Chen Ming was hard to miss; the moment she stepped out of the arrivals hall, she looked more like an A-list celebrity than an ordinary traveler.
Wearing oversized sunglasses that concealed half her face, Chen Ming strolled out and spotted Chen Wen holding up the airport pickup sign. Hooking her index finger under the frame of her sunglasses, she revealed a pair of stunning eyes filled with helpless exasperation. She marched over in her high heels and gave Chen Wen a swift kick: “Idiot.”
Chen Wen winced and yelped, “Ow, ow, ow! That killed me. You really are my own flesh and blood.”
With a laugh, Chen Ming walked over to Du Jinchen. “I am going with Jinchen. Walking with you is way too embarrassing and lowers my value.”
Du Jinchen gentlemanly reached out to take Chen Ming’s handbag, a light smile playing on his lips. “Sister.”
To welcome Chen Ming back, Chen Wen had reserved a private dining room at a local restaurant ahead of time. The three of them did not take too long over their meal, especially since Beiyuan University started classes the next day and Du Jinchen still needed to complete his enrollment reporting.
Chen Ming took a sip of barley tea and pointed a finger at Chen Wen. “If you had just scored a few dozen points higher back then and made it into Beiyuan University with Jinchen, you would not have to spend every single day being nagged to death by Mom.”
“Do you think those extra dozen points are something you can just get by snapping your fingers?” Chen Wen retorted. “My current score is already the result of Mom burning endless incense to the Buddha every single day. Anyway, both my university and Jinchen’s are in the same city, so I am already satisfied.”
Chen Ming naturally knew her younger brother’s capabilities. While T University was not quite as elite as the top-tier institution Du Jinchen attended, it was still one of the finest universities around. She only liked to roast Chen Wen to his face; if she were talking to outsiders, she would already be bragging nonstop.
The brother and sister were inseparable when apart, but within three sentences of meeting up, they would start bickering. Du Jinchen was long used to it.
Taking advantage of their ongoing argument, Du Jinchen stepped out of the private room to settle the bill. Just then, his phone rang, as it was a call from one of his cycling buddies.
Du Jinchen answered. Through the receiver, he could hear background noise that sounded quite rowdy, as if the person was already drinking. “Jinchen, when do you have time to go for a ride? I have not seen you in ages!”
“I have been busy lately,” Du Jinchen replied, walking over to the public lounge area. Through the floor-to-ceiling window, he looked out at the night view. The entire city was blanketed in neon lights, looking as though it were encased inside a transparent glass lantern.
“Busy with what?” Zhao Shengxin chugged a mouthful of alcohol. “In your senior year of high school, you kept saying your study schedule was tight, which was somewhat understandable. But you have not been seen out riding once this entire summer break since the college entrance exams. Ever since you came back from that trip abroad last year, I feel like you have been completely depressed and out of it. What is going on?”
Du Jinchen’s hand unconsciously grazed the hem of his trousers, the veins on the back of his hand bulging slightly. The cold, aloof, refreshing scent of that omega’s pheromones seemed to linger near his nose once more, along with those damp, cat-like, crystal-clear eyes.
A sharp pain suddenly stabbed at his heart. Emotions surged within Du Jinchen’s gaze, but he quickly reined them in. Lowering his eyelashes, he said flatly, “It is nothing.”
“Chen Wen mentioned that you got hurt by an omega,” Zhao Shengxin said. “Is that true? I never would have imagined that Du Jinchen, our golden-bachelor Alpha, would ever get tangled up in love troubles.”
Du Jinchen frowned slightly. “No. Do not listen to Chen Wen talking nonsense.”
“Ah.” Sensing the stifled annoyance in Du Jinchen’s tone, Zhao Shengxin laughed it off. “Right, right. I always said that kid Chen Wen’s mouth is not reliable.”
He added, “Next time you go traveling, do not go alone. Call us to come with you, and it will definitely be way more interesting.”
“Tomorrow, then,” Du Jinchen said, not wanting to continue the topic of traveling. He lowered his voice. “I will ride with the cycling team tomorrow. You guys decide the loop.”
Hanging up the phone, Du Jinchen returned to the private room. The Chen siblings had nearly finished eating. Du Jinchen picked up the car keys, drove the two of them home, and then headed back on his own.
Early the next morning, following his usual routine, Du Jinchen cycled two laps around the city moat. With Bluetooth earphones plugged into his ears, the teenager’s sturdy back was arched like a hunting leopard. His strong, slender legs tightened and relaxed in rhythm, propelling him like a cheetah flying across the morning streets.
Morning light gradually enveloped the city, casting streaks of crystalline brilliance across the mottled, rippling surface of the water. With the sound of tires crushing withered leaves, the black-grey road bike carried the teenager over bluestone pavement and yellow foliage, riding further and further away.
Last night, Zhao Shengxin had posted in the cycling group chat to let everyone know Du Jinchen would be joining the ride today. It immediately set off a flurry of messages as everyone chattered excitedly about which route to take. Finally, they settled on Qingzhang Temple and Huairou Road, which were close to the city center and convenient for transportation.
Du Jinchen planned to stop by the university for his enrollment check-in first, and then head over to meet up with the cycling team.
Both Du Chengming and Xu Xian were professors at Beiyuan University. Having grown up right on campus, Du Jinchen had long since lost any sense of novelty regarding the place, but on the first day of the semester, he still needed to dutifully go through the motions.
Riding all the way to Beiyuan University, he found quite a few freshers who had arrived early.
In light athletic wear and with a tall, slender physique, Du Jinchen looked somewhat out of place standing amidst the swarm of incoming freshmen. It did not take long for people to notice him, and within minutes, several bold and outgoing omegas had already come over to ask for his contact information.
Fortunately, the efficiency of the senior students handling registration was quite high. After waiting a short while, it was finally his turn.
A senior student who had been burying her head in paperwork finally looked up and saw Du Jinchen. His light athletic wear hugged his well-defined muscles, and his arms and shoulders possessed smooth, athletic lines. Du Jinchen was holding his helmet while pulling off his sunglasses with his fingertips, revealing a pair of sharp, striking eyes.
The senior student’s face flushed red instantly. Even though the Alpha standing before her was not releasing any pheromones, she was still rendered hot-cheeked by his sheer handsomeness. Flustered, she quickly tried to compose herself and handed the registration form over to Du Jinchen: “Are you a freshman? Please fill out this form.”
Du Jinchen muttered a polite thank-you, picked up a ballpoint pen, and filled in his basic information. The senior could not help stealing a glance at his handwriting, which was bold, flowing, and powerful, just as striking as he was.
Du Jinchen penned his final signature and handed the form back.
In a fleeting moment, a faint, refreshing scent of lemon-kissed mint brushed past his nose. Du Jinchen’s peripheral vision caught the hem of a pure white shirt and a slender, fragile back that had long since been etched into the depths of his memory.
Du Jinchen froze. Then, he snapped his head around and stared in the direction of that retreating figure.
However, the welcome committee had suddenly drawn a crowd of people. Bustling and noisy, they blocked his line of sight. Everyone around him was wearing pristine white cultural shirts, holding welcoming flags, waving and fluttering them joyfully.
Du Jinchen hurriedly took a step forward, paying no mind to whatever the senior student behind him was calling out.
He parted the crowd to search for that figure, but it was no different from searching for a needle in a haystack. Pure white was everywhere around him, as if he had plunged straight into a vat of white dye. The boisterous noise threatened to swallow him whole, yet he still could not see clearly through the chaos.
It felt as though that person existed everywhere, yet nowhere at all.
That slender back seemed nothing more than an illusion conjured up by Du Jinchen’s own mind, a pure, fragile bubble drifting from the shadows into the scorching glare of the sun, vanishing into nothingness in a single second.
Du Jinchen looked around, standing alone amidst the sea of people.
Everywhere he looked were pure white backs, but none of them belonged to the person he was searching for.
It was not until the phone in his pocket began to ring that Du Jinchen snapped out of it, pulling himself back from that ocean of white.
Answering the call, Zhao Shengxin’s voice came through the speaker: “Jinchen, where are you? When are you getting here?”
Du Jinchen exhaled to steady the rapid rise and fall of his chest, calmed his emotions, and gave a low, neutral hum: “Coming now.”
Hanging up, Du Jinchen lowered his arm with a slightly battered expression. He curled his fingers into a fist, his fingernails digging into his palms, and let out a self-deprecating smirk.
“Seriously. I am out of my mind.”
Du Jinchen joined the cycling team for a ride around the mountain temple loop. A large turnout of members had shown up today, mostly because they heard Du Jinchen was coming.
To be honest, riding with Du Jinchen was simply an absolute thrill. He was an all-around cyclist who could handle bike assembly and repairs, lead the pack to break the wind, or sweep the rear. On top of that, with a young man’s stamina and endurance, most of the members were able to ride far beyond their usual solo limits by keeping up with his pace.
Halfway through the route, Du Jinchen stopped his bike to wait for the teammates trailing behind. Raising a hand, he casually wiped the sweat from his chin and gazed out at the distant mountain scenery. Layers of clouds hung over the peaks, and the mountain wilderness stretched green and vast under the open sky. The scenery along this cycling route was truly exceptional.
A novice in the cycling team caught up from behind, exhausted, and slumped over his handlebars. Panting, he said to Du Jinchen: “Man, you are a beast! You really live up to your reputation as a master. I got completely dropped and left in the dust.”
Du Jinchen squeezed his handbrake and raised an eyebrow: “Ride more and practice more, and you will get there too.”
Before long, the main group caught up as well. Zhou Jin rode up from the rear of the team, parked right beside Du Jinchen, and complained: “Brother Zhan, you have not ridden with the team in ages, and you did not even wait for me. Tell me honestly, what have you been up to lately?”
Zhou Jin was a peach-scented omega. After exercising, his body carried a trace of pheromone warmth that drifted sweetly toward Du Jinchen. Without a trace, Du Jinchen stepped forward twice before finally speaking: “Not much.”
“You were not willing to come out even during that long summer break after the college entrance exams,” Zhou Jin pouted. “Zhao Shengxin told me you got hurt by an omega. Is that true?”
Catching a glimpse of Du Jinchen’s sullen expression, Zhao Shengxin immediately chimed in: “I did not say it! Zhou Jin happened to be standing right next to me when I made the phone call last night and overheard it by accident.”
Frowning, Du Jinchen gave an indifferent hum, reached down to unlatch a black water bottle from the frame, and took a large, heavy gulp.
Zhou Jin pressed on: “Brother Zhan, I did not bring any water today. Can I borrow your bottle?”
Only then did Du Jinchen lift his gaze to look at Zhou Jin. His dark eyes revealed no emotion, yet the chill on his face made Zhou Jin feel slightly intimidated.
Du Jinchen’s personality was easy to get along with, but one could also say he was exceptionally difficult to approach. His easygoing nature lay in the fact that he understood and looked out for people; though he spoke little, whenever he did, people naturally wanted to listen. He possessed strong leadership skills, and every cycling trip under his guidance was an enjoyable experience.
At the same time, however, it was extremely difficult to move past his polite, water-thin acquaintanceship. His adherence to proper etiquette gave him an air of detachment from everything around him. Toward anyone’s enthusiasm, he would merely offer a polite response while strictly maintaining a social distance.
Everyone in the cycling team knew that Du Jinchen had mild mysophobia; he would normally reject casual bro-hugs and shoulder-clings between friends, let alone letting someone else drink directly from his water bottle.
Zhou Jin knew this as well, but this time, he wanted to test Du Jinchen. He wanted to gauge his standing in the Alpha’s heart and make Du Jinchen pay attention to him.
Du Jinchen maintained his posture of holding the water bottle, staring calmly at Zhou Jin. Though he did not utter a word, the natural dominance inherent to an Alpha still bore down on the omega. Under that intense gaze, Zhou Jin turned pale, and his peach-scented pheromones involuntarily reeled themselves back in.
Realizing how awkward the atmosphere had suddenly become, so much so that even he, a beta, felt uncomfortable, Zhao Shengxin hurriedly stepped in to smooth things over: “Xiaojin, there is a convenience store just up ahead. I will treat you to whatever you want to drink in a minute.”
Just as Zhou Jin was about to agree, Du Jinchen reached down, plucked a bottle of mineral water from his bike’s bottle cage, and tossed it straight to Zhou Jin: “Sorry, we are not that close yet.”
With that, he pedaled forward. Like a majestic hawk breaking through the sky and soaring against the wind, the teenager cut through the air like a sharp arrow, instantly vanishing from everyone’s sight.