Min Yang noticed that Tang Zhe had been acting a bit off these past couple of days.
To be precise, it started right after that meeting ended. Min Yang had no idea what Min Cheng had said to Tang Zhe, but a vague sense of unease began to grow inside him.
Tang Zhe still said goodnight to Min Yang, but right after, he would turn around and head back to his room.
“Cough, cough!” Min Yang coughed twice forcefully. This time, he cleverly took a two-hour cold shower before bed, so his throat was indeed a bit scratchy.
As expected, Tang Zhe stopped in his tracks, and just when Min Yang thought he would come over to take his temperature, Tang Zhe handed him a box of cold medicine.
And it was the kind without candy!
This wasn’t normal! It was far too abnormal, and Min Yang’s internal alarm bells were ringing loud and clear.
In the middle of the night, the villa was pitch black. After making sure Tang Zhe’s bedroom was completely silent, Min Yang quietly made his way to the study.
Yes, Tang Zhe had ended up returning to his own room.
Even after he had coughed so pitifully, Tang Zhe had still left.
This was too strange. Min Yang covered his mouth and coughed again, his expression darkening slightly.
The cold was real; that two-hour cold shower had been a bit much. But at this moment, Min Yang didn’t have the headspace to think about that. He made a call to his assistant.
“Bring those guys who were with Min Cheng earlier over here,” Min Yang said.
He used the word “bring,” but his voice was as cold as ice. If Min Cheng hadn’t fled abroad early that morning, Min Yang would’ve definitely dragged him back to have a “chat.”
The assistant, who had been half-asleep when he got the call, shivered at his boss’s tone and quickly arranged for the people to be brought over.
Soon enough, the burly, intimidating bodyguards who had been with Min Cheng were brought into the study with their mouths gagged.
Min Yang made a “shh” gesture, covering his mouth as he coughed, the sound echoing in the dimly lit study. One of the bodyguards couldn’t help but shiver.
Two of these bodyguards had been the ones who restrained Min Yang before, only to be easily dealt with by Tang Zhe. But what they feared most wasn’t Tang Zhe—it was the alpha in front of them, smiling without warmth.
“Mr… Mr. Min,” one of them swallowed nervously, his voice trembling as he asked, “Why… why did you call us here?”
While the bodyguards in the study were shaking in their boots, Tang Zhe, who was supposed to be asleep, opened his eyes.
Tang Zhe turned over in bed, sighing as he gazed at the bright moonlight streaming in through the window.
He wondered how Min Yang was doing…
Tang Zhe didn’t entirely believe the things Min Cheng had said—about the martial arts training, the lack of emotion, the games. Perhaps Min Cheng had sensed Tang Zhe’s doubt and had sent him a video that evening.
In the video, after a dull thud, Min Yang delivered a flying kick straight to the opponent’s face. The person had no chance to fight back, sliding ten meters away like a sandbag before coming to a stop.
Only then did Min Yang casually dust off his shoes, walking over at an unhurried pace. The alpha’s lips were pressed tightly together, none of the usual frailty in his demeanor. His gaze was fierce, like a dangerous beast, and without warning, he stomped down on the man’s face.
The video was shot from too far away, so Tang Zhe couldn’t hear what Min Yang was saying to the man. Half of the alpha’s face was hidden in shadow, the other half cold and emotionless.
At the end of the video, Min Cheng added a comment, saying that the person in the video was a “friend” who had grown up with Min Yang.
Min Cheng had said, “See, he’s so ruthless even to his childhood friends. How could he possibly need affection?”
With a tone that implied he was looking out for Tang Zhe, Min Cheng had said, “I just couldn’t stand by and watch you be kept in the dark. No other reason.”
Tang Zhe didn’t respond to Min Cheng’s message and just tossed his phone aside.
Tang Zhe didn’t fully believe what Min Cheng had said. Even if the person in the video had grown up with Min Yang, Min Yang wouldn’t have acted unless that person had done something to betray him. Besides, Tang Zhe had trained before, and while Min Yang’s moves looked brutal, they were mostly superficial injuries—painful for a couple of months at most.
Tang Zhe trusted that Min Yang had his reasons, but even so, it seemed like Min Yang really didn’t need his protection after all.
With the lights off, Tang Zhe turned over again, still unable to sleep.
Min Yang should be able to take care of himself, right? Tang Zhe thought to himself, but then he recalled the image of the alpha coughing earlier that night. Did Min Yang have a fever? Did he take the cold medicine?
And his shoulder… was it still hurting?
At 2 a.m., Tang Zhe still hadn’t fallen asleep.
He sighed, got out of bed, and put on a coat before leaving the room. The Omega couldn’t shake his worry and decided to check on Min Yang.
Tang Zhe grabbed a thermometer and a glass of warm water before tiptoeing over to Min Yang’s bedroom door.
“Knock, knock, knock—” He rapped on the door.
“Mr. Min…?” Tang Zhe called softly from outside the door, “Are you… are you asleep?”
The bedroom was silent. Tang Zhe waited for a minute or two but didn’t hear any response from Min Yang.
Now he was really worried.
“Knock, knock, knock—knock, knock, knock—” Tang Zhe knocked again, more urgently this time.
“Mr. Min?”
“Are you okay… in there?”
The bedroom was still eerily quiet, and Tang Zhe, now anxious, hesitated for a moment before pushing the door open.
Strangely… there was no one in the bedroom.
Where was Min Yang? The little stammerer blinked in confusion, stepping back to check again and confirming that this was indeed Min Yang’s room. But where was Min Yang?
Out of habit, Tang Zhe scanned the area, and his gaze caught the sliver of light peeking out from the study door downstairs.
Could Min Yang still be working?
The thought flashed through his mind as he quickly headed downstairs.
In the study, the two bodyguards brought in earlier were pale and sweating profusely.
“He got you to give him a video?” Min Yang narrowed his eyes dangerously. “Tell the truth,”
“Or else…”
“The sharks in the open sea are really hungry.”
“Yes, yes…” One of the bodyguards swallowed nervously, quickly realizing the situation. “It was all the young master’s idea.”
“What video?”
“Just… the one where you kicked Mr. Xu and made him cough up blood—” The bodyguard began to answer honestly but quickly changed his tone when he saw the alpha’s increasingly cold expression, “I mean, the one where you were having a ‘friendly exchange’ with Mr. Xu.”
“Of course, we all know it was because Mr. Xu betrayed you first, almost costing you a leg, which is why you were so angry.”
The usually stoic and powerful alpha lowered his gaze at those words, his hand tightening around the armrest where no one could see. “Did he see the video?”
“Probably… yes…” The bodyguard’s voice grew smaller and smaller, and when he finally said, “Yes,” it was barely above a whisper.
“I did… see it.” Just then, a clear young voice echoed from outside the study door.
Min Yang turned around in shock, meeting Tang Zhe’s gaze.
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