Chapter 36: Softening Heart

Chapter 36: Going Soft

[Recipient][Pinned] Wifey 030

"Xie Chi: Babe! I'm off work! Heading home right now! Don't worry, I'm not hurt!"

[Recipient] Yan Wanqiu

"Xie Chi: [File: Mission Report]"

"Xie Chi: Mission complete, heading back. Ran into some special circumstances along the way, asking to report in person tonight."

At 11 PM, Blizzard City camp, inside the temporary palace.

After leaving Mr. Ai's place, Yan Wanqiu made a round to personally check on the disaster zones.

After the initial brief chaos, thanks to the camp's swift cleanup and the black market turning a blind eye, the infrastructure work across Blizzard City was already in full swing.

The supplies Yan Wanqiu had stockpiled were being shipped out batch after batch, and with so much money moving around, it was only natural for people to get restless.

Yan Wanqiu was prepared to share power with Xie Chi, but he never intended for Xie Chi to have too much power. When assigning personnel to each district, he had already planted trusted confidants brought from the home planet, who served as spies scattered across the five districts, sending him intel.

Yan Wanqiu had handled a few troublemakers in public today and had just returned to the palace. He was just wondering what was taking Xie Chi so long when both his devices pinged with messages from Xie Chi at the same time.

He rubbed the bridge of his nose, feeling somewhat relieved about Xie Chi's safety. He casually replied with a single word "Approved" on Yan Wanqiu's device, then opened Ji Chou's device.

He hadn't had time to check the device earlier, but now that he opened it, he found the screen flooded with messages from Xie Chi.

Yan Wanqiu didn't know where to begin, so he picked the latest few to reply to first.

"Ji Chou: Sorry, I was busy this afternoon with the move and the promotion. Hope work wasn't too rough. I'm not really into accessories, and I don't like anything too flashy. Don't waste your money on me."

Xie Chi replied quickly.

"Xie Chi: Huh?"

"Xie Chi: Babe, how'd you know I was gonna buy you jewelry? Did Yan Wanqiu spill the beans?!"

Yan Wanqiu: "..."

Xie Chi was basically asking him outright what jewelry he wanted—if he didn't catch that, he'd be an idiot.

And what kind of motormouth was Xie Chi, seriously? He'd only ignored his device for one afternoon, and Xie Chi had sent over eighty different messages.

Yan Wanqiu took off his heavy coat, poured himself a cup of hot water, and returned to the guest bedroom. After stashing the new couple's rings he'd just bought, he started carefully replying to each of Xie Chi's messages one by one.

.

Meanwhile.

Xie Chi was thrilled to see Ji Chou come online and slowly reply to him.

He savored every single reply, picturing what his wife must look like right now.

His wife got promoted today and moved into a bigger place, so work must be way easier now. Maybe he'd already showered and was cozy in bed reading his messages.

Just thinking about Ji Chou living better—no more kitchen grease, no more living in fear of Yan Wanqiu—Xie Chi felt all his earlier frustration vanish.

Having a wife is the best—after a mission, there's always someone to chat with.

By the time Xie Chi got back to the border, grabbed his aircraft from the camp, and headed home, Ji Chou was already saying goodnight and getting ready for bed.

No matter how much Xie Chi missed his wife, he wouldn't bother him while he was resting.

After reluctantly saying goodbye to Ji Chou, Xie Chi put away his device, his face turning serious as he started thinking through everything that had happened that afternoon.

First, Mr. Ai's identity had been exposed, which let Yan Wanqiu learn about the Mechanical Civilization ahead of schedule.

For Yan Wanqiu's side, this was naturally good news—at least he wouldn't be completely in the dark and could start preparing early.

But for Xie Chi, it was actually a bit of a problem.

Although he'd figured at the time that since the info could sell for over thirty million, he might as well be the one to spill it, Xie Chi also knew that now that Yan Wanqiu knew about the link between the Mechanical Civilization and Yan Huishi, with how smart and paranoid the guy was, he'd soon start suspecting Xie Chi.

Suspecting he had ulterior motives, or that he was one of Yan Huishi's people.

That's why Xie Chi had planned to hint at it gradually, only revealing the link between the Mechanical Civilization and Yan Huishi once Yan Wanqiu had no choice but to rely on his weapons.

He wanted Yan Wanqiu to fear the mysterious force backing him, not to treat him like a mole again.

Xie Chi's head throbbed.

He'd just barely cleared his name as a mole sent by Yan Baiyue, and now an even bigger blame was being pinned on him.

Luckily, Yan Wanqiu seemed to be in a decent mood lately and hadn't been giving him or his wife a hard time.

Even if he suspected Xie Chi, he probably wouldn't do anything too extreme... right?

Thinking about Yan Wanqiu, Xie Chi's feelings were actually a bit complicated.

If he'd just met Yan Wanqiu today, he wouldn't have bothered with any of tonight's business.

But he'd known Yan Wanqiu for over a month now, having gone through crises big and small—from being suspected and hassled to being saved by him, from a prisoner to a Deputy City Lord in training. He'd watched with his own eyes how this tyrant from the history books was betrayed by his own family, how he suffered through his illness, and how he carved out territory in the snow.

To be fair, Yan Wanqiu was indeed a good boss.

Xie Chi let out a soft sigh.

If only Yan Wanqiu had been the one to win in the end.

Then he wouldn't have to stress about this all the time—he could just work for Yan Wanqiu with his wife, with money and a future, and maybe even become a founding hero.

He wouldn't even have to worry about being killed after the job was done, because with Yan Wanqiu's health, he'd probably kick the bucket shortly after taking the throne. And with how smart his wife was, the two of them might even take the chance to rule as regents and have a go at being emperor.

He and his wife could never have kids, but if his wife liked kids, they could just take Yan Wanqiu's kid and raise it—after all, Yan Wanqiu was bound to have a harem.

Lost in these random thoughts, Xie Chi made it back to the camp.

It was already 1 AM.

The matter was urgent, and since he'd already asked Yan Wanqiu for a meeting on his device, Xie Chi headed straight for the palace after getting out of the aircraft.

The second cold snap had hit. The north wind was biting, and snow was falling in thick flakes. Even with his protective suit on, Xie Chi's cheeks were stinging from the cold. He quickly grabbed a scarf and hat from his storage space and bundled up tight before it felt bearable.

Because of the big blackout the day before, the camp still hadn't turned on most of its lights. Only a few huge temporary searchlights were lighting the way.

Xie Chi trudged along the snowy path, his steps uneven, and before long, he saw the palace lit up.

Yan Wanqiu was still waiting for him.

Xie Chi sped up.

The guards at the entrance had already been notified, and upon seeing him, they didn't ask any questions and immediately let him through. Xie Chi made his way unimpeded to the audience hall.

The heating inside the palace was ample. Xie Chi stood outside the audience hall, took off all the random stuff he was carrying, shoved them into his spatial ring along with his guitar case, and pushed the door open.

"Your Highness." Xie Chi gave a slight bow in lieu of a formal salute.

Yan Wanqiu nodded. "What is it? Come over here."

These past few days, Yan Wanqiu had taken to calling him to his side, and Xie Chi had grown used to it. He climbed the few steps, stood beside Yan Wanqiu, and walked him through everything that happened that night.

From framing You Fuzhu just like Yan Wanqiu had planned, to swiping some stuff from You Fuzhu's estate, to overhearing You Fuzhu and Yuan Mingshan's talk and then butting in to break it up.

Regarding the insults Yuan Mingshan had hurled, Xie Chi hesitated for a moment before simply saying, "He said some pretty nasty stuff that I didn't think was cool. Since I'd basically heard everything I needed, I chucked a dagger at them to teach them a lesson. Is this gonna mess with your plans?"

Yan Wanqiu raised an eyebrow in surprise, not expecting Xie Chi to have pulled off so much in a single afternoon.

He thought for a second, then asked Xie Chi back, "What do you think?"

Xie Chi had already given it some thought before acting. He replied, "I did some digging. Glacier City's a neutral city, and it's not all that strong. Plus the city lord's dead, Yuan Mingshan just took over, he's blowing money left and right, and the people are already suffering—plus he's got eighteen brothers gunning for his spot. I figured even killing him wouldn't mess with our plans going forward. It might even scare the nearby cities into line. That's why I went for it."

He hadn't acted on impulse—everything he did came from his own judgment, and he'd weighed it carefully.

If Yan Wanqiu was cool with it, Xie Chi wouldn't hesitate to ride to Glacier City overnight and chop Yuan Mingshan's head off.

He was strapped for cash to buy his wife jewelry anyway, so the more heads he could cash in with Yan Wanqiu, the better.

Yan Wanqiu gave a slight nod. "Not bad. You're learning."

Xie Chi: "..."

He felt like Yan Wanqiu was underestimating him.

Yan Wanqiu continued, "But we can't kill Yuan Mingshan right now."

Xie Chi instinctively responded, "Because he's still useful alive?"

Yan Wanqiu took his sweet time glancing at Xie Chi's right arm, still in a sling. "Because you're still not healed up."

"Even if Glacier City falls into chaos and they try to come at us, You Fuzhu from Ice City would be the one leading it—nothing to worry about. Yuan Mingshan's a small deal, but you can't afford to get hurt again."

That afternoon, Yan Wanqiu hadn't gone out just to kill someone.

Mr. Ai's words hadn't shocked him much, but they'd given him a lot to chew on.

They wouldn't be going head-to-head with Yan Huishi and the Mechanical Civilization behind him anytime soon, but the day would come when they'd face off on the battlefield.

Yan Huishi wasn't like You Fuzhu—you couldn't take him down with some clever scheme. He was cocky and full of himself. If Yan Wanqiu wanted to stay alive and climb to the top, he had to kill Yan Huishi.

Xie Chi's importance was a no-brainer.

He wasn't just some skilled bodyguard and temporary antidote anymore—he was one of the few advantages Yan Wanqiu had against Yan Huishi.

Yan Wanqiu was sure Xie Chi was human, not some machine.

But if an alien civilization existed, then there had to be other life out in the stars. Yan Wanqiu had no idea where Xie Chi came from or why he had so much weird stuff on him, but just based on how obsessed he was with "Ji Chou" and how capable he was, Yan Wanqiu knew he had to find a way to keep Xie Chi around and stop him from ending up on Yan Huishi's side.

As for whether Xie Chi was a spy Yan Huishi had planted—

Yan Wanqiu glanced at Xie Chi, who looked totally lost.

Could go either way, but probably not.

Mainly because he couldn't believe anyone would play dumb that hard just to spy on him.

Xie Chi was still confused, caught off guard by Yan Wanqiu suddenly caring about him.

Yan Wanqiu caring about him? Since when does the sun rise from the west?

That was supposed to be his wife's thing.

He actually looked up—which was rare—and gave Yan Wanqiu a confused look, only to find Yan Wanqiu staring back at him like he was deep in thought.

The hall was dark, which made Yan Wanqiu's blood-red eyes look especially deep and unreadable.

Xie Chi flinched and quickly ducked his head back down.

Yan Wanqiu spoke up out of nowhere. "Did you rewrap the bandage on your arm?"

Xie Chi paused.

He'd planned to take the whole bloody note thing to his grave, because getting hurt meant his wife would chew him out.

But Yan Wanqiu wasn't his wife, so...

Xie Chi worked up the nerve to look at Yan Wanqiu again. "You're not gonna rat me out to my wife, right?"

Yan Wanqiu got a bad feeling. "What else did you do?"

Xie Chi held his ground. "Your Highness, swear you won't tell first."

Yan Wanqiu couldn't win this one. "...Fine, I swear, okay?"

Only then did Xie Chi tell the truth. "It's nothing much. I was pissed off by how nasty his insults were, so I wanted to write a threatening note and stick it on the dagger before throwing it. But I couldn't find paper or a pen on the spot, so I tore off a strip of bandage and wrote in blood, saying I'd come back to chop off their heads next time."

"That City Lord Yuan has even less spine than Shi Peijue—he fainted at the sight of my blood writing. What a coward."

Xie Chi couldn't help but curse again as he spoke.

Yan Wanqiu's brow furrowed. "Whose blood?"

"Mine, of course." Xie Chi said matter-of-factly. "I bit my finger to write it. You can't tell my wife—he'd worry and feel bad."

Yan Wanqiu's temple throbbed—aggravated by Xie Chi.

Yet he had no right to be angry. Everything Xie Chi had done was for his sake; Xie Chi just didn't know he was Ji Chou.

He slowly let out a breath. "Good work. Next time you encounter a situation like this, just retreat and report to me directly. The pay will be the same—no need to make such a spectacle and risk any accidents."

Even now, Yan Wanqiu still believed Xie Chi did all this just to squeeze more money out of him.

He expected the young man to accept with a grin, but instead, Xie Chi frowned and, after a moment's thought, refused.

"No." Xie Chi said seriously. "I'm angry. Guys like that, I used to just kill them outright. Now you won't even let me threaten them—I won't be able to sleep at night."

"What are you angry about? It's not like they were insulting you." Yan Wanqiu said helplessly.

Xie Chi answered without hesitation, "They insulted you. That makes me angry too."

Yan Wanqiu was completely caught off guard by Xie Chi's response, and for a moment, he was stunned into silence.

Xie Chi muttered under his breath, "Although you suspected me and bullied my wife before, we agreed to wipe the slate clean at the mine. Now I'm working for you, and you've arranged jobs for me and my wife without holding grudges. Them badmouthing you is the same as badmouthing me, and you haven't done anything wrong, so it makes no sense for you to be catching flak..."

It really was unreasonable.

In Xie Chi's eyes, Yan Wanqiu wasn't exactly a good person, but Yuan Mingshan was definitely a bad one.

Yan Huishi was a bad one too.

After reading all those historical records, he'd been holding a knot in his chest, and today it finally boiled over—at least letting off a little steam.

Yan Wanqiu looked down at Xie Chi, his gaze complicated.

That fleeting warmth and softness belonged to "Ji Chou" behind the mask; under the identity of "Yan Wanqiu," he should've only been scheming against Xie Chi.

But looking at the young man's fair, handsome face and listening to his indignant muttering, some secret corner of Yan Wanqiu's heart couldn't help but soften.

God, this kid's so dumb.

He'd just been thinking how he'd given Xie Chi so many perks and never got a warmer attitude in return, only to find out this guy had actually been taking it all to heart the whole time.

He should keep Xie Chi away from Mr. Ai from now on, so this kid doesn't get snatched up by some stranger offering him a few pieces of candy.

Yan Wanqiu thought this, but the corner of his mouth still twitched up a little.

"Okay." He cut Xie Chi off softly.

"There are too many unreasonable things in this world. Reason isn't the truth—it only lives in power, status, and numbers."

"Don't be angry anymore. Go back and rest early. I'll handle the rest from here. Once you get your hands on one of those, you'll be the reason yourself."

Xie Chi blinked, not really getting what Yan Wanqiu meant at first.

But mostly, he was shocked.

The always-unpredictable Yan Wanqiu was talking to him in this... almost tender tone for the first time ever.

Could Pheromone Dysregulation Syndrome have side effects like this as well?

Xie Chi didn't understand.

But since Yan Wanqiu told him to go, he naturally had to take his leave. Handing the corpse in the guitar bag back to Yan Wanqiu, Xie Chi bowed and left.

It was already two in the morning when he stepped out of Yan Wanqiu's residence.

Since most people in camp were pulling round-the-clock shifts lately, the mess hall still had its dim lights on at this hour.

Xie Chi hesitated a second, then headed into the mess hall anyway.

Even though his wife said he'd deliver food to him, it was already 2 AM—Andre had to work to make a living too, so there was no way he'd still be standing at the door with a lunchbox waiting for him.

Xie Chi walked up to the serving window and asked, "What's still left? Just give me whatever."

The server, seeing it was him, quickly set down the ladle: "Captain Xie, don't bother ordering—someone left a meal for you here. He said you'd definitely swing by the mess hall after your shift and asked me to hand it to you when you showed up. It's still warm in the warmer. Hang on, I'll go grab it—"

With that, the guy hurried into the back and came out a moment later holding a familiar lunchbox.

"Here you go." He handed it to Xie Chi.

"Thanks." Xie Chi took the lunchbox, surprised, a warm feeling spreading through his chest.

He obviously knew who the "someone" the server mentioned was.

No one else would look out for him like this except Ji Chou.

It was late, and Xie Chi couldn't be bothered to go back, eat, and wash the container, so he just found a corner in the mess hall and sat down.

The food in the lunchbox was as lavish as ever—clearly his wife had secretly made him something special. Xie Chi quietly hefted the chopsticks in his hand and pulled a note out from inside.

"If you ever work past mealtime, come to the mess hall to grab food.—Ji Chou"

Xie Chi let out a little whimper.

His wife thought of everything, even predicting he'd be working past mealtime.

Ji Chou must be super popular in real life—otherwise, there's no way he could've pulled all those strings just to get him a hot meal and send him subordinates.

Xie Chi was touched and happy, and he missed his wife even more.

He opened his smart device to send a message, but afraid of waking his wife, he just snapped photos of the lunchbox from every angle before digging in.

His wife's cooking was as good as always—just as good as the mess hall chefs.

.

At eight the next morning, Xie Chi got up.

Even though he'd pulled an all-nighter, he still had a mountain of backlogged tasks—all promotion missions Yan Wanqiu had lined up for him.

The whole camp was so slammed everyone wished they could split themselves in half, and Xie Chi, who'd indirectly caused this mess, naturally couldn't rest much either, especially since running on no sleep was old hat for him.

After getting up, Xie Chi texted Ji Chou while washing up.

"Xie Chi: Good morning, wifey! Heading to work! Got the meal you made last night—delicious as always. You worked hard, babe. Next time if you're busy, no need to make it yourself—I can just grab something from the mess hall!"

Afraid of waking Ji Chou if he was still asleep, Xie Chi only sent one short message.

But to his surprise, a reply came back a moment later.

"Ji Chou: Morning, no worries, it's no trouble."

"Xie Chi: Wife, you're awake! I thought you were still sleeping! Let me tell you, last night Yan Wanqiu suddenly showed concern for me—scared me to death. I bet it's because your abilities got you into his good graces, so he has to soften his attitude toward me too!"

"Xie Chi: Image x6: six views of the lunchbox"

"Xie Chi: And also..."

...

Back in the residence, Yan Wanqiu, who'd just reached the guest bedroom to rest, saw the flood of messages from Xie Chi and twitched the corner of his mouth.

He shouldn't have replied to that text.

Sitting on the bed, catching the faint orange scent lingering on the sheets, Yan Wanqiu looked down and started replying to Xie Chi's messages.

"Ji Chou: That's not it—it must be your own skills that made His Highness see you in a new light."

"Ji Chou: Mm, breakfast should be there soon. Eat up."

"Ji Chou: And also..."

Yan Wanqiu had been a little sleepy, but after chatting with Xie Chi, he was wide awake again.

He looked at the screen filled with Xie Chi's whiny, clingy messages saying he couldn't wait to fast-forward seven days to see him, struggling to keep the smile off his face. Without a second thought, he sent out the bounty order he'd planned to hold off on for another half hour.

Within three seconds, a notification popped up on his smart device.

"BOUNTY REISSUED! Yan Wanqiu puts a three-billion bounty on Ice City Lord You Fuzhu's head—who's the real mastermind behind the prince's murder?"

As a prince, Yan Wanqiu couldn't put out top-tier bounties, but he could still issue standard ones.

Xie Chi also saw the notification. Never one to miss out on drama, he clicked in to see what the fuss was about.

To Xie Chi's surprise, Yan Wanqiu had taken a page out of Yan Huishi's book and put out bounties on two people at once.

"BOUNTY NOTICE"

Broadcast to all star domains:

The following two criminals are hereby placed under bounty. You're authorized to use lethal force to subdue them; if they resist, they can be shot on sight.

Bounty Target No. 1: You Fuzhu

Identity: Lord of Ice City

Charges: Plotting to murder royal family member Yan Baiyue, illegally mobilizing Personal Guard troops, defying central government orders—evidence is conclusive.

Bounty Target No. 2: Yan Huishi

Identity: First Prince of the royal family

Charges: Complicity in the murder of royal family member Yan Baiyue as the main accomplice, sheltering rebellious subordinates, trying to disrupt the royal line of succession, and secretly conspiring with regional factions.

Bounty Terms: For bringing either target in alive to the Blizzard City tribunal, a three-billion-credit reward each; for killing them on the spot, once their identity is confirmed, a one-billion-credit reward each. This bounty is effective immediately. No one may protect, hide, or help either target escape—anyone who does will be treated as an accomplice and prosecuted.

The attached images were the photos Xie Chi took yesterday at the Ice City Lord's mansion: the electromagnetic guns seized from the warehouse and Yan Baiyue's lifeless, wide-open eyes.

The photos were even full 3D panoramic high-definition—clicking in made you feel like you were right there at the scene.

Yan Wanqiu had even gone so far as to follow Yan Huishi's example, unearthing that grainy video screenshot and arguing from every possible angle that it was You Fuzhu and not Xie Chi.

Xie Chi was instantly amused and shared the bounty notice with Ji Chou.

"Xie Chi: Babe, look at this! Yan Wanqiu is so ruthless—he straight-up copied Yan Huishi's bounty notice word for word. Yan Huishi's gonna lose it when he sees this."

"Xie Chi: Heh heh heh, who told Yan Huishi to put a bounty on me? Bet he didn't see this coming! My boss is no joke—petty, vindictive, and holds grudges, and he'll find any excuse to get back at him!"

Yan Wanqiu: "..."

Is that supposed to be a compliment?

He was at a loss for words for a second, then sent the most in-character response.

"Ji Chou: You've got a bounty on you? When did that happen?"

On the other end, Xie Chi suddenly got guilty and didn't dare respond.

Yan Wanqiu let out a soft chuckle.

He figured Xie Chi wouldn't dare show his face until lunch, so he told the kitchen to add extra salt to today's lunch before he rested.

He'd never cooked before—his cooking could never match the cafeteria chefs'. He needed to set the stage in advance so Xie Chi wouldn't get suspicious.

Meanwhile, inside Ice City...

"Bang—!"

You Fuzhu sat in the now half-empty Lord's mansion, watching Yan Huishi furiously smash his third cup in front of him. Only four words echoed in his head.

—I'm a dead man.