228: Chapter 228 The Water Goddess fills in, Jiang Xiaowan fails to recruit more people.

Morning light filtered through the crack of the master bedroom door.

Su Muxue sat on the edge of the bed, head bowed, buttoning her white lab coat.

She buttoned the first one wrong.

She paused, undid it, and buttoned it again.

She paused again at the second one.

On the other side of the bed, Su Xiaonuan's face was buried in the pillow, her black hair spread out, her voice so hoarse it was reduced to a whisper.

"Mr. Lin... I'll go prepare breakfast..."

She propped herself up on her elbows, trying to get up.

Lin Yuan pressed down on the back of her neck, pushing her back into the quilt.

"Rest for half the day."

Su Xiaonuan clutched the corner of the quilt, her eyes reddening slightly.

"Yes, Mr. Lin."

Su Muxue avoided Lin Yuan's gaze.

"I won't go to breakfast."

Her voice was steady, but the tips of her ears had not yet lost their flush.

"My clothes were all torn by you..."

"Yesterday... was beyond my limits."

Lin Yuan scanned the state of the two women.

"You can be like Wang Ya and not wear anything; it's just me, anyway."

Su Muxue thought for a moment.

"It doesn't matter if Su Xiaonuan wears anything or not, but I still..."

Su Xiaonuan, under the quilt, immediately shouted, "Auntie!"

In the first-floor dining hall.

Jiang Xiaowan, holding her belly, sat next to the head of the table. She glanced at the empty seat of Su Xiaonuan, the corners of her mouth curling up slightly.

"Is the leader on strike today?"

She tapped her fingertips on the table.

"Does that mean no one is going to hold the morning meeting for us?"

Tang Qiqi bit into her bread, lowering her voice.

"The lights in the master bedroom were on until the middle of the night last night."

Jiang Xiaowan clicked her tongue softly.

"That bastard really knows how to exploit people."

Qin Yumo sat on the side, eating chicken breast, and looked up at her.

Jiang Xiaowan immediately swallowed her words.

She was pregnant now, but that didn't mean she wanted to test the Valkyrie's death stare.

Footsteps sounded at the entrance of the dining hall.

Wang Ya walked in, holding Lin Motong's hand.

At the edge of her gray-white irises, a faint golden water ripple flashed.

The water glasses on the table all shook simultaneously.

The dining hall fell silent for a beat.

Wang Ya did not sit in Su Xiaonuan's seat.

She stood at the serving counter and picked up today's menu.

"Housekeeper Su is resting."

"I will be in charge of breakfast and the morning meeting today."

Jiang Xiaowan leaned back in her chair, her smile still lingering.

"Sister Wang Ya, being in charge is fine."

She rubbed her belly.

"Shouldn't the prenatal meal be arranged first? After all, the one in my belly says he's hungry."

Feng Qingwu had just picked up her clipboard, her hand freezing in mid-air.

Several gazes fell upon Jiang Xiaowan.

Wang Ya pushed a portion of Qin Yumo's low-salt, high-protein meal in front of her.

"Then you eat this first."

"If you want an extra spoonful of salt, go get Dr. Su to sign off on it."

The smile on Jiang Xiaowan's face stiffened.

Tang Qiqi nearly spat out her milk.

She covered her mouth, her shoulders shaking twice.

Jiang Xiaowan glanced at her.

"Are you very happy?"

Tang Qiqi immediately lowered her head to gnaw on her bread.

"Easily holding it together."

Someone in the dining hall laughed out loud.

Wang Ya did not laugh.

She opened the morning meeting agenda.

"Shanghai supplies reception, Feng Qingwu to register."

"Hongqiao Command Center defense data, Liu Qing to take over."

"Xia Qingqiu to go to the new school in the Inner Circle to teach after breakfast."

"Lin Motong is only responsible for the zombie horde boundary commands."

"Additionally, reduce internal disputes in Tiangong No. 1."

Jiang Xiaowan's eyebrows twitched.

"Internal disputes?"

Wang Ya looked at her.

"The position Mr. Lin gave you is not for arguing."

Jiang Xiaowan pressed her tongue against her cheek.

"Alright, the Water Goddess doesn't just control water; she controls the crowd too."

Wang Ya placed a cup of warm water by her hand.

"Eat first."

"An empty stomach is prone to nausea."

Jiang Xiaowan stared at the cup of water.

She didn't concede verbally.

But her hand took it.

Zhao Ya came in from the side door carrying hot porridge.

She saw Jiang Xiaowan at a glance and was about to turn her steps in that direction.

The next second, she saw Wang Ya standing at the serving counter.

Her waist immediately bent.

She placed the porridge steadily by Wang Ya's side.

"Sister Wang Ya, the temperature is just right."

Jiang Xiaowan narrowed her eyes.

"You certainly know how to read the room."

Zhao Ya smiled obediently.

"Miss Jiang, knowing how to read the room is a basic skill in the apocalypse."

"I'm a pre-made sycophant, ready at your beck and call."

Tang Qiqi slapped the table.

"Well played!"

Zhao Ya continued to keep her head down.

"Housekeeper Su previously granted me temporary authorization; I come to the dining hall in the morning to help, go to the greenhouse in the morning to accelerate vegetable growth, and clean the second-floor corridor in the afternoon."

She looked up at Wang Ya.

"As a C-rank Plant-type, I dare not be idle."

Wang Ya pushed the bowl of porridge to Jiang Xiaowan.

"Drink."

Jiang Xiaowan looked at the bowl of porridge and cursed under her breath.

"One by one, they've all been corrupted."

She still picked up the spoon.

The sound of rotors came from outside the dining hall.

Liu Qing's voice sounded over the broadcast.

"Shanghai helicopter has arrived."

Yu Qingyi walked into Cloud Top Palace wrapped in a gray combat uniform, her shoulders still dusted with Shanghai's snow.

She first saw the twenty-centimeter-thick blast door.

Then she saw the automatic machine guns on the walls.

Patrol squads lined up in two rows, and the contribution point screen scrolled with the day's tasks.

Her pace slowed by half a beat.

The Shanghai representative following her also changed expression.

This place didn't look like a shelter.

It looked more like a machine that had already started running.

Tang Qiqi leaned over to look at her, her eyes lighting up.

"Are you the one who can fly?"

"Auntie from Shanghai?"

Yu Qingyi was stunned for a moment, then replied in a Shanghai accent.

"Do you want some milk tea?"

She patted her backpack.

"Right now, it only comes in compressed biscuit flavor."

Tang Qiqi laughed until she collapsed on the spot.

"I like this big sister; she feels like a real person."

She stopped laughing and spoke to Wang Ya, who was standing at the front to receive her.

"Yu Qingyi, here to hand over the Shanghai data."

Jiang Xiaowan suddenly sidled up.

She walked up to Yu Qingyi and held her hand.

"You're from Shanghai and unfamiliar with the place; it'll be easier to talk to me."

She smiled very naturally.

"I'm short of someone who can relay messages here."

Yu Qingyi looked down at Jiang Xiaowan's belly.

Then she looked at Wang Ya and Qin Yumo.

She had seen what these two looked like on the Shanghai battlefield.

She gently pulled her hand away and stood straight.

"I came to Tiangong No. 1 to report to Mr. Lin."

"Not to join anyone's little clique."

The smile on Jiang Xiaowan's face faded.

Captain Han Xue spoke up from the side.

"We don't care about numbers here."

"We care about who Mr. Lin finds useful."

Tang Qiqi turned her head in surprise to look at her.

"Judy Rabbit can even deliver finishing blows now?"

Captain Han Xue didn't catch the joke.

She reached out and took the registration box brought by Yu Qingyi.

Wang Ya opened the lid of the box.

Inside were the list of Shanghai survivors, the preliminary roster of Espers, and the temporary defense map of Hongqiao Command Center.

Feng Qingwu took the data.

She didn't waste words.

She directly connected to Liu Qing while pulling out a pen.

"Split the survivors by age, occupation, and health status."

"Create a separate file for the Esper list."

"Make a digital backup of the Hongqiao Command Center defense lines."

Yu Qingyi watched her hands, the self-introduction she had prepared all pushed back down her throat.

This process was too familiar.

So familiar that she couldn't get a word in.

Wang Ya closed the box.

"You all go to the Inner Circle lounge to rest for the time being."

"Specific arrangements will wait until Mr. Lin wakes up."

Yu Qingyi lowered her head.

"Understood."

The Shanghai representatives who came with her looked at each other and bowed their heads in unison.

Noon.

Lin Yuan came downstairs.

Su Xiaonuan didn't come.

Su Muxue didn't come either.

Jiang Xiaowan saw him and gave a soft hmph.

"The king isn't holding court?"

Lin Yuan sat at the head of the table.

"You have a lot of opinions?"

Jiang Xiaowan lowered her head to drink soup.

"No, your concubine has a very good appetite."

Lin Yuan was in a good mood today and rarely teased her.

"You should refer to yourself as a servant from now on."

Tang Qiqi almost laughed again.

Wang Ya handed over the morning report.

Lin Yuan finished reading.

"Handled well."

Lin Motong sat by the sofa holding her teddy bear and whispered.

"Mom is amazing."

Lin Yuan looked at her.

"Why did you skip class again?"

Lin Motong looked up.

"I'm fourteen."

"The things Zhou Niannian and Lu Xixi are learning aren't suitable for me."

Lin Yuan put down the documents.

"Then should I have Liu Qing get you some sets of past high school entrance exam papers?"

Lin Motong hugged her teddy bear and turned to leave.

"Bad dad, I'm ignoring you."

Wang Ya watched her back, her lips relaxing slightly.

The feeling of home.

When lunch was almost over.

The screen above the dining hall suddenly lit up.

Behind the clouds, the moon was turning red.

A layer of blood color crept along the edges.

Liu Qing's voice came over the broadcast.

"The fourth Red Moon has entered the visible area ahead of schedule."