The Alien Prince Has Fallen for Me

Chapter 12: The Unfinished Kiss and Time-Space Fluctuation

Fu Yuan felt as if struck by a thunderbolt, his entire body frozen in place, his face ashen. "Ah...!"

Seeing this, Loli immediately tried to ingratiate herself. "Let me help you with the dipping sauce..."

Without even lifting his head, Xing Hun coldly stopped her. "No. Don't move. You're a suspect now. We'll do it ourselves."

Yue Yao nodded in agreement. She was growing more suspicious of the father-daughter pair by the minute. "I'm starving! Xing Hun, hurry up and grill!"

Though frustrated, Fu Yuan was also ravenously hungry. He silently walked over to help. Xing Hun glanced at him but didn't stop him.

The three of them gathered around the fireplace, roasting the meat Loli had brought and the little black snake until they sizzled. Fat dripped into the flames, releasing bursts of tantalizing aroma. They ate with gusto, momentarily setting aside thoughts of conspiracy and murder. Only Loli was left isolated, watching as Xing Hun attended to Yue Yao with meticulous care—handing her grilled meat one moment, wiping the corner of her mouth the next. Her face twisted with jealousy as she sat on the distant sofa, fuming in silence.

As she chewed on the grilled meat, Yue Yao recalled the radical organization she'd heard about the night before. Swallowing, she asked, "Why do you think those radical groups opposing knowledge chips want to kill me?" She was now Mei Guo, the biggest beneficiary and promoter of knowledge chips.

Xing Hun tossed the question to Fu Yuan. "I don't know. Fu Yuan, you answer."

Fu Yuan paused for a moment, as if organizing his thoughts, then spoke, his voice carrying a complex emotion. "Probably... because the implantation cost of knowledge chips is too high. They make it easier for the rich to acquire knowledge and skills, cementing their status, while the poor, unable to afford the steep price, lose the chance to change their fate or get good jobs. This widens inequality, leaving many people hungry, homeless, and without hope." There was a subtle heaviness in his tone.

Yue Yao was stunned. She recalled her own days as the coffee shop girl, Yue Yao, watching Xie Ling and Shirley flaunt their latest knowledge chips, feeling that bitter ache of helplessness. She, too, had resented this technology—seemingly fair, yet dividing people into tiers.

"The knowledge chips are too expensive..." she murmured, as if understanding something.

Fu Yuan looked at her contemplative expression and nodded. "Yes."

A thought arose in Yue Yao's heart. If the world was destined for destruction, could she, in these days under Mei Guo's identity, do something? Maybe not to save the world, but for that small shred of inner peace, to prove that "Yue Yao" had existed and mattered.

She lifted her head, meeting Fu Yuan's eyes with a clear, unwavering gaze. "Then I can implant knowledge chips for the poor for free."

The words struck like a bombshell! Fu Yuan's head snapped up, staring at her in disbelief, nearly dropping his grilled meat into the fire. He hadn't expected "Mei Guo" to make such a decision so readily. It completely disrupted his original assimilation plan—or rather, it stirred something buried deep within him.

"...Then on behalf of the poor, I thank you." Fu Yuan's voice was a little hoarse.

Yue Yao shook her head, a self-deprecating smile curling on her lips. "No need. I also hate the way some people show off their knowledge chips." Before her eyes, she could almost see Xie Ling and Shirley again, strutting into the coffee shop, flaunting their top-tier acting knowledge chips with that exaggerated, nauseating performance.

(Flashback) Parallel universe, 2028. The day of the global fungal virus outbreak.

In the cramped coffee shop, Yue Yao used her phone to activate the "work mode" of her implanted knowledge chip via an app. Her body immediately shifted into an automated state, her hands skillfully mixing various coffees and milk teas while her mind wandered freely, drifting through idle thoughts. Customer orders, controlled by the app, were completed through her mechanical yet precise movements.

The shop door swung open, and her ex-boyfriend Xie Ling walked in, arm in arm with his wealthy, beautiful girlfriend Shirley. The moment they entered, they eagerly activated the performance function of their latest song-and-dance knowledge chips, launching into a clumsy, over-the-top hot dance and song. It drew the attention of other customers—some envious, but most frowning in disapproval.

Under the chip's control, Yue Yao's body stiffly turned toward them, delivering the standard greeting: "Welcome! Please have a seat!"

Xie Ling swaggered up to the counter, deliberately leaning close to Yue Yao to show off. "Yue Yao, still can't afford to upgrade your knowledge chip, huh? Serves you right for being stuck working at a coffee shop your whole life. Let me tell you, I've already upgraded to the super performance data pack, signed with a talent agency, and I'll be a big star soon!"

Yue Yao's heart churned with anger and humiliation, but her body remained out of control, mechanically repeating: "Please place your order!"

Shirley walked over too, a mocking smile on her face. "Oh my, you've turned on work mode to escape reality, huh? We'll come here every day just to annoy you! Let me tell you, Xie Ling and I are about to move into our new villa. Jealous, aren't you?"

Yue Yao didn't want to deal with them. Suppressing her fury, she pointed to an empty seat. "Table 9 is available. Please take a seat."

Finding it boring, the two reluctantly sat down and ordered coffee.

Just then, the screen hanging in the shop began broadcasting an urgent news bulletin: "Global fungal virus outbreak! Contact with fungal spores will cause fever, coughing, and eventually deterioration of bodily functions, leading to slowed movement. Everyone must immediately wear masks and enter enclosed spaces with sterilization and fresh air systems. Do not expose yourselves to the outside unless absolutely necessary!"

For most people, this news was a disaster. For Yue Yao at that moment, it felt like a release. *"Finally, no more work? Perfect!"* She immediately deactivated work mode, took off her uniform, quickly packed up the cookies, chocolate, cream, and other food she could take from the shop, and fled that suffocating place without looking back. She ran toward her only refuge—the second-hand new-energy RV parked in the small yard behind the shop...

(End of flashback)

"Yue Yao? Yue Yao?" Xing Hun's voice pulled her back to reality.

Yue Yao shook her head, casting aside those unpleasant memories. She looked at the dancing flames before her and the two men beside her, each with their own thoughts, and suddenly spoke:

"Let's play a game." Her gaze swept over Xing Hun, Fu Yuan, and Loli, who was sitting in the distance. "Let's say there are two months left before a global outbreak of a fungal infection that makes people slow and grows blue mushrooms on their heads, turning everyone into mushroom people... Before the end of the world comes, what would you do?"

Her question left the three of them stunned. Xing Hun's eyes grew deep, Fu Yuan furrowed his brow, and Loli sneered inwardly: *"Hmph, three fools. There's no way the world is ending."*

Xing Hun spoke first. His voice was calm but carried an undeniable weight, his gaze fixed on Yue Yao. "I would stop the end of the world from happening."

Fu Yuan flashed an ambitious smile. "I'd prepare myself to become a ruler in the apocalypse."

Yue Yao looked at them, then finally turned her eyes to the flickering flames. She spoke softly, a trace of weariness and longing barely perceptible in her voice: "I'd eat well and have fun before the end, stock up on plenty of supplies, hide at home once the apocalypse hits, and then... just live well." It was the simplest, most genuine wish.

Hearing this, Xing Hun turned to her, his gaze tender and resolute. "Then write down everything you want to eat and do. I'll eat and play with you!"

A warm current quietly flowed through Yue Yao's heart. She nodded, a genuine smile—one belonging to "Yue Yao"—spreading across her face. "Okay!"