Jiang Wan managed to pass off the disguised “dad with a beard” and “ghost mom” without raising any suspicion from Dou Ming.
The downside? The next morning, when he wanted to sleep in, he found himself not only battling his smart alarm but also having to wrestle with his “bearded dad.”
Du Yanjing: “Son, time to get up for school!”
Jiang Wan: “==凸”
Slap!
“You’ve got some nerve! Trying to take advantage of your dad, huh?”
“You better stop running!”
“Get your butt over here and take this spanking!”
The Jiang household was in chaos from the very start of the day.
Aunt Xue, knitting a sweater nearby, smiled kindly. “Young people have so much energy.”
Gang Ya: “…” silently sipped his porridge, not daring to comment.
After all the morning drama, Jiang Wan was fully awake and headed to school, full of energy.
Once in the classroom, he resumed his happy routine of bouncing around Dou Ming, chattering nonstop.
Even though Dou Ming ignored him, Jiang Wan continued to follow him, happily playing the role of an enthusiastic little shadow.
He always found some excuse to get close to the Alpha—asking for help with math after class, sitting beside him during lunch, or asking to partner up during PE.
The closer he got, the more of Dou Ming’s Alpha pheromones he could absorb.
Though Dou Ming always kept a stoic expression, as if Jiang Wan didn’t exist, whenever Jiang Wan overexerted himself, the calming scent of cedar would instinctively wrap around him, soothing his nerves.
Jiang Wan took full advantage, enjoying the cedar aroma to the fullest.
Soon, he figured out a strategy: exercise hard, get exhausted, and then indulge in the refreshing cedarwood scent.
After two or three days, Jiang Wan’s complexion became rosy, and he exuded a radiant energy, as if he had been bathing in a spring breeze.
Du Yanjing couldn’t help but worry for Dou Ming, fearing Jiang Wan might drain him dry.
“Remember,” Du Yanjing warned, “there’s no such thing as bad land, only exhausted oxen.”
Gang Ya, on the other hand, bluntly said, “That guy’s full of energy. He calls every day asking when he can finally serve ‘Big Brother Jiang’, he’s not bothered by giving off pheromones.”
Jiang Wan rubbed his chin, finding this unusual. “Why is he so eager?”
Gang Ya, ever the blunt one, replied, “If you paid me 15k a month, I’d be eager too. Come on, suck all the pheromones out of me, see if I care.”
Jiang Wan kicked him away and thought for a moment. “How much does Dou Ming know about Dou Deli?”
Gang Ya was about to speak again, but Du Yanjing clamped a hand over his mouth and reported, “Since you saw those sandbags at school, we started investigating. So far, Dou Ming has made thirteen calls to the police—five to report Dou Deli’s whereabouts and eight to provide leads on illegal loan sharks. Altogether, his reports have helped take down four illegal loan operations.”
Gang Ya’s eyes widened in fear. “So, does that mean he’s investigating us too?”
Jiang Wan shot him a sidelong glance. “What’s there to be afraid of? We’re a legal company, registered with the business bureau.”
Du Yanjing nodded in agreement. “That hundred thousand Dou Deli borrowed? We’ve only collected 23k in interest over six months. Nowhere near illegal loan standards. Plus, the ones who got caught were either using violent collection methods or tricking people into taking compromising photos. They deserve prison.”
Gang Ya, having been schooled in legal knowledge, sighed in relief. “So, we’re not loan sharks after all?”
Jiang Wan: “…” His kicking foot itched with the urge to strike again.
Du Yanjing rubbed his temples. “We have a business license hanging in the office.”
Gang Ya innocently muttered, “From what I know, only loan sharks dare to lend money.”
Du Yanjing paused for a moment and then looked at Jiang Wan. “Do you think Dou Ming thinks the same?”
Jiang Wan: “…QAQ”
Could it be? This whole time, Dou Ming wasn’t in it for the money, wasn’t trying to curry favor with him. Instead, he was a righteous young man, enduring hardships, working as an undercover agent within the ‘criminal organization’?
This misunderstanding was severe and needed to be cleared up immediately.
That evening, Dou Ming finally received a call from Gang Ya, who gave him an address and told him to head over after school.
Does this mean they finally trust me, letting me get closer?
Dou Ming wasn’t surprised. After all, Big Brother Jiang was methodical and meticulous, far more sophisticated than any of the petty gangs he’d encountered before.
When the final bell rang, Dou Ming packed up his bag. He hadn’t yet figured out how to shake off the little shadow—Jiang Wan, who had been following him around for the past two weeks—when he realized the Omega had already disappeared.
Finally had enough of me, huh?
That was fine by him.
Calmly, Dou Ming opened his navigation app and took the subway to the address he was given.
It led him to a billiard hall. As soon as he stepped into the smoky main hall, the overwhelming scent of cigarettes hit him in the face.
Tattooed thugs holding cigarettes, businessmen in suits gripping pool cues, and women in cheongsams with slits up to their thighs all turned to look at Dou Ming with curious eyes.
“Is that him?”
“They said he’s handsome, really handsome.”
“His pheromones are cedarwood. No doubt about it.”
The crowd whispered among themselves as if they had figured out who Dou Ming was. Suddenly, they all smiled warmly at him, asking in unison, “Hey there, young man. Looking for someone?”
The overly friendly tone, mixed with the crowd’s gangster-like appearance, was jarringly out of place.
Dou Ming stayed alert, feeling that these people were more dangerous than anyone he had ever dealt with before.
But he kept his expression neutral. “I’m here on Big Brother Jiang’s orders.”
“Ah, yes, we know,” said one tattooed thug, his voice soft and delicate. “He’s upstairs, waiting for you. Go on up.”
Despite his usual calm, Dou Ming felt goosebumps rise all over his body at the sound of the thug’s gentle tone.
He gave a simple “Mm” said no more, and walked through the crowd toward the stairs, aware of all the eyes following him as he went up.
As he ascended, he heard the hall below come alive with chatter again.
“Is that the boss’s new partner? Wow, Big Brother Jiang has good taste. He’s really handsome.”
“If you’re jealous, why not find someone for yourself?”
“Don’t get me started. Business has been rough this year. They all think I’m broke.”
“Well, you’re lucky at least. You bought a house, didn’t you?”
“When are you going to buy? There’s an interest-free loan for employees, and Big Brother Jiang even pays 24% of our provident fund. Get on board, and we’ll all be homeowners together.”
“But I haven’t even saved up enough for the down payment…”
The conversations of these so-called gangsters were so real, full of the struggles of life.
Unconsciously, Dou Ming’s thoughts drifted: So, even organized crime offers social security and provident funds?
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