On the way to the rehabilitation center, the driver kept glancing at the rearview mirror. “President Qin, there’s a car behind us that’s been following for a while.”
“Let it follow,” Qin Yu said calmly as he dealt with his emails. “Enter through the main gate of the rehabilitation center.”
Entering the rehabilitation center required registration. Qin Yu’s car had a permit but over the past few years he had always used the side entrance, first, because it was closer to the small building and second, because it left no record of his comings and goings.
“He Rui, leak everything that happens tonight to Qin Huajie,” Qin Yu said. “The sooner, the better.”
The driver followed the order and kept driving but He Rui hesitated. “President Qin, Chairman Qin specifically instructed that there was no need to interact with the one from the Xie family…”
Qin Yu did not look up. He only asked calmly, “He Rui, how many years have you been by my side?”
“President Qin, three years.”
“Three years.” Qin Yu’s voice was steady. “Just report my daily itinerary to him in detail like before. I have a sense of proportion in this matter.”
The car fell into dead silence. Only after a long while did He Rui’s hesitant voice sound. “…Understood, President Qin.”
Zheng Lan had already fallen asleep. Qin Yu sat by the bed for a long time and by the time he returned to the Qin residence, it was already close to dawn.
The brand-new gravel path leading to the most secluded detached building was clearly freshly laid. There were still weeds by the side that hadn’t been cleared away, making the place look desolate under the heavy night sky.
Qin Yu returned to his room and waited for a while longer before changing clothes and going downstairs.
Faint light seeped from the top-floor room of the detached building. Dressed in black, Qin Yu pushed open the door downstairs. Because no one had lived there for a long time, it let out a creaking sound.
The interior was pitch-black. Qin Yu didn’t take the elevator. He turned on his phone’s flashlight and steadily climbed the stairs to the top floor. The room door was closed but not tightly shut. Qin Yu walked straight up and pushed it open.
It wasn’t a suite, just a single bedroom. To be precise, it looked more like a hospital ward.
Qin Yu closed the door, stepped over the shards of a glass cup scattered near the entrance and walked inside.
Reminded of his youth by a bowl of wontons at a street stall, Ren Yi dragged Xie Wangyuan to an esports café, insisting on reliving their high school memories.
They hadn’t played for long before Ren Yi dejectedly tossed aside the controller, collapsing into a beanbag chair and wailing, “This isn’t scientific! How is it that after all these years, I’m still getting crushed by you?!”
Xie Wangyuan hadn’t touched games in a long time either. After a few rounds, his competitive spirit had been stirred. Focused, he gripped the controller and kicked Ren Yi lightly. “Hurry up and respawn. After this round, let’s team up.”
Ren Yi resigned himself to picking up the controller again, muttering, “Was I missing a screw in my head back in high school? Getting beaten this badly every time and still pulling all-nighters with you every day.”
“High school…” Ren Yi suddenly slapped his thigh. “I knew Qin Yu looked familiar! He kind of resembles someone from high school!”
After killing Ren Yi once more, Xie Wangyuan shot him a curious glance. “You even went to school? You actually met people from school?”
“I didn’t go many times but that’s still better than you, who only showed up three times in three years,” Ren Yi retorted confidently. “And hey, I even went up on stage to receive an award, okay?”
Xie Wangyuan snorted. “You? Receiving an award?”
Ren Yi scratched his head and cleared his throat awkwardly. “Next to the podium… the one waiting to read a self-criticism.”
“At the time, the principal insisted that that student go up to receive his award and give a speech but the guy flat-out refused and left. I was standing nearby watching, so the impression stuck with me,” Ren Yi said. “I think they even said his family situation was bad, that he lived off part-time jobs, school sponsorships and scholarships. He does look a bit similar, so how did the gap get so big? Qin Yu grew up overseas.”
Xie Wangyuan raised a brow. “Did that person also have a tear mole?”
“How would I remember that clearly?” Ren Yi scratched his head again. “I just thought it was impressive that a Beta with such poor conditions could still have such good grades. Otherwise, how would I remember him until now? Come to think of it, their names might even both have ‘yu’ in them…”
“What yu?” Xie Wangyuan tossed aside his controller too and scratched at the scabbed-over wound on his forehead. “Looks similar, name is similar, doesn’t that make it perfect to go strike up a conversation with Qin Yu?”
“‘You look a lot like someone I know.’ That’s a pretty good opening line, isn’t it?”
Ren Yi slowly looked into Xie Wangyuan’s eyes, making sure he wasn’t joking. Only then did his lips move as he asked with difficulty, “Brother Yuan, do you really think that’s a good opening line…?”
Xie Wangyuan raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t it? Even shameless persistence requires technique. I’m not some hooligan.”
Ren Yi said, “You’re not a hooligan but isn’t this behavior basically textbook substitute drama, scumbag Alpha behavior…”
“Is it?” Xie Wangyuan imagined it with amusement and pressed on. “You think someone like Qin Yu, how would he react if he knew he was being treated as a substitute? Think carefully again. What was that name?”
“Zheng… Jing… Yu…”
The man on the bed turned his head at the sound. He froze for a moment, then intense hatred gathered in his eyes. “Zheng Jingyu!”
Qin Yu stopped at the foot of the bed and said calmly, “Second Brother, long time no see.”
Qin Jingxuan reached out, wanting to smash something but there was nothing left by the bed to throw. The only cup had already been shattered earlier that evening when he had driven Wu Zhiyun away.
Propping himself up on the bed with difficulty, Qin Jingxuan lifted his head, his teeth almost grinding together. “Zheng Jingyu, you illegitimate child and a Beta at that… what right do you have to enter the Qin family?!”
After that night six years ago, Qin Jingxuan had been urgently sent from C City to an authoritative hospital overseas. During the two years of hospitalization, he had undergone several resuscitations due to severe gland damage. Most of the time, he had been unconscious and even when he woke intermittently, his awareness was far from clear.
It wasn’t until he endured the long semi-comatose period and escaped the danger of death that he was transferred to a hospital in Z City back home. After his condition improved somewhat, Qin Jingxuan finally realized what had happened to him.
Thanks to the careful care of attendants, the muscles of his limp, powerless limbs hadn’t completely atrophied but what terrified him was that he could no longer smell his own pheromones.
He had become an Alpha with damaged glands, someone whose survival could be called a “miracle,” yet who no longer had any pheromones.
“Illegitimate child, Beta…” Qin Yu repeated softly, as though hearing something amusing. He suddenly smiled. “Second Brother, you’ve just returned. You probably don’t know yet, I’m called Qin Yu now.”
Of course Qin Jingxuan knew. He simply refused to believe that he had already been discarded by the Qin family and even more refused to believe that the one who replaced him was Qin Yu, whom he had once tormented and humiliated at every turn.
Yet in these years in Z City, only Wu Zhiyun had ever gone to see him.
Qin Weihong had completely abandoned him.
Qin Jingxuan stared blankly, finally losing the strength to keep himself propped up. His head slammed back against the pillow as he gasped for breath. “Are you here to laugh at me?”
Qin Yu walked to the side of the bed and slowly bent down. Satisfied, he saw the unmistakable fear in Qin Jingxuan’s widening eyes. He spoke slowly.
“I’m happy. Very happy to see that you’re still alive.”
Qin Yu slightly curved his lips. The smile on his face was sincere, his eyes gently arched and the tear mole beneath them served as a perfect finishing touch, vivid and radiant, like a spring breeze rippling across the surface of a lake.
“Second… brother,” he said softly, every word clear and deliberate. “You must not only live well but also live well as a cripple. A useless person. An Alpha who no longer has pheromones.”
His smile did not fade. Instead, it grew even gentler, even warmer.
“This,” Qin Yu continued unhurriedly, “is the gift I returned to you six years ago. Do you like it?”
✦ ✧ ✦
Vynellia
[Translator]
☕ A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR THE TRANSLATOR
✧ Your mission, should you choose to accept it: FEED THE TRANSLATOR. ✧
☕ 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