Invincible Dad-Chapter 695: Huh, Is That All?_1

He was just one son, after all.

Even without Ji Gui, he still had another son and two daughters.

It was just one son... Even without Ji Gui, I still have another son and two daughters, Ji Jiuyou thought, closing his eyes to continue recuperating from his internal injuries.

「Far away on Earth.」

Ji Gui, who had been brought back to Sea City by Demon King Yuan Man for a series of "friendly exchanges," had no idea he had already been abandoned as Crown Prince. Having fallen into an abyss, he was still praying for his father and the other Moon Clan Elders to rescue him. It was the only hope he had left to hold on to.

But this was a prayer destined to go unanswered.

The moment Ji Gui went missing, he lost all value in Ji Jiuyou’s eyes.

He had sent the Crown Prince to lead sixteen Golden Core Elders from the Crescent Moon Clan to assassinate Xu Lai. And for what? Failure would have been excusable. Xu Lai’s Boundary was indeed terrifying; he, as Ji Gui’s father, wasn’t that unreasonable.

But that useless son of his, Ji Gui, had indirectly caused his Earth clone to be exposed. On top of that, his avatars on several other stars had perished at the same time. Centuries of hard cultivation were destroyed in a single moment. This had directly compromised his grand ten-thousand-year plan!

Why waste time and effort searching for such a useless person? It was better to let him fend for himself, to consider him dead. Besides, the title of Crown Prince could be passed on to one of his other children. It was just an empty title.

***

「Haitang Court.」

「Three o’clock in the afternoon.」

Ruan Lan, who had stayed up all night studying the Formation Chessboard, finally woke up.

Her hair was a mess, and she had no self-awareness of her own beauty. She lay on the sofa and reached out, ungracefully scratching her foot. Then, she rubbed her rumbling stomach through her pajamas.

"So hungry..."

Ruan Lan shuffled into the kitchen with a long face and, sure enough, found some leftover porridge and side dishes from the morning. She polished them off in a flash.

Ruan Lan then washed a large plate of fruit from the refrigerator, eating until she was stuffed and letting out a contented belch.

They’ll probably be home in about three hours, right? They’ll have dinner ready by seven, just in time for my second meal, Ruan Lan thought delightedly.

Only... she heard footsteps coming from upstairs.

Turning her head, she saw her sister being supported down the stairs by her brother-in-law. The younger sister-in-law was instantly baffled.

"You two didn’t go to work?"

"Yeah," Xu Lai nodded. "Are you hungry? Your sister is, so I’m going to make dinner."

"???"

Ruan Lan touched her bloated belly, her expression a mess of complicated feelings. She now suspected that her rotten brother-in-law had deliberately waited until she was full before coming downstairs.

Never mind the leftover porridge and fried eggs from the morning; she had also eaten two tomatoes, three cucumbers, four melons, five bananas, and a huge bowl of bayberries and cherries. How could she possibly have room for anything else?

"Looks like you’re not hungry," Xu Lai noted and went into the kitchen.

Ruan Tang, unaware that Ruan Lan had already eaten, frowned. "Even if you’re young, you can’t keep such irregular eating and sleeping habits. How can you go a whole day without a meal?"

"Hmm." Ruan Lan fell into thought.

She suddenly asked, "Sis, what were you and my brother-in-law doing in your room all day instead of going to work?"

"Resting."

"Oh, resting. I get it," Ruan Lan’s lips slowly curled into a suggestive smile. "But Sis, even if you are young, you shouldn’t be doing such high-intensity exercise. You’re pregnant, you know."

Ruan Tang was speechless for a moment. Was Ruan Lan using her own words against her?

She put on a stern face. "I can’t be bothered with you."

"No way, no way! You aren’t actually getting mad, are you, dearest sister?" Ruan Lan blinked her beautiful eyes, feigning surprise.

"?"

Ruan Tang’s brows shot up. "Xu Lai, from now on, you’re forbidden from making Ruan Lan any late-night snacks."

"Aww, she’s getting defensive. She’s defensive now."

"..."

Ruan Tang’s face darkened. "Ruan Lan, are you asking for a beating?"

"Heh, is that all you’ve got?"

"!!!"

Ruan Tang grabbed a cushion and threw it at her. She was furious. Why did this perfectly good young woman have to speak in such a snide, sarcastic tone? Couldn’t she be normal for once?

With her cultivation, Ruan Lan was far too agile, and Ruan Tang missed her several times. Just as Ruan Lan was about to boast again, she found her body frozen in place, as if filled with lead.

Oh, crap. She couldn’t move!

The sister-in-law froze for a moment, then complained indignantly, "You rotten brother-in-law! You’re ganging up with my sister to bully me!"

It had to be Xu Lai. Who else in the house had this kind of power?

From the kitchen, Xu Lai offered a kitchen knife. "Honey, use this."

"...I was wrong! I admit I was wrong!"

"Oh, gentlest, most beautiful, and kindest fairy sister in the whole wide world, your ignorant, foolish little sister knows she was wrong!"

"And you, my handsome, mighty, and dashing brother-in-law, please put in a good word for your little Lan’er, boo hoo hoo..."

Ruan Lan switched personas in a flash and began begging for mercy.

Ruan Tang didn’t use the knife. She simply reached out and—SMACK!—landed a blow.

Ruan Lan’s face flushed with indignation. "Sister, I’m not a three-year-old! You can’t spank me!"

"I’ll give you ’No way’! I’ll give you ’getting defensive’! I’ll give you ’is that all you’ve got’!"

Ruan Tang showed no mercy, delivering a dozen more smacks in quick succession that made Ruan Lan howl in pain. Her pert little butt felt like it was being flattened!

Of course, the torment was more psychological than anything. The worst part was her despicable brother-in-law leaning against the doorframe, clearly enjoying the show and even adding fuel to the fire.

"Honey, should I get you a stick? I’d feel terrible if your hand started to hurt."

Tsk! Listen to that. Were those the words of a human being? As the one getting hit, wasn’t she in more pain?

Ruan Lan was disciplined for a full ten minutes. Ruan Tang finally stopped after a flood of tearful promises. The overdramatic sister-in-law lay on the sofa, questioning her life choices. It really, really hurt...

But from the other side of the room came the delicious aroma of freshly cooked food. It made Ruan Lan gulp. She decided she would use her Spiritual Energy to digest what she’d eaten and make room for another feast!

"My handsome brother-in-law, could you please undo this seal on me? I need to use my Spiritual Energy to digest the stuff in my stomach." Ruan Lan sidled up to Xu Lai, batting her large, mascara-adorned eyes as she spoke in a soft whisper.

CLINK.

Ruan Tang’s chopsticks nearly fell from her grasp. She stared at her sister’s stomach in disbelief. "Don’t tell me you..."

"Mhm, mhm." Ruan Lan covered her face. "Sister, I know it’s wrong, but I couldn’t help it. I did it all for the food."

"But you can’t just get rid of the baby!" Ruan Tang cried, alarmed. "Who’s the father? How could he be so irresponsible!"

Ruan Lan was completely lost. "???"

"Sis, what are you talking about? I’ve been single since birth, how could I be pregnant? I was talking about digesting the food in my stomach."

"Really?" Ruan Tang asked suspiciously.

"Of course it’s—" Ruan Lan’s words caught in her throat. She bit her lip and said with a sly, provocative grin, "Actually, the baby really isn’t my brother-in-law’s."

"?"

A large question mark seemed to materialize over Xu Lai’s head.

My dear sister-in-law, you’re playing with fire, you know that?

"You didn’t have any peanuts just now, did you?" Ruan Tang asked, looking at her sister with a complex expression.

"No, I don’t like peanuts."

"If you’d had even two peanuts, you wouldn’t be this drunk," Ruan Tang said, shaking her head.

"Mhm." Xu Lai nodded. "Compared to a flat plain, I prefer a landscape of hills and valleys. Lan’er, give up your pointless fantasies."

"..."