AEKMEM chapter 8

At noon, An Qiao had lunch with Chu Heng.

For some reason, Chu Heng didn’t take his nutritional supplements like he had in the morning, but instead chose to eat the chef’s meal.

In fact, it was mainly because the butler kept nagging him, saying that as a newlywed, how could he have the heart to leave An Qiao eating alone? It made it sound as if Chu Heng were some kind of utterly heartless scumbag.

The butler was extremely annoyed. Considering that An Qiao might not be used to life at the Marshal’s residence, Chu Heng agreed.

After dinner, An Qiao remembered Song Leran’s message and thought about his trip to the Imperial First Military Academy.

“By the way,” he said, wiping his lips with a white silk handkerchief embroidered with a red rose, “could I borrow a aircraft?”

Chu Heng, who was about to leave the restaurant for his study, paused and picked up his coat from the wall, surprised. “A aircraft? Where are you going?”

An Qiao’s tone was calm. “I’m going to the Imperial First Military Academy tomorrow.”

“You said you’re going back to the Imperial First Military Academy?” Chu Heng couldn’t believe it, wondering if he had misheard.

An Qiao: “Mm.”

He had originally felt that there was no need to mention this to Chu Heng. His decisions were irrefutable. He rarely sought others’ opinions and disliked being interfered with or influenced.

However, remembering Chu Heng’s well-intentioned encouragement that morning and hoping he would feel optimistic and get some rest, An Qiao figured it wouldn’t hurt to casually mention his plans.

Besides, he needed a aircraft to get to and from the Imperial First Military Academy.

Oh, he’d never piloted a aircraft himself before.

aircrafts could be piloted automatically or manually.

Of course, he wouldn’t pilot one himself until he was confident.

Chu Heng frowned and said, “No…can’t you not go?”

He had wanted to say, “You’re not allowed to go,” but then he decided it was too harsh a tone. An Qiao wasn’t one of his subordinates, so a commanding tone would have been inappropriate.

Honestly, he didn’t approve of An Qiao returning to the Imperial First Military Academy at this time.

He was already seriously ill, and many rumors were circulating at the school. Even a healthy person would feel uncomfortable, let alone An Qiao, who is a patient. How could he maintain a good mood and recuperate properly in this environment? Not only would it be difficult to maintain a good mood, it might even worsen his depression.

If he were one of his tough, resilient beastmen who was afraid to face the rumors and was forced to hide away and escape reality, he would definitely beat some sense into them.

However, given An Qiao’s frail and delicate appearance, he could only advise him to avoid the storms of the outside world. He might cough up blood again at the slightest provocation.

He knew that he had already seen this sickly little boy cough up blood twice in such a short period yesterday!

Now, running off to the Empire’s First Military Academy—was he trying to cough up more blood? Was he courting death?

“Is it not okay?” An Qiao’s beautiful blue eyes stared intently at him. His gaze was serious and clear.

Feeling uncomfortable under An Qiao’s gaze, Chu Heng couldn’t bring himself to speak harshly. Instead, he countered, “Then why do you insist on going now?”

An Qiao replied, “I’m just curious.”

Chu Heng’s forehead creased with annoyance. He realized he was prone to anger and irritability around An Qiao: “Curious?”

An Qiao nodded. “Curious about what the Empire’s top military academy is like, what kind of courses they teach, and things like that.”

Of course, there was another reason: the Empire’s First military academy’s upcoming freshman finals would be held in the Star Beast Forest.

He was going to the Star Beast Forest to hunt star beasts in exchange for energy crystals.

An Qiao’s body hadn’t recovered yet.

Although the Marshal’s residence was adorned with numerous energy crystals, the Elf King, being cautious of his image, couldn’t simply take them without asking. Instead, he absorbed the energy emanating from the air.

The spilled energy was plentiful, restoring some of his magical power and alleviating his pain.

However, this amount of energy was a mere drop in the ocean; the demonic curse within him was corroding him too rapidly and preventing the recovery of his magic power and the healing of his injuries.

Therefore, his body was still weak, though he was no longer coughing up blood frequently and the pain had lessened.

He needed a much larger amount of energy to be absorbed directly.

Hunting star beasts in the Star Beast Forest and exchanging them for energy crystals was undoubtedly the best way.

“There are plenty of videos like this online. You’ll see.”

An Qiao said, “Watch videos? That’s so boring. Real-life experiences are more novel and interesting.”

Chu Heng: “…”

Not as interesting as real-life experiences? Do they think this is fun?

He couldn’t help but feel irritated and get a headache. “Didn’t you promise to rest and recuperate as much as possible?”

Initially, Chu Heng hadn’t disengaged from the match, afraid of upsetting An Qiao, this sickly little fellow. He figured that bringing him back wouldn’t be too much trouble, like having a pretty decoration in the house temporarily.

But he hadn’t expected this “pretty decoration” to be more than just something to look at. It was fragile and easily broken, coughing up blood frequently and requiring careful attention.

It was also spoiled, picky, and willful.

In short, he was a real headache.

An Qiao involuntarily frowned. He didn’t like being controlled.

But he managed to calm down a bit: “Going to a military academy and getting enough rest aren’t mutually exclusive.”

An Qiao seemed quite determined to go to the military academy.

Chu Heng suspected that the “chicken soup” he’d given An Qiao that morning had caused him to suddenly become so “ambitious.”

Ultimately, Chu Heng agreed to let An Qiao return to the Imperial First Military Academy the following day. However, he said that someone would keep an eye on An Qiao, and if he felt unwell, he should return immediately to avoid lingering and becoming depressed.

**

As the sun set that evening, An Qiao planted roses outside his room window.

In the interstellar age, the weak were at a disadvantage; even plants had mostly become ferocious. Purely ornamental, non-aggressive plants were scarce and extremely delicate.

That morning, An Qiao had mentioned to the butler that he wanted to plant roses. The butler was delighted and excitedly searched for pictures of various roses on the computer, asking An Qiao which one he wanted.

An Qiao took a liking to a blood-red rose.

But when An Qiao pointed to the picture of that rose, the butler nearly died of fright.

“Young Master An Qiao, why don’t you choose another kind of rose? This rose is beautiful, but it’s an aggressive rose.”

Although this rose’s offensive ability was inferior to that of even the lowest-level beastman and wouldn’t be feared by even the lowest-level elf—

But An Qiao had failed his awakening. He was weak and frail. They were afraid he might get hurt accidentally.

In the butler’s eyes, An Qiao was like a delicate, beautiful, fragile porcelain doll that needed to be protected with the utmost care.

An Qiao: “… Fine.”

He randomly selected one of the non-aggressive rose varieties from the pile.

While not entirely satisfied, they were passable.

He thought of the Blood Moon Roses he had grown in the Elf World.

The thought was depressing. He had painstakingly grown them for months without using any magic, yet he hadn’t picked a single one, and now they were gone!

The butler was surprised, his expression clearly disapproving.

“This isn’t acceptable either?” An Qiao asked.

The butler looked up and met his cold, indifferent gaze.

He was momentarily stunned.

A cold, handsome, and arrogant young man looked down at him, making him feel inexplicably intimidated and oppressed.

His presence was even more imposing than when he was in the presence of the emperor; it was an immense pressure.

It was truly strange.

“No…” the butler snapped out of his daze, “It’s not that it’s impossible.”

“This kind of rose is quite difficult to grow. It’s extremely delicate and hard to cultivate. How about we try another type that’s easier to care for?”

Cultivating this kind of rose requires skill and the gentle nurturing of a wood-type ability. Ordinary people have never grown it successfully. Even if they could, the rose would lack vitality and never bloom.

An Qiao: “No need, this one will do.”

Butler: “… ”

The butler didn’t dare offer any further advice. He felt unable to refute, even more so than when facing Crown Prince Chu Heng.

The robot carefully placed the purchased red rose seedlings aside.

An Qiao glanced at the pile, then at the empty space in front of the window.

He instructed the robot to loosen the soil in that area. Afterward, he had the robot dig holes at regular intervals with varying sizes and depths.

As the robot dug, An Qiao followed behind, casually tossing a red rose seedling into each hole.

He wore a snow-white robe, and his long, silver hair draped casually behind him. His complexion was pale, and he had an air of cool aloofness that seemed incompatible with farming. Yet, for some reason, the scene felt strangely harmonious.

Chu Heng, who had come to watch An Qiao plant roses after hearing from the butler, suddenly felt like laughing without knowing why.

Perhaps it was because of An Qiao’s casual way of tossing the seedlings and the stark contrast between his overall demeanor and the act of farming that made him want to laugh.

“What are you laughing at?” An Qiao glanced at him sideways. His beautiful, ice-blue eyes looked at him lazily, and he seemed to be in a good mood. His thick, curly eyelashes stood out in the afterglow of the setting sun.

Chu Heng was startled, his heart skipping a beat.

“I’m laughing at how good-looking you are,” he said jokingly.

To be honest, Chu Heng had been skeptical when the butler told him that An Qiao was going to plant the roses himself. Over the past two days, however, he’d come to understand. An Qiao was the kind of young master who seemed aloof and indifferent, but was actually arrogant, picky, and spoiled.

It was impossible for the young master to plant roses by hand.

Now, looking at him, it seemed like he’d barely managed to do it himself.

“Of course I know I’m beautiful,” An Qiao said lazily, like a noble, aloof cat squinting in the sun. “You have good taste.”

He looked away.

Soon after, he finished throwing out the seedlings. He gracefully stretched his hands, lightly smoothed his sleeves, and walked to the side of the soil. He directed the robot to plant the red rose seedlings in the pit.

Chu Heng was speechless. “You said you’d grow the roses yourself, but all you’re doing is throwing seedlings into the holes you’ve dug.”

An Qiao replied, “No, I’m also responsible for watering them afterward.”

“Do you really think they’ll survive like that?” Chu Heng raised an eyebrow, his eyes full of doubt and mockery.

The butler had told him that, although this type of rose had beautiful blooms and wasn’t aggressive, it was the most delicate and difficult to cultivate of all rose varieties.

Even those with rich experience and exquisite skills had to be extremely careful and attentive when growing these roses, even with their wood-based supernatural powers. The soil had to be specially prepared according to the roses’ nutritional needs. The nutrient solution, watering, and radiation protection had to be strictly followed.

“I’ve never seen anyone grow roses so casually.”

With An Qiao’s crude and direct planting method, he probably couldn’t grow even the easiest variety of rose.

When questioned, An Qiao retorted, “Of course I can grow them.”

He raised his chin and mocked, “If I can’t grow them, can you?”

Chu Heng rubbed his nose: “…No.”

Indeed, he couldn’t.

He didn’t know why, but he couldn’t grow even the easiest cactus.

In fact, if he touched a plant too much, it would quickly wither and die. He was practically a “plant killer.”

Although he couldn’t grow plants, clearly the young master’s method couldn’t either.

Chu Heng silently complained in his heart.

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