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Character List
=The Federation=
Qiao Zhiya: Half-elf, half-dwarf MC.
Chu Rong: Marshal ML.
Chu Yan: ML’s younger brother. Is the same age as MC.
Chu Huai: ML’s older brother, he’s in politics.
Yuan Xiu: Chu Yan’s bestfriend. Advertisement
Xiang Kun: Chu Yan’s mortal enemy. Xiang Hui’s younger brother. Mecha manufacturing student.
Xiang Hui: A colonel. The Xiang family’s current heir. Xiang Kun’s older brother
Wei Xiongchang: Wei family’s head. A Lieutenant General.
Ning Kongran: Ning family current heir. Studying mecha manufacturing, unlike his family.
Ning Kongting: Ning Kongran’s female cousin.
Long Ruifeng: the President.
Long Baorou: the President’s daughter.
Long Xuyang: Long Baorou’s younger brother. The President’s youngest child.
Long Ruizhang: The President’s younger brother.
=The Empire=
An Leen: Imperial Princess.
An Tyn: Imperial Prince, An Leen’s twin brother.
An Lita aka Ning Kong’an: The Emperor’s niece, born from Prince An Xei and Ning Kongran’s aunt. Studies pharmacy.
An Xei: The Emperor’s younger brother. A Prince and a scholar.
Neitaxi: General from the Empire, the strongest mecha soldier in the Empire.
Jexiu: Neitaxi’s son, studying mecha piloting.
Chu Yan saw Qiao Zhiya, and he wanted to chat with him. However, the blond youth was dragged by Chu Rong again out of the door.
Chu Yan snorted angrily. ‘Why can’t I just borrow Qiao for a while, huh? Erge, you’re so stingy!!’
The seats in the hall had already been set up. The seats of the President’s family and the Imperial Royal Family were placed on the top, and they were raised high.
“Hey, this seating arrangement is really interesting. Long Baoruo and Long Xuyang cAn Xeit in front with a high profile, and even Long Ruizhang is honored,” As soon as Chu Yan came out, he commented in a whisper, his eyes full of interest.
On such an event, there was nothing wrong with the President bringing his wife to sit in front, but it was very problematic to bring his son, daughter, and younger brother with him. After going this far, why doesn’t he drag Long Ruizhang’s family along? Why not bring You family too? Wouldn’t that be more lively?
Chu Rong and Chu Huai also saw this seating arrangement, and looked at each other. Chu Huai patted Chu Yan’s shoulder with a smile, and said, “Which seat do you want for the Chu family?”
Chu Yan’s eyes lit up, and he asked happily, “Really? Can I sit in the front row?”
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“Of course,” Chu Huai nodded, looking very talkative, and smiled, “Since it’s the President’s ‘family banquet’, let’s Just be casual.”
When it came time to take a seat, the Four Great Families showed an astonishing tacit understanding, and they all let their juniors or wives sit in the front seats, while the heads of the family or the elders all leaned back, and disregarded the nameplates on the table. Simply put, they did not get along with the President’s design.
Seeing this, the other families in the back looked at each other for a few seconds, and then casually spread out and sat down. Some of them had a good relationship and even switched positions, sitting cross-legged and chatting with each other with their heads bowed.
The staff members of the Presidential Palace watched anxiously, and the officials in charge of the banquet were sweating. When the President entered the arena with the Imperial Prince, Lieutenant General Wei took the lead in sitting and applauding, imperceptibly standing up and shaking hands with other officials. He made the banquet into a casual affair.
“Everyone is so enthusiastic.” Prince An Xei didn’t seem to notice the tricks in the seat at all. He smiled and sighed with the President, then greeted everyone in a very normal way, and finally sat down with the President.
As soon as the President came, he almost had a double-take. He almost couldn’t maintain his smile. He adjusted his expression by lowering his head and sitting down, hiding his face.
After they took their seats, the Imperial Twins, Long Baorou, and the other juniors who followed them also took their seats one after another. A group of juniors lined up separately, just next to the juniors of the Chu-Xiang family who deliberately sat in the front row. It’s quite harmonious, as if everyone was planning to let the juniors be the protagonists today.
But having said that, today’s welcome banquet was originally held for the juniors, so from this aspect, there was actually no problem with such a seating arrangement.
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Having been the President for many years, Long Ruifeng still has the dignity he should have. Seeing the disrespect from the Four Great Families, he simply chatted with Prince An Xei. The topic revolved around the juniors of the Empire, and he directly talked as if the Federation was his.
The Chu family didn’t care much about these superficial tricks. The President could ignore them as much as he liked. After a while, Prince An Xei would definitely take the initiative to bring the topic to the Four Great Families. The only person who would be ashamed would be the President.
The Ning family remained neutral. They ate their own food quietly after the food was served, acting very low-key, as if the Prince sitting on the stage was not married to a member of their family, but just a stranger. Ning Kongting took a few glances at the apparently mixed-race boy next to An Xei and the Imperial Twins. She knew that the situation was not right, so she acted more restrained.
The attitude of the Xiang-Wei family was a bit subtle. They took the initiative to say hello to Prince An Xei, but they completely ignored the President. They even appeared concerned and asked about Princess An Leen’s condition.
Long Baorou, who was sitting behind Long Xuyang, tightened her palms when she heard this inquiry. She turned her head to look at the Xiang family, then inadvertently looked in the Chu family’s direction. She saw that Chu Rong was lowering his head, cutting through his steak, he didn’t pay any attention to her, who was being deliberately embarrassed by the Xiang family. Her eyes sank, then she shifted her gaze at the gemstone necklace around Princess An Leenn’s neck. Finally, she bowed her head and brushed her hair.
On the stage, An Xei was introducing the juniors of the Empire.
Under the stage, Chu Rong put the cut meat in front of Qiao Zhiya, then brought over the untouched steak in front of him. He helped the youth adjust the napkin on his lap, and said in a low voice, “The dishes on this kind of banquet are quite heavy. Taste it a little first, and don’t force yourself to eat if you don’t like it. If you’re still hungry, I will take you to eat something else later.”
“Yes,” The heat on Qiao Zhiya’s face rose again. He picked up the fork and said, “You can eat too, You don’t need to take care of me.”
Chu Rong found that he kept his head buried the whole time while speaking, without looking at him. He moved his hand under the table, and lightly poked the youth’s waist.
Qiao Zhiya sat up straight in a snap, his ears strained, and finally looked up at him. His eyes widened, as if he couldn’t believe that it was Chu Rong, not Chu Yan, who just poked his waist for a prank.
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“Your clothes are wrinkled,” Chu Rong replied flatly. He reached out and pressed his ears down, forked a piece of meat with the other hand, and moved it to his lips. He then ordered, “Open your mouth.”
Qiao Zhiya opened his mouth reflexively, and then the steak entered his mouth. The hand on his head slid down to wipe the oil on his lips.
“Clang!”
Xiang Kun, who was sitting across from them, accidentally dropped the fork in his hand, his eyes widened as if he had seen a ghost.
The people around all looked over when they heard the commotion. Xiang Hui, who was talking to Prince An Tyn, frowned. He looked back at Xiang Kun, then smiled at the people around them apologetically. He patted Xiang Kun under the table to signal him to tidy his posture. Finally, he called the waiter for an extra fork.
Everyone looked away again.
Xiang Kun came back to his senses, grabbed Xiang Hui’s clothes, lowered his voice and said excitedly, “Ge, did you see just now? Chu Rong and that Native boy, they, they are… Did you see, they are so strange!”
“Be quiet!” Xiang Hui hissed, worried about being eavesdropped by Long Baorou, who was sitting not far away. After scolding Xiang Kun with an aggressive whisper, he then continued to pretend to have a conversation with Prince An Tyn who sat diagonally opposite of him.
Xiang Kun held his breath. He snuck a glance towards the opposite side again, but happened to meet Chu Yan’s provocative gaze, so his attention was immediately diverted, and he glared back viciously!
After exchanging greetings with the Xiang-Wei’s family, Prince An Xei really took the initiative to say hello to the Chu-Ning family.
The Chu family maintained a polite and reserved attitude and greeted him back. They said some words of welcome, and then naturally ended the greeting. The Ning family behaved similarly to them, they only cared a little more about Prince An Xei’s wife who didn’t come to the Federation, and Ning Kong’an, who was quietly sitting next to the Princess.
After all the greetings, everyone began to eat and chat. At first glance, the atmosphere was very good. However, the President knew that he had been targeted by the Four Great Families. They all refused to chat about the topics he raised, and let him sing a one-man show, enjoying the “protagonist halo” he craved.
This situation was completely different from what he expected. Recently, he followed the public opinion and tilted the policy toward the Chu family, which did offend the Xiang-Wei family a little bit. But, those two families did not express any extremes before, so why did they suddenly tear their faces today? And the Ning family, as the in-laws of Prince An Xei, were not very popular at all. Instead, their presence was getting smaller and smaller.
In short, judging from the current situation, this banquet, which was supposed to be a show of his status, was a complete, abysmal failure.
The dinner ended in an atmosphere that seemed harmonious but not embarrassing. After that, it was entertainment break time, and everyone moved to the lounge on the third floor.
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The seating arrangement in the leisure hall was much more casual. The Four Great Families members once again spread out tacitly, and none of them went to the President’s side. Seeing this, the other families did not dare to come forward, and they also sat apart, very “respectful” and “hospitable”. The big circle position was reserved for the President, An Xei, and their families.
The President’s expression could no longer be calm. Seeing this, Long Xuyang was a little worried. He stood up and made a show. He raised his voice and invited people from the Four Great Families to move forward. Prince An Xei also echoed with a smile.
The behind-the-scenes maneuver ended with the victory of the Four Great Families. So under Long Xuyang’s “gracious invitation”, each of them appointed a person in charge to sit in front, to save the President’s face.
The situation finally became a little more normal, and the President’s face looked much better.
Chu Rong took Qiao Zhiya and sat alone on a double sofa in the corner of the second circle. Chu Yan didn’t want to be a light bulb, so he simply slipped to where Yuan family’s seat was, and sat with Yuan Xiu.
The performance started on the stage, and Qiao Zhiya moved uncomfortably. He rubbed his body against the sofa, raised his hand and scratched his ears — ever since he entered this hall, the fluctuations on the simulator suddenly became stronger. It felt… hot?
“What’s the matter?” Chu Rong put his arms around him and pulled him closer. Their gap became nonexistent.
This feeling of leaning against Chu Rong’s warm body… was a bit ambiguous and romantic. Qiao Zhiya shook his head and hurriedly replied, “No, it’s nothing, it’s just a little hot.”
“Hot? The air conditioner here is fully turned on.”
Chu Rong frowned. He suddenly bent down to touch his forehead, rubbed it, and said soothingly, “Be patient, it should be like this just after eating, it’s hot. Don’t take off your clothes, be careful of catching a cold.”
During the process of touching the foreheads together, something soft seemed to rub against his cheeks. With a bang, Qiao Zhiya’s reason was completely wiped out by the heat that exploded in his brain, and his soul flew out of the sky.
‘That, that touch……’
Seeing this, Chu Rong curled his lips. He leaned comfortably on the sofa, withdrew his hand, and held Qiao Zhiya’s palm, playing with his fingers.
Xiang Kun, who was sitting not far from them, noticed them again. He yanked Xiang Hui’s sleeves, and hissed, “Ge, look at Chu Rong. There is really something wrong between him and that Native boy, just now they—”
“Quiet!” Xiang Hui held down his hand and gave him a warning look. With a scolding whisper, he said, “Calm down. Don’t make any noise.”
–After all, the performance was about to begin. It was not the time to raise a fuss.
Xiang Kun was extremely aggrieved. He kept looking back and forth at the people around him, but found that no one seemed to notice what was wrong with Chu Rong and Qiao Zhiya. He scratched his head anxiously.