188: Dragon Boat Festival pre-heating activities launched

In the small garden, the two looked at each other.

Meng Ke rested her chin on her hands, smiling as she watched Zhou Yan.

Although she really didn't want to admit it, as long as he didn't use that strange smile, and didn't use Mu Qianqiu's face, he still looked quite normal.

What's more, Song Ling's character model was indeed pleasing to the eye, so Zhou Yan was not as resistant.

Such is the way of those who prioritize looks.

When the Boss changed models, some people's values followed their aesthetics. Zhou Yan wasn't quite at that point, but his attitude did improve significantly.

"What does Long Tianxing coming have to do with me?"

"What I'm asking now is, why are you here?"

"Also, how did you recognize me at a glance? And why are you dressed like this?"

"One question at a time, don't rush."

Meng Ke sat up straight again and continued.

"Let's first talk about why I could see through you at a glance, and why I'm here."

"Your actions weren't cautious enough. Using the earth veins to open a passage can indeed shield many people's perception, but at that time, two Soul Transformation cultivators from our Joyous Union Sect had just arrived in the inner city."

"You passed by them twice. Once might be hard to detect, but twice makes it difficult not to be discovered, right?"

Hearing this, Zhou Yan's expression turned ugly. Was his Luck that bad at the time?

"As for what happened next, it was naturally inferred from the changes in the imperial court and your reactions."

"The Little Emperor suddenly became Emperor Taizong, and you still haven't replied to my messages. The timing of both events overlapped quite a bit."

"Furthermore, if the Little Emperor really had such a move, he would have used it to reshuffle Great Yu long ago. Why would he wait until now?"

"And if you didn't want to cooperate, you would have refused earlier, not dragged it out for so long without a reply. You're not one to procrastinate."

"Plus, that power that can travel through the capital's earth veins, and some information we collected..."

"It wasn't difficult for me to deduce that you and the Little Emperor swapped identities."

Noticing Zhou Yan's concern, Meng Ke continued to explain.

"But you can rest assured."

"Those flaws in the palace have been quietly dealt with by us. If you are exposed later, it won't be because of this incident."

"As for why I'm here looking like this?"

"Of course, it's because the imperial family is going to make a move against Grand Princess Your Highness."

"I suspect they are not just assisting Prince Kang as the intelligence stated, but have completely sided with him. It's just that Prince Kang hasn't let them make a move, so they've maintained neutrality all this time."

"So for her safety, and to see you again, I entered the palace with this identity."

"How about it, are you a little bit moved?"

Meng Ke leaned forward, making a gesture that could affect the harmony between two nations.

Zhou Yan slapped away her outstretched hand.

"Cut it out."

"Acting cute won't earn you my favor."

Zhou Yan, having been the 'King of Galgame,' how could he not be familiar with such small tricks?

Meng Ke, seeing her little scheme discovered, was also a bit helpless.

"What? So you don't fall for the cute act."

"It's okay, I'll learn more when I go back."

Ignoring her mumbling, Zhou Yan took out a blank notebook and wrote some symbols on it, speaking as he wrote.

"I agree to that previous cooperation."

"We can cooperate, but there's no need to sign a contract."

"You can help if you want, as long as you block the pressure from the imperial family and the Truth Cult."

Since the other party had already found out that there was a problem with the imperial family, and with their intelligence capabilities, they would probably soon figure out the specific situation, so Zhou Yan no longer revealed his own speculations.

As for the contract, Zhou Yan didn't care.

Although this was a Xuanhuan-side item, it could at most only bind ordinary people.

He himself had sworn an oath with a Heart Demon, and wasn't he still safe and sound?

Zhou Yan was not so arrogant as to think he was unique; what he could do, others might not have similar methods to escape the influence.

He didn't trust them in the first place. If he signed that contract, which he wasn't sure was effective, and then relaxed his vigilance because of it, that would be irresponsible to himself.

It was better not to sign at all from the beginning and remain vigilant.

Zhou Yan had seen too many tropes where villains surrendered their lives to show loyalty.

After writing the last stroke, Zhou Yan looked at Meng Ke.

"Do I still have two pieces of information I can get? Should I just tell you directly?"

"Of course, this is my compensation to you, after all."

"I..."

"Alright."

Zhou Yan reached out to stop her from saying any more cheesy words, pushing the notebook full of symbols towards her.

"These seem to be some kind of writing. I don't understand it, and I need you to provide relevant deciphering clues or knowledge."

Meng Ke was not angry at being interrupted. She naturally took the small notebook and glanced at it.

"These symbols look like something from the medieval period."

"The content involved might be quite complex; these symbols alone might not provide enough clues."

After speaking, she gently closed the notebook, placed it into her four-dimensional space in front of her chest, and then rested her chin on her hands again, her expression becoming more mature and elegant.

"However, since it's what you want, I will do my best to get it for you."

This time, her smile was even sweeter, and her small gestures were captivating.

Zhou Yan was startled by this, then quickly got up and climbed over the wall to leave.

"I'm leaving now. We'll talk when there's news."

Watching his fleeing back, Meng Ke's smile grew even softer.

"Teacher, oh teacher."

"I hope it's true, as you said, that love is the greatest power in this world."

At this moment, Zhou Yan, who had already climbed over the wall and was walking quickly towards the Little Emperor's sleeping quarters, instantly became serious.

Things were starting to get a little scary.

He could feel that the other party was truly trying to 'conquer' him.

This was extremely frightening.

Due to her previous actions, Zhou Yan's favorability towards her was already very low, so much so that if she was just slightly more normal, it would make him less repulsed.

This reminded him of classic tropes in Otome games and soap operas he had seen before.

First, one feels aversion, then finds it interesting, and finally, after more contact and various plot encounters, favorability skyrockets, leading to a special CG scene.

Zhou Yan had already seen Long Tianxing, the Long Aotian template; Shi Suiyan, the comedic female lead template; and Wang Yao, the hot-blooded protagonist type.

This was not a normal world; Luck and Karma truly existed, so he couldn't afford to be careless.

If she really continued to 'conquer' him like this, who knew where the future would lead? At the very least, their Karma would definitely become intertwined.

Moreover, although he was the 'King of Galgame' in his previous life, the more skilled one was at 'conquering,' the more one understood the terror of being 'conquered.' Ordinary people simply couldn't resist someone with such a good character model who was also proactive.

So Zhou Yan had to leave quickly and maintain his distance.

Compared to someone like Shi Suiyan, who was occasionally abstract and whose emotions were unclear, Meng Ke's level was simply too high.

The name Joyous Union Sect carried too much weight.

"Wait!"

"Did I forget something?"

"Ding! The Dragon Boat Festival is approaching. To celebrate the joyous occasion, the Seeking the Dao Studio wishes you a happy holiday!!!"

"The warm-up event is now live. Stay tuned for more great gifts!!!"

Benefits are here!

The long-dormant System finally exerted its power again. Zhou Yan immediately cast aside his previous emotions and hurried towards the sleeping quarters with light steps.

He couldn't wait to see what benefits there were this time.

Meanwhile, in the small garden.

"Was the Former Emperor a bit too strict?"

"He's been chatting with the Grand Princess for half a day already, why hasn't he come out yet?"

"Isn't that too harsh for a young girl?"

"And the Grand Princess, too. After narrowly escaping death and returning, she encounters such a thing. It's truly too much suffering."

"Should I go in and say something about this, and plead for Your Highness..."

Loyal, bored from standing, began to mumble incessantly, occasionally stopping passersby and signaling them to take a detour.

"Sister, what's wrong with Minister Du Zhi?"

"He's been standing here all afternoon, hasn't he?"

"Shouldn't he be serving Emperor Taizong Your Majesty in the sleeping quarters right now?"

Two passing palace maids, who were passing by for the third time, couldn't help but whisper as they watched the mumbling Loyal.

On the other side, Loyal was already gazing at the bright moon, looking utterly bewildered.