The Popular/Charismatic Beta Always Thinks They Are Universally Disliked - Chapter 17

Chapter 17: He Has No Tomorrow

The dream, which abruptly concluded with the break of dawn, was like a film strip snapping suddenly in the darkness. The blurred people and events in the dream instantly vanished as the medium collapsed.

Wen Zhiyi opened his eyes in a daze, reaching vaguely for the phone on his pillow. Only when his hand met empty air did he remember leaving his phone on the desk before going to sleep.

Yawning, he rubbed his messy, dishevelled hair. The slightly long, soft, black strands fell obediently over his eyes, obscuring his dark, relaxed eyebrows. Annoyed by the hair blocking his vision, Wen Zhiyi smoothed it back onto the top of his head. The indifferent lethargy often seen on his face right after waking up lessened slightly.

He was too lazy to check his phone right away, so he went straight to wash up. Cold water brought instant coolness and comfort upon touching his cheeks. Wen Zhiyi let out a sigh of genuine contentment from the bottom of his heart, raising his eyebrows to look at the youth still dripping with water droplets in the mirror.

Wen Zhiyi considered himself to exude a substantial Beta aura in both appearance and temperament, which was indeed true. He seemed to have a very pronounced sense of low desire, appearing indifferent due to his restrained temperament, seemingly uninterested in any form of intimate or sexual relationship.

Yet, this very low desire made him look even more subtly sensual. Yes, even his sexiness was tinged with restraint and lack of desire. The accumulated fatigue in his eyes revealed an innocent yet exhausted ‘husband’ quality.

Wen Zhiyi always felt that the expressionless youth in the mirror was missing something. He frowned in thought but still couldn’t find the answer.

Of course, he couldn’t think of the answer—

What he lacked was a sense of burgeoning desire. Toss him onto the street, and you wouldn’t even need to look at the back of his neck to know he was a Beta.

Water droplets still clung to his dark, thick eyebrows. The slightly messy brow ridge, due to not being groomed for a while, ironically gave Wen Zhiyi a hint of vivid, lively charm, allowing him to pass for a high school student with just a washed face.

However, he could only pass for a high school student overwhelmed by studies, not the hormone-fueled, naive high school student in a romantic movie.

…

After washing up, Wen Zhiyi returned to his room to check his phone. It was still early, just seven o’clock—a time too early to be fully awake but too late to go back to sleep.

He started replying to messages on his social media.

PART 1: The Advisor

Ambitious: The overall structure is quite good. Except for the final section where the path to resolution could be clearer, ask your senior classmates for their opinions on other issues.

One Who Understands Subtlety: Okay, thank you, Professor. Rose Rose

Wen Zhiyi’s advisor adopted a very hands-off, Zen-like policy with his students. Little Wen chose him for this reason. The number of group meetings in a semester could be counted on five fingers.

Wen’s parents had intended to contact other advisors for him, but Wen Zhiyi vetoed all of them. Regarding his relationship with his father, Wen Zhiyi preferred the academic department to remain ignorant, so he had been deliberately vague when filling out the family background section upon enrollment.

He had no intention of a complete break with his family but generally wanted to establish himself in a place completely independent of his parents.

Even as an ordinary Beta, Wen Zhiyi still had his pride.

PART 2: Miscellaneous Contacts

He casually replied to a few friends, declined a few insignificant invitations, and casually chatted a few words in a group chat. Finally, he saw a few friends, not particularly close but quite nice people, discussing going mountaineering this semester. Little Wen’s heart stirred, and he asked where they planned to go.

“Snow mountains! If you’re an Alpha, go straight for 8,000 meters. Anything less isn’t a true Alpha. K2, Lhotse, Broad Peak… Don’t bring up anything below that standard for discussion.”

Wen Zhiyi clicked his tongue. Hmm, as a mere Beta, he wouldn’t join in on that excitement.

He firmly believed that these physically monstrous Alphas in the chat were not the same species as him.

“…Is Zhiyi planning to join?”

A warm and lively female Beta in the chat group asked.

After her question, the group chat of over a dozen people fell silent for a moment. Soon, others picked up the topic, inquiring about Wen Zhiyi’s intentions.

“We estimate leaving in early September. Considering the round trip, the most time this many people can collectively spare is three or four days. The choices for that duration are limited. Places like Mount Ottana, Mount Sawu, and Haba Snow Mountain are very suitable for beginners.”

Lin Chang, sensing a rare approachable signal from the ‘male god’, slowly typed a few lines.

“If Zhiyi is interested, you can trust us. Everyone has extensive experience. We’ll handle the preparation work and the route team, so you don’t need to worry. The only thing you need to do is a little pre-training with weighted climbs. What do you say, want to consider it?”

He sincerely offered the bait and then quietly awaited Wen Zhiyi’s reply.

Little Wen looked at the barrage of invitations in the chat, only having a slight impression of the Beta who persistently tried to persuade him.

I think he’s Wen Zhijie’s friend.

He generally had an impression of Elder Wen’s friends, and Lin Chang was no exception.

But besides that, Wen Zhiyi couldn’t recall anything about this person. He couldn’t even find a label to put on this Beta. The only characteristic that stood out was probably—quiet?

Elder Wen’s friends were basically as chatty as him. It was rare to have one with a quiet and meticulous personality.

Wen Zhiyi admitted he was a little tempted. If he had experienced people as companions, his first mountaineering trip would likely avoid many pitfalls.

Little Wen, at this moment, had no idea that this instant of temptation would lead to him lying weakly in the snow, unable to stop his tears, a little over half a month later. Well, having the whole team take turns using a rope to drag him little by little to the finish line isn’t too embarrassing.

…

After resolving this major event, Wen Zhiyi sighed in relief and began replying to other messages.

He looked at the 99+ notifications on the message interface and frowned, clicking into Wei Xingjiang’s chat window.

The arrogant Alpha’s profile picture was surprisingly normal—a sleek, angular, cool helmet, the complex, layered structure allowing Wen Zhiyi to recognize it as a motorcycle helmet.

It had a deep, matte, sandblasted texture overall, but the visor adopted a playful, iridescent cat-eye shape. Vulgarly fun graffiti, in bright, saturated candy colors, trailed from the corners of the visor. The frivolous boldness of the glossy paint formed a contradictory yet surprisingly harmonious contrast with the deep restraint of the matte finish.

Wen Zhiyi watched for a few seconds but couldn’t decipher what the casually scribbled, candy-colored graffiti said.

He only recognized the letter ‘W’.

Wei Xingjiang started messaging him from 1 AM. God knows why this high school student was so energetic.

“Tomorrow night, no, tonight, come to my house. My dad wants to see you. Don’t be nervous; he’s not a good person.”

“If he asks about me, you know how to answer, right? After all, we’re kind of partners, aren’t we?”

“Betas your age sleep this early? It’s just past one. You don’t have a nightlife at all?”

“Tsk, single Betas are like this. I overestimated you.”

“…Don’t tell me you’re not single. If you have a partner, you should consciously keep your distance from Alphas, not just come over like you did last time!”

…

Wei Xingjiang’s messages stopped around 2 AM and resumed between 5 and 6 AM.

“You’re not tall, but you sure can sleep. I’m curious, what exactly is the purpose of sufficient sleep for you—?”

His last message was:

“You’re dead, aren’t you?”

The resentful “You’re dead, aren’t you?” fully exposed the high school Alpha’s uncontrollable concern and awkwardness. Wei Xingjiang himself certainly couldn’t detect the awkward anticipation and complaint in the sentence, and it was even less likely that Wen Zhiyi would notice.

He lightly exited the chat with Wei Xingjiang, naturally choosing to ignore him.

As for how long he would ignore him?

Well, that depends on his mood.

…

The youth, whose eyes were indifferent, didn’t take this small interlude to heart. After confirming with Assistant Fang, he received confirmation that the meeting was happening. Mr. Wei invited him to be a guest at the Wei residence tonight, ostensibly to better understand his son’s tutor.

He thought for a moment and realized that he still wanted to do this job well. Plus, he genuinely had no other plans today, so he readily accepted Mr. Wei’s invitation.

The Wei family’s car arrived punctually as usual. This was Wen Zhiyi’s second time riding in the car, and he lacked the initial wariness and curiosity. He was surprised to find a familiar face in the car besides the driver.

Assistant Fang, sitting in the passenger seat, turned around and gave Wen Zhiyi a polite, reliable smile: “Mr. and Mrs. Wei will be having dinner with you today. As for Young Master Wei, he unfortunately won’t be able to attend. High school students should be in school attending classes, after all.”

He winked at Wen Zhiyi after speaking.

Assistant Fang was also a Beta. His daily image was always smartly dressed in a suit, appearing stable, reliable, reserved, and gentle—a typical role model for an assistant from head to toe. The occasional display of a highly personalized trait made him seem much more approachable.

“Will he really obediently go to school?” Wen Zhiyi raised an eyebrow.

“Of course—not obediently, but he’ll go eventually,” Assistant Fang had already turned back around. He typed on his phone, casually revealing Wei Xingjiang’s daily routine to Wen Zhiyi: “Even if it’s just for show, he has to go a few days a week. Young Master Wei is actually a very intelligent child. I believe you can sense that.”

Intelligent?

Wen Zhiyi had reservations about the word Assistant Fang chose.

Perhaps sensing Wen Zhiyi’s noncommittal silence, Assistant Fang chuckled, cleanly put away his phone, and focused on chatting with Little Wen: “Before you, Young Master Wei had several private tutors. They were responsible for teaching high school and some university courses. In addition to them, Young Master Wei also has several mentors, including Ms. Feng. So, his academic load is actually not light.”

“Does he act very unmotivated in front of you? The next time you come to the Wei residence, you could try testing him on the content you taught last time. The results shouldn’t disappoint you.”

After Assistant Fang finished speaking, Wen Zhiyi spoke, but his first sentence was not a continuation of the topic but a request: “—Please don’t call me ‘Sir.’ Based on seniority, shouldn’t I be calling you ‘Brother’? I can tell that Wei Xingjiang’s occasional ‘distractions’ are more like an uncontrollable attention dispersion. Seriously, haven’t you taken him to the hospital?”

“Brother,” Assistant Fang carefully mulled over the slightly cool word that left Wen Zhiyi’s mouth, chuckling softly in his heart. On the surface, he maintained his formal posture and said: “It’s just a mild emotional issue, nothing severe. Bringing Jack home was also a suggestion from a doctor for pet therapy. Young Master Wei cared for that cat like the apple of his eye, doing everything personally, even disobeying Mr. Wei a few times. So, you know what happened later.”

Simply put, regarding Wei Xingjiang’s psychological issue, Mr. Wei’s act of discarding Zhuangzhuang was akin to the most useless thing in the house throwing away the only useful thing.

Wen Zhiyi couldn’t understand but was greatly shocked.

…

As the car drove into the Wei family garden, the time was precisely six o’clock.

Large, magnificent, flame-like clouds were layered across the sky, from far to near. Wen Zhiyi, stepping into the Wei residence under the full evening glow, sighed at the sheer villainy of the capitalists. The moment he stepped out of the car, he felt an unnaturally low temperature in the garden. In the sweltering heat that almost cooked people, several open-air cooling units were undoubtedly placed here.

His two employers, Mr. Wei and Ms. Wang Han, looked no different from when they first met, as handsome and profound and as beautiful and noble as ever. Wei Xingjiang clearly inherited the best of both of them, which was one of the few things Mr. Wei was satisfied with.

None of Mr. Wei’s mistresses outside had successfully borne him a child. In a sense, it was precisely because Wei Xingjiang was a presentable, high-grade S-class Alpha who sufficiently resembled him.

Therefore, he didn’t need more children.

Otherwise, given Mr. Wei’s aesthetic preference for female Omegas, Wei Xingjiang would have countless half-siblings.

What surprised Wen Zhiyi slightly was that Feng Yun, whom he had met the day before yesterday, was also present.

The beautiful Omega, wearing a business suit, gave him a slight nod. Her hair was neatly pulled back into a smooth, tidy bun. Her head shape was round and full, and her posture was elegant and proper, standing silently behind the Wei couple.

Wen Zhiyi had already sensed Feng Yun’s identity from the strange atmosphere. This Omega seemed to be more than just Wei Xingjiang’s mentor.

The surprise flashed in his mind, but he neither cared nor was concerned. As the group was seated at the dining table, three additional people were seated around the wooden dinner table draped with an embroidered tablecloth. Assistant Fang and Feng Yun did not join them for the meal but sat in the sunroom outside the dining area, chatting quietly.

Mr. Wei sat at the head of the table, while Wang Han and Wen Zhiyi sat on either side.

Wen Zhiyi recalled that when he first met Ms. Wang Han and Wei Xingjiang, the former had mentioned ‘etiquette class,’ yet the Wei family, who seemed to highly value etiquette and order, had not arranged the seating according to proper dining etiquette when hosting a guest.

He chuckled internally at this.

Wen Zhiyi boredly pierced the truffle onsen egg in the appetizer. Having dined with Wei Yuzhi for the past two years, he recognized the white truffle on the onsen egg. He couldn’t quite accept the smell, so he quietly stuffed it under the accompanying sourdough bread slice.

Wang Han, sitting opposite him, seemed to notice and looked over. Sensing her gaze, Wen Zhiyi looked up and gave a faint smile. The flat, deep corners of his almond eyes smoothly relaxed, and his thick, beautiful eyebrows lifted slightly.

Who could resist a top-tier model’s sweet smile?

Wang Han certainly couldn’t.

She was momentarily dazed, instinctively returning a meaningful, beautiful smile to Wen Zhiyi.

Mr. Wei, seated between the two, maintained his usual expression. He hadn’t touched his knife and fork much. To speak to Wen Zhiyi, he naturally tilted his head slightly to his left: “Mr. Little Wen… you must know Yuzhi, right?”

The soft murmurs of conversation from the sunroom outside abruptly ceased.

What must come, always comes.

Little Wen, who was addressed, was not surprised by Mr. Wei’s question. The moment he agreed to become Wei Xingjiang’s private tutor, he knew all his personal history would be thoroughly investigated, which was one of the costs of a high-paying job.

He was only slightly surprised by the Wei family’s inefficiency—it took them until now to uncover the fact that he and Wei Yuzhi were once married.

He was unaware that Mr. Wei had to bypass layers of defenses to unearth his personal information, and the reason he succeeded was thanks to one detail—Wei Yuzhi was about to move into the same complex where the two Wen brothers currently lived.

Mr. Wei’s subordinates followed this lead, using the shared complex between Wei Yuzhi and Wen Zhiyi as a starting point. After compiling and verifying multiple information chains, they finally confirmed the identity of his nephew’s spouse from two years ago.

However, this was not a major issue in itself. Mr. Wei’s stance within the Wei family had already tilted toward Wei Yuzhi long ago. The only reason he was so curiously determined to investigate was the sheer obsession stemming from his failure to find out who Wei Yuzhi’s spouse was two years ago.

Two years ago, the drastic change in Wei Yuzhi’s assets scared the Wei family into thinking this ancestor was about to stir up more trouble. The entire social circle they were in became jittery, with all kinds of true and false business rumors emerging endlessly. The aftermath proved that he had merely gotten married and wanted to amuse his spouse.

Two years later, the person for whom his nephew had played the beacon signal game was sitting at this very table. Mr. Wei’s investigative curiosity was naturally impossible to suppress.

“Perhaps it’s more than just an acquaintance,” Wen Zhiyi replied frankly. “Since Mr. Wei has brought up Wei Yuzhi, you must have already investigated the nature of our relationship.”

Little Wen was not entirely sure of the exact relationship between Mr. Wei and Wei Yuzhi, so out of caution, he vaguely and subtly acknowledged the connection, revealing no further information and making no mention of their impending divorce.

After Wen Zhiyi’s sentence, he clearly saw the hostility value next to Mr. Wei subtly increase by a notch, reaching about 10%.

?

This is quite strange.

It looks like his relationship with Wei Yuzhi is not good?

Wen Zhiyi believed he had found a reasonable explanation, and his frown subtly relaxed.

Hmph. Trouble-maker Wei Yuzhi.

“That’s truly unfortunate and a shame.” As the soft linen napkin in his hand wrinkled, Mr. Wei unhurriedly wiped the corner of his lips with the napkin. “However, I have a small question. You can disregard it if you don’t wish to answer, Mr. Little Wen.”

“Please ask.”

Wen Zhiyi heard Mr. Wei’s composed, cold, and dignified voice speaking word by word. The other person seemed to be considering how to phrase his words, so his pace was slightly slow, yet clear and coherent.

He heard the voice say:

“A while ago—around August 10th—I didn’t see Mr. Little Wen at the Old Madam’s funeral. That genuinely puzzles me. After all, the Old Madam was Yuzhi’s grandmother. Though not my birth mother, she was a respected elder to everyone in the Wei family. As Yuzhi’s partner, why did you not attend, Mr. Little Wen?”

Mr. Wei looked at Wen Zhiyi, who was gazing down at the napkin on his lap, and added casually, with a hint of confusion: “Of course, if this question makes you uncomfortable, Mr. Little Wen, please pretend I didn’t ask it.”

Wen Zhiyi’s lowered, long lashes trembled slightly for a moment.

Why didn’t he attend?

Why did he only just now find out that Wei Yuzhi’s grandmother had passed away?

Why did he only just now find out what Wei Yuzhi was doing on their wedding anniversary, August 10th?

An indescribable wave of absurdity and bewilderment completely submerged Wen Zhiyi. He couldn’t answer any of the three questions above, because he knew the answers were not within himself.

Wen Zhiyi calmly told himself, once again: The answers to these questions belong to a cold and hard asshole.

With this unshakeable and indifferent realization, Wen Zhiyi slowly raised his head to meet the gaze of the older Alpha beside him. He saw various emotions like amusement, interest, and curiosity in those dark, cold eyes, all impeccably concealed by politeness and elegance.

In response, he was certain that the other person would not derive satisfaction from his reaction.

Wen Zhiyi, utilizing his characteristic calmness, restraint, and detachment, coolly replied: “I regret only hearing this heartbreaking news now. Although your question is indeed impolite, I have a generally good temper, so I’m not exactly uncomfortable.”

He gave a decent answer, subtly rebuking Mr. Wei a few times in the process.

Mr. Wei, who received his answer, didn’t seem bothered. He thought for a moment, apparently extracting information that satisfied him from Wen Zhiyi’s reply, and revealed an extremely rare smile. Even Wang Han on his right looked at him with surprise for a while.

Following this absurd question, Mr. Wei asked a few questions about Wei Xingjiang. These questions were very routine, making him sound like a perfectly normal father concerned about his son.

Like any parent of a teenage Alpha, he complained with a hint of helplessness to Wen Zhiyi: “I don’t know who this kid takes his temper after. His mother and I were much more sensible when we were young. Oh, by the way, I assume you were an outstanding student in high school, Teacher Little Wen?”

Outstanding student?

Wen Zhiyi thought for a moment and decided he could probably be counted as an outstanding student in high school.

His self-assessment was objective because Gu Yansheng, as the so-called childhood sweetheart and first love, had never done anything inappropriate with Little Wen except for a kiss during his confession. High school Little Wen would self-reproach for half a day over a simple kiss, so no matter how much of a beast Gu Yansheng was, he wouldn’t push it.

At that time, even Gu Yansheng’s kisses were just a gentle peck on Wen Zhiyi’s lips. He believed there would be plenty of time in the future and wasn’t in a rush. When he was devoutly and devotedly kissing his childhood sweetheart, he never foresaw the hasty and brief parting that would come later.

Later, when he learned Wen Zhiyi was married, he painfully and uncontrollably recalled that pure and fleeting kiss. He thought he had truly lost the possibility of ever kissing the other person again.

He had no tomorrow.

Gu Yansheng, who had become a target of public criticism after the collapse of the Gu family and had been in exile abroad for three years, sent countless anonymous messages to Wen Zhiyi in message bottles. He slowly typed one word after another, then deleted them all, leaving only the usual phrase, Good evening.

Zhizhi, good evening.