Automatic page numbering on even-numbered pages

I’m working with a InDesign template created in earlier versions, where the first page is an even-numbered page (page 2), with automatic page numbering. In version 21, when I place an object on page 3 (for example, an image), InDesign changes the numbering of the first page to 1 and makes it an odd-numbered page (and so on with the page numbering throughout the document); and if I try to manually reassign the number 2 to the first page, the application simply ignores it and keeps it as page 1. The only way I’ve found to keep the first page as an even number is to place it on the first page, select ‘Start page numbering at’ and assign it the number 2. But then, when I add the documents to a book, it forces me to change all the documents back to the ‘automatic numbering’ option, which slows everything down unnecessarily. Does anyone know of a way to avoid this and ensure that the pages retain the order of the template, as in previous versions?