In the orphanage.
Xu Yin stood in the corridor leading to the backyard, hands in pockets, gazing at the scenery outside.
The weather today was nice, not too hot for summer, and the sky was blue with only a few clouds.
If not for being in this place right now… it would have been a perfect day for an outing.
Footsteps approached from behind.
He tilted his head slightly.
Qin Yuheng stepped into the hall, his face stiffening when he saw Xu Yin.
He hadn’t expected to bump into Xu Yin today!
Although Xu Yin was an omega, he was tall at 1.8 meters, slim and graceful, even just his back view was extremely attractive.
And today, wearing luxury brand clothing, the contrast was striking…
Qin Yuheng pursed his lips, suppressing the discomfort in his heart, and walked up, forcing a smile, “Xu Yin, why are you alone here?”
Xu Yin glanced at the newcomer, trying to dig into the memories of the original owner, and learned that this was Mrs. Lu’s son.
Mrs. Lu was a woman of similar age to the dean, who occasionally visited this orphanage, always dressed extravagantly and with an arrogant demeanor. She rarely spoke to the omegas, only exchanging a few words with the dean.
When facing her, the dean kept a low profile, and everyone speculated that Mrs. Lu might be a businesswoman who donated money to them. To maintain such a benefactor, the dean would flatter her like this.
But Xu Yin remembered that when Mrs. Lu came to visit once, representatives from the Omega Rights Association also came.
Although there wasn’t much interaction between them, as soon as the representatives arrived, their first reaction was to nod respectfully to Mrs. Lu, and there seemed to be some kind of exchange in their eye contact.
Considering the several times the Association had taken care of the dean before, Xu Yin suspected that Mrs. Lu might actually be a leader within the Association.
With this in mind, it didn’t seem strange that the Association would repeatedly abuse their power for the dean.
The original host wasn’t very familiar with Qin Yuheng, Mrs. Lu’s son, as the latter rarely spoke to them when he came to the orphanage, always appearing bored.
He didn’t know why this person had come to the hall now.
Seeing Xu Yin ignoring him and not smiling, Qin Yuheng also stopped smiling, his face slightly sullen, “Xu Yin, do you really want to go to the Qi family? Xiao Xiao likes you so much, why don’t you like him? You’re making him very sad. Do you just find him ugly?”
Xu Yin turned to look at him, a smirk playing at his lips.
Perhaps getting a reaction from Xu Yin, Qin Yuheng became more agitated, “Even though Xiao Xiao’s face was ruined by an accident, it’s not his fault! And how can you judge a person just by their appearance? He’s so obedient and innocent! It’s not good to value materialism and appearance too much—”
Qin Yuheng warned with wide eyes, “That’s shallow!”
After he finished speaking, Xu Yin spoke up.
“Is it any of your business?”
With a gentle and slow tone, Qin Yuheng froze for a moment, then blushed when he realized, “I’m Xiao Xiao’s good friend!”
Ah, Xu Yin vaguely remembered that when this kid came, Zhou Xiao did indeed behave better, just like trying to please Mrs. Lu, he would stick close to Qin Yuheng.
And Qin Yuheng would smile, pat Zhou Xiao’s head, feed him a cookie, and that was it.
Xu Yin thought of this as a “nodding acquaintance.” It seemed ridiculous that Qin Yuheng defined it as “good friends.” Perhaps, by calling the other person a good friend, one could have a more legitimate stance to vent their sense of justice?
Xu Yin chuckled.
He calmly said, “Then why don’t you like Zhou Xiao? Is it because you find him ugly?”
Qin Yuheng stuttered, “I… I only see Zhou Xiao as a younger brother, I don’t have that kind of feeling for him—”
“Well, so you don’t like Zhou Xiao because you treat him like a younger brother, and I don’t like Zhou Xiao because I find him ugly?” Xu Yin asked seriously.
Qin Yuheng stumbled for a moment, then said in a fluster, “No, it’s just that Zhou Xiao has liked you for so long, anyone would be moved, but you…”
“Then I’ll go suggest to Zhou Xiao to pursue you,” Xu Yin found it amusing, “I’m not a nice person, but you are. If Zhou Xiao has been pursuing you for so long, you should be moved and accept him. I wish you both happiness.”
Qin Yuheng’s face changed instantly, turning red and then pale.
He stammered, “Why are you like this…”
He felt wronged, “I… I believe in being single, I don’t plan to rely on any alpha or beta for my whole life, I don’t plan to get married, so I can’t be with Xiao Xiao…”
Xu Yin suddenly narrowed his eyes, “What are you even doing here today?”
Qin Yuheng was taken aback again, “My mom brought me…”
“Why though? Don’t you know in your heart that there’s something going on?” Xu Yin’s gaze was piercing.
Qin Yuheng’s eyes flickered away.
Xu Yin had been a little annoyed today, as Mrs. Lu, who seemed to be suppressing the original host and adamantly refusing to approve the discharge application, had brought her son here, all dressed up.
And this son wasn’t content to stay in the front hall, he even rushed to the back hall to provoke him.
Xu Yin, feeling irritated, spoke bluntly.
He smiled, “You’re dressed up, styled your hair, even put on makeup, and you say you don’t know why your mom brought you here today?”
Qin Yuheng blushed, “I… I always dress like this when I go out!”
“Is that so? But you didn’t seem like this on your previous visits to the orphanage, did you?” Xu Yin approached.
Qin Yuheng nervously retreated, “This time I’m meeting an important guest, it’s different…”
“But there was a time when you came to visit us and said you were going to attend a banquet afterward, but you didn’t dress up so elaborately then, did you?” Xu Yin stood firm, while Qin Yuheng leaned against the wall.
Xu Yin towered over him by a whole head, casting his shadow over Qin Yuheng, who suddenly felt goosebumps.
He clearly remembered that this omega named Xu Yin used to be obedient, always sneaking glances at him, envying him but never daring to speak to him!
Why was he so assertive today!
Qin Yuheng swallowed nervously, feeling both guilty and angry at Xu Yin’s accusations.
Looking down on him, Xu Yin said in a light tone, “Qin Young Master, as a single-minded person, I hope you mind your own business and don’t disrupt other people’s appointments today. As for Zhou Xiao, if you feel sorry for him, you can take care of him yourself.”
“Taking advantage of others’ generosity,” Xu Yin raised an eyebrow with a smirk, “If one day you really annoy someone, you’ll get a beating.”
Qin Yuheng’s face went pale.
Furious and ashamed, he took a deep breath and shouted, “Are you… are you threatening me? Taking advantage of others’ generosity? Why do you… why do you think so badly of others? Are you just bent on climbing up the Qi family and want no one to hinder your way?!”
—
A flying car flew over a small forest and landed in an orphanage.
“This place is so remote,” Qi Lian remarked as she surveyed the surroundings.
As they stepped out of the car, a group of people had already gathered outside.
Leading them was Mrs. Lu. Qi mother remembered her and had an idea about their visit today, so she smiled politely without changing her expression.
Madam Lu greeted warmly, “Long time no see, it’s been over twenty years since I left the central city.”
Mrs. Qi nodded with a smile.
In fact, the two were not familiar, but on key occasions, a little acting was necessary. As the current mistress of the Qi family, Mrs. Qi was very familiar with this routine.
After exchanging pleasantries, Mrs. Lu pulled the dean forward and introduced, “This is the dean of this orphanage, come on, introduce yourself.”
This was the first time in her life that the dean had seen such an esteemed guest, so she lowered her head nervously and introduced herself in a pleasing tone.
While this was happening, Qi Lian and Qi Yuanchu remained composed, observing their surroundings.
Although the orphanage was small and remote, the environment was still quite nice and very clean.
There were quite a few omegas living inside, and many heads popped out of the windows of the dormitories on both sides, peering at them cautiously.
Qi Yuanchu’s serious gaze swept over each face carefully. Some of the omegas blushed and shrank back when they were glanced at by him.
Qi Lian nudged him with her elbow and whispered, “What are you looking at? Your omega must have been brought down a long time ago, he’s inside.”
Qi Yuanchu: “…”
He immediately withdrew his gaze and looked deeply at the hall behind Mrs. Lu and the others, the dean.
Seeing his expression, Qi Lian couldn’t help but chuckle.
Ah, they had always thought he was unhappy about this marriage arrangement?
They had been completely fooled by his serious demeanor!
But come to think of it, when they communicated with the dean earlier, they inadvertently revealed Qi Yuanchu’s attitude to prepare the other party psychologically…
This… wouldn’t cause a misunderstanding, right?
Qi Lian suddenly felt guilty.
It shouldn’t, right? They only mentioned it briefly at the time, maybe the other party didn’t even remember?
Mrs. Qi was actually eager to see Xu Yin. Not wanting to chat with Mrs. Lu and the dean anymore, she smiled and interrupted, “Shall we go inside? Oh, by the way, where is Xu Yin?”
The dean became nervous.
Mrs. Lu replied nonchalantly, “He’s in the back hall, and so is my son. I’ll ask my son to bring him over. By the way, my son is also twenty years old this year, an omega. Madam Qi, do you still remember? You praised him for being cute when he was young!”
Seeing Mrs. Lu’s smiling face, Mrs. Qi signaled to someone nearby to bring Xu Yin over, but immediately stopped them, smiling, “No need, let Yuanchu go over by himself. Let the two young people talk alone and give them some space.”
Mrs. Qi gave Qi Yuanchu a meaningful look and said, “Go on, when you get there, let Mrs. Lu’s son come to the front hall. You chat with Xu Yin for a while.”
Qi Yuanchu nodded and walked towards the hall expressionlessly.
Mrs. Lu’s smile slightly froze.
With that said, the group naturally entered the front hall in a grand manner.
As they sat down for tea, Mrs. Lu lowered her gaze and said, “I heard that Yuanchu isn’t very satisfied with this match? Is this child, at this age, still not thinking about love and marriage?”
“Ah, we misunderstood. It was a mistake.” Mrs. Qi covered her lips and laughed.
The dean’s hand trembled, astonished, “What do you mean?”
—
Qi Yuanchu’s steps were steady… and urgent.
He had a serious expression as he walked quickly through the front hall.
There was a small passage between the front hall and the back hall. As he crossed the passage and approached the entrance to the back hall, his gaze became even deeper.
Stepping onto the last step, he heard an angry shout from inside:
“—Are you just bent on climbing up the Qi family and want no one to hinder your way?!”
Then came a gentle and soothing voice, “Yes.”
In the back hall, Xu Yin smiled warmly and said word by word, “If someone comes to hinder me… they should be prepared to bear the consequences.”
The last four words were said lightly, yet coldly.
Xu Yin was serious.
He was truly displeased today.
