Chapter 2: Wife

Chapter 2: Wife

To make a good impression, Cai Gu put on a brand-new shirt and dress pants. The fastened buttons sank into his body, the fabric clinging tightly to his muscles, outlining every inch of his well-defined physique.

He grabbed his well-worn shoulder bag, placed the pre-made sandwich inside, and hustled downstairs.

The thugs downstairs waited for him at the same time every day. Cai Gu had hoped to avoid them this morning, but as soon as he reached the ground floor, he saw a group of youths sitting under a tree, looking over with malicious intent.

Cai Gu lowered his head and quickened his pace, silently praying: Don't notice me, don't notice me...

His inner plea didn't work. The thugs had sharp eyes and immediately spotted his figure.

A youth grabbed Cai Gu's hand, his fingers tightening and leaving clear marks on Cai Gu's wrist. He slowly raised his head, tilted his chin toward the corner, and said, "Come with me."

＊

The secluded corner was overgrown with weeds and shrubs. This poor neighborhood had no property management to tend to them, so the vegetation had grown wild.

Cai Gu was shoved into a corner, his back against a dusty red-brick wall. In front of him was a circle of half-grown youths, their tall, lanky frames exuding chaotic, low-grade pheromones that clung to Cai Gu's cuffs and collar, seeping through the gaps and brushing against his dark skin.

Cai Gu didn't want any trouble. He looked at the youths—more than a decade younger—with pleading eyes: "I'll give you the money. Just let me go. I have to get to work."

The Federation had long adopted electronic payments. Only old-fashioned men like Cai Gu still carried paper money. He took out his wallet, counted a few bills, and handed them over.

The ringleader took the money and lit a cigarette, the rising smoke obscuring his face and making his expression hard to read. "Where were you yesterday?"

The youth leaned in, blowing a smoke ring that scattered across Cai Gu's face.

The poor old man's eyes instantly reddened. He coughed and turned his head, instinctively hugging his bag tighter: "I got off work early. The company let us out early and told us to go home."

Cai Gu was a bad liar. He furrowed his thick brows, putting on a pitiful expression, but that very expression irritated the youth.

"Liar." The youth saw through his lie at once. Noticing how tightly Cai Gu held his bag, he snorted coldly: "Your bag wouldn't happen to be hiding evidence of last night's rendezvous with some Alpha, would it?"

Cai Gu's eyes widened in disbelief, his drooping eyes with thick lashes: "I... I don't. I don't like Alphas. I would never hook up with an Alpha. And you're all still kids—you shouldn't be saying things like that."

"Alpha" and "kids"—those two words struck a nerve in the youth. He lost it and snatched Cai Gu's bag: "If there's nothing, then let me check the bag."

Inside the bag was a letter of recommendation with the Yasa Academy logo. If the thugs found it, they would definitely stake out the academy entrance.

Cai Gu shook his head, curling into a ball, using his broad shoulders to shield the bag against his chest.

The youth’s hand pressed on his shoulder, wrinkling the cheap dress shirt. His shoulder was broad and fleshy, firm to the touch.

The youth couldn't grab the bag alone. He signaled his companions, and several hands landed on Cai Gu at once, tearing at his shirt, pulling his arms apart, and yanking the bag out.

Cai Gu tried to protect the bag while being careful not to hurt the youths.

The bag finally ended up in the youth's hands. Inside were a sandwich and water bottle. The youth continued searching and finally found the delicate envelope in the hidden pocket.

"Yasa Academy."

Seeing his secret was out, Cai Gu grabbed the youth's sleeve: "This is for my new job. Please give it back? I can't lose another job... Please..."

The youth looked down, his gaze fixed on Cai Gu's red lips. His features were bold—thick brows, big eyes, full and bright red lips. As he spoke, his tongue trembled slightly.

How could an ordinary, cheap Beta have such beautiful lips? They made you want to lean in and kiss them, to bite and tear at them.

Realizing the desire that had risen in him, the youth grew flustered and angry. He pressed the envelope against Cai Gu's lips: "Shut up."

Even through the envelope, the youth could still feel the warmth of his lips.

Watching Cai Gu's timid expression, the youth suddenly smiled. He patted Cai Gu's cheek, the pad of his finger brushing the fine lines at the corner of his eye: "Fine. You better work hard. I'll drop by from time to time to check if you're slacking off."

Cai Gu caught the falling envelope. Seeing that the thugs had no intention of stopping him, he shuffled away and then quickly ran off.

Watching Cai Gu's retreating figure, the youth suddenly raised a finger and brought it to his nose, sniffing the lingering fragrance.

"Hey, do you think he's really not an Omega?"

"If he were an Omega, at his age, he'd have been married off by now."

"And what Beta has a chest that big and an ass that round?"

"Besides, it's common for divorced Omegas to pretend to be Betas, just to avoid harassment."

"Yeah?" The youth chewed on his cigarette, lost in thought.

His companion leaned in conspiratorially: "I heard there's a drug that can quickly make someone aroused. If he's an Omega, his pheromones could be released."

"Pheromones..." the youth murmured to himself. He snorted, "Even if he is an Omega, he's too old. Who'd want him?"

The youth stubbed out his cigarette, shoved his hands into his pockets, and swaggered up the steps: "Go get me some of that stuff you were talking about."

＊

The thugs had thrown off Cai Gu's original plan. He hurriedly hailed a taxi and jumped in.

"Sir, Yasa Academy."

The driver glanced at Cai Gu in the rearview mirror. His collar was a mess, and a button had somehow popped open, exposing half of his full chest, revealing the valley between his pectorals.

He could even see a bright red mole hidden in the crease, alluringly peeking out with each breath.

"Screech—"

The car screeched to a halt, and Cai Gu, caught off guard, lurched forward, his head hitting the headrest.

The driver snapped back to reality. He swallowed hard: "You okay..."

"I'm fine." Cai Gu rubbed his forehead, now red. He hesitated, then asked: "Sir, do you have a driver's license?"

"Hey." The driver let out a laugh. He tossed his license at Cai Gu.

After confirming the driver matched the photo, Cai Gu relaxed, relieved that the driver wasn't driving illegally.

After returning the license, Cai Gu sat upright with his hands on his knees, still struggling with his popped-open shirt.

But no matter what he did, his thick chest kept squeezing out through the gap. He could only cover it with his hand.

"We're here."

The driver had enjoyed the view throughout the ride. Covering it up, he took out his water bottle and gulped some water.

Cai Gu handed the fare to the driver and rushed toward the academy. The bills still held his body heat. The driver lowered his head, took a deep breath, and caught only a light, sweet fragrance. Was it his pheromones?

The driver looked back at the seat. The sturdy Cai Gu had left two deep impressions. He couldn't help but click his tongue—that ass must be enormous. He must be very fertile.

Want to lick.

Yasa Academy was even more luxurious than Cai Gu had imagined. To the left of the understated yet extravagant entrance was the security booth. It was currently class time, so there was no one outside.

Cai Gu licked his dry, chapped lips and knocked on the security booth door, but it opened at his touch. The air conditioner was running inside, so Cai Gu rubbed his arms for warmth and quietly sat on a stool in the corner.

A security guard came in from outside, glanced briefly at Cai Gu in the corner without getting a clear look at him, and waved him over, urging, "Quick! Quick! Don't just sit there—some students are climbing over the wall..."

The guard hurried out, and Cai Gu didn't hear the rest. He dropped his bag quickly and followed the guard out.

The wall was a full three meters high, with sharp metal spikes on top that gleamed coldly in the sun.

The bell had already rung once, and the main gate was closed, but there were still Alphas hoisting themselves over the wall's edge and jumping in. The guard shouted and chased after them.

They were obviously supposed to stop the late students.

No one told Cai Gu what to do. He stood helplessly in a corner, clutching the hem of his shirt, sweat beading on his forehead and trailing down his cheeks to his chin.

Then he heard a rustling sound above him. Cai Gu looked up and saw a young man flip himself over the wall from the outside, the hem of his jacket arching through the air.

Cai Gu's heart pounded like thunder, and at that moment, he met Jiang Yu's gaze.

Jiang Yu frowned. His red eyes reflected Cai Gu's image—an older man, well-preserved but with fine lines around his eyes that gave away his age.

Everything about him was large, especially his chest, which seemed ready to spill out of his open collar. A breeze pressed the fabric against his smooth, delicate skin, the gap between his pecs faintly visible.

His waist was slim, as if one hand could encircle it.

A random thought crossed Jiang Yu's mind, and for once, he was distracted. When he landed, he didn't notice the protruding stone underfoot, stumbled, and felt a sharp pain in his ankle.

A hand gripped Jiang Yu's wrist. The warm temperature seemed to almost melt his hand. The palm was rough but broad and strong, rubbing against his skin.

Jiang Yu's Adam's apple bobbed. All his attention was on that hand, completely ignoring the pain in his ankle.

"I..."

Cai Gu's lips moved slightly. He was standing very close, with most of his chest nearly pressing into the young man's face, yet he seemed unaware, just looking up with innocent, downcast eyes.

"I caught a late student."

Cai Gu raised Jiang Yu's hand. His voice wasn't loud, but it was perfectly audible to the group of security guards who had just finished their work and were walking over together.

The guards, who had just been congratulating themselves on another day of slacking off in their task of chasing the noble students, felt their hair stand on end when they heard that.

When the captain saw that it was the commander's son, his heart sank. Was his job about to be ruined?

An awkward atmosphere filled the air. Cai Gu blinked nervously. He shrank back timidly, hiding his beautiful chest, then helplessly let go and stepped back a few steps.

Cai Gu: "Isn't... isn't that what we're supposed to do? Catch late students?"

Cai Gu gave the captain a pleading look. The captain had wanted to pretend he hadn't seen anything, but seeing Cai Gu's meek, submissive expression, he couldn't help stepping in. "Uh, Student Jiang, since you're late, could you sign your name here first?"

The captain kindly stepped between them. Jiang Yu lifted his eyelids lazily, finding the man in front of him particularly annoying. "My leg is hurt. I can't walk over..."

Before Jiang Yu could finish, the captain waved a hand and signaled the other guards to lift Jiang Yu up and carry him respectfully to the security booth.

Jiang Yu's fluffy red hair bounced in the air.

Cai Gu felt like he had caused huge trouble. He looked at the captain with eyes glistening with tears. "Did I mess up?"

The captain cleared his throat, deliberately looking away. "You must be new. It's my fault for not telling you earlier. The work uniform is on the table. Go change first."

Cai Gu shuffled his feet but couldn't help whispering to the captain, "Are you sure there's no problem?"

His warm breath brushed against the captain's ear, and his full lips grazed the man's earlobe.

The captain caught a faint scent emanating from Cai Gu, but since Betas aren't affected by pheromones, all the hired security guards were Betas to deal with the restless students at the academy.

So it was probably just cologne.

The captain gestured to reassure Cai Gu. "It's fine. I'll assign you to the east gate. Give it some time, he'll forget about you."

Cai Gu hadn't expected the captain to be so kind. He nodded gratefully, a small smile on his face, and went to change.

Jiang Yu sat in his chair, twirling his pen. The sign-in sheet was blank except for the name "Jiang Yu."

Even though the security guards usually turn a blind eye, if someone actually caught a late student, they couldn't just let him go on the spot.

Jiang Yu waited for a while. He only saw the fawning captain, not the well-built guy. He leaned back, pressing the pen against the paper. "Where is he?"

The captain played dumb. "Who?"

Jiang Yu gave a mocking half-smile. Under his gaze, the captain's forehead beaded with cold sweat. He stammered, "Oh, oh, you must mean my... wife. Yes, my wife. I asked him to bring me lunch. It's his first time here, and he doesn't know anything. Please don't hold it against him."

*Screech.*

Jiang Yu's pen left a clear scratch on the paper, pressed so hard it almost tore through.

Author's note:

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