Chapter Summaries

On the day of the banquet, Pei Ji and Shen Que hurried to the Moon Palace reception after waking late. Pei Ji assigned Luo Yuan a secret mission while Shen Que met the lord’s personal physician, Charles Lee.

• Old Hall woke Pei Ji and Shen Que, who got ready for the banquet after Pei Ji brought Shen Que lunch.
• Pei Ji and Shen Que left for the reception as Demi and Anya urged them to hurry.
• Pei Ji spotted Luo Yuan and left Shen Que waiting while he went to confront him.
• Charles Lee shielded Shen Que from gossiping noblewomen, introduced himself, and said he had read Shen Que’s medical records.
• Pei Ji learned from Luo Yuan that paparazzi had entered the semi-public banquet to hear the lord’s announcement about his assets, then gave Luo Yuan a secret mission.

Pei Ji learned about Shen Que’s damaged mental power and reassured him that he would not abandon him, then the two prepared to open the banquet with a dance. The chapter left them joining hands beneath the moonlight as the banquet began.

• Dr. Li told Pei Ji and Shen Que that Shen Que had adapted well to White Sand Star and should continue treatment and medication.
• Pei Ji explained that he had learned about Shen Que’s damaged mental power after contacting Dr. Li and Shen Que’s physician at Messiah.
• Pei Ji pulled Shen Que along and reassured him that he would not abandon him for lacking mental power, joking that he only needed to dance at the banquet.
• Old Hall briefed Demi, Anya, and Phil on their duties to keep the banquet and the General’s public image under control.
• Pei Ji led Shen Que into the moonlit banquet hall and bowed, and Shen Que placed his hand in Pei Ji’s as the banquet began.

At the Moon Palace banquet, Pei Ji and Shen Que performed their opening dance while Carolina watched and criticized Pei Ji through a disguised account. The dance won over some viewers, and Pei Ji ended the chapter feeding Shen Que cake before reluctantly going to socialize.

• Carolina watched a secret livestream of the banquet and defended Shen Que while attacking Pei Ji in the comments.
• Pei Ji and Shen Que danced beneath the moonlight, with Pei Ji quietly guiding Shen Que through the steps as he grew dizzy and exhausted.
• Carolina angrily zoomed in on screenshots of Pei Ji’s hand at Shen Que’s waist and denounced him in the chat.
• After the dance, Demi and Anya celebrated that the pair had avoided mistakes, while Phil planned to promote them as a couple on the Star Network.
• Pei Ji fed Shen Que caramel cake, then went to greet a guest after Shen Que silently signaled him to socialize.

At Pei Ji’s banquet, Shen Que learned that Austin, Duke Owen’s son and Pei Ji’s former classmate, had once rivaled Pei Ji for someone they both loved. Shen Que grew unsettled by the story, but Pei Ji returned and offered him another bite of pudding.

• Shen Que spotted Duke Owen with Pei Ji and remembered the duke’s pushy attempts to recruit him for Star Network interviews.
• Austin confronted Pei Ji with insults, and Anya explained that he was Duke Owen’s son and Pei Ji’s former classmate, with whom Pei Ji had once made a graduation bet.
• Pei Ji dragged Austin aside, called Shen Que pretty, and announced that Shen Que was his wife before driving Austin away.
• Phil told Shen Que that Pei Ji and Austin had liked the same person in school and that their bet had led Pei Ji to attack an Insect Nest alone.
• Shen Que asked who their love interest chose, then Pei Ji returned, ate Shen Que’s bitter caramel pudding, and offered him a spoonful of milk pudding, which Shen Que accepted.

Austin ordered paparazzi to undermine Pei Ji and Shen Que’s reputation, but the banquet’s asset announcement stirred tension between the newlyweds when Pei Li gave Shen Que White Sand Star’s ore business. After Pei Ji left, paparazzi tried to photograph Shen Que, and Luo Yuan intervened just as Charles Lee arrived.

• Austin told his paparazzi to edit footage and spread negative stories about Pei Ji and Shen Que on the Star Network.
• Pei Ji promised Shen Que he could buy him anything before Pei Li announced Pei Ji’s inheritance and Shen Que’s share of the family assets.
• Pei Li revealed that Shen Que’s assets included White Sand Star’s ore business, and Pei Ji reacted with visible anger.
• Pei Ji kissed Shen Que’s cheek, told him to eat mousse cake, and left the hall; Shen Que watched him go, unsettled.
• A paparazzo photographed Pei Ji leaving and another tried to photograph Shen Que, but the Little Maid chased one while Luo Yuan crushed the other’s camera.
• Charles Lee and Luo Yuan reached Shen Que at the same time, clinked wineglasses, and Luo Yuan introduced himself as a second-class major general of the Fourth Fleet.

Luo Yuan and Charles dealt with paparazzi at the banquet while Shen Que went for a solitary walk in the garden. When a stalker attacked him, Shen Que fought back and pinned Austin beneath his boot as Luo Yuan, Charles, and Anya arrived.

• Shen Que left the banquet with Anya and asked her to wait while he walked alone in the garden.
• Luo Yuan broke a paparazzo’s miniature camera and dislocated his arm, while Charles helped distract the man’s servant.
• Shen Que reflected on his marriage to Pei Ji and resolved to talk with him properly.
• Shen Que spotted a stalker, exposed him with a Floating Lamp, and fought him when he attacked.
• Shen Que pinned the stalker beneath his boot and ordered him to rein in his pheromones; Luo Yuan recognized him as Austin.

Shen Que went into heat after confronting Austin, and Charles arranged for Luo Yuan to get him to a flower garden while Anya went to fetch the General. Meanwhile, Pei Ji hurried to find Pei Li but interrupted a private meeting with an unfamiliar interstellar merchant.

• Shen Que ordered the Combat Soldier to rein in his pheromones, then collapsed as he went into heat.
• Charles subdued Austin with an injection and gave Luo Yuan a soothing agent for Shen Que.
• Charles sent Anya to get the General and told Luo Yuan to carry Shen Que to a nearby flower garden.
• Pei Ji learned that Pei Li was meeting an interstellar merchant introduced by Duke Owen and pushed into the reception room.
• Pei Ji found Pei Li, the Lord's Wife, and the merchant already inside, while Barry apologized for failing to finish his warning.

Pei Ji confronted his parents about their decision to give Shen Que control of the ore trade and Pei Li’s suspicions about Shen Que’s loyalty. Ai Fan explained that the semi-public banquet was meant to help Pei Ji make up for the wedding and formal apology he still owed Shen Que.

• Pei Ji interrupted Ai Fan and Pei Li’s meeting with Mr. Ling, and Ai Fan reprimanded him for leaving Shen Que alone at the banquet and barging in rudely.
• Pei Ji asked whether his parents had chosen Shen Que to test him, and Ai Fan said they simply believed Shen Que was better suited to the ore trade.
• Pei Ji revealed that Pei Li had warned him that Shen Que’s injury was suspicious and that he might be acting for the Empress, prompting Ai Fan to scold Pei Li for insulting Shen Que.
• Ai Fan confiscated Pei Li’s terminal for a month after he admitted using the insult “the Empress’s lapdog.”
• Pei Ji asked why the banquet had been semi-public, and Ai Fan told him it was for Shen Que because Pei Ji still owed him a wedding and a formal apology.

Pei Ji realized he needed to understand Shen Que’s needs, then learned from Charles that Shen Que’s heat episodes were triggered by pain. Charles agreed to consult Shen Que’s doctor but warned Pei Ji to prepare for the worst because Shen Que’s condition was unprecedented.

• Demi and Anya told Pei Ji that Shen Que had beaten up Austin after Austin followed him into the garden.
• Charles reassured Pei Ji that Shen Que was stable, then asked about the pattern of his heat episodes.
• Pei Ji and Charles concluded that Shen Que’s heat episodes followed pain, while pheromones and physical contact did not trigger them.
• Charles said he would contact Shen Que’s doctor on Messiah and prepare more medication, but warned Pei Ji to prepare for the worst.

Pei Ji remembered how his mother explained her love of wisteria, then comforted Shen Que with his pheromones and asked him for help with White Sand Star’s declining ore trade. Shen Que agreed to help Pei Ji, and the two grew closer.

• Pei Ji recalled his mother explaining that wisteria symbolized obsessive love and steadfast waiting.
• Pei Ji checked on Shen Que after the suppressant eased his fever, and Shen Que asked for Pei Ji’s pheromones.
• Pei Ji kissed Shen Que and shared his pheromones, easing Shen Que’s discomfort.
• Shen Que asked whether Pei Ji was angry about the ore trade, and Pei Ji explained that his mother thought he was unfit to inherit it.
• Pei Ji asked Shen Que to save White Sand Star’s ore trade, and Shen Que agreed before Pei Ji hugged him.

After Shen Que nearly went into heat at the banquet, Pei Ji warned him not to wander alone, then realized he did not want to return to the party. Pei Ji changed their clothes, whisked Shen Que away aboard a warship, and declared that he was kidnapping him.

• Shen Que woke in Pei Ji's arms, and Pei Ji asked how he had defeated Austin despite losing his mental power.
• Pei Ji teased Shen Que about being disliked by the combat soldiers in his fleet, then helped him dress and warned him about the danger of going into heat near an Alpha.
• Shen Que silently wished Pei Ji would mark him, but a sharp pain in his temple stopped him from asking.
• Pei Ji mistook Shen Que's unspoken feelings for reluctance to return to the banquet and began changing their clothes.
• Pei Ji took Shen Que to a Z-390 Small Warship and told the maids to say he had been kidnapped.
• Pei Ji told Shen Que, "I'm kidnapping you," as the warship headed into the sky.

Pei Ji took Shen Que to the Desert Tavern, where the Desert Folk welcomed him and watched Safiya’s final celebration performance. Pei Ji told Shen Que the festivities were celebrating their wedding.

• Pei Ji brought Shen Que to the Desert Tavern and joked with the staff, who recognized him and teased him about the palace banquet and rumors about his marriage.
• Lulu gave Shen Que a pitcher of Sand Camel Milk for free, while Pei Ji denied the rumors by calling Shen Que clingy and saying he threatened to kill himself when Pei Ji was away.
• Shen Que confronted Pei Ji about starting those rumors, then tasted dried fruit and Sand Camel Milk as Pei Ji served him food and drinks.
• The tavern’s guests cheered as Safiya began her final dance, dedicating it to the lord, the Young Lord, and White Sand Star.
• Pei Ji fed Shen Que lamb chops and told him the celebrations were for their wedding.

Shen Que learned from Safiya why the Desert Folk loved Pei Ji, then watched Pei Ji make amends for leaving him alone at their wedding. The chapter ended with Pei Ji showing Shen Que the desert’s star-filled sky and apologizing.

• Shen Que deduced that Safiya was a mercenary and heard her explain how Pei Ji had freed the Desert Folk from the worms.
• Safiya told Shen Que that the Desert Folk marked someone they liked, without imposing many rules.
• Pei Ji found Shen Que had eaten a whole plate of White Thorn Dried Fruit, scolded Safiya, and took Shen Que outside.
• Pei Ji showed Shen Que the stars after the town lights went out and apologized for leaving him alone at their wedding.

Three weeks after leaving the medical pod, Shen Que received a stern checkup and recounted the incident that had destroyed his mental power. His account ended with his awakening eight months after the Seventh Fleet rescued him, while the cause and possibility of his recovery remained uncertain.

• Charles Lee told Shen Que to eat well, avoid alcohol and late nights, and refrain from strenuous exercise or piloting a mecha.
• Seven days earlier, Shen Que had secretly fought three consecutive mecha matches with Pei Ji, worsening his condition with another bout of fever.
• Charles explained that Shen Que's physical health could affect whether his mental power recovered, though he could not confirm that any mental power remained.
• Shen Que described how his judgment errors during a battle near the 8215 Asteroid Belt led him to take Cold Glow into a pirate ambush.
• Shen Que recounted colliding with an asteroid, suffering severe neural synapse damage, and waking eight months later after the Seventh Fleet rescued him.

Charles discussed Shen Que’s health and his rare new soothing agent, while Shen Que updated Carolina on White Sand Star’s ore trade and possible production-line loopholes. After Carolina urged him to consider divorce once recovered, Shen Que chose to go to the General Affairs Office.

• Charles told Shen Que to keep using the new soothing agent and said he would consult specialists about Shen Que’s mental power at an upcoming symposium.
• Charles received a call from his first-year students, and Anya brought Shen Que his terminal with a call from Carolina.
• Shen Que told Carolina he had learned White Sand Star’s mining operations and production lines and had found possible loopholes he needed more time to confirm.
• Carolina asked about Shen Que’s health and his separation from Pei Ji, then said divorce would remain an option once Shen Que recovered and no longer needed Pei Ji’s pheromones.
• After Carolina ended the call, Shen Que told Anya to take him to the General Affairs Office instead of Fallen Star Palace.

Shen Que visited the General Affairs Office and met the overworked ore staff, including the strict Jin Yi and scatterbrained Xingyao. After identifying a gemstone by sight, Shen Que impressed Jin Yi and left Xingyao feeling inadequate beside him.

• Gabi welcomed Shen Que to the crowded General Affairs Office and offered to show him around.
• Jin Yi stopped Shen Que from touching a sorted gemstone and warned him that disturbing the ores would create extra work.
• Xingyao hurried over to separate Jin Yi from Shen Que, then accidentally knocked a pile of sorted ore onto the floor.
• Shen Que identified a blue-green stone as Grade A larkstone, surprising Jin Yi with his appraisal skills.
• Xingyao watched Jin Yi focus on Shen Que and privately lamented his own lack of talent.

Shen Que settled into his new role at the General Affairs Office and learned about the backgrounds of its ministers. A dispute over whether a shipment of ore was A+ or A-grade left Jin Yi overseeing a retest while Xingyao compiled reports for Shen Que.

• Shen Que explained the difference between A+ and A-grade larkstone to Ai Fan, who had come to visit him at the office.
• Ai Fan told Shen Que that Gabi had served for twelve years, Jin Yi for seven and a half, and Xingyao was a Royal Military Academy graduate who had majored in mecha engineering.
• Xingyao challenged the appraisers' classification of an ore shipment, but they insisted it had passed three instrument tests.
• Gabi ordered Xingyao to compile reports for Shen Que, using his pheromones to pressure the Omega into leaving the disputed shipment behind.
• Xingyao asked Jin Yi to oversee a retest, and Jin Yi ordered the appraisers to use different equipment and produce a new report within half an hour.

Shen Que returned to the Fallen Star Palace exhausted and received a package from Pei Ji containing a stone and a Recorder that let them communicate. Pei Ji identified the stone as possibly a living Pheromone Memory Stone and told Shen Que to keep it beside him overnight to recover his scent.

• Shen Que criticized Xingyao’s report but let him keep his position, while Ai Fan suggested he could remove an unsuitable employee.
• Shen Que returned to the Fallen Star Palace and found that Anya had washed away Pei Ji’s scent from their bedding.
• Shen Que hurried out of his room when Demi said Pei Ji had sent something, then accepted a package containing a Recorder and a cloudy white stone.
• Shen Que used the Recorder to contact Pei Ji, who had sent him coordinates and a communication frequency so they could speak while Pei Ji was away.
• Pei Ji said the stone might be a living Pheromone Memory Stone and told Shen Que to sleep with it nearby so he could smell Pei Ji’s scent by morning.

Shen Que decided to have the Pheromone Memory Stone made into a necklace despite Demi's objections and learned that the General had bought rare gems as wedding gifts for him. He then heard a dispute over an ore shipment and asked Xingyao why he believed the appraisal was wrong; Xingyao said he could tell by looking.

• Shen Que asked the maids where he could have the Pheromone Memory Stone set into a necklace, and Demi warned that it was too ugly for his status.
• Demi showed Shen Que several costly gemstones the General had bought for him, explaining that the General had set them aside because none seemed worthy of Shen Que.
• Phil informed Shen Que that officials from the General Affairs Office had arrived with urgent business.
• Gabi argued that delaying an ore shipment would disrupt Master Blue Crane's work and bring penalties, while Xingyao insisted that much of the ore was below A+ grade despite passing instrument tests.
• Jin Yi supported a thorough review by signing the delay request, and Shen Que asked Xingyao how he knew the ore was undergrade.
• Xingyao lowered his head and said he could tell by looking.

Xingyao claimed the larkstone failed to meet the required grade, and Shen Que chose to delay the shipment and take responsibility for the client. Afterward, Xingyao arranged for the ore to be reappraised and invited Jin Yi to help, but Jin Yi refused.

• Gabi accused Xingyao of making trouble after Xingyao said he could identify the ore grade by sight.
• Xingyao unexpectedly asked Shen Que whether the Young Lord had returned, then said Shen Que seemed different from the day before.
• Shen Que ordered the shipment delayed and said he would explain the situation to the client and take responsibility for any breach-of-contract penalty.
• Xingyao arranged for experienced appraisers to sort through the ore again and praised Shen Que to Jin Yi.
• Xingyao invited Jin Yi to help with overtime, but Jin Yi declined because he had something more important to do.