Chapter 62 – Departure

Chapter 62 - Departure

On Planet 423, large spacecraft could only dock within military zones.

It was quite a distance from Luo Le's residence.

By the time the car stopped, it was already afternoon.

Luo Le's head rested against the cushion, his cheeks slightly flushed, showing no signs of waking up.

Uncle Wang was about to speak when he noticed Huo Lanjing gesture for silence in the rearview mirror. He wisely kept quiet.

Huo Lanjing gently unbuckled the seatbelt beside him and passed the packed items to the front seat.

Understanding the unspoken cue, Uncle Wang took the belongings and exited the car first.

Huo Lanjing stepped out after him and walked over to open the other door.

Bending slightly to avoid Luo Le's belly, he carefully lifted him up and carried him straight towards the spacecraft docking area.

One of the onlookers leaned in and whispered to another, "Hey, yesterday the military district suddenly had a thorough cleaning, and they emphasized grooming. When I heard it was because someone from the Empire was coming, I thought it would be for some policy discussion. Didn't expect all this fuss just to pick up one person."

"Shh, don't talk too much. People who can afford such a spaceship are either rich or influential — we can't afford to provoke them."

When Luo Le woke up, the vast windowpanes reflected a dazzling array of starlight, casting a dim glow over the empty room.

He propped himself up and moved to the edge of the bed. Sitting down, he looked around his belly for his shoes.

Spotting the apricot-colored pair, Luo Le froze.

These shoes... They were the ones he wore back when he was still married, with a small hole at the tip that he had accidentally burned but never bothered to replace due to inconvenience.

Huo Lanjing had even brought these along?

Strange.

Luo Le shook his head and curled his toes to grasp the shoes.

Click. The door creaked open.

Luo Le lifted her gaze, catching a glimpse of Huo Lanjing standing by the door, clad in a creamy-hued sweater, his figure silhouetted against the light.

Seemingly aware of his intention, she swiftly stepped forward and knelt before him, her ankle captured gently in his hand. "You're not moving around easily. Call for me next time."

As she spoke, she helped him put on his shoes with great care.

Luo Le offered no resistance, allowing the garments to be dressed upon him. Once fully attired, he braced himself on the edge of the bed, attempting to rise.

"Feeling hungry? There's fruit on the table."

Without his permission, Huo Lanjing dared not approach to lend a hand, so he could only watch from behind.

Luo Le nodded and stepped out, immediately spotting the pile of luggage.

One of the suitcases was open, with clothes scattered on the sofa.

The left side appeared rather disorganized, while the garments on the right seemed half-folded.

Just as Luo Le was about to speak, Huo Lanjing approached, gently pushing the clothes aside. He fetched a cushion, placed it down, and patted the less chaotic area. "Sit here."

"Mm-hmm, bring everything to my room. No need to tidy up." He walked over, sat down, and grabbed a wet wipe.

Observing Huo Lanjing wiping his hands, Luo Le acknowledged him with a nod but didn't ask further. Instead, he went over to carry the items inside.

As Luo Le watched Huo Lanjing's back and forth movements, he popped grapes into his mouth.

Huo Lanjing had been peculiar lately. Even when treated with arrogance and bossiness, he didn't seem to take offense.

This wasn't the Huo Lanjing Luo Le knew.

The Huo Lanjing he knew was lofty, imperious, and would never be someone who held his words as gospel.

"What are you thinking about?"

Hearing the sound, Luo Le snapped back to reality and noticed Huo Lanjing sitting on the sofa to his right, fixing him with an unwavering gaze.

Setting aside what was in his hands, he gazed intently up and down at her, asking earnestly, "Why, pray tell, do you wish to retreat?"

Huo Lanjing paused, gazing into his eyes, and after a soft 'I', he lowered his head.

Previously, he had always perceived Luo Le as someone indifferent to his life.

In the four years of their marriage, he had never once thought of Luo Le while in the military district.

Later on, Luo Le would casually bring up divorce, causing him great annoyance.

Coincidentally, at that time, he was preoccupied with dealing with the insectoid crisis and postponed the matter without a second thought.

Intent on resolving the matter at hand, I planned to delve into the origin of this nuisance afterwards.

But then Luo Le died, suddenly, like a hammer blow to his skull.

Gazing at Luo Le's cold body, he felt as if he'd grasped a wildly oscillating string in his mind, unsure how to react.

Luo Le had arranged his affairs with clarity, yet had entirely excluded him, leaving not a single word for him.

He thought that Luo Le must have hated him.

At the funeral, his mind remained a blank slate.

Upon completing the funeral arrangements, everything at home began to seem strangely unfamiliar.

During meals, he would always see Luo Le smiling and talking to him. At bedtime, he would catch sight of Luo Le sleeping on the adjacent bed, grinning at him. While working, he would envision Luo Le entering the room with a cup of tea in hand...

These occurrences grew more frequent, and so did his strangeness.

He started questioning himself.

Why did his heart feel so empty?

Why did Luo Le's image involuntarily surface in his mind?

And why did his heart ache whenever he thought of Luo Le?

The traces of Luo Le were everywhere in the house.

Within a week, he found himself thinking about Luo Le more and more.

This was followed by a sense of unease and disorientation.

An answer seemed imminent.

He was afraid.

For the first time, he was terrified of an answer.

So, he fled, retreating back to the military district.

There, he moved to a different residence.

Since then, Luo Le's figure never reappeared.

Yet, the sense of comfort he sought never arrived.

With no trace of Luo Le in his surroundings, his heart grew even more restless, and his mind wandered more frequently.

Eventually, Luo Le didn't even appear in his dreams.

His anxiety and unease threatened to consume him completely.

Promptly submitting his application, he returned to the empire.

Upon pushing the door open, memories flooded in like an endless river, cascading into his mind.

He saw Luo Le sitting on the sofa, smiling at him, her lips moving silently.

Unable to resist, he replied, "I'm back."

But Luo Le vanished, not rushing to embrace him as he had expected.

In that instant, he suddenly realized that she was far from being an insignificant person in his life.

—"What are you doing? Let go of me!"

Huo Lanjing snapped back to reality upon hearing her voice, discovering that he had, without noticing, embraced Luo Le, who was now struggling in his arms.

Still gripped by the panic from his recollection, he momentarily failed to react and continued holding on.

Seeing that she couldn't break free, Luo Le fiercely butted her head against his chin.

Huo Lanjing narrowly avoided biting his tongue in surprise, releasing his grip due to the pain. As he opened his eyes and saw Luo Le holding the back of her head, he leaned forward, reaching out. "Did you bump your head?"

Luo Le hadn't expected his chin to be so hard; tears welled up uncontrollably in her eyes, making her look like a pitiful little puppy.

She pushed away his hand that had reached out. "Forget it if you don't want to talk. Don't touch me."

The conversation returned to where it had started.

Huo Lanjing didn't wish for Luo Le to know about his vulnerable side, so he had no intention of responding.

Gazing at the person who had returned to him, a subtle smile tugged at the corners of his lips.

Thankfully, she was alright.

"I'm glad you're willing to come back with me to the Empire."

Who cares whether you're glad or not.

It was like talking to a brick wall when conversing with him.

Luo Le rubbed his head and nudged, "I'm hungry."

Upon hearing this, Huo Lanjing stood up, "Then I'll go check."

After sending him away, peace finally reigned in the room.

Thirty minutes after dinner, Huo Lanjing, as usual, brought a basin of water to massage Luo Le's feet.

Perhaps it was due to this.

During this period, his feet were indeed less swollen, and he rarely experienced nocturnal cramps anymore.

At three in the morning, a figure stealthily emerged from the room in the darkness.

Guided by the intermittent shimmer of starlight, Luo Le made his way smoothly down the corridor.

He remembered secretly stashing a small spaceship on this vessel sometime before.

Now, where was it again?

The memories were too distant, and he could only recall a vague impression.

Following his scattered recollections, he walked until he suddenly heard a series of footsteps.

It was too late to hesitate. He turned the doorknob on his left, finding it unlocked. He swiftly entered and closed the door behind him.

Inside was cluttered with various items, and in the center, something was covered by a black cloth.

Why did this feel so familiar?

After the footsteps outside faded away, Luo Le walked over and lifted the cloth off.

It was a small black spaceship.

Unbelievable that it's here.

Without further delay, Luo Le reached out to stow the spaceship away.

Those footsteps earlier must have belonged to Manager Wang. They sounded like they were returning from the cockpit.

His steps weren't hurried, suggesting that he hadn't been detected. Perhaps Luo Le had returned to sleep.

Apart from the cabins, this spaceship was equipped with surveillance cameras everywhere.

He needed to hurry. If Manager Wang sensed anything amiss, Luo Le might not be able to escape.

With this thought in mind, Luo Le pulled his coat tighter and turned the doorknob.

As he approached the deck's exit for the small shuttle, he released it and glanced behind him before ducking inside.

Before sealing the cabin, Luo Le reoriented himself, facing the spinning camera, and waved with a smile.

After saying goodbye, he pressed the button. The shuttle flickered and vanished from the deck.

The next morning, after Huo Lanjing woke up, he instinctively made his way to Luo Le's room.

Upon reaching the door, he noticed a slight crack in it.

His heart tightened as he realized something. He pushed the door open abruptly.

The room was eerily empty.

Huo Lanjing's dark crimson eyes narrowed, his face dark as he strode out forcefully.

His overpowering pheromones couldn't be contained any longer.

Exiting the room, he collided with Butler Wang pushing a food cart.

Butler Wang sensed the pheromones and paused, "Young Master, where are you headed?"

"I'm going to check the surveillance footage," his tone icy cold.

Butler Wang immediately understood and hurriedly followed him to the cockpit.

He set down the food cart and went to retrieve the footage from the previous night.

From the moment they had retired, a rapid sequence of twenty-odd surveillance screens played out.

Huo Lanjing tapped the light screen a few times, zooming in on one particular feed.

From the moment Luo Le slipped out of the room quietly, the scene unfolded seamlessly.

Upon seeing himself and Luo Le narrowly missing each other, Uncle Wang froze, casting a cautious glance at Huo Lanjing. Relieved to see that his expression remained unchanged, he sighed in relief.

The footage continued until it froze on Luo Le's smiling face.

Goodbye.

Huo Lanjing's face was grim. Clenching his teeth, he slammed his fist onto the console, producing a muffled thud.

"Find her."

"Yes, sir."

With that, Uncle Wang turned and left, leaving Huo Lanjing alone in the vast cockpit. His head was bowed, hiding his emotions from view.

He had failed to notice that there must be an issue for Luo Le to agree so readily. How could that be possible?

He should have noticed it sooner.

After finally finding someone, he's lost them again...