Chapter 83 The Pure Emperor Forces Marriage Online (17)
Gu Tang walked quickly to the window and looked outside.
At this moment, snow began to fall heavily outside, turning the world into a white expanse. The sky was dark as if it were dusk, and through the window, they could no longer see what was happening just a few meters away.
A moment of silence fell outside the window, then the alarm sounded again: "Enemy attack! Enemy attack! All personnel on high alert!"
"Dad." Gu Yan followed him over and looked outside side by side with him.
The boy was already quite tall, standing straight and exuding youthful vigor. His still somewhat immature, handsome face now displayed a composure beyond his years: "Hmm?"
Gu Yan frowned slightly and looked up at the sky not far away. There stood the tallest building on this small planet. At the top of the building was a lamp that was usually not lit, but now it emitted a bright, almost blinding white light.
No matter where you stand on the small planet, you can see that light now.
In the sky, the piercing alarm blared again: "Enemy attack! Enemy attack! All units on high alert!"
When the alarm sounded again, several aircraft pierced through the wind and snow and soared into the sky.
“One, two…” Gu Yan’s gaze followed the aircraft. “Five ships.”
He said, as if talking to himself, "On the northern border planet of the Empire, the customized fleet of spacecraft should have more than eight ships."
Gu Tang nodded casually.
"The closest level two planet to here..." Gu Yan said again.
He raised his right hand, and a blue light emanated from his palm. The blue light split into countless fine threads, which unfolded into a star map in front of him in a moment.
Gu Tang paused slightly, looking at the star map.
The star map is crisscrossed with filaments, and at the intersections are countless orbs of light of varying sizes.
This is……
He looked at the star map; it was the northern star map of the Galactic Empire!
His gaze followed the star map to Gu Yan's palm, where he indeed saw a small spot of light. Blue light flickered within the spot, and the star map unfolded from there.
Gu Tang looked at Gu Yan in surprise. Had Qin Junche already given the star map to Gu Yan?
He's still so young...
“If it’s just space pirate harassment, we should be able to hold out until a Level 2 planet rescue,” Gu Yan said.
His expression was serious, completely different from how he had been acting coquettishly towards Gu Tang just now. His voice also sounded serious, unlike before: "They only deployed five spaceships, so the enemy attacking them shouldn't be that many. The level one alert is only because this is a border planet."
As Gu Yan spoke, he slightly raised his head to look at Gu Tang, his eyes bright, but his expression had already relaxed, and his brows and eyes relaxed: "Dad..."
He reached out and grasped his father's hand, which was hanging by his side: "Let's sit down and talk."
Gu Yan's voice carried a hint of coquetry, completely different from the clear and bright voice of the young man who had been able to calmly analyze the situation in an instant.
Gu Tang looked at him in a daze.
He always knew that Gu Yan was very smart.
You could say he's incredibly smart!
Gu Yan has been like this since he was a child. He learns everything extremely quickly, whether it's literature, martial arts, strategy, or economics. Some of these things even give him a headache, but little Gu Yan can absorb them quickly and then surpass his teachers in no time.
Gu Tang had heard plenty of praise for him from the court tutors. Although they didn't say it, Gu Tang could tell from the attitudes of these learned people that they had high hopes for this young man who was likely to inherit the throne of the Galactic Empire in the future.
Gu Tang looked at the handsome young man who was smiling at him, and reached out to ruffle the other's thick hair.
Gu Yan may be the most suitable future monarch for the Galactic Empire.
Should I really take him away?
Should he and he spend their lives drifting through interstellar space, like wanderers, just aimlessly passing their lives?
Gu Tang suddenly felt somewhat lost.
“Dad.” His hand, which was hanging down, was shaken, and Gu Yan looked up at him.
"Hmm." Gu Tang responded and turned to walk into the house. "Okay."
He could hear his own voice, somewhat dazed, as if coming from a distant place, tinged with a trace of hesitation. The joy he had felt just moments before at the thought of taking Gu Yan away had vanished completely.
The two sat down on the sofa, but Gu Tang didn't remember what they said. His mind was still preoccupied with the same thought from before: Did he really want to take him away?
He didn't care, but what about Gu Yan?
Is he really unwilling to stay in the capital city, or is it just because he can't bear to leave himself?
Countless thoughts rushed through Gu Tang's mind as he stared at Gu Yan in a daze.
Although the boy was still somewhat immature, he looked exactly like Qin Junche back then. Only his eyebrows and eyes were brighter and more handsome, which made him look even more like him upon closer inspection.
However, anyone who saw Gu Yan for the first time would only think that he looked very much like Qin Junche, so no one ever suspected that young Gu Yan was the posthumous son of the deceased crown prince. Those people in the capital who were loyal to the former crown prince also transferred their loyalty to Gu Yan.
"Dad?" Gu Yan could definitely tell that he was distracted.
"Yan'er." Gu Tang reached out and ruffled Gu Yan's hair again, "Yan'er..."
He called Gu Yan's name again and sighed softly, "Dad is asking you, do you want to go back to the capital planet?"
"Hmm?" Gu Yan's eyes lit up, but he quickly shook his head firmly and forcefully. "No! I want to stay with Dad."
As he spoke, he reached out and tightly grasped Gu Tang's hands. The boy's warm, slender fingers had developed a thin layer of calluses from years of martial arts training.
Gu Yan gripped his hand tightly, as if worried that if he let go, his father would disappear from his sight again, just like a year ago.
"Dad." Gu Yan thought of his confusion, longing and worry over the past year, and the hands that would never appear again when he woke up from nightmares in the middle of the night, hands that would gently comfort him and softly coax him to sleep.
He suddenly lunged at Gu Tang, hugged him tightly, buried his head deep in his chest, and his voice trembled slightly: "I don't want to be separated from Daddy!"
"Wherever Dad goes, I'll go!"
Gu Tang raised his hand, hesitated for a few seconds, and gently placed it on Gu Yan's shoulder.
He sighed silently and hugged his son's trembling shoulders tightly.
"I don't want to leave! I only want Daddy!" Gu Yan was still stubbornly muttering, his head buried in Gu Tang's arms and refusing to lift it.
In reality, he was only ten years old. Even though he was raised from a young age to be the future monarch, he sometimes showed a maturity beyond his years.
But he was still just a child.
"Alright, alright." Gu Tang was always open-minded and carefree. With his son hugging him and acting spoiled, he completely forgot about his earlier hesitation and confusion.
He smiled broadly: "Dad knows, he won't abandon you this time."
"Really?" Gu Yan looked up at him with bright, sparkling eyes.
"Of course." Gu Tang smiled and ruffled her son's thick hair.
He doesn't make promises lightly, but he never fails to keep them. Especially when it's a promise he made to his most beloved son.
"Daddy." Gu Yan's face immediately lit up with a smile, and she threw herself into his arms, whimpering sweetly, "I missed you so much..."
“Dad misses you too.” Gu Tang relaxed, sat on the soft sofa, and hugged his son. “Once the state of emergency is lifted, we’ll leave here.”
He held his son in one arm and rested his chin on the other, feeling completely content. He even began to imagine the joy of taking his son to every corner of the Galactic Empire.
"Mmm." Gu Yan nodded vigorously.
The image of another father's handsome and expectant face flashed through his mind, and a pang of guilt swept through him.
But he quickly shook his head, banishing the guilt from his mind.
The father and son, reunited after a long separation, seemed to have endless things to say. In their small, warm house on this tiny planet in the northern part of the Galactic Empire, they felt as if they had returned to the days when they depended on each other for survival in the imperial palace.
Gu Yan was young and had traveled all the way from the capital city, so he finally fell into a deep sleep on Gu Tang's lap.
Gu Tang rested his chin on his hand, looking at the wall in the living room opposite the sofa.
The fireplace burned, casting bizarre and colorful shadows on the wall.
He patted his son's shoulder intermittently with his right hand. The long-awaited excitement gradually faded, and some things became clearer.
Qin Junche is not the kind of person who would let his son suffer.
Even when he entered the palace with an awkward identity, he never allowed himself to be wronged.
Besides, Gu Yan is his son.
What exactly happened on the capital planet?
Gu Tang glanced sideways at the window. The snow continued to fall heavily, but the lights atop the small planet's tower pierced through the layers of dark clouds, still shining brightly.
The alarms are not sounding as frequently anymore, but every half hour, everyone is still reminded that we are in a state of high alert.
The aircraft that flew out has not yet returned.
Gu Tang checked the time; in two more hours, the Empire's reinforcements would arrive.
Although it was on the northern border, the people on the border planet were much safer after he and Qin Junche joined forces to eliminate the largest and most ferocious pirates in the interstellar space. They no longer had to worry about pirate attacks.
Just then, there were three rhythmic knocks on the door.
The voice was soft, conveying restraint and politeness.
Gu Tang looked down at Gu Yan, who was curled up on the sofa sleeping soundly, lying on his lap, and carefully moved him away.
The boy didn't wake up, but just hummed softly, as if he was unhappy that his peaceful dream had been disturbed.
Gu Tang quickly placed a cushion under his head, then got up and opened the door.
The tall man stood against the light, his eyes bright, his nose straight and elegant, and his handsome appearance was evident even in the shadows.
"I've come to pick up my son." His voice was flat and even, without the slightest inflection.
Chapter 84 The Pure Emperor Forces Marriage Online (18)
The wind and snow on the planet grew stronger and stronger. It was a gale that the capital planet had never seen before, carrying large flakes of snow that attacked from behind the people.
A few cool snowflakes landed on Gu Tang's face, bringing him back to his senses from a moment of daze.
The newcomer stood against the light, tall and imposing, his short black hair unchanged from before.