“The Empire recently announced that the ringleader behind the abductions during the thirtieth-anniversary incident has been sentenced to one hundred years in prison.”
On the starship’s screen, a female presenter read the report fluently, praising the Empire’s efficiency.
Ji Shileng tilted his head slightly, his gaze settling on the screen.
The presenter continued in an animated, carefully enunciated voice:
“In addition, an even more shocking development has captured public attention: General Shang Jianli has canceled the funeral for his spouse, Ji Shileng.”
“Tch. Good thing they canceled it.”
A man in the row behind them clicked his tongue impatiently, closed the news page, and muttered:
“Someone that unworthy hardly deserved a funeral in the first place.”
Su Ke’s temper flared, but a look from Ji Shileng stopped him at once. Reluctantly, he settled back into his seat.
“Shi, what is that Shang bastard doing? Why cancel even the funeral?”
He felt that Ji Shileng’s devotion had been wasted.
After years together, could he not even receive a funeral after his “death”?
“It’s better this way.”
Ji Shileng gave a soft laugh and reassured him:
“Besides, I can’t think of anyone who would have attended.”
After all those years in the Empire, he had neither friends nor family there.
He had arrived alone, and he had left alone too.
A man beside them seemed to overhear their conversation.
“Hey, have you two heard the rumor?”
Ji Shileng turned to him.
“What rumor?”
“A classmate of mine is the general’s nephew. He told me the general had already divorced Ji Shileng.”
Thinking of Shang Jianli’s nephew, Ji Shileng had nothing to say.
Terrible at his studies and hopeless at gaming.
An utterly lost cause.
“Divorced?”
Ji Shileng lowered his eyes. As he bowed his head, the brim of his baseball cap hid his gaze, making his expression impossible to read.
Su Ke folded his arms impatiently.
“Divorce? They should never have married in the first place. Those two are worlds apart.”
The man beside them agreed.
“I don’t understand it either. According to my friend, General Shang seemed to like Ji Shileng quite a lot.”
“He insisted on marrying him back then, even at the risk of being thrown out of the family.”
Recalling everything that had happened afterward, the man continued to himself:
“But who can ever understand what those important people are thinking?”
Later, everything seemed to have changed.
Ji Shileng pulled his cap lower, his voice hoarse.
“Yes. Who can understand them?”
He should stop thinking about Shang Jianli.
It was utterly pointless.
The starship landed. Spring had just begun in Sitejiala, and warm air moving south from the north brought gentle, pleasant weather.
They got into the private car Ji Shifeng had arranged. Su Ke asked:
“Shi, the Empire sent people this time too, right?”
“Yes.”
Ji Shileng added:
“I heard my brother on the phone yesterday, specifically telling them not to seat his delegation beside the Empire’s.”
The interstellar military technology conference hosted by Sitejiala was so large that even tiny countries they had never heard of had been invited. The Empire was naturally on the guest list.
Fortunately, they were here on vacation and had no intention of attending the conference.
Given Shang Jianli’s workaholic tendencies, he would never set foot anywhere besides the conference venue and his hotel.
“Oh, right, Shi. Did you get that general figurine back?”
Su Ke liked collecting things. For its third anniversary, Path to Stardom had released ten limited-edition sets of character figurines, available through a lottery for the game’s biggest spenders.
Even as the owner, Ji Shileng had followed the rules. He had won a set himself, kept the General figurine, and given the rest to Su Ke.
In Path to Stardom, the General was the greatest military commander in the interstellar world. Ji Shileng had given the figurine to Shang Jianli, hoping he too would become the greatest general.
Ji Shileng thought Su Ke had a remarkable talent for bringing up precisely the wrong subject. Opening the navigation app, he answered casually:
“I gave it away. Let’s leave it at that.”
Even so, thinking of the incomplete set at home, Su Ke could not help feeling regretful.
Forget a complete set—even individual figurines now fetched astronomical prices.
The prices were manageable. The real problem was that no one was selling.
“Shang Jianli really lucked out.”
After a while, Ji Shileng said:
“I wouldn’t call it that.”
“He doesn’t even know what the figurine is worth.”
He did not know where it came from or how much it cost.
Shang Jianli knew nothing.
The more Su Ke thought about it, the more speechless he became. He truly could not understand what Ji Shileng had ever seen in Shang Jianli.
Ji Shileng slung an arm around Su Ke’s shoulders as they got out of the car. He put on his sunglasses, concealing nearly half his face.
“All right. That’s the store up ahead, isn’t it? Let’s buy what we came for.”
LILALI was a toy store owned by an internationally renowned designer. Its designs were unique, its prices steep, and only a handful of stores existed throughout the interstellar world.
The glass dolls from its latest collaboration with a famous painter were especially difficult to obtain, even with money.
Ji Shileng liked glittering glass ornaments. Fragile though they were, they shimmered with color.
Shang Jianli had never understood his taste. He had dismissed the glass dolls Ji Shileng bought in earlier years as flashy and impractical.
Ji Shileng stopped dwelling on it. Once inside, he went straight to the point, knowing exactly what he wanted.
“Please wrap all of these. Can I pay by credit card?”
Perhaps because of its high prices, LILALI had few customers.
The sales assistant was a little startled. Every doll the customer had pointed to was a collaboration piece, and their combined price was staggering.
Maintaining his professionalism, he replied:
“Of course, sir.”
As Ji Shileng took his credit card out of his pocket to pay, a voice interrupted from beside him.
“Please wrap the dolls in the middle row of display case S.”
Ji Shileng lifted his eyes and unexpectedly met Shang Jianli’s gaze.
After wandering around the store, Su Ke returned toward the entrance to find an atmosphere taut with tension.
He did not know Shang Jianli well. Besides, the man was wearing a mask that covered most of his face, along with silver-rimmed glasses that gave him a refined, aloof appearance.
How would a stranger recognize him?
But Ji Shileng did.
Quite apart from anything else, he had personally commissioned those silver-rimmed glasses. Up close, the letters JL could still be seen engraved on the temple.
Ji Shileng looked away first. He placed the credit card held between his fingers on the counter, his voice exceedingly cold.
“First come, first served. I trust everyone understands that rule?”
Adjutant Chu Wan, standing beside Shang Jianli, covered her mouth in shock.
After some time apart, Ji Shileng looked much healthier. He wore a pale gray hoodie and jeans, and the glance beneath his sunglasses was cold and distant.
His face had filled out a little, and he no longer spoke with timidity or apprehension.
The sales assistant paused, then picked up the credit card and smiled apologetically at Shang Jianli’s party.
“I’m sorry, sir. The dolls you selected have already been reserved. Would you like to see if there are any other designs you like?”
Shang Jianli said nothing.
His gaze remained fixed on Ji Shileng.
Su Ke thought there was something wrong with this man. What was he trying to do, staring at his friend like that?
“Look, buddy. You got here late, so you got here late. Staring at my friend like that isn’t exactly appropriate, is it?”
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