He Qing followed Duan Chenhui into the elevator and headed up to the top-floor restaurant. Looking around, he noticed that most of the tables were filled with couples. Clearly, this was a couples’ restaurant. Uncle is really putting in a lot of effort, he thought. (sigh)

Duan Chenhui’s expression didn’t change much. He led He Qing to their table and picked up the menu. “What would you like to eat?”

“The usual,” He Qing replied, adding, “something light.”

Duan Chenhui smiled as he placed the order, looking at He Qing. “You always eat so little. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I’ve always eaten this little,” He Qing smiled. Honestly, he could get by without eating at all, or be cared for like a lantern flower kept in a fish tank.

“If anyone else ate like you, they’d become a god by now,” Duan Chenhui joked.

For a moment, He Qing almost thought Duan Chenhui knew something. “I use less energy,” he responded lightly.

Duan Chenhui smiled mysteriously but didn’t press further.

He Qing silently knocked on the wooden fish in his mind. General, your smiles are getting a bit creepy lately.

The food soon arrived. After finishing his salad, He Qing nibbled on some pastries while watching Duan Chenhui cut his steak. The steak was cut into perfectly even pieces, each bite-sized, the knife moving with precision and ease.

He Qing thought about the sword. Duan Chenhui had been taken over before, and He Qing had temporarily held onto that sword. He needed to reforge it and return it to him later.

Halfway through the meal, Duan Chenhui suddenly asked, “About what my uncle mentioned… if you don’t want to go back to the main residence, it’s fine.”

He Qing put down his fork, thinking for a moment before asking, “Where’s the main residence? I’d like to check it out.” If I don’t go back with Duan Chenhui for the new year, I’m sure I’ll make the headlines the next day.

“No need to force yourself,” Duan Chenhui said, looking up at him.

He Qing gazed back and cautiously asked, “But does the General want me to go or not?”

Duan Chenhui’s fingers paused briefly as he set down his fork. “I remember you said you were uncomfortable with those kinds of situations, so it’s your decision.”

He Qing’s heart sank slightly, and he nodded. “Since it’s a special occasion, I should go. Where is the main residence, though?” He honestly had no idea.

Duan Chenhui smiled. “The North Pole.”

“Uh, what??” He Qing had thought it was nearby. The North Pole was not what he expected! “Why live in such a freezing place?”

Duan Chenhui took a sip of tea. “Because the entire North Pole belongs to the Duan family.”

“Oh, I see.” He Qing understood now. So that was the Duan family’s base of operations! It must be heavily guarded, all controlled by their own people.

He Qing glanced at Duan Chenhui again. Yep, I really am being kept by a wealthy landowner.

Seeing He Qing’s shocked expression, Duan Chenhui laughed and explained, “You don’t need to worry. The villa’s climate is spring-like year-round.”

“That’s good.” He Qing took a sip of tea. He was just surprised. Now that he thought about it, the North Pole must also be a military fortress, responsible for defending Capital Star.

After returning home from dinner, He Qing immediately opened StarNet to look up information on the North Pole. He found some strange posts, like people speculating that the Duan family was too powerful and possibly planning to usurp the throne.

He Qing silently exploded that comment. If the Duan family had those ambitions, they would’ve acted long ago.

In the days that followed, He Qing continued to challenge others on StarNet. His rapid rise in rank started attracting some attention.

One day, Zhang Yi showed him his terminal. “Feels like the secret won’t last much longer. Does the General know?”

He Qing glanced down. Someone had posted on the campus network.

#Mysterious Dark Horse Appears in Combat Rankings! True Identity Unknown!#

[Has everyone noticed? 666, he’s climbing so fast! Which freshman is going to shock us?]

[I’ve filtered through the possibilities, but I can’t figure out who it is.]

[It’s weird. I feel like there’s no one who matches.]

After reading the post, He Qing smiled. “Luckily, I stayed anonymous.”

“Doesn’t matter, you’ll be exposed sooner or later,” Chu Yan teased him.

Shi Lei also chuckled. “He Qing, this is the time for confessing early and getting leniency, or resisting and getting it worse!”

Zhang Yi nodded. “Maybe you should confess yourself first?”

He Qing thought about the rumors of Duan Chenhui’s preferences and shook his head. “I’ll think about it. Besides, as long as you guys win, I won’t even need to step in.” Although, it seemed like his secret was almost out anyway. Amitabha.

Zhang Yi, amused, said, “I bet the General is already suspicious of you.”

He Qing sighed dramatically. “Let’s just finish today’s goal first.”

“Good luck!” Shi Lei clapped him on the shoulder.

The others looked at him pointedly. “You actually lost yesterday.”

“…” Shi Lei weakly responded, “I’ll definitely try harder today!”

–

After defeating a few more opponents that night, He Qing returned home and saw Duan Chenhui directing robots to unpack some packages. He walked over, asking instinctively, “What is it?”

“Clothes.” Duan Chenhui pulled out a coat. “It’s cold in the North Pole. You’ll need to dress warmly when you go out. Here, try it on.”

He Qing took the coat and felt the soft white fur on the collar. He put it on and showed Duan Chenhui.

Duan Chenhui looked at him. With the coat on, He Qing looked like a young nobleman from ancient times. Then again, He Qing was of noble birth.

He Qing touched the collar. “How does it look? Does it suit me?” He really had never worn such clothes before.

“It suits you.” Duan Chenhui walked over, tugged his braid out, and draped it over He Qing’s shoulder. He looked again, then put it back behind him. “It looks better this way.”

He Qing touched his hair and laughed. “I wanted to shave it all off, but no one would do it for me.”

Duan Chenhui twitched. “Shave it all off?”

“A shaved head,” He Qing’s eyes lit up as he gestured to his head. “I’ve wanted to for a long time.”

Duan Chenhui’s eye twitched again, unable to imagine that terrifying scene. He quickly changed the topic. “I think long hair looks better. Shaved heads aren’t popular in the galaxy.”

“You’re right.” He Qing nodded with a sigh. Besides, he had already returned to secular life and even gotten married. Maybe after the divorce, he’d consider it again.

Duan Chenhui, feeling a headache coming on, quickly redirected the conversation. “We’ll leave in about a week. Go pack your things and put whatever you want to bring into your space ring.”

“Got it.” He Qing took off the coat. “I’ll go check upstairs.”

Duan Chenhui handed the coat to a robot. “Have them all dry-cleaned.”

“Yes, Master.” The robot butler diligently got to work.

Duan Chenhui sat down on the sofa, thinking about He Qing’s idea of shaving his head. What kind of taste is that? He truly couldn’t understand.

Just then, a message came in.

Duan Chenhui opened it. It was from General Sun.

General Sun: [Have you heard? There’s been a dark horse on campus recently.]

Duan Chenhui hadn’t been paying attention. [What dark horse?]

The Dean: [Someone’s been challenging others just like you did back in the day. He’s already defeated ten thousand people.]

Duan Chenhui’s eyes flickered. [Who is it?]

Dr. Qin: [I knew you’d be interested, haha.]

Qiao Yi, who knew the truth: [It’s really…]

The Dean pondered: [Unfortunately, I don’t even know who he is. He’s been participating anonymously, probably planning to surprise everyone.]

Qiao Yi: [Not sure if it’ll be a surprise or a shock.]

Duan Chenhui’s brow twitched slightly. He rubbed his forehead. [Must be a freshman. Who do you think it is?]

Dr. Qin: [Not sure, but he’s probably aiming for the friendship match. We’ll find out sooner or later.]

Duan Chenhui looked up toward the second floor, then turned off the screen and headed upstairs. As he passed He Qing’s door, he heard the faint sound of the wooden fish again.

Duan Chenhui paused for a moment, then went back to his room. Seeing the stack of Heart Sutras on the table, he walked over and picked one up. It looked like some kind of mysterious manual.

Duan Chenhui suddenly smiled, then put it back down. But he still didn’t understand it.