Chapter 26: Half-False, Half-True

“White moonlight?”

After hearing him out, Fu Rangyi thought for a moment and recalled the scene in the mall’s atrium. At that time, he couldn’t even control his own pheromones, yet Zhu Zhixi was still asking if that person was his “white moonlight.”

He let out a long breath, took off his glasses, and leaned back in his chair, staring straight at the blushing Zhu Zhixi with a serious expression.

“I’ll say it again, I don’t have any ‘white moonlight’.”

Most importantly.

“And how is he pretty?” Fu Rangyi couldn’t hide the disbelief on his face. “You think he’s pretty?”

Zhu Zhixi had both feet on the chair, hugging his knees, and nodded slowly. “He is pretty. Omegas are all very pretty, and he’s one of the very good-looking ones among Os, isn’t he?”

Fu Rangyi’s expression darkened even more. He sullenly took a sip of water and put the cup down heavily. “I don’t think so.”

“How can you…”

“I’m face-blind. I have no ability to appreciate people’s beauty or ugliness.”

“Aha, you!” Zhu Zhixi slammed the table. “You… you’ve exposed yourself! You just praised me for being good-looking… turns out you were insulting me all along.”

Fu Rangyi was a bit speechless, feeling like he had cornered himself.

He was stuck for a long time, finally only managing to say, “Anyway, I don’t think he’s pretty.”

Zhu Zhixi chuckled softly, propped his chin on his hand, and stared at him for a good while before asking clingingly, “Then… what’s your relationship? Your brother said, said your compatibility is very high… oh, I know, he’s your rut object…”

At best, just an induction object.

Rut object… Fu Rangyi glanced at the drunkard in front of him.

Who else could it be but this one?

Shouldn’t the protagonist of all the lewd thoughts currently filling my mind be my real rut object?

“Don’t talk nonsense, and don’t listen to his nonsense. Fu Liaoxing is full of crap.”

Zhu Zhixi nodded and demanded, “Then I command you to tell me.”

With another person, in another setting, Fu Rangyi would absolutely not have spoken. But now, facing a drunk Zhu Zhixi, his defenses were lowered again and again.

This drunk, he’ll probably forget by tomorrow.

“Just a teacher-student relationship.” Fu Rangyi lowered his eyes, staring at the pattern on the porcelain plate. He clearly didn’t want to talk, yet he slowed his speech, afraid the drunkard wouldn’t understand.

“His name is Yu Heng. He’s an undergraduate in the department, a junior now. Last year, another instructor and I took them for fieldwork. He was there. During his heat, he was almost assaulted by a local rogue Alpha. I happened to be there and helped him call the police. After that, he kept seeking me out.”

More accurately, he was constantly confessing his feelings. The first time was an email, which Fu Rangyi had encountered before and simply ignored. But then it escalated to letters, many letters, and even cornering him in his office or at his home.

Those excessively ardent words, and even the infatuated expression on his face, triggered Fu Rangyi, reminding him of past bad experiences.

“In short, he hasn’t given up to this day.”

Hearing this, Zhu Zhixi was stunned for a moment.

He was actually a bit surprised. He had guessed that perhaps Yu Heng was Fu Rangyi’s ex-boyfriend; after all, having had a relationship is only human, especially for a top Alpha. He had also considered that maybe it was an ambiguous relationship that couldn’t develop due to the teacher-student dynamic.

But he never expected it to be so simple.

Just one kind act of assistance had brought him such a long period of… harassment.

“This is harassment!” Zhu Zhixi drunkenly slammed the table again. “Releasing inducing pheromones towards an Alpha in public is major harassment!”

Hearing this, Fu Rangyi suddenly smiled.

But the smile vanished in a flash.

“It should be called pursuit, I suppose. It’s just that I… have a physiological aversion to others’ pursuits.”

Upon hearing this, Zhu Zhixi recalled some of Li Qiao’s fragmented words.

Fu Rangyi had presented as an Alpha in his early teens and had been on medication ever since. That was during puberty, a time when even a Beta like him was pursued by many, let alone AOs who were influenced by pheromones.

He shrewdly guessed, did something happen to Fu Rangyi back then? Is that why his guard is so high?

But asking further would certainly yield no answers. Their relationship wasn’t yet stable enough for complete openness.

Fu Rangyi picked up the bite guard, gazing at it intently. “It sounds ridiculous to say, but I just can’t seem to accept others’ goodwill and expressions of love. The stronger, the more passionate, the more I can’t stand it.”

Like ice approaching a fire, it would sooner or later melt and disappear.

Hearing this sentence, Zhu Zhixi once again felt his heart fill with something, swelling with a sour, warm feeling.

Unable to accept passionate love…

But you clearly want it so badly.

He thought of how Fu Rangyi was on the day of their blind date. He clearly disliked him; just from his expression, you could tell he thought he was crazy. But in the end, he still waited for him at the door and proposed a contract marriage.

“So… you and I…” He took a deep breath. “A fake marriage. You wanted a married status to help you ward off some troublesome people, is that right?”

Fu Rangyi raised his eyes and found Zhu Zhixi looking at him, then quickly looked away.

He didn’t know what he was thinking, but in any case, he answered after a while.

“Yes.”

The mystery was solved. It was indeed to block unwanted admirers. But was this really that surprising? Zhu Zhixi thought to himself, hadn’t he already guessed this, and just confirmed it today?

Besides, he himself had his own motives.

He looked down at his palm. The slowly pulsing numbers dotted the surface, separating and rejoining, finally seeming to form four words—impure motives.

Zhu Zhixi let out a little whimper and buried his face in his hands, trying to escape the truth.

“Are you drunk?” Fu Rangyi asked.

Zhu Zhixi didn’t lift his face, his voice muffled in his hands, “I’m not drunk.”

“That’s what all drunkards say.”

I’m really not drunk! I’m faking it! You idiot.

“Should I help you back to your room to rest?” Fu Rangyi asked again.

“No,” Zhu Zhixi said deliberately. “You… are you getting addicted to entering my room now?”

Fu Rangyi’s eyes widened. He was indeed a little guilty. “I was just…”

Zhu Zhixi lifted his face and said loudly, “‘Even if you invite me, I won’t go to your room!’ Who said that…”

Fu Rangyi: “…”

“If I knew you were this kind of untrustworthy person, I would have carried a voice recorder every time I talked to you,” Zhu Zhixi grumbled under his breath. “Not only did you enter, but you also messed up my tent…”

Your tent was already a mess to begin with, Fu Rangyi wanted to say, but held back.

“I was…” nesting.

He couldn’t say it out loud.

But the drunkard pressed on, “Why did you go into my tent? Didn’t you… didn’t you say my clothes were a mess? I thought there was a thief in the house…”

After asking, Zhu Zhixi guessed he wouldn’t confess honestly. He just enjoyed teasing Fu Rangyi and didn’t really care about the answer.

“Because your scent is very nice.”

Zhu Zhixi froze, his heel on the edge of the chair almost slipping.

“But… I’m not an Omega, how could I have any…”

“It’s just a scent,” Fu Rangyi said. “I get very anxious during my rut, and smelling it makes me feel… a sense of security.”

Zhu Zhixi was suddenly at a loss for words. He felt as if he really were drunk; he wanted to say something, but his tongue was tied. He couldn’t keep up the act anymore. He buried his face in his knees, trying to brush it off.

The dining table fell silent. A moment later, he heard Fu Rangyi ask softly, “You haven’t blacked out, have you?”

Zhu Zhixi didn’t make a sound.

Fu Rangyi paused, his voice growing even softer, as if talking to himself, “Not a shred of vigilance…”

Who says I don’t? If you dare to come over and bite me, I’ll tie you up right away.

He heard some faint sounds, a click, the sound of a lock. Fu Rangyi had obediently put on the bite guard again himself.

A moment later, he called his name softly, “Zhu Zhixi?”

Zhu Zhixi hummed groggily in response.

“I… I have never dated anyone. In other words, I’ve never had an intimate relationship.”

Zhu Zhixi’s heart suddenly started to race.

“I’ve also never marked anyone, except for you.” After saying that, he added, “Of course, I know that for you Betas, this doesn’t count as a mark.”

Why… is he suddenly talking about this?

He didn’t dare lift his face, rubbing it a few times and taking a deep, steadying breath.

“I was originally thinking… of taking advantage of you being drunk to ask clearly what exactly I did.” He suddenly confessed his intentions. “But I just realized something. Pressing you like this would be a secondary trauma for you. If it were me, I wouldn’t want to bring it up again. And I also just remembered…”

He suddenly stopped talking.

Hearing this, Zhu Zhixi’s heart was in turmoil, a complex mix of emotions.

You’re so righteous, and here I am, faking being drunk to get information out of you. It makes me seem like a really bad person.

However, Fu Rangyi’s confession wasn’t over.

“I swore before that I would absolutely not touch you, would not do anything to cross the line, but I ended up breaking my promise and letting you see such… an unsightly state.”

Unsightly state??

“It was actually quite beautiful…” especially when you were crying.

It’s over.

Zhu Zhixi belatedly realized he had actually mumbled that thought out loud.

“What did you say?”

Luckily, he hadn’t heard clearly. Zhu Zhixi quickly hummed and mumbled a few more times, lay his head on the table, and gave a silly smile, trying to bluff his way through.

“Zhu Zhixi.”

“Hm?”

“Are you a little too soft-hearted?”

What, it’s my problem again? Zhu Zhixi was indignant. This guy really can’t be nice for long before his true colors show.

Fu Rangyi’s voice lowered slightly, “If it wasn’t me, if it were another A, would you… help him like this?”

The room was very quiet. The scent of mulled wine had mostly dissipated, leaving only the smell of his own pheromones, which was still very strong.

As expected, he didn’t get an answer from Zhu Zhixi, but he still waited for another minute as long as he could.

He suspected Zhu Zhixi had never even considered this question.

He also suspected his rut wasn’t over at all; he was still sensitive and emotional. He had clearly intended to take advantage of his drunkenness to get information, but it ended up with him confessing, repenting, and probing while he was unconscious.

How foolish.

To do it even knowing it was foolish was the height of stupidity.

“Like, when you were at my house.” Fu Rangyi found that his brain and his mouth seemed to be two separate systems, neither listening to the other. He was cursing himself while the words just came out. “I heard you talking to Fu Liaoxing, but it wasn’t on purpose. You would make up a lie to stand up for me. If it were someone else, you would do the same, right?”

Still silence.

The bright, warm dining room seemed to transform into a small, dark confessional. Through the black mesh window, the priest’s form was hazy, his face blurry. He poured out his heart, waiting for the priest to recite the Bible to him, to tell him, the Lord will forgive you.

“Actually, you don’t have to say those things for me. My family relationships are more complicated than you imagine, very different from the environment you grew up in. I…”

But the “priest” suddenly raised his head, his red face looking at him. Those clear eyes were a little moist, as if with a hint of anger.

“Fu Rangyi, what do you think a partner is? A piece of paper? An identity to ward off admirers? Or a protective umbrella propped up so you won’t be ostracized by other boring people?”

Fu Rangyi frowned. It was as if the confessional window had suddenly been kicked over by the priest. He was too shocked to speak.

Zhu Zhixi bit his lip, staring at him. “Speak. I command you to answer me.”

Only then did Fu Rangyi speak. “What do you think it is?”

Zhu Zhixi was long used to his evasive pattern of answering a question with a question. He didn’t want to argue, just loudly declared his own view, “It’s a promise, a priority in a relationship.”

“Since we got married and became each other’s partners, regardless of whether it’s real or fake, at least in our interpersonal relationships, you are a priority over others to me, you’re in the family category. So I would absolutely never let others belittle you or look down on you in front of me. They don’t have the right to do that in my presence.”

Fu Rangyi’s voice became a little hoarse. “…Even if this relationship is fake?”

“Yes, that’s right, even if it’s fake. Since we’re fake, then my relationship with your parents and brother is even faker, so they have even less right. And is being real or fake that important? So what if it’s a real marriage? There’s still mutual deception and betrayal. How many people are eternally loyal to their partners? And those so-called fated pairs, don’t Alphas still force Omegas when they’re unwilling? But you don’t. You’re sicker than all of them, but you didn’t bully me.”

His heart was beating too fast, and Zhu Zhixi was even a little breathless from speaking the long, difficult sentences. He paused, took a deep breath, and his momentum weakened.

“In short… you’re a very good person, worthy of me defending you.”

Fu Rangyi’s eyes blinked rapidly. His mouth opened slightly, but he couldn’t say anything.

He suddenly realized that the one sitting across from him was not a priest at all.

It was a little god of love.

Watching Fu Rangyi stare straight at him, Zhu Zhixi suddenly sobered up.

I’m screwed. How can my mouth be so glib? Did I expose myself? Did he realize I was acting?

Zhu Zhixi panicked a little. He thought of how Fu Rangyi had gotten angry when he pretended to be stuck on a word just now, and he wondered how he could act his way out of this.

Just then, the doorbell rang, like a bell rung by a savior.

“Some… someone… is at the door…” Zhu Zhixi pretended to be drunk and got off the chair.

He walked towards the entryway like a boneless shrimp. This wasn’t acting; he had been sitting improperly and his leg had gone numb. Staggering, Zhu Zhixi reached the entryway. Just as he opened the door, Fu Rangyi followed and stood behind him, lightly supporting his elbow.

Outside stood a staff member in a brand uniform, an Alpha.

As soon as the door opened, his prepared smile suddenly froze, and his brows knitted together.

How rude, Zhu Zhixi thought.

But he quickly smiled again and recited his prepared lines, “Mr. Fu, hello! Thank you for your patronage. This is the ring you custom-ordered from our brand. We need your signature here…”

However, the little drunkard “accidentally” interrupted, actually teasing him on purpose, “My surname is Zhu.” He shook his head. “Not Fu…”

“It’s me.” Fu Rangyi sighed, took the form, and signed it. “Thank you.”

“Okay, thank you again for your…”

“It’s my wedding ring!” The drunkard, tearing open the packaging, excitedly held up the jewelry box inside, his sparkling eyes looking at the delivery person, and announced smoothly, “I’m married!”

The staff member was a bit flustered, quickly glancing at the sober Fu Rangyi, then back at the drunkard, smiling and clapping. “Yes, haha, congratulations on your new marriage!”

But the drunkard wasn’t done with him yet. “Happy?”

He pouted, hugging the ring box and shaking his head, starting to fake-cry, “But my husband doesn’t even love me, and I…”

Before he could finish his complaint, the Alpha behind him pulled him into his arms, covered his mouth, and smiled at the delivery person, thanking him again before saying, “You probably have a lot more work to do, right?”

“Ah.” The delivery guy chuckled. “Yes, yes, I have other…”

“I’ll see you out.” Without waiting for him to finish, Fu Rangyi quickly closed the door.

Zhu Zhixi, however, wouldn’t let it go. “Let go of me! What, what is this?” He played dumb, stuffing the ring box into Fu Rangyi’s hands.

“Our wedding rings,” Fu Rangyi said, a little helpless. “Didn’t I just say so?”

“Just now?” Zhu Zhixi feigned dizziness, unable to stand, and threw himself into his arms. “What? We’re married?”

“We’ve been married for a while.”

This is so much fun. Fu Rangyi must be going crazy. I have to pretend again next time.

“But…” Zhu Zhixi lifted his flushed face, squeezing out a pitiful expression, “You haven’t even proposed to me!”

“Propose?” Fu Rangyi’s expression was on the verge of losing control. “Do we… do we need to…”

Zhu Zhixi’s lip trembled, his watery eyes looking as if they could squeeze out a tear at any second. “I knew it. I’ve been deceived. I looked forward to it so much when I was little. When I played house… I was always the groom.”

Fu Rangyi frowned. “…”

“Forget it.” Zhu Zhixi sniffled, secretly wiping his tears in his arms. “The fortune teller said my love life would be bumpy. It really came true…”

“…Then what do you want to do?”

“You, propose to me.” Zhu Zhixi hiccupped.

This has to drive the caustic guy crazy, right? Haha.

As expected, Fu Rangyi fell silent. A mute groom, for real.

Zhu Zhixi wanted to peek but was afraid of giving himself away. Who knew that this person would suddenly lift him by the arm and help him to the shoe-changing bench in the entryway. “Sit properly.”

Zhu Zhixi hiccupped again, this time out of fright.

He’s not actually going to propose, is he? No way? I’m just messing with you.

Then Fu Rangyi really did pick up the ring box in his hand and bent down. This movement scared Zhu Zhixi so much he grabbed his hand. He shot up from his seat, terrified that Fu Rangyi would actually get down on one knee. But he stood up too fast and felt dizzy, nearly falling over.

“No… it’s not…”

Fu Rangyi frowned, wrapping an arm around him. His expression was very confused, not quite understanding what Zhu Zhixi wanted. “What do you mean…” he started to say, then rephrased, “Whatever you’re thinking, you can just command me directly.”

Zhu Zhixi’s mind spun rapidly, and he immediately came up with a new line. “There’s no witness! Not a single one… just the two of us. I don’t want it.”

Fu Rangyi took a deep breath, looking as if his patience was about to run out.

Sure enough, the next second, he pushed Zhu Zhixi back onto the bench. He opened the door himself, went out, and closed it behind him.

Huh? Zhu Zhixi was dumbfounded. He froze for a second, then got up too, pressing his ear to the door to eavesdrop.

Why did he suddenly run off? Was he scared by me? Or did he realize I was lying and got angry?

Zhu Zhixi raised his hand, subconsciously wanting to bite his nails, but suddenly, he heard the sound of the fingerprint lock. He immediately sat back down, tilted his head back panting, pretending to be unconscious.

But it wasn’t just one person who returned. Fu Rangyi had brought someone else back with him.

“Um… Mr. Zhu.”

Zhu Zhixi looked down in a daze, frowning, and stared at the embarrassed delivery guy. “…Why is it you again? Is it buy-one-get-one-free for wedding rings at your company?”

“No, no, no.” He glanced at the terrifyingly strange Alpha beside him.

Just now, he had finally managed to get to the elevator and was inside when the doors suddenly opened again. Standing outside was the top Alpha with the terrifyingly possessive aura wearing a bite guard. He had already prepared an apology, ready to state that he had absolutely no designs on his wife, even though he was indeed beautiful.

Unexpectedly, the client outside the elevator spoke first.

“I asked him to be… the witness.” Fu Rangyi was still panting slightly. He lowered his head and opened the ring box. “This way it’s not just the two of us.”

The delivery guy looked at him with some surprise.

That’s not it, handsome. When you were chasing the elevator just now, you clearly asked: Can I trouble you to be our witness? My partner wants to have a make-up proposal ceremony.

How come in front of your own wife, the word ‘witness’ is too hot to say? But he didn’t dare say it out loud. He couldn’t offend a client, especially a top Alpha client.

Fu Rangyi moved closer, coming before Zhu Zhixi who was about to have a breakdown from his own acting, and asked in a very soft voice, “So, do you still want it… now?”

---

Author’s Note:

—The delivery guy’s group chat gossip after he got back—

 [Let me tell you guys, you have no idea what kind of drama I got into delivering a ring today. The moment the door opened, the smell of pheromones almost split my head open. It had to be a rut. But when he opened the door, the A was wearing a bite guard. I was thinking, isn’t that putting your pants on to fart—totally unnecessary?]

 [Maybe the bite guard is for fun hhhhh]

 [Makes sense! His possessiveness over his wife was insane. I took one extra look and his expression immediately dropped.]

 [Alphas in rut are already terrifying, okay? Possessiveness off the charts, and they’re very impulsive, easily doing things they’d never do normally. You better be careful.]

 [What happened to him later? He didn’t do anything to you, did he?]

 […He asked me to be his witness. I delivered a ring and got a face full of PDA for no reason, watching them propose. Were they doing it on purpose?]

[They’re that in love and hadn’t even proposed??]

 [And I didn’t dare to look at his wife the whole time. I was afraid if I looked, he’d complain to the company about me…]

 [Such a petty man? So insecure? He probably isn’t that good-looking, right?]

 [Ah, about that, he’s ridiculously handsome. If I put this proposal video online, that bite guard would be sold out by tomorrow.]

 [There’s a video??? Send it over.]

 [I’ll die if I send it… It’s client privacy.]

 [Then why did you record it?]

 [The handsome guy with the bite guard asked me to… I would’ve died if I didn’t record, too.]

 [This is definitely a workplace injury (pats shoulder)]
—Three minutes later, the guy sends three new messages—

 [It’s fine, everyone.]

 [He transferred me a huge tip (smile)]

 [Handsome, may your wife love you forever! Love you to death and absolutely never leave you!!]