Trouble Rises Again / Ji Sui Makes Trouble

Noah was dead.

On the night of the execution, Shi Sheng saw Yumian standing on the terrace.

He stood in the shadows beyond the moonlight, seemingly lost in thought. Shi Sheng noticed that he had been standing there for a long time.

Yumian had stayed with Carlos all day and barely even left his room.

Shi Sheng felt that something must have happened between Yumian and Hovis when they went to the Capital Police Bureau yesterday, but Yumian had said nothing.

A familiar scent enveloped Shi Sheng from behind, and he fell into a warm embrace carrying the damp vapor of a recent bath.

"What are you looking at?" Elaine asked.

Shi Sheng pointed toward Yumian's figure in the distance.

As far as Shi Sheng could tell, apart from what he knew from the plot, Hovis really did not seem like a suitable Alpha for Yumian.

What exactly was going on between them, and what did Yumian think?

Suddenly, Shi Sheng remembered something Yumian had said one afternoon: he could never be with the person he liked.

So was that person Hovis?

As far as Shi Sheng knew, Hovis was a full eleven years older than Yumian.

[Age isn't really the issue, but Hovis was so cold toward Yumian the last few times they met.]

[Elaine was right. They're not suitable for each other!]

Hearing that Shi Sheng was still thinking about this, Elaine glanced at Yumian in the distance.

"Don't worry about Yumian. He'll grow up."

Shi Sheng froze for a moment, then turned and signed, "What kind of Alpha does Elaine hope Yumian will marry?"

Elaine said, "Shengsheng, that's something he needs to think about for himself."

[Sigh, Elaine really isn't honest.]

[Why does he always act like he doesn't care when he's clearly considered so much for Yumian?]

[Didn't they even argue before because of the Crown Prince?]

Elaine fell silent as he listened to Shi Sheng's thoughts.

When he still did not speak after quite a while, Shi Sheng lifted his face and quietly looked at him.

Elaine surrendered beneath his gaze.

"If I had to choose for him," Elaine said, "then at the very least, he needs an Alpha who can accept everything about him."

He paused, lowered his head, and gently kissed Shi Sheng's forehead.

"But Shengsheng, there is only one you in this world."

Such precious, frank, and accepting love was probably something everyone in Carlos combined had only ever seen in Shi Sheng's eyes.

Shi Sheng had realized that Elaine was decisive and unwavering as a rock in every other regard.

But the Empire's God of War was a pessimist when it came to love.

Or rather, everyone in Carlos was pessimistic about the curse.

Shi Sheng had no doubt that if he had not stubbornly forced Elaine to come back that day by going on a hunger strike, Elaine would definitely have avoided him, left him, and even sent him back to the Shi family for his sake.

So if Yumian truly had to marry someone, then he needed someone who loved him with enough determination.

"No matter what," Shi Sheng signed softly, "I think Yumian should marry the person he likes."

"But it's all right. He's still young. He still has plenty of time."

He looked at Elaine and touched the Alpha's hard, cool jaw.

"Elaine shouldn't worry either. No one can predict the future."

Don't keep locking yourself away because of this curse.

And don't hide your worries alone while looking at me so gently.

Shi Sheng did not express those final thoughts.

He thought that he needed to try a little harder, make Elaine believe that he would never leave, no matter what.

Shi Sheng rose onto his toes and kissed the corner of Elaine's lips.

Elaine never let him tire himself out. He wrapped an arm around him and bent down slightly.

"Lindsay has always called you Sister-in-Law," Elaine suddenly said in a low voice, amusement in his tone. "So are you fulfilling your duties now?"

Shi Sheng's face instantly turned red. One moment he thought Elaine meant one thing, and the next he thought he meant something else.

He hurriedly signed, "Because Yumian is Elaine's family. I care about Elaine's family the same way I care about Elaine."

He paused, a little embarrassed, and pointed to his own chest.

His small hands formed a heart, then his fingers tapped lightly against Elaine's chest.

After making the gesture, he lowered his head, not daring to meet Elaine's eyes.

The next second, the Alpha pulled him fiercely into his arms.

"I received it," Shi Sheng heard Elaine say quietly. "I will... treasure it forever."

Shi Sheng blinked and raised his arms to hug Elaine's broad back.

He thought that this handsome Alpha still did not understand.

For example, the atmosphere right now was so suitable for marking between Alpha and Omega lovers.

These days, Elaine had hugged him and kissed his brow, eyes, and lips. He had even kissed his earlobes and the side of his neck.

But even when he drew close to the back of Shi Sheng's neck, he would not remove Shi Sheng's bite-proof collar.

Shi Sheng had heard Yumian say that Omegas marked by cursed Carlos Alphas seemed to never meet a good end.

He did not know what kind of end that was.

But Shi Sheng did not actually care that much.

He lifted a hand and touched Elaine's jaw again, this time trailing upward until his fingers rested against his cool lips.

Elaine lowered his eyes to look at him, his gaze dark.

[Sigh.]

Shi Sheng sighed and shook his head.

Elaine:?

A few days later, Shi Sheng received a notice from the Capital Police Bureau.

The investigation into the incident where his program had caused a military academy student to be injured had concluded.

Because the matter had caused quite a stir within the academy, the military academy and the Capital Police Bureau had jointly issued an announcement.

The Capital Police Bureau had verified that the mech crash had been caused by an operational error made by the student pilot while using the matching program.

In other words, there had been no problem with the program Shi Sheng submitted. However, before beginning the practical exercise, the pilot, Lin Chi, had made an error during the step of selecting the matching program, which led to the accident.

The worry and guilt Shi Sheng had carried for the past few days were finally eased.

Everything had been normal when the announcement was first posted. Most of the comments on the military academy's largest forum were wishes for the injured student's recovery.

However, half a day later, another kind of opinion took over the discussion.

[Everything's automated now. How could someone who got into the Empire First Military Academy possibly be stupid enough to select the wrong match?]

[It sounds as ridiculous as saying a five-star chef blew up a restaurant because he pressed the wrong button on the microwave.]

[LMAO, just look at the identity of the person who wrote the program.]

[They even said he found the evidence in the Crown Prince's case last time. Who would believe that?]

[What's the point of working so hard to get into military academy? You can't beat someone who married well.]

[Why is everyone in this thread so jealous? Surely no one is unaware that Shi Yi has always ranked first in his major, right?]

[Is getting first in information technology that impressive? The mech combat department is laughing.]

[HAHAHAHA, ran into a live idiot. If the combat department is so amazing, how did they manage to blow themselves up just by running a program?]

[It's like pressing the power button on your wristband and somehow blowing yourself up.]

[They're not wrong. There are more Omegas in information technology, so mistakes happen more often.]

[Then when you go to the battlefield, you'd better cut off communications with your commanders. After all, data transmission and battlefield analysis are handled by information officers~]

[Exactly, exactly. What if they accidentally get some noble Alpha blown to death? That would simply be an unforgivable crime!]

[No, weren't we talking about Shi Yi? Why are people arguing again...]

[LOL, Carlos must have sent paid posters to defend Shi Yi. Changing the subject now.]

[...]

The aircraft stopped at the entrance of the military academy, and Shi Sheng calmly closed the forum page.

Because of the academy's procedures, the security department had asked him to come in person and cooperate with the process.

In order not to distract Elaine, who was handling military affairs at the military headquarters, Shi Sheng insisted on coming by himself, accepting only Merico's company at most.

Merico was an old man who kept up with trends at lightning speed, so he had naturally seen every word on the forum.

Even the usually impeccable butler was rarely angered. "What a pack of ignorant brats."

Instead, Shi Sheng reached out and patted him, telling him not to take it to heart.

In truth, Shi Sheng's attitude was not entirely good either.

Just earlier, he had sent a message to the person in charge of the security department, asking whether it would be convenient to release the recording of Lin Chi selecting the matching program as supplementary material for the announcement.

But the person in charge sounded troubled and only said they would need to submit an application to the academy's higher-ups.

As for when that application would be approved, no one could say.

Shi Sheng did not press the matter. He was already satisfied that the military academy had issued an announcement.

As for the forum's public opinion, he did not really care that much.

But some people cared very much about whether he cared.

After finishing the procedures with the security department, Shi Sheng had not yet met up with Merico when he first saw Ji Sui, whom he had not seen in several days.

"I didn't expect you to still be so carefree." Ji Sui no longer bothered with a fake smile when facing Shi Sheng. "Looks like you really are living well in Carlos."

Shi Sheng glanced at him, with no intention of responding, and walked straight past.

As they brushed shoulders, Ji Sui predictably grabbed his arm.

Shi Sheng was displeased by the touch and shook off Ji Sui's hand.

Ji Sui's voice was full of malice. "Why hasn't Thanatos held you accountable for concealing your identity? What did you use to deceive him?"

That day at the hospital, he had deliberately let Elaine overhear his conversation with Shi Sheng.

Yet the scene he had imagined—Elaine flying into a rage after discovering the truth about the substitute marriage and viciously tormenting Shi Sheng—had not happened.

That was impossible. How could the Grim Reaper, known to all as cruel and cold-blooded, be so magnanimous?

"Shi Sheng, why are you and Shi Yi always so lucky?"

Shi Sheng signed, "Whether Elaine holds me accountable is my business. Just like whether he holds you accountable for provoking me again and again is also my business."

He curled his lips. "Ji Sui, guess how much of the Shi family's property you'll still get? It doesn't matter whether I'm living well, but I'm rather curious—are you living well?"

He knew Ji Sui could understand that long string of sign language, so even his gestures carried no mercy.

Ji Sui had clearly been struck where it hurt, and his expression turned extremely ugly.

He stared at Shi Sheng with a sinister gaze and said coldly, "Interesting. You really have become exactly like Shi Yi now."

"Shi Sheng, you're really impressive. You even had the courage to survive in a place like Carlos."

"Then why were you scared out of your wits back then, to the point that you still don't dare speak now?"