Compared to the monthly test, the results for the city entrance examination took a little longer to be released.

After a week had passed, on Monday morning, Duan Jiayan arrived at school and saw the academic committee member discussing the exam results with her deskmate. 

He asked, “Are the results out yet?”

She turned her head around and spoke anxiously, “It’s out. My god…the class monitor’s score this time is truly terrifying. It seemed like he only lost a little more marks in the language paper, he got almost perfect marks for every other subject.”

Her deskmate chimed in, “The second place is in Ning High, and they scored 30 marks lower than class monitor. I heard that the brothers over there are questioning their life right now.”

Even though Duan Jiayan had never placed much emphasis on exam results, he still felt amazed listening to all this. 

Just then someone opened the classroom door.

Zhou Xingchen and Lu Xingci walked in one by one and the classroom instantly got noisier.

All of a sudden, someone suddenly slammed on the table and cried, “Lu-ge, accept me as your disciple!”

“726, even if I copy someone I wouldn’t be able to get such a score.”

“Seriously. Just now someone asked me if our school’s Lu Xingci is a robot. Without speaking, I immediately sent him a photo and asked if he had seen such a handsome robot before?”

“Duan Duan!” With all the noise around him, Zhou Xingchen shouted at the top of his lungs. “You’ve placed around the 500th place!”

There were more than a thousand students in the second year. Song Yi was originally dozing off but he was immediately awake after hearing that, “F*ck?”

Duan Jiayan was also in disbelief. The academic committee member turned around, “508th place! I almost forgot to tell you, I saw your scores on the way to the office this morning.” 

Duan Jiayan gave an “Ah.”

And gave another “Ah.”

He suddenly slammed a hand on the table, pure joy evident on his face as he looked at her, “Seriously?”

She immediately nodded, “I’m very serious! Congratulations! You made a really big improvement this time!” 

Duan Jiayan also felt like his improvement was very impressive. He wanted to say a little more when a boy that was passing by him patted him on the shoulder.

“Congratulations,” Lu Xingci said. “You did well.”

Duan Jiayan turned as Lu Xingci sat down, his amber eyes beaming.

Seeing even his eyes curving into a smile, Lu Xingci smiled along, “Very happy?” 

Duan Jiayan aggressively nodded. He still wanted to say more when Zhao Minjun entered the classroom.

She waved everyone to sit down before casting everyone’s score on the screen.

“Our class’ overall score is still pretty good for this examination,” Zhao Minjun said. “Aside from a few students who did not do so well, most of the students here exceeded my expectations with their scores.”

She called out a few of the top students in the class and praised them. Thereafter she said, “There are also some students here who made incredible improvements. Zhou Xingchen, Hu Hao, Li Sixin… and Duan Jiayan.” 

Duan Jiayan froze.

Zhao Minjun looked at him and smiled, “Classmate Duan Jiayan improved by over 500 places for this exam. He is the student in the second year who made the most improvements, you should all learn from him.”

Zhao Minjun finished talking and announced to the class, “It is also because of all your efforts that our class has the highest average score in the second year…… When do you all want to watch the movie? I’m more inclined to watch it right before the holidays, what do you guys think?”

The class began to chatter, with everyone talking over one another. Zhou Xingchen exclaimed, “Amazing!” 

“Over 500, it really is amazing, campus tyrant bring me to the cinema.”

“Duan-ge,” A boy sitting a row away from him gave him a thumbs up. “66666.”

After the sea of praises, Duan Jiayan lowered his head and stretched his hands out on the table, it looked like he was not sure of what he should do.

Song Yi saw his red ears and laughed evilly, “It can’t be that you’re embarrassed right?” 

Duan Jiayan gave him a frustrated stare after being teased by him and spoke lowly, “I’ve not been publicly praised by a teacher since kindergarten, how can I not be embarrassed?”

Song Yi was about to lose it and laughed as he said, “Sure you can, why can’t you?”

After the lesson.

Zhao Minjun called out to Duan Jiayan and Lu Xingci and told them to head to the moral education building in the afternoon after their class. They would be taking photos as the student representative and improvement representative for class ten. 

After they reached the place, Duan Jiayan realised there were quite a few people he recognised.

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Gejc Aljsjc, “Vbcu Tl abiv sbe?” 

Vtfc Jtlilf, “Qts kbeiv P cffv tlw ab afii wf? Snfgsbcf’r ajixlcu jybea atf rfmbcv sfjg’r ylu ybrr aegclcu bnfg j cfk ifjo, ogbw cbk bc tf’ii yf yegslcu tlr tfjv lcab j rfj bo ybbxr. Yeg obgw afjmtfg abiv beg kbgra-rmbglcu raevfcar ab ifjgc wbgf ogbw sbe.”

Duan Jiayan was happy to hear that.

Lu Xingci smiled as he walked over, “What are you two talking about?”

Shen Chilie looked at him, feeling amazed. 

He had heard from Song Yi that Lu Xingci had confessed to Duan Jiayan.

Without waiting for Duan Jiayan’s reply, Shen Chilie answered first, “Talking about our results.”

The two of them looked each other in the eye.

An alpha knows another alpha best, Shen Chilie’s protectiveness over Duan Jiayan was clear to see. Lu Xingci chuckled, “Bring me along, I want to chat about this too.” 

Shen Chilie, “We were just done chatting.”

Lu Xingci, “Then what else do you two still want to chat about?”

He paused for a bit, seemingly having realised his tone sounded particularly accusatory and mellowed his voice, “Bring me along too?”

Shen Chilie, “……” 

Shen Chilie never thought that this guy would deign to lower himself to such a level.

Duan Jiayan looked at Lu Xingci, before also looking at Shen Chilie.

Compared to before, he’s slowly getting better at understanding Lu Xingci’s actions. For example, he could tell that the atmosphere between these two was not that good.

Just then, the teacher who was in charge of taking the photos of the outstanding students called them into the classroom. Duan Jiayan hesitated for a while, not looking at Lu Xingci as he pushed Shen Chilie in, “It’s time to take our photos, let’s go.” 

Shen Chilie watched him as if he was a warrior and let himself be pushed in. Lu Xingci silently studied the both of them, not saying anything, before he too went in to have his photo taken.

Before long, another teacher called the students who have made significant achievements to head to a separate classroom to have their photos taken.

The teacher taking their photo for them was the sports teacher, Teacher He. Before running the relay race, it was Teacher He that gave class ten and the sports class a briefing on what they should do. Teacher He gave a pleased greeting upon seeing Duan Jiayan, “I heard you performed really well for this exam. Not bad, not bad. Studying is a continuous experience, just like running. You need to have the drive to overtake others.”

Duan Jiayan quite liked this teacher and so smiled as he nodded along. 

During the photo-taking, Teacher He had some advice to give him, “Tilt your head to the right a little, look at me, don’t look at the camera…… This is really good, let me shine some light on you.”

Heipi was familiar with Teacher He and could not resist laughing as he asked, “Teacher, are you taking photos for an autobiography?”

Teacher He actually nodded, “Student Duan Jiayan is very photogenic and nice to take photos of. In a while, I’ll also take nice photos of the rest of you.

Heipi laughed and thanked the teacher after hearing that. 

Duan Jiayan laughed along.

As he laughed along, he suddenly noticed a faint hint of lemons in the air.

As he was very familiar with the smell, he did not think much of it. Over time, the smell of lemons got heavier and heavier, like a cloud blanketing a forest, exuding heavy pressure over it.

After Heipi and the other alphas in the classroom began showing signs of irritation, Duan Jiayan realised something was not right. He asked Heipi, “Do you smell something?” 

Heipi frowned, “It should be someone’s pheromones.”

A skinny boy beside them looked especially pale and could not resist complaining, “Doesn’t he know to control himself a little?”

It was too domineering.

It was something every alpha was born with. Even though the pheromones did not outrightly display any hints of aggression, it was still a presence in everyone’s mind, like a shadow that would not leave. 

Not only alphas, but even omegas were also getting affected.

Gu Li looked a little uncomfortable and a girl next to her quietly asked, “Hu Li, do you have an inhibitor? My legs are getting a little soft.”

Gu Li quickly took out a small bottle from her jacket and passed it to her.

Just then, Shen Chilie knocked on the classroom door. 

“Teacher He, are you done with the photo-taking?”

As Teacher He was a beta, he was not affected by the pheromones and slowly answered, “Not yet, I’m only just done taking Duan Jiayan’s photo.”

Shen Chilie entered the room, “There is an alpha that entered his rut in our room, his situation is a little unstable. You guys……”

He originally wanted to ask if this side had been affected too but after one look at Heipi’s horrible expression and the few omegas in the room, he swallowed his question back down. 

Heipi could not resist asking, “Who entered their rut? This pheromone is too terrifying.”

Before Shen Chilie answered, Duan Jiayan already knew who it was.

And indeed he was right.

Shen Chilie quietly answered, “Lu Xingci.” 

An alpha’s rut was somewhat similar to an omega’s heat, but it is ultimately different from omegas who were defenceless during their heats. During an alpha’s rut, they’ll become more dangerous and volatile than usual, more prone to losing their temper.

During this period, an alpha’s possessiveness and need for control would reach its peak. They would be aggressive to other alphas and be more sensitive to an omega’s pheromones.

Under normal circumstances, an alpha’s heat is typically irregular, happening three to four times a year and lasting approximately three days each time. An alpha in rut would not be able to control their instincts and most alphas in rut would normally quarantine themselves to ensure nothing bad happened.

Someone once joked that a rut was like an alpha’s hunting season. 

Hearing this, Heipi exclaimed, “F*ck, I should have known my father would be this wild. If I had called him along for our fight with San Zhong last week, he’d only just need to stand by the side and those jokes of San Zhong would be scared off.”

The boy beside Heipi could not stand the oppressive pheromones any longer and tutted, “I can’t do this anymore, can you ask your father to control himself a little, I’m so god damn irritated I want to punch a wall right now.”

Heipi, “You think I’m not frustrated? I want to bang my head on the floor right now.”

Aside from the betas in the room who were not affected by the pheromones, Duan Jiayan was the only one who was faring a little better than the others. 

He was very familiar with Lu Xingci’s pheromones. Even though he had never used such thick pheromones to suppress him before, aside from being a little unused to it, he did not have a strong reaction to the pheromones, unlike the others.

Duan Jiayan studied his surroundings before asking Shen Chilie, “The last time you had your rut, what was it like?”

Shen Chilie had a pained expression as he said, “It felt like my logic and instincts were at war with one another, like someone had placed a blender into my brain.”

Duan Jiayan asked frankly, “It felt horrible?” 

Shen Chilie, “Horrible. If possible, I wish there was no such thing as a rut, such a thing that harms others as well as yourself.”

Duan Jiayan fell silent, “What can make it better?”

Shen Chilie shook his head, “There’s not much. He already called his family and in a bit, someone will be here to fetch him. It seems he’ll be kept at home for the next few days.”

As he spoke, Shen Chilie looked at him, “Actually there is a way…… I say, are you always sleeping during sexual education classes?” 

Duan Jiayan side-eyed him, feeling puzzled, “I was a beta, what else was I supposed to do if not sleep?

Shen Chilie, “……”

He motioned for Shen Chilie to continue.

“Omega pheromones,” Shen Chilie said. “Pheromones work both ways. If you show an alpha in rut pheromones that he likes, it would help to improve his situation.” 

Duan Jiayan frowned slightly.

After a few seconds, Shen Chilie heard him asking, “Where is Lu Xingci?”

Shen Chilie whipped his head around and asked warily, “Why do you want to know?”

He thought Duan Jiayan did not like Lu Xingci and was just asking out of curiosity. But after seeing Duan Jiayan’s posture, he wondered if he intended to go comfort him. 

Duan Jiayan mumbled, “I’ll go help him for a bit.”

Lu Xingci had helped him so many times. If it wasn’t for the other, there was a third of a chance he’d have to be quarantined. Plus Shen Chilie had mentioned that Lu Xingci was now feeling horrible.

Thinking of this, he could no longer just stand around as if nothing happened.

Shen Chilie immediately said, “No. You have no idea how dangerous an alpha can be. Plus you already have a history with him, if you go over…” 

He studied Duan Jiayan for a moment, before saying decisively, “You will get f*cked.”

Duan Jiayan, “……”

Duan Jiayan pulled Shen Chilie over and leaned in, softly asking, “Say that one more time, what will happen to me?”

“……” Shen Chilie was agitated by Duan Jiayan’s featherlight tone but he still placed his concern for Duan Jiayan on top. He looked him in the eyes, “It’s no use threatening me, you really will get f*cked.” 

Shen Chilie’s voice was very soft, only Duan Jiayan and him could hear what he said.

Gu Li had been paying attention to both of them. Although she could not make out much of what they were saying, she still more or less heard their conversation and could roughly guess what they were saying.

Even though she selfishly really wanted Duan Jiayan to help Lu Xingci but she rationally knew that this was not a good option to take.

It was too dangerous. 

She also advised, “It’s better not to go, Lu-ge might not even recognise you.”

Duan Jiayan assuaged Gu Li of her concerns, saying that he’d be fine. He could not be bothered to deal with Shen Chilie and instead just asked the boy that came along with him for Lu Xingci’s location. The other told him a classroom number, stating that Lu Xingci was afraid he’d bother the others and so headed over himself.

Seeing that Duan Jiayan was about to make his way over, Shen Chilie hurried followed along.

“Son! Son, don’t blindly give your head up to others— F*ck, wait for daddy!!” 

The closer they got to the classroom Lu Xingci was in, the stronger the pheromones became.

Shen Chilie’s goosebumps rose from the wave of pheromones. He suppressed his frustration and aggression as he nagged at Duan Jiayan, “He’s fine, at the most he’ll have a headache for a while. You really don’t need to go there. Plus even if you do, your legs might be snapped by him. Even if you want to escape then, it’ll be too late. Who’ll you go crying to later?

They had already made their way to the classroom Lu Xingci was in.

Duan Jiayan stopped and turned around. 

Shen Chilie originally thought he had a change of heart and was ready to continue persuading him when he heard the other say, “If I’m not out in 10 minutes, you can come find me.”

Shen Chilie, “……”

Duan Jiayan pushed the classroom door.

It was locked. 

He thought about it before making his way to the window, propping himself up with both hands, he jumped up. His moves looked very fluid, it was clearly not the first time he had done this.

Shen Chilie saw him jumping over and called out to him. Duan Jiayan turned around and placed a finger on his lips, motioning for him to keep quiet.

He said softly, “You want to call a teacher over?”

Thereafter he opened the window and jumped in. 

Duan Jiayan jumped into the classroom.

It was already the evening, the orange sunset shone into the classroom. With it being winter, the classroom was quickly turning dark.

The light in the classroom was not turned on.

Lu Xingci was sitting on a desk by the window. Hearing a sound, he turned over. 

After making out who it was, his eyes widened and his gaze sharpened.

The setting sun cast a shadow over his face. Half of his face was lit by the sunlight, while the other half was covered in shadow.

Due to him turning his head around, it accentuated his jawline and made it took even more appealing. His long legs that were originally propped on his chair swayed and a tinge of interest entered the boy’s dark eyes.

Even though Shen Chilie did exaggerate matters, Duan Jiayan had indeed listened to what he was saying. 

Seeing Lu Xingci staring at him, Duan Jiayan quietly looked back, body tense.

He could not deny that with the other being in this state, it did indeed give Duan Jiayan a sense of oppression.

Lu Xingci broke the silence first.

“Why are you standing so far away?” He looked at him, an eyebrow raised. “Come here.” 

Duan Jiayan could not ascertain Lu Xingci’s condition and so did not move.

“Afraid that I’ll eat you?” Lu Xingci jumped down directly from the table. “Then let me go over.”

The author has something to say: Go!! Catch him!!