After speaking, the department head put on an act, as if he had only Smelian’s best interests at heart.

But Smelian never once glanced his way, acting as if he hadn’t heard a word. The department head, who had hoped to ridicule Smelian, was disappointed not to see the reaction he’d been hoping for.

’It felt like punching cotton,’ a deeply frustrating sensation.

"Do you have any explanation for what your superior just said, Doctor Smelian?" the man from the Male Management Agency asked, his tone growing harsher as if he’d finally caught Smelian in a misstep.

If Smelian had any doubts before about who had reported him, they vanished now. Seeing the department head’s gloating expression, he knew it could only have been him.

"I have nothing to explain, but I need to contact my Female Master." He hadn’t wanted to trouble Lu Xia with his personal matters, especially considering her current delicate condition.

But when he thought about how Lu Xia treated Graces, he knew it would be a lie to say he wasn’t jealous. So he wanted to test her, to see if she would protect him the way she protected Graces.

That’s why he couldn’t resist making the request to the Male Management Agency.

Before the officials from the Male Management Agency could even respond, the department head let out a derisive snort, as if he’d heard the funniest joke. "Are you trying to stall for time, Smelian? What good would contacting your Female Master do? Considering the state of your relationship, do you really think she’ll bother with you?"

In his opinion, if Smelian truly had a good relationship with his Female Master, he wouldn’t have spent so much time living in the hospital dorms.

Smelian ignored the department head and looked at the lead official from the Male Management Agency, awaiting his answer.

"I hope you’re not just stalling for time. Go ahead." The request was reasonable. As one of Duke Lu Xia’s husbands, Smelian was naturally under her jurisdiction.

If they tried to stop him from informing his Female Master, they would be breaking the rules.

Smelian turned, activated his terminal, and sent a video call request to Lu Xia.

He had braced himself for the call to be rejected or to be left waiting for a long time. He never expected Lu Xia to answer so quickly, with almost no delay.

When the video connected, Lu Xia looked as though she had just recently returned home. Seeing Smelian still in his white coat, she couldn’t help but ask, "What’s wrong, Smelian? You haven’t finished work? Are you working overtime tonight?"

"I might need to work a little overtime. I’m sorry to bother you at this hour, but the Male Management Agency came to see me. They received a report from the hospital, claiming that I haven’t received your affection since our relationship was confirmed. Now they want to conduct a physical examination."

Smelian recounted the events plainly. On the screen, the woman frowned. "Who reported you? Where are the people from the Male Management Agency?"

Smelian turned and presented the virtual screen to the men from the Male Management Agency. "My Female Master wishes to speak with you."

The men from the Male Management Agency froze the moment they saw Duke Lu Xia on the screen. ’They never expected that Smelian—the one reported to have a terrible relationship with his Female Master—would actually manage to contact her. And she was even willing to stand up for him? What in the world was going on?’

But they didn’t have time to dwell on it. Duke Lu Xia was already speaking. "I seem to recall that the last time you visited my home, I made it quite clear. I manage my own husbands. I don’t require your assistance. Or were my words not clear enough?"

Although these particular men hadn’t been the ones to visit Duke Lu Xia’s Mansion last time, they’d heard all about it. The agents who did go hadn’t stopped complaining about how uncooperative the Duke was.

They should have been prepared. They just hadn’t thought it through. ’If we’d known this would happen,’ they thought, ’we never would have come.’

A wave of regret washed over them.

The lead official from the Male Management Agency scrambled to explain. "Apologies. The information we received must have been erroneous. We have clearly misunderstood your relationship with Smelian. Please, forgive us."

"Who was the informant?" Lu Xia demanded, her voice cold. She clearly had no intention of letting the matter drop.

"Well... we have a policy of confidentiality. We cannot disclose the informant’s identity. Please, you must understand."

"I don’t understand. Did the informant need to be understanding when he slandered Smelian? I now have reasonable suspicion that this person is trying to tarnish my reputation. If you refuse to disclose his name, I will initiate legal proceedings. I am quite confident I can obtain his information that way and ask him myself exactly how I’ve offended him."

Faced with Duke Lu Xia’s unyielding stance, the men from the Male Management Agency finally grasped the severity of the situation. If the Duke truly pursued legal action, they would be powerless to resist. The agency’s authority would take a massive hit.

Cold sweat trickled down the lead official’s back. The department head was in a similar state. He had never imagined that Duke Lu Xia would actually go to bat for Smelian. This was the complete opposite of what he’d predicted!

Just as he was anxiously wondering if the Male Management Agency would give him up, they dashed his hopes. "The informant is a man named Dean."

Hearing the name, Lu Xia addressed Smelian directly. "Is this Dean at your hospital?"

Smelian lifted his gaze to the department head, who was desperately trying to shrink behind the officials. Smelian gave a cold smile. "He’s my direct superior. The head of the surgery department."

"I see. Please be so kind as to inform him that I will be visiting him personally tomorrow to demand an explanation. As for you, you can get off work and come home now. If I don’t see you at home in thirty minutes, I will be contacting the Male Management Agency myself."

With that, Lu Xia said no more and ended the call.

As the virtual screen vanished, everyone except Smelian felt not a sense of relief, but an even greater pressure crushing down on them. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

That was just through a video call. Duke Lu Xia wasn’t even physically present, yet the sheer force of her presence had been almost unbearable.

’If they were to confront her in person, what chance would they possibly stand?’

"We are terribly sorry. We acted rashly and disturbed you without a proper investigation. It was completely inappropriate of us. Please, forgive us. We hope you can explain to Duke Lu Xia on our behalf that this was a genuine mistake on our part."

The men from the Male Management Agency had completely abandoned their earlier arrogance, now acting with extreme humility.

They had no choice. They were terrified that Duke Lu Xia would actually contact their superiors. If that happened, they would be the ones in deep trouble.