Chapter 32
The long-awaited sunlight warmed his skin, the warmth spreading from the inside out.
Shu Ci leaned his head against the car window, contentedly stretching before lowering the window a crack.
A cool breeze washed over him, and he sighed meaninglessly.
Including the seven days of his heat cycle and the return trip, this was the longest he’d ever spent at sea. Even now, with his eyes closed, he still felt a lingering sensation of bobbing on the waves; opening them, he felt carsick.
After letting the breeze blow on him for a while, he finally recovered.
“How… much longer?” He turned to Lu Wanqing, noticing the faint blue under his eyes, his tone softening.
The man had driven him back to the military port in a stealth-mode vessel. The shift supervisor at the port had scolded him for using a public vessel for private purposes until a message from He Lian arrived. Only then was he let go.
Shu Ci had unknowingly met the unusual gaze of a beta technician when disembarking, realizing that the lingering pheromones on the ship, the ones that couldn’t be completely removed, still emanated a seductive scent.
After the heat cycle, the lingering effects of pheromones varied from person to person.
With so many Alphas stationed at the port, Shu Ci’s presence could easily excite this group of single dogs. Lu Wanqing didn’t dare delay, afraid of Shu Ci, still exuding alluring pheromones, using public transport. He applied for a car and drove from the port to City A.
The journey was six and a half hours. Shu Ci felt like he slept one nap after another, unsure how much rest Lu Wanqing got on the way.
“Almost there,” Lu Wanqing said, his voice hoarse from lack of sleep. “Still feeling unwell?”
The gravelly texture felt like a friction against Shu Ci’s heart.
He was slightly stunned, unsure how Lu Wanqing could tell. “I’m still a little dizzy. I think some fresh air would help.”
“Get a good rest at home. There might be some trouble after inheriting Longji Island, but don’t worry about Shu Changhai and the others taking it back. With the defense system, no one can get on the island without your permission.”
Shu Ci’s expression had been serious since returning from the control room. Lu Wanqing hadn’t asked much, until he realized that Shu Ci’s spirits hadn’t been high during the return trip, his entire demeanor listless, so he couldn’t help but speak.
Lu Wanqing rarely offered comfort.
During medical school, his mentor often said he was “clear-headed and rational, yet lacking compassion,” with little expression or fluctuation in his tone, making patients feel distant.
He had only felt that words were useless.
Everyone has their own destined path, and it wasn’t something he could change with a few words. Over time, he even stopped making small talk.
Who knew that now, facing Shu Ci, he would unexpectedly want to say something to cheer him up.
“Trouble?” Shu Ci sat upright, his expression serious. “What kind of trouble?”
After Shu Changze’s video ended, it was immediately destroyed; trying to find it again would yield nothing.
So, did he not want him to dwell on the fact that “he wasn’t his biological son,” or did he want him to stop at knowing it without digging deeper?
The Shu family was, after all, a prominent family; they wouldn’t let a bastard enter the Shu family mansion.
Although he didn’t know what tricks Shu Changze had played during the paternity test to bring him back to the Shu family and gain the Shu elders’ acceptance, from another perspective, Shu Ci’s biological parents were certainly not people suitable for public knowledge.
Therefore, it was understandable that he didn’t want him to investigate.
After much deliberation, he kept these thoughts to himself and didn’t tell Lu Wanqing. Now, hearing him mention the “trouble” of inheriting the island, he couldn’t help but feel invigorated. Did Lu Wanqing know some inside information?
Lu Wanqing glanced at the highway sign indicating the direction to City A, smoothly turning the steering wheel and monitoring the traffic behind. His peripheral vision fell on Shu Ci’s bright eyes.
Did he seem happier?
He suppressed his emotions, the corners of his mouth slightly upturned. “Longji Island has geographical advantages in maritime and international trade. When it was ownerless, all landing and docking applications were directly rejected. After you inherit it, these applications will be transferred to you for approval.”
Then, he added—
“And Gu Lanzhu; he seems to have always wanted Longji Island under his name.”
Shu Ci’s face fell at the first half of the sentence.
He was an artist, not someone who understood business dealings and manipulating capital. What if he made the wrong decisions and lost both himself and the island? Should he just sell it?
However, upon hearing the second half, he perked up a bit.
He could still get under Gu Lanzhu’s skin by possessing this island? That wasn’t a bad deal! If he wanted it, he wouldn’t give it to him; he would drive him crazy!
Shu Ci’s expression was readily apparent. Lu Wanqing’s gaze softened.
After going through a heat cycle, spending seven days by his side, listening to many unconscious murmurs and ramblings, Shu Ci became surprisingly easy to understand in his eyes.
He said, “Private islands have dedicated management companies. They will arrange things according to your needs. If necessary, you can sign an anonymous entrustment on their website without needing face-to-face contact with the company.”
“Such comprehensive service?!” Shu Ci was a bit shocked, then realized something, leaning forward with sharp eyes. “How do you know so much about this?”
In a class-divided society, the amount of information between people is always walled off.
Perhaps Lu Wanqing, the cuckolded supporting character in the original book, had been reborn, abandoning marriage and forging a different path to career success. He hadn’t expected that he was still being controlled by the plot to get married.
“Mm, I have five private islands,” Lu Wanqing said without reservation. “If you need recommendations for reliable companies, you can tell me.”
Shu Ci: “…”
Damn it, he’d been outsmarted.
“Regarding the island’s construction and operation, I’m a complete novice—”
He pursed his lips, hesitating about how to phrase it, when he heard Lu Wanqing’s low voice.
“If you trust me, anytime.”
After Lu Wanqing said this, the car exited the ramp and drove into the City A area. He casually reminded him to fasten his seatbelt to prepare for the upcoming speed cameras.
Shu Ci clutched his seatbelt, looking at his cheap husband’s profile, feeling that he was becoming increasingly pleasing to the eye.
Even if their marriage was forced, he was still graceful towards him, not blaming him for it or showing any displeasure. Furthermore, his care during the entire heat cycle was meticulous. He said he wanted to train his pheromones, and he didn’t hesitate to give him all the resources.
A man like Lu Wanqing was a gem in the marriage market, in the positive sense.
Being with him, a “1%,” felt like such a waste.
Just as Shu Ci was staring at Lu Wanqing, lost in thought, the car suddenly stopped with a loud screech of brakes.
“What’s wrong?” He snapped back to reality.
Lu Wanqing wasn’t the type to drive recklessly; he hadn’t felt such a sharp forward lurch and pushback along the way.
“Police,” Lu Wanqing said hoarsely, looking down at the dashboard.
He had been feeling Shu Ci’s ardent gaze on him, causing him to forget to watch his speed. Did he speed?
“An Alpha, it shouldn’t be the traffic police.” Shu Ci lowered the window, looking at the Alpha quickly approaching in the distance, frowning. “What happened here? It might be a cooperative investigation.”
He’d read all the magazines Lu Wanqing had left in the stairwell; this kind of social common sense was ingrained in his mind. Due to the nature of traffic accidents and the high proportion of road rage drivers, traffic departments often prioritize using Betas.
They have stable emotions to handle various emergencies and are not affected by the pheromones of angry Alphas at the scene.
“Hello,” the enforcement Alpha walked to the driver’s side, showing his credentials to Lu Wanqing. “Please show me your identification.”
Lu Wanqing: “…”
During secret missions, they didn’t carry any identification. Even this car was chosen by the port dispatch personnel to avoid attracting attention, using a non-official license plate.
Shu Ci sat in the passenger seat, quietly looking at the Alpha, noticing that he kept winking at him.
Shu Ci: “?”
He didn’t understand what it meant, but he vaguely felt something was wrong.
“You want him to get out of the car?” Lu Wanqing spoke when the Alpha winked at Shu Ci for the third time.
The Alpha’s face changed, he waved his hand, and two or three people appeared from nowhere, running to the passenger side to open the door and pull Shu Ci out.
Shu Ci’s face changed slightly. Having experienced Zhao Qian’s forced kidnapping, he was increasingly wary of this situation and subconsciously wanted to release his pheromones for a mimetic attack.
“Don’t be impulsive.” Lu Wanqing coldly stopped him.
Shu Ci had only been practicing for a short time, let alone whether he could withstand three Alphas, this was not the time to reveal his amazing abilities. The moment Lu Wanqing spoke, a pheromone pressure slammed the four people around the car to the ground.
Before the four could react, they instantly knelt on their knees.
Their faces were pale, and within a second, they felt like they’d encountered the Grim Reaper.
“Unintentional offense, sorry.” Lu Wanqing rubbed his hair, calmly getting out of the car, pulling up the one who had just shown his credentials. “Please state your intentions properly; otherwise, tomorrow your superior’s superior will be summoned to the Marshal’s office for questioning.”
He quickly let go, walked to the passenger side door, and took Shu Ci’s slightly trembling hand.
He knew that Shu Ci’s pheromones were difficult to control when his emotions fluctuated violently. So he released some of his pheromones first, enveloping Shu Ci’s glands to prevent those scents from affecting others.
The slightly overflowing honeysuckle scent collided fiercely with Lu Wanqing’s pheromones.
Both their hearts throbbed for a moment, enough to make them ignore the insignificant pain in their palms.
The Alpha was stunned, his eyes darting between Shu Ci and Lu Wanqing. His voice still trembled under Lu Wanqing’s pressure: “Is this Mr. Shu Ci?”
Shu Ci nodded, leaning against the car door.
“We received a report that Mr. Shu might be missing. Currently, your facial information should be on Level 1 alert on all city surveillance equipment, and the nearest detachment is investigating.”
Shu Ci and Lu Wanqing exchanged glances, seeing understanding in each other’s eyes.
During the days Shu Ci disappeared, Shen Ti couldn’t contact Cui You, and not knowing he was on Longji Island, he might take some action. Of course, it was also possible that Gu Lanzhu was the one who reported it.
Shu Ci took out his marriage certificate from his pocket: “I haven’t gone missing, please have the reporter withdraw the report.”
Lu Wanqing held his breath the moment he saw the marriage certificate.
He was afraid that Shu Ci would point at his photo and comment on it in front of these people.
“This is our certificate. This gentleman is my husband. Look at this naturally handsome face, this jawline, aren’t they exactly the same?”
The moment Shu Ci’s fingers touched it, Lu Wanqing froze in place.
His fingers clenched tightly at his side.
“…Yes, yes, yes.”
The police officer, watching the omega praise his husband to the heavens, after confirming the authenticity of the marriage certificate in the system, awkwardly asked someone to contact the center to cancel the report, and went through the procedures with Shu Ci.
As he left, he turned suspiciously, looking at the Alpha who was frowning.
Why were his ears so red? Should they call the traffic police for a drunk driving test?
Author’s Note:
Lu Wanqing: Confiscate the marriage certificate.
Shu Ci: ?
——
Old Lu’s perspective: Director Ci touched him (his face) all over in front of a bunch of people (:з」∠) No drunk driving, no speeding, but almost.