A Short-Lived Cannon Fodder Alpha Just Wants to Be a Salted Fish - Chapter 5

On the way home, Wen Yuan—driven by some inexplicable impulse—found the list of “progressive contact steps” she previously had no interest in and began to read.

If no symptoms occur within half an arm’s length, you may attempt holding hands.

If hand-holding is maintained for over ten minutes, you may move to hugging.

If a hug lasts no less than twenty minutes, you may attempt non-salivary kissing.

If non-salivary kissing triggers no vomiting reflex, you may share a bed.

After sharing a bed for a night without obvious symptoms, the contact can deepen to salivary kissing.

If salivary kissing triggers no rejection, you may proceed to pheromone marking (including temporary and permanent marks).

This set of steps was practically a roadmap for a relationship: holding hands, hugging, kissing, sleeping together, kissing again, and marking.

Originally, Wen Yuan had imagined a generic “Little Person A” and “Little Person B” interacting. But somehow, by the time she reached the end, a vivid image of her biting a gland suddenly popped into her head.

A snowy white neck, a slightly protruding gland, a soft sensation…

Wen Yuan shuddered and tossed her phone aside.

Fang Jingbai glanced at the back seat through the rearview mirror, turned the air conditioning up a degree, and asked worriedly, “Are you feeling unwell again?”

“No, I feel… quite comfortable.”

“Good that you’re comfortable.” Fang Jingbai assumed she was talking about the temperature. “I turned it up; it shouldn’t be too cold now.”

Wen Yuan snapped back to reality and covered her face with both hands.

Comfortable, my foot.

That sensation was so clear that Wen Yuan was beginning to wonder if she really had bitten someone’s gland. But that was impossible; she didn’t have amnesia. If she had actually bitten someone, how could she not remember?

A terrifying suspicion dawned on her. Wen Yuan sat up straight and grabbed her phone.

CenturyEggPorridge: “When I was differentiating, I didn’t… do anything to you, did I?”

Chu Yihan: “Why ask that all of a sudden?”

CenturyEggPorridge: “Just asking.”

When Chu Yihan didn’t answer directly, Wen Yuan got anxious: “I didn’t actually do anything to you, right?”

Chu Yihan replied quickly and briefly: “No.”

Through the screen, Wen Yuan sensed a tone of absolute certainty. She let out a sigh of relief, but the heavy feeling in her chest didn’t completely dissipate. However, those messy mental images stopped popping up once she had an answer.

Staring at the various people on the street outside the car window, Wen Yuan thought of something else. She lifted her phone to type.

CenturyEggPorridge: “Besides me, have you met any other Alphas you don’t reject?”

Chu Yihan: “Yes.”

Thinking of the intimacy steps she just read, Wen Yuan raised an eyebrow.

CenturyEggPorridge: “Who?”

Shortly after hitting send, Wen Yuan regretted it. It felt a bit too intrusive, but it was too late to withdraw the message. She had to add: “It’s fine if it’s not convenient to say.”

Despite her words, she was curious. But Chu Yihan suddenly stopped replying, leaving Wen Yuan feeling restless and annoyed.

The road was congested. Fang Jingbai tapped the steering wheel irritably. She adjusted the mirror to look at Wen Yuan.

Wen Yuan was leaning against the backrest in a lazy posture, head down, tapping the edge of her phone with a curled knuckle. The frequency of the tapping was exactly the same as her mother’s, and the impatient expression on her face was a carbon copy. Fang Jingbai reached down and turned the AC back down a degree.

The car in front finally moved. Fang Jingbai started the engine and began humming a little tune.

The phone vibrated. Wen Yuan looked down.

Chu Yihan: “Family members.”

A moment later, a mother-daughter duet of sighs echoed inside the car.

It took twenty days of rest for Wen Yuan’s pheromones to stabilize. By the time she returned to school, it was already late May.

Given that Wen Yuan had grown significantly taller, He Xun moved her to the back row, right next to Shi Ran. During the long break between classes, Wen Yuan moved her things over.

Shi Ran pulled two bags of milk out of her desk. “I thought you were going to dodge the monthly exams before coming back.”

“I wanted to. But after so many days at home, my mom and I have reached the stage where we can’t stand the sight of each other.” Wen Yuan took the milk. “Better to face exams than a ‘demonized’ Ms. Fang.”

Shi Ran nearly choked on her milk laughing. “Did you forget there’s a parent-teacher meeting after this exam?”

“I really did.” Wen Yuan rubbed her head in frustration. “I’m screwed. I didn’t listen to a single online class properly.”

Shi Ran consoled her through a mouthful of milk. “Don’t panic. Find a top student to highlight the key points and predict the questions. If they nail it, your grades will take a leap of faith…”

Wen Yuan immediately thought of Chu Yihan and gradually calmed down.

Wang Xin walked past them and doubled back. “What top student are you talking about?” As a perennial high-achiever, he was sensitive to the term.

Wen Yuan and Shi Ran exchanged a look.

“Oh,” Wen Yuan’s dark eyes darted around. “We were betting on whether you, our top student, could surpass the ‘Academic God’ in this monthly exam.”

Zhang Lili, sitting in the row behind, let out a sound of interest and held up two fingers. “I’ll bet two cups of milk tea on the Academic God. She’s called a ‘God’ for a reason; mortals don’t just overtake her.”

“Hahaha!” This time Shi Ran actually choked. Coughing and laughing, she said, “Give the class rep some face! Ten cups! I’m betting on the Academic God!”

Her loud voice attracted a crowd. Jiang Huaiyu, returning from basketball, joined in. “A month’s worth of lunch money. Class rep, I’m rooting for you.”

Shi Ran looked at Jiang Huaiyu and gave Wen Yuan a meaningful look. Wen Yuan pretended not to see it.

Others who had been playing ball with Jiang Huaiyu followed suit and bet on Wang Xin. His competitive spirit was ignited, and he made a bold declaration: “I will definitely surpass her!”

Jiang Huaiyu patted Wang Xin’s stiff shoulder. “Relax. It’s no big deal even if you don’t.”

“Exactly. It’s not like it matters. Omegas are just birth machines anyway; what’s the use of good grades?”

The speaker was Qi Hui, a regular on the court with Jiang Huaiyu. He spoke loudly, making several Omegas in the class look displeased, but because he was a domineering Alpha, they only dared to glare in silence.

Suddenly, a girl’s voice asked playfully: “Then what are you? A piece of trash that isn’t even worth a fart?”

Everyone turned toward the source.

Wen Yuan looked at Qi Hui coldly. Her features were sharp, and with her dark pupils and cold expression, her striking looks took on a fierce, intimidating edge.

Qi Hui froze, then walked up to Wen Yuan. “Who the hell are you talking to?”

Wen Yuan curled her lips into a careless smile. “Oh, so you’re a stupid piece of trash who can’t even understand human speech.”

Low laughter broke out around them. Qi Hui’s face hardened as he glared at Wen Yuan.

Alpha suppression is simple and direct. Qi Hui originally intended to use his pheromones to crush Wen Yuan. But the moment she looked up at him, her aggressive, dominating pheromones flattened him until his mind went blank.

Even though he was standing and she was sitting, Qi Hui felt as if he were being nailed into the floor. It wasn’t until Wen Yuan looked away that he snapped out of it, realizing he was covered in a cold sweat.

Feeling humiliated at being suppressed by a female Alpha without any resistance, Qi Hui considered getting physical but was wary of her pheromones. The atmosphere was a tinderbox.

Only then did Jiang Huaiyu speak up. “Qi Hui, you shouldn’t insult Omegas.”

Someone added, “Careful, or you’ll end up in detention.”

Because Omegas were scarce and there had been high-profile cases of suicide due to bullying in the past, laws protecting Omega rights were very strict. Not wanting to escalate things further, Qi Hui kicked a nearby desk and stomped off in a rage.

Shi Ran whispered, “I was all ready for a fight, and he just left?”

Wen Yuan scoffed. “I can handle him alone.”

“Wen Yuan,” Jiang Huaiyu interrupted their whispering. “Who are you betting on? Chu Yihan or Wang Xin?”

Chu Yihan, carrying a stack of test papers, happened to pass by Class 2 just in time to hear this. Her footsteps paused. Her gaze swept coolly through the open window toward Jiang Huaiyu, but before it could settle on Wen Yuan, a passerby blocked her view. She lowered her eyes and kept walking.

After the final class, He Xun instructed the students to move desks to set up for the exam. “Once you’re done, go to your assigned room to confirm your seat.”

Wen Yuan went to Class 3; Shi Ran went further down to Class 8. After finding her seat, Wen Yuan headed toward Class 8 to find her friend.

Passing Class 4, she saw Chu Yihan coming out the front door. Just as Wen Yuan was about to say hello, she saw Qi Hui sprinting from the other end of the hallway. Seeing that Chu Yihan was about to be hit, Wen Yuan moved quickly and pulled her out of the way.

“Did he hit you?” Wen Yuan asked.

The girl’s scent was clean and crisp, like a stream flowing through a mountain forest. Chu Yihan leaned against Wen Yuan’s chest with a stiff back, her tense nerves slowly relaxing. She looked warily at the disappearing Qi Hui and shook her head. “No. Thank you.”

Wen Yuan let go of Chu Yihan’s left arm and gestured toward a less crowded area. “Give me some practical thanks then.”

Chu Yihan gripped her left arm with her right hand—right where Wen Yuan had just held her—and licked her lips. “What do you want?”

Wen Yuan stopped and turned to her. “I want you to help me highlight key points and predict some questions tonight. Can you?”

Stunned by her expectant gaze, Chu Yihan paused for two seconds before replying, “Sure.”

Wen Yuan worried, “Will it affect your own revision?”

“No,” Chu Yihan said. “I’m not revising.”

Wen Yuan blinked. “Just this once, or do you never revise?”

“I just don’t feel like revising this time.”

Shi Ran walked up just in time to hear the exchange. Seeing Wen Yuan’s speechless expression, she assumed her friend was worried about the bet. She teased, “If you lose the bet, are you going to be eating dirt next semester?”

Chu Yihan looked at them. “What bet?”

Wen Yuan: “Our class is betting on who gets first place in the monthly exam.”

“Who did you bet on?” Chu Yihan asked Wen Yuan with genuine interest.

Wen Yuan didn’t answer.

Shi Ran, finding Chu Yihan easy to talk to, chimed in: “She bet a whole semester’s worth of lunch money that you’d still be first. If she loses, she’ll probably be eating dirt.”

Wen Yuan pinched Shi Ran and hissed through gritted teeth, “Shut up.”

Chu Yihan stared at Wen Yuan’s embarrassed expression for a moment, and her pressed lips curved upwards. Her voice held a faint smile; it sounded like a joke because of her slow, gentle tone, yet it also felt like a serious promise.

“I won’t let her lose.”