Chapter 44
The vehicle stopped smoothly in front of Lu Wanqing, the door handle right at his fingertips.
As he hopped in, Cui You handed him an internal comms unit.
“Everyone’s green with envy.”
Cui You shot Lu Wanqing a teasing glance. “We only had half an hour to prepare, not even enough time to call our families. And you? You get your wife with you the whole time, and even a warm hug before you leave.”
“It’s not like you ever miss a chance,” Lu Wanqing replied, his expression languid as he took the device. “Didn’t buy anything this time?”
The marriage alliance between the Cui and Shen families was common knowledge. With a title to his name, Cui You could get away with things within the bounds of discipline that others couldn’t. While others might not know, Lu Wanqing was well aware that before every routine mission, Cui You would order a pile of random things to be sent home.
It was a classic case of having more money than he knew what to do with, his only outlet being tokens of his affection.
“Not enough time,” Cui You said, his eyes downcast.
After the verbal lashing Shu Ci had given him a few days prior, he had a lot he wanted to say to Shen Ti, and many questions he wanted to ask. He had tentatively sent a couple of messages, only to be met with a barrage of “???” from Shen Ti. Not only had he failed to communicate effectively, but she had even suspected someone had hijacked his account.
In the end, he found himself unsure of how to face Shen Ti at all.
For the first time, the flamboyant and unrestrained young master of the Cui family chose to run away.
Seeing his low spirits, Lu Wanqing raised an eyebrow. He slowly clipped the comms unit to his ear, his gaze drifting out the window.
Shu Ci was no longer where he had left him.
He had walked off and was now standing in a corner, his head tilted back as he filmed the flag fluttering over the base.
A faint smile touched Lu Wanqing’s lips as he watched the receding figure from afar.
He could tell that Shu Ci’s words hadn’t been heavy with worry. It was clear that, like himself, Shu Ci was used to being alone. He didn’t feel the pang of separation too strongly, preferring to use teasing banter to dispel the somber atmosphere of parting.
That thirty-second hug had been his own offering.
He was afraid Shu Ci would turn around and forget him, and he was afraid that when he returned, he would once again be helpless, forced to stand by and watch the story unfold between him and someone else.
“There’s nothing to be envious of,” he murmured to himself, so softly that even Cui You didn’t catch it.
By the time the last convoy had disappeared into the distance, Shu Ci had doubled his collection of B-roll footage.
He put away his phone, its battery nearly dead, and slowly walked back to the dormitory building.
He went back, fell into bed, and slept. After a hasty dinner in the somewhat empty cafeteria, he locked himself in the personal office the propaganda team had assigned him and began editing.
After two days of work, the rough cut was more or less complete.
Next, Shu Ci invited the propaganda team to preview it. After collecting their feedback, he shot some additional scenes. Once he received the exterior footage from the team, he spent several more days working, and the transitions and special effects were mostly finished.
The members of the propaganda team were all dumbfounded.
“I saw him here editing when I came in this morning, and he was still here when I left!”
“Is that even possible? Is that the kind of stamina an Omega is supposed to have?”
“You should reflect on yourself. The amount of time you spend slacking off is almost as long as his working hours.”
Spurred on by Shu Ci’s insane work ethic and efficiency, the whole team felt a surge of motivation for the first time. They worked overtime on the voice-overs and subtitles. The master procrastinator in charge of color grading even, for the first time ever, created two different versions for Shu Ci to choose from.
A project that had been delayed for months by an incompetent and inefficient outsourced company was now completely finished just as the summer break was ending. The number of people involved in this promotional documentary was unprecedentedly small, and the timeline was short, yet the final product showed no signs of being a rush job.
No, to be precise, they had never seen an official film that could be considered a work of art like this one.
The day he left the base was the first day of his school semester.
He packed his things early in the morning, ready to return his work pass and leave. He had just finished the paperwork when he was summoned to the Marshal’s office to discuss the payment for the promotional film.
“Payment? I didn’t ask for any money,” Shu Ci said, sitting on the sofa and tilting his head in thought. “I treated it as a summer internship. Just give me an internship certificate that I can submit to my school for credits.”
He owned an island now; he wasn’t short on cash.
“…” He Lian looked at the credits rolling on the screen before him with mixed feelings. He couldn’t help but marvel that the inscrutable Lu Wanqing had such a straightforward partner.
This was hardly the standard of an intern’s work.
If he submitted this to a film festival, he doubted anyone would object.
“How can we not pay you? People will use it against us, saying we mistreat Omegas.”
“Then I’ll just post pictures of the food at the base and let them see whether the Marshal has mistreated me or not.”
During Shu Ci’s days at the base, He Lian had found more opportunities to dine with him.
Shu Ci’s personality was a bit like his own granddaughter’s, and the two had unknowingly become friends despite their age gap. He spoke without any airs or sense of status.
He Lian shot him a plaintive look. “I can’t confirm the release date of the film with you just yet, but trust me, I won’t let them erase your contribution.”
“If you need to protect the reputation of the Golden Shield, I would understand even if my name is removed.”
Shu Ci knew that his very existence and his ideas were a challenge to the foundations of this world. If the general public couldn’t accept an Omega directing a film for their Alpha-led society, then he was willing to compromise with the limitations of the era.
As long as more people could see his work.
“Really?” He Lian looked up. “Your work says otherwise.”
Shu Ci chuckled. “You could tell?”
He Lian snorted. “Of course. You never once specifically mentioned gender, and quite a few of the people featured were Betas and Omegas. If I hadn’t looked closely, I would have thought we had completely relaxed our recruitment standards to include those two groups.”
Proposals to add more special units for Betas and Omegas had been made, but they were always shut down by the great families.
The system as a whole had not yet worked out a complete plan for integrating Omegas, especially in a communal living environment. It was hard to guarantee that some brainless, idiotic Alphas wouldn’t lose control of their pheromones.
Now, the times were subtly changing.
Even councilors were courting the Omega vote. If they didn’t catch this wind of change, they risked being left behind by other sectors.
Shu Ci’s painstakingly crafted proposal had indeed moved the twelve generals.
But what moved them even more was his narrative perspective.
Whether they sided with Councilor Gu, who grandiosely claimed to be elevating the status of Omegas, or with Councilor Shen, who was genuinely working towards equality for all three genders, this promotional film was like the perfect pillow arriving just when they were getting sleepy.
“Don’t you think so?” Shu Ci blinked, speaking boldly. “I actually think Betas are better suited for your line of work than Alphas. Pheromones are an Omega’s weakness, but aren’t they also an Alpha’s weakness? Only Betas, who have no pheromones and aren’t affected by them, should be the true kings.”
He Lian leaned back in his chair, watching him with narrowed eyes.
Sinking into the sofa, Shu Ci suddenly felt a wave of energy rush toward him. He instinctively sat up straight, his back rigid.
The scent of wild cypress vanished in an instant.
“Did he teach you that?” He Lian slowly rose to his feet, his military boots thudding on the floor as he walked toward Shu Ci.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Shu Ci said with a grin, not forgetting his promise to Lu Wanqing to keep his pheromone manifestation practice a secret.
The Marshal was testing him.
He had almost released his own pheromones to manifest a defense against He Lian’s aggressive intent.
“Pheromones are also an Alpha’s weakness—”
He Lian paused. “An ordinary Omega wouldn’t say what you just said. And they certainly wouldn’t choose to straighten their back when faced with dominance.”
The first reaction of a normal Omega when threatened was to show weakness.
Instinctive submission and a lowered gaze were the standard responses. Even a rebellious Omega would bow first before glaring. Only someone with the ability and confidence to resist would choose to meet a killing intent head-on.
This is bad, Shu Ci thought, his expression darkening.
He Lian stopped in front of him and, with a smile, handed him the stamped internship certificate and the payment contract. “Alright, alright. He can fool others, but he can’t fool me. What Omega can stand by the training grounds for more than ten minutes?”
Shu Ci pressed his lips together, unsure of Marshal He’s attitude.
“Look at how nervous you are. If Lu Wanqing saw this, he’d give me the cold shoulder and make me apologize.”
He Lian ran a hand through his graying hair and sighed.
“Your generation… you’ve never seen a truly powerful Omega. Back in the day, the position of Chief Executive almost went to an Omega. If not for an unexpected turn of events, the Gu family would have never risen to power.”
Shu Ci frowned. “Really? I’ve never read about that in any books.”
He Lian gave him a meaningful look. “You’ll have to ask Councilor Gu about that.”
Realization dawned on Shu Ci.
In the Alpha-centric narrative written by the victors, certain people and events were deemed unnecessary to mention, unnecessary to know. And the past glory of one Omega couldn’t save the countless vulnerable Omegas ruled by their instincts.
“From your reaction, I’m guessing he’s just teaching you based on his experience with teaching Alphas. I’ll find a couple of essay collections by a professor from the military research institute for you to read at home.”
“Essay collections… can I buy them?”
“Out of print. Even the book numbers have been destroyed. What I have are my friend’s manuscripts.”
“That’s… that’s too valuable!”
“It’s even more useless collecting dust at my house,” He Lian said with a wave of his hand. “Back then, that person was determined to build a special unit composed entirely of Omegas. A few old friends helped with the research, verifying its feasibility and practicality. Who knew that all their hard work would be thrown away, not even a trace of its existence left behind.”
Shu Ci felt an unexpected weight settle on him. “In that case, could you… mail them to me at Jiqing Road? I won’t be living at the school dorms.”
“Thank you for your trouble,” he said, then stood and bowed to He Lian.
“No trouble, no trouble. Not after I’ve already troubled your husband for a few hundred million in funding,” He Lian muttered under his breath. Seeing Shu Ci’s confused look, he cleared his throat. “Yu Xingxing is on leave today. I’ll have him drive you to the university.”
Yu Xingxing had spent many days scheming and maneuvering at the main command center. When Shu Ci saw him again, he seemed to have matured quite a bit.
His once-clear eyes were now somewhat clouded, heavy with fatigue. Only his voice still retained its youthful energy.
“Kid, stop talking. I want to take a nap,” Shu Ci said, leaning his head against the window in exasperation. “You don’t have to act out every single unimportant thing Lu Wanqing said. Seriously, your acting is terrible.”
Yu Xingxing: “…?”
The boss was out on a mission with no way to contact his wife, and here he was, reporting every little detail to Brother Shu, and he wasn’t even appreciated!
Yu Xingxing sensed trouble. The boss’s wife wasn’t going to fall for someone else, was he?
He gripped the steering wheel, his expression serious. “Brother Shu, I hear the university is full of preening Alphas. It can’t be helped that you won’t see our boss, but you absolutely must not be seduced by them!”
“…” Save me. Who else could possibly seduce me?
He would be thankful enough if Gu Lanzhu didn’t make it impossible for him to even attend school.
A dark look crossed Shu Ci’s face, but he couldn’t resist teasing Yu Xingxing. “What? If I cheat, are you going to snip me with a pair of scissors and mail me to your boss?”
The words scared Yu Xingxing so much that he drifted into a sharp turn and screeched to a halt in front of the school gate.
He coughed several times, his eyes wide. “You can’t joke about things like that! No, I have to walk you in!”
“Save it,” Shu Ci said, the corners of his mouth twitching upwards. He hopped out of the car, waved goodbye, and hadn’t taken more than a few steps before his path was blocked by a large crowd.
“Wow! Isn’t that the young master of the Bai family?”
“Holy crap, does an Omega that beautiful actually exist?!”
A shiver ran down Shu Ci’s spine. He turned to look at Yu Xingxing.
Damn it, the white moonlight has appeared!!
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