Deviant: No Longer Human

26th December, 2031! "..." "..." "Xiao Wang, what the hell is going on...? I have guests coming in an hour!" Xinyue Zhilan had barely stepped inside when the sheer audacity of her son made her grab her head and sigh. Wang Xueying and Wang Mei… the two had developed survival instincts by now. They had seen this play out way too many times over the last month. Their response? Eyes glued to the television. Posture straight. Absolute ignorance. Yes. Ignore everything. Why? Because on the couch next to them, two freshly polished young beauties sat stiffly, smiling like nothing was wrong. But everything was fucking wrong. These two? Wenxi and Yue. Their faces were subtly flushed, their eyes soft and evasive, like autumn leaves caught in an awkward breeze. Xinyue Zhilan's gaze flickered. Beautiful? Yes. Lovely? Of course. BUT WHY THE FUCK WERE THEY HERE?! Her mind worked at full speed. Did she miss something? Was she supposed to expect them? And weren't these the same girls from Icevale?! Too many questions. Not enough patience. She sighed, dragging out a chair and sitting the hell down before her legs gave out. Ahem. A familiar shameless voice interrupted her thoughts. "Mom, you asked how many girlfriends I have. And you wanted to meet them. So… here they are." Xinyue Zhilan blinked. Once. Twice. Did this bastard just say— "...Xiao Wang." Her voice was calm. Too calm. Dangerously calm. "Yes, dear mother?" A vein twitched on her forehead. "A FEW DAYS AGO, I ASKED YOU CASUALLY! CASUALLY!!! AND YOU TOOK IT AS AN INVITATION TO HOLD A WIFE INTERVIEW?!" Wang Xiao raised a brow. "Well, yeah? You asked, so I delivered." "DELIVERED?! WHAT AM I, AN HR MANAGER?!" She wanted to strangle him. The only thing stopping her was the fact that Wenxi and Yue were still here, sitting like they just walked into a mother-in-law audition and forgot their scripts. "Oh, come on, Mom. It's not like I introduced ten girls at once. You should be proud I'm keeping it simple. Two is reasonable." She stared at him. Mouth agape. This unfilial bastard. "Reasonable?! First, you impregnate a girl outside and give me a granddaughter, and now you're bringing home two girlfriends at once like it's a buy-one-get-one-free sale?!?" Wang Xiao sighed dramatically. "Mom, don't be so stingy. One woman isn't enough for a man of my caliber." Xinyue Zhilan slammed her palm on the table. "YOU'RE NOT A EMPEROR, XIAO WANG!" Wang Xiao, "You sure?" Her fists clenched. Oh, how she wished beating her children was legal right now. Hell, forget legal—she was this close to throwing the damn law out the window, rolling up her sleeves, and beating some filial piety back into this ungrateful bastard. If the ancestors were watching, they could look away. She'd deal with the consequences later. Meanwhile, Wenxi and Yue sat there, looking like guilty mistresses in a palace drama, blushing furiously under Xinyue Zhilan's stare. "So…" Wenxi finally spoke, her voice meek. "…should we help with the dinner?" "…Dinner?" "Yes," Yue added, nodding sweetly. "We should make a good impression, right?" Xinyue Zhilan felt her soul leave her body. Not only were they here. Not only were they introduced like some official wives. Not only was her son acting like a shameless emperor. These girls were actually playing along. She looked at Wang Xueying and Wang Mei. "Say something. PLEASE." Wang Xueying took a slow sip of water. "I mean… you did ask." Wang Mei nodded solemnly. "You really did." Xinyue Zhilan's world collapsed. And then she remembered—guests were coming. In an hour. This disaster of a son had picked the worst fucking time possible to introduce his personal concubine recruitment program. She exhaled deeply. "Xiao Wang." "Hmm?" "I swear on my ancestors… if my guests include another one of your fiancées, I will throw myself into the nearest river." Wang Xiao grinned. "Oh, don't worry, Mom. I have no idea who your guests are." Yup. Perfectly clueless. No idea whatsoever. But since disappointing his mother wasn't in his nature, he threw in a casual afterthought— "Although, if you really want a new daughter-in-law, I wouldn't mind making arrangements with one of your guests. Y'know, just to keep the tradition alive." Wenxi let out a soft whistle, shaking her head. Her dad was really out here playing marriage speedrun. Meanwhile, Xinyue Zhilan dragged a hand down her face, feeling her sanity slip through her fingers. She needed wine. Strong wine. The type that could erase memories. Forget guests. Forget dinner. Forget dignity. At this rate, her future grandkids were going to be named First Young Miss No. 1 and Second Young Mistress No. 24. She was so fucking done. "Mom, stop sulking, your beauty will be ruined." Wang Xiao grinned, stepping forward to wrap his arms around Xinyue Zhilan, effortlessly pulling her up into a hug. His chin brushed against her shoulder, and a subtle, mature fragrance filled his senses. Was that her perfume? Xinyue Zhilan's face twisted into a half-smile, half-scowl. "Oh? So you do care about my beauty? After giving me a heart attack every damn day?" Wang Xiao chuckled. "Of course! A beautiful mother makes for a handsome son. It's an investment." She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. So, what's the deal with them?" Her gaze flicked to the two shameless little parrots sitting on the couch. She had long accepted that Wang Xiao was beyond her control—too many secrets, too much power, too many damn women. He didn't even reveal what he had been doing for the past seven years, and now he had supernatural strength to add to his list of bullshit. What could she even do? Ground him? Nope. Better to redirect her energy—focus on these two girls instead. Did their mother even know they ran from Europe to China? Probably not. Because if she did—and if Xinyue Zhilan knew their mother was Wang Xiao's wife aka Anran—Xinyue Zhilan would personally throw herself into the Yellow River and drown. Meanwhile, Wenxi and Yue sat obediently, repeating the script Wang Xiao had drilled into them, like trained parrots. "W-when he went to Icevale to attend Qian Ruixin's wedding… he met us and… uh… we went on a few dates…" Wenxi mumbled, fidgeting with her fingers. "Yeah… just… some dates…" Yue echoed, nodding rapidly. Xinyue Zhilan narrowed her eyes. Bullshit. Grade-A, premium, top-tier bullshit. But she had to admit… it was convincing bullshit. She had no idea how this bastard managed to execute all of this under her damn nose. Then again… she had been busy with her daughters, and with Wang Mei… Ugh. Fine. Let's just pretend this makes sense. Coming back to the actual problem—these two supposedly took permission to follow him, got kicked out of their home by their mother, and had nowhere else to go, so they ended up here. Totally normal. Completely reasonable. Given that her son was the one who stirred the hornet's nest, this wasn't even the worst-case scenario. Xinyue Zhilan exhaled deeply before dragging Wang Xiao to the side. She didn't even look at him when she asked, voice dangerously low— "Tell me you haven't already…" She had only one question. Her son. He wouldn't have already cooked the rice, right? Right?! Wang Xiao shrugged. Then nodded. Dead silence. Her face darkened. "Do you even realize who their mother and father are?!" Wang Xiao blinked. "Uh… should I?" Xinyue Zhilan's hands twitched. This bastard didn't even know?! THEY CONTROLLED A WHOLE GODDAMN COUNTRY! Even SHE didn't have full intel on them! "Do you have a death wish by sleeping with their daughter?!" she hissed, gripping his arm. Wang Xiao raised his hands in innocent surrender. "Relax, Mom, I only slept with Yue. Haven't touched Wenxi yet." "Yet?" "…Well, not like I can't." Fucking hell. Xinyue Zhilan felt her lifespan shortening by the second. Xinyue Zhilan felt her lifespan shrinking by the second. "Oh, by the way… who are the guests coming?" Wang Xiao stretched lazily, eyes half-lidded with disinterest. He'd never seen her this stressed. Must be someone important. Oh, right… She never told them. Xinyue Zhilan took a deep breath. "Miss Xue Hanqin will be coming with her family." "Who?" Wang Xiao blinked. The name didn't ring a bell. Xinyue Zhilan forced a stiff smile, holding up her phone. "Look at this." "Oh…" Wang Xiao glanced at the screen. "Just a Supreme People's Court judge." "..."