After returning to the country, Guan Sui took over the management of his family’s company affairs, dealing with meetings for projects both big and small every day.
The youthful exuberance and sharp edge he used to have had been smoothed down by work into a steady, composed, and introverted demeanor. Wearing a tailored suit to mask the wildness inherent to an Alpha, he exuded maturity and nobility in every movement and gesture.
If Wen Song were to catch sight of him now, he would undoubtedly utter a single phrase: “A beast in a suit.”
After finishing the meeting, he returned to his office.
Guan Sui unbuttoned the top button of his shirt with one hand, slid his index and middle fingers beneath the tie binding his neck, and gave a sharp tug, injecting a trace of wild unruliness into his mature appearance.
He reached out to pull back his office chair, leaning back loosely.
He tilted his head up and closed his eyes.
He pressed his fingers against his glabella to soothe the exhaustion brought on by over a dozen hours of high-efficiency work during his rut period.
Assistant Jin, who followed closely behind, stood aside to pour him a glass of water, placing it within arm’s reach before continuing to report on work matters.
“Over at Zhengrong, they are currently developing a new plot of land and have sent an invitation for cooperation. Chairman Guan’s intention…”
Guan Sui opened his eyes and raised a hand to signal a pause.
“Just handle these matters according to Chairman Guan’s wishes. I’ve already looked over the cooperation contract with Zhengrong.”
“Is there anything else?”
“If there’s nothing, you can head out and get back to work first.”
Assistant Jin closed the documents in his hands and stood respectfully to one side.
“The work project report is finished, but on a personal note.”
At this, he paused for a second, lifting his eyelids to glance at Guan Sui, who was drinking water sitting in front of his desk.
Guan Sui took a sip of water to soothe his parched throat, his expression completely unperturbed without interrupting Assistant Jin’s words. Seeing this, the latter understood and continued, “Chairman Guan has arranged a blind date for you with Young Master Wen Xu of the Wen family.”
Upon hearing this, Guan Sui put down the water glass in his hand and returned to his original posture.
Assistant Jin observed the subtle micro-expressions on the other man’s face, finding no trace of resistance, and added, “Three days from now, there will be an auction that Young Master Wen Xu will be attending, and Young Master Wen Song will be accompanying him.”
Yet Guan Sui countered: “Do I have the right to choose who my blind date is?”
Assistant Jin maintained his composure: “Director Guan, of course you have the right to choose.”
Guan Sui had no desire to make things difficult for Assistant Jin, who was merely passing along a message. “I will handle personal matters by negotiating with my father myself. Your task is complete, so you can go back to your duties now.”
Assistant Jin gave a slight nod. “Understood, Director Guan.”
After the person left, Guan Sui bent his knuckles and tapped lightly against the desk.
“Ring.”
The phone lying on the desk rang with a ringtone. Picking it up, he saw the caller ID marked “Duan Ze.”
Swiping to answer, he turned on speakerphone and tossed it back onto the desk.
“Ah Sui, what are you up to?” Duan Ze hollered at the top of his lungs.
Guan Sui continued massaging his glabella. “At the company.”
Duan Ze let out a whistle, gleeful and gloating as he said, “After running wild abroad for so many years, it’s about time you came back to enjoy the misery of work. The empire your old man spent all these years building is now counting on you to take over everything.”
Guan Sui was Guan Ming’s only child and also a top-tier Alpha, carrying even heavier expectations from the family.
From a young age, the skills he was required to master far exceeded those of his peers. Everything related to self-cultivation, high-society social etiquette, and entertainment activities needed to be mastered. Calligraphy, painting, chess, archery, martial arts, and riding were just the basics. He had to learn multiple foreign languages and was required from childhood to read up on how to manage a family enterprise, leaving him virtually no personal recreational time.
Guan Sui had never possessed a mature and steady temperament. As he grew older, his adolescent rebellious streak surged unchecked.
Studying diligently during the day, he would scale the walls of the Guan family estate at night to meet up with friends for street racing.
From initially balancing the two to being discovered by his family and scolded, Guan Sui simply threw in the towel. He stopped suppressing his Alpha nature, refused to obey the family’s arrangements any longer, and began studying and playing alongside ordinary peers, venting his innate love for freedom.
Later on, Guan Sui was sent abroad for tempering.
“Yeah,” Guan Sui desperately wanted to smoke a cigarette to soothe his inner irritation. “He even wants to arrange my marriage.”
This “he” referred to Chairman Guan, his father.
Duan Ze gasped. “His desire for control is really strong. Your old man’s personality is just that rigid and authoritative. But if you’re unwilling, how could he possibly force you? The only reason you’re acting well-behaved now is because you’re worried about ticking him off and landing him in the hospital.”
“Besides, you still have Auntie. She’s always gone along with your wishes.”
“If all else fails, you still have your grandfather. Among all his grandchildren, the old man dotes on you the most.”
Guan Sui knew Guan Ming’s arrangements posed no real threat to him, but the thought that Wen Song would also be attending the auction lingered in his mind.
“I know.”
“Did the matter I asked you to investigate last time bear any results?”
Only then did Duan Ze say, “I called precisely to tell you that the team specializing in pheromone cancer cells has responded. They said that without deterioration, surgery can be performed within three months, though the specifics will require examining the patient before a final verdict is reached.”
Guan Sui fell into deep thought for a moment. “Good.”
“Send me the contact information for the team.”
“I’ll arrange a check-up with them.”
Although Wen Song had said he was still considering it, illness waits for no one. It was best to understand the situation in advance so that surgery could proceed immediately once the other person made a decision.
Since a method existed, he couldn’t just rely on threats without taking action.
After all, he had to show a bit of sincerity for Wen Song to believe him.
Duan Ze asked out of curiosity: “Ah Sui, why did you suddenly take such a keen interest in this illness? I remember that pheromone cancerous transformation only accounts for about two percent nationwide, and the probability of mutation is extremely low. Among all the people I know, it seems only Wen Song’s grandmother.”
Right as he reached this point, he seemed to have discovered some heaven-shaking secret.
Yet the logic within it was far too jumbled, leaving him momentarily clueless as to what Guan Sui’s true motive might be.
Could it be that Zhao Mingzhuo had asked Guan Sui to help investigate this?
Yet the very next second, he heard Guan Sui say, “Don’t tell Zhao Mingzhuo about this.”
Duan Ze: “?”
Investigating the illness related to Zhao Mingzhuo’s boyfriend’s grandmother and setting up a research team, yet keeping it a secret from the guy himself.
What was the intention?
Duan Ze’s thought process struggled to keep up with Guan Sui’s actions for a moment.
“Fine,” he agreed naturally.
Despite their close ties, this circle of friends actually contained a few smaller cliques.
Duan Ze, Guan Sui, and Fu Jingchuan, who was far away in another city, were much closer to one another.
Since Guan Sui told him not to mention it to Zhao Mingzhuo, he naturally wouldn’t leak a single word.
If the other party didn’t explain the reason, Duan Ze wouldn’t continue asking either.
“There’s an auction in three days,” Guan Sui said. “You’re coming with me.”
Before Duan Ze could manage to ask a couple of questions, he heard the other person drop another line: “Wen Xu will be there too.”
“Oh, the old man is just having me go on a blind date with him.”
Duan Ze: “?”
“Guan Sui! I’m telling you, you absolutely cannot agree to this.”
“There are so many Omegas in Suicheng. You can like whoever you want, but absolutely not Wen Xu.”
“You know that? Do you understand?”
“The friendship between the two of us depends entirely on your attitude this time, considering all the bullets I’ve blocked for you over the years.”
Guan Sui let out a short, light chuckle. “If I actually liked him, would I bother dragging you along?”
Duan Ze, on the other end of the phone, finally breathed a sigh of relief and quickly agreed, “Alright, alright, I’ll go with you in three days.”
“There’s one more thing.”
“What was the purpose of that time you had me forge a certificate of unstable and special Alpha pheromones for you early in the morning?”
Guan Sui curled his lips and spat out a few words:
“Hooking a wife.”