Chapter 38

However, Miranda and the others hadn't returned yet.

Two days passed, and Wu Ying and the rest hadn't seen the team come back. Only a few of them returned, supporting each other, and went straight into the medical pods as soon as they arrived.

"The situation inside is worse than we thought. We're pretty banged up, so we came back first."

It was someone from Li Ge's team. This time, he was in charge of bringing people back and swapping in new ones. He turned to Luo Meng, "You two can't dodge it this time."

Boone shrugged and sneered; he didn't want to dodge anyway. The outer perimeter tasks were done, so there was nothing else to do.

After a brief rest, Boone, Luo Meng, and a few mercenaries headed back into the depths of the forest. The core project was stalled, so the practical training had to be extended, leaving Wu Ying and the others stuck at the villa.

At least it wasn't boring. Cynthia linked her arm through Wu Ying's as they strolled in the garden, the two of them hitting it off so well they'd chat until one or two in the morning.

She glanced at Wu Ying, who was frowning at her light brain. "What's wrong? Your husband pushing you again?"

Wu Ying sighed helplessly. Was this really pushing?

Originally, the practical training was supposed to last just one week, but the core project hadn't been completed, so it dragged on for a few extra days. Asher had been sending her messages constantly.

It wasn't like he was directly telling her to come home; he just sent her all sorts of strange things.

For example, there might be an interstellar storm in the Five Elements Star System in a few days, or something new had gone wrong with her flowers...

Since Jiujiu had been taken along, the greenhouse's smart system was temporarily managed by Jiujiu and Zhi Yangyang. Asher apparently had time to check the greenhouse inspection reports now.

Wu Ying replied with a question mark. Setting aside the fact that it wouldn't be right for her to leave alone while the project wasn't finished, she didn't want to go back anyway. She planned to use the soil from Feng-2 Star for analysis experiments. The vegetation here was even more lush than she'd imagined; maybe it could give her new ideas.

Cynthia slyly glanced at her out of the corner of her eye, trying to sound casual. "Your husband is pretty clingy. I'm curious what he looks like."

Wu Ying chuckled and looked back at her. Ever since she found out Wu Ying was married, Cynthia had been intensely curious about Asher. Before, she could just ignore it through the screen, but now that they were face to face, it was easy for her to keep pressing.

"How many times have you asked today?"

Not counting last night's pestering, she'd asked five times this morning alone. Wu Ying sighed; it seemed she couldn't keep brushing her off.

Seeing that, Cynthia widened her eyes, practically sparkling. Wu Ying patted her shoulder and said seriously, "It's not that I'm deliberately hiding anything. It's just that my husband's job is special—he can't have his personal information leaked."

"Huh?"

Cynthia deflated instantly. She'd thought she'd finally get what she wanted, but Wu Ying pulled that card.

"Really?"

She seriously suspected Wu Ying was just making excuses.

"Why would I lie to you? If you don't believe me, go ask if that's a possibility. Cynthia, look into my eyes. See the helplessness? Am I really someone who can hold out under pressure?"

Wu Ying cupped Cynthia's face and blinked innocently. She really was helpless, not lying. Asher's image was all over the place; if she said anything, she couldn't imagine what kind of look Cynthia would give her. She was fragile; she couldn't handle that much pressure.

Cynthia reluctantly gave in. "Fine."

She had no choice but to believe it. "Ugh, you've taken away my only source of fun lately. Everyone's busy except me—I'm bored out of my mind."

Su Yi and Huo Lin always had things to do. Even at the villa, there were always meetings. Wu Ying didn't have meetings, but she was an experiment fanatic. If Cynthia hadn't dragged her out, she'd still be holed up in the lab.

"We came here to have fun, but you're all working so hard!"

Cynthia severely condemned this behavior. Wu Ying found it funny. Su Yi and the others were busy people who couldn't get away, but she herself was just after the soil here.

The soil stability on Feng-2 Star was impressive; she just couldn't resist.

"What's going on with the senior sisters? Why haven't they come back yet?" She wanted to leave.

Wu Ying tapped her empty little head. "You weren't paying attention in the meeting. They said there's a new mutation in the dangerous plants, and they're having a hard time."

Su Yi was planning to send more guards in as backup. Luo Meng said they could hold on a bit longer, but it would take more time.

Yesterday, Wu Ying had asked Luo Meng to bring back some soil from the forest, but he hadn't replied yet. Either the signal was too bad, or he was too busy to check his light brain.

Wu Ying was eager to get her hands on that soil.

"Ugh."

The two sighed in unison, then turned to look at each other and burst out laughing.

The next day, Su Yi gathered everyone together. With the newly hired mercenaries, she sent out nearly all her guards. They had to help the core team complete their mission as soon as possible, while the rest prepared for support.

A storm was coming in three days, and Feng-2 Star would close its ports to traffic. The experts predicted the storm would last a week, and she couldn't afford that delay.

Soon, Miranda's team emerged with the results of the practical training, though all of them were injured.

Wu Ying finally got the soil she'd been yearning for. "Ah, Luo Meng, th—thank you. Go get treated! Your hand is bleeding."

Luo Meng's hand was covered in red, fresh blood dripping from his fingers. Seeing him hurt so badly and still remembering what she'd asked him to do made Wu Ying's face scrunch up with guilt. She didn't dare pull at him, just urged him repeatedly to go get treatment.

"It's nothing, just a scratch!"

Luo Meng gave a shy smile and even had the energy to chat with her, which made Wu Ying's eyelids twitch.

After this practical training, Luo Meng would have a long training period, so chatting might not be as easy. He actually wanted to find Wu Ying to talk more.

Wu Ying hummed and hawed to brush him off, telling him to go get treated. Finally, Li Ge came over, hoisted Luo Meng up, and dumped him into a medical pod.

"Stop dawdling. Too much talk."

Feeling indirectly called out, Wu Ying rubbed her nose and walked off with her experimental box.

The schedule was tight, afraid of hitting the storm, so they only managed a data handover. The remaining work would have to continue via virtual meetings.

Wu Ying was heading back to Yuanji Star and would arrive at Beta Star Port that evening.

She took an air taxi home and got there in the dead of night. The night was fine, but she couldn't sleep. She'd slept too much on the ship; now she was wide awake enough to pilot a mecha for a spin.

Wu Ying single-handedly woke up the whole house. If she couldn't sleep, none of the systems in the house were going into standby mode!

The soil Luo Meng brought back hadn't been tested or analyzed yet, so she didn't dare start experiments on it. Instead, she made some adjustments to the lab, sealing the outer and deep soil samples separately and moving the old experiments to reorganize them.

...

People always start organizing things randomly late at night. The places she usually frequented had changed completely, though nothing was actually moved—just rearranged, so the layout was different.

"What are you doing?"

A low voice sounded, and Wu Ying nearly jumped out of her skin, almost slipping to the floor.

She was moving the sofa with Jiujiu. She didn't like this spot anymore; she wanted to move it to the other side to watch the sunrise. Wu Ying's head was full of fantasies when someone spoke from behind her out of nowhere.

Wu Ying put her hands on her hips and turned to glare. Scaring people to death—how was he like a ghost every single day?

She was ready to give him a piece of her mind, but when she turned around, she saw that he really did look like a ghost.

His face was deathly pale, his eyes red-rimmed, with bloodshot streaks in his deep pupils. Dark stubble covered his jaw, and his thin lips were pressed tightly together, radiating coldness. He wore a black military overcoat, the brim of his cap pulled low. If Wu Ying weren't so short, she probably wouldn't have seen his red eyes.

"What's wrong?"

Her voice was a bit stuttering, her emotions cut off abruptly, still not having recovered.

A week ago, he'd been as proud as a peacock, and now he looked like this. Wu Ying didn't dare speak loudly.

She shuffled in small steps to Asher's side and asked softly, "Trouble at work?"

Wu Ying wasn't sure if she should ask, but she did. She reached out to take his hand; Asher's palm was ice-cold, rougher than before, with many wounds on the back of his hand.

Asher watched her gently hold his hand, then turned to tell Jiujiu to get the medical kit.

For a moment, Asher felt like one of the fragile flowers in her greenhouse, being gently cared for.

He was dazed for a while before belatedly realizing he hadn't answered her question. "The insect race attacked. It's a headache."

In truth, the insect race had deployed more than three times their usual numbers. According to data analysts' predictions, they'd mobilized nearly all their armed forces this time. If the prediction was wrong, it meant the end of the war with the insect race was farther away than they'd thought.

He'd been on the battlefield all week, his mental power strained to the limit for long periods, and now he couldn't relax.

He didn't need to say it; Wu Ying had noticed long ago. The exhaustion in Asher's eyes was hidden beneath vigilance, his body tense, like a leopard ready to pounce at any moment.

Wu Ying took his hand and slowly guided him to sit on the half-moved sofa.

Her hand was soft, her breath gentle, carrying a faint fragrance. Wu Ying sat beside him and used the medical device to treat his wounds. The red wounds on his hand slowly healed, leaving only a few traces of blood on the skin.

While working, she talked to him. She told him about the practical training, the things he'd asked about on the light brain earlier. Now Wu Ying obediently reported on her own.

She didn't know what was going on with Asher on Alpha Star, and she felt a bit guilty thinking about it now. He'd clearly squeezed time out of his busy schedule to ask her, and she'd angrily shot back a question mark.

Asher slowly relaxed, listening to her chatter. He didn't find it annoying. Wu Ying's voice was always sweet and soft, and when she deliberately softened it, it was even more gentle, full of emotion. When she got to interesting parts, her tone would rise; just by hearing her voice, you could tell how happy she was.

"Is there anything else that hurts?"

Wu Ying had just finished treating all the wounds on his hands. There was a long, deep gash on his arm that he hadn't even bothered to treat—it was terrifying.

"Headache."

Asher tilted his head back, resting it on the sofa backrest. His long lashes cast two shadows under the light, right over his slightly dark under-eye circles.

His finely chiseled features were fully on display before her. For the first time, Wu Ying felt that Asher looked a bit pitiful, his sharp eyes closed, a hint of vulnerability on his face.