The plane landed in Haishi on time.

As soon as Pei Yi and the other three walked out of the airplane pick-up port, the saw a familiar figure.

They made eye contact.

Gu Jianshen walked up with a smile. “Mr. Yi, Mr. Li, we meet again. Welcome back to Haishi.”

Pei Yi and Li Yuan glanced at each other, a little surprised by Gu Jianshen’s appearance. The latter said, “Mr. Gu, why are you here in person? Wouldn’t it be enough to send a staff member from your company?”

“How is that possible, ah?” Gu Jianshen shook hands with them and responded jokingly, “Letting ordinary staff receive two big bosses who are our partners. If you’re not greeted well, it would be our Weiyi’s fault.”

The group of people walked to the car and opened the trunk.

Gu Jianshen tried to help Qiao Dong move the suitcase, but Qiao Dong moved it by himself.

Gu Jianshen saw Qiao Dong’s small stature and said, “You can’t tell by looking at him, but this little brother is quite strong!”

Pei Yi smiled and said, “Let me introduce you. This is my assistant, Qiao Dong. You can contact me through him in the future for follow-up matters.”

Gu Jianshen nodded. “Okay, let’s get in the car! I’ll take you to the hotel to check in!”

As requested in advance, they had already booked an independent suite in the hotel where the competition was held last time.

Qiao Dong sat in the front row at the request of the two bosses, while Pei Yi and Li Yuan chose to sit in the back row.

The car slowly started and drove smoothly onto the roadway leading into the city.

Gu Jianshen, who was driving, brought up the topic again, “It will be almost half past six when we arrive at the hotel. I arranged dinner in advance. Will Mr. Yi and Mr. Li eat a little bit? It’s just the right…..”

Halfway through his words, he fell silent.

Through the rearview mirror, Gu Jianshen saw Pei Yi and Li Yuan sitting in the back seat, in the same posture of lowering their heads and holding their cell phones.

They were each concentrating, with smiles on their lips, sending WeChat messages to unknown people.

Qiao Dong also noticed the suddenly quiet atmosphere and in a low voice, explained in their stead, “Mr. Gu, they just got off the plane and are reporting that they’re safe.”

Gu Jianshen had been transferred from Nebula Fun Tour back to Weiyi group headquarters. Moreover, he was promoted to manager of the copyright department, which also gave him additional say regarding investments. His future was bright.

As soon as he finished speaking, Pei Yi, who had sent Bo Yueming a message that he was safe, raised his head and spoke calmly, “Sorry, Mr. Gu, what were you saying?”

Gu Jianshen knew that Pei Yi had a lover, so he didn’t blame him at all. “I said, you two must be hungry after coming all this way. I booked a private room at the hotel restaurant where you are staying, and notified the other two leaders.”

“It just so happens that we can all meet, get to know each other, and communicate.”

Pei Yi knew that the meeting between the two parties was unavoidable. “Of course, Mr. Gu. Please arrange it.”

Gu Jianshen sighed deeply and didn’t conceal anything. “This ‘Mr. Gu’ sounds really unfamiliar. We’ve at least gotten to know each other, and the cooperation some time ago was quite pleasant.”

As for the connected games and projects, they were promoted through private communications. This friendship was much deeper than that of ordinary partners.

“Well, I’m two or three years older than you, so I’ll just call you by your names. If you two are willing, you can call me Brother Gu?”

Pei Yi and Li Yuan looked at each other and said without much entanglement, “Okay.”

Gu Jianshen was very good at getting around in the world, and had considered everything for them. “You guys go back to the room to settle in later, and then come to the private room after you’ve finished tidying up. There’s no rush.”

“En.”

“We’ll trouble Brother Gu.”

. . . . . . .

This was the first time the two parties were meeting since their partnership, after all, so they couldn’t be disrespectful and make them wait.

Pei Yi and Li Yuan took a brief rest, then quickly went to the box reserved by Gu Jianshen.

In the elegantly decorated box, Gu Jianshen took the initiative to act as a middleman. “Here, let me introduce you—”

“These two are YWY’s Mr. Pei Yi and Mr. Li Yuan, and this is general assistant Qiao Dong.”

In addition to Gu Jianshen, whom they were already familiar with, there were two unfamiliar faces in the box, a man and a woman.

Gu Jianshen gestured politely toward the long-haired woman on his right, “This is Ms. Kong Li, the executive director of our movie game.”

Kong Li had graduated from a famous film school and had always been passionate about making horror movies.

Her debut film “Soul” several years before was shortlisted for an international short film award, and she also won “Best New Director” that year!

For nearly ten years, Kong Li had taken root in the filming of horror and supernatural films, and had produced many popular movies.

Weiyi was able to hire Li Kong as its executive producer this time precisely because this new shooting mode drew her interest.

“Hello, Director Kong.”

Pei Yi spoke on behalf of YWY Studios, “You are the expert and we are the laymen when it comes to movies. Please take care of us in the next two months.”

When Kong Li saw Pei Yi’s young face and his humble and sincere way of speaking, her impression of him gradually rose.

“Mr. Yi, good to meet you. You’re younger than I thought.” She reached out to shake his hand, not hiding her appreciation—

“The game script you provided this time is very interesting. I hope we can communicate more and strive to successfully test the waters of this new method.”

“Certainly.”

Seeing Kong Li greet Pei Yi and Li Yuan one by one, Gu Jianshen introduced the other person on the left.

“Also, ah, this is our gold medal game planner from Weiyi, Gao Pingfeng.”

Gao Pingfeng looked to be in his thirties or forties, and wore black thin-framed glasses. He smiled and nodded hello to Pei Yi and Li Yuan.

Gu Jianshen was as good at speaking as always. “I’m a person who has a fair eye for copyright investment, but when it comes to the plot and text, I’m a bad student.”

He patted Gao Pingfeng’s shoulder and said subtly to Pei Yi, “I know that YWY is mainly responsible for the game script this time, but—”

“If you have any ideas or tangles about the game script in the future, you can discuss it with Mr. Gao. He will cooperate with you throughout the entire process to complete the writing of the game script.”

Gao Pingfeng nudged the frame of his glasses, looking very cooperative. “Mr. Yi is in charge, and I am here to assist.”

Li Yuan knew how to get along at the wine table better than Pei Yi, so he responded politely, “Teacher Gao is too humble. I have heard your name in the gaming circle for a long time.”

Pei Yi didn’t know Gao Pingfeng very well, but he still went along and said, “Yes, ah, I would like to learn more from Teacher Gao.”

After the two parties finished their polite greetings, they took their seats.

Pei Yi’s eyes wandered unobtrusively over the faces of Kong Li and Gao Pingfeng again, and his hand under the table quickly edited and sent a WeChat message.

After finishing this, he raised his glass at Gu Jianshen’s invitation.

In the end, this night was just the first meeting, and the two parties did not delve too deeply into work. Instead, they agreed to go to Weiyi headquarters the next day for a meeting and the formal handovers.

The meal ended just after nine o’clock.

As soon as he returned to the upstairs suite of the hotel, Pei Yi took off his coat and asked, “Qiao Dong, how is the investigation going?”

“Investigation?” Li Yuan was a little confused. “What are you investigating?”

Qiao Dong explained, “Before dinner began, Brother Yi asked me to investigate Gao Pingfeng.”

The WeChat message Pei Yi hid at the dining table just now was sent to Qiao Dong.

Li Yuan responded, “No wonder. I was wondering why you left to go to the toilet and never came back.”

Qiao Dong smiled sheepishly, feeling that his excuse had been a bit clumsy.

He handed over the information compiled on the tablet and returned to the topic, “Brother Yi, take a look.”

Pei Yi took it, and listened to Qiao Dong talk at the same time—

“Gao Pingfeng is thirty-eight years old this year, but is already considered a veteran-level game architect at Weiyi headquarters. He has nearly fifteen years of experience in the industry.”

He had practically accompanied Weiyi from a small company to being at the top today.

“He’s been able to stay with a game company that doesn’t belong to him for fifteen years? That’s a long time.”

There was a hint of admiration in Pei Yi’s eyes, but at the same time, some confusion. “Then he should have quite a few game works under his belt?”

He had been on the Youtu forum for so long, but had very little impression of this person.

Pei Yi’s fingertips slowly slid down the tablet as Qiao Dong continued his introduction.

“I found out that Gao Pingfeng has participated in many small game projects, but didn’t occupy the main leadership role. However, in the past five years, he had a particularly successful hit game.”

Li Yuan answered quickly, “Seventeen Days.”

Upon hearing this game, Pei Yi suddenly realized, “He was the chief planner of the game?”

“Seventeen Days” was a turn-based RPG mobile game launched by Weiyi five years ago. The copyright of a supernatural novel had been purchased from overseas, and then localized for Chinese audiences.

Once it was launched, it caused a stir in the Chinese gaming community and was even exported to nearly ten countries. As a result, the team behind the scenes became well-known.

Li Yuan shook his head slightly. “I vaguely remember that Gao Pingfeng was not the chief planner in the beginning?”

As soon as he finished speaking, Pei Yi saw the information on the tablet. “He only took over as the chief planner of the Seventeen Days game three years ago.”

Qiao Dong added, “Brother Yi, I just checked the chronology of Seventeen Days on the game forum. Originally, the chief planner of the game from Chinese localization to distribution was Chen Min.”

“Three years ago, she fell ill due to long-term overwork and had to resign in order to recuperate, so Gao Pingfeng, who was originally the deputy planner, was promoted.”

He had been in the position of the game director of Seventeen Days until now.

Pei Yi’s eyes flickered as he gave back the tablet in his hands. “I understand, thank you for your hard work.”

Li Yuan sat down on the sofa with his friend. “Why did you want to look into Gao Pingfeng? Do you think there’s something wrong with him?”

Qiao Dong took back the tablet and said, “I saw that Teacher Gao was smiling, shouldn’t he be easy to get along with?”

Easy to get along with?

Pei Yi thought about this phrase for a moment, and only said, “I think Weiyi is still on guard against us, or in other words, they want to gain greater say and control.”

It was clearly agreed that YWY would be responsible for the game script, but now they suddenly sent Gao Pingfeng and called him an “assistant?”

To put it bluntly, didn’t they just want to get involved in the game script?

Li Yuan thought for a moment. “Although, it’s reasonable for Weiyi to do this.”

After all, it was one of the top game companies in China. The division of shares had been controlled by Pei Yi at 40-60, and even the core game script rights were controlled by YWY. It was inevitable that Weiyi’s senior management would be a little unwilling.

Pei Yi raised his eyebrows. “En, but the fact that they are unwilling doesn’t mean that we’re taking advantage.”

The reason YWY Studios could obtain the rights and shares was not charity from Weiyi’s top management, but an exchange of commercial interests—

Pei Yi needed Weiyi’s exposure channels and connections, and Weiyi was also interested in YWY’s next Last Fog 3.0, and wanted to take the opportunity to reach an additional cooperation.

Qiao Dong was a little nervous. “Brother Yi, do we need to be on guard against Gao Pingfeng and Weiyi?”

“The partnership is set, and if we’re on guard, we won’t be able to cooperate. Besides, I trust Gu Jianshen’s character. Weiyi will not go back on its word and cause a setback, but Gao Pingfeng—”

Pei Yi shook his head. Gao Pingfeng’s smiling face reappeared in his mind, and a dark light flashed in his eyes. “Weiyi is Weiyi, and he is who he is.”

As the saying went, you could know people, and you could know faces, but you couldn’t know what was in their hearts.

Pei Yi didn’t want to be arbitrary, but he had an intuition that this person wasn’t as easy to get along with as he seemed on the surface.

Pei Yi glanced at the time and called a stop. “Never mind, it’s useless to think too much now. It’s getting late, let’s wash up and go to bed. We have to go to Weiyi headquarters for the meeting tomorrow.”

Li Yuan and Qiao Dong looked at each other and nodded.

. . . . . . . 

Half an hour later.

Pei Yi walked out of the bathroom after washing up. The bedding was specially brought from the Imperial Capital and laid out by the hotel staff.

Looking at the familiar dark blue sheets, Pei Yi felt that something was missing. He dug out the coat he had brought from the open suitcase, wrapped up in it, and lay down in bed.

Pei Yi picked up the cell phone on the bedside table and muttered subconsciously, “It’s not even ten o’clock yet, are you asleep?”

The next second, the phone screen jumped to the WeChat communication page.

Bo Yueming, who was far away in the Imperial Capital, seemed to have a natural understanding with him and made a video call exactly at that moment.

Pei Yi quickly answered the call and looked at his lover on the video. “Er-ge.”

There was a smile in Bo Yueming’s eyes when he heard this address. “Are you done with work?”

Pei Yi reported casually, “En, we had a meal with the other Weiyi party. I’ve already washed, and I’m in bed.”

Bo Yueming could clearly see the coat wrapped around him, and chuckled. “Can you sleep with my coat on? What time do you have to get up tomorrow?”

“Nine o’clock. We’re going to Weiyi to sign the additional agreement at 10:30.” Pei Yi shrank into the quilt.

Bo Yueming noted this down. “Then I’ll wake you up at that time tomorrow?”

Pei Yi nodded and said, “You’d better think of a way for me not to lose sleep tonight first.”

This was probably related to how he had grown up. Every time he was in a strange environment, he would be awake until one or two in the morning before falling asleep.

Sometimes he would even stay up all night, unable to get used to it.

Bo Yueming seemed to have considered this problem a long time ago. “Do you have any headphones? Put your phone on the bedside table, turn off the light, and lay down.”

Pei Yi obediently did as he was told, placing his phone on the bedside table and laying down on his side with his headphones on.

He looked at his lover on the screen and teased, “Er-ge, you’re not treating me like a three-year-old and telling me a bedtime story, are you?”

Bo Yueming accepted his teasing and asked fondly, “Do you want to hear a bedtime story, or do you want to hear me sing a lullaby to coax you to sleep?”

“…….”

Pei Yi was stunned. He didn’t expect that Bo Yueming would mention a “lullaby,” and raised his head eagerly. “For real? You can sing, ah?”

Bo Yueming added, “Turn off the light.”

Pei Yi replied, “It’s too dark, I won’t be able to see you clearly.”

Bo Yueming coaxed him, “You can still hear my voice. Be good.”

Pei Yi could only turn off the light as instructed. As soon as he lay down, a light, steady lullaby came from his headphones—

It was a lullaby with an English melody that he had never heard before. Rendered by Bo Yueming’s voice, it had the ability to soothe a person’s heart.

Pei Yi felt that his ears were numb, and his heart was so swollen with happiness that he was overwhelmed.

Whether he was in the orphanage or adopted later on, nobody had ever sung him a lullaby.

Pei Yi closed his eyes and said with unbelievable cuteness, “Er-ge, this is the first time someone has sung me a lullaby to put me to sleep.”

Bo Yueming stopped singing for a moment, but didn’t speak, then continued on again.

Even though they were separated, Pei Yi felt like his lover was leaning against him, holding him tightly in his arms as he fell asleep, just like before.

Time was drawn out long and slow by the looping lullaby.

After an unknown amount of time, Pei Yi’s breathing gradually calmed down. Bo Yueming on the other side stopped singing the lullaby.

“Kitten?”

“Mm-huh.”

The babbled response was a cute, unique thing that Pei Yi only did when sleeping.

Bo Yueming’s innermost being was touched by warmth and softness, and he added in a whisper, “Good night.”

. . . . . . .

When Pei Yi and the others arrived at Weiyi headquarters the next day, Gu Jianshen was still in charge of receiving them.

“The second to fourth floors are peripheral game exhibition halls, and the fifth and sixth floors are the staff canteen and kitchen.”

“From the seventh to the seventeenth floor are the planning, art, technology, online publicity, copyright, and logistics departments. They are divided according to the size of the departments, and there are high-rise offices from the 20th floor up.”

“If you look out this window, those two buildings are used specifically to house the servers, and the other two buildings are staff dormitories.”

Pei Yi and Li Yuan heard about Weiyi’s domineering division of departments, and invariably revealed a trace of yearning and fighting spirit.

No matter how good they thought they were, there was always someone who was better.

As the owners of YWY Studios, they also looked forward to their studio achieving such a large scale in the future.

Of course, they couldn’t grow fat in one bite, and must take every step in a down-to-earth manner.

Just like this partnership.

Gu Jianshen took them to the 18th floor and explained further, “This office building is specifically used for short-term external project cooperation. When the meeting starts in the afternoon, the personnel transferred from various departments will be working.”

As soon as the lingering sound faded, this group of people glimpsed a familiar figure.

Gao Pingfeng approached with his assistant, and the former still had a smiling demeanor. “I guessed that Mr. Gu would bring you here, so I waited in advance.”

Li Yuan nodded politely. “Teacher Gao.”

Gao Pingfeng explained his purpose for coming, “Mr. Yi came from the Imperial Capital. Perhaps you are unfamiliar with the personnel division of our Weiyi project team?”

“If you are comfortable with it, shall I arrange workstations for everyone and establish a work group?”

What appeared to be non-aggressive and friendly help actually hid a deeper intent to seize power. 

Pei Yi’s eyes flashed slightly, and he didn’t evade. “Of course, Teacher Gao has more experience leading large projects than I do.”

“Teacher Gao, there’s no rush in this matter. It can be arranged after everyone arrives in the afternoon.” Gu Jianshen calmly turned his watch and changed the topic. “I still need to take them upstairs to discuss re-signing the agreement. We’ll talk about this later.”

Gao Pingfeng still smiled easily, saying, “You guys go to work first.”

Gu Jianshen simply smiled back and shifted his position. “Then let’s go upstairs first. We will complete the supplementary contract in the morning and hold the meeting in the afternoon.”

“Okay.”

The group turned and walked toward the elevators, leaving Gao Pingfeng and his assistant behind.

The office where the contract was to be signed was on the 23rd floor. When the elevator reached its destination, Pei Yi was in no hurry to step out.

He looked at Gu Jianshen standing by the elevator door and asked in a respectable manner, “Brother Gu, please wait a moment.”

Gu Jianshen understood his meaning, and stepped tactfully to the side.

When he was the only one left in the elevator, Pei Yi whispered to Li Yuan and Qiao Dong, “I’ll follow you two in later, I’m not going yet.”

“Remember, put off signing the supplementary contract for the time being and wait until I come back.”

Li Yuan frowned slightly. “Pei Yi? What’s wrong?”

Pei Yi looked at his friend and said, “Pear Garden, did you bring your cigarettes?”

“Yes.”

Li Yuan cooperated and took the cigarettes and lighter from his pocket, both of them brand new.

Since he started dating Yan Cen, he was afraid that his lover wouldn’t like the smell of cigarettes, so he would either avoid smoking or restrain himself. After buying these cigarettes, he might not use one in ten and a half days.

Pei Yi took the cigarettes and lighter from Li Yuan and gave him a meaningful smile. “Wait, I’ll go meet Gao Pingfeng first.”

---

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Chapter Eighty-Nine <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety-One

The quilt was bathed in light, and the winter sun was warm but not glaring, falling on the large expanse of the soft bed. Such a morning was very suitable for lovers to lie in bed together. Because everyone was busy until midnight the previous night, now no one dared to disturb His Royal Highness Xiao Wang. Even A-Ning next door was still sleeping in, and the entire back courtyard of the government office was quiet.

The floral scent between the bed curtains was fragrant, the atmosphere beautiful. The lovely forty-eight thousand year old Sleeping Immortal suddenly felt a bit parched. Liang Shu got up and poured him a cup of thirst-quenching sour plum and tangerine peel tea. Second Young Master Liu frowned after drinking so much. He barely drank half a cup, but the sourness didn’t wake him up, so he yawned and got back under the covers.

Liang Shu drank the remaining half cup of tea, then lifted the quilt and got back into bed, embracing him from behind……he still refused to stop, and caressed his calloused hands all the way up the other’s waistline. The sleeping clothes were soft, and fell apart after a few strokes. He thought they were a hindrance, so he simply peeled them off bit by bit.

So Second Young Master Liu, who was lying leisurely in the clouds of the Three Thousand Worlds, had to get up and bid farewell to the sages. I still have something to do, so I’ll go out first. After speaking, he covered up and fled as if being chased by dogs, in a rare hurry! The white crane submerged into the clouds with the immortal in fluttering robes, and the cool mist and rain fell onto his face one after another, wetting his skin. Liu Xian’an opened his eyes and stretched out his hand to block it, but Liang Shu held his wrist with a smile and pressed it back onto the pillow, leaning their foreheads together: “What, you won’t keep sleeping?”

Having spoken, he didn’t intend to wait for an answer, but lowered his head and bit those lips that still carried a trace of green plum flavor. Liu Xian’an didn’t have the slightest room to resist. The difference in strength between them was truly great, so he just vaguely thought that the hot spring in his dreams was not as good as this.

Because A-Ning had not brought him books after a long time, Second Young Master Liu’s understanding of this sort of thing was still very superficial, at most a sentence like “the soul was in the clouds”……at this moment, he was indeed to entangled that he didn’t know which cloud he had flown to. Unable to bear it anymore, he put his arms around the other’s neck and called softly, “Your Highness,” but instead of pleading for mercy, he unexpectedly poured oil on the fire.

Liang Shu grasped his waist and gritted his teeth, saying, you’re going to kill me.

Liu Xian’an was very puzzled, who is killing whom now? I am clearly the one being killed.

Liang Shu took his hand, and Liu Xian’an’s fingers seemed to be scorched by fire. The prince raised his eyes to look at the person next to him and asked: “You can’t?”

Second Young Master Liu was about to answer that he really couldn’t, but Liang Shu had already enveloped his hand and said: “I’ll teach you.”

He directly taught an enchanting lesson.

In the afternoon, the sounds of voices and footsteps finally came from the corridor, as well as A-Ning’s footsteps, which were getting closer and closer. He seemed to lie at the door to check for movement, and when he heard noise in the room, he hurriedly stood up straight, but only Liang Shu came out.

“Your Highness.” A-Ning glanced into the room. “My young master……”

“Let him sleep a little longer.” Liang Shu closed the door behind his back. “After an hour, go in and serve him.”

In an hour, it would be dark. A-Ning sighed sadly, the prince was really spoiling the young master! He went to the kitchen to work for a while, calculated that it was almost time, and just as he entered the door with water for washing, Liu Xian’an was already sitting up, moving his sore shoulders.

A few brocade handkerchiefs were thrown on the ground. A-Ning unknowingly leaned over to pick them up, and Liu Xian’an said urgently: “Don’t touch them!”

A-Ning was taken aback: “Why?”

Wrapped in the quilt, Liu Xian’an murmured lightly: “Don’t touch them with your hands, get a broom and sweep them out.”

A-Ning: “…….”

He felt that he should perform his duties as a servant, and said tactfully: “Y-y-young Master, you and the prince……how good this is.”

Liu Xian’an replied, in fact, I won’t miss these things much, otherwise you can go talk to the prince.

A-Ning was dumbfounded: “Ah?”

Liu Xian’an put on his shoes and got out of bed, taking the opportunity to change the subject: “How is the city currently?”

“The whole city is abuzz.” A-Ning put on his clothes for him and opened a window to let air in. “Everyone is talking about the blacksmith’s shop.”

It was more and more mysterious. Originally, even the government officials’ faces told of deep secrets, so didn’t this firmly show that something was wrong with the matter?

“Most of what is said relates to Song-xiansheng,” A-Ning said. “They say that his spirit is forging iron.”

An entire night of clink, clink, clang, clang had made the people in the city dizzy, and when people were not fully awake, they didn’t have time to think and analyze, and could only follow the crowd in a daze. There was a haunting, who wouldn’t be afraid? There were not many people on the streets during the day, and in the evening, there was not even a wild dog, only the northerly wind blowing and rustling the leaves.

Liang Shu said: “I had initially wanted to take you to have a good meal, but now I can’t even find an open restaurant.”

“I’m not hungry.” Liu Xian’an stretched, standing at the end of the empty street. “I used to dream about scenes like this a lot.”

“An empty city?”

“En, an empty city.”

The wind blew and the fallen leaves rustled, and there was only one person in this world, walking alone on a long road that seemed never-ending. Sometimes it rained and sometimes it snowed, but because the people on both sides of the street would not open their doors for that person, he could only continue to move forward against the wind and rain until his shoulders were covered in frost and snow.

“Did you get tired from walking?”

“I just sat on the steps to rest.”

“Why didn’t those white-bearded old men accompany you?”

“Because they all had their own things to do.”

Discussing the dao, retreating into seclusion, drinking and composing poems with friends, dancing with swords by a waterfall. In short, everyone had their own business, and nobody wanted to come walk in an empty city.

Liu Xian’an said: “But every time I got tired from walking, A-Ning always called me back to reality, so this was not a nightmare. It was just a little boring.”

This lonely dream distressed Liang Shu. He held the other’s hand and promised: “I’ll accompany you from now on.”

They were originally heart-pounding words of love, but His Royal Highness Xiao Wang added domineeringly at the end, let’s see who dares not open the door for you.

Liu Xian’an: “…….”

He smiled and clasped the other party’s fingers, saying, okay.

Due to Liang Shu joining him, it seemed that hundreds of dream cities would become lively together, whether they were truly lively or forced to be lively. Anyway, Liu Xian’an liked this sort of change very much, and also looked forward to changing from a lonely traveler to part of the bustling world of mortals.

However, the same deserted Raven City would not be as lively as His Royal Highness Xiao Wang wished any time soon. Almost every house was locked. The two of them couldn’t find a place to eat, so they could only return to the government office and make bowls of rice noodles. After eating, they walked in the courtyard for a while.

The watchman was trembling with fear. Starting from the south of the city, he announced that everything was dry, be careful of fire…..fire……

His voice shook, and he froze in place, watching the flames in the blacksmith’s shop that were about to soar up to the sky again. There was a layer of cold sweat on his back. Why had he come again?

The clink, clink, clank, clank sound of striking iron could be heard again, and the people of the city lamented in their hearts, the one who should come still came. They pulled their quilts up to cover their heads, not daring to make a sound, and only hoped that the government would come forward to solve it quickly. No matter how bad it was, it would be fine if they found a wizard who could exorcize demons. What was with not letting people sleep every night?

Liang Shu and Liu Xian’an remained in the blacksmith’s shop. Song Changsheng said: “This is the first time I have admired the prince’s sword so closely.”

“In Song-xiansheng’s eyes, how does this sword look?”

“It is a peerless sword,” Song Changsheng praised. “Three hundred years in the past and three hundred years in the future, it might be difficult to find such a good, hard piece of black iron. It can be seen that the craftsman put a lot of effort into making the sword, and even I cannot find any faults. It is a pity that there is no name for such a sword.”

“The sword was given to me by Emperor Brother. He didn’t say what the name of the sword was, so I didn’t ask.” Liang Shu smiled. “But as long as it’s long enough and sharp enough to attack and kill the enemy, it doesn’t matter what it is called.” 

Liu Xian’an also took the sword curiously, and it was so heavy that it took him two hands to lift it. Liang Shu held his arms and took him away from the fire, taking the sword back as he said with a frown: “If you want to go back and play, I will let you play slowly. Messing around here, be careful not to get caught in the fire.”

This made the powerful sword that protected the border sound like a toy that could be played with casually. Song Changsheng was a person who had been married, and with just a word and a glance, he could tell the unusual relationship between these two. Half astonished and half envious, he thought of his dead wife. His eyes became hot again, and he hurriedly turned to hide them: “Your Highness, this sword is too heavy. If Second Young Master Liu wants one, I will forge a shorter, lighter one for him.”

“No need.” Before Liu Xian’an could speak, Liang Shu refused on his behalf, saying, “But I do want to ask you for a sword.”

Song Changsheng asked: “What sword does the prince want?”

“A Pojun sword.”

“All right.” Song Changsheng was very straightforward. He nodded in agreement and said: “It is only that I initially wanted to die, so I threw all the swords into the furnace and melted them into a puddle of molten iron. If the prince wants one, I will have to start from scratch, and it will take at least half a month.”

“I’m not in a hurry, take your time.” Liang Shu said, “If you can’t finish it in Raven City, just go to the Northwest Military Camp to continue. You should also take a look at the weapons workshop built in the desert. When all the bellows are pulled at once, it can light up the entire sky. It is not sophisticated, but it is spectacular.”

The number one swordsmith of the Central Plains was not wooed away by the Baifu Sect, but was firmly tied to the Northwest Garrison by Liang Shu. Song Changsheng had no opinion on this either. He considered himself a person who had already died once, and all the rest of his life had been gathered back. He also admired His Royal Highness Xiao Wang and was naturally willing to follow him with all his heart, working together to eradicate the cult and protect the stability of his homeland.

The three of them stayed at the blacksmith’s shop for most of the night. After returning to the manor, A-Ning brought hot water for washing. Liang Shu watched Liu Xian’an wash his face for a moment, and couldn’t help but ask: “Why haven’t you asked me why I want that Pojun sword?”

Liu Xian’an raised his head, rinsed his mouth, and replied: “It is to give to Young Head Escort Chang.”

Liang Shu was taken aback: “You can also calculate this?”

Liu Xian’an wiped his face with a handkerchief and replied in a muffled voice: “It is recorded in the books that a Pojun sword is two foot three in length and two cun in width. It is shorter and wider than ordinary swords, and Chang Xiaoqiu’s sword is just that long and wide.”

Liang Shu: “…….”

It can be calculated that you are very capable.

A-Ning waited for his young master to wash up, and when he picked up the wooden basin to change the water, his eyes were still turning wildly. Liang Shu didn’t understand, and waited until the door was closed to ask: “You master and servant, what kind of charade are you playing?”

“It’s nothing.” Liu Xian’an waved his hand perfunctorily.

Liang Shu refused to give up: “Speak!”

“Ai, it’s really nothing.” Liu Xian’an sat on a small stool to soak his feet. The water was too hot, and his whole body was steaming, his face flushed red.

“Will you say it or not?” Liang Shu crouched down in front of him, reaching out to hold one thin ankle.

Liu Xian’an: “…….”

After a long silence, he exhaled briskly. Your Highness, don’t throw dirty handkerchiefs everywhere.

Liang Shu reacted: “Pfft.”

He lowered his head and pressed a kiss to the other’s knee: “What are you saying?”

I didn’t say anything, and I didn’t want to say anything. Liu Xian’an wanted to cover his mouth, but considering that he had just touched his feet with his hands, it wouldn’t be good. So he struggled to move back, warning that if this kind of thing happened too much, it would result in kidney deficiency.

Liang Shu said: “I’m not that weak, you give me a try.”

---

Chapter Eighty-Nine << Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety-One

The meeting didn’t last very long. After all, although the species of the giant insect had been determined, nobody had actually had contact with it.

And Luo Ran didn’t want Lucas to harm it for the time being, so the military department had not taken any action at present.

The giant insect was an EX1, which came from an unknown subterranean source, and the red lines on its back and on the surface of the UNK were made of energy from underground magma.

Presently, it had been determined that the insect came from the ground in the eastern part of Luobing. The excavation projects there were too frequent and deep, which even changed the geology, drawing the insect up.

EX1 was originally small in size, but it could absorb the energy of the land and the planet’s crust to make a hard shell for itself to protect it from enemies and magma. During the manufacturing process, it released radiant energy, just like humans breathed oxygen and released carbon dioxide.

This was the energy that changed the nature of stone, turning it into UNK.

Luo Ran had also evolved to 3S or above after absorbing the insect’s radiation, and his hair had genetically changed to silver.

Now that the First Prince had fallen, no one intended to harass the insect to produce UNK. And the Second Prince had handed over the decision to Lucas, who had the final say.

In the end, Lucas decided to go and see for himself, and Luo Ran insisted on following.

The two boarded the battleship and traveled to the cave where EX1 currently lived.

They were currently on the Luobing frontier where it met Empire territory, not far from Chonghua City.

The outskirts of Chonghua City, near the snowy mountain where Luo Ran and Kleiman discovered Cyril’s communicator before, was also the current stronghold of the star pirates. The new ice mine was easy to defend and difficult to attack.

The giant insect had initially been discovered at the mountain, and it seemed that it hadn’t gone far and was still nearby.

It was also possible that the star pirates were mining a large amount of UNK nearby non-stop, and the energy fluctuation was so large that it interfered with the insect.

Luo Ran and Lucas were on the aircraft, and Luo Ran sighed: “EX1 may be the materialization of our greed. If we hadn’t exploited resources excessively, it wouldn’t have come up and caused so much trouble.”

“En.” Lucas said: “Follow me closely later, understand?”

“I understand.” Luo Ran said with a smile: “Admiral, I’ve said many times that I can still work and do things while pregnant. Don’t go without me just because of this.”

“I want to take care of you.” Lucas glared and said: “You’re really fragile now!”

“Aiya, we’re here.” Luo Ran changed the topic and pointed to the window.

It was getting dark outside as they slowly entered the cave.

Behind them followed a large platoon of troops, along with geological researchers.

The closer they got to the depths of the cave, the louder the sound of the detector was, sending out a warning.

Lucas and Luo Ran boarded a small, light aircraft and left the battleship.

As they went through a small passage, they saw a huge creature clinging to the stone wall of the cave, almost occupying the entire wall.

The giant insect had a square head, and just one of its feet was as big as Lucas’s small aircraft. On the back of the giant insect was a piece of hard armor covered with glowing crimson lines.

It seemed to be sleeping as it made its armor, the surrounding stones slowly turning silver.

—Rumble

The giant insect seemed to sense that there were outsiders, and its body moved.

Dust flew.

Then the insect rushed toward the aircraft where Luo Ran was.

? !

Although the insect was huge, its movements were not clumsy. It moved like a fighter.

But a creature that lived under magma couldn’t be clumsy.

Everyone was startled, but they had been ordered not to shoot at will, so they just kept alert and activated their weapons, ready to engage at any time.

The strange thing was that the insect didn’t attack them, but ran after Lucas and Luo Ran’s aircraft, trying to break the glass with its feet, as if trying to rob Lucas of Luo Ran.

Lucas controlled the aircraft, flexibly dodging the insect, and cursed in a low voice: “Fuck! It’s targeting you.”

“En.” Luo Ran frowned slightly.

“You have radiation in your body. It doesn’t want to eat you, does it?” Lucas cursed. “Retreat! Everyone retreat first!”

After the army retreated through the small passage, Lucas planned to catch up. This was a mine specially sought out by Lucas and the others to facilitate evacuation. Because it was so small, it would collapse and block the path if the insect caught up with them.

“Wait…..!”

Luo Ran had been carefully observing the insect.

Ever since Xhi Zhi mentioned EX1, Luo Ran had carefully memorized the insect’s behavior.

The insect could actually breathe fire to attack the enemy, and if it was in a state of rage and attacked, the lines on its back would be brighter and produce the energy of bursting flames.

Luo Ran pressed his temples tightly.

Perhaps because he was the one who absorbed the insect’s radiation to survive, he was a humanoid UNK, and could feel the insect’s emotions and thoughts.

“Admiral.” Luo Ran held Lucas’s hand and said: “Let’s jump out.”

“Are you crazy?”

“Trust me. Jump out.” Luo Ran said: “I wouldn’t lead you into a dangerous situation.”

“……..”

Lucas said: “Okay, I’ll switch the aircraft to spiritual driving mode. We’ll get out together.”

Lucas had absolute trust in Luo Ran.

“One……”

“Two……”

While dodging the insect’s attacks, Lucas cooperated with Luo Ran.

“Three!”

Boom! Suddenly, the two of them were ejected from the cabin, and their parachutes opened. At the same time, the glass of the aircraft was smashed by the insect’s feet, and fell into the dust with no one controlling it.

Lucas wasn’t worried. There were small passages here that the bug couldn’t reach, where he could hide with Luo Ran.

The insect stopped attacking after it realized that Luo Ran had landed on the ground, and just stared at him blankly.

Luo Ran couldn’t locate the insect’s eyes, but he could sense that he was being watched.

“……”

“……”

The surroundings were silent. A person and an insect stared at each other.

Lucas stood to the side with his hand on his weapon, on guard at all times.

After a while, Luo Ran stretched out his hand.

The insect stretched out its front leg.

Lucas: “……”

Luo Ran closed his eyes and felt carefully, then whispered: “It thinks I’m its child, and it wants to take me underground.”

The insect didn’t understand that the human body couldn’t withstand the temperature underground.

“Why?” Lucas frowned, feeling incredulous.

“Because I am the fruit of its ‘breeding.’”

“Then will it steal you?” Lucas didn’t move his hand from the gun on his waist.

“……I don’t know, I just know that it won’t hurt us or other humans.” Luo Ran touched the foot of the giant insect.

Luo Ran tried to take a couple of steps back.

The insect moved forward a little with a rustle.

And it stretched out its giant foot very lightly and slowly, perhaps in order not to disturb Luo Ran, and rested it on Lucas’s shoulder.

Lucas: “…….”

Lucas was also afraid of disturbing the insect, so he only frowned slightly and didn’t move.

Then the insect pushed Lucas away.

Away from Luo Ran.

Rather disdainfully.

Lucas: “……”

Luo Ran suppressed a smile and said: “Admiral…..we might have to force our way out.”

Although the insect wouldn’t hurt Luo Ran, it wanted to snatch him away, and a person couldn’t go underground.

Luo Ran tried to use his spiritual connection with the insect, but the insect couldn’t understand.

“Okay.” Lucas used the communicator attached to his ear to contact the people outside, and asked them to prepare the aircraft.

Wang Qiuyang led the team to sneak in silently. Soon after, Lucas put down the gun and raised his hand to knock down the insect without warning, then grabbed Luo Ran and rushed toward the small passage.

“Zhi—!”

The insect was huge, and was only stunned for a moment before catching up again.

The two jumped into the aircraft and rushed toward the exit.

“Zhi—!”

The passage collapsed with the insect inside, sealing it on the other side of the stone.

. . . . . . . .

This trip was quite rewarding. The researchers collected samples, which allowed them to conduct a deeper investigation, and Luo Ran found out the insect’s purpose. As for how it should be dealt with, they would have to wait for a detailed report from the researchers to see if there was any solution.

Once Lucas knew what was going on, he didn’t really want to kill the insect unless there was no other way.

“There’s this.”

On the battleship, Luo Ran smiled and took out a small plant from his pocket.

The leaves were light blue with a silvery gleam, soft and small.

“What is this?” Lucas frowned.

Luo Ran said: “This is a plant that grows in UNK caves. It’s the food I ate in the cave when I was young. I just remembered after seeing it.”

Luo Ran recalled what Xia Zhi had said before, that all things were born to balance each other.

There was no way to alleviate the side effects of UNK. He was a living person who had absorbed radiation but lived until now, and his spiritual strength had been injured because of Lucas, not because of the radiation. But during Luo Ran’s time in the cave, he did nothing other than drink the water in the cave and eat this plant.

“……En.”

Lucas thought to himself, this Luo Ran was quite capable…..as they were escaping the insect, he could bring such a thing with deft hands.

Luo ran handed the plant to the researchers, and only said with a smile: “Just wait for Xia Zhi’s test results.”

. . . . . . . .

After going back to rest, Lucas and Luo Ran went to visit Rong An, who was still recuperating in the battleship’s ward.

Rong Duo was also there.

She had originally not gone along with the army, but after hearing about her brother, she wanted to come and see him. Luo Ran made an exception and asked a team to escort her here so that she could take care of Rong An on the battleship.

When they pushed open the door, Luo Xingyuan was there.

“How was it?” Luo Xingyuan asked. “Did the trip go well?”

Luo Ran replied: “It was fine. We’ll wait for the test reports, and then have a meeting to make a decision.”

“Okay, don’t get too tired.” Luo Xingyuan glanced at Luo Ran’s stomach.

After hearing the news, Luo Xingyuan finally had a smile on his face, which had been gloomy due to the matter of Rong An for the past few days.

This was his precious little nephew or niece.

Rong Duo glanced at Rong An, who was leaning against the head of the bed. He had finally woken up after being in a coma for several days. Rong An’s face was half covered with bandages, and his eyes were red as he sat to the side.

As she held a pot of hot soup, Rong Duo’s shoulders shook as she began to cry.

“Gege…..”

Rong Duo swallowed and said: “I…..I…..”

“It’s okay.” Rong An said helplessly: “Xiao Duo, come here.”

“Wuwuwu……” Rong Duo said shakily: “I’m sorry, I seem to be..…hic…..wu…..”

“I’m really fine. Dr. Xia and the others said that I can also walk with prosthetics.” Rong An rubbed the top of Rong Duo’s hair and said: “Don’t cry, Secretary Luo is going to laugh at you.”

“Hiccup…..” Rong Duo leaned on Rong An’s shoulder and buried her head in his chest as she gasped.

“It’s all right.” Luo Ran smiled and said: “I haven’t formally thanked Adjutant Rong yet.”

Luo Ran bowed deeply to Rong An.

“Thank you for saving me.”

Lucas also said: “Thank you, Rong An.”

It was Rong An who protected his Luo Ran.

“It’s really okay.” Flattered, Rong An said: “Many other soldiers were injured more severely than me. I’m already doing well, it really doesn’t matter. Secretary Luo doesn’t need to think about it in the future, anyone would have done the same. This is my responsibility.”

“Thank you anyway.” Luo Ran said seriously: “I will definitely help you if you need anything in the future.”

“T-Then…..” Rong Duo was still very emotional at the moment, her cheeks red as she said: “Gege can’t continue to be an adjutant……”

Rong An was disabled now, and even if he could walk with prosthetic limbs, he could not longer perform the duties of an adjutant.

Rong Duo turned her head to look at Luo Ran with red and swollen eyes, and said: “Then, can Secretary Luo help send my brother to logistics?”

She knew that if Rong An lost his job in the military, he would be very upset.

Rong An immediately frowned, and stopped her: “Xiao Duo, we’ll handle this later…..”

“I’ll take care of him,” Luo Xingyuan said suddenly.

Rong Duo was taken aback, and so was Rong An.

Luo Xingyuan said earnestly: “Don’t worry, Xiao Duo. I’ll take care of your brother in the future. Even if he’s not an adjutant, I have many other civil servants by my side.”

“Ah…..?”

Rong An said with a frown: “You don’t need to…..”

“I said, I’ll take care of you in the future.” Luo Xingyuan disregarded Rong An, and just smiled at Rong Duo. “Is that okay?”

“…..O-Okay?” Rong Duo was stunned, and she realized that Luo Xingyuan’s care seemed to be more than just a superior’s care for a subordinate.

Rong Duo probably never thought in her life that she and Luo Ran would become in-laws.

. . . . . . .

After they left the room, Lucas rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“What is it, Admiral?”

Lucas said: “Rong An called your brother and you the informal ‘you.’”

“……”

Lucas turned his head and said sadly: “But you use ‘Admiral’ and the formal ‘you.’”^[1]

“……”

Luo Ran said helplessly: “It’s been so many years, I can’t change my words.”

“Then change them now.”

Lucas said with a straight face: “Call me by my name.”

Luo Ran hesitated for a moment, then said stiffly: “Lucas…..”

Lucas was like a lion who had eaten meat, and said happily: “Here!”

“…….”

“Call me again!”

“……Don’t make trouble.”

“Then call me gege.” Lucas blocked him against the wall and said fiercely: “Quick, call me Lucas-gege.”

“……”

Give him an inch, and he would take a mile.

“Lucas…..gege.” Luo Ran was very resigned, and said with red ears: “Okay, Admiral, there are people coming and going in the corridor.”

“Then you have to call me Lucas from now on. You can’t use the formal ‘you.’”

Luo Ran glanced at Lucas, and suddenly felt a bit like teasing him.

“Adm – Lucas.”

“En?”

“I use the formal ‘you’ because…..” Luo Ran said with a smile: “You are in my heart.”

“…….”

“Corny love talk. I learned it from you.” Luo Ran raised his eyebrows.

“…….”

The Imperial lion’s face turned red.

---

[1] Luo Ran refers to Lucas with the more respectful and formal you (您) rather than the informal you (你). ⮐

---

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Chapter Ninety << Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety-Two

In late May in the Imperial Capital, the temperature finally showed signs of rising again.

The breeze that came when the windows were open at night was comfortable, and no longer chilly.

Pei Yi carefully inspected the electronic contract sent by Gu Jianshen and forwarded it to his friend.

“Pear Garden, please confirm the details again. If there’s no problem, the signing process can be sped up.”

Li Yuan on the other side of the screen made an “ok” gesture, and asked proactively, “Have you talked to your family member?”

Pei Yi’s eyes flickered. “Not yet. I’m planning on talking to him tonight.”

Li Yuan seemed to understand his friend’s hesitation, and asked, “How about when the time comes, I go over and keep an eye out for you?”

Pei Yi raised his lips and teased, “Come on, I don’t want Mr. Yan to cause trouble for me. How could he let you go?”

Li Yuan sent a string of ellipses, likely shy.

Pei Yi glanced at the time in the lower right corner. “It’s best to leave this matter to me. Don’t worry about it, we’ll talk when we meet at the studio tomorrow. I’ll log off first.”

As soon as this line of text was sent, there was a knock on the room door.

Pei Yi moved his eyes away and said, “Come in.”

Bo Yueming pushed the door open and walked in, followed by the increasingly plump Inspector. “Are you finished?”

Since Pei Yi had moved into the master bedroom, the previous small room had become his dedicated home workplace.

Pei Yi noticed that Bo Yueming had already washed up and put on his house clothes. He stood up and moved around a bit before inviting, “Er-ge, want a drink? We can go to the rooftop upstairs.”

Bo Yueming had this intention, and went along with his thoughts. “Okay, what kind of wine do you want tonight?”

Pei Yi drew close and held his hand. “You help me pick something out.”

“Okay.”

. . . . . . .

Five minutes later, the rooftop door opened.

Some time ago, according to his own wishes, Bo Yueming had asked Uncle Kai to help rearrange this corner that had been neglected for many years—

The rooftop now had fully automated retractable glass windows, and there was a tent and oversized cushions on the ground for overnight stays.

Pei Yi reclined on the super spacious cushioned sofa and looked up at the night. There was still a little bit of light left.

He took a deep breath and said, “Er-ge, everything is perfect, only there aren’t many visible stars. Yanshan Mountain was better.”

Bo Yueming coaxed him patiently, “Wait a little longer. The weather will be hot next month, and we should be able to see more stars. Or, I can take you to Yanshan Mountain after a while?”

Pei Yi chuckled, feeling a bit of yearning.

Bo Yueming handed over the opened bottle. “The wine I chose today is a bit strong, so you can only drink a glass at most.”

Pei Yi looked at the small-capacity goblet and emphasized, “I haven’t started drinking yet and you’re looking after me? My drinking ability has improved now.”

Bo Yueming calmly sat down next to him, and took the initiative to chase after and touch the wine glass in his hand. “This is enough. I’m afraid you’ll get a headache if you drink too much.”

Pei Yi drank half a glass disbelievingly. The alcohol was strong, and sure enough, his insides were “burned.”

Bo Yueming frowned and said, “Drink slowly.”

Pei Yi used this strength to open up what was hidden in his heart. “Er-ge, actually, I have something to tell you.”

Bo Yueming heard the hesitation in his words and looked over. “What is it?”

Pei Yi thought for a moment, and said, “After the first round of internal testing of ‘The Last Fog,” I reached a partnership agreement with Weiyi headquarters over in Haishi. It’s a movie game about Chinese folklore and supernatural phenomena.”

YWY Studios was responsible for the script structure, Weiyi was responsible for the overall shooting and editing, and subsequent publicity and operations would be separated according to their respective content sections.

Pei Yi explained the content of the partnership. “…..The final profits will be based on a 40-60 share ratio.”

Because his lover’s career was related to “games,” Bo Yueming worked on many industry-related things in his spare time. 

He understood the shrewdness involved as soon as he heard it. “A major game company like Weiyi was willing to reach this share ratio with you?”

Speaking of this, Pei Yi was still a little proud. “A negotiated it based on my ability. Amazing, right?”

From the initial 20-80 to the current 40-60, Pei Yi’s full efforts were indispensable.

Bo Yueming praised him from the bottom of his heart, “Amazing.”

Pei Yi held the wine glass and moved closer. “You know, YWY is currently only a game studio. If we want to move to the next level, in addition to ‘The Last Fog’ that gave us a foothold, we also need other platforms and channels.”

And cooperating with a big company like Weiyi was the easiest way to increase their popularity. As long as the work created by both parties was outstanding enough, as the chief creator of the game script, he could take YWY one step further!

Bo Yueming nodded slightly. “I hear what you mean. Has the script been polished and prepared? Is it about to enter the filming stage now?”

He had never touched on the topic of “movie games,” but could get a rough meaning from the literal words.

Pei Yi replied, “It’s divided into two parts. The game concept and script of the first part have been perfected, and the prototype of the second part is also done, but it still needs a month or two of polishing.”

Ever since Pei Yi had an urge to make a “movie game,” he had begun to experiment with the setting of the game’s story in his free time and developed a complete plot outline.

Opportunities were always reserved for those who were prepared. After reaching an intention to cooperate with Gu Jianshen and Weiyi in March—

Pei Yi’s story concept was initially confirmed, and the production team at Weiyi also found relevant actors according to the game’s character settings.

There were few people involved in this kind of market, so it was naturally better to test the waters and seize it as quickly as possible.

Bo Yueming never doubted his lover’s capability and efficiency. He casually asked, “En, where are you filming?”

Pei Yi was stuck for a moment. “Haishi.”

Bo Yueming once again noticed something and asked slowly, “Kitten, it seems you still have something to tell me?”

“…….”

Pei Yi set the wine glass back on the coffee table next to him and moved closer, as if snuggling up. “Er-ge, let me discuss something with you. Because of this movie game, I have to go on a business trip to Haishi for a while. Is that okay?”

Bo Yueming heard this expected answer and said calmly, “How long will it take? When will you leave?”

Pei Yi’s Adam’s apple rolled slightly. “I’m thinking of booking a flight for the day after tomorrow. If all goes well, I’ll probably be back in a month and a half.”

Bo Yueming saw his lover’s cautiousness, and he frowned

Pei Yi was keenly aware of his emotions, and explained, “Er-ge, listen to me, this partnership project must be monitored by our YWY people.”

The Last Fog had completed three rounds of internal testing, and the number of reservations exceeded one million. It had also successfully obtained the external distribution rights of the game.

It would be officially launched for public beta on June 1st. Judging from the current preparations, there should be no major problems.

Lou Yang and Xiang Nansheng could take over all matters after the game was launched, not to mention that Li Yuan, the operations manager, was in charge.

But the upcoming movie game project was different—

“I’m the chief creator of the game script. If the matter is left to Li Yuan and others, it won’t be as clear as if I’m the one doing it.”

“And I want to use this opportunity to develop contacts in the Haishi gaming circle while cooperating with Weiyi.”

Bo Yueming saw Pei Yi’s eagerness to persuade him, and his hand on holding the wine glass unconsciously gripped tighter. He didn’t answer, remaining silent.

Pei Yi thought he disagreed. “Er-ge, I promise to come back when I’m done. And we can still talk on WeChat and the phone every day, right?”

Bo Yueming felt an indescribable depression when he heard his lover’s increasingly weak tone. He lowered his eyes to the wine glass in his hand and drank the wine in it.

A forceful idea was burning in his heart.

Bo Yueming ignored this uneasy feeling and nodded in agreement. “Okay, I understand. It’s getting late, let’s go back and rest.”

“…….”

Pei Yi’s heart shrank upon hearing this, and he tugged at Bo Yueming. “Er-ge, wait a minute!”

He leaned on his hands and knees into his lover’s arms. “Are you angry?”

Bo Yueming denied it. “No.”

Pei Yi didn’t believe this, and was immediately a little confused. “Don’t be angry. Then, then I won’t go! I won’t go, okay?”

Bo Yueming looked into the eyes of the person in his arms, which were trembling due to his great uneasiness, and was full of complexities that he had nowhere to vent.

He endured it again and again, and finally asked, “Pei Yi, who do you think I am?”

Pei Yi’s hand on his lover’s arm tightened, and he showed a rare trace of confusion. “Huh?”

Bo Yueming asked him bluntly, “Do I disregard right and wrong all day long and only know how to be jealous and lose my temper? Or am I just the kind of boyfriend who wants to tie you to my side, not let you go, and continue to obstruct your career?”

Pei Yi shook his head. “Er-ge, that’s not what I mean.”

Bo Yueming said what he was concerned about the most, “From the moment you and Weiyi reached a consensus and partnership, you were destined to go on a business trip to Haishi for work, but you kept hiding it from me!”

He had kept it a secret from the end of March until now, and even the flight had been booked, so he intended to act first and explain later!

What did this mean? It meant that he didn’t trust him!

“Did you think that if I knew about this, I wouldn’t agree to you going to Haishi?”

Bo Yueming suppressed his unspeakable grievance and disappointment, his voice trembling, “I said I would support all of your decisions, and in the end—”

“You think I will still stand in the way of your career? Is that it?”

“…….”

Pei Yi was startled.

He didn’t expect Bo Yueming to think like this at all.

Bo Yueming’s eyes wavered, and he looked at the other with rare uncertainty. “Kitten, am I not matching your feelings enough? Or have you ever truly accepted me from beginning to end?”

“That’s not true!”

It was the first time Pei Yi had heard Bo Yueming speak in such a tone, and the uneasiness in his heart suddenly expanded by several degrees. “It’s not like that, I’ve never thought of it that way!”

Bo Yueming kissed his head half-heartedly. “Then what are you thinking? You have to tell me.”

Pei Yi leaned against his shoulder, trying to clear his thoughts. “I admit that I was a little hesitant to tell you, but I never thought you would object.”

“Bo Yueming, I know better than anyone else that you will support my career and decisions.”

“You are my other half, how could I not accept you?” Pei Yi’s voice was a little choked. “If I was deliberately rejecting you, then why would I confess in the first place and enter this relationship with you?”

He recalled the words of disappointment that Bo Yueming had just spoken, feeling both distressed and aggrieved. “…..It’s because I haven’t done well enough that you think of me like this, right?”

Bo Yueming couldn’t bear to hear Pei Yi choking with self-blame. He reached out to rub the back of the other’s neck, apologizing, “I said the wrong thing in a moment of impatience. Darling, don’t cry.”

Pei Yi raised his head and looked at him again, his eyes slightly red. “I’m just a little afraid of strange places.”

Rather than being afraid that Bo Yueming would object, what actually made Pei Yi hesitate more was a long-distance relationship.

“Since the partnership was confirmed, it’s not that I haven’t thought about finding someone to go to Haishi instead of me, it’s just that I haven’t found the right one.”

Bo Yueming gently stroked the tips of his eyes. “What are you afraid of?”

“What else could I be afraid of?” Pei Yi couldn’t help but tilt his head and rub lightly against his lover’s palm, saying whatever came to mind—

“I’m afraid that once I’m busy with work, I won’t have time to look at my phone, and I’ll ignore you if I’m not careful.”

“I’m also afraid that when I’m sleeping in a strange place, I’ll have insomnia all night without you holding me to sleep.”

“I’m even more afraid that something will happen to us when we’re apart, that one of us will be wronged, but we’ll be afraid of worrying each other and deliberately hide it.”

“I saw people on the internet saying that long-distance relationships are the most likely to cause problems.”

Pei Yi thought about the interlude that had almost caused trouble just now, and felt depressed. “I started my career so that I could legitimately stand side by side with you, not to quarrel and break up with you.”

Bo Yueming heard his abruptly cute tone and felt helpless. “What are you thinking about? Why do you assume that we will quarrel and break up in the future?”

Pei Yi saw the person in front of him laughing, and mumbled more and more, “If you have a career and lose your love, then it’s better not to go. Anyway, with a third of an acre in the Imperial Capital, I shouldn’t starve to death.”

Bo Yueming asked, “You’ll just stay in the capital? You don’t want YWY Studios to move up a level?”

Pei Yi nodded, then shook his head.

Ever since he decided on returning to the “game” path after transmigrating, Pei Yi had imagined leaving his mark on the Imperial Capital, Haishi, and even the entirety of China!

From beginning to end, his ambition was still there!

Therefore, after facing Gu Jianshen’s invitation to cooperate, Pei Yi was impulsive and bold in negotiating their partnership.

Bo Yueming had already broken away from his emotional state just now, and gazed seriously at his lover. “I’ve always known that you have your own career ambitions, and you also know what you want.”

“You want to rely on yourself, you don’t want me and the Bo family to help too much, and you don’t want me to be distracted by you, right?”

Pei Yi nodded. He knew better than anyone else—

If he had confessed from the beginning that “I have to go to Haishi because of work, but I’m afraid of a long-distance relationship,” Bo Yueming would probably have made arrangements and left Bo Group behind to accompany him.

The current YWY could not be managed without Pei Yi, just like the current Bo Group could not be managed without Bo Yueming in control.

Pei Yi returned to his senses. “I have my career, and you have your responsibilities. I don’t want either of us to yield in one direction.”

Bo Yueming had guessed that he would answer like this. He said with a gentler tone and a firmer heart, “Pei Yi, you can do whatever you want and go wherever you want, but don’t worry that being apart will affect our relationship.”

“You and I are going to be together forever! What I said about ‘one day, one month, one year’ counts for a lifetime, do you understand?”

How could Pei Yi not understand what his lover meant? His smile overflowed.

A lifetime?

He didn’t know when it happened, but this word had lost its previous ambiguity and distance. It seemed that as long as he persisted, Bo Yueming would definitely accompany him to the end.

Pei Yi drew closer like a clingy kitten. “Er-ge, I’m sorry.”

“I didn’t report my trip to Haishi in time. I didn’t do well, but don’t doubt that you are important to me. Especially important.”

Bo Yueming smiled and kissed him. “I was anxious just now. I shouldn’t talk carelessly.”

Pei Yi laughed and said, “Then I forgive you. Let’s stop talking about this unpleasantness, okay?”

“Okay.”

The wind was stronger on the rooftop.

Although it wasn’t cold, Bo Yueming was still worried that Pei Yi would catch a chill. As usual, he picked his lover up and walked to the master bedroom on the second floor.

“Little Sir, although I do not object to you going to Haishi, I still have something to say to you.”

“Ah?”

Bo Yueming laid him down on the bed and kissed him, saying vaguely, “You can socialize like normal at work, but don’t get too close to other people. Be careful, as I might make surprise inspections at any time.”

Pei Yi raised his head up. “I understand. You’re being sour.”

. . . . . . . 

Two days later, Imperial Capital Airport.

As an assistant, Qiao Dong checked in the luggage and ran back. “Brother Yi, Mr. Li, it’s almost time to go.”

Pei Yi took his ID back from Qiao Dong’s hand and said, “En, you go through the security check first.”

When Qiao Dong saw these pairs, there was smoke under his feet as he ran away quickly.

Li Yuan and Pei Yi met eyes and picked up their backpacks. “Let’s go.”

Yan Cen stood next to them. He lightly hooked his lover’s hair with his fingertips and whispered, “When you arrive in Haishi, remember to let me know you’re safe. Can we have a video call tonight?”

Pei Yi  saw this sappiness and pulled his friend aside. “I say, that’s enough, ah! Li Yuan will only go with me for three or four days and come back when the signing is done. Look how nervous you are.”

Yan Cen glanced at Bo Yueming. “Am I the only one who’s nervous?”

Bo Yueming didn’t pay attention to his friend’s words, but turned to his lover as always. “Go through the security check. Call me if you need anything.”

Everything that needed to be said had been said at home. Their relationship could withstand this little test of being away from home.

Pei Yi understood everything that was left unsaid, and took Li Yuan to the security checkpoint.

Yan Cen stared as his lover’s figure disappeared through the security gate, and sighed jokingly, “Your family just went to Haishi by himself, and he kidnapped my family.”

It took a lot of coaxing and wheedling to get them to live together, and he was running away to Haishi in just a few days.

Bo Yueming turned around and walked to the underground parking lot. “Do you think I’m happy?”

If Bo Group hadn’t been left to him and arrangements weren’t impossible at the moment, he would have wanted to go to Haishi with his lover.

Yan Cen pushed up his glasses slightly and hooked his shoulder. “Let’s go have a drink tonight?”

“Okay.”

Bo Yueming suppressed his reluctance to part with his lover, and tried his best not to let his emotions show.

The two walked side by side to the underground parking lot, and a WeChat message from Pei Yi popped up on Bo Yueming’s phone.

— Already arrived in the waiting room, I miss you! [kitty kiss]

Bo Yueming stared at the screen intently for a long moment, and the corners of his lips suddenly started to rise.

Yan Cen didn’t peek at his friend’s private matters, but asked out of curiosity, “Why are you smiling?”

The haze of farewell enveloping Bo Yueming’s body lessened a bit, and he had no intention of showing off at all. “It’s nothing, my family just said he missed me.”

---

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Chapter Eighty-Eight <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety

The house was very quiet, without a sound.

“Holy Maiden,” the servant called out again, kneeling on the ground. He didn’t dare to raise his head, and only worshiped the empty chair in front of him as a sacred object.

Moonlight shone through the window lattices, making everything in the room look extraordinarily pale. Time seemed to be frozen in this place, everything isolated from the world, and the occasional noises of barking dogs and people on the street could not reach his ears. The window on the other side was open, and Gao Lin and a group of guards hid in the darkness, watching the boy’s extremely pious worship from haishi to zishi, and then to choushi. If he didn’t move his body a little from time to time, the guards would almost think that they were staring at a corpse or a sculpture.

His prayers lasted the entire night.

The watchmen also kept watch all night. It was getting brighter at this time, and the number of people on the main street next door gradually increased. Gao Lin said: “This house is empty. He’s just a discarded fish, and we can’t catch any bigger ones, so let’s just catch him.”

The boy was already half-frozen from the cold, and when he was dragged up, his body was paralyzed as if he had been pricked by a needle. He didn’t struggle, as if he completely lost the ability to think and his whole body was baptized into a puppet for the cult. Gao Lin led his men to thoroughly search the house. The place was scrubbed clean, and only a silver hairpin was found in a cabinet, inlaid with precious stones and butterflies.

He brought this thing back to the government office.

Liang Shu asked: “Who is the owner of that house?”

Gao Lin said: “It is registered under the name of a butcher in the city. The government has already arrested him, and he is currently under trial. This person is also a member of the cult, and his status is not low. He has the tattoo of the Baifu Sect on his body.”

“Only this hairpin was found in the room?”

“Only this hairpin. As for the rest, there was not even a scrap of fabric, cleaner than a dog-licked plate.”

“We’ve seen this hairpin before,” Liu Xian’an reminded. “At the market during the new year, there were four butterfly-shaped hairpins in this set. I bought three of them for A-Yuan, and didn’t want the remaining one because the color was too bright. Does the prince have any impression of this?”

Liang Shu ordered Gao Lin to investigate, and the owner of the jewelry store was quickly brought in. He thought for a long time, and confessed that it was a girl in a yellow dress, saying: “That’s the one who kept asking if Third Young Lady Liu was pretty. After the prince and Young Master Liu left that day, she spent a long time choosing at my stall, and was finally urged by the people next to her to buy this in a hurry. She spent a lot of money and left without even asking for change.”

“Did she say anything else?”

“No, she only said those few words to Young Master Liu.”

She didn’t ask anything else other than how beautiful Liu Nanyuan was. After the jewelry store owner left, Liu Xian’an said to Liang Shu: “Could that have been Wumeng Yunle in disguise?”

“It is possible.” Liang Shu said, “Perhaps she came to the city to confuse the servant boy, or give some kind of reward, so that he could become a pawn of the cult even more determinedly.”

Song Changsheng had single-handedly caused the explosion on top of White Crown, destroying the Central Plains forces that they had painstakingly arranged for a long time. In the eyes of the Baifu Sect, such a traitor must die, or their teachings would never be convincing in the future. Liang Shu had taken advantage of this to release the news in Raven City, bestowing gold and silver, and respecting Song Changsheng as a great hero who destroyed the cult. He made sure all the common people saw it — as long as you stood on the opposite side of the Baifu Sect, they could gain fame and fortune.

Driven by that fame and fortune, there really was a trend of purging and suppressing the cult in the city. In this situation, Liang Shu strengthened the protection around Song Changsheng. Aside from the doctor and servant, no one else could approach him at all. The meals, soups, and medicines he took every day, as long as they were brought in, they were all prepared by the people of Xiao Wang Palace. Not to mention poison, not even a fly could get past them.

With the paths of assassination and poisoning all blocked, there were only two paths left before the Baifu Sect. The first was to give up, but they would most likely not choose this, so there was only the second way left — start with the doctor and servant who were still close to Song Changsheng, and look for an opportunity to kill him.

Liu Xian’an said: “For them, the most trouble-free way is to send a prescription that could kill a person and convince us that it was the antidote. Otherwise, even if they successfully bribed a servant, the poison would not make it into Song-xiansheng’s bowl.”

Gao Lin reminded: “But they may not do it immediately.”

Liang Shu said: “Then force them to act as soon as possible.”

Gao Lin hesitated: “How do we force them to make a mistake? Those grandsons are shrewd and cautious. I fear it won’t be easy to lure the snake out of the hole.”

Liu Xian’an said from the side: “It’s simple. They must believe that Song-xiansheng is about to recover, and that once he’s recovered, he will be sent to the Northwest Military Camp immediately.” Sent to the Northwest Military Camp and guarded by thousands of troops, even if the Baifu Sect had great abilities in the future, it would be difficult to assassinate him. So if they wanted to eliminate Song Changsheng, they must seize the moment.

Thus, under the “treatment” of the miracle doctor, the blue veins on Song Changsheng’s face became lighter day by day, and he seemed to be improving rapidly. But in fact, Liu Xian’an really didn’t know what kind of poison it was, nor how to treat it, so he still only used ordinary detoxifying and heat-clearing herbs, as well as a bit of disguising techniques. He covered him in a layer every day, along with applying a little rouge to improve his complexion, also fooling the doctors and servants in the room.

Seeing that Song Changsheng’s condition was getting better by the day, there was indeed movement from the Baifu Sect, and the servant boy took the initiative to bring a dilapidated “ancient text” to A-Ning. Gao Lin said: “And what a seamless story they made up to lure us in. It turned out to just be this rotten book.”

“If we hadn’t prepared in advance, the appearance of this book might really have helped them complete their plan.” Liu Xian’an explained, “Although not all the herbs for detoxification recorded in the book are common, they are all available to normal people. There are also several excellent tonics in it with no murderous intentions.”

“I understand, I understand this,” Gao Lin responded quickly. “Separate, they are good medicines, but boiled together, they become poisonous. Although I don’t have medical skills, I have heard many stories in teahouses.”

Liu Xian’an shook his head: “Boiling them together still creates a tonic, and isn’t poisonous.”

Gao Lin didn’t understand: “Then where is the problem?”

Liu Xian’an said: “There is one possibility. These herbs are not poisonous, and they are not poisonous when boiled together, but if they are mixed with the poison already in Song-xiansheng’s body at this time, they will become a deadly poison.”

Gao Lin suddenly came to a realization. This unorthodox method was indeed sinister and cunning. With the prescription, Liu Xian’an plunged into the vast sea of books and mobilized his friends in white to search for an answer together. He could be seen lying on the table in a daze, and the second time a person passed by the room, he would be lying in bed asleep, and the third time he was standing by the window with his hands on his hips, looking into the distance.

Such a unique way of working, no wonder that Master Liu beat his son with a stick every day — most people really didn’t understand.

Only Liang Shu understood. When going to bed at night, he held his sweetheart who had been lying in bed all day in his arms, and asked: “Are you tired after working all day?”

Liu Xian’an sighed deeply. Very tired, ah.

Liang Shu leaned in and kissed him.

Kissing didn’t require thinking, and there was no need to move. It was very comfortable. So one more thing was added to the definition of bliss in Second Young Master Liu’s heart. He was bitten on the lips by the other party, kissed until he dreamed, and that world was also dripping wet. The next day, he continued to work with rosy and slightly swollen lips.

A-Ning was simple and pure: “Young Master, why are you so hot in the winter?”

Liu Xian’an lay on his back with his legs crossed, flipping through the books in his mind, and replied, oh, it’s not because I’m hot, I was bitten by the prince. I asked him to be gentle, but it still turned out like this.

A-Ning: “…….”

Don’t tell me in such detail!

Those friends in the Three Thousand Worlds had been busy for several days, and Liu Xian’an in reality also filled dozens of sheets of paper with all kinds of conjectures and densely packed names of medicinal herbs. In the end, by relying on the “antidote” prescription sent by the servant, a prescription was created that could really detoxify Song Changsheng.

When Liang Shu found him, the Sleeping Immortal who had completed the task was lying on the floor sound asleep, the wind blowing the rice paper all over the room. He sighed with an aching head and picked him up, carrying him to the bedroom.

“Huh?” Liu Xian’an opened his eyes in a daze.

“Sleep,” Liang Shu said. “Don’t wake up.”

Liu Xian’an raised his head slightly: “The prince seems to be in a bad mood.”

“You’re so tired, but you can still tell what mood I’m in?” Liang Shu kicked open the door and gently put him on the bed. “I’m not in a bad mood. I’m just calculating how many brocade and velvet blankets I must buy in the future to cover the entirety of Xiao Wang Palace, in order to cure your problem of being able to sleep on the floor.”

Liu Xian’an laughed and muttered something to himself, then turned around and continued to sleep. He slept for nearly ten hours, until he had completely recovered. Only then did he find Liang Shu to correct him, spreading blankets in Xiao Wang Palace would pamper him, but covering it with iron plates would cure him.

“Then do you want me to get used to it, or do you want to cure the disease?”

“Get used to it.”

Get used to it more, get used to it and become lawless. That was exactly what Liang Shu thought too. He smiled and pulled the other person into his arms, gently rubbing his temples with his thumbs: “After taking the medicine you prescribed, Song Changsheng’s health really improved, but he’s still pretending to be the same as before so that no one else will see it.”

“Then we can implement the next step of the plan.” Liu Xian’an stretched his waist. “I feel sore all over.”

“Sore, ah?” Liang Shu said, “Then I’ll massage you tonight.”

However, he was rejected. Because His Royal Highness Xiao Wang’s “massage” was not just a simple massage, but was often unspeakable touching and squeezing.

In the afternoon of that day, Liu Xian’an tried his best to disregard the objections of the other doctors, and used the antidote sent by the servant boy.

Song Changsheng logically “died.” Liu Xian’an even deduced what symptoms he should have before dying based on what he was poisoned with, and asked Song Changsheng to play along. Now, even if a cultist was standing beside the bed, he might not be able to see any flaws.

As for the boy, Liang Shu and Gao Lin both knew that he had a nine out of ten…..or ten out of ten probability of being an outcast, but they still decided to use him as bait for fishing, and arranged a guard to pretend to be a maid in white and rob the prison in the middle of the night. Although no big fish had been caught so far, at least the house and the butcher had been captured, which could not be considered a loss-making business.

Everything progressed according to Liang Shu’s expectations. The only thing that was not so pleasant was that the common people in the city were critical of Liu Xian’an’s medical skills, because the facts were in front of them, Song-xiansheng was put to death by him! It could be seen that the rumors could not be completely disbelieved. Although this Second Young Master Liu was as good-looking as an immortal, he was indeed an ignorant, lazy dandy.

Liu Xian’an himself was not bothered by this, because he could probably be called the one person in the world who didn’t care about fame. Seeing A-Ning crouching next to him and seeming unhappy, he pointed the jade fan in his hand to the sky and asked him: “Look at the current color of that cloud. Is that its real color? I don’t think so. The color of the sky is not the real color of the sky, and the color of the clouds is not the real color of the clouds. The colors of the sky and clouds are the colors that the world thinks they should have.”

After he talked endlessly for a long time, A-Ning fell asleep.

However, Liu Xian’an’s thoughts had already flown ninety thousand li away. He sighed, ah, life has a limit, but knowledge does not.

The news of Song Changsheng’s death also reached the ears of the Baifu Sect.

Wumeng Yunyou was seriously injured. Although the Master personally diagnosed and treated him, and a large group of doctors and ancestors waited on him, he was still unable to move at this time and could only lie in bed wrapped in thick bandages. He asked: “So smoothly?”

“Yes, ah.” Wumeng Yunle sat beside his bed. “He’s dead.”

Wumeng Yunyou said leisurely: “No wonder I saw that Master was in a very good mood this morning. It turns out that you have made another contribution.”

There were still many witch doctors busy in the sickroom, and Liu Hengchang was among them. Although the leader of the Baifu Sect promised that he could take a look at Wumeng Yunyou for the sake of Feng Xiaojin’s face, he really could only “take a look.” Firstly, he could not administer acupuncture, and secondly, he could not prescribe medicine. It was obvious that he was still not trusted.

Liu Hengchang was not anxious. Seeing that the witch doctor was going to the pharmacy, he volunteered to follow her and carry a heavy box, diligent and dexterous.

The pharmacy here was not an ordinary pharmacy, but a place where the Baifu Sect stored precious medicinal materials. There were also a large number of poisonous Gu hidden in the dark room. The witch doctor walked to the first gate and looked back at Liu Hengchang who was following behind, warning him in a blunt accent, this is the leader’s residence. After entering, don’t walk about or look around, otherwise be careful to keep your life and eyeballs!

“Yes, Sister, don’t worry.” Liu Hengchang hurriedly lowered his head.

The witch doctor took him into the courtyard with her. The residence of the leader of the Baifu Sect was naturally well-defended, and there were patrolling disciples everywhere. And Liu Hengchang was not qualified to enter the pharmacy, so he could only wait outside holding a box. While he waited, there were at least five disciples guarding him. Let alone wandering around, even if he looked around, he would probably be reprimanded. 

Liu Hengchang thought to himself, okay, this trip was for nothing.

The witch doctor stayed in the pharmacy for a long time, around half an hour. Even the sun was hidden in the sky and the wind began to blow. Liu Hengchang sneezed from the cold and then laughed, hehe, and hid under the eaves. Because there was not much movement, those disciples didn’t pay much attention to him.

The wooden door was blown open a crack by the wind. Liu Hengchang lowered his head, and his gaze drifted into the room. From this angle, he could see a small half of the space, which was an empty living room with only a short table and a portrait.

At the first sight of the portrait, Liu Hengchang was really taken aback. In the painting, there was a pair of fox-like slanted eyes. It looked like Feng Xiaojin at first glance, but upon closer inspection, it was a portrait of a woman, beautiful in appearance, charming in expression, and flirtatious in movement. Leaning on a railing with her upper body and holding a round fan in her hand, she seemed to be joking with someone outside the painting.

Liu Hengchang pondered, they looked almost identical. Could this be…..Feng Xiaojin’s big sister? Little sister? There was a signature on the painting, but because of the distance, he couldn’t clearly see what was written. At this time, the witch doctor had already taken the medicinal materials and come out, so he could only stow away his thoughts, leave in a proper manner, and wait for the next opportunity to come back.

The atmosphere in Raven City became somewhat depressed because of Song Changsheng’s “death.” This was also the result that the Baifu Sect wanted to see. This death was used to inform all believers of the fate of betraying the Baifu Buddha Mother.

“His Royal Highness Xiao Wang, who is so famous, can do nothing about them?”

“Looks like it.”

“No matter how powerful His Royal Highness Xiao Wang is, can he still surpass ghosts and gods?”

“He can, ba, when His Royal Highness Xiao Wang was in the Northwest, it was said that the ghosts were afraid to see him.”

“…….”

But the Northwest and the Southwest were different, after all.

Perhaps the ghosts that were afraid to see him would also be uncomfortable.

In short, the joy and cheer from the New Year could not be seen at all in the present Raven City. And those who had boasted previously that they would go to battle and catch evil cultists so as to honor their ancestors like Song Changsheng also tucked their tails. What bring honor to one’s ancestors? If their life was gone, they didn’t know when they would be mourned. Alas.

When everyone passed by the government office and thought of this incident, they couldn’t help but turn their heads to look a little more and sigh.

But there was no black and white banner hanging out at the door.

At the same time, not far from the government office, there was sudden movement in the abandoned blacksmith’s shop in the middle of the night.

Clank, clank, clank!

The crisp sound of iron clashing could be heard endlessly, and in the cold, silent night, it could be called a nuisance.

The little dolls were woken up, and the adults were also woken up, crying out and cursing. They thought it was Lao Wang who sold kitchen knives who was acting like a demon again, and after waiting for a long time without any rest, they just put on their clothes and went to argue. But when they went out to look, Lao Wang was also wrapped in a big cotton jacket, extremely innocent: “Why are you all scolding me, I’m sick. How could I play with iron in the middle of the night?”

In fact, he didn’t need to defend himself, because while Lao Wang was cursing, the sound of blacksmithing continued without stop.

Clankclank, clankclank, clankclank!

It was more and more intense.

Lao Wang was the only blacksmith in Raven City. If it wasn’t him, then……at this time, someone suddenly remembered the number one swordsmith in the world, and let out a cry, stammering out, it c-c-c-can’t be Song-xiansheng who just died, right?”

The cold wind blew, giving everyone goosebumps. A haunting, ah! The timid ones turned around and ran home without saying a word, while the bold ones gathered in pairs and followed the sounds to see what was happening.

Clank, clank, clank!

The government was also alarmed by the sound, and when the common people reached the blacksmith’s shop, they found it already surrounded by government servants.

Over the short courtyard wall, they could see red flames soaring into the sky.

“Constable Li, Constable!” A young man whispered to his childhood friend, “Li-ge, is this a blacksmith invited by your lord?”

“Don’t ask, don’t ask, go back quickly!” Constable Li also looked flustered. “D-don’t stay here!”

“What’s happening?”

“Didn’t you hear what I said? My lord has ordered that no one is allowed to approach. Everyone, go back!”

The government servants collectively drove the common people away. The common people had gone out on this trip for nothing, but not to mention nothing, things had become even more mysterious and strange. It made one’s hair stand on end. The young man was very curious and walked back and forth, but still did not forget to look back and ask his childhood friend: “Is it a haunting?”

Constable Li nodded hastily and gestured for him to leave quickly.

The young man gasped and slipped away as quickly as if he had oiled the bottoms of his feet.

At this time, the situation in the blacksmith’s shop was indeed a haunting, because Song Changsheng, who had been “dead” for several days, was now forging a sword, clank, clank, ding, ding.

Liu Xian’an said: “So it should be quenched at this time. Previously, I quenched one and it broke. No wonder I couldn’t find the reason.”

Song Changsheng was surprised, and asked: “Second Young Master Liu can also forge swords?”

“It doesn’t count as such.” Liu Xian’an took the iron clamp. “My family has its own knifesmith, who is responsible for forging tools to cut medicinal herbs. My father thought I was lazy, so he drove me to the blacksmithy, and I stayed there for seven or eight days.”

Later, Second Young Master Liu fainted from the heat and lay in bed for three days with a cold handkerchief on his head. Liu-furen scolded her husband a lot because of this, and also scolded him for three days. The scolded Master Liu was so angry that he got on a horse and tried to run away from home. Later, it was Liu Nanyuan who came forward to persuade her father to return to the village.

Song Changsheng couldn’t help but laugh: “Master Liu is so impulsive?”

Liu Xian’an said slowly: “My father is also a normal person.”

It was inevitable that people would be impulsive. Anyway, Second Young Master Liu didn’t think that what his father did was childish or shameful. On the contrary, he thought it was very amusing and cute, and was better than picking up a stick and beating him every day, so he enthusiastically shared it with everyone he met.

Village Master Liu thousands of li away: My chest is suddenly tight.

Song Changsheng worked hard for an hour before returning to his room to rest. The city was quiet, but the people’s hearts were not quiet. Almost all the common people in the city spent this night with their eyes open.

The only one who slept well was Second Young Master Liu. Wrapped in a soft, warm blanket, he had great dreams and didn’t want to return. As for when he returned in the end, it was because his butt hurt.

He drilled under the quilt, dissatisfied.

Liang Shu spanked him again: “Come out!” 

Liu Xian’an turned around and looked at him weakly. Why do you want me to get up, you’re lying down yourself.

But His Royal Highness Xiao Wang did not reflect on it, and pulled him into his arms: “A-Ning taught me that if you can’t wake up with a shout or a shaking, you can only be beaten awake.”

“Then did you shout?”

“No.”

“Did you shake?”

“Also no.”

“…….”

Liu Xian’an sighed and threw himself back into bed. Forget it, I don’t care.

But Liang Shu refused to stop, and hugged him again, asking endlessly: “You’re sleeping again? We’ve been together for so long, but I’ve never seen you get angry with me once.”

Liu Xian’an replied with great sleepiness, why should I be angry?

“We have a whole lifetime.” Liang Shu lowered his head and kissed him. “I want to see you angry. Waking up angry is also fine.”

Liu Xian’an completely ignored this strange demand, because he didn’t intend to get up at all and also wasn’t angry.

So His Royal Highness began to play on his own, touching from top to bottom, through the clothing and then without the clothing.

The Sleeping Immortal remained motionless.

Liang Shu rested his chin on his shoulder and exerted a bit of force with his hands.

Second Young Master Liu lying on the bed: “…….”

Liang Shu tilted his head and said: “Are you angry?”

Liu Xian’an felt that, in fact, this was not a bad feeling.

He turned his head and glanced at the other party.

There was a smile in Liang Shu’s eyes, the distance between them extremely close: “Hm?”

Liu Xian’an lay down again.

Not angry.

Can’t get angry.

---

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Chapter Eighty-Eight << Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety

When Bo Yueming returned to the room, Pei Yi was still curled up in a small ball under the quilt, with only a little curled up hair exposed. Inspector, who had just bathed, was also lying on the quilt stretched out on its back—

Two cats, one big and one small, were sleeping soundly.

Bo Yueming slowed his footsteps as he walked over. He had originally wanted to let his lover sleep a little longer, but Pei Yi turned around on his own and let out a muffled sound.

Bo Yueming caught a hint of grievance and quickly moved closer. “Are you awake?”

Pei Yi raised his eyes in confusion. “What time is it?”

Bo Yueming answered truthfully, “It’s four in the afternoon. Do you want to sleep a little longer?”

They didn’t stop until four or five in the morning, slept until eleven or twelve, got up reluctantly to have lunch, and then fell asleep again in one breath.

When Pei Yi heard the time, he reacted slowly and made a breathy sound of denial.

No more sleep.

If he continued to sleep, he feared he would have insomnia and be unable to sleep at night.

Pei Yi moved to Bo Yueming’s side dependently, an indescribable feeling of fatigue all over his body.

Bo Yueming asked him softly, “Do your knees still hurt?”

Pei Yi blinked in confusion. “Huh?”

“I saw that your knees were red and bruised. I suppose you rubbed them too hard on the carpet last night.”

Bo Yueming rubbed his knees through the quilt. “I took advantage of you falling asleep at noon to rub medicinal wine on them for you.”

Beneath his earnest words hid the nearly-devastating heat of the night before.

Pei Yi recalled that Bo Yueming had trapped him on the carpet in the cloakroom, their wildness revealed in front of the mirror. He was so ashamed that he blushed all over, and suddenly felt a little regretful—

He should have drunk more wine the night before so that he could directly forget!

Bo Yueming asked again, “Does it hurt?”

Pei Yi asked back, “If I say my knees hurt, can you not do it next time?”

Everytime, he teased and said, “I’ll give everything to you,” but once it was over, he regretted it so much that he wouldn’t admit it.

Bo Yueming laughed in spite of himself and bit his ear, replying, “The position can be changed, but Little Sir seemed to be very comfortable last night.”

“…….”

Pei Yi pulled the quilt over his head, but the indecent scenes remained in his mind.

How could they not?

It was so deep that his soul was pushed out.

Bo Yueming was afraid he would be smothered and uncomfortable, so he pulled off the quilt again and said, “Okay, I won’t bother you anymore.”

Pei Yi endured the soreness and swelling he was accustomed to and sat up. “Er-ge, give me your computer and I’ll take a look at the internal test data.”

The day before, they had announced the first round of closed beta testing and pre-heating videos for “The Last Fog,” and as the chief planner, he needed to pay attention to the game’s popularity.

Bo Yueming stood up and brought the laptop over, not neglecting to pull his lover into his arms. “Let me take a look too.”

Pei Yi found a comfortable position to lean into his arms, then searched for and entered the official Weibo account of their game group.

So far, the number of fans exceeded 200,000.

“We’ve gained another 70,000 to 80,000 followers since yesterday.” Pei Yi raised his eyebrows, a little surprised. “It’s better than I thought.”

After all, this was a domestic game that had not yet been released, and their YWY Studios was not a well-known game label. At this time, it was already very good for a single game account to have this number of fans!

“Meow-wu~”

Inspector woke up and leaned close to Pei Yi, nuzzling him coquettishly.

Pei Yi stroked his kitten with one hand and scrolled down the computer interface with the other. The Weibo video currently pinned to the top was the CG game trailer released at five o’clock the previous evening—

The video opened with a broken-winged butterfly resting on the dead grass in the deserted wilderness.

Suddenly, something happened.

The butterfly had no time to escape, and was crushed to pieces by a pair of hands covered with blood and veins, its broken wings crumbling under those fingertips.

The camera moved up along with those fingertips, and there was a bang sound effect.

A hand suddenly hit the “lens,” and in the blink of an eye, an enlarged and terrifying zombie face suddenly appeared in front of the shattered “lens.”

The camera quickly retreated and rose, and the complete image was finally displayed—

Behind this leading zombie were thousands of mutant zombies in different shapes and sizes!

And this seemingly vast wasteland was actually divided by an endless and unfathomable fissure in the ground.

In the next second, the seemingly naturally-formed fissure refracted a reflective screen like the light from a computer.

And underneath was China Underground City No.1, which had taken nearly thirty years to build!

The airborne lens passed the screening of the light barrier and descended all the way to the underground city, displaying its structure and facilities to everyone bit by bit.

There were five consecutive floors of military protection and various types of equipment lined up in sequence, followed by two floors of scientific research bases. In laboratories of various sizes, there were even live zombies that had been captured.

Under the dual protection of the military and technology, it was a stable place to live for ordinary people.

The video finally stopped on a freeze-frame image of zombies swarming the city, and two lines of characters floated back and forth on the screen — 

“Those who receive this mission, please return home in time.”

“China Underground City No. 1 will open on June 6th!”

The concept trailer was less than one minute long, and every frame was produced with high-quality movie images in mind. The comment area below had so far exceeded 10,000 comments —

“Holy shit! This is just a game trailer? I thought it was some kind of doomsday blockbuster movie!”

“You’ve worked hard, Big-Faced Cat, I like it so much! Finally, a studio that is serious about making domestic games. I will definitely buy this mobile game!”

“It’s really an original Chinese doomsday survival game, the residential areas in these scenes are all familiar! And seeing ordinary residents being protected by the military and technology, I don’t know why, but my nose feels sour!”

“I didn’t qualify for the first round of closed beta testing, ah. Has anyone got a trial account? Tell me if the quality of the game is good!”

“Me, me, me! I’m a rare lucky player that qualified for the first internal beta. My friends, you can rest assured that the game experience is unparalleled! The character models are so cool! I’ve been playing the closed beta from 12 noon until now, and I can’t stop!”

“Fuck, I’m so greedy looking at it. I’ll have a great time playing it when I get back!”

. . . 

Pei Yi looked at the nearly unanimous praise and couldn’t help but turn around to show it off to Bo Yueming. “Er-ge, what do you think? Isn’t it quite similar?”

Bo Yueming didn’t play games, but after watching the game trailer, he became curious and impulsive. “It’s very good. As everyone is saying, it has the qualities of a movie.”

There was a hint of pride in Pei Yi’s expression. “Naturally. I wrote the script myself, and Sister Yang personally checked it. She also asked her old friends and teachers to help create it.”

This sort of CG trailer was the most expensive. The budget allocated by the studio at the beginning was not enough, and Pei Yi even paid for it out of his own pocket. 

“Er-ge, the dungeon is just the first map hub. There will be new map hubs such as the Sky Castle and Deep Sea Ship in the future, as well as such CG previews.”

“Also, we produced separate trailers for the game characters. Seven versions for seven characters.”

“And the meaning of the last two lines is that — our ‘game protagonist’ will wake up with amnesia in various abandoned areas, and their task is to return to the dungeon within ten days…..”

As soon as he spoke about his exciting career, Pei Yi felt full of energy. His body was no longer sore and his head no longer dizzy.

He told his lover behind him everything he wanted to say, and finally looked up for confirmation. “See, wasn’t it worthwhile for your GM to choose our game and invest in it?”

Bo Yueming kissed his lover’s forehead gently. “En, it was worth it.”

Even though he knew that Pei Yi was excellent at what he did, the other person always proved through his actions that he could be even more brilliant.

Pei Yi said with a smile, “Pear Garden and I have agreed that ‘The Last Fog’ will occupy a place in the Chinese game market within two years.”

“You can do it,” Bo Yueming affirmed. “No matter what you want to do, I will support you from behind.”

Pei Yi felt elated, as if he was filled with honey. Although he was also a workaholic before, he had never felt as satisfied and secure as he did now.

Because Pei Yi knew that, bit by bit, he was using his ability to stand side by side with his lover.

Pei Yi retracted his overflowing thoughts and said coquettishly, “It’s just that I was too busy in the beginning, and sometimes I feel a little tired.”

Bo Yueming tightened his grip on him. “I see you haven’t hired an assistant yet? Do you need to ask Lin Zhong to help you find a good one?”

Pei Yi shook his head with a gleam of light in his eyes. “No need, I’ve already scouted one out. They’ll report to the studio in two days.”

Bo Yueming heard something unusual. “You’ve already found someone? Who is it?”

Pei Yi turned to look at him, and asked in a test of tacit understanding, “Guess?”

. . . . . . .

Three days later, Imperial Capital Airport.

It was just after eight o’clock in the morning and Pei Yi, who rarely got up early, was waiting at the airport pick-up gate.

Bo Yueming and Lin Zhong, who had come along, looked at each other and accompanied him silently.

After a while, Lin Zhong, who was still in the dark, couldn’t help being curious. “Little Sir, who is your assistant, ah?”

He actually had to get up early to pick him up in person? He wasn’t a big-shot in the gaming industry, was he?

As soon as he finished speaking, the sharp-eyed Pei Yi caught sight of a figure. “Hey, over here!”

The other person was holding a very large suitcase in his hand, looking around for something as he walked slowly.

Pei Yi got completely out of the car and showed himself. “Qiao Dong, this way!”

Lin Zhong reacted at once with surprise on his face.

Qiao Dong?

That young man who helped in Wencheng? Little Sir actually had private contact with him?

When Qiao Dong saw Pei Yi and the luxury car behind him, he walked up half cautiously and half excitedly. “L-Little Sir, long time no see!”

Lin Zhong got out of the car at Bo Yueming’s signal. “Qiao Dong? It’s really you, ah, is your foot healed?”

Qiao Dong’s aura was obviously much better than when he was in Wencheng. “Brother Lin, long time no see.”

He lightly stepped on his injured foot a couple of times, feeling a little happy about entering the big city for the first time. “I’m fully recovered now. I can run and jump, it’s not serious.”

Lin Zhong still felt strange. “What happened between you and Little Sir…..I mean, how did you become Little Sir’s assistant?”

Pei Yi raised his eyebrows. “I thought Qiao Dong was clever and had potential when I saw him.”

Thus, before leaving Wencheng, he had told Qiao Dong alone—

If the other person still had ambitions and expectations for his future, then after cleaning up at home, he should go and sign up for a professional management course. 

Once he had managed the basics, he could contact him.

At that time, although Qiao Dong was surprised by Pei Yi’s disguise, he understood very well that he was being given a chance.

Therefore, after Pei Yi and the others left Wencheng, Qiao Dong immediately used his few savings to register for classes and study professionally, then contacted Pei Yi a week ago.

Qiao Dong thanked him sincerely, “Thank you, Little Sir.”

“It’s time to work, why are you still calling me Little Sir?”

Pei Yi motioned for Lin Zhong to help move the luggage, and put his arm around Qiao Dong’s shoulder. “I’m older than you, so just call me Brother Yi from now on.”

When it came to Qiao Dong’s trip to the capital, Pei Yi had planned to charter the air ticket, but the other party refused to let him spend any money. He had simply bought the cheapest flight and rushed over.

Pei Yi feared he would be unfamiliar with the place, so he came here to pick him up.

Qiao Dong nodded. “Thank you, Brother Yi.”

Pei Yi asked with a smile, “Aren’t you tired? You have to go directly to the studio later. Don’t worry about accommodations, just live at home like Lin Zhong.”

The Bo family had a big estate. It was easy to have multiple pairs of bowls and chopsticks, and Uncle Kai and Lin Zhong were also familiar with Qiao Dong. The most important thing was that it was easy to hand over daily work affairs.

Qiao Dong knew that renting a place in the capital would not be cheap, and after a moment’s hesitation, accepted Pei Yi’s kindness.

“However, I’ll say the unpleasant thing first—”

“Qiao Dong, I’m not that easy to talk to at work. Right now, I’ll give you a one-month trial period. If you can adapt to the work and your efficiency is satisfactory, the studio will sign a contract with you.”

“If your ability or attitude isn’t good enough, then…..”

“I understand!” Qiao Dong responded positively, “I will definitely work hard and try to stay!”

Pei Yi knew that Qiao Dong cherished this opportunity, so he patted him on the shoulder and said, “You can do it.”

The three of them walked back to the car.

Only then did Qiao Dong realize that Bo Yueming was sitting in the back seat, and he became nervous again unconsciously. “H-Hello, Mr. Bo.”

“Why are you nervous? You’re my assistant and I pay your salary, don’t be afraid of him.” Pei Yi joked in order to overcome Qiao Dong’s nerves, and instructed, “Lin Zhong is driving, you sit in the front seat.”

Qiao Dong nodded obediently, “Okay, Brother Yi.”

When Bo Yueming heard this address, there was no trace of sourness in his eyes. When Pei Yi sat firmly next to him again, he quickly closed the electronic screen between the front and back rows.

Pei Yi was taken aback. “Er-ge?”

Bo Yueming said nothing, and only took the other’s palm and squeezed it.

Pei Yi belatedly realized something. Dumbfounded, he leaned close to him and whispered, “Mr. Bo, why do I feel that it’s sour in the car?”

“Didn’t I tell you earlier that I found a new assistant? You guessed it was him before, ah.”

In order to avoid being overheard by Qiao Dong, Pei Yi kept his voice very low.

Bo Yueming denied it. “I know, I’m not sour.”

Pei Yi couldn’t help but laugh. “I wanted to hire you as an assistant, but your hourly salary is too high and I really can’t afford it.”

Bo Yueming softly kissed the back of his lover’s hand and replied quite earnestly, “I can do it for free.”

Pei Yi burst out laughing. If not for the fact that he was wearing a seatbelt, he would have fallen into his lover’s arms.

“Er-ge, you’re so cute.”

“……”

This was the first time in Bo Yueming’s life that he was praised for being cute. He was stunned for several seconds, and then said, “Don’t talk nonsense.”

Pei Yi deliberately raised his voice, “Cute, cute!”

Bo Yueming helplessly blocked his lover’s mouth. “Okay, Little Sir, stop causing trouble.”

Even if there was some sourness, it was only a trace, and wouldn’t make him unable to tolerate Qiao Dong.

Pei Yi tugged on the seatbelt, leaned over, and kissed Bo Yueming. “Er-ge.”

“En?”

“No one can take your place. I like you the most.”

. . . . . . .

YWY Studios.

As soon as Pei Yi and Qiao Dong entered the office hall, many employees followed after, obviously curious about this strange person.

Qiao Dong hadn’t entered through the company’s recruitment channel, but Pei Yi had no intention of hiding it.

He said in front of everyone to the HR team leader, “Sister Ling, I hired an assistant directly. Please help him with the internship entry information.”

The HR team leader said decisively, “Okay.”

Pei Yi looked around again. “Xiao Xiao.”

“Mr. Yi.”

The girl whose name was called came up immediately. She was the assistant that Li Yuan had hired some time ago, and was very capable in her work.

Pei Yi kept it short, “You and Qiao Dong go over the general work processes later. Please guide him this week.”

Xiao Xiao responded quickly, “No problem.”

Pei Yi didn’t explain any further, just giving Qiao Dong a silent look. The latter understood his unspoken encouragement, suppressed his unnecessary nervousness, and became full of energy.

Qiao Dong had already graduated from college, and his academic ability was not bad. Before coming here, he had taken special classes to make up for his deficiencies.

Although he had no actual experience as an assistant, he was very adaptable. Within three days, he integrated into YWY’s high-intensity work environment.

In the blink of an eye, it was Saturday afternoon.

After the weekly meeting, Pei Yi walked out of the conference room and turned to Qiao Dong. “Compile an electronic version of the meeting content before getting off work today and send it to each group.”

“Oh, and remember to send a copy to Mr. Li.”

Li Yuan, who was never absent from company affairs, had asked for a rare period of leave. When he called, he said he was feeling unwell.

Qiao Dong was appropriately serious. “Okay.”

“Thank you.”

Pei Yi’s cell phone vibrated. He saw the caller ID clearly and walked quickly back to his office. “Hello, Mr. Gu.”

“Still calling me Mr. Gu, why are you so polite?” Gu Jianshen’s voice sounded from the other end of the phone. “Congratulations. The first round of closed beta testing for ‘The Last Fog’ is very popular.”

In just one week, it was already first in the anticipated rankings of major app stores.

Pei Yi took a sip of water and said, “If you hadn’t agreed to help a while ago and gotten Weiyi’s senior management to balance things out, things wouldn’t have gone so smoothly for us.”

Gu Jianshen chuckled, and didn’t deviate from the purpose of the call. “By the way, I have something important to discuss with you today.”

Pei Yi raised his eyebrows and said, “Tell me.”

Gu Jianshen said bluntly, “Weiyi’s top management has allowed investment in the movie game to test the waters. Mr. Yi, let’s talk about cooperation?”

Pei Yi had guessed this would be the case. “Are you sure you want to cooperate with our YWY?”

Gu Jianshen didn’t hesitate. “To be precise, I want to cooperate with you. However, we can accept the investment funds from the two companies, and the final profits or losses will be calculated in proportion.”

Pei Yi’s eyes flashed with cunning. “How is the expected shares calculated?”

Gu Jianshen didn’t expect him to hit the nail on the head, and smiled as he sighed, “Mr. Yi, you are truly straightforward enough.”

He paused. “We can accept 20-80 here.”

As a major game company, Weiyi also had various connections in the film industry, which was unmatched by YWY Studios.

According to their lofty thinking, in this kind of “big and small” cooperation, they would naturally occupy the absolute majority of the shares.

Pei Yi was unmoved when he heard this expected answer. 

He placed the water glass back on the table and both madly and confidently, “I want to cooperate, but the shares must be 40-60.”

---

Consider donating via Kofi here!

Chapter Eighty-Seven <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Eighty-Nine

Luo Ran stared blankly at his flat stomach.

Impossible…..

It had only happened two times, and only once did he forget to take the medicine. Lucas was going to battle the next day, after all, so he was really distracted.

He wasn’t as diligent……

Luo Ran was a little tense.

Regardless of the current battle situation, an Omega would be very, very dependent on an Alpha’s pheromones when he was pregnant, and would become very clingy. Luo Ran was afraid that he would cause trouble for Lucas.

And perhaps it was due to the psychological effects, but Luo Ran felt that he missed Lucas even more.

Lucas had gone on expeditions away from the capital in the past several years, but Luo Ran hadn’t felt this way.

Luo Ran was a little upset.

It was he who had been negligent.

He should have taken the medicine.

Luo Ran called Lucas again.

Lucas wasn’t asleep either, or he had gone to sleep and woken up again.

“What is it?”

Luo Ran paused, then said: “Admiral, I…..I want to discuss something with you.”

“Tell me.”

Luo Ran took a deep breath and said: “What should we do if I’m pregnant?”

“……”

For a moment, there was silence on the other end.

Just when Luo Ran was so nervous that his head hurt, he heard a heartfelt “Fuck” from the other end.

“Fuck…..!” Lucas’s tone became tense. “Why so suddenly! Has your battleship set off? How long will it be? Is there any discomfort, does it hurt, are you very tired? I’ll tell Lao Wang not to let you go out…..”

Lucas began to babble wildly, and Luo Ran was dumbfounded by his words.

Lucas seemed to be more concerned about Luo Ran’s physical condition, and didn’t focus on the child for the moment.

“No, I’m not……”

“Luo Ran, stay in the room tomorrow and don’t walk around! There is a lot of radiation on the battleship, especially near the mecha! Be careful where you go!”

“……Admiral!” Luo Ran couldn’t laugh or cry. He said: “I’m not pregnant.”

At least, he hadn’t checked yet.

“…….”

“Why didn’t you say so earlier!”

Luo Ran scratched his cheek, feeling very happy for some reason.

“I’m just…..asking what we should do if I was……”

“ ? ” Lucas was a little puzzled. “Just, if you were pregnant, ah?”

“En.” Luo Ran breathed a sigh of relief.

In their way of thinking, there was no concept of abortion.

After all, there was no need.

They were both people in good health who were going to spend the rest of their lives together.

After hanging up, Luo Ran thought about going for an examination the next day.

And Lucas nearly couldn’t sleep.

He was in a daze when Luo Ran brought it up, and didn’t start to react until now.

A child…..

The Imperial lion sat at the bedside, dazed once again.

He and Luo Ran hadn’t been intimate for long, and if there was a child in the future, would Luo Ran like the child more and ignore him?

But the little one might look similar to Luo Ran, made of his and Luo Ran’s blood.

Hiss.

It wasn’t impossible.

Lucas began to imagine his and Luo Ran’s children.

If they had children, then he and Luo Ran would be more closely linked.

They would have a family, lots of children and pets, and live in a little house together.

The Imperial lion began to laugh foolishly.

This was also pretty good.

What would the child’s name be?

Would it be male or female?

Would it be an Alpha, Beta, or Omega?

No matter what gender they were, they would be the heir to the military in the future.

Lucas was very confident that even if it was an Omega, his family’s Omega would be stronger than other Alphas, just like Luo Ran.

Thus, Lucas couldn’t sleep that night.

And Luo Ran’s battleship also joined Lucas’s brigade a day later to replenish supplies.

Luo Ran left the main control room and stood on the deck. He saw Lucas waiting for him on the pier, with Freeman and Zheng Lan beside him.

Luo Ran chuckled.

“Admiral.” Luo Ran and Luo Xingyuan disembarked the battleship with several adjutants and solemnly gave Lucas military salutes.

The two battleships were joined, and all the soldiers were present. Lucas glanced at Luo Ran and only nodded.

“Freeman, take inventory later.” Lucas said: “We’ll go to the meeting first.”

Only a few adjutants participated in the meeting, and they basically discussed their next strategies.

Now that the undercover agent had been caught, they could act with confidence, and their first battle also gave the Empire a great advantage.

Morale aside, Lucas himself bolstered their spirits. This battle had severely weakened the combat power of the star pirates, and they had little in the way of advantage.

It was a good opportunity to cut the weeds and pull up the roots.

After the meeting was over, the rest of the adjutants left very tactfully.

Only Luo Ran and Lucas were left in the room. Luo Ran said: “Admir—”

—Thud.

Luo Ran only felt dizzy as Lucas pressed him onto the table in the next moment.

Luo Ran lay on his back on the conference table. He looked at Lucas lying on top of him, and said in a daze: “Admiral…..”

Lucas bowed his head and kissed Luo Ran.

“Wu……”

Luo Ran’s mind immediately became a little hazy, and the scent of tobacco wafted over his face. So comfortable……

Luo Ran raised his arms and embraced Lucas comfortably, his legs unconsciously wrapping around Lucas’s waist.

Luo Ran’s spiritual realm had been a little painful, and he had missed Lucas’s pheromones very much these days. This sense of dependence even caused him to ignore the possibility of outsiders coming in. He just wanted to absorb more, more of the scent that belonged to Lucas.

Secretary Luo, who was strategizing in the conference room and discussing plans with Lucas a moment ago, presently hugged Lucas with blurry eyes. Lucas’s breath came quicker.

Only he had such a Luo Ran.

Noticing that Lucas’s hands had become restless and his pheromones had changed, Luo ran immediately said: “Admiral, I will go to Xiaxia for a checkup later.

“ ? ”

Luo Ran whispered: “……I really am.”

“ ? ? ”

Lucas asked in a daze: “What?”

“……Pregnant.” Luo Ran turned his head with reddish ears. “Just like I said the other day……”

“……”

Lucas was frozen in place, turned into a lion statue.

—Swish

After a moment of silence, Luo Ran was picked up by Lucas and held high.

“You’re pregnant……!”

“Fuck!”

“I have a child!”

“Admiral…..!”

“Right, okay.” Lucas quickly and carefully set Luo Ran down.

He didn’t know where to put his hands and feet.

“T-Then afterwards, you must have Xia Zhi give you a full-body checkup and prescribe medicine to recuperate……”

“And be sure to eat.”

“And take a picture later to see if it’s male or female……”

“Admiral, we won’t know until later. We can’t see it now.”

“Ah, oh……”

Luo Ran couldn’t laugh or cry: “I thought the Admiral didn’t like children……”

“I didn’t like them at first, but now that I think about it, they’re not bad. There’s a baby. It’s yours and mine. It’s our baby.” 

Lucas hehe’d and said: “Besides, I went to ask Shen Xiluo today, and he said that you are an excellent 3S Omega and your body can adapt by itself. You’ll be fine in half a month, and my pheromones and scent can also help you to conceive. After the child is born, I can still have a two-person world with you. If the child dares to cling to you, I will beat him.”

Luo Ran: “…….”

Luo Ran didn’t know what to say.

Lucas had been excited since the phone call that day, and planned everything out.

But now, after seeing Luo Ran, he suddenly felt anxious.

Would it be painful? Would it be very difficult?

“Admiral?” Luo Ran glanced at Lucas and said: “What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing.” Lucas said earnestly: “I will take good care of you.”

“Then…..since the Admiral has said so.” Luo Ran stepped forward and said with a smile: “A lifetime mark can also be put on the agenda.”

It just so happened that he had finished taking the medicine.

A lifetime mark could greatly reduce the distress caused by pregnancy.

Lucas was shocked.

Luo Ran said shyly: “I’ve already prepared.”

It just so happened that both he and Lucas had spiritual trauma, and could heal each other.

“……There’s no need to prepare.” Lucas hesitated for a long moment, then said: “Ranran, I won’t give you a lifetime mark.”

Luo Ran was taken aback.

“I’m sorry,” Lucas said, “but I won’t give it to you.”

Luo Ran frowned and said: “But the child……?”

“A child is a child. A lifetime mark is a different matter.”

As an Omega, Luo Ran offered a lifetime mark but was rejected. However, he wasn’t angry, and only smiled: “Admiral, you want to have a child, but you don’t want a lifetime mark?”

Lucas said nothing.

“Admiral.” Luo Ran stepped forward on tiptoe, wrapping his arms around Lucas’s neck. He teased: “How can an Omega request an Alpha to give a lifetime mark? You’ll become the scumbag that the Starnet says you are.”

“…….”

“Admiral, may I ask, will you mark me for life?”

“…..Don’t do this!” Lucas gritted his teeth and said: “I won’t buy it.”

But Lucas’s ears were slightly red.

Fuck. This little bastard was shameless.

“Admiral.” Luo Ran hugged Lucas and buried his head in his neck.

Lucas couldn’t bear it any longer, and babbled: “Luo Ran, having a child is insurance for the future. If anything happens, the child will protect you after inheriting the Aldor estate. He can take care of you, and you will have a place. But a lifetime mark is the opposite of this. If something happens, you will……in any case, be sensible and don’t speak of this. I’m not buying your argument!”

Luo Ran was silent for a long moment.

“Admiral.” Luo Ran embraced Lucas, lowering his eyes as he said: “You’re making an assumption. It seems that you think I could live well after your death.”

“……” Lucas thought, Luo Ran was not a weak Omega. No matter what, he could recover slowly.

Luo Ran said: “Then I’ll tell you right now, I can’t.”

Lucas froze.

Luo Ran repeated: “I can’t.”

“Ranran……”

“You think I can do it now because you’re here.”

“…….”

Lucas stared blankly at Luo Ran, feeling as if someone had stomped down hard on his heart.

“So the Admiral should stop being sentimental.” Luo Ran couldn’t laugh or cry: “Let’s be more straightforward. If there is a child, there should also be a lifetime mark. You don’t have to worry so much about life and death. After all, everyone dies. Let’s face it together and not overthink it.”

“Okay?”

Lucas looked at Luo Ran, aggrieved.

He spoke to him as if he was a lovesick little girl.

“Okay.” Lucas hugged Luo Ran, and then pressed him against the wall to kiss him.

Luo Ran finished the negotiations with ease and put his arms around Lucas, enjoying the passionate but desperately restrained intimacy and pheromones of the big lion.

. . . . . . .

The next day, the news spread on the Starnet.

— The First Prince has fallen……

— The First Prince is dead, and his body has been sent back to the capital by the military!

XXXX: Oh my god…..I really didn’t expect him to collude with the star pirates! Ahhhh oh my god, how much money and supplies did he give the star pirates?! Wuwuwu the Admiral is fighting on the front lines, but he helped the star pirates create Meteor Showers. How could there be such a cheap person! He deserved what he got!

XXXX: This…..the testimonies of Cyril, Yuan Han, and the people around him adde up. The First Prince’s misdeeds could fill a book, right? !  Not to mention the two crimes of forcing himself on someone and oppressing Secretary Luo for the benefit of UNK, the fact that he poisoned the Admiral and the birthday banquet and colluded with the star pirates for the sake of revenge is incredible enough! What is going on with the Empire’s royal family?! He’s so greedy that he doesn’t qualify to be a human being! He fucking deserves it!

XXXX: Ahhhh, look at the report! I really lost my melons, this is too much! He deserved to die!

XXXX: Death is too little! Then when the battle is over, the Second Prince will take the throne, right?”

The Starnet was full of righteous indignation and insults toward the First Prince, everyone wanting to mix his ashes with shit.

Due to the downfall of the First Prince, the people in the Imperial palace had been switched out, and even the pheromone management department had a lot of personnel changes.

An insider broke the news that Secretary Luo was actually an Omega, and he had seen the report that his gender was changed due to his connections.

— One stone stirred up a thousand waves.

— Secretary Luo was an Omega?! The wonderful love was actually an AO match?!

XXXX: Ah, this…..I’m not a CP fan, so I can’t understand the excitement of CP fans, but it’s not a good thing for a high-level person to conceal their gender, right?

XXXX: Secretary Luo wasn’t Secretary Luo when he concealed his gender! I heard that he asked his friend to change it!

XXXX: I think it’s understandable. After all, Secretary Luo wasn’t an Omega before, and the First Prince was already eyeing him. If he were an Omega, wouldn’t he have just tied him up?! 

XXXX: +1, if Secretary Luo had the identity of an Omega, it would indeed cause a lot of inconvenience. The situation in the capital wasn’t clear before. And Secretary Luo hadn’t proved his strength before, so if he told others that he was an Omega, wouldn’t he have been just a piece of meat and a soft persimmon?

The Starnet was chaotic and lively.

Then the military department’s official account directly posted Luo Ran’s gender report, listing him as an SSS Omega.

It also sincerely apologized, indicating that it was inconvenient to disclose such a thing due to official business, but it was not intentionally concealed.

Luo Ran also forwarded the apology.

XXXX: Ahhhh 3S Omega! So can we look forward to an excellent heir to the Empire?!

XXXX: God, a 3S Omega and a 3S Alpha. The children born of this won’t be able to directly destroy the galaxy, right?!

XXXX: How Many 3S’s have there been between ancient and modern times! ! ! This is the hope of the Empire!

The words “excellent heir to the Empire” immediately scrolled across the screen, and they didn’t know that Luo Ran was already pregnant.

……But he really was.

Looking at the excited chatter of everyone on the Starnet, Luo Ran was a little dumbfounded.

The war was still going on at present, and for Luo Ran’s safety, it couldn’t be publicized for the time being. Otherwise, the Starnet would probably be even more excited.

At this moment, Luo Ran was heading to the conference room with a stack of official documents.

They were going to discuss the giant insect. The investigation team had discovered its resting place, which was a cave not far away, but no one disturbed it.

“Secretary Luo…..!”

Wang Qiuyang ran over panting, then stretched out his hands and said: “How can you carry such a heavy load! Let me do it!”

“……? ?”

Although Luo Ran’s pregnancy could not be made public, the adjutants around Lucas and several familiar high-level officials already knew about it.

Luo Ran stared blankly at the documents Wang Qiuyang took away, which he could pick up with one finger.

Wang Qiuyang was also looking at Luo Ran’s stomach with eyes full of expectation, affection, and concern, as if he was looking at the hope of the future of the Empire.

Luo Ran: “……..”

Soon after, they arrived at the conference room. Luo Ran was about to open the door when Freeman, who happened to be there, rushed forward and opened it for Luo Ran.

“Secretary Luo, please come in!”

Everyone was afraid that Luo Ran would be uncomfortable at a single touch.

When Luo Ran went in and sat down, he saw Lucas pushing a cup of warm water toward him.

Lucas said: “I just went to get it. Drink more warm water.”

“Okay.”

Holding the warm water, Luo Ran couldn’t laugh or cry.

---

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Chapter Eighty-Nine << Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety-One

The moment the flames hit, Luo Ran could feel Rong An rushing to block him, and he subconsciously deployed his spiritual power.

A small number of high-level Alphas and Omegas could turn their significant spiritual power into something physical in some instances, such as Lucas’s blade attack before.

A transparent layer of light appeared next to Luo Ran. It all happened so suddenly. It was the first time Luo Ran knew that he could do such a thing, his potential being drawn out by the critical situation.

It turned out that it wasn’t just Lucas. He could do it too.

Boom—

Luo Ran could feel the fire breaking through his barrier. It dealt a severe blow to his spiritual realm, and he eventually passed out.

. . . . . . . 

Boom—

The last wave of artillery fire was shot from the kaleidoscope array, ending the assault that had lasted for half a day.

The Empire ushered in its first victory.

Although Huntsman escaped, the vitality of the star pirates was dealt a heavy blow, and they were caught off guard. In the next battle, the star pirates suffered a great loss, and they could only rely on Meteor Showers most of the time.

Lucas didn’t know if the star pirates still had Meteor Showers left, but even if there were, it would only be one shot. After all, it took a huge amount of money and materials to make one.

At present, Freeman was cleaning up the battlefield while Lucas stood on deck and read the report from the reinforcements.

Luo Ran and the others had already set off to join him.

The undercover agent Wang Ruicheng had been successfully lured out and died in the explosion, and the First Prince was successfully hooked and arrested.

Lucas clutched the terminal tightly as he read the report.

He didn’t expect that the First Prince would be so……extreme.

He knew that the First Prince liked Luo Ran, but didn’t expect it to be to this extent……after all, everyone thought that the First Prince’s fondness for Luo Ran was mostly about benefits.

But the first time the First Prince showed his flaws was because of Luo Ran.

And his final downfall was because of Luo Ran.

In the end, he finally lost his life because he wanted to pull Luo Ran to die in the name of love. He could have fought again.

Lucas took a deep breath and waited for the second report. His eyes were locked firmly on the fist one, which said: “Explosion occurred. Survival of Commander Luo and Adjutant Rong uncertain.”

When Freeman came, he saw Lucas’s extremely bad complexion and shaking fingers.

“Admiral……?”

“I’m fine.” Lucas said coldly: “Speak.”

“We discovered the energy transmission of the giant insect nearby! Do you want to track it?”

“Yes.” Lucas said: “Have a team track it.”

. . . . . . . .

When he woke up again, Luo Ran found himself lying in an infirmary bed on a battleship.

His entire body hurt when he moved, from head to toe. The most serious area was his back, where his bandage-wrapped wounds were still burning hot.

Luo Ran lowered his head and saw bandages on his limbs.

“Commander Luo is awake…..!”

“Commander Luo, don’t worry, your injuries aren’t serious.”

What was more serious was Luo Ran’s spiritual wound, but only Xia Zhi knew about this. Luo Ran had already been injected with medicine, and the rest could only be slowly healed by Lucas or himself.

Luo Ran supported himself on the bed and sat up. He found that there were several doctors around his bed, elites under Xia Zhi’s command.

Luo Ran’s heart was empty.

Logically speaking, with his identity and his precarious spiritual state, Xia Zhi would definitely guard him.

Now that Xia Zhi wasn’t here, it turned out that Rong An might have……

“Where is Adjutant Rong?” Luo Ran asked in a deep voice. “Where is he?”

“This……”

“Speak.” Luo Ran took a deep breath and said with a long face: “Be honest.”

A doctor immediately said: “Commander Luo, don’t worry, the worst scenario hasn’t happened yet. Right now, Dr. Xia and several seniors are trying their best to save him.”

Luo Ran rubbed his temples and asked: “How long have I been out?”

“Half a day.”

Such a long time, and he still hadn’t been saved……

Although it wasn’t the worst situation, it still wasn’t good.

Luo Ran pressed his forehead. As soon as his mood surged, he started to have a stabbing headache — his spiritual power was injured again.

But now was not the time to care about such a thing. Luo Ran pulled out the needle from his arm and got out of bed.

“Where is Adjutant Rong?”

. . . . . . . .

In the battleship’s emergency room.

As soon as Luo Ran arrived, he saw his brother Luo Xingyuan standing to the side, facing the wall.

He had his hands braced on the wall, with his forehead leaning on his hands. His expression couldn’t be seen clearly with his back turned.

Luo Ran stood next to him. He paused, and said in a low voice: “I’m sorry.”

After a long moment, Luo Xingyuan said hoarsely: “He did the right thing.”

“In public, you are the most important person on this battleship. In private, you are my little brother.”

Luo Ran knew that there was nothing he could say right then, so he could only stand to the side and wait with Luo Xingyuan.

Wang Qiuyang came to look for the two of them. Not many people survived after the explosion on the battleship, and the remaining mercenaries and star pirates had also been recovered by Wang Qiuyang.

Luo Ran and Rong An were transferred to the emergency room of the main battleship for treatment, while the First Prince……he was still breathing when Wang Qiuyang and the others found him, but he committed suicide after being carried back.

Wang Qiuyang bowed his head and said: “He also asked me to bring you a message. He said they were his last words.”

“What?” Luo Ran frowned slightly.

Wang Qiuyang: “He said, ‘To Secretary Luo, I am sincere.’”

Even from that first encounter in the back garden.

Luo Ran paused, then said: “Understood. Preserve the body well. I will entrust the team to transport it back to the capital and hand it over to the Second Prince.”

“Yes!”

Wang Qiuyang glanced at the red light of the emergency room, and said in a low voice: “Adjutant Rong……”

“He will be alright.” Luo Ran glanced at Luo Xingyuan and said: “He’ll be fine.”

“Yes,” Wang Qiuyang said with red eyes, gritting his teeth. “Wang Ruicheng died on the battleship because he was closest to the door. His body is all in pieces……as it should be!”

“I taught him well since he was a child, how could he……I didn’t expect this from him!”

Wang Qiuyang stepped forward and gave a big military salute to Luo Xingyuan.

“I have shamed the military, I have shamed the Admiral, and I have shamed Commander Luo!”

“It’s fine, no one needs to blame themselves for this.” Luo Xingyuan still had his back turned to them. Wang Qiuyang didn’t know if he was crying, but Luo Xingyuan’s shoulders were shaking slightly.

Ding-dong.

After an unknown amount of time, the door of the emergency room was pushed open at last, and Xia Zhi came out in a surgery gown.

“He’s okay,” Xia Zhi said through the mask. “Adjutant Rong is alive.”

Luo Ran saw Luo Xingyuan’s body lose its strength, and he slid down the wall, falling to his knees.

Luo Ran keenly grasped Xia Zhi’s words.

“You saved his life, but what about…..?”

Xia Zhi hesitated, then said: “Let’s put it this way, it was a miracle to survive an explosion of that scale, thanks to you, Commander Luo…..”

After thinking about it, he realized that Luo Ran’s identity as an Omega had not been made public, so he said: “It is thanks to the fact that Commander Luo found cover and in turn protected Adjutant Rong, otherwise he would have lost his life.”

The explosion had originated from within, and they were in the reception room, which was the central location.

If Luo Ran hadn’t succeeded in breaking through his potential, then Rong An would have died, and Luo Ran would have been seriously injured and unable to stand here now.

“So don’t blame yourself. You both did a good job and protected each other.” Xia Zhi reached out and patted Luo Ran, aware of what he was thinking.

Luo Ran didn’t let it go. He asked: “Then as you’ve said, you managed to save his life. What else?”

Luo Xingyuan also got up and looked over.

Xia Zhi hesitated, then said: “Half of his face is ruined, and there will be scars, but long-term application of medicine will let them fade. There is also a spinal injury, so he cannot walk naturally in the future, but you can rest assured that with the Empire’s prosthetic technology, there will be no problem giving him mechanical legs.”

The doctors inside pushed Rong An out and transferred him to the intensive care unit. Most of Rong An’s face was covered in bandages, and he couldn’t see what was going on around him.

“…..It’s alright.” Luo Xingyuan lowered his head, and his expression couldn’t be seen clearly. “He’s an undercover agent. With this identity, it’s good enough that his life can be saved.”

“Commander Luo, go back,” Luo Xingyuan said hoarsely. “You are also seriously injured.”

Luo Ran glanced at Luo Xingyuan. He paused, then said: “All right.”

Luo Xingyuan said: “You need to have a good rest and refresh yourself. I’ll handle the official duties on the battleship for the time being. You can sign off on things once you wake up and read them.”

“Okay.”

Luo Ran nodded and headed back toward the room.

Once he relaxed, Luo Ran could feel the stinging wounds on his body and his spiritual state.

He leaned against the wall and frowned tightly.

Before his eyes was a sea of wisteria flowers.

He was hallucinating again.

“Commander Luo..…!”

“I’m okay.” Luo Ran accepted Wang Qiuyang’s support and went into the room.

Xia Zhi had just finished a day-long operation, but after disinfecting and tidying up, he quickly returned to Luo Ran’s side. After all, Luo Ran also needed him because of his confidential identity.

Xia Zhi focused on scanning Luo Ran’s head, then said with a frown: “The wound that healed with great difficulty…..you…..”

What a disaster.

Looking at Xia Zhi’s exhausted yet professional appearance, Luo Ran said: “Xiaxia.”

“En?”

Luo Ran lowered his eyes and paused, not speaking.

Xia Zhi looked at Luo Ran for a moment, then smiled and said: “I know what you’re thinking.”

Xia Zhi pulled up a chair and sat down next to the bed, saying: “I used to be like this. I think you should know why I quit…..I couldn’t be as strong as they were. I was exposed to so much death on the battlefield, but I couldn’t accept it. What I didn’t understand at the time was why Lao Shen was so indifferent in that situation, why the Admiral was so unwell after Admiral Alton’s death.”

“So I regret it very much. Because of my cowardice, I couldn’t say goodbye to Admiral Alton. I lost my professional ability as a field doctor, and I couldn’t give Admiral Alton comfort on his deathbed.”

Luo Ran reached out and gently rubbed Xia Zhi’s shoulder.

Xia Zhi smiled slightly and said: “It’s okay, I understand now. It’s because I must be dispassionate. Just like how when Adjutant Rong sacrificed himself for us, Commander Luo became more determined. He couldn’t be discouraged or knocked down, and must quickly adjust his mood in order to continue to work on the battleship as a leader.”

Luo Ran nodded, then shook his head again.

“I understand, it’s just that now I can see the Admiral’s situation better.”

This was Luo Ran’s first time leading troops, and he also remembered the previous expedition with Lucas.

At that time, they were being chased and beaten by star pirates, and Wang Qiuyang and Lu Cheng quickly reached a consensus — Lu Cheng took him away, and Wang Qiuyang stayed.

At that time, Lu Cheng didn’t know if Wang Qiuyang would live or die if he stayed, but neither of them showed any emotion, and just completed their tasks.

Luo Ran thought, how difficult must it have been for Lucas.

So many years of immersion.

So many names struck out in the military’s system.

“Don’t think about it.” Xia Zhi finished his inspection and took out a syringe, injecting it into Luo Ran. “You’ll be able to meet the Admiral soon.”

“En.”

Halfway through the injection, Luo Ran suddenly felt nauseous.

“Wait, wait…..”

Luo Ran pushed Xia Zhi away, then turned his head and retched, as if allergic to the medicine.

Xia Zhi: “ ? ? ? ”

Luo Ran said with a pale face: “Sorry, I’m not feeling well.”

Xia Zhi: “……”

No wonder, Xia Zhi thought. After all, Luo Ran had just been officially marked.

Luo Ran glanced at Xia Zhi and said helplessly: “No, that’s not it. I took the medicine after the official mark.”

“……Ah.”

After giving him the injection, Xia Zhi went to rest.

After a while, Luo Ran received a call request from Lucas.

“Hello? Admiral?”

“……”

“Admiral?”

“…..Ranran.” Lucas said: “It’s good that you’re okay.”

“En, I’m fine.” Luo Ran noticed that Lucas’s voice was a little strange, and could probably guess what was going on.

Lucas should have received news of the explosion before, and had only just confirmed that he was okay.

“Admiral, I’m okay. I can protect myself.” Luo Ran tucked himself into bed and said with a smile: “We’ll meet again soon.”

“En.”

Luo Ran had a bit of a headache. Although he’d had an injection, he was still very uncomfortable. It was as if someone was poking his brain with hundreds of needles.

And what was even more strange was that Luo Ran missed Lucas very much, especially after hearing his voice at this moment.

He missed his pheromones. He wanted to be surrounded by Lucas and his pheromones.

It was like being addicted to drugs.

Perhaps it was because of the mark.

“Admiral…..” Luo Ran leaned back on the pillow and said: “What are you doing?”

“Lying down to rest.”

Luo Ran paused, not saying anything.

“Ranran, turn on the video.”

“……It’s inconvenient.”

Luo Ran was covered in bandages at the moment, and his face was very pale. He had been enduring the pain in his head, and didn’t want Lucas to see.

“Luo Ran.”

“Do it.”

Lucas directly sent the request, and seeing that Luo Ran didn’t accept it, he sent a series of them.

Luo Ran: “……”

Luo Ran had no choice but to cover himself up to his nose with the quilt.

“You…..” Lucas knew what was going on when he saw Luo Ran’s condition.

Lucas asked: “Does it hurt?”

“…..It’s fine.”

Lucas was a little upset. He wasn’t with Luo Ran at the moment, and couldn’t comfort him with his pheromones.

“Ranran, you……”

“Do it yourself, I’ll tell you what to do. Shen Xiluo said that this will relieve the pain.”

“……?”

“Go and ask Xia Zhi for Alpha pheromone simulation spray. It’s effective when you’re in heat.”

“……”

Luo Ran had never expected that one day he would have such a shameful, strange terminal conversation with Lucas. 

And his reasoning was justified. It really could relieve the spiritual pain a little bit.

Only, although Luo Ran was more comfortable after finishing, he still couldn’t help going to the toilet to vomit due to the mood swings.

Luo Ran suddenly remembered something.

After the official mark, he had taken the medicine.

But on Lucas’s birthday, he didn’t.

Luo Ran: “…….”

Hiss.

---

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Chapter Eighty-Eight << Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety

Such a straightforward way of replying to a letter was comparable to the concise and to the point Liu family letter with the word “Okay” printed on it. It could be seen that the two were indeed a match made in heaven, and had specially selected the person with the greatest affinity to get close to.

Liu Xian’an asked: “What will happen after the Emperor receives the letter?”

Liang Shu said: “There is an eighty percent chance he will break my legs.”

But broken was broken, ba. It wasn’t a big problem. A broken leg could be healed, and there was even a doctor at the ready. However, Liu Xian’an felt that it was better for them not to be broken. Liang Shu saw that his brow was slightly furrowed, as if he was really thinking about the matter. It was both distressing and cute. He couldn’t help but lean closer to ask: “What, a forty-eight thousand year-old immortal also cares about these worldly affairs? I thought you would disregard it and drag me to the ends of the earth.”

“I didn’t care at first,” Liu Xian’an said, “but the prince is really troublesome.”

The trouble was that the general of the whole country could not resign casually, and someone from the Imperial family could not elope to the mountains and forests to live in seclusion. In any case, there were many free and romantic things that His Royal Highness Xiao Wang could not do now.

Avoiding trouble now would only lead to greater trouble in the future, so it was best to proceed step by step.

Liang Shu didn’t feel that he was trouble at all, and had no sense of guilt. On the contrary, he quite easily exploited the situation to his advantage, sighing deeply. I have neither romance nor freedom, so pitiful, kiss me for a while.

Liu Xian’an said in his arms: “Okay.”

And the kisses of His Royal Highness Xiao Wang had always been dishonest, not like meeting each other in the golden wind and jade dew, but more like collecting a debt with interest. His thumb first slid from the cheek to the knot of his throat, pressing down on the mole the size of a sesame seed. He rubbed it repeatedly, then lowered his head and bit it with his teeth. The two of them were at the table first, and later rolled together on the bed. He wore a lot of clothes in winter, but Liu Xian’an could still feel the hands grasping his waist, so hard that they almost left bruises.

He didn’t dislike being completely controlled by the other party beneath the bed curtains. On the contrary, this kind of good thing that only required cooperation but not initiative was quite in line with his usual lazy style.

Thus, he lay down restfully and was about to embrace the god of dreams, but because he was so restful, Liang Shu had to stop and pinch his nose, calling: “Don’t sleep.”

“Not sleeping.”

“If you’re not sleeping, why aren’t you moving?”

Why do I need to move, Liu Xian’an thought. This person is really difficult to serve! So he turned over cooperatively and opened his arms to him again. I moved, come here.

Liang Shu stopped and lay on the bed with his head pillowed on his arms, no longer in the mood.

Liu Xian’an had no choice but to coax him, okay, ba, then I will do some more research later.

The method of research, of course, was to recruit a few new guests to the Three Thousand Worlds. When A-Ning received this new task, he was stunned. First, he asked in a whisper, you’re just fine, why do you need books on this topic? After asking, he stammered, at present…..the prince…..it’s too early, ba. The Emperor doesn’t know and the Village Master doesn’t know either. Bear with it for a while, Young Master, and we’ll talk about it when we return to Baihe City.

Then he found an excuse and ran away. Fearing that he would be stopped if he ran too late, he said while running: “I’m going to find medicine for Song-xiansheng!”

This was the medicine written down in the servant’s ancient book. There were many trees in the Southwest, and the air was damp. There was no telling how many unique plants and flowers grew in the wild forests. Many of them were similar in appearance and extremely difficult to identify, and it took a lot of effort to find all of them even though they were disciples from Baihe Mountain Village.

Liu Xian’an temporarily halted Song Changsheng’s previous treatment plan. The rest of the doctors in the city were also taking this opportunity to study, and had been accompanying the doctor in the government office these days. Most of them were locals, but they had never heard of Huanxi Toad Venom and couldn’t quite understand the antidote. Thus, they cautiously asked, shouldn’t the miracle doctor think twice?

“I’ll try this for two days first.” Liu Xian’an said, “If he doesn’t improve, then I’ll go back to the previous treatment.”

Seeing that he was so persistent, the doctors could say no more. After all, the blue poisonous ivy on Song-xiansheng’s face really looked horrifying, and the authority of Baihe Mountain Village was indeed unquestionable. More importantly, even Song Changsheng himself had no objection to this, so that night, Liu Xian’an switched the medicine for him.

The first day was fine, and he passed the night without incident. In the early morning of the next day, the group of doctors were still watching him, studying whether the blue lines were getting darker or lighter, and the atmosphere was relaxed.

But in the afternoon, Liu Xian’an was slowly dispensing medicine in the courtyard when he suddenly saw A-Ning rush in, out of breath. He said: “Young Master, Young Master…..Song-xiansheng seems to be dying.”

“Talk slowly, why is he dying?” Liu Xian’an put down the basket in his hand. “Didn’t he look fine when I went to see him just now?”

“He vomited a lot of blood, and the blood was all, all blue.” A-Ning coughed. “While talking, Doctor Li was sprayed all over.”

“Let’s go.” Liu Xian’an wiped his hands. “I’ll have a look.”

There were seven or eight doctors crammed into the room, and Song Changsheng lay on the bed, his face ashen. Seeing that Liu Xian’an had come, the others hurriedly made way for him and shakily told him the situation just now: “It seems that even his heartbeat nearly stopped.”

Liu Xian’an tested Song Changsheng’s pulse, then turned to A-Ning and said: “Give me the medicine.”

A-Ning hurriedly fetched a bottle of pills, hydrated them with water, and fed them to Song Changsheng. A doctor asked curiously, “What kind of medicine is this?”

Liu Xian’an said: “Pills made by Baihe Mountain Village that can save lives in critical situations. A-Ning, where is the prince?”

“The prince already knows about this.” A-Ning notified him in a whisper, “I heard that Lieutenant General Gao immediately arrested Si’er.”

Si’er was that little servant, whose name was Wei Si. When he was arrested, he screamed continuously that he really didn’t know anything, and was currently being locked up in the dungeon. A-Ning asked, do you want to call him in for questioning?

“No need, I can’t look after him.” Liu Xian’an said, “Go get the silver needles, and make the brazier in the room even warmer.”

All the doctors agreed and went to work on their own. Those who had nothing to do still gathered around the bed to watch, inevitably muttering in their hearts, the treatment was very good, but the prescription had to suddenly be changed. He wouldn’t listen to any persuasion. Everything was fine, and now wasn’t there a different problem? Looking at Song-xiansheng’s current state, they really didn’t know how many days…..or how many hours he could live.

Although the government ordered that no news be leaked, there was no impenetrable wall in the world, and there were always maids, servants, doctors, and medicine boys who came and went in and out of the courtyard. So soon, all the common people in the city knew that Song Changsheng’s condition had suddenly worsened, and he probably wouldn’t survive.

“This……didn’t they say he was almost cured?”

“Who knows.”

Liu Xian’an kept him alive for three days in a row, and during these three days, all kinds of rumors arose in the city. Of course, there were people with ulterior motives among them. On behalf of the heretical cult, they only said that Song Changsheng had offended the Holy Maiden and killed the envoy, so how could he survive? Let alone a miracle doctor, even a god would find it difficult to heal him.

Fear could speed up the spread of rumors. For a while, even four or five-year-old dolls were chanting and singing nursery rhymes related to the Baifu Sect.

“What are you singing!” After the adults understood it, they quickly covered the children’s mouths and scolded, “Be careful not to be caught by the officials!”

“We won’t be taken away,” a little girl said naively. “When Xiao Fuzi was teaching me yesterday, that official servant Brother Liu^[1] was standing right across from us.”

“That’s because he didn’t hear it clearly. If he heard it clearly, you would go to prison!” The adult walked back with her in her arms. “Don’t go out to play during this time.”

“……Wu.”

Without the children playing in the streets, it was deserted and dull.

On the fourth day, Song Changsheng died.

The doctors packed up their medicine boxes and slipped out of the manor one by one. None of them dared to say anything. Everyone said that the prince’s expression at that time, ah…..they really felt that the heads on their necks were about to be plucked. And Second Young Master Liu was completely exhausted. He staggered and swayed when he walked, and his vision went dark when he stood up, causing him to knock his head when he passed out.

It was true that he knocked his head. His Royal Highness Xiao Wang was painstakingly applying ointment for him, but the ointment was an unsightly reddish-purple color. A thin line trickled down his forehead, and Liu Xian’an had to remind him: “This medicine was made by my father himself. The quantity is small and precious, don’t waste it.”

Liang Shu said: “I’ll put a little more on, it will heal faster.”

Liu Xian’an: “……Medical blindness.”

“Don’t speak.” Liang Shu said, “I haven’t taught you a lesson yet. You were just pretending, why did you really fall unconscious due to exhaustion?”

“Because there were too many people in the room. Those doctors were with me at all times. I also have to wonder, weren’t they tired?” Liu Xian’an was also very gloomy when this matter was mentioned. “So I could only make do with Song-xiansheng’s bed for a while.”

Liang Shu used the back of his hand to wipe the medicine that had flowed elsewhere, rubbing red and purple across his face.

Liu Xian’an: “…….” You people from the Northwest Military Camp are really not particular, ah!

In the end, he got out of the other party’s arms and applied the medicine himself. Halfway through the application, A-Ning ran in again. He lay on the window and whispered: “Young Master, Lieutenant General Gao and the others are ready to act, so I’ll go join the fun!”

Liu Xian’an waved his hand, go, come back and tell me after you’re done.

As for where to watch the excitement, it was naturally the prison.

The servant boy had already heard the news of Song Changsheng’s death at this time, and there was a strange smile of ecstasy on his face. He wasn’t even bothering to pretend. The jailor leaned against the door of the cell. Seeing this expression of incurable bewitchment, he warned indifferently, you committed such a crime, and I’m afraid you’ll be hacked to pieces by the prince. How can you be happy?

The boy ignored him, and only muttered to himself. The jailer became increasingly disdainful, and spat. He turned around to leave, but was knocked unconscious by somebody’s palm and fell to the ground with a thud.

The maid in white was covered by a light veil. The boy became even happier when he saw her, and rushed to the prison door: “Did the Holy Maiden ask this sister to come and rescue me?”

The maid cut off the iron chains and took his hand: “Let’s go!”

At this time, the sky was completely dark. A-Ning hid in the shadows and watched the two leave the manor all the way through the dim moonlight.

The Imperial guard next to him saw that he seemed to be very interested in this kind of excitement, so he simply lifted him by the collar and flew to follow after them.

A-Ning was caught off guard, and was fed a cold breeze.

He hurriedly covered his mouth and nose with a cloth towel, and the Imperial guard kindly reminded him: “No one will discover us.”

But A-Ning still insisted on covering up, because if he drank too much wind, it would be easy for cold to enter the body.

For the disciples of Baihe Mountain Village, the most important thing was to keep in good health, protect the stomach, and strengthen the spleen at all times.

The Imperial guard: “…….”

The maid led the servant all the way into a dark alley, where they disappeared.

The boy asked: “Are we going to see the Holy Maiden?”

Before the maid could answer, a sword shadow descended from the sky.

“Ah!” the boy exclaimed, and was pushed aside heavily by the maid. Gao Lin swept across with a sword in one hand, almost cutting off his bun. The servant boy felt a chill on the top of his head, and fell to the ground with disheveled hair. He looked on helplessly as Gao Lin and the maid fought. A dog was barking in the distance. Flustered, he turned around and ran away.

It wasn’t until he ran so far away that his figure disappeared that Gao Lin kicked the maid to a government official who had been informed. Then, he jumped to the other side to chase after him.

“Cough, cough!” The maid was escorted all the way to the manor. As soon as she entered the door, she began to tear the white gauze and mask off her face. After a lot of tugging, she finally revealed a man’s face.

The guards of Xiao Wang Manor were joking, I can’t see it, ah. You, boy, you’re still a graceful beauty, but you’re a bit fat. Remember to shave your beard clean next time.

“Scram!”

On the other side, the boy also scrammed very quickly. He couldn’t go home, let alone outside the city gates, so he took advantage of the darkness to run straight toward the house in his memory. Seeing the familiar shadow of the tree looming in front of him, he desperately climbed up the wall and jumped into this “sacred place” that haunted his dreams.

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[1] This is a different Liu ( 刘 ) than Liu Xian’an’s family. ⮐

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Chapter Eighty-Seven << Table of Contents >> Chapter Eighty-Nine

Early the next morning.

As soon as Pei Yi entered the studio, Li Yuan, who was waiting in the lobby, greeted him, “Pei Yi! You really predicted it correctly!”

Li Yuan handed the tablet in his hand to his friend and indicated, “Look, Xunya Technology’s official Weibo posted a new announcement at 8 o’clock in the morning, saying that Nanchan Games is not a subsidiary of their headquarters. Two and a half years ago—”

“That is, before large-scale plagiarism occurred, the relationship between them changed to a partnership.”

At present, Xunya Technology unilaterally announced the termination of its partnership with Nanchan Games, and apologized to the netizens who felt hurt by online public opinion.

From now on, company headquarters would conduct stricter inspections of its partners in order to keep similar incidents from happening again. Everyone’s supervision, criticism, and corrections were welcome.

Pei Yi clearly read the black and white statement with the official seal, and a glimmer of understanding flashed in his eyes. “A major company is indeed a major company. It is necessary to be clean and tidy, and they use this superficial skill well.”

Last night went from Mufeng Games’ stern questioning, to Chanming Studios’ statement, to the revelations about Nanchan Games’ series of plagiarism incidents.

Not only had it become big news in the gaming circle, but it had also made the two parties the target of attention and abuse from ordinary netizens.

Although the officials of the original game design competition had been hiding and pretending to be dead, there was no end to the ability of the vast number of netizens who could pick up and expose information. More and more evidence pointed to their shady behavior of using backdoors.

From Ke Ming and Changming Studios to You Chang and Nanchan Games, they became like street rats almost overnight.

There were waves of hot searches related to entertainment on Weibo, and the two topics about Chanming Studios’ backdoor and Xunya Technology were right there on the list of Weibo’s hot searches.

“There’s a lot more heat than I had imagined.” Li Yuan gave a low sigh, and then asked speculatively, “There must be someone behind this, right? Weiyi?”

Pei Yi raised his eyebrows slightly, which was enough of an answer.

The statement issued this morning was the result of a secret game between two sides regarding capital.

Whether it was Chanming Studios’ manipulation of the award results, or the shameless plagiarism of Nanchan Games in the name of profit, they had undoubtedly stepped on the moral bottom line of public conscience. 

Fueled by public opinion, people’s anger grew stronger and stronger.

For Xunya Technology, Chanming Studios’ “Destroy the Alien Beasts” was just a small subsidiary mobile game. The initial investment could not be counted as their own, and the profits in the later stage had not yet been achieved—

Although the backdoor investment in the competition was a bit of a loss, as a major game company, they could still afford it.

This time, Xunya Technology was forced to be at a disadvantage. If they didn’t cut off the relationship as soon as possible, the anger of the netizens would burn them.

“Don’t worry, the above and below-board fight between Xunay Technologies and Weiyi isn’t just a matter of a day or two. Although I’m the one who organized this counterattack, from Xunya Technology’s perspective, they probably consider our studio to be a move by Weiyi.”

Big companies had their own practices, and small studios had their own ways of living.

YWY had always done the right thing and sat upright. They were not afraid of retaliation by Xunya Technology. If something was said in private, they had the double protection of Bo Group and GM.

Of course, in the long run, their studio would sooner or later occupy a place in the Chinese gaming industry based on its own capabilities!

Li Yuan closed the door to the office. “By the way, Brother Xiang still has old work friends at Chanming Studios. He secretly discovered that Ke Ming got very angry at the company last night.”

“It seems that Nanchan Games suddenly announced an end to their partnership. Their backer pulled out suddenly.”

Pei Yi naturally understood who was responsible for this, and didn’t reveal more.

He imagined Ke Ming’s expression. “It’s normal to get angry. Given his temperament of looking at people with his nostrils turned upward, it would be strange if he could deal with all of this calmly.”

Li Yuan had never had a good impression of Ke Ming, and continued, “After the in-game transaction channel of ‘Destroy the Alien Beasts’ opened, it is said that the total income didn’t exceed 300,000.”

However, tens of millions invested in production and millions of operating expenses would only return an income of less than 300,000 in the end.

If Ke Ming was old and in poor health, he might have been so angry that he had a heart attack.

Pei Yi’s mind returned to reality. “Are the hot searches still up?”

“They are, the top hot search is at 18th place.” Li Yuan nodded and made another guess. “However, I estimate that as soon as Xunya Technology’s statement is released, related hot search topics will follow.”

There was a dark light in Pei Yi’s eyes as he said, “Pear Garden, make the announcement. Everything that needs to be prepared is ready, and it’s our studio’s turn to come out and make our presence felt.”

It would be their own loss if they didn’t take these free hot searches and exposure!

Ke Ming must still plan to make a comeback after a while, but Pei Yi’s intention was to make him fall again and again, never having a chance to get up!

Li Yuan fully understood what his friend was thinking, and nodded firmly. “Don’t worry, leave it to me.”

The studio’s online publicity team was already prepared. It was time to send back all the misunderstandings and malice they had received since Monday!

. . . . . . .

It was Saturday afternoon, the moment Weibo traffic slowly woke up.

A new post landed on the Youtu forum homepage: Take a look! YWY’s latest Weibo. After reading the entire article, I can only shout one sentence: Amazing!

It should be known that although public opinion in the past two days had circled around Chanming Studios and “Destroy the Alien Beasts,” the other end of public opinion was linked to YWY Studios and their similar work, “The Last Fog.”

This straightforward post immediately attracted the attention of many game fans.

Everyone smelled a big melon, and immediately clicked on the link, rushing to the latest statement released by YWY Studios—

[ On the same day, an internet user named Chasing Wind posted false information about our studio’s chief planner, Will (Mr. Pei), and the studio’s “The Last Fog” project on the Youtu forum and Weibo. We are making the following statement:

We took screenshots as evidence and filed a police report as soon as possible. The user (Qin Moumou) has admitted to the police that he paid for tracking and paparazzi, spread malicious rumors, etc. He is currently in the process of legal prosecution!

Several other users (the specific list is attached in Figure 2) have been confirmed to be paid commenters from the same marketing company, which collected money to spread malicious public opinion and rumors. This behavior has also seriously infringed on the reputation and interests of our Mr. Pei Yi and the entire “Last Fog” game team, and those responsible will be held accountable to the end in accordance with the law!

Finally, from its inception to present, the “Last Fog” game team has respected fairness, originality, and ability, and respects their peers and opponents even more!

The entire production team felt deeply powerless and angry about the suspicions they received after winning the “8th Original Game Design Competition” — 

From this moment, YWY Studios and the “Last Fog” team voluntarily give up the winning title of the “8th Original Game Design Competition” and also condemn the organizers’ inaction!

If an award cannot prove our excellence, then let the game itself shine and speak for us! ]

If the first half was a normal clarification, then the second half was the surprising part.

Although there was a lot of controversy over the original game design competition this time, its prestige could not be underestimated. It was also one of the few awards recognized by the Chinese gaming circle.

Give up their winning spot?

Did that mean that YWY Studios had voluntarily given up the series of subsequent exposure channels?

Just to protest and denounce the organizers of the competition from the perspective of the general public? The entire YWY Studios was so unyielding!

For a time, the comment area was occupied by netizens who followed the trend and came to enjoy the melons.

“To summarize Big Cat Face’s statement: A certain garbage studio used a backdoor and hired trolls to blacken them, and they asked the police to deal with this pile of trash! Also, their game relies on their own ability to be awesome. Whoever wants the prize can have it, but they don’t want it! Meow~ It’s over!”

“Hahahaha the cat-like summary is perfect!”

“Damn, this small studio has some backbone, ah.”

“The real thing is here. Let’s go try The Last Fog 1.0. It’s definitely the most interesting card game I’ve played in recent years!”

“It’s true, the painting style is so beautiful! And the game experience is also very smooth, without any messy advertisements!”

“YWY, my kitty cat treasure studio, ‘The Last Fog’ is really a domestically produced original. Now I’m looking forward to the 2.0 mobile game version!”

“Come quickly! There’s a big melon, the chief planner Will is a King of Drinking Capacity!”

This comment quickly attracted the attention of melon-eating netizens, and they all moved over.

Just now, Pei Yi’s Weibo had uploaded ten minutes of video content, and the accompanying post was unparalleled in its toughness—

Destroy the alien beasts copied and plagiarized.

Seven simple words, not killing without spilling blood.

The video began with a surveillance video from late August last year.

The fairly spacious conference room was packed with people, but soon, the focus of the video zoomed to the conference stage accompanied by clear subtitles.

It was the scene of the meeting during the first bidding in the capital. The video was accelerated, but it didn’t affect the normal viewing and understanding of the netizens at all.

From Lou Yang coming on stage to accuse Ke Ming of plagiarism, to Ke Ming denying it, then to Lou Yang showing evidence and slapping him harshly in the face, and finally Li Yuan’s warning to Ke Ming—

Everything was truthfully announced to the public.

Perhaps even Ke Ming himself had forgotten that GM’s conference room was monitored!

Everyone was born as a human being.

Everything a person said and did would leave a mark on this world!

In addition, the content of the last five minutes involved the contacts and exchanges between the two parties in the recent competition—

““It wasn’t enough for you to copy the modeling at the beginning, but now you have to copy the character settings?”

“What did I copy? Do you have evidence? I’m the one who finished presenting the game settings just now, and you guys are presenting yours in the afternoon. Who is plagiarizing who in terms of timing?”

“I heard that you plan to customize the attack settings of the game? This is indeed a good idea.”

“How can you say it was copied? We are colleagues, let’s learn from each other and make progress together.”

As early as after meeting Ke Ming in Haishi, Pei Yi had been more cautious, and would use his cell phone to record in real time each instance they met.

Therefore, at present, every item listed by YWY had enough evidence to prove that it was the original work of their studio. On the contrary, it was Ke Ming’s shameless behavior and remarks that aroused strong resentment from the public.

“I’m going to vomit! I’ve never seen anyone more disgusting than Ke Ming.”

“Calling plagiarism learning and progress? No wonder Chinese games have had such a hard time getting ahead these years! They were hurt by worms like Ke Ming!”

“Teacher Will is awesome!”

“If you ask me, no one should question Will. What does the number of years in the industry matter? Last year’s ‘Joyful Spirit’ had the great atmosphere of a Chinese horror story! Recently, ‘Traces’ and ‘The Last Fog’ won at the same time! I’m super looking forward to it!”

“Well, Chanming Studios and Destroy the Alien Beasts will be completely blacklisted by me. Asking when The Last Fog will be released. I’m still looking forward to a doomsday escape game with China as the focus!”

“Chanming Studio has been reported to the relevant departments! Looking forward to The Last Fog.”

Pei Yi looked at the increasing number of comments on his computer, then at Li Yuan opposite, and went on to the next step.

“Pear Garden, get ready. At five o’clock tonight, we’ll officially announce that ‘The Last Fog’ is in closed beta testing.”

Li Yuan had just received the real-time data from the online publicity team and had to admire his friend’s marketing methods. “You’ve eaten up this wave of exposure to death.”

As the saying went, contrast creates beauty.

The more problems Chanming Studios and “Alien Beasts” had, the more it would boost the popularity of “The Last Fog.”

It might sound a bit unfair to the former, but business competition was destined to be cruel. After all, it was Ke Ming, who deliberately caused harm behind the scenes, so what was wrong with them taking advantage of the others’ ability and trying to exploit them?

Pei Yi chuckled. “Little Mr. Li, I’m going to trouble you next. From the beginning of the closed beta to the launch of the public beta, all kinds of publicity and marketing methods must continue on.”

“Now that the mobile game version is on the way, there will be a web-based game in the future. “The Last Fog” will be our core project to establish ourselves in the gaming circle.”

Pei Yi had completed the initial review of the work, and now it was time for Li Yuan to give full play to his abilities.

“I know. I won’t take it lightly.”

Li Yuan thought about the studio’s next path, and he had never felt that the future was so smooth and bright.

He looked at his friend who was still browsing the web, and said without thinking, “En. Pei Yi, thank you.”

Pei Yi was taken aback, and looked over. “Thanks for what?”

Li Yuan also felt that his sincere thanks had come a bit unexpectedly, and coughed in embarrassment. “I just feel like my life has changed since I met you.”

Whether it was his career or his new love—

He left behind struggling in the mud and walked onto the right path step by step.

Pei Yi deliberately put on the airs of a boss and joked, “Stop being pretentious here and get to work quickly.”

Li Yuan completely suppressed his sentiment and retorted, “Stop your lecturing, and don’t be lazy. You still need to keep an eye on the copywriting team yourself!”

Saying so, he paused and shared a smile with his friend.

. . . . . . .

Inside a beautifully decorated private box.

Bo Yueming and Pei Yi sat next to each other, and naturally opposite them were Yan Cen and Li Yuan.

Yan Cen pushed up his glasses and spoke first, “Come, let’s take this glass of wine to celebrate the successful start of YWY’s first mobile game. Thank you for your hard work.”

Pei Yi joked back, “It’s not hard work. Anyway, the money invested at this stage still belongs to Mr. Bo and Mr. Yan.”

Bo Yueming laughed helplessly and raised his glass. “Come, ba.”

— Clink.

The wine glasses tapped each other with a pleasant sound, and even the wine swayed with a moving glimmer.

Bo Yueming asked casually, “Has the matter been resolved? Do you need me to send someone to keep an eye on Ke Ming?”

The “keep an eye on” he spoke of was not only regarding his career, but his private life as well.

Someone as arrogant and conceited as Ke Ming had his career ruined after so many years of hard work, and if his emotions got the better of him, he might do something as extreme as Bo Guancheng did.

Pei Yi took a sip of wine and said, “Pear Garden and I asked my brother to send someone, so there shouldn’t be any trouble.”

Li Yuan nodded in agreement. “Ke Ming can’t protect himself now, so he shouldn’t have the energy to ‘harm’ us.”

Yan Cen didn’t speak. He just silently wiped his hands with a wet towel and began to peel the shrimp.

When Bo Yueming saw this, he remained calm on the surface and quickly accelerated the same movements of hand-peeling shrimp.

Pei Yi thought the champagne tasted good today, so he drank several more sips while his lover wasn’t paying attention. “You two probably don’t know yet, right? ‘Alien Beasts’ will likely be removed from the shelves.”

Yan Cen was taken aback. “Removed?”

Bo Yueming had learned the general situation from Lin Zhong not long ago. “Is it because of the game’s publishing rights?”

Pei Yi nodded. “En.”

This matter had come out this afternoon—

“Alien Beasts” had been blocked by the relevant game departments before and was unable to obtain distribution rights because some of its scenes were too bloody.

Later, they contacted Xunya Technology through Nanchan Games, and the latter obtained the game distribution rights through special means and channels.

There had been a lot of fuss over “Alien Beasts” in the past two days, which caused many netizens to go directly to the official website to complain. The truth was exposed over and over again.

“With the current reputation of Chanming Studios, it will be difficult to obtain the distribution rights for ‘Alien Beasts’ once it is removed from the shelves.”

Li Yuan paused, feeling indescribably complicated. “I heard that Ke Ming invested a lot. I’m afraid his studio will go bankrupt this time.”

Competition was destined to be cruel, but it was likely that many employees would suffer from unemployment.

Pei Yi’s eyes brightened when he heard this. “Then quickly ask Brother Xiang to find out if there are any highly skilled employees willing to come to our studio?”

Anyway, their studio would expand sooner or later, and the more excellent talents they had, the better.

Bo Yueming was long accustomed to his lover’s way of doing things, and simply put a pile of peeled shrimp in his bowl. “You can take the opportunity to ask. Water flows to lower places, and people to higher places.”

Li Yuan nodded, his eyes unconsciously focusing on the pile of shrimp meat.

He was a little greedy.

In the next second, Yan Cen put the same shrimp meat into his bowl and coaxed him in a low voice, “You should also eat more.”

Li Yuan’s ears turned red. “En.”

Pei Yi peeked at the small interaction on the opposite side with great interest, and then glanced at the dining table—

The other dishes weren’t touched at all, but the shrimps on the side were all divided up by Bo Yueming and Yan Cen!

Good fellows, where was the competition here?

. . . . . . .

Dinner ended happily, and both parties returned to their respective homes.

The car parked outside the villa.

Pei Yi drank a little too hard that night, and he felt a drunken softness for the first time in a long time.

He was so drunk that he didn’t even think about getting out of the car. Instead, he sat on Bo Yueming’s lap, face to face with him. “Er-ge.”

Bo Yueming signaled for Lao Fu to get out of the car first, then unbuckled his seatbelt and hugged this person tightly. “I wasn’t watching for a moment tonight, and now you’re a drunken kitten again?”

Pei Yi lay his head on his shoulder and groaned. “A little thirsty.”

There was a thermos cup in the back row. Bo Yueming held his lover with one hand and poured him some warm water with the other. “Slow down and have a drink?”

Pei Yi swallowed it all in one gulp and leaned back onto his lover’s shoulder.

Bo Yueming coaxed him, “If you’re sleepy, how about we go upstairs?”

Pei Yi shook his head, feeling that Bo Yueming’s arms were soft against him.

He raised his head to look at his lover’s superior jawline, and smiled infatuatedly. “Er-ge.”

“En?”

“I can’t seem to get enough of you.”

Bo Yueming pinched his earlobe and said, “It would be bad if you got tired of me.”

Pei Yi straightened up slightly and asked in a low voice, “Have I been neglecting you lately?”

Since being criticized by the public due to Ke Ming’s malicious designs on Monday, Pei Yi had been working hard to prepare for his counterattack for the next five or six days.

Bo Yueming kissed his lips. “No, I know you’ve been busy.”

Unlike the already stable Bo Group, Pei Yi’s career was still in its infancy, so he naturally needed to put more thought into it.

Bo Yueming understood him. Joy spread in Pei Yi’s heart.

He took the initiative to kiss his lover’s lips, somewhere between innocent and sultry. “Er-ge, I won’t be working tomorrow or Sunday.”

Bo Yueming was stirred up by the person in his arms. The hands around his waist tightened and he said knowingly, “Is that so?”

“I’ll give you everything.” Pei Yi was ambiguous and clingy. “I’ll give you whatever you want tonight.”

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Chapter Eighty-Six <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Eighty-Eight