Xie Wangyuan had gone out on an empty stomach. At the banquet he’d only eaten some fruit and on the way back he chain-smoked nonstop, grumbling, “Ge, I drank too much last night. I haven’t eaten all day. If we go home at this hour, there’s nothing to eat at all, I’m seriously going to starve to death.”
Xie Jun deliberately sat in the front passenger seat, window wide open to air out the smoke. “Nothing to eat around here. I’ll have the kitchen make something when we get back.”
“Dad already said the kitchen won’t fire up just for me.” Leaning over the back of Xie Jun’s seat, Xie Wangyuan exhaled smoke toward the front. “If I weren’t starving, would I be smoking nonstop? But you won’t have to smell it for long, because soon I’ll be a corpse.”
The smoke was unbearable. Xie Jun finally had no choice but to tell the driver to take a detour and see if they could find something to shut Xie Wangyuan up.
They were lucky. Not long after, Wangyuan spotted a narrow, brightly lit plastic tent by the roadside, steam drifting from within.
A street stall. The moment he saw it, Xie Jun mentally removed it from the category of ‘restaurants,’ and the driver clearly had no intention of slowing down either.
“Stop, stop, stop! Pull over, I’m eating that!”
Before Xie Jun could even react, Xie Wangyuan had already jumped out of the car, gone straight to the stall, said something to the owner beside the flaming stove and plopped himself onto a tiny stool at a grimy, flimsy folding table.
Face showing clear discomfort, Xie Jun turned to the driver. “Drive ahead a bit. We’ll wait for him.”
Elbows on the table, Xie Wangyuan watched the stall owner drop wontons into the small pot on the stove, then quickly return to wrapping more.
It had been years since he’d seen a stall like this. Back in high school, after every all-nighter, he would roam the alleys at dawn, find a street vendor, eat his fill, then go home to sleep.
The steaming bowl of freshly cooked wontons smelled strongly of broth simmered with pork bones, rich and fragrant, topped with seaweed, dried shrimp, scallions and cilantro.
After being hungry too long, his stomach had stopped complaining altogether but the moment he smelled it, his appetite surged. He swallowed unconsciously, grabbed a pair of disposable chopsticks and popped a steaming hot wonton straight into his mouth.
It was scalding, far too hot to bite. It slid down his throat whole, burning all the way, leaving him unable to taste anything at all.
Instantly, tears and sweat flooded his face.
The stall had no iced water. Half a bottle of mineral water later, he finally recovered. By then the wontons had cooled enough to eat properly. Eyes still red, he ate one after another without pause, eventually draining the bowl of broth clean.
It was probably the most satisfying meal he’d had since returning to the country.
After finishing, he wiped his mouth and lit another cigarette.
There had been quite a few omegas at tonight’s banquet. Even though they’d all used blockers and perfume to mask their pheromones, Wangyuan, who was extremely sensitive to scents, still caught faint traces here and there.
He had injected his suppressant before going out and his blocker patch was properly secured. The low concentration of omega pheromones didn’t affect him much but his nape still felt uncomfortable.
When he finished smoking, he resisted the urge to tear off the patch and scratch the back of his neck. Leaving some bills behind, he stood up to go.
The stall owner hurried after him, wiping his hands on his apron and holding the money. “Just one bowl of wontons, this is too much…”
“No small bills. The phone’s dead. Just take it.”
Wangyuan shook another cigarette loose and bit down on it, mumbling to himself, “I’ve helped so many stalls like this, I’ve lost count and still no good karma, huh, Xie Wangyuan?”
“Tsk. Should’ve kept a little notebook all these years,” he muttered. “Someday when I die, I could carve it all on my tombstone so the people who hate me won’t have any reason to dance on my grave to spite me…”
Xie Jun waited until the car had finally aired out before rolling the window back up. He had intended to talk to Wangyuan about his behavior tonight but when he thought of that mouth of his, his head started aching again.
His phone showed three missed calls from Xie Tiancheng. After hesitating, he still didn’t turn off silent mode.
Full of warm food and cigarette heat, Wangyuan stepped inside the living room, only for a flash of white to fly toward him. He instinctively shifted his body aside. A teacup shattered behind him, shards scattering, instantly breaking his satisfied, post-meal laziness.
“Dad, what are you doing?” Wangyuan looked down at his pants leg, dampened by splashed tea, cold sweat running down his back. “My lifeline, maybe you don’t care but I do. Without it, how am I supposed to survive out there?”
Xie Tiancheng threw another teacup. “The less you have, the better! Saves you from seeing any beta and immediately acting like… ”
“Like a dog. Sorry, Dad, I forgot, turns out I’m the dog who can’t resist a bone.” Stepping over the spilled tea, Wangyuan even kindly poured him another cup of already cold tea, sighing. “But Qin Yu’s really too much my type. The moment I saw him, my lower half-”
“Shut up!” Xie Tiancheng couldn’t listen anymore. He slapped the cold tea out of his hand. “What did you promise me before?!”
Xie Jun walked in, refilled the tea, poured a fresh cup for his father and looked helplessly at Wangyuan.
Touching his nose, Wangyuan remembered his soon-to-be-frozen card and tried to negotiate. “About my card…”
“Don’t even think about it!”
“Tsk.” He clicked his tongue in regret, then asked with hopeful brightness, “Then if I go to the company to sleep and waste time, they’ll still pay me a salary, right?”
“You’re not going. The Xie Corporation can’t afford an employee who eats but doesn’t work.” Tiancheng was past anger, now numb. “Going to the company just to sleep and mess around, you think you don’t already have enough labels attached to you?!”
Wangyuan sighed another regretful “tsk.”
Having just seen Qin Yu tonight and with a full stomach, he was in a great mood. So he patiently continued, “Still, I really want my card back. What should we do about that?”
Tiancheng stared at him coldly, unable to understand how such a shameless creature could come from his family. “You really want it?”
“Of course,” Wangyuan said, nodding firmly. “Without money, I can’t survive. Without money, how am I supposed to go flirt-”
“Enough.” Tiancheng cut him off before he could spew more filth. “I’ve already spoken with Lele. He’ll be coming back soon.”
Some expressions finally shifted on Wangyuan’s face. He waited for more. “And?”
“So, when he’s finished with his work,” Tiancheng said slowly, “You’ll go pick him up and bring him home for dinner. After dinner, I’ll unfreeze your card.”
Wangyuan stared at him and enunciated each word: “I go pick him up?”
“Yes. Lele has an endorsement shoot in a few days. Once it’s done, you go pick him up and then honestly sit down and have dinner with us.” Tiancheng turned to Xie Jun. “A’Jun, I’ll tell you the exact date in advance. You and your family will come back that night too.”
Xie Jun glanced at Wangyuan and nodded. “Okay, Dad.”
Tiancheng looked back at his expressionless younger son. “Well? It’s just picking him up and bringing him home for dinner. In exchange, your card will be unfrozen, for good. Not too much to ask, right?”
Wangyuan stared at Tiancheng, who clearly believed he had the upper hand. “After that… you really won’t freeze it again?”
“I won’t,” Tiancheng said dismissively. “Like you said yourself, freezing your card doesn’t accomplish anything anyway.”
“Sure, no problem.” Xie Wangyuan replied with zero politeness. “Then get me a Bugatti first as the deposit for my appearance fee. Deposits are non-refundable.”
Xie Tiancheng: “Get out.”
Xie Wangyuan very efficiently rolled himself out the door and headed straight to Yomey Bar.
“Wait, Brother Yuan, you surrendered that easily? Just like that?!”
Because Ren Yi had given instructions in advance, the private room, normally a place full of wild partying, had been turned into a pure karaoke room tonight. A few of Ren Yi’s friends were fighting over the microphone, wailing like ghosts.
“That’s true but still-” Ren Yi suddenly realized something, then straightened his expression and said solemnly, “No, Brother Yuan, actually you’re right. A wise man adapts to circumstances. When it’s time to bow your head, you bow your head. You’re a wise man.”
“Speak human language.”
Ren Yi forced a grin. “Bro, I really can’t afford to support you.”
Xie Wangyuan: “…”
The door of the private room opened. A tall, handsome Alpha walked in, followed closely by a small Omega wrapped up in a hat, sunglasses and a mask from head to toe. The two were holding hands tightly. “We just watched a movie nearby.”
“You two are really bold.” Ren Yi was long used to their lovey-dovey antics. He scooted further inside the sofa to make space. “You still dare go to a big public theater to watch a movie?”
“Can’t help it. An’an just loves the atmosphere in real cinemas. He doesn’t like watching anywhere else.” Meng Chaozhi greeted the guys who were howling into the microphone, then wrapped an arm around Zhou Qing’an’s waist and sat down with him. “If someone snaps a photo, worst case, we just go public. Throw enough money around and he can still keep filming, right, baby?”
Zhou Qing’an removed his hat, sunglasses and mask, leaning toward Meng Chaozhi with embarrassment and quietly observed Xie Wangyuan with a hint of curiosity.
Meng Chaozhi smiled and gave Zhou Qing’an a quick kiss before introducing the two sides. He poured a glass of liquor and after Zhou Qing’an nodded his permission, clinked his glass lightly with Xie Wangyuan’s.
Ren Yi’s teeth hurt from the sweetness. He gave Meng Chaozhi a look of pure speechlessness, then went to join the wailing chorus.
“Thanks for last time.” Xie Wangyuan downed half a glass of straight whiskey in one go. “In a few days, I’ll need you to help me with something again.”
Hearing that, Meng Chaozhi finished his drink as well and asked with interest, “You’re really chaining one scheme after another. Trying to anger your dad into an early grave?”
“Where would I dare?” Xie Wangyuan passed him a cigarette. Meng Chaozhi accepted it but didn’t light it. Xie Wangyuan glanced at Zhou Qing’an, then simply bit the cigarette between his own teeth, speaking around it, his words muffled. “But I’m a filial son. Isn’t it only right that I find ways to repay his kindness?”
✦ ✧ ✦
Vynellia
[Translator]
☕ A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR THE TRANSLATOR
Congratulations. You survived the chapter. Now survive the coffee request. 😈
☕ BUY THEM A COFFEE →
✧ (づ｡•ㅅ•｡)づ ☕ ✧
✦ thank you for reading ✦
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ChaptersChapter 1 · A Beta who looks particularly attractiveChapter 2 · Illegitimate child? BetaChapter 3 · Am I going to kick a hornet’s nest?Chapter 4 · A banquet that only Betas can attendChapter 5 · The young man’s heart was wastedChapter 6 · What’s so fun about Beta?Chapter 7 · Your dad has too many loversChapter 8 · Date with a ‘beautyChapter 9 · Long Time no see…Chapter 10 · He’ll definitely be the dominant oneChapter 11 · Seeing Qin Yu was like a dog seeing a bone.Chapter 12 · Young Master Qin, what a coincidenceChapter 13 · I don’t like things that other people have touched.Chapter 14 · Just call him “little brother”Chapter 15 · Are you going to pursue Xiao Mei O?Chapter 16 · The dead are deadChapter 17 · Qin Yu, aren’t you going to take responsibility?Chapter 18 · Xie Wangyuan and his dog are not allowed insideChapter 19 · Got into his carChapter 20 · He really gave me a hard timeChapter 21 · You actually Like that beta?Chapter 22 · Like an Alpha catching his wife cheatingChapter 23 · How do you want me to repay you?Chapter 24 · An Alpha without pheromonesChapter 25 · I’m determined to get my hands on Qin YuChapter 26 · Whatever service you needChapter 27 · Honey, shall I put it on for you?Chapter 28 · Mr. Qin has a rather unique aesthetic senseChapter 29 · Who says Qin Yu is hard to deal with?Chapter 30 · Please teach me, Teacher QinChapter 31 · These are all he can lose.Chapter 32 · I’m looking for someone who has “disappeared”.Chapter 33 · A new meaning in his lifeChapter 34 · Your birthday is in a few days, right?Chapter 35 · Just the two of us.Chapter 36 · It was like Qin Yu’s O-selection banquetChapter 37 · He saw himself clearly in his eyesChapter 38 · Do those Betas really make you this comfortable?Chapter 39 · Qin Yu, you just wait.Chapter 40 · I’m to blame for stealing tonight’s main characterChapter 41 · If you have only one piece of clothing left, you winChapter 42 · I admit defeatChapter 43 · He is my lover!Chapter 44 · What kind of cult is Yuyuan?Chapter 45 · There are no other BetasChapter 46 · Go to bedChapter 47 · Susceptible periodChapter 48 · Qin Yu, are you a damn dog?!Chapter 49 · It would be best to lock us up completelyChapter 50 · I’ll give you five million, leave my sonChapter 51 · Other Alphas smell awfulChapter 52 · He can’t possibly be like those stupid Alpha dogsChapter 53 · Only youChapter 54 · Go ahead and say what you just said again if you dareChapter 55 · I thought you were going to meet someone at night.Chapter 56 · Swallow it.Chapter 57 · Service fee for the second young masterChapter 58 · He touched it himself and showed it to meChapter 59 · To make an Alpha no longer need an OmegaChapter 60 · They’re kindly taking me in?Chapter 61 · Qin Yu is different.Chapter 62 · HelpChapter 63 · At times like this and that with Qin Yu.Chapter 64 · We will never abandon themChapter 65 · My wife’s surname is QinChapter 66 · Two numbersChapter 67 · Qin Yu and dogs are not allowed insideChapter 68 · Eat a lotChapter 69 · It’s a must-eatChapter 70 · Batian misses youChapter 71 · Earn money to support your wife.Chapter 72 · I hug you like a crossChapter 73 · Use these to exchange for a wish.Chapter 74 · Extra 1Chapter 75 · Extra 2Chapter 76 · Extra 3Chapter 77 · Extra 4Chapter 78 · Extra 5Chapter 79 · Extra 6Chapter 80 · Extra 7Chapter 81 · Extra 8Chapter 82 · Extra 9Chapter 83 · Extra 10Chapter 84 · Extra 11Chapter 85 · Extra 12