With major video platforms launching dating reality shows by popular demand, Mango Video’s large-scale reality dating show, Falling for Another Self in This World, was about to premiere in a live broadcast format.
Let us guess which guests will be joining us. A little spoiler in advance: there will be two female and four male guests.
Let us all look forward to the New Year’s Eve live broadcast on December 31st!
[Dating shows! I love watching dating shows so much!]
[Great! There is a new show to watch. I hope the guests’ appearances this time will be even better than before!]
[Don’t worry, everyone; Mango TV’s aesthetic is universally approved by the public.]
[Is it just me whose focus drifted? Two women and four men, does that mean there will be sweet Omegas?]
[Same as above. Just thinking about having Omegas makes me too excited to sleep!]
Browsing Weibo in the van, Shi Ruan could not feel happy at all looking at these comments.
Chapter 2
Just a day ago, his parents had suddenly tracked him down. Shi Ruan, who had not been in touch with his family for two years, could not figure out why they were suddenly reaching out.
Yet, deep down, he still held a lingering hope for his family, so he obeyed and went home.
“You finally decided to show your face!” As soon as he stepped through the door, he heard his father’s angry voice. “Do you still see us as your parents? You have not come back to visit us for so long! I see you have grown wings and think you are mighty now, have you?”
“Oh, goodness, isn’t the child back now? Don’t scare him,” Shi Mu hurried over to stop Shi Fu. “Ruanruan, come here. Mom made your favorite sweet and sour pork ribs today.”
This sudden pivot left Shi Ruan, who had always felt like an invisible presence in the house since childhood, feeling flattered and overwhelmed.
“Mom, thank you.” Just as Shi Ruan’s heart melted completely and he thought his parents were finally starting to value him, he saw Shi Yan.
“Brother, you are back!” Shi Yan looked at Shi Ruan with a beaming smile, but no matter how one looked at it, the smile was hypocritical, instantly plunging Shi Ruan into silence. “Brother, sit down!”
The moment he saw Shi Yan, Shi Ruan was flooded with unpleasant memories.
“Hey, Shi Yan, is he really your brother? But you and your brother are an Alpha and an Omega, and your parents are also an Alpha and an Omega, so why is he just a Beta?”
“Hahahaha, didn’t your family pick him up from a dumpster? Why is he so dirty?”
“Hey, dirty kid! Stay away from us!”
Back then, Shi Ruan had been wearing clothes that the nanny had been instructed by Shi Yan not to change for three days. Standing there at a loss, he listened to those children use their childish voices to show disgust toward him.
Little Shi Ruan did not understand what those taunts meant, but he could clearly see his Omega younger brother, who was only ten minutes younger than him, wearing clean clothes and looking at him as if he were trash.
Yet when Shi Ruan tried to complain to his father and mother, he was scolded instead.
Shi Fu felt that Shi Ruan was making a spectacle of himself just for being a Beta, which completely disgraced him.
Therefore, from then on, whenever guests visited the house or a banquet was held, Shi Ruan was strictly forbidden from stepping out of his bedroom.
Even the family nanny knew that although Shi Ruan was the second young master of the house, he was completely unloved because he was a Beta, and nobody took him seriously.
Shi Ruan grew up in a family devoid of even a shred of love.
Fortunately, he met Manager Liu, who brought him into the entertainment industry.
At this moment, although Shi Yan was not looking at him with that specific gaze, his look still made Shi Ruan feel thoroughly uncomfortable, as if something of his was being plotted against.
Sure enough, halfway through the meal, Shi Mu spoke up.
“Ruanruan, now that you are a celebrity and famous, can you bring your younger brother along with you?” Shi Mu asked cautiously in a consultative tone, knowing full well that Shi Ruan was most susceptible to this approach.
“I do not even have many resources myself.” The Shi family’s company was quite large, but it had never ventured into the entertainment industry, nor had they ever thought of spending money to buy resources for Shi Ruan.
The meager fame Shi Ruan had now was entirely built up bit by bit, starting from playing background extras.
“What do you mean? You have grown wings now and do not want to help your brother, is that it? If the family business had not stayed out of the entertainment industry, I would not have let you come back in the first place!” Before Shi Ruan could finish, Shi Fu flew into a rage. “If you do not want to bring your brother along, get out of this house right now. I will just pretend I never had a son like you.”
“Brother, do you hate me so much that you do not want to bring me? I just want to participate in Director Wu’s dating show with you.” Shi Yan was exceptionally skilled at utilizing his advantages; tears welled up and began to fall before he even finished speaking. “If Brother does not want to, then forget it, but please do not hate me.”
Shi Ruan stood helpless in front of these family members who did not have an ounce of genuine affection for him.
It was precisely because Shi Yan was so good at acting in front of their parents.
When Shi Ruan finished the college entrance examinations and Shi Yan destroyed his university admission letter, Shi Yan had put on that exact same expression, acting as if any blame placed on him was entirely Shi Ruan’s own fault.
Especially Shi Fu and Shi Mu, who continued to side with Shi Yan even after he ruined such a crucial life milestone for Shi Ruan.
【Ruanruan, you are the older brother, so you need to accommodate your younger brother. He is still young and does not understand these things.】
【Humph, what is the use of a Beta studying? He is like this entirely because you spoil him, Mother. Is the family really short of a bowl of rice for him? Studying or not studying makes no difference.】
Uncharacteristically, Shi Ruan, who was usually weak and never fought back even when bullied black and blue, made a firm and resolute decision for the first time.
Shi Ruan resolutely accepted a scout’s invitation and entered the entertainment industry.
Shi Ruan still remembered what Shi Fu had said to him back then. He had said that people in the entertainment industry were nothing more than actors and performers, no different from prostitutes selling their bodies, and that if Shi Ruan dared to go, he should never come back.
How was it that now, when it came to Shi Yan, Shi Fu not only raised no objections, but actually wanted Shi Ruan, this performer who supposedly sold his body, to bring Shi Yan along?
“Alright, I will take him with me, but only this time.” Shi Ruan compromised, thinking to himself that this would be the very last time.
He had finally lost all remaining hope for this family, and henceforth, he only hoped that their paths would diverge permanently.
“Ruanruan is such a good boy. You know that your brother is an Omega, so you must protect him well on the show, okay?” Shi Mu had achieved her goal, yet she was not satisfied and continued to rub salt into Shi Ruan’s wounds.
Yes.
Despite having a gentle name like Ruanruan, Shi Ruan was not an Omega.
He was a Beta. In a society dominated by Betas, Alphas and Omegas were exceptionally precious. Because of their extraordinary physical strength and mental fortitude, Alphas typically controlled top-tier societal resources. However, due to their rut cycles and hard-to-control pheromones, the probability of them becoming criminals increased significantly.
Coupled with accelerating social development, the natural conception rate of Betas continued to drop, while Omegas were treated like treasures bestowed upon humanity by the goddess of fertility. An Omega’s powerful reproductive capacity was their advantage, but their physical strength was the lowest among all genders. This led the government to introduce many protective policies for Omegas, allowing them to live in society just like normal Betas.
Every Alpha and Omega had their own unique pheromone; for instance, Shi Yan’s pheromone smelled like cream. The higher the compatibility between an Alpha and an Omega, the higher the pheromone grade of the child they would bear, and the stronger their abilities would be.
Unwilling to speak any further with them, Shi Ruan nodded, hurried through the tasteless, flavorless lunch, and left the Shi residence.
“Mom, do you think Brother will really take me on the show?” After Shi Ruan left, Shi Yan asked a question he already knew the answer to, feigning innocence.
“My darling, don’t worry,” Shi Mu looked lovingly at her Omega younger son. “Mom and Dad will definitely send you there. It is best if your brother takes you, but if he does not, Dad will invest in the show and send you anyway.”
“That is right, sweetheart, do not worry. You are the family’s precious treasure, and Dad is willing to do anything for you as long as you are happy.” In front of Shi Yan, Shi Fu always played the role of a good father.
Shi Yan got the answer he wanted and said happily, “I knew Mom and Dad are the best to me.”
“But won’t Brother resent us for doing this?” Turning around, Shi Yan put on a worried expression once again, as if he were genuinely troubled by the matter.
“He wouldn’t dare!” Shi Fu, naturally, could not tolerate any challenge to his authority as the head of the household. “I raised him all these years, and he dares to harbor resentment just because I asked him to do a small task? That would be unacceptable!”
“Shi Ruan is just an ungrateful wretch! He was unraisable since childhood; as soon as the college entrance exams ended, he entered the entertainment industry and did not come back for two years.” Shi Mu chimed in.
Yet they completely omitted the fact that they had destroyed Shi Ruan’s admission letter.
“And whose fault is that? You spoiled him! In my opinion, a Beta should just stay properly at home. At worst, we could arrange a position for him at the company.”
The position Shi Fu had in mind for Shi Ruan was the kind of desk job where he would work from nine to five, face forced overtime from time to time, serve as a punching bag for superiors, act as the office pushover in the eyes of colleagues, and earn a meager salary of three thousand yuan a month.
Shi Fu would probably even guard against Shi Ruan like a thief, terrified that he might steal the company away.
Hearing Shi Fu complain about her again because of Shi Ruan, Shi Mu’s dissatisfaction toward Shi Ruan deepened further.
It was all his fault for being disobedient and causing Shi Fu to treat her poorly; why couldn’t he just be obedient?
Seeing that the scene had achieved the exact outcome he desired, a flash of amusement crossed Shi Yan’s eyes as he contentedly resumed eating.
He was not worried in the slightest about whether he would become popular after entering the entertainment industry. Although his looks were inferior to Shi Ruan’s, having the identity of an Omega alone guaranteed him fans; after all, Omegas were rare nowadays, and Omegas who could enter the entertainment industry were even scarcer.
Besides, his manager had told him that as long as he entered the same variety show as Shi Ruan, he would find a way to step on Shi Ruan to rise to the top and make a name for himself in the entertainment industry.
After all, the returns on investing in an Omega far exceeded those of investing in a Beta.
While this place was filled with heavy scheming, far away on the other side of City A, in the top-floor office of the Thin Corporation’s headquarters, a completely different conversation was taking place.
“BOSS, the Fall in Love variety show that you asked us to invest in has been arranged, and your itinerary has also been finalized.” Assistant Xu dutifully reported on the work.
Yet inwardly, ripples of doubt arose: Why would the CEO suddenly think of investing in a reality show and even reserve a guest spot for himself? Could it be that after being single for so many years, he was finally becoming impatient? But none of these were matters for an assistant to manage.
“By the way, Boss, Director Wu just contacted me saying that the manager of Shi Ruan, whom you asked to pay close attention to, inquired whether the production team could bring along one more person, claiming it is Mr. Shi’s twin brother. Director Wu said this will create a massive trending topic.”
“Hmm. Go tell the production team to agree to whatever Shi Ruan wants. Your year-end bonus for this year will be increased by thirty percent. Now you may leave.”
The man’s gentle voice sounded, but Assistant Xu, who had worked closely alongside him for a long time, knew very well that the man’s gentle exterior was merely an illusion.
He thought that being a psychopath or a control freak suited the man much better.
However, as a working-class employee who had toiled hard for a year, upon hearing that all his worries were wiped away and his salary was going up, he had no brain cells left to ponder anything else and happily scurried out of the office.
The spacious office remained quiet for a long time before a soft chuckle suddenly broke the silence.
The Alpha sitting behind the desk constantly asserted his presence. Even though he reined in his towering 3S+ pheromones, it was still enough to send waves of oppression washing over countless Alphas.
This was the legendary top Alpha of City A, the current head of the Thin Corporation, Thin Jing. Countless Omegas were utterly infatuated with him.
Yet rumors outside claimed that he was impotent, because this Alpha, who was already over twenty-eight years old, had never even been in a single relationship.
According to insiders, there was once an enemy who, in an attempt to frame him for raping an Omega, sent an Omega with an eighty-percent pheromone compatibility who was currently in heat right into his bed. Yet he had thrown the person out without changing his facial expression in the least.
Yet such a remarkably abstinent man, well, if impotence did not count, one could call it abstinence, was at this very moment slowly stroking a photograph of Shi Ruan in his hand, his thin lips parting slightly as he murmured:
“Heh, I have caught you, my little bunny.”
Banxia Novels, bringing you endless joy.