Xiao Lü stared blankly for a long moment, then fled, covering her face, “Waaah, the women in space are so terrifying!”
After scolding Xiao Lü, Hong Fa saw the others standing frozen and decided to lecture them one by one. “What are you all still standing around for? Get back to whatever you were doing. Those of you who don’t know what to do, go assist Zi Ye!”
The youths exchanged bewildered glances, having no idea what to do, and finally flocked to Zi Ye’s side, begging her to assign tasks.
Zi Ye thought for a moment. “How about you all go train on Planet Yinfu for a few months first?”
The youths looked lost. “Planet Yinfu?”
Zi Ye shook her head, dismissing the idea. “I need hands on deck these days, so let’s wait a while longer. In that case, you all…”
Zi Ye hadn't finished speaking when she saw An Junlie outside, signaling to the group with his back turned.
She understood immediately, stood up, and continued, “Your mission assignments will be handled by An Junlie. He is the commander of the Angel Legion, highly experienced.”
An Junlie nodded to Zi Ye, approached, and gathered everyone. “If I assign you tasks, can you complete them?”
Xiao Hei answered without hesitation, “Yes!”
An Junlie glanced at the overconfident youth and continued, “Are you sure you can complete the tasks?”
Xiao Cheng weakly raised his hand. “What kind of tasks are they?”
An Junlie said in a deep voice, “Any task is possible. Perhaps infiltrating enemy lines in a stealth bomber to drop torpedoes, perhaps protecting key personnel in a crowd, or maybe even repairing a crippled warship!”
The youths looked at each other. “That’s too hard, let’s take another mission.”
An Junlie stood tall and straight, like a pine, his expression severe. “If you wish to become useful people, you must first train. Now, is there anyone among you willing to follow my arrangement and undergo training?”
The youths’ spirits flared with passion. “Yes!”
An Junlie’s expression softened slightly. “Very good. Now, please wait outside the airship docking bay. In five minutes, we will conduct an airdrop.”
Among the youths, Xiao Chi was the most afraid of heights. The journey from the garbage planet to space had left his legs weak, and hearing the word ‘airdrop’ made his face turn pale. “Airdrop what?”
An Junlie’s expression was unreadable. “We will airdrop your airships to the ground training base. In two months, I will personally inspect the results. Any problems?”
His voice was naturally deep, and when he became serious, it carried three parts more authority than the most iron-willed drill instructor. The youths glanced at each other, none daring to speak.
Finally, Xiao Hei whispered, “I have a question.”
An Junlie, imposing even without anger, commanded, “Speak!”
Xiao Hei flinched, then realizing his own shame, quickly straightened up. “Will Goddess Zi Ye be going with us?”
An Junlie stared at him with eyes like lightning. He grew more unsteady, lowering his head like a child who had done wrong. “I’m sorry, I won’t ask.”
An Junlie stated gravely, “No, you are not wrong. What I mean is, when you have nothing, you have no right to demand this or that. If you want what you desire, you must only strive!”
The youths were moved by his words and stood straighter. “Yes!”
An Junlie commanded, “Left face, quick march, assemble at the entrance to the gangway.”
The youths obediently ran toward the gangway.
Xiao Bai, beside Xiao Hei, gently nudged his back. “Don’t be sad. We’ll talk when we’re strong enough.”
Xiao Hei nodded and ran forward with long strides. —In truth, he just wanted to learn more mechanical knowledge from Zi Ye.
Five minutes later, the airship launch mechanism roared to life amidst the youths’ shrieks, flinging the airships one by one out into space toward the planet. Quiet finally descended upon the battleship.
Zi Ye closed her optical computer and walked to the viewport, watching the airships vanish into the sea of stars, feeling a pang of melancholy. It was incredibly rare to find a mentor at the age of one’s teens to complete fundamental training.
She was grateful to Tang Shan, grateful to Tang Wen. She believed that in the future, these youths would also be grateful to An Junlie.
“Little Stinky~” A drawn-out, seductive voice came from behind her. Zi Ye turned and couldn't help but want to slap someone. Heavens, Hong Fa was drunk!
Hong Fa hadn’t even finished putting on her clothes after dancing. Half-naked, holding a bottle of red wine, she staggered toward Zi Ye with drunken grace. When she got close, she blinked, suddenly threw the wine bottle to the ground, cupped Zi Ye’s face with both hands, pouted her red lips, and kissed her.
Zi Ye was terrified and ducked down, narrowly avoiding a kiss on the mouth.
Hong Fa was displeased and pulled her up. Zi Ye quickly said, “I’m not Lan Li, don’t just kiss people randomly.”
Hong Fa laughed charmingly. “Hehe, I know. You’re Little Stinky.”
Zi Ye nodded frantically. “Yes, I am Little Stinky. I am not your man.”
Hong Fa pinched Zi Ye’s cheek with her hand. Her nails were bright red, and her fingertips were strong, making Zi Ye’s cheek hurt. Hong Fa was still dissatisfied and pinched both cheeks simultaneously, muttering as she squeezed, “Little Stinky, how dare you ignore this old lady! I’ll strangle you!”
Zi Ye was on the verge of tears.
She had provoked a disaster!
Didn't she just want to act a little (proudly reserved)?
Zi Ye forcefully pried open Hong Fa’s left hand, then went for the right. Hong Fa wouldn't yield, pinching now with the left, now with the right, making Zi Ye’s face turn completely red.
“Stop it!” Zi Ye finally exploded, shouting, “If you don’t stop, I’ll throw you into space as wreckage!!”
As soon as she finished speaking, a pair of hands reached from behind and rescued Zi Ye from Hong Fa’s clutches. She turned back, let out a sigh of relief, covered her face, and said, “Alien, Hong Fa pinched me so hard.”
An Junlie watched her with a smile and chuckled, “Ruddy is quite nice to look at, much better than your pale complexion these past few days.”
Zi Ye: “…”
Thus, the unfortunate An Junlie discovered that his reply was met with a punch from Zi Ye.
Zi Ye threw a hard punch, then turned and walked away.
Damn it! It was one thing for Hong Fa to bully her, but for An Junlie to join in was simply too much!
An Junlie called two robots to drag Hong Fa away, then used the interlink to summon his deputy commander to take her back. He rushed to catch up with Zi Ye. “What’s wrong? Why are you angry?”
Zi Ye glared at him.
An Junlie appeared genuinely innocent, unable to figure out why Zi Ye had suddenly become upset.
He quickened his pace, reached Zi Ye, and quickly turned around to face her. Zi Ye was walking too fast and couldn't brake in time, crashing right into An Junlie’s embrace.
An Junlie seized the opportunity immediately, holding her firmly.
Zi Ye depressedly bumped her head against his chest—once, twice, three or four times in a row. An Junlie helplessly held her head and rubbed it. “Does it hurt?”
Ahhh, Zi Ye was driven mad.
Bumping into An Junlie’s chest, it was certainly her head that hurt!
An Junlie rubbed her head, then cupped her face, lowering his gaze to meet hers. “Why are you unhappy?”
Zi Ye’s tears were about to spill, not from pain, but from feeling wronged.
An Junlie completely failed to understand a girl’s heart.
She said her face hurt, but he commented that it looked better than when she was pale—wasn’t that inviting her to be pinched? It was too much.
Zi Ye pushed An Junlie away and stomped toward her room, tossing back a single sentence, “Call me when you get to the Wolf’s Den.”
As soon as he saw her enter the room, An Junlie quickly stuck out one foot, wedging it in the doorway so Zi Ye couldn't close it. An Junlie slipped inside, kicked the door shut behind him, leaned against it, and pulled her into his arms. He spoke softly, “Be good, don’t be angry anymore, okay?”
Zi Ye puffed out her cheeks and glared at him without speaking.
An Junlie found her expression incredibly cute and fought the urge to pinch her cheeks. Just as he raised his hand, he recalled that Hong Fa had just made her angry by pinching her, so he restrained himself and lowered his head.
Zi Ye thought he was going to kiss her cheek and haughtily turned her head away. However, An Junlie wouldn't let her go. He cupped both her cheeks firmly, holding them in place, and aimed straight for her mouth.
Zi Ye didn't have time to act proud before her lips were sealed.
An Junlie was very nervous.
He still didn't have much experience kissing. In their previous encounters, he either kissed her secretly while she was asleep or stole a quick one when she wasn't paying attention, resulting in her being quite unskilled at French kissing.
His forehead was practically sweating.
He didn't control his strength well, and in his nervousness, his teeth accidentally bumped Zi Ye’s lip.
Zi Ye kicked him hard. He kissed a few more times, trying to leverage his tongue, but couldn't pry open her teeth. His shin ached, so he had to call a temporary truce.
Zi Ye angrily pushed him away, clutching her mouth. “Bastard, you bumped me!”
An Junlie grabbed her wrist and pulled her hand away to look. The corner of her upper lip on the left side was indeed flushed red—he had actually bumped her. Luckily, the skin wasn't broken.
Zi Ye felt utterly despairing toward him. “Amateur. Come back when you’ve practiced.”
An Junlie stroked her lip with his thumb and whispered, “Alright, I won’t make that mistake again.”
Zi Ye expected him to leave and tilted her face up, signaling for him to go out. Instead, he hugged her face again and kissed her forcefully. This time, Zi Ye couldn't resist and melted into it.
Previously, she hadn’t understood why humans were so fond of this act of kissing.
She truly didn’t want to admit that she found the exchange of saliva rather unclean, but when An Junlie kissed her, she felt a happiness that was incomparable.
The nerves running through her body seemed to come alive; she experienced an ineffable joy.
Moreover, she understood An Junlie’s heart without any need for thought.
No matter how frustrated or displeased she had been moments before, in this time, their souls connected.
This connection was more harmonious than dancing a waltz in perfect synchronization.
It was as if they were born to be together.
An Junlie wrapped one arm around Zi Ye’s back and held the back of her head with the other hand, while Zi Ye instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck, merging completely with him, savoring the beautiful time belonging only to them.
However, An Junlie’s heart rate was accelerating.
An Junlie’s body was heating up.
It was a heat that could ignite a person, burning against her body through the thin fabric.
-RS