Chapter 147 – Love in a Fallen City: You Are My Eternal, Unfading Starlight – Video Controversy (10)
To make traveling easier, Bai Tang disguised himself as a human on land. This striking duo caught the attention of many passersby as they entered a small inn to rest for a while.
“Welcome to Ritley City,” the innkeeper’s wife greeted politely. “May I ask what you two would like to eat?”
Though Turs and Bai Tang’s clothing wasn’t too different from other tourists, the fabric was of superior quality. The innkeeper’s wife, having run the business here for years, had a keen eye for such details. Besides, Turs would never let Bai Tang wear anything substandard.
Bai Tang looked at the menu, wanting to try everything. Since this was a rather primitive tourist town, the food was naturally closer to its original, natural state. There were plenty of vegetarian options like mushrooms, which Bai Tang loved. However, there were too many dishes to finish, and he couldn’t decide what to order.
“The signature dish, and another one…”
Seeing more and more travelers arriving, Turs made a quick decision and ordered local specialties along with some of Bai Tang’s favorite dishes, those that were also good for a little mermaid’s health.
The food arrived quickly. Among the many dishes, Bai Tang spotted something he didn’t like. Pouting, he picked out the eggplant from the eggplant rice. “Eggplant isn’t tasty~”
Turs patiently coaxed him, “Don’t be picky, be good.”
A mermaid craze had erupted online thanks to Le Mengqi’s fame. Mermaids were already a popular race, but under government protection, ordinary civilians rarely had the chance to see them. Now, Le Mengqi’s enchanting voice was shining brightly in the entertainment industry, receiving endless invitations from various studios. Her vanity quickly swelled. After learning from Sade that Turs was on a honeymoon trip with Bai Tang, the feelings she had suppressed after their marriage reignited.
Isn’t it true that the national goddess and the national hero are the perfect match?
Under Le Mengqi’s manipulative direction, she edited together a promotional video of herself wearing a cheongsam with heroic footage of General Turs Walker bravely going into battle. The result was a dramatic tale of a fiery beauty amidst the flames of war, where passionate bloodshed and tragic songs intertwined. As the ethereal, haunting mermaid song played, fearless soldiers fell before the insectoid enemy, only to be followed by allied warriors charging forward in relentless battle. In the end, under Turs’s command, the alliance achieved a great victory, and he led his victorious troops back to the interstellar alliance — to the homeland of the mermaids.
There is no man who isn’t passionate, or who hasn’t been passionate at some point. Once this video was released online, it resonated deeply with a wide audience. Male netizens recalled their dreams or experiences of joining the military, while female netizens saw a story of unwavering, steadfast, and devoted romantic love.
The news of Turs’s marriage had not yet been made public. As Le Mengqi said, the Walker family was one of the old, established families of the Alliance. As the heir to the Walker family, Turs’s marriage was not just a personal matter but a family affair.
At that time, Turs’s parents were traveling, and with the elders absent from home, Turs didn’t want Bai Tang to feel wronged. Therefore, he temporarily suppressed the news of their registered marriage and planned to hold a grand wedding for Bai Tang once the elders returned.
Le Mengqi learned a lot about the upper-class nobility through Aida Sade, which is why she chose this moment to win over public opinion.
Who would have known that Turs Walker had married Bai Tang?
If they could marry quietly, they could certainly break up quietly as well. She simply had no opportunity to get close to Turs, and since he didn’t know her, she remained indifferent. Now, using this chance to become famous, she wanted the fame, fortune, and influence all for herself.
General Sade felt a chill in his heart when he saw Le Mengqi’s actions. Although the video was posted from Le Mengqi’s alternate account, appearing like a spontaneous fan-made montage, it was easy enough for General Sade to investigate. Moreover, Le Mengqi constantly probed the rules and secrets of the old noble families — her ambitions were obvious.
The Sade family was also a mid-level noble family, counted among the upper-class circles.
Le Mengqi’s inquiries into noble affairs could have been seen by Aida Sade as her showing interest in him. But when he discovered she and her team were scheming to leverage Turs’s reputation to advance even further — even aiming to establish a connection with Turs — without any thought for the support he had given her behind the scenes, Aida Sade sneered.
He had lifted her up, and the team was recruited by him. Although many had provided resources because of Le Mengqi’s mermaid identity, without his backing, she wouldn’t be able to dominate the entertainment industry simply by relying on mermaid protection laws. Did Le Mengqi really think he was a fool who knew nothing?
Mermaids are a race loyal to their partners and deeply concerned about their reputation. A mermaid who has a partner will never betray them no matter what happens. As for reputation, if anyone slanders them or spreads false rumors, they would rather die to prove their innocence than carry the stigma.
Regarding the trending searches about the future head of the Walker family, the Walkers had yet to respond. Suddenly, another video broke out online — featuring the Alliance hero, General Turs Walker, and his mermaid partner.
In the video, General Walker gently coaxed a handsome young boy to eat. The boy held a spoon, furrowed his delicate brows, and obediently scooped rice. When Turs turned to ask the innkeeper’s wife for something else, the boy quietly spat out the food and picked out the eggplant strips from the rice, throwing them into the trash bin at his feet. When Turs turned back, the boy immediately resumed eating, holding up the shiny, well-polished spoon to show how well-behaved he was.
Netizens were charmed by the boy’s adorable and clever behavior — how could there be such a cute and witty little darling?
In the video, Turs seemed completely unaware of the boy’s little tricks. After finishing the meal, the innkeeper’s wife brought over a cup of mixed fruit and vegetable juice, which made Bai Tang frown.
It turned out that Turs was not oblivious to Bai Tang’s antics. Seeing how much he disliked eggplant, Turs didn’t force him to eat it. Instead, he asked the innkeeper’s wife to prepare a glass of fruit and vegetable juice to help the little mermaid supplement his vitamin C.
The boy’s big, watery eyes stared up. After Turs promised him many things, the boy, as if going to battle, lifted the glass of vegetable juice and drank it all in one gulp. When he finished, he collapsed in Turs’s arms, looking utterly defeated, while the latter gently rubbed his stomach.
The video ended there. Netizens loudly cheered, saying that compared to Le Mengqi and General Walker’s video — which was just a simple splicing of clips — nothing could beat the real, live interaction between General Walker and the boy. It was more genuine and much more entertaining.
Moreover, netizens were eager to know what kind of relationship the boy and General Walker had, given their intimate behavior.
Watching the online buzz, the system opened the “Prime Minister’s Wife’s Quotes” notebook: “To suppress first is to praise later; to praise first is to suppress later—this always yields unexpected results.”
It was decided. That’s how it would be done.
Silently, the system raised the camera. Who had the best filming skills? The Interstellar Alliance System did.
At 10:30 PM, Le Mengqi’s trending topic was pushed down by the video of Bai Tang and Turs’s interaction. She picked up the phone to call her team. As soon as the call connected, she was met with a barrage of scolding, “What are you all doing? Do you still want to make money…?”
Caught off guard by Bai Tang’s overshadowing success, Le Mengqi didn’t notice that the person on the other end wasn’t speaking. The person answering was not her PR team, but Ada Sadeth.
“Mengqi, enough.”
The man’s voice reached Le Mengqi’s ears.
She was startled, then heard him say, “Do you find it comfortable being my stepping stone? Let’s end this here.”
Aida Sade’s plan was to elevate Le Mengqi to stardom — if she kept her original intentions, he could prove that the opinions of Turs, Bai Tang, and Mr. Eddie were wrong. Unfortunately, reality showed he was the fool.
Few could fully maintain their original intentions after tasting fame and fortune. But once Le Mengqi got carried away, she lost herself and revealed her true nature.
It was no wonder General Sade was utterly disappointed in her.
The call ended, but Aida Sade’s words about no longer wanting to be used by her still echoed in Le Mengqi’s ears. Meanwhile, another video was uploaded online, and within just a few minutes, it reached tens of millions of views — General Walker and the little mermaid’s honeymoon trip.
Legend has it that on the summit of Mount Lidawa, east of Ritley City, you can see the most beautiful sunrise.
Mount Lidawa stands 3,057 meters tall with steep slopes. Although mountain roads were built to promote tourism, they are still difficult to traverse. Many give up before reaching even one-third of the way. As a result, helicopters were introduced to transport those who want to see the sunrise directly to the peak. Yet some still prefer to climb the mountain on foot, savoring the hard-earned beauty of the view.
Bai Tang was one of them. He considered himself extremely fit and agile — after all, he could easily swing through the forest several times. So climbing a mountain was nothing to him.
No matter how Turs coaxed him, Bai Tang was adamant. He even used the promise made during dinner — that he wouldn’t be asked to do anything dangerous — to argue back.
“Turs, you take the helicopter. I’m climbing. See you at the summit.”
In the video, the boy’s stubbornness starkly contrasted with Turs’s helplessness. Watching their national hero getting outsmarted, netizens couldn’t help but joke — even General Walker has his day.
What to do with a headstrong little mermaid? Spoil him, of course.
Having no choice, Turs prepared food, water, and some mermaid supplies, then set off to climb the mountain with his wife.
Turs had his reasons for not wanting Bai Tang to climb. Aside from the difficult trail, mermaids are physically delicate and weak — not suited for mountain climbing. But Bai Tang just wanted to do it.
Sure enough, after struggling up about five hundred meters, Bai Tang was already gasping for breath and had to stop to rest.
He took water from Turs’s hand and drank, “Hmm, salty~”
“Climbing makes you sweat a lot; you need to replenish electrolytes. Want to turn back into a fish tail on the way down?” Turs gently rubbed Bai Tang’s little nose. Mermaids lose water easily and will revert to their fish tails as a self-protection instinct.
“Mmm~ No.” Bai Tang didn’t mind anymore and drank heartily. Before long, more than half of the water bottle was gone.
They say when you’re tired, you shouldn’t stop moving — otherwise, you might never want to start again. There’s truth to that.
After sitting for a while, Bai Tang felt his legs were like they were filled with lead, too heavy to lift.
“Come on, let’s go up the mountain.” Turs picked Bai Tang up on his back.
At this point, they still had more than two thousand meters to the summit, which meant Turs would have to carry him all the way up the difficult trail that was hard even for one person to walk. Only then did Bai Tang regret his stubbornness.
“Turs, I’m sorry~” Bai Tang snuggled into Turs’s broad back and apologized softly.
Turs slightly turned his head and said, “Then shouldn’t Tang Tang give me some reward to motivate me to climb?”
Seeing this, netizens couldn’t help but shout, “Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!”
Under the moonlight, a silver glow bathed the two of them, making them look especially pure and sacred.
Bai Tang looked around to make sure no one else was there, then, just as netizens had hoped, pressed a kiss to the general’s cheek.
“Turs, I like you.”
Netizens clearly saw that after the boy’s confession, General Walker’s ears turned red.
Author’s note:
Le Mengqi, who has woven her own trap, is about to fall from the clouds.