After discussing with Xiao Xiao, they decided to go to the ice cream shop downstairs.
At the checkout, Mu Nianwen was worried that Tan Janglin would insist on paying the bill like some Alphas did at previous VIP gatherings, but to his surprise, Tan Janglin calmly watched him scan the payment code, showing no intention of arguing.
Leaving the terrible internet-famous restaurant, Tan Janglin took the initiative to ask, “Which floor is the shop we’re going to?”
After getting the answer, he made a phone call. Mu Nianwen, walking ahead of him, vaguely heard him mention the floor and the name of the store, and curiously asked, “Do you have something else to do later?”
Tan Janglin shook his head. “I don’t have any other plans today.”
The noodles were a bit disappointing, but the ice cream tasted really good.
The three of them sat around a small round table in the shop, eating and chatting.
After chatting about some interesting things from their livestreams, the conversation gradually turned to Zhenzhu Zhuna’er.
“He’s really full of himself. I can’t stand it,” Xiao Xiao criticized openly. “His fans actually think he’s innocent. I almost bled my eyes out when I saw him!”
Mu Nianwen also wanted to join in the criticism but restrained himself because there was still a VIP present. “I heard a gossip once, from someone who knew Zhenzhu Zhuna’er before.”
“What gossip?” Xiao Xiao asked excitedly.
Mu Nianwen lowered his voice. “He said Zhenzhu Zhuna’er is actually a Beta, pretending to be an omega to deceive people.”
“Is that true?” Xiao Xiao was surprised.
“When he was in the dance category before, his gender was Beta, but he wasn’t popular and couldn’t compete,” Mu Nianwen said. “Maybe he thought that in the gaming category, being an omega would be more popular.”
In the gaming category, looks didn’t matter as much, but those who boasted about their skills were mostly average-looking Alphas. Beautiful and highly skilled omegas were rare, and Mu Nianwen was arguably his biggest competitor.
Xiao Xiao frowned and thought for a while before suddenly turning to the silent Tan Janglin. “From an Alpha’s perspective, what do you think of Zhenzhu Zhuna’er?”
Mu Nianwen also looked at him, eagerly awaiting his answer.
“Um…” Tan Janglin felt the pressure. “I can’t represent all Alphas. Personally… I think he doesn’t lack skills, but it’s kind of awkward.”
“Still, our Xiao Wen is better!” Xiao Xiao said.
Tan Janglin smiled.
“And if we’re talking about innocence, Xiao Wen is the real innocent one,” Xiao Xiao continued. “So many years, so many people pursuing him, but he still hasn’t found a partner.”
Tan Janglin blinked, and his hand holding the cup paused for a moment.
“Who says I haven’t had one? I’ve dated before!” Mu Nianwen retorted. “We just broke up, that’s all.”
“But when was that?” Xiao Xiao said. Seeing that Tan Janglin was clearly curious, she asked, “Haven’t you heard him mention it? It’s a classic story from our livestream.”
Tan Janglin shook his head.
“It was when I was in high school,” Mu Nianwen said briefly. “At that time, I dated an Alpha for a while, but we broke up soon after we got together.”
“Why are you being so vague,” Xiao Xiao added, “He always tells this story vividly in the livestreams, it’s so exciting.”
It was the first time Mu Nianwen felt that Xiao Xiao was talking too much.
In the past, he had indeed recounted many times in the livestream, including how he was enchanted by the other person, how he made breakfast for them every morning, secretly copied their name over and over again in his exercise book, and felt extremely happy when he received roses made of draft paper. He also talked about how heartbroken he was when he found out the other person betrayed him.
Now, he had completely bid farewell to those emotions and could treat them as interesting anecdotes. When he told the story, he would add more drama for effect, never feeling embarrassed.
But for some reason, faced with Tan Janglin’s inquisitive gaze, he inexplicably felt a little embarrassed and reluctant to speak.
“I’ve never heard it before, can you tell it?” Tan Janglin asked.
“It’s nothing…” Mu Nianwen felt awkward. “I was a bit silly back then, not good at judging people.”
When he resisted, Tan Janglin nodded and stopped asking further.
“What about you?” Mu Nianwen tried to shift the focus, leaning on the table with both hands, smiling mischievously. “You look talented and generous, so you must have no shortage of companions, right?”
Tan Janglin immediately denied, “I’m not that kind of person.”
Mu Nianwen and Xiao Xiao raised their eyebrows together. “Oh~?”
“Really,” Tan Janglin said. “I’ve had relationships in the past, but that was all several years ago.”
“‘Had relationships,’ meaning more than one?” Mu Nianwen asked.
He was teasing Tan Janglin a bit, but Tan Janglin seemed completely unaware and answered seriously.
“Once in college, and once later in graduate school,” he explained in detail, “The latter one lasted for quite a while, about half a year. But it’s all over three years ago.”
“So specific,” Xiao Xiao commented, “It’s like you’re advertising for a partner.”
“I…” Tan Janglin glanced at Mu Nianwen. “It’s not something I can’t talk about.”
“Why did you break up then?” Mu Nianwen asked again.
His probing was actually a bit impolite.
Fortunately, Tan Janglin didn’t mind. “Because I decided to return to my home country, but the other person wanted to stay. After discussing it, we both felt there was no need to continue.”
“A peaceful breakup? So does that mean there are still feelings?” Mu Nianwen asked. “If the other person came back to your country, would you consider getting back together?”
Tan Janglin shook his head.
Unlike before, this time he didn’t give any reasons.
Mu Nianwen leaned forward a bit, looking into his eyes, and asked, “Is it because… you have someone you like now?”
Tan Janglin clearly paused for a moment, then awkwardly avoided his gaze and didn’t answer.
Mu Nianwen wanted to ask further but suddenly felt another hot gaze from the side. Turning his head, Xiao Xiao’s eyes widened, and her mouth was slightly open.
Their eyes met, and Xiao Xiao showed a slightly distorted smile.
Mu Nianwen quickly leaned back against the chair, cleared his throat, and tried to appear calm.
At that moment, Tan Janglin’s phone rang. He glanced at the screen and answered.
“Yes, come in, the second round table to the right of the entrance.”
Mu Nianwen was curious. “Who did you make an appointment with?”
Tan Janglin shook his head, about to explain when a man in a shirt entered the store carrying two paper bags. He quickly walked over to Tan Janglin after finding him.
“Everything is here,” he said, handing over the paper bags respectfully.
“Thank you,” Tan Janglin didn’t stand up, ““You’ve been very helpful.”
“You’re welcome, it’s what I should do,” the man put down the paper bags, straightened up, slightly lowered his head, and asked again, “Do you have any other orders?”
Tan Janglin shook his head, and the man understood. With a slight bow, he stepped back and left.
His swift departure left Mu Nianwen and Xiao Xiao dumbfounded.
Tan Janglin’s gentle demeanor made them forget for a while that this Alpha must have an extraordinary status. The man who had just come and gone like the wind reminded them of this fact.
“What was that?” Xiao Xiao asked.
“I prepared some small gifts,” Tan Janglin said, “I made an impromptu appointment to meet, but I didn’t have the items with me, so I asked him to bring them over.”
It seemed that the man had flown a trip just for these items.
“Even I get one?” Xiao Xiao was surprised.
“I specially picked one for you,” Tan Janglin smiled, “I hope you’ll like it.”
Mu Nianwen glanced at the logo on the bag and secretly marveled.
It was an extremely well-known high-end luxury brand, with a hefty price tag.
Xiao Xiao was a bit excited. “Thank you, Boss Tan! Can I open it now?”
Tan Janglin seemed to have given up correcting her title, sighed helplessly, and said, “The table is so small, let’s wait until we go back.”
Mu Nianwen sneakily looked at his own bag, inside was a generously packaged box in a light green color.
“Since it’s specially prepared by you, then I’ll happily accept it!”
“Yeah,” Tan Janglin said, “consider it a return gift for this meal.”
On the way back, Xiao Xiao was excited.
“The way you were just now, you weren’t really trying to flirt with him, were you?” she asked.
“No, I… I was just teasing him,” Mu Nianwen’s face was a little flushed. “He’s so generous at his age; his family must be well-off. I know my place!”
“Meaning, it’s not that you don’t like him, but you’re afraid you’re not good enough for him?”
Mu Nianwen subconsciously wanted to deny it, opened his mouth, but hesitated.
“You were practically drooling just now,” Xiao Xiao said, “I remember every time you tell your love stories, you mention how your ex-boyfriend was the epitome of a cultured gentleman, and you find it hard to walk away from that type of Alpha.”
“Objectively… he’s quite handsome, isn’t he?” Mu Nianwen said.
“He’s okay,” Xiao Xiao thought for a moment. “He’s pleasant to look at, the main thing is he has a lot of bonus points.”
Mu Nianwen thought to himself, just pleasant to look at? Your standards are too high.
“However, people like him really aren’t suitable for getting too serious,” Xiao Xiao continued, “with such good conditions and such thoughtfulness, it’s quite unsettling.”
“…Mm.”
“Do you really like him?” Xiao Xiao asked.
“It’s not to the extent of liking him…” Mu Nianwen’s face turned slightly red, “but… he’s indeed the type I appreciate.”
Xiao Xiao shook her head. “Tsk, tsk, tsk.”
“Do you think he’s just pleasant to look at?” Mu Nianwen couldn’t help but speak out, “I think he’s really handsome.”
Xiao Xiao looked him up and down. “Is the state you were in when you were talking about your ex-boyfriend exactly like how you are now?”
“…”
“He looks good, but…” Xiao Xiao thought for a moment, “I advise you to think twice, don’t rush into it.”
“I’m not rushing,” Mu Nianwen said, “I just have a little bit of a favorable impression. Unless he actively pursues me… then I’ll need to observe for a while.”
“You’re already imagining him pursuing you!”
“It’s just hypothetical!” Mu Nianwen emphasized.
“He does seem nice, but… don’t you think he’s a bit too considerate?” Xiao Xiao said, “Have you heard of people who specifically target streamers for money and sex, spend some on you first, then when they’ve trapped you, they come up with all sorts of excuses to ask you for money, and then use your money to trap other streamers, casting a wide net.”
Mu Nianwen momentarily felt a bit shaken, after all, Tan Janglin’s appearance seemed to be very suitable for being pampered.
But soon he realized the flaw in this argument: “This kind of thing usually happens to smaller streamers. Moreover, many details indicate that he is really very well-mannered. It’s hard to fake that.”
Xiao Xiao chuckled twice. “You’ve been bewitched.”
Mu Nianwen’s face turned a bit red, no longer denying it, muttering, “But I absolutely won’t throw myself at him again.”
Back home, Mu Nianwen couldn’t wait to open the gift, despite not washing up.
Then he found that in such a large gift box, most of the things inside had nothing to do with the logo on the bag.
Taking up the most space was a box of chocolate biscuits.
Just then, he received a message from Xiao Xiao.
- There are so many snacks in the box!
Really? using such high-end packaging, but inside is just a bunch of cheap stuff. It’s not about being snobbish; it’s just a bit weird, making people can’t help but think of the money scam hypothesis.
Mu Nianwen picked up another item from the box.
Opening the smaller box, his eyes lit up.
The packaging box inside had a pair of headphones printed on it, a brand and style he was very familiar with. Not long ago, he mentioned in his livestream that he really liked this model, but it was discontinued, so he couldn’t buy a new one when his old one broke, which was regrettable.
It was unexpected that Tan Janglin, who was usually silent in the livestreams, would actually take this to heart.
Mu Nianwen couldn’t help but feel touched. He continued to open another box, inside of which was a small square jewelry box. When he opened it, there was a slightly exaggerated necklace inside.
He paused for a moment, then burst into laughter.
It was an accessory he really wanted in the game but could never obtain. Tan Janglin had customized one exactly the same.
The slight disdain from earlier had completely disappeared.
Actually, the chocolate wafers were quite good too. It was a flavor he mentioned in his livestreams that he really liked but wasn’t sold in China.
No wonder he went out of his way to have someone bring them over. These things weren’t something you could just buy casually.
Xiao Xiao sent another message, this time with a photo.
In the photo, she stood in front of a mirror, wearing a scarf around her neck.
—Does it suit me?
She asked Mu Nianwen.
The pattern on the scarf was a classic style from that luxury brand. In Mu Nianwen’s impression, it cost at least five figures.
—It seems to be this year’s new style. Boss is really generous, thank him for me!
Mu Nianwen became even more eager about what he hadn’t opened yet.
Picking up the last box, the same logo was printed on it as on the outer packaging. After opening it, there was a watch inside.
Finally, it wasn’t something Mu Nianwen had mentioned in his livestreams, but undoubtedly it was valuable.
The gift Tan Janglin had prepared for him was both thoughtful and valuable, anyone would be moved by it.
He secretly thought to himself, if Tan Janglin was willing to put in this much effort, he probably had some feelings for him too.
Since they both had feelings for each other, next time… he wouldn’t bring Xiao Xiao along.
Mu Nianwen covered his pounding heart and flipped through the raffia grass at the bottom of the box, suddenly noticing something brightly colored hidden inside.
Was there another surprise?
With great anticipation, he moved aside the raffia grass, and then… he froze.
A condom.
At the bottom of the gift, Tan Janglin had prepared a condom for him.
Mu Nianwen was stunned for a moment, then heard his phone ring.
It was Tan Janglin.
—Are you home? Do you still like the gifts?
What the heck!
Mu Nianwen took a deep breath, glared at the screen, gritted his teeth, and cursed, “F*ck!”
