Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"Ying Xi, control your pheromones." The Vice Monitor, slumped over his desk, gasped for air. "I can't breathe, Ying Xi. Please."

A heavy, tense atmosphere filled the classroom. The boy next to Li Yang remained impassive, as if deaf to the plea, his indifferent gaze sweeping over everyone.

The potent, clashing pheromones were a hundred times more nauseating than bus fumes. Before Li Yang could fully grasp it, his throat constricted, and he grabbed the trash bin by his feet, retching violently.

He emptied his stomach of the morning's baozi, leaving nothing behind. His face was pale, his back trembling. Straightening up, he noticed the others were almost frozen in place, shivering.

He was the only one in the class who could move freely—yet he was the one throwing up.

Breathing heavily, Li Yang silently cursed a hundred times. He painstakingly pulled out a tissue to wipe his mouth, but before he could even identify the new scent invading his nostrils, another wave of nausea hit, and he began retching anew.

The overwhelming, oppressive pheromones had already receded, the air loosening, allowing everyone to breathe freely again.

Only Li Yang remained, hunched over the trash bin for half an hour.

After washing up and returning to the classroom, he met Ying Xi’s apologetic, hesitant gaze. Li Yang raised a hand to stop him before he could speak.

He quickly moved his desk away, as if fleeing some monstrous flood.

But as soon as he moved, Ying Xi followed, shifting his own desk until Li Yang was backed against the wall, with nowhere left to go.

"Classmate." Li Yang pulled down his mask, the lingering nausea still unsettling him. He took a deep breath, truly unable to bear the Alpha’s pheromones any longer. "We're not suited to sit together."

Who could stand feeling constantly carsick?

Li Yang thought the school should sponsor him an air purifier, even if it was mostly for psychological comfort.

Thanks to Ying Xi, even during break time, the classroom was quiet enough to hear a pin drop.

Most students silently packed their belongings, terrified Ying Xi might suddenly release his pheromones again.

Li Yang knew they feared Ying Xi, but he hadn't realized the extent of their fear.

If top-tier Alphas could be ranked, Ying Xi would undoubtedly be at the very pinnacle.

His pheromones could affect anyone—except Betas.

Unfortunately, Li Yang was a mutated Beta who could smell pheromones but experienced an extreme adverse reaction to them.

"Quite suitable," Ying Xi said after a second of silence. "I'm sorry, I was wrong."

With a look of profound apology, he leaned his face close to Li Yang’s hand and said in a hoarse voice, "Please hit me."

Hearing the sincere, almost pleading tone, Li Yang thought, "…?"

Not only was he utterly bewildered, but the other students, hearing this, also looked on in stunned surprise.

For a moment, Li Yang became the focal point of the classroom.

"Why would I hit you?" Li Yang laughed in disbelief, his wariness intensifying.

The others might be crazy, but Ying Xi… he might actually be a pervert.

After all, no normal person could utter "Please hit me" with such an air of detached purity, as if saying "Please reward me."

Ying Xi said nothing. He didn't know the exact reason for Li Yang's discomfort, but he somewhat guessed it was his own doing. Seeing the strong aversion on the boy's fair face, he paused slightly.

Li Yang pushed that face away.

The students in the classroom didn't know he could smell pheromones. Most had wondered why he wore a mask but hadn't given it much thought.

For a fleeting moment, Li Yang thought Ying Xi knew, but looking into those calm eyes, he was certain Ying Xi didn't.

"My apologies," Ying Xi murmured.

Li Yang found him a bit inexplicable. He said nothing, lowering his head to flip through his book.

The classroom was still in disarray, but no one dared to release pheromones carelessly. Overturned desks were righted, and a few students brought in new, proper desks and chairs.

Everything returned to its place, and the classroom was unusually quiet.

The class bell had long since rung. The tardy teacher, thinking she had entered the wrong room, looked around skeptically. Only after seeing the faces of the usual troublemakers did she believe this was indeed the class that usually behaved like a kindergarten.

"Why is everyone so quiet today?" The teacher put down her textbook, leaning on the podium with a squinting smile, trying to inspire some change.

"This is so much better, everyone quiet and peaceful. Most of you are adults now, what major conflicts could you possibly have? Besides, graduation is less than a year away. After that, you'll all go your separate ways, unlikely to see each other again. So, you should cherish this time..."

"Teacher, do *you* cherish this time?" Jiang Su raised a hand, interrupting her.

The smile on the teacher's face instantly froze and crumbled. Gripping the podium, she gave a hollow laugh, not answering the question.

It was no joke; teaching this class was the most agonizing job of her life.

If it weren't for the exorbitant salary, she would have long since waved goodbye to this bunch of rascals.

"Most of us are quite well-behaved. It's just a few people who think they're hot stuff, finding fault with this and that." Jiang Su cast a sidelong glance at He Shi, his meaning clear.

He Shi said nothing, head bowed in thought, seemingly taking the teacher's words to heart.

The teacher clapped her hands. "Alright, let's begin class."

Few in the class paid attention. Li Yang knew most of them attended after-school classes and had private tutors, but he was different.

Unusually, today, besides himself, his deskmate was also diligently taking notes.

As Li Yang opened his thermos, he inadvertently glanced over and saw a page full of names. He raised an eyebrow, then looked closer: the entire page was filled with *his* name.

Li Yang: "…"

His eyelid twitched. He was glad he wasn't drinking water at that moment, or he would have definitely spat it out.

"Why are you writing my name?" Li Yang put down his thermos, unable to resist asking.

"I think your name sounds nice." Ying Xi paused his movements, his gaze fixed directly on Li Yang, with undisguised admiration in his eyes.

"It's very ordinary," Li Yang said flatly, his mood complex. "Don't write my name."

In his mind, Ying Xi was now irrevocably labeled a "pervert."

Ying Xi murmured, "Oh."

Li Yang could tell he was usually an indifferent and aloof person, so he didn't understand why his actions were so completely at odds with his demeanor.

*

Perhaps due to Ying Xi's intimidating presence, the classroom was unusually calm after class.

Li Yang experienced the high school atmosphere he hadn't felt in a long time.

As Ying Xi stood up and left, the classroom was like a taut string that had suddenly loosened, and many began whispering among themselves.

Li Yang put on his mask, preparing for a potential confrontation.

Led by Jiang Su, several people clearly harbored resentment towards Ying Xi.

As soon as the young man left, they gathered around Jiang Su and began to vehemently criticize Ying Xi, from his personality to his family background, not forgetting to disparage his pheromones.

"He just got lucky with his birth. His pheromones are disgusting, can't hold a candle to Jiang Su's."

"Exactly."

"That stone-faced look—I don't know why so many people at school like his face."

"Must be those good genes, I guess." Jiang Su leaned lazily against the back of his chair, tilting back on two legs. He cast a sidelong glance at Li Yang behind him, pulling him into the fray. "Monitor, what do you think?"

In the few days since transmigrating, if there was one person Li Yang disliked the most, it was Jiang Su, the class's biggest troublemaker.

This guy came from a better family than others in the classroom, self-proclaimed as the Alpha leader, and took pride in it.

But Ying Xi's family background was even better than his.

Ying Xi surpassed him in looks, height, pheromones, and popularity.

In comparison, Jiang Su felt an extreme imbalance.

Cannon fodder characters usually only appeared in the protagonist's class, so Li Yang guessed that Ying Xi was very likely the protagonist of this book.

"The monitor isn't mute, so why doesn't he ever speak?" Not receiving a reply, Jiang Su wasn't annoyed. Instead, he smiled and asked.

Li Yang couldn't be bothered to even glance at him. He pulled down his mask and took a sip of warm water to moisten his throat.

The corridor outside the window was strangely quiet. He rarely saw a scene without any roughhousing—until his gaze landed diagonally ahead, on a familiar figure.

A boy in a school uniform stood quietly, eyes downcast. His expression was unreadable, but his pressed lips showed his disinterest in the confession letter before him.

This was the first love confession Li Yang had witnessed since transmigrating.

He took another sip of water and was about to put the lid back on and look away when the boy standing not far off, with wolf-like keenness, immediately caught his gaze.

Their eyes met through the glass. Li Yang couldn't quite discern the emotions in Ying Xi's eyes, but he could see the originally somewhat dim pupils visibly brighten.

He lowered his head to break eye contact, pulled up his mask, and yawned.

"Someone's confessing to Ying Xi again," the Vice Monitor remarked, having slid into the seat across from him at some point. He glanced at the scene and sighed casually. "Gotta admire their guts."

There was clearly more to his words.

Most people would have asked, "Why?" But Li Yang simply nodded in agreement without pressing further.

"Monitor, why aren't you asking me?" The Vice Monitor rested his chin in his hand with a sigh. "Never mind, I'll tell you anyway. Before the class reorganization, we were in the same class. He'd rack up over a dozen confession letters a day."

"Plenty of people confessed to him face-to-face too," the Vice Monitor added. "Including quite a few Alphas."

Li Yang paused. "Alphas?"

"Yeah." The Vice Monitor sighed. "After Ying Xi beat them up, the confessions tapered off. Everyone says Ying Xi hates being confessed to—if you catch him on a bad day, he'll beat up anyone who tries."

Li Yang nodded.

"Monitor, any plans for the weekend?" The Vice Monitor stated his real reason for coming over. "I was thinking of inviting you out."

The two weren't particularly close, and Li Yang had a pretty good idea why the Vice Monitor was asking him.

Because he was a Beta.

Compared to Alphas who could enter rut or Omegas who could go into heat at any moment, Betas were the safest option.

"I have something on," Li Yang replied vaguely. "You should ask someone else."

He preferred to stay home and study rather than go out.

"I don't have any friends." The Vice Monitor hung his head dejectedly. "You're my only option. If you reject me, I'll just have to wander around alone."

"Where were you planning to go?" Li Yang asked.

"AC Mall and the surrounding area." The Vice Monitor blinked. "Is that okay?"

"Alright," Li Yang agreed. He needed to buy books near there anyway.

"Great, it's settled then. We'll coordinate on QQ." The Vice Monitor excitedly stood up and left.

The corridor grew noisy again. Li Yang glanced over and saw only the Omega, holding the confession letter, looking utterly crushed.

Ying Xi slowly entered through the back door. The moment he sat down, his cold expression shifted.

He turned his head towards Li Yang.

Li Yang was already on guard. The instant Ying Xi leaned in, he dodged sideways.

"What are you doing?" He looked at Ying Xi in astonishment, unable to comprehend his sudden movement, his pupils slightly dilated, like a startled deer.

The Alpha sensed his resistance and didn't press further, retreating to his original safe distance. The emotions in his eyes were unreadable.

"You have an Omega's pheromones on you."