Before My Withering

Qi Shu has been very busy recently and didn’t need me much because of his new lover. 

A few days later, I met the Omega in Qi Shu’s house once again. This time, he came by himself. 

Qi Shu was in the study to deal with his official business and had asked him to wait downstairs. I didn’t want to meet him, but my teacher asked me to go to school on short notice, so I had to change my clothes and go downstairs. 

I wanted to pretend that I couldn’t see him, but he stopped me when I passed the living room. 

It’s strange, he knows my name. 

“Is something the matter?” I asked as calmly as I could. 

“No.” He smiled sweetly, “Just curious when you will leave Qi ge.” 

What is this? Demonstration? Coercion? 

He wouldn’t be thinking he’s in a palace drama, would he? 

I was just getting tired of it, but now it felt laughable. 

“It’s easy to get me to leave.” I looked at him with good grace, “You pay me double the money, I’ll get out immediately and promise never to bother you again.” 

The omega’s fake smile couldn’t hold up, and his face turned unsightly. 

“You just want money?” He asked. 

“What else?” I asked. 

I want something else. Would Qi Shu give it? 

“Xiao Lan.” Qi Shu’s cold voice came from the back.

I shivered and looked back to see him standing at the top of the stairs, unaware as to when he had come down.

The calmness I felt when I was facing the omega was gone, and I said warily, “Senior.” 

Qi Shu seemed to be in a bad mood and only uttered one word: “Go.” 

I didn’t bully his little lover, why so aggressive. 

Even if I’m a beta and that person was an omega, with my current physical quality, I may not necessarily be able to do anything to him.

I tried to tug the corners of my mouth at Qi Shu, but I didn’t have to think about it to know that my smile was thunder among the leaves.¹ 

“Okay,” I responded. 

Just roll, I’m the best at rolling. 

Wait for me to go to another world and see how you will hurt me. 

Before closing the door, I glanced at Qi Shu out of the corner of my eyes. He was still looking at me. I ran away without looking back.

Generally speaking, it wasn’t good for him to look at me like this. It’s fine to suffer a bit of flesh and blood, but I didn’t want to be laughed at by the omega.

When I arrived at school, all classes had just ended. The younger students were overflowing with vitality, like luxuriant trees in the sun.

The top private schools were mostly composed of alphas and omegas. Betas running all over the street like me were rare. In addition, I studied a major that had me be hauled out to show my face in every school day and art festival. So many students had greeted me along the way. 

They’re much more enthusiastic and cuter than Qi Shu.

I was approached by my teacher because of the same reason. With the graduation party coming up, she asked me whether I would prefer to perform with singing or recital programs.

Anyway, I was just an accompaniment and backdrop. It doesn’t make any difference. 

I asked who the performers were, and the teacher said it was Xu Xingze who would be singing. 

Come to think of it, my excellent roommate won as the champion of the campus singing competition. 

“I’ll accompany Xu Xingze.” I said. 

The teacher didn’t have any opinions and had only asked me to find him to agree on a repertoire as soon as possible. 

When I came out of the office, I called Xu Xingze and asked him if he was at school. 

“I’m at home.” Xu Xingze sounded breathless. “I just came back from walking my dog. Is something wrong, Xiao Yu?” 

Following that, there came a few woofs from the dog.

“It’s nothing… I’m at school. I want to talk to you about the graduation party. Maybe some other time bah.”

“No.” Xu Xingze interrupted me, “You wait for me in the dormitory, I will be there right away.” 

“Ai?” I wanted to say it wasn’t that urgent, but Xu Xingze had already hung up the phone. 

Good timing. I didn’t want to go back to face Qi Shu today, so I settled down in the dormitory at ease. 

More than an hour had immediately passed just as Xu Xingze said he would come. I was on the verge of falling asleep on the table when he finally arrived. 

He came in with a big bag, put all the things in his hand on the table and shook me awake. “Xiao Yu, get up and eat.” 

I opened my eyes in a daze. I first caught the aroma of food, then the creamy smell of cake and dessert. 

“I specially let my aunt make them. They’re all your favorite food.” Xu Xingze said. 

I touched my stomach. I’m a little hungry. 

During the meal, I noticed that he had a suppression patch on the back of his neck, and the citrus smell was gone. 

Honestly speakIng, Xu Xingze’s pheromones smell good. It reminded me of the golden sun in late summer and early autumn. I was used to his scent since we lived in the same dormitory before, but now the doctor said that a pregnant omega would especially reject alpha pheromones other than those of their partners. I’m considered half omega, so this also applied to me. 

I was wondering if I should tell Xu Xingze about the pregnancy. After all, he was my only friend at school. 

“Xiao Yu, I heard something recently.” Xu Xingze suddenly said, “About Qi Shu.” 

Xu Xingze was born in a family of artists. He hadn’t thought much of Qi Shu as a thorough businessman. He seldom wanted to talk about him with me.

My intuition was telling me it wouldn’t be a good thing, so I put down my spoon and asked, “What’s the matter?” 

Xu Xingze hesitated for a moment, and said, “It’s said that Qi Shu is going to marry the young master of the Wen family.” 

Wen family? I first thought of Wen Yan. 

“Not Wen Yan.” Xu Xingze shook his head, “It’s Wen Yan’s half brother, Wen Ziqing.” 

Wen Yan has a brother? I’ve never heard of it before.

Xu Xingze explained to me patiently, “The two families had a marriage agreement. What they originally decided on was Wen Yan. But four years ago, Wen Yan escaped from the country, leaving the matter unsettled. Now, they didn’t know why Elder Qi suddenly pressured Qi Shu to marry. Wen Ziqing just happened to be an adult and willing to marry, so…” 

 “Wen Yan ran away from the marriage? How is that possible?” I couldn’t resist asking.

“One theory was that Wen Yan doesn’t want to get married, and the other is that Qi Shu didn’t want to marry him and forced him to leave. In short, they didn’t get along. I only recently learned that there was such a story back then.” Xu Xingze’s expression was complex, and he seemed to be scornful of these gentry feuds.

“If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t bother to ask about it.” 

“But Qi Shu said he won’t get married…” I didn’t know what to think for a moment.

“It may not be up to him. On the surface, Qi Shu is the head of the Qi Family. But the actual fact is that there is an old man above him. The old man is already old, and he has to wait for Qi Shu to get married before he can delegate power.” Xu Xingze hummed, “Now it depends on whether Qi Shu wants freedom or power.”

I listened to Xu Xingze’s words as if I were listening to a distant and false story, and my heart hadn’t quivered. 

“If the Wen Ziqing you’re talking about is only 18 years old, he may not be able to control Qi Shu… He can have both power and freedom.” I said.

Xu Xingze thought, “Maybe.”

When I picked up the spoon to drink pear soup again, Xu Xingze showed an old-father-laden-with-anxiety-look and asked: “What are you going to do if Qi Shu gets married?” 

“I…” I didn’t know what to do. I was only a pet that was kept. What’s the relationship between the owner’s marriage and me? 

“Are you still going to be with him?” Xu Xingze said with surprise. 

“I wasn’t with him.” I said to Xu Xingze, but also to myself. “We’ve never been together.”

I just didn’t understand why Qi Shu said he wasn’t getting married that day.

I wasn’t going to ask him for hush money or breakup fees, and I won’t pester him with tears and sobs.

I considered myself an underground lover with professional ethics. I hadn’t given Qi Shu any trouble in the past four years. 

“Is that Wen Ziqing an omega?” I asked. 

“Of course, how could Qi Shu marry an alpha or beta?” Xu Xingze blurted out, and then suddenly thought of something and explained: “I didn’t mean that betas are bad, but the Qi family won’t accept betas…”

“I know.” I laughed helplessly.

It seemed reasonable that Qi Shu wanted to marry Wen Yan’s younger brother.

Wen Ziqing was related to Wen Yan by blood. He must be more like him than me, and he’s ten years younger than Wen Yan. He was Qi Shu’s favorite young and beautiful omega.

And etc. An 18-year old omega that looked like Wen Yan. Could it be…

Ha.

The little lover turned out to be the future Mrs. Qi.

And today I still… No wonder Qi Shu was so angry. I was a bit over my head.

Wen Ziqing didn’t seem as good-tempered as Wen Yan. I hope he wouldn’t throw my cello out in a fit of rage.

….The more I thought about it, the more ridiculous it seemed. I had been Wen Yan’s stand-in for four years, but in the end, I gave Qi Shu back to his brother.