Ch. 1391..1400
Chapter 1391: 1390 is missing
Tan Rou brought Kas back to the hotel. As they passed the window, she glanced up and indeed saw Agira. Agira stuck his head out to watch them, and after being spotted, quickly retracted it.
“Hurry back, I’ll come to find you soon,” Kas called out.
Tan Rou had been out in the sun for too long and really didn’t want to bask any longer. She wanted to go back quickly to enjoy the air conditioning, so she walked briskly. Kas didn’t complain and just trailed behind her with his limp.
After returning to the hotel, the intense heat subsided somewhat, but the cooling effect of the hotel’s air conditioning was just average, and it wasn’t long before the coolness faded.
When the hotel staff saw Kas, they greeted him enthusiastically, “Kas, why have you come over so early today? Hey, what happened to your leg, are you injured?”
“I took a bit of a tumble,” Kas replied.
Kas was well-liked, and upon hearing he had fallen, the hotel staff immediately brought out a first aid kit from behind the counter, “Would you like to treat that wound?”
Kas, anxious to see Agira, politely declined the staff’s kindness, “Thank you, but I have something to do right now. I’ll come back and take care of it later.”
The staff’s gaze shifted between Tan Rou and Kas, then they said with a smile, “Have fun!”
Tan Rou said somewhat exasperatedly, “Could he have misunderstood something?”
“I’ll explain it to you later, let’s hurry and find Agira now,” Kas urged.
“Now you’re in a rush?” Tan Rou retorted, “What were you doing earlier then?”
“Let’s just get upstairs!” said Kas.
Tan Rou pressed her temples, “Don’t say things that lead to misunderstandings!”
They arrived at Lang Yue’s room, which had a password lock on the door. They had brought this lock from China because they had heard that the security in Country J was not very good. Concerned about thieves, they brought several portable password locks.
After Tan Rou entered the password, the lock disengaged. She then used the key to open the original door, allowing entrance to the inside.
“Agira! Agira!” Kas rushed in and seeing Agira sitting on the bed, became extremely emotional, “Agira, I’m your dad!”
Agira glanced at him and then said quite calmly, “I know you’re my dad, Mom has shown me your picture.”
“Is your mom doing well?” Kas asked.
Agira shook his head, “I don’t know, as I haven’t seen Mom in a long time.”
Tan Rou chimed in from the side, “Princess Samiyi is doing well. I even had tea with her this morning.”
Kas was reassured, “Thank you for the news.”
As father and son reunited, Tan Rou didn’t want to intrude and said, “You two talk for a bit, I’ll be in the next room.”
“Alright, we’ll come to find you after we talk,” Kas responded.
Tan Rou didn’t think much of it and, yawning, said, “The soundproofing here isn’t very good. Keep it down when you talk, don’t disturb me.”
Kas agreed, and after that, Tan Rou left. She returned to the next-door room and sent another message to Zhuang Liu, but Zhuang Liu seemed to be resting and didn’t immediately reply to her.
Feeling a bit tired, she lay down on the bed for a nap. When she woke up, it was already 2 p.m. local time.
Tan Rou was a little hungry as the snacks from the morning had already been digested, so she planned to grab something to eat. Remembering the two in the next room, she put on her coat and went to find them.
The next door was closed. Thinking the father and son had not yet finished their conversation, she knocked a few times, “Mr. Kas, are you hungry? Do you want to get something to eat?”
There was no response from inside the room. Tan Rou knocked harder, but still, no one answered her.
Feeling that something was off, she used her key to open the door, only to discover that the room was already empty. Kas and Agira were nowhere to be seen.
“Mr. Kas? Agira?” Tan Rou called out several times in the room then went to check the bathroom, but the entire room was empty, with nobody in sight.
“This is really interesting,” Tan Rou chuckled, then pulled out her phone from her pocket, “But did you really think I was completely unprepared?”
Chapter 1392: 1391 is not in a hurry
Tan Rou returned to her room, and the more she thought about what had just happened, the more interesting it seemed to her. She was still next door, pondering how to help them, but little did she expect that they did not care about her at all. While she slept, they had vanished without a trace.
Kas said he couldn’t take Ajila away, right? How did he end up taking the child away?
Tan Rou was somewhat angry. She was furious that Kas had taken Ajila and furious at herself for meddling in their affairs. She was here to work, not to participate in some “Where Are the Kids” show. There was no need for her to help others watch or find their children.
But Ajila was someone Tan Rou had gone to great lengths to bring into the country. She had even been cheated by the airport manager to get Ajila here. Now that Ajila was gone, how could Tan Rou not be angry?
She opened the tracking app on her phone, then began searching for Ajila’s location. Although J-country did not have its own positioning satellites, as long as the person being tracked was within signal range, they could still be located.
Tan Rou and her team had brought a signal receiver, which acted like a miniature satellite. It could receive signals within a radius of three thousand meters. As long as Ajila had not gone far, they could determine his location.
Upon arriving in J-country, Tan Rou had anticipated such a scenario. If Ajila was a fraud and he ran away while they were not paying attention, Tan Rou could use the mini locator on him to find him.
However, they also needed to find him quickly. If he left the signal coverage area, then he would be lost.
There was a flashing red dot on Tan Rou’s phone screen. To her surprise, the light was not far away—it was only two hundred meters from the hotel and had not moved at all.
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There were two possibilities. Either Kas and Ajila had discovered the locator and discarded it, or they were indeed nearby and had not gone far.
Tan Rou recalled what Kas had said. He mentioned that he just wanted to take Ajila out to see the sunlight and then bring him back. Maybe Kas was just taking Ajila for a walk and would return soon.
Considering this, Tan Rou decided to give them one more chance. If Kas truly did not bring Ajila back, then Tan Rou would go and find them herself, not for anything else but for money. She had gone through a lot to bring Ajila back, and it was not for nothing. Kas must give her a token of appreciation.
It was already past two in the afternoon. Tan Rou decided to get some lunch. She had heard that J-country’s roadside barbecue rice was very delicious and now was a good time to try it.
She asked the hotel staff where to find tasty roadside barbecue rice. Coincidentally, the location they pointed her to was very close to Ajila’s location, just fifty meters away.
When Tan Rou got to the dining spot, she first observed her surroundings, then went to eat.
The street was bustling with goods. The store on the left sold fruits, while the one on the right sold skewers, and next to it, a clothing store. Didn’t they worry about clothes getting a barbecue scent?
Following the coordinates displayed by the locator, Tan Rou found Kas and Ajila inside a flower shop. The door was closed, but the lights inside were on, indicating that there were people inside.
It turned out that the flower shop was likely owned by Kas. She hadn’t expected Kas to bring Ajila out just to take his son to his place of residence.
Tan Rou glanced a few times, then sat down in a barbecue restaurant diagonally opposite. She chose a seat near the door, from which she could see the flower shop across the street. If someone came out, she would notice immediately.
The waiter, seeing a foreign-looking girl come in to eat, asked her in an awkward common language, “Miss, what would you like to eat?”
Tan Rou really didn’t understand what the waiter had said, so she asked in J-country’s language, “What did you say?”
Relieved that she could speak J-country’s language, the waiter fluently asked, “Miss, what would you like to eat?”
Scanning the menu, Tan Rou noticed that the prices here were very reasonable, so she ordered the most expensive set meal.
The waiter was very pleased and immediately said, “Please wait a moment, your delicious meal will be served shortly.”
Rumor had it that restaurants were good places to gather information, hence Tan Rou intended to ask the waiter a few questions. This was also one of the reasons she had ordered the most expensive set meal—money well spent makes things easier.
Chapter 1393: 1392 low-key shop owner
It wasn’t long before Tan Rou’s combo meal was served. Since it was past the usual dining hour and there weren’t many customers in the shop, the server came over to chat with Tan Rou.
The server knew how to make conversation and, in addition to the combo meal Tan Rou had ordered, he also brought her a small platter of appetizers.
“Which country are you from, ma’am?” the server asked, sitting down at the table next to Tan Rou with a friendly smile.
Tan Rou replied, “I’m from Country C, here to work.”
The server nodded and said, “Oh, you’re from Country C. I have a friend who’s also from there. He comes to visit Country J every autumn.”
After some casual conversation, Tan Rou steered the topic towards what she wanted to ask. “I’m looking to buy some fresh flowers but I don’t know which shop has good ones. Could you recommend one?”
The server enthusiastically responded, “There’s only one flower shop on this street. If you want to buy flowers, you should go there.”
Tan Rou knew which shop he was talking about but her goal wasn’t really to buy flowers; she was trying to gather information about the flower shop owner. So she said, “Is there only one flower shop? Wouldn’t the flowers be of poor quality? Everyone says that competition breeds better products. If there’s only one shop here, might their flowers not be fresh?”
“That won’t be a problem,” the server explained. “Actually, there were several flower shops on this street before, but ever since Kas opened his flower shop here, other shops were embarrassed to stick around. Kas’s flowers are both beautiful and fresh, and the prices are very reasonable too. Everyone likes to buy from him. As time went by, the other flower shop owners left.”
Tan Rou still appeared puzzled. “If there’s only one flower shop, would the flowers be expensive? I have just started working here and don’t have much money. I can’t afford very expensive flowers.”
The server glanced at the meal Tan Rou had ordered. She noticed his gaze and said, “The money for food is separate; wherever I go I have to eat the best food.”
The server immediately nodded and said, “Right, right, you’re right. When it comes to food, you must eat the best.”
Then he continued the conversation about Kas. “You don’t need to worry about the price of the flowers because Kas has never raised his prices. Whatever the initial price was, it is still the same now.”
Tan Rou almost understood what kind of person Kas was. She smiled and said, “If the owner is so good, then surely many people come from other places to buy his flowers, right?”
“No no no,” the server said. “Only people from nearby buy his flowers, and he only sells to locals. If someone from elsewhere comes to buy flowers, he won’t sell to them.”
“Why is that?” Tan Rou asked.
The server explained, “Kas is a very low-key person. He says he isn’t selling flowers to make money, but rather to have something to do. If he had too many customers, he wouldn’t be able to handle it. He also doesn’t allow new customers to be brought in. Otherwise, he gets angry.”
Tan Rou could almost guess Kas’s thinking. He wanted to be closer to the palace but was worried about being discovered by the King, so he opened a flower shop as a cover. And the fewer people knew about his shop, the safer he was.
“So how can I go buy flowers?” Tan Rou looked troubled. “I really need to buy some bouquets.”
The server wasn’t just a chatterbox but also someone who liked to help. He said, “What kind of flowers do you need? I’ll go buy them for you.”
Tan Rou couldn’t possibly let him go buy the flowers because wanting to buy flowers was just a cover. What she really intended to do was to understand Kas’s character.
“I’ll go take a look myself,” Tan Rou said. “Because I’m a foreigner, he might sell the flowers to me when he sees my foreign face.”
The server didn’t insist further. He said, “If Kas doesn’t want to sell to you, just tell him I sent you to buy the flowers.”
Tan Rou smiled and nodded. “Thank you,” she said.
Before long, Tan Rou finished her meal. She said, “I’m going to buy flowers now. Hopefully, Mr. Kas won’t be too surprised when he sees me.”
The server found her words a bit odd, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on why.
“Well, I hope you enjoy your time in Country J!” he said.
Tan Rou waved her hand at him and then headed towards the flower shop across the road.
Chapter 1394: 1393 wants money
Tan Rou arrived at the entrance of the flower shop. Normally, the doors and windows of a flower shop are glass to facilitate sunlight coming in and to allow customers to select fresh flowers from outside.
Just like the shop assistant had just mentioned, Kas was very good at growing flowers; his green plants were very fresh. Even through the glass, Tan Rou could feel that the plants were very healthy.
The glass walls of the flower shop were almost entirely obscured by green leaves, leaving only tiny gaps. The situation with the glass door was slightly better, perhaps because decorations would impede movement, so there was nothing on it but a small pot of cactus.
J country is one plagued with water scarcity, which is why fresh cut flowers are a rarity in the market, with succulents being the primary commodities. However, Kas’s flower shop was different; inside, there were many fresh flowers and potted plants, even aquatic plants. Those flowers were so beautiful, not losing out in the slightest to the ones in Tan Rou’s greenhouse at home.
Tan Rou couldn’t help but take another look, and just as she peered through the glass door, suddenly, someone met her gaze. They stood facing each other, one inside and the other outside, both continuing to remain silent.
Kas couldn’t hold back any longer; he moved some things around inside then opened the door, “Please come in!”
Tan Rou said indifferently, “I’m not here to find you or Agila. I just came to buy some flowers. My hotel room has no green plants, and I find it quite uncomfortable, so I thought I’d buy a couple of pots to keep there. The barbecue restaurant’s staff said the flowers from this shop are the best looking, so I came over.”
Whether Kas believed her or not, his expression remained very calm as he said, “I took Agila with me because I didn’t think I should leave him there alone.”
“I know it was you who took him,” Tan Rou said. “I suppose if it were someone else, Agila probably wouldn’t have gone with them.”
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If Agila were the type to leave easily with someone, he wouldn’t have been wandering the airport for so long.
Kas said gratefully, “Thank you for bringing Agila back. You can pick any flowers you want, just consider it my way of saying thanks.”
Tan Rou’s ultimate purpose wasn’t to buy flowers, but she needed an excuse to stay there, so she entered.
Agila was hiding behind the counter, and when he saw Tan Rou, he smiled at her, “Sister Tan Rou.”
Tan Rou nodded at him and asked, “Are you happy by your father’s side?”
Agila replied, “Yes. We would be even happier if Mom could be here too.”
“As long as you’re happy,” Tan Rou said to Agila, then she turned her head to look at Kas, “Mr. Kas, perhaps that’s not your real name, but right now, I don’t want to dwell on that. I came here today intending to buy a few plants, but seeing you, I suddenly remembered something else.”
Kas asked, “Whatever you want to say, just say it. As long as I can help, I will.”
Fortunately, Tan Rou brought with her the paper invoice from the bank transfer. She didn’t know if Kas could understand the foreign language, but she showed it to him anyway.
“This is what I spent bringing Agila back. If he had been deceiving me, then I would have accepted my bad luck and dropped him off at the police station, considering the matter closed,” Tan Rou lifted the invoice for Kas to see, “But now that his father is here, I think it’s only right for his father to repay me this money, otherwise, I will have to take both of you to the police station.”
Kas looked at Tan Rou in surprise, “Why would you want to do that?” He might not recognize the words, but he understood the numbers—how could he possibly afford that hundred thousand US dollars?
“I won’t help a stranger for nothing,” Tan Rou said. “Just now I didn’t ask for the money because it seemed like you and your son had something important to discuss, but now that you’re done, isn’t it time to give me that money?”
Tan Rou had already been taken advantage of once in Agila’s matter and was not about to let that happen again. So, she had to demand some money from Agila’s parents to compensate for her losses. After all, she wasn’t close to this family; why should she help for free?
Kas looked at Tan Rou uncomfortably and finally said, “Alright, I will give you the money, but I do not have that much right now. Once I have enough, I will give it all to you.”
Chapter 1395: Reasons why 1394 can’t get married
Tan Rou wasn’t just missing this bit of money, was she? No, she was simply furious. She had kindly offered to help this family, only to find them leaving without a word. Had it not been for the locator that Tan Rou had prepared for him, she might not have been able to find them at all.
A word of thanks couldn’t compensate for Tan Rou’s loss. Although $100,000 wasn’t much for Tan Rou, it was still money, and she felt her request was perfectly reasonable.
When it came to choosing between a child and a sum of money, it depended on what the child’s parents found more important.
It seemed that Kas still cared a lot about Samiyi, he had chosen Samiyi between $100,000 and her. This choice made Tan Rou feel a little more favorable towards Kas.
“There’s no rush about the money; I’m just letting you know in advance. As long as you’ve gathered the sum before I leave, that’s fine,” Tan Rou said, “Moreover, Samiyi isn’t just your child, this money shouldn’t come out of your pocket alone. You can contact her mother. Everyone says the royal family of J is very wealthy, so Princess Samiyi should easily be able to afford this amount.”
Kas didn’t want to ask Samiyi for money. He said, “Samiyi’s situation in the palace is very difficult, and all her activities are being monitored by the King. If her account suddenly showed such a large withdrawal, the King would definitely discover it.”
“Since you know her life is under the King’s surveillance, why don’t you bring her out to live with you?” Tan Rou questioned, “You two already have a child, wouldn’t the King allow you to marry?”
“You’re not from our country, so you don’t understand our laws,” Kas sighed. “Our country has very strict marital requirements. Once married, neither party is allowed to cheat. If anyone does, regardless of their gender, they will be imprisoned.”
Tan Rou quite liked this set of laws. “Isn’t that a good thing? It ensures marital stability.”
Kas shook his head, “These are the post-marriage requirements, but there are also pre-marriage mandates. Our country’s laws prohibit premarital pregnancy. If a woman becomes pregnant before marriage, she must abort the child and then go to prison. If a man fathers a child before marriage, he too must serve time—longer than the woman.”
“Ah? Such an outrageous law!” Tan Rou had never heard of such legislation before, “Is your country that keen on imprisonment? Can your country’s jails even accommodate so many people?”
Kas also found this legislation ridiculous, “Steal a car, and you’ll be locked up for half a month, but for premarital pregnancy, the man gets one year and the woman half a year.”
Tan Rou felt her lips twitch as she asked, “Does your King think there are too many people in your country?” Then she thought for a moment. J did indeed have a large population and abundant labor force, and no issue with an aging populace, so perhaps they didn’t encourage childbirth.
But still, laws that imprison people for premarital pregnancy were too severe, and it wasn’t just a day or two in jail—it was six months to a year. After a year, the prisoners would be released with their jobs gone, love lost, and no children either.
“Ridiculous, these laws are utterly ridiculous!” That was the only way Tan Rou could describe them.
Kas continued, “The King dislikes us being together, so I planned to take Samiyi and leave. We’d go live in another country, where I’d still be a gardener, she’d wait at home for my return. We’d also have a lovely child who would go to school there, learn new things. But now, all that has become a fantasy.”
“Then just take your child and leave by yourself,” Tan Rou suggested, “Once you’re settled abroad, figure out a way to bring Samiyi out. Whether you have to scale walls or burrow underground, just bring her out and then quickly leave J—don’t stay there any longer.”
“No, I can’t abandon Samiyi alone!” Kas rejected Tan Rou’s suggestion, “If the King disapproves of our marriage, I will wait here until the day Samiyi can leave the palace.”
Tan Rou gave Kas a thumbs up, “You’ll make a good husband!” But she didn’t see him as a good father—don’t you plan to send your child to school?
Chapter 1396: The Letter from Princess 1395
“I am not yet qualified to be a husband,” Kas said with a bitter smile, “Only when I bring Samiyi out, will I have the right to be her husband.”
“How can you be so sure that Samiyi will follow you through hardship?” Tan Rou reminded Kas, recalling the incident that had occurred in the cloakroom, “She is a noble princess who has been taken care of by others since she was born. If she marries you, can you still provide that kind of life for her?”
Kas certainly couldn’t offer Samiyi a lavish lifestyle; what he could offer her was only flowers and love. That was why, when their affair was discovered by the King, he did not insist on taking Samiyi away. It was because Samiyi’s royal brother could offer her better protection.
However, being unable to bear the pain of being separated from his lover and child, Kas returned here, changed his name, and grew a beard to become a different person. He hoped that one day he would meet Samiyi here again, but Samiyi hadn’t left the palace in ten years.
During one outing, he encountered a former friend who was also a gardener. The friend was astonished to see Kas, for he had thought that the King had executed him or sentenced him to life imprisonment, never to be released. He hadn’t imagined that Kas was still alive, had come back to this place, and had opened a flower shop less than a kilometer away from the palace; he was indeed bold.
Feeling sympathy for Kas and Princess Samiyi, that friend helped them exchange messages. Although there were only one or two opportunities to pass messages a year, to Kas, it was already enough.
From the photographs he received from his friend, he learned that his child with Samiyi had been born and the King had named him Agila, but did not publicly reveal Agila’s identity. Up to this moment, Agila had no personal identification.
Samiyi also received photos of Kas from the gardener. She would often take them out to look at, and show them to the child, hoping her child would remember his father.
It was with the help of this friend that Agila was able to recognize Kas at first sight.
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“This is very good,” Kas said despondently, “I have no way to bring Samiyi out, nor can I take good care of them. Perhaps staying in the palace is the best outcome for them.”
Tan Rou wanted to scold Kas some more, but her cell phone suddenly rang. Thinking it was a message from Shang Jin and others, she took out her phone to have a look.
The person contacting Tan Rou was not Shang Jin, but Princess Samiyi. Princess Samiyi was asking if she had time for afternoon tea at the palace.
Tan Rou didn’t have the habit of drinking afternoon tea. She liked neither flower tea nor sweet pastries, so she intended to decline Princess Samiyi’s invitation.
Just as she was about to type a refusal, she suddenly thought of Kas, so she asked, “Princess Samiyi has invited me for afternoon tea. Do you have anything you want to say to her? I can relay your message.”
“You… How do you have her contact information?” Kas asked, shocked.
Tan Rou replied, “I added her this morning. Do you have anything you want to say to her or not?”
Kas made a bold decision and called Agila over, “Miss Rou, I know you are a good person. I will remember your help for a lifetime. As for the money you want, I will find a way to pay you. But now, there is one more favor I’d like to ask, and I hope you can agree to my request. After the favor is done, I will definitely give you another sum of money.”
Tan Rou roughly guessed what Kas was thinking, “You want me to take Agila back with me?”
Kas nodded and said, “Yes, Agila will be safer staying in the palace, so I still want him to go back to Samiyi’s side.”
Tan Rou said, “Have you even asked Agila if he wants to go back?”
Kas was very firm in his stance, “Whether he wants to go back or not, he has to go back.”
Agila, however, said, “I don’t want to go back. If I go back, it will only cause trouble for Mom! I came out this time to avoid causing her trouble!”
Chapter 1397: 1396 sensible children
“Although most people don’t know that I am my mother’s child, there are some who know whose child I am, and they mock my mother, calling her a shameless woman!” Agira cried, “I don’t want to stay in the palace anymore, staying there only causes trouble for my mother, and without me, she could still marry someone else!”
Children raised by their mothers are undoubtedly closer to them. Agira had always lived with Princess Samiyi, naturally considering his mother the most important person in the world. But for the sake of his mother’s future, the young child chose to leave secretly, which required courage.
If it were up to Tan Rou to decide, she didn’t think she would be braver than Agira.
Kas didn’t know how to comfort Agira, feeling extremely guilty because he lacked the ability to take care of both his lover and his child, and even seeing them was a luxury.
“Agira…” Kas gently stroked Agira’s head.
But Agira pushed his hand away and said with firmness, “If you are unwilling to take me with you, then I will leave this place. After all, I’ve been living at the airport, and I’ve been doing just fine, so I can go back there!”
“You can’t go back.” Tan Rou pinched Agira’s face and then said with a smile, “If you go back, wouldn’t my efforts be wasted? Besides, your father has already agreed to give me the money, and if you go back, I won’t get that money.”
Agira struggled for a moment and said, “Sister Tan Rou is a good person; I can’t let you waste your money. Wait till I grow up; I will earn money then, and then I can repay you.”
Tan Rou playfully said, “How will you repay me? Surely you’re not going to steal bread to exchange for money, are you?”
Agira’s face reddened, and he said softly, “I can earn money myself, help others water their gardens, arrange flowers, and even clean for money!”
The young child didn’t understand what earning money was really like. Agira had always lived inside the palace, meeting only gardeners and cleaners, so he was unaware that in today’s society, even watering flowers and arranging them required qualifications.
“By the time you grow up, those jobs might not even need people anymore.” Tan Rou said, “I study robotics, and there are already robots for watering and cleaning. Do you think an employer would prefer a cheap robot that works constantly, or an employee who always requires pay?”
Agira was a smart child, and he instantly grasped Tan Rou’s point, thus he fell into thought, “There will always be jobs that need people.”
“Of course.” Tan Rou affirmed his answer, “Robots also need people to operate them, but can you do that?”
“I can learn!” Agira declared.
Tan Rou smiled again, “How many characters do you know?”
Agira had nothing to say then; though he was the nephew of the King, his birth was not honorable, and the King forbade him from revealing his identity. In public places, the King did not even allow him to call Samiyi ‘Mother’.
The characters he learned were taught by Samiyi, who could only teach him some simple words and sentences. If he wanted to gain knowledge, he still needed to attend school.
“I… I will definitely repay you!” By the end, all Agira could do was repeat this sentence.
Tan Rou felt sympathy for the young child, who was only nine years old. What should a nine-year-old be doing? They should be going to amusement parks with family and friends, discussing whether last night’s cartoon was good, and holding hands on trips to the store for treats. He shouldn’t be here agonizing over how to repay someone or how to earn money.
“In our country, children of this age should be in classrooms learning.” Tan Rou was dissatisfied with the laws of this country, “Just because he is an illegitimate child does not mean he should be excluded from the classroom. If education is not guaranteed, how can this country develop technology?”
Tan Rou understood what Kas meant; he also wanted to send Agira to school, but he was unable to prove Agira’s identity. If Agira’s situation were exposed, both he and Samiyi would end up in jail.
“Agira will stay with you for now.” Tan Rou said impatiently, “I will find Princess Samiyi and tell her where Agira is.”
Tan Rou couldn’t be certain that the King wasn’t monitoring Princess Samiyi’s phone as well, so she couldn’t use the phone to discuss matters with Samiyi and had to find an opportunity to speak with Samiyi alone.
Chapter 1398: Majestic King 1397
Tan Rou was invited to the palace, and if it wasn’t for her desire to discuss Agira with Princess Samiyi, she truly would not have wanted to come here. She thought it best to finish her business quickly and leave, otherwise she would suffer from a headache.
Upon returning to the palace, Tan Rou felt her headache beginning to throb. She had once admired the scenery of the palace, but now she just wanted to get her tasks done and leave. With every additional minute she stayed, her head ached that much more.
“Miss Rou, good afternoon!” Princess Samiyi stood gracefully in front of the pavilion, “I am very pleased to see you again.”
Tan Rou did have a fondness for Samiyi, and with a slight smile, she said, “Since the princess invited me, I certainly could not refuse.”
Princess Samiyi arranged a seat for Tan Rou, “Miss Rou, please sit over here.”
As Tan Rou sat down, she felt extremely awkward. She was clearly here to discuss cooperation, but after arriving in J country, everything seemed to have changed. The cooperation had not yet started, but she had already had tea with the princess twice. Those unaware would think she was in J country for a vacation.
This idleness was a bit too much, but there was nothing to be done. She and her group had been in touch constantly, hoping to finalize the project soon, but the other party seemed in no hurry at all, always busy with other matters.
Princess Samiyi brewed a cup of green tea for Tan Rou and said, “I heard green tea is a specialty in your country, so I switched to green tea for you. Try it out and see if it suits your taste.”
Tan Rou wasn’t fond of tea, but she was knowledgeable about medicinal herbs, so she could distinguish whether the tea was good or not.
She took a gentle sip, and the tea tasted really nice, bitter at first and then sweetly refreshing after, very rich, though there was a bit of a strange flavor.
“You’ve put too much tea leaves,” Tan Rou said, “You shouldn’t use so many tea leaves for brewing tea, and the first wash of the tea leaves should be discarded, not drunk.”
Just because Tan Rou didn’t like drinking it, didn’t mean she hadn’t had good tea before. Speaking of which, none could probably compare to the tea from Clearwater Pavilion, where even the barley tea was more aromatic than other places.
Princess Samiyi was a bit embarrassed, she apologized, “Sorry, next time I’ll brew it better.”
“No need,” Tan Rou said, “I don’t enjoy drinking tea. And I presume you didn’t invite me here just to have tea, did you?”
Princess Samiyi nodded lightly, “Actually, I sent you a message to test you.”
“You wanted to test my curiosity, right?” Tan Rou leaned back, adopting a relaxed posture, “If I came, it would mean I’m interested in your matters, and you could ask for my help. If I didn’t come, you could seek someone else, right?”
“Yes,” Samiyi admitted, “I was indeed testing you because I want . . .”
Just as she was about to ask for Tan Rou’s help, she suddenly saw a familiar figure approaching and quickly retracted her words, then continued to make tea for Tan Rou.
“Miss Rou, try this cup of tea, it’s made with a different kind of tea leaves,” Princess Samiyi returned to her graceful and dignified demeanor, her movements very beautiful, like a performance.
Tan Rou caught on quickly, cooperating with Samiyi, “Hmm, the previous tea tasted great, let me try this one.”
It was as if they had merely been tasting tea and had discussed nothing else.
A tall middle-aged man surrounded by numerous bodyguards approached the pavilion. He had eyes like Laka’s, but whereas Laka’s eyes were filled with naivety, this middle-aged man’s gaze was cold.
He began, “Welcome to my kingdom, esteemed guest from afar.” Although he was welcoming Tan Rou, his expression was very serious, without a trace of a smile.
Tan Rou stood up and spoke very respectfully, “Your Majesty the King, I am pleased to meet you here.”
The King’s gaze swept between Tan Rou and Samiyi, then said, “I’m surprised that Miss Rou has such strong social skills, having become friends with the princess so quickly.”
Tan Rou replied, “Princess Samiyi is very approachable. I really like Her Highness’s personality, and since we got along well, we became friends.”
The King said, “I heard you told the princess a lot about the outside world this morning and even encouraged her to go out and see for herself, that’s very nice.”
Unsure of the King’s intentions, Tan Rou responded, “Your Majesty, my work involves mechanical research. If I didn’t discuss these things with the princess, I wouldn’t know what else to talk about.”
Chapter 1399: 1398 Silent Atmosphere
“I’m also very curious about other countries, why don’t we chat together,” the King said.
However, his expression didn’t seem like he was there to chat at all; it looked more like he was there to listen to a report, and if Tan Rou said anything that displeased him, he might just drag her out to execute her.
Yet, Tan Rou wasn’t afraid of the King; she was here for work, and if the King dared to trouble her, she would immediately leave with her team. Moreover, she wasn’t worried about the King not letting her go, because as long as she wanted to leave, she could definitely do so.
“Your Majesty, we are not discussing national affairs, just some achievements in technological development. If you are interested, we can talk more about it,” Tan Rou said right from the start, letting the King know she wouldn’t discuss politics much. If the King wasn’t interested in their topics, then she needn’t speak further.
The King seemed quite idle; he didn’t care at all about the topics Tan Rou discussed, “I’m also quite interested in technological developments, Miss Rou, if you want to talk, then you can elaborate more. It would be best to discuss how our country should develop its technology next.”
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Tan Rou really wanted to say “you shouldn’t be asking me this,” but she knew the King definitely wouldn’t want to hear that, so she said, “Technological development should be based on the national conditions of the country. I don’t know much about Country J, so I don’t know how Country J should develop its technology next. Your Majesty, perhaps you could discuss this matter with your ministers. I think Mr. Jimi is quite capable, surely he has many ideas.”
The King dismissed Tan Rou’s suggestion, saying, “Jimi’s thinking has solidified; he is fit to receive foreign guests, but discussing technological development is definitely not his forte.”
Tan Rou inwardly scoffed, knowing his incapability in the field of technology, yet you still appointed him as the person in charge of this project. This was like making a PE teacher the head of the math department; surely, the school’s mathematics would deteriorate.
“Hehehe.” Tan Rou laughed a few times, but didn’t dwell on that issue anymore.
With the King there, Samiyi couldn’t continue their previous topic, so she just sat on the side like a background board, occasionally having to pour some tea for Tan Rou and the others.
With Samiyi not speaking, Tan Rou not wanting to talk much with the King, and the King not being one to initiate conversation, the atmosphere became very silent.
This time, aside from hearing the “gurgle” sound of the tea boiling on the stove, no other sounds could be heard.
After quite a while, just when Tan Rou felt she had had enough tea, the King spoke again, “It seems Miss Rou doesn’t enjoy chatting with an old person like me. In that case, let’s have the young people come and talk to you.”
Tan Rou was a bit curious about who the King would call. She guessed Lin Yu would come, as Lin Yu was from her country, and he had exerted a lot of effort in this cooperation, so it was normal for him to be here.
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The King called two people, one of whom was indeed Lin Yu, but the other was beyond Tan Rou’s expectation. Instead of the Laka she had guessed, it was Rake, the chief designer she had met once.
In the morning, Tan Rou had already met with Rake. Rake hardly spoke; wherever he went, he just stood there, daydreaming. Someone unaware might think the chief designer was mute.
Even though professionals had come, the professionals weren’t talkative either. How could Tan Rou strike up a conversation with him? Observing the people from this country, Tan Rou really felt weary; she shouldn’t have signed the project contract, as collaborating with them was simply too exhausting.
Fortunately, Lin Yu was there. Although he wasn’t very knowledgeable in the field of technology, he surely knew much more than the King and Jimi, and Tan Rou could still have a conversation with him.
The arrival of Lin Yu and Rake livened up the atmosphere a bit, mainly because Tan Rou and Lin Yu, the two foreigners, were talking, while the other three local members of Country J could hardly get a word in.
Tan Rou awkwardly said, “Mr. Lin, I feel like we are like storytellers in a martial arts novel.”
Lin Yu responded very calmly, “You’ll get used to it, I’ve been doing it for several years now.”
The King said, “Continue, what were you talking about, the subway, what is that thing?”
Chapter 1400: A very tiring day in 1399
Tan Rou and Lin Yu had to take turns explaining to the king what a metro was and how high-speed rail operated.
The nation J was severely affected by desertification, characterized by abundant sandstorms and sandy landscapes, making even road construction challenging, let alone high-speed rail.
The king was very interested, he asked, “Based on what you two envision, when could my country possess such transportation?”
Given the situation in Nation J, it was estimated that even in fifty years, they would not be able to construct metros and high-speed rails, as their level of technological development did not meet the requirements for building metros. Moreover, since the civilians in Nation J were quite poor, would the king agree to let them use the metro at an affordable price?
The king would definitely not do that, in his eyes, everything in the country belonged to him, including the money in the civilians’ hands.
Tan Rou gave Lin Yu a look, signalling him to chat with the king.
Lin Yu said, “Your Majesty, we mustn’t rush things. Right now, the projects we are discussing involve robots and locators, so let’s settle this issue first. Besides, Miss Tan Rou isn’t a specialist in transportation, even if you question her, she wouldn’t know the answers.”
Tan Rou concurred, “Yes, I don’t know much about that area. I’ve told you all I know. If you’re interested in transportation, perhaps you could have your research personnel look into it.”
The king could tell that Tan Rou didn’t want to talk anymore, so he switched the topic, “I heard from Mr. Lin that you want to use my country’s satellite to study locators; which satellite do you want to borrow?”
Nation J had satellites, but their satellites were not built by them, they were purchased. The king was very wealthy, so buying several satellites was not an issue.
After hearing the king’s words, Tan Rou was momentarily confused by what the king had said. Locators had already been developed, so how could they possibly need to borrow Nation J’s satellite to study locators?
What Tan Rou meant was that the operation of the locators required Nation J’s satellite; only if the locator and the satellite could work together could the locator be effective, otherwise the locator would just be an ornament.
“Perhaps Your Majesty has misunderstood my explanation,” Tan Rou clarified, “I don’t mean to borrow Nation J’s satellite to study locators. Instead, our company’s locator needs a compatible satellite system to function properly. We are not very familiar with your country’s satellite positioning, so further study is needed.”
The king, not wanting to listen to so many technical terms, said plainly, “Just discuss whatever you need directly with Rake; he will cooperate with you in the research. But I must warn you, if you intend to steal our national secrets, I will not let you off easily.”
If not for the crowd there, Tan Rou really wanted to roll her eyes at the king; what nonsense was he talking about? What was the level of development in Nation J, and what was the level of development in her own country? Anyone with a brain could tell which country had higher technological standards.
The king warned Tan Rou not to steal Nation J’s secrets, but even if Nation J placed their secrets in front of Tan Rou, she wouldn’t give them a second glance. Backward countries with backward thinking and backward technological standards made Tan Rou’s head ache just thinking about it.
Furthermore, dealing with this arrogant and ignorant king, Tan Rou really wanted to slam the table and leave; she could pay the breach of contract fee because she just didn’t want to cooperate with such a person.
Seeing that Tan Rou was getting impatient, Lin Yu hastily said, “Your Majesty, please be assured, Miss Tan Rou is a very structured businesswoman and they are highly committed to contractual agreements, so you don’t need to worry about them stealing Nation J’s secrets.”
The king still trusted Lin Yu, and upon hearing his words, he nodded slightly, “Okay, let’s leave it at that then, I have other matters to attend to and must leave now. You all can continue the discussion.”
Tan Rou couldn’t wait for the king to leave, so she said with a smile, “Please go ahead with your affairs, I will discuss the project with Mr. Rake.”
After the king left, Tan Rou murmured to Lin Yu softly, “Mr. Lin, do you think this is a good deal?”
Lin Yu just smiled and didn’t respond.
Tan Rou felt mentally exhausted; no work had ever made her feel this drained before.