[Luofu]
Chanzhen and Daiyang were in high spirits. The two of them were talking over each other, getting more and more excited, practically wishing they could see Zero get married in the very next second.
When he heard the two of them arguing over where to hold the full-month banquet for the little prince and little princess, Zero couldn't hold back anymore.
He let out a deep sigh, raised his hand and lightly tapped their heads, urging, "Your Eight Characters aren't even written yet. How did you start talking about the full-month banquet? Just eat hotpot first."
Chanzhen and Daiyang instantly shut up. They touched their own heads and grinned as they sat down.
Zero's gaze swept across the dishes on the table, then he took out Jingliu's autograph in advance and handed it to them.
Daiyang reacted quickly and was the first to take the autograph.
When they learned that the Marshal finally had someone he liked, they had led a group of Seaborn Rangers to the front lines, hoping the two could reunite sooner.
Everyone began paying attention to this swordmaster named Jingliu.
She was originally from Cangcheng, then came to the Luofu with her family and joined the Cloud Knights.
Now, the empress's parents had already passed away.
Daiyang knew the Marshal too well.
He doted on his people and thought things through carefully, not to mention how he treated someone he loved.
He would definitely give his whole true heart.
Considering that the empress's parents had passed away, the Marshal would certainly give his lover enough security.
The Marshal intentionally transferred a huge amount of assets; surely he meant them as a dowry for his lover.
Thinking of this, Daiyang smiled and asked, "Is this the dowry you prepared for the empress?"
Zero hesitated for a moment.
Three properties could still be explained as inheritance, but what about a vacation planet and a star-destroyer ship?
He wasn't Lord Imbibitor Lunae, who had an alliance with the Immortal Ship and came from a wealthy ancestral background. With the identity of an ordinary diviner, there was no way to explain where such extravagant wealth came from.
Considering this, Zero planned to tell Jingliu only after they broke up.
He shook his head at Daiyang's assumption, "It's not a dowry, just ordinary gifts."
Chanzhen sighed in admiration, "As expected of the Marshal…"
Then she thought again, actually, that made sense.
At the previous Xianzhou Alliance annual meeting, they even got these things as lottery prizes. There was no reason to shortchange the empress.
Daiyang placed a whole plate of meat into the pot with public chopsticks. She was about to take advantage of being on her home turf in Luofu to fight for the right to help the Marshal host the wedding, when she heard Chanzhen jump in first, "The empress is a swordmaster. Can I forge a weapon for her?"
Daiyang couldn't help clenching her fists.
If it were anyone else, she could definitely outdo them.
But Chanzhen had been a general of the Vermilion Bird Army and excelled at forging weapons.
And herself? She didn't seem to have anything that could help the empress.
Wait… she was clearly best at dating... She could totally help the Marshal.
Daiyang looked sharply at the Marshal.
Zero glanced at Chanzhen, then took out his jade communicator. "I'll ask her first."
Wanting to give Jingliu a surprise, he didn't say it directly but asked indirectly.
[Xianyu, What do you think of Yingxing's forged swords?]
For some reason, Jingliu saw right through his intention.
[Jingliu, I'm used to using my sword. You don't need to spend money on another weapon for me.]
Zero had no choice but to put down the communicator and reject Chanzhen, whose face was full of expectation, "She said no. She's used to her own sword."
Chanzhen sighed faintly. "Alright…"
Beside her, Daiyang rubbed her hands together, "I'm very good at romance! I can give you advice!"
Hearing this, Zero shook his head with an amused sigh, "No need."
How could a junior act as a strategist for him?
Daiyang refused to give up, patting her chest with conviction, "Trust me! I have plenty of dating experience, "
Chanzhen quietly stabbed her, "And not one of them lasted longer than three months, right?"
Daiyang, exposed, glared angrily at her colleague, "Is that the point? The point is we have to advise our pure, never-dated-before Marshal!"
She huffed, "Don't make me sound like some scumbag. Every second of my feelings in a relationship is real, they just disappear a bit fast! And I've never been the one dumped! If I wanted, I could find someone to marry me anytime!"
Zero, "…"
Seeing Daiyang still so energetic, he felt relieved.
Zero quietly ate hotpot.
Daiyang strained her memory, trying to dig out normal, universally-accepted dating tips.
"It's simple, just praise your lover more, and they'll be devoted to you."
"Don't start with looks, you'll seem shallow."
"Praise their inner qualities first. Say they're sentimental, generous with friends, that they have exceptional abilities, but their job limits their potential."
"Say they deserve a better position."
"After all, who would admit they're heartless or incompetent? They'll only feel you're absolutely right!"
Daiyang paused, then continued, "These words actually hold deeper meaning. They work great on people who think highly of themselves. Of course, our empress won't be that type… ah, let me think, I've dated too much…"
It was Zero's first time hearing Daiyang talk about these things.
While picking up meat, he asked, "With so many admirers before, how did you manage all of them?"
Daiyang, seeing him take the initiative to ask, answered readily, "Oh, I usually told them the same lines."
"I told them I felt relaxed talking to them, that they were different from other men, that they didn't force conversation or ask awkward questions."
"I praised them for being mature, and that's when they can't come back from it."
Chanzhen stared wide-eyed. "As expected of you."
Daiyang smiled, "Well, we're all adults. They all know exactly what I mean."
Then she got enthusiastic and began sharing tips with her colleague, "I have a foolproof trick, first praise them for being steady and mature in their actions, then say that deep down they have a little boy inside, that beneath the calm surface they actually long for someone to do childish things with them."
Zero listened quietly while the two bantered. Even after finishing the meal, his mind was full of Daiyang's dating techniques.
Such as praising someone with concrete scenarios, adding details, expressing your own feelings and joy.
And that when giving gifts, don't ask if they want them, just buy them. If they ask why, say you thought they'd like it.
Zero selectively ignored part of Daiyang's words.
Before leaving, the two handed over a beautifully packaged, large gift box.
Chanzhen said softly, "Please accept it."
Zero untied the ribbon and opened the box. Inside were a jade hairpin, a dragon-shaped ear cuff, a leather belt, a dragon-shaped jade pendant, and a pair of bracers.
These were the gifts his subordinates had given him before.
At first, he didn't realize their intentions, and only much later did he understand the true meaning of these gifts.
Zero froze for a moment, then smiled, "At the time, it must have caused you two, and Hua, quite some trouble, didn't it?"
Learning from his previous lesson, he didn't directly mention his own death. He asked about it very subtly.
The two understood immediately, shook their heads repeatedly, and said together, "How could it? It was clearly us causing trouble for you…"
As if remembering something, Chanzhen took out another pouch and handed it to him.
Zero accepted it, glanced inside, and found a jar of liquor.
He casually asked, "What kind of liquor is this?"
Chanzhen hesitated.
She and Daiyang weren't used to calling Hua "Marshal," so she said instead, "The princess prepared it for you."
Zero didn't understand.
He didn't know why Hua would give him this jar of liquor.
Considering she was the successor he personally trained, she must have her reasons.
Maybe it was some agreement he made with her before?
Zero accepted both gifts. Just as he was about to leave, the two looked like they were on the verge of tears.
Seeing them make that face on purpose, he understood.
Zero was used to his subordinates' coaxing and pestering, and guessed they wanted him to agree to something again.
He sighed helplessly, "Alright, say it. What do you want to do this time?"
Daiyang asked, "Some unpleasant rumors have been circulating in the Luofu lately. Can we handle them?"
Zero was surprised.
So it was just this?
He lifted the two bags containing the gift box and the liquor, shook his head, "Ignore them."
The two nodded obediently and warmly followed him until the door of the private room, where they stopped.
Chanzhen and Daiyang hid behind the door, sticking out only their heads. They looked at him pitifully and said,
"Marshal, we'll stop here! Otherwise someone who knows the empress might see us and make the empress misunderstand your character…"
Zero, "…"
'Really? Didn't they already reserve the whole place?'
And this was the second floor! Who could possibly see them? Just how badly did they want an empress?
He was speechless for a moment, then waved and left.
After Zero left their line of sight, the two went to the window to watch him leave.
Daiyang sighed regretfully, "Ah… I really want to cut out those people's tongues."
Chanzhen gave her a look, "And then hang them on their doors, right? Forget it. Acting on our own will only make the Marshal angry."
The moment they heard the rumors, they didn't investigate or act, all for the Marshal's sake.
Whether they were vermin or traitors, the Marshal wouldn't care.
But if it concerned the Marshal himself, the subordinates couldn't decide on their own.
So no matter how angry they were, they had to ask for his opinion first.
The two were quiet for a moment. Daiyang sighed and voiced her conclusion, "The Marshal… doesn't know how to love someone."
"He knows how to love his people, but not how to love a specific, individual person."
"He'll only treat his lover the same way he treats his people, by giving unilaterally, by providing better material conditions, by handing over more assets."
"But how can the people and a lover be the same?"
"What else can he do? Other than this, he knows nothing."
Chanzhen stayed silent for a moment, then asked, "Then what do we do?"
Daiyang gave a strained smile, "What else? We can only hope our empress won't fail him."
The Marshal would dote on his lover unconditionally, just like he doted on the people of the Immortal Ship.
But love is never supposed to be one-sided.
Love makes people jealous, makes them unlike themselves.
But the Marshal wouldn't.
Over the long years, he had long lost the negative emotions humans should have. Even after reincarnation, he was exactly the same as before.
The Marshal would accept everything his lover gave, just like he accepted the Immortal Ship people forgetting him.
Whether good or bad, he would accept it calmly.
But it didn't matter.
Even if the Marshal's lover caused him pain, even if it made him repeat the same tragedy, it didn't matter.
Daiyang slowly smiled, "It's fine. We have the princess. She didn't have the Plume of the Passerby before, but she does now. If things really reached that point… she would definitely use it."
She glanced at her colleague's suddenly darkened face and chuckled, "Alright, don't make that face. You make it sound like I'm some traitor, when you, me, and plenty of others have disobeyed the Marshal's orders."
"If you've got the guts, open the letter the Marshal left you."
"Maybe even the Hunt Aeon that everyone worships is the same, you know?"
"Of course, Aeons aren't like us. They don't care about believers' prayers, nor would they read the letter the Marshal left them."
"Maybe the Hunt Aeon just burned the letter."
Chanzhen didn't refute Daiyang's words. She only said, "I believe in the Marshal's choice. I believe the person he likes won't fail him."
Daiyang picked up the autograph the Marshal had given them, stared at the name for a while, and sighed, "Hopefully."
Chanzhen hesitated but couldn't hold back, "Let me say something outrageous… if you didn't tell me you were talking about the Marshal, just by the description alone, I'd think you were talking about some dumb, sweet thing being hit on…"
Daiyang, "…Very well said. Please never say it again."
———
Zero, who was being called a dumb sweet thing, had no idea what his subordinates were thinking.
After Daiyang's reminder, he began paying attention to the rumors about himself.
The next day, he received a message from Baiheng.
Fox-folk had wide social circles and quickly heard the rumors.
Baiheng sent him an angry message, seemingly about to tell Jingliu and use her connections to find the culprit.
Zero refused, saying he would handle it, and repeatedly told Baiheng not to tell Jingliu.
Seeing this, Baiheng had no choice but to agree.
Then the fox-girl added that if the culprits crossed the line again, she wouldn't help hide it anymore.
Zero could only agree.
He didn't care about the rumors, but if Jingliu heard them… she might be very angry.
Couples needed honesty.
He would tell her after solving it.
As long as Baiheng didn't speak, Jingliu wouldn't know.
His lover was the swordmaster, the Arbiter, no one would dare mention such things in front of her.
And if the people behind the rumors had ulterior motives… then it was even more impossible for Jingliu to learn of it.
Zero began trying to fish them out.
For two days straight, instead of going home right after work like usual, he wandered around the busiest commercial street in the Luofu.
Unfortunately, there were no clues.
On the third day, when his fishing attempt failed, Jingliu invited Zero and four others to drink together.
As usual, he left work early, and stopped by a dessert shop on the way.
Zero planned to bring Jingliu some sweets.
Before he stepped through the door, two people suddenly appeared beside him.
One loudly complained about the miserable life he had after marrying into his wife's family; the other muttered something under his breath.
The married-in man exclaimed, "Really? I can actually gain power so that his whole family will look at me differently?!"
Zero, "…"
He remembered the demon shadow that had appeared before him and Jingliu earlier.
So that was it.
If it wasn't a scam, then it was a believer of the Abundance Aeon.
'Either way, very interesting.'
Zero stopped walking and looked toward the two people.