It's time to give out the rings, Admiral!

Volume 1, Chapter 375: Time Slowly

"Miss, after he returns, are you really going to go to Tsugawa with him?"

In the height of summer, in a seaside town on the other side of a distant ocean, a girl dressed as a maid is suspiciously asking another black-haired girl beside her, who is drawing and sketching on a tracing board with a pencil, in a beautiful room filled with girlish fantasies.

She was rapidly cleaning the collections in the cupboard with a feather duster, as well as the portraits on the wall that belonged to the same person but were viewed from different angles. At the same time, she was also wiping the portrait frames that her young mistress treasured until they were spotless with a rag.

She moved very quickly. Even while talking to her mistress who was copying someone's photo, she could clean the dust off the frame without looking at it. Her efficiency was no less than that of professional maids.

However, even such a seasoned maid, when faced with her mistress who looked expectant, infatuated, or rather, lovesick, completely abandoning her usual noble demeanor as a young lady, and recalling the news she had just received from the master that morning, couldn't help but feel a headache coming on and wanted to sigh and rub her forehead.

The fan beside it whirred, blowing on the long, smooth, dark hair of the girl sitting in the chair, who was wearing a pink princess dress.

After carefully examining her painting, which she had only completed a little over halfway, and hearing her personal maid's curious question, the girl decided to take a short break. She put down her paintbrush, stretched, and looked at her maid's face, which was full of doubt and suspicion.

She looked around, glanced at the quartz clock on the wall, and realized it was only 10 a.m. She nodded gently to the girl in front of her, who was about the same age as her.

"Of course, Xiaojia! I've already decided that after Yuchen comes back, I'll go to Jinchuan to study with him. What? Did Dad tell you? Or did Grandpa tell you about it? Doesn't he want me to go?"

The girl put down the rag in her hand, turned her head to look at her young mistress, and sensed that her young mistress seemed somewhat dissatisfied with her words, with a hint of questioning in her eyes. She wiped her hands with the apron in front of her, then faced the girl and spoke softly.

“It was the master who told me this morning. He instructed me to accompany you if you really want to go to Jinchuan, and also told me that if possible, it would be best to persuade you to give up the idea.”

Faced with her mistress's questions and inquiries, the young girl decisively betrayed her master, who was still in Tianshui City, and revealed the source of the information she had learned. Just as she had imagined, she received her mistress's satisfied smile.

The girl sitting in the chair pouted. She had known all along that her grandfather would not let her leave Tianshui so easily, but she did not expect that he would send Xiao Jia to persuade her. If it weren't for Xiao Jia's usual support, she would probably have been kept in the dark! Just a few days ago when he came to visit her, he said that he would support her no matter what she did!

"It really is Grandpa! Humph, I knew Grandpa wouldn't want me to go to Jinchuan with Yu Chen! But this time, no matter who it is or what they say, they can't stop me. If I don't seize this opportunity, I might never have another chance!"

"Xiaojia, you're my best friend. I'm just telling you this: if Grandpa asks you to stop me again, tell him that if he does, I won't speak to him for a month, no, for a year!"

The girl holding the feather duster nodded, but also subconsciously frowned. Although she knew that once her stubborn young lady made up her mind, nothing could change it, she obviously did not expect that her young lady would be so determined this time. As her personal maid, even if it was not for her master, but only for her young lady's safety, she felt that she should still try to persuade her young lady again.

“I understand, Miss, but…won’t you really reconsider? Tsugawa is very far from Tensui, much farther than you imagine! Even by train, it takes several days! And getting there isn’t as convenient as home; you’re unfamiliar with the area, what if something happens…”

"What could possibly happen? I've thought of all of this, Xiaojia. Even if something does happen, isn't Yuchen here for me? It's not like I'm all alone. Are you going to stop me, Xiaojia?"

The girl paused for a moment, then quickly shook her head. Years of experience told her that she couldn't go against the young lady's wishes, otherwise it would only make her more stubborn. Facing the young lady who had fallen into a strange frenzy, and looking at the numerous portraits behind the girl and the scattered drafts thrown into the wastebasket, she sighed slightly.

"How could that be? I was just worried about your safety, Miss."

"That's good! I thought even you, Xiaojia, didn't support me anymore! If that were the case, I would really be heartbroken!"

"No, miss, I will always support you."

The girl smiled contentedly, picked up a piece of strawberry cake that Aunt Rong had just brought in, took a small bite, and let the delicious cream stimulate her taste buds even more. Suddenly, she stood up again and, like a happy butterfly, went to her wardrobe and opened the cabinet that was filled with all kinds of beautiful clothes.

"Xiaojia! Xiaojia! Can you help me pick out an outfit? Yuchen is coming back in a few days. Can you help me decide what to wear to make him happy?"

Hearing her young mistress's words, the girl was both amused and exasperated. It was no wonder that her young mistress had been so excited these past two days. But according to the timeline, they had only just boarded the ship, and even if they arrived, it would be more than ten days later. Wasn't it a bit too early for her to be excited now?

"I think Miss looks good in anything. How about this one? Wearing this princess dress, Miss really looks like a real princess."

"Really? But this dress seems to have way too much fabric. What if he doesn't like it? No, no, too little fabric won't do either, or he'll misunderstand! Oh no, what should I do? Help, Xiaojia!"

Seeing her young mistress once again suffering from decision paralysis, the girl sighed helplessly and wanted to go forward to help. But just then, Aunt Rong, who was wearing a sun hat and pruning flowers and plants in the front yard outside the young lady's bedroom window, suddenly knocked on the window.

Volume 1, Chapter 376: The Stinky Girl and the Fox Spirit

"Xiaojia, tell Miss Yuru that she's here to see her. She's outside."

Aunt Rong, wearing a sun hat, knocked on the window of the girl's room in the courtyard. The golden sunlight shone into the garden behind her, so beautiful it was almost dazzling. The girl, dressed as a maid, nodded, turned to look at her young mistress who was tossing two adorable dresses back and forth, and then tugged at the girl's sleeve.

"Miss, stop competing! Miss Yu Rou is here to see you, she's outside right now!"

Obviously, this was not good news for the girl who was engrossed in choosing clothes and fantasizing about what her beloved would look like when he returned. Hearing the girl's voice reminding her, the girl's shoulder twitched in surprise, and she couldn't help but frown. She quickly stuffed the dress in her hand back into the closet.

"Why is that brat looking for me now?"

The girl's beautiful, twilight-colored pupils flickered slightly. No one comes to the temple without a reason, and she couldn't fathom the reason why that brat was always preventing her from coming back to see her.

She glanced suspiciously at the wristwatch on her slender wrist, then patted her cheeks, trying to put on a happy and welcoming expression. She then loudly said to the maid beside her, "Xiao Jia! Quickly help me put all these things away! That brat absolutely cannot see Yu Chen's portrait and photos!"

The girl anxiously gathered up the portraits and photos that were placed on the cupboard or hung on the wall with her maid. She hurriedly covered the tracing board that was still in the center of the room with a large square cloth, along with the half-finished painting on the board. Then she heard a familiar girl's voice and her mother's voice coming from outside her room.

"It's Xiaorou. Yuelin and Xiaojia are in their room. If you're looking for her, just go there."

"Okay! Thank you, Auntie, I understand."

Hearing the brat's footsteps getting closer and closer to her bedroom, the girl's hands moved even more hurriedly as she frantically stuffed the nearly thick stack of various photos into the album, yet she couldn't let any of those precious photos get dirty or wrinkled.

Seeing that someone's footsteps were already in front of her, with Xiao Jia's help, she finally finished packing her "treasures". Hearing the girl outside gently knock on the door, the girl, who had put on her prettiest and cutest smile, slowly opened the door to her bedroom.

"Oh! It's you, Xiaorou. What's up? Why do you suddenly have time to come and play with me today?"

The girl feigned surprise as she spoke to the girl with long, flowing hair in front of her. In the shortest amount of time, she put away the helpless and disgusted expression she had shown when facing Xiao Jia in the room, as if she had encountered a burden she couldn't shake off. The black-haired girl then pulled the pretty girl in front of her, who was also that person's sister, as well as her greatest enemy and rival, into her room.

The girl took the girl's hand and made her sit on her favorite plush cushion, and also put the strawberry cake that Aunt Rong had prepared for her on the coffee table in front of the girl.

Although he always says he'll do this or that to her sometime in the future, most of the time it's just talk. Right now, though, he still has to curry favor with her! After all, this brat in front of him is Yu Chen's favorite little sister!

Even if it's not for her own sake, but for the sake of her and Yu Chen's happy married life, and for the sake of her future sister-in-law relationship, she still has to endure it. What's more, Xiao Rou hinted a few days ago that she wanted to put aside her prejudices and start dealing with the ship girls that Yu Chen was about to bring back.

"Is it because we don't have enough material to make clothes for Yu Chen? It's okay, I'll buy some more on my way to school tomorrow."

The girl sat opposite the girl and spoke softly to her, but upon hearing the girl's gentle voice, the girl, whose brows had been slightly furrowed, gently shook her head.

She looked up at the girl in front of her, dressed in a gorgeous and beautiful princess dress, and then at the lovely and cozy decor of her room. She couldn't help but sigh inwardly at how this sly fox had so many beautiful clothes. She changed into a different one every day and never saw the same one twice. She muttered to herself that she wasn't envious at all, since she already had a brother. Then she turned her head and looked at the quiet, smiling girl in front of her with a very solemn expression.

"No, that's enough over there. This time, I'm here to discuss something with you, Zhuo Yuelin."

"Discuss something?" The girl was clearly surprised that the brat in front of her wanted to discuss something with her. Thinking about what she could possibly want, she frowned and instinctively adopted a possessive expression and gesture. "No, impossible! No matter what Xiaorou says, I won't back down! And that dress, that was a gift from Yu Chen! I won't give it back to you!"

Before she could even speak, she was interrupted by the hateful vixen in front of her. A frown appeared on the girl's forehead. She was already so worried, and she was still thinking of her, wanting to tell her the information she knew so that they could discuss a solution together. How come this vixen didn't appreciate it at all?

The girl rubbed her slightly aching forehead and couldn't help but sigh.

"It's not about that. What I wanted to say was... never mind, did you know that my brother sent me another letter the day before yesterday?"

"Hmm, what's wrong, Xiaorou? What happened to Yuchen's letter?"

The girl nodded. Of course she knew, because it was from that letter that she learned Yu Chen had boarded the passenger ship and was on his way back. Xiao Rou, who always opposed her, would never tell her such good news, so she had only gotten it yesterday afternoon by trading a piece of cake and several ice creams from Xiao Rou's good friend Wang Jing.

Ah, speaking of which, Wang Jing seemed to have said something else later, something about Yu Chen's ship girls or something, but I was so excited about Yu Chen coming back that I didn't hear a thing...

Seeing the girl's curious expression, before she could even get down to business, Su Yuru's pretty face darkened. "I knew it! I was wondering why Wang Jing was so timid and hesitant when she saw me yesterday. She usually doesn't have any pocket money, yet she had spare cash to buy ice cream. No wonder she always finds out about things before I even have a chance to say anything! So that's how it is!"

Determined to teach Wang Jing a lesson when she got back, to show her how dare she betray them, Su Yuru took out the letter her brother had sent back a few days ago from her inner pocket...

Volume 1, Chapter 377: Sisters in Misfortune

"What is this? Little Rou?"

Watching the girl on the sofa take a clean white envelope from her pocket and place it on the coffee table, the girl sitting opposite her tilted her head curiously, glanced at Xiao Jia standing next to her, and then looked at the girl's seemingly serious expression. Seemingly infected by the same thing, the girl couldn't help but put her hands on her round and cute knees.

The girl glanced at her, said nothing, withdrew her arm, and sat up. She calmly narrowed her eyes at the young woman. "This is a letter my brother sent me a few days ago. Don't you want to see what's inside?"

The girl's voice was very calm, as if there was no particular emotion in it, but when the gentle voice of Xiao Rou's younger sister entered the girl's ears, it suddenly made the girl's eyes widen in disbelief.

Are you kidding me? This brat actually showed me the letter Yu Chen wrote to her? Wasn't she always so secretive, not wanting to reveal a single word to me? How come this time… Could it be that she suddenly had a change of heart, decided not to interfere, and is now planning to acknowledge me as her sister-in-law? Otherwise, there's simply no way to explain this…

"Really? Little Rou? You're actually willing to show me the letter that Brother Yu Chen sent you?"

The girl glanced suspiciously at the gentle face of the girl opposite her, and couldn't help but become wary. Thinking about how obsessed this brat was with Yu Chen, the situation described above was simply impossible unless the sun rose in the west tomorrow. Could it be that she had some kind of leverage over her and put it in the envelope to blackmail her? Like when she had once peeked at Yu Chen while he was washing... cough hum!

"Watch it or not, it's up to you. If you don't want to watch it, then forget it."

Faced with the girl's cautious demeanor, the girl who frowned slightly still calmly said that, apart from in front of her brother, she was a girl who was not good at talking. If she hadn't really encountered a situation that she couldn't handle on her own, she wouldn't have taken the initiative to come to this vixen's house to discuss such a matter with her.

"Oh, how could that be? Since it was Xiaorou who wanted to show it to me, of course I have to take a look. Hehe, I don't know what Yuchen said in the letter."

Seeing the brat's fingers almost touch the envelope on the coffee table, the girl, who had been hesitating whether to take a look, suddenly grabbed the pristine white envelope with lightning speed. Looking at the girl's serious expression, increasingly confused about what this brat was up to, she tore open the envelope and pulled out three card-like objects.

The girl held three photos in her hands. At first glance, the first thing that caught her eye was a dazzling figure with long, flowing flaxen hair and wearing a pure white naval uniform, and a stunning beauty with gorgeous silver-white hair and a chest as large as if she had two watermelons on it.

Seeing the stunningly beautiful figure in the photo, just like the girl had when she first saw these photos, the next second, she heard the fox spirit's surprised and incredulous scream from the other side.

"Oh, this...this! Little Rou, these two women in the photo, could they be Yu Chen's ship girls?!"

The girl covered her gaping mouth and let out an incredulous question. If the photos in her hand hadn't truly shown her that this was reality, she would have found it hard to believe that there were such perfect women in the world, and two of them at once!

Looking at the woman in the photo, so gentle and beautiful she seemed like a fairy, the girl's pupils trembled slightly. As a daughter of a prestigious family, a wealthy heiress, she had always been surrounded by countless halos, like a proud white swan standing alone under the spotlight.

Even with a bratty girl constantly trying to stop her, she was confident she could eventually win his heart. But seeing the two perfect women in the photo, she suddenly felt her own aura dimming, and her confidence vanishing bit by bit—she was just an ordinary girl, how could she possibly compete with such perfect women?

Seeing her nemesis, the vixen who always seduced her brother, furrow her brow, the girl's expression remained serious, but she suddenly felt relieved inside.

Even if I'm sad, I can't be sad by myself. Sure enough, seeing that vixen become like this too, I feel much better!

"Yes, if I'm not mistaken, yes. These photos are from the letter my brother sent me the day before yesterday, and I came here today to discuss this matter with you."

The girl was still able to distinguish between primary and secondary matters. Although she was happy to see the fox spirit so distressed, she still put on a serious face and nodded to the young girl meticulously.

I've been thinking about this at home these past few days. If I'm really on my own, it'll be fine if my brother's two ship girls don't fall for him. But once they do, I definitely won't stand a chance. Even if I can gain some advantages in certain areas because of my understanding of my brother and my status as his sister, I can't fight against so many opponents, especially since they have the added advantage of being ship girls.

What is it that I cannot accept? If my brother is really going to be taken away by his ship girls, then I might as well let that vixen Zhuo Yuelin have him. At least, compared to those ship girls, Zhuo Yuelin is not dazzling enough to be incomparable.

So that's why I came to see her today. Since the opponent is an alliance of two ship girls, I can also form an alliance. As long as I can prevent my brother from being taken away by his ship girls, I can think about the rest later.

"It really is like that... Brother Yu Chen's ship girls are all so perfect, so beautiful, this is really... this is really... this is really amazing! As expected of Brother Yu Chen! Oh, right, I forgot to ask, Little Rou, what exactly do you want to discuss with me this time?"

Volume 1, Chapter 378: An Unbreakable Alliance

"???"

Su Yuru was a little confused. Something seemed off about the script. In her imagination, this vixen should be looking worried and crying like she was just like she was the day before, begging for help, and then she should have gone along with her and formed an alliance. Why wasn't she reacting at all? Did she no longer like her brother?

"Zhuo Yuelin, didn't you hear me? I said, these are all my brother's ship girls, why aren't you surprised at all?"

The girl felt a little flustered. If this vixen really didn't like her brother anymore, she would have been overjoyed in the past. But now, with external threats far outweighing internal troubles, without her help, she really had no confidence in defeating two such perfect ship girl ladies.

"I know, Xiaorou. Of course I was surprised too! When you sent me the photos that Yuchen sent back, I was almost scared to death! But even if I acted really surprised, it wouldn't change reality, right?"

Across the coffee table, the long-haired girl shrugged. If being surprised could make those two ship girls, who were still nowhere to be found, give up competing with her for Yu Chen, she could faint from surprise right now. But could she? Obviously not. So why was she so surprised?

Moreover, is it really unacceptable to let those two ship girls join the battle? The girl thinks that this matter is still debatable—if those two ship girls really like Yu Chen as much as she does, and don't reject her, then letting them join is not impossible. She won't restrict him like other girls do, just like her beloved grandfather, who also has several wives, right?

Of course, it would be best if no one competed with him for Yu Chen, but reality seems to be different.

"Well... you can't act so relaxed, can you? What if your brother really gets snatched away by his ship girls? What will you do then?"

The girl's ease made it hard for the girl to accept. Although she could understand what the girl meant, she still couldn't accept that this vixen had accepted it so easily. Just now she was thinking of laughing at Zhuo Yuelin, but in the end, she was the only one who was sad.

"What should we do? If there's no other way, then we'll just accept it. If we can't beat them, we'll just join them! Anyway, they're ship girls, and we're humans. We'll keep to ourselves. And there's no law that says an admiral who marries a ship girl can't marry a human wife, right? Besides, Little Rou, you've come to me, so you must have already thought of a solution, right? Like, the two of us can form an alliance to fight against Brother Yu Chen's ship girls, hehe."

The girl smiled slightly. As a member of a prominent family in Tianshui City, she had encountered many similar situations since childhood. Among the successful people she had met, it was extremely rare to find a man with only one woman by his side! Having seen so much of this before, she naturally had a strong ability to accept such things. Otherwise, she wouldn't have always told her little sister Xiaorou that she would be the boss and she would be the mistress, so that everyone could get along happily.

Sigh... However, the only regret is that I once asked Xiaojia to ask Yuchen what his life dream was. Yuchen smiled and told Xiaojia that his goal was to find a rich woman in the future, and then he would never have to work hard again! He could just live a carefree life and wait to die!

No, isn't this your own life dream? Then why not just pursue your life goals instead of trying so hard to get into some kind of admiral academy? You already have a little rich woman by your side! Even if she hasn't taken over the family fortune yet, she could easily support you and your brother right now, right?

Thinking about it, the girl sighed softly. If she had been able to muster up her courage before Yu Chen set off, perhaps she wouldn't have so many troublesome problems now.

The girl glanced at the young woman, then also let out a long sigh. Although she didn't want to admit it, Zhuo Yuelin was right. Her brother having a ship girl wife didn't stop him from finding a human wife, but... but... she just didn't want to share her brother with other women!

She wanted to possess her brother's love, his gaze, and his embrace all to herself, and didn't want to share them with anyone else!

"Phew... You're right, Zhuo Yuelin. I did come here to talk to you about this... So, what are your plans?"

"Of course I agree! How could I possibly refuse Little Rou's request? Hehe, I've said before that we sisters should unite against outsiders, but you disagreed before, Little Rou."

After licking the cream off the strawberry cake, the girl nodded with a grin. In any case, such an alliance wouldn't do her any harm. If it could really make Yu Chen's ship girls give up, that would be a pleasant surprise!

"Alright, let's put aside our differences for now and work together to deal with the ship girls my brother is bringing back. Now that the alliance is formed, let's discuss what to do after my brother comes back."

The girl continued the conversation, patting her chest in relief. Although the first step had been achieved, it was far from time to relax. There would be an even tougher battle to fight when her brother returned, so she needed to plan her next move.

"That's easy, little Rou. Since you can be by Yu Chen's side every day, use your status as his sister to prevent his ship girls from trying to win him over. With your help and intelligence as an inside man, I'll take the lead in the attack when the time is right, and we'll take down Yu Chen in one fell swoop, making his ship girls back down!"