Player 0

Although Wu Qiong's life experiences had nothing in common with that of a well-bred gentleman, Bai Shuang still felt somewhat uneasy about having her own father use his charm to seduce a criminal mastermind.

That morning, before entering the dining room, Bai Shuang had prepared a whole arsenal of comforting words. With her silver tongue, she was confident she could shine the light of righteousness into Wu Qiong's heart in under three minutes!

Yet when she arrived at the door, all those emotional lines she'd rehearsed through the night vanished into thin air.

Bai Shuang stood dumbly at the entrance, watching as Camellia Girl buzzed around Wu Qiong with pure joy.

"Godfather, try this one! I made it myself!" Camellia Girl eagerly laid out a spread of desserts fit for royalty.

"Mmm!" Wu Qiong nodded with satisfaction. "Our Camellia is so clever and skillful!"

"And this one too! And this!" Camellia Girl's smile outshone the morning sun as Wu Qiong delighted in her sweets.

Wu Qiong took a bite and couldn't resist jabbing at Bai Shuang: "If only Shuang'er were half as talented with her hands."

"Hmph!" Bai Shuang spun around and stormed off. She had spent all night worrying about Wu Qiong—for what? Clearly, she was worrying over nothing!

Wu Qiong had been a harem-novel protagonist for centuries, enjoying his life surrounded by beautiful women.

Now he was just returning to his roots: a Camellia Girl in his office, a Player Zero in his bedroom.

Before long, he might just restart his harem altogether, with beauties lining up to fill his arms.

"Shuang'er?" Zhuang Mo was on his way to the dining room when he spotted Bai Shuang storming back in the opposite direction. "You're done with breakfast already?"

"No need!" Bai Shuang snapped. "I'm already full—full of rage!"

Zhuang Mo immediately sensed something was very wrong. His princess was always sweet and gentle, never one to raise her voice. If she was this angry, something terrible must have happened to Wu Qiong.

"How's Father-in-law?" Zhuang Mo asked. "Don't worry, I'll go check on him right now."

"I suggest you don't!" Bai Shuang grabbed his arm. "He's very busy and doesn't have time for visitors."

Zhuang Mo understood—family matters shouldn't be made public. Bai Shuang must've been too embarrassed to let him see how pitiful Wu Qiong had become.

But it was precisely in moments like this that he had to step up and fulfill his role as a supportive boyfriend.

He reassured her, "Don't worry. Your father is my father. Your problem is my problem."

Bai Shuang shook off his hand and growled through gritted teeth, "He's not my father. I don't have a father like him! A father who ditches the old for the new? He's not worth having!"

Zhuang Mo couldn't quite follow her anger, but Bai Shuang's last few sentences reminded him: Wu Qiong had recently adopted Camellia Girl.

"Wait—are you jealous because your dad adopted Chen Camellia?"

"Why would I be jealous of that kind of person?" Bai Shuang became even more furious. "Her parents are still alive, and yet she's throwing herself at my dad? Clearly, the two of them are thrilled with each other, and I'm the odd one out!"

"Who says you're the odd one out?" came a calm voice from the end of the hallway.

Dressed in dark Taoist robes, Wu Qiong walked toward them slowly.

Bai Shuang threw him a bitter glare before turning and running in the opposite direction.

She ran to the observation deck. It wasn't open yet, so the place was empty.

There, beneath the starry sky, she knelt and stared up into the endless night—unable to tell which star her real father, the late City Lord Bai, had become.

In the past, Bai Shuang had feared nothing—not heaven, not earth. Heaven was first, and she was second.

Only after her father died did she understand: once a father is gone, he's gone forever.

For the past 25 years, she and Wu Qiong had relied solely on each other. She had always believed Wu Qiong would only ever be her father.

But she had been too naive. Wu Qiong had been many people's father before. And he would likely be father to many more in the future.

Bai Shuang was just one among many. Nothing special.

But Wu Qiong was all she had left. If she lost him too, she'd have nothing at all.

"Shuang'er," Wu Qiong found her on the deck. Her face was streaked with tears as she stared blankly at the stars.

Bai Shuang refused to look at him—especially not after he praised Camellia Girl to the skies and tore her down in comparison.

Such humiliation was intolerable.

Wu Qiong sighed, sat down beside her, and joined her in watching the distant stars.

"Shuang'er," he said gently, "you are the greatest pride of my life."

It was the same thing City Lord Bai had said to her—his final words before passing. Hearing it again now made it all the more tragic.

Wu Qiong continued earnestly, "I've lived every day of my life in despair. Your father gave me 25 years to deal with the six great families, and I wasted it. I did nothing—drifted through life.

"But now that the enemy is at our gates, if I don't act, how will I ever face the promise I made him?"

Bai Shuang murmured, "That's not what I'm mad about."

Wu Qiong reached out and ruffled her short hair. "No matter how great Camellia is, she's someone else's daughter. You're different. You're my real daughter. You're better than anyone else.

"I only said those flattering things to her because I needed her to get intel from her uncle."

He patted her on the shoulder. "Have some confidence in yourself. Do you really believe that nonsense? Think about who you are—you're the captain of the Jupiter Expedition Team. Camellia can't hold a candle to you."

After that pep talk, Bai Shuang burst into tears again. The kind that come from deep, soul-crushing sadness. "Dad… I miss my dad!"

"I miss him too," Wu Qiong said, gazing up at the stars—just as lost as she was in trying to find the one that had become her father.

If City Lord Bai were watching from above, he prayed that he'd bless Bai Shuang with the strength to overcome this crisis and protect Jingluo City.

When the time felt right, Wu Qiong helped her wipe away her tears. With their rift healed, the father and daughter returned to the control room.

They held their breath, listening to the audio feed from the tracker to see what Camellia Girl would say to Principal He once she returned to the Federal Space University.

"Camellia's back?" Principal He Shoucheng greeted his niece warmly. "So? Any new intel?"

Camellia blushed. "No new info… but my relationship with the Taoist is different now."

"What did you say?" He Shoucheng's face darkened. "That old monster took advantage of you?"

"No," she replied. "The Taoist adopted me. He's my godfather now."

"Heh!" He Shoucheng forced a dry laugh. "You'd better be careful. That old monster is dangerous. Half the people he's adopted over the years were killed by him with his own hands.

"He's a master manipulator. He adopts innocent people like you just to use them. And when they've outlived their usefulness? He kills without mercy."

Camellia looked nervous, but still said, "He doesn't seem like a bad person."

He Shoucheng sighed and said earnestly, "What do you know? You've barely lived. Our family's dealt with that old monster for generations. I've got full records of all the blood on his hands."