Since Goxi’s death, the Speaker of the Citizens' House had received no fewer than ten letters of protest from Nini.
In truth, Nini knew Goxi had treated her like a "plastic sister." Back when the two of them were vying for Suye’s attention, Goxi had shown no mercy. After Fanli appeared, even though Goxi didn't want her anywhere near Suye, she had still used her to help entice him just to stabilize her own position as his girlfriend. But with Goxi dead, Nini had lost all access to His Majesty. The rumors involving her, Goxi, and the Emperor were flying thick and fast, making it incredibly difficult for her to find another good man to marry. Thus, Goxi’s death was a profound blow to her. She had broken down in tears and flown into rages; she wasn't afraid of Suye’s blatant favoritism toward Fanli. She simply wanted the Speaker to step in and clear Fanli out of the way.
Unfortunately, those three "grand gifts" had already scared the Speaker out of his wits. He had ordered all of Nini’s letters to be disposed of. Eventually, Nini began camping outside his villa’s outer courtyard every day, dressed in Goxi’s style and floating near the upper right of the main gate like a ghost. She successfully forced the Speaker to surrender, and he finally agreed to call her into his vessel for a talk.
"It is absolutely impossible for me to help Goxi 'get justice,'" the Speaker said, his attitude blunt. "Goxi has no 'justice' to speak of. She attempted to use the Princess’s hand to assassinate Great Oracle Sui and sabotage our relationship with the Light Sea. That isn't just a common murderer; that’s a political criminal."
"Don't think I don't know anything! I’m not as stupid as Goxi was," Nini retorted. "Whether or not you gave your approval for the plan to murder Sui is something we both know perfectly well! To speak so sanctimoniously now—isn't that just too corrupt, too dark!"
The Speaker felt a headache coming on. He scratched his thinning hair, his face wrinkling like a crumpled piece of paper. "I will tell you clearly once more: the supreme ruler of this Empire is not me, and it certainly isn't you. It is His Majesty, Suye. I am loyal to His Majesty and to the Empire; I will never help anyone defy him. So, if you continue to speak such reckless words, I will have you arrested."
Nini froze, her courage vanishing instantly. "How can you be like this..."
"Since I let you in, it’s because I wanted to tell you this: no citizen of the Empire wants the Light Sea race interfering in our national affairs. I don't like Sui either, but within the borders of the Empire, we must all follow His Majesty’s orders. Outside the Empire—for instance, in the Light Sea—well, young lady, what you choose to do there is another matter entirely."
"The Light Sea is Sui’s home turf! There’s even less we can do there!" Nini lashed her tail in frustration. "She was more vulnerable in Bamanboya because she only had His Majesty backing her. In the Light Sea, she has the Dictator, her clan background, and that Light Sea tycoon husband of hers. Why would she be afraid of us?"
"Is that so? Will every one of those people help her? Will the Dictator help her? Will Gashihitian help her? Will her *husband* help her?" The Speaker placed a deliberate emphasis on the words "her husband."
Nini blinked for a few seconds. "If the Light Sea found out their Great Oracle had betrayed her husband, what would happen?"
"You’re smarter than me. Figure it out yourself; I wouldn't know." Though the Speaker was smiling, his eyes narrowed. "I’ll just offer my perspective as a man: if my wife cheated on me, I likely wouldn't go public with it. I’d wait quietly for time to pass and then divorce her without a sound. However, if my enemies found out, they might expose her scandal immediately, eager to plaster the word 'humiliation' across my face. In that situation, I probably wouldn't retain even a shred of mercy for her... Alright, I have work to do now. Miss Nini, forgive me, but I have no more time to chat."
Nini caught on quickly. She found a friend in the Elite House to look up the Moore Group’s biggest competitor—the company ranked second in the "Split-Mouth Shark Enterprises" list by the *Holy Light News*. She called their headquarters, asking to speak with their president to expose a scandal involving Moore Heiqiao.
Hearing that the call was from the Abyss Empire, the president didn't take the call personally, but his executive assistant immediately stepped in to handle the connection.
"Mrs. Moore is having an affair with the Crimson Moon Emperor?" the assistant said, surprised. "What makes you say that?"
"She has been staying in the Eternal Night Hall of the Endless Palace this entire time. That is our Emperor’s private residence."
"As far as I know, the Eternal Night Hall has more than one bedroom."
"Yes. Besides His Majesty Suye’s master suite, there are eight other bedrooms."
"Then, miss, you might have a slight misunderstanding regarding Mrs. Moore. Mrs. Moore was adopted by the Crimson Moon Emperor’s parents when she was a child. Nominally, the two of them are siblings. Therefore, even if you took photos of her entering and leaving the Eternal Night Hall, everyone in the Light Sea would simply assume a sister is staying at her brother’s residence. No one would find it strange."
"What... siblings?" Nini gasped.
"Yes. I imagine very few in the Dark Sea know this fact," the assistant said kindly. "Of course, if you find definitive evidence that she has betrayed Mr. Moore, then even setting aside corporate rivalry and speaking only out of a sense of responsibility and dignity for the Light Sea, we would contact the media to expose the matter."
After hanging up, even Nini began to wonder if she and Goxi had misunderstood Sui. Perhaps Sui was so close to His Majesty because they were siblings...
But she quickly dismissed her own hypothesis.
No. It was only after Sui appeared that Suye had shut Goxi out.
There was definitely something going on between those two. What she needed to do now was find as much evidence as possible.
***
Three days later, Fanli received the arcane scroll sent by Ye Jia. The content was exactly as he had described: it could only output consciousness to microorganisms in a one-way stream, with no clear focus. But thinking of it as the hard-earned academic fruit of "Little Ye," Fanli learned it out of politeness and tested it on some deep-sea microbes.
Sure enough, the effect was like blowing a breath of air into the void.
She placed the scroll in her bedside drawer. Just as she turned around, she saw half a small face peeking through the bedroom doorway. Suri was gripping the doorframe with both hands, watching her with a look that was both guarded and curious.
"Princess?" Fanli closed the drawer and walked toward Suri. "Are you alone today?"
Suri shrank back, looking ready to bolt at any second. Fearing she might scare her, Fanli didn't get too close. She stepped back a few meters and said with a smile, "No classes today?"
Seeing Fanli retreat, Suri instead crept inside tentatively, like a prideful little kitten. "About last time... I’m sorry."
Suri looked remarkably like Suye, giving her a look that was heroic, exquisite, and a little bit wicked. Despite her young age, her features were deep-set; her nose was narrow and high-bridged, putting many adult men to shame. But on that slightly "bad girl" face, there was now only shyness and a forced, stubborn mask. Fanli had originally been a bit angry about what she’d done, but because of Suye, she liked the girl more the more she looked at her. She simply shook her head. "I don't blame you. It was all an accident."
Suri pursed her lips and kicked the doorframe, showing no intention of leaving.
Only then did Fanli notice the Princess was wearing trousers and small boots. This meant she had undergone land-transformation early and had come prepared—likely specifically to apologize. Fanli found her even more adorable. "So, you cut your hair?"
"Ah, yes..." If Fanli hadn't mentioned it, Suri would have forgotten she’d had it trimmed.
"You look so much like your father this way, but you could clearly be even prettier... Have you thought about changing your hairstyle?"
"There aren't any events to attend."
"Who says a girl has to attend an event to change her hair? How about I style it for you?"
Growing up, Suri had never been fond of "girly" things. When the maids served her, she was always impatient. But knowing the person in front of her was her mother, Suri couldn't say "no." She simply nodded and sat down where Fanli indicated.
"Your face shape is wonderful; any style would suit you." Fanli looked over her outfit. "I’ll give you a side-braid today. A good friend of mine back in university loved dressing like this."
"Oh, okay..."
For the next half hour, Fanli was completely immersed in the joy of treating the Princess like a doll. After styling her hair, she even let Suri wear one of her dresses. Suri was only four centimeters shorter than her and would likely be taller once she reached adulthood; the dress fit perfectly.
Initially, Suri only let her fuss to please her. But once the braid was finished and the dress was on, she looked in the mirror. It was the first time she had ever seen herself radiating such a light, beautiful, youthful aura. Golden starfish hair ornaments crawled along her snowy-white side-braid; two stray locks fell against her slender cheeks. Her knee-length white dress was also encrusted with golden starfish floral patterns. She reached out to lift the hem of the skirt, her blue eyes sparkling like the sea under a clear sky, filled with joy and surprise...
"Mama has blue eyes, right?"
Hearing Fanli’s gentle tone, Suri’s eyelashes fluttered. "Ah, yes."
"Your father’s genes are too strong. His daughter is identical to him everywhere except for her eye color."
*Dad’s genes are strong, and his personality is strong too. I hate him...*
Suri pouted unhappily, about to reply, when she heard a faint sound from the distance. She whipped her head around, her body flashing, and vanished in a streak of red light.
"Princess?" Fanli looked left and right. "Princess, where did you go?"
But after waiting for a long time, the only person who arrived was Suye.
"Were you calling Suri just now?" Suye asked from the doorway.
"Yes. She came to apologize, and I even styled her hair, but she vanished in the blink of an eye."
"She doesn't want to see me. She hasn't spoken to me for several days."
"Why?"
"No reason. Just puberty." Suye checked the clock. "You can go back to work at the research institute now, but stay in the Eternal Night Hall for the time being. Also, I’m going on a long trip next month. You’re coming with me."
"Sure."
"Mm."
Seeing Suye turn to leave, Fanli took a step forward. "Wait..."
"What is it?"
"What are you going to do now?"
"Handle some official business. Is something wrong?"
"No... nothing."
And just like that, the two of them ended their first conversation in three days. Weren't they married? Why did they feel more distant than before they were married? The more Fanli thought about it, the more stifled she felt.
Could it be that he only got the certificate to take responsibility for the child? If that was the case, they might as well not have married at all.
In times like these, she had to seek help from her best friend.
"What?! You two got hitched?!" Feng Jin exclaimed over the phone in surprise. "That’s great news, Sui-Sui! This is a good thing!"
"It’s not that great," Fanli sighed. "He’s much colder to me than when we were just in a relationship."
"He’s just being difficult. You’ve already won!"
"I feel like he treated any of his previous lovers better than he treats me. What’s the point of being a wife like this? I’d rather not be married."
"My Saint Tizong God, are you really a woman who’s been married four times?" Feng Jin sounded like she wanted to shake her. "Can a man have the same requirements and attitude for a wife as he does for a mistress? Of course he’s a perfect god in front of a mistress. Only in front of a wife will he reveal his most idiotic side. The fact that he’s stopped hiding in front of you is actually a good thing."
"Strange. Why would he be better to a mistress?"
"How should I put this... remember when we go to the mall and the makeup salesgirls ask us to try on products? If you aren't wearing makeup that day and they offer a full makeover, you usually won't be too against it, right? Even if you refuse, you won't feel too bad about the brand."
"Right."
"If you accept the makeover and they say, 'Could you give us one De coin to compensate us?' you’d probably pay it happily, wouldn't you?"
"Yeah."
"But if they said, 'Please buy the entire makeup set right now,' would your requirements for that set be the same as when you were just trying it on?"
"Of course not."
"You’d consider the value and performance of the set from every angle, wouldn't you?"
"I get it, but..."
"When Suye said he’d help you support your boyfriend, it was nothing more than adding one more coin to that initial one. To him, supporting one more person is about as difficult as spending one Delop. But now that he’s married you, it’s a completely different story! In short, he really loves you. Stop doubting it!"
"If he loves me, why treat me like this... Is it still because of a lack of trust?"
"Sigh, that’s between you two; I wouldn't know. But you have to realize what marrying Suye means. You aren't just the Light Sea’s Great Oracle anymore; you hold half the ruling power of the Abyss Empire. My Saint Tizong God, our Sui-Sui is now the Crimson Moon Queen..."
Fanli nearly choked on her own saliva. "What Crimson Moon Queen? What does this have to do with being a Queen?"
"You’re Suye’s wife. If you aren't the Crimson Moon Queen, what are you?"
"I’m Suye’s wife..." Fanli cupped her face, fangirling for a moment before her head drooped again. "He won't even hold my hand... Do you think it’s possible he just married me but will keep having a string of lovers like before?"
"Is he seeing other girls in the Abyss Empire?"
"Well, there were three or four."
Now even Feng Jin sounded a bit less confident. "That... that’s hard to say. I’ve been watching the Miss Abyss pageant finals lately. The first and second places are a Shadowkin and a Flame Demon. Those races definitely have a vibe that Light Sea beauties lack. Compared to them, we seem a bit... boring."
Thinking of Suye’s three or four girlfriends, Fanli felt all her strength leave her.
So what if they were married? He was still the "His Majesty Suye" of many women, not her brother alone...
***
On the weekend, Xiami invited the four-person group to a gathering with friends. The location was a private room in a popular restaurant on the cliffside of Bamanboya.
Many people were there—Xiami, Aize, Qiong, the couple Kunti and her husband, Lina, and others, totaling fifteen. In one corner of the table sat a Tracking Sea Squirt that had been tamed by fel energy.
The Tracking Sea Squirt was a type of jellyfish that only inhabited the hadal zone. It looked like a kite; its deep blue outer bell was dotted with snowy-white spots, and beneath its "kite string" stalk was a smaller jellyfish that drifted slowly like a blue ghost.
Once tamed, the Tracking Sea Squirt possessed a "Forced Truth" game function: it would circle the table and randomly stop behind a player. A question would appear on its outer bell, and the chosen player had to answer within thirty seconds. If they didn't answer or if they lied, the squirt would detect changes in the player’s hormones, provide an answer close to the truth, and force the player to answer the next question until they spoke the absolute truth.
The game was incredibly intense. But Fanli found it interesting, so she sat down to play with everyone.
The next person chosen was Aize. The host was Lina, who read out the question from the Tracking Sea Squirt: "When was the last time you laughed out loud from the bottom of your heart?"
Aize let out three loud laughs. "Right now."
The Tracking Sea Squirt glowed blue. Correct answer.
Everyone: "???"
The second person chosen was Xiami. Question: "What is your ideal lover like?"
The question caught Xiami off guard. She pushed up her glasses, head half-lowered, and whispered, "A bit overbearing, a serious 'young master' temper, a little bit of a playboy, and... a little bit bad, I guess..."
The Tracking Sea Squirt glowed blue. Aize beat his chest. "So good women really do like bad men? What are we good guys supposed to do?!"
However, Kunti shot Xiami a suspicious look. Xiami had been introverted since childhood. Counting Qiong, her male friends could be counted on ten fingers.
After a while, Qiong was also chosen. Question: "Is the person you like present today?"
"Yes."
Though Qiong wasn't as high-profile or flashy as his father, his grades had never dropped out of the top five in his class from primary school through graduate school. Moreover, since primary school, he had received a love letter basically every month. After entering society, it was even more exaggerated; the girls asking to mate with him could form a line. So, after he gave this answer, the girls present were in an uproar, scanning the room curiously, pretending to be inquisitive while secretly hoping it was them.
Xiami suddenly turned to look at Qiong, curious and a bit worried. But he looked straight ahead, not sparing her a single glance.
Just then, Fanli received a call from Suye.
"Where did you go?"
He was still concise, just like always, but Fanli was in the middle of enjoying the gossip. She whispered, "I’m at a gathering with friends."
"Why didn't you tell me you were going to a gathering?"
"Ah, you said I was free to—"
Before Fanli could finish, Suye had already hung up.
That evening, Qiong was like a man possessed by a god of misfortune. He was picked by the Tracking Sea Squirt four times, and the subsequent questions were all quite awkward: the most embarrassing thing he’d done since childhood; the most intimate thing he’d done with the opposite sex; the flaw he was most ashamed to tell others.
No matter which one he answered, his speech was calm, and his heart rate didn't skip a beat. But Xiami’s face was bright red the entire time. Because every single answer was related to her. Kunti, of course, noticed Xiami’s reaction and spent the whole time squinting at her and then at Qiong, a hint of murderous intent in her eyes.
Just as everyone was trying to force Qiong to confess who the girl was, a waiter suddenly opened the door and said politely, "Please, this way."
Seeing the white-haired man appear at the door, the entire room turned to stone—why was His Majesty Suye here?!
"That, uh, His Majesty Suye was invited by me." Aize scrambled to his feet, moving a new chair next to Fanli.
"I have something to discuss with the Great Oracle. I’ll leave once we’re done. You all keep playing; don't mind us." Suye smiled as he walked toward Fanli and sat in the empty chair.
But from the moment he sat down, everyone was collectively distracted, their eyes drifting toward him from time to time. Suye was used to this. He cast a silence spell and whispered in Fanli’s ear, "Have you played enough?"
"Not yet. I haven't been here long." Fanli felt her ears heating up. He was so close that she felt awkward speaking. "Did Your Majesty have something to say?"
"I only permitted you to work at the research institute, yet you ran off to a place with so many people. Was nearly dying last time not enough?" He spoke slowly, the way he tilted his head and smiled exceptionally elegant. His voice was quiet and polite, as if afraid of disturbing others. "Don't forget your current status. Come back with me now. No more loitering outside."
"Brother!" Fanli clenched her fists, her scalp tingling. "I have social needs! I’m not your toy!"
"Then I’ll stay here with you."
"If you stay here, how am I supposed to play?" Fanli had been cooped up lately and was getting angry. She slapped the table. "Go away. I’m having a party. Goodbye."
However, the moment she pulled her hand back from the table, Suye grabbed it underneath. She struggled desperately for two seconds, but she couldn't overpower him and had to give up.
At that moment, Lina gasped, "The sea squirt stopped behind His Majesty!" Everyone looked behind Suye and Fanli.
"Alright, let’s see what the question for His Majesty Suye is—" Lina looked at the Tracking Sea Squirt, her face contorted in awkwardness. "This... In the past ten years, how many members of the opposite sex have you mated with?"
"Whoa..." Not just the guys, but even the girls huddled together, dying to know the answer.
"I don't remember clearly," Suye said indifferently.
"Wow, that answer is exactly what I expected!" one girl said, pointing at the guys around her. "Hear that? His Majesty says he doesn't remember! Not like you guys, who can't wait for the whole world to know if you trick two or three girls! Idiots!"
"It’s okay if you don't remember clearly. I recall this question has a range of options." Aize knew the sea squirt’s penalty mechanism and quickly hurried behind it to read the additional options. "A. 0; B. 1; C. 2 to 10; D. More than 10; E. More than 30. Answers A, B, and C are obviously excluded. Your... Your Majesty, please give your answer..."
Suye glanced at Fanli, then at the Tracking Sea Squirt. He looked a bit impatient but didn't say a word.
Thirty seconds later, the Tracking Sea Squirt provided the answer for him.
And then, everyone was stunned.
Fanli stood up and inspected the Tracking Sea Squirt—was this thing broken?
The answer was clearly wrong...
Tragically, because he hadn't answered the first question, Suye had to undergo the penalty mechanism’s "soul interrogation." Aize said tremulously, "Sup... supplementary question... Please state the name of this one individual."
***
**Glossary**
Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation
---|---|---
跟踪海鞘 | Tracking Sea Squirt | A tamed deep-sea creature used for a "truth or dare" style game.
裂口鲨企业 | Split-Mouth Shark Enterprises | A business ranking or list in the Light Sea.
圣光报 | Holy Light News | A major news publication in the Light Sea.
莫尔黑乔 | Moore Heiqiao | Likely the full name or a specific reference to the head of the Moore Group.
交尾 | Mating | Used in the context of sexual intercourse among the merfolk/underwater races.
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