Ziye woke up naturally, and when she looked up, she was startled to see An Junlie watching her with gentle eyes, nearly leaping out of her skin. What? She’d spent the entire night cuddling with An Junlie! And he was looking at her with such tenderness?

An Junlie was hardly a gentle man, but when he was gentle, her heart simply couldn't take it!

She composed herself, glancing around. Dawn was just breaking; the stars were fading, and distant alarms signaled the start of a new day.

An Junlie smiled faintly. "Awake?"

Ziye rubbed her eyes, turned her head, and stifled a yawn, handing back his coat while snapping back into her usual stoic expression. "Apologies, Commander. I must have drifted off."

An Junlie gently tousled her hair. "It's fine."

Ziye stared at his hand resting on her head, suddenly unsure what to say. An Junlie seemed slightly embarrassed and withdrew his hand. "Perhaps you should go back to the carrier and rest a bit longer?"

Ziye steeled herself, drawing a deep breath, and shook her head. "No, I think I need to go back now. An Junlie, thank you for your hospitality, and thank you for spending the day with me yesterday."

An Junlie had known she would eventually say this, but he hadn't expected it so soon. Though disappointed, he kept it hidden and nodded. "Alright. I'll send you back."

Ziye recalled her Ping'an Type mecha. If she flew back in that, it would be far too conspicuous; An Junlie would recognize it, and worse! Wait! A sudden realization struck her: An Junlie must know that machine was hers. If he connected the Ping'an Type to her work, she’d never escape!

No, she had to leave before he figured anything out!

She nodded. "Then I'll trouble you."

An Junlie signaled for a support frigate via long-range comms and then turned to Ziye. "Let's head to the frigate landing platform." By the time they arrived, the Angel Legion's frigate was just touching down. The timing was flawless, wasting not a single second. Ziye couldn't help but marvel at such efficiency.

Ziye boarded the frigate, and An Junlie followed without her refusing. The two stood in silence, looking at each other, saying nothing.

For him to have held her while sleeping last night—it was truly a miracle. Waking up now felt like emerging from a dream. As the light solidified, Ziye silently resolved to keep the memory tucked away as something beautiful.

The frigate was fast; the trip from Si'yatu Planet to the Kira Space Station took less than half an hour. As Ziye heard the frigate requesting station clearance, a wave of disappointment, tinged with sadness, washed over her.

Seeing her somber expression, An Junlie asked with concern, "Where are you staying? I'll take you."

Frigates couldn't move freely inside the station. Ziye shook her head. "No need. You should return. It's just a short walk for me." The moment the frigate docked, before An Junlie could move, she bolted out and down the ramp.

An Junlie quickly followed, but Ziye didn't dare look back. She sprinted down the access corridor, reaching the exit. Spotting a waiting mag-lev transport, she leaped in without a second thought. The car was piloted by an intelligent robot, and the instant she was seated, it shot forward like an arrow.

By the time An Junlie reached the corridor entrance, Ziye’s figure was only a distant speck.

This entire escape felt like a rout.

After accelerating at full speed for a few minutes, she suddenly remembered something. She commanded the robot to stop and looked back, but the station entrance was gone. Ziye stared blankly down the path the anti-gravity vehicle had traveled, and tears spilled over, unchecked.

She fiercely wiped them away, twisted her head around with sudden resolve, and looked forward. "An Junlie, thank you."

—

Back at her residence, Ziye collapsed onto the bed, too exhausted to do anything but stare at the ceiling.

Yes, she met An Junlie. Yes, An Junlie held her. Yes, she ditched An Junlie and ran.

Whether she wanted to or not, her mind was filled with An Junlie's image: the rare flashes of his smile, the severe set of his jaw, and the way he gazed wistfully at the stars...

She muttered, flipping over, and then remembered Xiaodouya was still in her bag. She quickly pulled the small sprout out.

Xiaodouya was flattened like a pancake, eyes shut, in standby mode.

Ziye poked it with her fingertip; no response. She poked again; still nothing.

Ziye poked it five, six, seven, eight times. Xiaodouya remained utterly still. Had it run out of power?

Xiaodouya’s energy source had always been mysterious. It had no visible charging port or energy cell, yet it maintained its charge indefinitely. Had it been in standby for too long and simply failed to reboot?

Ziye stopped poking and waited for it to cycle.

One minute, two minutes, five minutes passed.

Xiaodouya still hadn't woken up.

Ziye began to panic. Could it have been suffocated? That defied logic!

She rolled miserably back and forth on the bed, then looked at Xiaodouya again. It hadn't puffed up at all. The thought that she might have accidentally crushed it while sleeping struck her.

This realization brought a fresh wave of sadness. Cradling the flat sprout, she pleaded tearfully, "Little Sprout, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have pressed you. Wake up quickly. I promise I’ll never press you again, and I won’t keep you cooped up..."

"Is that a promise?" Xiaodouya suddenly whooshed upright, its body instantly round again, its eyes darting around. "I recorded everything you just said. You can't go back on your word."

Ziye finally realized it had just been playing with her. A huge weight lifted from her chest, but she couldn't help rolling her eyes. "Did you really need to do that?"

Xiaodouya glared at her fiercely. "Absolutely necessary! You promised the night before last you wouldn't keep me cooped up, and then you smothered me all day yesterday! I hate you!"

Ziye reached out to pick at its glass eyeball, but it jumped away with a swoosh. "Bad person! You are not a good owner!"

Ziye quickly tried to smooth things over. "I'm a bad person, and I apologize. I really won't do it again. Whether it’s aliens or An Junlie, neither of them is as important as you."

Xiaodouya huffed, turning its head away. "Fine. Since you admit you were wrong, I, the Great One, will temporarily refrain from holding a grudge."

Ziye happily kissed it, tucked it into the covers, and washed up before going to sleep herself.

She slept until the afternoon, waking up feeling mostly refreshed. For her, sleep was the ultimate stress reliever; no matter how painful her heart felt or how heavy her worries, they settled during sleep, and she woke up with her usual formidable mental resilience restored.

After eating something, Ziye climbed onto the forum to tackle practice problems.

She’d been swamped with exams recently, letting her assignments lapse, but solving problems had actually elevated her skill level. The exams had forced her to learn analysis and problem-solving techniques rapidly. Ziye found that upon returning to her regular coursework, her pace was faster, smoother, and more efficient than before.

Meanwhile, Xiaodouya had transformed into a homework-doing automaton.

In less than two days, Ziye achieved the merit level required for Grade Five problems. The duo reveled in the money steadily flowing in as they worked.

Chun Niu looked pleased but felt obligated by collegial duty to remind her, "Mengya Ya, you can do problems anytime. Scores are about to drop; how is your practical project coming along?"

Ziye scratched her head, stopped wasting time, and followed his advice by starting her practical work.

Practical projects weren't like written exams where reading sufficed; they required assembling a mecha or heavily modifying an existing one based on specifications. Ziye mulled it over; among all the chassis she knew, the Warrior Type was the most familiar. She had already analyzed it, so modification wouldn't be difficult—the lack of funds was the real obstacle.

Luckily, she had sold the blueprints for the Phantom Crow Type, leaving her with 300,000 credits. Adding her savings from assignments and government subsidies still wasn't enough.

Helplessly, she and Xiaodouya worked day and night on assignments for two more days, submitting everything at once. Only then did they scrape together the 500,000 required to purchase the Warrior Type.

Watching the meager savings she had painstakingly accumulated on Yin Fu Star vanish overnight made her wince with pain. However, she knew that small losses were necessary for big gains. She channeled her grief into motivation, ready to overhaul the Warrior Type: upgrading the engine system, modifying the cannon barrels, adjusting ballistics, increasing energy output...

Each part modification meant a new expenditure. With no time left for coursework, Ziye delegated the heavy lifting to Xiaodouya, urging it to work diligently.

The scores were due on December 10th at 2 PM.

Ziye was preoccupied with the results. She woke up early, unable to focus on mecha maintenance, and simply sat on the balcony chair, waiting for the announcement.

Waiting was the most agonizing and drawn-out part of time. Ziye had never felt the days drag so slowly. Normally, a day felt too short, ending before she finished her tasks. Now, she could only stare at the clock, wishing it would speed up.

The scores were the linchpin for her future path. Until they arrived, she had no motivation for modification, nor did she have the focus to manage her Meng Ya Ya shop.

From five in the morning until noon, she was a bundle of nerves, the hours stretching out like days. To distract herself, she decided to go online and tackle some forum problems.

As soon as she logged in, Cang Yunlang boomed loudly, "Mengya Ya, scores are out today! Are you confident?"

Ziye remained silent.

Cang Yunlang persisted, "Mengya Ya, if you pass, I'll give you a high-end mecha as a graduation gift!"

Ziye immediately logged off.

Unable to sit still, she dropped to the floor, almost rolling in frustration. Xiaodouya, completely unaffected by her anxiety, chirped cheerfully, "Ziye, it’s time for your nap."

Having woken up early, she usually needed an hour-long nap around midday. Ziye thought with a sense of defeat, the results were already set by now. Seeing them sooner or later wouldn't change the outcome. What was hers would be hers, even if she waited until dawn!

With that realization, her anxiety eased considerably, and she climbed back into her room to sleep. She was deep in slumber when Xiaodouya suddenly zipped into the room, wildly poking her with its tiny sprouts until she woke with a start. "Master, Master! The scores are out!"

Ziye leaped up. Xiaodouya instantly flipped the display screen toward her. "Look!"