My Omega Rival in Love [Interstellar] - Chapter 20

He Yu tossed and turned all night, essentially failing to fall asleep. Images of Gu Jin kept flashing through her mind, particularly from their time at Clini High School. Back then, both served as Student Council Presidents, and their daily bickering often turned the entire Clini Academy upside down.

Looking back, those days were rare, cherished memories. She especially recalled watching Gu Jin undergo corporal punishment in the gravity field, exhausted like a dog, yet still stubborn enough to glare and flip a middle finger at He Yu through the window. Unfortunately, the instructor happened to be standing right by that window; thinking Gu Jin was intentionally provoking him, he chased her for over a dozen laps with his teaching cane.

At the thought of this, He Yu could not help but let out a soft laugh. Since childhood, Gu Jin had been fearless, vowing to differentiate as the strongest female Alpha to pilot mechas and purge the Zerg. Later, she indeed achieved her heart’s desire, even becoming the youngest female Alpha Frontier Grand Marshal in a thousand years.

The smile faded from He Yu’s face. Perhaps differentiation was closely tied to one’s own will; compared to Gu Jin, her own resolve was much weaker.

Lying flat on the bed, He Yu’s hand unconsciously brushed against her lower abdomen. Although there was no sensation there yet, a tiny life was truly beginning to grow, and that life was connected to Gu Jin.

With a sigh, He Yu propped herself up against the edge of the bed. Looking at the glimmering dawn, she rubbed her tired eyes. She never expected that her second sleepless night since her differentiation results would be caused by that fellow, Gu Jin.

Just as she was about to get up and wash, He Yu heard movement at the door. It was so early that even her parents should not have been awake yet. Frowning slightly, He Yu used her optical computer to pull up the front door’s surveillance. It was her grandfather, Elder He. Her parents were at the door greeting him, and the three of them were talking as they walked in.

Elder He, supported by Dean He, moved slowly inward on a hovering light-disk. Dean He was clearly bewildered by his father’s sudden visit. “Dad, why are you here so early? Is something wrong?”

“Early? I just came straight from the Imperial Palace. I am here to give you a heads-up: stay inside these next few days. Keep your heads down and do not do anything, understood?” Elder He was old, after all; having stayed up all night, the fatigue on his face was evident.

“Is this about Marshal Gu?” Dean He asked. Thinking it over, only an event of that magnitude could make the old man this nervous.

“Exactly,” the Elder said. Reaching the living room, he sat down to catch his breath. “Something happened to Gu Jin last night. You should all know by now. This matter has even alarmed the old Marshal Gu and His Majesty the Emperor. The Emperor is furious and kept us all in the palace to conduct a thorough investigation into Gu Jin’s situation.”

“An investigation? Was it not a relapse of old injuries? What is there to investigate?” Madam He asked, puzzled. Dean He also looked toward the Elder.

Looking at his son and daughter-in-law, who were solely focused on scientific research, the Elder shook his head helplessly. “How could old injuries relapse so easily? According to the Emperor, it seems someone ambushed both the Emperor and Gu Jin. Gu Jin was caught off guard, making a bad situation worse.”

“Are there any leads?”

“Of course not!” Looking at his foolish son, Elder He felt like hitting him with his cane. If there were leads, he would not have needed to come here and tell them to stay indoors. “Fine, just keep it in mind. The Xiao family is in charge of this investigation. We should not be the main targets, but for safety’s sake, it is best not to cause trouble. Try to avoid them.” After all, having been brotherly families for so many years, Elder He did not believe the Xiao family would target the He family.

Dean He nodded. “By the way, Dad, why was the Xiao family put in charge? Did they not use to form investigation teams?”

“The last investigation team mess was a headache. This time, the Emperor chose family responsibility. Besides, the Xiao family has produced talent in this field over the last two years. Did their second son not crack a major case recently? It is likely because of that reason.”

Elder He had no suspicions about the situation, unaware that this was a conspiracy orchestrated by the Imperial Family to dismantle the Cabinet. After finishing, Elder He did not stay long and left immediately. He Yu closed the video feed, her expression grim. Gu Jin was actually ambushed. It made sense; her parents mentioned mechas being deployed yesterday. If there were no assassins, why would mechas be used?

What He Yu could not have imagined was that the siblings Gu Ting and Gu Jin were both eccentrics. The only reason Gu Ting used a mecha was to have it carry a doctor to the scene as fast as possible.

Completely unaware, He Yu began filtering suspects in her head. Not many people or factions had the power to enter the palace, assassinate the Emperor and Gu Jin simultaneously, and nearly succeed. However, given Gu Jin’s knack for getting into trouble, He Yu felt she could not just look within the Veiser Empire; neighboring countries had to be considered. After all, envoys from various nations were still in the Empire, and as the Grand Marshal of the border planets, Gu Jin had likely made many enemies through frequent combat.

Thinking about it, He Yu realized Gu Jin’s ability to hold grudges was quite extensive.

Arms crossed, He Yu paced her room. With a clatter, a miniature Star Rubik’s Cube fell at her feet. She looked in the direction it came from and saw a mini Husky remote-controlled toy floating in mid-air. It was tiny, barely half the size of a palm. A micro-projector on its forehead beamed three words: “Follow me.”

Rubing her eyes, He Yu double-checked the words. Having grown up together and even served as Gu Jin’s tutor, though the results were not great, she knew the handwriting. This did not stop He Yu from recognizing the script; it was impossible to mistake. In the interstellar era, to prevent citizens from relying too much on optical computers, schools had strictly maintained calligraphy requirements to ensure tradition was preserved.

Gu Jin was no exception. He Yu looked at the three words. Though Gu Jin’s academic performance was atrocious, her handwriting was actually quite good. Each stroke was sharp and heavy; years on the battlefield had even given her characters a murderous aura. Though slightly different from when she was a child, He Yu believed no one else in the galaxy could write with such a sword-drawn momentum.

But is Gu Jin not currently seriously injured and in critical condition? Looking at the Rubik’s Cube and the remote Husky, He Yu hesitated for a moment but picked up the cube and followed the toy as it floated out.

Exiting her home, she wound through several alleys. He Yu unconsciously gripped the cube, feeling a pang of regret for her carelessness. How could she trust a few words so easily? What if this is a trap? Am I walking into the lion’s den?

Just as she was considering turning back, the space ahead fluctuated. Under He Yu’s extremely guarded gaze, Gu Jin floated out of thin air while sitting in a hovering wheelchair.

Though the note suggested she was fine, seeing a living Gu Jin in the flesh was still surprising. “You, were you not injured?” He Yu looked around. Aside from Gu Jin, there was not a soul in sight, let alone the Royal Guard. She frowned. Is it really okay for a critically injured patient to run around like this?

Her face was indeed pale. Gu Jin steered the wheelchair toward He Yu, putting on a mournful expression. “Yes, I was injured and nearly died. But I could not leave you behind in my heart, so I came to see you one last time. Sigh, He…”

Before Gu Jin could finish, He Yu, unable to bear it, cut her off with a punch. Clutching the bridge of her nose, Gu Jin’s tears nearly came out for real this time.

“Goodness! You are too cruel! Are you trying to murder me?” Looking at He Yu accusingly, Gu Jin spoke too fast and choked, coughing against the wheelchair as if she were about to die.

Part of He Yu’s reaction was disgust at Gu Jin’s words, and part was to hide the strange thoughts in her own mind, which led to the heavy punch. She had assumed Gu Jin was faking the injury, so the force should not have been an issue. But seeing Gu Jin coughing so violently, He Yu panicked.

Watching her cough for a long time, He Yu’s cold face finally showed a hint of worry. “Are you okay?”

Her eyes were red and teary from coughing as Gu Jin shot her a glance. “What do you think? I am a patient, and you are ruthless enough to make sure I do not live long.”

“No,” He Yu replied. Knowing she was in the wrong, He Yu denied it seriously like a child who had made a mistake, her lips pursed and brows slightly knitted.

It was a rare sight indeed. Gu Jin looked at He Yu’s current state with wonder. It was incredible to see this side of He Yu in her lifetime. It was totally worth it.

Gu Jin cleared her throat. Seeing the worry in He Yu’s eyes, her mood improved. “Look at you. I am heavily injured and fought my way back from the brink of death just because I remembered what I promised you yesterday. And you? You greet a wounded soldier with a punch.”

Following her habit of pushing her luck, Gu Jin watched He Yu stand there with a flushing face. She paused, her gaze drifting. “Well, whatever, it happened. How about you…”

“That is enough, Gu Jin! Hurry up, someone is coming, let us go!” Just as Gu Jin was about to say more, Wen Ju’s voice came from the corner of the alley. The next second, He Yu felt a pair of hands on her waist. Her vision blurred, and when she opened her eyes, she was in a completely strange place.

Dizzy, He Yu shook her head. Just as she was about to speak, she realized she was sitting on Gu Jin’s lap.

As if struck by lightning, He Yu scrambled up and away from Gu Jin. Her arms now empty, Gu Jin looked at her innocently. “You were the one who could not stand straight; I just gave you a pull.”

“Shameless!” A voice nearby echoed He Yu’s thoughts. Turning around, He Yu saw Wen Ju standing next to Gu Jin, looking at the person in the wheelchair with utter disdain, only to be punched ten meters away by the latter. Wen Ju skidded across the ground face-first and lay there motionless.

He Yu was speechless. Glancing at Gu Jin’s reddened nose and then at the prone Wen Ju, He Yu finally understood how Gu Jin managed to rack up so much hatred. With this style of doing things, the only reason she was still alive was probably because she was exceptionally thick-skinned.

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