Chapter 18: The Consequences of Making a Tyrant Jealous
Lu'e was also paying attention to Rong Yin all the time. The mermaid was lying lazily on the low stool, with his black hair hanging down on his snow-white shoulders and his silver fishtail emitting fine light, making him look more elegant.
Most people's first reaction to aliens that are obviously different from themselves is rejection, not to mention that Rong Yin has fangs and claws that can hurt people, which makes him even more frightening.
Previously, Lu'e was assigned to clean the bathing pool because someone in the palace said that mermaids eat raw meat, and if you offend him, you might be eaten alive by him.
No one else dared to come, so the job naturally fell on Lu'e, who had been bullied for many years.
Before seeing the mermaids with her own eyes, Lu'e was also uneasy. After all, in her impression, mermaids were no different from the inhuman beasts in the mountains.
After seeing Rong Yin, Lu'e realized how ridiculous her stereotype was. How could a beast compare to that person who was as dazzling and gentle as a star?
Lu'e even felt that Rong Yin was more like a "human" than most of the "people" in the palace. In her eyes, no matter the emperor or any other palace people, including herself, they were all puppets bound by rules and classes.
Only the mermaid is like a butterfly that has strayed into the abyss, constantly flapping its beautiful wings that represent freedom, unrestrained, flying past everyone's eyes but never stopping. When it gets tired of playing one day, it will leave as it pleases.
The merman is the emperor's nominal pet, but his heart has never been imprisoned or tamed.
Lu'e liked him very much and also envied him.
Being with the mermaid makes people feel relaxed from the inside out, so even though Lu'e knew that she was the servant and the mermaid was the master, when he invited her to play tic-tac-toe, she couldn't resist the temptation and agreed.
The two people did not use pen and ink, but used their fingers dipped in water to draw chess pieces on the low table. This required the players to respond quickly, otherwise the water marks would dry up.
It was obviously a children's game, but the two of them had a lot of fun playing it. Rong Yin did not have the threat or oppression of a superior. Lu'e did not need to care about winning or losing when playing with him and could do whatever she wanted.
Under her influence, the palace servants who used to be extremely well-behaved became more lively and gathered around to watch their competition, cheering for whoever won.
When Zong Zhengxiao came over, he heard laughter from inside, almost making him think he had come to the wrong place.
When Si Xi heard what was happening inside, his expression changed instantly, for he was afraid that if Zong Zheng Xiao was unhappy, everyone would be punished.
He was just about to ask to go in first and give those lawless palace maids a good beating, but Zong Zheng Xiao stepped in before he could open his mouth. Si Xi was helpless and could only pray that the emperor would not be too angry.
"Ah, the master wins this time!" Another round ended, and a palace maid who was watching cheered.
Rong Yin grinned foolishly, and Lu'e also smiled and said, "I am ashamed of myself."
Rong Yin waved his hands to show his humility, but just as he raised his hands, a familiar voice came from outside the crowd, "What are you doing?"
This is the Emperor's voice!
Lu'e and other palace maids were so frightened that they immediately turned around, knelt down on the ground, kowtowed and shouted, "Your Majesty, please forgive me."
Zong Zhengxiao ignored them and looked at Rong Yin.
Rong Yin was not afraid of Zong Zheng Xiao. She let out a happy cry, wagged her tail, came in front of Zong Zheng Xiao, and grabbed his sleeve.
Rong Yin blinked her light blue eyes and looked at Zong Zheng Xiao with a bright smile: You're back!
Originally, Zong Zhengxiao felt a little uncomfortable seeing the little mermaid and the palace maids being so close and having fun together.
However, looking at the little merman whose heart and eyes were filled with only him, Zong Zhengxiao's discomfort quickly disappeared.
He thought: What if the palace ladies could make the little mermaid happy? As soon as he saw me, they ran over immediately.
Feeling relieved, Zong Zhengxiao smiled. He took Rong Yin's hand and sat down in front of the low table. Looking at the table that was still stained with water, he asked, "What were you playing just now?"
Zong Zhengxiao was asking about Rong Yin, and even though they knew he couldn't speak, Lu'e and other palace maids didn't dare to answer for him.
Rong Yin dipped his fingers in water and painted on the table as he did before, demonstrating to Zong Zhengxiao.
This little game was simple, and Zong Zhengxiao understood it after watching it once. Seeing that Rong Yin was in high spirits and wanted to fight again, Zong Zhengxiao said to him, "I will play with you, but the one who loses more will be punished."
As he spoke, in order to match Rong Yin's disguise, he raised his hand and started drawing a tic-tac-toe grid on the table.
To outsiders, it didn’t matter whether the merman could understand human language or not. As long as he followed along and drew the chess pieces, he had agreed to play the game with Zong Zheng Xiao.
Zong Zhengxiao drew "O" first, and Rong Yin drew "X" right after him, saying in his heart: Humph, I have been playing Tic-Tac-toe for so many years, and I am invincible. How can the evil emperor be better than me? Just wait to be punished by me!
Zong Zhengxiao smiled and replied silently: Let’s wait and see.
While the two were playing the game, the palace servants who were kneeling on the ground were called up by Si Xi.
Si Xi knew Zong Zheng Xiao. If Zong Zheng Xiao really wanted to punish these palace maids, he would have told him to do it long ago.
What's more, he was busy teasing the mermaid at the moment and was in a very good mood. How could he pay attention to other people?
The game lasted for two hours in total. At the beginning, Rong Yin was able to win a few games thanks to his skill. Later, Zong Zheng Xiao gradually figured out various tactics and directly suppressed Rong Yin to the point where he couldn't raise his head. He lost more than ten games in a row and didn't have any chance of winning at all.
The gap between people is so huge that the little fool Rong Yin was a little broken.
In the later stages, Zong Zhengxiao also felt the frustration and defeat of his little merman, and was afraid of making him cry, so he let him go a few times.
Rong Yin, who had seen his true strength, could tell that he was giving in to him. He couldn't beat him, and there was no point in deliberately letting him win, so he simply gave up.
Si Xi had been watching the fight on the side. Being very good at observing people's expressions, he immediately asked the palace servants to fetch water for the two masters to wash their hands, and then served them tea and cakes that had been prepared long ago.
Mermaids are greedy and their mood will improve every time they are full. If Your Majesty makes them angry, Si Xi will naturally help to comfort them.
Otherwise, if the mermaid is unhappy, the emperor will not be happy either, and the palace maids who serve him will be the ones who suffer.
Chef Yu, who makes snacks in the palace, is an excellent cook and Rong Yin loves all the cakes he makes. Just as Si Xi expected, after tasting the food he likes, Rong Yin's frown slowly relaxes.
Rong Yin swallowed the chrysanthemum crisp in his mouth and was about to put the second piece in his mouth, but when he turned around, he found that Zong Zheng Xiao didn't move. He didn't drink tea or eat snacks, but just stared at him.
"Ah." Rong Yin's eyes moved back and forth between Zong Zheng Xiao and Dian Xin with a puzzled look. Was he asking him why he didn't eat?
Zong Zheng Xiao understood what he meant, but did not answer. Instead, under Rong Yin's suddenly widened eyes, he held his hand, pulled it towards himself, and fed the snack in his hand into his mouth.