VAIP Chapter 83.2

“General Pei, did you know the King before?” Yi Chengze suddenly asked.

 

A hint of confusion flashed in Pei Zhaozhou’s eyes. In his memories, there was no one who matched the description of a person as high-ranking and influential as the current emperor. However, Yi Chengze did hit upon his inner concern.

 

After he regained consciousness, most of what happened in the past was recounted by Yi Chengze. Pei Zhaozhou only knew that a serious explosion had occurred, and almost everyone died except for him. However, due to Little Soybean running away from home, he had been too preoccupied with finding her to focus on his own matters.

 

Now that he finally had some time to calmly contemplate his own situation, he couldn’t act rashly due to various mysteries and Little Soybean’s peculiar abilities. Restoring his original identity wasn’t particularly crucial either. He wanted to figure out what exactly happened behind the accident.

 

Pei Zhaozhou said, “I don’t remember meeting such a person. Dr. Yi, why do you ask?”

 

Yi Chengze explained, “Shortly after I saved you, a Third Prince suddenly appeared. He is now the current King. In order to expose the true culprit behind the spaceship accident, he abducted the Second Prince at the time and even the Imperial Army couldn’t subdue him. Later, the Second Prince was indeed brought down by him and sentenced to death. Although there were definitely some twists and turns afterwards, he did end up dead… Is it possible that it was all for your sake? I was just a fugitive hiding on the Sinful Star back then, so I didn’t know the specifics on the main star. Why don’t you think about it?”

 

Pei Zhaozhou contemplated, lightly pursing his lips, recalling the appearance of the King. No matter how he thought about it, all he could picture was the cold, masked face filled with disgust and rejection towards him.

 

Although he initially didn’t know why he blurted out something he shouldn’t have due to a momentary lapse in judgment, he couldn’t help but feel that the King, who was like that, couldn’t possibly be someone he knew…

 

Or rather, it would be good enough if the King didn’t hate him.

 

A bitter smile unconsciously appeared on Pei Zhaozhou’s lips.

 

Pei Zhaozhou said, “Let’s not dwell on it too much. Right now, I just want to recover my health as quickly as possible and find Little Soybean’s father.”

 

“Ah.” Yi Chengze hesitated for a moment and asked, “The biological father of Little Soybean is that minor celebrity Si Huaixi, right? If I’m not wrong, I believe it would be hard to find him.”

 

Pei Zhaozhou’s eyes flickered, and his heart suddenly tightened. He asked, “Is it him? Did something happen?”

 

Yi Chengze replied, “I don’t know what happened to him. He seemed to have vanished into thin air, as if evaporated from the mortal world. Because he’s Little Soybean’s father, seeing the extraordinary and magical abilities Little Soybean possessed, I became curious and conducted an investigation. However, there is not a trace of information. It’s as if he disappeared after the war… Even the photo of Si Huaixi in Little Soybean’s hands, I obtained it from a crazy fan girl. So, I advise you not to have too much hope.”

 

Pei Zhaozhou’s gaze dimmed, but he still intended to investigate on his own and find any news about Si Huaixi, no matter what.

 

However, just as Yi Chengze had said, information about Little Soybean’s father had virtually vanished from the StarNet. Pei Zhaozhou searched persistently, occasionally even breaching the systems of the Imperial Government when necessary.

 

A person couldn’t vanish without a trace.

 

As long as he was still alive, his traces could be found on the StarNet, unless he was a hermit living in seclusion, disconnected from the StarNet.

 

Pei Zhaozhou daringly infiltrated the Imperial Government’s system, but this time the system was not like those outdated defense systems he had encountered before. It involved the information of the entire Blue Ark Empire’s population and operated at the cutting edge of Imperial technology. Despite that, Pei Zhaozhou managed to breach it.

 

And then…

 

He found information about Si Huaixi. Gazing at the identification photo of the young man with deep blue eyes, it stirred up memories as if unlocking a part of his past. Unconsciously, his fingers touched the young man’s cheek on the screen. His heart raced, a mixture of nervousness and anticipation.

 

Pei Zhaozhou smiled slowly, his amber-gold eyes filled with the light of longing and sadness. The blank face in his memory was finally filled with an image.

 

— Si Huaixi.

 

His fingers traced the clear, deep blue eyes, the straight nose, and the beautifully shaped lips…

 

Suddenly, Pei Zhaozhou’s movement froze.

 

He realized that the identity information came with a marriage certificate.

 

For some reason, he was afraid to click further, fearing he would see information that Si Huaixi had married someone else. After all, he had been gone for so long, and it would be reasonable if he had found someone else…

 

Though that’s what he said, Pei Zhaozhou’s complexion became unusually stiff, and he subconsciously clenched his teeth.

 

He clicked on it.

 

Finally, he saw the information on the marriage certificate.

 

[Groom: Pei Zhaozhou, born in the year 30XX, Alpha, deceased.]

 

[Groom: Si Huaixi, born in the year 30XX, Beta, 20 years old.]

 

[Both parties have successfully registered as legally recognized spouses of the Empire.]

 

Pei Zhaozhou suddenly froze, looking at the information on the screen. In an instant, his complex and uneasy heart collapsed.

 

— How could he not remember marrying him?

 

— The time was after his death?

 

Pei Zhaozhou continued scrolling down along the marriage certificate.

 

In the photo that should have shown both of them together, only Si Huaixi appeared. His silent deep blue eyes were like an endless abyss. He was smiling, but there was no trace of a smile in his eyes. Instead, his entire body was filled with a sense of hopeless grief.

 

He was actually crying.

 

He was waiting for him to come back.

 

But in the end, the lonely hand adorned two silver rings, with the adjacent seat remaining empty.

 

“Why are you crying? Did you see the news about Little Soybean’s father passing away? Here, let me give you some tissues. It’s okay, Little Soybean still has you as her father. You need to stay strong!” Yi Chengze said with a teasing tone, speculating randomly but then kindly handed a stack of tissues to Pei Zhaozhou.

 

However, Pei Zhaozhou’s pupils dilated, only then realizing his tear-streaked face.

 

The unstoppable tears wet his knees, and his throat suddenly felt hoarse, as if he had just finished crying through a silent play.

 

He couldn’t control the tears welling up in his eyes. Suddenly, his mind was torn apart with a piercing pain, and that person’s memory emerged vividly, causing him immense heartache. Si Huaixi shouldn’t be so heartbroken. He used to smile like shooting stars, playfully acting cute and kissing him…

 

Instead of waiting for him to come back while crying, like in the photo, with no tears but crying nonetheless.

 

“It’s okay, he’s fine. It’s just that I might have to find him and bring him back…” Pei Zhaozhou, with red-rimmed eyes and pale lips, suppressed his choked voice and spoke with determination in his gaze.

 

Yi Chengze suddenly wore a serious expression, looking at Pei Zhaozhou’s gradually paling face, and asked, “Before you go find him, maybe you should get yourself checked again. Have you consumed anything other than the nutritional supplements I provided?”

 

Pei Zhaozhou pressed his lips tightly and fell silent for a while.

 

Yi Chengze impatiently grabbed Pei Zhaozhou and took him for a comprehensive physical examination.

 

As a doctor, Yi Chengze frowned and informed the disobedient patient, saying, “Your body is currently imbalanced, and there’s a slight issue with blood production. The transformative medicine should no longer be taken, and you cannot go to the palace for the time being.”

 

Pei Zhaozhou immediately said, “No, I can’t leave Little Soybean alone.”

 

Yi Chengze scratched his head irritably and said, “Fine, just this once. I’ll look after Little Soybean for the next few days while you stabilize your health.”

 

The palace.

 

Si Huaixi’s eyes deepened as he listened to the report from his secretary, Irin.

 

“Just a moment ago, there was a problem with the data monitoring, an unidentified hacker infiltrated the Blue Ark government system and accessed classified information, including Your Majesty’s confidential data.”

 

Irin hesitated for a moment and said, “If it were just an ordinary hacker seeking information on important figures, I wouldn’t find it strange. But this hacker specifically searched for Your Majesty’s previous identity. After the establishment of the Blue Ark Empire, all information regarding Your Majesty’s former career as a star has been thoroughly erased… If it weren’t for the fact that the government system categorized your information as the highest level of confidentiality, we wouldn’t have discovered the intrusion by the hacker.”

 

“But who would be interested in your past identity? Could it be that someone doubts Your Majesty’s previous status?”

 

Irin found it quite puzzling. Even if someone discovered His Majesty’s true identity from the past, it would hold no value and wouldn’t shake His Majesty’s current position.

 

Si Huaixi’s gaze darkened slightly. “Have you found the location of that person?”

 

Irin shook her head. “We only found a false address. Your Majesty, what do you plan to do with this identity? You haven’t used it for a long time.”

 

Si Huaixi pursed his lips, furrowing his brows deeply. “Never mind. If that person is interested in my previous identity, he will come again. I’ll wait for him to fall into his own trap.”

 

Indeed, it had been a long time since he last used that identity.

 

Irin believed that this identity’s information held no value, but in Pei Zhaozhou’s eyes, it was invaluable.

 

However, Si Huaixi’s identity information had a series of blank spaces, apart from the most basic personal details. There were no related bank account transactions, internet browsing history, or records of transportation or purchases.

 

Unless Si Huaixi had never left the imperial capital, or even used a single interstellar credit, never took public transportation or made any purchases. Otherwise, there would be some trace of his activities.

 

Pei Zhaozhou’s gaze dropped, and suddenly, he felt lost.

 

What exactly had happened to make a person disappear without a trace?

 

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