Chapter 42#
The Innocent and Naive Fool#
Xu Feng froze for a moment, then turned his head in ecstasy.
“You agreed!?”
Lin Xiaodong: “I never planned to refuse anyway.”
The adjutant was so excited that he was a bit incoherent: “I, I thought you… that’s great!” He rushed over and gave the little merman a big hug, almost bursting into tears of gratitude.
“Xu Feng.”
Hearing the familiar deep voice from the door, the adjutant, who still had an excited smile on his face, suddenly stiffened.
The next second, he hurriedly let go, turned around, and gave a standard attention and salute: “Good day, Lieutenant General!”
“I am not having a good day,” Gu Xi said expressionlessly. “What are you doing?”
Xu Feng coughed: “Ah, this… wasn’t I persuading Xiaodong to agree to our plan?”
“Xiaodong?” Gu Xi snorted coldly, his icy gaze sweeping over Xu Feng’s face and finally landing on the innocent Lin Xiaodong beside him.
“You can leave now.”
He unceremoniously drove away the obstructive adjutant, walked over to Lin Xiaodong, and asked in a deep voice: “You agreed to him?”
“Yes.”
Gu Xi’s lips moved slightly, as if he wanted to say something.
But in the end, he just stroked Lin Xiaodong’s long hair and said softly: “In a while, I’ll take you back to the Merman Star.”
“Really!?”
The little merman suddenly looked up, his eyes lighting up instantly.
Seeing his face full of joy and longing, yet carefully trying not to show it too obviously, Gu Xi’s heart softened and he nodded.
“Really,” he said. “I also miss the water of Lake Garan.”
“Then let’s go back together!”
Lin Xiaodong jumped onto the man excitedly, his smile uncontrollably bright, which also slightly eased Gu Xi’s irritable mood.
He held the little merman’s tail with one hand to prevent him from falling, and led him to sit on the small sofa by the porthole. With the other hand, he carelessly tucked in the thin gauze clothes Lin Xiaodong was wearing, his gaze pausing for a moment on the faint red spots on the snow-white chest, then moving away as if nothing had happened.
Mermaids have delicate skin, so since Lin Xiaodong came to this world, he either wore no clothes or just put on a thin gauze garment, which was light and cool. From a distance, it looked no different from a thin light-colored long-sleeved shirt.
Gu Xi also liked Lin Xiaodong wearing this outfit.
How to put it, seeing it from a distance is very different from seeing it up close—that’s probably what it means.
“What song are you going to sing?” he asked.
“A song of the mermaids themselves,” Lin Xiaodong answered.
Mermaids have no names and no titles. The only thing passed down from generation to generation is this ancient ballad praising Lake Garan.
It is said that whenever the lake tides rise, mermaids of all ages would gather by the shore of Lake Garan and sing together about the gifts of the gods and nature.
Unfortunately, such a spectacular sight can no longer be seen.
Lin Xiaodong is the last merman in the world. No one taught him how to sing. If it weren’t for the musical score in the system’s database, this song would probably have been completely lost.
“I want to hear it,” Gu Xi said.
So the little merman in his arms closed his eyes and began to practice this ancient ballad very intently.
He leaned on the man’s shoulder and sang it over and over again.
But what frustrated Lin Xiaodong was that this guy Gu Xi was still tone-deaf even in a different world, and couldn’t tell if the pitch was accurate at all.
“How was that time I just sang? Any progress compared to before?” he asked deliberately.
“Yes,” Gu Xi pondered for a moment and nodded with feigned profundity, “great progress.”
Hearing this, the little merman immediately whipped him with his big tail: “I clearly sang out of tune on purpose just now and you didn’t even notice! All you do is ‘hmmm’! Perfunctory!”
Gu Xi: “…………”
Oh boy, the secret is out.
On the day of the live broadcast.
The military released the news that they had the last merman a few days in advance and set up a temporary website, announcing that Lin Xiaodong was willing to sing for all humans suffering from brainworms to alleviate their pain.
The tragic stories of the mermaids had already spread widely among the people. As the last merman in the world, he actually took the initiative to save humanity, which immediately caused a sensation on the Star Network.
“So ashamed…”
“If it were me, I’d rather die than do it. Why save enemies?”
“On behalf of my family of five, I sincerely thank this kind merman. I will never forget this great kindness!”
“Thank you, words cannot express…”
“When the mermaids were taken to the palace, I sincerely envied them. Thinking about it now, that was hell.”
Gu Xi had shown these comments to Lin Xiaodong, but he just glanced at them, his expression not changing much.
“I’m not saving them to be thanked,” the little merman said, tilting his head. “Whether they hate me or love me, I will save them.”
This was the voice of the original little merman.
In the original timeline, because of fear, he didn’t save that strange man before the life pod self-combusted, which became a lifelong knot for the little merman.
Because of his kindness, he was in agony.
Even at the moment he was caught by humans and sent to the operating table, the little merman still foolishly thought he was guilty.
System: “I think after this live broadcast, you should be able to get the last Good Person Card.”
Lin Xiaodong sighed: “I’m not counting on that. Besides, there’s still a fragment with Lu Xing. I have to find a way to deal with it.”
For some reason, seeing more and more criticism, abuse, and even curses about Lu Xing on the Star Network, he always had a premonition that the young man’s life would soon end.
“Do you think he’s thought about his own way out?” he pondered and asked the system. “A person as selfish as Lu Xing doesn’t actually need to go to such extremes. Or rather…”
Just as the Queen said, among the targets of his revenge, was he himself included?
System: “Based on the time estimation, Lu Xing was parasitized by brainworms much earlier than other nobles, so he is at least in the middle stage now. A person in this state is already considered to have strong willpower if he hasn’t been driven mad by torture.”
“I really want to know what his face looked like when he found out I was gone that day,” but Lin Xiaodong had no sympathy for him at all, because from a certain perspective, Lu Xing brought all this on himself. “If he had even a bit of conscience, he wouldn’t have repeatedly bitten the hand that fed him.”
Noah was the first time.
He was the second time.
Lin Xiaodong believed that even if heaven gave Lu Xing another chance and let Noah come back to life and return to his side, the young man would definitely commit the third betrayal.
His love was too selfish.
It was like a poison wrapped in “deep affection” honey. At first, it was endless sweetness and touch, but in the end, when the honey melted, it would only cause unbearable pain.
On the other hand, the Central Star.
Today’s Empire had long since been turned upside down and was no longer what it used to be.
Since the military disclosed the existence of brainworms, the entire country had been in a mess. Psychotics choosing to take revenge on society were everywhere on the streets, and even people staying in their own homes would be robbed and killed.
Everyone’s emotions were repeatedly magnified by various reasons, and the whole country seemed to have reached the end of the world.
And no matter how many people earnestly advised him, Lu Xing just half-closed his eyes, leaned on his chin, and sat high on the throne.
The pale young man looked coldly at the antics of the nobles with a faint mocking smile, ignoring all voices of opposition.
As this happened more often, the neutral nobles who originally had a glimmer of hope for him also despaired.
Just the day before, an assassin of unknown origin sneaked into the palace trying to assassinate Lu Xing.
But obviously, he didn’t succeed.
The next day, Lu Xing still appeared in front of everyone intact, except that he wore a black eye patch over his left eye.
This look made his temperament even more unpredictable and his methods even more ruthless and sinister.
On the contrary, Earl Lian’s supporters grew rapidly within a few days.
He not only sidelined Lu Xing, turning the palace into a truly forbidden city, but also privately sent an envoy to negotiate with Gu Xi, trying to persuade Gu Xi to join forces and pull Lu Xing down.
But Gu Xi had long seen through these nobles and knew they were all birds of a feather. He didn’t even meet them and directly drove the envoy back.
“You will regret this!” In the end, Earl Lian was so angry that he publicly made a harsh remark. “Even if you blockade the Central Star and have a starship fleet ten times larger than the Imperial Guards, the control of the Star-Destroying Cannon is always in the hands of the royal family! At most, we’ll all go down together!”
Lin Xiaodong only found out after asking the adjutant that the Star-Destroying Cannon was not located on the Central Star.
In fact, its body was disguised by the designer as a periodic comet, which could only be activated remotely under the joint verification of the King’s and the Marshal’s medals.
“But don’t we have the Marshal’s medal?” he wondered.
“Yes,” Xu Feng sighed, “but think about it, this is the Lu family’s world after all. How could they not do something to the Star-Destroying Cannon? The Marshal’s medal plus the King’s iris can fully activate the Star-Destroying Cannon, but a direct royal descendant like the Crown Prince can also activate it alone, although only at a maximum of fifteen percent of the energy.”
“Fifteen percent of the energy… what can it do?”
“With a precise strike, it can instantly evaporate a planet within thirty million light-years,” Xu Feng said solemnly. “If it’s fire coverage, our fleet can also win, but it will definitely be a tragic victory with nearly four-fifths destroyed.”
Lin Xiaodong understood.
To put it simply, it was an upgraded plus version of a nuclear bomb, which led to the current stalemate.
But these were not things he should consider now.
Two hours before the live broadcast started, the number of logins to the website had exceeded thirty billion. Seeing the numbers on the backend soaring like a rocket, Xu Feng was afraid Lin Xiaodong would be nervous and hurriedly called Gu Xi to take him back to the room to rest for a while.
Lin Xiaodong didn’t feel much. Thirty billion is thirty billion.
After all, through the internet, he couldn’t see people. Thirty billion was no different from three hundred people to him.
“The live broadcast will start at six o’clock tonight,” Gu Xi’s large hand ran through Lin Xiaodong’s hair as smooth as silk, his fingertips gently circling between the strands. It was said that this could effectively relieve the subject’s stress. “I said I’d help you cut it when I got back, but I didn’t expect so much time to pass and your hair to grow so long.”
When he said that, Lin Xiaodong also remembered.
“Then help me cut it,” he said, but immediately added, “don’t make it too ugly!”
Gu Xi smiled: “Don’t worry.”
Ten minutes later.
The little merman’s tail was soaking in the bathtub, his slender neck slightly lowered, his eyes staring straight at a little yellow duck drifting past.
Feeling the clicking sound from behind his head, his mood was as apprehensive as if he had just walked into a barbershop he had never been to before, yet tomorrow was the school opening ceremony.
He didn’t know how Tony Gu’s skills were.
But to be honest, Gu Xi’s movements were really gentle. Lin Xiaodong became a bit drowsy as his hair was being cut. In a daze, he felt like the man had finished. He turned his head and saw Gu Xi bending over to collect the hair he had dropped on the floor.
This action puzzled Lin Xiaodong: “What do you want this hair for?”
“To weave a ring,” Gu Xi smiled and showed him his left hand.
It was empty, and the original black ring was gone.
“How did you take it off?” Lin Xiaodong asked curiously.
“Seriously injured, broke an arm,” Gu Xi smiled lightly, “it didn’t hurt anyway, so I just took it off.”
Lin Xiaodong was speechless.
It really didn’t hurt? How could a broken arm not hurt!
“Then how are you now?” The little merman was anxious and wanted to pull open his clothes to see.
“Much better now.” Gu Xi couldn’t help but press down on the little merman who was splashing in the bathtub, half his body covered in water. “Don’t worry, it’s just a scar. I’m a soldier, what’s a scar?”
“But…” The little merman stared at him, a thin layer of mist gradually rising in his large bright eyes.
“But what?”
Lin Xiaodong lowered his head and gently poked the little yellow duck with his finger. The little yellow duck, which was floating on the water, was suddenly poked into the water, making a “puji” sound.
The merman said in a voice as soft as a mosquito’s hum: “But, I’ll feel heartbroken.”
Hearing this, Gu Xi lowered his eyes. This man, who could give a speech before the three armies without changing his expression, for a moment didn’t seem to know how to respond. His movement to put on his clothes slowed down for a moment, and it was nearly half a minute later that he slowly buttoned his shirt.
“Ding dong, Good Person Card Fragment +1”
“Holy shit!”
The system and Lin Xiaodong shouted in shock in their hearts at the same time.
“How… why wasn’t it there before?” Lin Xiaodong was completely puzzled.
If Gu Xi in this world also had a Good Person Card, it should have been discovered when he saved the man. Why wait until today to get the prompt?
“By the way, what were you shouting for?” he realized after a while and asked the system.
System: “I finally contacted headquarters just now!”
“Really?” Lin Xiaodong’s eyes widened slightly.
But it soon added: “Although it’s disconnected again, don’t worry, I’ve raced against time to download what you need most now.”
Lin Xiaodong tilted his head and thought for a while, but really couldn’t think of what he was lacking now.
But when his gaze accidentally fell on the little yellow duck, he suddenly realized.
He said in surprise: “You actually downloaded the SpongeBob SquarePants 2030 movie!?”
System: “…………”