Chapter 65: Sixty-fifth Day of Being a Salted Fish

The Sea Eagle Pirates.

Siming watched the messages sent by Goudan, his brow furrowing deeper with every line.

“What’s wrong?” Geshu Qing asked. Zhu Rong also looked over with concern.

Siming handed his communicator to the two of them. He didn’t say a word, nor did he move from his spot. He simply sat there, lost in thought, his expression grim.

Geshu Qing and Zhu Rong found it strange at first, but after reading for a moment, they understood why he was acting this way. By the time they finished, both had fallen into a heavy silence.

Finally, it was Siming who broke the dead quiet.

“This is going to be difficult,” he said.

“The Emperor is disgusting,” Zhu Rong agreed.

Geshu Qing said, “We’ll find a way. At least Lu Yuan isn’t dead yet. Besides, he’s working on a solution himself.”

“That’s not what I meant.” Siming shook his head. He knew their primary concern was undoubtedly the fact that Lu Yuan had been brainwashed, and he had felt the same initially. However, there was another matter that was far more pressing at the moment.

Siming walked to the door, glanced outside, and shut it tight. Returning to the center of the room, he carefully closed the porthole as well. “The problem is how to keep the Emperor alive,” he said.

They rarely kept the doors and windows shut here.

Making it obvious that they had secrets was an easy way to invite unnecessary suspicion.

To occasionally discuss Lu Yuan and Goudan under the eyes and ears of others, they had specifically given Lu Yuan the codename “Salted Fish.”

However, thinking of that name now made Siming feel a strange pang of heartache.

Fortunately, the matter they were about to discuss was something that absolutely could not be overheard. With the doors and windows sealed, they could refer to Lu Yuan by his real name.

Geshu Qing frowned but remained silent.

Zhu Rong, on the other hand, answered bluntly, “Ignore him. If he dies, he dies. We’ll find the truth behind the secrets of the Desolate Planet eventually. Besides, he can’t be the only one who knows.”

“No,” Siming shook his head.

“Why?” Zhu Rong asked. “Doesn’t he deserve to die?”

“He does,” Siming sighed. “I want him dead too. The more miserable and painful the death, the better. But not right now.”

“Why not?”

Siming sighed again. “There’s something Lu Yuan didn’t mention.

“Geshu Ming certainly didn’t just gain the ability to kill the Emperor after Lu Yuan’s faked death. She must have had that capability long ago. Why didn’t she kill him then?

“The Emperor is clearly a piece of trash. Lu Yuan’s grudge against him didn’t start yesterday. If it were me, I certainly wouldn’t have waited until Lu Yuan’s ‘death’ to develop murderous intent toward the Emperor.”

“…” Zhu Rong pursed her lips. “She was afraid that the Emperor’s death might affect Lu Yuan?”

Siming nodded. “So no matter how much we hate him, the Emperor cannot die until Lu Yuan’s problem is resolved.”

“Lu Yuan must know this, right?” Geshu Qing said suddenly. “But he didn’t mention it at all. Even in that state where the brainwashing was temporarily lifted.”

“…Yeah.” Siming gave a bitter smile. “So… who knows what he’s actually thinking…”

He was at a loss for words.

What exactly was Lu Yuan thinking?

Did he feel he wasn’t important? Did he think that if he just gave them a reason, they would save the Emperor without needing further explanation? Or did he assume they would figure it out themselves?

Siming didn’t know.

What alarmed him even more was that Lu Yuan had made many arrangements, yet he hadn’t mentioned himself once.

He said he was looking for a way to escape the Emperor’s control, but he didn’t say how he planned to do it. Nor did he say if they could help in any way.

Was there truly no way? Or did he simply not want them involved?

Siming had many thoughts, but his words remained vague. Fortunately, Geshu Qing and Zhu Rong understood, and they sighed along with him.

“If this were before we hijacked the transport ship, things would be much easier,” Geshu Qing said. “But the ship is already taken, the medicine can’t be delivered, and we can’t exactly tell Geshu Ming that Lu Yuan is alive so she should hold off on killing the Emperor…”

Zhu Rong’s tone was hesitant. “Perhaps there’s no need to rush. I don’t think the Emperor will die that quickly. Even without this batch of medicine, he should be able to last for a while.”

Siming nodded in agreement. “I think so too. With the Empire’s medical technology, they can always find a way to prolong his life for a bit. This medicine might be important, but its role might just be the icing on the cake.”

“I wouldn’t go that far,” Zhu Rong shook her head. “It must have a critical function. But since Lu Yuan told us to find a way, it means there’s still a chance the Emperor will wake up.”

“However, if Geshu Ming was the one who administered the poison, she likely won’t allow the Emperor to wake up again,” Geshu Qing said. “So, the key remains that we have to persuade Geshu Ming.”

“That phrase Lu Yuan used might have another meaning – the one who tied the knot must be the one to untie it.”

“Even without this batch of medicine, Geshu Ming should have the antidote in her possession,” Siming said. “So, finding Geshu Ming is the right move. The problem is, how do we convince her?”

“Brainwashing,” Zhu Rong answered quickly. “If the Old Emperor’s death affects the brainwashed Lu Yuan, then it should affect us as well.”

Siming sighed. “I’m just afraid that our lives aren’t as important to her as getting revenge for Lu Yuan.”

Zhu Rong pondered this. “…That makes sense.”

“…” Siming felt helpless. “Are you just going to accept the fact that you’re unimportant like that?”

“There’s no helping it,” Zhu Rong said. “We’re just strangers. Even if Geshu Qing is from the Geshu Family… there are plenty of people in the Geshu Family. His importance is likely limited.”

“But as Lu Yuan’s friend, Geshu Ming must be a good person,” Geshu Qing countered. “At first, Lu Yuan even thought Geshu Ming fell out with him because he refused to negotiate with the Zerg.

“That shows Geshu Ming strongly hopes for a peaceful resolution to the war with the Zerg. She isn’t someone who disregards the lives of others.”

Siming took a deep breath, lost in thought.

Then he spoke: “It’s feasible. If all else fails, we can always… resort to a bit of moral kidnapping¹.

“Tell Geshu Ming that we aren’t the only ones who were brainwashed. There are many more back at that Research Institute.”

“Lu Yuan said Geshu Ming knows about the existence of the Research Institute in the Galactic Core,” Zhu Rong noted. “If that’s the case, she should also know there are people inside? She didn’t seem to care much.”

“…” Siming frowned. “Do you have any other ideas?”

Zhu Rong suggested, “Contact Geshu Ming directly and tell her Lu Yuan isn’t dead.”

“No.” Geshu Qing immediately shook his head in refusal. “We can’t contact Geshu Ming. If we use StarNet, there’s the issue that the communicators were given to us by Ying Xun; he might see the messages we send. On the other hand, StarNet is a place where there are no secrets.

“Even if we aren’t necessarily noticed, if the news that Lu Yuan is still alive leaks out… it wouldn’t be appropriate. Lu Yuan hasn’t indicated that he’s willing to expose that fact.”

Siming added, “Moreover, if we want to tell Geshu Ming news about Lu Yuan, we’d have to tell her part of the situation regarding the Desolate Planet. That’s dangerous. Geshu Ming will help Lu Yuan, but she won’t necessarily help us.”

Zhu Rong fell silent. “Then we can only take the long way around. If we do that, we might end up with half the result for twice the effort.”

“But we have no choice,” Geshu Qing said suddenly. “I have a plan.”

“What is it?”

“Spread the news,” Geshu Qing said. “Put it on StarNet. Say the Emperor has been poisoned and is in critical condition. When the time comes, in order to appease the public, Geshu Ming or the Imperial Family will have to let the Emperor wake up.

“They must make the Emperor appear in public. Claiming the Emperor is seriously ill won’t be enough to break this ‘rumor.’ The people won’t believe it.”

“What if they choose not to debunk the rumor and just let things fall apart?” Zhu Rong asked.

Geshu Qing thought for a moment. “Then continue releasing information that the Geshu Family was behind the poisoning. Geshu Ming wants to kill the Emperor, but she certainly doesn’t want to cause social upheaval, nor does she want the Geshu Family to go down in flames with the Emperor. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have used a method as gentle as poisoning.”

“It’s actually a viable method.” Siming thought it over for a long time before letting out a dry laugh. “It’s just a bit unfair to Geshu Ming. She only exposed her identity because she trusted our side and wanted to cooperate… what’s more, she’s Lu Yuan’s friend. Doing this feels a bit like ‘attacking my own teammate’ no matter how you look at it.”

“Regardless of whether she trusts us or not – in fact, I think she’s more likely to trust Ying Xun and Nan Yingzhe, it has nothing to do with us. It’s precisely because she is Lu Yuan’s friend that we can’t let her kill the Emperor now. If something happens to Lu Yuan because of it, that would be the real betrayal,” Geshu Qing said, appearing extremely calm. “Besides, if we do this and Geshu Ming reacts quickly enough, it won’t cause any negative impact on her. She’s Lu Yuan’s friend; we should be able to trust her abilities.”

“One last question,” Siming asked. “If we’re caught, how do we explain this behavior?”

“Self-preservation,” Geshu Qing said. “We’ve been brainwashed; we can’t just let the Emperor die. As for how we knew the Emperor was dying and needed medicine… we deduced it after hijacking the ship.”

“Or it could be that we’ve been brainwashed, and we’re being forced to protect the Emperor.”

Zhu Rong narrowed her eyes. “The official reason will be the former. But we need to show a few subtle signs to let people guess the latter.”

“Understood,” Siming nodded. “Then that’s the plan. Geshu Qing, will you take charge of the StarNet side of things?”

“I’ll handle it,” Geshu Qing agreed. “Also, the matter of returning to the Geshu family needs to happen as soon as possible.”

“I’ll see to it,” Siming said.

Zhu Rong tilted her head. “So, can I go back to playing my game?”

“…Go ahead,” Siming replied helplessly.

Letting her play the game was actually necessary. After all, it was one of the tasks Lu Yuan had specifically requested.

The thing was…

Lu Yuan had also told Geshu Qing to play.

Siming turned his gaze toward Geshu Qing.

Geshu Qing shook his head. “I’ll log in once I’ve returned to the Geshu family and secured my own identity. Having the Star Pirates open another account for me would be too strange.”

Translator’s Notes