Chapter 4

Chapter 4

After his rebirth, Ying Zhiyu never once considered changing his Omega.

In his previous life, aside from the initial three years of marriage when Ying Zhiyu harbored resentment towards Li Xi for being forced into wedlock, their subsequent eight years together were, in fact, quite respectful.

Li Xi was exceptionally capable.

As an Alpha and the promising heir to the LI Pheromone Group, his status afforded Ying Zhiyu countless advantages.

Li Xi was a qualified leader, a strategic and decisive helmsman of a commercial empire.

Months before Li Xi's "mate selection," the LI Pheromone Group, under his leadership, launched a new "soothing agent."

Unlike "suppressants," which merely suppress one's special biological cycles, the "soothing agent" championed embracing bodily desires and rejecting the shame associated with special physiological periods.

Given the vastly different physical impacts of an Alpha's rut and an Omega's heat, the soothing agent was more convenient for Omegas and, to some extent, diminished or even replaced the role and value of Alphas during Omegas' special periods.

The emergence of the new soothing agent, as expected, sparked an unprecedented wave of discussion.

Extreme Alpha rights activists once attacked the soothing agent as a poison that would endanger the fertility rate of the entire ABO society.

Its controversial reception was anticipated even before its release, yet Li Xi, overriding all objections, brought it into the public eye and onto the historical stage.

This occurred less than three years after Li Xi's return from studying abroad.

Among the new generation of heirs in the Li family, Li Xi had an elder sister and an elder brother, both Alphas.

He also had a twin sister, Li Yue, who was a Beta.

Due to the unique nature of the Li family's business empire, being a Beta essentially meant being excluded from the heir competition.

Three months prior, news suddenly broke online that Li Xi and his twin sister, Li Yue, were actually illegitimate children born from LI Chairman Li Songqian's extramarital affair.

At the time, the controversy surrounding the "soothing agent" was escalating.

Amid such a sensitive and volatile period, the LI Pheromone Group's scandal caused significant stock price volatility.

The LI Group's PR department promptly released Li Songqian's divorce certificate from his ex-wife, alongside Li Xi and Li Yue's birth certificates.

The several-year gap between the two documents effectively debunked the "illegitimate children" rumor.

However, this false news seemed to be merely a trigger.

What followed was an influx of so-called insiders and marketing accounts digging up dirt on Li Xi.

Li Xi had studied abroad from a young age, attending prestigious schools all the way to the Ivy League.

He graduated with dual master's degrees in Business Administration and Marketing at 25, returned to China, and within three years rose to become the senior director of the LI Group's core R&D department, launching the "soothing agent" with outstanding results.

Such a background was almost impeccable.

If there was any flaw to be found in Li Xi, it might be that he was an Omega.

And the easiest, zero-cost way to slander an Omega is to spread salacious rumors.

At some point, photos and videos began circulating online of Li Xi entering and leaving the residences of well-known high-society socialite Alphas—sometimes at night, sometimes in the early morning.

Public opinion was also steered by numerous paid posters toward the unfavorable notion of "an Omega paying for an Alpha's services."

As the Alpha who had been Li Xi's partner for eleven years, Ying Zhiyu knew how ridiculous these rumors were.

Li Xi could be called "asexual among Omegas."

In his eyes, Alphas were merely tools to relieve heat cycles.

Ying Zhiyu would sooner believe that Li Xi would let any of his Alpha bodyguards give a temporary bite to end his heat than believe he would travel miles in the middle of the night to hire some famous socialite Alpha.

However, as a reborn individual, Ying Zhiyu knew from his previous life that Li Xi's visits to that Alpha were actually a sincere effort to recruit talent.

That legendary high-society socialite Alpha had a pheromone compatibility rate of over 60% with any Omega, making them a rare and valuable sample for pheromone experiments.

In his previous life, Ying Zhiyu, in his genetic research, also sought help from that Alpha through Li Xi's referral.

Unfortunately, most people preferred salacious gossip, and explanations were often dismissed as excuses to cover up the truth.

Such news kept emerging endlessly.

Li Xi's way of putting an end to these rumors once and for all was to establish a family through "mate selection."

After all, once an Omega is permanently marked, unless surgically removed, they will only ever have that one Alpha for life.

Ying Zhiyu had already prepared his explanation: "When I saw that everyone at the LI Laboratory was an Alpha, I had a good idea of the reason."

"Mr. Li's presence here now should prove it."

It just so happened that Li Xi was about to join the group's board of directors, and a stable family could be an asset.

Ying Zhiyu said, "Based on adequate pheromone compatibility, a clean family background, and a family influence that wouldn’t pose a threat or cause panic within the LI Group, making it easy to control."

Whether out of confidence or self-recommendation, the Alpha calmly concluded, "I should be a suitable marriage candidate."

The elevator had descended to the first floor of the library.

The doors opened to crowds of university students waiting to take the elevator.

Ying Zhiyu moved closer, protectively maneuvering around Li Xi.

It was almost a conditioned reflex—they had eleven years of experience performing as a "loving couple" in public.

Li Xi's steps faltered slightly.

Ying Zhiyu whispered, "Let's talk outside."

Li Xi ultimately chose the Chocoliz, which was one yuan more expensive than the Bitter Coffee.

Tearing open the cheaper Bitter Coffee, Ying Zhiyu took a bite and noticed the chocolate-coated ice cream inside had slightly melted.

He glanced nonchalantly at the cold, dignified Omega beside him.

Li Xi also tore open the ice cream wrapper, frowning at the Chocolate Bar dripping milk.

Ying Zhiyu started to say, "Don’t eat it if it’s melted."

But Li Xi had already furrowed his brows and put the half-melted ice cream into his mouth.

Pan Da, who had exited earlier through the library’s first-floor emergency exit, stepped forward promptly and handed over a wet wipe.

Ying Zhiyu raised an eyebrow, almost forgetting that from his past life, this dutiful "panda" was less of a bodyguard and more like a mother hen to Li Xi.

However, the next moment, Li Xi, after taking the wet wipe, passed it to Ying Zhiyu instead.

Ying Zhiyu: "...Thanks."

Pan Da handed over another wet wipe. Li Xi wiped his fingers, sticky from the melted ice cream, before asked calmly, "You guessed the reason after seeing all the Alphas. Then why did you wash your hair before going?"

Li Xi was adept at spotting details and logical flaws.

Even though Ying Zhiyu had taken the initiative to reveal his cards, Li Xi wasn’t fooled by the momentary surprise.

Ying Zhiyu finished off his bitter coffee-flavored ice cream, wiped his hands, and replied just as calmly, "Better safe than sorry."

They had already exited the library and were standing on the long steps in front of the building.

Ying Zhiyu was a well-known figure in the School of Biology at Biomedical University, and from time to time, passing students greeted him.

Li Xi wasn’t fussy.

But not being fussy didn’t mean that someone born with a silver spoon in his mouth could truly enjoy a five-kuai ice cream bar with a large chunk of chocolate.

Moreover, Li Xi’s upbringing and manners didn’t allow him to eat while walking.

Seeing the Chocolate Bar in Li Xi’s hand about to completely melt, Ying Zhiyu took it, walked up a few steps, and tossed it into the trash can near the library entrance.

When he turned back, he bumped into someone he knew.

The classmate enthusiastically invited Ying Zhiyu to play basketball.

"Are you alone, senior?"

"Senior Ying, give us the honor."

"God Ying, let’s have hot pot tonight."

Behind the familiar classmate was a group of others—some Ying Zhiyu knew, some he didn’t, but they all seemed to know him.

Ying Zhiyu politely declined, "I have something to do. You all go ahead."

He excused himself and returned to Li Xi’s side. With Pan Da and the other bodyguards following behind Li Xi, they naturally formed a protective bubble, and passing students consciously kept their distance, walking along the edges.

Li Xi keeping his eyes forward and asked, "Good social connections?"

Ying Zhiyu didn’t answer directly, "You must have investigated it all already."

Indeed, everything had been investigated. Three months was enough to dig up every detail of Ying Zhiyu’s family history, going back eighteen generations.

Including how Ying Zhiyu transferred from a rural town to the city at age eight, and for half a semester, his uniform, backpack, and textbooks were often slashed and scratched up.

And his supposed Omega girlfriend, who was actually Ying Zhiyu’s biological sister.

Ying Zhiyu’s sister was ten years older than him. At 22, she suffered acute liver failure from taking the wrong medication. Their Alpha father eventually gave part of his liver to save her, leaving the family deeply in debt.

But that same year, the 12-year-old Ying Zhiyu applied for his first food formula patent.

Three years later, the Ying family paid off their debts.

That same year, Ying Zhiyu gained admission to the special program for gifted students at Biomedical University, won a gold medal in the International Biology Olympiad, declined a guaranteed admission to Capital University, the top-ranked institution, and at not even 16 yet, became a university student majoring in Genetic Engineering, the most prestigious program at Biomedical University.

As Ying Zhiyu had said, his background was clean.

Not just clean, but even somewhat inspirational and legendary—the kind that could drive up stock prices if made into a news story.

Li Xi snapped out of his thoughts and glanced at the Alpha beside him.

The Alpha was tall and had long legs, his simple black T-shirt and casual pants unable to hide his striking appearance.

On their way out of the library, countless Omegas had kept looking in their direction—or more accurately, at Ying Zhiyu beside him.

But now, Ying Zhiyu had somehow produced a baseball cap and pulled it low over his head.

From Li Xi’s angle, he could only see the lower half of the Alpha’s sharp features: thin lips and a defined jawline.

Noticing Li Xi’s prolonged gaze, Ying Zhiyu turned to look at him, his thin lips curving upward slightly, softening the distant demeanor around him. "Is this better?"

The Alpha was asking him.

As if they were in a committed, exclusive relationship, and he was keeping others away for him.