CH 5

Xiao Li’s father was a high-level alpha and he smelled traces of vodka the moment the man fell in the door. The Xiao family was not as powerful as the Jiang family, but it was still easy to investigate a suspected alpha, and the police soon arrived at the hospital.

Jiang ChengLi recognized the boy who had just been beaten up by Shi Yu.

Alpha accounted for twenty percent of Nan Zhong’s annual intake of students, divided into two classes A1 and A2. Perhaps because of the same-sex confrontation, each class of A1 and A2 were not very good at dealing with each other, including this year.

The alpha, strong as a black bear, was an A2 student named Huang Lin.

Father and Mother Xiao were waiting for the lab results while Jiang ChengLi learned what happened from the medical staff.

Shi Yu had a verbal confrontation with Huang Lin in the restaurant. The alpha was as hot-tempered as his pheromones. When he couldn’t get what he wanted, he tried to hit him, injuring a waiter. Shi Yu reciprocated, picked up a tray and beat Huang Lin’s head.

The two men fought to the point of no expense. Finally the boss called the police before they would stop, only to have the injured waiter sent to the hospital where the two men fought again.

When Jiang ChengLi found Shi Yu, the doctor was preparing sutures.

The omega, who had looked stern before, was standing behind Zhong Tan covering his eyes with one hand and wiping his sweat with a tissue in the other.

The doctor was holding a suture needle to help Zhong Tan mend his hand. The doctor reprimanded him, “You young people are impetuous. Everything likes to solve everything by force. It is fortunate that it was only a flesh wound. If the glass piece went deeper and cut the ligaments of your hand, you know it would be ruined, right?”

Shi Yu bowed his eyebrows. “Yes.”

“What the hell?!” Zhong Tan grimaced and brushed Shi Yu’s hand away from his eyes. “Come on, it’s not like you can’t see blood.”

“Eh, eh, don’t move!” The doctor said carefully. “I’m stitching it!”

“Doctor, you don’t know, but that alpha is the reincarnation of a sex demon. He actually put something in the cup!” Zhong Tan’s voice was vicious, saying that Huang Lin was cheap and despicable.

“That sister was already unstable when he was holding her, and the dog actually tried to run! I went to drag him and was hit by a glass bottle.”

The doctor let out a yowl. “So you two are still brave, huh?”

“That’s not true. I’m a good young man with a strong backbone, and what I mean by being in society is… Ah, it hurts!”

The wound wasn’t deep but it was still a flesh wound. Shi Yu pressed him down. “You get stitched first. I have something to do.”

Zhong Tan could only resign himself to staring at the doctor mending his wound.

Shi Yu was on his way out when he bumped into Jiang ChengLi at the door.

President Jiang’s figure was slender and straight. Without the cover of the student-spirited school uniform, a look of distance, detachment and indifference suddenly appeared.

“Xiao Li’s parents asked me to bring you there.”

Shi Yu gave an ‘Oh’ and swallowed his doubts before going with him.

When Jiang ChengLi turned back, he saw a light-colored scab on President Jiang’s collarbone, but it was not visible when the collar covered it up.

Shi Yu involuntarily touched the tip of his nose and bowed his head.

The test results came back, and Huang Lin’s pheromones were a perfect match, proving that the person who tried to misbehave with Xiao Li at school that day was him.

Father Xiao used a phone call to find out that Huang Lin had originally studied in Jincheng for a year in high school. He got in trouble and was expelled from school. But the family had some connections and means. After using money to smooth things over, he changed his age and re-entered Nan Zhong.

Mother Xiao laughed coldly. “Unrepentant beast. He has already come of age. Let him eat in prison.”

The Xiao family’s power was no less than Huang Lin’s background.

Shi Yu stood outside the ward and suddenly understood why the Lian family had swept him out of the house. The Lian family could not afford to offend the Xiao family.

When she saw Shi Yu coming, the anger in Mother Xiao’s eyes turned into guilt. “Shi Yu, right? My daughter told me everything today. It’s true that our family misunderstood you.”

Shi Yu didn’t have much of an expression. When he met Xiao Li’s grateful eyes he just said, “It’s okay, get some rest.”

Father Xiao knew how much Shi Yu had been scolded during the week. He had been reading on Nan Zhong’s forum. Almost all of them were overwhelmingly scolding him. “Our family will compensate you for the trouble that’s been caused and we will clarify properly afterwards. If you still need anything else, you can just ask.”

Xiao Li carefully observed the person in front of her. The omega class also had many people sending her messages righteously scolding Shi Yu. She also wanted to provide whatever compensation that was rightfully his, but from Shi Yu’s entrance to now, aggression, resentment, joy or relief didn’t appear on his face.

He seemed to be born with very light emotions. The teardrop mole emphasized this and made him look inexplicably cold and arrogant.

Xiao Li was looking on, fascinated, then suddenly found another figure was also staring at Shi Yu.

She raised her eyelashes slightly, and looked to the Kaolin Flower, who was worshipped by the students on an altar. President Jiang, who was rumored not to look at anyone, was looking at Shi Yu.

Xiao Li’s heart was shocked for a moment, and she hurriedly hung her head and didn’t dare to look deep into the President’s eyes to hide her inquisitive curiosity. Nevertheless, an alpha staring so intently at an omega normally had a deeper meaning.

Shi Yu refused all the material compensation offered by the Xiao family.

Without that accidental fall into the water, he might not have awakened in this body. Indeed, Xiao Li owed him nothing.

Father Xiao took several phone calls and said sincerely to Shi Yu, “Then you should go home first, and I will take care of the rest.”

Shi Yu understood that the Xiao family wanted to turn the page on the feud and was ready to help him settle the fight. At least after this, he could count on no delay and no debt. He whispered his agreement and left the ward. 

Only when he began to look for Zhong Tan, did he find out that Jiang ChengLi had already left.

He was a bit depressed. He wanted to apologize to Jiang ChengLi, but now he could only help Zhong Tan hold his coat and go home.

With the Xiao family’s pressure, Huang Lin was responsible for all the compensation tonight, and Zhong Tan kept his job.

The city hospital was not far from Zhong Tan’s home, and Nancheng was a city near the sea. When they passed the beach, Zhong Tan suddenly suggested, “Why don’t we go to the beach and sit in the wind?”

Shi Yu could not resist him. “Be careful, don’t fall.”

“Just a little thicker bandage, it’s not serious.” Zhong Tan laughed and said. “We used to chat on the beach after school in junior high school. I scolded the homework for being difficult and the exams for being annoying. You scolded the Lian family for not taking you as a person.”

“I thought you were quite cowardly at that time, being so obviously bullied but you still didn’t dare leave home. Then I saw you kick Huang Lin and felt like I misunderstood you. Shi Yu, you’ve changed.”

Shi Yu’s eyes were downcast and he didn’t answer. As headlights swept by in the driveway behind him, he saw something in the sand.

“I thought at the time that we were both too miserable, both having no parents, but I thought you were worse off than me. At least no one was bullying me… What are you doing?”

Shi Yu touched a light blue stone with a white center. It looked good on the surface.

“Sea glass? What are you picking that up for? It’s not worth anything.” Zhong Tan couldn’t understand.

Shi Yu said, “Legend has it that dragons like shiny things.”

“Who doesn’t like gold and gems?” Zhong Tan glanced at it again. “But this scrap glass isn’t shiny either.”

Shi Yu used the corner of his coat to wipe it. “Substitute.”

“What, you want to give it to a dragon?” After saying that, Zhong Tan laughed. “Is this like the idiom, Lord Ye’s passion for dragons, right?” 1

Shi Yu turned around. “Let’s go home.”

“Okay.” Zhong Tan wasn’t sad. “Brother, that broken glass. Throw it out, yeah?”

“…No.”

Zhong Tan nagged Shi Yu to throw the glass away the entire way, but finally stopped when they got home. The door of his small apartment was wide open, and Mrs. Lian and Lian ZiJin were standing inside.

The Lian family had always been picky and disliked Zhong Tan’s cramped apartment, not even willing to sit on the clean sofa.

Mrs. Lian half covered her nose. “Finally, you’re back. Acting like such a young master.”

Zhong Tan instinctively shielded Shi Yu behind him. “Mrs. Lian, trespassing is not a good thing.”

“Trespassing?” Mrs. Lian sneered. “I haven’t even asked you to settle the score yet for taking Shi Yu without permission, but you dare to call us out first?”

Mrs. Lian had always treated the two of them only as dogs that mixed together. The difference being that Shi Yu was domesticated and Zhong Tan was wild.

Lian ZiJin, who had recovered from his injuries, stood behind her and looked at Shi Yu with resentment. He spoke without a bottom line that day because he was convinced that Shi Yu was about to be expelled. He didn’t expect Shi Yu to pretend to be sick and go to the hospital after that day’s trouble. Then the school administration strangely failed to follow up in the past two days.

Lian ZiJin couldn’t discover anything, so he came with his mother to escort him to the Xiao’s doorstep.

Shi Yu smiled indifferently. “Mrs. Lian, you have always wanted to get rid of me, haven’t you? I am now doing this, but it is not to your liking?”

Mrs. Lian’s face went cold. “The Xiao family is not someone you can afford to offend. I helped you contact your second aunt’s vocational school. Move there now and maybe no one will know you’re plotting against an omega at sixteen.”

Zhong Tan laughed, “Let a top student in a key high school with grades on top go to a vocational school? What’s the difference between that and destroying his future?”

“Who is destroying his future? Isn’t he the one who’s being cheap? Even a beta like him doesn’t know what he is, he’s really a bitch…”

Zhong Tan knew that not mentioning Shi Yu’s parents was the most important thing so he picked up a broom in anger. “This is my house, get out!”

Mrs. Lian did not expect the wild dog to suddenly go crazy and was driven out in a mess with Lian ZiJin. Mrs. Lian was furious. “Shi Yu, you’re the one who gave up your face! What the Xiao family does to you next has nothing to do with our Lian family!”

Shi Yu listened to her shrewish curses at the door for a long time, then looked back at Zhong Tan. “Sorry.”

“What are you apologizing for? It’s not like we didn’t know she’s sick.”

Mrs. Lian had bipolar disorder and Shi Yu had suffered a lot because of it when he was a child.

Zhong Tan swept the floor. “I’ll change the locks tomorrow so that shrew doesn’t come in again. Such bad luck.”

The weekend was over and Shi Yu’s first heat was nearing its end, so he was ready to go back to school after his inhibitor injection on Monday morning. 

Before he left, Zhong Tan gave him a bottle of new blocker that smelled like ‘Little Spring Peach.’

Zhong Tan was holding his toothbrush.  “You don’t know how to take care of yourself and I only thought of it last night. The affordable ones of other flavors are out of stock and I can’t afford the high-priced ones, so use this one first.”

Shi Yu hesitated for a moment and gently sprinkled a handful on the back of his neck.

The moment he left the house, he felt like a freshly picked peach.