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Ch49 - He’s my fiancé
Shao Tianyang was unhappy to be interrupted halfway through his sentence. He had already given the governor plenty of benefits, but he had still been disturbed by someone else.
He turned his head in annoyance. Immediately, he spotted Shao Ci and the governor standing at the door.
Although Shao Tianyang hadn’t seen Shao Ci in many years, for better or worse he had looked up his information before coming and had an idea of what Shao Ci looked like. He snorted at once. “And here I thought it was someone important. So it’s just Shao Ci. Do you think there’s a problem with something I said? Do you think you’re so amazing?”
“What’s going on here?” Shao Ci immediately turned to look at the governor. “You’d better explain this clearly.”
Despite his words, Shao Ci could pretty much gues what was happening… Just now when they were on the airship, he had a feeling the governor’s attitude was off.
The governor’s face was ashen. He blurted, “Actually, this is all a mistake. It was just that a member of the Shao’s branch family wanted to come and take a look around. I don’t know where the miscommunication was…” Simultaneously, he gave Shao Tianyang several meaningful glances, hoping he would play along.
He had barely managed to calm down on the airship just now and resourcefully said that they ought to bring gifts when visiting the in-laws. He had successfully managed to delay the crown prince.
But Shao Ci had noticed something, and insisted on hurry back. The governor had no choice but to come along, thinking he would still be able to salvage the situation. He didn’t expect that he would spot this kind of situation at once. He immediately felt his head begin to spin.
Even if you wanted to snatch someone els’s noble title, there should be no need to act like this! Shao Tianyang was too arrogant. He had even begun to plunder the house.
As the governor thought, he also forgot what he had guaranteed Shao Tianyang when he first accepted his bribes.
It was a pity that Shao Tianyang completely missed the governor’s signals. He snorted. “I came this time for the Shao family’s noble title. There’s no mistake at all. It seems to me, sir, that you’ve forgotten something.”
Mother Shao and Father Shao looked at the governor next to Shao Ci in shock. They knew that Shao Tianyang had bought over the governor a long time ago, so they thought the governor had come to pressure them. Their hearts sank.
They just didn’t expect that Shao Ci would also come. If he impulsively began to argue with the governor, it would be terrible. Mother Shao quickly stepped forward, tugging at Shao Ci. With worry, she said, “Xiao Ci, why are you here? You don’t need to worry about this… We can deal with it.”
But Father Shao stared coldly at the governor. “We’ve stayed on this planet for several years. We paid plenty of fees every year. Sir, if you’ve become biased towards someone else for this trifling benefits, my heart has truly gone cold.”
When the governor heard his words, he was ready to faint away. He hurried to say, “You’ve made a mistake, my lord. I haven’t come because of that.”
Father Shao was shocked by his address. It was the first time the governor used the words “my lord” in all these years.
Although the governor was unwilling to let go of Shao Tianyang’s benefits at first, Shao Ci was right next to him. This was the crown prince’s fiancé! How could he offend him? Were those bribes as important as his position?! Did he even need to think about it?
The governor made a prompt decision. He said to Shao Tianyang, “I have no idea what is happening here. The way you barged into the Shao family’s house truly has no regard for me as governor. As for the Shao family’s noble title, you’re just a member of the branch family. Unless the heir of the Shao family dies, it’s impossible for you to inherit the Shao family.”
Shao Ci: “…” Hey, your attitude changed too fast, didn’t it? Besides, he should be the one saying these cheesy lines… The governor was making it seem like he was the heir of the Shao family.
Mother Shao and Father Shao were stunned by the governor’s rapid change of heart. They had absolutely no idea the governor would speak up for them like this. They had already known each other for decades, but he had never faced them with a smile. If the governor, who only recognized wealth and not personality, turned into such a fair and honest person, the world didn’t feel quite real.
Shao Tianyang couldn’t help but laugh in his anger. He sneered, “I’ve already given you the money. You don’t want to recognize it anymore, sir? The Heimann family is supporting me. You should think it over one more time.”
Should the governor choose Shao Tianyang, who had the Heimann family supporting him, or three people who had nothing but their noble title?
The governor chose almost without hesitation. Damn it, compared to the crown prince, Shao Tianyang’s Heimann family meant jack shit. The crown prince could kill them all without even lifting his pinky finger.
“So what if you have the Heimann family? I won’t subdue because of something like that.” The governor looked firm and just. “Even if the chief of the Heimann family came personally, I would still stand by my word!”
Mother Shao and Father Shao were dumbfounded. They wondered if the governor had been possessed.
It was the first time Shao Tianyan met someone who would remain unmoved after hearing the Heimann name. He frowned, wondering how much money Shao Ci had bribed the governor with to make him speak up on his behalf.
Although he was close to the Heimann family, he had no way to keep rising up if he didn’t blow his money. After all, there were many strong people around. If it wasn’t for this, he wouldn’t insist on seizing the Shao family’s title.
Shao Tianyang said, “According to clan laws, only the strongest alpha of the next generation can inherit a title. Shao Ci is just a useless beta. He has no right to inherit. Even if I’m a branch member, I’m the strongest alpha in this generation. I’m clearly more qualified than he is.”
The governor’s head ached. This was rule from hundreds of years ago. It had been abolished ages ago.
Although there were were some people who held nostalgia for the past and still practiced the tradition, in reality there weren’t many families who followed it. He didn’t expect that Shao Tianyang would bring it up. He was truly shameless! It was obvious how many times his parents had said it to him.
Just as the governor was going to sneer something at Shao Tianyang, Shao Ci suddenly spoke up.
“What you mean is that you’re sure you’re the strongest in our generation?”
“Of course.” Shao Tianyang curled his lip, looking at Shao Ci. “I’m different from a beta like you who could only get into the empire’s military institute through a back door. I was admitted into a military institute by recommendation, and I graduated in the top ten.”
However, he attended one of the lower-ranked schools in the five major military institutes and not the empire’s military institute. This had always made Shao Tianyang unhappy. Regardless of whether it was natural gift or ability, he was several times stronger than Shao Ci. Why could Shao Ci get into the empire’s military institute with the help of his parents’ connections? On the other hand, he had struggled long and hard and was only able to make it into a lesser military institute.
If he was in Shao Ci’s position, he would certainly have even greater achievements. He would be on par with Pei Shijian of the empire’s military institute.
“Then I’ll fight a match with you. If you win, then I’ll give you the position of heir. What do you think?” Shao Ci said suddenly.
He had completely given up on the idea of hiding his strength. In any case, he was already sucking up to the crown prince. He could just leave everything to Roris to deal with.
Mother Shao and Father Shao were stunned. They were very clear about Shao Ci’s abilities. He would certainly lose. They nearly grabbed onto Shao Ci’s clothes to stop him on the spot.
Again, the governor felt like he was going to faint. If he kept getting shock after shock like this, he wouldn’t be able to take it.
Things had been going perfectly smoothly. Why did Shao Ci sa something like this? If he couldn’t keep the title with the Shao family, the crown prince would cut him into bits!
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“You guys don’t need to say anything. I’ve already thought it over,” Shao Ci said to his parents.
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Shao Tianyang laughed in delight. “Shao Ci, do you really think you’re so amazing just because you attend the empire’s military institute? Let me beat you into the ground, and I’ll let you know what strength really is.”
“And if you lose?” Shao Ci said.
“If I lose,” Shao Tianyang sneered, “then I’ll go straight to a rural planet and mine. I’ll never come back to the heart of the empire.” He didn’t consider Shao Ci to be his match in the slightest. He threw out a promise casually.
After both parties signed a contract, they got ready to fight. However, the Shao family didn’t have a mecha or a fighting arena, so the group of people went to a mecha training site in the heart of the city.
Mecha training sites like these allowed people who couldn’t afford mechas to practice. Normally, there were occasional fights, but there weren’t many spectators. After all, the competitors were all quite amateur.
But this time, after hearing it was a fight for a noble title, and the governor was acting as guarantor, the manager of the training site sensed a financial opportunity. He immediately allowed to let them use the arena for free. Simultaneously, he began to spread the word.
The tickets sold out in seconds. All of the spots were packed. There were even some of Shao Tianyang’s fans who became incredibly excited after hearing that he had come to fight.
Shao Tianyang had never participated in a virtual mecha competition, but he would occasionally participate in a few small-scale competitions. That, combined with his decently handsome appearance, meant he had some popularity.
“Is that Shao Tianyang? I’ve seen his mecha fights on the virtual net before. With his skill, if he participates in the virtual mecha competition, he’ll certainly be in the top hundred.”
“My god, why is someone so amazing fighting here?”
“I heard that he’s here to win the Shao family’s title.”
“The heir of the Shao family… I think his name is Shao Ci. He’s just a beta, right? I saw him in a mecha fight before. He has absolutely no skill. It made me wonder if he even knew how to pilot a mecha.”
“Then the winner of this fight is obvious.”
“Sure enough, it’s better to give the title to someone with real strength like Shao Tianyang.”
“It’s too bad. It would be nice if they were evenly matched. I wanted to watch an exciting match… Still, it’ll be pretty cool to see an expert like Shao Tianyang crush his opponent.”
No matter how you thought about it, it was Shao Tianyang who was in the wrong for coming to take someone else’s title, but this was an empire that respected the powerful, so everyone was on Shao Tianyang’s side. Only a small portion of people would take pity on the original heir, Shao Ci.
The governor couldn’t stop Shao Ci. His forehead was full of sweat, but he could do nothing. He could only buy the best seats and invite Mother Shao and Father Shao to sit. He fawned over them, hoping to give himself a few more brownie points in the crown prince’s in-laws’ hearts.
He didn’t have any dreams of being promoted up to the peak of achievement. He would be happy as long as he was able to avoid being banished to a remote planet.
Two mechas walked into the center of the arena. Both of them were provided by the training site, and they were both exactly the same. It was quite fair.
Immediately, many people in the stands began to shout Shao Tianyang’s name. There were even several people who were confessing directly.
Shao Tianyang felt incredibly proud. He opened his mouth to speak.
The model of mecha he was using had a special function that allowed the contestants to amplify their voices for everyone to here.
“Thank you for your support, everyone. If there’s anyone in the audience who is interested, after the competition ends, I’ll perform for a few minutes for everyone. If there’s anyone feeling uncertain about mechas, you can also come and ask me directly.”
He spoke as if he had already won, and he could defeat Shao Ci in minutes.
But nobody in the audience felt that there was anything wrong with his attitude. In fact, they felt like they had lucked out. Even Mother Shao and Father Shao felt the same. They watched the arena nervously, afraid to even breathe.
On the other hand, Shao Ci was perfectly calm. He didn’t say a word even until the match began. Whispers erupted in the stands, discussing whether or not he was so scared he couldn’t say anything.
When the match started, Shao Tianyang opened with an incredibly difficult move. It was the kind of move that drew the most attention from young people. Although it was magnificent, it was in fact a flashy trick without much use.
The crowd immediately burst out in applause, as though they were watching a mecha exhibition show.
Shao Tianyang charged at Shao Ci, who still had no reaction. He was moving as though with great difficulty, just like a beginner piloting a mecha.
Shao Tianyang smirked. To maintain his outside reputation, he faked a gentle attitude. “Shao Ci, I really apologize. Although I don’t want to see you lose the position of heir… Well, we need a strong person to inherit the position to lead the family back to glory.” As he spoke, his weapon thrust right at Shao Ci’s cockpit.
The weapons in competitions like these were specially made. In reality, they didn’t have much capacity to harm; when they stabbed through the opponent’s cockpit, they would simply make the other person’s mecha stop operating.
Mother Shao was already covering her eyes, afraid to look. Father Shao forced himself to keep watching, but he knew what the result would be.
The governor watched on, feeling like his world had already collapsed, but he had to endure. If anything happened, he had to have people immediately bring Shao Ci to the hospital… Today, his health felt especially fragile.
But Shao Ci’s mecha moved. It was just a gentle, minute movement, and he caught Shao Tianyang’s blow as if by accident.
Shao Tianyang was stunned. He gritted his teeth. “A good-for-nothing caught my attack? How utterly humiliating.”
He immediately maneuvered his mecha to pull back, spouting out fakely wise words. “Shao Ci, I’ll give you this one as courtesy for all the years we’ve known each other.”
The crowd, who had felt uncertain after the earlier situation, suddenly saw the light. So Shao Tianyang was going easy on him. No wonder his attack would be caught.
After he spoke, Shao Tianyang got ready to use an even more flashy move to defeat Shao Ci. He immediately prepared his position.
“Isn’t Shao Tianyang using the move that’s talked about in the textbook?!”
“Oh my god, this move is incredibly difficult. I used to be a mecha teacher, and I can’t even do it!”
Everyone was worked up. Many people had their terminals out to record, wanting to catch the legendary move on camera.
But what they couldn’t have imagined was that when the magnificent, amazing move was used against Shao Ci, it was caught again. It made the magnificence dim into nothing.
“Shit, what’s with this Shao Ci guy?!” Shao Tianyang was going crazy. He braced himself. “This time, I’m giving courtesy to your mother and father. I’ll give it to you one more time. Next time, I’ll fight for real.”
Now, Shao Tianyang didn’t dare to act cool. He grabbed his weapon, aiming at the weakest point of Shao Ci’s mecha, and attacked.
But Shao Ci didn’t stand in place obediently waiting for his beating anymore. He maneuvered his mecha to dodge the attack and then took the offensive.
Shao Ci didn’t use any flashy moves, but his speed and ease was astonishing. It was obvious at a glance that he was skilled with mechas.
The crowd couldn’t help but feel like they had been thinking along the wrong lines. It looked like Shao Ci had been practicing properly at the empire’s military institute. The people who hadn’t spared a glance for him now had a change of heart.
When Shao Tianyang was suddenly attacked, he was given a shock. He counterattacked furiously and successfully blocked Shao Ci’s attack, but he still felt a wave of lingering fear. Luckily, his combat experience allowed him to react and counterattack by relying on his instincts.
Shao Tianyang felt another wave of humiliation. He wanted to fight back in his fury, but he was shocked to find that he had no opportunity.
It was as though Shao Ci had an eye on every part of the battlefield. He attacked Shao Tianyang continuously so that he could block one spot but not the other. His limbs moved in a flurry, but his mind could barely keep up.
At some point, the crowd began to hold their breaths. They watched the competition seriously, feeling that the match they were watching wasn’t the one-sided beating they had expected. Instead, they felt an unforeseen excitement.
Not even a minute had elapsed, but Shao Tianyang was already feeling exhausted. His panting, heavy from nerves, was broadcast to the entire arena, making everyone feel a sense of panic.
“…How could he be so strong? He’s just a beta… How could he…”
Unexpectedly, Shao Tianyang felt the same feeling he had when he first entered the Heimann family and he had been easily defeated by the bodyguard of a branch family head. He had never known until then that he wasn’t the most outstanding. There were countless people even more impressive than him.
“I-it’s impossible. No matter how impressive he is, he’s just a beta. He can’t win over me at all!”
In the next moment, Shao Ci pulled back his offensive.
But Shao Tianyang didn’t dare to advance. The attacks just now had shaken his morale. He felt as though no matter where he attacked, Shao Ci would be able to counter easily.
“The warm up should end here,” Shao Ci suddenly said.
The stands rose up in an uproar. Could it be that all of Shao Ci’s moves just now were warmups? That was too ridiculous!
Before the match, they would have jeered at Shao Ci. Now that the match had started, there was nobody who would say anything, because they all had a feeling that Shao Ci was probably the real deal.
“What did you say?! A mere beta has the guts to be so arrogant!” Shao Tianyang was enraged. He rushed up, planning to attack Shao Ci.
Because of his agitation, Shao Tianyang completely forgot to guard. His mind was a ball of fire that wanted to teach Shao Ci not to give him cheek.
But he discovered that he couldn’t operate at all. The mecha wouldn’t move at all.
“What?” Shao Tianyang was breathless in his shock. “Did this mecha break?”
The crowd was silent. Everyone had an unusual expression on their face.
Shao Tianyang realized something had happened. He looked up and realized that Shao Ci’s weapon was pressed against his mecha’s cockpit… It was for this same reason that his mecha had stopped moving.
“You lost,” Shao Ci said.
Shao Tianyang was stunned. He wanted to resist, unwilling to accept his defeat, but he discovered that his body was weak. At some point, it had filled with cold sweat, and almost felt like he couldn’t even stand.
The people in the stands were also shocked. It had only been minutes since the start of the match to now, but victory had been reversed easily. Shao Ci, who they thought had no strength at all, had won so easily, and Shao Tianyang, who they all expected to win, had lost so badly.
The crowd began to applaud fiercely. No matter who won, the person they worshipped would always be the one with strength.
When Mother Shao heard the applause around her, she moved away her hands, looking at the arena with sorrow, but she discovered that Father Shao was incredibly worked up. She blurted, “What happened? Xiao Ci is fine, isn’t he?”
“He’s fine, he’s fine.” Father Shao almost couldn’t calm himself down. Although he was an alpha, he didn’t have the slightest bit of talent with a mecha. After he grew up, he had no choice but to admit it, and he was forced to give up on his dreams and choose to become a businessman.
In the past, Father Shao had once hoped that his child could carry on his dreams, but he only had an omega child, and because of the difficult birth, his wife was left with an illness and could never bear a child again.
Since then, Father Shao had never held onto his hopes. Although he had always raised Shao Ci as a beta, when all was said and done, he wasn’t a real beta and he was completely ignorant about mechas. They couldn’t force him to learn.
But now, looking at the sight of Shao Ci fighting in the arena, Father Shao remembered his dreams from the past. He couldn’t help tearing up.
Mother Shao finally realized that Shao Ci had won. When she thought about how Shao Ci was actually an omega, she was both excited and distressed. She even began to cry. “Xiao Ci, he… he’s really worked himself too hard.”
After the governor let out a sigh of relief, he felt that it was only natural. Shao Ci was the person His Highness the Crown Prince selected as his fiancé! Of course he was talented. Although he was a beta, he wasn’t any worse than an alpha. It was no wonder that he was able to cling  onto the crown prince’s side.
After the match ended, the two people got off from their mechas.
After bitter training, Shao Ci was able to extend the time he could pilot a mecha using spiritual energy up to five minutes… Moreover, he wouldn’t be so weak after he disconnected.
Now that he had finished the fight, Shao Ci felt like all his training was completely worth it. It was too bad that omegas has too many physical limitations. If he had transmigrated into an alpha, he would even be able to become as OP as Long Aotian.
Shao Tianyang stayed in his mecha in a daze. He couldn’t accept that he had lost right in front of everyone. He rushed to grab Shao Ci, but the sharp-eyed governor hurriedly called people over to stop him.
“Shao Ci, how could you win against me?” Shao Tianyang was being held back by several people. He glared at Shao Ci, besides himself in his rage. “You must have cheated!”
“If you’re saying I cheated, then bring out the evidence.” Shao Ci looked back at him calmly.
The governor’s attitude similarly cooled. “Everyone saw how you did during the match. Everything was inspected before the match, and you signed the contract. Even if you don’t want to honor the contract, you can’t wrong someone and say they cheated for no reason.”
“I’m someone that the Heimann family has recognized! How could I lose to a beta?!” Shao Tianyang refused to admit it, but he couldn’t bring out any evidence that Shao Ci cheated. He could only say, “It’s because I didn’t bring out my all just now. I demand another round! If Shao Ci wins again, then I’ll believe that he didn’t cheat!”
The crowd’s disdainful expressions changed when they heard the name “Heimann”. If Shao Tianyang was telling the truth, then he might really have lost because he didn’t bring out his all. After all, the Heimann family was the number one family in the empire.
As for what Shao Tianyang said about Shao Ci cheating, there weren’t many people who believed it. Mecha training sites had high-level examination machinery. It was as hard to cheat as it was to climb up to the sky. If it was really cheating, it was absolutely expose several scandals. Even the governor wouldn’t be able to assume responsibility.
“Who cheated?” A voice came from the door.
Everyone froze. They turned their heads. In the next second, the crowd erupted in screams.
“Ahhhh I was able to see His Highness here?”
“I didn’t believe it when someone said they saw him before…”
“Oh no, I’m going to faint…”
Roris walked over, wearing black sunglasses. He had a slight smile on his face and looked incredibly gentle. The people following after him were holding several bags, both large and small.
“Your Highness?” Shao Tianyang naturally recognized the crown prince. He got up, feeling excited.
If he could seize this opportunity, why would he pledge his loyalty to whatever Heimann family? If he could go to the crown prince for shelter, he would have an even better future. Besides, he was so strong. The crown prince would certainly be happy to take him into his troops.
The governor broke out in cold sweat. He didn’t know what he could this time and if he could make His Highness the Crown Prince let him go for his hard work.
The more Shao Tianyang thought, the harder he struggled free of the people holding him back. He rushed up to Roris, half kneeling, his voice serious. “Your Highness, there’s a contestant in this match who may have cheated. Sir, you must investigate clearly.”
Shao Tianyang began to explain his fair competition with Shao Ci over the position of heir. He didn’t expect that Shao Ci, a beta without any fighting power, would cheat and make him lose. He took the chance while he was in front of Roris to introduce some of his glorious achievements, thinking himself to be quick-witted and sure that he would leave a deep impression on the crown prince.
“Why do you think Shao Ci cheated?” Roris said.
Shao Tianyang was bold and confident. “He’s just a beta. How could he win against me?” He looked at the crown prince.
“Oh?” Roris looked at him with a smile that wasn’t a smile.
Shao Tianyang thought that the crown prince believed him. He turned his head proudly and spotted the governor’s ugly expression. He even thought that the governor was afraid that he would be exposed for taking bribes, and he quickly said, “This governor actually accepted the Shao family’s money. He shamelessly covered up Shao Ci’s cheating. Someone like this doesn’t match up to his position.”
Now that the crown prince was involved, the governor ought to forget about shielding Shao Ci… Besides, the Shao family’s noble title was naturally Shao Tianyang’s.
But, he suddenly wondered, why in the world did someone like the crown prince come to this planet? Still, it wasn’t anything important. The important thing was that the crown prince had come, and he could go a step further.
The governor’s face turned even more colorful. He was looking at Shao Tianyang almost with pity. He was certain now; with Shao Tianyang drawing all the hatred, no matter what he said, he wouldn’t be left too miserable.
But Mother Shao and Father Shao was panicked. They looked hastily towards Roris. “Xiao Ci certainly didn’t cheat.”
“Your Highness, you can’t believe his one-sided statement.”
Immediately, Roris looked down at Shao Tianyang. “Do you think I’ll believe you?”
“Why not?” Shao Tianyang thought the crown prince was testing him. He immediately said, “No matter what happens, as someone the Heimann family chose, I would never lose to Shao Ci. The truth of this matter is already very clear.”
The audience couldn’t bear to look. After all, Shao Tianyang only knew how to say again and again that he couldn’t lose, but he couldn’t bring out any evidence that the other party cheated. Still, the Heimann family was behind Shao Tianyang, and the crown prince’s mother was also from the Heimann family. Would he believe Shao Tianyang because of this?”
“Then do you know Shao Ci’s identity?” Roris smiled slightly.
“He’s nothing but a student at the empire’s military institute. He doesn’t matter at all,” Shao Tianyang said without hesitation. “I know everything. He got into the institute through bribery, and he’s always messing around at school.”
“Then do you know,” Roris said softly, “that he’s my fiancé?”
The author has something to say:
Writing face-slapping feels so good. I feel like it’s opened up the gates to a new world -V- I suddenly feel like I can still write several thousand more words for this world (??