Chapter 59
Several hours earlier, Lu Wanqing had silently boarded the luxury cruise ship.
The stealth mode of his personal combat vessel made evading the cruise ship’s visual detection effortless. He slipped into the cabin before the chaotic charity dinner began.
For missions related to mutated creatures, one of the key principles was concealment and secrecy. He successfully blended into the crowd, successively placing the spare special defense devices from his vessel in the most vulnerable parts of the cruise ship.
At the same time, he secretly released a bit of pheromone, eliminating hidden dangers in the engine room.
After completing all these reinforcement and defense preparations, Lu Wanqing changed into a waiter’s black vest and suit and walked to the banquet floor. The banquet floor was not divided by ticket class; tourists gathered together, clinking glasses.
However, the glittering chandelier above acted as a dividing line, separating the two distinct groups.
“Hello, please give me a glass of whiskey,” someone raised a hand and said to Lu Wanqing.
This was the person responsible for drafting speeches in Gu Yan’s campaign team.
Lu Wanqing lowered his eyes and bowed, taking a bottle of liquor from the tray and handing it to him. The moment the other party took the glass, he glimpsed a chat interface reflected on the glass wall.
Seeing the profile picture flash by, Lu Wanqing concealed the surprise in his eyes.
The other party in the chat was one of the Twelve Generals, whose stance had always been impartial.
It turned out Gu Yan also realized that his power within the military was insufficient and had begun to reel people in, both openly and secretly.
“I’ll have one too.”
“Do you have ice?”
“Thank you.”
Before he could take a step, several high-ranking Alphas successively took wine glasses from his tray, as if they didn’t know him at all and just treated him as an ordinary Beta waiter.
Lu Wanqing wandered undisguised in the center of the venue, as if accustomed to being ignored like this.
In the past, the times he had lived through were always like this.
People didn’t remember his face clearly, nor would they actively call his name. One moment he was speaking as a student representative, and not long after stepping off the stage, the principal would frown and ask him which class he was from and why he was running around there.
Even when he entered District Seven of the Far-flung Regions and called out his name with the roster during registration, the Lieutenant General would subconsciously skip his name.
The first time he attended a meeting as the General of District Seven, he had met Shen Lin, He Lian, and others.
As a result, when he changed into casual clothes and went to a summit in City A with an invitation from the N.O. Group, he found that the people he had met then seemed to have no impression of him.
Even Lu Wei only barely remembered him after seeing him bullied repeatedly.
It was said that in the neighborhood of Juqing Road, she had witnessed him being bullied and ignored several times, thinking he was ostracized and bullied by those people, intentionally given the cold shoulder and maliciously ruined.
But it wasn’t actually like that. Whether it was those arrogant second-generation Alphas who only came occasionally or the local bullies entrenched in Juqing Road, they only knew they were bullying someone; they couldn’t even name him.
The shocking graffiti of malicious words on the courtyard wall was just a mark.
The mark told them that someone lived here who could be bullied by them. As for who this person was and what his name was, it had nothing to do with them.
He was just a symbol carrying their evil tastes and infinite malice.
Other people’s memories of him were only awakened when needed. Sometimes it even required him to introduce himself as a switch. As long as he didn’t speak, everyone naturally treated him as background decoration.
Before, he didn’t understand, thinking he was born a mediocre person. No matter how earth-shattering things he did, he seemed unable to leave a deep memory in others’ eyes.
Until on the sea of Dragon Spine Island, hearing Shu Ci in his heat period vaguely reveal the truth with a sleepy voice, at that moment he truly found the answer that had troubled him for a long time—
It turned out that the so-called fate hanging over his head was just an artificially carved trajectory.
His life was written in a book.
Because he wasn’t the protagonist of the book, he could never intervene in the fate of the characters in the book. Because he was just an unimportant passerby, no one would bother to remember his name.
The moment he watched Shen Lin hold Shu Ci in his arms, his eyes nearly splitting with rage, his mind, emptied by the sea breeze, was left with only one scene—
That day, Shu Ci’s warm fingertips placed the sunglasses in his palm, looking at the marriage certificate with bright eyes and reading aloud.
“Lu Wanqing.”
The first person to call out his name proactively without his reminder was Shu Ci.
At that time, he thought his rebirth had affected fate, and something had gone wrong somewhere, causing him to step on the accelerator in panic.
Later, he discovered that Shu Ci shared the same feelings as him.
Seeing Shu Ci’s firm attitude to get rid of and reject Gu Lanzhu and be independent, Lu Wanqing made a bet, vainly attempting to accompany him to reverse the absurd trajectory of fate together.
But the moment Shu Ci embraced Shen Lin, Lu Wanqing’s heart wavered again.
Could that “Lu Wanqing” be just an illusion he wove for himself?
Could it be that no matter what, he had to be an existence forgotten in the background?
Just like now, he lowered his brow and shuttled through the banquet hall. He didn’t find Shu Ci but brushed past Gu Lanzhu. He stopped behind Gu Lanzhu, but Gu Lanzhu didn’t notice his existence at all, just talking single-mindedly to the person beside him.
Small, low voices fell into Lu Wanqing’s ears.
“Didn’t manage to invite him?”
Gu Lanzhu frowned and asked impatiently, “I said, have you thought of any method, every method?”
Zhao Qian looked up, rarely disobeying his instructions blindly, and objected in a low voice, “President Gu, forgive my bluntness, but doing this will only push him further away. Don’t you think you are too obsessed with compatibility and results?”
Gu Lanzhu’s eyes trembled, and he stared at him fixedly for a long time.
Only when the people around felt a trace of scalp-numbing pressure did he slowly say, “Continue.”
“Since no one can surpass the compatibility between you two, why aren’t you willing to put more thought into coaxing him, making him willing to be with you?
“The era of AO being assigned marriage partners by parents is long gone.
“If an Omega faces partners with 88% and 90% compatibility, and the 88% one loves him dearly while the 90% one treats him badly, why are you certain he would choose someone who has hurt him for that extra 2% compatibility?”
Gu Lanzhu rarely saw Zhao Qian speak so persuasively. Could it be that Shu Ci gave him some hint?
While puzzled, he also felt that Zhao Qian’s words made sense.
“When I went to find Mr. Shu, he was chatting with Mr. Shen Lin, and their relationship was very close.” Zhao Qian lowered his eyes, altering the facts and stating them calmly.
“Do you remember that video from the A University opening ceremony?
“Mr. Shu and Mr. Shen have been friends since childhood. After Mr. Shen was adopted into the main family, his relationship with Mr. Shen Lin also became increasingly close. Now that Shen Lin is unmarried, it’s hard to say they won’t end up together. Leaving compatibility aside, what you can give him, Councilman Shen can also give him. The more you disrespect his opinion, the more you’ll make him realize how good others are.”
Lu Wanqing stopped in his tracks.
Although Zhao Qian’s words were meant to persuade Gu Lanzhu, every word also pierced his heart.
“Shen Lin.” Gu Lanzhu clenched his fist.
If Shu Ci’s 1% compatibility husband could only make him angry out of humiliation and wasn’t enough to generate much of a sense of crisis, then Shen Lin made him feel a trace of fear.
What if the compatibility between them wasn’t much lower than 100%?
“You’re right.” Gu Lanzhu focused. “Such a simple principle, why didn’t I think of it before?”
Zhao Qian paused, then chose his words carefully.
“Perhaps because you were busy with your career and haven’t tried dating?”
People accustomed to being dominant, thinking everyone would offer everything to them on a platter, didn’t understand love.
Gu Lanzhu: “…”
He coughed lightly and asked, “Then what should I do?”
“Do you need me to compile some proper ways to pursue a wife for you?”
Lu Wanqing didn’t listen any further. He left the banquet hall, threw away the tray in his hand, and tore off the uniform waiter’s bow tie with hostility.
Following the fragmented information, he went straight to the floor booked by Shen Lin.
Before he could figure out what to say when he saw the person, his body was already standing at the entrance guarded by layers of bodyguards.
He had the token Shen Lin gave him when trying to recruit him. Councilmen usually used this method to show the existence of confidants. The bodyguards didn’t hesitate and made way: “Sir is taking a shower; you can wait a moment.”
Lu Wanqing’s heart tightened.
Taking a shower? What did he do that requires a shower? Did he mark him today?
He walked in quickly and stopped at the door of the innermost room. Excellent soundproof walls couldn’t block the hearing of a top Alpha. The sound of running water washed over his despair in his ears.
Suddenly he heard a faint mutter.
Hidden in the familiar voice was a humming tail tone. Lu Wanqing looked sharply at the door next to him, walked quickly forward, and stopped outside the door.
“Can’t you find food yourself? How many years have you been acting, and you still want me to teach you how to look at the camera?!”
Shu Ci’s irritable sleep-talking came through just like that. Lu Wanqing let his hand drop in a daze and turned around.
He was sleeping right next door to Shen Lin, talking in his sleep so comfortably.
The suppressants accumulated in his body could only suppress his impulses, but not his sensitive and suspicious heart. His solid mental defenses were riddled with holes by his own thoughts.
Lu Wanqing didn’t know what he was thinking. In a trance, he sat down along the door and leaned back dejectedly.
He wanted to wait for him to wake up and pronounce his death sentence personally.
After a while, Shen Lin walked out of the room in formal wear. Seeing him sitting at the door, he subconsciously took a step back.
The Alpha didn’t seem as broad as before. His exhaustion was visible to the naked eye, his jawline had become sharp and thin, like a rock polished sharp in a strong wind. Those deep eyes showed no expression.
“You’re here?”
Shen Lin was surprised by Lu Wanqing’s speed, but on second thought, he knew how much influence the person inside had on him. If he had known Song Shiyu was in danger on the ship back then, he would have flown a helicopter to save her without a word too.
Thus, his attitude towards Lu Wanqing became somewhat kinder.
“I saved the person for you, safe and sound.” Shen Lin looked down at him and frowned. “Just out of your rut, how did you torture yourself into this state? Don’t go in now. Go to my place to clean up and let him rest well. I’ll bring you some medicine.”
Shen Lin had to attend the charity dinner and didn’t say much more.
Lu Wanqing narrowed his eyes and watched his retreating figure. He didn’t go to his room as told, but continued to lean against the door. Even when Shen Lin returned, looked at him like he was a pervert, and turned into his own room, he was still sitting there.
Everyone on the ship had gone to sleep, but he was still awake, listening to Shu Ci’s every breath.
As if tasting some sweetness by masochistically swallowing glass shards, even the rustling sounds inside were sweet to him.
Suddenly, his back felt empty, and the door was pulled open.
He looked back in shock. The Omega inside the door stood behind him barefoot, looking at him with shocked eyes.
He was scared awake, but his eyes still held some irresistible sleepiness.
His gaze instantly looked at his neck, and he immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, no one has marked him yet.
“Lu Wanqing? Why are you here!?”
Lu Wanqing’s eyes suddenly felt sour.
Only him, only he in this world would call his name so crisply and loudly.
The restlessness forcibly suppressed during his rut surged in his chest again.
He didn’t answer, just asked hoarsely, “Why are you awake at this hour?”
“Thirsty.” Shu Ci scratched his head, half of his consciousness still hazy in sleep. For a moment, he didn’t know what to say. “Why are you sitting outside sleeping? Come in and sleep.”
Lu Wanqing’s throat moved slightly, his crimson-blue eyes hidden in the shadow cast by Shu Ci’s body.
Shu Ci lifted his foot and kicked the forearm he was using to support himself on the ground. “Come in quickly; it’s a bit cold with the door open.”
In the next second, his ankle was grasped by a burning hot palm.
Shu Ci blinked and wanted to pull it out, but unexpectedly, his field of vision suddenly rose.
Holding his legs, Lu Wanqing picked him up directly.
His heart began to beat violently. The unease of being in the air made Shu Ci subconsciously wrap his arms around Lu Wanqing’s neck. He watched as Lu Wanqing placed him on the bed, his face close at hand.
“Cold and yet you don’t wear shoes.” His voice was low and husky. He pulled the quilt over his legs, leaned over, and hugged him. “Is it still cold like this?”
One arm encircled his ribs, the other supported the back of his neck.
Releasing pheromones, they condensed into a translucent film that clung tightly to the person in his arms.
He was crazy with jealousy, so crazy he didn’t know what he was doing. He only knew that he didn’t want to feel any trace of aura that Shen Lin had embraced.
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