No Money to Divorce

“What do you mean spherical? Are you all blind? Don’t you see that big tail at the back?” Adrian said in a huff. “Reply back to them, that’s my giant space rabbit. They’re likely going to see it often in the future, so don’t kick up a fuss over nothing!”

Adrian hung up the call and turned to Zhong Yan. “Sure enough, we can’t just leave the rabbit in the nest all day. It’s time to bring it out for some exercise.”

You could say he had only agreed with Zhong Yan about taking it for a walk just to make him happy, but now he realized how grave the situation was. Usually, they had to look at the rabbit from the side every time they examined it. Since it was too big, it was hard to see anything wrong with it, but the rabbit was so fat it had actually lost its shape when seen from afar. Adrian really had to admit that he really fed it too much.

After finishing his dinner today, he tied the end of the rope that was fixed to the nest to his personal spacecraft and flew the rabbit into space.

Adrian parked the ship in a remote star system that was relatively far away from the travel route s. The two of them stood by the portholes, looking at the rabbit that was floating not far away from them. In the dense, dark universe, the white of the giant space rabbit was particularly prominent. Who knows if black giant space rabbits would become invisible in space?

“Is it just me or does it not look very happy?” Adrian looked at it for a while and concluded.

Zhong Yan said, “Giant space rabbits aren’t canines. They won’t appear very joyful when they’re taken out for walks. But you still have to do it to keep it in good health.”

So far, no results for the cause of the mutation has been found, so how did they find out that this is good for their health? Adrian didn’t really believe it, but he was wise and did not ask Zhong Yan about that, lest he be forced to listen to rabbit science for another half hour.

Currently, they were not far from the ground so they still had a bit of signal. Zhong Yan looked through the porthole for a while, then he returned to his seat to look at his terminal.

With the Capital staying silent recently, Zhong Yan seemed to be getting a little impatient. Adrian walked over to his side and massaged the back of his neck, asking, “What’s happened that made it so you don’t even want to look at the rabbit anymore?”

Zhong Yan shook his head. “It’s nothing, I’m just checking if there’s news.”

Frequent contact will increase the risk of exposure, so he could only look at other news and handle other business affairs to relieve the anxiety in his heart.

“Relax, it’s no use getting too strung up about it.” Adrian sat on the chair across from him. “I think I have a few bottles of wine I left here in the ship from last time. Want a drink?”

Zhong Yan asked, “How are we going to go back if we drink alcohol?”

“The return is generally auto-pilot anyway. We don’t have to drive.”

“I don’t feel like drinking.”

“Come on, just a little toast to relax.”

Accepting no refusals, Adrian brought two wine glasses over as well as a bottle of wine. Zhong Yan could only close his terminal and say helplessly, “I’m not strung up, I’m just…”

“Anxious,” Adrian said. “I know. You’re just like how you were in the past, desperately going through your books before an exam. But did it really have to bother you so much? You never failed a single subject! I’ve actually wanted to tell you to try having some wine when you’re anxious since a long time ago, but we weren’t allowed to drink in the dorms. Now that we’ve graduated, nobody can say anything.”

Zhong Yan picked up the bottle and looked at the label. “What kind of alcohol is this?”

Adrian filled both the glasses one-third of the way up. “Navi’s specialty, Never Wine. It’s a must-have at parties. It’s not a spirit. Give it a try. We’re not really supposed to drink them in goblets, but these are all we have on the ship. It’s just the two of us here anyway. It doesn’t matter.”

He passed a glass to Zhong Yan and both of them clinked their glasses together. Then, each of them took a sip.

The beverage was warm as it entered their mouths, and it had a sweet aftertaste. It really wasn’t a spirit. Holding the glass, Zhong Yan thought for a while and asked, “Aren’t you nervous?”

Adrian knew what he was trying to ask. The “Honor Decree” was their call to strike. They have already been preparing to use this as an opportunity to launch an attack on the AI that had been raised as a supreme system for nearly a century. If they win this battle, their names would be recorded as heroes for the rest of life; if they lose, there was only eternal doom.

With a storm soon to come, even if they had already prepared countless plans, and were ready to set off, Zhong Yan was still inevitably nervous before having to set off the stormy wave that will sweep across the entire Federation and change the course of human history forever.

“I’m not nervous,” Adrian said. “What’s there to be nervous about? We’ve already gone through so many meetings. The countless people supporting us from behind have worked so hard for this. We’re fully prepared. Everything is ready. We don’t need destiny on our side. We have enough to turn it around.”

His words came out completely natural and unrestrained. Zhong Yan felt infected by him, and he agreed, “You’re right. We do have enough to turn destiny around. Cheers.”

The two clinked their glasses and finished their wine in one go.

Zhong Yan had been too busy this whole time. If he wasn’t busy with his official duties at the Capital, then he’s busy with household chores. He hadn’t really taken the time to learn about Navi’s local culture. If he talked more with the locals, he would know that though Never Wine was not a spirit, it was much stronger in comparison. Space pirates loved this kind of wine for how strong it was. It gave them the best excuse to indulge themselves with both the male and female entertainers at the feast after their drink.

Adrian had a very good tolerance for alcohol. Though on one hand, he had given Zhong Yan Never Wine to help with his anxiety, he had some other ideas as well.

As a newly-married couple at the prime of their lives, they actually didn’t have much of a sex life. Both of them had their own ideals during their one fling before marriage, and they still restrained themselves in the end. Also, it was also their first time so it had been a bumpy ride. After their marriage, their minds were finally one, but the main issue was that they were too busy. Until today, they had at most helped each other out with just their hands a few times. Now, things have finally settled down, and they had some leisure time to spare…

Adrian refilled their cups and stopped caring about wine glass etiquette, filling it up to the top.

“Are you going to leave after the ‘Honor Decree’ is announced?”

“Not immediately,” Zhong Yan said as he raised his glass. “But soon. As soon as this decree is promulgated, everything will begin to go down in a few day’s time.”

Adrian nodded. “Of course, you have to be in the Capital during the critical moment. I suspect I will not be in Navi at that time either.”

“It would be best if we don’t have to go that far,” Zhong Yan said.

Adrian’s absence in Navi meant that both sides will already have gone hostile with each other, and that an armed conflict would have broken out. Adrian would be leading his team on a military expedition, but that was what Zhong Yan had been trying his best to avoid.

“If only that were possible…” Adrian said indifferently. “Things can change at any time. It’s no use thinking about it now. Let’s drink up.”

Zhong Yan threw his head back and gulped down half of his wine. Adrian was feeling secretly happy in his heart, but he had also downed half of his glass so as not to expose himself too early. Then, he refilled both their glasses again.

They chatted as they drank. After an hour, they had already finished half of the relatively large bottle. Only then did Adrian finally realize that something was wrong.

The alcohol was gradually taking effect. Even Adrian who had a good tolerance for alcohol was beginning to feel hot, while Zhong Yan who was sitting opposite him had flushed cheeks. But even so, he was still speaking articulately and logically about his life when he had just arrived at the Capital.

Adrian could not believe it. He poured them another round, and half an hour later, Zhong Yan began to feel suspicious. “Did you drink too much?”

Both his cheeks were red, but his eyes were bright and sober. On the other hand, Adrian who was trying to get him drunk was already going down. He suspected that the first to fall from all this alcohol would be he himself. So, he could only give in. “No, I didn’t. I just…want to relax a little. Let’s stop here. Xiao Yan, you…take your alcohol really well, huh?”

“Well, I was trained from all the banquets.” Zhong Yan said, “I don’t think you can take any more. Should I bring you to the bed at the back so you can rest for a while?”

“Who can’t take any more?” Adrian struggled to maintain his dignity. “A glass to good health! It’s not that I can’t take it. We said we were only going to have a toast!”

“Alright alright, we had our toast, let’s stop,” Zhong Yan giggled.

Relying on the auto-pilot system, the two of them brought the giant space rabbit back to land with their ship. Adrian handles himself well when he’s drunk, so he caused no problems even when intoxicated. He just got sleepy. The two of them returned home and fell asleep after a brisk shower. Both of them fell asleep just seconds after their heads fell to their pillows, and Adrian even thought that this was quite a shame…

But he thought that too early.

Two hours later, Adrian was woken up by Zhong Yan.

Though he got drunk fast, he sobered up fast too. By the time he woke up, his head had already stopped buzzing. When he lifted his wrist to look at the time, it was already past midnight. Zhong Yan was looking at him with bright eyes, seemingly quite awake. “I can’t sleep. Let’s sing.”

Adrian couldn’t help but wonder whether he was dreaming.

“What should we sing? Do you know how to sing ‘Be Good Little Rabbit’?” Zhong Yan asked for his opinion.

Adrian sat up confused. Zhong Yan looked normal on the surface, even the flush on his face was mostly gone. Adrian tried to ask, “Why do you want to sing?”

“Because…” Zhong Yan looked down, appearing rather embarrassed, “I like you.”

Flowers bloomed in Adrian’s heart. Even though he didn’t understand what was going on, he still answered, “I like you too.”

Zhong Yan looked at him for a while, and the smile on his face gradually disappeared. He suddenly gave him a slap on the chest. “Then tell me so earlier!”

“…Your drunkenness came it a bit late, didn’t it?” Adrian was caught off guard. Only now did he realize that he was drunk. Not knowing whether he should laugh or cry, he brought him into his arms. “Okay, okay. Go to sleep. You’ll be fine when you wake up.”

“No. Why didn’t you tell me that you liked me earlier? I thought you didn’t like me. I even had to force you when we slept together that day.”

Adrian was shocked. “What do you mean forced? No…forget it. What am I talking about to a drunk person? Go to sleep. What time do you think it is?”

Zhong Yan climbed on top of Adrian and would not let him off. “You can’t sleep, we need to talk.”

Honestly, Adrian had already given up on his earlier plans, but Zhong Yan was sitting right on top of the key part. Moreover, he was moving around restlessly. Adrian couldn’t stand it anymore. He turned over and pressed him down on bed. “Forget talking, let’s get physical.”

……

A fickle night passed like a spring breeze.

The hour before dawn was when the night was darkest. It was raining hard outside the window in a billowing storm. Zhong Yan shrunk into Adrian’s warm naked embrace and they cuddled each other to sleep on this island of tenderness.