Childhood Sweethearts

If people mistook him for supporting the Second Prince, then even as a powerful Ninth Level Soul Engineer, the master of Mingde Hall, and the dean of Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, he would be in for a massive headache.

In Jing Hongchen's eyes, the merit of backing a future emperor was certainly good, but that only applied to Soul Engineers below the level of Titled Douluo.

For a powerhouse at his level, it could not exactly be called worthless, but it was of little use.

After all, he had already reached the ceiling of what a subject could achieve. Going any higher would mean touching upon the taboos of imperial authority.

Even if a prince promised him something beyond the ordinary before seizing the throne, he would surely go back on his word afterward.

It was not as if Jing Hongchen could overthrow the Old Xu Family's rule and take the throne himself, right?

Setting aside the fact that Jing Hongchen currently had no such ambition, even if he did, he lacked the strength to pull it off.

Therefore, he was extremely unwilling to involve himself in the struggle for the throne. It was not just him—other Ninth Level Soul Engineers were equally unwilling to get involved.

If they got involved, winning brought little benefit, while losing would leave them drowning in trouble.

And even if he were to get involved, he would have to wait until the situation became clear and he could be one hundred percent certain which prince would become emperor before placing his bet.

The returns might be small that way, but it was safe and reliable enough, and he would not offend the new ruler.

The other Ninth Level Soul Engineers basically thought the same way. They sought no merit, only to avoid fault.

Therefore, before the princes decided a victor, Meng'er and Wang Chen absolutely could not have any further contact! That would prevent them from getting dragged into the princes' conflict.

Jing Hongchen thought to himself, "Meng'er, Grandpa is doing this for your own good. If you want to blame someone, blame that old fossil Wang Yan. Once you grow up, you'll understand Grandpa's good intentions."

Just as Jing Hongchen's thoughts were running wild and he was feeling emotional, the butler's voice interrupted him.

"Master, an important letter from Mingde Hall." As he spoke, the butler handed the letter to Jing Hongchen.

Jing Hongchen took the letter and hurriedly read it.

Experiment No. 1's sixth experimental plan has failed... The Core Array still cannot operate...

After reading the letter, Jing Hongchen's expression changed at once. Experiment No. 1 was Mingde Hall's most important project.

Even His Majesty had been asking about the research results. There absolutely could not be any mistakes.

Jing Hongchen was a decisive man. Before leaving, he gave the butler a few instructions: Wang Chen and dogs were forbidden entry, and any attempts by any prince to recruit them in any form were to be rejected outright.

Then, he activated his Flying Soul Tool and flew toward Mingde Hall.

Meng Hongchen's residence.

As Jing Hongchen's granddaughter, her residence could only be described as luxurious. Calling it a house would be less accurate than calling it a palace.

It covered an exceptionally vast area, spanning over a thousand square meters.

Her clothes alone occupied an entire large room, and there was also a huge cultivation room, a room for storing rare metals, and a Soul Tool laboratory...

Beside the palace were a kitchen specifically for preparing meals and quarters for the servants.

The rare metals in just one room were so valuable that even selling a hundred Wang Chens would not be enough to afford them.

Three words: a little rich girl.

The moment Meng Hongchen returned to her room, she stopped crying.

She flopped onto the bed in a huff and rained a flurry of soft punches onto her pillow.

After venting for a while, Meng Hongchen propped up her chin with one hand, and Wang Chen's handsome face inevitably surfaced in her mind.

Meng Hongchen had known Wang Chen for a long time. When they first met, she had only been six years old.

Back then, when Meng Hongchen and Xiao Hongchen awakened their martial souls, both possessed Innate Full Soul Power.

Jing Hongchen had been overjoyed. He immediately hosted a hundred tables of banquet guests to celebrate his grandson and granddaughter's Innate Full Soul Power and their promising futures.

Then, at that banquet, Meng Hongchen met Wang Chen, who had come with his parents to see the world.

As someone who cared greatly about appearances, Meng Hongchen was immediately drawn to Wang Chen's adorable and handsome looks.

From then on, even though Meng Hongchen had to train diligently every day, she would still visit Wang Chen from time to time to play with him, bringing him little gifts along the way.

After all, such a good-looking older brother was dressed far too poorly. It looked completely out of place.

All in all, it would be perfectly fair to describe their relationship as a rich girl and the boy she kept... Pah, pah, pah! They were childhood sweethearts, innocent companions who had grown up together.

Meng Hongchen thought of Wang Chen Gege's handsome face, only snapping back to her senses after a long while.

Once she came back to herself, Meng Hongchen covered her fair little face with her hands and began racking her brains.

"What am I supposed to do? Grandpa won't let me see Wang Chen Gege, but I really want to play with him. Whenever I go out now, guards are watching me. There's no way I can go find Wang Chen Gege. Should I ask Brother for help? No, he's unreliable. He listens to Grandpa the most. He'll definitely tattle to Grandpa."

Xiao Hongchen: "Achoo! Achoo!!"

After thinking for a long time, Meng Hongchen buried her head under the blanket in frustration. "No, I can't think of any way to meet Wang Chen Gege. Everyone in the family only listens to Grandpa."

Just as Meng Hongchen was overwhelmed with frustration, an idea suddenly flashed through her mind.

Meng Hongchen sprang up from the bed. Since they couldn't meet, she would use another way to contact him.

Meng Hongchen: (ω) I really am such a clever little thing. Hehehe.

Just as the Hongchen Family was stirred up because of Wang Chen, Wang Chen was reuniting with his family. As for the guard, Shen Kang, he had naturally gone to report back to the family elders.

After all, guards belonged to the family, not to Wang Chen personally. Unless one day Wang Chen became clan head and took charge of the entire family.

Compared to Meng Hongchen's luxurious residence, Wang Chen's home seemed rather modest. It was a simple two-story house with equally simple furnishings, nothing lavish about it.

After all, the Wang Family had too many members. Though the family's total assets were considerable, once divided among everyone...

They were certainly much better off than Soul Engineers from ordinary civilian backgrounds, but they could never compare to a top-tier wealthy second-generation girl like Meng Hongchen.

"Dad, Mom, I'm back." Wang Chen walked through the door with a happy smile.

"My son's back! Let your father take a good look at you. Did you grow taller during this month away?"

A handsome middle-aged man who bore a fifty-percent resemblance to Wang Chen opened his arms with a broad smile and leaped to Wang Chen's side.

But before he could pull Wang Chen into his embrace, a beautiful middle-aged woman beat him to it and hugged Wang Chen first.

"Son, did you run into any danger on the way? You weren't hurt, were you...?"

Wang's Father and Wang's Mother had not seen Wang Chen for a month and missed him dearly. They fussed over him for quite a while before finally letting him go.

That evening, they made him an entire tableful of his favorite dishes.

However, the news Wang Chen heard from his parents at the dinner table cast a shadow over his heart.

Even the feast before him became as tasteless as wax...