Chapter 27

Chapter 27

Gu Shize never replied to him.

Who would have thought that in just one day, he’d gone from ignoring others’ messages to being ignored himself? Pei Ningyu’s mood was unusually complex, but he wasn't entirely without recourse.

The moment Pei Ningyu stepped out of the clinic, he sent messages to quite a few people, then headed to the club he and Gu Shize often frequented.

Ever since distancing himself from Gu Shize and the others because of Yin Xishu, this was the first time Pei Ningyu had taken the initiative to propose a gathering.

Before, he had simply thought Yin Xishu was full of ideas, knew how to act humble, and was great at sucking up, so he had repeatedly ignored invitations from Gu Shize and the others.

But now, with Gu Shize subtly threatening him with those reports, Pei Ningyu naturally couldn't be bothered with anyone else and returned to his familiar circle of friends from the past.

Pei Ningyu was accustomed to being the center of attention. The moment he called for people to come out, no one would refuse him. If Gu Shize wasn’t replying to him, how could he not show up when so many others were coming?

Entering the club, the moody, pulsing lights made the leather couches gleam with their characteristic luster. Pei Ningyu strode past the alphas blocking his way and flopped onto the couch without a word, downing one drink after another, playing the brooding card.

His gaze swept across the room, and of course, he spotted Gu Shize in the corner.

Thankfully, he hadn’t hit Gu Shize in the face yesterday—otherwise, Gu Shize probably wouldn’t have come.

Pei Ningyu was clearly in a funk the moment he arrived. Anyone could tell something was off about him, especially his old crew who had known him for years.

A few of them exchanged glances before rising from their seats and walking over to Pei Ningyu, looking down at him slouched on the couch. “Tsk tsk, Ningyu, in a bad mood? We’ll drink with you.”

They had known from the moment Pei Ningyu called them out that he was upset. In the past, the reason for his bad mood had always been the same—Pei Xu.

This time, however, they keenly sensed that Pei Xu likely had nothing to do with it. Many of them, eyes twinkling, stared at Pei Ningyu’s captivating face, wondering—what reason could have made Pei Ningyu suddenly reach out to this group of “old friends”?

Hadn’t Yin Xishu been willing to do anything, no matter how humiliating, to please Pei Ningyu? Why wasn’t Pei Ningyu turning to Yin Xishu now?

If Pei Ningyu wanted, Yin Xishu would even bend over for him.

Had Yin Xishu suddenly grown a spine he never had before?

Soon, someone noticed another anomaly—why wasn’t Gu Shize all over Pei Ningyu this time?

Gu Shize remained seated in the corner, neither approaching Pei Ningyu nor drinking, just silently fiddling with his watchband. Someone with sharp eyes recognized it as the antique watch he’d gotten from Pei Ningyu last time.

Did they have a fight?

Could two people who’d grown up together really have a blow-up?

No matter.

It had been a long time since they’d all met up, and with Pei Ningyu actually showing his face, they gathered around him, drinking and chatting.

“So you did a number on Fu Chu,” one of them smirked. “We all heard about it. Everyone was saying you were going to marry him.”

“Yeah, Fu Chu even posted on the forum that there’d be a wedding.”

Pei Ningyu hadn’t known about this. He perked up a little. “Fu Chu posted on a forum? Which one?”

“The base’s forum, of course. You didn’t know? Fu Chu was all over the forum back then.”

Pei Ningyu frowned. “What did he post?”

The man thought for a moment before summarizing accurately: “His deep thoughts on becoming a beta, his jitters about tying the knot, and his high hopes for the wedding.”

The more Pei Ningyu listened, the weirder it got. His brows furrowed in displeasure. “Are you messing with me?”

The man looked genuinely offended. “Not at all.”

At the time, news of Fu Chu’s differentiation into a beta had blown up, far more widely than the rumors about Xu Sidu—Xu Sidu’s family had suppressed some of the gossip to cover up the scandal, but Fu Chu, with nobody giving a damn about him, had no one to stop him. Combined with the nonsense he’d posted on the forum, there wasn’t a single person in the base who didn’t know about it.

Fu Chu had written things like:

“I'm so nervous... They say marriage is a forever deal, but my husband seems to have a bad temper. I hope he won’t hit me in the future.”

“I’m willing to take the hits, but I hope my husband will take it easy on me. Don’t beat me so badly that I can’t get out of bed—I still need to serve him.”

“It’s better to differentiate into a beta. Unlike you all, I don’t have to face the big exams. I can just find a good husband and skip straight to the good part.”

“No matter how strong a man is, he still needs a good home. Spending six years in the base, going through hell, just wears you out. No one will want you then.”

“There’ll definitely be a wedding. No wedding means I'm nobody. Everyone better come when the time comes.”

“…”

These shocking statements had taken over the whole forum for days. Burdened with brutal training, they barely had time to glance at the forum, but these posts were so outrageous that they couldn’t help but mockingly imitate them among themselves, ensuring they’d remember every word.

Once the topic came up, those around him began mimicking Fu Chu’s words with scary accuracy, trading lines. It was clear they’d practiced this routine in private.

By the time they finished, Pei Ningyu was completely floored, even forgetting his original purpose for coming here.

He’d long suspected Fu Chu was off his rocker.

It was just that Fu Chu had such a cold, serious face that no one else believed it.

Now, it seemed the man was actually messed up.

Pei Ningyu drank silently, not daring to ask more about Fu Chu for fear of further shocks.

After a while, a shadow fell over him. Pei Ningyu looked up.

It was Gu Shize.

He grabbed Pei Ningyu’s slender wrist, took the drink from his hand, and shot a warning glance at the smirking alphas. “Stop drinking with him.”

Finally made your move, huh?

Pei Ningyu snapped out of his daze from Fu Chu’s absurdity and fixed his gaze on Gu Shize.

As someone born with a silver spoon, Pei Ningyu had no concept of backing down or currying favor.

His calm eyes flickered slightly as he studied Gu Shize, but in the end, he opted for the safest approach and said coolly, “The AML tournament is about to start. My brother is still the event organizer this year.”

Gu Shize replied, “I know.”

His expression remained indifferent as he continued, “I heard this year’s venue has been moved outside the First Star System…”

Seeing Gu Shize’s interest, Pei Ningyu relaxed slightly. He tilted his head. “Want me to look into the venue and rules for you? The military seems to have updated their tech this year.”

*Look into the venue and rules*—what a polite way to put it.

In plain terms, it meant helping him cheat. The AML tournament had always been confidential. Even someone from an old aristocratic family like Gu Shize could only get wind of the venue change.

Gu Shize understood that this was probably the best method Pei Ningyu, the spoiled rich kid, could come up with to please him—likely the most humble gesture Ning Yu had ever made in his life.

Gu Shize couldn’t quite describe his own feelings. The fact that Ning Yu had now learned to butter him up with favors was truly unbelievable.

Ning Yu had never lowered himself to this before… Was it because he had leverage over him?

Gu Shize had achieved his goal of making Pei Ningyu care more about him, yet he couldn’t bring himself to feel happy.

He’d rather have Ning Yu slapped him a couple more times.

The scene from yesterday was still imprinted in his mind—inside the abandoned equipment room, Ning Yu had swung the baseball bat, lifting his shirt slightly and revealing a sliver of his narrow waist, unnaturally pale.

The bat had hurt when it struck him, but what ached more was the aching need down below, swollen and uncomfortable.

He hadn’t ignored Ning Yu’s messages out of anger—he simply hadn’t dared to reply.

He’d splattered that mess on Ning Yu’s face… Even now, he still felt a dazed sense of having narrowly escaped disaster.

Hearing Ning Yu mention Pei Xu, a darkness flashed in Gu Shize’s eyes, an inexplicable frustration rising within him. “Was it troublesome getting this information from Pei Xu?”

Pei Ningyu took a sip of wine, with a drunken edge. “No sweat. Just doing a favor.”

Gu Shize continued chatting idly, his tone seemingly indifferent.

“Is it really fine? Last time, didn’t you say your brother sent away the two betas from your room? I thought you’d be angry at him for that. Have you two made up now?”

“And what about you going after Xu Sidu? Or bringing Fu Chu home? He didn’t object? You didn’t argue?!”

Gu Shize’s tone turned sharper than he meant, and those around them picked up on it—they’d never seen Gu Shize speak to Pei Ningyu like this before. Most of the time, Gu Shize simply let Ning Yu walk all over him.