"Huh?" Yi Zan rubbed his ears. It seems … he misheard? "Your Majesty, could you repeat that? It seems the transmission is bad today."
"I said: Your sister. She's a beauty."
"Hm?" Yi Zan looked at Qiang Wei, his gaze asking 'Did you hear that, too?'.
Qiang Wei leaned over and looked at Qiu Ling's face with a frown. "Your Majesty, something is wrong with this stone. It sounds like you're asking after Yi Zan's sister. How about we try my stone instead? Maybe Yi Zan's became spoiled or something like that."
"Screw you, Qiang Wei! How could a transmitter stone become spoiled? You're talking nonsense again! Now get back to your post! Who's going to guard my beloved if both of you are talking to me?!"
"But nothing is happening any—"
"Don't you dare slack off!" Qiu Ling had been in a bad mood anyway. Being able to roar at Qiang Wei felt good. He was a little disappointed that he couldn't kick him through the transmitter stone.
"Your Majesty, we're standing right beside his bed …"
Qiu Ling stopped roaring. "Why the hell are you standing at his bedside talking?", he hissed at them in a low voice. "Yi Zan, get out of the room while you talk to me! Do you want to wake him up?!"
Qiang Wei's lips twitched. "His soul isn't here, though? What does it matter where Yi Zan talks to you? He wouldn't hear it down in the mortal world, would he?"
"Shut up, Qiang Wei! Lower your voice!"
Qiang Wei indeed shut up, but he couldn't help sending a disgruntled look at their king. This was really too much! But, well, he couldn't claim to have expected anything else. This was just how their king was.
Yi Zan didn't argue and left the room. He had a look around to make sure none of the gods were around in case that what their king had to say was a secret.
"Your Majesty, I left the room. What may I do for you?"
"Your sister", Qiu Ling reminded impatiently.
Yi Zan smiled wryly. So I didn't imagine that? "Yes, she was described as thus."
"Good, good. She married some years back, right?"
"Indeed."
"And her husband was good looking, too."
"Yes …"
"They already have a child together, am I right?"
Yi Zan started sweating. What was it with these personal questions? On a normal day, he would be lucky if His Majesty even remembered he had a sister. Where did this sudden interest come from? "Yes."
Qiu Ling frowned. It had been hard remembering that much, but the most important detail still eluded him. "Was it a boy or a girl?"
"A boy?"
Qiu Ling narrowed his eyes. "You don't seem so sure."
"Yes … No. I'm sure. It definitely is a boy, Your Majesty. I was just wondering, why you asked me something like that?"
Qiu Ling didn't deign to explain. "Tell your sister to send him down to the mortal world." He wanted to end the transmission, but Yi Zan stopped him.
"Your Majesty, wait! This is my sister's son we're talking about here. He's her only child and still quite young. She won't send him down without any explanation."
"Isn't me summoning him enough? Damn, just tell her I urgently need him down here! Hurry!"
"What do you need him for?" This sounds like a life and death situation. But what could one boy do to help in such a situation?
"To eliminate a competitor! Now hurry! I need him here as soon as possible. No, not as soon as possible. Tomorrow. Tell her, I need him tomorrow. And I'm talking about the mortal tomorrow, not yours!"
The transmission was cut off. Yi Zan stared at the smooth surface of the stone. He had gotten it a couple hundred years ago, but he still remembered it as if it had been yesterday.
He had always looked up to his king. Being able to serve by his side and even being trusted to such an extent that the king felt it necessary to give him such a transmission stone so that he could call him if needed … He had been touched beyond words and felt like he was walking on clouds for weeks. Embedding the stone in a bracelet was as much for showing it off as it was for not losing it.
Unfortunately, as time went on he had to admit that the stone was merely a decoration. The king never contacted him through it. Even after he found out that his highly respected king was a little strange, he still talked himself into believing that the king had given him the transmitter stone for an important reason. He would certainly use it if there was an emergency.
Now, that treasured stone had been used for the first time.
"Looking at it from the king's perspective … This probably is a major emergency?" Yi Zan lifted his brows.
He didn't have any illusions about Qiu Ling's priorities. Using that transmission stone, asking him these strange questions in that kind of urgent voice, speaking about competition … This had to have something to do with the crown prince.
He sighed, took out another transmission stone — albeit one that was several levels below the one the king had given him — and contacted his sister.
"Yi Zan! You finally contacted me. I thought you —"
"The king wants you to send Guanting down to the mortal realm."
"Huh?" From her happiness because of her brother calling her she was plunged right into confusion. "Why would the king want me to send my son down?"
"He probably wants him to seduce some mortal child."
"Why would I do that?! How did he think of such a thing?"
"It seems to have something to do with crown prince Jing He. His Majesty remembered you were a beauty —"
"When shall I send him?"
Yi Zan kept mum. Seriously, if you weren't my sister, I would be exasperated by how two-faced you can be. First, you pretend to be totally against it and now you agree without a second thought just because the king said you were a beauty? Where's your pride?!
But, well, it made things easier for him. Father, mother, thank you for having such a strange child. Not that the king would thank me.