After Becoming Pregnant With The Empress Cat's Cub - Chapter 36.1

The Queen: “Have you tested your spiritual power yet?”

“I was supposed to today,” Lan Ye said, looking at the King. “But an ‘accident’ happened.” She had been forcibly brought to the palace.

The King hadn’t fully recovered from the earlier shock, but her expression turned slightly disdainful. “Testing it isn’t important.” A human carrying a kitten… the spiritual power would be a B at best, and that was only because Rin was so exceptional.

Lan Ye nodded. “I agree. It’s my child regardless.” She looked directly at the King. “I won’t eat more just because the level is high, and I won’t eat less or discriminate if it’s low.”

The King: “…” She felt like she was being mocked, but had no proof.

The Queen’s pale face grew even whiter. She looked at the human, trying to see if she was being pointedly insulted… but the human looked innocent, as if just speaking casually.

The Queen turned away and coughed lightly. Jona quickly handed her a tissue and a glass of warm water. The Queen took a sip and glanced at Jona. Jona immediately understood and said, “Your Majesty, it’s time for your medicine.”

The Queen nodded and stood up with Jona’s help. The King was slightly annoyed that the Queen was leaving earlier than they had planned, but seeing how poor her complexion was, it was only a slight annoyance. “Take good care of the Queen,” the King instructed Jona.

Before leaving, the Queen seemed to remember something and looked at Ju Rin. “I have some things to give you… come with me for a moment.”

Ju Rin was surprised and didn’t react at first. The Queen… has she forgiven me? She wouldn’t even see me this afternoon…

Seeing Rin hesitate, the King frowned. “Rin?”

Ju Rin snapped back and looked at the King. “Since the Queen has things for you, you should go with her.”

Ju Rin’s brow furrowed as she realized what was happening. She looked at Lan Ye. Lan Ye realized it before Rin did, they wanted to get Rin away so they could talk to her alone. After all that circling, they were finally getting to the main point.

Seeing Rin’s worried expression, Lan Ye gave her a look to reassure her. She even puffed out her stomach (though nothing was visible yet) since everyone already knew.

“Go ahead,” Lan Ye said, patting her belly to show she wasn’t scared; she had leverage.

Ju Rin found the gesture of puffing out her stomach strangely cute. Now she remembers she’s pregnant. After all that running and jumping earlier. Ju Rin looked at the Queen, who was already walking out. She thought of what Mi Can had said that the Queen had been ill since Rin left the palace. Seeing her now, it was clearly true. Rin wondered how serious it was… After a moment’s hesitation, Ju Rin stood up and followed.

With them gone, only three remained in the lounge. Lan Ye, the King, and Minnie.

Lan Ye watched them leave, then turned to the King. The person was away, if you have something to say, say it. Any later and she’d be sleepy. She still hadn’t looked at the photos she took with Rin.

The King looked at the seemingly unconcerned human and thought of her as foolish. The human probably hadn’t realized this was all a setup to talk privately. With Rin gone, the pressure the King had dialed back for the “family vibe” returned.

“Lan Ye.”

“Hmm?” Lan Ye felt the change in the atmosphere and got excited. Finally, some drama.

“I hope you don’t mind the unpleasantness this morning. That was just a mother worrying for her child…”

Lan Ye: “?” She hadn’t expected the King to apologize. And even then, why did she still sound so arrogant?

“Actually, I do mind. I hope you don’t mind that I mind. You might not know, but I’m quite petty.”

The King: “…” She had deigned to explain herself, and this human wasn’t giving her any face. She looked at Minnie.

Minnie, already holding a grudge, immediately barked: “Presumptuous! You, a mere human.”

Lan Ye interrupted her before she could finish. “Has no one taught you not to interrupt when others are speaking?”

The King: “…” That sounded familiar.

Lan Ye cheered internally. Finally, a chance to throw it back. She had told Rin she treats nasty words like farts she doesn’t smell, but that was only half the truth. For “farts,” she usually fans them back so the person has to smell it themselves. In short, use their own words to irritate them.

Minnie was choked up. Those were the King’s words from earlier, and she didn’t know how to argue back. She couldn’t say the King had signaled her to speak. She looked at the King, who signaled her to stand down. Helpless, she shut her mouth.

The King looked at the human. “One needs to be more generous.”

Lan Ye patted her stomach. “You’re right. I’ll be ‘generous’ (big bellied) soon enough.”

The King: “…” This human was incredibly good at playing dumb.

She pushed it aside, she didn’t actually need the human’s forgiveness. “Did Rin tell you? She won’t be the Princess anymore, nor will she inherit the throne.”

Lan Ye nodded.

The King: “Do you know why?”

“I know,” Lan Ye nodded. “Because of me.”

The King: “…” Where does this confidence come from?

Lan Ye was joking. She had said at lunch that Rin was a “love-brain” giving up her title for her, but anyone with a brain knew that wasn’t the only reason, since Rin had left the palace long before they met.

Minnie couldn’t help but snort. “How thick is your skin?”

Lan Ye cupped her face and beamed. “Exactly this thick.”

Minnie: “…” I didn’t ask for a measurement.

The King coughed. “It’s not because of you.” She looked at Lan Ye, expecting her to ask why.

Lan Ye didn’t bite. If it wasn’t because of her, why should she care? No need to ask.

The King eventually broke the stalemate. “Don’t you want to know the reason?”

Lan Ye pointed at an orange on the table. “See this orange? If I say I don’t like it and you ask why, I’ll say it’s sour. Then what? Can that change the fact that I don’t like it? Or are you going to say it’s not sour and tell me to try it again?”

The King: “…” I don’t understand what she’s saying.

Lan Ye looked disappointed. She had used such a simple analogy and the person didn’t get it… the beastmen’s IQ, from King to guard, really wasn’t high.

“You just don’t agree with my ideas and want to change me. Similarly, you don’t think Rin’s decision is right, and you want to change it. But you have no way to do it, so you want me to find a way.”

The King finally understood the human’s roundabout logic and thought humans were indeed full of schemes. “Do you think her decision is correct? Since it’s wrong, we should correct her.”

Lan Ye didn’t want to be “we” with the King. That sounded like siding against Rin. “Don’t ‘do you think’ me. I don’t ‘think’ anything. Whatever Rin decides, right or wrong, I respect it. It has nothing to do with what I ‘think.’ And as of now, it’s mostly you thinking she’s wrong and wanting her to follow your will.” Lan Ye gave her a thumbs up. “That’s a very ‘Overbearing President’ vibe you’ve got there.”

The King: “…” She felt a weight in her chest. “She’s just being muddle-headed for a moment.”

Lan Ye: “See? I told you. You think she’s wrong and want to change her.”

The King: “She’s being foolish and must be corrected. She is the kingdom’s most outstanding Princess; the country needs her.”

Lan Ye blinked. “So you need me now? You want me to persuade her?” She put on a terrified face. “But a ‘mere human’.” She paused and looked at Minnie. “Right? How could a mere human do that?”

Lan Ye threw the words back again. Yeah, that felt good.

Minnie: “!” Arrogant! Presumptuous! This human is detestable!

The King was also seeing such an arrogant human for the first time. She wanted to have her taken away and given ten lashes for offending the King. But she was pregnant. She couldn’t touch her.

Lan Ye felt the anger in her gaze, patted her stomach, adjusted her seat, and made the bump more obvious. When you’re under someone’s roof, you have to bow your head. But when you’re on the roof, you might as well jump around a bit.

The King coughed, and Minnie quickly brought water and a label-less transparent box of medicine.

Hmm? Lan Ye was surprised. She hadn’t said that much, right? The King was already taking medicine? She frowned, trying to see what it was, but there were no markings. The King’s face looked poor, barely covered by her heavy makeup. Why are the King and Queen both so sickly? Aren’t beastmen supposed to be physically superior?

After the King took her medicine and stabilized her spiritual power, she realized she had been led off-track. She wasn’t asking the human to persuade Rin. Rin just didn’t understand her good intentions yet, but she would. She hadn’t called the human over for that.

“Rin and I have some misunderstandings that led to her rejecting her identity. But she will eventually understand my efforts.” It probably wouldn’t be much longer… The King composed herself. “I can see Rin has feelings for you.”

This morning, she wanted the human gone because she thought the human was clinging to Rin because of the baby, and Rin was just taking responsibility. But now she knew Rin had feelings. She didn’t believe the story about Rin chasing her, but Rin hadn’t denied those obviously fake claims, the feelings were evident. Rin was indulging her, even if it cost her dignity.

The King was slightly moved. She had once loved someone, she knew what it looked like. Rin had fallen in love. “Rin will eventually become the King of the Cat Kingdom. Since she likes you, I hope you can stay by her side and quietly be her lover.” Rin’s Queen could only be an outstanding beastman. She wanted the human to recognize her place so she wouldn’t make things difficult for Rin later. She had faced a similar choice and knew the pain, she didn’t want Rin to face it.

Lan Ye was surprised. Rin said she wasn’t being a princess anymore. “Didn’t you promise not to force her? That she could leave after her birthday? Are you going back on your word?”

The King’s aging eyes flickered. “No, I have always been a person of my word.” She looked at Lan Ye with a confidence Lan Ye didn’t understand. “But in the end, Rin will choose to stay. She will understand my efforts. I hope you can stay with her… as her lover, you will have much.” A throne is always lonely, having someone you love by your side makes it less so.

Lan Ye pursed her lips. “Have much? Like what?”

The King listed casually: “Money, power, status…”

Lan Ye: “I don’t like those.”

The King didn’t believe it. This human was bargaining for money in the grand hall this morning. “Then what do you like?” Whatever it is, I can give it to you, as long as you love my child and don’t leave her.

Lan Ye: “Freedom.”

The King: “…”

Lan Ye: “Can the King’s lover have freedom?”

That was something that had to be lost, at least a lover couldn’t leave the palace. There are always trade-offs.

The King: “By sacrificing a bit of freedom, you gain much. Your child will be a princess and enjoy royal status.”

“Royal status?” Lan Ye patted her stomach and laughed. “That’s something her other mom doesn’t even want.” Why give the child something the parent hates? Besides, her kitten might stay a cat forever. What’s the use of being a princess? Higher grade cat food? Or not having to bury her own poop?

The King was shocked that the human truly didn’t care. “You don’t want to stay by Rin’s side?”

Lan Ye: “If I have to lose my freedom, then forget it.”

The King didn’t understand. “Is freedom that important? You can’t sacrifice a bit for Rin?”

Lan Ye looked at her in shock. What’s going on? Another love-brain! How could you even ask that?! Of course not!

She was about to answer when she saw a familiar figure out of the corner of her eye. Lan Ye’s heart skipped. She turned around.

At the door, Rin was standing there… all alone, quiet. Though the hallway was lit, Lan Ye felt as if she were shrouded in shadow. Meeting those dark amber eyes that looked somewhat hurt, Lan Ye’s heart missed a beat!

It might have been an illusion, but Rin looked like a stray kitten who had finally found her way home, only to find the owner had another puppy… Her eyes held the hurt of someone who just realized she wasn’t important.

Yikes. Looking at that “about to shatter” gaze, Lan Ye’s righteous “No” turned into “I feel bad.”

“I feel bad,” Lan Ye bent over and clutched her abdomen. “My stomach hurts…”