Chapter 232: Electric Shock

Xie Rong remained silent.

The question lingered between them, heavier than the steam rising from the hot spring. He had thought about the possibility before, especially after learning that his existence in this world was already different from what it was supposed to be, but he had never found an answer he could confidently give her.

After a while, he gently tightened his hold on her hand. "I don’t know."

Wang Gege lowered her gaze.

Xie Rong watched her quietly before continuing, "But this husband doesn’t want to find out."

She looked up at him.

"There is no guarantee that dying here will return us to our world," he said. "There is also no guarantee that we would simply disappear from both worlds. We don’t know enough about how souls are moved between worlds to make that assumption."

Wang Gege nodded slowly, her expression becoming thoughtful.

"I was even thinking that if we died, perhaps we would return to our world." She smiled, finding her own thought absurd. "You know... since Xie An’an thought she might turn back time if she died... again..."

Xie Rong’s expression became complicated. "Furen really shouldn’t use Xie An’an’s reasoning as a reference."

"I know!" Wang Gege immediately laughed. "That’s why I said it sounded ridiculous."

She leaned back against the edge of the hot spring, looking up at the evening sky. "But after everything we’ve experienced, I don’t think I can call anything impossible anymore."

Xie Rong was silent for a moment before gently squeezing her hand. "That may be true, but this husband would still rather we don’t test every possibility ourselves."

Wang Gege turned toward him and smiled. "Don’t worry. I don’t intend to die just to find out. I still have too many things I want to do."

Xie Rong’s gaze softened. "Such as?"

Wang Gege thought for a moment before counting on her fingers.

"Since my goal is going home now, I want to eat all the food I’ve been missing, visit every place, go to every festival, and sleep in my own bed..." She paused and looked at him.

"And most importantly, spend every second with my husband."

A faint smile appeared on Xie Rong’s lips, but before he could say anything, Wang Gege suddenly reached out and pressed both of his cheeks, forcing his lips into a pout.

"Do you know how many times I cursed you before?" she asked, glaring at him playfully. "You can’t leave me no matter what when we go back home... promise?"

Her teasing expression slowly faded.

She paused, her eyes changing slightly as she looked at him.

"Since you’re the only one I have..."

Xie Rong’s smile disappeared.

For a moment, he simply looked at her, his cheeks still trapped between her hands.

Then he gently covered one of her hands with his own.

"This husband promises."

Wang Gege’s fingers loosened slightly.

"No matter what happens when we return, I won’t leave you." Xie Rong gently took her hand and held it tightly. "I don’t remember if I ever told you this since we are together..." He paused, his gaze softening as he looked at her. "I really love you, Furen..."

Wang Gege’s eyes softened, and for a moment, she could only stare at him, completely speechless.

The warmth of the hot spring suddenly felt different, and the words she had been waiting to hear seemed to settle somewhere deep in her heart.

But then...

"Ahem."

The sweet moment was abruptly interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat.

Both of them turned toward the sound.

Mini was hovering nearby, wearing an awkward grin.

"Aaaa... Mini didn’t mean to disturb Host and Husband, but Host didn’t tell Mini yet if Mini could go..."

Wang Gege, who was still trying to recover from Xie Rong’s confession, stared at Mini dumbfoundedly. "You never asked my permission to appear or go before, have you?"

Mini froze.

"Ha ha ha..." Mini blinked innocently. "Mini didn’t? But can Mini just stay here for a while? Mini promises Mini won’t disturb Host and Host’s husband..."

It raised its tiny pinky finger as if making a serious oath.

Wang Gege stared at the little pinky before looking at Mini’s face.

"And why...?" She tilted her head slightly, sensing that something was wrong.

Mini’s smile stiffened. "Why what, Host?"

"Why do you suddenly want to stay?" Wang Gege narrowed her eyes.

Mini’s tiny wings fluttered nervously.

"Because..." It glanced toward Xie Rong, then quickly looked away. "Mini just wants to accompany Host!"

Wang Gege shook her head, unconvinced. "Clearly, that’s not the real reason."

Mini’s cheeks puffed up.

"Mini..." It looked away for a moment before finally pouting. "Mini is arguing with Gemi!"

Wang Gege blinked. "Arguing?"

Mini nodded, looking rather aggrieved. "Yes! Gemi is so annoying!"

Xie Rong raised an eyebrow. "What did Gemi do?"

Mini crossed its tiny arms. "Gemi said Mini shouldn’t interfere with Host’s mission anymore!"

Wang Gege’s expression changed slightly. "Why would Gemi say that?"

"Because..." Mini hesitated, then lowered its voice. "Mini just wanted to help Host..." it paused, "When Mini heard Host finally wanted to return, Mini was so... happy Mini wanted to help Host go back faster..."

Wang Gege listened quietly, trying to read Mini’s guilty expression. "Did you do something?"

Mini looked down, "Mini... Mini..." she paused, huffing weakly, "Mini just... hinted to the Eight Prince to go to this hot spring..."

Wang Gege stared at Mini for a moment before her expression slowly turned incredulous. "You... hinted to the Eighth Prince to come here?"

Mini shrank under her gaze, its tiny hands nervously rubbing together. "Mhm..."

Xie Rong, who had been listening quietly beside her, raised an eyebrow. "And why did you do that?"

Mini glanced at Wang Gege before lowering its head again. "Because Mini wanted to help Host gain points for the final reward quickly..."

Wang Gege’s expression softened slightly. "You wanted to help me gain points?"

Mini nodded eagerly. "Mhm! Host said you wanted to return home, and Mini thought... if Host could help the Eighth Prince restore his storyline, then maybe Host could complete the hidden mission faster and get more Fortune Points!"

Wang Gege furrowed her brows slightly. "So Mini actually knew about all the hidden missions, right?"

Mini froze. Its eager expression slowly disappeared, and its tiny body stiffened in midair. "Ah..."

Wang Gege narrowed her eyes. "You said earlier that if you knew how many hidden missions there were, how could they be called hidden?"

Mini’s tiny hands immediately clasped together. "Mini... Mini only knew a little..."

"A little?" She blinked seriously at Mini.

"Maybe... more than a little..." Mini started to shrink in guilt.

Wang Gege stared at it.

Mini lowered its head guiltily. "Mini knew there would be hidden missions related to Host’s final mission, but Mini didn’t know exactly when they would appear..."

Xie Rong glanced at Mini. "Yet you knew helping the Eighth Prince could trigger one."

Mini hesitated before giving a tiny nod. "Mhm... Mini is sorry..."

"Then..." Wang Gege paused, glancing at Xie Rong for a moment as though she was still hesitating about whether she should ask, "if Mini really wanted to help, can Mini answer my question?"

Mini blinked a few times before looking at her. "It depends, Host. Mini really couldn’t answer questions related to this world... otherwise, our system’s restrictions would be triggered."

Wang Gege’s expression became slightly more serious. "Even if I only ask you one question?"

Mini nodded slowly. "Mhm. If the question is something Mini isn’t allowed to answer, the system will stop Mini from answering."

Xie Rong’s gaze darkened slightly. He seemed to understand what Wang Gege was thinking.

Wang Gege lowered her eyes, her fingers unconsciously tightening around his hand beneath the warm water. "Then I won’t ask you directly about this world."

Mini tilted its head.

Wang Gege looked up again. "I’ll ask you about something else."

The question she really wanted to ask was simple.

Who was the Eighth Prince’s female lead?

If Jiang Zhaoyuan truly was the Main Character, then his female lead should have existed somewhere in this world. Finding her might be the first step toward restoring the original storyline.

But if she asked Mini directly, would that count as asking about this world?

Wang Gege hesitated before looking at the little bee again. "What if I ask you about the Eighth Prince’s original storyline?"

Mini blinked. Its expression immediately became cautious. "Host..."

"That is not exactly asking you to tell me what will happen in this world, right?" Wang Gege raised her eyebrows in anticipation.

Mini tilted its head, apparently thinking very hard about the distinction.

After a few seconds, it raised one tiny finger. "Maybe..."

Wang Gege’s eyes brightened. "Maybe?"

"Mmm..." Mini remained silent for a few seconds before finally sighing. "Mini thinks... Host should just ask away. If it is a forbidden question, Mini will just receive an electric shock as a restriction. So—"

"Wait, wait!" Wang Gege’s eyes widened. "You what?!"