HOYSE CHAPTER 96

Chapter 96 — It’s Good That You’re Back

That night, Rong Jing and Gu Xi finally reunited after a long separation. They were caught in a haze of sweetness and want; nothing could pull them apart as they poured every bit of longing into each other.

Meanwhile, the lawn outside the new Wu family villa glowed under party lights. Guests drifted among flower arches, laughter and music overlapping.

Wu Fuyu, dressed in a rare formal suit, stood where everyone could see him. Every few minutes someone came up with a bright “Happy Birthday, Young Master Wu!” He had gone straight from work to this new villa the family had just bought. Invitations had gone out two weeks earlier.

He chatted half-heartedly, eyes constantly flicking to the entrance. The person he most wanted to see never appeared.

There were celebrities everywhere. Some had heard that the crown prince of the Wu family changed partners quickly and had shown up dressed exactly to his taste, circling him like moths. A few went even further, boldly volunteering themselves.

Among them were current top stars and self-proclaimed stunning omegas, but none got more than a polite brush-off.

Once, Wu Fuyu might have picked one at random, chosen a pretty face just to please himself. But things had changed. Once he’d truly fallen for someone, no one else seemed worth the glance. No matter how he looked, they simply weren’t that person.

From the far corner, Guan Hongyi held a glass of red wine. The rising young director had come as an invited guest. He scanned the crowd, no suspicious waiters, no trace of disguise.

Usually, Gu Xi would have shown up in some creative disguise at an event like this. Was his absence tonight a sign that his “illness” was finally improving? That would be good news. Gu Xi hid himself too well. Blink once, and you’d think he was perfectly fine.

Just as he thought this, a WeChat message popped up asking where he was.

Earlier he’d posted a few cozy photos with other alphas on Moments, visible to one specific person, purely to test whether that person truly didn’t care.

And look who came running anyway. People really shouldn’t fake indifference when they clearly aren’t.

Guan Hongyi sent his location, then walked out of the villa with graceful bearing, waiting in the cool midnight breeze for a moment. A shabby secondhand car worth only 70,000 yuan drove around the corner and stopped in front of him.

The car window rolled down, revealing a cold, handsome face. “Get in.”

Guan Hongyi put his hands on his hips for a moment, then rested them on the window frame. “Oh my, isn’t this the person who said he’d absolutely never touch an omega? What does this count as now?”

Zhou You found himself cornered. Looking at the omega before him dressed in a sexy black off-shoulder gown, alluring as a demon king, his eyes showed a hint of panic. “It’s too dangerous for an omega to go home alone at night.”

Guan Hongyi laughed. “You know I’m an omega. How could I be alone?”

Zhou You fell silent. Indeed, omegas never lacked people eager to show courtesy.

That time when Rong Jing asked him to send the drunk Guan Hongyi home, he’d ended up being clung to by the drunkard and nearly lost his virtue. Almost...

After that, Zhou You had been absent-minded for several days, occasionally becoming slow to respond to Rong Jing’s instructions. After noticing this, he’d immediately pulled himself together, which was why Rong Jing had noticed his usually omnipotent assistant’s changed state.

Zhou You was a male beta. As everyone knew, someone of his status had no right to touch omegas, who were so rare that even most alphas couldn’t compete for them.

He admired Gu Xi, that cool and ethereal type of omega, but it was merely admiration. Perhaps only his boss Rong Jing, that kind of alpha, was qualified to possess him.

He knew his place and didn’t want to casually provoke omegas.

Because he’d provoked one before, leaving indelible scars in both the other person’s heart and his own.

During his time studying abroad, he’d once wanted to visit that person but ultimately lacked the courage.

Later, after beating up a senior who’d engaged in racial discrimination, he was given a warning by the school and told to apologize to the perpetrator. Zhou You refused. After leaving without completing his degree, he returned to China to continue his studies, graduating many years later than others. After coming out, for a long time he couldn’t find work because of the assault on his record. Beta employment was intensely competitive, and finding work with a black mark on his record was even harder. Before his brother Zhou Xiang introduced him to Rong Jing, he’d been ready to go work construction.

During the initial interview, he’d told Rong Jing clearly that he had an assault record.

Rong Jing was the first interviewer willing to understand why he’d done it. After learning the reasons, he’d expressed willingness to hire him.

From that moment, he knew he wanted to work for Rong Jing, for that respect.

In the future he could envision, there had never been an omega.

Guan Hongyi before him was an exceptionally outstanding existence even among all omegas. He didn’t even have the possibility of getting involved with him.

Seeing this assistant gentleman stubbornly refusing to respond, Guan Hongyi simply got into the passenger seat himself and fastened his seatbelt. “Why are you staring at me? Drive, assistant sir~”

For a moment, Zhou You suddenly wondered what it would be like.

The Wu family’s banquet continued. After Wu Fuyu had declined several gathering invitations from his old party buddies, they too realized this young master was different from before. Even their speech became more careful around him.

“He’s really cleaned up his act this time?”

“Probably because of his white moonlight.”

“Who? Don’t leave us hanging!”

“Remember that Xie family event? The guy who shut us down?”

“No way! It’s that one?”

“The prince’s taste is wild. What’s wrong with gentle pretty omegas? Why pick a cold, hard alpha…”

Wu Fuyu heard enough. His glare cut the chatter short. “Whatever filthy jokes you trade in private, I can ignore. But don’t you f***ing use that tone when you mention him, understand?”

He isn’t someone you can joke about.

When he was serious, he looked like a hawk ready to strike. The crowd fell instantly silent.

The first invitation that went out had been hand-delivered by Wu Fuyu to Rong Jing himself, and Rong Jing had agreed to come.

The past three months had been unusually smooth. Rong Jing’s attitude had shifted, a little warmer, enough to throw him off balance. More importantly, Rong Jing and that old demon Gu Xi barely interacted anymore. It looked like they were done. Every time Wu Fuyu tried to provoke Gu Xi, the man wouldn’t even respond. Confidence swelling, Wu Fuyu decided it was time to slip in.

But as the banquet wound down and there was still no sign of that figure, he finally lost patience.

Slipping out to a quiet path, he called. A soft automated female voice told him the number was powered off.

“Still want my help with that attitude? If I agree to you again I’m a damn dog!” he growled, almost hurling his phone before stopping himself.

He checked every social app he had for a message from Rong Jing and nothing. His irritation spiked until he wanted to punch something.

Out of habit he opened his work email. A small red dot blinked. His heart jumped. He wandered the main hall once, taking a breath before opening it.

From rj: Happy Birthday.

Simple and clear, a very Rong Jing-style way of speaking.

“I f***ing knew it. He does care a little!” Wu Fuyu’s mood shot through the roof, the earlier anger wiped clean. Still got it, he thought smugly.

He never realized the email had been scheduled months ago, drafted by Rong Jing long before, set to send automatically no matter what happened.

Wu Feiyu didn’t care about any of that. He was very happy today and hurried back to open several bottles of champagne, making the birthday party lively and bustling.

---

When the banquet ended, the butler led the servants to clean up. Wu Feiyu declined as usual his party friends’ invitation to continue partying elsewhere. Enjoying the night breeze, slightly tipsy, he walked back to the main residence.

Downstairs, he noticed the light was still on in his father’s study.

Wu Hanqi had only appeared briefly at the beginning of today’s banquet before leaving, but for many people this was already rare. Most of the time Wu Hanqi wouldn’t show up at all.

Since his father had come to the capital from Shanghai, he’d completely changed his usual approach and begun expanding aggressively. He’d heard his father had snatched quite a few projects from Rong Jing.

Most of these projects had been ones Rong Jing’s people had contacted first. Industry insiders who knew about it all said he was bullying the weak, giving the Xie family a warning.

Wu Fuyu had asked why, but Wu Hanqi as always hadn’t explained.

Wu Fuyu went upstairs. The study door was cracked open, light streaming out from inside. Just as Wu Fuyu was about to open the door and ask, he heard his cousin’s pleading voice.

Ji Jiongjie knelt on the floor, head lowered. “Uncle, I don’t want to leave. Please give me one more chance.”

At the desk, a scroll of rice paper lay spread out. Wu Hanqi held a brush, the tip dipped in paint, leaning over the desk painting a sparrow. This sparrow looked very out of place in the entire landscape painting.

A few hours ago, Wu Hanqi had sensed something. In intense heart palpitations and chest tightness, his hand slipped and he painted the wrong spot.

To complete the entire painting, he’d added another sparrow.

A thousand-mile dam collapses from an ant hole. Sometimes a great mountain crumbles from the accumulation of seemingly insignificant problems.

By the time you notice, it may already be too late.

Just like this seemingly insignificant sparrow, who knows how much impact it would cause?

The Heavenly Dao had placed its last hope on him but given him a ruined mess. It was truly laughable.

Did it really think he was omnipotent?

After completing the last stroke, he finally raised his head to look at Ji Jiongjie. “Are you staying for work or for a person?”

Wu Hanqi’s tone was casual, but his words were sharp as knives.

“Uncle!” Ji Jiongjie suddenly raised his head.

“The drug in Chu Yang’s hands. You gave it to him, didn’t you?”

Ji Jiongjie jerked his head up. “I didn’t mean to. It was an accident.”

In the Wu family’s private study, Wu Hanqi looked up from his desk. “So you’re fooling your uncle now too?”

His laboratory had S-level clearance, licensed for experimental treatment of terminal illnesses. The work it did was far beyond what most people could imagine.

He was, before all else, a businessman. And businessmen always looked for advantage.

The drug Chu Yang used had an official finished version. He’d signed to receive a portion legally. But impatience drove him to steal a half-finished batch instead and he’d paid for it.

The finished product was too dangerous and now under government seal. Those half-finished samples had been assigned to Ji Jiongjie for destruction. Chu Yang’s madness was probably a side effect of them.

Ji Jiongjie’s crimes didn’t stop there. He’d ordered a fire set at a state-protected omega’s home and Rong Jing had caught him. The charges stacked high. Though there was no conclusive evidence yet, the arsonists’ suicides said everything.

The police had already come calling. Because of the Wu family’s major contributions to national projects, they hadn’t taken anyone away, but the warning was serious: one more mess like this, and your projects go on hold.

It was the biggest blow Wu Hanqi had taken in decades. He’d stripped Ji Jiongjie of all posts to contain the fallout, but the damage was done.

He could feel it, the family’s luck was running thin. The “bug” in fate had changed too many paths. Strangely, he almost enjoyed it. The thrill of skating on the edge of ruin made his blood race.

As Ji Jiongjie passed him in the hall, their eyes met for an instant. Wu Fuyu saw the hatred blazing there.

“Dad, you’re just letting him walk?”

“He crossed the line. Someone else will take care of him.”

“Will it drag us down?”

“Not yet. Later… maybe.”

Closing his eyes, Wu Hanqi pictured his mental chessboard. The bright family pieces flickered—only he and his son still intact.

He looked long and hard at Wu Feiyu. “Our family has only one heir. Even if I fall, you can’t. Got it?”

“Dad, don’t talk like that. It freaks me—” Why did it always feel like his father was leaving his last words?

“Don’t overthink. As long as I’m alive, you’ll have no worries for a single day.”

Wu Hanqi sent his hesitant son away, then turned over the hourglass on the desk. Sand trickled down slowly, and a trace of fresh blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.

It dripped onto the painting like blooming red plum blossoms.

Wu Hanqi wiped away the blood, speaking lightly. “So he’s returned.”

You didn’t disappoint me, you brat.

After the bug returned and broke through the restriction he’d set this time, he himself had suffered backlash.

Rong Jing’s existence always surprised him and filled him with interest. He was an anomaly. To the people of this world, Rong Jing’s existence was too special, whether his thoughts or his actions, they were completely different from theirs.

This time, the duplicate had been more aligned with Rong Jing himself than before. Theoretically, no one should have been able to recognize him.

Moreover, Rong Jing himself didn’t belong to this world. He had no sense of belonging to this world, just like how his soul had been so easily replaced the second time.

Wu Hanqi had always been confident in his judgments, and this time was no different.

But accidents always came so suddenly. A second person had recognized the duplicate.

One last time remained.

Once overturned, what would this world become?

---

Gu Xi woke in a familiar scent, with warm body heat beneath his hand.

Body heat?

He suddenly remembered something and jerked his eyes open. When he saw Rong Jing’s face, his whole body finally completely relaxed. He’d really come back.

He looked at the sky outside. It was still early morning.

Gu Xi gazed deeply at Rong Jing’s face without speaking, just watching with focused attention.

Such a simple wish, yet this simple wish had been so difficult these past three months.

Gu Xi looked carefully, as if treasuring a rare gem, his fingers tracing Rong Jing’s face in the air.

Perhaps his gaze was too intense. Rong Jing seemed to sense something and murmured a few times in his sleep.

Gu Xi withdrew his gaze. As he got out of bed, he felt coolness behind him. That area had been cleaned and ointment was applied. Gu Xi felt like steam might come out of his head.

How could Rong Jing... didn’t that mean he’d seen everything clearly?

Gu Xi dashed into the bathroom and splashed water on his face. He stared into the mirror, cheeks flushed, skin luminous like porcelain just glazed. Every tilt of his eyes carried a trace of charm.

He’d been sleepless for weeks. How could one night with Rong Jing leave him glowing like this? Did the man have some secret beauty-enhancing effect? He’d even walked to the bathroom at a sprint earlier. Last time, the size difference had left him sore and it had been a bit uncomfortable from overuse, but now he felt fine.

Had his recovery ability also improved? Then what about multiple times? Would he be able to avoid passing out?

“Ahhh—” Gu Xi squatted down and covered his head, brain filled with nonsense.

When Rong Jing woke and saw him curled against his chest, his heart melted instantly.

Half an hour earlier, Gu Xi had carefully groomed himself, blow-drying every strand, planning a light makeup look to hide the fatigue. Yet the mirror showed bright skin and clear eyes.

Rong Jing softened his tone. “Does it still hurt?”

Gu Xi rubbed his face against his shoulder and shook his head, clinging like a warm puddle. It was the only way he knew to ease the lingering unease.

“Next time, can you not help me… clean up?” he murmured.

“Why not?” Rong Jing noted how relaxed he seemed now and felt relieved.

Gu Xi couldn’t admit the truth. He buried himself deeper in the alpha’s arms.

“You could get sick,” Rong Jing warned. Omegas were fragile in that regard. “We should use protection next time.”

“No.” With you? That would ruin everything. Gu Xi had never seen an alpha voluntarily bring that up before. Alphas were possessive, their pheromones too wild for restraint. His alpha was truly one of a kind.

Seeing his refusal, Rong Jing kissed his pout. “Then you have to be good. If we don’t want to, I must clean up.”

Neither of them felt there was anything wrong with such an in-depth topic. The affection between them was unknowingly growing deeper and deeper.

Gu Xi hummed and kissed him again, slow and lingering, until his breath caught and Rong Jing finally let go.

They hadn’t talked properly since meeting again yesterday; now they could breathe and speak softly.

“You’ve been staying up late again?” Rong Jing brushed under his eyes.

“Just occasionally. There’s been a lot of work.”

Rong Jing didn’t know if this was an excuse or meant to comfort him. His chin rubbed against the top of Gu Xi’s head.

“Tell me how you spent these three months?”

“Actually it was quite boring. After you left, I finished filming the remaining scenes, then went to M country to shoot magazine covers, took on three endorsements...” Gu Xi spoke slowly, then at the end, “Oh right, Ling-ge found out!”

Rong Jing asked, “You mean...” A ripple appeared in his eyes.

“Yes!” When Gu Xi thought about not fighting alone anymore, he was filled with motivation. Thinking of that five million, he threw off the covers to get out of bed and find it.

Rong Jing discovered that as the down comforter slid off, Gu Xi had no clothing covering him at all. It was absolutely blood-pumping. He clearly remembered dressing Gu Xi before they slept last night.

Gu Xi definitely wouldn’t have undressed himself, so the remaining suspect... was him?

Rong Jing knew he couldn’t resist, but he didn’t know he could be beastly to this extent. It must have been while he was asleep that he couldn’t help making a move.

Why didn’t Gu Xi know to resist? Was he being too obedient?

He pulled back Gu Xi who was about to get out of bed, his gaze serious as he straightened Gu Xi’s shoulders. “Don’t get out. I’ll get it for you. From now on, if I do anything inappropriate, you must stop me, understand?”

Gu Xi’s gaze was somewhat confused. He probably didn’t understand at all.

Rong Jing took a deep breath, deciding he still had to rely on himself.

He took his own clothes and helped Gu Xi put them on. Gu Xi was somewhat unwilling. “It’s not even cold.”

Rong Jing was unmoved and even wanted to add an outer layer.

Rong Jing said, “Spring just started. Your constitution is weak.”

Gu Xi didn’t know where an omega who could shoulder-throw an alpha was weak, but his heart felt sweet as honey.

Good thing Rong Jing hadn’t thought deeply about that incident. He should have completely gotten away with it.

Rong Jing saw the check Gu Xi had in his wallet and said this was big brother’s meeting gift, just keep it.

He pulled the person back into his arms. Both of them got into the warm covers together before asking, “What did you just call him?”

Gu Xi was so embarrassed by the question he could barely speak. “Uh...”

Rong Jing wasn’t surprised that big brother had acknowledged Gu Xi. Not only because he himself was a fan of Gu Xi’s looks, but more because this was the person his little brother had chosen.

The two chatted and played around like this for half the morning before slowly getting up.

Later, while cooking, he sent Gu Xi out of the kitchen when the man nearly sliced his finger cutting tomatoes.

“You’ll spoil me into a useless little o,” Gu Xi complained.

Carrying washed lettuce, Rong Jing bent down and pecked his cheek. “My little useless o.”

Gu Xi’s face went up in flames.

After dinner, Rong Jing texted Zhou Xiang to ask about his brother’s schedule, planning to visit later.

“I’m coming too,” Gu Xi said.

“You just… why not rest at home?”

Home? Is this our home?

Rong Jing was always like this. A casual sentence could easily make him fall into obsession.

One offhand word from Rong Jing could unravel him. He blinked away misty eyes and bounced once on his toes. “See? I’m fine.”

At most, the size was just a bit hard to get used to. Wasn’t he slowly adapting?

“You recovered somewhat quickly this time.” Rong Jing was completely confused. This wasn’t just adapting, this was rapid advancement.

He suddenly thought of the original novel. In it, Gu Xi had a universally attractive constitution, so his recovery ability seemed to also be... maxed out?

“Do you really have to go?”

“I don’t want to stay behind.” After finally reuniting, how could he?

Rong Jing discovered he had absolutely no way to deal with this little troublemaker. When Gu Xi looked at him with slightly pitiful eyes, he found himself inexplicably nodding, then could only watch as Gu Xi happily went to the garage to get the car.

His own omega, he had to pamper him no matter what.

Sharing the small space of the car, the air between them changed again. The pheromones felt like tiny magnets pulling closer. Last night had been one sip of poison; now the thirst only deepened.

They parked near the Xie Group tower. Rain began to patter against the windshield. Gu Xi reached into the glove box and handed over an umbrella. “Don’t get soaked. You’ll catch a cold.”

Rong Jing accepted it, then paused. There was a faint trace of another alpha’s scent on the handle—weak, but it’s there. It smelled like one of the crew members, probably someone who had borrowed it and returned it. Still, the scent irritated him.

“Wait here,” he said, stepping out into the rain.

Rong Jing ran to a nearby 24-hour convenience store, bought a new umbrella, and replaced the original one. “I’ll take this one.”

This was something the original Rong Jing would never have done, but now it seemed so natural.

Gu Xi watched the alpha’s figure and chuckled, unable to control the smile at the corners of his mouth.

Rong Jing walked halfway when he saw in the distant rain curtain a man holding a black umbrella, standing in the heavy rain.

The umbrella brim obscured the man’s features, leaving only a chiseled jawline. The man seemed to sense something and lifted his umbrella. A pair of gentle eyes looked over.

Their gazes met.

Rong Jing saw Wu Hanqi, and waves rose in his heart.

His return meant the shattering of this imprisonment.

Rong Jing walked forward, speaking softly. “Uncle Qi.”

Wu Hanqi remained unperturbed. “One more time left. Prepare well.”

The man was too calm and detached, as if this had no effect on him whatsoever.

Rong Jing suddenly felt an indescribable discomfort. “Uncle Qi, if I win, what will happen to you?”

Wu Hanqi replied, “Let’s talk about it when you win.”

Rong Jing said without hesitation, “It’s not if there’s one more time, it’s that there’s only one time left, and I will win.”

Wu Hanqi laughed. “At such a young age, don’t speak so arrogantly.”

Rong Jing watched Wu Hanqi get into his car. Looking back, he saw Gu Xi had already stuck his head out, looking at him with worry. Rong Jing indicated he was fine.

Rong Jing collected himself before both him and Gu Xi finally went upstairs.

Xie Ling was in the conference room. A planner’s presentation had just ended, and they looked anxiously at the expressionless Xie Ling.

The prolonged silence, everyone knew this was a sign of dissatisfaction. Just before this, Xie Ling had already scolded several supervisors. The atmosphere in the conference room was tense when suddenly the conference room door burst open.

Everyone looked at the secretary who’d interrupted their meeting. Didn’t they know President Xie hated having his proceedings interrupted without cause?

Everyone waited for Xie Ling to scold them, but unexpectedly, after the secretary whispered a few words in Xie Ling’s ear, Xie Ling suddenly stood up. “Meeting suspended. All the proposals that didn’t pass just now, go back and rewrite them.”

With that, Xie Ling strode quickly out of the conference room, wind at his feet.

No one knew that Xie Ling had just given orders this morning that during this period, if Rong Jing came to Xie Corporation, he must be notified immediately.

Rong Jing was in Xie Ling’s office crunching on chips when with a bang, the door flew open.

Rong Jing saw his older brother, who remained composed even when Mount Tai collapsed before him, come rushing over and grab his little brother by the collar, dragging him up.

“Ah, wait, ge!” You’re using so much force I can barely breathe.

“Shut up.” Xie Ling was impatient.

After carefully examining him thoroughly and confirming this one was finally the genuine article, he pulled his little brother into his arms before Rong Jing could protest.

Rong Jing discovered his older brother was actually trembling. He slowly hugged back this tough man.

“It’s good that you’re back.” Xie Ling said quietly.

Gu Xi stood to the side, watching the brothers hold each other. The word home rose warm and steady in his chest.

---

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