My Promotion Story Through Time Travel

Chapter 231 Ants

"Hey, wake up!"

Lin Ziping snapped out of his daze, instinctively touching his mouth as he looked at the person speaking in front of him with a blank expression.

"You were supposed to be here learning manners, and you've already fallen asleep?" Dongshan laughed angrily.

"The moonlight, like water, accompanies me to sleep," Lin Ziping said with a forced smile.

Yanshan clasped his hands and said, "It was my fault for not keeping a close watch on things. Please punish me, Godfather."

Dongshan waved his hand and looked at Lin Ziping: "Did you figure it out?"

Lin Ziping lowered his eyes and replied, "The people sitting in the distance are all distinguished guests. I dare not look too much for fear of disturbing them. However, the wine is sweet, the food is delicious, and the aroma is so enticing that I cannot help but dream of savoring it."

"Heh, all you can do is play petty tricks." Dongshan kicked Lin Ziping's knee. "Let's go."

"Yes," Lin Ziping replied.

I didn't realize it when I was kneeling on the ground, but now that I've suddenly stood up, I realize that I've been kneeling for too long and my legs are numb.

Lin Ziping gritted his teeth and stood up abruptly, rubbing his legs as he followed Yan Shu shakily.

After several twists and turns, the group arrived at a camp tent.

Two people were standing at the door. Upon seeing Dongshan, they stepped forward and bowed respectfully: "My lord."

"Are there any distinguished guests inside?" Dongshan asked.

The man on the right replied, "Lord Zhou has just gone in."

Dongshan nodded and stepped aside, kneeling on the ground.

Yan Shu also retreated and knelt behind Dong Shan.

Do I have to kneel again?

Lin Ziping looked around and resignedly knelt down next to Yan Shu.

"Stop thinking those little schemes, answer my questions directly, and keep quiet," came Dongshan's voice.

“I… am.” Lin Ziping lowered his head and answered respectfully.

A moment later, a man from the doorway walked over, bowed to Dongshan, and clasped his hands in greeting, saying, "Sir, please come in."

Dongshan nodded slightly, and Yan Shu quickly got up and went forward to help him up.

"Thank you for your trouble," Dongshan said, standing up and straightening his clothes.

"It's my duty, sir, you're too kind." The visitor's expression became even more respectful.

Lin Ziping got up slowly but saw clearly that when Dongshan said "thank you for your trouble," he patted Yan Shu's hand.

When the person in front of him answered Dongshan, a flash of smugness appeared in Yan Shu's eyes.

What is this operation?

Is this a story of "I seem to love you, but I actually love him" playing out between palace eunuchs?

Lin Ziping unconsciously started to daydream.

"What are you dawdling for? Hurry up and catch up!" Dongshan turned around and shouted sternly.

"Yes," Lin Ziping replied quickly and stepped forward.

As he approached the tent, the person standing beside him lifted the thick tent door: "Please, sir."

Dongshan nodded and smiled slightly, then stepped inside.

Lin Ziping glanced at Yan Shu, who was standing to the side and hadn't followed, hesitated for a moment, then followed after him.

"Your Majesty," Dongshan knelt and bowed.

Lin Ziping reacted quickly and followed suit.

"Haha, Qianzheng, look, Dongshan, you old codger, you're even putting on this kind of empty formality now." The person above laughed heartily.

Dongshan stood up and smiled, saying, "Your Majesty said it was just a formality because you were considerate, but formalities should never be disregarded."

"Qianzheng, look at Dongshan now, he's quite something. He can say anything, good or bad. Don't just stand there, come over and see how I should play this game."

"Yes," Dongshan replied.

Amidst the laughter and cheers around him, Lin Ziping was torn between his inner turmoil and his own conscience.

Should I kneel, or should I kneel?

It was said to be a formality, but kneeling on the ground was a real act.

Ugh, my knees have really suffered today.

The room is so bright; you can even see the ants on the floor.

They were still at get off work and hadn't finished their shift yet; a bunch of worker ants.

A layer of wooden planks was laid on the ground, and then a carpet was laid on top of the planks.

Lin Ziping was kneeling directly opposite the table. The floor was raised with wooden planks, so that only the legs of the table were visible to him.

It is estimated that the table was placed right on top of an ant nest, thus avoiding being cleaned by the palace servants.

This group of ants, carrying a crumb of pastry, was heading back in that direction.

Anyway, he could only kneel obediently now, with his head bowed and eyes lowered, but in reality he was observing the ants on the ground with great interest.

Two ants took the lead and scouted ahead, followed by a group of ants carrying crumbs of snacks. A few others lagged behind, presumably as reinforcements or to clean up the mess.

The two ants, lightly equipped, quickly left the ant carrying the load behind.

The two ants easily climbed the steps of the table. They struggled left and right, and although they bumped into the table legs, they quickly found their way and disappeared from Lin Ziping's sight.

The group carrying the snacks wasn't in a hurry. They followed the path of the two ants that had preceded them, carrying something several times larger than themselves. Every now and then, two more ants would run up behind them, sniffing around, presumably acting as the commanders.

A short while later, another group of ants appeared where the two vanguard ants had disappeared, and they descended the steps to join the group of ants that had carried the snacks.

With more ants, their strength increased, and their speed was significantly faster than before.

Soon a group of ants arrived at the steps.

A few ants stepped forward and climbed onto the steps, followed by the ants behind them. After a few steps, the snack rolled down and hit the ants behind them.

The ants that climbed the steps turned around and hurriedly came down, vividly illustrating the phrase "ants running around in circles on a hot pan."

If you had a magnifying glass, you'd see ants scratching their heads and looking at themselves.

And the ants under the snacks, were they crushed to death?

Time has given Lin Ziping the answer.

Not long after, several ants crawled out from under the snack.

Gravity and gravitational acceleration were no match for the formic acid in the ants, and the small ants successfully escaped.

A group of ants circled the pastry for a while, and finally lifted it up again, continuing along the same path, carrying it up the steps.

This time the process went relatively smoothly, with clear division of labor. The pastries were carried smoothly, and just as we were about to step onto the stairs, they rolled down again.

Once, twice, three times, four times, the ant kept failing, and the snack rolled down the steps again and again.

Lin Ziping was very distressed. If these pastries were dropped a few more times, they would probably break. If there weren't other people around and he couldn't move, he would have been ready to help them up by hand.

However, the ants did not give up. They repeatedly returned from the steps and continued, finally succeeding in carrying the snack up.

Alas!

For ants, it's an ordinary occurrence, a matter of following their survival instincts to seek food. But the observers, on the other hand, imbue it with subjective thoughts and personal interpretations.

Fireworks lit up Lin Ziping's heart; he was happy for the little ants who had finally climbed over the step.

It didn't take long, but the journey from failure to success felt like a Hollywood blockbuster.

Who is kneeling?

Suddenly a voice came.

Lin Ziping snapped out of his thoughts; now it was time for him to start turning the tables on himself.

"Your Majesty, this humble servant is Lin Ziping from the Imperial Guard." Lin Ziping bowed deeply and said loudly.