CR CH4

Chapter 4: Preliminary Examination

“Tianji… Jiang Tianji…”

Vague, muffled calls sounded beside his ear. As the ambient noise of electronic instruments hummed to life, the voice snapped into sharp clarity. Jiang Tianji abruptly opened his eyes and sat bolt upright.

He Qian was logging readings on a virtual interface, her brows slightly furrowed. “Alright, the examination is finished. Still, your situation is somewhat peculiar. None of your metrics show any abnormalities—in fact, they are far more stable than the average person’s.”

“Your inability to sense your own pheromones is likely due to the delayed differentiation. It will resolve naturally after a while. We’ve administered an inhibitor, and we will monitor your condition regularly. During this time, you don’t need to worry about pheromone leakage.”

“If you feel physically unwell in any way, make sure to inform an officer immediately, understood?”

Jiang Tianji instinctively touched his torso, realizing his clothes were already back on. Once his brain caught up with the situation, he immediately nodded.

“Understood, thank you.”

He Qian smiled warmly at him.

“We’ll take our leave first, then.”

The medical staff nodded to him and filed out toward the door together.

He Qian deliberately slowed her pace. Once the others had exited, she turned back, her voice gentle.

“Tianji, Commander Jiang asked me to pass along a message.”

“Take things as they come. When you don’t know what to do, just eat well, sleep well, and take your time figuring out what you truly want. Then, simply work hard in that direction.”

“Upon hearing something happened to you, your mother skipped her meetings. Sadly, she still missed the chance to see you. That was the first time I’ve ever seen Commander Jiang look so rattled. She loves you dearly.”

Seeing Jiang Tianji freeze on the spot, He Qian let out a soft sigh, turned around, and shut the door behind her.

He stared at the sealed mechanical bulkhead, a sudden wave of sour melancholy swelling in his chest.

Beep, beep—

The mechanical door slid open again, snapping Jiang Tianji out of his reverie.

A uniformed squad member stood at the threshold. “Please follow me.”

Jiang Tianji stood up at once. “Okay.”

The two left the medical vessel, returning to the landing dock in front of the earlier warship to wait.

“We will temporarily confiscate your communication device. Do you need to notify your family or friends first?” the escort inquired.

Jiang Tianji licked his pale lips and gave a slight nod.

Powering on his device, he found the dorm group chat had already exploded. Messages poured across his field of vision like a torrential downpour.

• Liang Shaoqun: ???
• Liang Shaoqun: Young Master, where the hell are you?!
• Luo Yang: Jiang Tianji, why are you running around like an idiot when you’re sick?
• Jiang Jun: Reply ASAP, reply the moment you see this!
• Luo Yang: I’m already on my way to the infirmary. Seriously, you’re huge—if you faint on the road, who’s supposed to carry you?
• Jiang Jun: Yeah, we were worried you’d come back and find nobody, so we sent Luo Yang to check first.
• Liang Shaoqun: Jiang Tianji, you’re giving us gray hairs! Completely reckless!

Jiang Tianji sighed silently, his fingers tapping on the keyboard.

• Happy Every Day: I’m not at the infirmary.

The chat fell eerily quiet for a split second, followed immediately by an incoming video call.

Jiang Tianji accepted. A virtual projection popped up before him, and two faces instantly shoved close to the frame.

Liang Shaoqun: “Where the hell did you vanish to, kid? Couldn’t give a heads-up first?”

Just as he was about to launch into a full tirade, the person beside him yanked his arm.

Jiang Jun wore an odd expression, hesitating before asking, “Why are you dressed like that? Whose military combat jacket is that?”

Hearing this, Liang Shaoqun finally registered the anomaly. “You…”

Having weathered so many shocks in such a short window, Jiang Tianji’s expression was strained and bitter. He kept it brief: “I differentiated into an Alpha. The military just hauled me away.”

The video call practically froze into a still frame. His two roommates stared back with expressions of utter shock. Behind them, a figure blasted into the dorm room like a cannonball, the door slamming against the wall with a deafening crash.

Luo Yang was back. Jiang Tianji let out a sigh.

“So, yeah. I probably won’t be able to come back anytime soon. I’m only allowed to give you guys a quick heads-up before they confiscate my device. If you miss me that much, print out a photo and stick it by your bedside to reminisce. Make sure it’s in color.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he glimpsed a tall figure approaching, and Jiang Tianji instinctively straightened his spine.

Luo Yang’s shouting erupted through the speaker: “Wait, stop joking around, what’s actually going on?!”

There was no time to explain.

Ling Kongmiao came to a halt in front of him. “Still not done chatting?”

“…All done.”

He spoke softly to the three faces on screen, “I’ll let Brother Liang and Jiang Jun fill you in later. I have to hand in my device now. Take care, guys.”

A second before the call cut off, Ling Kongmiao stepped up beside him and held out an open hand.

The last visual the trio in the dorm saw was their salted-fish roommate standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the Federation’s pinnacle combat asset, the Chief Commander.

Nobody could mistake the youngest Chief in the Federation.

Luo Yang looked completely lost. “For real?”

Liang Shaoqun suddenly let out a dry laugh, his gaze glazed over. “Must be fake. How could that possibly be real?”

Jiang Jun: “…”

The three exchanged glances, sinking into a prolonged, stunned silence.

On the other side.

Seeing that Jiang Tianji hadn’t surrendered his device immediately, Ling Kongmiao raised a brow.

“What is it?”

“Just one moment, please.”

Jiang Tianji swiftly opened the dorm group chat and fired off one final message:

—There’s a gift box in my locker. When you have time, please deliver it to my mom.

Having sent the message, he dallied no longer, unfastening the device and handing it over to Ling Kongmiao.

Ling Kongmiao took it, yet his gaze didn’t shift away, lingering instead on the youth’s dejectedly bowed head.

It’s just the basic military forces. Is it really necessary to look like an abandoned puppy?

It’s not like you’re being hauled off to a slaughterhouse to be sold by the pound.