Chapter 33

Chapter 33

At this, Li Xi paused, looking up.

“Impossible, Pan Da and the others are guarding downstairs…”

A sudden realization cut off his words.

Ying Zhiyu clearly had the same thought, asking softly, “Do your grandparents have a key to the house?”

He felt the person in his arms tense completely. So, the answer was yes.

Ying Zhiyu gave Li Xi’s back a comforting pat. “It’s fine, I bolted the door.”

Although no one else lived in the house, in such an old apartment building, just to be safe, Ying Zhiyu had not only locked the main living room door from the inside but also latched the bedroom door after entering.

He just hadn’t expected that even with the main door locked from the inside, it could still be opened from the outside with a key.

There was no time to overthink. Ying Zhiyu carefully retreated.

Li Xi buried his face in Ying Zhiyu’s chest, clenching his teeth.

Having just completed the permanent mark, with no time for tenderness or aftercare, Ying Zhiyu could only plant a hurried kiss on the top of Li Xi’s head.

He got out of bed, picked up the clothes from the floor, and said, “You get dressed first; I’ll go out and explain.”

Although with Pan Da and the others around, the likelihood of a burglar was almost zero, Li Xi wouldn’t let Ying Zhiyu face the situation alone without knowing what was happening outside.

“I’ll go with you.”

Ying Zhiyu was already standing by the bed, lighting up his phone. “No need, it’s just your grandparents.”

He showed Li Xi his phone, which was on the bedside table, its lock screen clearly displaying missed calls and unread messages from Pan Da.

They must have been too preoccupied earlier to notice.

Without needing Li Xi to unlock the phone to read the messages, the fact that Pan Da had time to call and message while knowing someone was upstairs meant it wasn't an intrusion.

That left only one possibility: they didn’t know how to handle the situation and had no choice but to let the visitors upstairs.

Ten minutes later, Li Xi walked out of the room.

The ice cream cake on the living room coffee table from the night before, which they had used for other purposes and had melted to little more than the cake base, had already been cleaned up by Ying Zhiyu.

The two elderly people sat awkwardly on the living room sofa, with two steaming cups of tea placed on the coffee table in front of them—

They were the parents of Li Xi’s mother, Gan Ruyuan.

Li Xi’s grandparents, whom he had only met “once.”

As soon as Li Xi stepped out of the room, the elderly couple turned their heads in unison toward the doorway.

Li Xi strongly resembled his mother, and with just one glance, the couple recognized him.

Moreover, Li Xi was incredibly popular online, known as “the top stream in the Omega world,” so his grandparents must have kept up with his news regularly.

Ying Zhiyu looked up and smiled when he saw Li Xi come out. Breaking the ice in the momentarily silent living room, he said,

“Grandpa, Grandma, I’m Ying Zhiyu. You can call me ‘Xiao Ying’ or ‘Zhiyu.’ I’m Li Xi’s newlywed Alpha. Li Xi wanted to visit his hometown, so we came back together during our honeymoon.”

Since the old house’s bedrooms didn’t have attached bathrooms, Li Xi had no way to wash off the strong scent of pheromones on him.

Ying Zhiyu had intentionally waited for Li Xi to come out before formally introducing himself.

He skillfully framed their “marital relationship” to ease the awkwardness of them emerging from the same room and presented the idea of “visiting his hometown” as Li Xi’s initiative.

Ying Zhiyu was exceptionally good at charming elders.

Li Xi had already witnessed this when he took Ying Zhiyu to the Li family garden villa twice.

Li Xi was a man of few words, and his grandparents were also somewhat reserved upon suddenly meeting their grandson.

Fortunately, Ying Zhiyu acted as a perfect social lubricant.

Who wouldn’t love a handsome, sweet-talking grandson-in-law?

The elderly couple had been teachers before retiring. Upon learning that Ying Zhiyu was a Ph.D. from Biomedical University and already working in a biogenetics lab at just 22, they soon regarded Ying Zhiyu as their own grandson.

As everyone gradually relaxed, the atmosphere became less tense.

Li Xi’s grandmother spoke up, “Our former neighbors called to tell us that someone was staying in our old house and claimed to be our grandson.”

“Old Gan and I were skeptical, worried that thieves might have targeted the place, so we rushed over early this morning. We apologize for disturbing you.”

Li Xi shook his head. “No disturbance.”

Grandma gazed kindly at Li Xi sitting across the sofa and said warmly, “Xixi has grown up so much, and already married. Time flies.”

Ying Zhiyu chimed in with a smile, “Even if you hadn’t come today, we planned to visit you once we settled in.”

Of course, he didn’t mention how they had followed the elderly couple all morning the day before but ultimately didn’t approach them.

Holding Li Xi’s hand, Ying Zhiyu paused briefly before asking, “How have you been all these years, Grandpa and Grandma?”

As soon as he finished speaking, he felt Li Xi’s hand tighten momentarily in his.

Ying Zhiyu subtly rubbed the back of Li Xi’s hand with his thumb to comfort him.

Li Xi’s grandmother’s expression tightened slightly, and she didn't answer immediately, while his grandfather took over.

“We’ve been well. We’re still healthy. The money Xixi and Yueyue sent us every month—we received it all. Honestly, us old folks don’t need much living here. You’ve been too generous.”

They understood the thoughtful gestures of their grandson and granddaughter.

As for not meeting all these years…

Grandpa continued, “Actually, we did visit you.”

He explained, “Before Xixi and Yueyue went abroad, we went to the capital several times. After Xixi returned to the country, your grandmother and I also went to see you in secret.”

Li Xi’s grandparents were much like Li Xi himself.

They shared the same mindset: as long as their grandchildren were happy and well, they were content.

They didn’t want to suddenly reappear and disrupt their lives.

They were even more worried that their presence might stir up painful questions about their mother’s passing.

Having lived most of their lives, they had to bury their own child—a painful experience of burying the young before the old.

Li Xi's grandparents understood better than anyone that happiness and health are more important than anything else.

At noon, Ying Zhiyu invited Li Xi's grandparents to stay for lunch.

When Li Xi offered to help Ying Zhiyu in the kitchen, Ying Zhiyu told him to go chat with his grandparents instead.

Li Xi looked up at Ying Zhiyu and said, "They keep asking about you, as if you were their biological grandson."

In truth, the elderly couple simply felt too awkward to pry too much into Li Xi's personal life, so they ended up directing all their questions at Ying Zhiyu.

Ying Zhiyu, busy chopping vegetables without looking up, replied, "If you are, then I am."

As long as Li Xi remained their biological grandson, Ying Zhiyu could also be considered their "biological grandson" for as long as that lasted.

Li Xi's eyelashes lowered slightly, trembling faintly.

He thought to himself, Alphas really do have a sweet tongue—they know exactly how to win people over.

No one could possibly dislike him.

-

After the meal, Li Xi's grandparents prepared to leave. Though Li Xi and Ying Zhiyu wanted to see them off, the elderly couple repeatedly declined.

In the end, Li Xi had Pan Da arrange for a bodyguard to follow them discreetly and ensure they got home safely.

Back inside, Ying Zhiyu started clearing the table.

Li Xi tried to help, but Ying Zhiyu stopped him, saying, "Go take a shower first. You must be uncomfortable after last night."

After their "ice cream cake" play the previous night, although they had cleaned up once, the subsequent bonding mark had lasted until morning.

And throughout the whole process, Li Xi had been the one exerting himself.

No matter how strong his physique or how great his stamina, Li Xi was still the Omega who had received the permanent mark.

He wasn't made of iron—it was impossible for him not to feel tired.

As Ying Zhiyu picked up the dishes and turned toward the kitchen, Li Xi suddenly hugged him from behind.

"Thank you."

With both hands full of leftover dishes, bowls, and oily utensils, Ying Zhiyu couldn't really return the gesture.

He raised the dishes slightly, turned around, and smiled. "What’s there to thank me for?"

Li Xi kept his arms wrapped around Ying Zhiyu's waist, refusing to let go. Ying Zhiyu circled an arm around Li Xi in return, gently stroking his back, but said teasingly, "With a monthly salary in the tens of millions, it should be me thanking Director Li."

Li Xi: "…"

Annoyed, he let go for a moment—but then, as if thinking it over and finding it even more irritating, he abruptly hugged Ying Zhiyu even tighter.

Ying Zhiyu wasn't sure whether Li Xi's sudden clinginess, pressing close against his chest, was due to aftereffects of the bonding mark.

Still, when an Omega needs their Alpha, a responsible Alpha ought to offer ample reassurance.

Besides, Ying Zhiyu did have something more to say to Li Xi.

So he set the dishes down, then led Li Xi into the kitchen so they could both wash their hands first.

Back in the living room, Ying Zhiyu had Li Xi sit down again on the sofa while he knelt before him and spoke seriously.

"I have no other Omega, and I've never liked anyone else."

Li Xi, who couldn't tolerate even the slightest impropriety—who would become upset if his Alpha so much as spoke to an unfamiliar Omega—had, in their previous life, impulsively completed the bonding mark with Ying Zhiyu under a misunderstanding.

Although Li Xi would certainly investigate afterward and eventually uncover the source of the high-compatibility Omega pheromones detected on Ying Zhiyu, the "doubt," "anger," and "all-or-nothing gamble" surrounding that night when the lifelong mark was made were all very real.

Ying Zhiyu didn't want Li Xi to carry the same doubts in this life.

"I know some things might seem strange to you."

When you know someone this well—sometimes, the better, more thoughtful, and considerate he was, the more it seemed like a "honey trap" tailor-made for Li Xi.

Wealthy people aren't fools; fools don't become wealthy, or at least can't hold onto wealth.

Li Songqian saw Li Xi as valuable and favored him as successor to the Li Group not only out of lingering affection for Li Xi’s Omega mother, but more importantly because Li Xi was capable, qualified, and suitable.

From their very first meeting—or rather, from the moment Ying Zhiyu wrote "supportive spouse" on that Li Pheromone Laboratory registration form—he had already raised suspicions.

At the time, he merely wanted to express his "voluntary" intent, hoping to avoid being forced into anything months later at gunpoint.

Later, the oddities he revealed were also intended to prevent them from wasting too much time testing each other.

The benefit of this approach was indeed bringing them closer faster.

The downside was leaving behind many unexplained suspicious points.

Having spent eleven years together in their past life, Ying Zhiyu understood Li Xi’s character well—he wasn't someone who feared unknown dangers or crises.

Li Xi had always been someone who faced challenges head-on.

So back then, Ying Zhiyu hadn’t been afraid of raising suspicions that Li Xi might notice.

But now, everything between them had completely changed from their previous life.

Even if Ying Zhiyu was slow to realize it, he could still sense Li Xi’s "liking" for him.

Li Xi had never said it aloud, but his actions and emotions had never hidden it either.

Ying Zhiyu couldn’t avoid it; he had to respond directly.

So, kneeling in front of Li Xi, looking him straight in the eye, Ying Zhiyu spoke to him word by word.

"There’s no one behind me. I’m not sent by Dad, Eldest Sister, Second Brother, or any other family member, and I have no ulterior motives."

Ying Zhiyu held Li Xi’s hand. "You don’t have to believe me right away. Investigate whatever you want, ask whatever you want. But if there are things I can’t fully explain, let time prove it, okay?"

Li Xi looked at Ying Zhiyu for a moment, then helped him up from the floor.

"Okay."

That was the only word he said to Ying Zhiyu.

No further questions, no hesitation—that single word said everything.

Ying Zhiyu sat down beside Li Xi. After resolving the first matter, he actually had a second issue to discuss with him.

"We need to take emergency contraception."