Chapter 44: Keep It Up, Brother-in-Law 21

I decided to check on Yeyu first. Slan had been lost in thought all day, distracted by what happened earlier.

The fact that a cute dragon ate grass was quite a shock to Yeyu. After watching the dragon devour everything in the kitchen, there was no choice; between its size and appetite—even at its cutest, the dragon weighed at least a ton—Yeyu took it to the vegetable patch behind the manor.

Yeyu remarked, "It's getting dark outside; I can't just let a dragon wander off on its own."

Xining remained speechless.

Half an hour later, the dragon returned, happily clutching a large basket overflowing with Chinese cabbage. Watching it sprawl out on its pink bed, picking up the cabbages one by one with its claws and daintily biting off only half at a time, was a scene of such unbearable cuteness that it was hard to look at directly.

The dragon even squinted its eyes in delight, murmuring, "Mmm, delicious."

What kind of bizarre world was this, where a pink sub-dragon existed, and a vegetarian one at that?

When the weather cleared, the water on the ground mostly dried up after a day. Molly brought in two sets of clothes, claiming Yeyu had sent someone to the town to buy them. Xining tried them on; they fit perfectly, but why were they pinkish-purple? The colors were so vibrant and saturated that she couldn't help but question Yeyu’s taste. Standing next to the pink dragon, the whole scene felt like something out of a sugary fairy tale.

When she saw the dragon wearing matching pinkish-purple bows on its neck, tail, and its two red horns, Xining thought to herself, *I am sticking to my black magic robes.*

The dragon, however, seemed delighted, constantly twisting its neck and flicking its tail, terrified that people might miss its girly, flamboyant bows. When Xining ignored it, it made a point of drawing attention to how different it looked today.

Xining didn't reply. With a long face, she said calmly, "Molly, bring me my black robes."

But Molly refused, insisting that since the master had bought them, she had to wear them, claiming the other clothes were being washed or returned. When Xining checked the closet for the second set, she groaned—it was magenta! And it came with a full set of matching magenta bows for the dragon. It was clear now: Yeyu either had terrible taste or was doing this on purpose.

Slan certainly wouldn't have bothered buying her clothes; his entire soul was tied up with Maria. He sat there day after day, his cheeks flushing like peach blossoms one moment, looking miserable the next, and then sporting a faint smile. He cycled through these emotions so frequently that Xining felt her brother-in-law was on the verge of a mental breakdown.

After watching him for three days with no signs of improvement, Xining brought it up during dinner. "Brother-in-law, why don't you just call my sister over and talk it out?" She wanted to finish her mission and be done with it.

Lately, she and the dragon had been wearing "master and pet" couple outfits, living out a Barbie-like, overly sweet existence. Whenever Yeyu saw them, he would lean against the wall, clutching his scepter with a wicked, charming smile on his handsome face. The boy was full of mischief.

Slan hesitated but eventually nodded. "You're right. Whether Maria is willing to marry me or not, I owe her a proposal."

Touched, Xining felt even more compelled to help this rare, nearly extinct breed of a good man. Using the faint scent of perfume lingering on a hairpin, Slan used magic and a mirror to locate the cave where Maria lived, sending her a message to come and have a proper talk.

Maria didn't agree at first; it was Yeyu’s words that finally convinced her.

Yeyu had goaded her: "What’s the matter? Are you afraid of what my brother might do to you if you come over?"

Hitting a sore spot, Maria flared with rage. "Just wait! I’ll blast Slan Leng-Nan-Yan-Yu-Yan-Xue-Bing-Ling-Meng-J-Gamio into ashes and leave you to collect his remains!"

Listening nearby, Xining covered her forehead. Her sister really had a short-circuit in her brain. At a time like this, she still insisted on using the full, ridiculously long name. Besides, if he were blasted into ashes, there wouldn't be any remains to collect.

The resentful Maria, whose magical power was quite formidable, appeared outside in less than a minute, hovering in mid-air and roaring, "Slan Leng-Nan-Yan-Yu-Yan-Xue-Bing-Ling-Meng-J-Gamio! I’m here! Get out here and face me—I want to duel you!"

*How many times have they dueled already?* It seemed that their last "intimate" encounter had left Maria quite wounded; she didn't even mention her own sister today.

With Maria’s arrival, Slan became agitated. His sapphire eyes shone brightly, and he gripped his scepter so hard his knuckles turned white.

Xining cheered him on from inside: "Brother-in-law, just speak to my sister properly—though she probably won't listen."

Yeyu looked on... *What a great motivator.*

In reality, Slan just needed to use the same tactic as last time. He wasn't weaker than her; in terms of both magic and stamina, he absolutely surpassed Maria. Xining’s mind wandered back to the concept of time, and she couldn't help but mutter to herself, *Three hours, three hours...*

Slan’s breathing grew heavy with tension. "I will succeed. The proposal will definitely succeed."

"Yes, it definitely will," Xining said, not wanting to add more pressure. "You can do it. Go for it, brother-in-law!"

Yeyu joined in the encouragement, handing him a bottle of smelling salts. "Go for it, brother!"

Slan took the bottle, opened it, and inhaled deeply before shoving it back to Yeyu. Summoning his courage, he floated out to face Maria.

Yeyu chuckled, looking like a sly fox.

"What’s so funny?" Xining asked, puzzled.

Yeyu shook the bottle of smelling salts. "I tried changing the delivery method from oral to inhalation. It should work much faster. I'm not sure if it was a success yet."

"What?" Xining almost screamed, pointing at the bottle with wide eyes.

Yeyu arched a brow, just in time to hear a shriek from Maria outside: "Let me go, Slan! I didn't think you were this shameless! Let go..."

*The effects certainly were fast.* Yeyu wore a faint, calm smile. "Success."

*Good grief.* Xining stared at the scheming boy with her mouth slightly agape. She thought she was the queen of setting her sister up, but this boy was the king of sabotaging his own brother. Still, it was for the best; she had been wondering how to move to the next step, and he had solved it for her.

Yeyu curled his lips into a wicked, heart-stopping smirk. "Sister! Pleasure doing business with you." He looked exactly like a fellow schemer who had finally found his match. From now on, they were family, and Yeyu began calling her "sister."

Xining patted Yeyu on the shoulder with a solemn expression. "Brother, pleasure doing business with you."

It seemed the protagonists' halos were truly powerful. Just as she was worrying, a flamboyant, venomous supporting character delivered the potion, and a mischievous, black-bellied younger brother administered it. With a free supply of medicine and a pair of master-saboteurs on their side, how could Slan and Maria, those two hopelessly infatuated fools, not fall into the trap again?

As the potency of the potion took hold and his beloved was right in front of him, Slan refused to hold back, forcefully carrying Maria into the bedroom... The bed shook for another three hours.

This time, both of them let go of their inhibitions. It wasn't just the bed creaking; there were all sorts of moans and sounds they couldn't control. The commotion was so loud that Xining felt like covering her ears.

They truly were in great physical shape, the medicine worked wonders, and they were experts at everything they did!