After Dating the President O, I Turned Into a Puppy-Like Lover - Chapter 8

Monday afternoon—Class 5’s PE lesson.

Last week’s class had been taken up by the opening ceremony, so this was their first official physical education class of the term.

Jiang He and the others were the last group to leave the classroom. The preparatory bell had already rung, and the hallway was unusually quiet, so quiet that the sharp, grating voices coming from behind them stood out all the more clearly.

After listening for a moment, it became apparent that the group was talking about the Student Council. About Dan Sirou.

“So, what if she’s the President?” Wu Kui sneered, clearly disdainful of her underlings’ earlier caution. “No matter how capable she is, she’s still just an Omega. Even the lowest Alpha could make her legs go weak face-to-face. She’s only arrogant because she has some authority at school. Once she’s outside, who would even bother looking at her?”

Hearing Wu Kui’s words, the shorter Alpha finally dropped his misgivings and echoed eagerly, “Exactly. But speaking of that, I’d really like to taste Dan Sirou’s pheromones.”

“Get lost,” another Alpha scoffed. “As if it’d ever be your turn.”

“Can’t I at least think about it? Don’t tell me none of you have fantasized about it.”

“If anyone gets a turn, it wouldn’t be you. Neither Sister Wu nor Sister Kuang has made a move yet, what are you yapping for?”

Wu Kui was clearly pleased by the respect they showed her. A smug smile spread across her sharp-featured face beneath her buzz cut.

Their voices weren’t particularly loud, but the contempt dripping from their words carried clearly to Jiang He and her friends, every sentence steeped in disdain for Omegas.

Wu Kui’s crooked smile didn’t escape Jiang He’s notice. Jiang He lowered her head slightly, her long fingers clasping and unclasping, then clasping again. Her expression remained as cool and unreadable as ever.

She said nothing but Zhou Yi broke the disturbed silence in a flash of anger.

“What a bunch of perverts! How can they talk about the President like that behind her back?”

Zhou Yi’s fury jolted Jiang He. She lifted her head and glanced sideways, only to see Zhou Yi trembling dramatically with rage.

Xu Yiran patted her shoulder and nodded along. “Yeah, that’s pretty disgusting. But those people are always like that.”

Zhou Yi glared sideways, her lips jutting out. “I really want to beat them up!”

“Even if you do,” Xu Yiran said with a wry smile, “they’re about to walk over here.”

“So, what if they do?” Zhou Yi snapped, turning to look. Sure enough, the three of them were striding down the hallway, radiating swagger. She snorted and turned her head away in disdain.

From afar, Wu Kui spotted two familiar dormmates. She reined in her showy bravado and replaced it with a friendly smile.

“Hey, Xiao Zhou Yi.”

Zhou Yi twisted her neck even farther away, pointedly ignoring her.

Wu Kui didn’t take offense. Her politeness was only because Zhou Yi was a tolerable dormmate and Jiang He’s friend.

She bypassed Zhou Yi entirely and looked instead at Jiang He, her expression turning more serious.

“Jiang He.”

Jiang He didn’t react as strongly as Zhou Yi. Receiving Wu Kui’s courteous gaze, she replied with a faint, neutral, “Mm.”

Once the three of them had walked away, Zhou Yi finally turned back around. Thinking about how Jiang He hadn’t taken her side just now, she grew indignant.

“Boss!”

“Mm?” Jiang He glanced sideways at her.

“Why did you even respond to her?”

“Respond to who?”

Zhou Yi grew even angrier. “Wu Kui!”

Jiang He chuckled softly, genuinely puzzled by her exaggerated reaction. “Are you really that upset?”

Zhou Yi crossed her arms over her chest and huffed. “Of course I am.”

“I can tell. You really love her,” Jiang He said lightly, an unreadable smile flickering across her face. Then she turned toward the stairs, her voice drifting back. “Come on.”

Zhou Yi redirected part of her anger toward Jiang He—not for any clear reason, just dissatisfaction with her boss’s attitude. Why couldn’t Jiang He empathize with her? Did that mean Jiang He secretly agreed with what Wu Kui had said?

In the end, it was Xu Yiran who dragged her along.

The two whispered behind Jiang He’s back.

“Yiran, do you think Boss actually agrees with Wu Kui?” Zhou Yi asked.

Xu Yiran narrowed her eyes in confusion. “Agrees with what?”

“What they were saying about the President.”

“No way. You’re overthinking it,” Xu Yiran said, indulging her with a smile. “You know her better than that. She’s always like this, indifferent to everything. Even if she disagrees, she wouldn’t show it on her face.”

That explanation soothed Zhou Yi considerably. Her anger faded, replaced with understanding and a twinge of guilt for doubting her boss.

But the guilt didn’t last long. Like a fish with a three-second memory, something new soon caught her attention.

Not long after, the class bell rang. The PE teacher assembled everyone and instructed them to run two laps before free activity.

Class 5 was enthusiastic about sports. After finishing their laps, no one rushed back inside. Students scattered across the field to borrow equipment—some playing table tennis, others badminton. The school basketball team used the time for practice, preparing for an upcoming match against a neighboring school.

Zhou Yi and Xu Yiran liked badminton, so the three of them headed off to borrow equipment.

On the way, they ran into the same three people from the hallway.

Rather than coincidence, it felt more like Wu Kui had deliberately arranged the encounter. She carried several cups of milk tea, as did her underlings, it looked like they’d just come back from outside the school.

“Jiang He.” Wu Kui smiled warmly and lifted the milk tea in her hand. “Want some milk tea?”

She had three cups, one for each of them.

Though Wu Kui had never interacted much with Xu Yiran, she still prepared a cup for her as well. This attention to detail was precisely why she could command so many followers, despite ranking below Kuang Wenqi.

She handed the first cup to Jiang He.

Jiang He stared at the hand, at the tattoo near Wu Kui’s thumb, fell silent for a moment, then accepted it. Her expression didn’t change.

The second cup was offered to Zhou Yi.

Zhou Yi might be forgetful, but not that forgetful. She hadn’t forgotten the discomfort Wu Kui had caused her earlier and hesitated instead of taking it.

Wu Kui had noticed her strange attitude already, but hadn’t deemed it worth caring about. Now, faced with an outright refusal, she addressed it calmly.

“Xiao Zhou Yi?”

Standing face-to-face like this, Zhou Yi lost some of her confidence. She instinctively glanced at Jiang He who was already holding her milk tea and relaxed slightly.

“What?”

“I’m offering you milk tea. Didn’t you say this is your favorite flavor?” Wu Kui smiled. “You said you were dieting, so I had them make it low-calorie and low-sugar.”

Zhou Yi’s hand twitched. Her carefully constructed resolve began to crumble.

“And there’s a new Spring Serenade release at the arcade,” Wu Kui continued smoothly. “It’s super popular overseas. Only VIPs can book seats right now. I can ask my uncle to reserve you a ticket. How about it?”

Wu Kui clearly knew how to strike Zhou Yi’s weak spots. The moment she mentioned Spring Serenade—a 3D immersive otome game, Zhou Yi was completely defeated.

Without realizing it, she took the milk tea, smiling brightly.

“Thanks!”

Wu Kui seemed particularly fond of this kind of psychological conquest. Seeing her success, a trace of satisfaction gleamed in her eyes. Having lost interest in humoring Zhou Yi, she said casually, “Alright, we’re heading off to play basketball.”

Once she left.

Pop.

The straw pierced the lid. Zhou Yi took a huge gulp. In the lingering heat of September, the icy liquid slid down her throat—refreshing and blissfully satisfying.

Then something poked her shoulder.

She turned slowly, it was her boss’s hand.

Jiang He lifted her gaze coolly, eyes fixed on the milk tea.

“Weren’t you going to stand up for your goddess?”

“Hehe.” Zhou Yi laughed awkwardly. “Wu Kui’s actually not that bad. I don’t think she meant it.”

This time, Jiang He said nothing.

Xu Yiran, however, looked utterly exasperated. “Honestly, didn’t I tell you not to talk so big?”

Zhou Yi lowered her head, letting them scold her.

After that episode, the three of them went to borrow badminton equipment together.

Xu Yiran was also holding a milk tea with a pierced lid—half of it already gone. She wasn’t an Omega, nor was she Dan Sirou’s friend. At most, she’d felt uncomfortable with Wu Kui’s words, but it wasn’t something she’d dwell on.

Only Jiang He hadn’t touched her drink at all.

Class 5 received two sets of badminton equipment. All four rackets were already in use, meaning anyone who wanted to play would have to wait.

“Class monitor, why aren’t you with your boyfriend today?” Zhou Yi asked Lin Momo with a grin, holding a milk tea that barely had a sip left.

Lin Momo and her boyfriend Ding Hao, like Jiang He and the others, had advanced from the same middle school and even the same class. Lin Momo was simple and warm-hearted by nature. Once, after helping Jiang He, she had been accidentally dragged into a conflict with off-campus hooligans. Jiang He had always been grateful to her for that. At the very least, beneath her usual cold, taciturn exterior, Jiang He would always offer Lin Momo a trace of warmth—a faint, familiar smile reserved only for her.

“Teacher An asked him to take care of something,” Lin Momo said with a smile. “Do you want to play? Qingqing and I can take a break.”

“Yes, yes!” Zhou Yi said excitedly.

Lin Momo handed her the racket, and Ye Qing stepped off the court as well. With three people standing there, she hesitated, racket in hand. “So, who’s playing first?”

“Yiran,” Jiang He said. “I’ll watch you guys.”

Neither Zhou Yi nor Xu Yiran had any objections.

It wasn’t that they didn’t want to play with her—on the contrary, Jiang He was simply too good. As the two people closest to her, they’d been utterly crushed by her countless times. Over time, they’d both quietly agreed to avoid competing with Jiang He in anything remotely athletic.

So, Jiang He really did stand off to the side, watching them play, occasionally responding when Lin Momo tossed a comment her way.

Before long, Lin Momo and Ye Qing went together to the school convenience store to buy hot dogs, leaving Jiang He alone. Zhou Yi and Xu Yiran might fear getting “destroyed” on the court, but they feared their boss feeling lonely even more.

“Boss, wanna play?” Zhou Yi called out loudly.

Jiang He shook her head.

She didn’t stay alone for long.

In the distance, Kuang Wenqi and Wu Kui walked toward her side by side in basketball jerseys. Jiang He narrowed her eyes, it looked like they were coming for her.

“Jiang He,” Kuang Wenqi said. She had a low, androgynous voice. Her hair was just long enough to tie back, her earlobes adorned with eye-catching studs. On closer inspection, her features were striking, and paired with her A+ rank, it was no wonder she attracted so many Omegas. Even Lin Shi, the vice president—a Beta who couldn’t sense pheromones was deeply drawn to her, despite being female herself.

“Wang Bin hurt her leg and went to the infirmary. The women’s basketball team is short one person right now. Could you help us fill in for a bit? The match is next week.”

Jiang He swept a calm glance over the two of them.

The ice in the milk tea she’d been carrying had long since melted, the cup warmed by her body heat. She parted her lips, about to refuse but just then her gaze met Wu Kui’s fox-like eyes. After a brief pause, she changed her answer.

“Sure.”

“Do you need to change?” Kuang Wenqi asked.

“No.”

She set the milk tea she’d carried all this way beneath the basketball hoop. Interlacing her fingers, she loosened her joints and stepped into the game.

She took Wang Bin’s position, joining Kuang Wenqi and Wu Kui’s team.

Thanks to her grandfather’s rigorous upbringing, Jiang He had received professional training in nearly every extracurricular activity. As a top-tier Alpha with natural talent, basketball was one of her strong suits. Compared to the half-trained female Alphas on the court, even after a year or more without touching a ball, her skill still easily exceeded the average.

Wang Bin, on the other hand, had been the team’s weak link—height without technique. Because of her, no matter how well Kuang Wenqi performed, their team always trailed behind.

Once Jiang He stepped in, the tide shifted. With frequent assists and clean shots, the score quickly evened out.

During one possession, Jiang He held the ball, cornered by two or three defenders with no clear path forward.

Wu Kui broke through the opposing defense alone and called out in a low voice, “Jiang He, pass it to me!”

Jiang He lifted her eyes and glanced at her. She dribbled for a moment, and just as Wu Kui focused intently, convinced the pass was coming, with a sharp clatter, Jiang He relinquished the ball without resistance, letting the opponents take it cleanly.

Wu Kui froze in place.

The opposing team scored, taking the lead once again.

A huge, unspoken “?” flashed across Wu Kui’s face. Jiang He didn’t even look at her, fully absorbed in the game.

Wu Kui took a deep breath and made excuses for her. That angle had been awkward for a pass. Gradually, she suppressed her irritation and continued playing.

That, however, was only the beginning.

For nearly the next ten minutes, whenever Wu Kui passed the ball to Jiang He, Jiang He immediately handed it to the opposing team. Eventually, Wu Kui caught on. Sensing that Jiang He clearly disliked her, she began to keep tight control of the ball—passing only when absolutely necessary, and choosing long shots over passing to Jiang He.

During the next play, Kuang Wenqi hesitated with the ball. Jiang He and Wu Kui were positioned on opposite sides, both with potential openings.

Wu Kui knew she couldn’t let Jiang He get the ball. She rushed forward to demand it but her speed was no match for Jiang He’s.

Jiang He reached the ball first.

Momentum carried Wu Kui straight into her.

Rather than avoiding her, Jiang He chose to yield the ball but not her position. She slammed into Wu Kui without mercy.

The result—

Wu Kui got the ball.

But she also got knocked flat onto the court.

Her back hit the hard floor solidly, pain nearly bringing tears to her eyes. Jiang He stood over her, looking down. Under the sunlight, those dark brown eyes felt like an icy abyss.

Everyone around them froze, then hurried forward to help Wu Kui up.

The moment she stood, Wu Kui hurled the ball at Jiang He.

“Are you fucking insane?”

The ball clattered past Jiang He, bouncing out of her line of sight.

That was as far as Wu Kui dared go. No matter how furious she was, she didn’t dare actually hit Jiang He.

Jiang He glanced toward where the ball bounced near the table tennis courts. She said nothing and walked away without a word.

The Alphas on the court snapped out of it and quickly restrained Wu Kui.

“Calm down.”

“Did you offend her somehow?” Kuang Wenqi asked.

Everyone had seen it over twenty minutes of play, Jiang He had been deliberately targeting Wu Kui.

“How the hell would I know?” Wu Kui snapped. “She’s fucking crazy.”

Jiang He returned to the stands, carefully smoothing the wrinkles in her clothes before pulling out a tissue to wipe the sweat from her brow.

Zhou Yi and Xu Yiran were still happily playing badminton. As class time drew to a close, students began leaving the field in small groups, while another class entered for PE.

Finally, the dismissal bell rang muted by distance as it reached the field.

Jiang He was just about to leave when Wu Kui approached from afar. The hostility from earlier was gone; the closer she came, the more obvious her ingratiating smile became.

“Jiang He.”

Somehow, Wu Kui had gone to the convenience store again. She raised a bottle of mineral water and handed it over, smiling brightly as if nothing had happened.

“Here.”

She was clearly trying to make peace but even so, receiving no immediate response, her smile slowly stiffened under the harsh sunlight.

Jiang He looked at the hand frozen midair. The bold tattoo on Wu Kui’s thumb had been scraped raw from the fall, ugly and exposed.

In the end, Jiang He took the bottle but didn’t drink it.

Wu Kui finally let out a breath of relief. As long as Jiang He accepted it, at least she wouldn’t completely lose face.

“Can I ask.” Wu Kui said carefully, still smiling. “What did I do to offend you? You seem to have a problem with me.”

“I’m easy to talk to, Jiang He. If I did something wrong, just tell me. If I can change it, I will.”

She wasn’t groveling but every word carried a trace of humility.

Jiang He lazily lifted her eyes, as if hesitating.

Just as Wu Kui was bracing herself for another cold rejection, Jiang He spoke. Her eyes were sharp with frost.

“When you talk with those men, watch your mouth. Don’t dump every piece of trash out in the open.”

With that, she turned and walked away.

Her hand flicked lightly.

The bottle traced a clean arc through the air and landed squarely in the trash can with a dull thud.