The Dangerous Omega Who is Good at Disguising Always Wants to Hook Me! - Chapter 110

Chapter 110: Finale Replacement

Shen Yunshu was very unhappy.

All day long, he wore a grim expression, lashing out with indiscriminate cynicism. Whether it was Qi Yan, Shen Xiliu, the other research staff, or even the Shen Clan Head back at the ancestral home—anyone who happened to cross his path got an earful.

The reason was simple: he had gone to immense trouble to “kidnap” Zhai Xuan back to the country, only for Zhai Xuan to stay tight-lipped about why the Shen Clan Head had sought him out years ago. Zhai Xuan kept citing professional ethics; no matter how Shen Yunshu pressured him, he wouldn’t breathe a word.

As for Qi Yan, after their talk that day, he had clearly undergone a subtle transformation. It was as if, overnight, he had become more mature and composed. Even the heavy, soul-deep aura of death that occasionally emanated from his grand-nephew seemed to have vanished in an instant.

“I’ve already had him join the Phase I clinical trials,” Shen Yunshu said coldly, seeing right through Qi Yan’s intentions as he tossed a thick stack of documents onto him. “It was a special case under my sole responsibility, which is why I didn’t let you know.”

Qi Yan’s project was progressing well. Once it entered clinical trials, Shen Yunshu immediately involved Shen Xiliu. The medication was indeed effective, alleviating Shen Xiliu’s psychological issues and preventing his pheromone disorder from escalating into a full-blown pheromone riot.

“I’ve troubled you,” Qi Yan said, picking up the files.

At the beginning, he hadn’t realized Shen Xiliu’s condition was so severe, which was why he hadn’t planned for him to participate as early as Phase I.

“Heh,” Shen Yunshu laughed sarcastically. “It really is a ‘trouble.’ To think I’m saving my own nephew and I have to be thanked by an ‘outsider’ like you. To the uninformed, they’d think you two were already married. When did this start? I haven’t even had a single wedding candy. What, are you keeping such a big event a secret for fear I’ll break you up? It seems you’ve treated me, your future mentor, as an outsider while treating my nephew as family long ago.”

Qi Yan’s mouth twitched at the sheer sarcasm. “…Director, could you please speak normally?”

Seriously, how did I not notice what a snarky person he was in my past life?

One could only say the perspective was different back then; Shen Yunshu used to be even better than Shen Xiliu at looking down his nose at people.

Qi Yan suddenly felt a twinge of regret about his plan to pursue further studies under Shen Yunshu. His current mentor, Qin Yimin, was a very kind person, and continuing his PhD under him would have been great. It was just that before he recovered his memories, he had a sort of blind idolization for the industry giant Shen Yunshu.

“Is my way of speaking not normal?” Shen Yunshu looked at him askance. “They say ‘a teacher for a day is a father for a lifetime.’ Even though I’m not your mentor yet, I will be soon. Since I’m your mentor, I’m essentially your father…”

“Then do you want me to send you to prison to meet Yi Hongli? I’m sure you’d have a lot to talk about regarding your shared desire to be someone’s ‘daddy’.” The door was suddenly pushed open. Shen Xiliu walked in with a cold sneer, staring at Shen Yunshu with an undisguised, oppressive aura.

It had been a long time since Shen Yunshu had seen Shen Xiliu act this way. Whenever Qi Yan was around, Shen Xiliu would usually mask himself a little. But now…

“How rude,” Shen Yunshu adjusted his glasses and said to Qi Yan. “Do you see this? My nephew is incredibly arrogant. He doesn’t even knock before entering an elder’s office. He has no respect for his elders at all.”

Qi Yan: “…”

He smiled and remained silent, pretending he hadn’t seen a thing.

“Ha.” Shen Xiliu gave a short laugh, fished a phone out of his pocket, and tossed it to him. “An elder who lacks virtue, likes to act on his seniority, and sows discord doesn’t deserve respect.”

The phone was thrown over with the speakerphone on. Shen Yunshu instinctively caught it: “Wait, Shen Xiliu, you—”

Honey?

A familiar, elegant, and gentlemanly voice came from the phone, carrying the distinct grace and refined upbringing of the aristocracy.

Shen Yunshu’s expression froze. Suddenly, the phone in his hand felt far too hot.

“Shen…” Xiliu, don’t go too far!

Shen Yunshu frowned deeply. He wanted to say that while internal bickering was fine, bringing an outsider into the fray was crossing a line!

Darling, I can guess what it is you want to know, the person on the other end said elegantly. Tell me, should I tell you?

One could only say that as the most calculating Alpha, he knew exactly which words would keep Shen Yunshu from pressing the end-call button.

“…So spineless.”

Seeing him like this, Shen Xiliu laughed. He would definitely not “air-drop” Shen Yunshu abroad in this life, but that didn’t mean he had no other ways to deal with the man.

“Qi Yan, let’s go. Honestly, I advise you not to work under him. Mentor Qin is a good man. Rather than being tortured under someone incompetent and immoral, you’re better off staying with Mentor Qin.”

He hadn’t felt comfortable saying this before because it was Qi Yan’s choice, but now that the memories were back, Shen Xiliu felt the Qi Yan who remembered would have a better understanding of Shen Yunshu.

Rather than staying in the institute to be tormented, it was better to return to school for his doctorate.

“That might not be right…” Qi Yan coughed lightly. Although he thought Shen Xiliu’s suggestion was excellent, Shen Yunshu did have his merits alongside his flaws.

“Nonsense!”

Shen Yunshu no longer cared about Shen Xiliu and the others. Holding the phone, he crossed his long legs with a mocking look: “You’re halfway across the world, how could you possibly know?”

He had already turned off the speakerphone. Qi Yan and Shen Xiliu couldn’t hear what the person on the other side was saying. Even Shen Yunshu had turned his wheelchair around, his back to them, his attention clearly consumed by the person on the other end.

It was a rare sight for Qi Yan to see Shen Yunshu so guarded. Holding the large box of documents, he curiously whispered to Shen Xiliu: “Is it… that person?”

The one who made Shen Yunshu “willingly” do… that.

“Yes. Let’s talk outside.” Shen Xiliu hooked his arm into Qi Yan’s, pulling him out of the office and whispering, “His name is Christian, he’s from Ital—”

Other people’s stories always sounded particularly grand and tumultuous, especially for people like Shen Yunshu. Qi Yan found it… interesting.

As long as it wasn’t his own story, other people’s lives were quite entertaining.

The first trial was over, and it would likely be a long time before the second trial. Grandpa, Grandma, and Ms. Xia were preparing to return to City C for New Year’s Day. Qi Yan and Shen Xiliu only saw them as far as the airport.

“Xiliu, thank you so much.” Ms. Xia gave Shen Xiliu a light hug, tears brimming in her eyes. A few days ago, Qi Yan and Shen Xiliu had accompanied her back to the old Xia family residence.

When they first arrived in City S, Ms. Xia and her parents had visited the area once, but they only looked at the exterior of the old house, reminiscing about the past and how kind her adoptive parents had been to her.

She hadn’t dared to go inside back then. Firstly, she was afraid the beautiful memories would be ruined, as everything had been sold off; secondly, since it belonged to someone else now, she felt it wouldn’t be right to enter…

Considering all that, she didn’t go in. Unexpectedly, a few days ago, Qi Yan personally took her inside. The house she thought would be unrecognizable was exactly as it was when she left over a decade ago; many areas had been beautifully maintained, which left Xia Yunqie deeply moved and surprised.

Qi Yan hadn’t hidden the truth from her; he told her everything Shen Xiliu had done.

Of course, he kept the matter of the rebirth a secret. Ms. Xia wasn’t like Shen Yunshu—she didn’t exhaust herself trying to dissect their relationship.

She simply smiled through her tears and said, “Thank you.”

Regardless of Shen Xiliu’s reasons, she wouldn’t pry. She cared more about the underlying emotion and intention, and was sincerely grateful to Shen Xiliu for protecting the home she had lived in for nearly thirty years.

“This… I…” Shen Xiliu hadn’t expected Ms. Xia to suddenly hug him. He froze, looking at Qi Yan with rare panic, his voice stammering, “You’re far too kind!”

“Alright, Mom, it’s time for you to board.” Qi Yan reached out to take Shen Xiliu’s hand and reminded her.

Ms. Xia looked at their joined hands, her eyes full of tenderness. She smiled gracefully: “You’re right.”

She wasn’t sure if it was because of her visit to Dr. Zhai, but she had been thinking a lot lately about how little Yan was as a child. The period when the psychiatrist said he had split personality was when she felt the most guilt. After all, if she hadn’t been such a failure as a mother, her child wouldn’t have ended up that way…

Fortunately, Dr. Zhai’s arrival changed Qi Yan’s situation, and Xia Yunqie was able to put her heart at ease. Later, when the Clan Head found them, little Yan had taken the initiative to change his name to Qi Yan.

When asked why, he had said with a calm face that it was the name he deserved—to be loathed (Yan) by everyone…

Then, seeing her cry, he would snap out of it, scratching his head in confusion, not knowing why he had said those things.

The past held too many questions, and Xia Yunqie was unwilling to look back. As long as the Qi Yan before her was happy, that was enough.

In some mysterious way, she felt that the two children before her hadn’t had it easy. She only hoped they would have peace, joy, and smooth sailing from now on.

Grandpa also looked over and said with a stern face, “I originally promised Old Brother Shen and Old Zhao that we’d go fishing in the mountains together. It looks like that’ll have to wait until after the New Year.”

“Thinking about fishing every single day. Do you really love it that much? Look at how old you are, and you still want to go into the mountains!” Grandma shook her head in disapproval. When they visited Shen Xiliu’s grandfather previously, they intended to return the favor, but the group of elderly fishermen had hit it off immediately on the subject. “Xiao Yan, don’t forget to come back and spend the New Year with us. If Xiliu is free to come along, that would be even better…”

Grandma only mentioned it briefly to avoid putting pressure on Shen Xiliu. After all, they had only recently started dating; if Shen Xiliu preferred to spend the New Year with his own family, it would be easy for him to decline.

However, after they saw them off and got into the car, Qi Yan said to Shen Xiliu, “Why don’t you come back to City C with me for the New Year this year?”

“Hmm?” Sitting in the passenger seat, Shen Xiliu turned to him, a faint smile appearing on his face.

Qi Yan noticed and lightly scratched his cheek with his index finger, his eyes fixed on the road ahead: “I have quite a few things I want to do with you.”

There were truly many things he wanted to do with Shen Xiliu. His memories of this life were so happy that they were enough to cover the misfortunes of the previous one, so he wanted to take Shen Xiliu along to experience them.

Qi Yan had only entered that room once, but he had memorized many of the photos. He also remembered the photo the Shen Clan Head had given him, knowing that the Shen Xiliu of the past hadn’t dared to appear before him.

Carrying the weight of the past life’s memories alone, he had followed Qi Yan, photographing many of his past experiences.

And in those photos, there was Qi Yan, his friends, brothers, and family—but never Shen Xiliu.

Qi Yan thought that perhaps, it was time to fill that gap.

They had too many regrets to make up for.

“…There’s no need to ask about something like that, is there?” Shen Xiliu looked at him with a smile. “Didn’t you promise never to leave me again?”

If Qi Yan left him behind to go back to City C for the New Year alone, Shen Xiliu wouldn’t be angry, but his sensitive nature would inevitably lead to many negative thoughts.

But the current Qi Yan would never let him think that way. Shen Xiliu knew that Qi Yan had always been gentle and attentive to detail; he wouldn’t leave him alone again.

“Of course.” Qi Yan also smiled. “It’s just that the original plan wasn’t like this.”

Before his memories returned, he couldn’t have been thick-skinned enough to bring a newly-dating Omega home. Such a move wouldn’t have been good for Shen Xiliu and would have left a bad impression on his family.

Originally, he was going to go back to City C alone and return to accompany him after the New Year. But now that his memories were back, it felt like he and Shen Xiliu had been together for a very long time.

Qi Yan didn’t elaborate on the original plan, only saying: “Tomorrow is New Year’s Day. Let’s go to Xingyue Bay to see the fireworks together.”

Shen Xiliu didn’t speak, feeling a bit dazed. New Year’s Day, Xingyue Bay, fireworks—the combination of these three terms easily brought back painful memories. Cold snowy nights, rampant jealousy… he was afraid that one more look would make him lose control. His envy for others and his yearning for Qi Yan had coiled around his heart like shadows, gnawing at his flesh day and night to survive. Yet, he had no right to rush forward and take Qi Yan away…

Before the chill could set in, Qi Yan’s warm palm grasped his slightly trembling fingers.

“This time, just the two of us, okay?”

It was time to let brand new memories overwrite those painful past experiences. There was no need to look back; Qi Yan would find ways to completely cover and replace the past. Shen Xiliu didn’t need to be jealous of anyone, and he didn’t need to stay trapped in the past, unable to move forward.

They would create a new beginning together.

“Yes.”

Shen Xiliu bowed his head. After a long while, he slowly turned to look at Qi Yan. His face wasn’t as pale as before, having regained some color. Even the three beauty marks under his left eye didn’t look quite so cold and aloof.

“Just us, the two of us.”

Shen Xiliu repeated.

“Yes, just the two of us.” Qi Yan looked at him and smiled. After speaking, he withdrew his hand: “Then I’ll stop holding your hand for now. There are quite a few cars here, and my driving skills are average. I’m not used to driving one-handed.”

He remembered that the New Year fireworks this year were quite beautiful, though he hadn’t seen them in the past life as he was still in the hospital. He remembered You Yi saying in the previous life that Shen Xiliu had gone to see them alone, and a heavy rainstorm had followed, soaking him to the bone.

He should remember to bring an umbrella tomorrow. Also, after New Year’s Day, it was Shen Xiliu’s birthday.

This year, he would be the first person to say happy birthday to Shen Xiliu. And he would be the first from now on.