The Cannon Fodder Became the Empire's Beloved Omega - Chapter 61

A Big Trouble?

What kind of trouble could warrant Cheng Mu going to such lengths to find him?

Yu Ruan was taken aback. “What? Did something happen?”

“Yeah,” Cheng Mu replied with a heavy tone. “Gu Yu seems to have been provoked today and went to the simulation training room to vent his anger. You know how things are there. We’re at our wits’ end and had no choice but to come to you.”

“Ah? But I—”

“Ruan Ruan, don’t be modest!” Cheng Mu cut in immediately. “Out of everyone I know, you’re the only one whose words carry any weight with him. Even Duke Gu Yuan and Duchess Lu Nian can’t handle him. If you don’t step in, there’s really no one else who can save the situation!”

“…” Hearing this, Yu Ruan felt a pang of guilt. His intuition told him that his earlier actions were likely the cause of this mess. He sighed and said, “Alright, I’ll give it a try.”

“Great, thank you so much!” Cheng Mu, clearly unaware of the truth, sounded genuinely grateful. “You’re a lifesaver!”

Yu Ruan hung up the phone, overwhelmed with shame.

He glanced at the wall clock, there was still an hour left before the break ended, enough time to make a call and return. He quickly stood up, hurried out of the training room, and dialed the number.

As his finger hovered over the familiar name, Yu Ruan paused, lost in thought.

In his memory, Gu Yu had always been the epitome of calm, rarely showing any emotional fluctuations.

Most of the time, getting this person to even furrow his brows was considered an achievement.

But now.

Recalling Cheng Mu’s tone, Yu Ruan grew worried. There was no reason for Cheng Mu to lie to him, it would be pointless. This only confirmed that his earlier behavior had indeed been excessive.

The dial tone rang for a long time before the call was finally answered.

A slightly irritated, hoarse voice came through: “Hello?”

Yu Ruan felt uneasy. “Gu Yu, do you have a moment? There’s something I need to talk to you about. It might take a little of your time.”

“…”

A soft breath was clearly audible from the other end of the line. After a moment of silence, Gu Yu removed the VR headset he was wearing. He stood up and turned on the room light. “What is it?”

“Yeah.”

Perhaps the distance made it easier to overcome his embarrassment. After hesitating for a moment, Yu Ruan mustered the courage to speak: “Actually, something has been bothering me, and I wanted to tell you about it and ask for your opinion.”

As if struck by a sudden premonition, Gu Yu paused for a few seconds. “Go on.”

“Last time, I told you I was a bit affected by the mark.” Yu Ruan fought the urge to flee, forcing himself to continue. “I’m sorry, I lied to you. That wasn’t the truth. I…”

The next sentence felt like a sharp blade piercing his heart. Gu Yu’s fingers, resting against the wall, stiffened slightly. He lowered his eyes, tightened his grip on the headset, and paused for a few seconds. “Mm, is there more?”

“…I,” Yu Ruan stammered, struggling to get the rest of the words out, “it’s actually more than just a little. The pheromones are affecting me quite severely. And my heat cycle is due around this time, so I thought maybe creating some distance proactively could help resolve the issue.”

“I don’t mean that I dislike you. I’m sorry for not telling you sooner.”

“Your pheromones smell really nice. I like them a lot.”

After blurting out the words he had rehearsed for so long, Yu Ruan turned his head to glance at his reflection in the polished wall tiles outside the training room his face was flushed, and he was trembling with nervousness, looking exactly like a frightened animal with its fur standing on end.

Seeing this, he felt genuinely relieved: Thank goodness this was just a call, not a face-to-face conversation. The other person naturally couldn’t see his current embarrassing state, allowing him to preserve at least a shred of dignity.

“…”

There was only silence on the other end of the line.

The quiet stretched on, and Yu Ruan clutched the receiver anxiously, waiting for Gu Yu’s response.

He felt that his words had come out somewhat jumbled, and the meaning he wanted to convey was unclear. It might even have the opposite effect. But no matter what, he had truly done his best.

Yu Ruan bit his lip lightly, listening to the sound of breathing coming from the other end of the line. Just as he was about to add an apology and hang up, he suddenly heard a slightly hoarse voice slowly respond with an “Mm.”

“Your pheromones,” the voice transmitted through the signal carried its usual coolness but evoked a tingling sensation, “also smell very nice.”

“Very sweet. I like them a lot.”

He paused for a few seconds. “It’s not a disturbance.”

Embarrassment washed over Yu Ruan instantly. He felt his face burning and softly replied, “Mm.”

His gland had just been bitten by Gu Yu. Logically speaking, the other person was the one most qualified in the world to say such a thing. But why did it feel so mortifying when spoken aloud?

Just as Yu Ruan was lost in his thoughts, a light, cheerful knock came from the distance. Startled, he immediately looked toward the source of the sound and saw Qi Shu standing not far away, smiling warmly at him.

Although it wasn’t Lin Fenghan who had arrived, Yu Ruan still felt as though he had been caught by a parent while secretly dating in his youth.

He covered the glowing communicator on his wrist as if hiding from the truth and asked, “Is something the matter?!”

Qi Shu said, “I’m in no hurry. You can finish what you’re doing first. We can talk slowly after you hang up.”

“…” Yu Ruan froze.

He glanced at Qi Shu’s smiling face, then at his own hand covering the communicator. There was no way he could repeat what he had just said in front of a third person.

After hesitating for a moment, Yu Ruan couldn’t help but whisper, “I’m done talking. Gu Yu, thank you for listening. See you next time.”

With that, before the other side could say anything more, Yu Ruan hurriedly ended the call. He forced an awkward smile at Qi Shu and said, “I’m finished now.”

Inside the simulation training arena.

The combat data from the previous match application remained stuck on the words “In Progress” for a long time. Finally, under everyone’s watchful eyes, it changed to two glaring red characters: “Failure.”

As expected!

Seeing this result, Cheng Mu felt a weight lift from his chest. He let out a sigh of relief and quickly addressed the people around him, “Alright, alright, the matter is resolved. Everyone, stop crowding around. I’ll handle the rest. You can all head back now.”

Tears of gratitude welled up in everyone’s eyes. “Senior Cheng, as expected, you understand His Highness Gu Yu the best! Thank you so much!”

Cheng Mu felt a shiver run down his spine. “Alright, alright. Save all those nice words for the next time you see His Highness Yu Ruan, and thank him properly then. I’m just the messenger, what does any of this have to do with me?” Spotting a figure emerging from the training room in the distance, he immediately called out, “Hey, Gu Yu!”

The figure paused and stopped. “What is it?”

Cheng Mu hurried over, carefully observing his expression and confirming that he was no longer in a fit of anger. Only then did he ask, “Feeling better after venting?”

Gu Yu gave him a faint glance, as if he couldn’t be bothered to respond, and started walking away.

Cheng Mu quickly caught up. “Don’t rush off!” From Gu Yu’s reaction, Cheng Mu had already pieced together the gist of the situation. Coupled with the fact that he hadn’t seen much of Yu Ruan lately, he couldn’t help but ask, “Are you being avoided?”

Gu Yu’s steps faltered for a moment, but he didn’t stop, acting as if he hadn’t heard the question and continuing calmly toward the exit.

So he is being avoided!

Cheng Mu instantly confirmed the reason for Gu Yu’s unusual behavior today. Recalling the phone call he had made earlier, he felt a wave of relief: Thank goodness Ruan Ruan hadn’t lied to him and had genuinely tried to persuade Gu Yu. Otherwise, wouldn’t his actions have only added fuel to the fire?

Ignoring the cold shoulder Gu Yu was giving him, Cheng Mu walked alongside him and sighed. “It’s normal to be avoided. After all, you’re usually so reserved and never say anything. A sudden 180-degree change would naturally scare anyone off!”

“…” At this, Gu Yu stopped in his tracks and turned to glare coldly at him.

Cheng Mu remained unfazed. He immediately put on a cheerful smile and said reassuringly, “Actually, there’s no need to worry too much about being avoided. Look, the annual state banquet is coming up soon, right? No matter how much someone tries to avoid you, as heirs, both of you will have to attend. By then, you’ll get to see each other!”

“None of your concern.”

“How can it not be my concern?” Cheng Mu exclaimed. Then, as if realizing something, his eyes widened in shock. “Wait, Gu Yu, don’t tell me you’re not planning to go at all?!”

“Marshal just received a message and had to leave the residence temporarily to attend to urgent matters.”

Qi Shu flipped open the record book and smiled at Yu Ruan. “However, before leaving, the Marshal left today’s training schedule for you. So, for now, I’ll be supervising and assisting you with today’s training.”

He paused, clearing his throat lightly. “Of course, there’s no need to worry about my capabilities. Although I’m far from matching the Marshal, I have won several military competitions. So please rest assured, I am fully capable of guiding you through the training.”

Yu Ruan nodded absent mindedly, his thoughts still preoccupied with earlier events. For the moment, he found it difficult to focus on what the other was saying and could only murmur a vague acknowledgment.

He wasn’t actually concerned about the other’s skill level.

After all, given his own level, it was still too challenging for him to discern the gap between Qi Shu and Lin Fenghan. On the contrary, Qi Shu’s ever-present cheerful demeanor made him feel somewhat more at ease.

Qi Shu smiled and nodded, glancing down at the record board before saying, “Then let’s begin the training, Your Highness.”

“Alright.”

“By the way.” As if suddenly remembering something, Qi Shu halted his steps and looked at Yu Ruan. “Speaking of which, has Lord Itu discussed matters related to the state banquet with you?”

Yu Ruan hesitated for a moment before nodding. “A little, but I don’t know much about it.”

Although he had read the original novel’s plot, Yu Ruan only had a basic understanding of the Gaia Empire. Having spent many years on a resource planet, information exchange was difficult. For private aristocratic events like state banquets, it was natural that he wouldn’t be very familiar with them.

What he knew was limited to what Itu had previously mentioned.

“That’s how it is.” Qi Shu smiled at him. “Lord Regent called earlier to inquire about your training progress. When he learned that you were progressing with ease, he was quite surprised and thought it might be appropriate to add more courses for you, just in case.”

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