throne fire

The bright sky penetrated the thin clouds and shone into a courtyard in Mudu that was far away from the hustle and bustle.

"I'm the prince, right?"

The self-study children all looked up at the boy who broke the silence, and Teacher Amo also looked up from the old file.

"Of course, Your Highness."

"Sooner or later, I will inherit the throne, right?" The boy's black pupils are bright, his black hair is slightly curly, and his immature face reveals a natural hostility.

"Of course, Your Highness."

"If I die, who will inherit the throne?"

A hint of imperceptible surprise jumped over Amo's eyes, he put down the file in his hand, and signaled to the other children that today's lesson is over.The children got up politely and left one after another.

When there were only two people left in the other courtyard, Amo said, "It will be your children and grandchildren."

The boy smiled, "I don't have a son yet."

"Your Highness, when you grow up, you will have countless sons."

"If I don't have a son, who will inherit the throne when I die?"

"your brother."

"Is it my mother's son, or another woman's son?"

"It's your father's son."

"If my mother didn't give birth to a younger brother for me, the sons of other women would become the heirs to the throne after me, wouldn't they?"

"Yes, Your Highness."

"If all my father's sons die, who will inherit the throne?"

Panic like a dying god flooded Amo's eyes in an instant, "Your Highness, you must not let Ram hear this."

"This is just a metaphor." The boy was unmoved, "Who will I be?"

"The late emperor's son." Amo replied tremblingly.

"So it's useless for my mother to give birth to more daughters for my father?"

"Your Highness..." Amo no longer knew how to answer the boy.Fear surged out of his pair of calm black pupils unique to scholars, and the boy just smiled lightly, as if he had found the answer he wanted.

____

In the early summer of 1367 in the Mu calendar, the Sokaka River entered its flood season.

Suo Jia is five years old.

When he ran in front of a group of colorfully dressed children, the red cloak fluttered behind him, and his messy hair fluttered in the morning light, like the mane of a runaway horse, flamboyant, wild and sharp.

"Your Highness, wait for us!"

"His Royal Highness!"

The yelling and chasing of the followers had the opposite effect, Suo Jia quickened his pace, took the lead, and rushed down the long stone steps at the front slope.At the corner at the end of the stone steps, he ran head-on into General Bamida who was rushing towards him.

"Your Highness, be careful."

Bamida wanted to hold Suo Jia's hand, but before he put his hand on Suo Jia's shoulder, the little prince turned sideways perfectly, and ran away in a hurry.The collision didn't end, and the children following behind bumped into it one after another, and a series of apologies rang out.

"Sorry, General!"

"I'm so sorry, General!"

"Sorry, General!"

"My God, what are you guys doing running like this?" Bamida shook his head vigorously, his gray beard swaying from side to side with his body.He wasn't too old yet, but when he faced this group of lively and wild children, he suddenly felt that he was already old.It should be a happy thing to be able to run so carefree, right?The general couldn't help but sigh with emotion.

On the Royal Military Dock, Suo Jia leaned against the purple-red stone railing and leaned over to look down.At the other end of the line of sight, a behemoth is parked on the shore.The mainsail of the ship has been stowed, and the tsunami totems on both sides of the ship and the dark blue pterosaur flag flying on the mainmast all show the special identity of the owner of the ship.

"Your Highness!"

The children arrived one after another, and they surrounded Suojia and leaned against the stone railing.

"Is that what Ram was talking about?"

Suo Jia remained silent, his eyes searching the deck of the ship.

Recently, wave after wave of boys came to the palace for study and exchange, ranging in age from 3 to 16 years old, all of them came to the small countries around the continent of Mu, and their identities were without exception the princes of neighboring countries.The person who came today is different, he is very special, he came from Atlantis, another powerful country in today's world.This made Suo Jia puzzled, if they were all powerful countries, why did they send their princes to learn and communicate?You must know that these children who are used for so-called learning and communication are nothing more than legal hostages in the eyes of the Mu people.

Soga asked Amo this question, and the teacher explained that the early Atlantis civilization was far behind the Mu civilization. In order to obtain advanced technologies such as technology and military, the two countries formulated this long-term contract.No matter how prosperous Atlantis is many years later, it must fulfill its allegiance to the Mu Dynasty. In order to prove this allegiance, the direct means is to send one of its own princes to the Mu continent every 100 years as a three-year study Exchange.

Suo Jia thought that if Atlantis was really comparable to Mu's national power, they could completely make a mistake. After all, force between countries often determines political power.But Tesoda's priest in red dispelled the prince's doubts. He said, "Your Highness, the notaries of that contract are gods. If they make a mistake, they will be punished by heaven."

As soon as Suo Jia heard that it was related to God, he no longer bothered to think about this issue.He knew that there was a mysterious controlling power stored in their bodies, it was a gift from the gods, and he had the right to take it away one day if the gods were willing.

At this time, a small white spot appeared on the side deck of the ship.Behind it is a mass of black armored soldiers, they form a semi-arc, setting off the white dots like the only star in the night sky, gorgeous and bright.

Not long after, Baidian boarded the river bank surrounded by armored soldiers.The huge shadows cast by the boats on the river bank obscured them.When the crowd came out of the shadows, the white dot was within reach.

In an instant, Suo Jia was completely stunned.The other party was a boy who was almost the same age as him, with a very beautiful appearance, and a pair of blue eyes that were completely different from those of the Mu people.He raised his clean chin slightly, and a trace of hesitation paused between his brows.Those expressive eyebrows are wise and deep, as if they can see through everything in the world.

At that moment, Suo Jia actually felt a little bit ashamed, but his dignity as a prince of a country made him regain his lost confidence in an instant.His face became indifferent, and he walked down the last majestic stone steps with an unattainable momentum.

He stood in front of the boy and raised his left hand high.

"As a hostage, you should give your prince a kiss."

This blatant provocation made all the supporters behind the boy feel indignant, and some of them even planned to step forward and teach the arrogant foreign prince in front of them a good lesson.It's just that the boy's performance is beyond the calmness of ordinary people.He grinned, his clear eyes picked up Suo Jia's hand without any anger, and kissed him sincerely.

The courtiers were stunned, and Suo Jia was also stunned.

The boy's long brown eyelashes shone like the sun and the moon when he lowered his head and kissed his left hand.

"Prince Mu, may the gods bless you."

This move did not allow Suo Jia to take any advantage, but made him extremely embarrassed.He quickly withdrew his hand, and a trace of indescribable flashed in his black eyes.

"Exemption."

This muffled echo couldn't conceal his pretended calmness.No one has ever given him this feeling, it's like bringing shame on himself.