The Omega Who Canceled the Engagement Ended Up Falling for Me - Chapter 24

Fu Shuang’s workplace was only two or three kilometers away from Xu Qing’s unit. After dropping her off and heading back, Xu Qing was only fifteen minutes late. This wouldn’t have been a big deal normally, but she happened to run into Director Li from the office next door, who had come looking for her.

“Oh, just getting in now?” The woman spoke in a snide, mocking tone. Peering through her gold-rimmed glasses, she looked Xu Qing up and down and huffed. “I came by your office twice this morning and knocked; there wasn’t a soul here. You young people really don’t take your work seriously. How do you expect to get promoted acting like this?”

In the past, hearing this would have made Xu Qing panic. But after the recent storms she’d weathered, she had a new perspective on her job and didn’t take the superior’s words to heart. Instead, she calmly set down her bag and helmet and poured herself a glass of water, preparing to face the day.

“We young people don’t wake up as early as you do, and we live quite far away. Getting to the office before nine is already doing well,” Xu Qing said with a harmless smile after taking a sip of water. “Director, did you need something from me? Or were you looking for my colleagues? They might be a bit later than me.”

Behind the gold rims, Director Li’s shrewd eyes darted around. “Is your department always like this, or is it just today?”

“I’ve only been here for two months, so I’m not entirely sure,” Xu Qing replied nonchalantly. “Why? Are we starting to strictly monitor attendance now?”

“Just checking the situation. Write a self-reflection on your tardiness and give it to me this afternoon,” the woman said, adjusting her glasses. She pointed a finger at Xu Qing. “And one more thing—this concerns your personal conduct.”

Xu Qing raised an eyebrow, listening intently.

“Your family wants you to call them back. What is this mess you’re making?”

Xu Qing replied, “That’s it?”

“How much more of a mess do you want? What kind of child doesn’t return their parents’ calls? You’re an adult; is it really worth throwing a tantrum over a small matter?” As she spoke, the bridge of her glasses slipped further down. Her stern eyes glared at Xu Qing from over the frames, radiating pressure.

“Did Ms. Min ask you to come persuade me?”

“What ‘Ms. Min’? Your mother is your mother. Can you not even bring yourself to call her ‘Mom’?” She nearly rolled her eyes.

“Then tell her this: since it’s a family matter, she shouldn’t involve outsiders. Dragging these trivial affairs into the office makes it common knowledge. I’m not afraid of losing face, but I wonder if she is?” Xu Qing said this with a smile, her expression unchanged.

Director Li’s face turned various shades of blue and white. She snapped, “You really don’t know what’s good for you!” She turned to leave, nearly walking into the door, before adding spitefully, “What a heartless creature!”

Xu Qing called out, “Watch your step on the way out.”

This scene was witnessed by Xiao Zhao, who was delivering documents in the hallway and stood there with her hand over her mouth in shock.

While government jobs were stable and you didn’t have to fear being fired, it was a lifelong career. Colleagues usually maintained a surface-level harmony; who would dare talk back to a superior like that?

Once Director Li was gone, Xiao Zhao curiously approached Xu Qing. “Hey, what did you say to make the boss that angry?”

“She insisted on meddling in my family drama,” Xu Qing said. “She deserved to be upset.”

“Incredible. I guess having family connections makes you brave enough to defy leadership,” Xiao Zhao said admiringly. Remembering the recent gossip, she couldn’t help but ask, “By the way, what happened with that broken engagement of yours?”

Xu Qing had almost forgotten about it. “Nothing much lately. It should be over now.”

Xiao Zhao said somewhat regretfully, “I saw the news. That Boss Fu recently bought a yacht, probably preparing for a remarriage. You were almost his son-in-law. Don’t you find it a bit of a pity?”

Xu Qing asked, “Ah, a pity for what?”

“You missed out on a fortune!” Xiao Zhao winked. “Don’t tell me your family is even richer than his?”

Xu Qing gave a dry laugh, thinking that if the Xu family were that wealthy, her parents would have to be incredibly corrupt. She shrugged and asked, “Do I look like a rich person to you?”

“True, you won’t even buy a designer bag,” Xiao Zhao teased. “But that Little Deng in your office? The Hermès she’s been carrying lately was a gift from the Deputy Director. Don’t tell anyone I said that.”

Xu Qing: “…”

After the gossipy Xiao Zhao left, Xu Qing reopened the recruitment website and submitted a few resumes. She didn’t want to rot in this position, living her whole life under her parents’ surveillance.

During her break, Xu Qing opened her messaging app and checked Fu Shuang’s social feed.

Fu Shuang posted rarely—mostly landscapes and a couple of selfies. Xu Qing secretly saved a selfie, only to find in her gallery that she had already saved it three days ago. This repetitive, unconscious behavior further confirmed the feelings in her heart.

Before Fu Shuang, Xu Qing had never been in a real relationship.

In high school, a couple of girls had feelings for her, but Ms. Min found out somehow. Before the girls could even act, Ms. Min confronted them. This bizarre behavior terrified the girls, who avoided Xu Qing from then on.

In college, many Omegas confessed to Xu Qing, but they were all “pretty boy” types who weren’t her type at all. She couldn’t imagine living with a tearful Omega boy. After going abroad, she couldn’t fit into the uninhibited environment of the locals, so she naturally became that “pathetic soul” who remained single throughout.

If you surveyed all Alphas in society, over 50% probably had their first love before eighteen. For someone Xu Qing’s age to have never been in a relationship was rare indeed.

The feeling of these fluttering heartbeats was foreign to her, but it was thrilling. It made her so excited she’d wake up in the middle of the night smiling.

Fu Shuang’s feed was sparse. The earliest post was a photo of cherry blossoms from six months ago, captioned: I wish you could have stayed with me a bit longer.

Was she mourning the briefness of the blossoms, or was she trying to hold on to something else?

Xu Qing left the question unanswered and pulled her wandering focus back to her work.

In the afternoon, she sent Fu Shuang a message: “What time do you get off work?”

Seven or eight minutes later, Fu Shuang replied: “I can leave early today, 6:30. What about you?”

It was clear she was truly busy; her previous slow replies hadn’t been intentional.

Xu Qing: “I’ll wait for you. Meet at the usual spot?”

Fu Shuang sent a sticker of a cat blowing a kiss, which made Xu Qing feel quite bashful.

Using AI to write the self-reflection, Xu Qing delivered it to Director Li. Finding her in a meeting, Xu Qing simply dropped the paper on her desk, closed the door, and left.

Around 6:20 PM, Xu Qing was already at the bottom of the office building. She saw a message from Fu Shuang: “Sorry, sister, I’m not finished yet. Why don’t you head back first? I’ll just take a taxi later.”

Xu Qing: “It’s fine. Finish up, I’ll wait for you.”

Close to 7:00 PM, Fu Shuang finally came down. She spotted Xu Qing and the motorcycle immediately and ran over. Like a magic trick, she pulled a small cake from behind her back—

“Ta-da!” Fu Shuang said happily. “Thanks for your hard work. Have you been waiting long?”

Xu Qing got off the bike and asked with a smile, “Where did the cake come from?”

“A colleague gave it to me. Taste it, see if it’s good?” Fu Shuang blinked, carefully watching Xu Qing’s expression.

Hearing “a colleague gave it to me,” Xu Qing’s eyes seemed to cloud over, turning a shade darker. Her lips moved as if to say something, but suddenly her face felt a cold touch. Fu Shuang had mischievously dabbed some cream on her.

Fu Shuang giggled. “I lied! It’s a piece of cake from a colleague’s birthday party.”

Xu Qing: “…”

So she was intentionally testing me just now? That was a bit “tea-like” behavior.

“I thought someone was pursuing you,” Xu Qing said, cream still on her face, playing along with the girl’s lead. Just as she opened her mouth, Fu Shuang fed her a large bite.

Fu Shuang sent the fork and cake into Xu Qing’s mouth. Xu Qing pulled the fork out, savored the cream cake, and asked with a light smile, “Speaking of which, when is your birthday?”

“September. It just passed,” Fu Shuang said, feeding herself a small bite. She bit the plastic fork and leaned forward, smiling sweetly. “Why? Is sister going to give me a birthday gift?”

Xu Qing: “Didn’t your birthday already pass? We’ll have to wait until next year.”

“My birthday was just a few days before I met you. Just because we missed it by a few days, I don’t get a gift?” Fu Shuang argued playfully. “Not knowing you before my birthday was already a huge regret. To miss out on a gift too would be a double regret, sister!”

Xu Qing was defeated by that bone-meltingly sweet “sister.” She said helplessly, “Fine. I’ll make up your birthday to you this weekend. What gift do you want?”

Having successfully played the spoiled child, Fu Shuang dug out another piece of cake with the fork and thought about it. “What gift… would sister’s kiss be okay?”

Xu Qing’s eyelids flickered. Hearing the girl speak so playfully, she asked, “That shouldn’t be a very difficult request, right?”

Their eyes met. Xu Qing curved her lips and said nonchalantly, “Mm, indeed, it’s not a very difficult request.”

That casual tone of hers was, to Fu Shuang, incredibly charming. It made it seem as if what they were discussing was no big deal at all.

Fu Shuang felt scorched by her own breath. She touched her cheek with the back of her hand; her face was indeed burning. As she raised her hand, the plastic fork fell. She suddenly became nervous, and as she wobbled, the cake in her hand became precarious—

“Ah!”

She reached out with both hands to save the cake, but the back of her hand was caught by another pair of hands. An unfamiliar warmth suddenly pressed against her. Fu Shuang seemed frozen in place, reaching a delicate balance between the urge to retreat in panic and the instinct to lean in.

Her hand was held by Xu Qing’s, steadying the triangular slice of cake. The plastic fork Xu Qing had just used was still stuck in it.

“What do I do… my fork fell…” Fu Shuang lowered her head, acting coy. “What a pity, I only had one bite.”

Xu Qing: “It is a pity. Although you could use my fork, it seems we aren’t quite at the stage where we can share a fork yet.”

Fu Shuang furrowed her soft brows. Her exquisitely made-up face was as beautiful as a doll’s. Her thin shoulders slumped as she sighed softly, “True. What should we do then?”

“Solving this problem isn’t actually that troublesome,” Xu Qing said slowly, lowering her head and swallowing. “If you really want to eat this cake, and you happen to… find me agreeable, we could try to develop our relationship.”

Her words were like a hypnotic spell, imperceptibly numbing Fu Shuang’s nerves. Fu Shuang looked like a good student listening intently and taking notes in class.

Seeing her nod, Xu Qing stood a bit straighter and asked once more, with great solemnity: “So, Lulu, do you really want to eat this cake?”

The attentive “good student” nodded toward her without the slightest hesitation.

Xu Qing took a soft, long breath and heard herself speak: “So, baby, are you willing to be my girlfriend?”