Chapter 23: An Appointment

That morning, after waking up, Long Yuan’s first instinct was to check himself for anything amiss. Immediately afterward, he pulled up the surveillance footage from Shi Chuchu’s room. The footage showed that Shi Chuchu had left her room for quite a while the previous night.

Long Yuan perked up, pulling up all the surveillance feeds from the entire children’s area, determined to catch this woman red-handed. To his surprise, however, she had merely spent the time in the playroom playing games. Long Yuan frowned, feeling that this result did not quite add up. Yet, after pondering it for a long time without a lead, he had to set the matter aside for the moment. He had more important business today: meeting with the Crown Prince, Xi Yao, alongside Shuang Ming.

*

At the Qatara Royal Court, in the council chamber, the young Crown Prince with golden hair and blue eyes sat in the seat of honor. To his lower left sat the High Priest with frost-colored hair and purple eyes, and to his right sat the Marshal with black hair and black eyes. The three sat opposite one another, each with a stack of documents and a cup of clear tea at their side. The tea had already been drained, clearly indicating that their meeting had been ongoing for some time.

Crown Prince Xi Yao, looking somewhat pale, turned to the final page of a document and spoke softly, “There is one more matter that warrants attention. Those people in the Council have been growing increasingly restless lately.”

Long Yuan nodded slightly. “Indeed. They have planted several moles within the upper echelons of the military department. While their exact objective is unknown, it is clear they are planning something.”

Shuang Ming, also reviewing his documents, said concisely, “Yes. Their influence has also infiltrated the Sanctuary. They are lying low, waiting for the right moment to strike.”

Xi Yao’s eyes narrowed slightly. “The current Council Chairman is no simple figure. For Luo Jia to tame those old foxes in the Council at such a young age, he clearly relies on more than just his Nine-Tailed Red Fox lineage.”

Long Yuan spoke in a deep voice, “Luo Jia has absolute control over the business world; he has surely allowed those nobles in the Council to gorge themselves on wealth.”

Shuang Ming set down his files. “My divination indicates that, in the short term, Luo Jia will not be able to stir up any major waves. It might be best to wait and see what he truly intends to do.”

The other two fell silent for a moment, both knowing this was the best course of action for now. In the Qatara Empire, the noble factions were deeply entrenched and had long been powerful; they had established the Council to rival the royal authority. For the past several decades, they had even subtly overshadowed the throne.

If not for the current Military Marshal, Long Yuan, and the Sanctuary High Priest, Shuang Ming, standing firmly by the Crown Prince’s side, this Crown Prince would likely have already become a mere puppet for the Council. Even so, the two factions could barely maintain a delicate balance. Even though the three of them had discovered the Council’s machinations, it was difficult to intervene directly; they could only plan carefully before acting.

As their weekly meeting drew to a close, Long Yuan and Shuang Ming stood up to take their leave. Unexpectedly, Xi Yao detained them.

“High Priest, Marshal, what do you usually have planned for your days off?”

Long Yuan and Shuang Ming were taken aback; the sudden turn to personal matters made them both uncomfortable. Shuang Ming was silent for a moment before asking, “Why is Your Highness suddenly curious about this?”

Xi Yao chuckled. “I have been feeling stifled and bored lately, looking for some amusement. After thinking it over, I realized you two are the only ones I can really talk to.”

Seeing the Crown Prince act this way, Long Yuan replied truthfully, “In my spare time, I usually spend it with my cub.”

Shuang Ming nodded gently. “As do I.”

A touch of emotion appeared on Xi Yao’s face. “Becoming a father truly changes a man. Speaking of which, you two have it hard; with your wives not by your sides, raising your cubs alone must be no easy task.”

Both men frowned imperceptibly at the mention of their wives, only to hear Xi Yao continue, “I am actually quite curious about the two little ones. I wonder, would it be possible for me to meet them this coming weekend?”

Long Yuan and Shuang Ming were both startled, looking at the young Crown Prince and unable to fathom his true intentions. Xi Yao was in no hurry, watching them with a smile as if out of pure, simple curiosity.

After a moment of silence, Long Yuan explained, “There is no reason why not, but the two cubs have already arranged their own travel plans for this weekend... I am not sure if it would be convenient for Your Highness.”

Xi Yao looked surprised. “The two little ones have their own social plans? That’s wonderful. Where are they planning to go?”

Shuang Ming replied, “To the Chali Sea region. Marshal Long Yuan has a private island in those waters, and the two cubs will be playing there.”

Hearing the mention of the sea, Xi Yao’s eyes brightened. A longing for the ocean was in a mermaid’s nature. He beamed, “Would you two mind if I joined you? It has been a long time since I have spent time with children, and I must say, I am quite looking forward to it.”

With the request put that way, the two men could hardly refuse, so they nodded and agreed to Xi Yao’s request.

Upon returning home, Long Yuan informed Shi Chuchu of the arrangement. However, he omitted Xi Yao’s status as Crown Prince, saying only that a friend of high standing would be joining them, and instructed Shi Chuchu to mind her manners and not be reckless in front of their distinguished guest.

Shi Chuchu rolled her eyes, unable to understand when Long Yuan had become such a social butterfly with friends everywhere. It was already difficult enough to handle two adults and two cubs, and now there was going to be a third. But since she was, after all, just a temp worker, she had to endure it despite her grievances.

In the following days, Long Yuan continued his routine of coming over punctually to read bedtime stories to Long Xiaobao. The only difference was that Shi Chuchu did not dare to sneak any food. The system had warned her that Long Yuan had installed several highly concealed cameras in her room; she was now under total surveillance.

Shi Chuchu was furious, but even more so, she was nervous and terrified. She knew Long Yuan wasn’t a pervert who enjoyed spying on a woman’s privacy; if he was doing this, it meant he must have started to suspect something about her. Thus, for the last two days, she had been forced to suffer through hunger, not daring to leave a single trace, in hopes of waiting out this storm.

Late one night, as Shi Chuchu was playing games in boredom, the system tried to comfort her.

[Don’t be sad. Aren’t we going to the island in two days? Surely there won’t be any cameras on the island.]

Shi Chuchu replied listlessly, “You don’t have to tell me that. Once we get to the island, I absolutely must find a chance to eat; the energy I saved up is almost depleted.”

Shi Chuchu sighed. Life was unpredictable; just a few days ago she had been so resistant to this trip, and now she was actually looking forward to it.

In her anticipation, the day finally arrived. She was even more excited than Long Xiaobao, crawling out of bed early in the morning and efficiently getting both herself and Long Xiaobao ready. The moment she sat in Long Yuan’s hover-car, she could barely suppress the smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

*Food! I’m coming!*