Chapter 47

Chapter 47

The white "boundary marker" in the distance shivered in the torrential rain. The faint pink traces on its pale petals, though barely there, stubbornly refused to be washed away.

This perpetually gray zone had now turned capricious—alternating between blazing sun and sudden downpours, like a malfunctioning old film projector.

The pale sea of flowers was first obscured by the curtain of rain, then vanished completely beyond the transparent window as the aircraft ascended.

Then, uniformed base personnel emerged one by one, like dormant beetles, once again encircling the border of Zone 16.

Through the thick glass, Meng Shijiu vaguely saw a neat, straight formation. Cui Suifu had likely given prior notice, instructing the guards to temporarily withdraw.

As if long accustomed to such "special treatment," no superfluous glances followed the departing aircraft.

Meng Shijiu lay back and closed his eyes, his tone still unreadable: "Had you planned to bring me out here all along?"

Cui Suifu sat beside him.

Raindrops snaked down the window, reflecting the silver-haired Alpha's profile. His moistened lips resembled dark, ripe green fruit, shimmering with an alluring luster in the shadows.

"Tired?" Cui Suifu extended his thumb, gently stroking Meng Shijiu's jawline. The warm touch felt particularly distinct against the cool, rainy atmosphere.

Applying slight pressure, he gently turned the silver-haired Alpha's face toward him: "If you're tired, we don't have to go."

"Not at all," Meng Shijiu opened his eyes. "I just happen to have nothing better to do."

His captivating yet aloof eyes lifted, and that strikingly beautiful face settled calmly into his palm. The sensation, cool and smooth, burned like fire all the way to his heart.

In that instant, any liking or admiration briefly vanished, replaced by a sudden surge of destructive and possessive desire.

Meng Shijiu didn't move: "You have a lot of free time too, Your Highness."

He couldn't remember the last time Meng Shijiu had addressed him as "Your Highness."

Cui Suifu cleared his throat softly, attempting to mask the abruptly surfacing emotions, his gaze intense as he looked at the Alpha resting peacefully in the seat: "How am I free? I'm very busy, thinking every day about how to pursue you."

"..."

Meng Shijiu's lips curved: "How, exactly? Do tell."

Cui Suifu: "..."

Meng Shijiu deliberately drew out his tone: "Could it be hiding in corners secretly writing love letters?"

Cui Suifu remained silent, suddenly leaning in, pressing closer: "Keep teasing and I'll lock you away."

Meng Shijiu laughed, throwing his head back: "Oh, so the Second Prince pursues people with threats."

The words hadn't even faded before the opportunistic Alpha captured his lips in a kiss. This time, along with all the flippant remarks, they drowned in the surging tide of passion.

The kiss grew fiercer. Cui Suifu wrapped his arms around his waist, lifting and pulling him into his embrace, cradling the back of his head as he kissed him.

Cui Suifu felt Meng Shijiu gradually relax his jaw, obediently offering his tongue to be sucked, trembling subtly in his arms, shaking from head to toe repeatedly, as if he were his absolute possession.

The Second Prince kissed with urgency this time, carrying a hidden unease, as if unsettled by the non-committal, aloof attitude of the person in his arms.

He couldn't help but wonder if Meng Shijiu treated others the same way. What was so special about him to deserve Meng Shijiu's favor?

His teeth itched with the desire to lift the soft silver hair, part the nape of the neck, and sink his canines deep into the scent gland, marking him profoundly.

But Meng Shijiu was an Alpha.

His lips and tongue brushed over Meng Shijiu's thin eyelids, licking repeatedly until saliva smeared his face, eyelashes sticking together as if he had been crying.

Meng Shijiu pushed him away in disgust, patting his cheek.

Meng Shijiu commented: "Dog."

Cui Suifu stubbornly leaned in again, kissing his temple: "Mhm."

...

The aircraft slowly descended onto a white structure. The moment the hatch opened, damp, sultry air rushed in.

A massive awning overhead shielded them from the dense rain, the droplets striking it with a muffled, drum-like rhythm.

The colossal white building stood tall within the rain curtain, devoid of any external markings.

Meng Shijiu glanced at it, then slowly walked through the already open door on the top floor. Cui Suifu followed serenely behind.

After traversing a short passageway, Meng Shijiu suddenly halted.

He lifted his gaze.

His field of vision abruptly expanded.

...Within the light seeping through the glass seams above, countless tiny golden beams floated, like swirling stardust.

And there, in the deep, ink-like darkness, he met a pair of gentle eyes—a completely transparent deep-sea fish, its faint outline traced by the glow from the luminescent organs near its gills.

This was the color of the deep sea, a drowning indigo blue.

Meng Shijiu: "...An aquarium?"

Cui Suifu didn't answer, allowing the deep-sea currents to flow silently in the quiet.

Meng Shijiu: "Why did you want to bring me here?"

He stepped into the main hall, instinctively glancing at the floor.

Beneath the dark marble, faintly etched underfoot, was the emblem of a rose and a sword—

The Royal Private Aquarium.

Meng Shijiu looked askance.

Cui Suifu: "In the esoteric probability elective, you told Professor Zou that the most bewildering place in this world is the ocean."

"But I couldn't take you to the nearest sea. You said we couldn't leave Yanbei."

He slowly approached: "I don't know what kind of bewilderment you meant."

"However." The blue light from beyond the glass flowed over his features, casting his profile like an undersea sculpture. "In my deep-diving records... starlight is a luxury. The deeper you go, darkness devours all sense of direction. You lose your way, and you lose the path back."

Meng Shijiu nodded, his fingertip touching the glass where the iridescent golden beams danced. He turned his head to look at Cui Suifu, who had followed him closer: "So, is this your deliberately arranged starlight?"

Those golden specks of light leaped within the dark blue shadows. Clearly out of place against the deep sea's tranquility, yet in their swirling motion, they merged seamlessly with the undulating water and the gliding schools of fish.

As if the Milky Way had been crushed and scattered into the deep sea, as ethereal as a dream that might end at any moment.

Cui Suifu didn't look where he pointed, his gaze fixed firmly on the silver-haired Alpha.

He said, "You are the starlight I orchestrated."

"..."

Meng Shijiu raised an eyebrow. "So that's why you brought me here."

Cui Suifu replied, "No."

Meng Shijiu asked, "Hmm?"

Because the moment I saw you, I was reminded of a siren's eyes. Like a sea witch. Luring one astray, inviting willing surrender.

Cui Suifu didn't answer. Instead, he took two items from his person and gently placed them in Meng Shijiu's palm.

The silver-haired Alpha looked down.

A delicate white wristband and a deep blue, exquisitely crafted lozenge-shaped object.

It was a holographic recorder and a... key?

Cui Suifu picked up the wristband and clasped it around the silver-haired Alpha's wrist. The recorder emitted a faint, pale glow as it closed, its flowing patterns lighting up.

"A holographic recorder, specially modified," he explained, holding Meng Shijiu's wrist as he opened the device, adjusted some parameters, and gave a quick rundown on how it works. "Look—"

The recorder suddenly emitted a soft light, and the surrounding scenery transformed...

It was as if they were submerged in the ocean depths. Schools of deep-sea fish swam past Meng Shijiu, streaking like comets behind them.

Meng Shijiu reached out, his fingertips brushing against the nearest fish. A cold, slippery sensation grazed his palm, feeling eerily real.

This was a recording Cui Suifu had captured earlier.

"It will remember the romance in your eyes and transform it into an everlasting universe."

The holographic image froze. The flowing light came to a halt, like the last instant before waking from a dream.

"You can record what you see—the eternal vistas that are yours alone." An Alpha's lips almost brushed against his ear.

"As for the key," Cui Suifu whispered, his magnetic voice edged with a plea, "you can come here anytime you want."

The heavy door closed quietly behind them, retracting the last sliver of daylight.

Only in the ensuing silence did Meng Shijiu realize that the deep-sea hum he thought he heard was actually the forgotten sound of rain.

"Your Highness," a curator who appeared young and had been waiting for some time approached the two.

Cui Suifu glanced at Meng Shijiu. "Wanna check it out?"

Meng Shijiu shook the recorder in his hand. "Do I have any reason to refuse?"

Cui Suifu's lips curved into a smile once more, revealing his canine teeth, a glint of fervor appearing in his eyes.

...

...

A slender figure swam past Meng Shijiu on the other side of the glass, its silver-white scales gleaming with a cold light in the darkness, moving silently like a ghost.

Meng Shijiu stopped walking.

"Want to go into the water?" Cui Suifu asked at just the right moment.

Meng Shijiu nodded.

The curator beside them bowed. "I'll take you to the water entry area and have a specialist explain everything to you."

...

Passing through a corridor illuminated by blue fluorescent lights, the door to the diving zone slowly rose, bringing a wave of salty, damp mist.

Inside stood a specialist, who was dismantling a machine one-handed, the metallic clinks of wrenches and parts echoing crisply.

His black work uniform outlined his sleek figure, and under his precise movements, the loose strands of hair falling over his face cast sharp shadows.

"Wait thirty seconds," the man's cold, firm voice rang out.

Meng Shijiu paused, feeling something was off.

The lighting was dim, but as the man straightened up and walked over, turning to face the three of them, Meng Shijiu finally recognized his face.

Meng Shijiu: ?

—Wen Hui.

Meng Shijiu slowly turned his head to look at Cui Suifu.

The other man acted completely unbothered. In fact, when he noticed Meng Shijiu looking at him, he immediately grinned.

Meng Shijiu: Nice one.

Meng Shijiu: It's like skipping class to go to an internet café only to find the manager is your homeroom teacher.

Seeing Meng Shijiu, Wen Hui also raised an eyebrow in slight surprise but said nothing, his cold expression softening just a bit.

Meng Shijiu: Nice one.

Meng Shijiu: It's like taking on a side gig and bumping into the client you're currently collaborating with.

Meng Shijiu: You sure keep busy.

Wen Hui first checked their stats, then instructed them to change into diving protective suits.

As soon as Meng Shijiu stepped out in his suit, Wen Hui approached to fit it for him.

"Lean forward," Wen Hui said.

The tall Alpha moved behind the silver-haired Alpha, all but enveloping Meng Shijiu in his embrace, his hair brushing against the other's ear.

Cui Suifu, who had just emerged, frowned at the sight, his expression darkening. He quickly strode over and raised a hand to stop Wen Hui. "Let me."

Wen Hui didn't look up. Instead, his fingers suddenly tightened on a buckle, creating a sudden pressure against Meng Shijiu's lower back. Meng Shijiu instinctively straightened up, lurching back into his arms. "...?"

Wen Hui still didn't look up. "—You a professional?"

Cui Suifu gritted his teeth silently, gave a low chuckle, and was about to say something when he glanced at Meng Shijiu and stopped short.

The Second Prince's face grew increasingly cold. Seeing Meng Shijiu raise an eyebrow at him, he reined in his irritation and moved aside to wait.

"Skipping class again?" Wen Hui asked without looking up, adjusting Meng Shijiu's mask.

Even with an Alpha's keen hearing, the distance between Cui Suifu and the two of them was likely too great to make out their voices.

"What do you mean 'again'?" Meng Shijiu retorted lazily. "You're the one working a side gig again."

Wen Hui countered, "What do you mean 'again'?"

He knelt on one knee, his fingers swiftly adjusting the clasps on the protective suit near Meng Shijiu's thigh, his gaze sweeping over the other's straight, slender calf.

His tone was teasing, laced with amusement. "It's not like I've actually gotten paid yet, but you really did skip my class."

Meng Shijiu's voice was muffled by the mask. "Haven't earned anything? You're earning right now, aren't you?"

Wen Hui stood up and leaned close to his ear, whispering, "Earning from you? Are you my boss?"

Meng Shijiu fell silent for a moment. "Don't push it. We're outside now; you're not my instructor here."

Wen Hui gave a low chuckle.