The Empress's Vulnerable Side

Deep into the night.

After sending off the completely drunk Zhou Yan, Lin Fan returned home with late-night snacks.

Click.

The door opened to reveal Long Yue sitting in the pitch-black living room, slurping instant noodles, illuminated only by the flashlight on her mobile phone.

Seeing Lin Fan return, Long Yue was momentarily stunned, the instant noodles still hanging from her mouth.

"Why aren't you turning on the lights? Did the power go out?" Lin Fan asked, confused.

"Electricity costs money too, so I didn't turn them on..."

Long Yue slurped the noodles in her mouth and mumbled softly, a hint of guilt in her voice.

Last month, because she had ordered too much takeout food and kept the lights on all day to watch TV, the household money had run out so quickly.

She had originally hoped her magical artifacts could be exchanged for money, but that didn't pan out...

To save money, she no longer felt comfortable turning on the TV or the lights.

Looking at Long Yue sitting in the dark eating instant noodles, Lin Fan felt a mix of amusement and a touch of heartache.

The dignified Empress of the Immortal Realm couldn't even afford to turn on the lights, sitting alone in the dark eating instant noodles...

"There's no need to save on electricity, it doesn't cost much."

Lin Fan reached out and turned on the living room lights, then placed the fried chicken he bought for a late-night snack in front of her.

"Here, late-night snack I bought for you."

"Ooh! Fried chicken!"

Long Yue's eyes lit up as she looked at the fried chicken in front of her, almost drooling. However, reason ultimately triumphed over appetite, and she looked at Lin Fan with a troubled expression.

"Aren't we almost out of money? Why did you still buy fried chicken for me?"

"It's alright, I've temporarily solved the money problem. You can still order whatever you want to eat from now on."

"Really?!"

Long Yue's pretty face lit up with joy, then she suddenly seemed to remember something, her gaze narrowing, her expression gradually becoming serious.

"Demon Supreme, where did you get the money?"

"You didn't... rob someone, did you!"

As far as she knew, this world had an institution similar to a money shop, called a bank, which held countless amounts of money and gold.

Robbing a bank once would ensure a lifetime of not worrying about food or drink!

Many desperate criminals in movies had tried robbing banks for money, and she couldn't help but suspect Lin Fan had done the same...

After all, it was perfectly reasonable for the Demon Supreme to rob a bank, right?

Lin Fan gave Long Yue a speechless, white-eyed look, unable to help but admire her imagination.

"I wouldn't use my remaining precious spiritual power for something like that."

"I borrowed the money from a friend I made in this world."

Long Yue, mouth full of chicken leg, looked surprised.

"A friend? Demon Supreme, you have friends?"

Lin Fan was speechless, so angry he wanted to pull the chicken leg out of her mouth.

"I lived in this world for over twenty years before, so I do have some friends."

"Oh... sorry."

Long Yue realized she might have said something excessive and quickly apologized, offering the chicken leg in her hand to Lin Fan.

"Want some?"

"I already ate outside, you eat it."

Lin Fan pulled up a chair and sat in front of Long Yue, watching her eat, and asked curiously:

"Why are you eating so late tonight?"

"I wanted to cook noodles with you when you got back, but you never came back, and you didn't reply to my messages..."

Long Yue put down the chicken leg, her resentful little eyes glancing at Lin Fan.

Lin Fan opened his mobile phone and saw the text message Long Yue had sent around six o'clock.

[Demon Supreme, I plan to cook noodles tonight. Do you want to eat together? If you do, I'll wait for you to cook.]

"I'm sorry, I wasn't looking at my phone outside. You can call me directly next time."

Hearing this, Long Yue's mood drooped, and she lowered her head. "I thought you weren't coming back, so I didn't call..."

After Lin Fan left, she had felt a vague sense of unease, constantly wondering if the Demon Supreme had found an excuse to leave because he found her a burden...

The thought of being left alone and not knowing how she would survive in this world made her increasingly anxious.

With a tentative hope, she tried sending a text message to Lin Fan.

After sending a text at six, she had been holding her phone, constantly watching for a reply. But by past ten, there was still no news.

It made her think the Demon Supreme really wasn't coming back...

Lin Fan looked at Long Yue, who was clearly afraid of being alone, with a look of surprise.

He had only been gone for most of the day, was the Empress really this worried...

Even this seemingly strong Empress had a vulnerable side...

Thinking this, Lin Fan smiled apologetically and gently placed his hand on her head.

"Empress, this is my home. Where else would I go if I didn't come back?"

Long Yue was silent for a moment, then let out a soft hmph and pushed Lin Fan's hand away.

"Hmph, whether you come back or not, this Empress doesn't care."

Lin Fan saw through her insincere words and smiled without revealing her.

If she truly didn't care and wasn't scared, she wouldn't have shown such a dejected expression just now...

As Long Yue was devouring fried chicken, Lin Fan's peripheral vision caught sight of her mobile phone on the table. On its screen, a job recruitment software page was clearly displayed.

"Empress, are you looking for a job?" Lin Fan asked curiously.

"Mhm..."

Long Yue glanced at her phone and nodded slightly.

"This Empress doesn't want to freeload off you, Demon Supreme. We agreed on a thousand rent per month, and this Empress will definitely pay you!"

Having once been an Empress, she had no concept of money, as she never needed to use it.

After arriving in this world, she had also paid no attention to its currency. With a month of understanding this world, she now deeply grasped the importance of money.

Not only to pay the fixed thousand rent to the Demon Supreme each month, but also so she could freely buy the things she liked. She decided to start working hard to earn money!

"Hearing the Empress say that, this Supreme is relieved."

Lin Fan couldn't help but show his approval as he looked at the determined Long Yue.

The thousand rent he had proposed initially was just a joke; he hadn't taken it seriously and didn't expect her to actually pay it every month.

He thought that as an Empress, she would never go out to work and earn money, and would definitely be unable to pay the rent. But he hadn't expected her to actually plan on finding a job...

This was also an opportunity to further understand this world, so naturally, he had no reason to stop her.

"How is it, has the Empress found a job she likes?"

"Not yet, but this Empress has already completed the most crucial first step. I'll find a job soon!"

Long Yue proudly raised her head, her face filled with smug confidence as she handed the resume information, which she had spent a whole day filling out on her phone, to Lin Fan.

"Look, this resume was written by this Empress herself. How is it~!"