Chapter 3
The private box suddenly grew noisy. Ren Yi, who had organized the gathering, was afraid something might happen. He was about to push the door open and go back in, but then turned around, hesitating before saying, “Don’t blame me for not warning you. Everyone says that Qin Yu isn’t someone to mess with. Be careful you don’t kick an iron plate.”
“How is that possible?” Xie Wangyuan said confidently. “I’ve seen countless people and have been navigating the Beta circle for years. What kind of Beta haven’t I seen? Me, kicking an iron plate?”
Chunshui Xifeng’s business area wasn’t in the main building. Exiting from the side door of the lobby, one passed through a small open-air garden with an imitation ancient corridor on each side.
Xie Wangyuan looked at the end of the left corridor, lifted his chin, and asked a nearby waiter, “What’s that place?”
The waiter replied, “That’s the clubhouse’s grand banquet hall. It’s generally used for large events with many people. Usually, the small banquet hall in the main building is sufficient.”
Xie Wangyuan looked thoughtful. “Large events…”
At the other end of the right corridor, several men in suits and leather shoes appeared. The one walking at the very front was a Beta, yet his aura was powerful.
Xie Wangyuan’s eyes lit up, and he walked forward to meet them.
With only a few steps between them, a middle-aged man among the group on the other side spoke up first. “Eh, Wangyuan, is that you, kid? You’re back in the country?”
Xie Wangyuan followed the voice and barely recognized him as one of Xie Tiancheng’s friends. He used to visit the Xie family often, so they had met a few times.
Xie Wangyuan nodded, his eyes fixed on the Beta’s face. “Uncle, aren’t you going to introduce us?”
The middle-aged man was taken aback, still suspicious that the current Xie Wangyuan would be so polite, but answered subconsciously, “Oh, this is President Qin, Qin Yu. He came over tonight to discuss some business. President Qin, this is the Xie family’s second young master, Wangyuan.”
So he was Qin Yu.
Xie Wangyuan took another step forward, deliberately dragging out his syllables one by one, his smile deep. “Qin, Yu.”
Xie Wangyuan’s gaze was too direct. Qin Yu frowned very slightly, his gaze pausing briefly on Xie Wangyuan’s face before he nodded and said coolly, “Second Young Master Xie.”
His voice was cold and clear, very pleasant to the ear.
This Beta was actually as tall as he was.
Xie Wangyuan twitched his nose, catching a very faint, cool scent of mint coming from the person in front of him.
Xie Wangyuan pressed the tip of his tongue against the roof of his mouth. His craving for a cigarette was kicking in. He extended his right hand. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”
He smiled with a rogue’s air, looking as if he wouldn’t let the man go without a handshake. Qin Yu shook his hand briefly and released it quickly. “Excuse me.”
Xie Wangyuan rubbed his slightly cool fingertips together. He didn’t retract his gaze until the light breeze from their passing dispersed the mint scent.
“When you have time, ask your dad to come to my place for tea. I’m off.”
Xie Wangyuan nodded perfunctorily. Once everyone had left, he pulled out his phone and messaged Ren Yi.
[WHY]: That Beta I mentioned tonight? No need to investigate.
[WHY]: Coincidence. He is Qin Yu.
[WHY]: He is indeed interesting.
Xie Wangyuan was satisfied. He walked back leisurely with his hands in his pockets. At the entrance, he was intercepted by Ren Yi, who had rushed over. “Holy shit! The person you just saw in the complex was him?! What kind of ill-fated connection is this? Brother Yuan, you didn’t do anything to him, did you?!”
“What could I do? Just got acquainted.” Xie Wangyuan glanced at Ren Yi, who was visibly relieved. “Is that necessary?”
“There’s no smoke without fire. Otherwise, why do you think he can preside over the Qin family?” Ren Yi looked around and whispered, “He’s ruthless in heart and hand. Nowadays, no one dares to say to his face that he used to be an illegitimate son or a Beta.”
Ren Yi made a fist, then extended his thumb and drew it across his neck. “Everyone’s afraid of becoming the next Qin Two.”
Xie Wangyuan acted as if he hadn’t heard and asked, “Doesn’t your sister love listening to gossip the most? Has she never told you any gossip about Qin Yu?”
Ren Yi couldn’t help but roll his eyes. “Not the kind of gossip you want to hear. Only about how shrewd he is in business, how domineering he is at the negotiation table, how ruthless he is in dealing with those relatives from the branch families… Do you want to hear it?”
“Not interested,” Xie Wangyuan said decisively. “You go back and play. I’m leaving.”
“Those drunks are all settled. I’m done playing,” Ren Yi said with concern. “That house you had in high school hasn’t had anyone in it for years; it’s probably uninhabitable. How about staying at my family’s hotel tonight?”
Xie Wangyuan didn’t really care where he stayed, but he didn’t want to dampen Ren Yi’s spirits, so he nodded. “Sure.”
Ren Yi drove, his expression serious. “You didn’t make it clear earlier. What exactly is Yu Xiele’s background?”
“An orphan.” Xie Wangyuan, in a good mood after just seeing Qin Yu, replied, “That orphanage was founded with an investment from my mom before she passed away.”
Ren Yi let out an “Ah,” confused. “An orphan… Your dad spent so much effort, energy, and money to make him famous? Why not just adopt him directly into the Xie family?”
Xie Wangyuan scoffed coldly.
Perhaps that was exactly what Xie Tiancheng thought when he first brought Yu Xiele back to the Xie family. An orphan from an orphanage sponsored by the Xie family entering the Xie family as an adopted son—it was simply logical and completely normal.
Only, from the moment he learned of their pheromone compatibility, Xie Tiancheng wasn’t satisfied with letting Yu Xiele be just an adopted son of the Xie family.
After all, an Omega would eventually leave the Xie family. But if he became Xie Wangyuan’s Omega, he could stay in the Xie family for a lifetime.
Even more so, he could stay in front of Xie Tiancheng forever.
Xie Wangyuan didn’t want to explain too much, only saying calmly, “He just wants to keep Yu Xiele in the Xie family.”
Ren Yi could hardly believe it. “Your dad ignored you for years just for Yu Xiele, only to wait until your body couldn’t hold out anymore for you to come back on your own?”
Xie Wangyuan shrugged, noncommittal.
“Then your illness… If it really doesn’t work out, I’ll contact a good psychiatrist for you first? Many hospitals in C City have pheromone banks now. Once you can tolerate Omega pheromones, maybe find a suitable one first…”
Xie Wangyuan had heard this kind of talk too many times. Every time, the doctor would suggest he solve his psychological problems first, then find a suitable Omega for a temporary or permanent mark.
An Alpha who couldn’t accept Omega pheromones was an anomaly in their eyes, but Xie Wangyuan himself didn’t care.
Xie Wangyuan didn’t say more, only stating, “I heard in the hospital before that there’s a special inhibitor being developed domestically with good progress.”
Ren Yi’s eyes lit up. “Useful for you?”
“Maybe,” Xie Wangyuan said. “It’s still in clinical trials. Anyway, I’m back now. Let’s wait and see.”
During the hour-long drive, Ren Yi’s mouth never stopped. Half the time was spent cursing Xie Tiancheng, and the other half was spent recounting Qin Yu’s deeds in the business world.
Xie Wangyuan listened distractedly at first, but later realized it was all meaningless repetitive talk, so he turned to look out the car window.
Having flown for over ten hours and not rested since getting off the plane, Xie Wangyuan’s temples were throbbing with pain.
He woke up two hours later. The car was parked in front of a restaurant, and Ren Yi was playing a match-three game in the driver’s seat.
Xie Wangyuan rubbed his neck, stretched his long legs which were a bit numb, his voice slightly muffled. “What time is it?”
“Eleven-thirty.” Ren Yi, focused on his game, asked, “Want some midnight snacks?”
Xie Wangyuan, who hadn’t eaten all day, gave an “En” and opened the door to get out.
It was a fusion restaurant. Ren Yi ordered a few signature dishes. “Next time we’ll drink properly with Brother Zhi. Just eat a bit for tonight?”
Xie Wangyuan nodded, his head lowered as he focused on the hot search.
The new topic had already pushed the original scandal down. Xie Wangyuan scrolled through the comment section; a whole row was full of comments cursing him.
Ren Yi gave him a plaintive look. “Is it fun to watch?”
“It’s alright. Watching them curse me is satisfying.” Xie Wangyuan asked, “Is he very famous now?”
“Yu Xiele? Yeah, pretty famous.” Ren Yi thought for a moment and nodded. “Especially these last two years. Feels like I can hear his songs everywhere. Though, I think his songs are just so-so.”
Xie Wangyuan searched online.
Yu Xiele first entered the public eye by participating in a music talent show. His ranking wasn’t very high, but afterward, he signed directly with Huangda, the most established and powerful entertainment company.
Shortly after signing, Yu Xiele released a single and officially debuted. Less than half a year later, he released his first personal album with a luxurious production team.
Two years ago, Yu Xiele graduated from university. At the same time, while Huangda was operating steadily with no stock fluctuations, Xie Tiancheng not only bought a large amount of stock from retail investors but also acquired stock transferred at a high price by a Huangda shareholder, joining the Huangda board of directors in a high-profile manner.
Having only seen him twice, Xie Wangyuan only remembered that Yu Xiele looked somewhat similar to his late mother. But if it was just about looks, there would always be a Zhang Xiele or Zhao Xiele who looked even more like her than Yu Xiele.
Six years wasn’t a short time. Resources, money, connections… Xie Tiancheng even moved from behind the scenes to the front stage of Huangda for Yu Xiele.
Doing so much for Yu Xiele, was it really just because of that slight resemblance?
Xie Wangyuan tapped his finger lightly on the photo of the Omega who looked very obedient and innocent on the screen. “It won’t take long for these two hot search topics to be pulled down.”
“Then what do we do?” Ren Yi suddenly felt a headache coming on, lamenting the money Xie Wangyuan and Meng Chaozhi had wasted. “So that money was spent for nothing?”
Xie Wangyuan shifted to a more comfortable position and said leisurely, “It was my dad’s money.”
Ren Yi was immediately relieved, clinking glasses with Xie Wangyuan with a grin. “Forgot, you’re currently an unemployed vagrant, a freeloader.”
Xie Wangyuan laughingly cursed him.
The entire resort area in the south of the city had only been completed a few months ago, but it was bustling even at night. The restaurant was very close to Ren Yi’s family resort hotel, so the two walked back to the hotel.
Ren Yi took two room cards from the front desk, swiped into the elevator, pressed the button for the top floor, and took out his phone.
Sure enough, as Xie Wangyuan had predicted, after midnight, the rankings of the two topics dropped continuously and had now completely disappeared from the hot search list.
Xie Wangyuan locked his screen. “When is Chaozhi coming back?”
“Soon, probably. His little boyfriend is filming.”
Xie Wangyuan chuckled lightly. “Then let’s wait until Chaozhi comes back.”
The Alpha’s voice, seemingly steeped in smoke, was still a bit hoarse and carried a trace of cynicism. Ren Yi was on guard. “Brother Yuan… what are you planning now?”
Xie Wangyuan played with his lighter, saying relaxed, “Nothing.”
The elevator doors opened. Xie Wangyuan walked out, flicking the lighter with a pa. His eyes, illuminated by the flame, held a playful look. “My dad might have been too idle these past years. I’ll find him some other amusement first.”
~~~
Translator’s note: It was late when I realized this has been translated by another group. I’m dropping this. I actually like this novel, and will continue to read but will drop. I actually have a few more chapters in my docs translated and I might post it here because it will be a waste if I don’t post it. I hope the other translator won’t mind. You can find the translated novel here: Velicresrealm
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Thank you so much for the update and for handling this so thoughtfully 💛
I really appreciate you reaching out and being considerate about the overlap.
No worries at all, if you’d like to share the chapters you’ve already translated, I’m completely fine with that. Your effort shouldn’t go to waste, just don’t link it on NU as it will create confusion.
Wishing you lots of joy with your future projects, ✨
Hi, thank you! Noted. I wish you the best with all your future projects as well. Have a great day!
Hello, I have uploaded the rest of my already translated chapters. And I also asked Novelupdates to remove my link this particular novel. Have a great day and I wish you all the best for your future projects!