Chapter 23: Happy Puppy

Chapter 23: The Happy Little Puppy

"I'll have him add you tomorrow," Yan Wanqiu said, trying to stall for time.

Xie Chi had no trust in Yan Wanqiu at this point and dug in his heels: "No, it has to be now."

Who knew what could happen by tomorrow? Yan Wanqiu had zero credibility left in his eyes right now.

Yan Wanqiu grasped at straws for an excuse: "I need to have the tech department process the chat software first. It can't be done today."

"Fine," Xie Chi grudgingly accepted the explanation, then added, "A one-day delay is acceptable, but I'll only hand over the nutrient solution once he adds me. And I also want to see Ji Chou one more time after I kill Yan Baiyue."

Yan Wanqiu was about to refuse Xie Chi's push to press his luck when he suddenly remembered that, following his usual pattern, his Pheromone Dysregulation Syndrome was due to flare up again in a few days.

He swallowed the refusal that was on the tip of his tongue. Yan Wanqiu pursed his lips. "Fine."

Xie Chi gave Yan Wanqiu a surprised glance.

He'd thought the cheap Tyrant would refuse—he'd already prepared to go another round of haggling with Yan Wanqiu over the nutrient solution formula.

But Yan Wanqiu actually agreed.

Xie Chi was a bit hesitant.

Did he still need to offer the formula?

Regardless, he was currently on Yan Wanqiu's side. Only if Yan Wanqiu grew stronger would he and his wife have a chance at a better life.

So the nutrient solution and formula were things Xie Chi had planned to bring out anyway. What pissed him off was Yan Wanqiu using Ji Chou as leverage—not the act of handing over the nutrient solution.

Yan Wanqiu, annoyed by Xie Chi's surprised look, said irritably: "Anything else? If not, you're dismissed."

Xie Chi thought about it. He actually did have something.

"Your Highness." Xie Chi looked at Yan Wanqiu and ventured, "Is there anything on Yan Baiyue that you need?"

Yan Wanqiu: "?"

Xie Chi said earnestly: "If there is, if you throw in a little extra cash, I can retrieve it for you."

Yan Wanqiu: "..."

Hadn't he just given Xie Chi a million? The guy had only spent 250,000 on daily necessities. Even after giving him 200,000, there was still 550,000 left. Did Xie Chi eat through all the rest?

Looking at Xie Chi's hopeful eyes and recalling the man's brutal assessment of him, Yan Wanqiu rubbed his forehead in exasperation. "No. The electromagnetic guns he brought are all on his Personal Guard—I'll just seize them during the counter-encirclement at the mine. But you did contribute this time. I'll give you another million after Yan Baiyue dies. If you distinguish yourself in the breakout and the electromagnetic gun seizure, I'll add another million. Your monthly base salary will also be paid as usual."

Xie Chi suddenly saw Yan Wanqiu in a much better light.

Every boss in the world makes things difficult for their subordinates, but generous bosses were few and far between.

Especially in Blizzard City, where the average monthly salary was barely a thousand credits—no one else was handing out million-credit bonuses except Yan Wanqiu.

"Thank you, Your Highness."

Xie Chi said his thanks in a light, cheerful tone and didn't stick around, turning to leave.

Yan Wanqiu watched Xie Chi's retreating figure, then after a long moment, opened his smart device and issued a command.

"Yan Wanqiu: Send me a blank, unregistered smart device."

.

Yan Wanqiu held up his end of the bargain.

Early the next morning, Xie Chi had just gotten up and was about to follow his usual routine—visiting Yan Baiyue, then inspecting the mine—when he opened his smart device and saw a friend request from someone named "Ji Chou."

[Friend Request] Ji Chou: It's me.

The requester's avatar was blank, and their profile had no posts.

Xie Chi wasn't surprised—there was no way Yan Wanqiu would let him learn anything about Ji Chou's actual situation—but that didn't stop him from eagerly accepting the request right away.

Without even bothering to change, Xie Chi sat on the bed and furiously typed out messages.

"Xie Chi: Babe! Is that you, babe? How are you? Did Yan Wanqiu give you any trouble?"

"Xie Chi: Babe, why are you adding me so early? Did you rest well last night?"

"Xie Chi: Don't you worry about me! I've agreed to hand over the nutrient solution to Yan Wanqiu. If he gives you any more trouble, just message me directly—I'll go have a word with him."

"Xie Chi: Are the things I got you last time working out okay? I'll get paid again after this mission. What else do you need, babe? I'll get you anything you want!"

"Xie Chi: We'll see each other again after this mission. Yan Wanqiu even forgot about the time limit, so we can stay longer. Is there anything you want to eat? I actually know how to cook a bit—you're always the one bringing me food, so let me cook for you this time."

"Xie Chi: Oh right, I fell asleep last time we met. Next time that happens, just wake me up directly. I wasted a full five minutes of our time together—I'm so bummed."

"Xie Chi: [sob.gif]"

Yan Wanqiu, who had just added the friend and was still trying to figure out what to say: "..."

Watching the messages flood the screen, Yan Wanqiu silently deleted the half-typed "Good morning" in the chat box.

"Ji Chou: I'm fine. His Highness only lets me reply five times a day. Just focus on your mission. I've got everything I need, and you don't have to go out of your way to cook for me. I'm looking forward to seeing you again too."

Xie Chi sent another barrage of crying emojis.

"Xie Chi: Yan Wanqiu is such a jerk. He explicitly promised me he wouldn't threaten you. When he called me over, I thought something had happened to you again—I was scared out of my mind. I miss you so much, babe."

"Xie Chi: [sob.gif]"

"Xie Chi: I've been working hard, I swear! I'm up and getting ready to wash up. Check it out, I'm using the same cup as you!"

"Xie Chi: [Photo: pink mug with a heart on it]"

Yan Wanqiu looked at the messages Xie Chi had sent, feeling at a loss.

Xie Chi also had "Yan Wanqiu" as a friend—his daily mission reports all went directly to him.

Although they had regular conversations every day, Xie Chi's messages were always concise mission reports or requests for authorization, and Yan Wanqiu only had to reply with a single "Noted" or "Approved." If anything came up, he'd just call Xie Chi to the palace to discuss it.

He'd thought that adding Ji Chou as a friend would just mean answering a few more messages a day.

He hadn't expected Xie Chi to be a completely different person with Ji Chou.

Yan Wanqiu had been a prince on the capital planet, and after coming to the frontier, he'd become a madman everyone was afraid of. No one had ever dared to talk to him like that, so he naturally had no idea what a normal reply even looked like.

After mulling it over, Yan Wanqiu finally dug out the mug Xie Chi had given him from the storage room in the palace, and copying Xie Chi's setup, took a photo in the guest room and sent it to him.

"Ji Chou: [Photo: pink mug with a heart on it]"

"Ji Chou: Yeah, I'm about to start work too."

After sending that photo, Yan Wanqiu, afraid Xie Chi would keep hounding him, quickly set a message cap for him from the admin panel.

On the other side, Xie Chi let out a small sigh of relief upon seeing the mug photo sent by Ji Chou.

Shopkeeper Wang had said that this style of mug was only stocked as a pair, one of a kind in Blizzard City.

Great, it looked like the person on the other end really was Ji Chou.

Ji Chou was fine and could still message him normally.

Xie Chi immediately typed out another long block of text and hit send.

But this time, the moment he hit send, a red pop-up flashed on the screen.

"You've hit your daily message limit. Messages remaining: 0/5. The limit resets at midnight every day."

Xie Chi: !!

He'd sent way more than five messages just now—why was the cap suddenly kicking in?

Was it because he typed too fast and the system hadn't caught up yet?

He should've just combined all his messages into one.

Xie Chi stubbornly tried sending stickers and making calls, but all attempts failed.

Frustrated, Xie Chi jabbed at his smart device.

Limiting message counts now? Yan Wanqiu just couldn't stand seeing him and Ji Chou being all sweet together, so he was deliberately trying to split them up!

He stared at Ji Chou's message, dying to reply but unable to, and finally could only dejectedly change his profile picture to a crying puppy, hoping Ji Chou would get the message.

It wasn't that he didn't want to reply—it was that Yan Wanqiu was too stingy to let him T^T

Meanwhile, on the other side.

Yan Wanqiu stared at Xie Chi's new profile picture, momentarily confused.

What was this supposed to mean?

Was he actually crying?

Yan Wanqiu couldn't help but think back to their earlier meetings, when Xie Chi's eyes would easily get red just from seeing him.

He stared at the string of crying stickers Xie Chi had sent, hesitating for a moment.

He wasn't really crying, was he?

Over a message limit? Getting that upset? He was getting more and more high-maintenance.

He wasn't going to spoil Xie Chi.

With that, Yan Wanqiu turned off his smart device, ready to call it quits.

But after turning it off, Yan Wanqiu only got more restless.

Images of the young guard's red-rimmed eyes and that eager look he always gave him kept popping into his head.

Yan Wanqiu: "..."

Muttering a curse under his breath, Yan Wanqiu turned his smart device back on.

So when Xie Chi finished washing up, he found a new message from Ji Chou on his device.

"Ji Chou: Don't cry."

"Ji Chou: I'll wait for you."

Xie Chi hugged his smart device, reading Ji Chou's words, and his mood instantly brightened.

His wife really got him!

His profile picture quickly changed to a happy puppy bouncing with joy.

.

Nutrient solutions weren't nearly as rare as repair fluids. After some haggling with Yan Wanqiu, Xie Chi handed over a box of nutrient solutions as the trade.

With Ji Chou added as a friend and five messages a day, Xie Chi was buzzing with energy for the next few days.

Before work, after work, during meals, during training... Xie Chi saved up a bunch of rambling messages, each one maxing out the two-hundred-character limit before sending them to Ji Chou.

"Xie Chi: That Third Prince is such a pain! Let me tell you, it's because of him that Yan Wanqiu is making things difficult for us..."

"Xie Chi: Babe, you doing okay in the kitchen? I heard Yan Wanqiu just stocked up a ton of supplies, and the kitchen staff are drowning in food prep. If you're too tired, use the repair fluid I gave you on the sore spots. I've got plenty more. If it's really bad, I'll get Yan Wanqiu to move you somewhere else..."

"Xie Chi: Babe, today I wore the same pajamas as you..."

Yan Wanqiu, scared of getting caught, replied seriously to every message—basically answering whatever Xie Chi asked and sending photos back when Xie Chi sent them.

To pull it off, Yan Wanqiu even cleared out a spare room in the palace, setting up all the stuff Xie Chi had sent there so he could take photos easily.

One day he'd snap a pic of the plush pajamas, the next day the new washing machine...

Meanwhile, in the dining hall.

Yan Baiyue, seeing Yan Wanqiu walk out to breakfast in pink-and-blue plush slippers that clashed with his cold, sharp vibe, gave him a weird look: "Brother, those slippers...?"

Yan Wanqiu looked down and went quiet at the sight of his own feet.

These were the slippers from the photo Xie Chi had taken this morning, claiming it was his clever idea—he'd deliberately mixed up the two pairs so each of them wore one pink and one blue slipper.

Yan Wanqiu had found the slippers, recreated Xie Chi's photo, and then forgotten to switch back to his own shoes after washing up.

On top of that, he was still wearing the thermostatic combat suit Xie Chi had given him.

...All Xie Chi's fault.

Yan Wanqiu's mouth twitched, and he tried his best to glance at Yan Baiyue casually, replying in his usual annoyed tone: "Mind your own business."

Yan Baiyue, predictably annoyed by his attitude, snorted coldly and stopped looking at his slippers.

After a moment, Yan Baiyue spoke again: "I've surveyed all around Blizzard City these past days, except the mine. Don't forget, Brother, you promised to take me to tour the mine today."

With seven days left until the freeze period, even though Yan Baiyue didn't think he'd lose, he still followed Yan Huishi's orders, leaving plenty of time to escape or call for backup from the main star.

Yan Wanqiu, already tipped off by Xie Chi that Yan Baiyue planned to make his move today, sat down to breakfast with zero emotion and replied flatly: "Oh."

What a phony!

Yan Baiyue was once again pissed off by his attitude.

But he couldn't argue with Yan Wanqiu right now, lest it trigger unpleasant memories and cause a relapse of the other's Pheromone Dysregulation Syndrome.

Killing a madman is a lot harder than killing a sane one.

Yan Baiyue gritted his teeth, shot Yan Wanqiu a poisonous look, and ultimately suppressed his anger for the sake of the plan. Fuming, he slammed down his chopsticks and stormed off.

After all, Xie Chi had already arranged everything—his two thousand men, armed with eighty electromagnetic guns, had quietly set up around the mine, while the remaining two thousand soldiers, carrying twenty electromagnetic guns, were stationed at the Icebound City border, ready to back them up at a moment's notice.

With the new weapons his royal brother had gotten, Yan Wanqiu was dead meat today.

Meanwhile, inside Icebound City.

"So the Third Prince's making his move today?" You Fuzhu narrowed his eyes at the man below.

The man below was a soldier who'd been flipped from Yan Baiyue's ranks. He kept his head lowered and said cautiously, "Yes, my lord. The prince informed the soldiers in Blizzard City last night to surround the mine. Unless something unexpected comes up, the operation's going down today."

You Fuzhu's eyes darkened.

The last time he went to Blizzard City, he had two goals: to scope things out and to poison Yan Wanqiu.

When Yan Wanqiu saw Yan Baiyue, a fight was bound to happen, and the shock alone might not be enough to trigger a relapse of his Pheromone Dysregulation Syndrome. But with his little sabotage, Yan Wanqiu would definitely relapse, and it wouldn't be easy for him to settle down by killing in a short time.

That way, to handle Yan Baiyue, Yan Wanqiu would have to go looking everywhere for a fix, which would easily lead him to Fu Zhu, the doctor in Icebound City. Then he could take the chance to exploit the guy's weakness.

According to the spy's intel, Yan Wanqiu really did lose it and leave that night.

But after just one night, Yan Wanqiu was back to normal, like nothing had happened, and even seemed in better shape than usual. Somehow, he'd even managed to talk Mr. Ai into teaming up with him.

Had Yan Wanqiu found an antidote?

You Fuzhu quickly brushed that thought aside.

Impossible.

The poison Yan Wanqiu had been hit with was a pheromone toxin. Though this poison differed from the toxins he had seen before, the principle was the same: it attacked a person's pheromone system, making it unable to tell if the person was an alpha or an omega, or if they were in a rut or a normal state, throwing their pheromones completely out of whack. At the slightest trigger, it would cause a defensive pheromone surge, making them lose control of their emotions and actions.

These outbursts definitely burned through a person's lifespan, which is why most people with Pheromone Dysregulation Syndrome didn't live long.

Unless Yan Wanqiu had a doctor nearby who specialized in pheromones and, by some lucky coincidence, knew about Pheromone Dysregulation Syndrome—or unless he could find a perfectly matching pheromone of the same type, and through repeated marking and guidance from that matching pheromone, slowly get his own pheromone system back on track.

Not to mention, Yan Wanqiu had been dealing with Pheromone Dysregulation Syndrome for years—if he could've found a doctor or a perfectly matching pheromone, he would've done it ages ago. Given how aloof and proud Yan Wanqiu was, he'd probably rather die than let someone of the same type mark him, let alone go through the full marking needed for a complete cure.

You Fuzhu was leaning more toward the idea that Yan Wanqiu had used some other method to force the pheromone imbalance down.

But either way, Yan Wanqiu's Pheromone Dysregulation Syndrome was cyclical. He'd been clear-headed for a whole week now. Not only would forcing the syndrome down inevitably cause a harsher rebound, but even with a matching pheromone guiding him, without daily marking, Yan Wanqiu should've hit his limit by now.

"Send the order: get a team to disguise themselves as Yan Wanqiu's people and head to the border. Once the mine in Blizzard City goes sideways, detain Yan Baiyue's soldiers at the border and take all the electromagnetic guns."

You Fuzhu's gaze was heavy.

Since Yan Wanqiu had the intel network and the muscle to wipe out Wind Cliff Village, if he was really set on going against the main star, Yan Baiyue was never coming back.

That being the case, he might as well grab the closest prize while Yan Wanqiu was busy dealing with Yan Baiyue and his Pheromone Dysregulation Syndrome.

Then, playing it smooth, he'd pin all the blame on Yan Wanqiu, who'd just killed his own brother.

Once the ice-sealed period began, with the emperor far away, the main star naturally couldn't investigate what had truly happened at the border between Icebound City and Blizzard City.

And with Yan Wanqiu drawing all of Yan Huishi's hatred to the front, he would not only remain safe, but Yan Huishi, in order to deal with Yan Wanqiu, would even need to continue pouring heavy resources into supporting him—the lord of the largest city beside Blizzard City.

Killing two birds with one stone, nothing more.

"Yes, City Lord!"