Chapter 49 Part 1

The entire venue fell silent.

Demian thrived like a fish in water among the female insects. Every time he appeared, he was always surrounded by a crowd of them. Now that he had been publicly humiliated like this, not a single one dared to step forward.

The wine smeared across his delicate little face. Demian’s complexion flushed red as he directed his gaze toward those female insects who had previously fawned over him so eagerly, seeking help. But without exception, none of them wanted to get involved in a male insect’s dispute. They all averted their eyes, dodging his pleading looks.

Andre and the eldest prince finished a dance and stood at the edge of the dance floor. Their gazes quickly swept across the venue, and they sneered inwardly.

The golden-haired male insect strode straight over, grabbed a folded clean napkin from the table, and tossed it onto Demian.

Demian blinked stiffly, his fingers dumbly clutching the napkin that had been thrown at him.

Andre hooked his arm around Shen Yu’s, gently patting his arm just as Shen Yu had soothed him earlier.

Being called by his name so directly in front of so many people, it was easy to imagine how furious Sadro was right now—and what kind of harassment the next three months would bring. Andre frowned and tugged Shen Yu’s arm, leading him toward the exit.

As they passed the male insect who was still frozen in place, Andre turned his head and spoke coldly:

“Slei, male insects have never been your enemies.”

The farce quickly came to an end.

Andre led Shen Yu out of the banquet and into the Court Rear Garden. Unlike the clamor of the gathering, this place was exceptionally quiet. Purple Night Lantern Flowers bloomed in the deep night, emitting wandering particulate light, their rich fragrance drifting along with the breeze.

Andre released his arm. He was also tall, nearly as tall as Shen Yu. He raised his hand to tidy Shen Yu’s disheveled silver hair and asked, “Sadro, do you want me to send you back?”

Back when Sidorey was still alive, Andre had often interacted with him. Victor had kept his hair long since childhood, and it would always tangle at the ends whenever he met Andre. Over time, this had become a habit of helping to comb it out.

Vidonien let him tend to his long hair and asked, “What’s this? Spent too much time in Parliament and picked up female insect mannerisms?”

Andre badly wanted a smoke. “Don’t even mention it. I get nauseous just looking at female insects now. If it weren’t to win over the Faen Family, who would bother attending this utterly boring gathering?”

“The Faen Family? That marshal lineage?”

Andre nodded.

Vidonien raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t the Faen Family’s reputation hit rock bottom after Ludwig defected from the Military Department? After that incident, the Faen Family straightforwardly withdrew from worldly affairs and politics. Are you planning to completely abandon the civilian vote like this?”

“The vote?” Andre sneered. “Excluding female slaves, the population of female insects and sub-females outnumbers male insects by nearly fifty times. Even if I grovel to them, how many votes could I get? What I need now is the military and mineral resources.”

The military and minerals were precisely what this centuries-old marshal family had in abundance.

Vidonien quickly understood his implication. He slowly lifted his eyelids and looked at this male insect who had truly grown up alongside him since childhood. “What conditions did they offer?”

Andre finished tidying the last strand of hair, casually plucked a purple Night Lantern Flower from atop his head, and sniffed it at his nose tip. His voice was low: “Find Ludwig.”

Vidonien gradually sensed something off. He straightened slightly. “So the recent encirclement and suppression of Red Blood was your doing?”

Andre nodded but soon furrowed his brow. “But the Military Department stuck their nose in, and we didn’t catch him.”

Vidonien frowned slightly. “Then where is Ludwig now?”

Andre tucked the flower into his pants pocket. “Unknown. The Faen side provided Ludwig’s genetic profile. We’re secretly expanding the search range now.”

Footsteps sounded at the entrance to the rear garden. The two stopped talking in unison and turned to look.

A light gray-haired military female insect parted the purple flower clusters overhead and ducked his head as he entered from outside. Seeing the two male insects before him, Fred wasn’t surprised—they had left the banquet together earlier.

The female insect touched his hand to his heart and greeted Andre and Shen Yu in turn. He straightened slightly and said to Shen Yu, “The gathering is nearing its end. Do you need me to send you home?”

Coming over so late—he had clearly gone to offer comfort to Demian.

Andre saw through him at a glance. He didn’t believe there was any such thing as pure friendship between female and male insects. He stepped forward directly and refused on Shen Yu’s behalf. “No need. I’ll send Sadro home.”

Fred’s stern sword-like brows furrowed. Andre grabbed Shen Yu’s hand and led him out, his voice icy:

“If you want to pursue Sadro, clean up your own relationships first.”

By the time they rode a carriage out of the palace and transferred to head back to Azure Sparrow Hill, night had deepened. Vila Forest became extraordinarily serene after dark. The faint starlight filtered through to the treetops, which swayed gently in the breeze, producing a rustling sound like the voices of the stars.

Flowers that bloomed only at night lined the path. The scents of soil, vegetation, pine needles, and damp moss mingled together, releasing a peculiar fragrance.

Azure Sparrow Hill had a large diurnal temperature swing, and the weather plummeted at night. The air brushed against exposed skin, feeling somewhat cold.

Before leaving, Andre pulled a bouquet of fresh flowers from the hovercar and thrust them into Shen Yu’s arms. Shen Yu collided full-force with the flowers and happily accepted them.

After bidding Andre farewell, Shen Yu carried the flowers through the courtyard. He couldn’t help wrinkling his itchy nose. The gate detected his information and unlocked automatically. He gripped the door handle and pushed the door open, and a wave of fragrance immediately hit him.

Shen Yu’s gaze swept past a pile of blood-seeping bandages in the trash bin. He raised his eyes to the center of the living room. Once his vision adjusted to the indoor lighting, it gradually focused. On the dining table sat a plate of steamed fish and stir-fried vegetables, steam rising lazily under the lights, with a bowl of Cream of Mushroom Soup beside it.

The Cream of Mushroom Soup must have been made by Number Two—this was the housekeeper robot’s final stubbornness.

The Court Gathering wasn’t a good place to fill one’s stomach. Shen Yu had only downed a tube of Nutrient Fluid before attending. His appetite wasn’t strong, but after going so long on an empty stomach, he quite wanted some hot food.

Before eating, though, he needed to deal with the flowers in his hands first.

He bent at the waist. The bow on his hair and the one on his cuffs trailed ribbons with his movements. His slender fingers opened the bottom layer of the flower cabinet, circled the bottle body, and pulled out a brand-new glass vase.

After pouring in purified water and nutrient solution, Shen Yu carefully inserted the flowers one by one into the multifaceted glass vase.

Ever since Ludwig had started taking over most of Number Two’s work, their relationship had eased in a strangely harmonious way.

The broad-shouldered, robustly built red-haired female insect wore a fitted black turtleneck on his upper body and loose black pants over his sturdy long legs. If not for the cold Mental Shackles on his limbs, he could easily be mistaken for a fighting-type female insect about to compete.

Ludwig’s brows were pressed low, his thick arms crossed over his chest. Because he’d rolled up his sleeves to cook, his solid honey-colored forearms were exposed, veins and muscles coiled like dragons—quite impressive.

The female insect leaned against the doorframe, quietly watching the male insect’s actions.

After placing the last flower in the vase, Shen Yu finally stood and sauntered slowly to the dining table. He didn’t eat much—just enough to settle his stomach a bit. Then he rose and sank into the soft sofa.

His gaze swept around and quickly noticed the parcel newly received by Number Two in the basket. Shen Yu didn’t shop online much, but he’d recently ordered a book on Star Net. It had arrived surprisingly fast.

Ludwig dumped all the dishes and utensils into the dish basket, added dish soap and rinse agent, and pressed the control panel. The machine didn’t respond. He frowned, reached out, and slammed it twice with heavy thuds—still no reaction.

Ludwig suddenly realized something. Backward—this was perhaps the baseline of this household.

From the outdated housekeeper robot to the aging, malfunctioning smart appliances.

The female insect slowly furrowed his brows and raised his arm for two more heavy thuds.

The dishwasher finally clicked and, under Ludwig’s violent coercion, shuddered back to life.

Warm lighting fell down. Silver hair scattered across the sofa, illuminated like a flowing galaxy. The male insect sat quietly in the corner of the sofa alone, cradling a book in his hands, his eyes lightly shifting with the flow of the text.

Ludwig emerged from the kitchen with arms crossed and saw this exact scene.

The male insect read with intense focus, fully immersed in an ocean of knowledge and stories. The sound of turning pages rose in the quiet room.

On the book’s cover, four boldly scrawled characters stood out—

“Dog Raising Guide”

Fuck.

Ludwig cursed viciously in his mind.

Shen Yu heard the noise and looked up. He parted his lips: “Come here.”

Ludwig’s body stiffened. Those two words were like some kind of spell, instantly awakening extremely unpleasant memories. He pursed his lips, tensed the abundant strength in his forearms and wrists, and approached warily, step by step.

Shen Yu set the book aside and tilted his head up to look at him.

Ludwig sat beside him.

The sofa sank deeply under the female insect’s weight.

Shen Yu suddenly leaned in close.

The male insect had already removed his gloves while eating. He still wore his banquet attire, with loose cuffs tied into bows with ribbons—like a blooming flower bud. His outfit today was full of petal shapes everywhere; it was hard not to suspect the designer’s inspiration came straight from flowers.

The puffed pants resembled a budding white lotus, the chest bow a drooping blue-edged narcissus lily, the upper cuffs bell-shaped wind chimes, and the lower ones drooping lily-of-the-valley.