The next morning, Ziye habitually woke up at six. She pulled open the curtains to find the expanse of space outside, profoundly deep, with no clue as to her current location. Raising her hand, the multi-comm device on her wrist indicated they were currently above Siyatu.

Had they reached Siyatu already?

The dreadnought carrier was immense, its systems incredibly robust; even when navigating through intense space turbulence, it maintained a smooth course. Ziye felt as grounded as if she were on solid earth, leading to a night of perfect sleep, completely unaware of the progress made.

She stepped out of her cabin. The corridor was quiet.

Fearing she might wake the children who were still sound asleep, Ziye tiptoed forward, only to "inconveniently" run right into An Junlie, who was walking toward her. She froze instantly, almost snapping to attention and saluting. "Good morning, Commander."

An Junlie smiled faintly. "Good morning. You can just call me An Junlie."

Ziye readily complied. "Good morning, Commander An Junlie."

Upon seeing her, An Junlie instinctively thought she was the brat, reaching out to clap her shoulder. Halfway there, he suddenly realized she was just a young girl he wasn't familiar with, causing a flicker of awkwardness. He quickly shifted his focus. "Did you sleep well last night?"

Ziye was thrilled to see him, but she had long mastered the art of the high-level poker face, not allowing him to detect any trace of emotion. "Very well, thank you for your hospitality."

An Junlie chuckled softly. "No need for thanks. Let's head to the mess hall first. The children will be back from their exercise soon, and we can start breakfast."

What? Ziye’s eyes snapped open in shock. The kids were already out exercising? Her six o'clock wake-up call was the latest? Good heavens, the Angel Legion was terrifying!

She glanced sideways at the tall man beside her, feeling ever more certain that this man was ruthless. Not only did he require her to rise early, but he mandated early morning training for the children too. It seemed his treatment of her on Silver Emblem Star had been quite merciful by comparison. She changed the subject. "Where is Exbent?"

An Junlie walked on. "Exbent departed for school at five this morning, under instructions from the Vice Commander."

Ziye was momentarily bewildered. "What happened?"

An Junlie laughed. "I was away from the Legion for a while. They used the excuse of looking for me to skip three months of classes. Lan Li issued an ultimatum today: if they don't return to school immediately, they repeat the next academic year."

Ziye blurted out, "That harsh?"

It was one thing for the Commander to be iron-fisted, but the Vice Commander was clearly tough as well. Poor Exbent... But, Lan Li was right; without such severity, those two troublemakers definitely wouldn't listen.

An Junlie gazed into her bright, expressive eyes and suddenly recalled seeing the exact same expression in his studio. He paused, momentarily lost in thought. Ziye waited for a reply that never came. Seeing him staring blankly, a nervous guilt pricked her, making her wish she could hide her face. Still, she managed a calm smile in the end. "What is it?"

An Junlie shook his head, snapping back to the present. "Lan Li is actually quite mild-mannered. They were just too rowdy. Exams start tomorrow, and they insisted on staying today. Lan Li had to resort to this measure."

Just as Ziye was about to speak, her multi-comm chirped with an incoming message. She opened it; it was from Exbent. They had truly left the Wangu—because it was so early, they were afraid of waking her, so they hadn't said goodbye in person.

She sighed softly, nodding to An Junlie. "I’ve already intruded for too long. Perhaps I should—"

Before she could finish, An Junlie cut in. "It's fine. Since you're here, let's go see the meteor shower on Siyatu together."

Ziye gently squeezed the squirming little sprout in her bag, silently taking a deep breath. Since she still had the chance to stand beside him and have fun, she would seize it. Perhaps there would never be such a good opportunity again!

Ziye, be brave! she told herself internally, lifting her face into a bright smile. "Okay."

After breakfast, the personnel from the Wangu began boarding escort vessels in batches to descend to Planet Siyatu. Because Ziye was leaving with An Junlie, the staff intuitively arranged for them to board the same escort ship. Chen Yin and Lan Li were also accompanying them.

Lan Li, refreshed after the night’s rest, looked radiant. The moment he saw Ziye, his eyes shone like the brightest stars in space. He immediately took Ziye’s hand, leaning in close. "Beautiful lady, would you consider dating me with the prerequisite of marriage?"

Ziye froze, unsure what to do, and looked towards An Junlie. Chen Yin watched Lan Li with an expression of unexpected shyness mixed with hopeful anticipation—the Vice Commander was proposing to a girl again, how deeply romantic!

An Junlie twitched the corner of his eye, sighing helplessly. "You say that to every girl you meet for the first time. Aren't you afraid of scaring them off?"

Lan Li refuted innocently, "I'm serious."

An Junlie gave him a sidelong glance. "You're serious with every girl."

Ziye couldn't help but let out a small laugh. "Thank you, Vice Commander. You are a good person."

The Friend Zone card! It was the Friend Zone card! Lan Li looked at An Junlie with an expression of "grievance." An Junlie decisively turned away from him toward Ziye. "We're about to arrive at Siyatu. Where do you want to go?"

Lan Li shook his head, letting out a silent sigh. The Commander's soul had definitely been snatched away. Back in the day, no matter who he said that to, An Junlie would never interject. Now, he was publicly exposing him and flirting with the girl?

He blinked, noticing Chen Yin timidly looking at him with an expression of pity, like someone weeping over lost love. He couldn't help chuckling and gently tapped Chen Yin’s forehead. "Let's go play together in a bit."

Chen Yin obediently nodded.

After disembarking the escort vessel, Ziye followed An Junlie, assuming Lan Li and Chen Yin would be with them. Unexpectedly, the pair disappeared somewhere as soon as they stepped off the ship. She found herself enjoying a "world for two" with An Junlie.

Ziye felt a strange sense of unreality. She hadn't expected to be able to walk shoulder-to-shoulder with him after leaving Silver Emblem Star, to watch the gathering storms and the sunrises and sunsets with him. The excitement bubbling inside her was impossible to conceal.

When they reached the snack street, Ziye’s eyes widened as she stared at the variety of food stalls. She excitedly pointed at the deep-fried scorpions. "Commander, Commander, these look delicious!"

An Junlie smiled indulgently and said to the vendor, "One skewer, please."

Ziye turned her head. "You're not eating?"

An Junlie shook his head. "It's enough that you enjoy it."

Ziye puffed out her cheeks, dissatisfied. "No way. If you don't eat, then I don't want them either."

An Junlie had never experienced someone throwing a small tantrum with him. Even the children in the Legion, mindful of his rank and his usual stern demeanor, never dared to act spoiled around him. In truth, being easygoing, he certainly wouldn't refuse such a small request, so he relented. "Fine, two skewers."

And so, a big man and a little girl walked down the street eating fried scorpions, one skewer each. In this era, it was rare for anyone, especially a powerful man, to engage in such a self-degrading activity, particularly a man as dominating as An Junlie. As a result, they attracted stares wherever they went.

A female tourist pointed at him, speaking excitedly. "Look, look! That man is so handsome!"

As soon as she finished speaking, her boyfriend shot her a look. "Handsome? Don't you think he looks ridiculous? Look at him, ruining his imposing image!"

The female tourist rested her chin on her hands, her eyes sparkling. "You don't get it! A man willing to eat street food with his girlfriend is the most handsome!"

Her boyfriend was utterly speechless. "I honestly don't know what goes on in women's heads."

The tourist gave him a sharp look. "Will you eat with me?"

Her boyfriend was utterly defeated. After glaring at each other for a moment, the boyfriend finally gave in, and they walked hand-in-hand toward the snack street.

Ziye happened to witness this exchange and clutched her stomach, laughing heartily. She absolutely would not tell An Junlie that she had done it on purpose! That imposing, magnificent image was meant to be ruined!

She had expected An Junlie to frown, or perhaps simply refuse, but unexpectedly, he took the scorpion without a word. This kind of man was good.

As An Junlie ate the scorpion, he felt a sense of confusion. He couldn't understand what was so good about scorpions—they had practically no meat, and the sauce overpowered any natural flavor the flesh might have had. If he were cooking, he was sure he could make them taste better.

When An Junlie lived with his teacher outside, he had always looked down on things like scorpions. They offered little meat and were toxic, requiring too much time to prepare safely, violating the principles of wilderness survival. Why would women enjoy eating such things? Would the Brat like it if he ate them?

The answer was no.

In his view, the Brat could force down a rose pastry nearing its expiration date; eating a scorpion would be child's play. But liking it was different from being able to eat it. He felt the Brat would prefer tearing into large chunks of meat.

An Junlie found the experience strange. Standing next to Meng Ya Ya, she felt both incredibly familiar and strangely distant. Familiar because when she ate, she always bit the center first and then worked her way out to the sides. He also noticed her gait—she always stepped with her left foot first, walking lightly, almost floating, just like the Brat.

Distant because of her carefree, guileless laughter.

The Brat rarely smiled, and even when his smile was dazzling, it was never this simple, seemingly unburdened by any worry.

After finishing the scorpion, Ziye moved on to other specialties: Siyatu's signature Meteor Biscuits, carbonized roasted slave-hunting dog meat, and fireworks cakes... She didn't care if they tasted good; if they looked appealing, she'd ask An Junlie to buy them.

If An Junlie was lacking in other areas, he was certainly quick when it came to paying the bill. He held the Universal Interstellar Card; Ziye handled the ordering, and he handled the swiping. Once paid, they split the cost and ate as they walked.

He didn't feel it was damaging his image; he just didn't understand women—if they weren't hungry, why eat? Since Meng Ya Ya was eating, and her mannerisms were identical to the Brat's, he wanted to watch her more closely, so he ate along with her.

Lan Li, leading Chen Yin, happened to spot the two of them—those two fools—and nearly walked straight into a wall.

The Angel CEO! How could the Angel CEO do something so image-destroying! Lan Li felt his heart bleeding, hoping desperately that no one recognized him. If this incident were somehow broadcast on intergalactic television or captured by some busybody, the gossip would be endless. He could guess the headlines with his toes: Angel Legion Commander and Loli Vacation Show Their Low Point; An Junlie Eats Scorpions in Public for Girlfriend; The Commander with the Worst Image in History... (To be continued.)

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