Chapter 46: The Longevity Pact

With a crowd of students in front of them, Fu Rangyi hesitated again and again before finally stepping forward, reaching out to pull the rascal who had fallen into the snow.

Although he knew it was a trick, and that Zhu Zhixi wouldn’t just tease him once.

Sure enough, the moment he grabbed his fingertips, he felt a pre-gathered force yank down hard, trying to pull him down as well. But unfortunately, while the rascal’s mind was sharp, his strength was a little lacking.

He didn’t move an inch. Zhu Zhixi’s eyes widened.

Fu Rangyi almost laughed out loud. He reversed the pull, easily yanking the dazed Beta up. Zhu Zhixi, unsteady on his feet, stumbled right into his arms.

“You’re quite hard to fish out,” Fu Rangyi said, a hint of a smile at the corner of his mouth.

Now it was Zhu Zhixi who felt embarrassed. He quickly retreated from his embrace, trying to save face in a small voice, “I’ve just been slacking on my workouts recently. Starting tomorrow, I’m going to hit the gym and pump iron, you just wait…”

But Fu Rangyi sensed something. He lowered his head and twitched his nose.

“What are you doing?” He was very close, and Zhu Zhixi misunderstood, feeling a bit shy. He pulled him along, leaving the icy battlefield.

Fu Rangyi frowned. “Who did you just go see?” The scent was so obvious; it must have been more than just a brief encounter.

Zhu Zhixi was taken aback. “You can even smell that?” Alphas were really like dogs, with noses just as sharp.

“You…”

“Yu Heng,” Zhu Zhixi explained first. “I ran into him when I was returning a book just now.”

Actually, that wasn’t true.

Before going to the office, Zhu Zhixi had made a special trip to the archaeology department to look for Yu Heng, but he couldn’t find him after asking around. Coincidentally, when he was returning a book at the library, he chatted a bit more with the librarian and happened to run into Yu Heng, who was leaving after studying.

He hurriedly called out Yu Heng’s name. The moment Yu Heng saw him, he immediately pressed the elevator button. Fortunately, someone else helped hold the door open, allowing Zhu Zhixi to squeeze in.

“Thanks, classmate.”

The student who helped hold the elevator door had red ears, but Zhu Zhixi didn’t notice, greeting Yu Heng with a cheerful grin.

“Want a red bean bun?”

Yu Heng tried to avoid him, but Zhu Zhixi, with his sunny and brilliant expression, followed him, drawing a lot of attention. Many people on the way turned their heads to stare.

He had no choice. As soon as they left the library, he stopped and said to Zhu Zhixi, “You don’t have to flaunt your victory in front of me. I haven’t tried to see Professor Fu since the cultural festival.”

Zhu Zhixi smiled and walked backward. “I really just want to treat you to something good. Not red bean buns, though. How about butterfly pastries?”

And so, they once again found themselves inexplicably eating together.

As they ate, Zhu Zhixi began to sigh with emotion. “Sigh, what’s so wrong with liking someone?”

Yu Heng frowned at him.

“Pursuing someone isn’t wrong either. Texting, calling, none of it is a big deal…”

Yu Heng immediately interrupted, “I never called! Or sent text messages! I just… sent emails.”

Zhu Zhixi raised an eyebrow, staring at the proud and sulky face for a few seconds. “Is that so.” He smiled. “My mistake. Sending emails isn’t a big deal either. But as for things like pheromones, it’s better not to release them casually in the future. It’s very dangerous.”

Hearing this, Yu Heng looked a bit embarrassed. He lowered his head and touched the back of his neck.

Zhu Zhixi was slightly taller than him. Seeing the inhibitor patch on his neck, his smile faded a little as he said seriously and sternly, “Think about it. There were so many people at the mall that day. What if some random Alpha was affected by your pheromones and went crazy and marked you in public? What would you do? You’re so cute, what if an Alpha smelled your pheromones and followed you?”

Yu Heng’s head sank lower and lower. He kicked at the air and looked away, refusing to look at him.

After a while, he mumbled, “That day… I didn’t do it on purpose.”

“I happened to be in heat and didn’t have any strong suppressants. I happened to see Professor Fu and wanted to say hi. I got a little excited, and for a moment, I… lost control…”

Zhu Zhixi made a sound of understanding. “Were you okay that day?”

Yu Heng was stunned. He stared at him blankly, the light in his eyes flickering.

Suddenly, as if waking from a dream, he reacted. With a complicated expression, he lowered his head and glanced at the wedding ring on his hand. “Anyway, I won’t show up again in the future! Don’t worry, no one will compete with you!”

But Zhu Zhixi tilted his head. “I’m not saying these things to you as Fu Rangyi’s partner.”

Yu Heng looked at him. “Then as what?”

“A… kind-hearted Beta who watched a bad play with you and ate red bean buns with you?” Zhu Zhixi hooked his lips and bumped his shoulder. “We even applauded for my junior together, remember?”

“You forced me…”

“Then give me back the butterfly pastry.” Zhu Zhixi held out his palm, the countdown on it still glowing.

Yu Heng looked at him with disbelief, as if he was about to pry it out of his stomach.

“Just kidding.” Zhu Zhixi patted his shoulder and then asked casually, “By the way, are there any students at your school who dislike Fu Rangyi? The more extreme kind…”

“Why do you ask?” Yu Heng grew nervous. “Did someone do something bad?”

Zhu Zhixi studied his expression, feeling more certain. He shook his head and said lightly, “Just asking. His tire blew out a while ago, right? The mechanic said it wasn’t natural. What if it was some university student with an unstable mental state seeking revenge?”

Yu Heng’s brow furrowed tightly.

Seeing that he couldn’t get any more information, Zhu Zhixi shoved both hands into his pockets. “I’m leaving.”

After taking a few steps, he turned back and shouted to Yu Heng amidst the crowd, “Almost forgot, hurry up and say ‘Thank you, Xiao Zhu, for the butterfly pastry’!”

Watching the proud oddball turn and walk away with a flushed face, he left with satisfaction. When he passed the small plaza, he resolutely joined the snowball fight army and added many students on WeChat.

He had collected a lot of strange pheromones.

And he could still smell Yu Heng’s through all that?

“Are you that sensitive to his pheromones?” Zhu Zhixi narrowed his eyes at Fu Rangyi. “I should have a lot of people’s pheromones on me right now, right? You picked out classmate Yu Heng’s so quickly?”

Fu Rangyi stared at him. “You’re very good at turning the tables.”

Zhu Zhixi patted the snow off his clothes. “I’m a diligent working person. If you provoke me again, I’ll turn so many tables it’ll be enough to plow a field for you.”

Then I’ll take you to dig dirt.

“Where’s the book I asked you to borrow?” Fu Rangyi asked.

“Didn’t borrow it,” Zhu Zhixi said shamelessly.

Fu Rangyi found this unbelievable. “You didn’t borrow it?”

“Nope.” Zhu Zhixi’s eyes darted. “What book? You obviously just wanted to send me away. You didn’t really want to read. You think I couldn’t tell?”

Fu Rangyi: “…But you didn’t reply to my messages either.”

“To make you anxious, Fu… oh no, Great Professor.” Zhu Zhixi walked closer and closer, almost pressing against his arm, tilting his head to look at him. “Professor Fu, did you secretly take a picture of me just now? I saw you raise your phone. Let me see.”

Only then did Fu Rangyi remember. He took his phone out of his coat pocket.

“Is it a video? Hey, it looks like it’s still recording.”

“…Don’t watch it.”

“No, I want to watch it.”

Unable to win against him, Fu Rangyi had to let him watch.

“It’s not a good shot. I don’t know how to shoot videos.” He had never filmed anyone before. His hand was shaky, and Zhu Zhixi was a professional in social media, so he probably wouldn’t be too satisfied. He gave a disclaimer in advance.

As he watched, Zhu Zhixi suddenly stopped, his expression serious.

“Fu Rangyi, did you add a filter to this video? It’s all washed out and a bit blurry.”

Just as I thought.

“No, maybe the lens was foggy. Give it back, I told you it wasn’t a good shot.”

“No way, I was about to say, how did you make me look so good.” Zhu Zhixi smiled and looked up. “It’s a bit like those popular ‘memoirs of a deceased wife’ online.”

The moment the words left his mouth, he realized his mistake and covered his mouth.

As expected, Fu Rangyi’s expression changed. He tilted his head slightly, his gaze toward him seeming helpless.

Zhu Zhixi lightly slapped his own mouth several times. “My bad, my bad, I said the wrong thing.”

Fu Rangyi didn’t reply and walked ahead alone, not even wanting his phone back. Zhu Zhixi immediately ran after him, his scarf half-fallen and swinging behind him like a long tail.

“How about we replace the sensitive word? What do you think?” He forced his arm into Fu Rangyi’s, linking with him. “From now on, no one can say ‘die’ or its synonyms. We’ll change them all to ‘live’?”

“Memoir of a living wife?” Fu Rangyi was so angry he wanted to laugh.

Living wife. A wife who could anger me back to life even after I’m dead.

“No, no, that sounds like some kind of financial treatise.” Zhu Zhixi thought for a moment, then said, “How about ‘longevity’! Isn’t that auspicious?”

Fu Rangyi: “Whatever you say. It’s not like I would say that word anyway.”

“Really?” Zhu Zhixi didn’t believe him, his eyes darting. “Then who was it I heard secretly muttering ‘stupid to death’ when I passed by the study?”

Fu Rangyi: “…”

“Professor, next time remember to say ‘stupid to longevity.’ Then I’ll also say, ‘laughed to longevity,’ ‘happy to longevity,’ ‘stuffed to longevity’…”

Fu Rangyi’s mind inexplicably and uncontrollably drifted to Zhu Zhixi’s little tent, a vision of a certain someone’s flushed red face and lips parted, unable to breathe, already appearing before his eyes.

You’d better be able to say ‘about to reach longevity’ at a time like that.

At this thought, he couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

Zhu Zhixi was startled.

“What are you doing? What are you suddenly laughing about? It’s so scary.”

“Nothing.” Fu Rangyi’s face returned to normal. He glanced at him. “Does this sensitive word replacement system have a penalty mechanism?”

Zhu Zhixi didn’t expect him to be so serious. “It can. The loser pays a fine.”

“Let’s skip the fine.”

“Then what do you want?”

Fu Rangyi: “Just like you did last time. Unconditionally agree to the other person’s request.” After speaking, he reached out, pulled the scarf that had long since fallen behind him, and wrapped it around Zhu Zhixi.

“Okay.” Zhu Zhixi had a look of determination, deliberately moving closer to him and walking backward. “So, I came to find you today and brought you good food. Are you happy?”

This again. Fu Rangyi stared at his face, having to divert his attention to watch what was behind him.

“Happy to longevity.”

“You’re so clever. No wonder you’re a doggy doctor.”

“What doctor?” Fu Rangyi frowned, not hearing clearly.

“Nothing.” Zhu Zhixi suddenly stopped walking and looked up.

Fu Rangyi couldn’t brake in time and almost bumped into him. He subconsciously reached out and grabbed Zhu Zhixi’s arm, afraid he would fall. “What’s wrong?”

“I suddenly remembered, I called my dad yesterday, and he asked if I could bring you to my hometown for the New Year.” Zhu Zhixi scratched his face. “Of course, I know this isn’t in our contract, and it’s a special time of year…”

“With a lot of people?” Fu Rangyi asked.

“No. We don’t spend it with relatives.” Zhu Zhixi shook his head, rising and falling on his heels. “Just my dad, Da Zhu, you, and me. The four of us. Want to come?”

A snowflake blew onto his eyelash. Fu Rangyi raised his hand, brushed the snowflake away, and said, “I’ll let my family know.”

Zhu Zhixi smiled with satisfaction. “It’s a deal then. I can report back to Lao Zhu and Da Zhu.”

“Mm.”

Fu Rangyi didn’t mind going to Zhu Zhixi’s for the New Year; it was even more relaxing than going back to the Fu family. The only source of pressure was his brother-in-law.

Ever since that time at the hospital, seeing Zhu Zeran was like seeing a contraception promotion ambassador. He felt like he would be pulled in for a lesson on contraception in the next second, or worse, be tied up and taken for a vasectomy. The latter seemed more likely.

“What are you thinking about?”

“Your brother.”

“Huh?” Zhu Zhixi suddenly pulled him. “Is it okay for you to be like this?”

Fu Rangyi: “No, it’s the kind of thought that gives me PTSD.”

Zhu Zhixi suddenly stood still and rose on his tiptoes. They had already left the small plaza and, while chatting, had arrived at the foot of Mingde Building, which was bustling with people. His sudden proximity startled Fu Rangyi, who thought Zhu Zhixi was about to do something to ‘extend his life’ in public.

But in the next second, Zhu Zhixi stretched out one palm, holding it under the front of Fu Rangyi’s coat. The index finger of his other hand poked his chest twice. Just as he was wondering what was happening, he clapped his hands together, rubbed them, and then extended his index and middle fingers, pressing them against both of Fu Rangyi’s temples. He then kneaded and rubbed for a long time.

“What are you doing?”

“Washing your brain,” Zhu Zhixi said with a straight face. “You knew to wash your hands after holding hands with Xiao Yu last time. If you think about a bad thing like Zhu Zeran, you have to wash your brain.”

If it weren’t for the many students turning to look, Fu Rangyi would have been happy to let him wash it for a while longer.

The New Year came early this year, and the break started late. The winter vacation officially began four days after the students finished their final exams. The scores came out one after another, and everyone was surprised that Fu Rangyi, who was always known as the “Living King of Hell of Finals Week,” hadn’t failed a single person this time.

Everyone attributed this to his famous Beta wife, who had only come a few times.

The students were on vacation, but Fu Rangyi was not. He had originally signed up for this year’s archaeological fieldwork in the fall, intending to go so he wouldn’t have to go back to the Fu family for the New Year. But later, the department learned he was newly married, and out of concern for a subordinate, the leadership decided not to let him join the team.

But Fu Rangyi couldn’t get over it and continued to help solve technical problems remotely. He finally rested the day before New Year’s Eve.

However, Zhu Zhixi was also exceptionally busy during this time, leaving early in the morning and coming home very late.

It was unclear what he was busy with. Several times when Zhu Zhixi came back, he not only had the unpleasant smell of eucalyptus on him but sometimes also the “scumbag fragrance” of the contraception committee member. It seemed he had been back to his own home.

The social butterfly himself was completely unaware. But under his influence, Zhu Zhixi had already learned to shower as soon as he got home and obediently change into his pajamas.

Because he had no time for his daily life-extending missions, Zhu Zhixi would proactively come to the master bedroom these past few nights, knock, enter, close the door, and quietly get into bed, pressing his forehead against his back.

“So sleepy to dea—” he hissed like a tired little snake, then quickly corrected himself, “Sleepy to longevity.”

He had missed a chance to command Zhu Zhixi. When he turned around, he was already asleep.

So tired. Anyone who didn’t know would think he was going out to save the world every day.

The sleeping Zhu Zhixi was very quiet, his breathing soft. He often changed positions five minutes after falling asleep, usually turning onto his stomach, with his face typically turned to the other side, naturally exposing the back of his pristine white neck to him.

Staring and staring, Fu Rangyi would lean over, his nose touching the skin of his neck, releasing his own pheromones to cover up all the miscellaneous smells from outside.

He couldn’t help it; it was an Alpha’s instinct.

Before the vacation, the results of the hospital check-up also came out one by one.

“The other parts are all healthy. The only questionable part is the gland,” Li Qiao said on the phone. “I asked Director Wang. He said that based on the various endocrine data and imaging, your Xiao Zhu most likely has a latently developed gland. Simply put, its volume is extremely small and it has little function. If this type of gland were to become cancerous, it would be very difficult to detect in the early stages. But don’t worry, he’s an expert in this field, and he doesn’t think it looks like that, at least not now.”

“Not now?” Fu Rangyi was still not reassured. “He has a family history. His mother died of gland cancer.”

“I remember, I told him that. Director Wang said this disease has a high incidence in Omegas, especially after childbirth. And the nosebleeds you mentioned are not a typical symptom of this disease. Don’t panic yet. Come back for a check-up next month.”

“This check-up interval is too long,” Fu Rangyi said. “I’ll take him right after the New Year.”

“That works too. Don’t worry, look at him, so full of life. Does he look like someone who’s about to die?” Li Qiao said on the phone.

“He’s someone who’s about to live a long life. Hanging up.”

Li Qiao held his phone, looking baffled. The more he thought about it, the more baffled he became, and he changed Fu Rangyi’s contact name on a whim. Despite this, with the New Year approaching, he still thought about how Fu Rangyi had to go back to the Fu family, unloved by his parents, and felt he was quite pitiful.

[Li Qiao: Hey, tomorrow’s New Year’s Eve. Want to come to my place for a drink? Your big bro Qiao is feeling charitable and has decided to randomly take in one heartbroken Alpha this year. Congratulations, you’ve been chosen.]

[Husband of the World’s Longest-Living Beta: Thanks, but give that precious spot to another Alpha. I’m already at Zhu Zhixi’s house.]

---

Author’s Note:

—Mini Theater: Campus Forum—

[Help, the grades are out…]

[WTF I didn’t fail!! FRY gave me such a high grade for participation?? It feels a little hot to hold]

[Did FRY have a personality change this year? Isn’t he famous for being an angel in class and a devil during exams?]

[If I had known, I would have taken his class! I got failed by Lao Zhang!!]

[Could you even get in… His classes are getting harder and harder to enroll in. Since he didn’t fail anyone this year, it’ll probably be even harder to get in next year]

[As expected, an Alpha nourished by love is no longer world-weary. He can’t bring himself to be ruthless with students anymore]

[Having a wife really changes a person]

[How come you all seem to have seen FRY’s wife? What’s he like? Any pointers?]

[^^ls, go check out the long thread about the snowball fight. The latter half is full of it, lots of photos, the two of them hugging, it’s like they’re on their honeymoon]

[FRY’s wife is really cute! He can even chat with the big yellow dog on campus, and his personality is super nice. I thought he was an undergrad, but it turns out he’s already graduated with a master’s]

[How did you even dig that up?]

[Someone added his wife on WeChat, and someone else found his wife’s account as a vlogger. His homepage has such a lively vibe, I’m so envious…]

[FRY’s wife is a vlogger?? Does that mean we’ll have a chance to see Professor Fu in a cameo showing affection!! Dreaming of a couple’s video!]

[With FRY’s personality, that seems unlikely… unless it’s academic-related]

[He’s seriously so cute, I can’t leave his video homepage. I’m going to become a ‘mom fan’ of my professor’s husband!]

[They’re such a good match, I’ll sigh about it ten thousand times]

[His wife is a Beta. Wouldn’t Professor Fu get super jealous and bite and lick and hug him every day? It’s hard to imagine that ice-mountain face doing something like that]

[Probably not, right? Even adding him on WeChat was fine. Professor Fu wouldn’t go that far]

[Okay, I spoke too soon. I’ve been deleted.]

[Me too… FRY, you’re something else]

[I was deleted too (CP fan’s heart is broken)]

[I have a feeling this thread is in danger too…]