Chapter 27: Investigation
“Admiral, Lan Ze has been taken away by the Male Protection Association.”
He Qiu returned to the military base and reported directly to Lan Hechen.
Lan Hechen reached up and massaged his temples.
“Hmm. Was Lord Yan Mo escorted back safely?”
He Qiu paused for a fraction of a second before smiling. “It seems the Xiongzhu the Admiral selected for Xiao Ze was absolutely the right choice!”
Lan Hechen raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”
“He is incredibly protective of Xiao Ze. Fearing that Xiao Ze would be mistreated at the Male Protection Association, he stubbornly insisted on going with him.”
Lan Hechen set down the documents in his hand and looked at He Qiu, a distinct expression of disapproval on his face. “Foolishness!”
He Qiu offered a gentle smile. “Come now, they have such a wonderful relationship, isn’t that a good thing? In the Zerg empire, finding a Xiongzhu who treats you with genuine sincerity is already incredibly rare. The local branch of the Male Protection Association here can’t make any real waves anyway. Let’s just consider it an opportunity for them to bond.”
Lan Hechen remained silent for a long moment before letting out an exhausted sigh.
“I don’t even know if I made the right decision anymore. Lan Ze’s affection for Lord Yan Mo is growing far too deep. That might not be a good thing in the long run.”
When Lan Hechen first received the report that Lan Ze had rescued a Male from a garbage planet, he was thrilled upon seeing Yan Mo’s photograph. In the Zerg race, genetic rank heavily influenced physical appearance; Yan Mo’s striking looks practically guaranteed he was a high-level Male.
Lan Ze had steadfastly refused to enter the Star Net matchmaking program, and he held nothing but contempt for the elite Males on the Capital Star who pursued him.
The severe pollution in Lan Ze’s mental domain had been Lan Hechen’s greatest source of anxiety. He was desperate to find a suitable Xiongzhu for his cub—someone who could at least soothe his mental domain and prevent an early death from a mental riot.
But Lan Hechen knew exactly what kind of degenerate filth the elite Males of the Capital Star truly were. Those high-ranking noble Males had toyed with and discarded more Females than he could count.
No matter how desperate Lan Hechen was, he absolutely refused to force his own cub into a living hell.
Yan Mo’s sudden appearance was a miraculous blessing—a high-level Male with zero political background was the perfect match for Lan Ze.
But then he received the news that Yan Mo had not yet undergone secondary differentiation.
A twenty-year-old Male who had yet to differentiate possessed a high probability of carrying genetic defects. Even if he eventually differentiated, his rank might end up being pitifully low.
After thoroughly reviewing Yan Mo’s file, Lan Hechen had considered the situation carefully and decided to take the gamble.
Initially, when Lan Ze had rejected the idea of becoming Yan Mo’s guardian, Lan Hechen had secretly breathed a sigh of relief. This meant that if Yan Mo’s eventual differentiation resulted in a low rank incapable of purifying Lan Ze’s mental domain, separating them wouldn’t be too difficult.
He just hadn’t expected them to develop such strong feelings for each other so rapidly. One single trip to Garbage Planet 1347, and it seemed they had already cemented their mutual devotion.
He Qiu felt that Lan Hechen was simply worrying too much.
Back in the day, when their Admiral led them—a heavily armored legion of Military Females—soaring through the stars and conquering the galaxy, he had never been like this. Back then, Lan Hechen was truly a cold, ruthless commander. Now, however, while he maintained the facade of a stern and unyielding Female Father, behind closed doors, he fussed over Lan Ze more than anyone else.
He Qiu couldn’t hold back a laugh. “You were never like this when you were leading troops. Your brothers-in-arms really need to see what their fearless Admiral has become. Since becoming a Female Father, it’s like you’re a completely different person.”
Lan Hechen shot He Qiu a glare. The sheer oppressive weight of that gaze swept over the room, causing He Qiu’s smile to falter. He raised his hands in a gesture of surrender.
“How goes the investigation into the missing Male?”
Lan Hechen asked.
This matter technically fell outside the military’s jurisdiction, but since it involved Lan Ze, the military had secretly dispatched their own operatives to investigate.
“He vanished on Planet Cangnan shortly after disembarking from the starship. Aside from Pete, all of his Female Attendants are currently being held at the Planet Cangnan Male Protection Association. The local security forces are conducting sweeping searches, but they have yet to locate him.”
Lan Hechen’s eyes darkened. Planet Cangnan was a massive tourist hub, with incredibly dense and chaotic spaceport traffic. The local security forces were moving far too slowly. Who knew if Pete had already been covertly transported off-world by now?
Efa Star Male Protection Association.
Because the investigation now included Yan Mo, Xie Dun didn’t dare risk throwing a noble Male Lord into a standard interrogation room. Enduring Xin Feng’s relentless glares and eye rolls, he compromised by relocating the investigation to the main conference hall.
A long table occupied the center of the room.
Yan Mo held Lan Ze’s hand and led him to sit on one side of the table.
After a few minutes, three of the Association’s top leaders walked in.
It was the same three officials who had confronted them at the spaceport: Xie Dun, President of the Efa Star branch; Xin Feng, the Vice President; and another Female who also appeared to hold a vice-presidential rank.
They took their seats opposite Yan Mo and Lan Ze.
“May I ask where the two of you were on [Date], Star Calendar Year 3095?”
Lan Ze answered first, “On that day, Lord Yan Mo and I traveled to the Efa Star Spaceport and boarded the military starship assigned to the Fourth Army’s inspection of Planet 1347. From that point on, we remained on the starship the entire time.”
Xie Dun quickly followed up, “To my knowledge, the military inspection mission was assigned to Major General Saiensi. Why did you insist on accompanying them, and why did you bring Lord Yan Mo?”
Yan Mo answered calmly, “It was my own request to visit Planet 1347. As you well know, I was rescued by Lan Ze on Planet 1347. I simply wanted to return and take a look. Surely that doesn’t violate any interstellar laws?”
Xie Dun laughed awkwardly, “Of course not, of course not.”
Planet 1347 was a garbage planet. Under normal circumstances, taking a Male to such a hazardous location would incur severe penalties under Zerg law. However, if the Male himself requested it, the Male Protection Laws unequivocally guaranteed his absolute freedom to travel anywhere he wished.
Xie Dun coughed in profound discomfort. Since he had started working at the Male Protection Association, he had only ever interrogated Females. He was entirely accustomed to holding absolute authority and maintaining an aura of unassailable intimidation.
Never in his life had he been forced to conduct an interrogation while walking on eggshells.
“Lord Pete’s Female Attendants stated that prior to boarding the starship to Planet Cangnan, they engaged in a conflict with you at the spaceport?”
Yan Mo frowned. “That did happen. That day, some guy named Pete completely lost his mind. I was rushing to catch the military starship when he suddenly grabbed me and unreasonably demanded that I hand over my ticket. I merely acted in self-defense.”
Xin Feng suddenly glared at Yan Mo, clearly dissatisfied with his answer. “Yan Mo, watch your tone! Pete is a D-rank Male, whereas you are nothing more than a defective insect with genetic flaws. Insulting a Male is a crime.”
Lan Ze’s eyes instantly turned to ice, locking onto Xin Feng with a deadly stare.
Xin Feng puffed up with arrogance, continuing his mockery, “What are you staring at? He hasn’t even undergone secondary differentiation yet. If he isn’t a defective insect, what is he?”
Lan Ze’s eyes practically froze over.
Yan Mo grabbed Lan Ze’s hand. Lan Ze paused, looking back at Yan Mo, a wave of profound guilt suddenly washing over him.
He had allowed Lord Yan Mo to suffer humiliation.
Yan Mo didn’t even acknowledge Xin Feng, treating him as though he simply didn’t exist. He addressed Xie Dun directly, “Once this interrogation is over, I will be filing a formal complaint with the Capital Star Male Protection Association.”
His total dismissal infuriated Xin Feng to the point of apoplexy.
Xie Dun and the other Female official couldn’t even force a smile anymore. Enduring Lan Ze’s suffocating, murderous aura was hard enough, but now it turned out that this seemingly gentle Male Lord was equally ruthless, shielding Major General Lan Ze with an iron grip.
Xie Dun desperately wanted to kick Xin Feng out of the room, but he lacked the courage to actually do it.
Unable to afford offending either side, Xie Dun could only offer another agonizingly awkward smile.
They had already reviewed the spaceport’s surveillance footage, watching the entire conflict between Yan Mo and Pete unfold.
Following standard protocol to clarify the situation, Xie Dun looked into Lan Ze’s eyes, desperately hoping to find some hint or clue.
“Major General Lan Ze, before you departed, you allegedly issued verbal threats against Lord Pete.”
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