Chapter 15 Older Sister

Chapter 15: Sister

After eating, Ji Anzhi said goodbye to the other two, carrying Xiaoxue, who was full and sound asleep.

Back at the dormitory, Ji Anzhi saw a notification in the package locker indicating he had a delivery.

After confirming receipt, he took the space bracelet from the package box and went upstairs.

First, he put the fruits, vegetables, and the chilled cake he bought from the official store today into the fridge. Then, Ji Anzhi washed a few fruits and brought them back to his room.

Back in his dorm room, he put Xiaoxue down and changed out of his school uniform. Feeling clean and comfortable, Ji Anzhi sat down at his workbench.

After checking that the contents of the space bracelet were mostly complete, he first took out the mannequin inside and placed it on the balcony.

The balcony had ample space; even after putting a bed there, about ten square meters remained.

Against the wall of the balcony near the dorm room, Ji Anzhi had previously installed a five-tiered tall cabinet for storage. There was also a desk by the head of the bed where things could be placed.

He put the needles and thread on the fourth shelf for easy access, and placed gemstone accessories and such on the third shelf. Then, Ji Anzhi went back inside, took out his design drafts, looked through them, and selected a simple shirt design.

The design was largely based on a shirt, with a pale, silvery blue as the main tone. However, the collar was designed as a standing mandarin collar. On the left side of the collar, about a third of the way down, was a jade button, and the button below was positioned to fasten at the center. The cuffs also featured jade buttons.

This design was fairly simple, perfect for a beginner like Ji Anzhi to get some practice.

He spread the fabric flat on the floor. The floor was clean anyway, so it wasn't a problem.

Using the graphic data calculated on his smart device, Ji Anzhi accurately drew the size and shape of each piece onto the cloth. After triple-checking for any errors, he finally picked up the scissors to cut.

Modifying Mech Energy Tanks was infinitely more precise work than this, so Ji Anzhi's hands were remarkably steady and swift as he finished cutting.

Next came the sewing. He used a small sewing machine to stitch the fabric pieces together.

At this point, somehow, the fabric Ji Anzhi sewed always ended up a bit curved and wrinkled.

Ji Anzhi had to unpick the stitches and start over. To avoid damaging the fabric, he used a needle to carefully pick out the threads bit by bit.

After several more attempts, guiding the fabric through slowly and carefully, it finally didn't wrinkle.

However, after sewing the garment together, Ji Anzhi realized he seemed to have sewn it inside out...

He spent the whole afternoon unpicking and resewing until Ji Anzhi finally finished this shirt.

In the middle, due to mistakes, he had to unpick and redo sections multiple times, so he recut the fabric and sewed it twice before finally completing it.

Ji Anzhi looked at himself in the mirror, wearing the moon-white shirt, feeling pleased and confident.

He hadn't cut his hair in the two months before leaving Suoar, and he still hadn't, so now it was past his shoulders.

Ji Anzhi stared blankly, looking at his reflection, which bore a forty percent resemblance to his sister, not knowing what to think.

He really was becoming more and more like his sister...

Ji Anzhi's omega sister had been beautiful since childhood. Raised by her, Ji Anzhi had always been acutely aware of the jealousy other omegas felt toward his sister, the admiration from betas, and the ill-intentioned gazes from alphas. Little Anzhi, who had followed his sister around since he was young, felt it keenly.

He remembered when he was little, after an alpha harassed his sister, he said something to her.

"Sis, can't you just not dress up so much and stay home? Those alphas are very bad, like those guys, they'll bully you!"

His sister just smiled and told him she wouldn't do that. She was just confidently expressing herself. It was those ill-intentioned alphas who should stay home and not go out.

His sister had patted his head then and said something that had always stayed with Ji Anzhi.

She said, "I hope our little An can also confidently express himself like this in the future. Don't care about what others think. Just be happy living your own life."

Ji Anzhi hadn't been able to do it. In that hypocritical family, he had pretended for eighteen years, becoming a notorious playboy.

But his sister had done it. She was born in a cage, but her heart was free. In the end, to resist being married off to a depraved duke, she died in the starry sky, without leaving a body intact...

At that time, Ji Anzhi was only twelve. His only family in that house was gone.

So perhaps due to that childhood obsession, six full years of regret, without even noticing it himself, Ji Anzhi had started acting more and more on impulse, caring less about others' opinions, and drifting further away from that low-key life...

Ji Anzhi touched his hair. It was a nuisance, whether for cleaning or work; short hair was much more convenient. Yet after leaving Suoar, he had never even thought about cutting it.

In Suoar, before his sister's death, because Ji Anzhi admired her, he kept his hair long like hers. Since he had always lived with his sister, even when he sometimes wore dresses, it looked very harmonious.

After his sister died, Ji Anzhi kept his hair short and began to become a playboy, plotting carefully for six years, all to avoid following in his sister's footsteps.

Now he had already left Suoar, left that hypocritical, sorrowful home...

Could I... also fulfill my sister's words?

Ji Anzhi thought, his mind blank. Over these six years, trying to forget on purpose and studying like crazy had caused him to almost forget what his sister had said.

After a long while, Ji Anzhi suddenly smiled at his reflection in the mirror.

"That's right, I've already left. Why should I still pretend? Just do as I please."

Right?

Sister.

I won't let you down again.

...

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Evening

Lu Yan and Qi Yanshen returned to their respective dorm rooms. Before they could even shower, their parents' calls came through.

Lu Zechuan was clearly still handling official business, multitasking as he asked, "Everything alright today?"

Lu Yan replied with a grin, "What could happen to me? I'm the son of General Lu. Who would dare mess with me?"

Hearing this, Lu Zechuan's mouth twitched. He was exactly like his father.

Lu Zechuan rubbed his temples and said, "I heard about what happened at the military academy today. Although that person certainly lacked upbringing, remember not to be so impulsive. Be more careful next time."

Lu Yan replied dismissively, "Got it, got it. Does Dad know?"

Lu Zechuan: "Your father knows. Right now, he's using the cooperation with the Aike family to pressure them, warning them to keep their children in line."

Lu Yan raised an eyebrow: "Dad didn't tell Uncle?"

Lu Zechuan shot Lu Yan a look: "Tell your uncle? If I told your uncle, even I would be in trouble."

His brother-in-law would definitely finish dealing with the Aike family and then come talk to me, saying things like I should let others know my partner's capabilities, take his brother out more often, let people know the backing behind his brother, and completely prevent such situations.

Lu Yan: "..."

Lu Yan wore a complicated expression; he could read his father like a book. Typical men...

Lu Zechuan didn't care to decipher his son's expression. He put his work down and looked directly at him. "I called to remind you: I agreed to let you hang out with Jian Fuxu so you and the Qi family kid could keep him in check, not so you could pick up his crazy habits. Understand?"

Lu Yan pouted. How was he crazy? He just used Uncle Yun's potion once. It's not like anyone died...

But on the surface, Lu Yan nodded very obediently.

Lu Zechuan knew his son inside out and knew he was just paying lip service. Not wanting to say more, he warned him a few times about the school rules and hung up.

After ending the call, Lu Yan grumbled to himself, "Where's the craziness? Compared to Little Madman, I'm not even one-tenth as wild as him... Hmph!"

On the other side, Qi Yanshen also received a video call from his mother.

When the call connected, Qi Lan was relieved to see Qi Yanshen was okay. "In the future, if you encounter this kind of situation, just teach them a lesson. Don't use the potions your father gave you on a whim."

Qi Yanshen knew she meant the noon cafeteria incident. He softly acknowledged with an "Mhm" and said, "Next time, I'll use the medicine Xiao Jin developed."

Qi Lan: "..."

Qi Lan helplessly rubbed her forehead. The medicine Xiao Jin developed was even more potent than Huaifeng's and was very likely to cause death or permanent injury. It seemed Yanshen was truly angry today.

Qi Lan didn't put up much of an argument. After all, Qi Yanshen would definitely join a legion, and being a bit ruthless wasn't a problem, as long as his moral compass was still sound and he didn't stray too far.

Qi Lan said calmly, "Just remember, don't leave any evidence for others to seize. Our family has plenty of enemies."

Qi Yanshen nodded. "I know. I'll be more careful."

Knowing he had taken it to heart, Qi Lan didn't plan to say more. She told him to rest well, as he still had military training tomorrow.

As if remembering something, Qi Yanshen asked just before Qi Lan hung up, "Oh, right, Mother, what's the benefits package like in the Star Chart Department of the Third Legion?"

Qi Lan's face remained expressionless, but her eyes revealed confusion. "Why do you ask?"

Qi Yanshen replied, "One of my roommates is this year's top student in the Star Chart Department, a beta. I was thinking, if the Third Legion's Star Chart Department is really short-staffed, I could try to recruit him early."

Hearing this, Qi Lan's eyes lit up. Without hesitation, she said, "We are short-staffed. Do your best. Tell him he can set any conditions, as long as they're within military regulations."

Qi Yanshen made a mental note and nodded. "Alright, I'll try. By the way, has that person from the black market been found?"

This gave Qi Lan a headache. She rubbed her temples helplessly. "No. The forces behind the military academy joined the search recently, but they still haven't found anything. The few surveillance cameras in the black market trading center were all jammed; there's no footage to trace."

Qi Yanshen raised an eyebrow. "Why is the military academy willing to get involved this time?"

Those people were almost impossible to mobilize for anything other than the Zerg, ABO equality, or military academy students.

Qi Lan replied, "Isn't the Bug Swarm coming? The area the academy is responsible for has already produced six King Insects this year. While there haven't been significant losses, the situation is clearly abnormal, which is why they intervened."

Qi Yanshen frowned, his expression serious. Historical data showed King Insects would appear sporadically in the decade before a Bug Swarm, but never more than three per year. It had already doubled this year, which was indeed abnormal.

Considering the Bug Swarm would arrive two years after his graduation, Qi Yanshen decided to draw up a rigorous training plan for Lu Yan later.

After a few more words with Qi Lan, he hung up to wash up and rest.

Meanwhile, Ji Anzhi was confirming information with X.

"X: Xiao Anzhi, are you there?"

X sent the message while Ji Anzhi was still organizing the balcony cabinet. Seeing it, he continued tidying up while replying via voice-to-text.

"Lai Zhi An Zhi: Yes, what's the result?"

"X: So cold. But don't worry, only those two sons of Duke Prolo had people investigate you. They backed off immediately after finding you were at First Military Academy."

It seemed they hadn't tracked him from the black market. He should avoid it in the future.

"Lai Zhi An Zhi: Thank you."

The reply came quickly.

"X: No problem."

"X: But your father found out you were admitted and flew into a rage. I heard your two older brothers have had faces as dark as charcoal ever since."

Ji Anzhi thanked him again.

"Lai Zhi An Zhi: Thank you for telling me. I'm going to rest now, goodbye."

He logged off without hesitation, muted his smart device, and set it aside.

"X: So, have you considered becoming my apprentice? I can teach you so much."

"X: Did you really have to log off that fast?"

"X: Think about it some more. If you ever want to become my disciple, I'll come right away."

"X: Alright, I won't disturb your rest."

"X: Goodbye."

Of course, Ji Anzhi wouldn't see these today. He turned on the climate control, walked to the balcony, lay down, and soon fell sound asleep.

He had pleasant dreams all night.

...

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For the next month, Ji Anzhi spent almost all his time in the dormitory working on his designs.

Midway, he went to the holographic fashion city and bought another batch of fabric. This batch was more luxurious and intricate, with dark patterns woven in gold and silver thread.

After a month's work, he had only finished a dozen or so garments. His hands were pricked several times on parts requiring hand-stitching, but Ji Anzhi had never felt so genuinely happy and unrestrained.

It was a pity First Military Academy required uniforms; he might not wear his own clothes more than a few times in four years.

Ji Anzhi hung each garment, sealed them in dust-proof bags, and neatly arranged them in the wardrobe.

After putting on his uniform and tidying his long hair, he prepared Xiaoxue's food for the day and headed out.

The military training evaluations finished yesterday. Sixty-four people failed and were all advised to withdraw.

Tomorrow was the final day—the closing ceremony and opening ceremony. In recent days, aside from fourth-years on internship, returning first to third-year students had been checking in. They would also attend.

He had to attend too. Today, he needed to scout the location to avoid being marked late tomorrow.

Ji Anzhi went downstairs, first grabbing the four bottles of mint water he'd prepared from the kitchen fridge, with a bit of honey mixed in for flavor.

Arriving at the sports field by hovercar, aside from the freshmen rehearsing below...

The sun on the field was scorching, as if trying to bake people dry. The cicadas' chirping grew increasingly listless. After just a few steps, he was already sweating.

The other six who had opted out of the military training were all seated in the stands, waiting for the head instructor to arrive.

As for why they were all in the stands—the stands had temperature control. Though it was still a bit hot, it was much better than anywhere else.

Ji Anzhi walked over and immediately spotted Jian Fuxu, sitting alone in the leadership seats at the central podium. He seemed to be reviewing some documents, looking murderous.

The four other alphas nearby had quietly distanced themselves, fearing that if he lost control, he might ship them all off to the Treatment Pod for ten days to two weeks.

The Omega stood silently by the edge of the podium, looking down.

Ji Anzhi took out some mint water and walked over to Jian Fuxu. It was midsummer, and even just sitting here felt unbearably hot.

Ji Anzhi sat down beside him and placed the water in front of Jian Fuxu. "Mint water."

Jian Fuxu noticed him and nodded, his expression softening. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it."

After saying this, Ji Anzhi also took out a bottle of mint water, unscrewed the cap, and took a sip. The sweltering heat was especially rough on him, being a beta.

Seeing that the rehearsal below wouldn’t end anytime soon, Ji Anzhi simply pulled up his smart device and began reviewing the star chart knowledge he hadn’t seen in a month.