A World Asunder - Chapter 10

Who hasn’t been sprayed by a carbonated drink at some point? Yet Lu Huangzhi actually wanted him to wash his clothes. Where did he get the nerve?

Acting on his principles of fairness and justice, Tao Qiaosheng said, “Xi-zai, you really should be the one to wash this.”

“You two,” Zhao Yexi looked at Tao Qiaosheng, then at Lu Huangzhi, “did you strike some kind of shady deal while I was gone?”

Tao Qiaosheng’s look toward Zhao Yexi was hard to describe. “Well, someone left their fox tail exposed while doing something bad and got caught red-handed.”

Zhao Yexi choked for a second, putting on an innocent face. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Tao Qiaosheng expected Lu Huangzhi to drop the hammer on Zhao Yexi right then and there, but surprisingly, he let it slide effortlessly.

“I’m going to go change,” Lu Huangzhi said, “be back in a bit.”

Once Lu Huangzhi left, Zhao Yexi asked Tao Qiaosheng, “What did you mean by that?”

Tao Qiaosheng stirred the hotpot base and said, “Forget it. One is willing to hit and the other is willing to suffer. Just act like nothing happened.”

Zhao Yexi said irritably, “I really wish they’d pass a policy where people who speak in riddles get hung up and beaten.”

One of the secrets to a good hotpot is the dipping sauce. Zhao Yexi meticulously crafted a small dish of sauce, took a taste, and frowned. “I messed up. Too much salt.”

Lu Huangzhi pushed his own dish toward Zhao Yexi. “Mine shouldn’t be salty.”

Zhao Yexi froze. Lu Huangzhi wanted to swap with him?

Lu Huangzhi, thinking Zhao Yexi was worried about hygiene, said, “I haven’t used my chopsticks yet.”

Zhao Yexi said instinctively, “But I have.”

“One bite doesn’t count.” Lu Huangzhi took Zhao Yexi’s dish, dipped a piece of beef, and popped it into his mouth. “It’s fine. Acceptable.”

Zhao Yexi tasted Lu Huangzhi’s sauce. It wasn’t salty at all; the flavor was perfect.

He felt a momentary pang of regret for ruining Lu Huangzhi’s shirt. But thinking of the eighty-plus entries left in his grudge notebook, that regret was quickly suppressed.

“I saw on Weibo that someone’s pheromone is spicy hotpot flavor. Too bad Xi-zai’s glands haven’t grown in yet,” Tao Qiaosheng said. “What about you, Campus Heartthrob? What’s your pheromone scent?”

“I can’t really smell it myself.” Lu Huangzhi looked at Zhao Yexi. “What does the Senior think?”

Recalling the strange sensation he felt after smelling Lu Huangzhi’s pheromones earlier, Zhao Yexi said uncomfortably, “I’ve already forgotten.”

“Is that so? Then when you have time, help me smell it again.”

“I’d rather smell Tao Qiaosheng’s cat litter box than smell you.”

After hotpot, Zhao Yexi walked Tao Qiaosheng downstairs. Tao Qiaosheng asked, “Xi-zai, that debate you had with Lu Huangzhi, what was the topic?”

Zhao Yexi’s ears perked up defensively. “Why are you suddenly asking that?”

“Just curious.”

Zhao Yexi was silent for a moment before saying, “It was a very serious question regarding one’s outlook on life.”

“I figured.” Tao Qiaosheng was dying of curiosity, grabbing Zhao Yexi’s arm. “Ahhh, what was it? Tell me! Xi-zai? Daddy?”

“Stop asking.” Zhao Yexi put on a solemn face. “In short, his argument was unreasonable, inhumane, and barbaric. We are simply not the same kind of people.”

Tao Qiaosheng remarked dryly, “Not the same kind of people, yet you’re eating the sauce he made?”

“…” Zhao Yexi was speechless. “Do you know you talk too much?”

After seeing Tao Qiaosheng off, Zhao Yexi received a WeChat message from Lu Huangzhi. Lu Huangzhi said he lived directly opposite and told Zhao Yexi to come over.

It’s a Macho Man: ? Huang: Take my clothes to wash.

Zhao Yexi laughed from sheer anger.

It’s a Macho Man: Who do you think you are? Huang: [Short Video]

Zhao Yexi clicked the video, and blood instantly rushed to his head. He was dead.

Five minutes later, Zhao Yexi knocked on Lu Huangzhi’s door. He kept his head down, his cheeks and ears burning. He was certain he looked like a giant tomato.

Lu Huangzhi looked down at him and said, “The Senior’s face is very red.”

No need for a reminder, thanks.

Even though Lu Huangzhi was in the right, it didn’t stop Zhao Yexi from trying to shift the blame. “Why the hell didn’t you show the evidence earlier? Are you playing me?”

“You save the ultimate move for the end,” Lu Huangzhi said, leaning against the doorframe. “Besides, you wouldn’t want your friend to know you’re actually washing my clothes for me.”

“I never said I’d wash them.”

“Then why are you here?”

Zhao Yexi locked eyes with him for a few seconds before looking away. “If I wash them, I’m just tossing them in the machine.”

Lu Huangzhi nodded. “Fine. Return them once they’re dry.”

Zhao Yexi took a deep breath. “Where’s the shirt? Hand it over.”

Zhao Yexi clutched the T-shirt as he returned to his apartment, unable to believe he had felt guilty about it earlier. This was Lu Huangzhi; he’d do something nice once, then immediately follow it up with something terrible.

Before throwing it in the washer, he glanced at the tag: a symbol for “Do Not Machine Wash.” But Lu Huangzhi said it was fine, so if it got ruined, it wasn’t his problem. He slammed the washer door shut, stood still for a minute, then humiliatingly pulled the shirt back out.

He wasn’t doing it for Lu Huangzhi; he was doing it for the brand. He recognized the label; a shirt like this cost several thousand at least. Ruining it might be a criminal offense.

Looking at the Coke stain, he moved on impulse and leaned down to sniff it. It smelled of Coke, yes, but there was something else underneath. A refreshing sweetness with a hint of tartness, Lu Huangzhi’s pheromone scent.

That troubling sensation returned. Zhao Yexi felt an inappropriate sense of comfort. He knew he was being a creep, but he couldn’t stop. Why did it smell so good? It was like being tucked into a warm bed on a snowy day; leaving for even a second was a challenge.

His phone buzzed, snapping him out of it. Seeing the T-shirt clutched in his arms, he tossed it aside in a panic. Tao Qiaosheng texted to say he was home. Zhao Yexi didn’t care to reply; he searched “pheromones” on Weibo.

ABO Institute: Alphas and Omegas secrete pheromones and are more susceptible to each other’s scents than Betas. Since we haven’t found a way to extract pheromones yet, specific effects are still under study. Volunteers are needed. Please register on the official website.

Even the Institute couldn’t explain his behavior. He washed his face, but seeing the T-shirt by the sink, he felt the urge again. Darn, are Alpha pheromones like opium?

Treating the shirt like a bomb, he backed away and bolted out the door. He ended up at a local fruit shop. The owner was cutting a jackfruit and called out, “20% off!”

Zhao Yexi hesitated. “Can I smell it?”

“Smelling won’t tell you much! Try it! If it’s not sweet, it’s free.”

“I just want to smell it.”

The owner looked confused. “Sure, knock yourself out.”

He sniffed the jackfruit. Not it. He sniffed a lemon; too sour. Mango? Too heavy. Kumquat? Close, but not quite. He sniffed almost every fruit in the shop.

“Young man, what are you looking for?” the owner asked.

Zhao Yexi’s gaze landed on a fruit in the corner. He walked over, and before he even got close, he knew. Lu Huangzhi was grapefruit scented.

He had never particularly liked or disliked grapefruit before. Why the sudden obsession? Where was the logic?

“You buying that?” the owner asked.

Zhao Yexi pursed his lips. “No way.”

Zhao Yexi didn’t sleep well. Neither did Tao Qiaosheng.

Tao Qiaosheng was a man possessed. When he got curious, he would scour the ends of the earth for answers. If Lu Huangzhi and Zhao Yexi wouldn’t tell him, he’d find out himself.

Lu Huangzhi was a campus heartthrob; there had to be records of his debates online. He searched “Lu Huangzhi” and “Debate” on Weibo and found a blurry photo of the two of them on stage. Behind them was a giant screen with the topic.

After a long silence in the dark, Tao Qiaosheng yelled at the ceiling: “You’ve got to be kidding me!”

Zhao Yexi had just drifted off when his phone rang. He nearly knocked over the grapefruit on his nightstand.

“Hello?”

Tao Qiaosheng’s furious voice came through: “Between Wei Xiaobao and Yang Guo, whose love was more perfect?!”

Zhao Yexi thought he was dreaming. “Huh?”

“This is your ‘serious question regarding one’s outlook on life’?!”

Zhao Yexi went quiet for a few seconds before bolt-waking. “Holy sh*t, how did you find out?”

“You made him your arch-enemy over this?”

Zhao Yexi’s anger flared up. “Lu Huangzhi was jealous of Wei Xiaobao! He said he wanted seven wives!”

Tao Qiaosheng was losing his mind: “What the hell does him wanting seven wives have to do with you?!”