CH extra 6

“Of course I’m not an omega!” Xia Wennan instinctively felt his nape. It took some time for his erratic heartbeat to calm down.

Ming Luchuan levelled him with a penetrating gaze but said nothing.

At this time, an old lady from his building passed by with a vegetable basket in her hands. She greeted Xia Wennan first with a “Wennan is back?” before sizing up Ming Luchuan with interest.

Alphas like Ming Luchuan were rare in small towns like these.

The old lady entered her apartment building, but not without repeatedly turning back to sneak peeks at Ming Luchuan.

Xia Wennan couldn’t help but look at her over his shoulder, and she immediately scaled back her staring, slowly climbing up the stairs. When Xia Wennan retracted his gaze, he became aware of something and craned his neck to look skyward, only to see his grandpa leaning over the windowsill—he had no idea how long the old man had been watching them.

When his grandfather noticed Xia Wennan’s line of sight, he chuckled and waved.

Xia Wennan instantly felt uneasy. “Let’s talk somewhere else,” he suggested.

“All right.” Ming Luchuan nodded.

They relocated to a coffee shop near Xia Wennan’s apartment. The coffee was nothing special, but the space was very enclosed, and once the curtains next to the table were drawn, and drawing the curtains next to the table formed a makeshift booth. Through the curtains, they could occasionally hear voices conversing from the next table over, but it came across as low hums and murmurs, and they couldn’t tell who was saying what.

Xia Wennan stirred his cup of coffee with a small silver spoon.

Ming Luchuan looked at him mutely at first, then crossed his hands atop the table and said, “Would you like to hear me out first?

Xia Wennan looked up. “By all means.”

“I was hoping you’d return to the company,” said Ming Luchuan. “I’ll give you all the support you need for the research and development of pheromone perfumes.”

“All the support I need?”

“Funds, manpower, working environment—whatever you need. Don’t hesitate to ask,” said Ming Luchuan.

Xia Wennan was a little sceptical. “Did you know that right after I submitted my proposal to Xu Zong, it was returned to me? Why do you have so much faith in me?”

Ming Luchuan didn’t answer his question. His brows furrowed imperceptibly as he locked his burning gaze on Xia Wennan. After ten seconds passed, the entire booth was saturated with his pheromones.

Xia Wennan set down his spoon and shifted in his seat. “If there were any omegas around and you keep doing that, you’d definitely be reported for sexual harassment,” he said.

It was only then did Ming Luchuan tone down his pheromones. “You’re a beta, but you can perceive pheromones?” he remarked.

“It’s actually a genetic disorder,” Xia Wennan stated flatly. “Except for the ability to stick my nose into the emotional ups and downs of alphas and omegas, it’s basically useless.”

“But pheromone perfumes are exactly that—the embodiment of those emotional ups and downs conveyed by pheromones.”

Xia Wennan was caught off guard—this was the first time he’d heard it being put like this.

Ming Luchuan leaned forward slightly, and while his tone remained calm, his words unknowingly came out more quickly as he said, “Many things are subjected to ignorant and prejudiced perspectives. Just because alphas and omegas can’t do one thing, it doesn’t mean that betas can’t either.”

Xia Wennan couldn’t hold back from saying, “Why do you have so much confidence in me? Honestly? I’m not even that sure of myself. I’m not sure how well pheromone transmitters will be able to mimic actual pheromones, or how well the pheromones will suit the artificial fragrance. This isn’t the company’s first attempt at developing pheromone perfumes—too many previous attempts have failed.”

“There have been plenty of failures, yes, but you still came up with that project proposal, didn’t you?” Ming Luchuan’s hands clenched into fists.

“I just wanted to give it a shot, that’s all,” Xia Wennan admitted. “Whether I succeed or not—I won’t lose out either way…”

“With that being the case, why aren’t you willing to do it now that I’m giving you the chance?”

For a while, Xia Wennan was at a loss for words.

“Xu Zong will no longer lead the team,” Ming Luchuan continued. “If you’re willing to return to the company on Monday, you’ll be the manager of the R&D department.”

“Huh?” Xia Wennan was taken aback. “Can you decide things just like that?”

Ming Luchuan nodded. “It’s entirely my call.”

The words ‘If it wasn’t your call, would you go back and ask your daddy first?’ popped into Xia Wennan’s head, but he kept his mouth shut and only said “Oh,” along with, “Are you sure?”

Ming Luchuan was deadly earnest. “Very.”

The two of them talked at the coffee shop for the entire afternoon, with Ming Luchuan promising Xia Wennan so many things that he even became touched upon hearing them.

However, he made no guarantees to Ming Luchuan, even as he was about to leave, he still said, “I’ll have to go back and think about it.”

“I’ll send you back,” Ming Luchuan said as they exited the coffee shop.

“No need!” Xia Wennan hurriedly declined. “I can get back on my own. It’s getting late. Please go ahead, Manager Ming.”

Ming Luchuan didn’t argue and merely nodded, stepping onto the curb and heading to where he’d parked his car nearby.

Xia Wennan stood there watching him walk away, then turned around and went on his way.

The following day was a Sunday. Xia Wennan slept in, and it was nearly 10 a.m. by the time he woke up.

His grandpa, being a frugal man, always quietly went to turn off the air conditioner in Xia Wennan’s bedroom at the crack of dawn. The air was still cool in the morning, but Xia Wennan slept until the sun came out, and it was difficult to avoid waking up sweating all over. Despite this, he never complained and was even pleased with himself.

Xia Wennan took off his sweat-soaked pyjamas and stood there in nothing but his underwear, intending to go straight to the bathroom and take a shower before tossing them in the washing machine so his grandpa could wash them later with his own laundry.

But, as he stepped out the door, he noticed that there was one more person in the living room.

Ming Luchuan stood there, tall and slender, exuding the oppressive air that alphas possessed. His gaze swept over Xia Wennan’s entire body in an instant.

Xia Wennan immediately retreated, gritting out a string of expletives as he closed the door. He hurriedly threw on some clothes before opening the door and stepping out again.

Right then, his grandpa called Ming Luchuan to the dining table and told him to eat.

Ming Luchuan politely declined. “I’m fine, thank you. I’ve already had breakfast.”

Xia Wennan’s slippers dragged across the floor as he briskly walked to the dining table, where he pointed at Ming Luchuan and asked his grandpa, “How did he get in?”

“This alpha colleague of yours was downstairs waiting for you,” explained his grandpa. “I was out buying you breakfast, so I just invited him upstairs.”

Xia Wennan looked toward Ming Luchuan.

“Sorry for intruding,” Ming Luchuan said, taking his hands out of his pants pockets.

Grandpa Xia addressed the both of them, “This store’s cheung fun is really good. It’s Wennan’s personal favourite—I went there first thing this morning. Come sit down and eat. Even though you’ve eaten, you can still try some.”

Xia Wennan and Ming Luchuan sat down. The two sat facing each other, and Xia Wennan’s eyes on Ming Luchuan weren’t particularly friendly.

Ming Luchuan was completely silent at first, meeting Xia Wennan’s gaze expressionlessly. Later on, he slightly lowered his gaze and apologised.

Grandpa Xia, who was bringing out the cheung fun, cut in, “What are you apologising for?”

“For disrupting your weekend,” said Ming Luchuan.

Grandpa Xia was in a seemingly joyful mood. “None of that! You’re the first ever coworker of Wennan’s we’ve had over. You’re welcome to come here as often as you’d like in the future.”

Once Grandpa Xia had returned to the kitchen, Xia Wennan lowered his voice and asked Ming Luchuan, “Didn’t we already settle things yesterday? What have you come here for now?”

Ming Luchuan responded with his own question, “And what did we settle yesterday?”

Xia Wennan was unprepared for his question. It was true—they really didn’t settle anything yesterday.

Ming Luchuan continued, “Actually, we can keep talking.”

“About what?” asked Xia Wennan.

Ming Luchuan had barely touched the cheung fun on his plate. “We can keep talking until you agree to return to Ming Yan with me.”

Xia Wennan was rendered speechless. After a bout of consideration, he said, “Fine. I’ll go back to Ming Yan. I haven’t turned in my resignation letter yet anyway. But whatever there is to discuss, we’ll discuss it on Monday, all right?”

Ming Luchuan was holding his chopsticks, the ends of which were lightly resting on the edge of his plate. He looked at Xia Wennan, and said, “All right.”