“Brother! Brother! I really cannot do this!” In the quiet and peaceful courtyard, An Feiyu’s wailing voice was incredibly piercing. However, seeing the “ugly-cute” big fellows clinging to various parts of his body, his ear-splitting screams were somewhat understandable.
Lu Qing said, “Almost done,” as his hands continuously plucked the large creatures off An Feiyu. Before long, the bucket was filled with insect-snakes.
The long, black creatures blinked their large eyes and tangled together like a messy ball of twine that could not be unraveled. Lu Qing gently separated their intertwined bodies and carried the bucket back to the kitchen.
An Feiyu was still reeling from the shock of being “invaded” by the big fellows. Seeing Lu Qing carry a pile of snakes and insects inside, he shook his head in terror: he would not eat them, he absolutely would not eat them! Whoever wanted to eat them could have them!
One hour later.
The table was filled with various dishes.
There were fried insect-snake skin crisps, insect-snake and tofu soup, and braised insect-snake shreds.
The insect-snake skin was coated in a golden layer of fine crumbs. The salty fragrance, combined with the aroma of eggs, burst with flavor upon contact with the tongue. The snow-white insect-snake meat in the soup was nearly indistinguishable from the tender tofu, while in the braised pot, it appeared as long, resilient red shreds with a pleasant chew. Mixed with the savory sauce, the umami flavor was endless.
An Feiyu took a large spoonful: “It is so delicious.”
After eating and drinking his fill, An Feiyu let out a long burp and leaned back in his chair with a grand wave of his hand. “I declare that from today onwards, this stuff is one of my favorite things!”
The Book lay on the sofa with a small bowl placed in front of its tiny body. It had scraped the sauce-covered rice completely clean. It let out a small, satisfied burp and echoed An Feiyu’s sentiment almost exactly: “I declare that from today onwards, the big fellows are one of my favorite things to eat!”
Lu Qing stared at the small portion of insect-snakes remaining in the bucket, his gaze darkening as he fell into deep thought.
Through the process of catching the insect-snakes earlier, he had vaguely grasped a pattern to their appearance.
There was nothing particularly special about An Feiyu’s movements when standing in front of the crystal flowers, but as soon as he got close, the insect-snakes would slowly poke their heads out. Some would even actively crawl onto An Feiyu’s legs.
Crystal flowers were one of the insect-snakes’ favorite foods because the nectar contained special nutrients they needed to soothe the violent cells within their bodies.
Coincidentally, the mechanism of insect pheromones was very similar.
Lu Qing asked An Feiyu about his mental strength level, which was S-rank. This might be the reason why the insect-snakes targeted him. However, he still lacked enough samples to verify this point.
“Ah, Brother, your home looks so warm. The old sofa gives it a sense of history and the feeling of a real home.”
While Lu Qing was thinking, An Feiyu walked over and plopped onto the sofa. The mini Book, which had been comfortably nestled in the sofa crack, was sent flying by the vibration. Seeing the massive bottom, it hurriedly scrambled away.
“Hahaha,” An Feiyu laughed as he picked up the small bowl on the table. “This is so cute. Is this the ‘kitchen toy’ everyone talks about online? How interesting.”
An Feiyu looked around with emotion. He truly liked Lu Qing’s home: a neatly kept little courtyard, a vintage and old yet cozy living room, a kitchen that looked just the right size but was packed full, and several unexplored rooms with oak doors upstairs.
There were no traces of modern technology.
“Sigh, if only I could have brought Lilfer here.”
An Feiyu sighed deeply. Lu Qing withdrew from his thoughts and, after a moment of silence, said, “You can.” His grandfather always loved a lively atmosphere; having more people at home would likely make him very happy.
An Feiyu was startled and waved his hands repeatedly. “I was just speaking casually; I did not mean to hint at anything.”
Lu Qing walked over slowly and stacked the dishes on the table. The warm yellow light of the living room hit his profile as he leaned down, casting a soft glow. “I am not forcing it. It is good to have more guests at home; it makes things lively.”
An Feiyu paused. “I thought you did not like crowds.” There was a sentence he did not say aloud: Lu Qing’s face looked very gentle, but his words and actions always revealed an indescribable sense of detachment, as if he were isolated from the world.
It must be said that sometimes the intuition of a simple-minded person is very accurate; Lu Qing was indeed indifferent to lively crowds. Or rather, the excitement he had experienced was all illusory. The only time he truly felt warmth was during a small fragment of his childhood.
“Are you still going to cook?”
Lu Qing subtly changed the subject, and An Feiyu’s attention was immediately captured. “Yes, yes, yes!”
Time slipped away unnoticed to the ticking of the wall clock.
An Feiyu wiped the sweat from his forehead caused by the steam and said with full confidence, “Come and eat.”
Perhaps the twenty-four filial virtues a male boasts of are true; at least the presentation of the dish was good.
The Book quietly flew to the edge of the plate and sneaked a small piece of meat while the male was not looking. Unexpectedly, an overwhelming taste surged through it. It closed its eyes, stuck out its tongue, and fell straight out of the air.
Lu Qing caught the Book with precision.
The Book squinted its eyes and weakly raised a hand before it fell back down powerlessly. “This dish is poisonous!”
Even Lu Qing did not expect that there was a person in the world who was naturally incompatible with cooking. Even if he followed the teacher’s instructions exactly, a slight lapse in attention, like the time it took to grab a seasoning, would turn the dish into an extremely dangerous “dark cuisine.”
Lu Qing’s chopsticks hovered in mid-air, finding himself in a rare dilemma. However, after just a few moments, he made a decision. Without changing his expression, he said, “I ate too much just now and cannot bear the sight of meat.”
The silly male was stunned. “Is that so?”
Lu Qing nodded, his expression unchanging. “Yes.”
An Feiyu scratched his head and muttered, “I remember you did not eat much.” After saying that, he used his chopsticks to pick up a piece of meat.
An Feiyu: “…”
The male’s fair face turned purple in an instant. His eyes rolled back until only the whites were showing, and finally, they closed as he collapsed onto the sofa.
Looking at the tragic state of both the large and small one, Lu Qing: “…”
That is actually quite impressive.
In the evening, Lilfer came to take his little male home.
The male’s face was red, like a steamed apple, and he was sleeping soundly.
“Thank you for taking care of Xiaoyu,” Lilfer said in a gentle voice while holding the sleeping male.
However, the next second, the polite and elegant female said something unexpected. “Now, please allow me to express my sincere apologies for investigating your information without permission.”
“I had to investigate Xiaoyu’s social circle to ensure his personal safety. I apologize for the offense,” Lilfer said full of regret.
Lu Qing seemed to have expected this and remained calm. “It is no problem.”
Lilfer paused for a moment and then said slowly, “I do not know much, but I wonder if you need my help. As far as I know, the heir to the Locke family is usually the first son born to the main husband. Even though you have… you still have a great hope of taking back what belongs to you.”
Lu Qing did not speak.
His dark, quiet eyes were like obsidian that looked ordinary but reflected light under the starry sky. He silently looked at the elegant female’s face.
The atmosphere became somewhat frozen.
After a while, perhaps a minute or two, Lu Qing said, “No, thank you for your kindness.”
The pressure lifted. The young male’s eyelids drooped lazily, hiding the shimmering obsidian. His thin lips curled into a perfect smile, making him look a bit more casually detached.
Lilfer understood his meaning and smiled. “You can contact me whenever you are willing in the future. It would be my honor to help you.”
Lu Qing walked out from behind the glass door.
The Book flew over and looked at Lu Qing’s face with concern. “Are you okay, Lulu-zi?”
“If you are unhappy, just do not go to that broken family. They call it a dinner party, but who knows if it is just a way to suppress you. Ugh, I hate your bad half-brother, I hate your indifferent and biased father, and I hate that scumbag female who served you for so long only to marry someone else in the blink of an eye. I hate them!”
As the Book spoke, it got itself worked up and began kicking and punching the glowing optical computer on the coffee table.
Lu Qing pulled the optical computer out from under the Book’s fists and quickly typed into the chat box with half-closed eyes: “I am not going. Thank you, Brother.”
Within seconds, a new message appeared. It seemed the person on the other side of the dialogue box had been waiting for his reply.
Step-brother: “Are you sure? This is Father’s birthday party; many high-ranking nobles will attend.”
Step-brother: “You were in poor health before, so Father did not let you go. Now that Father is letting you attend, why are you throwing a tantrum?”
The Book was furious upon seeing this. “What! Is that how a person talks! Is this throwing a tantrum? They did not let you attend before because they were afraid of losing face. Now that you are older and have left home, your father suddenly remembers you? Guilty? Bah!”
Lu Qing replied calmly: “I have been feeling unwell lately, and my eye condition seems to have flared up. I do not want my illness to disturb Father’s gathering. Thank you for the notice, Brother. I will send a gift as a small token of my regard.”
After sending this, Lu Qing did not look at his step-brother’s reply and went upstairs.
Upstairs, there was a study, three bedrooms, and a simulation room.
The simulation room was originally built by his father to train his mental strength, but they did not expect him to be a male with only F-rank mental strength. It had now become Lu Qing’s practical lab for experimental machinery.
Besides machinery, there was also a partition in the lab where equipment for researching food ingredients was kept. While cooking from the medicinal diet book, he was also researching the mechanism of how these dishes worked together to provide therapeutic effects. This was why Lu Qing was more adept when preparing medicinal meals.
Lu Qing placed the bucket of insect-snakes next to the partition and selected an ordinary-looking small robot from the experimental machinery room to refine.
The Book patted the top of the small robot’s head curiously. “Are you sure about this one? To pass the mechanical class assessment, you could use a more sophisticated machine.” The row of larger small-scale mechs over there all had more intricate structures and looked more imposing than this small robot.
Lu Qing cut the excess wires and tilted his head to look at the bottom of the robot. “This is enough,” he said while drawing lines.
As long as I pass the exam.
Imperial Military University had the lowest tuition among the four major academies. Females or males from lower-level planets could even qualify for tuition waivers if they could prove financial hardship.
Every year during enrollment season, the gates of Imperial Military University were crowded with Zerg carrying large and small bags for the exams. They looked at the school emblem with hope and enthusiasm, praying they could get into a university on the main star to gain residency and change their lives.
“Hey, Elliot, look! Look at that male Grace over there; he looks really good.” Tanqi poked Elliot’s arm.
Today was the military academy entrance assessment, and the number of participants was always at maximum capacity. Both commoners and nobles came to take the exam. For a university that prided itself on fairness and justice, it was difficult to maintain order without the presence of high-ranking military females.
Besides Elliot and Tanqi, who were managing order, there were also instructors from other classes who knew the two of them. Hearing what Tanqi said, an instructor suddenly got excited and leaned in. “Where? Where? Let me see too.”
Tanqi glanced at the instructor with disdain and waved his hand as if shooing a fly. “Go away, I am talking to Elliot. You really have sharp ears.”
Among the soldiers, there were no taboos, and they dared to say anything. The instructor was not angry and said with a smile, “Well, I stay in the army every day and hardly see any males. I have basically never seen a good-looking male Grace. Hey, let me see the world.”
“Tsk, look over there, the one with black hair. That male Grace looks quite tall; do you see him? Right in the middle of the candidates,” Tanqi said.
The instructor said in surprise, “He is a male? He does not look like one; he is too good-looking. Are you mistaken?”
Tanqi cursed, “Nonsense! My eyes are always sharp. Even from a distance, I can tell if someone is male or female.”
Black hair?
Elliot was stunned. As he slowly realized, a ripple appeared on his calm, cold face. He suddenly looked down and indeed found that familiar male with a shoulder bag in the middle of the crowd. He was tilting his head, chatting with a beautiful, blushing sub-female nearby.