Chapter 8

Qi Nuo was straightforward enough to start guessing the moment he was told to guess. Other than erectile dysfunction, there was no life-risking reason he would not dare suggest. Some of his guesses even made Xie Yanxing wear an expression of, So that's possible too.

Although the Upper Planet Confidentiality Bureau had not explicitly demanded that Xie Yanxing guard the secret of his transit to the death, they had said not to spread it around unnecessarily. As an Earthling, he was bound to let some things slip over the two months he would spend living day in and day out with Que Rong and Qi Nuo. But he could not exactly announce now that he was an alien. Whether Que Rong and Qi Nuo could accept his identity was one question; even if they accepted it perfectly well, he could forget about sleeping tonight. Qi Nuo's endless questions alone would drown him.

In the gym, Que Rong listened as Qi Nuo badgered Xie Yanxing for ten minutes without extracting a single useful piece of information. He finally understood that Xie Yanxing was someone who looked easygoing but in fact never leaked a drop. He decided to give up probing the reason Xie Yanxing would not marry consorts and focus on working out.

But just as he wanted some peace, an insect had to deny him even that. The moment Que Rong stepped onto the treadmill, a call from an unfamiliar number came through—

"Hello, Female Insect Que Rong. This is MIPA's unscheduled supervision and inspection team..."

Que Rong hung up with a snap and blacklisted the number outright.

Back when he had still belonged to the Space Force, Que Rong had been unruly and defiant by nature, and nothing chafed him more than being controlled. Later, after the incident that got him stripped of his military status, many powerful male insects forced MIPA and the government's various associations to jointly sanction him. Not only had all his assets been frozen, but he had been unable to find any work. He had suffered quite a bit and felt thoroughly defeated during that period, becoming somewhat more cautious in everything he did—like an insect with his tail tucked between his legs.

But today, he had work again. He would not starve to death! Que Rong's hand did not tremble in the slightest as he blacklisted MIPA.

At dinner, Qi Nuo showed off his skills and made five dishes and a soup. Following recipes Xie Yanxing had described aloud, he made three of Xie Yanxing's so-called hometown dishes: sweet-and-sour ribs, stir-fried eel, and pine-nut corn. The soup was Wensi shredded tofu soup. Qi Nuo's knife skills were superb, and even on his first try, he made everything look convincing.

With Xie Yanxing's permission, he improvised freely on the other two dishes. Qi Nuo made his favorite, fresh conch tossed with mango, and after asking Que Rong's preference, roasted a whole chicken for him. Their staple was rice, specifically requested by Xie Yanxing, who said he would die if he did not eat rice soon.

At the table, Xie Yanxing warmly invited everyone to eat together. Qi Nuo repeatedly declined, saying female insects could not possibly dine at the same table as their master. But when he turned around, Que Rong was already seated stiffly at the table like a block of wood, unceremoniously picking up his chopsticks. After hesitating again and again, Qi Nuo ultimately accommodated the male insect's wishes and sat down too.

Xie Yanxing lavished praise on Qi Nuo's cooking, but would not touch the insectfolk's famed mango-and-conch dish even if it killed him. His over-the-top praise made Qi Nuo flush so red he practically wanted to run into the kitchen and whip up twenty more substantial dishes. Que Rong kept a cold face and showed no hint of a smile after sampling every dish. Then, without a word, he broke off a chicken leg for Xie Yanxing. He asked Qi Nuo whether he wanted one, and after getting a negative response, simply gnawed on the roast chicken straight from its serving platter.

"Wow, young male master, you're incredible." After hearing about the several dangerous incidents Xie Yanxing had encountered over the past half month, Qi Nuo was full of admiration. "The important thing is, after being followed, peeped on, harassed, and kidnapped so many times, you still haven't lost your virginity. That's amazing! You escaped both times you were trapped in a basement by yourself. I don't think even I, a female, could do that..."

"Uh." Xie Yanxing blinked. "Isn't 'lose your virginity' a little weird...?"

"If not losing your virginity, then what?"

"...Fine. Then it's losing my virginity."

Que Rong went into the kitchen and served himself another heaping bowl of rice.

"Wow, Major General Que Rong, you're amazing too. You eat so much and don't get fat." Qi Nuo now looked at everyone with adoration. "You're so strong and muscular, but you look super slim in clothes. I'm not like that—if I eat even a little extra, I get all chubby. My stomach and arms are covered in fat..."

"I'm not a major general. Call me Que Rong." Que Rong gave him a dark look, then tapped the edge of a serving plate with his spoon. "Are you two still eating?"

Xie Yanxing, who had always eaten little, was still struggling with his chicken leg. No matter how delicious the meal was, he was helpless before it. Qi Nuo, who dieted to maintain his figure, naturally declined as well. Seeing the male insect and sub-female shake their heads, Que Rong immediately dumped his rice into the ribs sauce, added the shredded eel and corn, and began eating in enormous mouthfuls.

Though he ate quickly, his table manners were refined. While Que Rong feasted, Qi Nuo, whose head was always full of a hundred thousand questions, suddenly asked, "Young male master, since you lived on the Upper Planet before, why did you come to our Third Planet?"

This time, Xie Yanxing did not evade the question. He smiled and answered, "Because I have many fellow townspeople on the Third Planet."

Before the words had fully left his mouth, he said excitedly, "You just reminded me. I was so busy looking after my own safety that I delayed the original purpose of coming to the Third Planet. But now that Que Rong is protecting me, I can put visiting my fellow townspeople on the schedule."

Xie Yanxing was always astonishingly decisive once he set his mind to something. He immediately pulled up a small contact list on his terminal, containing around thirty names, and muttered, "Who should I go visit first...?"

The contact list had also been given to him by the Confidentiality Bureau. It contained the contact information for every human who had come to the Insect Planet from Earth. Perhaps because their experiences were so unusual, almost every visitor from Earth was very willing to establish contact with other Earthlings.

Only then had Xie Yanxing learned how many people shared his experience. That was also why, after the half-month period of research into the spacetime-storm particles in his body, he had chosen to spend his next two months on the Third Planet, home to the most Chinese nationals.

After only a brief consideration, he picked an unfortunate Earthling. He happily fiddled with his wrist terminal for a while before finally telling Qi Nuo in distress, "Where do I send a text? And help me download handwriting software. This keyboard is too hard to use. I can't type..."

Qi Nuo: "...???"

Que Rong licked the final grain of rice from his bowl. His stereotype of Xie Yanxing as some primitive insect who had crawled out of a rural village deepened by another yard.

"You... can't... type... on a terminal?" Qi Nuo had only realized after asking that his tone might hurt the illiterate male insect's tender heart. Fortunately, Xie Yanxing seemed entirely unconcerned. He nodded without a shred of shame, and Qi Nuo hurried to make up for it. Pulling the floating screen closer, he explained gently, "I've never used handwriting software either. Here, tap this app that looks like a little bee, then drag the other person's identification number here. If you can't use the keyboard, you can use voice input... But it may not recognize the other person's name correctly. Should I type it for you?"

"Sure. Write..." Xie Yanxing thought for a moment. "Dear Mr. Jing Minghui, hello."

"Mr.?"

Xie Yanxing did not even blush. "It's a dialect where I'm from. It means young male master."

"Oh, what a special dialect... Dear... Jing Minghui—'jing' as in 'well,' 'ming' as in 'bright,' 'hui' as in 'radiance'..."

Xie Yanxing corrected him from the side. "You got every single character wrong. It's 'jing' as in scenery, 'ming' as in birdsong, and 'hui' with the sun radical."

At that, he wondered for the umpteenth time why the common language in this place, which was worlds apart from the solar system, was ninety percent similar to his native language. But because Chinese was the most widespread language, the keyboard was neither an English keyboard nor Wubi; it used an insectfolk-exclusive input method that made Xie Yanxing's head hurt just looking at it.

His wandering thoughts were abruptly interrupted by a particularly jarring shriek. Looking up, he saw Qi Nuo staring with round eyes and squealing like a startled groundhog. "Jing Minghui???"

Que Rong had stacked the bowls and plates in the sink and nearly washed them on reflex. He came out of the kitchen with a frown, handed Xie Yanxing the hot water Qi Nuo had prepared beforehand, and said impatiently, "Why are you making such a fuss?"

"Jing Minghui, Jing Minghui." Qi Nuo had lost the power of speech. He could only point at the floating screen and repeat the cause of his shock.

"Which Jing Minghui?" Que Rong thought the name sounded familiar too.

"What other male insect is called Jing Minghui?" Qi Nuo said incredulously. "Jing Minghui, the richest insect on our planet. The legendary tycoon Jing Minghui. If you don't know his name, you know Blue Whale, right? My wallet is that brand." He excitedly ran to his bedroom and took out a palm-sized wallet patterned with sleek, minimalist blue whales. "My male master gave it to me for my birthday. I begged him for so long..."

"..." The pink little wallet was an aesthetic Xie Yanxing could not comprehend.

After showing off his wallet, Qi Nuo hurriedly put it away like a dragon hoarding treasure, his eyes sparkling. "Young male master, you actually know him?!"

"..." Xie Yanxing considered it. "I don't know him yet, but once I send the text, I will."

Qi Nuo: "..."

"After all, when fellow townspeople meet fellow townspeople, their eyes fill with tears." Xie Yanxing smiled, his eyes curving.

Qi Nuo walked over to Que Rong with an indescribable expression. "Are you sure... the richest insect on the planet could have a fellow townsman who can't even type?"

Que Rong did not answer directly. "Maybe Jing Minghui can't type either."

"That's possible!" Qi Nuo felt his worldview expanding. "...Possible my ass!"

"Don't badmouth me behind my back." Xie Yanxing tapped the table as though displeased. "Come help me compose the text."

"...Young male master." Qi Nuo sat back down with difficulty. "If you aren't good friends with Young Male Master Jing Minghui, it's better not to send him anything rashly. He has... a few peculiar habits. He hates males."

"What?" Xie Yanxing repeated. "Hates males?"

"Yes. Though he's a male insect himself, he despises other male insects." Qi Nuo explained solemnly. "He once publicly said male insects are a bunch of stupid, rotten parasites who have been raised into uselessness by society."

Que Rong shifted his attention from his after-dinner fruit to Xie Yanxing's face with considerable interest, wanting to see how the male insect would react.

"Really? He's pretty bold."

To Que Rong's disappointment, Xie Yanxing's expression did not change in the slightest, as though he was not a male insect at all. Que Rong immediately lost interest and went back to eating his apple.

"And he seems to hate females too." Qi Nuo recalled, "After cursing male insects, he called female insects ignorant, lowly slaves without a shred of independent insecthood."

"He curses that harshly?" Xie Yanxing was still entirely unfazed.

"Yes. So many powerful, influential insects who wanted to get close to him came away defeated. He practically throws them out the door without giving them any face at all," Qi Nuo said. "Though I think his unconventional nature is really charming, my male master dislikes him quite a lot... But Blue Whale products are exceptionally reliable, and many of them have no substitute whatsoever. MIPA initially said they would boycott him, but in recent years, thanks to Blue Whale's rise, our Third Planet's economic growth has nearly surpassed the Second Planet's. MIPA went silent right away."

"Didn't they say..." Que Rong remembered something and actually joined the discussion. "That because he only married one primary consort and refused to take more secondary consorts, the government forced him to pay an enormous tax?"

Qi Nuo nodded. "Yes. Then, for the contract to build that enormous transit spacecraft yard to the east, which the government was preparing to partner with Blue Whale on, he directly raised the interest rate by 0.5 percentage points. That added more than a hundred million to the total price. The key was that Blue Whale was the only company on the Third Planet capable of building that transit spacecraft yard, so the government tearfully signed the contract. The tax money they squeezed out of him instantly flowed back twice over..."

"Impressive." Xie Yanxing smiled happily. "As expected of my fellow townsman. So hurry up and help me write this text. Don't delay me getting in his good graces."

"..." Was that really the point here?

Since the young male master was impossible to reason with, Qi Nuo could only sit before the floating screen with a stiff upper lip. "Then, young male master, if he refuses you, or your message disappears without a trace, don't be too upset... What do you want to say next?"

"Write..." Inspiration struck Xie Yanxing. "Odd changes, even stays the same,"

Before he could finish, he laughed so hard in his chair that he nearly slid under the table. Qi Nuo and Que Rong could only look at each other, completely unable to understand the source of his joy.