After Lu Xia left that evening, Smelian glanced at the sullen-faced Cecil.

Feeling his gaze, Smelian met his eyes.

"What are you looking at me for?"

Smelian said, "What’s the point of being angry here? If you’ve got the guts, go after her."

"All you do is talk. Why don’t you go? Hmph!"

With that, Smelian turned and went back into the house, not looking too happy himself.

The old butler, watching this childish spat from the side, thought to himself, ’No matter how mature a male acts, he’s still fundamentally childish.’

Lu Xia arrived at the appointed restaurant. The moment she entered, a waiter came up to her and said respectfully, "Good evening, Your Grace. Do you have a reservation?"

"I do."

Hearing this, the waiter quickly said, "This way, please."

Led by the waiter, Lu Xia arrived at a private room. The moment the door opened, she saw a young male with long silver hair sitting inside. His skin was porcelain white, and his pair of light purple eyes were both beautiful and captivating.

’I didn’t expect him to be so remarkably handsome.’ She had to admit, his appearance was rather stunning.

The moment he saw her, Simon stood up.

"Duke Lu Xia, good evening. It’s a pleasure to meet you here."

Lu Xia walked in gracefully, sat in the chair Simon had pulled out for her, and replied with a smile, "Good evening, Simon."

Simon wore a polite smile. He sat elegantly across from Lu Xia, his light purple eyes seeming especially amorous when he looked at someone.

He began in a soft voice, "Duke, speaking of which, I am one of your husbands. Do you still remember me?"

Surprised that he would bring up their relationship so directly, Lu Xia smiled after a moment and said, "At first, I only thought your name sounded familiar. I only remembered after they reminded me. Did you ask to meet because you’re thinking of coming home?"

Simon was surprised that Lu Xia used the word "home." Even though he hadn’t been by Lu Xia’s side during this time, he had heard many things about her, both intentionally and unintentionally.

He knew that the three males currently by Duke Lu Xia’s side were all now Gene Fusion Experts. Two of them had even gained superpowers, and it was only a matter of time for the third.

A female so willing to give everything to her males was unheard of in the Empire.

In fact, there had been hints of this back when Lu Xia allowed them to leave and pursue their own affairs.

’Back then, I just thought it was some kind of training tactic on Duke Lu Xia’s part. But now it seems that if I hadn’t taken the initiative to show up, the Duke probably wouldn’t have cared about my whereabouts. She might have even forgotten my name, only remembering it after someone else’s reminder.’

This realization made him uncomfortable. People were always like that. If Lu Xia had been overbearing from the start, he wouldn’t have thought much of her; after all, that’s how females in the Empire treated males. But Lu Xia’s attitude toward him was one of complete neglect, as if his presence didn’t matter to her at all. And that, funnily enough, made him care.

After all, the males who had stayed by Duke Lu Xia’s side were now the most envied individuals in the entire Empire.

’I originally had the chance to be one of them, but I missed so many opportunities because I only just now came to my senses. I hope it’s not too late.’

So, in response to Lu Xia’s question, Simon said without any hesitation, "May I come home with you?"

"You can if you want to. Of course, if you’d rather dissolve our relationship, I have no objection to that either. You are free to control your own life."

Lu Xia’s words made Simon’s heart clench. He wondered if Lu Xia would have eventually dissolved their relationship if he had never shown up. The very thought of that possibility filled him with regret.

"No, I don’t want to dissolve our relationship, Duke. I’m very sorry for only coming to your side now and failing to fulfill my duties as a husband. If I’ve displeased you, you may punish me."

As he spoke, he stood up and moved closer to Lu Xia.

The moment he approached, Lu Xia belatedly realized what was happening.

In the next second, Simon bent his knees, about to kneel before her.

Lu Xia quickly stopped him. "Don’t. There’s no need for that. If you don’t want to dissolve the relationship, we won’t. You don’t have to kneel to me."

Having learned from her experiences with the other three, Lu Xia felt she was now quite adept at handling these situations.

Seeing that Simon was no longer trying to kneel, Lu Xia breathed a sigh of relief and let go of him. She said to Simon, "Sit down first."

The young male was very tall. With him standing in front of her like that, it was tiring to have to look up at him.

Hearing this, Simon obediently returned to his seat, his gaze resting on Lu Xia with a hint of apprehension.

"If I remember correctly, I was the one who told you all to go and do your own thing, so none of this is your fault. You don’t need to overthink it. The Duke Mansion has plenty of rooms. If you want to come back, I’ll have the old butler prepare one for you. You can return anytime. The reason I said what I did earlier was to tell you that you can still do your own thing and live the life you want. You don’t have to compromise or sacrifice just because of me. Do you understand what I’m saying?"

"Duke, you’re even gentler than I imagined. Thank you for being so considerate. I want to stay by your side voluntarily. It’s not a sacrifice at all, please don’t worry."

Seeing Simon say this, Lu Xia nodded and didn’t press the issue. She proactively changed the subject, "The food here looks exquisite."

Simon immediately said, "If you like it, we can come here often in the future. I own a stake in this place."

Lu Xia smiled at his words. She knew that by saying this, Simon was telling her he wasn’t just some ordinary, ’defective’ male, but that he had his own career and accomplishments.

In truth, Lu Xia had never doubted this. After all, anyone who could find the Ice Spirit Gene and the Golden Spirit Gene was proof enough that Simon’s background was anything but simple.

’Come to think of it,’ she mused, ’none of the three males currently by my side have simple backgrounds.’

"Your Golden Spirit Gene arrived at just the right time. Thank you for that."

"You don’t have to thank me. It’s my honor to be of help. I’d like to ask, was the Golden Spirit Gene intended for Cecil?"

Lu Xia didn’t hide it. She nodded and said, "Cecil is already a Gene Fusion Expert now. He’ll need it sooner or later."

Hearing this, Simon asked expectantly, "I wonder if I’ll have such an opportunity in the future?"

Lu Xia looked at him. "I remember in our last transaction, I gave you two gene fusion agents. You haven’t injected them?"

"I haven’t had the chance. Didn’t you say I could come to your research lab for the injection?"

"I did say that. So, when are you planning to go?"