Chapter 110 Part 1

“Brother Pei Ji?”

The crowd surged toward the long corridor after class. Amid the throng, Lu Yuguang spotted the young alpha waiting outside at a glance.

Lu Yuguang paused in his steps, puzzlement crossing his face. “Why are you here?”

After blurting out the question subconsciously, Lu Yuguang realized what was going on. His eyes darted back and forth between Pei Ji and Shen Yu. He gripped Shen Yu’s arm instinctively, a mix of worry and tension in his expression.

Pei Ji closed his terminal. His gaze lightly swept over the hand Lu Yuguang had grabbed Shen Yu’s arm with, then quickly withdrew.

Shen Yu arched a brow faintly.

A natural, perfectly measured smile curved Pei Ji’s lips as he addressed Lu Yuguang. “I’m Shen Yu’s study companion. There’s a new activity later, so I came to pick him up.”

Lu Yuguang looked skeptical. “A new activity? How come I didn’t hear about it?”

He was a freshman too. If there was a related event, he should have been notified as well, but Lu Yuguang had been speed-scrolling through feeds earlier and hadn’t received a single new email.

Pei Ji lightly tapped the terminal dial that hadn’t yet pierced his skin and bones. His mild gaze swept toward Shen Yu, amusement suppressed in his voice. “It’s a psychological counseling activity. If you don’t pass the test, you have to take it again.”

Shen Yu: “…”

Lu Yuguang looked shocked. “Really? Does anyone actually fail this thing?”

Shen Yu subtly shook off Lu Yuguang’s hand. After pondering seriously for a moment, he furrowed his brow ever so slightly and replied to Lu Yuguang. “Maybe because I selected A for everything.”

“…”

Lu Yuguang couldn’t help but fall silent.

In the end, Pei Ji successfully took Shen Yu away. The hover elevator plummeted through the air at high speed.

Shen Yu rested his arm on the metallic handrail. The touch was icy cold, like a block of ice frozen inside the metal.

Shen Yu lowered his gaze. Through the transparent blue glass, his cool, somber eyes looked out at the steel garden bathed in sunlight. Recalling that headache-inducing psychological test paper, he couldn’t help but purse his lips. “Should’ve known better than to select A for everything.”

Pei Ji leaned against the cabin wall with his arms crossed. His gaze fell on Shen Yu, then swept over Shen Yu’s reflection on the blue glass. He couldn’t resist curving his lips. “Why did you select A for everything back then?”

“Two reasons.”

Pei Ji raised a brow, his tone rising in a hum to prompt him. “Mm?”

Shen Yu withdrew his gaze and looked at him. “Wanna guess?”

Pei Ji’s eyes fixed on him. “Is there a reward if I guess right?”

The elevator cabin descended to the ground. The two stepped out, their shadows overlapping on the rippling, stream-like surface of the central courtyard, shimmering with wave-like light.

Shen Yu could tell exactly what Pei Ji was thinking. He smiled faintly. “What kind of reward do you want, then?”

Pei Ji hadn’t expected him to agree so readily. For a moment, he truly hadn’t decided. “Haven’t thought of one yet.”

Pei Ji paused, then asked, “But why the sudden reward?”

Shen Yu thought for a moment. His cool gaze fixed directly on Pei Ji as he stated bluntly, “Maybe because someone just got jealous.”

Pei Ji met his gaze head-on. He felt his heart pounding wildly.

Help.

How could it be this sweet.

Shen Yu felt a bit uneasy under Pei Ji’s direct stare, the tips of his ears hidden under his black hair growing faintly warm. He lowered his eyes and urged Pei Ji coldly. “Guess already.”

The first reason was an obvious giveaway. Pei Ji smiled. “Because you didn’t want to do the test?”

Shen Yu nodded. “And the second?”

Because I was waiting for you outside.

Pei Ji met Shen Yu’s gaze and suddenly felt it sounded a bit corny, hard to say out loud. He sighed helplessly. “Do I really have to say it?”

Seeing Pei Ji caught between a rock and a hard place, Shen Yu’s lips curved with mischievous delight. His eyes silently urged Pei Ji on, wanting to confirm his feelings over and over.

Pei Ji fell silent. This was something they both knew in their hearts, yet it felt oddly hard to voice—like the subtle awkwardness when ambiguity was called out. He spread his hands helplessly and stated bluntly, “Suddenly, it’s hard to say.”

Shen Yu watched him.

Pei Ji closed his eyes briefly and exhaled a breath. His sharp thin lips pressed together slightly. A moment later, he said slowly, “…Because I was waiting for you.”

Once it was out, it felt much better.

Pei Ji curved his lips, slipping back into his usual poised demeanor, as if that fleeting moment of fluster had been an illusion.

He asked Shen Yu, “Did I get it right?”

Shen Yu suddenly felt the drafty hole in his heart being filled bit by bit. Pei Ji always satisfied all his needs.

He was… so irresistibly appealing, so mood-lifting. It felt like his entire heart was a flower bud brimming with water, full to bursting.

Shen Yu nodded, finally revealing his true intent. “Since you’d wait for me anyway, can you do the psychological test for me later?”

…He really didn’t want to do it.

He hated all tests. Just one glance at that dense wall of text made his head throb.

Pei Ji nearly laughed and cried at the same time upon hearing this.

“I’m afraid not.”

Shen Yu’s cool gaze swept toward him, a hint of surprise in it. “Hm?”

“I know you hate them, so I canceled it for you.”

Shen Yu froze. Only then did he realize that the direction they were heading wasn’t toward the psychological counseling room at all.

Towering evergreens lined the path, their branches stretching toward the horizon on both sides. The Zero-Gravity Garden floated at the center of his view, vibrant colors weaving together, with verdant vines dangling in the air.

A faint floral fragrance wafted over. Petals scattered by the wind drifted lightly to the ground, crushed underfoot.

Shen Yu pursed his lips, a trace of disbelief rising. “Can you just cancel something like that on a whim?”

The First Military Academy’s education system was complex and rigorous. With the rise in genetic, environmental, and social issues in recent years, psychological disorders had become rampant. The school always prioritized students’ mental health, which was why they held various counseling activities.

Tampering with the education system meant invoking privileges.

Shen Yu thought this naturally and voiced it without hesitation.

Pei Ji heard him. He loosened his tie with his fingers and exhaled a warm breath from his throat. Amusement lurked in his usually deep, sharp eyes as he said slowly, “It’s not like you actually have mental issues.”

Shen Yu lowered his gaze.

Truth be told, he kind of did.

But without facing that wall of dense text again, Shen Yu’s mood instantly brightened.

He rarely showed emotions, so this subtle joy was like fine dust particles dissolving into the air, flickering briefly in his eyes and a faint flush on his cheeks.

Pei Ji noticed.

They exited the school gates. Pei Ji curved his lips, courteously opening the passenger door for Shen Yu to get in first. Then he circled around the front of the car and slid into the driver’s seat.

The black sports car had a low chassis, its body lines understated yet sleek. The front dipped elegantly, while the rear rose slightly with a subdued, profound sheen, exuding a wild, unrestrained flair that matched Pei Ji’s personal style perfectly.

The engine roared to life.

Pei Ji rested one arm on the car window, his hand casually on the steering wheel. He lounged in a relaxed, leisurely pose, like a black panther at rest.

Pei Ji suddenly remembered something and chuckled with a sigh. “I didn’t used to do things like this much.”

Shen Yu lounged lazily against the soft seatback, propping his long legs against the front. After a while, he turned his face, slender fingers tugging at his scarf and shirt collar as he checked the marks on his neck in the car window reflection.

The colors had faded considerably, no longer as shocking as they had been that morning. The scarf felt too stuffy, so he simply removed it and tossed it aside.

Hearing Pei Ji’s voice, Shen Yu paused and arched a brow. He asked indifferently, “Cancel the test?”

“Yeah.”

Pei Ji affirmed with a lip curve. “But I’m discovering now that using privileges once in a while feels pretty good.”

The sleek sports car pulled up outside a serene pavilion. The facade looked utterly unremarkable, but once they pushed through the door, soft lighting spilled down, and the air carried a faint sandalwood scent. Green sandalwood branches burned in white shells, as if they had entered another world.

The attendant led them to the second floor, surrounded by lush greenery. Looking up through the windows, they could see the airport hovering above Central City, precise light tracks extending like veins in all directions.

The surreal fusion gave Shen Yu a sense of temporal disorientation.

The attendant in charge lowered his gaze politely, his eyes subtly sliding over Shen Yu. His face remained calm, but a storm raged in his heart.

He had worked at the Little Building for years, never stepping beyond its confines. This was the first time he had seen the Pei Family’s decision-maker bring someone along.

Nestled in a quiet corner, the Little Building had no name and no public signage. Yet its location in the ultra-premium Central District Inner Ring—where every inch of land was worth its weight in gold—meant it was far from ordinary.

From the moment anyone stepped through that door, they received absolute protection from the neutral faction—political refugees, the dispossessed, exiles… all could catch their breath here.

With enough power and money, you could enter. Absolute safety. Absolute secrecy.

Here lay the hidden cards of countless elites.

The attendant bowed courteously, his smile impeccable with a subtle fawning toward Pei Ji as he placed two menus before them.

“What would the two gentlemen like to order?”

Shen Yu glanced over it. The menu brimmed with specialties from various star systems, but having grown accustomed to nutrient fluid, Shen Yu’s cool gaze skimmed it without much appetite. In the end, he casually ordered the recommended signature dish.

Pei Ji had no objections, but when his eyes passed the wine list, he couldn’t help but pause.