Didn't you go to Teyvat to earn money to support me?

"Don't worry about it! Just apologize for me. I'm not the kind of idiot who feels unloved and insecure all the time and gets jealous of a little girl anymore," Shen Liang said awkwardly. "It's... my fault. I hope she still considers me her brother."

“Brother Eve,” the Sustainer suddenly said in a childish voice.

"Don't mimic Gretchen's way of talking! It's disgusting for an older woman to pretend to be a little girl!"

"Shut up! Do you think I haven't read your memories?" The Sustainer sneered. "My dear brother Eve, this is a shadow that can't be washed away even after fifty thousand years."

Shen Liang lowered her head in shame.

"You know, for an innocent little girl, just because she accidentally took up Aponia's lap, that little devil got jealous and so jealous that when she got home she saw her mother and him... tsk tsk tsk, and she even forced the dazed Aunt Blanca to say things like 'I'm sorry, daughter,' 'Go find Aponia,' and 'Mom can't lose the dolls more than you.' Little Gretchen just unintentionally stole their affection for you, and this is how you retaliate against her?"

Miss Fanan, who was closest to Shen Liang, wished she didn't have ears.

Chapter 111 To save my brother, I don't care who's innocent.

Eight months into the Battle of the Laminar Abyss.

The supreme god descended, and the guardian of the heavenly order responded to the God of Fire's plea for help. He descended upon Sky Island to suppress the four directions, slayed the Golden King Beast, shattered the gate to the Beast Realm, and calmed the surging abyss.

The invasion of Kanria was quelled. Before the "laws of nature," which transcend all earthly forces, the overwhelming tide of beasts melted away like snow under the direct sunlight. From beginning to end, the Rock King never returned to defend the land for a single day, placing the entire burden of the land and its people on his subordinates and Pandora, the Goddess of Fire.

Thanks to the telegraph, news of victory spread faster than the soldiers could prepare. In early August, before the cleanup of the battlefield was even finished, news of the little demon god's rage in summoning a god to descend to earth for the sake of his beloved had already reached Jigsaw and even Liyue Harbor. In no time, the words "Thunderous Cool" and "Pandora" became famous, and you could see idle people gathering around storytellers in the streets and alleys, asking who this General Inazuma Aiko really was.

Yes, son, things have come to a head, and that matter can no longer be hidden. Or rather, what started as a bizarre development has finally gotten back on track. With such a high level of fame, how could Inazuma not notice the foolish thing that Liyue even uses "Princess" in their official language?

"But...we were the last to find out?"

In the Jueyun Valley, at the Jixia Academy, the girls, finally liberated from the battlefield, rushed back to school overnight and arranged to meet in Shen Liang's dormitory.

Since it was the Ji Palace's holiday, there were hardly any people left on campus. A welcoming banquet was unlikely to be held during this time of rest for both the military and civilians. Gan Yu ordered the kitchen to bring over a few dishes and a few jugs of wine. After the group rested, the Liyue people changed into their undergarments, and the Mondstadt people changed into their nightgowns. They lazily settled on the sofa in the middle of the living room, chatting about random things.

There's no worry about him being exposed, since Shen Liang is in the room and it's highly unlikely he'll come out.

Having just come from the battlefield, none of them wanted to talk about the war anymore, so they all instinctively sought out lighter topics. Shen Liang was among them, while Rosalin, hugging a pillow, nestled on the sofa, fidgeting with her toes, her expression a mixture of helplessness and resentment: "Liang'er usually seems so well-behaved, but she actually had such wicked thoughts, pretending to be a girl and sharing a room with me for a whole semester!"

"Aren't you Mondstadt people? We Mondstadt people... well, we're quite open-minded, aren't we?" Iris, wrapped in a silk nightgown, lazily rested her head on Rosalind's shoulder and said casually.

Her silk nightgown had a low-cut neckline that revealed her ample, snow-white breasts, which in turn accentuated the side boobs of her student, Rosalyn, almost spilling out of the nightgown. The two of them, master and student, had figures that were far more striking than those of the Liyue group across the street, so it seemed they deliberately favored such revealing low-cut outfits. How to put it… it's like how the Liyue Sage group across the street liked to wear black stockings to show off their slender, shapely legs.

Girls' competitive spirit always manifests in strange ways; even when boys aren't around, they still like to subtly flaunt their strengths.

"Who's talking about 'we'? When Liang'er comes back, I'm going to give him a good thrashing..." Rosalin clenched her fists, very annoyed. "Even if he's a brat who doesn't understand the difference between men and women, it's still not okay for him to take advantage of me like this! No one has ever dared to take advantage of me like this in their entire life!"

Alice, Fanan, and Ganyu exchanged glances, then looked at Shen Liang's bedroom, which was tightly closed. They all knew that Shen Liang had been locked in that ice coffin for two days.

However, that kid Shen Liang... doesn't even understand the difference between boys and girls?

The three of them knew each other very well, so they couldn't say anything and could only look at Rosalyn with pity.

One thing is certain: although that white-haired, red-eyed wildcat is certainly not a kind soul, he wouldn't do something like sneakily taking advantage of someone. Everyone knows his personality; he usually asks you for something openly and honestly. Therefore, Shen Liang most likely doesn't have any ulterior motives towards Rosalin.

Indeed, given that child's abilities, even if he had the slightest desire to conquer Rosalind... with Rosalind's mere mortal willpower, she would have long since become the little wildcat's personal "antipyretic," just like that little fox or the puppet general.

“But I think that even though you bear 80% of the responsibility, don’t you also bear 20%?” Yae no Miko plopped down on the general’s back. At this moment, the general could only silently be ridden by the little fox because of necrosis of his limbs. The spare limb structure might take several more days to be transported from Inazuma. “I have been calling you brother from beginning to end. Have you never thought about it yourself?”

“You two are always together, so I thought you were the ‘brotherly love’ type. After all, I guess sisterly love and lesbian love are quite common in your palace. Liang’er is the one who plays the male bird in this kind of relationship…” Rosalin said, both amused and exasperated.

"That's strange," Yae no Miko narrowed her fox-like eyes. "Then why did you so readily take your brother to your room to sleep every day when he was a girl, but now that he's a boy, why this change?"

"How can that be the same! Mondstadt people are open... but this isn't how you can be open! Girls can kiss and hug, but can they be with boys? Humph, little fox, I understand you're speaking up for your brother, but don't be unreasonable."

"Who's being unreasonable? The reason you can't kiss or hug boys is because there's a possibility of things going too far between between men and women; it's called the separation of men and women." Yae Miko's lips curled slightly. Those who knew her well knew the little fox was about to start spouting nonsense. "But before, when you thought your brother was a girl, you also thought he was attracted to girls. Back then, in your eyes, your brother must have been a lesbian 'male bird,' right? If that's the case, shouldn't you have felt that your brother would take advantage of you?"

Rosalyn was speechless for a moment.

The little fox pressed her advantage, not letting her off the hook. "So, when you didn't know your brother's gender, even knowing he might have impure thoughts about you, you still took the initiative to take him to bed? Hmm... let me sort this out. Does this mean your brother had feelings for you, or... did you have feelings for him back then?"

Upon hearing this, Alice, Gan Yu, Fanan, and even the General all turned their gazes towards her! Rosalyn's face instantly turned bright red. She pulled up the fabric of her chest to cover the lower half of her face, gritting her teeth in embarrassment and anger, "You fox! Stop talking, it's all nonsense, all of it! What could I possibly have in mind? I have a boyfriend!"

"Oh, did I hit a nerve?" The little fox grinned mischievously. "No wonder. Rather than saying that your brother took advantage of you, it's more like you wanted to take advantage of your brother when he was a girl, right? What, it's okay if you're a girl but not if you're a boy? That's blatant discrimination! Tsk, how can you discriminate against your brother's boyish nature just because he has the appearance of a beautiful girl?"

Rosalyn jumped up in anger, ready to squish the little fox, but Yae no Miko nimbly dodged behind Gan Yu. Rosalyn chased after her, circling around her several times, before saying resentfully, "So what if it is! Liang'er didn't lose anything! She's a girl, so she didn't lose anything either. Anyway, he likes girls, so let's just say we both benefited! He's a boy, so he didn't lose anything either. Only I lost out!"

The girls all laughed, "Yes, yes, that makes sense."

"What's wrong with you? It's not like you don't like boys." Since her sister left, Fanan was able to smile and tease her for once. "Have you forgotten that you have that young wolf knight from Mondstadt who is infatuated with you? What, are you going to say you're a pure yuri who doesn't get close to men now?"

Rosalyn gave a wry smile, feeling teased. "So you guys knew too? Doesn't that make it even worse? If Rustan knew that I'd been sharing a bed with a boy for so long... well, how am I supposed to explain that?"

“What’s there to say? Just bring Liang’er to him and tell him directly that this child is the little demon Pandora. Yes, a boy. I often hold him to sleep. See what his reaction is?” Alice patted her shoulder and chuckled. “Ms. Rosalyn, you know how cute Liang’er is. How likely do you think Mr. Rustan will mind seeing Liang’er?”

Rosalyn suddenly had a picture flash through her mind: she was married to Rustan, Rustan was holding her and sniffing her scent, and she asked curiously what he was doing. The stinky man said embarrassedly, "I heard you and the little demon Pandora are roommates. I'm smelling to see if there's any trace of that little demon on you..."

For some reason, she shuddered and felt a subconscious aversion to the scene.

It wasn't fear, just aversion. Rosalyn was surprised to find that she wasn't afraid Rustan would mind her past intimacy with Shen Liang; after all, she could honestly say that nothing had happened between her and Shen Liang. But she was actually somewhat disgusted by the scene she had just imagined: on their wedding day, Rustan holding her, intimately smelling and kissing her…

Rosalyn thought she must be going crazy. This was exactly the wedding scene she had fantasized about all these years—intimate, ambiguous, and sweet. But today, imagining this scene didn't make her blush or her heart race; she only felt disgusted… She didn't want Rustan to smell Liang'er's scent on her, to sense Liang'er's presence. It wasn't out of fear, but because… those scents and presences belonged to her and the little wildcat's memories, and she didn't want anyone else to get mixed in.

But that's Rustam, my future lover. How could I dislike him?

—Why do I feel that Liang'er's scent shouldn't be erased from my body?

—I should have picked up Rustan's spirit sooner or later.

Rosalyn felt a little dizzy and lightheaded. She subconsciously glanced in the direction of Shen Liang's bedroom, then realized that if her gaze had been seen, it could easily be misunderstood. Fortunately, by then everyone had already started talking about what they had just discussed, and no one noticed her shifty gaze.

"I heard that Miss Rosalyn had already made plans before the holiday. If it weren't for the battlefield assessment, Miss Rosalyn should have been taken back by Mr. Rustan by now?" Gan Yu asked curiously.

"Ah? Yes, that's how it is. I was originally considering going back to my hometown to get engaged." Rosalin realized what was happening, forced a smile to clear her mind of the previous thoughts, and then continued, "Actually, Rustan said he would take me away at the end of June."

"Engaged?" These two words were exactly what the girls were most interested in. Fa Nan's beautiful eyes widened slightly, quite surprised. "So fast?"

“It’s been delayed because of the war, and it’s not going to happen anytime soon. I’m almost twenty years old. If it weren’t for my studies, I would have been married and had children long ago.” Rosalyn said, a feeling of happiness welling up in her heart. The strange feeling she had before gradually faded away, and she began to look forward to her future with Rustan. “Maybe we can’t put it off any longer. Two months ago, Rustan said he sent me a wedding dress and asked me to try it on and see if there were any things that could be altered.”

Her eyes narrowed when she talked about wedding dresses, and everyone could see the little thrill in her heart. For girls, marriage, weddings, and the sacredness and beauty of wedding dresses are the biggest topics.

"The wedding dress from Mondstadt? Gan Yu has never seen one before. Has Miss Rosalyn received it?"

"I received it! I received it! But I've been in the Abyss of Layered Rocks for the past few months, so Rustan could only send the items to the Ji Palace. Hmm, it's in my room!" Rosalyn said happily. "I'll try it on first thing tomorrow morning!"

"Hey—" the girls' disgruntled voices rang out, "Just wear it now! Wear it now and show it to us! It'll need alterations anyway, so what's the harm in showing it to us anytime!"

“No way~” Rosalyn raised her slender index finger and shook it, looking at everyone with a sense of superiority over a group of spinsters. “It has to be a ritual, you have to wear it tomorrow morning.”

"Why?"

"Hmph, because I sent a telegram the day before yesterday, and Rustan knows I'm back. He should be at the Palace of the Gods tomorrow." Rosalind chuckled. "A wedding dress is the most beautiful and purest garment a Mondstadt girl can wear in her lifetime. Of course, I want him to see me in... in a wedding dress."

"It's just an engagement," Alice retorted.

"Anyway, I'm going to dress up beautifully tomorrow. We haven't seen each other for over a year, so I'm definitely going to see her in the most dazzling way possible. Humph, I'm a one-in-a-million adorable girl, you know. Being with you guys every day makes me insecure about my looks." Rosalin had just finished speaking when she remembered something and quickly added, "Oh, right, please don't stay in the dorm tonight. Rustan might be here tomorrow morning, and it wouldn't be good if everyone came in in their pajamas and nightgowns, all disheveled and still half asleep, and got taken advantage of."

"It's all Liang'er's fault! When Liang'er was around, I never heard you say that wearing pajamas would be taken advantage of!" Alice teased.

"That's right! Liang'er is no longer allowed to come and visit openly!"

"Yes! But this is my brother's dormitory, and I'm a potential candidate for his harem. Is it okay for me to continue wearing my pajamas to seduce him every day?"

"Neither can you! No one can let Liang'er get the better end of the deal! You're the fox and he's the cat, the two of you can't be together!"

The girls laughed and joked around until late at night, when Gan Yu finally got up, picked up the general, and then the others said goodbye together.

They really can't stay in the dorm. Tomorrow morning, Rosalyn and Rustan, the young couple, will be reunited after a long separation. Who knows what might happen? What's the point of them staying?

Before leaving, Rosalina hesitated for a moment, took Gan Yu's hand, and looked at Shen Liang's closed door: "He... Liang'er, is his condition alright?"

Gan Yu, Alice, and Fanan exchanged glances and thought for a while. She said, "Liang'er is in his coffin. Well, maybe I shouldn't say it, but... at least we can control him."

"At least?"

“We will transport him back to Inazuma tomorrow. Inazuma… naturally has the means to cure Liang’er.” Fa Nan bit his lip, his gaze becoming much firmer. “We are not afraid of any trouble that might happen along the way. If Liang’er really can’t control himself, we in Liyue… we in Liyue can also learn from Inazuma.”

"Huh?" Rosalyn was taken aback. "What do you mean? You guys talk about treating Liang'er... why does it sound like you're carrying such a heavy burden of hatred?"

Gan Yu pulled Fanan back, not letting her say too much, and shook her head with a smile before closing the door and leaving.

"Actually, I think we could recruit a few more people." After walking for a long time, the little fox couldn't help but whisper, "Sister Gan Yu, maybe Rosalina can too..."

“A gentleman has things he will do and things he will not do,” Gan Yu said softly. “Miss Rosalin is getting married tomorrow, why drag her into Liang Jun’s mess? A pure and innocent girl should live a pure and innocent life.”

"I don't care who's innocent or not, as long as I can save my brother." Yae no Miko stared at her dangerously. "If three people aren't enough, then four will do; if ten aren't enough, then a hundred will do."

Chapter 112 Three people are always enough

If three people aren't enough, then four; if ten aren't enough, then a hundred. Just to make Shen Liang feel better, the Eightfold Divine Child made no attempt to conceal her demonic nature.

A demon is a demon. How many of Inazuma's civil and military officials are actually spirits in human form? The so-called cultivation is about suppressing the cruel desires and demonic nature in one's heart, cultivating benevolence and restraint. But a demon is a demon, and it's different from the immortals of Liyue! Demonic nature is hard to tame, while even a tyrannical being like Yaksha in the immortal realm still strictly abides by the Emperor's contract to protect all people.

However, in the eyes of the Eightfold Divine Child who had not yet cultivated into a Celestial Fox, she could destroy someone else's innocence without hesitation for the sake of Shen Liang.

Gan Yu looked at the little fox gritting her teeth and saw the biggest difference between the girls of Inazuma and the girls of Liyue in her eyes. Yae no Miko subconsciously took a step back. She knew that her words might displease these immortals, and that they might arrest her to prevent her from using any dirty tricks. She was already prepared to run away with her tail between her legs.

But Gan Yu just sighed softly.

“We’ve both read the ‘Book of Yin and Yang Harmony.’” Finally, Fa Nan said in a low voice, “After everything that’s happened, I think I’m Liang’er’s woman now, and I think Sister Lei Dian Zhen would agree. So if necessary, I will do my best to endure it… The Yaksha clan is the strongest and most determined in the Li Yue Immortal family, and I can handle it.”

"Bullshit! What if you can't handle it?" Yae no Miko sneered, her words now becoming increasingly explicit, "Die in bed?"

“That’s enough to repay you,” Fanan said softly.

"I'm so sorry, Sister Fanan, I haven't considered you my sister-in-law yet. I only care about whether my brother will be alright." Yae no Miko stared at the three of them and said, word by word, "Your life or death is none of my business, but if my brother doesn't wake up, I won't consider the bigger picture, and neither will the general."

The general was not referring to Raiden Shin and Raiden Movie, but to the little doll in his arms, the emotionless loli who called Shen Liang "brother".