What to Do If Beta Cannot Be Marked? - Chapter 23.1

Thud!

“Ouch!”

The phone slipped from his hand and plummeted straight toward his forehead. Chi Jinxian’s mind was still completely occupied by the message Lu Zhi had sent him, leaving him no time to dodge. It hit him squarely, right after ditching Qi Suiyi, he had just lain down on his back, phone in hand, to chat with Lu Zhi more comfortably.

Chi Jinxian clutched his head, crying out in pain, and his numb brain instantly snapped back to reality.

Had Lu Zhi been possessed by someone?!

“Why are you so careless?” Yuan Si Bai handed Chi Sui his medicine and, seeing Chi Jinxian had hit himself, furrowed his brow and walked over. “Let me take a look.”

Chi Sui observed the reaction of a certain classmate surnamed Chi, sipping his medicine while sarcastically commenting, “Yuan Yuan, you might as well check what message he received. Look at how guilty he appears.”

Seeing that Yuan Si Bai was actually turning his attention to the phone now lying on the floor because of Chi Sui’s remark, Chi Jinxian’s eyes widened, and he suddenly forgot the pain. He quickly bent down to pick up the phone, saying, “It’s just because I didn’t play with Uncle, and he’s secretly cursing me! What kind of message could make me feel guilty?”

Chi Sui let out a disbelieving “Hmph.”

Meanwhile, in another household, Qi Suiyi had been sneezing nonstop. He grumbled as he rubbed his nose, waiting on the game interface for Chi Jinxian to accept the invitation. But the invitation expired without the familiar account joining. Qi Suiyi sent another invite, with the same result. Refusing to give up, he called Chi Jinxian.

The next second, the call was declined.

Qi Suiyi: “…”

Future Superstar: [?]

Future Superstar: [What’s the meaning of this? Weren’t we supposed to play games together? I’ve been waiting for you, where are you?]

Future Superstar: [And you declined my call. Are you crazy?]

Cash Pool: [Not playing anymore. Don’t message me for now. I’m chatting with Brother Lu. Don’t disrupt my train of thought.]

Future Superstar: [??]

Qi Suiyi was never one to take such treatment lightly! If Lu Zhi hadn’t been mentioned, he might have let the game slide, but once Lu Zhi was involved, only one of them could come out on top.

Immediately, Qi Suiyi sneered and began annoyingly seeking attention from Chi Jinxian. When he got no response, he resorted to calling repeatedly, irritating Chi Jinxian so much that he abandoned all decorum and started cursing.

Qi Suiyi chuckled gleefully, convinced he had the upper hand until the next moment,

Cash Pool: [I already called Grandpa and told him you’re playing games in your room. I suggest you hide that sixth phone now while you still can. You’re on your own.]

Qi Suiyi: “…”

At the same moment, his bedroom door was knocked on twice in a measured rhythm. Qi Suiyi’s body stiffened.

A deep, stern male voice said impassively, “Qi Suiyi, come out here.”

Qi Suiyi thought to himself, in this lifetime, he and Lu Zhi would remain mortal enemies!!

Chi Jinxian, having just called Grandpa Chi in front of his parents to tattle, awkwardly smiled and dashed back to his room, saying he’d come down for a snack later.

Now, he sat tensely at his desk, staring intently at his phone screen. The words “make love” seemed to materialize on the screen, making Chi Jinxian blush furiously, his neck flushing red. Soon, even his breathing seemed to grow heated.

Chi Jinxian had a strong intuition Lu Zhi must have read his love letters, especially the third one.

Normally, Chi Jinxian would have replied to Lu Zhi instantly, but today, he didn’t know how to respond without feeling like his head was about to steam.

He didn’t want Lu Zhi to think he was frivolous either.

And he wasn’t a frivolous person.

Cash Pool: 【Bro, have you read my love letter? [softly]】

Lu Zhi seemed to have been staring at his phone, replying immediately.

Lu Zhi: 【I’ve had the honor of reading it once.】

Lu Zhi: 【Was it insincere?】

Cash Pool: 【It’s real! It’s real! I never lie!】

Chi Jinxian, like an anxious or eager child trying to prove himself, gently bit his thumbnail as he quickly typed these words.

But Lu Zhi didn’t respond to this message.

Cash Pool: 【Only when you like me too, bro, will I do such things with you [whispering softly again and again JPG.]】

The words “The other party is typing…” appeared above Lu Zhi’s chatbox, but the message seemed to be long, taking a while to send.

After a moment, it disappeared, then reappeared again, repeating this pattern.

Chi Jinxian didn’t know what Lu Zhi wanted to say, but he felt the need to explain his feelings about “liking.”

Cash Pool: 【My liking for you isn’t just about one thing. I want to be with you for a lifetime, always by your side.】

The car drove along the sparsely populated street, colorful light signs and neon lights swiftly left behind, turning into streaks of light and shadow.

It felt as if everything could be temporarily left far behind.

【But I don’t know why you like me】 the words formed one by one in the chatbox, only to be deleted one by one, vanishing.

The evening breeze from the half-open window tousled Lu Zhi’s black hair, obscuring his brows and eyes. Lips pressed together, he sat quietly in the passenger seat.

“I heard there’s a classmate at school who’s been pursuing you? Chi Sui’s son, right?” The red light ahead required a short wait. Lu Zisheng glanced at the street illuminated by lamplight and asked casually.

As if caught off guard by the sudden question, Lu Zhi was momentarily stunned before replying, “Mm.”

Children, even if not fully open with their fathers, often avoid hiding things outright.

As if seeing a reflection of his own youth, Lu Zisheng chuckled lightly at the confirmation. “Do you like him?”

After the question, Lu Zhi fell silent for a long time. He unconsciously spun his phone, its screen dark, and looked out the window without answering.

Lu Zisheng said, “You didn’t know he was Chi Sui’s son before?”

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have stared so intently at Chi Jinxian during the birthday banquet last time.

The light turned green. Lu Zisheng started the engine, and the roadside lights began moving backward again.

Lu Zhi said, “You could say that.”

“You could say that?” Lu Zisheng repeated the phrase, not quite understanding its meaning.

But today, having visited the same place and seen the same person together, it felt like a good time to talk. Lu Zisheng smiled and casually delved deeper into the topic. “How did you feel when you found out?”

Lu Zhi fell into another prolonged silence, so long that Lu Zisheng began to think his reticent son wouldn’t speak at all.

Then, he heard Lu Zhi murmur softly, “As if a weight had been lifted.”

“…” Lu Zisheng was utterly bewildered. He realized that when conversing with his underage son, he couldn’t understand a word he was saying. After pondering carefully, he still couldn’t make sense of it and could only shoot Lu Zhi a strange look.

After a moment, he said, “If you like him even if you don’t, the Chi family is an excellent match for an alliance marriage.”

Lu Zhi frowned, withdrawing his gaze from the window, and replied, “Wasn’t my dad just an ordinary person? You still married him.”

Lu Zisheng laughed. “Your dad and I genuinely loved each other.”

“Really?” Lu Zhi murmured almost inaudibly, reminding him, “Lu Wan is only a year younger than me.”

Lu Zisheng’s smile vanished. The overly rigid uniform made his features appear even sharper, as if coated with a layer of melancholy and sorrow.

As if recalling something, he lowered his eyes and pulled out a cigarette from somewhere, not lighting it, just holding it slantwise at the corner of his mouth.

The conversation between father and son ended there.

Lu Zhi rubbed his thumb against the phone beneath his palm, the initially cool surface now warmed slightly by his blood.

He lifted his eyelashes but no longer focused on his father, instead turning his gaze back to the window.

Yet the earlier conversation had affected him. Lu Zhi felt a surge of violent energy beginning to stir faintly in his heart, urging him to destroy something.

He restrained the darkness in his pitch-black pupils, unconsciously furrowing his brows. No external light could penetrate his eyes.

Suddenly, Lu Zhi thought of Nan Mengbai. At that moment, not even light could reach him, the faint shadow of his hair allowed the night to seep into his eyes, darkening them to a frightening degree.

Lu Zhi: [In the infirmary, what did that Omega in heat smell like?]

Chi Jinxian had finished a page of problems in his room and still hadn’t received a reply. He planned to finish one more before going downstairs to check if his dad had prepared the late-night snack.

Just then, his phone vibrated as if reading his mind. He hurriedly opened it to look.

Not long ago, the topic had been about sex and love. Now, abruptly, it shifted to Chi Jinxian’s experience in the infirmary at noon. Reading the message, Chi Jinxian felt a bit confused.

But the next moment, his confusion vanished.

He didn’t know what that Omega smelled like! He couldn’t smell it!

“Buzz.”

As he anxiously pondered how to bluff his way through today, like a savior sent from heaven, a friend request suddenly popped up on his chat screen.

Note Nan Mengbai (I’m here to apologize, please accept [pitiful])

Seeing the name, Chi Jinxian’s mind jolted. He suddenly remembered that during dismissal in the afternoon, he had been so dazed by Lu Zhi throwing a school uniform over his head that he completely ignored Nan Mengbai, who had been asking for his contact info!

The contact details were one thing, but outright ignoring someone was really rude.

As if suffering from a toothache, Chi Jinxian’s face twisted into a grimace, and he thought to himself, love-struck idiocy ruins people.

The words in Nan Mengbai’s parentheses were more fitting for him it seemed like he should be the one apologizing.

But how did this person get his contact info?

Cash Pool: [Bro, wait a sec, I forgot what it smelled like [head hung] Let me think about it, okay?]

After hastily replying to Lu Zhi, Chi Jinxian accepted Nan Mengbai’s friend request.

Daylight: [Ah, finally added you. It’s so hard to become friends with you [helpless]]

Daylight: [Before we really chat, I need to apologize to you first.]