MORIC - Chapter 182
Chapter 182: Printed Diapers
Xi Zhoumeng refused to leave.
Chi Yueshan's mecha room no longer looked so cluttered that you couldn't find a place to stand, but to Xi Zhoumeng, it made little difference. It was, after all, still a mess.
Various large pieces of equipment could be seen piled in the corners, and small parts were scattered on the floor.
Chi Yueshan sat on the sofa, holding the baby.
Xi Zhoumeng sat beside her, and an indoor AI robot brought her a glass of warm milk.
It was almost evening, and the sunset was visible outside the mecha room's window. A flock of birds flew by, seemingly unaffected by the human world.
It was unclear what Chi Yueshan had turned on, but a machine in the southeast corner was still running. While it wasn't roaring, a sound could still be heard.
The only other sound was the soft suckling of the baby nursing.
Normally, this wouldn't be anything special. Chi Yueshan had gotten used to it over the past few days. Plus, she genuinely loved children; just looking at them made her heart soften, and she didn't feel awkward.
But Xi Zhoumeng hadn't been there before; she had always done it alone.
At first, a professional caregiver had taught her how to care for the baby, and Chu Jing would also come to comfort Chi Yueshan.
It didn't make much of a difference whether Xi Zhoumeng was there or not. If she had been, she might have shrieked and tried to stop Chi Yueshan from doing it herself, thinking that formula was good enough for the baby and there was no need to be so delicate.
But now Xi Zhoumeng was back. She sat to the side, leaning against the back of the sofa, just watching Chi Yueshan.
Chi Yueshan suddenly turned her back. "Stop looking. It's weird."
Xi Zhoumeng: "What's weird about it?"
She insisted on snuggling up intimately. Even though her body temperature was on the cooler side, she was still warm. Despite the pheromone patch, an S+-grade Alpha's pheromones were still difficult to block completely. Just a moment ago, Xi Li had felt as if he were being pricked by needles.
Let alone Chi Yueshan, who had been marked by Xi Zhoumeng. She couldn't suppress the instinctual attraction at all. Even if Xi Zhoumeng didn't lean in, she would have wanted to press closer herself.
It was the intimacy of a complete bond that she had once dreamed of.
But after being separated for so long, they seemed to have grown a little distant. Chi Yueshan couldn't pinpoint how, but she felt something was missing.
Chi Yueshan: "It's just..."
She paused for a long while before finally getting a little annoyed. "What else do you want me to say? What can I say?"
Xi Zhoumeng rested her chin on Chi Yueshan's shoulder, nuzzling her cheek against the nape of Chi Yueshan's neck, which made Chi Yueshan shiver.
Chi Yueshan: "What are you doing? You should be resting."
Xi Zhoumeng sighed and leaned back again. The pheromones that compelled one to cling to her receded, and Chi Yueshan breathed a sigh of relief, yet an inexplicable sense of loss bloomed in her heart.
The little cub in her arms, now full, kicked her legs and looked for a place to rest. Chi Yueshan then shoved her into Xi Zhoumeng's arms.
"So annoying. You can feed her next time."
Xi Zhoumeng instantly went from utterly relaxed to utterly tense. The baby's mouth hadn't even been wiped. A milk stain smeared onto Xi Zhoumeng's collar, then was absorbed by the fabric, leaving no trace.
This child had been smacking her lips since she was tiny. She didn't mind the scent of Xi Zhoumeng's perfume and burrowed deeper, determined to find a suitable spot before she could sleep contentedly.
Xi Zhoumeng was posed like a stone statue. Chi Yueshan laughed out loud, tugged at the baby's sleeve, and said gloatingly, "I told you to rest, didn't I?"
Xi Zhoumeng leaned against a cushion, staring at the large mecha, Moon-Swallower, in front of them. She shook her head. "Aren't you angry? How could I possibly go rest?"
Chi Yueshan: "I'm not angry."
Xi Zhoumeng: "Then why were you being so passive-aggressive?"
Chi Yueshan buttoned her clothes. Lately, she felt her chest growing heavier. After all, in that other world, Xi Zhoumeng had been the one to take care of her. Here, she was too embarrassed to ask for help, and the more she did herself, the more annoyed she became.
She glared at Xi Zhoumeng again, completely unaware that her own lips were rosy and that her glare could stir boundless desire.
Xi Zhoumeng: "See? Now you're seducing me again."
Chi Yueshan nearly choked. "I did not."
Xi Zhoumeng: "Mother is injured and at home, and she won't be recovering anytime soon. The situation with the Expeditionary Force isn't exactly optimistic."
Xi Shuang had told Xi Zhoumeng this; she and Ling Xun had just returned from there. It wasn't that the Expeditionary Force didn't need them, but they had matters to attend to at home. Plus, they were still students and lacked Wen Xinghuo's invincible strength. Without the academy's approval, their presence there was always unofficial.
They had returned this time to get that approval.
Chi Yueshan: "I know, but isn't she still the Commander?"
Xi Mingguang had been a commander for a long time, constantly drifting between star systems. It wasn't as if Chi Yueshan had never stayed on a starship before.
It was so boring. Even though she had spent her time on the return trip discussing things with the mecha technicians, she couldn't fight the oppressive feeling of the enclosed space.
Besides, becoming a commander required rising through the ranks, level by level. Xi Mingguang came from a traditional commander background.
There was specialized training, too.
Xi Zhoumeng was not.
Chi Yueshan acknowledged Xi Zhoumeng's abilities, but she was also afraid that she would face criticism from others during such a critical time.
Xi Zhoumeng: "Yes, the new commander was attacked and killed. The deputy commander is temporarily in charge now."
"The Zerg on the various planets in our galaxy haven't been completely wiped out, but the most important thing right now are the Zerg on the Capital Star."
The old laboratory that served as the passage between the upper and Lower Worlds was destroyed by Shen Yu long ago, but a steady stream of Zerg still appears out of thin air, as if an invisible channel is transporting these low-level creatures.
The parasitized Queen in the Royal Palace refuses to speak with Shen Yu, but this stalemate cannot last for long.
The people can't afford to wait either.
Perhaps Xi Mingguang had also spoken to Shen Yu about these 'kids,' as Shen Yu's attitude was quite clear.
When she spoke to Xi Zhoumeng, she had the kindness of an elder, completely unlike the 'iron-fisted marshal' style described in the StarNet headlines.
Chi Yueshan: "I wasn't angry about that."
Xi Zhoumeng was still very tense. Chi Yueshan moved closer, hugged Xi Zhoumeng's arm, and leaned on her shoulder.
"I was just thinking about what I could do to help. It seems like you're always the one worrying about everything, and I..."
Before she could finish her sentence, Xi Zhoumeng pressed a finger to her lips.
Xi Zhoumeng: "You still think like that?"
She let out a laugh. "I thought you'd say something like, 'I'm such an amazing mecha technician, you lot who pilot mechas wouldn't survive without me.'"
Chi Yueshan: ......
That's more your style, isn't it?
"I'm not even a mecha technician."
I only have a mechanic's license. The truth is, most people still don't accept that an Omega can master mecha theory.
Chi Yueshan's time aboard Xi Mingguang's Expeditionary Force starship had managed to change the average person's impression of Omegas, but she still felt dejected from time to time.
After all, the person who taught her this skill had left behind nothing but the techniques themselves, not a single word more.
Chi Yueshan didn't even know why Zhou Fengqin had raised her.
If it was really as Xi Zhoumeng said, that Zhou Fengqin was her mother Jiang Zhi's mecha technician back then, did she guess who my Alpha mother was when she saw that button?
But why didn't Master tell me?
She clearly had so many opportunities to tell me.
If only Mother were still alive, would everything be clear then?
Xi Zhoumeng: "What does that matter? Is it that you can't repair mechas without the title?"
"When this is all over, we can blackmail Sheng Yangkui into giving you a title... Hey, but if the Zerg are completely gone, what's the point of mechas? You'd be out of a job."
With Chi Yueshan leaning against her, Xi Zhoumeng relaxed a lot and slowly grew accustomed to the soft little thing in her arms.
She was even in the mood to joke.
But this future was both wicked and wonderful. Chi Yueshan huffed. "Mechas aren't just for combat. Besides, there are still space pirates."
Her tone was smug. "I know how to do a lot of things. I feel like I've improved so much. If only Master..."
She didn't hide her disappointment from Xi Zhoumeng at all. Xi Zhoumeng wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "So, the lives of our whole group are riding on you. Xi Shuang even said her mecha depends on you. She'll send it over, and she said if you want her family's hotel, she'll give it to you."
It was unclear what about that last sentence set Xi Zhoumeng off, but her tone turned strange again. "An Alpha who's such a spendthrift is so boring."
Chi Yueshan: When will she ever get over this habit of putting others down to praise herself?
But she also found it quite funny.
The little thing in her arms would nuzzle even in her sleep, forcing Xi Zhoumeng to reach out and pull her down a bit, afraid the little one would end up sucking on the earring dangling by her shoulder.
Xi Zhoumeng: "But don't put too much pressure on yourself. Don't think you have to do everything alone."
She closed her eyes. The drain on her spiritual power was indeed causing her occasional dizzy spells. She leaned her head back against the sofa's bolster pillow and plucked out the electronic testing pen that Chi Yueshan had used to pin up her hair.
"We just need to do what we can do well..."
Her nails were long, something Chi Yueshan had complained about in the hovercar. Now, instead of using her hands, she used the electronic testing pen to trace Chi Yueshan's silhouette.
From her cheek to her chin, finally pressing against the yellow rose tattoo revealed where her shirt collar was unbuttoned over her heart.
"There's no such thing as 'success is the only option, failure is not permitted,'" Xi Zhoumeng exhaled. "Don't lose sleep over things like this."
Chi Yueshan slapped away the pen that was about to probe lower. "I wouldn't. When you were gone, I ate well and drank well, and I never had trouble sleeping."
She refused to lose a verbal battle. "I even thought that if you really didn't come back, I would still do my best to optimize this world."
Xi Zhoumeng: "Hm?"
She shifted to the side, her expression relaxed, but she was actually clumsily propping up the baby's bottom, shuddering at the sensation.
"How would you optimize it?"
Chi Yueshan: "The Alpha who marked me would be dead, so I'd be free. I could find another one."
She said this while looking up at Xi Zhoumeng with a smile. The speaker was being sarcastic, and the listener took it as a joke.
Chi Yueshan was waiting for Xi Zhoumeng to make another flamboyant retort, but instead, she received a deep kiss. The kiss smeared Xi Zhoumeng's lipstick onto Chi Yueshan's lips, smudging past the corners, a tangle of tongues and frantic breaths that nearly startled the baby in her arms.
Chi Yueshan: "No, I can't... do that with you right now... Mmph!"
Xi Zhoumeng picked up the porcelain cup, watching with a grin as Chi Yueshan panted, and drank the rest of the milk.
Her red lips were coated with the thick, white liquid, and the curve of her lips made Chi Yueshan feel as if she were about to be devoured.
An overwhelming flood of Alpha pheromones descended like divine punishment, once again injecting into the nape of Chi Yueshan's neck.
Then, it was covered by a rose-scented pheromone patch.
The little cub in Xi Zhoumeng's arms was startled awake after all. She was about to open her mouth and wail, but Xi Zhoumeng pinched her tender earlobe.
She clipped the earring she had taken off onto the baby's earlobe.
Chi Yueshan's eyes widened in horror, only to realize that Xi Zhoumeng was wearing an ear cuff today.
But she still punched Xi Zhoumeng. "Are you insane? She's just a baby."
Hunhun didn't cry. She had a pair of eyes identical to Chi Yueshan's, as clear as uncut gemstones freshly pulled from the earth.
What Xi Zhoumeng had longed for all those years ago, she now held in her arms years later—a buy-one-get-one-free deal.
She didn't cry out in pain; instead, she admired her handiwork.
"Dressing up should start from a young age. If you're all drab and dusty like you were, you won't find a second person as patient as me to wash you clean."
Chi Yueshan: "Did I ask you to wash me?"
Xi Zhoumeng: "My child will, without a doubt, be the proudest girl in the world."
It was hard to tell if she'd lost her mind or had a sudden epiphany. "Then let's start with her clothes. Who bought these baby clothes? Even the diapers should be printed. This is hideous."
Chi Yueshan: ......
I'm going to lose my mind. Just hurry up and go be a commander.
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