Two faint sleep lamps were lit in the rest cabin.

Little Song Cat’s beautiful eyes shimmered with a faint light, making it impossible for Rong Shi to look away.

After a moment of silence, Song Yu saw Rong Shi open his mouth, and his hand unconsciously clenched the thin blanket.

“Call me husband, and I’ll answer you,” Rong Shi said in a low voice.

Song Yu’s fingers paused. “…”

Rong Shi wrapped an arm around his narrow waist and reminded him, “You still haven’t delivered on last time.”

Before coming to the Imperial Capital Star, Song Yu had casually promised to call him husband if they arrived safely. The promise turned out to be an empty one, and he had clearly reneged on it.

Song Yu hummed softly, pressing half of his body against Rong Shi and leaning close to his ear. “Hubby~”

He deliberately dragged out the last syllable with a seductive lilt.

Rong Shi’s hand tightened, and half his body went numb.

When little Song Cat was serious about being cute, even a hundred-year-old block of wood couldn’t resist.

Song Yu lifted his head, just in time to meet Rong Shi’s smiling eyes.

“Smiling so sweetly. Are you satisfied with just that?”

Rong Shi: “What do you mean, ‘just that’?”

Song Yu’s fingers grazed his chin. “Answer me, and I’ll give you a big reward.”

A big reward from the little cat? Rong Shi imagined what it could be and was intensely tempted.

“I retained my original memories,” he said, his voice so low only the two of them could hear. “Unfortunately, I lost only the ten years when you took care of me.”

As soon as he finished, Rong Shi felt the person in his arms tremble slightly.

Song Yu hugged him tighter, burying his head in the crook of his neck, silent for a long moment.

Hearing Song Yu’s unsteady breathing by his ear, Rong Shi patted his head. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me. It must have been hard.”

From Mianmian’s descriptions, he had some idea of how difficult little Song Cat’s life had been in the previous lifetime.

Whether he could recover those memories or not, whether he was an alpha or an omega, to Rong Shi, his little cat was his little act.

Suddenly, he felt a tickle on the side of his neck.

Rong Shi: “Xiao Yu?”

Song Yu gnawed on his gland. “I can’t believe I endured it for so many years. Thinking back on it now, I really regret it.”

Rong Shi: “Hm?”

Song Yu: “An unconscious rabbit must have a unique flavor when eaten.”

Rong Shi: “…”

Your tastes are truly unique.

Song Yu: “I don’t accept verbal thanks. If you really want to thank me, let me top you.”

Rong Shi: “…………”

Has the little cat’s confidence inflated now that his memories are complete?

Rong Shi: “A toy car is still a toy car, no matter how many years pass.”

Song Yu: “…”

Is this dead rabbit implying I’m no good?

His personal terminal suddenly rang, the notification tone for a special contact.

Their playful mood vanished, and they quickly sat up.

Song Yu swiped open his terminal. It was a message from Zhang Yi.

[The Lu family is making a move. Come quickly!]

Rong Shi glanced at the message, threw off the blanket, and got out of bed, picking up the shirt from the floor and putting it on.

After Zhang Yi had offended Song Yu that time, the entire Zhang family was completely abandoned by the Lu family.

Song Yu promised a small benefit and managed to turn Zhang Yi, having him return to Lu Ming’s side as an informant.

Song Yu switched to the shadow guard group chat, quickly browsing through the reports sent out that day.

“Lu Youqi’s Ninth Legion has set sail from their deployment location. The Eleventh and Thirteenth Legions are also on the move.”

Rong Shi quickly buttoned his shirt from the bottom up and put on his military academy uniform jacket.

“Ji Ming is on Snow Star.”

Song Yu got out of bed, wearing only a pair of trousers with the top button undone, revealing half a love bite.

He ran a hand through his slightly messy golden hair, his expression annoyed. “This bunch of old fools who don’t know what’s good for them.”

The two rushed to the command cabin, only to be told that Qian Li had just gone to rest.

They didn’t want to disturb a man in his nineties, so they turned and went to Song Zheng’s rest cabin instead.

Time was of the essence. Song Yu had temporary authorization for this rest cabin and could enter directly with a retinal scan.

The moment the cabin door opened, a rich omega pheromone washed over them.

After so many dangerous encounters related to omega pheromones, Song Yu had developed a psychological aversion to them.

The sudden scent made his face change drastically, and he rushed inside.

But after a couple of breaths, he gradually recognized it.

This pheromone had no aggression, and it was very familiar.

Thinking of a certain possibility, Song Yu became even more anxious, taking a few large strides through the outer hall and into the bedroom.

In the bedroom, the military doctor who had examined Song Zheng that afternoon was leaning against the headboard, while Song Zheng was resting his head on his lap, sleeping soundly.

Hearing the commotion in the outer room, the doctor looked up, and their gazes met across the room.

“You… you are—” Song Yu stopped abruptly, his feet feeling as if they were filled with lead, unable to take another step forward.

“Dad?” he asked tentatively, his voice soft.

The doctor put a finger to his lips in a shushing gesture, carefully moved Song Zheng aside, and got off the bed quietly.

He gestured for the two of them to go to the outer hall.

“He just fell asleep. Tell me what’s wrong, and I’ll pass it on to him.”

Song Yu stared at the doctor, his expression wary.

Too much time had passed, and his father’s image had become very blurry in his memory. He found it difficult to judge if this person was his father based on physical form alone, but he would never mistake the scent of his pheromones.

Seeing Song Yu remain silent, the doctor turned his gaze to Rong Shi.

Rong Shi’s expression was serious. “There’s going to be trouble on Snow Star soon. I’m afraid we’ll have to trouble you to wake His Majesty.”

After hearing Rong Shi’s brief explanation, the doctor’s eyes grew cold. He turned to go back into the bedroom. “I’ll call you in a moment.”

“Wait.” As they passed each other, Song Yu suddenly seized the doctor’s wrist. “Dad, is that you?”

The doctor paused and turned his head to look at Song Yu.

As their eyes met, he suddenly smiled.

“Not calling me the hemorrhoid doctor this time?”

Song Yu: “…?” Something’s not right.

The doctor: “Robbing the cradle, hm?”

Song Yu: “…………”

Something is very wrong!

“How is that possible—” Song Yu looked at Rong Shi, completely bewildered. “Jiang Huai, Jiang Huai is—”

Though the face was completely different, the expression, the tone, the words—

How could Jiang Huai be his dad?!

Rong Shi looked away, his face expressionless.

He had tried his best to give clues. If the silly kitten still couldn’t guess, there was nothing he could do.

He couldn’t save him from this one.

Before Song Yu could accept reality, his ear was suddenly twisted.

“Hiss—” Song Yu instinctively tried to retaliate but managed to stop himself when he realized who it was. He bent over slightly, voluntarily offering his ear.

Dad is so fierce.

Shen Sinian twisted his son’s ear, showing no mercy. “Your skills haven’t improved much over the years, but your mouth has certainly gotten sharper.”

To be reunited with the dad he had been separated from by life and death, only for it to be a scene of conflict.

Song Yu’s feelings were complicated. He glanced at Rong Shi and said in a small voice, “My wife taught me.”

Rong Shi: “…”

He passed the buck so smoothly.

The smile on Shen Sinian’s lips was chilling. “Did he also teach you how to make those sickeningly sweet cookies?”

Song Yu nodded, selling him out without any psychological burden, his voice full of grievance. “Dad, you’re twisting my ear off.”

If not for the urgent situation, Shen Sinian would have definitely sat his silly son down for a long talk about life.

“What is it? Come in.”

The noise in the outer hall had woken Song Zheng in the bedroom. He sat up against the headboard and told them to enter.

After hearing Rong Shi’s brief report, Song Zheng accepted the cup of water Shen Sinian handed him, not showing much surprise.

“Qian Li reported the situation to me just before his shift ended. We can’t spare too many people to go over there right now.”

The rebel army was still expanding, and they had to ensure that the Imperial Capital Star had sufficient combat power.

If the capital fell, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Rong Shi said calmly, “I have an idea.”

Twenty minutes later, the two of them left the rest cabin.

Watching the cabin door close, Song Yu reached up to pinch Rong Shi’s cheek.

“You didn’t even give me a hint.”

Rong Shi pulled his hand down and held it. “I’ve reminded you so many times.”

To think his dad was so close by… Song Yu still found it a bit surreal.

Adding up his past and present lives, he hadn’t seen his dad in nearly thirty years.

The two took Song Zheng’s letter of authorization and connected with the Second Legion, requesting a small squad of about a hundred men from Jin Dazhao.

Jin Dazhao: “Is that few people enough?”

Rong Shi: “It’s no problem to hold out for a day or two.”

Jin Dazhao was very efficient. In less than half an hour, he had pulled over a hundred elites from the legion’s deployment and assigned them a medium-sized warship.

Rong Shi confirmed the details with him and ended the call.

“I should still go with you,” Song Yu frowned, not quite agreeing with Rong Shi’s plan.

Rong Shi shook his head. “This is the main battlefield. His Majesty is unwell. You have to hold the fort here to ensure nothing goes wrong.”

Song Yu understood the logic, but emotionally, he didn’t want to be separated from Rong Shi.

Rong Shi also knew that he wouldn’t be reckless, just unhappy.

“Besides Snow Star and the Imperial Capital Star, we also have to be on guard against the possibility of war breaking out on other planets.”

The fractured military command was already a mess. It was impossible to integrate all its forces. Under these circumstances, it was extremely difficult to both defend the capital and keep an eye on all the other planets to send reinforcements in time.

This was going to be a tough fight.

Song Yu’s face was grim. “I know.”

Rong Shi wrapped his arms around him and gave him a kiss. “I feel at ease with you here. The war on this side will surely end quickly. I’ll wait for you to come and support me.”

Ten minutes later, the two warships docked.

Rong Shi entered the Second Legion’s warship through the connecting tunnel and immediately saw Qiu Tianhao waving at him.

“Why were you sent over?”

Qiu Tianhao smiled. “Snow Star is in trouble. I have to do my part.”

The two chatted as they walked, and Qiu Tianhao gave Rong Shi a rough overview of the squad members.

Rong Shi: “This mission is very dangerous. Tell them to be prepared.”

Qiu Tianhao: “If you’re not afraid, what are we afraid of?”

Rong Shi paused for a moment before realizing that in others’ eyes, he was just a first-year military academy student.

Arriving at the command bridge, Rong Shi personally set the return route and had 01 help him modify the data for the stealth mode.

These were extraordinary times. He had to ensure he returned to Snow Star as quickly as possible. Encountering enemy forces on the way would be a huge waste of time.

Old Lin had volunteered to come along.

Seeing Rong Shi issue commands one by one in an orderly and seasoned manner, completely unlike a novice, he couldn’t help but marvel.

“I really suspect this kid has been studying military theory since he was in the womb,” he whispered, leaning close to Qiu Tianhao.

Qiu Tianhao had always admired Rong Shi’s talent, so he didn’t find it strange at all.

“Some people are so brilliant you can’t even be jealous of them.”

Amidst the flames of war, a medium-sized warship activated its stealth mode, broke away from the main fleet, and flew off.

Only after leaving the range of attack did Rong Shi breathe a sigh of relief.

“01, any news from Professor Qin’s side?”

[01: The alarm has not responded for the time being.]

For safety, Rong Shi had installed an alarm device in the new laboratory, directly connected to 01. Any abnormality detected by the AI there would be reported to 01 immediately.

The new laboratory was well-hidden and equipped with so many anti-detection devices; it shouldn’t be so easily discovered.

After the space jump, Rong Shi still felt uneasy. He had 01 and 00 activate their shared vision to check on the battle situation at the Imperial Capital Star.

His terminal vibrated. He swiped it open, and Song Yu’s face appeared on the virtual screen.

The two discussed battle plans through the screen for a long time.

Before hanging up, Rong Shi suddenly thought of something.

“What’s the big reward?”

With his wife not by his side, Song Yu’s mood had visibly soured.

“You want to know?”

Rong Shi: “…”

Song Yu: “I’ll tell you next time we meet.”

With that, he cut off the communication.

Rong Shi: “…”

He’s got me completely hooked.

---

Author’s Note:

Facing Cat Dad (Shen Sinian)—
Song Cat: Daddy, my ear hurts~ [offers ear]

Facing Cat Father (Song Zheng)—
Song Cat: You old man, you better fu-cking get your act together! [shows claws]

Rong Rabbit: Little Cat, you’re an internationally renowned double standard.