After I Stopped Being a Simp, My Husband Fell for Me on His Own - Chapter 13

Yu Yi had not expected that while the outside area felt spacious enough, stepping into Ji Xingxiao’s bedroom would feel like entering an entirely different dimension.

Calling it a bedroom was an understatement. The space was immense. The actual sleeping quarters seemed to be behind a door at the far end. The rest of the area was partitioned by the same water walls found in the living room, creating two distinct zones that appeared to be a private gym and a training suite.

It looked more professional than the training facilities at their school, and there was even a private elevator at the end of the hall.

Yu Yi suddenly understood why he had not seen Ji Xingxiao come out of the room during the past two mornings. It turned out he could exit directly from his bedroom. If this was a bedroom, then the space outside was nothing more than a foyer. This was in the Upper District, where land was worth its weight in gold.

“Damned rich people,” Yu Yi muttered under his breath. Every reserve commander in this building, no, this entire school, likely lived in these conditions.

He watched as Ji Xingxiao walked through a water wall and casually raised a hand. With a slight gesture, the water wall shifted the layout of the training room, expanding the floor area.

So, the things outside were not actually water walls or fish tanks at all. They were manifestations of Ji Xingxiao’s natural ability.

As Ji Xingxiao moved, a platform slowly rose from the floor. He stepped up to it and tapped a few times on a light screen. A circular simulation pod rose from beneath the floor. Ji Xingxiao leaned down, and the light from the screen reflected off his face, making the sharp angles of his features, split by the birthmark, appear even more defined.

Yu Yi heard the system prompt.

[Do you wish to delete all previous data?]

Ji Xingxiao tapped the screen expressionlessly.

The system asked again.

[This action will clear all your past records. Our records show that you hold the top rank in 87 categories in the Mecha Proving Grounds. Do you still wish to delete the personal data stored on this machine?]

Yu Yi was shocked.

“How many?” he thought. “Eighty-seven?”

What kind of person holds the top record in eighty-seven different categories? Yu Yi was stunned.

Over there, Ji Xingxiao did not hesitate for a second. He tapped the confirmation.

The system replied, [Understood. Deleting now. Your records will remain on the Mecha Proving Grounds global leaderboard, but if you are surpassed, you will need to start from the beginning to reclaim your rank. If there are no objections, deletion will begin in ten seconds. Ten, nine…]

Yu Yi did not fully understand the technicalities, but he knew it was something incredible. He spoke up softly, “Um, you do not really have to delete it.” He did not want to owe Ji Xingxiao too much.

“Those were records from before I entered the Command Academy. They are not very useful now,” Ji Xingxiao said dismissively. “The simulation pod can only store one person’s data at a time.”

This was a regulation in the Upper District, primarily to ensure pod sales and to limit usage by people from the Lower District. While simulation pods were expensive, they were still far cheaper than actual mechas. Every year, there were online mecha competitions held via these pods with massive prize pools. These online matches discarded genetic tiers and special abilities, relying purely on manual skill. This ran contrary to the Upper District’s system of genetic superiority, so the authorities did everything possible to block the path of inferior genes.

Ji Xingxiao cleared all his data, pulled open the hatch, and gestured for Yu Yi to come over.

Yu Yi noticed that Ji Xingxiao’s pod was different from the ones at school. It was much more advanced. He sat inside awkwardly, looking as if he wanted to say something.

Ji Xingxiao had no intention of staying to help. Seeing Yu Yi settled, he said, “I am going to sleep. When you are finished, just leave on your own.”

“Sleep? Now?” Yu Yi was shocked. It was only eight-thirty.

“Yes. I have high-intensity physical training tomorrow.”

“Oh, okay. Goodnight.” Hearing about the intense training, Yu Yi did not dare disturb him further. He mimicked the way Ji Xingxiao had opened the hatch and pulled it shut.

The circular hatch sealed shut instantly. Yu Yi began feeling around, trying to figure out how to turn the thing on. It was completely different from the school models. He remembered the school switches being at the top, but after groping around the ceiling for a long time, the pod remained unresponsive.

Ji Xingxiao had intended to leave him to it, but as he turned to walk away, he noticed the pod was still dark. He paused, wondering what Yu Yi was doing. He waited for about three minutes, and seeing that the circular pod remained dormant, he could not help but ask, “Are you planning to sleep in there?”

“I…” Yu Yi did not want to admit he did not know how to start it, fearing Ji Xingxiao would not let him use it anymore. He said softly, “You go to sleep first. I will figure it out.”

Ji Xingxiao replied, “How can you figure it out? You have not even awakened the cabin yet.”

“I…” Yu Yi’s voice was tiny. “How do I turn it on?”

Silence followed. Ji Xingxiao walked over and pulled the hatch open.

Because Yu Yi was wearing the helmet but had not awakened the pod, the temperature inside had risen quickly. He was sweating slightly at the temples. Seeing Ji Xingxiao suddenly open the door, Yu Yi looked up at him with a startled, slightly panicked expression. Even someone as thick-skinned as he could feel awkward and restless.

“This model is indeed not very intuitive to start,” Ji Xingxiao said. He did not say anything else but leaned into the pod. His long arm reached down past Yu Yi’s feet and lightly touched a sensor.

The circular simulation pod awakened instantly, glowing with a soft water-blue light.

Ji Xingxiao explained, “All simulation pods have the power switch at either the head or the feet. It usually depends on the shape. Circular pods are generally at the feet, while the square ones at school are at the head.”

“Oh, okay.” Yu Yi was dazed. He had not expected Ji Xingxiao to be so patient. Accustomed to cold mockery, he felt a bit flustered. “Thank you.”

“I am going to rest now.” With that, Ji Xingxiao closed the hatch and left.

Cool air began to circulate through the helmet, blowing away the slight flutter in Yu Yi’s heart. He silently began to explore the interface. He pulled up the panel and entered his information, but his head began to ache as he stared at the mass of virtual buttons.

“I should have brought the textbook,” Yu Yi thought regretfully.

The school textbooks were actually electronic tablets that could be detached from the desks. Yu Yi had found them cumbersome and never brought them home, fearing that carrying a desk tablet would make him a target for ridicule from his classmates.

In reality, those tablets were a decade old and considered obsolete. Everyone used communicators now. A communicator could connect to textbooks to view course schedules and knowledge points in real-time. Everyone in the Upper District used them. They were usually designed to look like jewelry or accessories, making them far more compact and convenient than his current mobile phone. They could also project a virtual screen anywhere.

Yu Yi did not have one. The reason was simple: he was broke. Communicators were far too expensive for him.

He initially wanted to register for an online virtual mecha membership, only to find that it required a communicator identification number. Frustrated, he could only browse the homepage of the website. It seemed that if he truly wanted to integrate into the Upper District, a communicator was essential. He planned to go to the city center tomorrow after class to look at them.

The homepage featured an introduction to the Mecha Proving Grounds, showcasing various battle modes. The competitions for the first half of the year had already concluded. As Yu Yi scrolled down, he saw Ji Xingxiao’s name listed as a special guest judge. Surprised, he clicked the link and saw that while others had personal profile images, Ji Xingxiao’s space was blank. Remembering the birthmark on his face, Yu Yi felt a sense of understanding. Even the photo Cheng Sui had sent him had intentionally avoided the birthmark.

“So, Ji Xingxiao actually cares about the birthmark, does he not?” Yu Yi wondered.

After browsing for a while and gaining a basic understanding of the Mecha Proving Grounds, Yu Yi rubbed his eyes and slowly opened the hatch.

Several water walls stood nearby, glowing with a pale blue light like ribbons drifting in the current. Knowing they were the product of Ji Xingxiao’s ability, Yu Yi could not help but walk over to examine them. He suddenly realized that if these were Ji Xingxiao’s natural ability, the ones outside must be as well.

“Does that mean Ji Xingxiao can actually see my every move?” he wondered.

At that thought, he felt a sense of relief. It was better if he could see. After all, Yu Yi had nothing to hide.

The next day was a Mecha Maintenance course. When he saw a gleaming miniature mecha model on every student’s desk, he realized something was wrong. He reached into his own desk and pulled out a rough, dull little mecha.

“Dammit,” he thought. “Why did no one tell me there was a homework assignment?”

To be fair, he had spent most of the previous classes daydreaming because he simply did not understand the material.

When it was Yu Yi’s turn to submit his work, the teacher frowned deeply at the sight of his model, which showed no signs of maintenance whatsoever.

Yu Yi quickly explained, “Teacher Fang, I was on leave for half a month. It is on record.”

“I know.” The Mecha Maintenance teacher was a gentle Omega. He nodded and said, “However, I must remind you that your score for this semester is already below passing. You will need to retake all your courses.”

“Retake?” Yu Yi was startled. “How can I be at the point of retaking everything?”

The teacher turned the virtual screen around to show Yu Yi his grades. Every item was listed, and almost none of them met the passing mark. Aside from never having skipped a class, Yu Yi had no achievements to show for his time at the Defense Academy.

“Yu Yi, you cannot go on like this,” Teacher Fang said, shaking his head earnestly. “Please focus on your retakes.”

Yu Yi nodded silently and sighed. He was already two years older than his classmates. If he had to retake everything, he had no idea how old he would be by graduation.

However, retaking the courses actually had its benefits. He had entered the school too abruptly and understood nothing about the operations or theory. Now that he had latched onto Ji Xingxiao and convinced Cheng Sui, he did not have to worry about living expenses for the time being. He could also use Ji Xingxiao’s spare simulation pod at night. He felt that starting over was not a bad idea, as he was only just beginning to find his way.

That was, until he received the tuition bill from the school.

Every credit cost money. Retaking courses would cost nearly half of his original tuition. When Yu Yi saw the long row of zeros, he nearly fainted.

The good news: it was not quite half the tuition. The bad news: it was 380,000 Star Credits.

“I cannot afford to retake these!” he cried inwardly.

After class, Yu Yi rushed to find Teacher Ruan. After he explained his situation, Teacher Ruan looked surprised. “You only just realized? I thought you were just coasting along every day.”

Yu Yi was at a loss for words. “I did not know.”

Teacher Ruan crossed his legs. “Well, you know now. Do you regret it? It is too late!”

“What am I supposed to do? I cannot afford to retake them, Teacher,” Yu Yi said with a long face. “I am already worrying about next semester’s tuition.”

“Stop joking.” Teacher Ruan smiled and took a sip of tea. “You have a commander for a fiancé.”

“What?” Yu Yi was stunned. Did this involve Ji Xingxiao too? He wondered if the teacher had realized his engagement was a sham and was mocking him, but he saw no ridicule on Teacher Ruan’s face, only a light, pleasant smile.

Teacher Ruan continued, “It has been nearly half a year since the term started. Every time Ji Xingxiao leads his team into the contaminated zones, they rank first. If you go on a mission with him once, you will earn enough credits to cover your needs. If your team performs exceptionally well, the credits are doubled. Did you not know that?”

“I know now,” Yu Yi replied.

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