Chapter 16#
[Revised] The Kind Omega#
The group here today all moved in the same circle as He Junhua. The young masters and misses came from families in business or politics, and they were awfully finicky:
“Miguo Tea? It’s only a few yuan a cup, I don’t drink such cheap beverages.”
“Ew, it’s all artificial sweetener, so unhealthy.”
He Junhua said casually, “You’ve never tried it, so why not give it a shot? If it’s bad, just toss it.”
“Fine, fine.”
After placing the order, He Junhua chatted intimately with them for a while. Among those present were students from Mao University, as well as from the neighboring Polytechnic University and Medical University, and they all traded campus gossip. They were just covering their mouths and giggling over which art school girl had been kept by an old sugar daddy when someone suddenly called out:
“Hey, little President Lin is here.”
He Junhua looked up. Under the dim lights of the bar, the man stepped out from the shadows by the entrance. As he passed their booth, he cast a careless glance their way.
That face was sharply defined and quite handsome, the corners of his eyes carrying a teasing charm. He Junhua met his gaze for a brief moment, then immediately lowered his head, his cheeks flushing inexplicably.
“What are you calling ’little President Lin’ for? You should call him President Lin—” Meng Yimeng made a show of swatting the speaker, then stood up and, smiling, led Lin Heye into the private room.
Lin Heye hated being called “little President Lin.” “Little Lin, little Lin,” it sounded like he was Japanese, and that “little” character seemed to silently announce to everyone that there was a bigger shot looming over his head.
But Lin Heye was here to have fun today, so he couldn’t be bothered to quibble with small fries like these.
He entered the private room and sat down spread-eagled on the crimson sofa, radiating thick alpha pheromones. “You said you had new people here. Where are they? Bring them out for me to see.”
Meng Yimeng had been waiting for that exact line. He had the three newly hired waiters called in from outside and presented them to Lin Heye one by one.
All three waiters were university students—young betas and omegas, with decent features, but their family circumstances were rather poor. When they’d come to apply, Meng Yimeng had said the job involved chatting and drinking with guests, but remembering the ten-thousand-yuan monthly salary, they’d figured they could accept it.
Lin Heye wasn’t actually short on company. With his top-tier alpha status and top-tier family background, the omegas who wanted to climb into his bed and bear his children could form a line stretching out of the city.
But as the saying goes—people are perverse. Eat too much fine cuisine, and every now and then you crave a bit of plain greens and tofu. That was exactly Lin Heye’s state right now. The young heir sat there while little celebrities and models fluttered at him like moths to a flame, and he’d grown sick of it. That was why he’d asked Meng Yimeng to scrounge up a few “blander” options for him.
Lin Heye raised an eyebrow and sized them up. The three students were like tender melon sprouts—timid and afraid to look anyone straight in the eye.
A little too green.
Lacking flavor, tsk.
But since he was already here, Lin Heye lazily pointed at random. “You two, then.”
The two students flinched nervously, but their boss Meng Yimeng shoved them forward without warning. Meng Yimeng laughed. “Have a good time, President Lin. Give me a shout if you need anything.” With that, he led the remaining one away.
When He Junhua saw Meng Yimeng return, he shifted aside to make room for him to sit, then asked in a low, curious voice:
“President Lin—who’s that?”
Meng Yimeng was taken aback. “You don’t know?”
“Should I?”
Meng Yimeng smiled, amused that He Junhua was so out of touch with the world. “True enough. You—your whole heart’s hung on that Uncle Rong of yours, so of course you never noticed that he has a nephew.”
He Junhua suddenly realized. “Oh, so it’s him.”
He’d heard of Lin Heye’s reputation and knew he was a hot candidate among the next generation of heirs to the Rongsen Group, but he’d never seen him up close.
“You know that famous omega bio-doll chain store? That’s the project Lin Heye built single-handedly. So young and accomplished.”
Meng Yimeng said this with admiration, then teasingly poked He Junhua’s waist. “Of course, when it comes to sheer wealth, no one compares to your beloved Uncle Rong.”
At the mention of Rong Yu, He Junhua’s gaze dimmed for a moment. He couldn’t help but think of that night, when the alpha had carried someone into the house.
That day, he’d run back and thrown himself into his mother’s arms, crying for a long time in grief—a suffocating feeling like a treasured treasure had been snatched away.
Zhong Liyun, however, seemed half amused and half helpless. “Junjun, what alpha doesn’t stray? Besides, Chairman Rong is single, so of course he needs to take care of his physical needs.”
She said it bluntly, and He Junhua’s face flushed bright red as he stammered, “But, but…”
Zhong Liyun spoke earnestly. “But you need to understand, those omegas are mostly just selling themselves. They can’t be brought into polite society and they get no title—at most, they’re used a couple times and sent off. But you’re different—”
She pinched He Junhua’s delicate little face and told him word by word, “Junhua, you need to remember: your value is high. You’re meant to marry into a great family as a proper wife.”
“No matter what they do, what matters to you is the title.”
He Junhua nodded, half understanding, and went home crying to sleep. But even now, he was still hung up on it.
That person who’d had intimate contact with Uncle Rong—who was it?
Could it be someone prettier and more accomplished than him?
·
“Zhen Ye.”
At the shop entrance, Sister Chen ordered Zhen Ye out for a delivery. She set the insulated box onto the shop’s electric scooter, cursing under her breath, “Which heartless bastard ordered fifteen cups of lemon tea? My arms are sore from making them…”
The tires rolled over withered yellow plane-tree leaves with a crisp crunch. Zhen Ye rode against the wind, weaving nimbly through the evening traffic. As he neared the university town intersection, the traffic ahead gradually slowed.
It was a checkpoint set up by traffic police.
Zhen Ye’s gaze swept across. Nearby, there was also a Mao City TV station vehicle.
Two people got out of the TV station car—presumably preparing to film the police’s nighttime traffic enforcement operation.
A reporter raised a microphone toward a passerby riding without a helmet. “Sir, excuse me, may I have an interview…”
The passerby looked panicked, only now realizing that if he got caught breaking traffic laws tonight, it would be broadcast live.
Zhen Ye watched calmly, his pupils shifting slowly, then straightened the handlebars and continued toward his destination.
But halfway there, he stopped and bought some things at a pharmacy on the roadside.
The clerk asked as routine: “Sir, are these for yourself or for a family member?”
Zhen Ye smiled. “Medication for an elderly relative. My grandmother has mild high blood pressure.”
The clerk glanced at the two medications he’d bought and helpfully reminded him, “Then please remind your family, sir—if they’re taking this medication, try not to drink alcohol, or it might cause heart palpitations and dizziness.”
Zhen Ye rubbed the medicine box in his hand, a grateful expression on his face:
“Thank you, I’ll remember that.”
He got back on the scooter, crossed two streets, and arrived at the “Little Ice Age” bar.
Inside the bar at this moment, soft melodies drifted as the female singer with a husky voice clutched the microphone, expression entranced.
The sound of singing faintly reached the private room, causing Lin Heye, who had been resting with his eyes closed, to open a pair of deeply bored eyes.
Christ, this was dull.
The two students were fresh, sure, but they were far too nervous. When he touched their hands, they flinched like rabbits, not daring to show any backbone at all.
Honestly tasteless.
Lin Heye felt stifled, so he stuck a cigarette between his lips and headed out the door.
He sat down at the bar and ordered a whiskey. Suddenly, the wind chime overhead rang out, and a gust of wind squeezed in as the door opened, making everyone turn their heads.
A person walked in through the entrance, eyes fixed straight ahead, found an empty table, and set down the insulated box. He looked like an ordinary delivery guy, shabbily dressed. But when he turned his back and took off his helmet, Lin Heye’s sharp eyes caught the slim nape of his neck.
Lin Heye narrowed his eyes slightly. Based on his years of experience, the proportions of this person’s body under that windbreaker were definitely good…
Just didn’t know about the face.
“Eh? …Brother!”
He Junhua seemed to have just noticed him, surprise and smile in his voice as he waved. “Zhen Ye ge, over here, over here. This is the delivery we ordered.”
He called out with unusual enthusiasm. If anyone didn’t know their relationship, they’d really think the brothers were thick as thieves.
A faint, faintly cold smile hung at the corner of Zhen Ye’s mouth. Following his direction, he carried the fruit teas over.
One of those cups, he handed to He Junhua with his own hands.
Suddenly, a thick wave of pheromones cut in, its tone teasing: “What’s this nice stuff? Give me a cup too.”
Everyone looked over. That President Lin had crept over at some unknown moment, abandoning his whiskey at the bar to grab a cup of fruit tea instead.
That lemon tea was genuinely cheap—at least that’s how it tasted in Lin Heye’s mouth. He wanted to frown, but when he looked up to take in the delivery guy’s face, he immediately felt his throat itch with thirst, and even plain water seemed to taste good.
But the others didn’t share his fine mood.
“What is this? Ugh, so gross!”
“Way too much sugar, and the lemon’s not fresh either. Is it from yesterday? Not even as good as what my maid makes.”
“Junjun, I think you should just leave a bad review and get a refund.”
He Junhua put on a kind act. “Don’t be like that, everyone. My brother works hard, so please don’t give him a bad review, okay? Consider it for my sake.”
“Junhua, you have such a good temper.”
“Junjun, you’re so good to your brother. I’m so jealous.”
He Junhua smiled shyly. To show support for his brother, he took a big slurp of the lemon tea.
Just then, Meng Yimeng appeared at the right moment, a mischievous smile at the corner of his mouth. “Junhua’s big brother here—play a game with us, and we won’t ask for a refund. Deal?”
Zhen Ye raised his eyes calmly. “Play what?”
Meng Yimeng pointed at the row of glasses already arranged on the table. “These—”
He Junhua’s eyes widened, and he revealed in a panicked voice, “No way, my brother has a bad stomach. He can’t drink.”
Meng Yimeng directly upped the stakes. “Drink them all. Not a drop left!”
Zhen Ye watched the two of them perform in tandem, finding it simply ridiculous.
He Junhua had been like this since they were kids.
No matter how malicious his original intent, on the surface he always played the good guy, making someone else the villain.
Zhen Ye used to not bother with it, but now, he didn’t want to watch He Junhua keep up the act anymore.
He gave a smile, then directly picked up a glass and shoved it into He Junhua’s hand. “With my little brother caring about me this much, you’ve got to help your big brother drink it then.”
He Junhua frowned, about to refuse, when Zhen Ye cut him off with a single sentence:
“Junhua has always been the kindest omega in our family. He surely couldn’t bear to see his brother’s stomach ache, right?”
With so many eyes on him, He Junhua’s scalp tightened, and he suddenly found himself unable to save face.