Chapter 12

Shu Baiyu’s heart tightened as Lu Xingzhou’s words made him realize how different the ABO world was from his original one.

Fortunately, he had instinctively run away at the time. Otherwise, just as Lu Xingzhou had said, he might truly have suffered because of their pheromone suppression.

After saying this, Lu Xingzhou stepped back again.

It was not Shu Baiyu’s imagination. He could clearly sense that the other man’s mood had grown much colder.

After pausing briefly, Shu Baiyu turned to leave, only for Lu Xingzhou to stop him with a frown.

“What are you doing?”

Shu Baiyu looked back.

“Getting your bread.”

The bread he had bought while running Lu Xingzhou’s errand had been abandoned on Read on BaiLianTalesthe path through the woods.

Lu Xingzhou’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“There’s no need.”

Since he had said so, Shu Baiyu did not insist. However, before Lu Xingzhou could walk away, Shu Baiyu grabbed him.

Meeting Lu Xingzhou’s faintly displeased gaze, he extended his hand.

“I spent thirty yuan just now.”

Lu Xingzhou said, “Thirty yuan? For one loaf of bread?”

Without the slightest change in expression, Shu Baiyu replied, “That includes the delivery fee.”

Apparently, the expensive part had not been the bread, but the delivery.

Lu Xingzhou finally suppressed the emotions that had just been stirred up. Facing Shu Baiyu directly, he asked the question that had been bothering him.

“…Doesn’t the Jian family give you money?”

Shu Baiyu did not explain.

“I don’t use it.”

His bangs were already long, and after the strenuous exercise earlier, most of his hair had become disheveled. Several strands stood up whenever the wind blew.

Lu Xingzhou stared at him for a long while.

In the end, he did not press further. He merely took out his phone and waved it in front of Shu Baiyu.

“I’ll transfer the money to you.”

Shu Baiyu gave an “Oh.”

Instead of following Lu Xingzhou, he immediately pulled out his phone to check.

Several missed calls from Lu Xingzhou appeared on the screen. After unlocking it, Shu Baiyu went straight to their chat.

Seeing his actions, Lu Xingzhou had no choice but to take out the phone he had just put away and make the transfer on the spot.

The phone vibrated.

Shu Baiyu stared silently at the transfer amount, which had three zeroes attached to it.

Then he looked up at Lu Xingzhou.

“Did your hand slip?”

He had asked for thirty yuan, not three thousand.

“We’ll use it again in the future,” Lu Xingzhou replied calmly.

Without looking at him again, he turned and walked away.

Shu Baiyu automatically interpreted this to mean that Lu Xingzhou intended to send him on more errands in the future.

That completely confirmed his suspicion that Lu Xingzhou wanted to take him in as a subordinate.

Although he was displeased, keeping watch over the cannon-fodder Alpha was more important.

After accepting the transfer, Shu Baiyu followed him, only to discover that Lu Xingzhou was not heading toward the academic building where they had attended class.

As though guessing what puzzled him, Lu Xingzhou offered no explanation. He merely glanced at the soaked corner of Shu Baiyu’s clothes.

“Class is almost over.”

Shu Baiyu nodded and silently followed behind him.

However, when Lu Xingzhou prepared to walk toward the dormitory entrance, Shu Baiyu suddenly stopped.

Weren’t they supposed to be going to the cafeteria to eat? Why had he come here?

That was only a secondary concern.

The important thing was that after agreeing to meet, the protagonist Alpha and Omega would return to the university and tour the campus together.

This was an excellent opportunity for them to spend time alone and deepen their relationship.

If Shu Baiyu and Lu Xingzhou went to the dormitory now, they might run into the protagonists and ruin the atmosphere between them.

Noticing his movements, Lu Xingzhou turned around.

“What’s wrong?”

Shu Baiyu glanced toward the dormitory entrance, where only a few people were currently coming and going.

He asked in return, “Why did you come here?”

Lu Xingzhou’s gaze swept over his upper body.

“Aren’t you going to change your clothes?”

He had not exposed Shu Baiyu earlier, but he had seen through everything long ago.

Shu Baiyu had made himself look this miserable.

He had poured the remaining mineral water over his own body, leaving more than half of his clothes soaked.

Yet he was still wandering around behind Lu Xingzhou as though nothing had happened, seemingly unaware that there was anything wrong.

In fact, Shu Baiyu truly had not considered this.

When he heard Lu Xingzhou’s words, he took a second to react before firmly refusing.

“There’s no need. It’s almost dry.”

As he spoke, he even wrung out the corner of his shirt, squeezing out the remaining water.

Lu Xingzhou: “…”

He had never met an Omega who lived so carelessly.

Regardless of what Shu Baiyu said, he absolutely needed to change.

Eventually, Shu Baiyu realized that he could not change Lu Xingzhou’s mind, so he offered a compromise.

“You have to come with me while I change.”

No matter what happened, he would not allow the cannon-fodder Alpha to encounter the protagonist Omega one more time than necessary.

Sure enough, Lu Xingzhou frowned upon hearing his demand.

“What?”

Shu Baiyu stubbornly insisted, “Come upstairs to the dormitory with me.”

Lu Xingzhou stared at him for several seconds before asking:

“Why?”

Shu Baiyu produced an excuse without hesitation.

“I’m afraid to go alone.”

“…”

Lu Xingzhou clearly did not believe him. He looked at Shu Baiyu strangely, while Shu Baiyu calmly allowed himself to be examined.

After thinking for a while, Lu Xingzhou convinced himself.

This was probably another method Shu Baiyu had devised to grow closer to him.

Although their university’s dorm supervisors were not very strict about students visiting other dormitory buildings, unauthorized copy there was still a boundary between the Alpha and Omega dormitories.

In the past, Lu Xingzhou would never have imagined entering so casually.

He remained silent for a long time.

Although Shu Baiyu showed nothing on his face, he was already growing impatient.

If Lu Xingzhou kept hesitating, the protagonist Alpha and Omega would arrive. Running into each other then would be even more awkward.

He watched Lu Xingzhou’s gaze change several times.

Fortunately, Lu Xingzhou eventually agreed.

The moment he received an answer, Shu Baiyu did not hesitate. He immediately led Lu Xingzhou into the dormitory building.

Just after they went upstairs, two familiar figures slowly entered the dormitory area.

Fortunately, Jiang Min was not in the room.

Once Shu Baiyu and Lu Xingzhou entered, Shu Baiyu closed the door, completely eliminating any possibility of encountering the others.

Shu Baiyu had only organized the original character’s belongings once.

The original character’s clothes had never been removed and placed in the wardrobe. Instead, they had all been stuffed into a suitcase.

Lu Xingzhou had made no sound since entering the dormitory.

Shu Baiyu naturally ignored him. He bent down, opened the suitcase, and casually took out a shirt to change into.

The zipper made a scraping sound as Shu Baiyu closed the suitcase again.

Since entering, Lu Xingzhou had been quietly surveying the items in the room.

Hearing the zipper, he casually looked toward the source of the sound.

His gaze abruptly froze.

Shu Baiyu was standing beside the bed, casually removing his clothes without the slightest hesitation.

His pale body was openly exposed right in front of Lu Xingzhou.

The instant Lu Xingzhou saw this, he froze.

It took him a long moment to react, and then his pupils suddenly trembled.

By then, Shu Baiyu had already picked up another shirt and pulled it over his head.

The firm line of his waist disappeared beneath the hem.

After changing, Shu Baiyu turned and saw Lu Xingzhou standing motionless in silence.

The emotions in the other man’s eyes were difficult to understand, and his lips were pressed into a perfectly straight line.

Confused by the way Lu Xingzhou was staring at him, Shu Baiyu asked:

“What’s wrong?”

His reaction made a vein throb at Lu Xingzhou’s temple.

Lu Xingzhou also remembered the selfie Shu Baiyu had sent him before.

He exhaled, lowered his eyelids, and silently stared at Shu Baiyu.

His voice was considerably deeper than before.

“…You truly have no awareness at all.”

Shu Baiyu had no idea what the cannon-fodder Alpha was talking about and looked completely baffled.

Lu Xingzhou reminded him:

“Change your clothes away from other people from now on.”

Shu Baiyu asked, “Why?”

They were both men. What was wrong with removing a shirt?

He did not say that aloud, however.

While thinking it, he remembered the secondary genders in this ABO world and swallowed his original response.

“Oh.”

Lu Xingzhou looked away, lowering his eyes as though lost in thought.

Now that Shu Baiyu had changed, they no longer needed to remain in the dormitory.

Shu Baiyu walked to the door and prepared to open it.

However, he had only opened it a crack and had not even stepped outside when he suddenly heard the familiar voices of Qi Yan and Tao Xi coming from the corridor entrance.

Not only that, but Jiang Min’s figure also entered his field of vision.

In an instant, Shu Baiyu abruptly slammed the door shut and pressed himself against it.

His pupils were pitch-black.

He looked at Lu Xingzhou with a complicated expression and informed him:

“…The situation is a little troublesome.”

Lu Xingzhou asked, “…How troublesome?”

Shu Baiyu did not answer.

He was now caught between two impossible choices.

If they went outside, they would encounter the protagonist Alpha, protagonist Omega, and Jiang Min.

If they remained inside, they would still encounter Jiang Min when he returned.

One option might interfere with Shu Baiyu’s mission.

The other might damage Lu Xingzhou’s reputation.

Shu Baiyu decisively chose the latter.

He began calmly listing his reasoning.

“First, you’re very popular.”

Even if rumors spread about him, they would not affect his romantic prospects.

“Second, I think you’re already accustomed to this.”

He was capable of handling Jiang Min if he threw himself at him.

Shu Baiyu raised a third finger.

“Finally, you decided to follow me here yourself.”

Therefore, Lu Xingzhou could not blame him.

After stating all three points, he moved away from the door.

With a click, the handle turned.

The person outside happened to open the door and walk inside.

Jiang Min did not know what madness had possessed Shu Baiyu over the past few days.

Ever since returning that day, he had seemed like a completely different person.

Not only did he refuse ​Read on BaiLianTales​to treat Jiang Min kindly, but he no longer listened to anything Jiang Min said.

Jiang Min suddenly felt as though Shu Baiyu had escaped from his grasp.

No matter what, Shu Baiyu was still useful to him, so he needed to take the initiative and repair their relationship.

With that thought, he entered the dormitory wearing a smile.

Then he met the gaze of Lu Xingzhou, who was standing in the middle of the room.

Jiang Min nearly cried out in surprise.

“Lu Xingzhou!”

Looking at Jiang Min, who had unexpectedly returned, Lu Xingzhou finally realized what was happening.

His gaze slowly shifted toward Shu Baiyu, who had retreated to the side long ago.

Shu Baiyu completely ignored his stare.

Before the protagonist Alpha and Omega could reach their dormitory door, he closed it.

At that moment, Jiang Min nearly doubted his own eyes.

He rubbed them, only to find Lu Xingzhou still standing there.

Then he turned toward Shu Baiyu and stammered:

“You—no, you two…”

He finally managed to form a complete sentence.

“What are you doing here together?!”

Hearing this, Shu Baiyu glanced at Lu Xingzhou from the corner of his eye.

Seeing that he remained silent, Shu Baiyu answered instead.

“Is there a problem?”

His confident tone left Jiang Min momentarily confused.

“No, but isn’t this the male Omega dormitory?”

Why was Lu Xingzhou here—and together with Shu Baiyu?