In an instant, the entire lounge fell silent enough to hear a pin drop.
Qin Han’s eyes widened. Ever since he had begun suspecting that Xie Ling was an Omega, he had run all sorts of subtle tests on him at school over the past few days. But because he feared arousing Xie Ling’s suspicions, he hadn’t dared to push too far. His guesses had grown firmer and firmer, yet he still hadn’t been able to confirm them for certain.
Not until he heard Qin Huai’s answer.
Qin Huai pushed a sheet of paper toward him. “See for yourself.”
Qin Han’s outstretched hand trembled as he took it. By the time he finished reading, the edges of the paper were crumpled and torn where he gripped them.
“He’s an Omega,” Qin Han murmured, closing his eyes and repeating Qin Huai’s earlier words. “A top-tier Omega with a compatibility rating over ninety-eight percent with me.”
Qin Huai hummed in agreement. “In theory, he’s your fated partner for this lifetime.”
“Fated partner for this lifetime…” Qin Han leaned back into the sofa, covering his eyes with the back of his hand as he savored the words. Slowly, the corners of his mouth curved upward.
Qin Huai watched his expression, then adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses. “So, what’s your next move?”
Qin Han shot the question back at him. “What do you think I should do, Second Brother?”
“Do I even need to say it? You’ve always liked bossing him around.” Qin Huai chuckled. “From now on, just suppress him with your pheromones and force a mark on him. With compatibility that high, no matter how dominant he is, he won’t be able to resist you.”
Qin Han’s throat bobbed. The hand over his eyes clenched tighter and tighter. After a long moment, it finally relaxed.
He lowered his hand and opened his eyes, letting out a soft laugh. “That’s what you say, but those things you have out there tell a different story.”
He had passed by Qin Huai’s lab on his way in and spotted some equipment inside—devices specifically designed to restrain a rampaging Alpha, and all of them were the reinforced versions.
“I only said that because I figured the thought might cross your mind.” Qin Huai smiled. “I put those out there just in case, Second Brother doesn’t want you committing any crimes. After all, if you really lost control, you could probably tear this whole research institute apart.”
Qin Han brushed back his bangs, only to find them damp with sweat.
“But it looks like you’re still holding it together.” Qin Huai eyed Qin Han closely. His gaze was a little clouded, but he was clearly still lucid. “So now I can tell you the other thing.”
Qin Han noticed the shift in Qin Huai’s tone toward something more serious, and his own expression grew solemn in response. He had spotted some omissions in that file.
“He’s a top-tier Omega who emits an Alpha scent because he’s been injecting Pheromone Inductor Agent. From our analysis, the agent has already started causing side effects in his body…”
The rest matched exactly what the doctor had told Xie Ling back then.
Finally, Qin Huai added, “When I checked the ABO Gene Database, I saw that the head of the Xie Family had queried it too, about a week and a half ago.”
Qin Han’s pupils contracted sharply.
It all clicked into place.
He now understood not only what Xie Ling had been enduring every time he claimed to be anemic, but also that Xie Ling had known from the start that Qin Han could cure him—yet because of their relationship, he had never been able to bring himself to ask.
And those side effects would only grow more severe with time.
His heart, pounding wildly from excitement, cooled with the speed of a plummet off a cliff, leaving only faint, excruciating twinges behind.
Qin Han murmured under his breath, “If the mountain won’t come to me, then I’ll go to the mountain.”
After a moment’s thought, he asked Qin Huai, “Is there any way to trigger an outbreak?”
Qin Huai studied Qin Han for a beat, confirming that his little brother wasn’t about to do anything illegal, before replying, “Intense exercise. He hasn’t had any treatment, so his condition must be deteriorating. And since he’s already stopped using the inductor, if my estimate is right, within the next couple of days, he’ll completely lose the ability to emit Alpha pheromones. Once the outbreak hits, he’ll start secreting Omega pheromones outright.”
In other words, Xie Ling’s true nature would be fully exposed.
Aside from last week’s physical fitness test, PE classes lately had been free periods, and Xie Ling had clearly noticed his own condition—he hadn’t done anything strenuous, not even shooting hoops during break.
Qin Han thought for a moment, then asked, “Didn’t Director Cai used to teach you math back in the day, Second Brother?”
Qin Huai had gone to Jiangning No.1 High School too, though unlike Qin Han, he hadn’t exactly been a model student. He’d clashed with Director Cai plenty during his school days, and just hearing the name triggered a reflexive tension in his spine. “And?”
He had a bad feeling about this.
Qin Han smiled, all politeness and friendliness. “Next Wednesday, on Commodity Street near our school—why don’t you treat Director Cai to afternoon tea?”
Qin Huai: “???”
~~~
As was tradition, First High School held baseline exams for the freshmen and sophomores on the second week’s Wednesday and Thursday.
These baseline tests were school-made, mimicking the format of the upcoming college entrance exams, with questions pitched at a high difficulty.
The first morning session was Chinese, allotted two hours.
But after an hour and a half, Xie Ling—the top seat in the first exam room—handed in his paper to the proctor.
The first exam room was reserved for the elite of the elites, all top performers who were used to sharing a room with Xie Ling and his habits.
Still, it was only half an hour early. Normal operations for Ling God.
Not only were these academic gods brilliant at studying; their mental game was unbreakable too.
If only reality weren’t so harsh.
At 1:50 in the afternoon, Xie Ling turned in his math paper forty minutes early.
This math exam had been brutally tough. Nearly half the first exam room consisted of math Olympiad kids—talents who ranked nationally among high schoolers—yet even they had been stumped by the final two questions.
When Xie Ling handed in his paper, a wave of profound self-doubt washed over everyone.
What was going on?
Had they really been given the same test as Xie Ling?
Were they really the academic gods here?
Xie Ling walked out of the room looking refreshed and invigorated.
As he passed Xiao Yanfei in the second row, first seat, the other boy muttered under his breath, “Are you fucking human?”
It came out half-gritted through clenched teeth.
Xie Ling’s lips quirked up, and he started to fire back on instinct—until a cough from the proctor at the front of the room cut him off.
Xie Ling flashed a smile at the teacher. Before leaving, he patted Xiao Yanfei’s shoulder.
He hadn’t said a word, but Xiao Yanfei could practically hear it: Don’t fall for me, bro—I’m just a legend.
~~~
Xie Ling emerged from the exam room, slung his backpack over one shoulder, and headed straight for a low wall near the school’s back gate.
The back gate had been abandoned for ages, without even a guard post. In the corner between the gate and the wall grew a stunted little tree, long since withered.
At this hour, the seniors were in class, and the freshmen and sophomores were testing—no one else was around.
Xie Ling unzipped his backpack. He had stashed his books in Class 7 before the exam, so now it held only his used pencil case from the test and a plastic bag about the same size as the pack.
He opened the bag and pulled out a pair of inline skates, swapping them for his shoes right there.
Once geared up, Xie Ling shouldered his bag with one strap and nimbly climbed the little tree on skates. Then a voice called from behind him: “Xie Ling.”
The sudden sound startled him so badly he nearly tumbled down.
Looking below, he saw Qin Han standing at the base of the tree.
Xie Ling was all question marks. “What are you doing here?”
“Turned in early.”
Xie Ling arched a brow. “That’s not on, you know. Sure, this test must feel like climbing Everest for the last-place kid in the last room, but finishing properly is our duty as students.”
Qin Han smiled and hummed in agreement. “I think I did finish it properly.”
Tch. Xie Ling eyed Qin Han’s calm, confident smile and inwardly rolled his eyes.
Seating for this exam had been based on last semester’s final rankings. Qin Han landing last in the last room was purely because he had transferred in this term without prior scores—it had nothing to do with his actual ability. Xie Ling knew that, and he knew Qin Han must have completed the paper before leaving. Still, he couldn’t resist poking at him.
“Don’t get too cocky. High school questions are worlds harder than middle school’s, and with that Western math education you got in the States for three years, you won’t touch first place for the next two.”
Back in middle school, Qin Han had often tied with Xie Ling for first—or even edged him out sometimes. It was one of the things Xie Ling still held a grudge about. But now, he was confident he could grind Qin Han into the dirt.
“Yeah, I definitely didn’t score as high as you.” Qin Han played the bootlicker as always, though his mind wasn’t on the exam at all. “Are you headed to that figure store you always go to?”
Xie Ling blinked in confusion. “How’d you know?”
“Xia Yu mentioned it during lunch last week.”
Xie Ling thought back—yeah, that tracked. He narrowed his eyes and shot Qin Han a cold smile. “Chairman Qin, don’t tell me you turned in early just to stalk me and catch me skipping.”
It had happened plenty back in middle school.
Seeing the wary, hostile look on Xie Ling’s face, Qin Han’s heart sank a little. He smiled. “I’m not chairman anymore. Truth is, I came here to skip with you.”
???
Was he hard of hearing? In his entire life, he never imagined hearing the words “skip class” come out of Qin Han’s mouth.
Xie Ling shot him a look that said, Are you up to something stupid?
Qin Han spoke with calm certainty. “During those three years in America, I reflected on it day and night. The more I thought about it, the more I realized how handsome and dashing you looked skipping class back then. So I want to follow in your footsteps and see the world outside.”
As if he would believe such blatant flattery!
And yet…
“If you can keep up, then come along.”
Xie Ling suppressed the delighted wag of his little tail. His feet, clad in inline skates, glided one after the other along the edge of the low wall before he flipped smoothly over it.
The Figure Store on Commodity Street was just a fifteen-minute walk from First High School. Even if Xie Ling was in a rush, he could have run there without issue. But he loved wearing his inline skates—the thrill of speeding freely through the wind was irresistible.
Humming a newly learned Japanese song, Xie Ling zipped through one intersection after another. At a sharp corner, he glanced left mid-turn.
Qin Han was actually keeping pace right behind him! And the guy was even on the phone while sprinting at top speed!
Damn, what a show-off.
He remembered their junior high days— their running times had been neck and neck. Xie Ling hadn’t slacked on his workouts these past few years, and with the inline skates giving him an edge, he should have left Qin Han in the dust by several blocks. Yet here the guy was, glued to his tail.
Was this the raw physical gap between a differentiated Alpha and an Omega?
Xie Ling tsked in frustration. Qin Han’s behavior felt like a blatant provocation.
“We’re heading there now…” Qin Han ended his call with Qin Huai and noticed Xie Ling pulling ahead even faster.
At full throttle, Xie Ling was lightning-quick. Trailing behind, Qin Han watched that figure blend seamlessly with the rushing wind.
Without Qin Huai’s report, Qin Han never would have believed someone with such prowess could be an Omega.
But because it was Xie Ling, anything seemed possible.
The wind billowed up the hem of Xie Ling’s T-shirt, revealing a glimpse of his slim waistline.
Qin Han had held that waist—not long ago, when he’d escorted Xie Ling to the Medical Office.
The memory of that touch made him bite his lip.
Snapping back to reality, Qin Han realized he’d followed Xie Ling straight into Commodity Street. The crowds here were thicker than on the main roads, and after his brief distraction, Xie Ling had slipped even farther ahead in the blink of an eye.
Weaving through the throng, Qin Han spotted Xie Ling ducking into a shop.
A top-tier Alpha’s dynamic vision was exceptional, and Qin Han clearly caught the provocative smirk Xie Ling flashed him just before vanishing inside.
Assuming Xie Ling was gloating about outpacing him, Qin Han didn’t dwell on it. He charged after him without glancing at the shop’s sign.
Xie Ling was nowhere in sight, but some rather… intriguing items caught his eye.
A dozen seconds later, Qin Han backed out of the store, a rare flush of embarrassment cracking his usual unflappable composure.
He glanced up at the sign: “Yellow Lover.”
A nationwide chain of 24-hour, self-service adult novelty shops.
Passersby eyed the school-uniformed Qin Han lingering at the entrance, their whispers buzzing like flies.
Ignoring the stares, Qin Han schooled his features into elegant poise—as if he were ascending a stage to accept an award—and strode calmly back inside.
