05
“…No, his blood isn’t compatible with yours.”
The woman in the white coat came out and handed the report to Qi Wei. “You can’t give him your gland.”
Qi Wei stared at the report. He didn’t need to open it; he could see the data on the front, confirming Meng Li’s words. He tugged at the corner of his mouth and closed his eyes.
The moment his pheromones exploded uncontrollably, everyone present paled. Meng Li, whose rank was relatively high, almost buckled and knelt before Qi Wei, managing to stay upright only by leaning against the wall and gripping the railing.
Qi Wei suppressed his emotions for a long time before slowly regaining control of his pheromones. But the strong scent of liquor still hung in the air like a knife over everyone’s heads, sending chills down their spines.
“Your pheromones are becoming increasingly unstable.”
Meng Li frowned. “Didn’t you see him? Didn’t anyone help you…”
Qi Wei opened his eyes and said indifferently, “Liking him is my business. In his eyes, this is our second meeting. If I went up and kissed him, that would be sexual harassment.”
Meng Li: “?”
You’re talking about morals now, after all the stalking and surveillance?
Meng Li was speechless. “Do you know what your situation is? You’ve been relying on suppressants since your differentiation. You can’t even tolerate a trace of omega pheromones. If you don’t… you’ll die!”
Qi Wei raised an eyebrow and said casually, “If I die, I die. What’s there to be afraid of?”
Meng Li: “I’m afraid that if you die, no one will invest in my projects, damn it!”
Qi Wei tilted his head slightly, saying nothing, but Meng Li understood what he meant—what did it have to do with him?
This man, from the moment they met, had only cared about one person.
A madman.
Although they were both alphas, Meng Li knew very well that the obsession inherent in alphas could drive them mad, but she had never seen anyone as crazy as Qi Wei.
Wanting to dig out his gland for a beta, rejecting any omega, even those with a 99% compatibility rate, to the point that he couldn’t control the urge to kill them if they entered his line of sight, believing their existence tainted his feelings for that beta… Insane.
Meng Li had always thought that someone like him would resort to force. Once he had power in his grasp, he would impatiently kidnap the person from abroad, lock them up… but Qi Wei hadn’t.
Not only had he not done that, he was even playing the pure love game…
Meng Li was curious about what kind of person Qi Zhao was, to make Qi Wei so obsessed, treasured and hidden in his heart.
Meng Li tossed the item Qi Wei wanted to him. “I’ll say it again, if you don’t…, you’ll die.”
Qi Wei reached out and caught it, gently rubbing the round ball in the center of the necklace, watching the materialized white smoke of his pheromones swirling inside, using his own pheromones to wash away the faint trace of Meng Li’s scent. “Thank you.”
He stood up and walked out, his tone slow and leisurely, still with that air of not taking anything seriously. “Senior, if there’s a chance, I’ll invite you to my wedding.”
Meng Li: “…You better be able to give me that chance.”
“Bosses” like Qi Wei were rare. She didn’t want to deal with another “boss” who didn’t understand anything but insisted on micromanaging them.
Despite resolving his cousin’s issue, Qi Zhao didn’t sleep well that night. He tossed and turned for a long time, replaying many scenes in his mind, including him pleading with Qi Mu, him being confirmed as a beta, but mostly, Qi Wei.
Qi Wei stopping him before, and Qi Wei today…
Back then, in front of Qi Wei, Qi Zhao’s mind was unconsciously tense, and everything seemed normal. But away from Qi Wei, the scenes replayed over and over, making him feel somewhat… Qi Zhao buried his face in his pillow.
He wasn’t exactly embarrassed, he was just confused.
He wasn’t a stranger to confessions, but it was the first time he had been so fixated on by an alpha.
It was awkward.
Strange.
He didn’t know what Qi Wei saw in him.
In his memory… he and Qi Wei didn’t know each other.
If there was a chance, he still wanted to ask.
That time when he was seventeen and Qi Wei stopped him, confessing, was truly a chaotic mess. He hadn’t taken it to heart afterward, but now he had to.
Qi Zhao took a deep breath, lay flat on the bed, cleared his mind, and closed his eyes again.
The next day, Qi Zhao woke up early and saw the message Qi Wei had sent him.
Simple, but shocking.
[Qi Wei: At your door.]
Qi Zhao was stunned. He looked at the time; it was an hour ago, 6 a.m.
Did alphas really not need to sleep?
And why was Qi Wei here so early…
Qi Zhao jumped out of bed, quickly tidied himself up with the mindset of meeting a new boss, and opened the door.
He had expected to see a group of people, or at least someone by Qi Wei’s side, but unexpectedly, he only saw Qi Wei alone.
The alpha wasn’t wearing a suit, just casual clothes, but the pressure he exuded hadn’t diminished much.
Fortunately, betas were a bit less sensitive than other secondary genders. Otherwise, when Qi Wei tilted his head and glanced at him, Qi Zhao would have felt his hair stand on end and instinctively retreated.
But even so, Qi Zhao instantly forgot what he wanted to say.
Qi Wei knew that Qi Zhao had gone for a haircut after returning to the hotel yesterday. He had also seen the photos of Qi Zhao with his new haircut. He looked good. For a moment, it made him feel like he was seeing the seventeen-year-old Qi Zhao, but much more mature.
Even though he had prepared himself, and there was no surprise, now face-to-face with Qi Zhao, Qi Wei still couldn’t help but pause, his breathing becoming shallow.
Objectively speaking, as a beta, Qi Zhao’s genes couldn’t compare to those of alphas and omegas. But he wasn’t as delicate or beautiful as an omega, nor as dangerous and sharp as an alpha. He combined the two, perfectly highlighting his primary gender without leaning towards either extreme, standing in the middle of the balance.
And for Qi Wei, Qi Zhao was the most beautiful person he had ever seen, always capturing his attention.
“…Er-ge.”
After a moment of awkward silence, Qi Zhao finally spoke. He wasn’t used to this form of address, but he was trying to adapt. He moved his lips, bringing Qi Wei back to his senses. “Have you had breakfast?”
This question was better than “Why are you here?” or “Why are you here so early?” It would seem much more intimate to Qi Wei.
And…
Qi Wei’s mood brightened.
Qi Zhao was concerned about him.
Qi Wei put away his phone and straightened up. The genetic advantages of a super S-rank alpha were evident, making the 1.8-meter tall Qi Zhao seem somewhat “petite.” “No.”
Qi Wei could feel his heart pounding in his chest. He suppressed the pheromones that wanted to surge towards Qi Zhao, speaking casually and calmly. “I’ve booked a table at a restaurant. You should like it. Want to eat together?”
Qi Zhao felt that with their current contractual relationship, Qi Wei didn’t really need to add the question mark, but Qi Wei asking him made him feel respected, and also… made him take Qi Wei’s feelings more seriously.
He wasn’t someone who was overly sentimental or prone to melancholy. He could see Qi Wei’s desire for him and naturally, Qi Wei’s regard for him.
“Okay.”
Qi Zhao nodded. He originally wanted to ask if the restaurant Qi Wei booked had a dress code, but then he thought, going to dinner with Qi Wei, he probably wouldn’t be stopped even if he wore flip-flops, so he smiled and dismissed the thought.
He looked good when he smiled.
Qi Wei stared at Qi Zhao and couldn’t help himself. Pheromones, undetectable to betas, quietly clung to Qi Zhao’s body, lingering around him. The scent of liquor brewed sweetness and attachment. If it weren’t for the strong possessiveness and dominance, one would suspect it was a courting signal from an omega.
Qi Zhao, oblivious, closed the door and followed Qi Wei. They entered the elevator, and Qi Wei pressed the button for the top floor, adding, “The restaurant is in this hotel.”
Qi Zhao didn’t really care where they ate; he only cared about eating well. So he nodded. “Okay.”
Then silence fell between them again.
…It was still rather awkward.
Qi Zhao lowered his head, feeling Qi Wei’s gaze fixed on him, thinking.
The silence continued until they reached the restaurant. The waiters, already prepared, served the breakfast tea. Qi Wei wiped his fingertips with a warm, damp towel and casually asked, “Are you going to the Qi family to get your things today?”
Qi Zhao hummed in agreement. “After I get my things, I can move in with you.”
As he spoke, he took a bite of a shrimp dumpling, his eyes narrowing slightly in satisfaction at the tender texture.
The food back home was indeed better. What had he been eating for the past seven years?
Qi Wei slowly stirred the porridge in his bowl, his eyes lifted, his gaze sweeping across Qi Zhao’s lips before he forced himself to look away.
He really had to exert a lot of effort to keep his composure and not pick Qi Zhao up and make him sit on his lap to eat.
“…I’ll go with you.”
Qi Zhao had no objections. “Okay.”
He didn’t know what to say, or how to face Qi Wei, with whom he had signed such a strange contract. Especially since Qi Wei was familiar yet incredibly strange to him. He was already trying his best to appear calm.
Qi Wei could also sense the hidden awkwardness, but he didn’t mind, just slowly starting a conversation. “What kind of work do you want to do in the future?”
Qi Zhao paused slightly.
There were few jobs available to betas, but if Qi Wei really changed his official records to alpha, he could do a lot more.
Qi Zhao’s eyelashes fluttered slightly, his grip on his chopsticks tightening. “I don’t know.”
He was honest with Qi Wei. “When I left the country, I thought if I ever differentiated into an alpha and returned, I would do this and that, but after so many years, I’m a little tired.”
He was tired of those struggles.
Whether it was the scheming between alphas, or the social interactions of the upper class, during the seven years he was “exiled,” he actually felt that the lives of ordinary people weren’t bad.
The only regret he had was that he still wanted to punch Qi Mu in the face and settle back home.
And now, it seemed he could do all of that. But what then?
Qi Zhao felt a sense of bewilderment.
Qi Wei said softly, “It’s alright.”
He looked at Qi Zhao gently, and even though he knew Qi Zhao couldn’t sense pheromones, he still released soothing ones to try and penetrate that iron wall. “Then rest for a while. You must be tired after these seven years.”
Tired?
Perhaps.
More than surviving in a foreign land, what truly wore Qi Zhao down was the feeling of homelessness.
The Qi family was where he was born, Qi Mu was his biological father, but because he was a beta, an ambitious beta, he no longer had a home.
Qi Zhao moved his lips, about to thank Qi Wei, but then he remembered the contract they had signed, so he swallowed his words and said, “I’ll see what Qi Mu’s attitude is like when I go back this time. My cousin… she’s very good to me, so no matter what, I have to make sure she isn’t pushed into the fire again.”
No.
Qi Wei lowered his eyes and took a sip of pork rib porridge.
Qi Yi Liu wasn’t good to him at all.
But… that was the last bit of warmth Qi Zhao associated with family. Qi Wei knew how painful it felt to be all alone, so he was willing to maintain this false bubble for Qi Zhao.
Silence fell between them again. Qi Wei continued to search for a topic. “You haven’t checked your identification information today, have you?”
He smiled gently. “You can take a look.”
Qi Zhao paused, took out his phone, and checked his citizen information. He saw the latest information updated promptly at 8 a.m.—
[Name: Qi Zhao
Primary Gender: Male
Secondary Gender: Alpha (A-rank) Specifically noted as secondary differentiation]
Qi Zhao: “…”
He wasn’t too surprised, but…
He rubbed his finger over the [Alpha (A-rank)]. He had stared at “Beta” in that spot for seven years.
He felt a sense of unreality, but as for happiness… it wasn’t that intense.
Because he knew it was fake. But this fake identity could change so many things.
Qi Wei said casually, “I originally wanted to change it to S-rank for you, but the President said the procedures for S-rank were very complicated, and you would need to go to the institution for several experiments, and also go through international archives… So we settled for A-rank.”
Qi Zhao came back to his senses. He took a deep breath and looked up at Qi Wei, who was looking at him with a smile, warning him with his eyes not to say thank you.
So Qi Zhao smiled again.
This time, his smile was much brighter, genuinely relaxed, making Qi Wei’s heart itch. Especially since Qi Zhao spoke to him jokingly, like a friend. “Er-ge, so you also like to talk business during meals.”
This scene had appeared in Qi Wei’s dreams countless times.
Qi Wei’s lips curved upwards, his eyes incredibly gentle, his voice soft as if he was merely commenting on the delicious porridge in front of him, but his words carried a strong sense of possessiveness. “Ah Zhao, if I don’t talk about these things to distract myself, I won’t be able to resist kissing you.”
Qi Zhao: “…”
Qi Zhao: “…………”
How could Qi Wei…?!
He froze instantly. He had never been teased so boldly and openly, so…
Qi Zhao could no longer maintain his composure. He slowly lowered his head, his much shorter hair no longer able to cover his ears, and without the cover of his glasses, his panic and embarrassment were completely exposed to the alpha’s eyes.
Qi Wei licked his lips slightly, staring at Qi Zhao’s slightly reddened ear tips. He held his breath and closed his eyes for a moment, hiding the scarlet in them.
He was going crazy.
He wanted to lock this person up in bed and…
