Chapter 101: The Discovery of Oil

"Hey, kid, I'm standing right here, and you're already trying to swipe my girlfriend away to your place!"

Xiahou Yu landed a heavy slap on Guangming's back. Guangming stumbled, staring at Yingyue with pure disbelief, and stammered, "That... that... Yingyue, are you... are you really the Vice President's girlfriend?"

Guangming waited for her answer with bated breath, praying silently that she wouldn't say "yes." He had finally taken a liking to a girl, a wonderful girl at that—she absolutely couldn't be taken!

Yingyue shot a glare at Xiahou Yu and smiled at Guangming. "Don't listen to his nonsense. I don't have a boyfriend."

Guangming’s eyes lit up instantly upon hearing her answer. He repeated happily, "Really? Really? Really?"

"Are you a broken record?" Xiahou Yu said, dissatisfied. "'Really? Really? Really?'"

To his surprise, his complaint earned him another eye-roll from Yingyue. She turned back to Guangming and said, "Really! Really! Really!"

Great! Two broken records.

Xiahou Yu rolled his eyes at the sky.

After a moment of silly grinning, Guangming’s expression suddenly turned serious, and his brows furrowed.

"What's wrong?" Yingyue asked, sensing something had happened.

"It’s like this, Yingyue," Guangming hesitated, then decided to speak. "I've discovered oil in these waters!"

"Oil?" Yingyue’s eyes widened in shock.

The previously languid Xiahou Yu sat up straight, his expression turning grave in an instant.

This was a problem. A massive, catastrophic problem.

In a world currently facing energy shortages, this news, instead of bringing joy, caused their brows to knit together.

Oil had been discovered on Sirius Island—within this small patch of sea already purchased by Blue Tear. They had found liquid gold!

This wasn't a stroke of good luck; it was a meteor strike of terrible news.

"Does anyone else know about this?" Xiahou Yu asked in a low, serious voice.

Yingyue also looked at Guangming with a stern expression.

Seeing them both so grave, Guangming’s heart sank. As expected, this was not good news.

"Not yet. I discovered it in the seabed where we are planning to develop the underwater world. Not only is it an ocean basin, but the rocks in the basin are sedimentary, showing clear signs of marine fossil deposits. These are all significant indicators of oil underneath."

"How do you know so much about undersea oil?" Xiahou Yu asked, his eyes narrowing, his gaze dark and unreadable.

Guangming scratched the back of his head, grinning sheepishly. "I majored in geology in college, and later, my master’s and doctorate were both in engineering."

Xiahou Yu thought for a moment before asking, "Are the features of that basin obvious?" If they were, wouldn't they be in extreme danger?

Guangming understood what Xiahou Yu meant and replied seriously, "Not really. Unless someone has studied geology, the average person wouldn't see anything different there."

"I see." Xiahou Yu nodded. After a long pause, he said to Yingyue in a low voice, "I think we have a ticking time bomb on our hands. Or perhaps something even worse."

Yingyue had remained silent during their conversation. Hearing Xiahou Yu’s heavy words, she came back to her senses and smiled. "Perhaps it’s not a bomb, but a bulletproof vest. Who knows?"

Xiahou Yu froze. The tension in his brow instantly smoothed out, and he smiled at her. He turned back to see Guangming looking at them with a bewildered expression. He raised an eyebrow, gave Guangming another slap on the back—not caring if he almost knocked the man over—and said grandly, "Only the three of us know about this. Just treat it like something you read in the newspaper. Don't take it to heart; everything continues as usual." With that, he took Yingyue’s hand and walked away.

Guangming watched their retreating figures until they vanished. He felt a bit dissatisfied, his back still stinging from the slap.

If only three people knew, how could he not take it to heart? Wasn't that a contradiction?

Guangming shook his head in frustration and turned back to focus on his blueprints. If the bosses weren't worried, why should he be? He wasn't some court eunuch!

Xiahou Yu led Yingyue back to his small cabin. His relaxed demeanor vanished, and he looked at her seriously. "What do you plan to do about this?"

Yingyue glanced at him, stood up, went to the cupboard, took out some tea leaves, a set of purple clay tea ware, and boiled a kettle of water. She performed the entire tea-making ritual without skipping a beat. Finally, when Xiahou Yu couldn't hold back anymore and spoke, "Yingyue—"

Yingyue picked up a small purple clay cup and poured the boiling tea directly toward Xiahou Yu’s mouth.

"Wow! It’s burning! Yingyue, are you trying to murder me?"

Yingyue watched with amusement as Xiahou Yu’s lips swelled up like a pig’s snout. She picked up her own cup, blew on it, took a gentle sip, and said calmly, "I haven't decided yet."

"Yingyue, if you’ve disfigured me, I’m going to cling to you for the rest of my life. Don't you think—" Xiahou Yu was still rambling when he heard her words. He froze, his mouth hanging open in shock. "Yingyue, what... what did you just say?" He dug at his ear, unable to believe it.

Yingyue gave him a look of disdain and repeated airily, "You heard me correctly. I haven't decided how to handle this yet."

"Then... then why were you acting so confident just now?" Xiahou Yu protested.

"That’s called being calm and composed." After saying this, Yingyue stood up and walked outside, moving faster and faster because—

"Yingyue, you stop right there! See if I don’t make you lose your composure!" Xiahou Yu jumped up to chase her, his grumbling echoing cheerfully.

Inside the room, Guangming heard their shouts and couldn't help but smile. He thought with envy: "As expected, those who do great things handle everything with such ease. The very thing I was worrying myself sick over, they don't even care about."

In the distance, Xiahou Yu, while chasing Yingyue, suddenly stumbled and nearly fell.

***

Wyatt Villa, England.

"Arthur, when are we leaving?" Maria swept through the villa like a green whirlwind and arrived at Arthur’s side.

Arthur looked at Maria, his blue eyes thoughtful.

Hill stood beside Arthur, looking at Maria with a similarly contemplative expression.

Maria felt a slight chill under their gaze and said uncomfortably, "Wh... what is it? Why are you looking at me like that?"

Arthur pulled his gaze away from her and said to Hill, "Watch her; I’m going upstairs to change." He stood up and headed for the stairs.

Maria was about to follow, but Hill stepped in front of her, bowing respectfully. "Miss Maria, please wait here a moment longer." With that, Hill also headed upstairs.

Behind them, Maria’s expression flickered, though she quickly put on a look of wounded, aggrieved innocence.

Upstairs, Arthur stood in the dressing room, taking the clothes Hill handed him. Hill looked at Arthur, appearing as if he had something to say but was holding back.

Arthur glanced at him and said coolly, "Speak."

Hill exhaled and said nervously, "Your Highness, I feel that Miss Maria has been a bit strange lately."

Arthur continued to dress and adjust his clothes in the mirror as he asked, "Strange how?"

Hill glanced at Arthur. Seeing no sign of displeasure, he continued, "Miss Maria’s attitude toward you and Miss Yingyue is odd. Before, she clearly despised Miss Yingyue and was always hovering around you, impossible to shake off. But last time, when you asked for her help, she didn't show her usual enthusiasm. Her attitude was indifferent. And the strangest thing is, she didn't go to cause trouble for Miss Yingyue. After helping you, she didn't linger as she usually does; she left before you even asked. And most bizarrely, after Miss Yingyue left, Miss Maria returned to her old 'enthusiastic' self."

Hill watched Arthur’s expression carefully as he spoke, only continuing once he saw that Arthur remained impassive.

Hill couldn't help but admire Arthur inwardly; as expected, if it wasn't about Miss Yingyue, His Highness simply didn't care.

"The world of female creatures is always so ever-changing and incomprehensible." Arthur finished, left the room, and headed downstairs, leaving Hill standing there like a statue.

*Your Highness, could you please not be so venomous with your tongue? 'Female creatures'? How could you even say that! Even if you don't like Miss Maria, you shouldn't describe a graceful woman in such a crude and vulgar way!*

Hill grumbled in his heart while Arthur walked ahead, completely unaware of the impact his dismissive words had caused. Of course, if he knew what Hill was thinking, he would likely say, "It’s time for you to retire."

Hearing footsteps behind her, Maria turned around.

She saw Arthur dressed in medieval noble attire, his dazzling golden hair falling loosely and defiantly over his shoulders. He walked toward her with elegant strides. A look of wonder flashed across Maria's eyes! Of course, her admiration would have been more sincere if one ignored the purple hues of his outfit and the purple brooch on his chest.

Maria looked at his clothes and the brooch, a flash of complex emotion crossing her eyes. She then smiled, hooked her arm through his, and looked up at him with a grin.

Arthur did not look at Maria, missing the emotion in her eyes. He said coldly, "Let’s go."