Chapter 56
Gu Yang felt a bit embarrassed. He had an immediate reaction after just a kiss, and he was so direct with Lin Xiaoran about it. It felt like he was the one in heat, not Lin Xiaoran.
“Um…” Gu Yang awkwardly let go of Lin Xiaoran, taking two steps back while scratching his head uncomfortably. “Sorry, I… I don’t have much self-control.”
Lin Xiaoran, who had just been flustered and blushing from Gu Yang’s straightforwardness, suddenly found Gu Yang’s embarrassed demeanor amusing.
He had never seen Gu Yang look so awkward, with his ears turning red and not even daring to make eye contact.
And what did he mean by not having enough self-control? Last night, he calmly called the police while dealing with an Omega in heat!
Seeing Gu Yang looking as flustered as himself, Lin Xiaoran suddenly relaxed. He glanced at Gu Yang and let out a soft laugh.
Gu Yang felt even more awkward at Lin Xiaoran’s laughter, but he also couldn’t help feeling that Lin Xiaoran looked incredibly attractive while laughing like that. His heart fluttered, and before he realized it, he closed the gap between them again, pinning Lin Xiaoran against the wall. He squeezed Lin Xiaoran’s chin and threatened with a low chuckle, “Got some nerve, huh? Do you know what happens when you provoke an Alpha at a time like this?”
Lin Xiaoran raised an eyebrow challengingly. “And do you know what happens if you keep pushing against me? I’ll punch you!”
Wait, what?
At a time like this, wasn’t an Omega supposed to shyly blush and call him shameless?
Lin Xiaoran was totally not playing by the rules!
Gu Yang was completely caught off guard by his reaction, and before he could respond, Lin Xiaoran had already pushed him away, leaving behind a casual, “Go take a shower.”
Looking at his own still-energetic situation and then at Lin Xiaoran, who had already put a good distance between them, Gu Yang could only head to the shower in resignation.
But really, what else was he planning to do if not shower?
Although… there were plenty of things he’d like to do, it seemed too rushed to be thinking about that right after they had just gotten together.
So, self-reliance it was.
Lin Xiaoran took the chance to use the bathroom in Lin Lan’s room to take a shower as well. After being tormented by his heat all morning, he had sweated a lot. A shower and a fresh change of clothes made him feel much better.
By the time he returned to his own room, Gu Yang still hadn’t come out of the bathroom.
He stood in front of the bathroom door for a moment, and the thought of what Gu Yang might be doing in there made his face flush slightly. He quickly turned away, sat down at his computer, and started a game to distract himself from the strange thoughts creeping into his mind.
When Gu Yang came out of the shower, he saw Lin Xiaoran engrossed in a game. Drying his hair with a towel, he sat down next to him.
Lin Xiaoran glanced over, their eyes briefly meeting. Both of them felt a little awkward—it wasn’t surprising, considering they had just gotten together and things had gone beyond what either of them had expected.
Their eyes quickly averted, and Lin Xiaoran refocused on his game. Gu Yang cleared his throat, trying to start a conversation. “What are we doing this afternoon?”
“Hmm?” Lin Xiaoran responded while continuing to play, not missing a beat. His attitude clearly showed he had no intention of going out.
Gu Yang poked Lin Xiaoran’s cheek with a smile. “Don’t tell me you’re planning to stay home all day? I promised Auntie I’d make sure to take you out.”
Lin Xiaoran, clearly not very interested, didn’t want to dampen Gu Yang’s spirits, so he asked, “Where do you want to go?”
“Hmm…” Gu Yang pondered, feeling a bit stumped.
He didn’t really know either.
Normally, when he went out, it was with friends, but today was different—this was technically a date, right?
What do people usually do on dates?
Just then, a WeChat message came through on Gu Yang’s phone. He opened it and frowned slightly. The message was from Bi Ying Liunian, apologizing for what happened last night and thanking him, while also asking to meet in person to discuss it.
Gu Yang glanced at the message and then at Lin Xiaoran, a slight smile forming on his lips as he replied: “Okay, see you in half an hour.”
After sending the message, Lin Xiaoran had just finished a match and was about to start another one when Gu Yang quickly stopped him.
“That’s enough. Playing solo against people worse than you will only lower your skill level. If you really want to play, I’ll play with you tonight until you’re satisfied, okay? But now, let’s go get some good food.”
Lin Xiaoran, who had no interest in going out earlier, suddenly perked up at the mention of food. He turned to Gu Yang, asking, “What are we eating?”
“You’ll find out when we get there!” Gu Yang pulled him up from the computer and said while leading him out the door, “I heard it’s a really good place, and you have to book it well in advance.”
“Huh?” Lin Xiaoran frowned slightly, already losing some of his enthusiasm. He loved good food but didn’t like it when it required too much effort.
Gu Yang knew him well and immediately laughed, “Don’t worry, we’re just going to enjoy ourselves. No hassle.”
With that, he pulled Lin Xiaoran out the door.
Lin Xiaoran didn’t ask why they could just walk in, trusting Gu Yang as he followed him out.
They grabbed a taxi, and after half an hour, they arrived at their destination—a popular restaurant.
Since reservations were made online, there was no line at the entrance. However, there were plenty of tourists taking photos and checking in at the location, giving the place a very trendy vibe.
After getting out of the car, Gu Yang immediately led Lin Xiaoran into the restaurant. As soon as a server approached to greet them, Bi Ying Liunian emerged from inside.
The moment she saw Gu Yang, her face lit up with joy. But in the next second, her smile froze when she noticed that Gu Yang wasn’t alone—he was holding someone’s hand. That someone was Lin Xiaoran.
Wuhuan Xingyi?
Bi Ying Liunian had attended the Seventh World’s offline event before and had seen Lin Xiaoran there. However, her attention had always been focused on Gu Yang. She hadn’t even known that Lin Xiaoran attended the same school as Gu Yang or that they were classmates.
Now, seeing Gu Yang bring Lin Xiaoran along caught her completely off guard, and disappointment quickly followed.
Despite her feelings, she maintained a cheerful facade and warmly greeted Lin Xiaoran. “Wuhuan Xingyi? Wow, it’s such an honor! I can’t believe I get to treat two top players to dinner at once. Please, come in, I’ve already reserved a table.”
Lin Xiaoran hadn’t expected that when Gu Yang asked him out, it was to meet Bi Ying Liunian.
Recalling what happened last night, he subtly furrowed his brow, but didn’t say anything. He couldn’t understand why Gu Yang had brought him along.
Gu Yang, however, acted as if he hadn’t noticed Lin Xiaoran’s discomfort and led him inside to take a seat.
Bi Ying Liunian immediately handed them the menu, her sweet smile never wavering as she began introducing the dishes. “This place may be trendy, but it’s not just about looks. The food here is actually amazing, especially—”
But as she excitedly described the dishes, she realized neither Gu Yang nor Lin Xiaoran was paying any attention to her. Gu Yang was quietly discussing the menu with Lin Xiaoran.
“How about this? You love shrimp, right? Should we get extra?” Gu Yang asked softly.
Lin Xiaoran, though still puzzled by Gu Yang’s strange behavior, found that the menu catered to his tastes. He loved fried food with bold flavors, though he wasn’t fond of sweets. So, without paying much attention to Bi Ying Liunian, he focused on ordering.
He nodded, “Yeah, let’s get some chicken tendons and eggplant too, and—”
As Lin Xiaoran kept adding items, Gu Yang marked them down, occasionally chiming in, “Don’t you like this too? Let’s get one.”
Bi Ying Liunian, watching from across the table, felt like a complete outsider. Unable to bear it any longer, she inserted herself into the conversation. “I had no idea you two were this close. Have you known each other for a while?”
Just as Lin Xiaoran finished ordering, Gu Yang, without much interest in her question, asked Bi Ying Liunian if she wanted to add anything. When she shook her head, he handed the menu to the server and then smiled as he finally answered her, “I forgot to introduce you. This is my boyfriend, Lin Xiaoran.”
Instantly, Bi Ying Liunian’s wide eyes grew even larger, unable to conceal her shock and disappointment. Her earlier calm and sweet demeanor crumbled.
“I… I never would have guessed. You two are dating?” She struggled to maintain her composure, forcing a strained smile, but her voice had a noticeable tremor.
And then, all of a sudden, she caught a faint scent in the air—cedarwood.
Her barely-contained expression faltered as her gaze fixed on Lin Xiaoran, filled with unmistakable jealousy and sadness.
With the restaurant full of people and the strong smells of food in the air, she hadn’t noticed it at first. But now that she was sitting closer, she could clearly make out the cedarwood scent coming from Lin Xiaoran.
Lin Xiaoran was marked by Gu Yang!
In that moment, Bi Ying Liunian’s hopes shattered.
She had gone to great lengths to pursue Gu Yang, even bringing her team over just to have a legitimate reason to be around him. For half a month, she had dropped hints, both subtle and obvious, yet Gu Yang remained as oblivious as ever.
Last night, she had taken a gamble. Knowing she was about to enter her heat, she had dismissed her teammates and gone to eat with Gu Yang at the food stalls near their school, allowing herself to enter heat deliberately.
She had hoped that if Gu Yang couldn’t resist and they ended up together, he would take responsibility—Gu Yang was that kind of person.
However, even as her pheromones went wild, Gu Yang was barely affected. He had only released a faint trace of his cedarwood scent.
But that tiny hint of cedarwood had given her hope. She had begged him to bite her, to mark her temporarily—she didn’t need him to take responsibility.
Yet Gu Yang had turned and left the alley, calling the police instead.
The Gu Yang who had rejected her so cleanly and thoroughly now seemed like a completely different person when he was with Lin Xiaoran.
Ha… ha…
In that moment, Bi Ying Liunian felt utterly foolish. She no longer wanted to stay even for another second, not when she had to watch Gu Yang being so gentle and attentive toward someone else.
Forgetting her earlier desire to maintain a good image in front of Gu Yang, she abruptly stood up. “I’m leaving,” she muttered hastily, grabbing her bag and rushing out without looking back.
Lin Xiaoran watched her leave before turning his gaze to Gu Yang. “Was this your plan all along?”
“Not really,” Gu Yang replied as he pushed a plate of fried shrimp toward Lin Xiaoran. “I mainly brought you here because I heard this place is good. Plus, I didn’t want you to misunderstand.”
Lin Xiaoran glanced at him but said nothing.
“Honestly, I didn’t even know she was interested in me until last night. Between classes and team training, I barely had time to eat with you, let alone notice anything else. I didn’t realize she had posted so many photos of me on her social media either. I have no idea when she even took them. Really.”
Even though Lin Xiaoran hadn’t asked, Gu Yang felt it necessary to explain the situation. He knew that Lin Xiaoran probably trusted him enough not to doubt him, but he also knew that Lin Xiaoran had been jealous over this misunderstanding yesterday.
Gu Yang liked that Lin Xiaoran got jealous for him, but he still felt that clearing up any confusion was the right thing to do.
“And now? How did you find out?”
Gu Yang had a good sense of Lin Xiaoran’s feelings. Lin Xiaoran hadn’t planned on asking since he already knew it was a misunderstanding. Gu Yang couldn’t possibly be professing his love to him while being ambiguous with someone else.
But hearing Gu Yang’s explanation did make Lin Xiaoran feel better.
“I figured it out last night. She’s an Omega—unlike you, her heat cycle isn’t irregular. There’s no way she’d forget something that important. It was obviously intentional,” Gu Yang said. “I just didn’t expect that Omegas these days would use tactics like that to chase someone. What if it backfired, and she ended up getting permanently marked by someone who didn’t want to take responsibility?”
Lin Xiaoran shrugged, indicating he didn’t really understand, and continued eating his food.
Just then, his phone buzzed with a WeChat notification.
While gnawing on a chicken wing, Lin Xiaoran freed a finger to check it and discovered that once again, someone had tagged him in the Seventh World player group.
He clicked into the message, rolled his eyes, and handed the phone over to Gu Yang.
Gu Yang glanced at the screen, where none other than Bi Ying Liunian had tagged Lin Xiaoran.
Bi Ying Liunian: Wuhuan Xingyi, I’m sure you’ve figured it out by now. I like your boyfriend Jidu Qiu. I know it’s wrong to interfere in someone else’s relationship, but I believe everyone has the right to pursue happiness. So, I’m not giving up. I’m going to win him over!
Gu Yang shook his head in exasperation. He hadn’t expected that after storming out in disappointment, Bi Ying Liunian would turn around so quickly and publicly declare her intention to challenge Lin Xiaoran in the group chat. What was she thinking?
Bi Ying Liunian was somewhat of a public figure herself—didn’t she fear that her actions would be exposed and ruin her reputation?
However, Gu Yang didn’t plan on getting involved. Whatever Bi Ying Liunian decided to do was her own business.
But seeing Lin Xiaoran, who was calmly eating as if none of this concerned him, Gu Yang felt a slight pang of disappointment. He couldn’t resist leaning over and poking him. “Hey, your rival is throwing down the gauntlet. Aren’t you going to claim your territory as my boyfriend?”
Lin Xiaoran shot him a glance. “So childish.”
Just as he was about to go back to his meal, he noticed Gu Yang staring at him with a wounded expression, as if he’d been deeply wronged. “You don’t really like me, do you? You were just lying to me, weren’t you?”
Lin Xiaoran: “…”
After a moment of hesitation, Lin Xiaoran found himself torn between kicking Gu Yang to knock some sense into him or soothing his fragile ego. Since they had just started dating, he chose the latter. He grabbed the phone and quickly typed out a message.
Then, he handed the phone to Gu Yang. “Satisfied now, boyfriend?”
On the screen was the message Lin Xiaoran had just sent to the group chat: He’s mine. No one can take him from me!
