Chapter 98 Not Happy to See Me Alive?

Chapter 98: Not Happy to See Me Alive?

The road back to the hotel was not far, and in the quiet car, even the sound of breathing seemed crystal clear.

Shi Xiangyang sank into the comfortable leather seat and dozed off.

Chen Su turned his head to look out the window. The rain was too heavy tonight, the view was blurry. Lishi was not a prosperous city, and the night scenery was not worth such careful appreciation.

When the car arrived at the hotel, as Chen Su got out, Uncle Wen handed him an umbrella, then scooped up Shi Xiangyang with one arm and got out, holding his own umbrella. Chen Su stood frozen outside the car door, hesitating to lead the way.

Chen Su held the car door and looked inside at the handsome, sharply featured Enigma.

Uncle Wen prompted, "Mr. Chen?"

"Room 601. Uncle Wen, could you take him up?"

"Alright." Uncle Wen glanced at Zhao Jinzong before carrying Shi Xiangyang off.

The rain pelted loudly against the umbrella, and the icy wind whipped. Chen Su wasn't wearing a jacket, just standing outside the car door. A passing car kicked up a puddle of water, wetting Chen Su's back.

Chen Su didn't leave or even move.

Zhao Jinzong turned his head. "Something up?"

"Mr. Zhao." Chen Su's gloved hand trembled as he gripped the umbrella—not from cold, but from nerves, squeezing it so hard he shook.

"I'm sorry."

Chen Su had never given Zhao Jinzong the sincere apology he owed him.

Zhao Jinzong looked up at him. "Which one are you apologizing for?"

"I shouldn't have hidden from you that I'm an omega."

The alpha identity was fake, and so was the 99% compatibility.

Chen Su had told way too many lies; he needed to apologize.

Zhao Jinzong looked at Chen Su's gloves and smiled.

"Chen Su, does it even matter?"

The tattoo on his hand, refusing to be marked, lying deliberately, cutting ties after the breakup, returning the ring, writing a cold farewell letter that read like a suicide note, disappearing for a year… all of it made Zhao Jinzong wonder how much Chen Su actually cared for him.

Or maybe agreeing to give it a shot with Zhao Jinzong on the Huai River was just a spur-of-the-moment thing?

Chen Su had told too many lies, done too many heartless things. A belated, flustered apology—just a simple "I'm sorry"—was too light, too weightless to make up for it.

"..." Chen Su was silent. It did matter.

After a pause, Chen Su changed the subject. "What brought you to Lishi? Did you go to the hospital because you weren't feeling well?"

"Chen Su. You got what you wanted. I won't bother you anymore. No need to hide."

Zhao Jinzong reached out and closed the car door.

The Enigma's move was so final.

In the past year, Chen Su had not used his ID card.

Zhao Jinzong, Xiao Li, Meng Suizhi—almost everyone believed that Chen Su had died on that yacht.

Chen Su hadn't died; he'd just gone into hiding, unwilling to come back.

Chen Su stood frozen, staring at the closed door. With the tinted windows and the dark night, he couldn't see a thing inside.

Chen Su stood frozen like a statue outside the car door. The cold on his back seeped into his bones. The wind whipped his clothes wildly, but he didn't leave; he just let the wind and rain drench him.

Zhao Jinzong was pissed—really pissed.

Deception is shameful, and so is harassment.

Chen Su knew that, he got it. Yet he still raised his hand and knocked on the car window.

Chen Su wanted to placate Zhao Jinzong, to make him feel better.

The luxury car's soundproofing was too good, and the rain was heavy—Zhao Jinzong couldn't hear what he was saying. Chen Su knocked twice; no response. He knocked twice more…

Zhao Jinzong still didn't roll down the window.

Chen Su grew desperate, but there was nothing he could do. He stood outside the car for a while. Zhao Jinzong knew, but he didn't let him in, didn't lower the window, didn't want to talk to him, didn't want to listen, didn't want to see him.

Chen Su lowered his hand and stopped bothering him, quietly walking away.

In truth, just knocking on the window had taken all of Chen Su's courage.

He wasn't someone who liked to bother others, especially not Zhao Jinzong.

He owed Zhao Jinzong too much; he had no reason to cling like this, begging for forgiveness.

He just wanted to make Zhao Jinzong a little happier, as much as he could.

Chen Su entered the hotel lobby. Uncle Wen was holding an umbrella, his whole body wet—the rain tonight was so heavy that even with the umbrella, he was drenched.

But Chen Su was even wetter, as if he'd been dunked in water, looking completely miserable and bedraggled.

Uncle Wen greeted him, "Mr. Chen."

Chen Su stopped Uncle Wen. He took off the watch from his wrist—the watch that was now useless, kept only as a memento—and handed it over. "Please return this to the Director."

Uncle Wen: "..."

Chen Su gave Uncle Wen a phone number. "Please ask him: is he upset that I'm alive?"

Uncle Wen was so startled that the watch slipped from his hand and hit the floor.

"Mr. Chen, please don't do anything impulsive. How could the Director be unhappy you're alive? He's just angry."

"Maybe. When you have an answer, let me know."

Chen Su gave a small, bitter smile and walked away.

Uncle Wen stood stunned for a while, then picked up the watch from the floor, sighed, returned to the car, wiped the watch dry, and handed it to the back seat.

His heart racing, he said, "Director… Mr. Chen told me to give this back to you."

Zhao Jinzong frowned deeply.

Uncle Wen then handed over a phone number. "Mr. Chen also asked me to ask you: do you… wish he weren't alive? When you have an answer, he told me to let him know."

Uncle Wen shot a glance at Zhao Jinzong.

He'd never seen a look that cold and dark on Zhao Jinzong's face, as if it had fallen into an icy pool.

Chen Su booked a room, took a shower, changed out of his wet clothes, put on a bathrobe, lay on the bed, and tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.

He was an alpha now.

But Zhao Jinzong had come to hate him deeply.

He no longer hoped for Zhao Jinzong's love; just staying far away and out of his way would be enough.

But Zhao Jinzong still seemed unhappy.

So Chen Su returned the watch.

Chen Su didn't know how to make it up to Zhao Jinzong or how to calm him down.

In fact, Chen Su had no clue how to comfort people; it was just that the Zhao Jinzong of the past favored him and was willing to forgive him.

But now Zhao Jinzong was unwilling.

He wouldn't even roll down the car window to listen to Chen Su's apology.

Chen Su didn't really care all that much about staying alive; if it could make Zhao Jinzong happy, he honestly didn't care.

Chen Su waited all night but received no reply from Uncle Wen.

The next morning, Chen Su bought clothes, changed into them, and went to see Shi Xiangyang. Teacher Xu said the competition was tomorrow and asked Chen Su to stay. Chen Su nodded, taking it as a yes, but he said he was going to resign.

Teacher Xu blinked: "Huh? Why?"

Chen Su didn't answer.

At noon, he received a reply from Uncle Wen.

Uncle Wen: "Mr. Chen, when you had the accident at sea a year ago, the General Administration searched for you for a long time."

"Not a single word. Later, he filled a bottle with seawater and went back to the capital."

"He lived in your place for more than a month."

"After that, the General Administration got sick—really sick."

Chen Su replied quickly: "What happened to him?"

Uncle Wen: "The General Administration came down with severe aquaphobia."

Chen Su died in the sea, and Zhao Jinzong developed severe aquaphobia.

How could a guy with aquaphobia be unhappy that Chen Su survived?

Chen Su's heart ached like it was being pricked by a thousand tiny needles.

Zhao Jinzong didn't hate him nearly as much as Chen Su thought.

Zhao Jinzong was just angry—angry at him for disappearing for a year, angry at him for hiding the truth...

So Zhao Jinzong wasn't a man of his word either. He said he didn't like omegas, but it turned out he didn't actually hate omegas that much...