There were six rooms on the second floor.
The master bedroom belonged to Jiang Lijin. Tiniya, Karon, and Baal each had one. Originally, two rooms were left empty, meant for Tianyan and Tianque.
But ever since the twins moved in on the first day, they only ever used one room.
Jiang Lijin had asked at the time, "Not staying in the other one?"
Tianyan had answered quite seriously, "My brother doesn't sleep still at night. Someone needs to watch him."
Tianque added two words, expressionless, "It's a habit."
Jiang Lijin didn't pry. Those twins were like conjoined twins anyway.
So now, there was exactly one spare room left on the second floor.
Rowan stood in front of that door, tilting his head back to look at the sensor light above the frame. The light came on, and the door slid open automatically. Inside, the bed was neatly made, the curtains half-drawn, giving a view of the greenery in the yard.
"This one is yours," Jiang Lijin said from behind him.
Rowan walked in and took a turn around the room. He was so small that when he stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, he could barely reach the window ledge.
"It's huge," he remarked.
Tiniya leaned against the doorframe, jerking his chin toward the room. "Wasn't your room in the palace ten times bigger than this?"
Rowan turned to look at him and shook his head very seriously. "The palace rooms were huge, but cold. Here, the sun shines in."
Tiniya opened his mouth, but didn't manage a reply.
Jiang Lijin walked in and pulled the curtain halfway open. Sunlight spilled in, falling on the cool gray carpet, chasing away the abandoned feel of the room.
"If you need anything, just tell Tiniya to buy it," she said, glancing over her shoulder.
Tiniya immediately protested, straightening up. "Sister, I'm your husband, not his errand boy."
Jiang Lijin ignored him.
Rowan, however, spoke up, his voice small and not quite steady: "I don't need anything at all."
He stood in the middle of the room, still holding that box of gummy candy he'd barely touched. His tiny figure cast a long shadow in the sunlight, looking a bit lonely.
Jiang Lijin watched him for a few seconds.
"Get someone to change the mattress to a softer one later," she said to Tiniya. "Also, add a set of children's toiletries, and have three changes of clothes made in his size."
Tiniya pulled out his optical computer and swiped his fingers across it quickly, muttering to himself. "Fine, fine, I'll arrange it now."
"Want to add a smart kids' assistant?" he added. "The newest model from the Academy of Sciences. It's specifically for taking care of kids. It can tell bedtime stories, monitor body temperature, and adjust the room temperature automatically."
"No."
It was Rowan who spoke.
He walked over to Jiang Lijin and tugged at the hem of her shirt.
"Sister, I don't want a robot."
Jiang Lijin looked down.
Rowan's golden eyes were perfectly clear, without any hint of a sulk or a plea.
"Alright," Jiang Lijin agreed.
Tianyan had somehow wandered up and was leaning on his elbow against the doorframe, cocking his head to peer inside. "The little emperor's all settled?"
Rowan turned to look at him.
Tianyan grinned and waved at him. "Hey, kid. Your next-door neighbor is me and my brother. If you get scared at night, feel free to knock on our door."
Rowan tilted his head, his gaze shifting between Tianyan and Tianque at the end of the hall.
"You two are twins?"
"Sharp." Tianyan gave him a thumbs-up. "But I'm the better-looking one."
As Tianque passed by the door, he kicked Tianyan's calf without changing his expression and walked straight back to his own room.
Tianyan grimaced and rubbed his leg, but his mouth kept running: "See that? He's got a violent streak. Don't talk to him."
Rowan didn't laugh, but the corners of his mouth lifted just slightly.
Jiang Lijin noticed, but she didn't say anything. She reached out and ruffled Rowan's hair. "Go wash your hands. Dinner's almost ready."
Rowan nodded obediently and trotted off to the bathroom.
When the child's figure disappeared behind the door, Tianyan dropped his smile and lowered his voice. "That kid has a heavy heart. Six years old, his biological mother is dying, he gets taken away by a stranger, dumped in a place he doesn't know at all, and he hasn't shed a single tear yet."
"It's not that he doesn't want to cry," Tiniya said, serious for once. "He doesn't dare."
Tianyan glanced at him, a little surprised.
Tiniya shrugged, his blue eyes carrying no warmth. "I was the same way when I was a kid. When my mom made me sit on the board of directors meetings, I was only eight. A whole room full of old foxes staring at you. If you so much as showed a trace of weakness, the company stock would drop the next day."
He paused, then shifted his tone. "Of course, I was better looking than him."
Jiang Lijin reached out and slapped the back of his head.
Tiniya covered his head, shrinking his neck in feigned hurt. Instead of pulling away, he leaned against Jiang Lijin's shoulder.
Jiang Lijin walked to the top of the stairs, about to go down, when the optical computer on her wrist buzzed.
A communication from Baal.
A holographic projection popped up, showing Baal's half-body figure. He was wearing the black military uniform of the Federation, his collar buttoned meticulously, with the fleet command bridge in the background.
"I've seen what the Cabinet's up to," Baal said, his speaking speed fast. "The Third Fleet is making moves. They've transferred two cruisers to the outer perimeter of the home planet."
"Just intimidation." Jiang Lijin leaned against the stair railing, her posture relaxed. "They won't dare start a real fight. The old emperor hasn't drawn his last breath yet. Whoever fires first becomes the rebel army."
"I'm not afraid of them fighting." Baal's brow was knit low, his golden vertical pupils locked onto her through the hologram. "I'm afraid of them trying an assassination. Do you have enough bodyguards on hand?"
"Tianyan and Tianque are here."
Baal was silent for two seconds.
"Black market people," he said in a tone that was neither good nor bad, carrying a hint of scrutiny. "You trust them?"
"Whether I trust them or not, I use them and find out."
Baal looked at her, his lips moving like he wanted to say something, then swallowing it back. His gaze dropped half an inch and eventually he forced out: "What's that on your neck?"
Jiang Lijin instinctively touched her collar.
Her casual wear was hanging loosely at home, and the marks at her collarbone were impossible to hide. Under the high-definition quality of the hologram, even the outline of the bite was clearly visible.
Baal's face darkened.
"A mosquito bite," Jiang Lijin said without batting an eye.
Baal's mouth twitched.
"The mosquitoes there," he said, his voice dropping, as if grinding his teeth, "must have pretty big mouths."
"Yeah, really fierce ones." Jiang Lijin bluffed with a straight face.
The communication went quiet for a long time. In the background noise of the command bridge, officers could be heard reporting data, but Baal completely ignored it.
He stared at Jiang Lijin's collar and finally said just one thing: "I'll handle things here and come home as soon as I can!"
The communication was cut off directly.
Jiang Lijin put away her optical computer and went downstairs.
There was already activity in the kitchen. Tiniya had asked the villa's housekeeper to prepare a full table of dishes, varied in meat and vegetables. Compared to usual, two extra light dishes had been added, clearly meant for Rowan.
That guy complained with his mouth, but his attention to detail was perfect.
Jiang Lijin sat down, and Rowan sat to her right. The chair was a bit tall for him; Tiniya casually grabbed a cushion and put it under him, so Rowan's line of sight leveled with the tabletop.
Tianyan and Tianque sat across from them.
Tianyan picked up his chopsticks, grabbed a piece of meat, and tossed it into his mouth, chewing as he spoke indistinctly: “Boss, do you think those people in the Cabinet will just flip the table and go all out?”
“Flip the table? That depends on whether they have the balls.” Jiang Lijin grabbed a soup bowl, ladled out half a bowl of broth for Luo Wen, and pushed it over. “The old emperor is still alive, and the will has the highest encryption. For them to turn things around, there are only two paths: either tamper with the will, or make something happen to the Third Prince.”
“The first path is impossible.” The voice came from the restaurant entrance—it was Karon.
He had swapped his white lab coat for a dark gray casual shirt. His hair was still damp, water droplets trailing from the ends and dripping onto his collar; clearly, he had just showered. He walked to the table, pulled out the chair to Jiang Lijin’s left, and sat down, so now he and Luo Wen were flanking her on either side.
“The Empire’s highest encryption is bound to the old emperor’s biometric data. Unless she revokes it herself, no one can crack it. No matter how stupid those Cabinet folks are, they won’t waste time on that.” Karon’s tone was even and clear, every point well-articulated.
“So the key is the second path.” Tianyan’s chopsticks pointed to the note, gesturing at Luo Wen, who was quietly eating. “Protect this little one.”
Luo Wen looked up, a greasy smear on the corner of his mouth. His golden eyes blinked as he stared at Tianyan.
“I’m not a little one,” he corrected. “I’m six years old.”
Tianyan burst out laughing, then picked up a piece of fried fish and dropped it into his bowl. “Fine, you win, Your Majesty. Six-year-old emperor it is.”
Luo Wen glanced down at the fried fish in his bowl, prodded it with his spoon to make sure there were no bones, and resumed eating earnestly.
Karon picked up the kettle, poured a cup of warm water for Jiang Lijin, and set it beside her hand. The movement was natural, his gaze brushing briefly over the mark on her collarbone, but he said nothing.
Yet as he handed her the cup, the tips of his fingers brushed her hand.
Jiang Lijin glanced at him.
Karon raised his own cup and drank, his gray eyes calm and steady—his lashes didn’t so much as flutter, as if nothing had happened.
Tiniya saw everything from across the table. His smile didn’t change, but the force with which his chopsticks stabbed into his bowl increased by threefold, and china clinked sharply from the impact.
