After Becoming Pregnant With The Empress Cat's Cub - Chapter 44

Lan Ye’s words rang clearly in everyone’s ears.

Knowing they were the ones Lan Ye classified as “bad babies,” every person present had only one thought in their minds: She’s way too arrogant!

Not only was she arrogant, she was incredibly smug. It was terrifying. Everyone instinctively huddled closer, watching the beaming Lan Ye with nervous eyes. Since they had all just met her today, no one knew her specific style of doing things, they only knew that if this human was “calling the shots,” they were in trouble.

She definitely wasn’t going to let them off easily!

The crowd shifted backward, trying to hide behind General Li Hu. Although the King had revoked the General’s authority over the birthday banquet, she was still a General. Surely the human wouldn’t dare be too outrageous, right?

But no one was certain. This human simply did not play by the rules.

Because there were so many people, General Li Hu alone couldn’t block them all. Lan Ye looked at the group huddled like a brood of quails and deliberately scanned them one by one with a lingering gaze, saying nothing.

The most terrifying time is the wait for a judgment you know is coming. It’s like a blade hanging over your neck, you don’t know when it will fall.

Recalling how panicked and scared “Hakimi” (the cat-girl) had looked when she first entered, Lan Ye decided to let these “bad babies” stew in their fear a little longer. She smiled at General Li Hu.

“General, I’m afraid I must ask you to leave now. We need to rehearse here, and unauthorized personnel are not allowed.”

As long as the General was there, that group of “bad babies” would cling to a sliver of hope that she could protect them. Sure enough, as soon as Lan Ye told her to leave, the look of despair on their faces deepened. It was as if their last safety float was being pulled away.

They hadn’t expected the human to be bold enough to kick a General out!

Everyone prayed the General wouldn’t leave. If she did, this human might go on a “killing spree”! There was a guard standing right next to her…

Looking at the light sword in the Guard Captain’s hand, every beastman knew that was a top-tier weapon. It could damage not just the physical body, but the spiritual power as well. Even though none of them had experienced it, they had seen it on TV, one strike and the blood doesn’t even have time to splatter before a beast is in pieces.

Li Sha’s guards stared nervously at Lu Li, fearing she would suddenly strike. This woman was the Princess’s Guard Captain, her strength must be immense. Dealing with Miss Li Sha and the others would be as easy as picking groceries.

Lan Ye indeed planned to “educate” these bad babies once the General was out of the way. Seeing Li Hu remain stationary, Lan Ye asked with faux concern, “Is the General having trouble with her legs? Do you need someone to carry you out?”

Li Hu’s eyes flickered. She couldn’t believe a human could be this insolent! In her entire life, she had never been classified as “unauthorized personnel,” let alone been kicked out of a room.

If she walked out of this hall like this, her dignity would be ground into the dirt and spat upon.

She looked at Lan Ye and reminded the arrogant human in a cold voice: “His Majesty said this place was handed over to Rin, he never said it was handed to you! What kind of thing are you? You don’t call the shots here!”

Li Hu was Rin’s elder; even Rin had to politely call her “Aunt.” She didn’t believe for a second that if Rin knew how rude her human was being to an elder, she would continue to indulge her. Yes, she had to tell Rin exactly how loathsome this human she brought into the palace was!

Li Hu’s words sparked a tiny flame of hope in the huddle of “quails” behind her. They widened their eyes, hoping the General would say more and perhaps even take the arrogant human down a notch.

Everyone finally realized, right! The King said it was for the Princess, not this human. How could she say she was in charge? Their courage returned slightly, and their gazes stopped trembling.

Lan Ye “tsk” looking helpless. Why were there always so many people rushing to get slapped in the face? Was her palm particularly fragrant or something?

Just as Lan Ye was about to respond to the stubborn General, a familiar voice drifted from a distance.

“Her words are equivalent to mine!”

That voice! Lan Ye’s eyes lit up. She turned toward the sound and saw a tall figure standing at the open doors above the stairs.

The person moved toward her rapidly, her flying hair catching hints of golden light. Lan Ye suddenly remembered the morning they first met before the hospital, she had seen her from a bus, driving a sports car. Back then, her hair had been just like this, a romantic pink shimmering with gold.

The wind always seemed to favor her, making her hair look beautiful even when she was rushing. Looking at that increasingly clear, moving face and meeting those amber eyes that were focused solely on her, Lan Ye saw the tension in them and smiled.

She, too, was being favored.

Before walking toward her, Lan Ye tapped Lu Li’s arm. Lu Li was very familiar with this gesture now, and her loud voice shook the hall once more!

“THE PRINCESS HAS ARRIVED!”

Out of excitement, Lu Li yelled even louder than the previous two times. Fortunately, Lan Ye had covered her ears in advance. Everyone else was shocked by the volume.

Lan Ye was very satisfied with this “human loudspeaker.” She decided she would take Lu Li everywhere from now on; in a crisis, she’d be great for yelling for help!

After the initial shock, one thought crossed everyone’s mind: The Princess? The Princess is here?

As the figure reached the stage in the blink of an eye, everyone’s eyes widened! This was the Princess?

Due to royal regulations, a Princess’s information was only made public upon her coronation or death, so they had only heard things from Li Sha. They heard she was the only remaining Princess, that she was an exceptionally talented over-S-rank beastman.

They hadn’t expected to see her today!

Looking at the person under the lights, everyone held their breath. Some were so excited they hopped in place. An over-S-rank beastman, just her presence alone exerted a sense of pressure on everyone.

Li Sha clutched her racing heart. She knew this had to be the person her mother spoke of: Her Highness, Ju Rin.

Because of royal rules, her mother couldn’t even show her a photo. Li Sha had attended royal events before but had only seen the King from a distance. The Princess usually didn’t attend, or if she did, she wore hats or accessories to hide her face.

Li Sha had begged her mother many times to meet the over-S Princess, but her mother, loyal to the throne, always refused. This was the first time she had seen Ju Rin… so this was her. She was more radiant than Li Sha had ever imagined.

Seeing her leap effortlessly onto the stage, Li Sha felt like her heart would stop beating.

…Until she saw this god-like Princess walk straight to the side of that ordinary human.

Lan Ye had intended to walk toward Rin, but Rin was too fast. Before she could take more than a few steps, Rin was already on the stage. Such a high stage, and Rin jumped up like it was nothing. Truly a beastman, the physical fitness was top-tier!

“Are you okay?”

Ju Rin reached Lan Ye’s side and immediately checked her over, using her spiritual power to sense the baby in her belly. When she had seen the message from Si Qing in the council chamber saying Lan Ye might be in trouble, her heart had felt like it dropped into an ice cellar. She had broken into a cold sweat. After contacting Lola and finding out she was here, she rushed over immediately, terrified she would be a step too late.

Fortunately, after a quick check, everything was fine. Ju Rin breathed a sigh of relief.

Sensing her tension, Lan Ye smiled reassuringly, but the words that came out weren’t “I’m fine.”

“There is a little something wrong.”

Ju Rin frowned, her eyes searching Lan Ye again. “Where are you uncomfortable?”

Everyone else: ?

What could possibly be wrong with this human? After that “Pregnant Lady has Arrived” stunt, who would dare touch her? What is she doing? Filing a false complaint?

Now that the excitement of seeing the Princess had subsided, the crowd’s emotions were complex. Seeing how much the Princess cared for this human, they felt envy, jealousy, resentment, and fear. It was clear the Princess cherished her.

Fortunately, they hadn’t actually physically harmed the human. If anything, the human had been the one infuriating them. Everyone looked at Lan Ye, wanting to hear what her “problem” was.

Li Hu, looking displeased, felt ignored. Rin acted like she didn’t even see her. Seeing the human about to complain, Li Hu didn’t wait for Rin to greet her and spoke up to expose her.

“Rin, this human…”

She was cut off.

“Aunt Hu, her name is Lan Ye.”

Ju Rin acted as if she had just noticed Li Hu and performed a flawless junior’s salute.

Li Hu: …Did I ask for her name? Everyone here knew her name was Lan Ye, they’d probably never forget it!

“This person was just using your name to act like a bully.”

Before the words “bully people” could come out, she was cut off again.

“She doesn’t need to ‘use’ it. Lan Ye’s words are equivalent to mine.”

Ju Rin didn’t know exactly what had happened, but as she arrived, she had heard Li Hu saying: “The King gave this to Rin, not you! What kind of thing are you?”

She didn’t know why the venue had been handed to her, but that single sentence made her extremely displeased. Because she planned to give up her royal status and leave the palace soon, she couldn’t use the title of Princess to announce Lan Ye as her wife. But she thought that, given her attitude, no one would dare offend Lan Ye. She hadn’t expected someone to say such hurtful words to Lan Ye the moment her back was turned.

If Ju Rin had arrived earlier, she would have known why Li Hu was so out of sorts, she had been driven to it by Lan Ye.

Li Hu looked at Ju Rin in shock, as if she didn’t recognize the child she had watched grow up. She hadn’t expected Rin to be so unreasonably protective of a fierce, rude human with more schemes than hair.

The crowd behind Li Hu was also stunned. No one expected the Princess to show such blind, indulgent trust in the human without asking a single question. Their hope was crushed by the Princess herself. It felt like a collective slap to the face.

Lan Ye smiled and looked at the gloomy crowd. “See? I told you, I call the shots here.”

The crowd: …Do you dare be any more arrogant?

If they wanted arrogant, Lan Ye would give them something else. She tucked away her smile and shifted seamlessly into a “helpless and weak” mode, continuing her conversation with Rin.

“Rin, you have no idea. These people were so scary just now, I was terrified…”

Everyone: ! This face changing skill was incredible! This human, terrified? Everyone else was terrified, but not her!

“Look at them, they’re still glaring at me.” Lan Ye touched her belly. “The baby was scared, too.”

Li Hu: …This acting is so fake, who would believe it?

She turned to Ju Rin to explain how the human had threatened to have her carried out. But before she could speak, she saw Rin pull the human into her arms, her hand gently resting over Lan Ye’s on her stomach, acting as if she believed every word!

Li Hu: ? Can’t you see through this acting?

“Rin!”

Lihu’s voice suddenly faltered. She buckled, clutching her chest and gasping for air. Everyone else did the same. Almost instantly, except for the three on Lan Ye’s side, everyone felt their hearts tighten. A powerful spiritual force directly suppressed theirs.

Lower-level beastmen clutched their heads and fell to the ground as their spiritual power went haywire.

Li Sha, her face pale, yelled at Ju Rin, “Highness, she’s lying! She was the one bullying us using your name!”

Struggling against the spiritual surge, Li Sha vented her frustrations, but as she tried to elaborate, a sharp pain tore through her spiritual core. She could no longer maintain her human form, the hand she used to prop herself up turned into a furry paw.

Li Hu shouted, “Rin, what are you doing?”

Lan Ye “tsk-ed.” “Can’t you tell?” She leaned back, showing Rin’s hand around her waist. “Obviously, she’s backing me up!”

Lan Ye looked at Rin with sparkling eyes. She knew this was Rin’s spiritual power. Back in the bedroom, Rin had done something similar to “Little Landmine”, she seemed to do nothing, yet the other fell and reverted to beast form. Among beastmen, the strong could clearly suppress the weak.

Lan Ye looked at Rin admiringly. She had wanted to punish these “bad babies” in the way they feared most, but she lacked spiritual power. Now, Rin was here.

Lan Ye unlocked her phone and pointed it at the beastmen who had partially reverted. At the same time, she elbowed Rin’s waist. “A bit more.”

Ju Rin: ?

Lan Ye: “The spiritual power. Make it stronger.”

Ju Rin: …She’s treating me like a generator. Though it was strange, Ju Rin complied.

Lan Ye focused on the emerging cat ears and paws. She turned her camera sound to maximum and went click-click-click as she took photos.