NOVEL NEXT 21
Chapter 21: Without Noble Quality, it Won’t Do.
Qi Yao found something to do and had a clear goal, so he was full of energy all day long.
Last time, when Yi Er helped him get familiar with the mech, he felt he did quite well. Seizing the opportunity, he buried himself in the pile of mechs every day, hoping to reach Locke’s level as soon as possible, standing proudly behind Yi Er as an unknown male behind Yi Er’s career.
Yi Er had been busy lately.
Qi Yao knew Yi Er was busy and didn’t want to disturb him too much.
On the contrary, Yi Er, knowing Qi Yao’s career goals, not only didn’t interfere with him but also called Qi Yao over several times during breaks to personally guide him and give him appropriate encouragement and support when necessary.
Today was Sunday, and both Qi Yao and Yi Er didn’t have to work. On this rare day off, Qi Yao considerately didn’t discuss mechs with Yi Er, using the pretext of the weekend to let Yi Er rest at home.
Unfortunately, Emperor Si Niya’s summons happened to come on this day off when Qi Yao was teaching Dean how to make cookies. Hearing Yi Er receive the terminal command from Si Niya, Qi Yao perked up his ears unintentionally.
Si Niya said, “You’re still in your honeymoon period. My and Dai Na’s intention is for you to rest more, after all, you’re nearing…”
Yi Er directly interrupted Si Niya, “Your Majesty, I understand. I know what to do.”
Si Niya didn’t mind Yi Er’s rudeness. “Since you know, then I won’t worry about you. If you have time in the afternoon, come to my place. I have important matters to discuss with you, and Dai Na also wants to see you.”
Yi Er replied, “Yes, Your Majesty.”
Si Niya added, “By the way, bring your spouse along. It’s been half a month since you got married, and you haven’t brought him to meet Dai Na yet, although he’s your…”
Whatever Yi Er’s was, Si Niya couldn’t finish his sentence. Clearly hearing Dai Na’s voice from the other end, Si Niya hurriedly hung up the terminal.
Qi Yao didn’t intentionally eavesdrop on Yi Er’s conversation with Si Niya. It was just that when Yi Er was speaking, he didn’t avoid mentioning him and Dean, who were just outside the kitchen door.
After patiently teaching Dean the cookie-making technique, Yi Er came over to inform Qi Yao, “The Emperor and Empress want to see you. When you’re done, we’ll go to the Imperial Palace to meet them.”
“…”
Whether as an ordinary worker who grew up on Blue Star or as a commoner male zerg who grew up in the lower city, even if it was the second time meeting the two most esteemed zergs in the empire, Qi Yao couldn’t avoid feeling nervous.
The nervousness mainly stemmed from his lack of knowledge of noble etiquette. He was afraid he would be too casual and embarrass Yi Er.
Originally, Yi Er had chosen him, a commoner male zerg, which was enough to cause a stir among the zergs. If he lost face in the palace, then perhaps the quiet star network news that had just calmed down for a few days would once again stir up discussion due to this meeting with the Emperor and Empress, creating another round of fervent debate among netizens.
Yi Er noticed Qi Yao’s hesitation. “What’s wrong?”
Qi Yao hesitated and asked, “Will it take long?”
“What?”
“To meet the Emperor and Empress.”
Qi Yao had been immersed in mechs recently, so Yi Er thought he might be worried about wasting study time at the Imperial Palace, so he estimated, “It shouldn’t take long.”
That’s good.
As long as the time spent there was short, the chance of making mistakes would be small enough.
Last time, it was only about an hour in total. Qi Yao just let himself be manipulated to do an assessment test. The impression left by the Emperor and Empress that time was relatively peaceful, and now with Yi Er’s words, Qi Yao felt a bit more relaxed.
In the meantime, Dean had already quickly brought over the clothes for meeting the Emperor and Empress.
Qi Yao changed into his clothes, and Yi Er didn’t delay any further, taking Qi Yao to the Imperial Palace.
As it turned out, Qi Yao’s worries were completely unnecessary.
Si Niya summoned Yi Er because there were official matters to discuss, and Dai Na’s desire to meet them was merely incidental.
So, this wasn’t a formal audience, and there weren’t many rules to follow.
But this time… Yi Er couldn’t accompany him again because as soon as they met, Si Niya took Yi Er away.
Qi Yao had to face Dai Na alone.
“You seem reluctant to part with Yi Er.” Watching Yi Er being taken away by Si Niya until not even a shadow of them could be seen, Dai Na spoke softly after a long while.
Only then did Qi Yao realize how fixated he had been on Yi Er’s figure, and now that Dai Na had seen it too, he quickly averted his gaze, embarrassedly saying, “I apologize for being impolite in front of Your Majesty.”
Dai Na took it as a sweet gesture of reluctance between newlyweds, shrugged, and chuckled, “It seems you two have a good relationship.”
Qi Yao lowered his head, feeling his ears gradually heating up.
Dai Na noticed every bit of his shyness, and it sparked a bit of curiosity in him. He led him into the reception room, gracefully sat down, and gestured for Qi Yao to do the same. Then, had attendants bring over desserts, drinks, and cookies, packaging this meeting as a simple afternoon tea with friends.
Qi Yao: “…”
He didn’t have a good impression of afternoon tea, so he sat there awkwardly.
Perhaps Qi Yao was too reserved, so Dai Na intentionally tried to make him relax and brought up Yi Er again.
“Yi Er has a rebellious nature. Has he not troubled you after marriage?”
Without hesitation, Qi Yao replied, “No, Yi Er is very good.”
Dai Na was surprised by this answer. “I thought he would resist discipline.”
“Resist discipline?” Qi Yao was slightly surprised. Dai Na seemed like a mild-mannered female zerg, so did he secretly enjoy being bound by the strictures of the zerg society? Was that why he asked such a question?
But Qi Yao had no intention of discussing his and Yi Er’s private life with other zergs, even if this zerg was the empress.
He furrowed his brow and earnestly said, “You’ve misunderstood, Your Majesty. Yi Er’s personality is not as rumored. On the contrary, he is clear-headed, with his own principles of dealing with the world. He doesn’t need me to discipline him.”
Dai Na maintained the gentlemanly smile, admiring Qi Yao’s defense of Yi Er. He responded, “You’ve also misunderstood. Just as you said, Yi Er has his own principles of dealing with the world. I originally thought he would be punished by you for refusing to accept rules.”
“I…” It turned out Qi Yao had misunderstood Dai Na’s meaning. He explained embarrassedly, “I apologize, Your Majesty, I was too nervous and misunderstood your meaning.”
Dai Na didn’t mind at all; instead, comforted him, “It’s okay, I can understand that you care a lot about him.”
Qi Yao lowered his head, feeling too embarrassed to speak.
“Recently, I saw what happened between you and Yi Er, and I understand the situation.” Looking at his reaction, Dai Na suddenly said.
Qi Yao: “?”
Dai Na added, “About Ke Lisi’s public apology.”
Qi Yao suddenly realized. At that time, Yi Er did indeed bring up the identity of the Emperor and Empress to scare Ke Lisi. He didn’t want Dai Na to misunderstand it was Yi Er, so he explained seriously, “Your Majesty, that matter was Ke Lisi’s fault. Yi Er was just trying to protect me, and he did nothing wrong in this matter.”
Dai Na smiled again, “I didn’t say Ke Lisi wasn’t at fault, nor did I say I wanted to blame Yi Er.”
Qi Yao: “…”
He was really too nervous, afraid of saying something wrong and causing Dai Na to misunderstand. But it seemed like he hadn’t said anything right at all.
“I just want to say, you did well.”
Dai Na deliberately livened up the atmosphere to help Qi Yao relax a bit from his stiffness and continued, “Ke Lisi is someone who bullies the weak and fears the strong, and he cares a lot about his noble family status. Yi Er knows how to handle him, so in this matter, Yi Er did nothing wrong. I can see that Yi Er is protecting you.”
Dai Na smirked slightly, “Your relationship is better than I imagined.”
With Dai Na’s affirmation, Qi Yao’s tense expression indeed relaxed a bit.
Seeing the effect of his words, Dai Na continued chatting, “I heard you’ve been studying mecha recently?”
Qi Yao’s cheeks flushed, and he nodded slightly, “I want to contribute to Yi Er’s career as much as I can.”
Dai Na gave him some recognition, “The fact that you can make this decision shows how remarkable you are.”
Qi Yao couldn’t bear such praise and said embarrassedly, “Your Majesty, you’re too kind. I think it’s a normal thought. I also want to contribute to our home like Your Majesty and His Highness, supporting each other and managing our little family together.”
Qi Yao lifted his head, his gaze firm, “I want to be a spouse who can stand shoulder to shoulder with Yi Er.”
A hint of surprise flashed in Dai Na’s eyes.
Dai Na had never heard any other male zerg say such words. He looked at Qi Yao and couldn’t help but scrutinize him.
After scrutinizing him, he asked, “Do you know why Yi Er hates male zergs and is unwilling to accept arranged marriages?”
Qi Yao had thought about this question a long time ago. His conclusion was that it was partly due to Yi Er’s nature and partly because he grew up in the Second Military District, where he had little contact with male zergs, which shaped his dismissive attitude towards them.
Before Qi Yao could answer, Dai Na said directly, “Yi Er hates his male father. His male father, in order to prove the absolute noble status of male zergs in the family, personally removed his female father’s wingbones, destroyed his female father’s pursuits, and stifled his female father’s career, which is why he has prejudice against all male zergs.”
Qi Yao was taken aback, “But Yi Er’s female father isn’t…?”
“You mean, Yi Er’s female father died in battle?”
“Yeah…” Qi Yao responded slowly.
“If the Empire hadn’t had the 92nd Defense War, perhaps Yi Er’s female father would have ended up dead at the hands of his male father.”
Qi Yao was shocked, unable to imagine what would have happened to Yi Er if his female father hadn’t died in battle.
“I’m telling you this because I see something different in you. After Yi Er lost his female father, he followed me into the military district as a military female. He’s like half of my female, and I hope he does well.” Dai Na looked at Qi Yao gently. “You are the male master he personally chose, so I hope you won’t let him down.”
From the moment Qi Yao decided to stand behind Yi Er, he had no intention of giving up on him. Dai Na’s words only strengthened his resolve.
“I won’t let him down,” Qi Yao said.
After all, he had fallen for Yi Er before him.
*
Yi Er stayed with Si Niya until nightfall.
When he returned to pick up Qi Yao, Qi Yao had already had dinner with Dai Na as requested.
Moreover, he was being carefully supported by two female attendants, feeding him soup and wine spoon by spoon.
Dai Na hadn’t expected this situation at all. He felt very guilty. “Yi Er, I didn’t mean to… I didn’t know he couldn’t handle alcohol.”
Qi Yao had a tall wine glass next to him, which was already empty. At this moment, his eyes were unfocused. When he saw Yi Er come in, he flashed a smile that reached the sky and waved excitedly at Yi Er, “Yi Er, you’re back!”
Yi Er: “…”
The female attendants beside him chuckled softly.
Dai Na apologized, “How about letting him stay overnight in the palace tonight?”
There was more than enough room in the Imperial Palace for Qi Yao to stay.
Yi Er declined politely, “No need, I can take him home.”
Dai Na’s expression turned serious, “Yi Er, you haven’t had dinner yet.”
“It’s okay, Dean should have left dinner for me.”
Dai Na didn’t insist anymore. He knew Yi Er’s temperament and wouldn’t easily change his mind with just a few words. So he asked the attendants to help Qi Yao and sent him to Yi Er’s aircraft.
Watching Yi Er leave, Si Niya worriedly asked Dai Na, “How is it? Is Qi Yao capable of helping Yi Er through the Second Molting?”
Dai Na remained silent for a moment, then shook his head, “Your Majesty, perhaps we’re all wrong.”
Si Niya’s eyes widened, “Could it be that Qi Yao’s zerg quality is not up to par? I’ve been thinking about improving the evaluation testing chamber and adding zerg quality testing to the agenda.”
Dai Na chuckled at Si Niya’s idea, “No, it’s not that his zerg quality is lacking.”
“Then what is it?”
Dai Na sighed softly, “I’m thinking, perhaps… Qi Yao might be a very good male master.”
Si Niya suddenly fell silent.
The two zergs walked back together. Dai Na remembered the business at hand, “Your Majesty, what did Yi Er say about the border star system?”
Si Niya suddenly felt a headache, “Don’t mention it. Ais is useless. If it weren’t for Yi Er still being in the honeymoon period, I would really want to personally order him to clean up that mess.”