Invasion - Chapter 108

Chapter 108

While Lin Yuan was eating breakfast, Guo Suo brought in a bouquet, saying it was from Jiang Yangshuo.

Expensive Black Knight roses paired with light green bellflowers, beautifully packaged, their fragrance strong. This kind of flower, in the current empire, was incredibly valuable, a romantic and expensive gift.

Lin Yuan glanced at it, she wasn't interested, they weren’t edible, and they weren’t as beautiful as the flowers Xun Hua grew in the courtyard.

"Throw them away," Lin Yuan said. She was never sentimental about things she didn’t like.

Xiao Suo was delighted. Jiang Xiaochun and the others were coming over to play today, she could give the flowers to them.

With such a big bouquet, if those children took them to the streets to sell, they could exchange them for quite a bit of pocket money.

After a while, Xun Hua came in, also carrying a bouquet, saying that he had seen it by the gate while pruning, and didn’t know who had left it there.

It was a huge bouquet made of all kinds of candies.

The dazzling array of sweets made Lin Yuan's eyes light up, she licked her lips, and took the candy bouquet.

Xiao Suo craned her neck to look.

Miss, these days, would often receive beautifully packaged gifts of all kinds, and she mostly didn't care about them, letting her deal with them.

Guo Suo hoped that she wouldn't want this bouquet of candies either, she could then keep them to entertain the children coming to play today.

Unfortunately, this time, she was disappointed, miss happily carried the huge bouquet, and went up to the attic.

Who sent this gift? Xiao Suo wondered.

It seemed that they had figured out Miss Lin Yuan, no gift was better than candy.

The bouquet had no sender's name, just a large bundle of candies, each flavor only one piece, carefully packaged, quietly placed outside the courtyard gate in the early morning, picked up by Mr. Gardener.

Lin Yuan looked at the candy bouquet, and remembered something someone had said to her in a dark maze.

"I’ll give you candy, lots and lots of candy."

Other than Little Fish, no one else would give her a gift like this.

Lin Yuan placed the bouquet of candies by the window.

Outside, the sky was deep blue, a beautiful backdrop for the colorful candy wrappers.

It was like all the sweetness in the world, gathered and offered to her.

Why had Little Fish suddenly remembered to fulfill his promise, and chosen such a quiet early morning?

Lin Yuan counted the candies and thought, if she ate two or three every day, it seemed like they would last a very long time.

Just looking at them made her happy.

After breakfast, Lin Yuan, having gotten ready, went to the White Tower.

She swiped her ID card, took the elevator to the upper levels.

During the elevator's ascent, floor by floor, she saw the Royal soldiers in training, the Guide academy students in their flower arrangement class. Everything in the White Tower still seemed the same as before, not a single change.

These past few months, Lin Yuan had often been summoned by the Queen and had become used to coming here, she no longer needed anyone to lead the way.

Minister of Finance Victor was a man who weighed over two hundred catties, usually lying down whenever possible, instead of sitting.

But when he saw Lin Yuan, he actually came running, calling out, “Little Sister, Little Sister.”

He said that, just like Lin Yuan, he also had royal blood, and naturally, he should call her Little Sister.

And that it was a pity Lin Yuan never called him Big Brother.

Lin Yuan had lived for more than ten years without a single relative. Ever since being personally commended by the Queen, they had popped up like bamboo shoots after the rain.

All those nobles and imperial ministers suddenly seemed to become her family, acting very close to her.

"I was just about to look for you," the Minister of Finance smiled and handed a document bag to Lin Yuan.

"These are all the properties under your parents’ names. You were still a minor before, the empire has been managing them for you."

"I specially had people sort and organize everything these past few days,” he put the thick bag into Lin Yuan's hands, with an earnest look, "It’s all here, see if anything’s missing.”

Lin Yuan casually opened it. Several sheets of paper and receipts fell out, property ownership certificates, share agreements, income statements, everything neatly organized.

Lin Yuan flipped through it, and a record with a photo attached fell out from the bag.

The photo was a little old. A snow-covered place, a completely burned-down villa, suddenly appeared before Lin Yuan’s eyes.

Lin Yuan was now in the upper levels of the White Tower.

No matter the season, this place was always like spring, with flowers and trees, butterflies dancing in the landscaped gardens.

Lin Yuan’s fair fingers pinched the photo, she felt a chill throughout her body.

Her emotions hidden in her dark eyes, her head lowered, she stared at the photo, motionless.

That was the place where her nightmares had begun.

For so many years, that burning house, which had appeared in her dreams countless times, had suddenly appeared from a document bag, falling into her hand.

Looking at the photo, she could even remember which room she had been playing in, how her mother, rushing into the room, had picked her up.

Only, in the end, her father, her mother, and even the old servants at home, had all died in this snow-covered villa.

Lin Yuan, motionless, gripped the photo.

The building in the photo was completely burned down. In the charred ruins, the dark, open windows seemed like the eyes of restless souls.

Victor, seeing that the little girl didn't look at the property certificates or the bank statements, only staring at the photo,

Couldn't help but move closer, "Don’t look at that, that house was burned down, it’s worthless. But, next to it, there's a vineyard and a winery, they also belong to your family, that’s a gold mine, let me find the documents for you," he reached out, wanting to help Lin Yuan find them.

Lin Yuan raised a hand, her dark eyes looking over, not letting him touch the document bag again.

Victor subconsciously shuddered.

He was the Minister of Finance, holding the empire's financial power, with royal blood flowing through him.

Usually, it was others who feared him, he had never been afraid of anyone.

But for some reason, he sometimes felt apprehensive in front of this young Guide.

It was like the feeling he had when facing “that one.”

Lin Yuan's attitude was cold, but Victor didn’t get angry, still smiling as he followed.

His chubby face was full of an amiable smile. No one would have the heart to be cold to someone like this.

But Lin Yuan never tried to make things easier for others with her facial expressions, she didn't know how to.

She only judged whether a person was well-intentioned by reading their outward mental state.

The person before her, his smile was so fake, the emotions beneath that face, disgusting.

Smiling like this, yet full of disdain, jealousy, and contempt towards her, even with some obscene thoughts.

【So smelly, so smelly.】

【Walk faster, I'm about to throw up.】

【Why do we have to talk to such a disgusting creature?】

【I don’t want to be here for even another second.】

"Wait for me, Xiao Yuan," Victor, his fat body shaking, followed Lin Yuan, "Don't walk so fast, Xiao Yuan, I'm worried about your safety, if you don't have anything to do recently, don’t go out anymore," he looked around, lowering his voice, "There are rebels now."

Lin Yuan paused.

When she was in the White Tower, she had never heard words about rebellion, traitors, etc.

The empire was so powerful, so beautiful, there wasn't supposed to be any rebellion.

But having been to various outposts these past two years, she had seen those at the very bottom of society, those who could barely survive.

So she vaguely knew that in this world, there were many who were dissatisfied with this dark empire, unwilling to endure this distorted system any longer.

They had suffered too much oppression and injustice, their hearts filled with hatred and anger, lurking in the shadows, scattered across every corner of the empire.

They wanted to fight this behemoth, to tear down this rotting, foul White Tower.

These people were called rebels, traitors.

Lin Yuan had heard of these people and the things they had done.

Lin Yuan didn’t think they were bandits or traitors. She only hoped that their fire could burn even stronger, that they would quickly tear down this empire that couldn’t distinguish between black and white, that they would tear down the White Tower, a breeding ground for filth.

"It's true, it’s not a peaceful time lately, there’s news of rebels everywhere, some have even infiltrated the capital," Victor said with a worried look.

For those nobles who lived permanently in the capital, contaminated zones and deviants weren't something to worry about, but tools for obtaining wealth.

Those rebels who caused trouble right before their eyes, who assassinated, who infiltrated the capital, they were the truly frightening enemies.

"Thinking of my Little Sister running around outside, I’m so worried, Xiao Yuan, you really shouldn’t go out anymore.”

He looked very sincere, incredibly concerned, as if Lin Yuan really was his close family.

But inwardly, he was mocking Lin Yuan for being a fool, for not cherishing the opportunity that others would do anything for.

He didn't understand, since His Majesty liked Lin Yuan so much, why didn't she stay by her side, and try to gain her favor?

A Guide, running around all day, who knew what for.

Even they, even with royal blood, weren’t valued by the Queen, what an incredibly rare opportunity to meet her.

"A few days ago, the Royal Guard captured a rebel," Victor leaned closer to Lin Yuan, showing off his sources. "I heard Her Majesty personally interrogated him, even Luther was questioned, you have to be careful when you go up there now."

Lin Yuan reached the top of the tower.

The palace at the top was the same as usual, vast and quiet, filled with Her Majesty’s unique aura.

A faint sound came from the main hall. It was a bit like a moan, a bit like a whisper, mixed with the sound of wet, sticky writhing, an incredibly painful emotion spreading towards Lin Yuan like a tide. Lin Yuan subconsciously stopped.

The Queen was still sitting on the huge throne, dressed in white, her red lips slightly pursed, her expression blank.

Only after seeing Lin Yuan did she seem to brighten up a little, extending her hand to greet Lin Yuan.

"I heard you've been getting along well with the sentinels lately."

"How is it? Have you gotten used to multi-person coordinated combat?"

"Anything special to report from the contaminated zone?"

The questions from the Queen on the throne were as gentle as before, but Lin Yuan’s attention was diverted.

In the shadows of the side hall corridor, there was a giant iron cage, something seemingly locked inside.

The faint, intermittent moans she kept hearing came from that corner.

It was too dark to see clearly. There seemed to be an insect’s abdomen, human limbs, and flapping wings inside that iron cage.

Lin Yuan felt goosebumps rising on her skin, as if a pair of blood-red eyes were staring at them through the darkness.

Intense pain and hatred, like icy waves, washed over her, almost suffocating.

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