After Differentiation, I Marked My Arch-nemesis - Chapter 79

Lu Yaoyi didn’t expect Jiang Youli to directly admit that she had an Omega she liked.

Her brows furrowed, and she instantly felt a sharp pang of hurt.

How could Jiang Youli have an Omega she liked just a few days into the school year? They were together celebrating Valentine’s Day just last week, and they even hugged and kissed while watching the fireworks show on the Ferris wheel. It was impossible for Jiang Youli to have an Omega she liked in just a few short days.

She didn’t believe it and didn’t want to end the partnership.

Maybe this was just an excuse Jiang Youli found to end the partnership.

She couldn’t help but ask Jiang Youli, “Do you really have an Omega you like?”

Jiang Youli: “Mhm.”

Lu Yaoyi: “Are you serious? You’re not lying to me, right?”

Jiang Youli was so nervous that she was afraid of revealing a flaw, so she answered without hesitation, “Why would I lie to you? What good would it do me to lie to you? Don’t forget why we’re in a partnership. You’re the one who said that once we have someone we like, we should end the partnership immediately.”

Lu Yaoyi fell silent.

Jiang Youli took a deep breath, organizing her inexpressible feelings.

She could have ended the partnership without giving a reason, but to make Lu Yaoyi accept it, she chose to be clear. “You said before that our partnership is just for us to be each other’s inhibitors. We’re just getting what we need from each other and have no right to interfere in each other’s emotional lives. We’re just a tool to help each other get through our heat periods.”

“Since I have an Omega I like now, then that partnership agreement is void starting today. You wouldn’t disagree with me ending the partnership, would you?”

She sounded very relaxed, as if she were talking about something she didn’t care about at all.

The terms of the partnership agreement were clear in her memory.

After hearing her words, no matter how much Lu Yaoyi didn’t want to end the partnership, she had no choice but to agree.

But…

She still wanted to confirm one more time. “Do you really want to end the partnership?”

Jiang Youli: “I said so much, so of course it’s real.”

Lu Yaoyi: “No regrets?”

Regrets…

Jiang Youli’s eyes drooped, and she felt awful inside.

From yesterday to today, she had been telling herself that she had to stay away from Lu Yaoyi. But at this moment, she was going against her true feelings and was extremely reluctant. She didn’t know if she would regret doing this, but she stubbornly believed that she would definitely regret it if she didn’t.

She slowly closed her eyes and said, resignedly, “No regrets.”

Lu Yaoyi: “Okay, I agree to end the partnership.”

She forced herself to hold back the overwhelming sadness and spoke calmly. Her tone was so even that no one could hear the slightest flaw. “From now on, I’m no longer your Omega.”

“And you’re no longer my Alpha.”

Jiang Youli’s heart ached slightly. “Then it’s settled.”

Lu Yaoyi: “Mhm.”

Jiang Youli: “I’m hanging up.”

Lu Yaoyi: “Okay.”

Jiang Youli hung up the phone and casually threw her phone on the bed. Then she lay on her back like a corpse, with her arms spread out. The crystal lamp hanging from the ceiling shone brightly, slightly illuminating her eyes, which were as hazy as if they were covered in dust.

From now on, she and Lu Yaoyi had no relationship whatsoever.

She had achieved her goal.

But why was she so sad…?

She was going crazy.

Lu Yaoyi slowly put down her phone, which had already hung up. Even though she didn’t believe that Jiang Youli had an Omega she liked, she was still so, so sad.

Jiang Youli wouldn’t end their partnership for no reason.

There must be some reason.

She decided to go to Jiang Youli tomorrow and ask her face to face what was going on.

It was late at night.

Jiang Youli tossed and turned in bed, unable to fall asleep.

Now, as soon as she closed her eyes, she would think of Lu Yaoyi. Those intimate scenes were engraved in her mind, replaying over and over, and she couldn’t shake them off. She even started to miss Lu Yaoyi’s sweet scent and warm embrace. She thought this must be her punishment from God.

A punishment for agreeing to partner with Lu Yaoyi.

And a punishment for deliberately lying to Lu Yaoyi to end their partnership.

Heavy sighs carried all her complex emotions.

Time passed slowly.

Jiang Youli couldn’t fall asleep no matter how much she tossed and turned, so she called Chen Huaian and asked him to go to the beach with her to clear her head. Then, she got up, changed her clothes, and left, feeling depressed.

The salty sea breeze blew toward her, bringing a hint of bone-chilling coldness.

The sea reflected the bright moon, sparkling.

Jiang Youli’s face was gloomy.

She looked at the deep sea, appearing to be lost in thought. A dense fog seemed to be swirling between her eyebrows, and she looked to be in a very bad mood.

Chen Huaian silently observed Jiang Youli from the side.

When he saw Jiang Youli frowning, he knew that she must be in a bad mood to call him to the beach at three in the morning. “Boss, what’s wrong?”

Jiang Youli: “Nothing.”

Chen Huaian: “You didn’t talk to me at all yesterday. I thought you were angry at me for saying you liked Lu Yaoyi and didn’t want to talk to me anymore.”

When Jiang Youli heard Lu Yaoyi’s name, her heart rippled slightly.

She wasn’t angry at Chen Huaian yesterday.

She was in self-doubt all day and didn’t talk to anyone.

“I’m not angry.”

She looked down slightly, her voice low. “I don’t like Lu Yaoyi.”

Chen Huaian: “Mhm, if the boss says no, then it’s no.”

The surroundings were so quiet that all they could hear were the howling of the sea breeze and the sound of the waves.

The two of them sat on the beach for an unknown amount of time.

Jiang Youli saw Chen Huaian yawning sleepily, looking as if he would fall asleep at any moment, so she said, “Huaian, let’s go. Let’s find a hotel nearby to rest for the night.”

Chen Huaian: “Okay.”

His eyes were still teary from yawning. “Let’s go, boss.”

The two of them got up and walked toward the shore.

“Boss.”

Chen Huaian suddenly remembered something very important and said, “Do you know that Pei Jingning from Class 2 is treating us to a meal tonight? I was a little surprised when Ziqin found me.”

Jiang Youli: “I know.”

Chen Huaian: “Boss, do you think Pei Jingning has a thing for you?”

Jiang Youli: “…”

She gave Chen Huaian a speechless side-eye. “Would you stop talking nonsense?”

“If she didn’t have a thing for you, why would she suddenly treat you to a meal?” Chen Huaian said, walking beside Jiang Youli. “The fact that she could hit your head twice with her serve means she’s very interested in you.”

Jiang Youli: “Even if she wanted to hit me on purpose, she wouldn’t necessarily be that accurate.”

“Anyway, I think Pei Jingning is a great person,” Chen Huaian said, smiling as he patted Jiang Youli’s shoulder. “Boss, I support you being with Pei Jingning.”

Jiang Youli slightly frowned. “Chen Huaian, are you sick?”

Chen Huaian: “I…”

Jiang Youli: “If you don’t shut your mouth, get lost.”

She was too lazy to deal with the gossipy Chen Huaian.

Chen Huaian obediently shut his mouth.

The first light of dawn broke through the eastern horizon, illuminating the earth.

Lu Yaoyi didn’t sleep all night and got up as soon as it was light out.

She ate breakfast and then, at around nine o’clock, she went to Jiang Youli’s house without telling her first, because she didn’t want to give Jiang Youli any chance to avoid her.

However, Li Henian, who opened the door, said that Jiang Youli wasn’t home.

“Yaoyao, Dingding isn’t home right now.”

Lu Yaoyi was very surprised. “Dingding isn’t home right now?”

“Dingding sent me a message at five in the morning saying she was going out. I was still asleep at five, so I didn’t know she had already left,” Li Henian looked at Lu Yaoyi in front of him with a gentle gaze. “She’s probably with her good friends right now.”

Lu Yaoyi couldn’t help but wonder if Jiang Youli went out so early to avoid her.

Her mood instantly fell to the bottom, but she still maintained her normal demeanor and said politely, “Okay, I got it. Thank you, Uncle Li.”

Li Henian smiled gently. “You’re welcome.”

Lu Yaoyi: “Then I’ll go back and wait for Dingding to return.”

Li Henian: “Mhm.”

Lu Yaoyi returned home feeling disappointed. She held her phone and stared at her chat interface with Jiang Youli. The last message, “Lu Yaoyi, let’s end our partnership,” was particularly jarring. She never thought that Jiang Youli would end their partnership so quickly.

Why did Jiang Youli do it…?

“…”

Time passed by, minute by minute.

Lu Yaoyi waited from dawn until sunset but still didn’t hear from Jiang Youli. Finally, she couldn’t take it anymore and sent Jiang Youli a message.

—Jiang Youli, when are you coming home today?

—There’s something I want to tell you in person.

But she didn’t get a reply for a long time.

Night fell, blanketing the earth.

Lu Yaoyi only put down her phone when she was eating. Other than that, she almost never let it out of her sight. She wanted to receive Jiang Youli’s message as soon as possible.

She wanted to talk to Jiang Youli in person and make things clear.

She wanted to see Jiang Youli.

But…

Jiang Youli, whom she had been thinking about all day, never replied to her.

It was soon past eight in the evening.

Lu Yaoyi was sitting at her desk, staring at the chat interface, lost in thought.

Just then, a message from Jin Rubing came in.

Lu Yaoyi clicked on Jin Rubing’s chat interface.

—Yaoyi, did you see the class group chat?

Lu Yaoyi replied.

—No.

Jin Rubing sent a few pictures to Lu Yaoyi.

—[Image]

—[Image]

—[Image]

—Go look at what they’re talking about in the group chat.

—They’re even gossiping about you.

Lu Yaoyi replied.

—Okay.

After she replied, she clicked on the first picture Jin Rubing sent her with a puzzled look.

It was a screenshot of the chat history of their Class 1, Grade 1, group chat.

Li Xiangyang: What’s with the picture you posted on your friend circle?

Li Xiangyang: @Chen Huaian.

Li Xiangyang: Why are you and Jiang Youli with people from Class 2?

[Chen Huaian]: The beautiful girl from Class 2 is treating the boss and me to a meal tonight.

Lu Yaoyi’s heart sank when she saw Chen Huaian’s reply.

Pei Jingning treated Jiang Youli to a meal tonight?

She stared at the picture Li Xiangyang posted in the group chat in shock. After a few seconds, she exited the picture and went into the group chat to find the photo. She clicked on the photo and finally saw everyone’s expressions and faces clearly. It was a group photo of a few people sitting in a KTV room.

In the photo were Jiang Youli and Chen Huaian.

And Pei Jingning, as well as Cen Ziqin and a few other people from Class 2.

Lu Yaoyi stared blankly at Jiang Youli in the photo. Jiang Youli’s expression was very faint, and it was hard to tell how she was feeling. Her gaze slowly fell on Pei Jingning in the photo. There was only a smiling Cen Ziqin between Jiang Youli and Pei Jingning.

She looked at the photo and couldn’t help but remember the scene she saw on the badminton court that day.

Pei Jingning…

Could it be that the Omega Jiang Youli liked was Pei Jingning? Did Jiang Youli fall for Pei Jingning just a few days into the school year? She didn’t believe that Jiang Youli would fall for someone so quickly, but sometimes feelings came out of nowhere, and you could never be sure.

She had been sad all day because Jiang Youli suddenly ended their partnership.

And she had waited for Jiang Youli all day.

But Jiang Youli went to meet with Pei Jingning.

It was true that Jiang Youli didn’t care about ending their partnership at all. It was true that Jiang Youli could just end it so heartlessly. It turned out that she was the only one who had fallen deeper and deeper from the beginning to the end. She was the only one in this one-woman show.

And Jiang Youli was never in it.

When she thought of this, her eyes gradually became misty.

A bitter and sour feeling surged up in her heart and spread wildly along her bones to her limbs.

So it was true that Jiang Youli had been with Pei Jingning all night…

Is that why she didn’t reply to her messages?