Drunk On The Night Breeze - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

What did he mean? Was he saying it was unseemly for him to be tangling with an Alpha in public? Besides, he was the one being harassed; by no definition could he be called “lacking self-respect.”

Not long ago in the meeting room, Tao Zhi had said the same thing—telling him to have some self-respect.

It was completely… nonsensical.

“Are you sick in the head?” Ruan Lingfeng thought it, and then he actually said it out loud.

He stunned even himself the moment the words left his mouth.

Whether out of anger or the humiliation of being insulted in public, Ruan Lingfeng felt a surge of emotion rush to the top of his head. Usually, he had an excellent temperament and was very calculating when it came to professional interests. No matter how difficult or foul-mouthed a client was, even if a thousand storms were raging in his heart, he would maintain a smile and choose the most dignified words to communicate.

He would never, under any circumstances, speak to a client this way.

Ruan Lingfeng took a deep breath, wanting to say more, when a sudden wave of dizziness hit him. The terrible emotions, the pathetic wails of his ex-boyfriend on the ground, the restless scent of strong liquor in the air… it all converged in a chaotic mess to attack his consciousness.

Ruan Lingfeng shook his head and heard Tao Zhi’s voice, though it wasn’t directed at him.

Tao Zhi ignored Ruan Lingfeng and spoke to his manager instead: “Hurry up and take him upstairs.”

The manager didn’t react immediately, so Tao Zhi urged him impatiently: “Can’t you see this guy is about to collapse?!”

The manager looked at Ruan Lingfeng. The latter’s face was flushed an unnatural red, and he was swaying on his feet, looking teetering and precarious—it was exactly as Tao Zhi described. “Should I call an ambulance…”

Tao Zhi interrupted him: “Don’t make a mountain out of a molehill. Go ask their reception if they have any Omega suppressants on hand.”

The manager thought he had misheard: “What?”

Tao Zhi: “Just go up already!”

The manager closed his eyes and let out a sigh, his face a strange mask of suppressed frustration. He quickly pulled Tao Zhi to the side and headed toward Ruan Lingfeng, not forgetting to instruct Tao Zhi: “Don’t you dare cause trouble. Get in the car and wait for me. And don’t worry about that… gentleman on the ground. I’ll handle it later. I’ll come right back after I take Mr. Ruan upstairs. You must, must not pull any more stunts.”

Tao Zhi seemed to have lost all patience: “How much longer are you going to talk?”

Manager: “…”

And so, before Ruan Lingfeng could fully grasp the situation, he was being supported by Tao Zhi’s manager toward the elevators. On the way, the man asked him, “Mr. Ruan, are you alright?”

Ruan Lingfeng was dizzy, and his footsteps were weak, but he managed to maintain a baseline level of clarity. “I’m fine… thank you.”

As he spoke, he couldn’t help but glance back through his heavy head. Tao Zhi had indeed followed his manager’s words; he hadn’t moved further or cared whether the ex-boyfriend on the ground lived or died. He was walking in a different direction. Ruan Lingfeng caught a glimpse of Tao Zhi dragging someone holding a camera out from a corner.

Ruan Lingfeng didn’t have the capacity for deep thought at that moment, vaguely assuming Tao Zhi had brought a photographer along today.

The dizziness eased significantly after walking a distance. Feeling better, Ruan Lingfeng smiled at the manager and said again, “I’m alright now. You can leave me here… I don’t know what happened suddenly. I’m sorry for the trouble.”

“It’s good that you’re okay… We’re the ones who should apologize.” The manager looked embarrassed, seemingly trying to salvage Tao Zhi’s image. “Actually, Tao Zhi just thinks differently from most people. Plus, his temper is a bit short and he’s impulsive, but he doesn’t have any malicious intent… please, bear with him.”

In general, Ruan Lingfeng agreed with that statement—Tao Zhi had a rotten temper and was impulsive and brainless.

However, credit where credit was due. Now that he was calmer, he replied, “Regardless, I should thank him for helping me out. Otherwise, I really might not have been able to handle that Alpha. Thank him for me.”

The manager didn’t press further about the incident; after all, the entanglement between Ruan Lingfeng and that man was a private matter. Recalling what Tao Zhi had mentioned, he asked, “Did you… forget to take your suppressants today?”

Ruan Lingfeng froze. He realized his state earlier must have been mistaken for an Omega going into heat. Tao Zhi’s blunt claim that he was an Omega was likely because of this. In his haze, he had even heard Tao Zhi tell the manager to find suppressants.

But how could that be? Today was definitely strange—he had smelled an Alpha scent he shouldn’t have been able to—but he had a “defect.” That was the verdict doctors gave him during puberty. He had lived to twenty-seven without ever having a heat, and he never would.

He chuckled and said, “I don’t need suppressants.”

“Eh?”

“I’m a Beta,” Ruan Lingfeng said, too tired to explain his medical condition to others, using the “Beta” label he had used countless times before. “I’ve probably just been sleeping too little lately, and with the heat, I just felt a bit lightheaded.”

Ruan Lingfeng genuinely believed this. A heat cycle was a sheer impossibility. Recently, to finish the proposal for Tao Zhi’s concert, he had survived on three or four hours of sleep for several days. He had likely reached his body’s limit.

“As long as you’re okay. Get some rest and remember to drink plenty of water.” They reached the elevator. Seeing that Ruan Lingfeng was fine and insistent on going up alone, the manager didn’t follow further, offering a polite parting: “If you need anything, feel free to contact me.”

Ruan Lingfeng said again, “Thank you for today.”

Neither mentioned the proposal or the partnership, simply saying their goodbyes.

Even without the sudden physical discomfort, Ruan Lingfeng had planned to rest. He had intended to go home and sleep like the dead after reporting the proposal; he was truly exhausted.

Since entering this industry, sacrificing sleep for overtime was common. Even when he did sleep, he was often pulled out of dreams by various trivialities. He felt like a person destined to never have good dreams.

Even though he planned to rest, he was mentally prepared for only a short nap. Seconds before lying down, he was still holding his laptop, reviewing a project draft submitted by an intern in the group chat and assigning several tasks.

However, when he woke up again, Ruan Lingfeng opened his eyes to total darkness. Only the distant city lights filtered into the room. He felt groggy, fumbling for his phone by the bedside. One look, and over ten hours had passed.

There were several missed calls. Ruan Lingfeng never muted his phone; it was rare that these calls hadn’t woken him.

Despite the long sleep, he didn’t feel refreshed. His head was still heavy. Uncharacteristically, he only handled the most urgent matters, pushing the rest to his to-do list.

Some colleagues asked if the collaboration with Tao Zhi would continue. Tao Zhi’s side hadn’t reached out, so he couldn’t answer, leaving those questions hanging for now.

After finishing this, Ruan Lingfeng slowly climbed out of bed, turned on the lights, and headed to the kitchen to see if there was anything to eat while opening his private WeChat.

His younger sister, Ruan Xinyu, had bombarded him with over a dozen messages.

Slipping into his slippers, Ruan Lingfeng rummaged through the fridge for the wilted greens he hadn’t had time to cook, thinking of making some simple vegetable congee while clicking on his sister’s chat.

They were all about Tao Zhi.

In the morning, out of spite, Ruan Lingfeng had trashed Tao Zhi to his sister. Initially, she replied, “Stop talking nonsense, you’re just jealous.” But hours later, while Ruan Lingfeng was deep in sleep, she had forwarded several tabloid Weibo posts to him.

Tao Zhi Assaults Someone Suspected Violent Tendencies? Tao Zhi Brutally Attacks Innocent Pedestrian in Parking Lot Rising Singer Tao Zhi Involved in Violent Incident; Studio Has Yet to Respond

Sister: OMG, my idol’s image has collapsed! Crying

Ruan Lingfeng’s heart skipped a beat at the headlines. A fight in a parking lot with a “pedestrian”—wasn’t that exactly what happened this morning? Tao Zhi had only kicked that idiot ex-boyfriend to help him out.

Only now did Ruan Lingfeng realize why his colleagues were so suddenly and urgently asking about the collaboration.

It was because of the scandal.

Ruan Lingfeng stuffed the wilted greens back into the fridge, holding his breath as he read the messages and comments on the Weibo Trending list.

It turned out there were indeed paparazzi lying in wait in their company’s parking lot, likely following Tao Zhi from the start. They had captured photos of Tao Zhi kicking the man and preparing to press a cigarette into his face. Though the shot was from a distance and the pixels were low, the signature red hair was unmistakable.

Beyond the photos, these tabloids exaggerated how Tao Zhi had punched and kicked an “innocent passerby” who was “crying and begging for mercy,” yet Tao Zhi hadn’t stopped his violent behavior.

The photos weren’t fake, and the assault—Tao Zhi really did hit him—but it was completely different from what Ruan Lingfeng knew.

Tao Zhi didn’t hit him for no reason.

Ruan Lingfeng looked at the comments on the Trending Page. Netizens were already in a heated debate.

“I knew this guy was a little thug… back when I said he was rude, his fans chased me down saying ‘oppa’ is just blunt and authentic. Now that there are photos of him hitting someone, let’s see who dares to call it ‘authenticity’ now.”

“You’re telling me? I actually saw some brainless fans saying it looks hot and has ‘sexual tension’.”

“Is there a reason? These unscrupulous tabloids love to cut out the beginning and end to make up stories; it’s nothing new.”

“An entire afternoon and evening have passed. If it were really a misunderstanding, they would have cleared it up by now.”

“It’s just hype, right? This guy loves buying hot searches for himself. He’s always manipulating public opinion.”

 “But he usually only buys searches for his songs, right? They are actually pretty good… (whispers)”

Ruan Lingfeng felt a headache coming on. Yes, Tao Zhi loved the spotlight, but according to the research Ruan had done for the proposal, this guy was a typical cocky kid. If he wrote a song he thought was good, he had to make sure everyone heard it; if he won an award, he had to make the whole world know how great he was.

Given his personality, even if he were to hype this up, he would have focused on the “Saving an Omega from Harassment” angle as he had said at the time. Why would he only amplify his “brutality”?

Maybe a rival leaked it maliciously… Ruan Lingfeng suddenly remembered: he had glimpsed the moment Tao Zhi caught the paparazzi, but his brain wasn’t functioning at the time, and he had instinctively assumed it was just a regular photographer.

But even if someone took the shot with malicious intent, Tao Zhi had caught the person—how did the photos still get out? Was Tao Zhi really hyping this himself?

He refreshed Weibo and saw the latest update: the victim had reported it to the police, and Tao Zhi was currently under investigation.

If the rumors were true, how could this be hype?

And did Xu Mao actually have the nerve to call the police?

Right then, Tao Zhi’s manager’s phone call came through at the perfect moment.