Chapter 59

Guan Zifan had just finished a business meeting with Liu Yun.

The meeting had lasted over two hours. They had just arrived at the coffee shop to have some afternoon tea and rest when Guan Zifan saw the hot search topics. He nearly spat out the iced Americano he had just sipped.

#Teacher Yu Xi Ships CP#

#Teacher Yu Xi and Geng Shanglou#

#Teacher Yu Xi Bought Dawn CP Merch#

#Teacher Yu Xi Officially Announces#

Guan Zifan: “????”

Compared to Guan Zifan’s shock, Liu Yun appeared quite calm.

“Hurry and handle these hot searches. Yes, guide the momentum in the right direction. Don’t let them be exploited maliciously. Also, check who 【Geng Shanglou】 is and make sure there won’t be any follow-up twists or malicious hype.”

Guan Zifan sighed and got back into work mode. “I know Geng Shanglou. She’s a huge Yu Xi stan who recently turned into a CP fan.”

Guan Zifan called his staff. “No need to worry. Let it ferment naturally. Don’t suppress the topic deliberately. Oh, and send me that merch link.”

After all, they had signed a collaboration agreement, so Liu Yun and Guan Zifan coordinated seamlessly on work matters.

In terms of buzz, Liu Yun was quite satisfied with the effect of Yu Xi’s link incident. She praised, “I don’t know if it was intentional or accidental, but your Teacher Yu Xi really has a knack for promotion.”

Guan Zifan: “…”

Based on his understanding of Yu Xi, it was probably genuinely accidental.

Otherwise, why would he buy CP merch with his ex-boyfriend?

Yu Xi and Yi Chen were exes. Guan Zifan wasn’t sure if Liu Yun knew about it.

Pretending to be calm, Guan Zifan probed, “Speaking of which, when we were forced to sign that promotion agreement, what was Yi Chen’s attitude?”

“He was extremely resistant at first,” Liu Yun recalled the scene. “But he agreed after just a couple of sentences.”

Guan Zifan: “How did you convince him?”

He had tried advising Yu Xi eight hundred times with no effect.

“I didn’t convince him,” Liu Yun said. “He figured it out himself.”

Guan Zifan: “?”

Liu Yun: “What about you guys?”

Guan Zifan said helplessly, “He doesn’t agree. He still doesn’t agree to this day.”

Liu Yun comforted him. “It’s fine. Fans are eating up the tsundere act right now.”

They hadn’t chatted for long before their phones started ringing nonstop.

Where to Go This Weekend always generated high heat with every episode. The basketball game at B University had over ten million concurrent viewers, with countless comments flying around. Yu Xi’s education background had been dug up and trended, and now the link incident had exploded. There was a mountain of work to handle.

They had to keep working.

Meanwhile, Yu Xi saw “Payment Successful (No Password Required)” on his phone screen. The sky had fallen.

Wait, when did he click that?

After buying from the V Blog link, it defaulted to auto-posting the purchase info to his latest V Blog.

Yu Xi’s hand trembled as he tapped into V Blog. When he saw the hot searches and his first post, his vision went black.

【Yu Xi V: I bought the #Dawn CP (Profile Pic and Bio Update Ships Immediately) (I’ll be so sad if anyone doesn’t know what Dawn CP is, OK?)# merch bundle from the window posted by @Geng Shanglou for just 1 yuan. Check the link below for details ↓↓↓ [Link]】

The comment section had already gone insane.

【He’s true love!!!】

【Could they really be dating behind our backs?】

【When’s the profile pic change [doge]】

【Squatting for profile pic and bio change. Begging for a live stream. I want to witness history.】

【Screamed at work with auntie laughter. Coworker asked what I was laughing at. I said my CP started dating hehehe.】

Yu Xi switched to his alt account, trying to defend him.

【Zhen Bu Chi Yumi: No, I think Teacher Yu Xi must’ve clicked it by accident.】

【Netizen 1: Tell me, he clicked the link, browsed it for so long, read all the merch details, hit ‘Buy Now,’ and paid—a whole series of actions, all accidents?】

【Zhen Bu Chi Yumi: No! It’s because of no-password payment! No-password payment is the original sin!! He only paid because of no-password payment!!】

【Netizen 2: I get you’re trying to explain, and maybe it was accidental, but if he didn’t ship CP, how would he even know about Mrs. Geng Shanglou’s link? He clicked it, browsed it—that proves they’re true love, right?】

【Zhen Bu Chi Yumi: Geng Shanglou is a huge fan!! It’s not weird for him to notice a huge fan!】

【Netizen 3: As everyone knows, some big fans are connected to the star’s studio or agency. Some actions represent the studio or company’s stance. Geng Shanglou is a big fan shipping CP—how do you know his company isn’t okay with it?】

【Zhen Bu Chi Yumi: …】

Yu Xi frantically fought for his reputation, his fingers flying across the screen. On the surface, though, he remained perfectly calm, without a hint of anything amiss.

At the same time, Yi Chen’s V Blog app had crashed from overload.

The basketball game had just ended, and he hadn’t checked the hot searches yet. He felt puzzled inside.

He remembered logging into 【Geng Shanglou】’s alt account at this time. Why was it flooded with messages causing it to crash?

It lagged for a good while before V Blog started working normally.

His DMs and notifications showed blazing red 99+ icons.

【Aaaah Mrs. you got flipped by the real deal!!】

【OMG!! Mrs.! Sincerity works wonders. You got what you wished for—your CP is real!!!】

【Check hot search, Mrs. you’re trending!】

【What a wholesome Mrs. Ruthlessly followed!】

【Pic and bio changed, link bought—Mrs. please ship!!】

Amid the flood of comments, one system notification stood out.

【System Message: Yu Xi bought your #Dawn CP (Profile Pic and Bio Update Ships Immediately) (I’ll be so sad if anyone doesn’t know what Dawn CP is, OK?)# merch bundle from the window. Please ship to him promptly~!】

Yi Chen: “!”

Yi Chen sneaked another glance at Yu Xi.

Most teams had finished the basketball game by now, with only two still competing. They started packing equipment. A few of them dragged a pile toward the Equipment Room.

Yu Xi looked calm, utterly unconcerned—no, he looked like he had no idea about the online buzz—if his fingers weren’t blurring with phantom speed on the screen.

Honestly, based on Yi Chen’s understanding of Yu Xi, buying the link might really have been accidental—at least Yu Xi wouldn’t use his main account for it.

But!!

Yu Xi knew about the 【Geng Shanglou】 account, knew about all the CP-shipping content she posted, and had carefully checked the merch!!

If Yu Xi truly disliked the designs and content on the merch, he couldn’t do anything to 【Geng Shanglou】 over the internet, but he could do something to the other half of the CP—Yi Chen. He’d either find an excuse to avoid him or snap at him on the spot. At the very least, he’d sulk for days.

But Yu Xi did nothing. He even pretended not to know.

Which!

Meant!

Yu Xi had accepted this CP!!!

No need to explain what accepting a CP means, right?!

Yi Chen: “!!!!!”

He forcibly suppressed his inner excitement and, in a great mood, poked his CP-shipping sister who was still struggling.

【Geng Shanglou: Sis, stop struggling.】

【Geng Shanglou: Your Fish Fish Teacher has acknowledged this CP.】

【Geng Shanglou: [Smug]】

【Geng Shanglou: Just ship it.】

Amid the flood of DMs and comments, Yu Xi spotted the glowing 【Geng Shanglou】. The rich fangirl sister had been flipped by the real deal. In high spirits, she bought herself a bunch of profile glow auras.

Yu Xi: “?”

【Zhen Bu Chi Yumi: Impossible!】

【Zhen Bu Chi Yumi: I know him so well. If he acknowledged it, I’d eat my keyboard on the spot.】

【Geng Shanglou: You know him?】

【Geng Shanglou: Based on the Teacher Yu Xi you know, if he didn’t accept it, what would his reaction be to all this CP merch?】

【Geng Shanglou: Rage-quit? Or calmly admire?】

Yu Xi froze.

Right, shouldn’t he be venting at Yi Chen right now??

What was he pretending for??

【Geng Shanglou: Still live-streaming now. See how calm your Fish Fish Teacher is? Not even a frown. Total acceptance, or it’d be a new hot search by now.】

Yu Xi: “…”

【Geng Shanglou: [Pat on shoulder] Accept it, sis. This CP is real.】

【Geng Shanglou: Want me to send you a merch bundle as a friendly gift? Just give me your address.】

Yu Xi: “…”

Yu Xi stared at Geng Shanglou’s barrage of messages, completely at a loss for how to reply.

V Blog kept auto-pushing #Teacher Yu Xi Ships CP# hot searches.

Nearby, the guests must have noticed too. Wu Zhiqi sidled over cautiously. “Teacher Yu Xi, do you want to change your profile pic first? You gotta change the pic and bio for them to ship it.”

Yu Xi: smile 🙂

He smiled as he turned off the screen, smiled as he pocketed his phone, smiled as he took a deep breath, smiled as he told Wu Zhiqi “No change,” and smiled as he kicked Yi Chen.

Destroy the world.

Yi Chen: “?”

【Hahahaha Yi Chen got kicked into confusion】

【Teacher Yu Xi couldn’t keep up the act hahahaha】

【Knew it—how could his 5G not see the hot search? All that calm was fake!!】

【Ears red, ears red!!】

【Ah! His pissed-off look is so cute!!!】

“What’d you kick me for out of nowhere?” Yi Chen demanded an explanation from Yu Xi.

“If you hadn’t suddenly come over, would I have hit payment?”

“You didn’t click the link—how could you pay no matter what you touched?” Yi Chen narrowed his eyes. “Our Fish Fish Teacher secretly shipping CP without me? Not cool.”

Yu Xi: “…”

He was too lazy to bicker with Yi Chen anymore. With the camera live-streaming, Yu Xi didn’t want to create more CP fodder. He quickened his pace toward the Equipment Room.

Just then, a sharp sting hit the back of his neck. A scorching burn instantly swept through his body from his gland.

Yu Xi’s steps faltered. He clutched his neck fiercely.

Yi Chen immediately realized what was happening.

—Secondary Differentiation symptoms had flared up again.

To avoid accidents during the live stream, Luo Qin had prescribed Yu Xi Emergency Inhibitors. They had the mildest side effects but limited duration.

One injection in the morning prevented massive pheromone leaks during symptoms, though a small amount still leaked, and it couldn’t suppress the pain. It was only for emergencies.

But at least it bought time for Yi Chen to get Yu Xi to a safe spot for a Temporary Mark.

Wen Yimeng caught a faint gardenia scent—probably some Omega’s Pheromone Blocker Patch failing. Before he could trace the source, Yi Chen slung an arm around Yu Xi’s shoulders and grinned at the guests. “We’ll handle the stuff. It’s close to the Equipment Room anyway. You guys head to the Dining Hall first.”

Everyone understood.

These two promo CP partners wanted to whisper sweet nothings.

With the hot searches blowing up, they definitely needed private space to strategize next steps.

“Sure.” Fang Peng said. “We’ll head over first. Fu Le’s still competing. Pack up and join him later, yeah?”

They split up. Yi Chen dragged the equipment cart straight into the Equipment Room and shut the door.

—The Equipment Room was the only nearby spot no one would enter for a while.

Yu Xi’s condition was obviously bad. His shoulders trembled, lips bitten nearly to bleeding. Even his usual steely gaze softened from the red at his eye corners.

If only he were this obedient all the time.

Yi Chen thought as he lowered his head and gently bit Yu Xi’s gland.

The Equipment Room lights were off. The only light was golden sunlight spilling through the glass window above the door, stretching their shadows long.

–

Fu Le dragged a bag of basketballs toward the Equipment Room.

His match had run late, so he hadn’t come with the others.

He’d only mentioned politely for his teammates to go ahead and sell a “down-to-earth” image. He hadn’t expected his earnest teammates to actually leave it all to him, briefing him on precautions, thumbs-upping him enthusiastically, cheering him on, then rushing to the Dining Hall for dinner.

Fu Le: “…”

In front of the live camera, Fu Le was helpless. He could only keep smiling, diligently and happily cleaning up.

To get to the Equipment Room, he had to pass a corridor. The cameraman got a call from the director to film at the Cafeteria, so he instructed Fu Le and left with the camera.

Fu Le’s smile dropped the instant the cameras were gone.

“Don’t you have any sense? I was just being polite, and you really let me come alone.”

His face darkened as he dragged the basketball into the corridor. “Damn, this is exhausting.”

When he reached the Equipment Room door, the Portable Pheromone Sensor on his body beeped.

—Fu Le was a Beta, but he sold an Omega persona. If he failed to detect pheromones when he was supposed to smell them, it would be a disaster. That’s why he always carried a Portable Pheromone Sensor—a small, thin card that could stick to the back of his phone.

The electronic screen displayed: Omega pheromone, gardenia scent, concentration: low.

Fu Le: “!”

At a time like this, in the unlit Equipment Room, with Omega pheromones leaking out a little… it had to be…

The door lock clicked, and with a “creak,” the door cracked open.

Fu Le retreated behind a pillar nearby—good thing he instinctively backed away, because he saw Yu Xi emerge from behind the door.

Fu Le: “!”

Yu Xi, who stepped out, wore a dazed expression, and his collar looked somewhat disheveled.

It was obvious he’d just done something unspeakable!!

—Fu Le had seen a similar scene at the banquet. He’d had his suspicions back then, and now they were confirmed.

Yu Xi really had some shady relationship with an Omega?!

“Don’t leave at the same time as me,” Yu Xi turned back and said to the person inside. “I’ll go first. Once I’m sure no one’s suspicious, I’ll message you, and you can come out.”

“You’re just leaving like this?”

Yi Chen sat on the equipment rack. He… still had a bit of a reaction that hadn’t fully subsided.

“I went to great lengths to make you feel better, and you’re just going to leave me here alone?” Yi Chen feigned a hurt expression. “Fish Fish Teacher, you’re so heartless.”

Yu Xi: “……”

He seemed like he wanted to defend himself, but in that brief moment of stunned silence, Yi Chen grabbed his wrist and pulled him down entirely. Tilting his head up, Yi Chen gently kissed him on the lips.

Fu Le was at some distance and couldn’t hear what Yu Xi said to the person inside. He could only see Yu Xi turn back, lean down, and kiss the person inside for quite a while.

What luck.

Fu Le sneered coldly.

The opportunity had come.

He had been racking his brains to whitewash himself and smear Yu Xi, but he’d never had the chance before. This time, Yu Xi couldn’t hold back and got involved with some mysterious Omega.

Yu Xi left.

Yi Chen stayed alone in the Equipment Room to calm down for a bit.

His condition wasn’t great.

He… was about to lose control. If he kept doing Temporary Marks like this, his Susceptible Period would inevitably be forced out sooner or later. If that happened…

Yi Chen sighed.

Soon, Yu Xi messaged him that it was safe to come out—the Dining Hall food was ready.

Yi Chen stood up, about to head out, when from his angle, he spotted someone outside acting sneaky, holding up a phone like they were recording.

—It was Fu Le.

Obviously, Fu Le had seen Yu Xi leave.

The situation was easy to guess now. Yu Xi’s Secondary Differentiation hadn’t been announced publicly yet. Fu Le, unable to smell pheromones himself, still thought Yu Xi was an Alpha. He must have detected a trace of leaking Omega pheromones with his device and assumed Yu Xi had an intimate relationship with some Omega. Now he was lurking to record it.

This little green tea had never been one to stay quiet, always looking to stir up trouble, but he’d never had a chance to strike before.

Now, he probably thought he’d found the perfect scoop.

It looked like this episode of the show wouldn’t be peaceful after all.

Sigh.

Yi Chen felt helpless too.

He clearly didn’t want to clash with anyone on the show, but some people just had to deliver themselves on a platter.