In the Interstellar Beast World, females are rare. To perpetuate the Beastman race, every female in the Federation can legally have seven male partners, who are all expected to work together to support her.
But someone like Lu Tingyan, who couldn't even support himself, was utterly incapable of providing for a female or contributing to a family.
Even if a female were willing to marry him, he'd be ostracized and bullied by her other husbands the moment he joined her family.
Life would only be worse than it is now.
Lu Tingyan said nothing, silently continuing to read the document in his hands.
Finding this pointless, Lu Yanhua spat and turned to leave.
He was left alone in the office.
Lu Tingyan stared at the document with a calm expression. After confirming its contents, he coolly signed his name.
But the bulging veins on the back of his hand betrayed his true feelings.
Lu Tingyan abruptly tossed the pen aside. He took a deep breath, leaned back in his chair, and loosened his tie with his other hand.
Even at rest, the explosive power simmering beneath the skin of his veined hand was obvious.
After all, he was once the Federation's most powerful Beastman.
His gaze fell to the document on his desk, the light in his eyes wavering.
The document was an application from the Suburban Construction Department to incorporate the mountaintop orphanage into the public domain. The attachments included further requests for public area renovations, building repairs, and a series of similar items.
He stared at his own hand. There wasn't the slightest fluctuation of spiritual power in his palm.
But he couldn't have been mistaken about what he felt that day at the mountaintop orphanage. It was the budding of spiritual power.
He had to go back.
In the hallway just around the corner from the office, Lu Yanhua, who hadn't gone far, was on the phone, his voice lowered.
"Dad, I tested him. I don't think he's recovered."
"There's no spiritual power fluctuation from him. He didn't even react when I humiliated him."
"Yeah, I told him about making him Zhu Li's Beast Husband."
"Zhu Li is over fifty, and he had no reaction at all when he heard."
"Okay, don't worry, Dad. I'll keep monitoring him."
*
Bai Su yawned, her eyes watering from sleepiness as she stared at the construction crew that had arrived first thing in the morning, making a huge commotion.
A crowd of onlookers from the foot of the mountain had gathered, finding it hard to believe that this orphanage, once designated as outside Federation territory, was about to be brought within its borders.
"I heard it's because some female got hurt around here. That's why the Federation is stepping up control of the area."
"Didn't they also say there was a case of child Beastman abuse a while back?"
"Pfft... What's there to control? Just arrest Wang Biao and Bai Su. Once you get rid of those two cancers, this place will be peaceful, won't it?"
"You won't believe this! I ran into Bai Su a couple of days ago, and she was like a completely different person. She actually went down the mountain to buy groceries, said she was going to cook for the kids. Scared the hell out of me."
"That female is famously awful around here. She even knows what 'buying' means?"
"You must have heard wrong. Did she say she was cooking *for* the kids, or cooking the kids?"
The crowd roared with laughter.
Bai Su was busy arguing with Lu Tingyan. "You bring a crew here to work, and I'm supposed to feed all of you?!"
The assistant beside Lu Tingyan nodded. "Yes, Miss Bai. The mountaintop orphanage isn't easy to get to, so it's a bit difficult for the construction crew to sort out their meals."
Bai Su laughed, but it was a laugh of pure anger. "Do you have any idea how hard it is to cook for this whole damn crowd? I have children to look after! I'm not your personal chef! It's not like I begged you to come here and build anything. Fine, then don't! Get out, all of you!"
The assistant was dumbfounded. He'd never met such a crude female.
In his mind, females were delicate flower buds, coddled in a greenhouse. They were supposed to be soft-spoken and gentle, possessing a kind of lofty, aristocratic elegance that came from a pampered, wealthy upbringing.
Not... like the female standing before him.
Overweight, loud, crude, blunt, and common.
She might have been a bit overweight, but her eyes were surprisingly beautiful—large and luminous, as lovely as pebbles glittering in a summer stream.
Clean and clear.
The assistant glanced at his superior, looking troubled. He had no choice but to steel himself and try to negotiate again. "If that won't work, could you perhaps just handle meals for Major General Lu? Is that possible? I'll find another solution for the workers."
Bai Su sized up Lu Tingyan, her expression a mixture of wariness and irritation. "Eating here costs money. I have children to raise. How can I afford to let your major general eat for free every day?"
Beads of sweat were forming on the assistant's brow.
'His boss might be a fallen noble Beastman, and he might be getting pushed around at military headquarters, but things weren't so bad that he should be getting scorned by a civilian, were they?'
Just as he was hesitating, wondering how to handle the situation, he heard Lu Tingyan's deep, detached voice. "Fine."
Bai Su upped the ante. "One more thing. You can't eat inside the orphanage. Bring a container, I'll dish some out for you, and you can find your own place to eat outside!"
"How can you treat people with such contempt?!" The assistant couldn't hold back his anger.
'Isn't this how you treat a beggar?'
Bai Su crossed her arms, her posture oozing arrogance. "Take it or leave it? If you don't want it, get lost."
Lu Tingyan's eyes darkened. "I'll take it."
The assistant stared at his superior in shock, completely baffled.
'Sure, the major general was a bit of a pushover at headquarters, but that was because he was surrounded by high-ranking officials. He didn't have a choice.'
'But this female... she's just a minor exile! Even if she's about to be re-instated, she's still just a civilian!'
'Why would the major general offer himself up for humiliation like this?'
'Worst case, I could just bring up canned food and nutrient packs for him every day. That would be enough!'
But he could never figure out what the major general was thinking.
Besides, the major general hated it when subordinates questioned his decisions. Once his mind was made up, no one could change it.
Satisfied at last, Bai Su turned, walked back into the orphanage, and shut the main gate.
Inside, the little cubs were eating breakfast.
The little wolf cub's face was much cleaner now. The scar over his left eye had shrunk considerably, and it looked as though the eyelid would soon be able to open a sliver.
Bai Su looked at him. "That Major General Lu will be here to supervise the work for a while. Bai Xiaolang, you'll be the one to give him his meals from now on."
Bai Xiaolang was the name she had given the little wolf cub.
The previous owner of this body, just to humiliate him, had forced everyone to call him "little doggy." If they were going to break with the past, it was best to start by changing his name.
The little wolf cub's beast form was a small, pure-white Snow Wolf. Since her own surname was Bai, she had given him the simple, straightforward name.
Bai Xiaolang nodded and went back to burying his face in his food.
Ever since he learned that eating well would help his wounds heal, he had become the orphanage's most enthusiastic eater, consuming more than anyone else.
Bai Su returned to her room and lay down on her bed. Her eyes, however, were perfectly clear and alert.
Lu Tingyan had taken the bait.
She knew he would come.
'How could someone who once stood at the pinnacle be content to remain a cripple forever?'
'He would seize any glimmer of hope without hesitation.'
'But Lu Tingyan is a meticulous man.'
'If she had fawned over him, he would have immediately guessed that she'd deliberately cooked that meal to attract his attention.'
'That's why the more she pushed him away and feigned disinterest, the more he would lower his guard and trust that she meant him no harm.'
She could feel Lu Tingyan's loathing for her.
'And yet, according to the original owner's memories, she had never crossed paths with Lu Tingyan in her entire life.'
His loathing was completely baseless.
'The only possible explanation is that something happened between them during that one year she can't remember.'
Bai Su hated taking the blame for someone else's mistakes more than anything.
She was determined to find out exactly what had happened back then!