Chapter 111
“Okay.”
Xiao Xiao agreed immediately. It wasn’t that he particularly liked interacting with alphas—after all, it wasn’t part of his job description—but he knew omegas had their sensitive times, especially around their heat. During those days, it was difficult for them to take time off, and they genuinely disliked being around alphas. As a beta, it hardly affected him, so he was happy to help when he could.
Seeing that Xiao Xiao had agreed, the omega’s smile widened, but she still frowned slightly. “I’ll leave it to you then. I have to get back to work. I don’t feel comfortable over here… it’s too strong.”
Her voice trailed off, and Xiao Xiao didn’t quite catch the last part. He just nodded. “Don’t worry. You go do your thing, I’ll go take a look.”
With that, Xiao Xiao stood up and walked out.
He had just reached the entrance when he saw a tall, handsome young alpha walking towards him. From a distance, the alpha had a smile on his face. But as he got closer to Xiao Xiao, he instinctively frowned, covered his nose, and said with disgust, “What is that smell on you?”
“A smell?”
Xiao Xiao was baffled. He suddenly remembered his other omega and alpha colleagues. They had also seemed to be frowning today, looking like they wanted to cover their noses but didn’t.
He reflexively lowered his head and sniffed himself. “No way,” he muttered. “I shower every day. My shampoo and body wash are all scented. There’s no way I smell bad!”
He sniffed all over but couldn’t detect anything unusual. When he looked up, however, he saw the new alpha had taken a step back.
The alpha looked a bit chagrined. “It’s not a bad smell,” he said, sounding apologetic. “Sorry, my tone was off just now. But seriously, walking around reeking of another alpha’s scent is going to tick people off.”
An alpha’s scent?
Xiao Xiao immediately thought of the jacket Gu Qian had draped over him yesterday. It must be the scent from that. His roommates were all betas, so he couldn’t smell it, and neither could they. His colleagues in the office would have known it was Gu Qian’s pheromones and would never have dared to tell him. That’s why they had been avoiding him all day.
A wave of mortification washed over him. His face turned red as he said, “Sorry, I’m a beta. I can’t smell pheromones.”
The new intern, an alpha, had already composed himself. “It’s okay. I forgot to introduce myself. Hello, senior. I’m Wang Xin. It’s my first day, please take care of me…”
Wang Xin said a lot more, but Xiao Xiao didn’t hear any of it. He had a desperate, urgent need to go downstairs and buy a bottle of pheromone neutralizer. He couldn’t believe he had come to work smelling of Gu Qian’s pheromones. What must his colleagues think of him? Smelling the scent but not telling him—they were probably gossiping about him behind his back.
His face was beet red. “Okay, uh, why don’t you go find your desk in the office and wait for me,” he said to Wang Xin. “I need to run downstairs to buy something. I’ll be right back.”
“Sure,” Wang Xin replied.
Xiao Xiao bolted into the elevator, rushed downstairs, hailed a cab to the nearest store, and bought a bottle of pheromone neutralizer. He sprayed himself down right there in the shop before finally heading back to work.
Wang Xin had already asked around and was waiting at his desk. When Xiao Xiao got back, he immediately ran over to him. “Could you do me a favor and smell? Do I still have an alpha’s scent on me?”
Wang Xin laughed and leaned in to sniff. “Nope, it’s gone. That mint scent is really overpowering. It’s the first time I’ve ever found the smell of mint so unpleasant.”
It was a classic signal of an alpha marking his territory—the pheromones were so aggressive and formidable that they made other alphas feel irritated and repulsed, driving them away.
“That’s good.”
With that settled, Xiao Xiao began to show Wang Xin the ropes. Wang Xin had previous work experience, so he picked it up after just one explanation.
“Okay, I’ve got it. Thanks, senior.”
Xiao Xiao found that training alphas was the easiest. Their natural abilities were just so much better than a beta’s. He had trained several alpha interns, and they always learned everything instantly. He remembered when he first joined the company, it took him over a month just to learn how to use a computer and do his job. Maybe he wasn’t stupid, just starting from a much lower point than everyone else.
“Great,” Xiao Xiao said. “If you don’t understand anything, just ask me. If I’m not around, you can ask anyone else. Our colleagues here get along really well, so you can ask whoever. But there are a few omegas who aren’t feeling well these days, so try not to bother them.”
Wang Xin glanced at Xiao Xiao. “Got it. I’ll only ask betas and alphas. I won’t disturb the omegas. You’re really considerate, senior.”
Xiao Xiao gave a helpless shrug. “I’m just trying to keep my job. If I’m not careful and make a mistake, they’ll dock my pay.”
His salary wasn’t much to begin with. After two years, he had only managed to get a raise to 5,500 a month. But if he became Gu Qian’s personal assistant next month, his salary would double to 11,000!
At that thought, a huge smile bloomed on his face.
Still smiling, he went back to his desk. Since Gu Qian wasn’t back yet, he secretly pulled out his phone to play a game.
He didn’t know how much time had passed before Gu Qian finally returned.
Xiao Xiao immediately ran over. “Boss, how did the meeting go?”
For the sake of his salary, Xiao Xiao was incredibly enthusiastic. For the past few days, Gu Qian had happily accepted his attentiveness, but not today. Gu Qian’s face was cold, and he completely ignored him.
Xiao Xiao froze. Did the business negotiation go badly? Did the client give him a hard time? Or did the deal fall through?
He trailed behind Gu Qian, confused. He wanted to go into the office and ask, but he was worried he would just make Gu Qian angrier. If he upset him, Gu Qian might just fire him. After all, just yesterday, Gu Qian had told him he didn’t like betas. His offer to let him pursue him must have just been a game. Once he got tired of it, he’d get rid of him.
Xiao Xiao pressed his lips together, standing outside the office door, unsure of what to do.
Suddenly, he spotted one of Gu Qian’s assistants passing by and hurried over. “Assistant Liu, can I ask you something? Did the boss’s meeting not go well today?”
“It went great!” Assistant Liu said with a smile, confused by the question. “It was extremely successful. President Gu said the client will likely be a long-term partner from now on. They secured a long-term contract. He was very happy.”
“Happy?”
Xiao Xiao was stunned. He recalled the thunderous expression on Gu Qian’s face as he’d walked past him just moments ago. How could that possibly be the face of someone who was happy?
“Thanks.”
Even though he couldn’t figure it out, Xiao Xiao thanked Assistant Liu and went back to his desk. He had no idea what was wrong with Gu Qian, so it was best not to poke the bear.
Xiao Xiao sat at his desk, waiting for the workday to end. Suddenly, Wang Xin ran over, holding something out for him to see. “Senior, can you help me with this? Which floor does this need to go to?”
Xiao Xiao glanced at it. “Third floor. First door on the right after you get out of the elevator.”
“Okay, thanks, senior!”
Wang Xin was clearly adapting well. Since he had experience, the work wasn’t difficult for him. He was just new to the building and had a poor sense of direction. After getting his answer, he asked curiously, “Senior, is your boyfriend really possessive? Leaving so many pheromones on you. The alphas and omegas in the office must be avoiding you, right?”
Xiao Xiao froze for a second. Wang Xin was right; a lot of his colleagues had been avoiding him today. But…
He looked up, a little annoyed. “You can ask me about work anytime. But don’t ask about my personal life. It’s not polite. And the scent on me wasn’t from my boyfriend. I borrowed the boss’s jacket yesterday. If you spread rumors and the boss finds out, you can say goodbye to the job you just got.”
Wang Xin quickly clapped a hand over his mouth. After a few seconds of shock, he stammered, “Sorry, senior! I didn’t know it was from the boss! I’m sorry!”
He then turned and ran off.
Xiao Xiao pouted and continued to sit there. He didn’t want to have to explain such a private matter, especially to a newcomer. But because the pheromones belonged to Gu Qian, he felt he had to. Wang Xin would find out whose scent it was sooner or later, and it would be bad if he misunderstood their relationship. So, he explained.
But for some reason, after explaining, he felt a faint sense of disappointment.
He checked the time: 3:56 PM.
Just a little longer and he could go home.
Xiao Xiao glanced back at Gu Qian’s office. The door was closed. He secretly pulled out his phone again, planning to play for a little while.
But he had only been playing for ten minutes when Wang Xin ran over again. “Senior, this is my first time in City A, and you’re pretty much the first friend I’ve made. So, I was wondering if you wanted to go out for dinner tonight…”
“Xiao Xiao!”
Before Wang Xin could finish, Xiao Xiao heard Gu Qian’s voice.
He instinctively turned his head and saw Gu Qian standing at his office door, his face as black as storm clouds. “Get in here.”
Forgetting all about Wang Xin, Xiao Xiao quickly got up and walked towards the office.
Inside, Gu Qian’s expression was just as dark as before. Xiao Xiao hated his unpredictable moods but had to suppress his fear and ask respectfully, “Boss, you wanted to see me?”
“Don’t you want the promotion anymore?”
It took Xiao Xiao a moment to process the question. “Of course I do!”
“If you want the promotion,” Gu Qian said, his voice dangerously low, “then why are you doing other things during work hours?”
“…”
I’m screwed. Gu Qian was already in a bad mood, and now he’d caught him playing on his phone at work.
“I’m sorry, Boss,” Xiao Xiao said helplessly. “I shouldn’t have been playing on my phone during work, but I already finished all my tasks for the day.”
Gu Qian let out a cold laugh. “Is that so?”
Xiao Xiao didn’t understand what he meant. His work was done, so playing on his phone for a bit was normal. He had done it before, and Gu Qian had explicitly said it was okay.
“Do you really think,” Gu Qian said, his voice dripping with ice, “that I’m talking about you playing on your phone?”
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