"Let's go take a look," Lu Zhi was incredibly curious. The alley in between had been too dark, only allowing him a vague glimpse.
He was very curious to see what the eighteenth wife of the Rat Emperor looked like.
But...
Why was the Rat Emperor's wife male?
In a secluded corner, away from the bustling, lively streets, on a wooden bench beneath a tree by a cold wall, a dark blue chinchilla was chattering and waving a small long spear in its hand. From time to time, it would glare at a plump white chinchilla curled up on the other side, its words filled with a sense of righteous indignation, as if frustrated by its lack of progress.
"So, you ran away from your wedding?" Lu Zhi, standing beside the chubby Bai Zhan and offering comfort, sighed after hearing the story. Then, with a subtle look, he asked the plump chinchilla, "So you're a girl?"
Bai Zhan squeaked pitifully, 'I've always been a girl.'
Lu Zhi looked disapprovingly at the blue chinchilla and chided, "That's not right. How can you be so rude to a girl?"
Upon hearing this, the blue chinchilla became even more agitated and chattered again.
Lu Zhi suddenly understood. In nature, males generally held a lower status than females. However, in the 'boyfriend-girlfriend' relationship between Bai Zhan and the blue chinchilla, the Rat Emperor, having taken a liking to the blue chinchilla, deliberately assigned Bai Zhan to a position in the art gallery, intending to forcefully marry the blue chinchilla through his power.
The blue chinchilla had asked a friend to convey this bad news to Bai Zhan, but the response received was Bai Zhan's 'scumbag' reply, stating that it was the blue chinchilla's fortune to serve the Rat Emperor and that the two chinchillas had no destiny, deciding to break up.
The blue chinchilla, unable to stand it, wanted to escape. Unfortunately, it had been under constant surveillance. Tonight, it found an opportunity to escape during the Rat Emperor's concert. However, it encountered Bai Zhan, the 'scumbag', halfway through, enraging it so much that it directly knocked out the Rat Emperor, leading to the scene Lu Zhi and the others witnessed.
Lu Zhi was at a loss for words and sighed, "Bai Zhan... this was wrong of you."
Bai Zhan chattered excitedly for a long time, even patting its chest with its front paws, its black bean eyes teary, looking unspeakably wronged.
"Hmm?" Lu Zhi was surprised. "You're saying you didn't receive the message and didn't say those things?"
Bai Zhan nodded its squeaks.
The blue chinchilla was suspicious, "Really?"
Lu Zhi mused, launching into a conspiracy theory, "Could it be the Rat Emperor's divisive tactic?"
Luofisi, who had been listening with amusement, suggested, "If you want to know, why not find the friend who delivered the message and ask them?"
The blue chinchilla's small eyes turned serious. "My friend is the Rat Emperor's personal guard. He should be maintaining order at the Rat Emperor's concert right now."
Lu Zhi: ???
Lu Zhi: "The Rat Emperor's personal guard is your friend? It was the one who said Bai Zhan wanted to break up with you? How can you be sure it's your friend and not the Rat Emperor's loyal guard? Didn't you ever consider that it might be helping the Rat Emperor trick you?"
The blue chinchilla was shocked, "He would lie to me?"
Lu Zhi: ...kuAiδugg
It seemed none of them were particularly intelligent.
"Bai Zhan, I was wrong to blame you." The blue chinchilla's demeanor instantly wilted, its fierce black bean eyes turning soft and tender. It slowly approached Bai Zhan, gently patting Bai Zhan's plump, fluffy bottom, "Does it still hurt?"
The misunderstanding between the two chinchillas was resolved. Bai Zhan whimpered for a long time, and the atmosphere instantly became warm and sweet, as if a pink bubble had enveloped the two chinchillas.
Lu Zhi expressionlessly mounted the Red-Tailed Moth mount that Shen Qi had conjured for him, holding onto its two long antennae with his small hands, letting the Red-Tailed Moth fly towards Shen Qi. He familiarly returned to his own vehicle.
Shen Qi leaned against the tree trunk, his eyes closed, lost in thought. As Lu Zhi approached, he opened his eyes. His silver-gray eyes, under the quiet moonlight, appeared even more translucent like glass. The curve of his lips tilted slightly, "Eight... curiosity satisfied?"
With that subtle pause after the word "eight," Lu Zhi knew without thinking that Shen Qi meant, "Gossip satisfied?"
Lu Zhi rested his chin on his hands, his small face a little chubby. His large, dark eyes gazed at Shen Qi, and he asked, "Are the Rat Emperor and the Rat God literal?"
Shen Qi stood up, brushing some fallen leaves off his clothes. "Yes, it's exactly as you think."
Lu Zhi had always assumed the Rat Emperor and the Rat God were the same entity. After receiving the true answer from Shen Qi, he wondered if the Rat God and the Rat Emperor were the positive and negative aspects.
From the Rat Emperor's 'forcing a male into marriage' conspiracy, it could be seen that the Rat Emperor's personality was somewhat extreme, resorting to any means to achieve his goals, which did not align with the aspect of a righteous god.
"Since you have resolved your misunderstanding, leave here together and find a suitable place to live," Lu Zhi said, noticing that it was getting late and the concert was about to end, reminding the two affectionate chinchillas.
"This is our home, we will not leave easily," the plump Bai Zhan replied reluctantly.
Lu Zhi frowned slightly and said to the blue chinchilla, "When I arrived, I saw quite a few rats nearby. They should be the Rat Emperor's guards, looking for you?"
The blue chinchilla looked puzzled, "Why would they be looking for me?"
Now it was Lu Zhi's turn to be confused. "You are the Rat Emperor's soon-to-be bride, oh, no, groom. You've run away from the wedding, aren't they here to catch you and bring you back for the marriage?"
The blue chinchilla shook its head. "According to our Rat Kingdom's wedding customs, on the wedding day, if one party is unwilling and successfully escapes, the wedding will not receive the Rat God's blessing. They won't catch me and force me into another marriage."
Lu Zhi was astonished, "There's such a custom? Then what happens to the wedding without the groom/bride?"
Bai Zhan answered in its stead, "They can have a wedding on the spot! As long as one is willing, the marriage can take place immediately!"
Lu Zhi: ...He had nothing to say.
"Wait, you said they weren't looking for you, then who are the Rat Emperor's personal guards looking for?" Lu Zhi realized, his mind instinctively going to someone.
Luofisi, who had been watching the show, exclaimed in surprise, "Could they be looking for Qin Huai?"
The only one they could think of was the missing Qin Huai.
At this moment, Luofisi's communicator received a message and a map from Yan Shao, who had gone to inquire about the location of the Rat God Temple.
Before Luofisi could reply, Xia Zhi, who had gone to the Rat Emperor's concert, sent a video. The Rat Emperor's concert did not allow any recording devices. All mobile phones, cameras, and other items brought in had to be handed over for safekeeping. However, Xia Zhi and the others were using light brains, which were like temporary tattoos on their wrists.
Lu Zhi also received Yan Shao's information and Xia Zhi's video. Although he had shrunk, the light brain, which could adjust its size according to the user's body size, had also shrunk, not affecting its use.
Lu Zhi opened the video and saw a rat as plump as an orange cat, wearing a leather jacket. Under the intense DJ background music and the play of lights, it held a microphone and sang affectionately, squeaking its heart out. The audience below, having shrunk, all displayed expressions and gazes of rapturous admiration...
And the squeaking, in Lu Zhi's ears, turned out to be a current hit song, "Let's Swing Together."
Rat Emperor: (Let's swing together~~~ Yo yo yo~~ Let's swing together~~)
Lu Zhi: ...Well, very... trendy.