A Short-Lived Cannon Fodder Alpha Just Wants to Be a Salted Fish - Chapter 9

The next second, Wen Yuan saw Chu Yihan collapse onto the table laughing, half her face buried in her arms. Only her eyes, curved into crescent moons, peered at her. Her voice was brimming with amusement: “Did you take me seriously?”

“I did not,” Wen Yuan denied flatly. She pursed her lips, her voice betraying a hint of surprise. “I just didn’t expect someone like you to play pranks on people.”

“What kind of person is ‘someone like me’?”

Chu Yihan sat up straight, her smile unfading, looking as though she were eagerly waiting for an answer.

Only she knew that every passing second felt like dancing on a knife’s edge—nerves taut with anxiety and unease. She was intensely curious about, and deeply invested in, how Wen Yuan perceived her.

Fortunately, Wen Yuan answered quickly, not leaving her to suffer for long.

“Rigorous and serious when explaining problems, very gentle and patient… anyway, you just don’t feel like the type of person who would joke around to tease someone.”

These descriptions were lovely and showed a sense of propriety—the polite praise of a friend who wasn’t yet very close.

The smile on her face dimmed slightly. Chu Yihan lowered her head. Just as she was about to drink her fruit tea to mask her uncontrolled emotions, she heard Wen Yuan add: “But I think you’re quite gifted at it.”

“Joking with a straight face is a very effective way to bluff people.”

Chu Yihan countered: “I didn’t bluff you.”

“That’s because I’m sharp,” Wen Yuan raised an eyebrow with a proud expression, her tone half-comforting and half-challenging. “Keep trying, then.”

Chu Yihan gazed at Wen Yuan and lightly bit her straw, responding quite seriously: “Mm, I’ll work hard at it.”

Watching Chu Yihan’s movements, Wen Yuan suddenly felt a bit thirsty. She took two sips of her tea and picked up the thread of their previous conversation: “No joking around—what request did you want to make?”

“I haven’t thought of it yet,” Chu Yihan said. “We’ll talk about it after you successfully stay in Class 2.”

Wen Yuan pondered for two seconds and nodded.

During the remaining time, Wen Yuan finished her math homework quickly with Chu Yihan’s help. Just as she was preparing to tackle her Chinese assignment in one go, Fang Jingbai called to say the parent-teacher meeting had ended. Wen Yuan gave her the address of the milk tea shop.

Hanging up, Wen Yuan said to Chu Yihan: “My class meeting is over. My mom is coming to pick me up soon. When is your mom coming for you?”

“She has to finish the meeting for Class 7 first, then go find our homeroom teacher,” Chu Yihan checked her watch. “It should be at least 5:30 PM.”

Wen Yuan repeated in surprise: “Class 7?”

“Duan Jiayan from Class 7,” Chu Yihan paused, choosing her words carefully. “He’s the son of my mother’s second husband. His father was busy today, so my mother went to his meeting first.”

Duan Jiayan. The school hunk and local “bully,” the male protagonist of the original novel. Wen Yuan remembered that Duan Jiayan had a stepsister who later developed a crush on him because he helped her. In the side stories, that sister’s unrequited love was written so movingly it became a point of eternal regret for many readers.

Wen Yuan remembered the plot, but for some reason, she hadn’t been able to recall the sister’s name. Now that she realized Chu Yihan was the male lead’s sister, Wen Yuan was quite shocked.

Chu Yihan met Wen Yuan’s dark eyes and looked slightly surprised: “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Nothing,” Wen Yuan composed herself. “I’m just surprised that the school bully is actually your brother.”

Chu Yihan arched an eyebrow: “How do you know he’s the younger brother and not the older one?”

Wen Yuan steadied her nerves and acted calm: “Just a lucky guess. So, he’s actually the older brother?”

Chu Yihan stared at her for two seconds and shook her head: “He’s one year younger than me.”

That was close. Wen Yuan let out a slow breath, her shoulders gradually relaxing.

Two phones on the table lit up one after the other. Wen Yuan checked hers; Fang Jingbai had texted saying she was at the door. She looked at Chu Yihan, who had also put down her phone: “My mom’s here. Is your mom finished too?”

Chu Yihan gave an “Mm.”

“Then I’ll stay and wait with you until your mom arrives,” Wen Yuan suggested.

“No need, she’ll be here any minute,” Chu Yihan said. “Don’t keep your mother waiting. Go ahead.”

Wen Yuan replied: “Alright then.”

Leaving the shop, Wen Yuan spotted Fang Jingbai’s car immediately. She walked over and pulled the door open, only to hear her mother ask: “Were you having tea with that girl?”

Wen Yuan looked where her mother gestured; Chu Yihan was sitting alone by the floor-to-ceiling window.

“Yeah.”

“Is she in your class? I don’t think I’ve seen her.”

“No, she’s the one who tutored me,” Wen Yuan said as she buckled her seatbelt. “It’s thanks to her that your daughter made such an ‘astonishing’ improvement this time, so I treated her to tea.”

“Oh, the top of the grade? Then you definitely should,” Fang Jingbai retracted her gaze and started the car, speaking earnestly. “Get to know her more, pick her brain, see how she studies.”

“Get to know her, pick her brain…” Wen Yuan repeated perfunctorily, interrupting her. “Got it, got it. Mom, stop lecturing.”

“I only lecture for your sake,” Fang Jingbai had no intention of stopping. “That girl looks so sweet and well-behaved—clearly a good kid. Her parents must have it easy. You should look up to her and learn from her.”

“Ms. Fang,” Wen Yuan leaned forward to hug the back of the passenger seat, looking at the back of her mother’s head with a serious expression. “I really can’t ‘learn’ how to look like that.”

Shortly after Wen Yuan left, Chu Yihan received a call from Han Yu: “I’m at the door of the milk tea shop. Come out.”

Chu Yihan blinked, glanced out the window, and saw Han Yu’s red Bentley. She walked out slowly and sat in the back.

“Where’s Uncle Li?” Chu Yihan asked as she closed the door.

“I ran into Old Li’s car leaving the school, so I told him to go home first,” Han Yu smiled. “Ever since your grandfather assigned you a driver, I barely get a chance to pick you up anymore.”

Chu Yihan’s long lashes fluttered, but she said nothing.

Han Yu bit her lip: “Old Li said you were here having tea with a classmate. Where is that classmate?”

Chu Yihan replied: “She already went home.”

Han Yu looked slightly surprised. When she heard from Li Zhang that Chu Yihan went for tea with a classmate, she had been shocked and found it hard to believe. Perhaps influenced by her mother’s divorce and remarriage, Chu Yihan was very detached regarding relationships. After differentiating and being diagnosed with Alpha Rejection Disorder, she had become increasingly reclusive. Han Yu had never seen her make a friend.

“Is she in your class? Boy or girl? An Omega?”

“She’s from Class 2, a girl, and she’s an Alpha,” Chu Yihan answered directly for once, not skipping any questions.

The surprise on Han Yu’s face was impossible to hide: “No rejection reaction?”

Chu Yihan’s features softened: “I don’t have a rejection reaction toward her.”

Finding someone who didn’t trigger her condition and being able to become friends made Han Yu very happy for her daughter. But after two seconds of relief, she couldn’t help but worry: “What is she like as a person?”

Thinking about how Wen Yuan had offered to wait with her at the end, the corners of Chu Yihan’s lips tilted up slightly. “She’s a very good person.”

Han Yu could see that Chu Yihan was in a good mood—at least, she wasn’t as cold as usual and seemed willing to talk about her new friend. She was just about to take this chance to bridge the distance between mother and daughter when her phone rang.

It was Duan Yun calling. Han Yu listened to the ringing, suddenly unsure of what to do. A rare opportunity…

Chu Yihan spoke up: “Aren’t you going to answer? It’s Uncle Duan.”

After a two-second hesitation, Han Yu put on her headset and answered. Duan Yun was asking about the meeting. Duan Jiayan’s “achievements” were numerous; Han Yu couldn’t hide everything, nor could she reveal it all. She only mentioned a couple of less serious incidents.

A father knows his son; Duan Yun was already furious just hearing those two things. Han Yu spent the whole drive home trying to calm him down.

By the time the call ended, the warm atmosphere in the car had long vanished. Han Yu looked in the rearview mirror at Chu Yihan, who had put on her headphones and closed her eyes. She let out a heavy sigh in her heart.

Images of Wen Yuan standing under the tree waiting for her kept surfacing in Chu Yihan’s mind. The layered colors of the sunset, the lush green plane tree leaves, and the tall, slender girl—the moment she turned her head, the wind brushing through the branches, her dark hair fluttering… the hazy, dappled coolness of that moment felt like a dream. One look, and it felt like eternity.

Chu Yihan furrowed her brow. I should have taken a photo.

When they got home, Duan Yun was arguing with Duan Jiayan. Han Yu rushed forward to play peacemaker. No one paid attention to Chu Yihan, and she didn’t mind. She changed her shoes and went upstairs to her studio.

After hanging a “Do Not Disturb” cartoon sign on the door, Chu Yihan locked it.

It wasn’t until she finished mediating between the father and son that Han Yu remembered Chu Yihan. She went upstairs and stood outside the studio for a long time, eventually lowering her hand without knocking.

Around 11:00 PM, Chu Yihan grew tired of painting. She scratched a slightly itchy spot on her arm and checked her phone for the time. Only then did she see the messages Wen Yuan had sent much earlier.

The first message was a photo. The scent-blocking patch in the photo was the same as the one they had exchanged—a design of a cute, chubby little lamb.

[My mom bought several blocking patches at the school store, and one of them is the same kind I got from you.]

[Did you use yours on me? I’ll give you one back when we go to school on Monday.]

[Remember today when you asked what kind of person I thought you were? There’s one thing I didn’t dare say to your face. At first, when you bit me, I thought you were like a puppy (“Wang-wang”). But after getting to know you, I feel like you’re quite like a little lamb.]

[Are you home yet?]

The last message was from fifteen minutes ago:

[“Mie-mie” (Baabaa), you haven’t been carried off by a wolf, have you?]

A smile floated into Chu Yihan’s eyes.

[Sorry, my phone was charging, I just saw the messages.]

Wen Yuan replied quickly with a voice note, saying she was too lazy to type. Chu Yihan initiated a voice call.

Probably because it was late and she didn’t want to wake her family, Wen Yuan’s voice was low: “I thought you were already being digested in a wolf’s stomach…”

Chu Yihan laughed: “Why do you think I’m like a little lamb?”

Wen Yuan explained: “Because you both look so well-behaved.”

—“I only look well-behaved.”

A voice suddenly rang in her ear, but it didn’t sound like it came from Chu Yihan. Wen Yuan bolted upright in bed, rubbed her head, and asked uncertainly: “Did you just say something?”

“No,” Chu Yihan put down her palette. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, maybe I’m too sleepy and hallucinating,” Wen Yuan yawned. “If I wasn’t worried you’d been kidnapped by a wolf, I’d already be on a date with the God of Dreams.”

Her voice grew lower and lower, trailing off on the last word.

Chu Yihan’s heart softened like water, and her bright eyes curved into little crescent moons: “Go on then, go on your date.”