Chapter 108
Chapter 108: A Cub’s Mother Rages Helplessly, Wishing She Could Kill Old Loach
Jiang Tea Tea understood every word, and then she laughed—sharp, merciless.
“Old Loach, pirates coming to capture me just means you, the supreme commander of the imperial armed forces and Prince Regent, are useless.”
“Why are you telling me this? What am I supposed to do—be scared?”
Chong Ming’s sternness lasted less than ten seconds before a faint curve touched his mouth.
“Useless?”
Jiang Tea Tea leaned closer to the camera and started lecturing him like she was scolding a delinquent.
“Old Loach, you have over a hundred million soldiers. Billions in military spending. Death-level training. Defense stations across star systems. Strict entry checks. Thorough inspections at every planet’s docking stations.”
“And now you’re telling me that twenty pirates are ‘coming to the capital planet to capture me,’ and you’re worried. You’re warning me to be afraid.”
“So what is it? Are all those defenses just for show?”
“Or are you so incompetent that twenty pirates can stroll through your layers of protection, stand under your nose, and shit on your head?”
“My bounty is fifty billion. Fine. Even if it’s five thousand billion, they can still post it.”
“Whose face gets slapped by that? Not mine.”
She wasn’t scared. She was offended.
“Remove the satellites,” Jiang Tea Tea said. “I don’t want monitoring. I don’t need anyone hiding in the shadows protecting me. I can protect myself.”
Chong Ming nodded once, serious again. “Your analysis is sound. I have confidence in my defenses and in how I govern.”
“But even the tightest net has holes. Every—”
“No buts,” Jiang Tea Tea cut in. “Remove them.”
Chong Ming exhaled softly, voice gentler. “Jiang Tea Tea, all your future courses now overlap with your roommate’s.”
“For the next three and a half years—maybe ten, twenty—you and your roommate will go in and out together.”
“Even if I remove the three satellites above you, they will simply be reassigned to your roommate. They will monitor and protect your roommate’s safety.”
“And you’ll be within that same net. So what difference does it make?”
Jiang Tea Tea shot him a glare like a knife. “It makes a huge difference. I don’t want to sleep, use the toilet, or shower with someone watching.”
Chong Ming blinked, momentarily speechless. “You’re worried about being watched while you sleep, use the toilet, and shower…”
“Fine. That’s on me for not having Secretary Wen explain clearly.”
“The dorm has surveillance only in common areas and around the building exterior.”
“Your personal room and bathroom do not have surveillance. You have private space.”
“Your security system is aligned with your roommate’s: maximum privacy and maximum safety. No one can casually view anything except me.”
If anything, his explanation made it worse.
She was worried about him.
Jiang Tea Tea bared her teeth like an angry little beast. “So after all that, you’re still not removing them?”
Chong Ming fell silent for a beat. Then he said, “Remove them.”
Jiang Tea Tea’s eyes lit up. “Really?”
“Remove two,” Chong Ming added.
Jiang Tea Tea almost choked. “Remove two and leave one? What’s the difference from not removing them?”
Chong Ming smoothly offered, “Then I won’t remove them.”
Jiang Tea Tea’s eyes went round. “Are you trying to piss me off to death?”
Chong Ming studied her through the screen, calm as ever. “No. You’re young. I’ll die before you do.”
Jiang Tea Tea laughed, furious. “You bastard. Old Loach. You deserve to be single at one hundred and fifty. No wonder nobody wants you. Get lost!”
She cut the call and dragged both hands through her hair again, screaming like a demon.
A sharp knock sounded at the door.
Jiang Tea Tea froze, forced a breath, then slapped her palm firmly over her belly. The cubs quieted instantly.
She sprinted to the door, yanked it open, and unloaded her rage onto the first target she saw.
Sui Xuan Chu.
“What? What? What? You have time to knock, but you don’t have time to study? What are you knocking for?”
Sui Xuan Chu hissed, backing up. “Roommate, who stuffed gunpowder down your throat? Why are you this explosive?”
“Your uncle,” Jiang Tea Tea snapped.
“My uncle stuffed gunpowder down your throat?” Sui Xuan Chu blinked, genuinely confused. “That doesn’t make sense. He should be at the Military Department building—meeting, yelling at people, forcing the Information Bureau to audit officials for corruption. When would he have time to feed you gunpowder?”
Jiang Tea Tea stabbed a finger at him. “Be glad you dyed your hair. If I could pretend you were him, I’d beat you to death.”
“I still don’t understand how he thinks it’s okay. Three satellites on you, three on me—no privacy at all.”
Sui Xuan Chu made an “ah” sound, suddenly understanding. “You’re upset about that? Why? He’s doing it for you. For me.”
“If you keep obsessing and blaming and trapping yourself in a dead-end, then blame yourself. It’s not my uncle’s fault.”
Jiang Tea Tea’s fist clenched. “Blame me? Did I kneel and beg him to aim satellites at me?”
Sui Xuan Chu nodded with absurd sincerity. “Yes. Blame you. Blame you for being too excellent. Your market value and rarity are basically equal to mine, the Crown Prince.”
“If he doesn’t keep satellites on you, the whole M31 star system—including small nations like Da Da, and even the Insect Clan—who wouldn’t want a healer like you?”
“You can calm ability backlash. You can soothe mind seas. You can raise ability ranks.”
“In this era, tech medicine can treat most diseases—even cancers. The only thing it can’t fix is ability backlash and mind-sea collapse.”
“And ability rank is tied to lifespan. Fix backlash, clear the mind sea, raise rank—living five hundred or eight hundred years becomes possible.”
“You are the key to making countless beastfolk, humans, even insect clan chiefs live longer.”
“Tell me—what ruler wouldn’t want to kidnap you, keep you by their side, and make you their personal healer forever?”
Jiang Tea Tea’s worldview tilted sideways.
In her demon realm, everything was food for trees.
Here, the “food” wanted to steal her.
She opened her mouth. “Your uncle—”
Sui Xuan Chu raised one finger and wagged it. “My uncle isn’t like those other cheap temptations.”
“He’s thinking bigger. He believes your value is far greater than just being a healer.”
“He’d rather put you high up, where no one can reach you, than keep sending people to protect you twenty-four hours a day.”
Jiang Tea Tea fell silent. Deep down, she understood the truth: without full magic power, she had no freedom.
She needed to restore her magic power.
If she couldn’t, then she would raise her cubs properly once they were born.
She refused to believe that a great demon—the pride of the tea tree clan—would keep losing in this world.
Sui Xuan Chu leaned in like a thief and lowered his voice. “Roommate. If you don’t want to stand high, but you still want to be protected so no one can touch you… there’s a simple way.”
Jiang Tea Tea narrowed her eyes. He looked way too pleased with himself. “What way?”
Sui Xuan Chu cleared his throat. “Marry my uncle. Become my aunt. Become Zhen Lin Empire’s princess consort!”
Jiang Tea Tea shoved his forehead and pushed him away. “Get lost.”
Sui Xuan Chu laughed. “Yes, ma’am!”
Jiang Tea Tea slammed the door and flung herself onto the bed, dragging the blanket over her head like a corpse.
*
After Jiang Tea Tea cut the call, Chong Ming resumed the meeting.
And then, casually, he opened the satellite feed tracking Sui Xuan Chu and Jiang Tea Tea.
He happened to catch them arguing outside Jiang Tea Tea’s door. He even turned on the audio, hearing every single word.
His thin lips lifted slightly.
The officers on the meeting screen nearly stopped breathing.
The Commander-in-Chief was smiling.
That meant someone was about to suffer.
Jiang Tea Tea slept under her blanket until 4:45 a.m., when knocking woke her. Hair a disaster, eyes half-open, she dragged the door open.
“What the hell is it? It’s still dark!”
Sui Xuan Chu stood outside, clearing his throat and forcing seriousness.
“Jiang Tea Tea. My uncle told me to remind you: starting today, you wake up at 4:45 a.m. You finish washing by 4:50.”
“Three minutes to get downstairs. Seven minutes to run to the main field.”
“From 5:00 to 6:30 a.m., you must run at least twenty to thirty kilometers.”
“6:40, back to the dorm to shower. 7:00 to 7:15, you must appear in the canteen.”
“7:30, arrive early to class for review. Class starts at 8:00 sharp.”
“Today you have three classes: 8:00 to 11:30, campaign analysis breakdown. 11:30 to 2:00, rest and lunch—memorize fifty articles of the criminal code.”
“2:00 to 5:00, simulated campaign command drills. 5:00 to 6:00, dinner and rest—memorize ten articles.”
“6:00 to 9:30, ability control and attack practice.”