最佳契合 (Perfect Match) – 十九瑶
Chapter 28
At the start of December, Zheng Feiluan signed a mountain of paperwork to hand over the management rights of Jiusheng.
When word spread that the chief executive, who had been in charge for many years, had suddenly stepped down under the guise of taking a much-needed break and had been replaced by the first young master Zheng, who had been keeping a low profile, there was an instant controversy among the employees of the company. One story led to another, and when the rumor that the Zheng brothers didn’t get along was spread, it exaggerated the situation, which people found hilarious and intriguing.
As for the board of directors, Zheng Feiluan’s resignation wasn’t exactly a surprise, since he stepped down of his own will at a meeting held on short notice.
There was just one reason for that meeting, and that was to dismiss the CEO.
Zheng Feiluan has been displaying signs of agitation and irritability for quite some time, and due to his constantly low state of mind, he is no longer capable of taking on a strenuous decision-making position. Even if Zheng Hongming didn’t give him those options, he’ll be facing the board of directors for an interrogation sooner or later if he makes an error with his decisions. He proposed the “vacation” idea himself, so he can at least leave with some sense of dignity.
No one would be so naïve enough to believe such a driven alpha would step down from his position of power at the peak of his career for a “break,” but no one could refute it either.
It did, however, keep the mate-seeking disorder under wraps, allowing Zheng Feiluan to leave the Jiusheng administration unscathed.
Zheng Feiluan said nothing throughout the transfer of responsibility and power. He had convinced himself he could handle it all calmly, but it was clear that with each document he signed, a piece of his protective armor got shattered.
Before signing his name for the last time, he pondered deeply.
With this one stroke, his brother would gain power and fame, while he would be stripped of the CEO nameplate on the fifty-fifth floor, no longer possessing any actual authority and no longer serving as Jiusheng’s sole successor.
Who drove him to do this?
It was the humble, seemingly gentle omega.
On the day he had a talk with He An at the café, he was still the more powerful person: he had a vast network of connections that spanned beyond twenty-nine towering cities, while the person on the opposite side was merely an omega who couldn’t afford even a shabby 30-square-meter house. Because of the huge social gap between them, he looked down on He An and considered him no more than a joke. He treated him with contempt, labeling him a “weakness,” and even insulting him at will.
Over a year has gone by since then, and that supposedly minor “weakness” has spread and destroyed the extensive resources he once had.
It’s ironic when you think about it.
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Time passed slowly in the conference room as the clock continued to tick. There were dozens of people staring at Zheng Feiluan, and their gazes fused to create a crushing weight that pressed heavily on his shoulders, pushing him to sign the transfer papers as quickly as possible.
Zheng Feiluan sat up and turned to face his father, who was sitting in the chairman’s chair.
Old Man Zheng sat quietly, one hand on the table and the other on the swivel chair, his old and vigorous eyes hints of mockery. When he noticed Zheng Feiluan looking over, he curved the corners of his mouth slightly and looked at him with the calm confidence of a father who knows his child will admit his fault eventually.
Zheng Feiluan knew he still had a chance to back out. As long as he lowered his head and vowed to take He An home, he could quickly cancel this stupid “vacation,” reclaim what was his, and get everything on the right track.
He hesitated.
This was the Jiusheng he had devoted his entire life and career to for the past twelve years. Was it really worth it to sacrifice it for an omega he couldn’t even look at? It is merely an omega, after all.
The tip of the pen hovered over the paper, taking its time to fall.
Zheng Hongming simply sat in place without rushing or distracting him, giving him plenty of time to consider his options. No one dared to make a sound in the conference room since the Chairman of the Board hadn’t spoken yet, so everyone waited patiently for him to make a decision.
Suddenly, Zheng Feiluan waved his pen and signed his full name. Then he banged the pen on the table, pushed his chair away, and stormed out of Jiusheng without looking back.
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He accepted having nothing to do and embraced the time he had to himself.
What was once a brief span of time off that could only be squeezed out with the help of his secretaries has turned into forever, like the endless ocean water; it’s too much that it was filling his mouth and nose to the point he could barely breathe.
He looked for someone close to talk to, but he’s been so self-reliant for so long that he never learned to ask for advice from others. When he has a lot to say, he realizes he has no close friends who can listen to him. Instead, birds of every kind come flying in from every direction, showering him with affection and offering to end his loneliness if he allows them.
Zheng Feiluan knows exactly why they showed up.
Even though he no longer manages Jiusheng, he still owns 9% of its shares. More than a dozen properties are registered in his name, and he has enough money stashed away to last him many lifetimes, which makes him a target. When he was at work, he didn’t have time for a relationship, and now that he’s on leave and has a lot of free time, he still doesn’t have anyone to share his pillow with, making others want to seize the opportunity.
So one by one, they came.
He asked the little finch what he wanted, and the bird replied, “I don’t want anything, just for you to be happy.”
With a forced smile, he said, “I’ll be happy if you get out of my sight.”
He then summoned Aunt Zhang, who escorted the man away nicely.
No one would serve a complete stranger unless they were offered something in return. If you want something, just ask, and he’ll give you what he’s willing to give. Acting innocent is precisely the same as writing “I want money” all over your face, and it’s the most disgusting thing imaginable.
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Every night before going to sleep, he lays a twig of Lily of the Valley on his pillow.
As time passed, the twig turned into a bouquet, and the bouquet into a basket. He gradually became dependent on its scent, laying in bed all day and night in his pajamas, depressed, like a dead and rotting tree.
Aunt Zhang wanted to open the window and help him get some fresh air because she felt bad about him being stuck inside all the time, but she was stopped by a serious voice.
“I’m fine.”
He spoke indifferently as he looked up at the ceiling.
The smell, no matter how strong and suffocating, was the man’s relief, and without the flowery scent to comfort him, he couldn’t even get a full night’s sleep.
But the flower is just a temporary fix after all, which can console him for a while but not for the rest of his life. After a few days of calm and quiet, he had another episode of his sickness and woke up on a wintry street.
Only his shadow followed him wherever he went.
Zheng Feiluan simply accepted his fate, angrily threw heaps of cash in the car, and let “him” drive around mindlessly. After he woke up, he took the money and took a cab home, leaving the fancy car like garbage on the side of the road, not giving a damn if it got wrecked or towed.
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He had finally fallen asleep one night when a sharp pain woke him up.
A blinding brightness appeared, shaking his vision and causing him pain and tears in his eyes. Subconsciously, he shut his eyes and let the lingering green and red light patterns alternate in front of him. After a short while, his vision returned, and he saw his brother standing in front of him, panting. His brother’s appearance looked threatening and miserable; his hair was messy, his clothes were wrinkled, and there was a dark patch of red at the corner of his mouth.
Zheng Feiluan didn’t know what happened, casually wiped the corner of his lips, and groaned in pain. He looked at the back of his hand and saw that it was wet with blood.
From the looks of it, they got into a very brutal fight.
After noticing his stunned expression as he looked at his hand, Zheng Feiyi sneered, “What, awake now? You finally recognize me as your brother, and you won’t try to beat me to death anymore, right?”
“…Gege?”1Chinese term for elder brother.
Zheng Feiluan took a look around and noticed that they were in the underground garage. Zheng Feiyi stood between him and the car, blocking the door with his body. The alpha pheromones were so strong in the air from their fight that it smelled like a pheromone collection bottle had been smashed.
He asked, “What’s going on?”
“What’s going on?” Zheng Feiyi laughed, “There are a bunch of reporters camped outside. If it wasn’t for me stopping you, you would’ve gone out to give them new material by now!”
He then aggressively pushed an envelope into Zheng Feiluan’s arms and said in a loud voice, “Take a good look inside. Don’t you want to protect your image?”
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The envelope was opened, and a dozen parking tickets flew out along with white flowers on the ground. There is also a large stack of pictures, maybe around thirty prints, all of which were obviously taken before sunrise.
Zheng Feiluan saw a total stranger in these photos:
He was sitting proudly on the sidewalk, rubbing his hair, and was looking blankly down the street;
He rests his back against a streetlight and turns his head as he looks out into a closed window, waiting eagerly with almost innocent look in his eyes;
He even forcibly blocked the path of a passerby, grabbing his chin as he studied the man’s face more closely and then standing there dumbfounded when the man shoved him away.
……
Really? Is that what he looks like when he’s looking for a mate?
A dumbass who thinks just with his cock and hasn’t given any thought to the possible outcomes of his actions.
Only a mentally challenged, sheltered alpha would consider an ordinary omega to be his perfect match.
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Translated and edited by janemoyu (11/20/23)
