He was certain that He Siheng cared about his reputation and wouldn’t dare to publicize what happened that night. Even if he mentioned the harassing letters, there was no evidence to prove that he was behind them.
He Siheng sneered, defying his expectations. He directly flung those harassing letters in his face and then called He Yunlang over from the company.
Although Boss He always came up short against the Tan Family, he wasn’t one to be trifled with. The harassing letters might lack evidence tying them to Lu Xinshu, but the sleeping pills in the milk could certainly be detected.
Regardless of any connection between the two, He Yunlang directly pulled strings and sent Lu Xinshu’s entire family out of Qinan City.
They had originally planned to call the police, but He Siheng stopped them.
Reporting it to the police would mean the matter blew up, and Shu Qiu would find out. Both father and son knew Shu Qiu’s temperament well—she wouldn’t just cry heartbrokenly for ten days or half a month; she might even cry to her good friend Jiang He, which, rounded up, meant Tan Cong and Tan Jing would learn about it.
He Yunlang and He Siheng were both competing against the Tan father and son, with faces thinner than paper and reputations larger than the sky.
He Yunlang ordered the school to strictly keep it confidential, and the matter was ultimately handled discreetly.
But this was far from the end.
On the day Lu Xinshu dropped out, someone wrote a sentence on the blackboard in He Siheng’s classroom:
“Wait for me to come back. I will definitely turn you into my Omega.”
Some thought it was a prank, others saw it as a pure confession from some Alpha. Only He Siheng, who recognized the handwriting, understood its true meaning, and his face turned ashen.
There was one thing he never told anyone.
That night, Lu Xinshu’s true motive for drugging him with sleeping pills was to rape him.
…
He Siheng took quite a long shower, as if he wanted the hotel’s body wash to pickle him through.
He changed into a dry set of clothes and emerged from the bathroom. Not seeing Tan Jing in the room, he thought he had gone out again. Then he glanced toward the terrace outside the room, where a tall, slender figure leaned against the window, a cigarette clamped between his fingers.
The rain outside continued to patter softly. It was already dark, and the terrace lights weren’t bright, casting a hazy glow over him. The glowing red tip of the cigarette was brought to his lips, and thick white smoke billowed out from deep within his lungs, dissipating like mist.
His back view inexplicably carried a touch of desolation.
This was the second time He Siheng had seen Tan Jing smoke. The first was the day Big King passed away.
The guy must have picked up this bad habit at some point, but he didn’t seem to be a heavy smoker.
He Siheng casually towel-dried his hair a couple of times, tossed the towel onto the bed, and pushed open the terrace door.
As soon as he stepped out, the wind made him shiver.
Tan Jing flicked ash from his cigarette with a bend of his finger and glanced at him. “Go put on the hoodie.”
He Siheng ignored him and walked to his side, leaning against the window just like him. “Don’t want to.”
The reason he had stripped off and showered immediately upon returning was that he felt Lu Xinshu’s pheromones lingered on the hoodie. Whether it was his nerves being overly sensitive or not, he just found it disgusting.
Tan Jing stubbed out the half-smoked cigarette and tossed it into the ashtray. He took off his jacket and handed it over.
He Siheng didn’t take it. “Aren’t you cold?”
Tan Jing didn’t respond and directly draped the jacket over his shoulders, efficient and without fuss.
On any other day, he might have mouthed off a bit.
He Siheng pressed his lips together and stopped being polite with him, pulling the jacket on.
A faint grassy woody scent enveloped him, and the inside of the jacket still held Tan Jing’s body heat, warming his skin lightly.
He Siheng glanced sideways at the ashtray between them. It held more than one cigarette butt.
He looked at the guy who had suddenly developed a heavy smoking habit. “You have something bothering you?”
Tan Jing lowered his eyelids and idly toyed with his lighter. “Want to be my confidant big brother?”
He Siheng laughed. “Confidant daddy works too.”
Tan Jing smiled as well. “I don’t lack a daddy. I lack a lover.”
He Siheng’s eyebrow arched, catching the undertone. “Oh~ So your troubles are about romance? Feeling lonely and wanting to date? Or do you already have someone you like? Who’s the lucky one?”
He fired off questions like rapid-fire shots, making it obvious he wanted to dig for gossip.
Tan Jing huffed a laugh and didn’t answer. He kept his head down, pressing the lighter now and then.
The rainy air was humid, the wind strong—no spark ignited even once.
Click, click. The sound of the lighter was like some hesitant drumbeat, prolonging the silence.
He Siheng was wondering if his silence meant tacit agreement or just laziness to respond when the clicking suddenly stopped.
Amid the pattering rain, Tan Jing softly called his name. “He Siheng.”
“Yeah?”
He Siheng turned his head to look at him.
The terrace lights were dim and yellow. Their shadows slanted across the glass window. The rain whispered noisily, occasionally sending raindrops skittering across their cheeks on the wind, bringing a cool touch.
In the dim light, the young man’s amber eyes remained clean and clear, filled only with confusion and curiosity.
Nothing but confusion and curiosity.
Frustratingly clear eyes.
After locking eyes for a few seconds, Tan Jing looked down, tugging at his lips in a somewhat helpless smile. “Nothing.”
He straightened up and left the terrace.
“Go back and sleep. Good night.”
