Qiu Ling indeed noticed that Ye Yang was trying to talk about more than his visit to their wedding today. Well, it wasn’t surprising, considering the things Xiang Yong had reported to him based on what Fu Min found out while snooping around in the past few weeks. Things really seemed to be changing in the demon realm and it was all thanks to this person.

Needless to say, he was happy to see this change. Even though so far, the demons hadn’t actually reached their goal and had always been beaten back, there had always been casualties on both sides. For the dragons especially, a second wave of tragedies often followed in the wake of each battle, when the soldiers’ partners finally succumbed to the curse. At that time, how many orphaned children would there be? How many bereaved parents and siblings? How many people whose friends were suddenly missing from their lives?

Of course, he didn’t want to see a repeat of that if possible. With this new demon king, maybe that would indeed be possible. But then, he would never just trust a demon’s word either. He had seen how that worked out for Jinde. He certainly wouldn’t make the same mistake.

No, this matter would take careful observation and discussion. Only if Ye Yang could believably prove that he wasn’t trying to play the long game would he consider the possibility of changing the relationship between their races. Until then … well, he’d just let him do what he wanted in his realm and continue being ready for whatever attack might come next.

Ye Yang naturally knew that they weren’t at a point to discuss anything further. Not to mention that there wasn’t any time for that today and the dragon king had other things on his mind, the demons’ track record wasn’t great and it’d need a lot more than a few words to convince this person that things could change. He knew and he understood the reasons well. Even though he wouldn’t mind if things were easier, he’d work on this slowly. Today was merely the first step.

He gave the two of them a faint smile and inclined his head. “Well, I will return to my people then. Right …” He motioned to where Lin Shi and Xia Wei were sitting. “These two are Lin Shi and Xia Wei. If there is anything the Nine Heavens or the dragon realm needs in the future and I am unavailable, you may get in touch with them. You could call them my right and left hand, respectively.” He nodded again and then really took his leave, not wanting to draw things out. Just making an appearance was good enough. Anything more than this and he’d become a nuisance. That certainly wouldn’t make the path going forward any smoother.

Lin Shi turned to look at him when he sat down again. They actually weren’t that far from the seat of the couple so it was easy to hear what was being said. “Well said, Your Majesty.”

Ye Yang picked up his teacup and gave a faint smile. “Which part?” They hadn’t had any warning that there was going to be a wedding so he hadn’t been prepared for that. Having to adapt what he was going to say on the spot while also having to somehow relate it to the gifts as if he had been planning this all along naturally wasn’t as easy as simply giving his prepared congratulatory speech on the crown prince’s safe return. Considering these facts, he felt that he had done reasonably well.

“My favorite part was the one where Your Majesty introduced me but the explanation of the meaningful wedding gift you chose was a close second.” She chuckled, picking up the jar of wine that stood at the side, and poured herself a cup. Even if they were set to leave earlier than everyone else, they’d likely stay for a few minutes or so at least. Otherwise, this might also be misconstrued.

Ye Yang’s lips twitched. “It’s good that you’re having your fun.” Well, it sounded a bit sarcastic but, actually, he was indeed glad that she was. Making fun of him or laughing at his expense if he was in a difficult situation and tried to finesse his way out of it was harmless. If it kept her happy, he certainly wouldn’t make an issue out of it.

Lin Shi smiled as well, clearly enjoying this day. She didn’t talk to Ye Yang any further and instead started to pay attention to the wedding couple that was now receiving other guests. The dragons seemed a little preoccupied at the moment but the trueborn gods were slowly waking up from the shock that the Supreme Sovereign’s visit had been and the first one had walked up to congratulate them as well.

The person in question was someone from the capital city of the Nine Heavens: Yu Lin, the Goddess of Magnanimity. Lin Shi didn’t know her but this was a good opportunity for her to learn more about the other two realms so she hoped they’d stay around for long enough to get a better grasp on the general situation at least.

On the other hand, Jing He and Qiu Ling were familiar with her. Apart from her official position, Yu Lin was the mother of Duan Ming, one of the people whom Jing He’s father had tried to set him up with. She hadn’t been all that enthusiastic, knowing that Jing He wasn’t interested and instead loved someone else. Duan Ming had also helped him during his trial and was friends with Leng Jin Yu so while their relationship with Yu Lin couldn’t be called close, there was at least a degree of familiarity that was higher than it could be said about the other titled gods.

Seeing her approach and realizing that there was a long line of people who’d come to see them, Qiu Ling finally sighed to himself and turned to the front. Anyway, even though he just wanted to indulge in the bliss of being a newly married man, he couldn’t very well let Jing He do all the work so … he could only bear with it and deal with these people alongside him.