Chapter 82: Your Daughter is a Love-Brain
After the meeting ended, Sen Ji learned that Xie Qiang had already left the room. Instinctively, he began walking toward the lounge.
However, as he drew near her room, he stopped, hesitating.
Why… why did she message Hong Que but not him?
Was she regretting it?
Or was it that the person she was willing to be marked by was the young, arrogant version of Sen Ji—the boy willing to bow his head and beg for her pity—rather than the fiancé he was now, who constantly lost his temper with her?
His fingers, clad in tactical gloves, slowly curled into a fist. Sen Ji’s eyes darkened as he stood motionless, staring at the lounge entrance.
It wasn’t until noon that the door opened. Xie Qiang and Mo Yin stepped out together and headed toward the cafeteria.
Seeing them approach, Sen Ji retreated around a corner, using the wall to hide his frame. Only after they turned down another corridor did he slowly emerge, watching their retreating backs with a complex gaze.
As the girl walked, she suddenly stopped and reached back to support her waist.
The youth in black stopped with her. He looked down as she massaged the small of her back with a pained expression. He moved behind her, using the back of his hand to nudge her own hand aside before beginning to knead the sore area himself.
“Mm…”
Perhaps the youth’s strength was a bit much, as the girl stumbled forward against the wall. Forced to brace herself with her arms, she looked back in surprise. “Mo Yin?”
The youth in black pressed closer, closing the distance between them. Gripping her hips with both hands, he slightly lifted her waist, focused and serious as he massaged the aching muscles.
The girl stopped resisting. She lowered her head and bit her lip, her ears turning a deep shade of crimson.
Sen Ji watched them from afar, feeling as though a swarm of ants was gnawing at his heart. The sound of his leather gloves creaking under the pressure of his grip mirrored his current gloom and agitation, making him increasingly restless.
Urgent to break the ambiguous atmosphere between them, he strode forward. His military boots thudded heavily against the floor tiles, loud enough to draw attention. Catching Xie Qiang’s upward glance in his periphery, he steeled his expression and slowed his pace, staring straight ahead.
Then, as he passed them, his gaze swept across Xie Qiang’s face with a light, indifferent touch. After a momentary pause, he withdrew his eyes and continued walking forward.
Xie Qiang hadn’t expected Sen Ji to appear so suddenly. She instinctively arched her back, trying to push Mo Yin’s hands away. Seeing Sen Ji move past her with total apathy, she bit her lip, annoyed by her own guilty conscience.
She had only helped Sen Ji resolve the Zerg pheromone interference; she hadn’t promised her life to him. Why did she react like a wife caught in an affair by her husband just because he saw a potentially misunderstood scene?
She shook her head and turned back to Mo Yin. “I feel much better, thank you.”
Mo Yin withdrew his hands and gazed intently at her expression. Noticing that her eyes kept drifting toward the space behind him, he shifted his body to block her view.
“Go back.” He reached out, lifted the girl in a princess carry, and started walking toward the lounge.
“Ah!” Caught off guard by the sudden lift, Xie Qiang instinctively hooked her arms around his neck to keep from falling. “We’re not going to the cafeteria? What will we eat?”
“Someone will deliver it.”
The youth in black replied expressionlessly.
Who? Did Mo Yin actually know another Sentinel he could order around?
Xie Qiang was surprised, but since food was being delivered, she was too lazy to drag her aching waist to the cafeteria. She rested her head on his shoulder. “Fine, let’s go back and eat then~”
Having received her permission, Mo Yin immediately picked up his pace.
Behind them, Sen Ji—who had been waiting for the girl to catch up and explain—slowed down until he eventually came to a dead halt.
He raised a hand to press against the bridge of his nose, not daring to look back. Beneath his palm, his deep-set eyes were filled with an irrepressible sense of grievance and frustration.
Liar.
She clearly said he would be her Sentinel from now on.
She clearly promised she would dominate him forever, making him feel that he was needed by her.
And yet, after they slept together and she obtained his permanent mark, she turned cold and heartless, flirting with another Sentinel right in front of his face.
“So heartless.”
The man’s tall frame trembled slightly. After forcing down the suffocating jealousy in his chest, he resumed his stride. His clenched fists relaxed, letting the stinging bitterness spread through his palms to his very heart.
Since she didn’t care about him, he would be sensible and stay far away from her.
It had been five days since Xie Qiang last saw the two men when she learned that Sen Ji and Hong Que had taken the second batch of Sentinels to the wormhole.
“Is it really that hard to accept that he marked me? He just left without saying a word?”
Surprised by the man’s coldness, Xie Qiang pouted. “Fine, I won’t care about you either. Once your reputation is restored, I’ll immediately ask the Emperor for a divorce decree!”
With that, she opened her light-brain and sent a message to the Emperor.
Xie Qiang: [Imperial Father, your daughter has performed meritorious service in annihilating the wormhole. Does this mean I no longer need to obtain the support of ten S-class Sentinels?]
Emperor Xie: [Mm, you have done very well.]
Xie Qiang: [Then, regarding your daughter’s marriage, may I make my own decisions?]
Emperor Xie: [Of course. If you want to marry twenty of them, it’s no problem. Once you return to the palace, Father will summon all S-class Sentinels of marriageable age to hold a selection for your Imperial Consorts.]
Xie Qiang: ?
How did the situation get even worse?
She didn’t even want to marry the S-class Sentinels in the Third War Zone with whom she had some emotional foundation, let alone those she had never met!
Fearing the Emperor might follow through on a whim, Xie Qiang quickly employed her anti-marriage-pressure tactics: [No need, your daughter wishes to spend more time with Imperial Father!]
Emperor Xie: [Don’t you live in the palace? It won’t stop you from visiting me.]
Xie Qiang: [Imperial Father might not know, but your daughter is a ‘love-brain.’ Once I fall in love, I become hopelessly lost. I’ll forget the world exists and only want to stay in my Sentinel’s palace every night, wanting to go nowhere else.]
There was a long silence on the other end before a reply came.
Emperor Xie: [Qiang’er, while you are away, please take care of your health…]
Xie Qiang: …Did I actually fool him?
Xie Qiang: [Don’t worry, Imperial Father! Everything is under my control!]
Emperor Xie: [Mm. Once the Zerg are cleared, return to the palace with them. Your Royal Brother misses you dearly; he asked me just yesterday when you would return.]
Hm, Royal Brother?
In the novel’s plot, this elder brother of the villainess was indeed very doting. He often cleaned up the messes she made after her return to the palace and spoke well of her in front of the nobles and ministers.
But the strange thing was…
In the memories she inherited from the villainess, there wasn’t a single trace of this Royal Brother. Not his voice, not his face, nor any past interactions.
Why was that?
Translator’s Note: Hey everyone! “Love-brain” (戀愛腦 – liàn’ài nǎo) is a popular internet slang term in China used to describe someone who prioritizes romance above all else, often to a foolish degree. Xie Qiang is using it here as a hilarious excuse to get out of a harem situation! Also, “Er chen” (兒臣) is a formal way for a prince or princess to refer to themselves when speaking to the Emperor. Sen Ji is acting like a total “jealous vinegar jar” right now, isn’t he? Happy reading!
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