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Inside the quiet carriage, the atmosphere was filled with a light, teasing energy. Zhu Zhuqing looked back at Su Yan and allowed a small, weary smile to touch her lips. She asked him why he wouldn't just take the situation seriously and let everyone enjoy the gossip for a change.
Her words caused Ling Yuan and the others in the carriage to burst into laughter, enjoying the playful banter. Su Yan looked a bit surprised by her request, but he laughed too. He told her that while he understood, they still had to keep reading the information he was sharing.
Turning his attention back to the group communication, Su Yan sent a message asking if everyone was being impatient again. He noted that every person has flaws, but Zhu Zhuqing's role in the story was that of a supporting character. He explained that the fewer scenes a character has, the fewer flaws the audience sees. For those characters who are on screen all the time, he admitted it was much harder to explain their many flaws in just a few words.
This comment sparked an immediate reaction. Xiao Wu, often called the Little Rabbit, sent a string of question marks, while Dugu Yan joked about how smart the rabbit had become. Ning Rongrong, the little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, asked if she was one of the characters with many flaws or just a few. Su Yan simply told her to guess.
Inside the carriage, Ning Rongrong leaned in and nestled into Su Yan's arms. She pouted slightly and looked over at Zhu Zhuqing. She remarked that Zhuqing was truly large and took up much more space than the rest of them. As she spoke, she reached out and playfully grabbed Zhu Zhuqing's spirit, noting that it was much larger than her own hand could hold.
Su Yan then decided to shift the topic to something more serious before getting back to the gossip everyone wanted. He told the group that he needed to explain some facts about the Star Luo Empire's Royal Family, specifically the Dai Family. He also wanted to complain about Dai Mubai, whom he called a scumbag, so that everyone would understand the context of the story.
He explained that in the Star Luo Empire, the White Tiger spirit of the Dai Family and the Hell Civet spirit of the Zhu Family were a perfect match. Together, they could perform a powerful Martial Soul Fusion Skill called the Hell White Tiger. This skill gave them the strength to fight and defeat opponents who were at a much higher rank than themselves.
Because of this power, the two families were tied together very closely. To keep the Royal Family strong and stable, the Dai Family chose to marry into the Zhu Family for many generations. Zhu Zhuqing had been betrothed to Dai Mubai since she was a small child, and her sister, Zhu Zhuyun, was betrothed to Dai Mubai's older brother, Dai Weisi.
Su Yan continued by describing an even more shocking tradition. The Dai Family chose its leader through a brutal competition, similar to raising poisonous insects in a jar where only the strongest survives. This meant that Dai Weisi and Dai Mubai were forced to fight each other for the throne. The brother who lost would be killed or locked away forever to make sure there was no internal fighting within the family later on.
Since the Zhu Family was tied to them, Zhu Zhuqing and her sisters were also forced into this competition from a young age. It turned the sisters into bitter rivals who had to fight for survival. Su Yan revealed that the prince engaged to Zhu Zhuqing's third sister had already died in this generation's competition.
Liu Erlong was surprised, saying she thought the relationship between the sisters was actually quite good. Dugu Yan agreed, and Ning Rongrong pointed out that Zhuqing had even given Zhu Zhuyun an Immortal Herb recently. She wondered if that was just helping an enemy. Zhu Zhuyun responded with confusion, while Tang Yuehua and Bo Saixi noted that the sisters probably didn't want to fight and were being forced by the Dai Family's rules.
Su Yan confirmed that the Zhu Family was a sacrifice to the Dai Family's power and had no real choice in the matter. He remarked that the Royal Family was ruthless, and half of those born into it were destined to be killed. A commoner in the chat noted that the fight for the throne has always been bloody.
Bai Chenxiang realized that this meant Zhu Zhuqing and Dai Mubai were actually first cousins, just like Zhu Zhuyun and Dai Weisi. Ma Xiaotao recalled that Su Yan had mentioned before how the families had been doing this for generations. Tang Ya then joked that this was even more intense than the situation with Liu Erlong.
At the Blue Tyrant Academy, Liu Erlong was shocked and angry. She couldn't understand why Tang Ya would bring her up while they were discussing the Dai and Zhu families. Meanwhile, at the Supreme Pontiff Palace, Bibi Dong burst out laughing. When Hu Liena asked what was so funny, Bibi Dong didn't explain directly to her.
Instead, Bibi Dong sent a message saying that Yu Erlong—using a mocking name for Liu Erlong—must be very happy to read this. She pointed out the hypocrisy, asking why people mocked her for her paternal cousins when the Dai and Zhu families had been marrying cousins for generations. Wang Dong then mentioned that Tang Yuehua was also involved in similar gossip.
At the Moon Pavilion, both Liu Erlong and Tang Yuehua were furious. They hated being dragged into the conversation out of nowhere. They realized that the daily gossip could turn on anyone at any moment.
Su Yan then posed a question that he expected someone to ask: why can't siblings or close relatives be together? The Three-Eyed Golden Lion, acting as the Empress, immediately asked "Why?". Others were shocked that anyone would ask such a basic question, but Ma Xiaotao realized the Empress was being serious.
Inside the carriage, Dugu Yan and the others were stunned by the Empress's lack of knowledge. Su Yan explained with a smile that the Empress was actually a soul beast, the Imperial Auspicious Beast, with only fifteen thousand years of cultivation. Since she was technically very young and not human, she didn't understand human morals or ethics.
Su Yan told the Empress to ignore the others and praised her for wanting to learn. He explained that if close relatives have children, the babies might be unhealthy or not very smart. When she asked "Why?" again, the entire group chat went silent. No one knew how to explain it simply.
Dugu Yan said it was just common sense, but another member suggested that only Su Yan could answer such a deep question. They joked that Bo Saixi was isolated on an island, Bibi Dong was too focused on love, Liu Erlong had fallen for her cousin, and Tang Yuehua liked her own brother. They suggested Tang Yuehua should be the one to explain it.
Tang Yuehua was stunned, and Liu Erlong complained that the gossip was just digging up their old secrets to make fun of them. Bibi Dong called everyone idiots and tried to explain it using the idea of bloodline connection. Another person added that having the same blood meant they couldn't be together.
The Empress still didn't understand the link between blood and the health of a baby. Ma Xiaotao urged Su Yan to give a real explanation. Su Yan explained that it was a scientific fact that would be proven two thousand years in the future. He talked about genes and how parents pass them to their children. He explained that everyone carries some harmful recessive alleles.
He told them that if only one parent has a bad gene, it stays hidden. But if both parents are close relatives, they are likely to carry the same bad genes. This gives the child a 50% chance of having a birth defect because the bad genes are no longer hidden.
He noted that since the Douluo Continent is a world of spirits and high-level life forms, the risk is lower than for ordinary people, but the rule still applies. The entire group was left in shock by this scientific explanation.