After the Corporate Slave Beta and the Top Alpha Married - Chapter 4

Ji Yu had initially thought this high school reunion would just be a small gathering initiated by people within the same social circles. It wasn’t until he arrived at the venue that he realized the turnout was quite high—it was a formal, full-scale reunion.

He reflected for a second on his own poor social relations from high school but didn’t take it to heart.

Five years after graduation sounded like a long time, but calculating it out, everyone had only officially entered society for about a year. While people’s appearances had changed, one could still see traces of their former selves.

The private room was noisy, with most people still in the stage of matching faces to names.

Though it was called a reunion, they had already entered adulthood; the class hierarchies that weren’t obvious as students were now strikingly vivid. Those who were doing well or came from good families were surrounded by quite a few people, basking in smiling compliments.

Alphas and Omegas were particularly popular in these crowds. Differentiation had had a greater impact on them, changing their appearances more significantly and making them stand out even more.

Ji Yu arrived a bit late. Sun Caicheng, who was surrounded in the center, sharply noticed him walking to the door and waved him over. “Ji Yu, come here, come here!”

Sun Caicheng was used to seeing people in suits and shirts at the office; seeing Ji Yu walk in wearing casual clothes was quite refreshing. “Not bad, Ji Yu. Dressing like this actually gives you that green, high school student vibe again.”

Ji Yu’s face could only be called refined, but precisely because of that, wearing casual clothes made him look as fresh and tender as a young student.

He didn’t have any ulterior motives for dressing this way. It was a holiday; he didn’t want to stifle himself in a tight suit. Though he had to attend the reunion, he didn’t care much for it and certainly wouldn’t bother dressing up.

As the surrounding people laughed, Ji Yu walked over and greeted him as “President Sun.”

Sun Caicheng waved it off. “This isn’t the company, no need for that. We’re all classmates here.”

He said this with a smile, clearly satisfied with Ji Yu’s tactfulness.

The others were suddenly surprised and began chiming in.

“Ji Yu works under President Sun?” “President Sun, look at you, still looking after old classmates.” “You can’t just take care of Ji Yu. President Sun, look after us old classmates too.”

Sun Caicheng’s position at the company was high—he was the Vice General Manager—not to mention it was his own family’s company. There were many people wanting to curry favor or find a partnership.

Sun Caicheng basked in the flattery, saying things like, “I told you it’s a reunion, we’re all classmates, don’t call me President Sun, just use my name.” But the smile on his face grew more and more joyous.

As they chatted, another topic came up. “I heard that at a cocktail party yesterday, that person shook hands with you?”

Yesterday’s party wasn’t something just anyone could enter. Ji Bohan was only able to bring people in because he had done a small favor for the host.

Originally, they were just there to be ignored, and the few people Ji Yu spoke to were just being perfunctory. But after Shang Yuanzhou spoke a few words to Ji Yu, their group had become the focus of the crowd.

And now, because of that, Ji Yu had become the focus of the reunion.

Shang Yuanzhou had transferred in during the final year of high school and was distant with the class. Back then, because he was an illegitimate son, he was intentionally or unintentionally ostracized. Now his status was entirely different; no one in this room dared to invite him to this reunion.

News from the party traveled fast. To satisfy their curiosity, they could only ask Ji Yu.

If Shang Yuanzhou truly intended to acknowledge high school classmates… Everyone in the room stared at Ji Yu, their hearts hiding varying degrees of greed.

Ji Yu felt a bit awkward being stared at and briefly explained the situation.

“That’s it?” “He didn’t say anything else?” “Tell us more, don’t keep secrets among classmates.”

Ji Yu felt helpless. “That’s really it. I’m not close with President Shang.”

The moment he finished speaking, there was movement at the door. A figure with a tall, straight posture appeared. Narrow, deep eyes swept through the room, making everyone instinctively stiffen.

The room fell silent instantly. Everyone watched in a daze as he walked in; the only sound was the steady click of his leather shoes on the floor.

“Am I late?” Shang Yuanzhou spoke, finally breaking the silence.

“Not late, not late!” “How could you be late? We just arrived early.” “President Shang, come, sit here, sit here.”

No one expected Shang Yuanzhou to actually show up. But now that he was here, everyone naturally gravitated around him, vacating the head seat and letting him sit down like the moon surrounded by stars.

Ji Yu was squeezed to a corner seat. He hadn’t intended to approach anyway; he even retreated a bit. Seeing Shang Yuanzhou’s face now, he felt a mix of awkwardness and guilt.

Sun Caicheng accompanied him with a smile. “President Shang, I am from the Zhenghong Group—”

Before he could finish, he was cut off by Shang Yuanzhou’s sweeping gaze.

Sun Caicheng was also an Alpha, but there are invisible ranks among Alphas. Shang Yuanzhou was undoubtedly the highest tier, looking down from the top of the pyramid. That expressionless look made Sun Caicheng’s back nearly drench with sweat in an instant.

He froze in place, half-bowed. Shang Yuanzhou, however, stopped looking at him and said flatly, “Isn’t this a high school reunion?”

“Right, right, a reunion!” “Exactly, it’s so nice for everyone to catch up.” “It’s been so long. I really miss our high school days, back then we were so…”

No one dared mention business or careers again. They brushed over that brief moment as if nothing had happened and began noisily discussing high school anecdotes.

They racked their brains to think of things related to Shang Yuanzhou.

However, Shang Yuanzhou had only transferred in senior year. Not only was there little bond to speak of, but most people back then had ostracized him for being an illegitimate son. Forget “interesting stories”—they’d be lucky if they didn’t bring up something that angered him.

When there was nothing left to say about high school, the topic of past relationships—which never fails—was brought up. They didn’t dare gossip about Shang Yuanzhou, but discussing each other was a good way to warm up the room.

A few Omega classmates were the first to be asked. Some showed off their partners openly, while others admitted they were still single, their gazes more or less drifting toward Shang Yuanzhou in the head seat.

Ji Yu, shrunk in the corner eating, was eventually asked as the topic made its rounds.

Shang Yuanzhou’s gaze also fell on him, naturally following the shift in conversation.

Ji Yu shook his head. “Single. Nothing to talk about. Ask the next person.”

He was never a prominent figure in class. Although his family had a company, he was a Beta and was disregarded; his family had made it clear he was given up on back in high school.

Hearing this, the crowd gave a few uninspired sighs and prepared to move on.

“You’re single now, but can’t you talk about past experiences?”

Shang Yuanzhou, who hadn’t spoken much until now, suddenly spoke up. His voice was low and not very loud, yet no one could ignore it.

The crowd froze for a few seconds before erupting in a chorus of teasing.

“Saying you’re single is so boring! Tell us about your past relationships. We can all listen and help you analyze them, right?” “Tell us! I can’t even imagine what kind of person Ji Yu would like.” “Exactly! Everyone else talked, you can’t just brush us off.”

Ji Yu was a bit helpless. Likely because of the party yesterday, this President Shang is feeling whimsical enough to tease me. He had no choice but to say, “I’ve never dated. There’s really nothing to tell.”

Before the others could speak, he drank a glass as a way of asking for mercy.

Seeing Shang Yuanzhou’s brow furrow slightly, Ji Yu worried he might press further. Fortunately, Shang Yuanzhou didn’t make things difficult and moved on to the next person.

After several rounds of drinks, everyone was more or less tipsy. Ji Yu didn’t like these occasions. Seeing that no one was paying attention to him, he slipped away to the outdoor terrace.

He was wearing short sleeves, and the night breeze carried a summer coolness. Ji Yu’s thoughts slowly went blank. Leaning against the railing, he stared at the night scenery in a daze.

“Ji Yu.”

Someone called him, the voice very light.

Shang Yuanzhou looked at the person in casual clothes who turned around with a flat expression. For a moment, his own expression froze.

“President Shang.”

Ji Yu’s formal address broke the “high school” feeling. Shang Yuanzhou retracted his expression and walked over to stand beside him. “Why did you run off to here?”

“To get some air.” Ji Yu’s attitude was neither fawning nor cold.

It was that kind of distance—the polite, perfunctory distance he used with everyone.

He didn’t look at Shang Yuanzhou beside him again, his gaze reaching out toward the distance, looking at the glittering city under the night sky. Thus, he failed to notice the person beside him watching him.

Shang Yuanzhou was tall. When he looked down at Ji Yu, his deep, narrow eyes were dark, like a swamp one could easily sink into.

He suddenly spoke: “Will it be long before I get to drink at your wedding?”

Ji Yu looked up at him in surprise. “Why do you say that all of a sudden?”

Shang Yuanzhou said calmly, “You aren’t involved in your family’s business. Going to the party… wasn’t it for a match-making alliance?”

Ji Yu was a bit embarrassed by his bluntness. Since meeting Shang Yuanzhou, he felt he had been embarrassed more times in two days than in a whole week. “President Shang must be joking. How could the people at that party look at me? It was all just polite small talk.”

Shang Yuanzhou: “What if someone did take an interest?”

Ji Yu touched the tip of his nose, beginning to deeply regret slipping out to this spot, yet he still had to answer: “I won’t be getting married.”

Shang Yuanzhou: “Why?”

What ‘why’ could there be…

Ji Yu wondered if Shang Yuanzhou was able to grow his business so large at such a young age because of this kind of persistent, “getting to the bottom of things” spirit. He was developing a headache from the questions. “No reason.”

His answer was short; the intent to end the topic was obvious.

Yet Shang Yuanzhou acted as if he didn’t understand the subtext, continuing: “You don’t want to say?”

“I remember you said in high school that you liked freedom. But your family probably won’t give up on the profit your marriage could bring.”

Even though Ji Yu was a Beta and the potential profit was limited, businessmen understood the principle of making the most of every asset.

Ji Yu was briefly stunned to hear him mention high school. From his memories, he found the words he had said to Shang Yuanzhou back then—no, back then, he was still Shang Fan.

Perhaps because Shang Yuanzhou brought up his own words, perhaps because Shang Yuanzhou’s current status meant there was no way he would repeat his thoughts to the Ji family, or perhaps simply because the night breeze was comfortable…

Ji Yu bared his inner heart to this man he wasn’t well-acquainted with: “I plan to leave after I pay back the money the Ji family has spent on me all these years. My parents gave me a life, but they don’t treat me as a human being. I have to treat myself as one.”

“I plan to go abroad.”

“I’m already preparing the documents. If my family takes a hard stance on forcing me to marry, then I’ll just send money back from abroad once I’ve saved enough; it’s the same thing.”

“I went to the party because these thoughts can’t be seen or spoken. If I speak them, I won’t be able to leave.”

Ji Yu smiled at Shang Yuanzhou, his attitude relaxed. “Though I know you wouldn’t—and there’s no reason for you to—I still want to say: please don’t let the Ji family know about this.”

This was the second time he had confessed his inner heart to an outsider. Once was in high school, and once was now. Both times were to Shang Yuanzhou.

Shang Yuanzhou stared at him fixedly. After a moment of silence, he suddenly smiled. “You haven’t changed, Ji Yu.”

Still the same as back in high school.

And still just as naive—

Not understanding the principle that you should never tell anyone the things you truly intend to do.