Chapter 35: Dad, It Hurts

Chapter 35: Daddy, It Hurts

Song Yuqing: "..."

Song Yuqing: "You guys head back first."

After giving a brief instruction, Song Yuqing turned and took off. Pei Huai: "..."

He ran so fast, as if afraid they would follow him.

But Pei Huai didn’t dare say much and secretly trailed after him, making sure Song Yuqing didn't notice he was following.

He knew Song Yuqing was good in a fight—against an average alpha, it was hard to say who would come out on top. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Song Yuqing; he was just worried about what might happen if Song Yuqing encountered multiple alphas. Yes, he wasn’t intentionally following Song Yuqing—he was just really worried about him.

The autumn sunlight streamed down, yet it carried no warmth. The air had a bite to it.

The sound of a robot’s footsteps clacking against the bluestone pavement echoed repeatedly through the alley.

A black-clad alpha crouched at the very end of the alley, his back against a door. He reached out toward a big-eyed cute robot, a faint smile on his lips, and clapped his hands. "Come, come, come to Papa."

The big-eyed robot’s tapping footsteps paused briefly, hesitating, before resuming in the alley.

The alpha gently patted the robot’s head. "Who is Qingqing?"

The robot’s display screen showed: O(∩_∩)O

"Mommy."

The alpha gave a satisfied pat to the little robot’s head. "Qingqing, Mommy."

Song Yuqing arrived at the alley where he'd caught the alpha the day before.

The wind lifted the strands of hair on Song Yuqing’s forehead, revealing his beautiful, delicate features. His pale complexion, usually untouched by sunlight, now carried a faint flush from all the running.

It made him appear even more vivid.

Tap, tap, tap.

The little robot turned its head from the alley and called out to Song Yuqing, "Mommy, cuddles."

"Daddy told me to wait here for Mommy."

The little robot wrapped itself around Song Yuqing’s leg.

Song Yuqing: "..."

Little traitor.

The alley was now completely empty. Song Yuqing glanced around before looking at the bustling street beside him. A tall figure appeared on the opposite side of the street and waved at Song Yuqing.

As if saying goodbye.

Just as Song Yuqing was about to chase after him, a double-decker bus passed by, robbing him of the best opportunity to pursue the alpha. When he looked again, the tall figure had already vanished. As the bus drove away, Song Yuqing unexpectedly ran right into Pei Huai.

His phone notification chimed again.

.: "Song Yuqing, see you next time. I hope you won’t get me wrong again."

Busted, Pei Huai could only flash a quick smile. Before he could explain himself to Song Yuqing, the latter scooped up the little robot and asked, "Did you see anyone over there?"

"Not really," Pei Huai replied, initially worried that Song Yuqing might confront him. Now that Song Yuqing was asking about something else, Pei Huai breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well, it’s not that I didn’t see anything—I saw a lot of people."

Song Yuqing: "..."

Song Yuqing: "Alright, let’s head back."

On the way, the little robot kept insistently calling out to Song Yuqing, "Qingqing, Mom."

Song Yuqing: "..."

Song Yuqing: "Shut up."

Little robot: "Okay, Mom."

Song Yuqing: "..."

Like it's got a virus—who knows what weird program got uploaded into it.

Pei Huai glanced at Song Yuqing and the robot in his arms. "If you call Song Yuqing Mom, then you should call me Papa."

Little robot: X﹏X

Song Yuqing was speechless for a moment, then suddenly got an idea. He patted the little robot and asked, "Who is your Papa?"

"Papa is... is—" The little robot hesitated briefly just as it was about to answer, then continued, "...Papa."

Pei Huai gave a look at the robot that called Song Yuqing Papa but refused to call him Papa. "Who doesn’t know Papa is Papa? You idiot."

Song Yuqing frowned slightly. From its serial number, this robot was one of the earliest ones he had made.

Song Yuqing checked the chat logs from when the robot was sold.

His interactions with "Juhao" were minimal.

Juhao said he wanted it and sent the money right away—their chat history didn’t even exceed five messages.

Juhao had done so many things, yet Song Yuqing still had very little to go on.

The key was...

Juhao was almost the same height as the Alpha who had been arrested. Could it really be such a coincidence?

Song Yuqing called 88: "Is the script you gave me even reliable?"

88: "Reliable... I think?"

88 was also troubled—the plot wasn’t supposed to be this complicated. It was all supposed to be playful plotlines.

Dealing with one shady Alpha was bad enough, but now there was another Alpha?

Very mysterious, and he seemed to have his eye on Song Yuqing.

88 said, sounding guilty, "Maybe it’s a hidden plotline?"

Song Yuqing: "..."

Just my luck. Not only did I transmigrate as a beta, but now I have to deal with hidden plotlines too.

"Song Yuqing."

"Qingqing."

Pei Huai looked at the somewhat absent-minded Song Yuqing, reached out his right hand to Song Yuqing's right shoulder, and patted it. "Babe?"

Song Yuqing raised his eyes and elbowed Pei Huai for teasing him.

Pei Huai: "..."

Pei Huai: "Why'd you hit my left side? I clearly patted your right shoulder. Don't you think I'm on your right?"

Song Yuqing suppressed the urge to roll his eyes at Pei Huai and weakly muttered a complaint, "...You're insane."

Pei Huai, however, grinned. "I called your name and you didn't answer, but when I called you 'wife,' you hit me. Doesn't that mean you're..."

Before Pei Huai could finish, Song Yuqing smacked him a couple more times.

Pei Huai continued to grin mischievously.

What did it mean that Song Yuqing kept hitting him? It was domestic abuse. And what was domestic abuse? It only happened within a family—that was the prerequisite.

Song Yuqing only hit him and no one else—that meant he was special to him.

Song Yuqing couldn't stand Pei Huai, that big idiot.

The two of them still had to scale the wall to get into the school. Pei Huai went over first and reached out to help pull Song Yuqing up, but Song Yuqing didn't take his hand and climbed over on his own. Just as they made it over, the little bot in Song Yuqing's arms suddenly spoke.

"Mom's the best! Mom's the best!"

The robot's voice blurted out loudly. It was afternoon, right when the student council supervisors were patrolling the area.

Song Yuqing looked up and made eye contact with one of the supervisors.

Song Yuqing: "..."

The supervisor hadn't expected to catch the council president himself. Their eyes darted around, unsure where to look. Though Song Yuqing didn't want to speak, he calmly climbed down from the wall, his movements smooth and without showing any guilt.

He nodded to the supervisors, his voice steady and unfluctuating. "Thanks for your hard work."

The supervisors: "..."

The student council supervisors usually oversaw student attendance and enforced campus rules. Back when discipline was lax, they mostly docked points from students from poorer backgrounds, while turning a blind eye to those from the upper-class.

Since Song Yuqing became president, the situation began to change.

The school atmosphere gradually became more disciplined.

It was awkward catching Song Yuqing today. They didn't know whether to deduct points or not.

Song Yuqing: "Remember to dock points for me and Pei Huai. Also, Xiao Jinshi snuck out last night. I left campus to drag him back."

"But I should also get penalized since I left campus too."

After hearing Song Yuqing's explanation, the supervisors praised the president for not only disciplining others but also holding himself accountable.

Pei Huai, standing behind Song Yuqing: "?"

Xiao Jinshi, who had just climbed over the wall: "?"

Sitting on the wall, Xiao Jinshi let out a frustrated laugh. He had snuck out? Song Yuqing caught him?

Song Yuqing was docking his own points but wasn't sparing Xiao Jinshi either?

Classic Song Yuqing.

Song Yuqing was in a league of his own when it came to ruthlessness.

Xiao Jinshi smiled and raised his hand. "The president is right. I snuck out and was caught by him."

Xiao Jinshi emphasized each word.

Even though he was called out on his lie, Song Yuqing showed no guilt. "Dock the points."

After saying this, Song Yuqing walked away.

Pei Huai had spent two years at school without a single demerit, but now that Song Yuqing was student council president, he got penalized.

Xiao Jinshi, an outstanding student at Victor, was also dragged down by Song Yuqing and had points docked.

Xiao Jinshi followed Song Yuqing. Song Yuqing wasn't exactly a rule-abiding person himself—otherwise, he wouldn't have been involved in brawls or climbed walls to leave campus.

It wasn't a case of "concern leads to recklessness." Song Yuqing's practiced actions showed he'd pulled this stunt before.

If he hadn't been caught, Song Yuqing would have said nothing and done it again. Even though he was caught this time, he'd probably do it again.

But since he was caught, Song Yuqing dragged Pei Huai and Xiao Jinshi down with him. Docking their points was a message to everyone: Song Yuqing wasn't afraid of Pei Huai or Xiao Jinshi. He was using them to assert his authority. If even Pei Huai and Xiao Jinshi crossed Song Yuqing, who would dare break rules in front of him?

By docking his own points, Song Yuqing also gained a reputation for being fair and strict.

No matter the situation, Song Yuqing always turned it to his advantage.

Xiao Jinshi caught up to him. "Brother, you threw me under the bus."

"I was just trying to help you," Xiao Jinshi whined, sounding particularly wronged.

Song Yuqing didn't bat an eye, ruthlessly exposing Xiao Jinshi. "Weren't you just there to watch the drama?"

Xiao Jinshi's smile froze for a second before he continued with a sly grin. "I didn't jump in because I knew you had it under control. Next time you get into a fight, take me with you. I'll have your back."

Song Yuqing finally lifted his eyes to glance at the hypocritical Xiao Jinshi. "Next time, I'll dock your points again."

Xiao Jinshi: "..."

Song Yuqing didn't go to Professor Lin's lab but went to the lab he had applied for himself. He reexamined the code rewritten by that person and the data storage, hoping to find some clues.

In the code, he found a large number of nonsensical commands.

For example: Qingqing is Mom, a darling who is great at making robots, smart, skilled with her hands, the most impressive beta in Xinzhu.

Commands to praise Mom repeatedly were also written into the code.

Song Yuqing: "..."

He remembered how he had just climbed over the wall when the little robot's loud cry got him caught.

Song Yuqing's pale face stiffened as he silently mentally noted another strike against that mysterious, troublemaking alpha in his mind.

Song Yuqing fell silent, like he was dealing with a crazy person.

He kept reading until the end.

/*See you in five years. I’ll be waiting for you to grow up.*/

Where code comments should have been, Alpha had written this line. "See you in five years" wasn’t the important part.

What pissed Song Yuqing off was how this mysterious Alpha had kept predicting his every move.

From luring Qi Ran outside, to setting up an Alpha who had done similar things, to Song Yuqing chasing him from the police station into the alley where the Alpha waited to meet him, leaving the little robot behind, and now predicting that Song Yuqing would return to check the code—leaving this message for him.

It all left Song Yuqing with a creepy feeling of being completely exposed.

88: "..."

"If they meet again in five years, Song Yuqing will want to kill you."

Qi Ran was recuperating at an outside hospital. The incident had made quite a scene.

Naturally, their escape and the ensuing chaos had also gotten back to Gu Jingtang.

After Gu Jingtang recovered from his injuries, Song Yuqing went to his office once again.

Gu Jingtang said, "If something happens, you should report it to the teachers first. Let us handle it instead of handling things yourselves."

Song Yuqing nodded, "...Mm."

Gu Jingtang: "..."

Being stubborn, just nodding along without listening to a single word, is that it?

He had finally figured out Song Yuqing’s tactic for dealing with him: ignore everything and just brush him off. Every time he saw Song Yuqing now, it pissed him off.

Gu Jingtang added, "The school will increase patrols to prevent such people from getting in again."

In truth, the incident was pretty weird. Viktor’s security had always been reliable.

"The school will also reinforce the walls. You won't be sneaking out anymore."

Song Yuqing: "..."

Song Yuqing finally lifted his head slightly, his pale face tense, a trace of barely noticeable displeasure flickering across his expression before he gave a slight nod.

Seeing Song Yuqing’s displeasure, Gu Jingtang smiled with satisfaction.

There was something weirdly obedient about Song Yuqing when he was frustrated.

Reinforcing the walls was a good idea—otherwise, Song Yuqing would probably find a way out and beat him up again.

Gu Jingtang had thought about it for a long time and was convinced that, aside from Song Yuqing, no one else could have been responsible for his beating.

Song Yuqing said, "I need to leave campus to visit Qi Ran."

Since he couldn’t climb the wall, Song Yuqing had to follow the proper procedure.

Gu Jingtang replied, "I’ll approve it. Come back early. After what just happened, it’s not safe outside. Do you want me to go with you?"

Song Yuqing: "No."

He was afraid he wouldn’t be able to resist beating Gu Jingtang up again.

T-T: "Your son is in the hospital. Pay the medical bills."

Qi Zhengqing: "Sending transfer now. Confirm when you get it."

T-T: "Transfer received."

Since the last incident, things had gotten icy between them. Song Yuqing didn’t think he was in the wrong.

Qi Zhengqing felt he had no business getting involved.

Even the automatic check-ins had stopped.

Qi Zhengqing, dressed in a suit, sat looking polished and relaxed in his study at their First District home, scrolling through his recent exchanges with Song Yuqing. His assistant knocked on the door. "Come in."

The assistant said, "Mr. Qi, from what we found out, the arrested Alpha sent Mr. Song some shady stuff. Mr. Song and Qi Ran got into a fight while chasing the Alpha, which is how Qi Ran got injured."

Qi Zhengqing lifted his eyes, his gaze cold yet carrying an indescribable pressure. The assistant quickly added, "Mr. Song wasn’t hurt. In fact..."

The assistant continued, "He broke two of the Alpha’s ribs and fractured the Alpha’s left elbow."

Qi Zhengqing: "Hmm. Go to the prison."

"Get more details."

Perhaps it was intuition, but Qi Zhengqing didn’t believe things were that simple.

Before leaving, the assistant hesitated but decided to speak up. "Mr. Song went to visit Qi Ran. Would you like to go see him, Mr. Qi?"

The Alpha’s gaze snapped toward him, and the assistant instantly realized he might have said the wrong thing.

But Mr. Qi clearly cared about Mr. Song. Mr. Song was always at school, so they couldn’t meet.

Now that Qi Ran was hospitalized, wasn’t this a good chance to see him?

Qi Ran lay in the hospital bed, staring out the window, his lips pale, looking really weak.

Song Yuqing arrived outside the room. The blood loss had left Qi Ran looking pale, but what made Qi Ran even more anxious was the thought that Song Yuqing now knew what he had done. Would Song Yuqing abandon him because of it?

Song Yuqing glanced sideways at the poor kid inside. "Qi Ran’s always the one getting hurt. I wonder how many lives he’s got to waste."

88: "..."

88: "At least he’s actually helpful now. He didn’t get beaten to the ground this time."

Song Yuqing nodded. "Yeah."

Song Yuqing entered the room, pretending not to notice the look of happiness on Qi Ran’s face. That momentary happiness made the Alpha, who had been lying gloomily in bed, seem briefly his age again.

Song Yuqing’s expression remained unchanged, his face still cold.

Qi Ran got nervous and grabbed Song Yuqing’s wrist. "Dad, I messed up."

Song Yuqing: "What were you wrong about?"

"I... I... I shouldn’t have hurt someone on purpose and framed someone else." Qi Ran’s hand under the blanket gripped the sheets, clenching tighter and tighter. Even if given a hundred chances, he would still beat the shit out of that Alpha who dared to go after Song Yuqing.

If he couldn’t kill him, he’d rather hurt himself to ensure that disgusting Alpha who coveted Song Yuqing got more time.

But now, facing Song Yuqing, who believes he is obedient, he wouldn't say such things. He had to be obedient for Song Yuqing to love him.

He had nothing to begin with, and Song Yuqing wasn't going to love him anyway. If he lost his obedience and let Song Yuqing discover how malicious he truly was, Song Yuqing would despise him.

"You're wrong," Song Yuqing lifted his eyes to look at Qi Ran. "What you shouldn't have done is hurt yourself."

"For someone like that, it's not worth it," Song Yuqing said calmly. "Don't resort to such ways of hurting yourself."

So, was Song Yuqing more worried about him being hurt?

If Song Yuqing was worried about him, then even dying for Song Yuqing would be worth it.

Qi Ran remained expressionless on the surface, but a flicker of joy stirred inside him.

Carefully, Qi Ran reached out, his fingers gently hooking onto Song Yuqing's hand. With a pitiful look in his eyes, he said, "Papa, please touch my wound, it hurts so much."

"I'll do whatever you say from now on, Papa. As long as they don't threaten you, I won't do such things again."

The alpha lay on the hospital bed, bandages wrapped tightly around his powerful waist and abdomen, covering the wound and cinching his well-defined abs.

Qi Ran called out "Papa" several times in a row, making Song Yuqing feel like Qi Ran was a whining dog, nuzzling against his owner after being hurt, begging for a gentle touch.

After a moment's hesitation, Song Yuqing asked 88, "Why do I feel like Qi Ran is also like a dog?"

88 replied, "It's nothing."

He's quite a dog.

He'd also really like to be your dog.

Song Yuqing lowered his eyes. Song Yuqing’s eyes were beautiful, with long lashes that fluttered, casting a gentle play of light and shadow. His amber eyes were clear and devoid of any lust.

His slender fingertips gently touched the white bandage that was seeping with a bit of blood, making his fingers appear even more pale and snow-white.

Qi Ran’s breath caught in his throat as he stared at Song Yuqing’s profile. Black strands of hair fell beside the beauty’s face, and his pale pink lips parted slightly, “Does it hurt a lot?”

Song Yuqing lifted his lashes to look at Qi Ran, his gaze filled with a questioning tenderness, a contradictory softness amidst the coldness, tinged with a hint of warmth.

A tenderness born from the need to comfort the injured alpha, yet mingled with an ingrained coldness.

Contradictory and captivating.

The pain was nothing much for Qi Ran, but at this moment, he was captivated by Song Yuqing’s expression, greedily savoring the gentleness and beauty bestowed upon him.

Gently grasping Song Yuqing’s wrist, Qi Ran tilted his head up, looking at Song Yuqing with earnest eyes, “It hurts, Dad, please touch me again.”

Qi Ran rarely showed such vulnerability, and Song Yuqing did not doubt that his adopted son would betray him; he only thought that Qi Ran must be in great pain to act this way.

Placing his hand on Qi Ran’s abdomen, he gently poked and touched, his face pale and stiff, his voice strained, “Dad is touching you, it doesn’t hurt.”

Qi Ran stared at Song Yuqing with a lovesick gaze, utterly captivated by the warmth she exuded.

He wished time could freeze at this very moment.

Would Song Yuqing keep touching him if he were always injured, and ignore other alphas?

The tall alpha, standing outside the hospital room, could see everything through the glass pane in the door. The alpha’s entire body radiated a low pressure.

His wife was touching his adopted son’s waist, offering him warmth.

Author's Note:

Song Qingqing: What are you jealous about with your son?

Da Qi: He’s about to climb into your bed, and I can’t be jealous?