“Alright, enough about that. Let’s talk about you.” Xie Ling lowered his hand.
Though he had a grudge against Qin Han, he wasn’t so petty that he’d hold it against Qin Han’s friends too.
He wasn’t some elementary school kid, after all.
Still, it really rubbed him the wrong way.
He’d snuck a few glances at the TV during Qin Han’s speech earlier and hadn’t seen the appeal at all.
What was so handsome about it? Why was everyone losing their minds? The guy had just come off as totally sanctimonious.
Qin Han had kept a low profile since the start of school, even lending him his pheromones when needed. But now that he was Student Council President with real authority and this massive fanbase, who knew if he’d pull the same stunts from junior high?
Xie Ling pressed his lips into a thin line. Just then, a low voice murmured in his ear, “Bad mood?”
Qin Han had stopped beside Xie Ling’s desk, one hand propped on the surface while the other held a bar of chocolate, which he was sneakily pushing toward Xie Ling. “Want some?” he whispered.
The kids in Class 1 spotted Qin Han’s return and immediately turned their gazes his way.
Their shining star! That speech alone had him locked in—no need to wait for the third round. This year’s Student Council President was his for sure!
They’d be able to strut around the school like kings from now on!
Waves of adoring, worshipful stares filled the air, but Qin Han seemed oblivious. Xie Ling’s mouth twisted downward even more.
He eyed the chocolate bar with a humph. On the wrapper, a cute little white rabbit stared back with big, round, dewy eyes, looking for all the world like it was begging to be petted.
…Kinda adorable. He wanted to eat it.
“Move your hand.” Xie Ling didn’t take the chocolate. Seeing Qin Han’s other hand still resting on his desk, he grabbed a pen and prodded the guy’s thumb. Raising his voice a notch, he added, “Don’t manhandle my cute, charming desk.”
Qin Han obediently lifted his hand. He watched as Xie Ling snatched a tissue from Xia Yu and scrubbed at the spot Qin Han had touched like some tiny painter gone mad, swipe after swipe. Qin Han could practically read the disgust in every stroke.
Looks like today’s not gonna be an easy fix. Qin Han felt a mix of helplessness and that familiar itch deep inside.
It had been a while since he’d seen Xie Ling bare his fangs like this. Others might find it intimidating, but to Qin Han, that exquisite face sharpening into something fierce was a whole different kind of thrill.
Like a blaze of perfect fire—beautiful enough to burn, and he still wanted to dive right in, consequences be damned, even if it meant going up in flames…
His gaze grew hazy as it drifted to Xie Ling’s pale neck. In that split second, he reached out and laid his hand there.
Xie Ling shuddered and instinctively grabbed Qin Han’s wrist. “What the hell are you doing?”
The onlookers lost their cool too.
Zhang Chengrui tugged at Xia Yu and whispered tensely, “Is Qin God about to choke out Ling Bro?”
“Shut up,” Xia Yu swatted his hand away. “You think throats grow next to necks?”
But damn, that spot was a little too intimate. If those fingers slid back just a bit more, they’d be right at the glands!
“Aaaahhh!” Mu Yin let out a shriek like a rooster from her seat.
The commotion snapped Qin Han back to his senses. He withdrew his hand, cool as ever. “Sorry. Saw a bug on your neck and flicked it off.”
He paused, then added softly, “Didn’t mean to grope you.”
Xie Ling: …Damn. The guy sure knew how to turn a phrase against him.
~~~
The forum vote for Student Council President opened right after school that day. By the rules, everyone had to use their real-name accounts.
Xie Ling logged in with his username and password but skipped the voting section entirely. Whether he voted or not didn’t matter—he was in a foul mood and wanted to scour the boards for some idiot spouting nonsense. Perfect stress relief.
Hoping to snag a keyboard warrior as his punching bag, he headed to the off-topic section. What he saw left him dumbfounded.
Normally, the off-topic board was a wild mix: from earnest study posts like “How I Tamed Math, That Teasing Little Devil, and Locked Down a Top-Ten Spot in My Grade” to juicy gossip like “Shocker! The PE Teacher’s Forbidden Romance: Two Alphas Getting It On in Hallowed School Grounds!” and even come-ons from other schools disguised as mixers.
But today? Every single post title was just one thing, repeated over and over: AAAAAAAAAA!!!
What kind of glitch was this?
Xie Ling blinked in confusion, a bad feeling creeping in. He clicked into one of the pinned threads—a massive wall of A’s stretching three lines long.
OP: Sisters, did you SEE IT?! DID YOU?! What kind of dimension-breaking gorgeousness is this?! That effortless elegance in every gesture—is it even real?! And that voice… Every extra word he says makes my belly swell a little more! How does a top-tier alpha like this even exist in the world?! AAAAAAAAAA! Pics incoming!!
Xie Ling thought, You’ve said plenty already. He scrolled down lazily and, sure enough, spotted Qin Han’s punchable face.
Ten photos in total. Caption: 360° no dead angles! Raw footage, no filters, no beautification! Under Qin God’s stunning beauty, any filter would just tarnish him!!!
…This school was too small for his bullshit artistry.
Xie Ling’s already crappy mood tanked further.
He should’ve backed out right then, but for some reason, his thumb kept scrolling.
12L: Aaaah! He’s too hot!! I was worried about Gu Ran stepping down and Ling Bro not running—our next president’s looks were gonna take a hit. But now!! Hahaha! Vote Qin Han, everyone! Vote him!
17L: Waaah, if Qin God becomes Student Council President, will he bust us for skipping? What to do? I’m a good student who never skips, but I really wanna get caught by him~
22L: Sister 17L!! Is that all you’re aiming for?! I’ve got it planned—if Qin God catches me skipping, I’ll just kiss him!
30L: …Are all you Omegas this bold? I’m an alpha and I want to too, damn it!!
31L: Bro, wake up. With Qin Han’s pheromones? You’d be dead before you knew what hit you.
Nearly a hundred replies, Alphas, Betas, and Omegas alike gushing mindlessly over Qin Han.
The more Xie Ling read, the more it grated. That kind of star-studded fandom used to be his exclusive domain!!
He wasn’t a petty guy. If it were anyone else, he might’ve jumped in on the hype. But Qin Han? Hell no.
No way. He couldn’t let these innocent underclassmen fall for Qin “Scheming Dog” Han’s tricks!
Xie Ling scrolled to the reply box and started typing, then stopped. Screw it—he bailed and started a new thread.
Title: [Qin Dog’s Years of Being Less Than Human: Gossip Thread on How a Certain Top-tier Alpha Abused His Power to Bully Classmates in Junior High! Everyone Who Reads This Will Turn into a Total Hottie Like Me!]
In under a minute, the post shot to the top of the front page, knocking the AAAA spam out of first.
Xie Ling always posted under his real-name main: Free.
Everyone at First High knew it.
OP: As the title says. Everyone knows Qin Han and I went to Huaining Junior High together. We’ve never gotten along, and it’s all because this guy’s rap sheet is endless!
1L: Back in first year, he was already Student Council President and class monitor. Teacher had him check our recitation homework, so he abused his power. I nailed it, but he nitpicked like crazy and wouldn’t pass me. We had a big school event too—I had plans with someone, but he gave me a hard time and made me flake. Ruined my rep!
2L: One time I had an emergency and wanted to ditch class. Yeah, skipping’s not cool or whatever… If he’d just stopped me or straight-up ratted to the teacher, fine. But no, this two-faced jerk played along at first. I gave him half my chocolate (I hate sweets; it was a gift) so he’d let me go. Me and my buddy were over the wall when he flipped, couldn’t stop us, so he snitched to the teacher instead. Total scum.
3L: The worst! One day it was my turn for cleanup after school. I’d swept everything spotless, but suddenly there was trash everywhere. He made me redo it all. Weird, right? Turns out he dumped it there on the sly! Outrageous! I missed my favorite mangaka’s signing event because of him. Tripped running there too—the scar’s still on my knee!
…
Usually, his posts blew up in minutes with Alpha fans, Beta fans, and Omega fans piling on. But today? Dead silence.
Even so, with a rare chance to vent all those old grudges, Xie Ling hammered away solo, fingers flying like they could punch through the screen. The thread hung there at the top.
Ten minutes later, still nothing.
The few replies that had popped up were all irrelevant nonsense like “Ling Bro, calm down, how about we go shoot some hoops?” and “Ahh, first time seeing Ling Bro this genuinely pissed off, but damn he looks so hot like this aaaaaah,” the same kind of off-topic comments.
Xie Ling was starting to feel puzzled when a message from Xia Yu suddenly popped up on WeChat.
Little Yu’er: Little Lingling Little Lingling, is everything you said on the forum for real? [Cat peeking out]
Xie Ling raised an eyebrow.
Free: Of course it’s real. When has your Ling Bro ever spread rumors? [Cat patting head]
Little Yu’er: emmmmmmm [Cat conflicted]
Free: What’s up? Spit it out if there’s something. You and I keeping secrets now?
Little Yu’er: Aiya, just see for yourself.
With that, Xia Yu sent over a few screenshots from a group chat.
“Aaaah what do I do? I saw that post bashing Qin God and wanted to jump in and clap back, but then I realized it was Ling Bro who posted it 55555555”
“Girls, I get it! I don’t wanna believe it either, but Ling Bro doesn’t seem like the type to trash someone without reason!”
“Could Qin God really be the kind of guy who abuses his position?? I don’t believe it aaaah!! Anyone from Huaining Junior High in the group, spill the tea!!! [Tears] [Tears] [Tears]”
“Me me me! Not saying Ling Bro’s lying or anything, but my best friend from junior high was classmates with Qin God. She said he’s super nice—whenever the teacher had him check if they’d memorized their lessons, he’d just listen to the start, figure it was close enough, and let them pass without making them recite the whole thing!”
“+10086. I went to Huaining Junior High too. To be fair, catching skippers is the discipline committee’s job at our school. I’ve never seen Qin God personally go after anyone?? And bribing with chocolate… Forget whether my god has the family background to need chocolate or not—he doesn’t even eat sweets!!”
“I think so too. Plus, a college god like Qin God should be super busy, right? Why would he have time to stalk someone over classroom duty? [Thinking] [Thinking] [Thinking]”
“Could Qin God just be targeting Ling Bro specifically? But why??”
“I just thought of a possibility!! What if it’s that ‘if he likes you, he bullies you’ trope!!”
Xie Ling nearly choked on his own spit when he saw that last one.
The screenshots ended there.
Xie Ling’s anger hadn’t subsided one bit.
Qin Dog was obviously just protecting his image—he couldn’t be like that to everyone. But Xie Ling was convinced there had to be others who’d gone through the same thing!
So he kept posting in the thread—
Free: You guys really need to believe me. Don’t vote for him as chairman, or we’ll have no freedom left! If you don’t believe me, go check my junior high’s forum. There are definitely others who’ve been through the same—managed to death!!
“No.”
Xie Ling was stubbornly trying to convince the crowd when a voice suddenly sounded from behind him.
Xie Ling froze for a second, then turned to find Qin Han looking right at him.
He’d almost forgotten—this guy hadn’t left yet.
Not only that, Qin Han was still holding his phone. Xie Ling glanced quickly but couldn’t make out the content. From the interface, though, it looked like the campus forum.
Xie Ling narrowed his eyes slightly. “What did you just say—nothing?”
Qin Han: “I’ve never managed anyone like that. Back then…”
“Little Ling.” Gu Ran called from the back door, waving at Xie Ling—and at Qin Han.
Qin Han’s lips curved up slightly as he nodded politely back.
Only then did Xie Ling realize he’d gotten so carried away exposing Qin Han’s dirt on the forum that he’d forgotten to go pick up Gu Ran.
He grabbed his backpack and stood, flashing a cool smile at Qin Han’s seat as he passed. “Chairman Qin never managed anyone like that. He only ever did it to me, only ever bullied me. Should I feel honored or what?”
Only bullied him. Those were Qin Han’s own words, right after their long-awaited reunion. Xie Ling hadn’t expected Qin Han to be scrolling that post too.
Qin Han paused, but before he could respond, Xie Ling had already dragged Gu Ran away.
The massive classroom suddenly held only Qin Han.
Ever since last time, when he’d followed them from the classroom all the way to the school gate while chatting with Gu Ran, Xie Ling had “fiercely” warned him not to tag along on their way home.
His hands clenched unconsciously. A faint red mark still lingered on his left wrist—from when Xie Ling had grabbed him at lunch.
Qin Han’s throat bobbed. He slowly closed his eyes, brought his wrist to his mouth, and—with extreme restraint—extended his tongue to lick that ring of red.
