Chapter 18: Is This a Dream?
“Well, no,” Yu Heng shook his head repeatedly. “But many Zerg know about this, so it’s likely not just baseless rumors.”
“……..” Jiang Xu was silent. Why did he feel the probability of this being true was zero?
However, looking at it this way, his marriage to Fei was indeed a result that neither side wanted.
“Just listen to it for a laugh,” Yu Heng bumped his shoulder against Jiang Xu’s. “Just make sure you don’t have any contact with that kind of Xiongchong. You might get offed one day.”
“I’ll… try my best,” Jiang Xu said, his expression difficult to describe.
Yu Heng laughed, thinking the other hadn’t taken it to heart. “By the way, where do you live?”
Jiang Xu was exhausted, both physically and mentally.
“Mind if I come over for a visit?” After asking this, Yu Heng suddenly realized something and sized Jiang Xu up. “Oh, right, you aren’t married, are you?”
If there was another Zerg at home, it might be inconvenient.
“I am.” After saying this, Jiang Xu ignored him and walked straight toward the house he had pointed at earlier.
Yu Heng followed beside him, not thinking much of it at first. But as they got closer and closer to the house, he finally couldn’t help but pull him back urgently.
“That house is dangerous!”
In the past month, the danger level of this house had jumped to number one in this district. Anyone with a bit of sense wouldn’t walk in this direction.
Jiang Xu glanced coolly at the hand on his arm and shrugged it off. “That is my—”
“Lord Jiang Xu, you’re back.” The Cichong neighbor from next door was carrying trash to the gate when he saw the two Xiongchong standing not far away.
Looking at the trash in his hand, he resignedly greeted them.
Jiang Xu gave him a slight nod in return.
“You two… keep chatting. I won’t disturb you.”
The Cichong threw the trash and ran back as if fleeing for his life.
“……..”
“……..”
The two bugs stared at each other in silence. The air seemed to solidify.
Yu Heng stiffly retracted his hand, which had been about to reach out again, and let out two awkward chuckles. “Heh, he-heh.”
The laugh sounded as strained as could be.
“So you are Lord Jiang Xu.”
The awkwardness didn’t seem to lessen. He raised a hand and scratched his head.
What could be more awkward than insulting someone to their face?
Nothing. At least, not in Yu Heng’s twenty or thirty years of life as a Zerg.
Jiang Xu felt as though he had finally escaped the grip of an octopus; his body felt much lighter. “Want to come in for a bit?”
“I… I think I’ll pass.” Yu Heng was now afraid he’d have the life to go in but not the life to come out.
The house right in front of him looked like a giant monster that could swallow him at any moment.
“Come in. It won’t eat you.” Since the guy claimed to be a “know-it-all” who knew every bug, it was perfect. He could ask about the demographics of the neighborhood.
With such clear customer profile data right in front of him, Jiang Xu wasn’t about to let him go now.
Yu Heng felt like his life was forfeit!
He’d seen cases of sheep entering a lion’s den, but a Zerg entering another Zerg’s mouth? This was a first…
Resigned to his fate, he followed Jiang Xu into the house in silence.
Fei finished work a bit late today. By the time he reached home, the sky was completely dark.
When he entered his yard, the light from the house shone through the windows, illuminating the yard brightly.
He felt a bit dazed. The last time he had seen this was when his Cifu was still alive.
He remembered that as a child, whenever he played outside until dark, his Cifu would turn on all the lights in the house, as if afraid he wouldn’t recognize his own home when he passed by.
“Cifu,” Fei murmured involuntarily.
“Aya, you’re back. You little grease monkey, hurry up and wash your hands. I made your favorite luncheon meat and winter melon meatball soup today.”
A familiar voice came from the front of the house—it was his Cifu.
“Hurry up now.” The voice urged him to enter the house quickly.
Fei’s eyes grew red. “I’m coming.”
His voice was very soft, afraid of breaking the vision.
Just as he was about to step forward, the door was opened from the inside, and his Cifu’s silhouette vanished like starlight.
Yu Heng opened the door and saw Fei standing in the yard. “Yo, isn’t this Major General Fei? You’re back.”
He looked up at the sky and sighed. “Back at this hour. It’s not easy.”
“And you are…?” Fei recognized the other as a Xiongchong. He suppressed all his sorrow, his voice carrying a faint coldness and aloofness.
“I—I’m Yu Heng. Nice to meet you. It’s getting late, I should head home. Goodbye!”
Yu Heng casually tossed the trash he was holding into the bin by the street, turned to wave at Fei, and left.
Fei watched him leave coldly, a bit surprised to see the trash in his hand.
Once the other vanished from sight, he retracted his gaze. Jiang Xu brought another Zerg home?
Jiang Xu had just finished putting the food in the warming box when he noticed the front door was open. He was a bit speechless; the guy was loud and just as careless in his actions.
He went forward to close the door and was surprised to see Fei standing in the yard. His hand on the door paused. “You’re back?”
“Yes, Xiongzhu.”
The Cichong’s answer was low and filled with visible emotion.
“Tired?” Jiang Xu pursed his lips. Suddenly remembering what Yu Heng had said that afternoon, he sighed in his heart.
They were both victims.
Seeing the other still standing there motionless, he said, “There’s steak and winter melon meatball soup for dinner. It should still be hot.”
Jiang Xu’s sudden change of topic left Fei a bit dazed.
The voice before him seemed to overlap with the scene from before the door opened.
“Is there winter melon meatball soup?” Fei’s voice was very faint, carrying a hint of suppressed grievance.
Jiang Xu hesitated for two seconds before answering again, “Mm. Come inside.”
He had intended to go straight to his room to rest, but for some reason, he went to the kitchen and brought the food out of the warming box.
This was the takeout he had ordered tonight. The portions from that shop were huge, and two Xiongchong couldn’t finish it.
“This portion hasn’t been touched. Eat.” After placing the dishes on the table, Jiang Xu felt awkward for two seconds at his own inexplicable actions and turned to go upstairs.
After changing into his slippers, Fei stood silently at the doorway, watching as Jiang Xu brought the food to the table for him.
He felt an indescribable sensation in his heart.
Looking at the closed bedroom door, he walked to the dining table and sat down.
It really was winter melon meatball soup.
He hadn’t eaten it since his Cifu passed away. It wasn’t that he couldn’t afford it, it was just that…
He had intentionally or unintentionally hidden those memories deep inside.
Fei took a bite of a meatball. Although it was delicious, it didn’t have the familiar taste.
He couldn’t help but think of Parker’s roar earlier that afternoon, and he couldn’t stop himself from looking at the closed door on the second floor.
Will he be good to me for the rest of his life?
In the half-month or so they had spent together, not only was the other not as malicious as other Xiongchong, but he could even be said to be countless times better.
So good that he wondered if these past two weeks had all been a dream.
And in reality, he had already carried out the assassination as planned and died in that attempt.
Translator’s Note:
- Mental Power (精神力): In Zerg novels, Xiongchong (males) have mental powers that can biologically suppress Cichong (females). Jiang Xu used it in the alleyway.
- Cifu (雌父): Literally “Female Father.” In Zerg society, this refers to the male who gives birth (the Shou/Cichong parent). Think of it as the “mother figure” in their culture.
- Winter Melon Meatball Soup (冬瓜丸子湯): A classic, comforting Chinese soup. For Fei, it represents the warmth of his lost family.
- The “Wing Wall”: A common “scum gong” trope where a cruel male collects the wings of his partners. Our Jiang Xu is definitely going to have to clear his name!
- Soft Rice / Parasitic Pest: Terms used by Fei’s subordinates to describe the “useless” pampered status of Xiongchong.
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