New Year No

The moment Eugenia uttered those words, a dark, damp, and gloomy spiritual force swept out. Jima heard Song Yu's sinister voice after he removed his disguise: "Why did you have to say it? You are my sister. I didn't want to attack you so soon. I even thought about taking you with me after it was all over."

"Are you crazy?" Eugénie snapped. "Do you think I'd be like you?"

"You really hurt me, and you really disappointed me. It's always been like this since I was a child."

Jima had no recollection of what happened afterward. The impact of the two spiritual forces instantly knocked her unconscious. When she woke up again, she was lying in a hospital bed, where she saw Song Yu's hypocritical face: "You are Eugénie's adopted daughter, which means you are my adopted daughter. Eugénie is seriously ill, so you must take on her responsibilities."

Jima was too young then, so she could only endure it. She refused to admit that she had heard almost the entire thing, and Song Yu had no idea what Jima knew.

For years, Gemma had been searching for the videotape Eugénie had mentioned, the one that was the truly useful evidence. But to no avail.

Moreover, Song Yu became even more rampant and cautious after that. He used similar methods to drive away the sentries at important posts, but left no trace.

Although Song Yu secretly controlled Muli Star, the appointment and dismissal of the executive team were directly appointed by the royal family, and he dared not attract the emperor's attention; the executive team had always been suspicious of Eugenia's disappearance while recuperating, and they were more inclined to support Jima, who had been raised by Eugenia since childhood.

As a result, Jima gradually grew up and became a threat to Song Yu.

On his way to the processing plant, Song Yu's face grew increasingly grim. The two trusted confidants who had been following him had unfocused black pupils and numb expressions.

It's so close, so close to success.

In this secluded place, Song Yu made no attempt to hide his bad temper.

Only a fool would wait to die on Muli Star. He knew Lin Shuangqiao's methods all too well.

He was originally exiled to the neighboring planet Snowy Planet, a place of perpetual snowfall and harsh natural conditions. The entire planet had only one communication station, and almost all the inhabitants had moved away, leaving behind only a few scattered villages and a pile of old bones longing for their homeland. Naturally, there were no troops stationed there either.

The result is that this worthless planet was attacked by space pirates who had disappeared years ago and been wiped out by the G13 Legion, who traveled all the way here!

Moreover, the target was coming straight at him, and he couldn't be bothered to pay attention to those old bones.

It goes without saying who instructed them.

Fortunately, among those old-timers was a respected figure in the education sector who wanted to return to his roots. He used a messaging system to call for help from his students. The student was also quite capable; he jumped over in a warship and rescued them.

Before the follow-up support requested by the student arrived, the space pirates retreated unscathed.

Once this news got out, many people who were unaware of the situation hoped that he could return to the capital planet, since the attraction of guides to sentinels is like water to fish.

Under public pressure, Song Yu was finally transferred to Muli Star next door.

In the end, fate was on his side.

On the planet Muli, there is an executive officer named Eugenia Adam, a sister who was separated from them in childhood and refused to acknowledge them as her adult brother.

Eugénie spoke with great dignity, saying that the experience of being stolen from different mothers by her biological father was not worth talking about, and that her biological father, who was beaten to death by Eugénie's mother, should not appear in their family background section, as they were not even as good as those who came from an orphanage.

In fact, Song Yu knew that Eugénie thought they were dishonest and too fond of taking shortcuts, and that they would get into trouble sooner or later. Even when Yu Shen married the princess, Eugénie refused to attend, unwilling to have anything to do with it.

Eugénie was indeed farsighted in this regard, because Yu Shen died a few years later, and in a very dishonorable way. This dishonor was based on the fact that he was the well-known biological father of the Crown Prince, and the Crown Prince's reputation could not be tarnished.

If they had recognized each other back then, Eugénie would certainly have been implicated. After the incident, to avoid trouble, Eugénie resigned and returned to her hometown, never pursuing further career advancement.

While secretly rejoicing, Song Yu felt sorry for his brother.

On what grounds?

Yu Shen was just a little harsh on the child. Besides, Lin Changli is still alive and well, isn't he?

Doesn't a father have the right to discipline his child?

But when he thought about Lin Changli's strength, status and future, he couldn't help but want to get closer to him.

As an uncle, I can't expect to get nothing out of it.

But Lin Changli is too useless, just like Yu Shen.

His spiritual growth was too rapid, exceeding the limits of human endurance, and no guide could soothe him. After the expedition to the Sulfurfire Star System, similar spiritual power triggered a mental upheaval, causing damage that forced him to leave the legion and recuperate in the palace.

These weren't the most fatal flaws. What Song Yu found most unbearable was that he had actually allowed Lin Yangchuan to be born! He lived in the palace, right next to Lin Shuangqiao's bedroom! He had countless opportunities to act, yet he let Lin Yangchuan, the guide who could completely replace him, be born!

Song Yu cursed the useless man a thousand times in his heart, but on the surface he had to show "sincere joy" for Lin Yangchuan's birth. He had been a masked man for long enough, so this pretense was easy for him.

He didn't know what Lin Changli was thinking, but he was even more unwilling than Lin Changli.

So when Lin Changli had another mental breakdown, Lin Shuangqiao asked the other four S-level guides for help, and Song Yu felt that he had found an opportunity.

However, he did not expect that Lin Changli could resist the nightmare suggestions that had been repeated tens of millions of times, and even told Lin Shuangqiao about it.

Song Yu simply couldn't understand how anyone could trust his mother so much, especially the mother who had subtly stripped him of his inheritance rights.

Song Yu's life's work was destroyed in an instant. Lin Shuangqiao didn't even give him a chance to defend himself, nor did she care about the dirty work he had done for the empire and the royal family. His legion was disbanded, and his personnel were scattered and sent to various parts of the star system. His most trusted subordinates were even sent to garrison in other star systems.

In the end, only the two people most deeply controlled by his nightmares remained by his side. They risked their lives to come to his side and became unregistered individuals without identities.

The three of them were escorted to Muli, wearing collars that would explode if they left. The key program was controlled by Eve; even Eugénie had no access.

Lin Shuangqiao wants him to die here.

However, there is a way. If Song Yu finds Eve's branch room on Muli Star and paralyzes Muli Star's artificial intelligence system, he can escape Muli Star.

Eve will certainly alert the main unit, but it doesn't matter.

Muli's army is under his control and will be taken away by him.

The armies of other planets will come to the rescue, but it will take time; besides, Eve's repairs will also take time.

Once such a restriction instruction leaves the restricted area, it will be determined that it has "taken effect".

Artificial intelligence is, after all, a program created by humans.

Only a fool would sit idly by and wait to die on Muli Star.

He wanted to live, even if it meant starting over in another galaxy, as long as he was alive.

Song Yu stood in front of a small, heavily guarded door of the processing plant. He took a deep breath to calm himself down.

He's close to success; be patient and eliminate all potential threats.

It doesn't matter if Eugénie dies if necessary. She never truly helped her brother; shouldn't she have done something in the end?

Song Yu thought maliciously that it was all Eugénie's fault for not letting her mother take him with her back then. Eugénie was living a good life, while Song Yu was struggling to grow up in the orphanage. If it weren't for the discovery of his S-level spiritual body, he would never have had a chance to rise in this life.

This is what Eugénie owes him.

*

Black Tower Star. West Small Building.

The New Year is almost here.

After humanity migrated into space, during the process of rapid development, ethnic groups gradually merged. Some groups even had their own unique definitions of the New Year. However, at the imperial level, the first day of each year was designated as the official New Year.

Lin Changli was watering the flowers and plants, while the puppies circled around his feet, still biting on the beef knee bone, making Lin Changli's trouser leg shiny with oil.

He's such a germaphobe, yet he can tolerate even dog saliva and grease.

Sangye felt that Lin Changli doted on her excessively.

Sangye would occasionally scold them, but Lin Changli would always dissuade him. "They're just puppies, what do they know? They only rub against you because they like you. Don't be mean to them, it will hurt their feelings."

After several unsuccessful attempts to educate them, Sangye simply gave up and let the puppies develop freely according to their nature.

After Lin Changli returned home that day, Sang Ye found a time to tell Lin Changli everything that Mu Lixing, Song Yu, and Meilushin had revealed.

She truly couldn't predict Lin Changli's reaction to this matter. Confidently predicting someone else's thoughts was itself a form of arrogance. Besides, the choice wasn't in her hands.

That day, she and Lin Changli sat on the roof, looking at the full moon hanging in the base—it had nothing to do with the date, it was just that Eve thought it looked nice and released it—the two of them drank osmanthus roasted milk and ate osmanthus glutinous rice cake.

Sangye knew that Lin Changli was genuinely happy when he ate sweets. Anyway, he wouldn't get diabetes or anything like that, so let him eat what he wanted.

If he's unhappy, try to soothe him with sweets.

Lin Changli remained silent for a long time. The fragrance of osmanthus lingered between his lips and teeth. The smooth roasted milk mixed with the sweet and sticky rice cake created an explosion of sugar, and he felt a sense of peace.

Human greed and its boundless nature seem so close to him, yet so far away.

He gently leaned closer to Sangye and said softly, "Thank you for telling me all this. Otherwise, I wouldn't know where Song Yu's malice towards me came from."

Kuwano thought he had accepted it calmly.

The next second, Lin Changli said, "But it's a pity, this person's conspiracy has been discovered again. He's cunning and calculating, but he can't figure things out."

He curled his lip, dismissing it with disdain.

Sangye: "..." Very well, still that familiar sharp-tongued person.

After watering the flowers, Lin Changli walked around the little dog at his feet and put away his tools.

Sangye sat in a comfortable rocking chair, calculated his income, gritted his teeth, and transferred all the compensation money into the court account in one go, paying off the entire debt.

The New Year is almost here, don't let yourself go through it with debt.

This left her with only a few hundred thousand yuan in cash. Fortunately, she had no expenses at the base.

Since she started receiving dividends, she has given all the subsidies from the base to Du Yuan.

Her income now comes from two sources. One is a fixed salary, which has increased since her promotion to 18,000 star coins a month. The year-end bonus ratio has also increased, and the difference will be visible at the end of the year. The other part is the bulk of her income, Jiang Siwei's bonus. As the volume of goods expands, the bonus is also increasing. Now, however, the production capacity cannot keep up, and Jiang Siwei is busy selecting a site to build a new factory.

Soon, Camellia will also send dividends; a sum will definitely be sent before the end of the year.

Her income streams will only continue to grow.

According to Jiang Siwei's recent complaints, she's vying for a plot of land on the outskirts of the capital. This plot is perfect: a great location, perfect compliance with environmental safety standards, and controllable emissions.

Too many people are eyeing this piece of land, all of them coveting it. Jiang Si is really struggling to compete on her own, but she is naturally competitive, and she will not give up unless she is defeated.

Sangye heard that Jiang Siwei had prepared a market research report on the specific uses of the factory and various products, from taste to the help in restoring mental strength and the sharing of the guide's work, and submitted it all to the review panel. She tried her best to prove that her factory would be more helpful to society, and that if it were put up for auction, hers would definitely fetch the highest price.

The review panel couldn't produce results before the Lunar New Year, and everyone's attention was focused on the holiday season.

The New Year holiday lasts a full month, or 31 days. For positions requiring job rotation, each unit or department must make up for the lost time within four months, without taking up other regular holidays, and each make-up leave must be no less than seven consecutive days.

Even Black Tower Star has unusually opened its visitation channels, allowing the awakened Sentinel families to come and reunite for the New Year. Each family has three days to gather together.

Meanwhile, the high-ranking officers at the Black Tower base arranged for shifts to ensure that two groups of senior officers were stationed at the base every day; each group could take 15 days off.

Jiang Sili prepared to return to the capital planet with Aso Mente, his daughters, and his mother-in-law for a family reunion. This was also the first time Jiang's mother and the Jiang family had seen the twins. Except for Jiang Siwei, who was working hard away from home, the rest of the Jiang family members happily made preparations.

Sangye felt that Lin Changli would definitely have to return to the palace.

His relationship with the emperor had improved, and his mental state was stable. There was no reason for him not to return home for the reunion, and the royal family's New Year's banquet also required his presence.

Jiang Siwei secretly asked Sang Ye when Lin Changli would be returning this time.

Her thinking was simple: Lin Changli's return and appearance in public, coupled with his stable mental state, meant that Sangye's "food therapy" was effective. This gave her a huge advantage in the evaluation and could also help promote the product and earn her more money!

Jiang Siwei said, "It's good to date, but making money is also very important! Besides, as the old saying goes, absence makes the heart grow fonder, and it's boring to be together all the time."

Hearing about money, Sangye was also tempted. As for what happened next, she pretended not to see it for the time being. She promised Jiang Siwei that she would definitely persuade Lin Changli to go back.

After repaying the money, Sangye watched the interface change several times, and the money quickly flowed into the victim's account, finally showing "No outstanding debts, debts have been repaid"; immediately afterward, Sangye's terminal received a settlement record from the court.

Looking at the light, airy document stamped with the court's seal, Sangye excitedly exclaimed "Yay!"

From today onwards, every penny she earns is hers!

She was about to ask Lin Changli when he would be going back, and she had even prepared her answer in her mind.

Lin Changli had already squatted down next to her rocking chair and touched the violet in her arms.

"Can you come home with me for the New Year?" Lin Changli asked, his golden eyes filled with anticipation.

"Huh?" Kuwano was stunned, pointing to himself, "Me?"

She realized she was talking nonsense; there were only the two of them in the courtyard, so who else could Lin Changli ask?

"This isn't appropriate," Sangye genuinely felt.

Furthermore, she hadn't considered any further developments in their relationship; she felt things were fine as they were. Marriage wasn't necessary, and although Lin Changli was very clingy, she maintained her freedom.

Lin Changli couldn't stay on Black Tower Star forever, but that didn't matter. Whenever he had free time, he could fly back in his warship to meet her.

This is common. Rong Cheng could have left Black Tower Star a long time ago, but there wasn't a suitable opportunity, and she wanted to spend more time with her and Du Yuan.

Sangye won't be lonely; she has her own things to do, and Du Yuan will be by her side.

“I want to introduce you to my family. My mother and sister have already met you. But other family members will also be there this time.” Lin Changli’s idea was actually very simple. Sang Ye had always acted as if he didn’t care about this relationship, that it was fine to have it or not.

He was eager to take it a step further.

There is no better occasion than a New Year's party.

Sangye blinked and met Lin Changli's gaze. She thought for a moment.

"Alright, but I want to keep my master with me. I can't leave her all alone on Black Tower Star."

Lin Changli didn't expect it to go so smoothly; Sang Ye didn't resist at all.

Sangye really didn't care. She was a free woman now, with no prison sentence, no debts, and no enemies. She also had no intention of serving the army. She just didn't want to be stationed by another legion and be controlled by another legion general.

So, he and Lin Changli went back to see the emperor and, if there was an opportunity, express their thoughts to her. In reality, Sangye's participation in the army was not very useful; rather, his contributions to the construction and continuous production on Black Tower Star were far greater.

Sangye went to ask Du Yuan if she would like to go to the capital planet with her for the New Year, and Du Yuan readily agreed.

So the trip was quickly arranged.

Lin Changli will be among the first group of high-ranking military officers to return to the capital planet.

Wu Huansheng will return to Mingyang Star next week, at which time the Wu family will also return from the New Year's banquet in the capital star.

Half a month later, Aso Mente and Jiang Sili returned to Black Tower Star.

*

It was already midnight when we landed on the palace helipad.

However, the palace was brightly lit, and even the staff on the helipad were neatly dressed and solemn.

Lin Changli had secretly returned on his own in a fit of pique. When he landed, there were only regular staff on duty at the tarmac, and they were quite startled to see him return.

This time, he gave advance notice that he would be bringing his girlfriend and her mother back, so the palace was naturally on high alert.

Under the canopy not far away stood the emperor and his daughter.

Lin Shuangqiao, dressed in a black and gold gown, treated the occasion with solemnity.

Lin Yangchuan held his old dog, Little Dot, and looked expectantly at the people disembarking from the warship.

Lin Changli stepped down first, followed by Sangye and Du Yuan. Then came Sang Sejin, Sang Yaohuang, Sang Wuyun, and Sang Taxue, who hopped and skipped down. They barked and meowed lively, showing no signs of stress or shyness. Instead, they bypassed their owner, sniffing and looking around, and even ran up to Lin Shuangqiao and wagged their tails.

Lin Shuangqiao smiled, squatted down, picked up Sang Wuyun, and patted her gently in her arms.

Welcome home.

Lin Changli hugged her.

"Major General Sangye, we meet again." Lin Shuangqiao greeted Sangye and Du Yuan with a smile, then invited Du Yuan to walk beside her, while the three children lagged behind.

Lin Yangchuan had only met Sangye briefly once before, and he was still very curious about Sangye.

The little one in her arms tried to lean closer to Lin Changli, who gently pulled her into his embrace.

The little guy is quite old; he was bred by the Academy of Sciences at Lin Shuangqiao's request, specifically to keep him company when he was young. The little guy has his own noble title—Duke of Garde—and shares royal dividends with Lin Changli.

Sangye prepared gifts for Lin Shuangqiao and her daughter.

They don't need jewelry or exotic minerals; they prefer novel flowers or animals.

Sangye brought Lin Yangchuan a gentle pony and Lin Shuangqiao various fresh flowers suitable for the study. Cultivated in her spiritual soil, they could emit a calming fragrance without careful maintenance, which was perfect for Lin Shuangqiao who worked long hours.

My feelings upon arriving at the palace for the second time were completely different from the last time.

Kuwano finally had the mood to take a good look at it.

Most royal palaces aim to showcase the grandeur and magnificence of the royal family. Each floor is nearly 30 meters high, with paintings by famous artists hanging on both sides of the corridor. Numerous gilded and precious metal carved lamps hang softly on both sides, illuminating the way.

Inside the palace, everyone was well-trained, and the Persian-style carpets absorbed a great deal of footsteps. Only the laughter and conversation of Lin Shuangqiao and Du Yuan could be heard ahead.

This was the first time the kittens and puppies had been to a place different from the cold, impersonal architecture of the shelter. Under the warm yellow lights, a cozy atmosphere filled the air. They ran around, sniffing everywhere, thoroughly enjoying themselves.

“I brought you a foal that’s already weaned. You can keep it in the Imperial Garden and take it for a walk every day. When it’s a little older, we’ll build it a stable and a paddock. Interact with it often, otherwise the horse will become depressed,” Sangye said.

Lin Yangchuan's eyes lit up: "A horse? The kind you see in books?"

Sangye nodded with a smile. The horse was sleeping in her secluded cave, so Sangye naturally couldn't bring it out for her to see now.

"Come to the back garden tomorrow morning, and I'll teach you how to ride a horse," Sangye and the excited Lin Yangchuan agreed.

The eunuch was last, checking the arrangements with those around him. Even when Sangye was a criminal, she had remained neither humble nor arrogant; today was no different.

Lin Shuangqiao's study and bedroom were both located in the middle of the palace, making it convenient for her to receive all information in a timely manner.

To show respect for their guests, Sangye and Du Yuan's bedrooms were arranged on either side of Lin Shuangqiao's bedroom, both being large suites. Originally prepared for the brother and sister, Lin Changli chose the bedroom in the tower at the highest point of the palace, so that the little phoenix could fly around freely. Lin Yangchuan and Lin Changli had a good relationship, so they stayed on the other side of the highest floor.

Sangye smiled and waved goodbye to Lin Changli, saying goodnight.

Lin Changli glanced back at the eunuch, who was looking straight ahead, head held high, chest out, and expressionless.

Even if Lin Changli was unruly, he didn't dare to show it in front of Lin Shuangqiao. He glanced at Sang Ye, who had a mischievous smile on his face, and had no choice but to return to the top-floor palace with Lin Yangchuan.