Chapter 85 Adoption

Chapter 85: Adoption

Qi Yanshen knew his father was sounding him out and stated firmly, "I think we should do it."

Seeing he was set on it, Yun Huaifeng didn't say more and agreed to help.

At the same time, he delivered a series of piercing remarks.

"He's even taking in a child now, and you still haven't won him over. Your progress is truly touching."

"And he's a beta. While I don't oppose AB relationships, if you can't get him to say yes, I still hope you can learn to let go."

Qi Yanshen remained silent, unable to refute.

Yun Huaifeng sighed, hoping his son wouldn't follow in his footsteps—obsessing over one person to the bitter end.

Seeing no point in further discussion, Yun Huaifeng changed the subject. "Where will the child live after adoption?"

Qi Yanshen hadn't thought about that and answered honestly, "I don't know."

Yun Huaifeng offered a suggestion. "From what I can see, the child is probably around four or five years old, old enough for kindergarten. Have the child attend school on Scott Star during the day and return to the dormitory on Military Academy Star at night. The trip back and forth is fast."

Qi Yanshen replied, "Alright, I'll ask Ji Anzhi for his opinion later."

"Alright, I'll hang up if there's nothing else. I'm busy."

After the call ended, Qi Yanshen sent a message to Ji Anzhi.

"Qi Yanshen: My dad said he can help."

Ji Anzhi, who had been waiting for news, replied immediately.

"Ji Anzhi: Really? Thank you!"

"Qi Yanshen: But have you considered where the child will live?"

"Ji Anzhi: I just checked the military academy handbook. It's allowed to live with a child, but you need to submit proof for approval and get your roommate's okay. The child is really scared right now, so I'd feel better having him stay with me."

"Qi Yanshen: How old is the child?"

"Ji Anzhi: He doesn't know, but he should be around four or five."

"Qi Yanshen: If he's four or five, he can attend kindergarten on Scott Star. And as his adoptive parent, he can enroll in the First Military Academy's affiliated kindergarten."

Ji Anzhi knew about the First Military Academy's affiliated kindergarten. The children there were all from wealthy or influential families, with backgrounds he couldn't afford to offend.

Ji Anjue still couldn't gauge situations appropriately, so it was better to keep him in the dormitory.

"Ji Anzhi: That might be difficult. The child has no sense of security right now and probably wouldn't speak up if bullied. I wouldn't feel at ease."

"Qi Yanshen: Then let him stay at the military academy temporarily. It's up to you. I'll message the dean to let you leave the academy. Send me a message once you arrive on Scott Star, and I'll take you to handle the adoption paperwork."

"Ji Anzhi: Thank you."

"Qi Yanshen: It's nothing, really."

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, the conversation ended. Ji Anzhi breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Ji Anjue, who was eating heartily beside him. "It's settled."

Ji Anjue looked up at him, noodles still stuffed in his mouth, and mumbled in a childish voice, "Cah be shu-ulled."

Ji Anzhi chuckled and patted Ji Anjue's head. "Finish eating before you talk. Be careful not to choke."

Ji Anjue swallowed and said clearly, "It can definitely be settled!"

Ji Anzhi pinched Ji Anjue's chubby cheek and asked if he could make his face look thinner.

Ji Anjue said it was no problem, just a bit of mental effort. But after consuming three fruits, this amount of mental energy was a drop in the bucket for him.

In just two seconds, Ji Anjue's originally round cheeks quickly thinned out, and he even slimmed down his whole body to appear much slimmer.

"Is this okay?"

Ji Anzhi picked him up and gave him a little heft. "Yes."

This way, they wouldn't give themselves away. If any flaws were discovered, Ji Anjue could just use his mental energy to alter others' memories.

Ji Anzhi took Ji Anjue to Scott Star. Along the way, because he was with a child, they were stopped for inspections many times.

However, after checking the child's genes and finding no record in the Star Network gene database—likely indicating he was an undocumented resident—and learning that Ji Anzhi was a current student at the First Military Academy who intended to take the child to the Capital Star for adoption, they had Ji Anzhi leave a record. This record would later be cleared upon presenting official adoption documents.

For those who could bypass federal laws through connections, they could only issue a warning.

After getting off the ship, before even sending a message, Ji Anzhi saw Qi Yanshen standing at the port exit.

Carrying Ji Anjue, Ji Anzhi walked over and said apologetically, "I'm sorry for troubling you so much."

Qi Yanshen said it was no trouble and called for a ride to the adoption registration office.

On the way, Qi Yanshen inquired about Ji Anjue's specific situation. "What exactly happened with this child? Why doesn't he have parents? Shouldn't an orphanage have taken him in?"

Ji Anzhi had already prepared his story, his tone tinged with pity. "This child was found in the woods near a vagrant settlement. When discovered, he was covered in injuries and unconscious in the forest. Worried about the child, I used a treatment device and repair agents to help treat him."

"After the child woke up, I asked where his parents were. He hesitated for a long time before saying they were gone, that he had no one. I guessed he was the offspring of nearby vagrants. I searched for his parents but found nothing. Orphanages don't accept children with no birth records in the Star Network gene database—children of unknown origin."

"He kept clinging to me, and I felt so sorry for him that I thought about taking him in..."

Hearing this, Qi Yanshen was certain that Ji Anzhi was adopting out of compassion and kindness.

Just like Xiaoxue back then, who was also pitifully parentless and was adopted by Ji Anzhi.

Qi Yanshen replied, "You're very kind. It's his luck to have met you."

Ji Anzhi patted Ji Anjue in his arms, who was afraid of saying the wrong thing and remained silent, and smiled. "Thank you for the praise."

Arriving at the adoption registration office, Qi Yanshen took Ji Anzhi to meet the person in charge and said straightforwardly, "Hello, we're here to handle adoption procedures."

The person in charge had received a message an hour earlier that Commander Qi's child would be coming and to bend the rules a bit, not to be too strict about the age.

He was shrewd and knew what to do, welcoming them in with a smile.

The person in charge led them to the examination room and asked the child's name along the way. Ji Anzhi replied, "Ji Anjue."

Hearing this, Qi Yanshen glanced at the white-haired child in Ji Anzhi's arms, thinking that Ji Anzhi really liked this child.

He wondered if the child would reject him. If so, his already precarious pursuit would become completely overgrown with weeds, its direction unknown.

Every child being adopted must undergo a physical examination. This examination is required not only at the time of adoption but also for follow-up check-ups every month until the age of twenty. This is to ensure every child's safety and minimize the risk of abuse or neglect.

This rule absolutely cannot be bypassed through connections. Even if it were the Commander, if discovered, they would be immediately dismissed.

Before they arrived, Ji Anzhi had reminded Ji Anjue not to speak carelessly and to listen to him.

So when the examining doctor took Ji Anjue for the check-up, he remained silent throughout. During the blood draw and injection, he looked terrified, and though tears fell, he didn't cry out loud.

The doctor's heart went out to him, soothing him gently the whole time, but unfortunately, it didn't help much.

Half an hour later, the check-up results were ready.

The doctor came out with the results and said, "The child's bone age has just reached four years old. Genetic testing shows the secondary gender is beta. There's some malnutrition, and the weight is on the lighter side, but with proper care, he can reach the normal weight range."

The doctor walked to the desk, sat down, signed off on the exam data, entered it into the system for backup, and simultaneously uploaded the newly obtained genetic data into the Star Network genetic database.

As he worked, he added, "There are no physical illnesses, but we preliminarily suspect the child has psychological trauma. Stress may have led to a psychosomatic mutism—he doesn't speak. He'll need counseling later on; otherwise, the longer it goes on, the more reluctant he'll be to speak, and even his vocal organs could deteriorate."

Ji Anzhi nodded, "Okay, thank you."

When he was done, the doctor printed a copy of the examination report and handed it to Ji Anzhi. The three of them left the examination room together.

Seeing Ji Anzhi come out, Ji Anjue immediately scurried over, tightly grabbing his pants, refusing to let go no matter what.

That made moving around difficult, so Ji Anzhi crouched down and picked up Ji Anjue. Ji Anjue didn't resist, nestling obediently in Ji Anzhi's arms.

Carrying Ji Anjue like this, they walked all the way to the processing room to evaluate Ji Anzhi's financial and other basic qualifications for adoption.

Although Ji Anzhi was a military academy student, none of the top cadets at the First Military Academy were short on funds, so he passed the financial assessment easily.

The main sticking point was gender.

If the child were an alpha or omega, a note in the file would do, but since the child was a beta and the adopter was also a beta, it became a bit tricky.

The clerk took out an adoption agreement from the Federal Court.

The officer said uneasily, "This is the Federal Court's adoption agreement. Since both you and the child are betas, to prevent any risk of a child bride situation, this agreement must be signed. In the future, if any inappropriate relationship develops between the two parties, it would mean a mandatory life sentence."

Ji Anzhi understood this and signed the agreement promptly.

The person in charge breathed a sigh of relief. Thankfully, this one was being cooperative, unlike the last guy who pulled strings but still threw a fit about signing—wasn't that just asking for trouble?

Pulling strings and then refusing to sign—if someone reported it, he'd be immediately dismissed and charged by the court, with penalties ranging from removal from office to even the death penalty for complicity.

The people at the Child Protection Center were not to be trifled with; crossing them could cost you half your life.

While processing the paperwork, the clerk had initially assumed it was just the young master Qi (the Commander's son) being good friends with this student, helping out as a friend.

However, he keenly noticed that the young master Qi was unusually attentive to his roommate. Based on his years of experience, the young master Qi definitely had feelings for his roommate.

But one was an alpha, the other a beta—it would be a difficult path.

After completing all the adoption procedures, it was already past six in the afternoon. As soon as the adoption certificate was issued, Ji Anzhi immediately filed the proof with the academy for approval and uploaded the certificate to update his records.

The academy was efficient; approval came through in just a few minutes.

Luckily, there was precedent at the academy for students adopting children before graduation, though more commonly it was for students from backwaters who were orphaned and supporting siblings.

Since Ji Anzhi chose to remain in his original dormitory, after approval, the academy also messaged his three roommates, requiring their consent for Ji Anzhi to continue living in the original dorm. Otherwise, he would have to change rooms.

When Jian Fuxu and Lu Yan received the message, they were almost shocked out of their wits. Jian Fuxu chose to send a message to inquire, while Lu Yan directly called.

"Jian Fuxu: What's going on? Did you get cuckolded before even catching up?"

"What's going on, what's going on!!! Why is Ji Anzhi raising a child in the dorm??? It can't be that you two secretly had a child together, right?!"

Qi Yanshen: "…………" Should have worn Bluetooth earphones...

Ji Anzhi: "…………" I can hear that...

Suppressing the urge to hit someone, Qi Yanshen replied to Jian Fuxu via message while speaking to Lu Yan, "No, Ji Anzhi found the child near the Mechanical City. He took pity on him and wanted to adopt him."

The message sent to Jian Fuxu was similar. Jian Fuxu, who might have been busy, agreed immediately upon learning the situation and then went offline without further reply.

"Hey! Wait! Adoption? Are you really sure? Although I don't mind... I don't mind a good child, but at our age, it's a bit of a struggle just to support ourselves, and now we're adopting a child? Couldn't he go to an orphanage?"

Qi Yanshen also had a headache: "The child is undocumented and can't enter an orphanage. The only option is adoption."

Lu Yan thought it was an orphan, but it turned out to be an undocumented child.

If it's undocumented, then adoption really is the only option; otherwise, the child would likely end up dying tragically on the streets.

Though it may seem heartless, it's done more for the safety of ordinary citizens, as a necessary measure.

Lu Yan fell silent for a few seconds before finally saying he could accept the child in their dorm, but he asked uneasily, "What's the child's... personality like?"

In reality, he was asking if the child was a troublemaker.

Qi Yanshen replied, "He's quite quiet and a bit fearful of people. During the check-up, he was scared but didn't cry."

After a pause, he added, "He's a very brave child."

Lu Yan could guarantee that the last sentence was absolutely filtered through rose-tinted glasses.

"...Do you have a photo? I'd like to see."

Qi Yanshen forwarded the photo Ji Anzhi had sent him earlier.

Lu Yan opened the image and saw a child dressed in a cat outfit eating delicious food, cheeks puffed out, with golden hair, blue eyes, snow-white skin, looking utterly adorable...

"O-omega?"

Lu Yan exclaimed in surprise. Such a beautiful child was most likely an omega, with the remaining slim chance of being an alpha.

Qi Yanshen coldly interrupted, "He's a beta boy."

Lu Yan was even more shocked, to the point of being speechless, his face filled with disbelief. Just as he was about to speak, Qi Yanshen reminded him coldly to remember to agree and then hung up the call without mercy.

The next second, Ji Anzhi received notification that the final approval had passed, and he could bring the child to the military academy. At the same time, an admission notice for the First Military Academy's affiliated kindergarten was sent.

As long as the child wanted to go, he could start at the academy's kindergarten anytime. This was one of the benefits of being admitted to First Military Academy, whether the child was adopted or biological.

Setting the notice aside, the two of them took Ji Anjue back to the military academy. On the spacecraft back to the academy, there were only the three of them, and the port was nearly empty too.

So no one noticed that two of their military academy's most prominent figures had brought back a child.

Returning to the dormitory, just as they reached the second floor, Ji Anzhi and Qi Yanshen were met with the death glares of Lu Yan and Jian Fuxu.

Just as the atmosphere grew awkward, Ji Anjue, following Ji Anzhi's instructions, made a sound.

"Hungry..."

In the quiet environment, Ji Anjue's single word "hungry" was as clear as a pin drop...

The four adults present were instantly thrown into disarray.

"Wait! How old is the child? What can he eat? Maybe we should just give him nutrient solution... Ow! That hurts!"

"Children should be able to eat some fruits and light food. I'll have the robot prepare it."

"Shh, don't cry. You'll have food soon."

Ji Anjue: ...Humans are so childish.