Chapter 9

She had been just this happy the last time he came back. Asher suddenly remembered that his previous return was to help Wu Ying pick out a mental power training teacher—back then, she'd been just as delighted, buzzing around him, practically dragging him off to run the test on the spot. Back then, Jiujiu hadn't even been called Jiujiu yet.

Had it really been that long since he'd come home?

At the thought, he hesitated slightly. He was still in the adjustment phase when it came to Wu Ying's brand of enthusiasm.

Wu Ying looked at him with sparkling eyes. Her amber-colored irises shone brighter than even the interstellar afterglow right now. She seemed to be waiting for him to say something, Asher judged.

"How's the teacher you picked last time?"

He brought up a topic, his fingers unconsciously rubbing against the rim of his cup, his gaze drifting lightly to the woman before him.

She was wearing a pale yellow pajama set with two little cats on the chest, big amber eyes, and light orange hair flying loose. She was like the sun itself—one look at her and you felt the warmth.

Hearing his words, Wu Ying's joyful expression suddenly shifted. Her brows knitted together, and she stared at him with a fierce glare.

The situation seemed a bit precarious. Asher couldn't tell if Wu Ying was deliberately picking a fight or if he'd truly said something wrong. Bringing up a topic shouldn't have been a problem, surely.

Asher set down his cup and faced her, waiting for her reaction.

Wu Ying looked at his serious expression and thought to herself that she didn't want to lose her temper this early in the day, but he'd practically handed her the opening on a silver platter.

She lowered her voice, her tone stern, almond eyes slightly widened, and reprimanded him with righteous indignation: "Are you trying to pick a fight?!"

Asher shook his head just as seriously, his tall frame standing like a mountain in front of Wu Ying.

That posture wasn't doing her any favors. "Come here. I need to have a proper talk with you."

She grabbed his arm and pulled him over to the sofa. She hopped up onto the cushion, making up a bit of the height difference.

Asher even steadied her, only letting go once she was balanced. He stood quietly as Wu Ying looked down at him, let out a cold snort, and began swiping furiously at her Light Brain.

Seeing her actions, Asher immediately understood the reason. Wu Ying must have already messaged him on her Light Brain, and he'd forgotten. Now she was using this topic to confront him.

"I apologize."

Asher tried to defuse the conflict, his fingertips pressed against the stiff seam of his trousers, body slightly taut. He looked at Wu Ying with a headache forming, yet inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. This kind of "quarrel" with a clear reason, he could still accept.

He'd roughly figured out Wu Ying's personality by now: gentle but with a mischievous streak, cute yet sly. Outside, she put on the air of obeying his every word; at home, she tested boundaries in every way, scheming to have her way with him.

Asher had thought more than once that he shouldn't have given in last time. Give an inch, and she takes a mile. Now she could probably stand there with her hands on her hips, listing his faults for eight hundred rounds without stopping.

"Now you know to apologize? I sent you so many messages—did you even look at them? I know you're busy with official business, but do you not even have time to glance at a single message? Look at how many I sent—I never once urged you to reply, because I knew you were busy, so I didn't dare push. And yet you really didn't look at any of them."

"You did urge me."

Asher reminded her. She'd indeed urged him many times. But she sent so many messages every day, it was hard for him to read them all one by one. And after reading, he had to reply, and if his replies weren't up to her standards, she'd have more to say.

Wu Ying refused to admit it. "I did not. Not only do you refuse to admit your own mistake, now you're making things up."

She was adamant, without a trace of guilt, her eyes wide and brows raised, her light orange hair wild and defiant behind her—utterly arrogant.

Asher lowered his head and started scrolling through his Light Brain as well. The top of his jet-black head faced her. Wu Ying froze. She'd expected Asher to get angry and walk away, or to call her unreasonable.

But he was going to find evidence to counter her?

That wouldn't do. Wu Ying couldn't remember urging him, but she wasn't all that confident in her own memory.

She quickly cupped his face and lifted it, her slim, soft palms pressed against his cheeks. They faced each other, and Wu Ying caught a flicker of confusion and bewilderment in his eyes. She looked seriously into them.

"We're trying to solve a problem here. Finding my mistakes isn't going to solve anything. The core issue is that you don't remember anything I said, and now you're trying to poke holes in my words. That's very harmful to our relationship."

Then she nodded to herself in affirmation. Asher stopped his search and slowly brushed her hands away from his face, his obsidian-like eyes gazing deeply at the earnest woman in front of him. He said nothing, avoiding her gaze, and sat down on the sofa on his own.

Wu Ying watched as he took a seat on the sofa, unable to see his expression. From her angle, she could only see his long lashes and those long, long legs. He sat upright, his knees pressing against the coffee table, rising slightly above it.

Had the guilt-tripping not worked?

Wu Ying rubbed her nose and knelt down beside him, her calves lightly brushing against his. She was testing his reaction. He was like a deep well—no matter what she threw in, there was no response. Even now, she could only conclude that Asher's tolerance was beyond that of ordinary people.

He habitually set emotions aside, went straight to the facts, and proposed solutions. Whenever Wu Ying fought with him over emotional issues, he'd fall silent. Perhaps no one had ever taught him how to deal with them, growing up.

Wu Ying's current tactic was: we're husband and wife, we need to build a connection, and how does this affect her trust in him?

And then Asher would concede. Last time he came back, she'd used the same argument to make him give up the master bedroom. He hadn't been too keen at first, but after Wu Ying talked at him for a while, he'd moved to the guest room the next day.

First victory won, she'd grown bolder with him. But this was the first time he'd shown any sign of resistance.

It was kind of cute, actually. Wu Ying leaned forward slightly, bringing her face close to his side. Just as she was about to catch his expression, he immediately turned his head away.

A snort escaped her. He really was a bit adorable.

"Alright, fine, I'll stop, okay? I didn't mean to say those things—I just got carried away. Don't be mad. See? I'm not even angry anymore. Look how understanding I am."

Hearing this, Asher seemed dissatisfied. He turned back, his gaze heavy as he looked at her. "Wu Ying."

Sharp brows, starry eyes—an assault of devastating handsomeness. Wu Ying retreated half a step, then slid her feet into her slippers and shuffled forward. "Oh, come on, enough talk. Time for breakfast. Jiujiu, Jiujiu, bring the menu over!"

Wu Ying sat down at the dining table with her back to him, her slender, fair neck turning this way and that as she ordered her meal. Only after she finished did she turn back to call him. "Have you eaten breakfast? Come eat with me."

Her eyes curved in a smile, no trace of her earlier anger. Better to quit while she was ahead, lest she poke the quiet one until he blew.

"Come sit here. Jiujiu's fast. I'm going to go wash my face and brush my teeth."

Wu Ying saw him sitting motionless on the sofa, and with a crafty glint in her eye, she got up and walked over to take his hand.

Just as she extended her hand, Asher abruptly lifted his head to look at her. Wu Ying's heart jolted. Her hand veered to the side, grabbing his sleeve instead of his hand. She tugged hard, and Asher didn't resist—when she pulled, he rose with her.

She pressed him down into the chair before heading out of the living room.

"Wow, that quiet one's got some looks after all. Almost made me hold back," Wu Ying muttered, looking at herself in the mirror. She wrinkled her nose. She was pretty too—she didn't envy anyone else's devastating beauty.

"How long are you staying this time?"

At the table, Wu Ying chatted with him while having breakfast. They were sitting across from each other—wouldn't it be weird not to talk?

And Wu Ying wasn't exactly the quiet type. When Asher was away, she could chat with Jiujiu for hours.

She'd only had a few bites of her congee when Asher set down his bowl, already finished. "Not sure. At most a week."

"A week? That's not bad. I've been busy too, actually. I'm prepping for finals. The College of Plant Science has so many courses, and they're so hard. People say the first-year stuff is just basics, and it only gets tougher later."

At the thought of her troubles, Wu Ying took a big, miserable bite of her pancake. She'd been studying so hard lately she felt like her hair was falling out. Finals were still a while off, but Wu Ying had no idea how the college would test them, so she had no choice but to study relentlessly.

"Military training is moving up this year. Be prepared."

Asher casually dropped a bombshell, leaving Wu Ying reeling. "What? Moved up? Isn't it supposed to be sophomore year? How early?"

Whether it was Federal University or the Federation Military Academy, military training was always connected to the military districts. It wasn't surprising that Asher knew this. Wu Ying didn't doubt him for a second and immediately pressed for details.

She'd already heard in the group chats how brutal the College of Plant Science's military training was. With their low mental power, they'd be lambs to the slaughter. And worst of all, the college believed that after such training, the students would be tempered enough to dive deeper into plant science. The related field-study courses would open up afterward too.

How could this be? Wu Ying felt like she hadn't even adjusted yet.

"It'll start next semester. The dean of the College of Plant Science changed. The new dean thought the training plan was too lenient, so some adjustments were made."

Asher wiped his hands, ready to leave. Wu Ying had no time to cling to him—she was now scrambling like a weasel trying to find out which courses would open after the training.

She lowered her head, her round head showing a white cowlick. Asher thought she'd grab him and demand details about the training.

Asher paused for a moment. "I'll check on your mental power training progress later."

Hearing this, Wu Ying lifted her face, looking at him in surprise. "Great! Teacher Nova just said I've been improving."

She smiled warmly. Asher nodded and turned to head into the bedroom.

Wu Ying didn't pay him any more mind. They didn't spend much time together at home, but it was harmonious. As long as you didn't actively seek him out, their daily lives rarely intersected.

Most of his time was spent in his study. Since it might involve military secrets, Wu Ying couldn't just barge in. And she couldn't sit still all day, flitting between the bedroom, the greenhouse, the study, and the training room.