Chapter 126: Double Standards

Chapter 126: Double Standards

Qi Zhengqing: "May I hold you?"

Song Yuqing nodded.

Holding Song Yuqing in his arms once more, Qi Zhengqing felt an unprecedented contentment, as if he held the entire world.

No kissing was needed, no deep desires—just a hug was enough to bring them both peace. Dopamine was secretly released, filling two hearts simultaneously.

Just as Song Yuqing was drifting off to sleep, the ringtone of Qi Zhengqing's phone shattered the quiet night.

It jolted Song Yuqing awake. He placed a hand on Qi Zhengqing's shoulder and said, "Answer the phone."

Qi Zhengqing, who had been gazing at his wife: "..."

*Don't they sleep at this hour? Don't they have anything better to do?*

Glancing at the phone screen, the caller was Tan Hongzhen.

Qi Zhengqing wasn't in the mood to talk. He answered the call and spoke coldly, "What is it?"

Tan Hongzhen paused slightly, sensing something was off in Qi Zhengqing's tone. But remembering his purpose, he continued, "Just wanted to chat with you."

Qi Zhengqing: "We have nothing to chat about."

Song Yuqing settled back into Qi Zhengqing's arms, his fingers idly toying with the sash of Qi Zhengqing's robe, tying it into a bow.

Hearing Qi Zhengqing's bluntness, Song Yuqing thought he was being particularly sharp-tongued.

However, it was true that Qi Zhengqing had nothing to say to Tan Hongzhen.

Feeling the warmth of the person in his arms, Qi Zhengqing's emotions settled. He slid an arm around Song Yuqing's waist, pulling him closer.

Song Yuqing's fingers continued to play with the robe sash, like a kitten with a ball of yarn.

The thought made Qi Zhengqing chuckle softly, which earned him a glance from Song Yuqing, who seemed displeased by the sudden laughter.

Tan Hongzhen: "..."

*What a psycho.*

*He insults me and then laughs? Is Qi Zhengqing out of his mind?*

*Oh, well, most alphas are screwed up anyway.*

Tan Hongzhen: "I wanted to send you a gift."

Qi Zhengqing's expression turned serious. A gift from Tan Hongzhen could only be an upgraded version of "Jingxi No. 9." Otherwise, Tan Hongzhen wouldn't have brought it up.

After all, anything Tan Hongzhen could obtain would be of little value to him.

It seemed that while Song Yuqing was busy developing new products, the Tan family hadn't been sitting idle either.

Unable to target Song Yuqing directly, they had resorted to more legitimate means of competition.

However, he still didn't know whether Song Yuqing's Prometheus-1 was solely for military use or if it was intended to compete with the Tan family and capture their market share.

Based on his understanding of Song Yuqing, if Song Yuqing was putting effort into it, he would maximize the benefits of whatever he created.

Qi Zhengqing: "What is it?"

Tan Hongzhen: "Our new product, Jingxi No. 10, can help an alpha recover from mental instability faster than Jingxi No. 9."

Qi Zhengqing put the call on speaker so Song Yuqing could listen.

*Jingxi No. 10?*

*Calm mental instability quickly?*

Qi Zhengqing felt that Song Yuqing didn't seem to be paying much attention. To Song Yuqing, the so-called "Jingxi No. 10" probably couldn't surpass Prometheus-1.

"I remember your mental instability is approaching. Should I send you a sample?" Tan Hongzhen continued to press.

Qi Zhengqing: "Hmm, is there anything else?"

Tan Hongzhen: "..."

On the surface, Qi Zhengqing was asking if there was anything else, but the underlying message was clear: *if there's nothing else, hang up.*

He hadn't managed to extract any information.

But before Tan Hongzhen could say anything more, Qi Zhengqing hung up.

"Sleep, Qi Zhengqing," Song Yuqing said without even opening his eyes, his voice fading as he curled up against Qi Zhengqing.

Qi Zhengqing's phone buzzed again. Tan Hongzhen had messaged him saying the invitation to the "Jingxi No. 10" launch party would be delivered along with the product.

He invited both Qi Zhengqing and Song Yuqing to the launch party.

Qi Zhengqing: "Are you going to Tan Hongzhen's party?"

Song Yuqing closed his eyes. "I might go."

That old fox Tan Hongzhen was getting impatient.

Qi Zhengqing glanced down at Song Yuqing, who had his eyes closed. "Qingqing, while I'm asleep these few days..."

Song Yuqing promised him, "I won't do anything. At most, I'll attend Tan Hongzhen's party."

Song Yuqing's assurance was so straightforward that Qi Zhengqing felt even more unsettled.

After all, when Song Yuqing was being defiant, his attitude was usually, "None of your business."

He was utterly unapologetic.

Drowsiness washed over Qi Zhengqing, and he felt as if he had fallen into another one of Song Yuqing's traps. The reagent made it impossible for him to interfere with Song Yuqing.

"Will you go see other alphas? Or..."

Song Yuqing didn't respond.

Qi Zhengqing looked down and noticed that the sash of his robe was no longer tied in a bow—instead, Song Yuqing had tied it into a hard knot.

The culprit, overcome by sleepiness, had buried his face in the blankets and fallen asleep.

Qi Zhengqing bent down and kissed Song Yuqing's cheek. "Why do you keep setting traps? You'll trick anyone."

The only response was the gentle flutter of long eyelashes swaying with each soft breath.

Qi Zhengqing sent a message to Pei Wei.

Qi Zhengqing: [Arrange for a few military Alpha personnel to come over and keep Song Yuqing safe.]

He had people around Song Yuqing as well, but they would stay under the radar as much as possible and not interfere in Song Yuqing’s affairs.

If anything happened, these people would generally contact him first to get the green light.

He might be unavailable in the coming days.

He did not want to wake up and see Song Yuqing injured.

Double protection was necessary.

Pei Wei: "..."

Pei Wei looked over at Pei Huai, who had just returned.

The matters in the Border Military Region had been fully resolved. The defeated Westland had offered significant compensation to Newland—at least in a way that satisfied Song Yuqing.

Pei Wei: "You have a mission tomorrow—to protect the core personnel of the project."

Pei Huai, sitting on Pei Wei’s sofa, replied bluntly, "Not going. Who deserves my personal protection? If they wanna die, let 'em. If they have no self-defense ability, they might as well not live."

Pei Wei: "..."

*Useless. Even when given an opportunity, Pei Huai couldn’t seize it.*

Pei Wei lifted an eyebrow. "Fine, if you won’t go, I’ll send someone else."

Pei Huai slouched back on the sofa, nodding with a completely indifferent attitude. While Pei Huai could remain steady during military operations, around those he was familiar with, he tended to be as much of a jerk as possible.

"Go ahead and call someone else. You should approve my leave—I need to go find Song Yuqing."

He had to stop by Song Yuqing’s apartment first. He had previously ordered some risqué items online.

He wasn’t sure if Song Yuqing had discovered them. Before ordering, he hadn’t even known they were that type of product.

Sheer, thin layers.

Using a barrier wouldn’t hurt Song Yuqing, but it also couldn’t—

When the items arrived, he had just opened them and was staring dumbfounded when Song Yuqing happened to return. He hurriedly hid the items.

Song Yuqing probably didn’t know what he had hidden, but the hiding spot wasn’t smart. He was worried that if he found out, Song Yuqing would kill him.

Before things blew up, he needed to take some time off, hide the items properly, and then go find his wife.

"Hurry up and approve it. It’s urgent." Thinking of this, Pei Huai grew even more impatient.

Pei Wei was fuming. "If you won’t go, others will."

Pei Wei also loved the idea of Pei Huai’s embarrassment. "I just need to say one thing—'Protect Mr. Song'—and everyone will jump at the chance for this task."

Pei Huai: "?"

Pei Huai: "Why didn't you lead with that? Protecting Song Yuqing? I’ll lead the team? When do we go? Are there spies trying to assassinate him again?"

His wife was as fragile as porcelain—what if those bastards hurt him again? The last injury took forever to heal. *Damn it, when will these people from Seriland ever stop?*

Pei Huai: "When are we going to attack Seriland? Instead of being on guard every day, we should find a way to crush Seriland once and for all."

*Kill those scumbags.*

Pei Wei: "..."

*Who was it that just said, "Let them die"? Now that Song Yuqing’s life is threatened, it’s all about wiping out the enemy’s base.*

*How did he end up with such a double-standard son like Pei Huai?*

Meanwhile, Tan Hongzhen was on edge. He hadn’t managed to get any solid intel. The fact that Qi Zhengqing wanted "Jingxi No. 10" didn’t necessarily mean Song Yuqing’s research had failed. It might even be a deliberate attempt to throw him off.

Tan Hongzhen didn’t want to gamble the whole Tan family over a wrong decision.

Song Yuqing was becoming harder to touch.

The Tan family had actually been involved in the car accident that targeted Song Yuqing, but they had hidden their tracks well, staying under the radar from Qi Zhengqing.

Failing to eliminate Song Yuqing back then meant they had lost the best opportunity to do so.

After that incident, Song Yuqing rapidly grew stronger, quickly consolidating power and gaining significant influence in Newland. Initially, the old guard in the parliament still had dissent, but recently, for some reason, they had become dodgy and kept making excuses when approached.

Could it be that Song Yuqing’s charisma had won them over? Was that even possible?

It was utterly impossible.

Still, this didn’t change the fact that the Tan family could no longer take action against Song Yuqing.

They could only engage in head-to-head competition with Song Yuqing, purely comparing R&D capabilities.

If their newly developed "Jingxi No. 10" could prove more effective than the drugs developed by Song Yuqing, the Tan family might still keep their status.

Otherwise, they would have to withdraw from the center of power while the situation was still favorable.

If that happened, the Tan family’s future generations would likely gradually fall from Newland’s upper crust, eventually becoming a second-rate family.

He had worked hard for half his life. How could he accept the Tan family losing ground on his watch?

Yet, forcing a confrontation might lead to the total ruin of the Tan family.

"Father..."

Tan Yan, Tan Hongzhen’s illegitimate son, had become his most favored successor after Tan Shu left the Tan family’s power center to expand business in the Westland.

"Should we consider bringing Tan Shu back?" Tan Yan suggested.

Everyone knew that Tan Shu and Song Yuqing had been butting heads since their time at Victor. Song Yuqing had even kicked Tan Shu out from his position in the student council, driving him out of Victor and out of Newland.

Tan Shu probably hated Song Yuqing to the core. Moreover, in the past few years, Tan Shu had actually managed to develop the Westland.

If Tan Shu continued to expand his influence, he might eventually seize control of the Tan family, which would not bode well for Tan Yan.

The best strategy now was to let those who were already fighting like mad dogs continue their struggle.

He would come out on top.

Tan Hongzhen also narrowed his eyes. Bringing Tan Shu back and revealing some truths about the past would surely drive Tan Shu to spare no effort in seeking revenge against Song Yuqing.

In the end, if Song Yuqing came demanding answers, they could simply sacrifice Tan Shu, sever ties with him—just like they did three years ago.

Tan Hongzhen: "Tell him to come back. We'll hold both the welcome banquet and the launch party together. Remember to send a separate invitation to Song Yuqing."

The next day, when Song Yuqing went to work and came downstairs, he ran into Pei Huai. The alpha was leaning casually against his motorcycle, eyebrows raised and eyes shining, full of confidence and energy.

Pei Huai waved at Song Yuqing. "Where are you headed, princess? Need a ride?"

The other alphas assigned to protect Song Yuqing alongside Pei Huai were positioned not too far away in the shadows.

They all heard Pei Huai call Song Yuqing "princess."

*Wow, Pei Huai actually dared to talk to Mr. Song like that—is he not afraid of getting himself killed?*

In their eyes, Song Yuqing was like the moon—meant to be admired from a distance, not approached.

Over the years, Song Yuqing's demeanor had grown even colder, and his methods of handling matters had become more ruthless. Ordinary people regarded him with a sense of awe, could barely meet his gaze.

Pei Huai's flippant "princess" was practically suicidal.

Song Yuqing lifted his gaze and looked at the alpha. The cool morning air seemed to freeze for a moment.

Song Yuqing didn’t break his stride, not even his expression flickering at the address.

He walked straight up to Pei Huai before stopping. His eyes, cold and still like a deep pond, rested on Pei Huai’s face, which was spreading a bold grin.

The sunlight outlined Song Yuqing’s exquisitely defined profile and illuminated a faint, almost imperceptible scrutiny deep in his eyes.

The surrounding air grew even quieter. Several alphas held their breath, already mentally writing off Pei Huai.

But Pei Huai acted oblivious, still leaning against his motorcycle, a bold smirk tugging at his lips. He even met Song Yuqing’s gaze head-on. "Qingqing, I'm home."

Then, lowering his voice so only Song Yuqing could hear, he added, "Did you miss me? I bet you did, but I know you’d never say it."

Song Yuqing’s gaze turned even colder, almost laughing at Pei Huai’s nerve.

He patted Pei Huai’s face—*You've got some thick skin.*

His thin lips parted, voice cool and detached. "Miss the stuff you hid everywhere?"

The sound of the pats was crisp, one after another, snapping Pei Huai out of his daze.

Pei Huai: "..."

*So Song Yuqing had found out after all?*

Author's Note:

Song Yuqing: *Wish you were dead.*