Chapter 48

Jing Chi stroked his chin, sensing that he’d forgotten something a moment ago.

He slapped his forehead as it came back to him. Showing Pei Rui the Light Brain earlier hadn’t just been for showing off—he’d wanted to ask why Pei Rui had suddenly gone to the Pheromone Matching Center.

But after all the teasing, Jing Chi figured Pei Rui probably wasn’t in the mood to chat with him right now.

Fine, he’d try a different approach. Jing Chi tapped on the System and cut straight to the chase. “Do you know why he suddenly went to the Pheromone Matching Center?”

The System gave Jing Chi a quick rundown of Pei Rui’s visit to the Pei Family.

Jing Chi let out a deep sigh. Sure enough, a villain’s family was never a happy one.

That Pei Heng really wasn’t fit to be a male father. In his youth, he’d leeched off his female consort and concubines, and now in his old age, he was leeching off his own son.

Fortunately, Pei Rui’s personality meant he wouldn’t put up with any of that nonsense.

At the same time, Jing Chi realized that while his arrival had altered some details, the main plotline was still marching forward relentlessly.

Like this whole Pheromone Matching business.

He wouldn’t have recalled it otherwise, but now that it was on his mind, something clicked. He checked with the System:

“During this test, Pei Rui got a 89% matching degree with Lantis, right?”

The System sounded surprised. “Wow, Host, you’ve got a great memory. That’s right.”

Jing Chi’s expression turned thoughtful. Then the corners of his lips curved up in a smile as enlightenment dawned.

“I know exactly what I need to do.”

The System asked, “What are you planning, Host?”

Jing Chi put on a mysterious grin and strung the System along. “Not telling. You’ll find out tomorrow.”

Pei Rui finished his shower and stepped out of the bathroom, only then remembering that his apartment had just one usable bedroom—the other room was stuffed with junk.

He pushed open the door and saw Jing Chi fast asleep on the sofa.

The young man was curled up tight, like a bug huddled in its nest, and it was obvious he wasn’t comfortable at all.

Without a second thought, Pei Rui scooped Jing Chi up and carried him into the bedroom.

He’d just laid Jing Chi on the bed when, before he could pull his hands away, Jing Chi’s eyes fluttered open.

It was all perfectly timed.

Their gazes locked. Jing Chi lay there on the bed, blinking up at him.

Pei Rui still had one hand tucked beneath Jing Chi’s back, the other braced against the mattress to keep from pressing down on the youth.

Awkwardness hung in the air once more—of course, it was all on Pei Rui’s side. Jing Chi was thoroughly enjoying himself.

Pei Rui yanked his hand back at once, cleared his throat, and explained, “I saw you were asleep, so I carried you in here.”

Jing Chi blinked. “Oh.”

“I didn’t mean anything by it. It’s just that you gave me the bed back at your place.”

Jing Chi nodded to show he understood.

Though it came off a little like protesting too much.

“Anyway, since you’re awake, you should go take a shower.”

Jing Chi paused for a beat. “Mm.”

Pei Rui: …

Jing Chi burst out laughing at the choked look on Pei Rui’s face. “Haha, just messing with you. I’m going now.”

Pei Rui stayed silent.

As he watched Jing Chi’s retreating back, he felt he needed to reflect on this.

Why on earth did Jing Chi find teasing him so amusing? Other female insects hemmed and hawed for ages before saying a single word to him. He’d always considered himself pretty intimidating.

He pulled up his Light Brain and scanned his contacts. There was no one he could really talk to about this, but in the end, he messaged Reis.

Reis had just wrapped up some vigorous activity when his Light Brain lit up. Seeing Pei Rui’s name, he assumed it was urgent and scrambled out of bed to check it.

The message that appeared left him stunned.

General Pei Rui: 【Some insect says teasing me is fun?】

Reis’s fingers shook as he typed, hardly able to believe his eyes. He hammered out a reply:

【General, who the hell would say teasing you is fun? Who has the guts?! Are you so hyped about finding a Male Lord that you’re hallucinating?】

The three exclamation points captured his shock perfectly. Then came a single-word reply: “Scram.”

Perfect. That was their usual General. The one from before had clearly been off.

Pei Rui rubbed his forehead in helpless exasperation. He must have lost his mind to ask such a ridiculous question of such a ridiculous insect.

He stowed his Light Brain and climbed into bed.

By the time Jing Chi emerged from the shower, he took Pei Rui’s position to mean he was asleep and moved as quietly as he could.

He slipped carefully under the covers, switched off the light, and murmured a soft “good night” to the insect beside him.

The moment Jing Chi closed his eyes, Pei Rui opened his.

The man turned his head to look at Jing Chi beside him. He moved his lips slightly, mouthing the words: Good night.

In that instant, he suddenly stopped agonizing over that earlier question.

~~~

The next day.

Pheromone Matching Center.

“Hello, are you here for pheromone matching?”

The sub-female at the front desk looked up and was instantly captivated by the insect standing before him. This insect was simply too striking.

Handsome features, a tall and slender build, an air of refined elegance—there wasn’t a single flaw.

Unable to help himself, the sub-female softened his tone. Regardless of whether this insect was a female insect or a male insect, he deserved to be treated with gentleness. “Female insects should go down the left channel for pheromone collection. Male insects, the right channel.”

Jing Chi smiled and thanked him, then headed toward the right channel.

The sub-female hurriedly called out to stop him, assuming Jing Chi hadn’t heard clearly. Patiently, he repeated, “Female insects go left. Only male insects go right.”

He was afraid Jing Chi might take the wrong path and accidentally offend the high-status male insects inside.

After all, from those two polite sentences alone, with such a mild and courteous demeanor, the sub-female was convinced Jing Chi was a female insect.

Even the most good-tempered male insect wouldn’t thank a mere front desk attendant so graciously.

“Got it, thanks for the reminder.” Jing Chi knew exactly what was going through the sub-female’s mind. He gladly accepted the well-intentioned advice and proceeded into the right channel.

This action left the sub-female stunned. It took him a long moment to recover before he couldn’t help murmuring in shock, “Oh my god, that insect is actually a male insect! He’s a male insect!”

Jing Chi, entering the facility, had no idea of the impact he’d just made on the sub-female.

He stepped into the pheromone collection area. There weren’t many male insects here—after all, they were rare to begin with, and only a fraction chose to undergo matching.

Worried that the earlier mix-up might cause more trouble inside, Jing Chi slipped on a face mask.

Sure enough, the gazes falling on him diminished. But his standout physique and the innate elegance that even a mask couldn’t hide still made him stand out among the mostly average male insects.

Jing Chi went first to register his information.

“Name?” the collection nurse asked.

He thought for a moment and didn’t give his real name. Although matching results weren’t publicly released, an insect of Lantis’s status could easily access them.

In the face of absolute power, privacy was an illusion.

If Lantis found out he was still alive, it would invite no end of complications. For now, staying low-key was the best course.

“Chi Jin.”

Jing Chi—Chi Jin. Similar, yet not quite the same. It was a good name, and he was pleased with it.

After his pheromones were drawn, Jing Chi provided his Light Brain contact information.

From what he’d learned, tests at the matching center typically took three days for results. They had to screen the data, rule out errors, search the database for the highest match, and then notify both the male insect and female insect.

In this modern era, few insects still sought a Male Lord or Female Consort through pheromone matching.

Marriages nowadays were either unions of powerhouses or simply a matter of mutual attraction, followed by an application.

Not all were true marriages, either. Only a Female Consort involved a formal bonding. Concubines did not.

Female Consorts enjoyed government protections, so while a male insect might not love his Female Consort, he couldn’t replace him at will—unless he passed away or under exceptional circumstances.

Concubines had no such safeguards, so exchanging them was commonplace.

The downside of pheromone matching was the uncertainty: you never knew what insect you’d be paired with. If that male insect already had a Female Consort, you’d have no choice but to become a concubine, no matter your status.

Matches below 90% could generally be refused by either the female or male insect. But to protect superior genes, anything over 90% triggered a mandatory bonding.

Pei Rui had considered this, but matches exceeding 90% hadn’t appeared across the interstellar expanse in over a century, so he wasn’t worried.

Jing Chi had already checked with the System beforehand. His matching degree with Pei Rui was a whopping 99%. He felt secure.

Three days later.

The day of the matching results arrived. Not only was Pei Rui awaiting them—plenty of other insects outside were watching closely too.

Lantis, who had stationed insects to monitor the situation, soon received the report.

He first saw his own matching degree with Pei Rui: a solid 89%.

“Haha, as expected, he’s the most suitable for me.” Lantis’s face was full of smug satisfaction. It had been over a century since any insect had scored a matching degree above 90%, so he was convinced Pei Rui was made for him—89% had to be the highest.

“Let’s see how he refuses this time.” The male insect was feeling quite pleased with himself, but when he read the next line, his smile froze on his face.

“Impossible! How is this even possible? How could there be a male insect with a 99% match to him? This can’t be happening! Who the hell is this Chi Jin? Where did he even come from?” Lantis was practically losing his mind.

His obsession with Pei Rui went beyond what had happened in his previous life or the man’s good looks. It was also about the formidable power backing Pei Rui.

Marrying him would solidify Lantis’s own position even further, and that was another key reason for his fixation.

Meanwhile, Pei Rui had also received the notification from the matching center.

【Congratulations, Mr. Pei Rui. The results of your pheromone matching conducted this past Tuesday are now available. Congratulations! Your matching degree with Mr. Chi Jin is an astonishing 99%. Due to this exceptionally high match, mandatory bonding will be enforced. Please complete the relevant bonding procedures before the 15th of next month.】