When Ye Qi opened his eyes, he found himself in a bedroom.
Blue and white checkered sheets, a simple wardrobe, and a desk were the furnishings of the entire bedroom. On the desk were a row of strange reference books, and he randomly picked out two—"Mech Operation Techniques" and "Mech System Theory."
The moment his fingers touched the book, countless unfamiliar memories flooded his mind like a storm. Ye Qi closed his eyes, took a deep breath to suppress his headache, and carefully sorted out the setting of this world.
Empire, Southern Cross Star... Ninth Military Academy.
He is a freshman majoring in mecha operation at Ninth Military Academy.
His parents died in a battle many years ago, and he grew up in an imperial orphanage.
When he was 10 years old, a wealthy businessman took a liking to him when he went to the orphanage to donate to charity. He took him home and adopted him, and thus began to live the life of a rich young master.
An orphan without parents...
This setting actually relieved Ye Qi. After all, Shao Qingge had loving parents back in the tenth stage, but his adoptive mother turned out to be the final boss? Without parents and relatives, he felt much more at ease, at least he didn't have to worry about being stabbed in the back by family members.
As for the wealthy businessman who adopted him...
His name is Shao Qingge.
The moment that name popped into his mind, Ye Qi almost choked on his own blood.
He took the surname Shao Qingge, so he is now called "Shao Ye Qi ".
What kind of ridiculous setting is this?!
After he meets CEO Shao, does he have to call him "Dad"?
Ye Qi wanted to crush Hearts. Guardian's identity in every escape room is handled by the Hearts Sisters. Does this sister have a grudge against him? In Red Heart 8, she made him a prostitute; in the 10th Stage, she turned him into a 7-year-old child; and now she's making him call Shao Qingge "Dad"...
Ye Qi pressed his temples, feeling a headache coming on, unsure how to face CEO Shao.
Just then, someone knocked on the door and said, " Ye Qi, the exam is coming up soon, hurry up!"
Ye Qi responded. It was early July, and universities across the empire were busy organizing their final exams. As a student in the Mecha Piloting Department of Ninth Military Academy, Ye Qi also had to take the final exams.
The Ninth Military Academy has a very strict system. Exam grades are graded as A (above 90 points), B (75-90 points), C (60-75 points), and D (below 60 points). Students must ensure that every course is graded as B or above in the final exam. If a course is graded below B, the student can apply to retake it; if two or more courses are graded below B, the student will be held back a year.
Ye Qi has already finished the theory exam, and this afternoon's scheduled practical exam is on mecha operation.
How can we possibly take this test?
Ye Qi scratched his head, feeling somewhat lost. Forget piloting a mecha, he couldn't even ride a motorcycle in the real world; the most he'd ever done was ride a bicycle. Mecha combat operation? He frantically tried to organize his knowledge on the subject… but unfortunately, too many memories flooded his mind, and Ye Qi only felt a headache coming on.
Ye Qi's roommates outside were still urging him on, so he had no choice but to walk to the mirror and quickly tidy his clothes.
He was wearing a dark blue military uniform, the school uniform of Ninth Military Academy students. Ye Qi was stunned when he saw himself in the mirror—he was 18 years old, and the world was set up with 18-year-old freshmen, but he had never worn a military uniform before.
His crisp blue military uniform gave him an air of heroism.
It looks pretty good.
Ye Qi casually put on the hat hanging next to him, and then put on the matching black leather boots.
As Ye Qi was leaving, he saw a roommate. Upon seeing that face, Ye Qi's mind automatically retrieved memories of the person—his roommate was named Liu Jian, and he was quite tall and handsome. After seeing Ye Qi, he walked over with a smile and said, "What are you dawdling for? If you don't hurry, you'll be late, and the instructor will definitely scold you."
Ye Qi verbally agreed with "I'm coming," but he was actually quite nervous. Taking a mecha piloting exam? It felt like being led to the execution ground...
He went out with his roommate. On the way, Ye Qi looked around and found that all the surrounding buildings were painted dark gray. The whole school had a "cold" style, so solemn and dignified that Ye Qi didn't dare to speak loudly.
The students around them were all dressed in military uniforms, each one looking dashing and upright, standing with their chests out and stomachs in, walking with proper posture and eyes straight ahead. Ye Qi felt embarrassed to look around, so he followed Liu Jian quickly to the front of the science and technology building.
When the two took the elevator directly to the top floor, there were already many students queuing up in the hallway.
The instructor's voice came from inside the room: "Number 7, Ye Qi, time for the computer-based exam."
Ye Qi nervously entered the mecha control room and, under the instructions of female instructor Kelly, sat in the cockpit of the simulated battle mecha.
In front of him was a complex control panel with many small red, yellow, green, and blue buttons, and a joystick on each side. Ye Qi was completely bewildered. He quickly recalled the knowledge he had about mecha operation, but before he could remember it all, the instructor said, "The test begins."
A mountainous area appeared on the screen in front of me.
The realistic VR effects made Ye Qi feel like he was piloting a mecha flying through the mountains. Suddenly, a snow-capped peak appeared ahead, blocking the mecha's path. For some reason, Ye Qi's body moved faster than his brain could react; he gripped the right joystick and pulled it upwards sharply, while simultaneously stabilizing the balance bar with his left hand…
The mech soared into the air like a roc spreading its wings, narrowly missing the snow-capped peaks.
It flew into the air.
Ye Qi's knowledge of mecha piloting fully returned. He remembered being the top student in the mecha piloting department, frequently praised by his instructors. It was said that in recent years, the two most talented mecha pilots at Ninth Military Academy were Tang Ci from the class of 2993 and Shao Ye Qi from the class of 3000 …
Tang Ci? Mr. Tang is also in the mecha department?
Ye Qi was slightly distracted when three electromagnetic cannons suddenly attacked his mech!
The three electromagnetic cannons were positioned at extremely tricky angles, and it looked like they were about to blast his mech to pieces. Ye Qi's left hand continued to stabilize the balance system, while his slender fingers in his right hand rapidly pressed several buttons in succession. The mech he controlled was like a nimble fish, rotating to the left and dodging to the right, managing to avoid the three oncoming cannon shots perfectly in succession!
Instructor Kelly nodded in satisfaction and gave her an A+ grade in the first assessment.
...
The following tests went surprisingly smoothly. When Ye Qi stepped out of the cockpit, he was covered in sweat. He couldn't even believe that a novice who could only ride a bicycle could actually pilot such an advanced intelligent battle suit. Those physical memories he had just experienced must have been implanted into him by the Guardian based on his character design.
Instructor Kelly rarely smiled: "The exam results are in. You got A+ in all three parts of your mecha combat assessment, and all your other theoretical courses were also A+. If nothing unexpected happens, you can apply for the Outstanding Student Scholarship this year."
Ye Qi gave her a standard military salute: "Thank you, Instructor."
Kelly said, "I heard your dad has already come to Southern Cross Star. You can go home for vacation after your exams."
Ye Qi: "...Oh."
dad?
He doesn't want to acknowledge this father.
Although Ye Qi was inwardly complaining about Guardian's poor arrangements, he still needed to meet up with CEO Shao as soon as possible.
Thinking of this, Ye Qi wanted to contact Shao Qingge using his communicator. Just then, a message popped up on his wrist Ring communicator, the text message appearing directly in the air: "I'm waiting for you at the school gate."
The sender's contact name was "Dad," so it was naturally Shao Qingge. Ye Qi rushed out of the science building and turned to walk towards the school gate.
Ninth Military Academy is strictly managed; ordinary people are not allowed to enter.
At this moment, Shao Qingge was standing opposite the school gate. He was dressed in a white casual outfit, his hands in his pockets, squinting as he gazed in the direction of the school gate, exuding a relaxed and carefree air. A few girls at the school gate glanced at him and whispered among themselves, "Who is that guy? He's so handsome." "He's probably not one of our school's instructors."
Just then, a figure ran quickly out of the school gate.
Upon seeing Ye Qi in military uniform, Shao Qingge smiled slightly, crossed the road, and walked straight towards Ye Qi.
With many classmates around, Ye Qi awkwardly called out, "...Dad."
Shao Qingge's smile widened as he leaned close to Ye Qi's ear, lowered his voice, and said in a teasing tone, "Good girl, Daddy will take you home." With that, he gently grabbed Ye Qi's wrist and led her forward.
Ye Qi followed behind him, her face flushed, feeling every pore of her body resisting this strange relationship.
Shao Qingge is very young. Although Ye Qi is nominally his adopted son, the two are only a little over ten years apart in age. According to his memory, Shao Qingge was only in his early twenties when he adopted Ye Qi, and he is only 30 years old now.
Ye Qi often jokingly calls Shao Qingge "sugar daddy," but this time, when they've actually become adoptive father and son, and Ye Qi has to call him "dad," he feels a strange sense of shame.
Shao Qingge led his rosy-cheeked "son" onto the hovercar.
There were only two people in the car. Ye Qi broke free of his hand and said, "Let go of me."
Shao Qingge released Ye Qi and looked him up and down with a half-smile: "Our little Ye looks quite handsome in his military uniform."
Ye Qi's face turned bright red, and he muttered under his breath, "Who's from your family?"
"They've all taken my surname, Shao, so aren't they part of my family?" Shao Qingge chuckled as he removed Ye Qi's military cap, placed his hand on it, and affectionately ruffled Ye Qi's hair. He then added, "Didn't you just call me 'Dad'? You said it so smoothly."
Ye Qi was speechless.
She's even worn women's clothing, so being Shao Qingge's son for once doesn't seem so unacceptable, does it? It's much better than being a prostitute in Red Heart 8, right? Ye Qi took a deep breath and looked up at Shao Qingge, only to meet a pair of deep, gentle eyes.
Ye Qi's heart skipped a beat under his gaze. She quickly turned her head away, avoiding his eyes, coughed lightly, and tried to calmly change the subject, saying, "I got A+ in both my theory and practical courses. The instructor told me I can have a break. So, are we going straight home?"
Shao Qingge withdrew his hand, leaned back comfortably on the sofa, and said lazily, "Yeah, let's go home."
Ye Qi sat opposite him and asked curiously, "Where are the other teammates? Do you have any clues? All I know is that Tang Ci was a student in the Mech Piloting Department in 2019, so he's my senior. He went to Arrow Legion after graduation."
Shao Qingge said, " Lu Jiuchuan is a major general in Arrow Legion."
Ye Qi remarked, "That was pretty much a natural performance, since Ninth Brother used to be a soldier... What about Captain Yu and Professor Xiao?"
Shao Qingge narrowed his eyes slightly, as if he had learned something interesting: " Yu Hanjiang is the captain of the Royal Guard, mainly responsible for protecting the safety of the imperial family, while Xiao Lou is the esteemed prince."
Ye Qi almost choked on his saliva: "Your Highness?"
Shao Qingge smiled faintly, his slender fingers stroking his chin with amusement: "The guards and the prince, how interesting."
Ye Qi: "???"
Seeing Ye Qi's blank expression, Shao Qingge put away his smile, patted Ye Qi's head again, and said, "Three days later is the Imperial Prince's birthday banquet, and I will be attending."
Ye Qi's eyes lit up: "Take me there, that way I can meet Captain Yu and Professor Xiao."
Shao Qingge: "Call me Dad."
Ye Qi answered without hesitation: "Dad!"
Shao Qingge: "...What about your principles?"
Ye Qi declared righteously, "A true man can bend and stretch. Don't even mention calling me Dad, I'll call you Grandpa too!"
Shao Qingge chuckled softly at his words.
No need to call me Dad, and no need to call me Grandpa. From now on, there's another name for me that you'll call out to every day.
*****