Tao Xiu's departure sparked heated discussion among the students, especially among Su Ya's new roommate. After learning that Su Ya had been taken away, he inevitably brought up her strange ways, suggesting she was avoiding him in the dorm.

The classmate asked curiously, "Why is she avoiding you? I think she likes making friends and is very outgoing."

The roommate shook her head. "It's just an inexplicable feeling, like there's some secret hidden somewhere. Tao Xiu was in the same group with her today, and she was even taken away, so that feeling was even more pronounced."

"She probably wants to follow Tao Xiu just like Yi Wen does. Isn't she an A-rank? Even a Beta is pretty impressive."

"Don't you find it strange? Su Ya used to be Tao Rui's roommate. After she and Tao Xiu became close, Tao Xiu always made trouble for Tao Rui. If you think about it carefully, there's something going on!"

"That's right. There are only two possibilities. One is jealousy, and the other is that Su Ya is badmouthing Tao Rui in front of Tao Xiu to sow discord between the brothers."

"Tao Rui likes Ye Jia, and Su Ya is just a Beta, so I think the first possibility is impossible. The second possibility is quite likely. I don't know if you noticed, but Su Ya used to have a good relationship with Tao Rui, but after she followed Tao Xiu, she became estranged from him."

"That's true, haha, the villain is successful."

Everyone quickly concluded from the surface information that Su Ya was a bad person. Fang Tong muttered, "Tao Rui, I used to suspect you and Su Ya were having an affair, and I told Jia Jia about it. I never thought she was actually on Tao Xiu's side."

Tao Rui confessed without a second thought, "You're not wrong. At first, I was only familiar with Su Ya, and I did consider taking things a step further. But we have different values, and we drew a line a long time ago."

Ye Jia and Fang Tong were both stunned. They looked at Tao Rui and saw that he was so nonchalant, saying it as if it was a nice day, so they didn't take it seriously. Ye Jia even laughed and said, "It seems that dormitory assignments are very important. If Tongtong and I hadn't been assigned together, we wouldn't have become good friends."

The three chatted while searching for Zerg, and when they found them, they carefully practiced their attack methods. By nightfall, all three felt they had gained a lot.

When everyone gathered on the spaceship, Tao Rui inevitably received everyone's stares. Everyone had similar opinions on the training officer taking Tao Xiu away. The commander's attitude either showed that the commander was biased and only cared about Tao Xiu and not Tao Rui, or that Tao Xiu made a mistake and Tao Rui did not.

Either way, it's a bit too obviously unfair.

What used to be taken for granted changed after Tao Rui completely defeated Tao Xiu. Everyone couldn't help but feel sorry for him, thinking that if he had received the same kind of treatment as Tao Xiu, his achievements would surely be even greater. I heard he'd been promoted from C-rank to B-rank. If he was properly nurtured, could he even reach A-rank, or even higher?

There are some influences that are happening naturally, not dramatic, but far-reaching.

Tao Rui returned to the villa and was about to enter the laboratory when the housekeeper stopped him and said, "Prince, the Commander-in-Chief's wife sent a message asking you to confirm whether the person you are talking about is your former roommate Su Ya?"

Tao Rui shrugged. "Did I say anything? I forgot it a long time ago. You know that the human brain has limited capacity. My mind is full of my laboratory and my own affairs. I won't remember other people's messy things that have nothing to do with me. Just reply to the Commander-in-Chief that I am not interested in anything about them and don't bother me."

The butler lowered his head and said, "Prince, I am very embarrassed by your behavior."

"That's your business. Have you forgotten that you're the commander's man, not mine? I'm very protective of my shortcomings, but not of outsiders." Tao Rui said as he closed the laboratory door, leaving behind his last words, "Don't bother me anymore."

The butler followed Tao Rui's instructions and sent a message to the Commander's Palace. A three-person court hearing was underway there, and the Crown Prince's romance was a serious matter. Dating a Beta was considered treason and must be taken seriously. So the Commander, his wife, and Tao Xiu all heard Tao Rui's reply at the same time. Tao Xiu snorted, "Father, Tao Rui is the one you should be more responsible for. He's already ignoring you, Mother, and the Commander's Palace. He's severing ties with them. He..."

"You don't have to worry about what happens to him," the commander said sullenly. "If he doesn't inherit the position of commander, he'll have relative freedom. Do you want that freedom too? Then you'll have to give up your inheritance first."

The Commander's wife hurriedly asked, "Tao Xiu, who have you been friends with lately? You've picked up all these bad habits! Don't hang out with Su Ya and Yi Wen anymore."

"Mother! Don't I even have the freedom to make friends? I'm still a student, and I'm happy with them. Just think of me as having two more people around to entertain me, so what? Is it necessary to bring us back with such fanfare? What do you think my classmates will think?"

The Commander's wife was worried when he refused to bow his head, fearing the Commander would blame him and increase his punishment. She wanted to speak up for her son, but the Commander raised his hand to silence her. The Commander was clearly displeased. "Tao Xiu, do you think the way you are now is okay? You're making up stories, relying on your parents' love and being unruly. You don't know how to be careful with your words and actions. You enjoy better treatment than everyone else, yet you cry out that it's unfair."

The commander snorted coldly, "You don't need to hide your relationship with Suya. Beta will never be allowed to be your partner. You just need to remember this. As for whether you want to raise her, fall in love with her, or separate, it doesn't matter. Your future partner will only be an excellent Omega!"

The commander stood up and gave his final order, "You don't need to go to school anymore. I'll have professional teachers teach you everything you need to know at the Commander's Palace. You're not good enough to be the crown prince yet. If you don't work hard, I don't mind giving the position to someone else."

The commander left after he finished speaking. Tao Xiu was angry that he was not gentle and fatherly enough, but the commander's wife changed her expression.

Tao Xiu couldn't help but complain to the commander's wife, "Father is too overbearing. Why doesn't he let me go to school?"

The commander-in-chief's wife walked up to him and slapped him hard!

"Why? Because you want to be the next commander! Because he holds the power of life and death!"

Tao Xiu said in disbelief, "You hit me? What's wrong with you? What did I do that is against the will of heaven? Why have you become so terrifying?"

The Commander's wife stared at him and said, "You want to know why? I'll tell you, because your position as heir is no longer secure. If you don't perform well, the outside world's impression of you will continue to crumble. Do you know what will happen then?"

The Commander's wife was very disappointed. "Then your father will treat you like he treated Tao Rui and will abandon you! Do you think you can do whatever you want just because you are his only beloved son? You are wrong! Your father has two other sons in private, and they are both A-level Alphas!"

The only reason you've been able to prosper for so many years without having to fight with your brothers is because you're S-rank! It's an extremely rare S-rank!

Your father has high hopes for you, hoping that you will inherit the position of commander-in-chief, so as not to let the illegitimate sons compete with you. But if you don't live up to your expectations, those two illegitimate sons will climb over our heads!"

Tao Xiu was speechless with shock. He had no idea, never before had he known his father had cheated on his wife and fathered two illegitimate children. So, all the happiness he'd always imagined for their family of three was a lie? Between the two A-rank Alphas and Tao Rui, who had just beaten him so badly, he instantly felt an unprecedented sense of crisis.

It’s as if... he is the worst among the four brothers!

The Commander's wife grasped his shoulders firmly and said solemnly, "Our family is different from others. Any heated discussion will have unforeseen consequences. The video of you being defeated by Tao Rui is known to everyone, and it's a huge blow to your image in people's minds. You may not feel it now, but if you don't find a way to turn the tables, you will soon feel that you are no longer the crown prince they most want.

Your behavior these days has disappointed your father. You have to do better than he expected to regain his favor. Do you understand? This is why I asked you to leave Su Ya and Yi Wen. Show your father that it will be like cutting off the bad past. Everything I do is for your own good, do you understand?

Tao Xiu broke free, took two steps back, and shook his head. "I'm confused. I don't know what I'm thinking. I... I'm going back first."

He hurried back to his room, his mind a mess, unable to make sense of anything. But he knew his mother was right. He had already noticed that everyone looked at him differently at school this time. It was like a god standing in the clouds suddenly falling into a quagmire, and you would feel that he was nothing special.

Because he knew his mother was right, he became even more upset, panicked, and confused, because he felt he had lost the bargaining chip to fight back. He didn't want to obey, but if he didn't obey, he might really lose his position as crown prince.

Su Ya and Yi Wen were each locked in their own guest room. Both were extremely anxious, constantly texting and calling Tao Xiu. Tao Xiu had blocked his video call when he met the commander, but now he opened it and answered Su Ya's video call. He suddenly felt an urge and said anxiously, "Su Ya, let's confess to my parents. You're an Omega, and an A-level. They'll definitely agree to us being together."

"No! Tao Xiu, you can't tell!" Su Ya said anxiously, "You swore to keep this a secret for me. I still want to join the army, I still want to kill enemies, I have my dreams, you can't let me be raised like a canary. If you tell anyone, I will definitely hate you!"

"But you can't keep it a secret forever. If it's exposed at any time, you'll lose your eligibility to join the army. Are you going to ruin our relationship for a dream that's simply impossible to achieve? My mother has already forced me to break up with you, Suya!"

Su Ya was silent for a moment, then said in disbelief, "You did whatever she forced you to do? Do you still have any sense of self-determination? Just because she forced you, you let me ruin my dream? Also, it turns out that my dream is impossible to achieve in your heart? So you were just trying to coax me before? Tao Xiu, if you also think that I should just stay home and have children, then I was wrong about you. Maybe we shouldn't be together at all."

Su Ya hung up the video first, and Tao Xiu's already bad mood worsened. He called Tao Rui and angrily shouted like a trapped animal, "You knew this a long time ago, didn't you? You deliberately helped those two illegitimate children to bring me down, didn't you?"

Tao Rui put down the tools in his hand and looked at Tao Xiu in the video. "The commander actually has two illegitimate children?"