Picking Up An Alpha On Garbage Star - Chapter 37.2

…

Pei An had some rare free time, so he went to the welfare center to visit those who had been rescued from Golden Wind Jade Dew earlier.

Joshua had recovered quite well after undergoing the gland operation. His mental state had improved significantly, and upon seeing Pei An, he ran towards him excitedly.

“Commander Pei!”

Joshua’s body was still weak, and he was slightly out of breath after running a short distance, but his eyes were eager, as if arriving a second late in front of Pei An would be a regret.

“How’s Joshua doing lately?” Pei An inquired with a smile. “Have you been eating well?”

Joshua nodded vigorously. “Yes! I had a big meal for lunch today!”

Pei An looked at Joshua, who was now completely different from when he was first rescued, and his smile grew warmer.

Originally, Pei An had considered whether to forcibly erase the memories of these people about their experiences in Golden Wind Jade Dew, to spare them from a lifetime of remembering the hardship. However, as he walked this path, he realized he had been overly concerned. All these people were remarkably resilient, even those who loved to cry, red-eyed and holding tissue paper, were still strong.

“Everyone has recovered well, and there are no signs of PTSD for now,” Shu Mingya reported while still wearing her apron.

Pei An ruffled Joshua’s soft hair. “Go play with everyone. I need to discuss work with Aunt Shu Mingya.”

Joshua obediently greeted Shu Mingya and then returned to where he was before.

“Mrs. Shu, shall we take a stroll?” Pei An tilted his head.

Shu Mingya wiped her hands on the apron. “Are you really giving up on trying?”

Pei An, hands behind his back, walked lightly. “Since I can’t overcome it, why not try putting it aside and not bother with it.”

Shu Mingya frowned slightly; she didn’t quite support Pei An’s idea.

When Pei An told her that he would no longer force himself to learn cooking, she disagreed. According to the inquiry results provided by Pei An, the stressor had been present for a long time, and Pei An had been suffering for quite a while. This was not a good sign, so Shu Mingya had always hoped that Pei An could overcome the psychological trauma.

However, Pei An insisted that he didn’t want to try anymore. On the one hand, the trial didn’t yield good results, and he reluctantly persisted in it. On the other hand, he truly believed that he could leave that trauma aside and not bother with it.

His stress reactions were not as severe as before. As long as he didn’t cook, nothing would happen.

“Mr. Pei, you can’t avoid cooking forever, right? Are you going to use a cooking robot at home?” Shu Mingya still hoped that Pei An would persist a bit longer.

Pei An’s mouth involuntarily curled up. “I can wash dishes.” Since Xie Yu was good at cooking, he might as well let Xie Yu handle that part, and Pei An had no problem washing dishes.

Oh, wait, with Xie Yu around, he probably wouldn’t allow Pei An to wash dishes.

Shu Mingya knew Pei An’s stubbornness, and since Pei An had made up his mind, she couldn’t do anything about it. “If one day you want to learn how to bake cookies, I’ll still welcome you.”

Pei An: I think just eating is also a good choice.

The welfare center was established by Pei An himself, and he knew every person housed in this welfare center, some of whom he had known for many years. This might be his last visit to the welfare center.

Pei An leisurely strolled through the welfare center, while Xie Yu listened to Zhuge Yue’s complaints in the office.

“Commander, the Moonlight has been in service for twenty years. Even if the weapon systems aren’t upgraded, the central control system should at least get an upgrade,” Zhuge Yue covered her face. “Think about it, Commander. Thousands of people on the Moonlight, all stuck with the central control system from twenty years ago. We’re living so miserably!”

She cried without a hint of sincerity, not shedding a single tear.

The central control system was crucial for a main warship, and having a well-performing one was essential. Relying on maintenance alone wasn’t enough; upgrading and modernizing were necessary. Otherwise, the main ship would lag behind in various aspects, posing a deadly problem on the battlefield, like the defense level of the shields, signal capture, and response speed to various commands.

The Moonlight had been in service for twenty years, with its share of bumps and bruises over the years, but not a single upgrade.

“Zhu Ge, crying to the Commander won’t help. The Commander won’t upgrade the central control system,” Pang Li cruelly pointed out the truth.

Zhu Ge, full of resentment, slapped Pang Li’s shoulder. “You’re really naive!”

Pang Li: “… So what mischief are you planning now?”

Politely smiling, Xie Yu said, “Just tell me what you want. You really think the Commander will approve an upgrade for the central control system?”

The Finance Department aimed to cut military expenses every day. Hoping for budget allocations from the Finance Department was like daydreaming. Without official orders from the Military Headquarters, individual legions couldn’t return to the Central Star privately. Otherwise, they might as well try to sneak out a big shot from the Imperial Academy.

“Commander, you’re close to Mr. Pei. If you ask Mr. Pei for help, he won’t refuse. Isn’t that right?” Zhuge Yue blinked at Xie Yu.

Xie Yu couldn’t help but quirk an eyebrow. “Did your language teacher teach you to use ‘close’ in this way?”

Zhuge Yue proudly flicked her hand. “Commander, that’s not the point. The point is, don’t you want Mr. Pei to move to ML001 sooner? Why not ask Mr. Pei for help? Mr. Pei will definitely agree.”

Does she really think Xie Yu doesn’t want that? Look at that priceless expression. He’s daydreaming every day, gazing at that necklace with so much tenderness.

A true hero couldn’t chat romantically with a necklace. Why don’t you go pursue someone!

Xie Yu calmly said, “When Pei An finishes his tasks, he’ll naturally move over. Why the rush?”

This person looked pretty worthless, sighing over a necklace every day, expressing his feelings toward an accessory. Isn’t he going to pursue the person?

Zhuge Yue sighed. It seemed she couldn’t help the Commander. The Commander was a bit slow-witted.

“Alright, upgrading the central control system of the Moonlight isn’t urgent for now. I’ll talk to Pei An about it, and as for when he’ll move to ML001, we’ll see.” Xie Yu waved his hand to dismiss them. “Have all the tasks I assigned been completed? If not, go finish them quickly!”

Zhuge Yue brushed it off, “Yes, yes, yes. I’ll continue interrogating those interstellar pirates. I promise to make them confess truthfully. But Commander, if I really get results, you have to help me ask Mr. Pei for assistance in upgrading the Moonlight’s central control system. It’s crucial for us to have it upgraded before going into battle.”

Pang Li chimed in, “Commander, I agree with Zhu Ge. Mr. Pei’s subordinates are probably a bunch of technical experts. With their help, the Moonlight will surely be revitalized.”

Xie Yu pointed to the office door, “Feel free to go. Slowly if you please.”

Zhuge Yue and Pang Li then left.

Xie Yu stood up, pacing around the office, feeling lost and unsure where to put his hands. He really wanted Pei An to move to ML001 sooner, but he hadn’t figured out how to broach the subject. If he urged Pei An, would Pei An find him annoying?

Xie Yu was in turmoil, so he unbuttoned his shirt and held the red petal pendant in his hand, being careful not to squeeze it too hard, fearing he might damage it.

“Commander,” an alpha in military uniform outside the office saluted. “Captain Zhu Ge asked me to have you sign this.”

In military interrogations of stubborn interstellar pirates, some unsavory methods were often employed. To put it plainly, it was torture for confessions. However, openly admitting to such practices was embarrassing, so official approval from higher-ups was required to use these methods and prevent their misuse.

The person who brought the paper to Xie Yu for signing was Zhuge Yue’s subordinate, Captain Qi Dong. During military academy, he majored in a related field, and he was almost never wrong in judging the veracity of information given by prisoners. Zhuge Yue liked using him.

“Come in,” Xie Yu sat back in his chair, took out a pen from the penholder, signed his name on the application, stamped it, and handed it to him.

Qi Dong emitted a faint fragrance. It was familiar but clearly not Qi Dong’s pheromones.

“What scent are you wearing? You haven’t picked up omega pheromones, have you?” Xie Yu cautioned. Having an omega at the center of the operation was not advisable.

Qi Dong sniffed himself, “The scent still lingers? It’s a local specialty perfume my partner brought back for me from her trip. I sprayed it a few hours ago, and it’s still strong. It’s quite potent.”

Just perfume?

“What scent is this perfume?” Xie Yu asked.

Qi Dong replied, “My partner said it’s plum blossom. She visited a planet without climate control systems, where a type of flower called plum blossom grows. This perfume is made from the essence of plum blossoms.”

Plum blossom? Xie Yu had never heard of such a flower.

Qi Dong observed Xie Yu’s expression carefully. Did he like this scent?

“Commander, if you want this perfume, I can ask my partner about the specific planet it’s produced on.” Qi Dong cautiously inquired.

Xie Yu waved his hand, “No need. You can go to Zhu Ge.”

He just felt that the fragrance on Qi Dong resembled Pei An’s pheromones. However, it could also be that he missed Pei An too much, leading to such illusions. With limited communication and no videos, focusing solely on work and avoiding personal matters, occasional hallucinations weren’t surprising.

Xie Yu couldn’t stay idle. When idle, he tended to overthink things. To clear his mind, he decided to check the progress on Zhu Ge’s end.