Chapter 26: Thinking of Fooling Him? Youâre Seeking Death.
Yu Shi was a step too late; the garbage truck had already emptied the bins and driven away.
He swayed slightly, as if struck by a physical blow.
Last night, he had snuck into the changing room, pried open Xie Renâs locker, andâcaught in a mental brawl between his ethics as a teacher and his bodyâs urgent needsâfinally chose a “moral” theft.
He made a decision: he would forgo the pile of intimate Alpha clothing and take only a hat and six exercise booklets.
That way, it wouldnât violate professional ethics.
The pages retained the faint scent of Peppermint Wine, superficial and easily blown away by the wind.
But that didnât stop him.
Yu Shi soaked the paper with a diffusing agent and stuffed it into a diffuser. Utilizing the volatility effect, he let the scent of Peppermint Wine fill the entire room along with the steam.
His entire body relaxed.
It was the first time in his life he felt that an Alphaâs pheromones weren’t unpleasantâat least, they didn’t make him feel a stinging pain.
After being diffused, the alcohol scent faded, and the coolness of the mint became more prominent, like a basin of cool, refreshing well water, or standing under the shade of a tree in a courtyard afternoon.
He received ample soothing, and the high temperature of his body receded with it.
The next day, his symptoms had completely disappeared.
Yu Shi was shocked. Such a trace amount of pheromones could actually have such a huge effect. It also confirmed once again that Xie Ren was the cause of his heat.
However, the terrible thing was that the exercise books had been hauled away. How was he supposed to get through tonight?
He frowned in thought for a long time, until finally, a flash of inspiration struckâa brilliant idea.
Ding-ling-ling, the class bell rang.
Xie Ren walked into the classroom and saw a crowd surrounding the podium so tightly not even water could trickle through. They were all asking questions.
After sitting down, he asked Zhao Yi with a weird expression, “What’s the situation? Why have these retards suddenly become so studious?”
Zhao Yi smiled slyly. “Thatâs called showing their true colors, okay? They didn’t dare to get close to him before, but now that theyâre familiar, theyâre like hungry wolves seeing a sheep. As soon as itâs his class, they pounce. How many of them are genuinely asking questions?”
“Tch.” Xie Ren laughed disdainfully.
Yesterday, he heard the Alphas in the back row discussing how Qi Huan was the cutest Omega assistant in recent years. He always kept a straight face, but as soon as Yu Shi spoke to him, he would turn beet red, his face looking like a red apple.
At the time, Xie Ren had turned around and asked, “What did Yu Shi say to him?”
Ye Bingyang replied, “Seemed like there was an error in the experimental data, so he scolded him a bit.”
“Then whatâs he blushing for, like a boiling teapot?” Xie Ren was speechless.
He naturally assumed the person on the podium was Qi Huan.
Xie Ren took out an exercise booklet to catch up on homework. After writing for a while, he looked up and asked, “What time is it? Yu Shi isn’t here yet?”
Zhao Yi said, “Tsk, calling him by his full name now? You really have no manners. Isn’t Instructor Yu right up there? I thought you saw him ages ago.”
The group of Alphas parted to reveal the person they were surrounding. The noble, cold Omega sat in the center, his hands stuffed with exercise books, answering one incredibly moronic question after another with a look of endurance on his face.
“Instructor Yu, did I draw this mechanical arm correctly?”
“Idiot, can you stop asking with just a rough sketch? Instructor Yu, look at my question. What do you think of the topic for my article? Hehe.”
“Instructor Yu, thereâs a problem with my thesis too. Can you help me take a look?”
“With such a pretentious title, are you trying to laugh someone to death? Don’t show these dirty things to Instructor Yu. Fuck, why are you shoving me?”
“Instructor Yu, the pinky ring youâre wearing today is really nice. what brand is it?”
“Can you guys rein in your pheromones? Are you trying to harass him or what? Iâm going to vomit from the smell.”
“Fuck! Whose pheromones smell like durian? Thatâs disgusting.”
“Instructor Yu, I bought breakfast for you at the cafeteria today, you didn’t seem to see it…”
Three Alphas make a drama; ten Alphas… the noise was enough to turn a human brain into porridge.
Yu Shi furrowed his brows. “Everyone shut up. No swearing. Ask one by one. Those without questions, go down first.”
Bang! A loud noise came from below.
All the chattering Alphas quieted down and looked over in unison.
Xie Renâs face was dripping with gloom. He slammed his optical computer onto the desk. “Are we having class or not? The bell rang ten minutes ago. What are you all trying to do?”
The Alphas present were all afraid of him. They instantly became well-behaved, hugging their textbooks and scrambling back to their seats. Han Po sat in the back row, revealing a cold smile of ambiguous meaning.
Yu Shi let out a sigh of relief and pinched the bridge of his nose.
He never refused students who were eager to learn, and he couldn’t bear to tell them their questions were truly idiotic for fear of hurting their self-esteem. Enduring until now had pushed him to his limit.
He glanced at his wristband. He didn’t know if it was the soothing effect of the Peppermint Wine, but surrounded by a pile of pheromones, there was surprisingly no sign of it turning red.
After class, while Xie Ren was packing up his components, three exercise booklets suddenly appeared on his desk.
Yu Shi stood in front of him and said, “This is my research report from last month. Mark one of these today and hand it to me during the evening news.”
Lost six, gave him back three.
Problem solved.
Perfect.
Xie Ren said sullenly, “Got it. About those exercise books of mine…”
“It’s fine. If they’re lost, they’re lost.”
“How did you know I lost them?” Xie Ren asked suspiciously.
Yu Shiâs expression stiffened, then he calmly said, “I heard it from Doctor Chen.”
He tapped the booklets on the table, emphasizing again, “Use a marker to annotate every page. Read them carefully. I will check very thoroughly.”
With that, as if avoiding something, he hurriedly turned and left.
Xie Ren flicked the pages with his fingertip. The three books stacked together were as thick as a dictionary, and the paper still held the residual warmth of the printer. They looked like they had been printed ad-hoc.
Zhao Yi was puzzled. “Did you provoke Instructor Yu again? Why is he always targeting you, giving you so much extra homework? It looks so thick. Can you finish it today? Heâs really too much.”
“None of your business,” Xie Ren said, stuffing the booklets into his bag.
Zhao Yi: “…Huh?”
The afternoon was combat training. Everyone was operating mechas in the simulation grounds, while Xie Ren sat in the second-floor control room reading the research report.
He wasn’t just skimming through to complete a task; he was reading the data and analysis very seriously.
The more he read, the more incredible he found it. Yu Shi had written such extensive data analysis while simultaneously conducting high-intensity lectures, simulated battlefield drills, and robot dog experiments. The exquisite anatomical models inside were effects that an ordinary researcher would take half a year to produce.
Numbers were cold and heartless, but the complex data contained the researcher’s pure passion. He seemed to be able to see through the pages to Yu Shi burying his head in study, his eyes sharp and focused.
His love for weapons research, like magma erupting from a volcano, was displayed so openly and honestly before every reader.
9527 came in with ice water and knocked on the door. “Master, a handsome guy is looking for you.”
Xie Ren looked up. Handsome guy?
The next second: 9527, are you fucking blind?
An Alpha wearing a summer service uniform walked in, bearing the badge of an Army Second Lieutenant on his shoulder. His features were regular and handsome, but the moment he saw Xie Ren, he revealed a sycophantic smile that ruined his face.
The man extended his hand to introduce himself. “Commander Xie, hello. I am the new Logistics Staff Officer, Tang Tianhao. I’ve heard so much about you! It was a regret we couldn’t chat more last time we met, but fortunately, we can work together now. Please give me your guidance.”
His silky smooth combo of greetings was something only an old bureaucrat could pull off.
Xie Ren didn’t take his hand. He sized the other up and said, “Have we met?”
Tang Tianhao hadn’t expected Xie Ren to have forgotten him already. His expression turned awkward. “Haha, Commander Xie is a busy man who forgets things easily. Last time at the Offshore Hotel, I was responsible for the reception for Marshal Xie. We spoke on the phone and met once.”
“Oh, it’s you,” Xie Ren mocked. “In school, don’t mention my father.”
“Understood, understood. You prefer to be low-key! Anyway, I just reported for duty today. After seeing the Principal, I came over immediately.” Tang Tianhao carried a fawning tone. “I was in charge of procurement and reception at K9. If you have any work in this area, just give the order.”
This kind of work had a lot of “oil and water” (kickbacks). He was secretly delighted after entering NDU; looking at the facilities and buildings here, it was definitely a lucrative post.
Xie Ren closed the booklet and said carelessly, “Summer Training requires neither procurement nor reception. I don’t like going through these formalistic motions.”
Tang Tianhao froze, not expecting him to be so direct. He forced the flesh on his face into a smile. “Then if you have other work, feel free to order me to do it too.”
“Keep up.” Xie Ren didn’t say more, standing up and walking towards the first-floor training ground.
Tang Tianhao rarely encountered such a difficult superior. He hurriedly followed him into the elevator, his brain spinning rapidly as they descended.
This young master seemed to have a weird temper. Last time, he tried to arrange drinking companions and got scolded. But Alphas… they all liked to pretend on the surface while actually having no taboos in private.
He tentatively opened his mouth to ask, “Commander Xie, a new batch of Omegas arrived at Offshore recently. All types are available. Do you want to go relax tonight? If you go, Iâll arrange it for you.”
Xie Ren glanced at him. That look didn’t seem particularly special, but perhaps due to his low brow bone, it made Tang Tianhao feel inexplicably cold all over.
“No time. Have to write homework,” he said flatly, hands in his pockets.
“Homework? You’re about to graduate; who dares to assign you homework?” Tang Tianhao replied with “high emotional intelligence.” “How about I find someone to write it for you and hand it in?”
Xie Ren hooked the corner of his lips. “You might get away with fooling others, but trying to fool him? You’re looking for a death wish.”
Him?
Tang Tianhao thought quickly. This “him” must refer to the instructor in charge of Summer Training.
Before coming here, he was solely focused on the pie Xie Chengfeng had painted for him and hadn’t paid much attention to his colleagues. He said offhandedly, “This instructor is too much trouble. What’s his name? I’ll talk to Principal Tang later and teach him a lesson.”
Xie Ren’s mouth dipped. “Who are you going to teach a lesson?”
“Cough, no one, no one.” Tang Tianhao thought to himself, You really love to pretend. “Isn’t everyone talking about the ‘Double Reduction Policy’ now? He shouldn’t assign so much homework. I’m just afraid you’re under too much pressure.”
Xie Ren ignored him and walked straight out of the elevator.
Inside the training ground, students were operating tall mechas in combat.
Yellow mechas, three meters high, lined up in a row. Their outer shells were composed of self-repairing nano-coatings, carrying shotguns and pulse cannonsâknown as the meat grinders of the interstellar battlefield.
Tang Tianhao opened his mouth wide, deeply shocked. “This is the Guardian? My god, one costs over two thousand, right? How much money is all this…”
Behind him, Ye Bingyang’s cheerful voice rang out. “All sponsored by the Falcon Regiment. The Third Institute gave a 5% discount. Is this the new Staff Officer?”
“Hello, I’m Tang Tianhao.” Tang Tianhao hurriedly turned around.
Xie Ren asked, “Did you go up and try it?”
“Just tried it. Itâs too awesome.” Ye Bingyang’s hair was still wet with sweat, wearing a special protective suit. He couldn’t help praising it repeatedly. “As expected of the console designed by Teacher Little Fish. The experience is simply too cool. All the buttons are placed in the handiest positions, and even the conduit linking pheromones is made of skin-friendly material. Teacher Little Fish is simply the God of Details.”
“The firepower is fierce too. The monitoring and anti-tracking are incredibly badass!”
Xie Ren raised the corners of his mouth, rarely not blaming him for shouting nicknames.
Ye Bingyang wasn’t finished. “Of course, these are just icing on the cake. The most important thing is that this mecha is extremely energy-efficient. I fired a hundred rounds in jump state, and the energy stone usage was actually half of the Hurricane H5! That nano-repair layer is the absolute best of the bestâcompleting repairs within five seconds. Simply unbelievable! I heard it’s super expensive; I only tried it once.”
In the sand pit, two mechas were engaged in close-quarters combat. A giant brilliant yellow object leaped up, swinging its armćçś in mid-air to slash at the opponent. The thermal sword it carried was infused with pheromones, rubbing sparks of heat against the air. Any Alpha would be fiercely moved by this.
Tang Tianhao watched unblinkingly until Xie Ren said to him, “Your job is to supervise the mecha repairs. After daily checks are complete, put them in storage. There will be a secondary check inside the armory. Don’t make mistakes.”
“Yes!” Tang Tianhao said excitedly. “Just these mechas?”
That would be very easy.
Ye Bingyang sneered. “What are you thinking? There are a hundred more in the warehouse. Every day requires a full-body checkup. Wait to work overtime until midnight.”
Tang Tianhao froze, his expression looking sheepish.
Xie Ren couldn’t be bothered to look at him and waved him away.
Ye Bingyang said kindly, “Nothing going on right now. You can go ask Instructor Yu and the others if they need help. You should have met Instructor Yu, right?”
“Instructor Yu?” Tang Tianhao frowned.
Why did this surname linger like a ghost?
“That’s right, Instructor Yu Shi. He’s the Chief Designer of the Third Institute. You can ask him if you have any questions you don’t understand.”
Tang Tianhaoâs eyes suddenly widened, wearing an expression like he had seen a ghost.
Truly, enemies walk a narrow road. It was him again!
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