The historical archives sounded like a department where aging officers went to wait out their retirement. The middle-aged police officer certainly hadn’t expected their leader to be this fiercely protective.
He was just inwardly marveling at how rare it was to see a boss shield his subordinates so fiercely when the vice president of Xiefeng Shares suddenly rushed toward him.
“Officer, I’m dropping the charges! I want to withdraw the case! I’m applying for mediation!” The man looked on the verge of tears.
The middle-aged officer actually laughed. In all his years on the force, he had never seen a victim so eagerly demand a settlement.
He glanced at Xie Yunnian to gauge his reaction, but Xie Yunnian didn’t even look up. He had wrung out a wet handkerchief at the sink and was gently pressing it against the small cut on Qiu Nan’s cheekbone.
Qiu Nan instinctively tried to flinch away, but he couldn’t dodge in time. The burning, swollen wound was instantly covered by a soothing wave of coolness.
Actually, that feels pretty good.
He blinked.
Watching from the side, Mi Zhu felt a phantom ache in his teeth from the sheer, sugary awkwardness of the scene.
“Um, Director? Since you’re here taking care of Captain Qiu, I’ll head back to work now, okay?” Much as he wanted to stay and watch the conclusion of this melodramatic soap opera, he decided to be smart about it and beat a hasty retreat.
Receiving Xie Yunnian’s nod of approval, Mi Zhu shot Qiu Nan a loaded, meaningful look before swiftly slipping out the door.
Qiu Nan: “???”
Some brother you are.
Talk about rats fleeing a sinking ship.
He practically snatched the handkerchief out of Xie Yunnian’s hand. The moment he recalled the scene in the car from the night before, his entire body felt uncomfortable and stiff.
If it had been anyone else, he probably would have beaten them into a pulp by now. But this was Director Xie—the Alpha who had marked him, and the only person who could resolve today’s crisis and protect his bank account balance.
Must exercise restraint!
Xie Yunnian didn’t force the issue. Instead, he went over to the water dispenser and poured a cup of warm water for him. “You didn’t sleep all night, did you? Take the day off. Drink some water, and I’ll take you home.”
A day off?
Qiu Nan blinked.
His status as an Omega was practically public knowledge at this point. They weren’t firing him?
Maybe I still need to go through the formal resignation procedures?
Guiltily avoiding Xie Yunnian’s gaze, he cast his eyes downward and nodded.
The middle-aged officer walked back over to them. He was thoroughly sick of being pestered by the pig-faced vice president, but he still had to fulfill his duty as a cop.
“Director, the other party has requested to withdraw the case and apply for mediation.”
Terrified that Xie Yunnian might object, Pig-Face quickly scurried over. “Yes, yes, yes! I’m willing to pay compensation!”
As he spoke, air whistled through the gaps of his missing teeth.
Xie Yunnian looked at Qiu Nan, who had remained silent the entire time. Qiu Nan simply turned his head away.
Yesterday, his judgment had been clouded by his heat cycle, which was why he had beaten the man into a swollen pig.
Don’t ask—if you did, the answer was regret. Immense regret!
If it were today, he probably would have just finished the guy off while the window for justifiable self-defense was still open!
Still, Xie Yunnian’s performance just now had cheered him up a bit. Even if the man’s personal character was somewhat questionable behind closed doors, judging by the details since he took office, he was a decent boss after all.
Qiu Nan’s mouth puffed out slightly in a pout, making the line of his cheek look incredibly adorable. Xie Yunnian suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to reach out and ruffle his hair.
He could tell his little Omega was still resentful, but letting this matter blow up would do him no favors.
And besides.
After a few seconds of silence, Xie Yunnian suddenly pulled out a card, held it out to Pig-Face, and said coldly, “There’s no need for mediation. Let’s keep the accounts separate. I’ll cover the cost of your dental work and medical bills. The corporate buyout and your unemployment are the price you pay for your misconduct and insolent words. You should consider yourself lucky if anyone else in this industry is willing to take you in.”
Besides, this was a rare opportunity to establish a personal connection with his little Omega.
Pig-Face froze, a cold sweat breaking out instantly. Only then did he realize that this young master of the Xie Group was actually being merciful by merely kicking him out of Xiefeng Shares. If the Xie Group dropped even a subtle hint, he wouldn’t be able to survive in the entire industry.
He swallowed hard, terrified to take the card, but Xie Yunnian’s unyielding gaze forced him to accept it.
“Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Xie!”
Qiu Nan suddenly found it a bit absurd.
Getting ruined to the point of losing your skin and feathers, yet still having to say thank you—was this the sheer power of capital?
Xie Yunnian waved his hand dismissively. “That will be all. I trust you won’t go around talking about what happened last night.”
Otherwise, you know the consequences.
He left the threat unsaid, but his contemptuous gaze made it crystal clear.
Pig-Face nodded frantically. “Absolutely! Mr. Xie, we’ll act as if nothing happened yesterday. I just fell and hurt myself during a night jog!”
He turned back to the middle-aged officer. “I’m withdrawing the case, Officer. It was all a misunderstanding!”
To the middle-aged officer, this was a fantastic outcome. He was more than willing to help an Omega who had been harassed get off scot-free. With a smile, he briskly stamped the file “Case Withdrawn” and efficiently closed the folder.
Just like that, the matter was resolved.
A faint inkling began to stir in Qiu Nan’s heart. It seemed like.
He wouldn’t have to publicly expose his gender after all?
He followed Xie Yunnian out of the police station, suddenly finding that the morning air felt a bit fresher.
As Xie Yunnian walked ahead, he noticed the footsteps behind him had stopped. He turned around and saw that Qiu Nan hadn’t kept up.
Qiu Nan was standing right in front of the main entrance of the police station, clearly preparing to leave in the opposite direction.
Xie Yunnian walked back to him. “Going home? I’ll drive you.”
“No need, Director. I’ll hail a cab. Thank you for today.” Qiu Nan paused, intending to draw a clear line between himself and this man who had once harbored improper intentions toward him—and who now held a major grudge over him.
“Tomorrow, I’ll submit my transfer application.”
Xie Yunnian cut him off instantly. “I got drunk last night and can’t remember a thing. Did I mention anything to you about your employee benefits?”
Qiu Nan: “?”
Drunk? Doesn’t remember a thing?
Huh?
He carefully scrutinized Xie Yunnian’s face. “You don’t remember anything that happened last night?”
“No. How did I even leave Jinyan Pavilion? I completely forgot. Lao Zhang mentioned that you escorted me home? How did you leave afterward? It was so late, did I really not have Lao Zhang drive you back?” Xie Yunnian pressed his forehead, putting on a perfect act of a hangover headache. “Really, if I had the sense to let Lao Zhang drop you off, today’s incident wouldn’t have happened. My apologies, Captain Qiu.”
The corners of Qiu Nan’s mouth twitched upward uncontrollably, and the usual spark finally returned to his eyes.
So, it was just a case of acting wild while drunk? He had wondered how Director Xie could possibly do something like that. A man like him could have any type of Omega he wanted; why on earth would he harass him?
Playing along with the excuse, Qiu Nan said, “It’s fine, it was just an accident. My heat cycle has been a bit unstable lately, and I gave my backup suppressants to someone else, so.”
“Since I didn’t get to tell you about the benefits last night, let’s talk in the car.” Xie Yunnian pointed toward the luxury car parked not far away.
“Okay.” Qiu Nan hesitated for a fraction of a second before deciding to act as natural as possible. “By the way, Director, how much money was on that card just now? I’ll pay you back later.”
At first, Qiu Nan hadn’t understood why Director Xie insisted on compensating the guy when the other party was clearly the one at fault. But a sudden flash of insight made him realize: Director Xie wanted to settle the matter completely so the guy would never dare to use it as leverage again.
Otherwise, if the guy brought it up later without their knowledge, Qiu Nan’s identity as an Omega would be exposed in an instant.
How thoughtful. How incredibly farsighted!
Then, he heard Xie Yunnian casually drop a number: “One hundred thousand.”
Qiu Nan: “Oh.”
One hundred thousand yuan for a few missing teeth?
He suddenly felt like his bank account balance hadn’t actually been protected at all.
The corners of Xie Yunnian’s mouth curved upward. Under the watchful eyes of several passersby, he stepped forward with a light, brisk stride to cross the street side-by-side with Qiu Nan.
“Oh, by the way, didn’t you mention something about a transfer application just now?”
“No, no! You misheard, Director!”
“Oh.” Xie Yunnian suppressed a smile, rubbing the spot through his clothes where he had been bitten the night before. “When I woke up this morning, I noticed a set of teeth marks on my arm. Do you happen to know how they got there?”
Qiu Nan decisively shifted the blame: “You bit yourself! I tried to stop you, but I couldn’t! Alcohol really is a terrible thing!”
“Mm.” Xie Yunnian nodded solemnly. “Indeed.”
That was a close call. Having let the alcohol push him into crossing the line, he had almost scared his Omega away—the poor guy had been entirely prepared to file for a transfer!
Alcohol really is a terrible thing!