“You’re so confident?”

Song Jin set down his teacup and looked at Li Xiao with suspicion. “You’ve said similar things about knowing him well before. When and where did you two meet?”

Li Xiao slowly picked up his teacup. “What do I get out of answering that?”

“Is it that you don’t want to answer, or that you don’t dare to?”

Song Jin crossed his long legs and leaned back comfortably, though his posture remained rigid. He added out of the blue, “Don’t tell me you’re that old man’s illegitimate son, trying every trick in the book to sneak into Saint-Ya just to recognize your father.”

Pfft—cough, cough, cough! Li Xiao choked on his hot tea, coughing uncontrollably.

Hearing such violent coughing, nearby students looked over with worry.

“Li Xiao, are you alright?”

That brat Qi Ge really had a heavy hand; to think he injured Li Xiao this badly—he’s still sickly even after three days.

Li Xiao wiped his mouth with a handkerchief and waved them off, indicating he was fine.

That little Golden Lion really has a knack for riling me up every time.

“Why so excited?” Song Jin leaned over and patted his back, his tone sounding concerned, though his eyes were full of mischief. “Who in the royal or noble families doesn’t have one or two illegitimate children? I know plenty; I wouldn’t look down on you.”

Li Xiao caught his breath, calmed down a little, and looked at Song Jin gloomily. “Do I look anything like him?”

Song Jin feigned deep contemplation as he sized him up. “Two eyes, one mouth—looking like a human being, though whether you act like one is another matter.”

Li Xiao: “…”

Song Jin draped an arm over Li Xiao’s shoulder, leaned in close, and lowered his voice: “It must be that the old man seduced your mother and ran off, leaving her to raise a child alone, dying of exhaustion while struggling for a living. You witnessed your mother’s suffering since you were young, so you decided to test into the First Military Academy, swearing to come to Saint-Ya to take revenge on the old man, reclaim your rightful property, snatch his throne, and then drag him to your mother’s grave—”

As he spoke, Song Jin made a throat-slitting gesture.

Li Xiao’s gaze followed Song Jin’s movement, landing on those long, graceful fingers and his fair neck. “…………”

For a moment, he couldn’t tell if this brat was insulting him or Song Yu. Are all the Song family members this unhinged?

Jiang Hao felt his temples throb: “……!” The logic is so tight, I almost believed it.

Song Jin asked with an expression of earnest sincerity: “Am I right?”

Li Xiao wiped his hands, which had been dampened by the tea, then grabbed Song Jin’s face—which was leaning in too close—and shoved him away. “Right—my foot. Stop hanging out with those weirdos; it’s affecting your intellectual development.”

Song Jin grabbed his wrist and pulled it down. “If you’re not the old man’s illegitimate son, then who are you?”

Facing Song Jin’s eager gaze, Li Xiao hooked his finger. “Since you’re so desperate to know, I suppose I could tell you—but you have to keep it a secret.”

Song Jin hesitated for a second, then leaned his ear in close to listen.

Li Xiao whispered into his ear in a low, serious voice: “Actually, I’m already sixty-eight this year. I came to Saint-Ya to find my long-lost son.”

Song Jin: “…………”

Jiang Hao looked as if his entire worldview had shattered: “…………” Big Brother, how did even you go crazy?

A faint cracking sound of knuckles came from beside his ear. Before Song Jin could strike, Li Xiao quickly retreated, grabbing the incoming fist. “Why the sneak attack?”

Song Jin gave a cold smile: “Wouldn’t that make me a ‘surprise father’?”

Li Xiao: “Saving you decades of detours—isn’t that a great deal?”

Jiang Hao: “…”

So, no matter how strong an Alpha is, when they get childish, they’re no different from a brat.

In a fit of pique, Song Jin swept the entire plate of cookies in front of Li Xiao away, leaving Li Xiao with none.

Seeing this, Li Xiao simply ordered three more of the same, placing them deliberately right next to Song Jin’s hand, while he himself ordered a new plate of spicy snacks. He sat back and watched the field assessment with great satisfaction.

Song Jin nibbled on a cookie and glared, feeling that he was the one getting all worked up. This brat is definitely here to be my nemesis.

At 4:00 PM, the final field assessment concluded. The battle zone soon released the rankings. The massive virtual screens were laid out in order, making for quite a spectacle.

A crowd of students rushed over, surrounding the first virtual screen. Because there were so many people, students ranked in the middle or back couldn’t find their own names, so checking the notifications on their terminals was simpler. This way of publicizing the results was just to let everyone see who had taken first place as intuitively as possible.

“As expected, it’s Li Xiao and Song Jin’s team—they’re in first place by a massive gap!”

“They earned five hundred points alone from that rescue mission with the excavator; they left us in the dust by eighteen streets.”

“Heh heh heh, I won the bet. A month’s worth of meal money is in the bag.”

“Meng Tao, who had such high support on the forum, performed mediocrely this time; he’s ranked past two hundred.”

Meng Tao, Zheng Lin, and the others arrived just in time to see the rankings and heard the discussion. Their expressions darkened instantly. They were authentic First Military Academy students; their daily grades were always top-tier. Yet Li Xiao, who hadn’t spent a single day in a military academy and whose whereabouts for the past ten years were a mystery—having likely attended some “back-alley” school—had completely crushed them in the field.

It doesn’t make sense!

Zheng Lin snorted irritably: “It’s a format issue. They just got lucky; one field test doesn’t represent anything.”

The other exchange students echoed his sentiments. Compared to the down-and-out prince Li Xiao, Zheng Lin and Meng Tao came from established families and were more worth befriending. Even if Li Xiao looked glorious on the surface now, one word from the Emperor could make him disappear completely again, just like ten years ago. He wasn’t worth the attention.

“He had Student Council President Qin Le on his team, so of course he wouldn’t do too poorly.” Meng Tao scoffed sarcastically, though he felt deeply unhappy inside. He had a nagging feeling that Li Xiao might actually be stronger than them, but he would die before admitting it.

The ranking for the freshman field assessment was synchronized to the Student Council and Academic Affairs office bulletin boards. Soon, several analysis threads appeared on the military academy forum, sparking intense discussion.

If one had to name the most stunning performers in this assessment, it had to be Li Xiao and Song Jin. Some upperclassmen even started specific threads analyzing their performance, which were pushed to the top by numerous students.

Even top-tier students like Qin Le, whose grades were always at the top of the pyramid, were seen as having performed normally this time. But when Li Xiao transferred in, he had been branded a “flower vase.” In a military academy where strength was everything, a student with only beauty and no strength wouldn’t earn respect; instead, because they were liked by the Omega groups, they were more likely to be collectively despised and ostracized by the Alphas.

Song Jin, who enrolled at the same time, had always been a mysterious existence. To outsiders, he was a cold, unreachable flower with a powerful background—an invisible isolation shield kept everyone at bay. People figured he was just mixing around for a few months to “gild” his resume before leaving.

One “flower vase,” one “slacker”—yet they had treated the entire school staff and student body to a brilliant field performance.

As the freshmen prepared to return to school, some sarcastic comments began to appear under the analysis threads.

“Heh, it was all due to being propped up by his teammates. I didn’t see much skill; he’s simply not worthy of Song Jin.”

“Song Jin’s methods are truly brilliant. How could Li Xiao have taken a liking to him?”

On the transport ship heading back, Qian Can was browsing the posts and saw someone trashing Song Jin. Bored, he started replying to them one by one. Unexpectedly, it escalated into a flame war; the two camps—those who liked Song Jin and those who liked Li Xiao—tore into each other. Qian Can was so furious that his two fists couldn’t handle the four hands, so he dragged Jiang Hao in to help. Jiang Hao saw that his “Big Brother” was being insulted and decisively joined the fray.

The two of them fought furiously online, while the two parties involved were busy working in quiet corners.

Li Xiao quickly scanned the domestic news. With Meng Zai detained in the Nanming Sector, the Yi family’s troops stationed in the Tianjiang Sector wouldn’t need to move. The handover suspension order hadn’t been lifted yet; Meng Jian likely couldn’t sleep at night recently.

If the Meng family wanted to spark a civil war and erode the royal family like in his previous life, they needed to control the military power in the Tianjiang Sector; otherwise, they would inevitably be resisted by the full force of the Yi family. Among the five major families, the Yi family had intermarried with the royal family the most, but the younger generation of both had become increasingly mediocre. Many people whispered that the Yi family was just occupying the position, yet they hung on awkwardly thanks to their thin ties to the royal family.

Calling the Yi family the royal family’s “guard dog” wouldn’t be much of an exaggeration. But compared to the vicious wolf disguised as a fierce dog that was the Meng family, and with the constant whispering in his ears, his brother had begun to look down on this dog more and more.

There was less than half of the month left. If the Yi family couldn’t seize this opportunity, he would need to prepare a backup plan.

The doorbell rang. Qin Le acknowledged it and gestured for the AI to open the door. An Alpha wearing an exchange student uniform walked in. He had thick brows and puffy eyelids, looking gentle, and he was holding a small box.

“Sorry to disturb you, I’m looking for Li Xiao.” Jiang Mu scratched his head, looking a bit embarrassed.

Hearing his name, Li Xiao looked up. He found the school uniform familiar but wasn’t sure who it was, so he greeted him with some confusion: “You are…?”

“You saved me at the examination grounds that day.” Jiang Mu gave his name and handed over the box. “I feel terrible that everyone was put in danger just to save me. I’ve been thinking about it and decided I had to come over and say thank you.”

This drew the attention of everyone in the lounge. Qian Can, seeing a chance for gossip, ran over and scrutinized Jiang Mu. Suddenly, he remembered: “You’re the one who was chased by the wild boar pack at the end, right? Your face was so covered in mud I almost didn’t recognize you.”

Seeing Jiang Mu nod, Li Xiao said calmly: “The saving part is done. Don’t worry about it.”

Jiang Hao, lacking an opponent, picked up a jujube from the table, took a bite, and turned to Jiang Mu: “Your field ability is poor. You lagged behind, took the wrong path, and led such a huge wave of mutant beasts our way. If this were a real battlefield, you’d be dead already.”

Hearing this, Jiang Mu was at a loss for words. He pulled at the corner of his mouth and forced a smile: “I… I will strengthen my training.”

Li Xiao didn’t reach out to take the gift. Jiang Mu’s expression stiffened: “This isn’t anything valuable. I’ll feel terrible if you don’t accept it.”

“If it had been any exchange student being chased, I would have intervened. Don’t carry that psychological burden.” Li Xiao made his stance clear: he wasn’t going to take it.

Seeing the situation turn awkward, Qin Le patted Jiang Mu’s shoulder to mediate: “On the battlefield, mutual help between partners is expected. If Li Xiao accepts your gift, it might actually make him feel pressured.”

Seeing that Li Xiao was preparing to go back to work, Jiang Mu grew anxious and suddenly raised his voice: “It was them! They intentionally led me away from the squad to stand guard, and they didn’t notify me when they discovered the danger. That’s why I got left behind and almost got trampled to death by the boar pack!”

Everyone in the lounge was shocked, even Song Jin, who had been immersed in the joy of office work, looked up.

Li Xiao turned around and looked at Jiang Mu with suspicion: “Who do you mean by ‘them’?”

Jiang Mu gritted his teeth: “Who else but my teammates?!”

Qin Le frowned: “Did you report this to the instructor?”

Jiang Mu shook his head: “It’s useless. Even if I told them, they would just deny it.”

Qian Can shouted, “Yo! Selling out your teammates on the battlefield—if there’s solid evidence, that’s a heavy punishment.”

Li Xiao didn’t know Jiang Mu and didn’t entirely believe what he said. Even if it were true, he had no interest in getting involved.

“You could try asking the Student Council for help. Maybe you can find evidence.”

Qin Le nodded: “If you want to file a complaint, I can explain the application procedure to you.”

“Thank you.” Jiang Mu thanked him, then looked back at Li Xiao, speaking solemnly: “That day, I really thought I was going to die. So, that you could save me… I’m truly grateful. This is a gift I chose after asking my father’s advice. Please, accept it.”

With that, Jiang Mu shoved the small box into Li Xiao’s arms, bowed, and ran off.

As the door to the lounge closed, Song Jin sauntered over to Li Xiao’s side, his tone carrying his usual sarcasm: “I look away for one second, and you’ve summoned another swarm of bees and butterflies.”

Li Xiao: “…” He forced it on me.

Song Jin eyed the small box: “Open it and take a look.”

The others crowded around curiously. The Danshi people highly preserved their various cultural traditions and had many strange and odd trinkets. Under the curious, puppy-dog gazes of five people, Li Xiao opened the box with resignation.

Inside lay a neatly folded handkerchief. Just by looking at the texture and sheen, one could tell it was of excellent quality.

“A handkerchief. Quite ordinary. I thought it would be a love letter or something,” Qian Can said with disappointment.

Qin Le: “Who still writes love letters these days?”

As Jiang Mu said, it wasn’t a very expensive gift; at least it wouldn’t cause any burden to the recipient.

“The texture is nice,” Song Jin remarked indifferently.

Li Xiao handed it over: “You like it? It’s yours.”

Song Jin: “It was a gift for you.”

Li Xiao: “You had a hand in the rescue that day, too. It wasn’t just sent to me alone.”

Song Jin hadn’t been interested in the handkerchief originally, but since Li Xiao was handing it over, he intended to take it smoothly and use the opportunity to tease him a bit. But just as his hand lifted, Li Xiao suddenly snapped the lid shut and pulled it back.

Song Jin’s brows furrowed: “Playing games with me?”

Li Xiao said expressionlessly: “I’ll buy you a better one; just forget about this one.”

“I want this one.” Song Jin reached out to snatch it.

Li Xiao dodged back and turned to leave: “This one isn’t good. It’ll scratch your delicate skin.”

Song Jin chased him: “You’re overthinking it. Even a steel wool scrubber wouldn’t scratch me. Are you giving it to me or not?”

The two chased each other, crashing into the small lounge on the side.

Qian Can and the other three: “…” Day after day, are you not going to let us single dogs live?!

They wouldn’t be able to appreciate the view inside the small lounge, so Qin Le sat down and opened the student council backend, using his authority as president to pull up the examination room surveillance. There was a lot of footage, and Qian Can and Jiang Hao were too busy to keep arguing on the forum, so they sat in a circle to help watch.

Da Bei wondered: “Can you tell from this?”

Qin Le explained: “The exam room surveillance doesn’t have audio, but by logic of behavior and backend operation logs, we can restore what happened at the time to a certain extent.”

Qian Can said to Da Bei: “You Danshi students are truly not united at all. Forget the ordinary ones—even a powerhouse like Li Xiao gets bullied. You’ve really opened my eyes.”

Da Bei found it hard to refute, struggling for a long time before choking out: “Everyone is very… individualistic.”

Qian Can asked with a giggle: “I’m curious, when your army goes out on expeditions, does everyone do their own thing, too?”

Da Bei: “…” How is he supposed to answer such a death-trap of a question?!

In the small lounge, Song Jin cornered Li Xiao against the wall.

“Give it to me.”

Li Xiao: “How old are you? Are you being childish?”

Song Jin: “As old as my opponent is, that’s how old I am.”

Li Xiao: “…” Are kids these days all this difficult to handle?

Li Xiao looked into Song Jin’s eyes, his expression deep: “I don’t want you to use a handkerchief sent by another Alpha.”

Song Jin: “…”

Li Xiao: “How about we go out and browse when we get back to school? I’ll buy you one you like?”

Song Jin raised his eyebrows: “A date?”

Li Xiao: “We’re already married; is a date strange? Or are you afraid to go out alone with me?”

“What do I have to be afraid of?” Song Jin chuckled, “Then it’s settled.”

Having successfully tricked Song Jin into leaving, Li Xiao reopened the box. When he had handed it to Song Jin earlier, the handkerchief had shifted slightly, revealing a small part of a pattern underneath.

Li Xiao took out the handkerchief and unfolded it. Embroidered on one corner was a complex circular pattern—the family crest of the Yi family.

So, that’s what he meant by asking for his father’s advice?

Jiang Mu? Surname Jiang?

Could he be from the Yi Yongning brothers’ branch?

He had no impression of this “Jiang family.” In his previous life, he had only heard his subordinates mention the name a couple of times while investigating Yi Yongning. By that time, the Jiang family was already practically extinct.

After confirming the pattern, Li Xiao tossed the handkerchief into a crushing robot and waited until it was completely shredded before leaving.

At noon the next day, the entire freshman class returned to the Central Military Academy. The first announcement issued by the Student Council was regarding the disciplinary action against Qi Ge.

“Due to personal reasons, Qi Ge used his pheromones to attack Li Xiao in the rest area, resulting in Li Xiao’s mental damage. The circumstances are serious and the influence is egregious. After communicating with multiple departments, we have decided to repatriate him to the Danshi Empire.”

A group of students surrounded the bulletin board outside the cafeteria, debating endlessly.

“Great! As expected of the Student Council; they’ve never let me down.”

“It should be like this! Exchange students shouldn’t have special privileges!”

“And he injured Li Xiao, who is also an exchange student. I really don’t know what they’re thinking.”

“No, no, no—Li Xiao is now the daughter-in-law of our Saint-Ya.”

In the Alpha dormitory area, Meng Tao locked himself in his bedroom and flew into a rage. A holographic projection appeared in the small space: it was the Beta official from the Danshi Ministry of Foreign Affairs responsible for exchange student matters.

“Qi Ge was set up by Li Xiao!” Meng Tao roared, “He wouldn’t be stupid enough to attack Li Xiao in a corridor full of people! If he’s actually repatriated, the impact on his future is too great!”

The Beta official: “It’s useless to roar at me; this is the decision from above.”

Meng Tao sneered, his knuckles thumping hard against the table: “Which ‘above’?! I want to see who dares to oppose our Meng family!”

The official gave him an extra look: “The Emperor issued the order himself.”

Meng Tao’s eyelid twitched violently: “How could the Emperor bother with these small things?! If Qi Ge is being repatriated, Li Xiao should also be sent back to accept an investigation!”

“Why don’t you go notify the Emperor directly? No one dares to defy your Meng family anyway.”

After saying this, the official cut the connection.

“What do you mean—you!” Meng Tao was exasperated; he swept the books off the table onto the floor.

Still fuming, Meng Tao sent a message to his father, Meng Zai.

[Father, Qi Ge is being repatriated. They say it’s the Emperor’s will. Please step in to handle this.]

He waited until evening to receive a reply.

[If you don’t restrain yourself, just pack your things and crawl back here!]

Meng Tao’s pupils quaked; he didn’t understand what his father meant. Wasn’t this just a matter of a single word? Why are they making it sound so difficult?

Qi Ge’s repatriation was scheduled for 6:00 PM the following day. Recalling the feeling of being controlled, Li Xiao wanted to see him one last time before he was sent away. Qi Ge was being held by the security department and wasn’t accessible to ordinary students, so Li Xiao went directly to Song Jin.

“See Qi Ge?” Song Jin was playing with his pen, watching the complex mathematical equations on the podium screen. “Why come to me? I can’t get in either.”

Li Xiao: “If I see him, I might be able to remember the feeling I had when I jumped off the excavator.”

The pen in Song Jin’s fingers paused. He looked at Li Xiao slowly, then passed him a sheet of draft paper: “Write a promissory note; sign it and press your thumbprint.”

Li Xiao: “…” Has his credit rating really dropped to this point?

The layout of the detention room was similar to a prison cell. Li Xiao followed Song Jin to a room with three-sided glass walls and saw Qi Ge, who was currently undergoing an examination.

In the examination room, Qi Ge looked impatient: “Didn’t I just do this a few days ago? Why the check-up again?!”

The middle-aged Beta school doctor smiled good-naturedly: “Today’s is a routine procedure before leaving the territory to ensure you don’t unintentionally bring any Saint-Ya viruses into Danshi.”

Qi Ge: “Then why even test the pheromones?”

The doctor fiddled with the instruments and replied: “To see if Saint-Ya’s environment and climate have affected your rut; this is for the sake of your health.”

Locked up for so many days, Qi Ge was too anxious to sleep. After hesitating repeatedly, he asked: “Then what were the results of the previous pheromone tests?”

The doctor smiled: “Don’t worry, the indices are normal. You’re very healthy.”

Qi Ge stared at him, still uneasy: “Completely normal?”

The doctor nodded: “Yes. Kids your age usually don’t have any problems, but the examination procedure must still be performed as a routine.”

In the observation room next door, Song Jin watched Qi Ge coldly: “A thief has a guilty conscience.”

To ensure nothing was missed, he arranged for the school doctor to collect Qi Ge’s pheromones again. After all, once a person was released back to Danshi, it would be difficult to catch them again.

“Is there a problem with his pheromones?” Seeing Song Jin’s face looking poorly, Li Xiao added, “You still haven’t given me the blood sample report you promised.”

Song Jin met his gaze: “Are you the only one allowed to go back on your word?”

Li Xiao was amused: “I promise you today: I absolutely won’t go back on it.”

After Qi Ge finished the exam and was taken away, Li Xiao entered the examination room. Qi Ge’s pheromones had been intentionally preserved—it was still that rotten tomato smell, but he didn’t get that feeling of his heart being gripped.

Sensing movement behind him, Li Xiao turned and saw Song Jin leaning against the workbench, his brows tightly locked.

“How are you feeling?” Li Xiao walked over.

Song Jin’s face was dark: “Chest tightness. This smell is disgusting.”

Li Xiao: “What scent do you smell?”

Song Jin: “Some kind of fruit wine.”

Li Xiao: “Does it smell like rotten tomatoes?”

Song Jin’s expression turned subtle, and he gave him a suspicious look for several seconds: “It doesn’t.”

Li Xiao: “…”

This brat must have been mocking him in his heart just now.

In other words, the scents they were smelling were different. Seeing Li Xiao in deep thought, Song Jin realized something and tentatively asked: “You smell rotten tomatoes?”

Li Xiao: “Yeah.”

Song Jin thought for a moment, then grabbed Li Xiao and walked out. Driving to the medical department, Song Jin had the young Beta doctor follow them: “Simulate pheromones using the various blood samples collected previously.”

Li Xiao was pinned in front of the instrument by Song Jin.

The Beta doctor: “This is the first one.”

After the blood sample was precisely calculated by the instrument, it released a synthetically produced pheromone.

Song Jin: “What’s the smell?”

Li Xiao: “Rotten tomatoes.”

Song Jin pointed randomly to an ordinary student’s sample on the screen: “How about this one?”

Li Xiao: “Apple-pear.”

Song Jin pointed again: “This time?”

Li Xiao’s brows furrowed: “Rotten tomatoes.”

After testing more than twenty times, Li Xiao was always able to accurately identify the pheromones of those four “problematic” exchange students.

Song Jin pointed to another one: “How about this?”

“Ugh—I’m done. Not playing anymore.” Li Xiao stood up and left.

Song Jin: “…”