive within a minute of any problem..."

Hearing the somewhat hurried explanation from the Iron Son, Kang De smiled.

"I know, but this isn't a technical problem." Kang De glanced one last time at the departing man. "The flashes of drones hurtling through the night give peace of mind to those walking at night."

"Is that so? I understand. Let's begin the deployment of the bomb..."

So what's wrong on your end?

"It's nothing, I won't disturb Father's pursuit of women any longer, goodbye."

The communication was deliberately cut off, which puzzled Kang De, but he shrugged anyway.

Well, my son's grown up now, he deserves some privacy.

The two strolled along another path to the construction area of the dock.

The once-abandoned dock area was brightly lit, with high-powered lights illuminating the construction area as if it were daytime. The night shift workers were clearing away the ruins and debris, reinforcing and repairing the site. The scene was bustling with activity, and everyone was working with great enthusiasm. The air was filled with the aroma of some kind of food, and laughter could be heard everywhere.

The streetlights illuminated the calm sea, giving it a halo. In the distance, numerous merchant ships bobbed and sank in the harbor; Nixiyasi could clearly see that most of them were merchant vessels.

There seemed to be a few people standing on the boat, peering in this direction.

After a moment's thought, she understood the reason.

With the Broken Isles destroyed and the largest trading hub on the west coast vanished, trade continued, business had to go on, ships needed supplies, and their cargoes needed buyers. So the captains turned around and headed for Distant Harbor. With the Broken Isles gone, this city was the safest place in the western sea.

And wealth will surely flow to Distant Harbor.

Nixiyasi glanced at Kang De again, a subtle emotion stirring within her.

In the Battle of the Broken Isles, the Cathayan were undoubtedly the biggest winners.

The relocation of the western sea's trade hub back to the Distant Harbor signifies that this city is about to replace the Broken Isles as a golden city flowing with gold coins. During the Great Evacuation, he took in a large number of elite talents from the Broken Isles and saved ordinary civilians as well, earning him a sacred reputation for mercy and compassion.

As for the mobilization capacity, military strength, Forbidden Spell, and alchemical weaponry displayed throughout the operation, they were a manifestation and deterrent of military power, with countless benefits, making it a grand slam victory.

According to the conspiracy theory that "whoever benefits the most is the most suspicious," the claim that "those deep-sea monsters were released by Kang De and this is his conspiracy" made by some members of Council is not entirely unreasonable. Even Nixiyasi herself sometimes had doubts about it.

They questioned whether everything that had happened before was a hoax orchestrated by Kang De himself.

But at this moment, she heard the cheerful songs from the construction area, and even saw the man from before running briskly and even excitedly toward the construction site, greeting his coworkers loudly.

She thought about what she had seen and heard that evening, about all the legends about Kang De, and about the actions that the Council members had condemned as "hypocritical," "false," and "scheming." Everything seemed to have an answer.

It's all true.

Intervening in the Goth-Moon War was solely to protect the people, not to pursue Princess Tina.

The massacre of the nobles in the Distant Harbor was because they were hoarding food and trying to starve the common people, not because they wanted to occupy the Distant Harbor or seize Goth's power.

He refused to rescue the Azure Fleet because he felt the Council's navy was no more noble than the refugees of the Broken Isles, not because he wanted to weaken the Council's naval power.

Throughout the entire process, this person, who inspired fear, criticism, condemnation, and hostility from politicians and nobles across the continent, had no ulterior motives or selfish intentions.

She blurted out instinctively, "I believe you."

Kang De asked in confusion, "What?"

"... Oh, it's nothing, it's nothing."

Nixiyasi hastily changed the subject, but the turmoil within her was difficult to quell. At that moment, she suddenly felt an immense curiosity about Kang De —so powerful, so compassionate, wielding the most lethal destructive force on this planet, yet as merciful and kind as a god—why did such a person exist in the world?

In what environment did he grow up and develop his current beliefs and character?

She looked at the man on the construction site, the man who worked hard to raise his children, and she could feel his silent yet profound love for his family.

She then looked at Kang De. Although this man knew nothing about dealing with women, he had created two children, A Fu and Horus, with his unparalleled alchemical skills. He had obviously never raised children, but judging from A Fu's words and the conversation just now, he maintained a kind of interesting interaction and relationship with his children, rather than a father's authority, control, and command over them.

That kind of man...

"Kang De Highness..." she said softly, "What kind of person was your father?"

What kind of father could raise such a son?

The question had barely left her lips when she regretted it. Firstly, it was too abrupt; secondly, she had studied Kang De's life, Cathayan Aurora on the mainland might...

She quickly said, "If this question is rude, please just pretend I didn't..."

The next moment, she froze.

Because Kang De is laughing.

The kind of laugh that comes out immediately upon hearing the question.

It was as if he had thought of something very, very happy, so much so that he instinctively smiled, as if he had talked about a very interesting friend.

Such a smile deeply moved Nixiyasi.

She didn't know the answer, yet she seemed to read it in Kang De's smile. She didn't know about the relationship between Kang De and his father, but she did know one thing.

That was the fatherly love she longed for, could never have, and would never have.

She stood there like a statue, warm tears silently streaming down her pretty cheeks.

"Hold!"

Through her tear-blurred vision, she saw Kang De's expression change, his face filled with bewilderment and panic.

"What's wrong? Why are you crying? What did I do wrong? Did I say something wrong? Did I make you angry? Do you want to go back? Did I keep you too long? Oh, do you want to know about my dad? I'll tell you, I'll tell you, please stop crying, okay?"

Nixiyasi stopped crying and started laughing.

Or rather, they were both crying and laughing.

A brave, strong, and spirited Flower of the Navy weeps under the moonlight in Distant Harbor.

Like a delicate little girl.

"N-nothing... it's nothing."

She laughed and cried at the same time, "I'm just a little envious, a little envious..."

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PS1: Damn, why did it suddenly change to updating at night again?