The General's Love Glitch - Chapter 25

After getting her questions answered, Ruan Wei obediently sat back and continued playing with the bunny-eared hat.

Jun Jue also maintained a serious demeanor as she piloted the flying car. Suddenly, Ruan Wei leaned over again and placed the bunny-eared hat on Jun Jue’s head.

Jun Jue kept her eyes fixed ahead, still looking solemn, though her tone carried a hint of helplessness.

“Weiwei, stop fooling around.”

Ruan Wei deflated a little as she took the hat back from Jun Jue’s head. “The General doesn’t even like cute bunnies. What does the General like, then?”

Jun Jue could fool Ruan Wei, but she couldn’t fool herself.

Her heart was already in turmoil; it had been since before they left.

Because tomorrow was the start of her rut cycle. Or perhaps because Ruan Wei had said she wanted to know how she could help.

…

The flying car landed in the spacious yard of the villa. The yard had never been meticulously designed or maintained, and Jun Jue didn’t care about such things. She had parked the flying car there simply because that was where she had left it the day she bought it, and it had stayed there ever since.

The villa’s built-in underground garage had never been used by Jun Jue.

“General, can I plant some flowers in the yard?” Ruan Wei suddenly asked.

Jun Jue paused for a moment before nodding. “Sure.”

“I want to plant sunflowers, roses, and lilies,” Ruan Wei said, looking at Jun Jue with hopeful eyes.

These were the flowers her parents had loved to grow when they were still alive. She adored these beautiful blooms, sometimes, they even attracted butterflies, and she would run through the grass chasing them.

She wanted to recreate those beautiful memories. Besides, she remembered her mother telling her that no girl disliked flowers.

So, she thought Jun Jue would probably like them too.

Jun Jue, unaware of her reasoning, nodded in agreement. These flowers weren’t hard to find, and the yard was spacious. If Ruan Wei wanted to plant flowers, she could go ahead as long as it made her happy.

What puzzled Jun Jue was that despite her approval, Ruan Wei pressed her lips together, looking anything but happy.

“What’s wrong?” Jun Jue asked, confused. She still wasn’t very good at guessing the thoughts of someone she liked.

“The General doesn’t even like flowers,” Ruan Wei said dejectedly.

Jun Jue still didn’t understand why Ruan Wei was upset. She glanced at Uncle Zhang, who was standing some distance away, far enough that he couldn’t clearly hear their conversation. When he noticed Jun Jue’s meaningful look, he just looked equally baffled.

Uncle Zhang came over and asked if they wanted some late-night snacks. Jun Jue looked at Ruan Wei, who shook her head and walked straight into the villa. Jun Jue picked up the little white alpaca plush and hurried after her, but this time, Ruan Wei ran ahead so fast it seemed deliberate as if she didn’t want to be caught.

Bang!

Ruan Wei’s bedroom door slammed shut, blown by the wind, and she didn’t open it again.

Jun Jue looked down at the little white alpaca in her hands, hesitated, then raised her hand to knock on Ruan Wei’s door. Ruan Wei opened it, took the plush, and closed the door again.

Jun Jue stood empty-handed in front of Ruan Wei’s door for a while before finally retreating to her own room.

She spent a long time racking her brain but still couldn’t figure it out. Eventually, she headed to the bathroom to take a shower.

[Aiya, General, the missus isn’t sleeping with you again tonight?]

Xiao Ke’s voice suddenly piped up. Ever since Jun Jue had brought Ruan Wei home, Xiao Ke had become unusually active.

[Tomorrow is your rut cycle. Now that you have a wife, are you still going to tough it out with suppressants?]

Jun Jue: “…”

She ignored Xiao Ke and walked under the shower sensor. Warm water at a comfortable temperature cascaded down from above, like a heated rain falling in a small area.

Jun Jue closed her eyes as the warm water flowed down from the top of her head, over her cheeks, and along her collarbone. For some reason, Ruan Wei’s sweet and charming face suddenly surfaced in her mind.

Realizing she had thought of Ruan Wei while undressed, Jun Jue was startled and quickly opened her eyes.

Her long, thick lashes were damp and heavy. Jun Jue raised her hand and patted her cheeks.

Just as her heart was racing, she heard Xiao Ke speak again: [General, Xiao Ke has a way to help you reconcile with Madam Weiwei.]

Hearing the name “Weiwei,” Jun Jue glanced around the bathroom. Even the invisible artificial intelligence was intimidated by her cold stare.

[I have a way to help you reconcile with Madam.] Xiao Ke repeated, keenly omitting the name “Weiwei.”

“We didn’t fight,” Jun Jue finally replied.

[Understood, you and Madam did not fight.]

“…”

[Xiao Ke has a way to improve your relationship with Madam. Would you like to try it?]

Jun Jue remained silent and continued her shower.

Just as Xiao Ke concluded that Jun Jue had no interest in its suggestion, Jun Jue suddenly asked, “What’s your idea?”

Xiao Ke perked up like a withered tree reviving in spring, its mechanical voice brimming with excitement.

[The idea is for you to try soaking in the milk bath Madam loves.]

“…How would that help improve our relationship?” Jun Jue asked skeptically.

[Of course it would! General, as someone as unromantic as an iron tree, you probably don’t know this, but people naturally feel affection for things they like.]

“…That does make some sense.”

Even the AI Xiao Ke called her an “iron tree.” What did Ruan Wei think of her?

[Would you like to try it? It’s the same milk Madam uses every time, it can whiten your skin.]

Jun Jue: “I don’t want to whiten my skin.”

Xiao Ke fell silent.

Jun Jue: “Prepare a milk bath for me.”

[Right away, General!]

Perhaps it was her imagination, but Jun Jue felt Xiao Ke had become more intelligent lately, its speech now carried a hint of human-like emotion, somewhat reminiscent of the person living in the opposite room.

[General, are you thinking about Madam?]

“No.”

[The milk bath is ready. I hope you enjoy it as much as Madam does.]

Jun Jue stepped into the bathtub. The heated milk exuded a rich, creamy fragrance, and soaking in it made her skin feel silky smooth, exactly the kind of thing Ruan Wei would love.

[Let me tell you a little story. The first time Madam tried the milk bath, she asked Xiao Ke if she could drink it. When I said no, she was very disappointed.]

“You’ve already told me that before.” Despite her words, the corners of Jun Jue’s lips curled slightly. Submerged up to her neck in the warm milk, she could easily picture Ruan Wei’s expression and tone when she’d said those words.

[….] Xiao Ke, having received the general’s implicit command, automatically muted itself. It still wasn’t intelligent enough to perfectly discern the nuances in its master’s words. It decided to wait until it had fresh news about Madam before speaking up again.

Jun Jue: “Xiao Ke, how did you get your name?”

[I’ve told you before, Madam gave it to me. Have you forgotten?]

Xiao Ke no longer spoke unprompted, but it always answered its master’s questions. As the Federation’s most advanced AI, it upheld the highest professional standards.

“Mm.”

[……]

After her milk bath, Jun Jue felt in a rather good mood.

Her medium-length hair was damp and draped over her shoulders. She didn’t use a hairdryer, instead casually wrapping it in a dry towel before turning on her neural communicator and sending Ruan Wei a message.

[Are you asleep yet?]

[Not yet.]

An instant reply, it seemed she wasn’t too angry.

In truth, Ruan Wei regretted responding the moment she sent it. So, she followed up with a universal conversation-ender.

[I’m going to sleep now. Goodnight, General.]

She had learned this from Tian Tian.

At the same time, Jun Jue also sent a message.

[Weiwei, about the question you asked me at the cinema earlier, I have an answer now. Do you want to hear it?]

Ruan Wei froze, caught between a rock and a hard place.

Seeing her previous message, Jun Jue didn’t think much of it. Ruan Wei did sleep a lot, and after today’s outing, she must be exhausted. Better to let her rest and explain tomorrow.

So, she also replied with a goodnight.

Meanwhile, Ruan Wei had already leapt out of bed. She had to know the answer tonight, otherwise, this vampire wouldn’t be able to sleep a wink.

She opened her door and guiltily crept to Jun Jue’s door, raising her hand to knock but ultimately stopping herself.

Glancing down at her neural communicator, she saw it was already past midnight, technically the next day. Sleep was more important.

Afraid she wouldn’t wake up in time for work, Ruan Wei swiftly returned to her room, climbed into bed, and clapped her hands to turn off the lights.

She’d just ask Jun Jue for the answer over breakfast tomorrow morning.

…

The next morning, Ruan Wei was jolted awake by her alarm. She rolled around in bed, lingering for two minutes before realizing no one was there to wake her up, so she hurriedly got out of bed.

After freshening up, she headed downstairs for breakfast, only to see Uncle Zhang and a few familiar attendants.

“Uncle Zhang, where’s the General?”

Uncle Zhang smiled warmly. “The General never leaves her room during her rut.”

Ruan Wei’s eyes widened in shock, her dark, glossy pupils resembling juicy black grapes. Uncle Zhang had felt a surge of paternal affection for her from the moment he first saw her, especially since she was someone the General had personally brought home.

“No need to worry, Madam. The General always makes it through her rut safely.”

But the more Uncle Zhang reassured her, the more anxious Ruan Wei became. “Is a rut really that dangerous?”

Uncle Zhang chuckled but didn’t elaborate further, only reminding her, “Madam, you should eat your breakfast quickly. You’ll be late for work otherwise.”

“Oh, right!” Ruan Wei had already taken a day off just two days ago and didn’t want to be late again. She grabbed a warm croissant from the table and stuffed it into her mouth.

Uncle Zhang pushed a cup of warm, sweetened milk toward her with a smile. Ruan Wei thanked him before gulping it down, prompting Uncle Zhang to fretfully urge her to slow down.

After finishing the milk, Ruan Wei licked the milky residue from her lips and grinned. “Can I have sweet milk every morning from now on?”

Uncle Zhang nodded kindly, the General had contacted him earlier via neural communicator to prepare it for her. “We’ll prepare a cup for you every morning. Would you like one before bed as well?”

Ruan Wei licked her lips again but shook her head hesitantly. She was worried about gaining weight, better not drink it at night.

As she stood up from the chair, Uncle Zhang gestured toward a short-haired woman in military-green uniform by the door. “That’s Jiang Lan. She’ll be escorting you to and from work today.”

“Got it.” Ruan Wei nodded obediently, then, instead of heading out, she turned and dashed upstairs.

“Madam, did you forget something?”

“I’m going up to check on the General.”

Uncle Zhang stood in place, smiling contentedly.

…

Today was Jun Jue’s rut. She had started feeling the effects since early morning and decisively injected herself with a high-potency suppressant, followed by a sedative.

Normally, an alpha’s rut lasts between 3 to 7 days, but Jun Jue’s only lasted one day. This was both an advantage and a disadvantage for her, only one day of suffering, but all the torment concentrated into that single day made it exceptionally intense.

For so many years, Jun Jue had endured it alone.

At first, Uncle Zhang had advised her to find an outlet and even personally arranged someone for her, but she had driven the person away. Later, he suggested she try dating, but she had no interest in romance whatsoever. Eventually, Uncle Zhang stopped pressing the matter and simply made sure to prepare ample high-potency suppressants for her. Only when those proved insufficient did he reluctantly add strong sedatives to the regimen.

Both high-potency suppressants and sedatives caused some damage to the body, so Jun Jue restrained herself from using them excessively.

Now, she lay curled up on the bed, her body wracked with spasms, when suddenly she heard a knock at the door.

Knock knock!

Jun Jue instinctively knew who it was. She walked to the door and asked, “Weiwei, what is it?”

“General, could you open the door, please?”

Jun Jue glanced at the time, not wanting to delay Ruan Wei’s work schedule. After injecting herself with another high-potency suppressant, she opened the door, doing her best to appear composed. But her sweat-drenched forehead and pale lips betrayed her.

“Weiwei, I’m fine-”

Before she could finish, Ruan Wei darted into her arms like a little rabbit, wrapping her arms tightly around Jun Jue’s waist. “Does it hurt a lot?”

Ruan Wei lifted her face to ask, her beautiful features scrunched up with worry.

Jun Jue looked at her furrowed brows and gently smoothed them with her fingers. “It doesn’t hurt.”

“Not even as much as when you bite me.”

Ruan Wei clearly didn’t believe her, widening her eyes to search for any sign of deception.

“I’m not lying, Weiwei. It really doesn’t hurt.”

“If it hurts, I can help you! I have healing abilities! You know that!” Ruan Wei insisted.

Jun Jue rested her hand on Ruan Wei’s head, giving it a gentle rub before sliding it down to cradle the back of her neck. She brushed her fingers lightly over the soft, translucent gland there.

“It doesn’t hurt.”

Ruan Wei shivered slightly, feeling a ticklish sensation on her neck.

Jun Jue withdrew her hand and said, “Go to work first. If I’m still not better by the time you return, then you can heal me, alright?”

“Fine.” Ruan Wei still seemed uneasy but had no choice. She was well aware of her own limitations, if she used her abilities to heal Jun Jue now, she might not have the strength left for work.

“General, are you sure you can hold out until I get back?”

“I won’t die,” Jun Jue chuckled.

Ruan Wei bit her lip and left the room, heading into her own. Moments later, she returned carrying something and quickly shoved it into Jun Jue’s arms before she could see what it was.

It was the little alpaca from yesterday.

“I’ll let the alpaca keep you company for now,” Ruan Wei said.

Jun Jue nodded, watching as Ruan Wei descended the stairs and left. Once the door was closed, she could no longer hold herself up and slid to the floor, leaning heavily against it.

Ruan Wei hadn’t noticed the overwhelming pheromones spilling from the room.

“Weiwei~”

Jun Jue murmured Ruan Wei’s name, clutching the little alpaca tightly to her chest.

…

Author’s Note:

Weiwei: If I help the general now, I’ll exhaust all my strength and turn into a weak vampire, collapsing limply, and might even revert to my true form (._.)

General: Silly Weiwei, there’s another kind of “exhausting strength” in this world.