After Becoming Pregnant With The Empress Cat's Cub - Chapter 28.1

Seeing her bring it up, Ju Rin didn’t want to beat around the bush. Lan Ye was still waiting for her. “I remember Your Majesty promised me that as long as I didn’t want to come back, you wouldn’t force me.”

The King’s eyes darkened for a moment, but she feigned lightness: “Is that so? I’m getting old, I can’t remember some things clearly.”

Ju Rin frowned, surprised by the denial. The King looked at her and smiled: “Still think it’s my fault?” Ju Rin looked back, her eyes directly conveying ‘Isn’t it?’.

The King sighed: “When you sit in my position, you will understand.”

Ju Rin looked at her: “Then I think I will never understand. I will not sit in your position, and I still feel that position is not that important, at least not more important than one’s own child.”

Mentioning the child, a trace of sadness appeared in the King’s aged eyes, she closed them to hide the emotion. “That human’s child… has its mental power been tested?”

Ju Rin: “It has nothing to do with you. And regardless of whether it has mental power or what its level is, it is my child. My child doesn’t need to be outstanding, being healthy and safe is enough.”

Hearing this, the King was momentarily stunned but quickly regained her composure, her gaze sharpening. She pointed to the ornate chair behind the desk. Although it wasn’t a throne, everyone knew it was a seat only the King could occupy. “When you sit in that position, you will know that your child is not just your child, she is also the heir to the next generation’s throne. You always need an outstanding child.”

Ju Rin frowned: “I said I will not sit in that position.” She looked at the kitten in her arms: “You can choose another outstanding child.”

The King looked at the orange kitten, sighing in her heart. She was too small, and she didn’t have much time left. She looked at Ju Rin: “You have been outside for so long, you have interacted with people and things outside. You should know that only in a stable country can the subjects have a peaceful life, and their children can grow up safe and healthy as you say. I think you know the current situation, how many eyes are on this throne, and how many forces are watching greedily. Only an outstanding heir who can command respect can stabilize the current situation. This is not just a seat, it is the key to the kingdom’s stability. You are not just your child’s mother, the subjects of this country will all be your children.”

Ju Rin had heard similar words before, her attitude toward them remained unchanged from the past, finding them hypocritical. “Someone who can sacrifice their own child talking about subjects…” Ju Rin scoffed. “You just love your throne, the power and glory it brings you. For that, you can sacrifice everything.”

The King looked at her, thinking of the source of their massive conflict, and sighed: “Your sister’s sacrifice was her own choice. She understood her responsibility sooner than you.” Saying this, her gaze toward Rin carried the helplessness one has toward a child who doesn’t understand. “Clearly, you still don’t understand.”

Ju Rin: “Naturally, I don’t understand. How could I understand when I clearly could have saved her, but you stopped me!”

“Because you are the heir to the kingdom, the next King! Your putting yourself in danger would have placed the entire country in crisis!”

That same old rhetoric. Ju Rin looked at the person in the chair. This person had used the most rigorous standards to train her since childhood to be one of the top Beastmen, yet everything she learned was only for practice in safe conditions, she was never allowed to put it into practice. The reason was always the same, she was the heir and couldn’t be placed in danger. She was clearly an ultra-S Beastman, the most outstanding Princess in everyone’s mouth, but at the same time, she was the most useless Princess. She was forever to stay in this palace, in the safest place, enjoying the glory and wealth forged by blood.

“Choose another heir. I will not inherit the throne.” She didn’t want to, and she wasn’t worthy.

Queen’s Sleeping Palace

Hearing the news that the Queen had woken up, Qiao Na hurriedly entered the Queen’s bedroom and delivered the message she had received.

“Princess Rin has returned.” Qiao Na looked around and lowered her voice as she leaned in toward the Queen. “And that human, she was brought into the palace by Qiao Zi before the Princess returned.”

Unlike the human, who was brought back in secret with few people knowing, the Princess had returned through the palace gates, so everyone in the palace now knew that Princess Ju Rin had returned.

The Queen was surprised by both pieces of news. That human… Qiao Zi… the King? How did she think to bring back that human? She wasn’t surprised the King knew of this human’s existence, it could be found out with a little attention but she was surprised she would bring her back. A human she hadn’t even bothered with.

She looked at Qiao Na: “Did Rin return because of that human?”

Qiao Na nodded: “It seems so.”

The Queen was surprised. She thought the human was just someone Rin was momentarily interested in while outside… Cancan and the others went to find Rin, and she even had the people in the central district protect them. After all, that human was pregnant, if anything happened during the process, both Rin and Cancan might be sent to the tribunal. She didn’t expect the King to bring this human back to the palace… this was quite a trouble now… A human pregnant woman, if something happened to her in the palace…

“Where is that human now?”

“Qiao Zi took her to the Princess’s sleeping palace.”

“Have someone watch her, nothing must go wrong.”

“Yes.”

The Queen realized almost immediately that the King must not have known the human was pregnant beforehand. She likely saw her as just a human and didn’t take her seriously. That person was always like that self-righteous. Thinking of her, the Queen’s face filled with disgust. She looked around. “Where is Ningning?”

Qiao Na: “After hearing the news of Princess Ju Rin’s return, Princess Bu Ning went to Princess Ju Rin’s palace.”

The Queen looked like she had expected as much. “She likes Rin the most…”

Qiao Na: “Do we need to send someone to invite Princess Ju Rin over?”

The Queen waved her hand: “No need.” She didn’t want to see her… “What about Cancan? Did she return together?”

Qiao Na: “No.”

The Queen was surprised. Rin was back, so why hadn’t Cancan returned?

At the same time, Mi Cancan, whom she was thinking of, was also trying to contact the outside world. But the phone had absolutely no signal. She looked at her subordinates trying to figure out how to pick the lock and asked anxiously, “Can’t you open it yet?”

Mi Xiaoman, seeing Cancan’s anxious look, fanned her: “Sis, don’t worry, we’ll definitely get it open.”

Cancan stepped forward, pulled a subordinate aside, and went to check the lock herself. After trying a few times, she took out her light energy sword again and struck it. Other than a loud bang, the lock was completely unharmed, and the countdown on it didn’t stop.

Mi Xiaoman hurriedly tried to dissuade her: “Sis, maybe we should just wait for the countdown to end. Princess Rin prepared food and water for us.”

“What does she mean? What does she mean by locking us up like this!” Cancan interrupted before Xiaoman could finish, venting the fire pent up in her heart. “I just wanted to invite her back to the palace, and she actually locked me up!”

For the past few weeks, they had been chasing her, catching up only to be thrown off several times. Cancan finally understood, it was all a trap! She was stalling for time to build this ‘safe house’! A 7 day countdown! Why didn’t she just lock her up for seven years!

Mi Xiaoman also couldn’t understand why the Princess would think to lock them up, nor could she understand why she wouldn’t return to the palace with them. Even more baffling, didn’t she like her sister? Why wouldn’t she agree to the marriage? Once they got out, she decided that for her sister’s sake, she would swallow her pride and go ask that coward Si Qing.

“Sis, don’t be angry. Have something to eat first, you haven’t eaten since this morning.”

“I’m not eating!”

“This is so delicious~”

At the same time, inside Rin’s sleeping palace, Lan Ye leaned back on a soft sofa, rubbing her belly and letting out a sigh of happiness. It was truly delicious! The chefs in Rin’s palace were much better than those at any restaurant she had ever visited. Being a princess is so lucky, being able to eat such delicious food every day.

She wondered what Rin was thinking, running away from home. Probably because there were things more important than eating. True, that person didn’t seem to care much for food anyway.

Lan Ye looked around the magnificent, exquisite, and large room. The person who brought her said this was Rin’s bedroom. She said Rin had lived here since she was born. Lan Ye looked at the bed, which was large enough for three people to sleep and roll around freely. For an adult, it might be fine, but for a kitten that hadn’t transformed yet, wasn’t this like sleeping on a 500 square meter bed? Thinking of this, Lan Ye smiled. As expected of Princess Meow, waking up every day from a 500 square meter bed.

Just as she was wondering if she should feel what the Princess’s bed was like, a cat appeared in her field of vision. “Eh? Where did this cat come from?”

Lan Ye got up and walked to the other side of the bed, looking at the white cat walking unsteadily. It looked very old, with its eyebrows and whiskers drooping. Lan Ye walked up to it, and it finally seemed to realize someone was there. Lan Ye crouched down and picked up the cat: “Where did you come from? Are you a cat in this palace?”

She sat back on the sofa holding the cat. Just as she sat down, she heard a ‘click’ as the door opened. Lan Ye quickly looked up, wondering if Rin was back. When she saw the head poking in, Lan Ye’s big eyes became as round as a cat’s, full of surprise. “Little Landmine?”

Lei Xing, who was looking for a cat and found an acquaintance, was even more surprised: “Lan Ye?”

“Why are you here?” they both asked at the same time.

Lei Xing explained first. After she entered the palace, she was assigned to be a guard at the Princess’s sleeping palace. This morning she familiarized herself with the rules and received her guard uniform, and she had just finished the handover. Her task for the afternoon was to guard the Princess’s palace. The captain of the guards said that without an order, not even a cat was allowed in. But just now, as she was patrolling, she saw a white cat enter the Princess’s bedroom, so she hurried in to take the cat out. She looked at the cat in Lan Ye’s arms; it should be this one.

After Lei Xing finished, she looked at Lan Ye’s clothes: “And you? Why are you in the Princess’s bedroom? And wearing… a wedding dress…”

Lan Ye patted the seat next to her, telling Little Landmine to sit down: “That’s a long story.” She looked at Little Landmine’s clothes. Thinking back to this morning when she wondered what she would look like in them, Lan Ye’s eyes curved into smiles. Really, she was too cute! Like a little elf from a fairy tale! “You look so adorable in this guard uniform!” Lan Ye said habitually. “You must be the cutest guard in this palace!”

Lei Xing blushed instantly. In her excitement, she forgot this was the Princess’s bedroom and sat right next to Lan Ye. “If you like it, I’ll wear it for you every day.” Then Lei Xing realized something was wrong. Why was Lan Ye in the palace? She asked again.

Lan Ye scratched the chin of the white cat, not noticing the human-like confusion in the cat’s eyes. “The princess you’re guarding is my wife.”

Lan Ye smiled after saying it. If she wanted to explain her relationship with Rin, she really had eight hundred ways of saying it. If they were all bought out, she would probably be the richest person in this world!

Lei Xing’s eyes grew as round as the white cat’s in Lan Ye’s arms. “What? That marriage partner of yours, Rin, is a princess?”

Lan Ye nodded: “It’s a secret, don’t tell anyone.”

Lei Xing’s face immediately fell. Why was she a princess? In her frustration, she blurted out her thoughts: “Then can you still divorce?”

Lan Ye sighed: “Going to divorce soon.”

Lei Xing’s fallen face instantly recovered: “Really? Then I…”

Lan Ye reminded her: “You’re No. 2.” Why so excited. If anyone’s getting excited, it should be No. 1. No. 1 Hakimi finished the competition and successfully entered the top ten, set to enter the palace for the final on the King’s birthday. She called Lan Ye to tell her the good news. Unfortunately, the call wouldn’t go through. Lan Ye’s phone had run out of battery. After interrupting Little Landmine’s happiness, she asked to borrow her phone. She had originally said she would bring Rin home for lunch, but this happened. It was already past lunchtime, her aunt and the others would be worried if they couldn’t contact her. She also had to tell them that the wedding on the 30th would be canceled.

Ju Rin returned to the sleeping palace, not expecting to see such a scene. A human holding a cat, a Beastman showing a pair of heavy beast-form paws, the human was holding the cat’s little paw to step on the huge beast-form cat paw shown by the Beastman, her eyes curving with laughter.

Suddenly, she thought of what Si Qing had said, the human found another Beastman to marry, and her kitten would call someone else “Mom”… A family of three, harmonious and happy…

Lan Ye was comparing the paw of a normal cat with the beast-form cat paw shown by the Beastman. She was truly being melted by the cuteness. Cat paws, whether mini-sized or plus-sized, were so cute. Looking at the scene in front of her, Lan Ye felt as if reality was connecting with a fairy tale. She suddenly wondered if Rin’s beast-form hands were also this large. She had never seen them. She had only seen her ears, golden and fluffy, looking even softer than Little Landmine’s. Those were the first pair of beast ears she had seen in this world, unfortunately, she didn’t get to touch them at the time. After this, she’d have even less of a chance… truly a pity…

Little Landmine looked at the small cat paw in her beast-palm, then at Lan Ye’s soft hand, and a blush spread all the way down her neck. She was so happy. Lan Ye was about to separate from the Princess, and if things didn’t work out with No. 1, it would be her turn! Then, Lan Ye and her kitten could play together just like this. A family of three, harmonious and happy.

Thinking of a future where Lan Ye called her “wife,” Little Landmine felt her mental power becoming so excited it was getting out of control. Just then, with a ‘whoosh’, a pair of beast ears popped out uncontrollably. At the same time, the smile on Little Landmine’s face vanished instantly.

It hurts! Little Landmine clutched her head, her trembling mental power was completely out of control! Such strong pressure! She looked toward the direction the pressure was coming from and saw a figure with an immense sense of oppression standing in the half-light at the palace entrance. Amber eyes seemed to contain the night, extremely dangerous!

A surge of panic rose in Little Landmine’s heart. Not good! Without thinking, she shielded Lan Ye, blocking the person’s gaze.

“Lan Ye, be careful!