The little Sprout, fanning its wings, broke into a mischievous grin, its entire body starting to spin. Its beautiful, fluffy clothes spread out in all directions, resembling a lovely skirt. It spun faster and faster until the skirt blurred into a single white streak.

Zi Ye and An Junlie exchanged suspicious glances. What trick was this little thing up to?

Just then, the little Sprout shot towards An Junlie’s chest with lightning speed. The tiny sprout at the top of its head remained at the center of the rotation, aiming directly at An Junlie’s sternum.

In that instant, An Junlie felt a sudden urge to thank whoever had designed this outfit for the little Sprout.

The tip of the sprout was originally pointed, but the clothing designer, to enhance the Sprout's cuteness, had placed a soft, fuzzy little ball right on its tip.

This meant that no matter how fast the little Sprout spun, with that little ball present, it was physically impossible for it to pierce his chest.

The little Sprout spun and spun against his chest, unable to break through. Instead, the rigid little sprout bent further and further until its entire body pressed flat against An Junlie’s ribs.

Zi Ye shook her head and sighed. She had expected some constructive act of revenge; what a disappointment.

Yet, if she didn't indulge it, it would start throwing a tantrum. Zi Ye knew without asking that the little thing must have suffered greatly during the time it spent with that wretched Tang. That was why she had played along earlier, allowing it this brief bout of mischief.

—One must remember, pets throwing tantrums can be incredibly troublesome!

Seeing that it was about to deflate from exertion, Zi Ye "kindly" scooped it up, stroking its fluff back into place. "If your fur gets messy, you won't look pretty anymore."

The little Sprout froze instantly. "I don't want to become ugly!"

Zi Ye smiled sweetly. "Good boy, let's go home."

With that, she tucked the little Sprout under her arm, bid farewell to An Junlie, and headed back to her own apartment.

An Junlie stared blankly at the sky.

—Was this a warning that in the future, if he wanted to date Zi Ye, he’d first need to win over the little Sprout?

He desperately wanted to escort Zi Ye back, but it was nearly noon, and accompanying her openly would harm her reputation. He reluctantly shelved the idea of driving her home and instead headed toward the X-Bente hospital.

The twins were both recovering: one from extreme exhaustion of physical and mental energy, the other from a hand burn.

In truth, Sprent only needed a few days of good rest and some energy-replenishing food. For Xeks, it was even simpler—just a quick trip through the cellular repair unit.

But the media coverage was relentless.

They were inflating the twins' conditions to epic proportions, causing the audience, media, and reporters to swarm the hospital entrance, forcing the twins to continue their "convalescence."

Currently, the twins were whispering amongst themselves.

"Didn't Commander Teacher say he was coming to see us? Why hasn't he shown up yet?"

"Little Ye Zi, Chun Niu has forgotten us too."

The two brothers sighed in unison.

They were experiencing an unprecedented level of neglect. Not a single person from the Chu Chu team had visited them! Not even anyone from the Angelic Domain!

They had spent an entire day in the hospital, cycling through every small game available, then napping several times out of sheer boredom. They hadn't seen a single reporter, yet they were so idle their fur was beginning to stand on end.

Just as they were about to dial Mama Dittar’s hyper-com to vent their grievances, the hyper-com rang.

It was a call from the most devilish of them all, Vice Commander Lan Li.

Lan Li’s smile was light and airy. "I hear you two have been injured?"

The twins, perfectly synchronized, put on mournful faces. "Not only are we injured, Vice Commander, but we've been abandoned by the world."

Lan Li chuckled softly. "And has the Commander abandoned you?"

This pierced the twins' tear ducts again, nearly bringing them to tears. Damn it, stuck in a hospital, suffering life-or-death crises without anyone knowing—how pathetic!

Despite their tragic depiction, in reality, the two were bursting with health, better than ever.

Lan Li let out a slight sigh. "You two know how determined the Commander is about that girl, Zi Ye—he won't marry anyone else. You should try to be understanding, right?"

What?

The twins shot up simultaneously. Since when had the Commander and Zi Ye reached a point of life-and-death devotion? They spent every day with Zi Ye and hadn't even known about it—that made no sense!

Seeing his words had hit the mark, Lan Li sighed again. "It was wrong of the Commander to leave you two behind, but you are different. You are both good children, and contributing to the hospital's publicity is only fitting, yes?"

The Buddha said that enlightenment can happen in an instant.

In that instant, the twins understood.

So, the cunning Vice Commander Lan Li was actually trying to advertise the hospital!

In the final competition, the pilots were the most direct and crucial element, and thanks to the twins’ emotionally charged performance in the final seconds after the match, they had now become celebrity idols across the entire galaxy.

It was rumored that Lan Li had established a talent agency specifically for them, assigning an agent named Bibi to handle all the endorsement offers pouring in from across the stars.

Rumor had it that the invitations they received had already shattered the all-time record for stars emerging from Mech Competitions.

But they hadn't seen a single visitor.

The hospital's security measures were too effective, weren't they?

Then again, hadn't their fans rushed to the hospital the moment they heard the news? Weren’t the reporters eager for the latest scoop, camping out at the gates when they couldn't get in? Weren't they providing free advertising and promotion for the hospital every single day?

No wonder they were immediately pulled aside the moment they entered the school hospital.

Vice Commander Lan Li’s business acumen was truly excellent.

It was likely they would have to remain hospitalized for the next few days for the sake of the hospital's publicity.

To be saddled with Lan Li, truly tragic.

Xeks cried out in despair, "Vice Commander, when can we be discharged?"

The Vice Commander adopted a thoughtful pose. "That's not for me to decide. The Commander makes the final call."

Sprent’s face fell upon hearing this. "Are you going to abandon us too?"

The Vice Commander smiled mysteriously. "The Commander is pursuing true love, and I must pursue my own true love as well..."

The twins nearly wet themselves in fear.

What poor girl had the bad luck to be the object of Lan Li's affections? That was terrifying!

Xeks guessed, "Vice Commander, what does this girl look like?"

—The unspoken question was: Vice Commander, are you sure this girl can withstand your 'devastation'?

The Vice Commander paused for a moment in thought. "She's quite feminine."

The twins exchanged looks—it was over. The Commander had his love interest and had abandoned his pitiful twin followers; now the Vice Commander also had that lovesick look in his eyes. Wuwu, truly no one would love their brothers anymore.

Cue the floodgates of tears!

The Vice Commander thought for a moment, then added, "You know her."

The twins felt the world wobble beneath them again.

The two brothers communicated silently for ten seconds, until Xeks posed the question: "Can you tell us her name?"

—Shaxinni? Seemed unlikely; Shaxinni had confessed to Sprent before.

—Aina? The twins didn't have good feelings toward Aina; they could never tolerate a woman who seemed to wear several layers of masks on her face.

Who else?

—April?

That was it. April was practically a little lamb; if she fell into Lan Li's grasp, not even bones would be left behind.

After much mental deliberation, Lan Li dropped a bombshell: "It’s Zihong."

-RS