AHDIBCB Chapter 03

Zhou Tandai carefully reviewed his earlier conversation with his nephew. “I don’t think so. Why?”

Zhou Xingran said, “At the hospital, he was like a completely different person. He even told me to apologize to him. Dad, do you think he hit his head or something?”

Zhou Tandai frowned. “He actually said that? After I left, did he meet anyone else?”

Zhou Xingran shook his head. “No, I watched him the whole time until he woke up. I didn’t leave for even a second.”

Zhou Tandai pondered for a moment and cast a doubtful glance at his son. He found this whole idea absurd. After all, he had raised his nephew himself—he knew exactly what the boy was and wasn’t capable of. His son, on the other hand, was much more prone to lying. Still, this wasn’t the time to argue about it. Keeping his tone calm, he said, “Then it’s probably nothing. He must still be upset about what you did before and just wanted to vent. Don’t overthink it. Focus on clearing up the situation at school first. Once you’re done, I need to contact the Li family.”

Zhou Xingran figured his father was right. The sooner he got rid of Yuan Yi, the sooner he could go after Bai Wanzhe without distractions. Without another word, he dashed out like a gust of wind.

The clarification process wasn’t particularly complicated. The Alpha who had framed Yuan Yi was just doing it for money in the first place. As long as a bigger payment came through, issuing a public statement was as simple as moving their lips. The person who made the false accusation admitted their ‘mistake’, Zhou Xingran accepted a private settlement on Yuan Yi’s behalf, and just like that, the matter was swept under the rug.

Whether or not people actually believed the clarification wasn’t something Zhou Xingran cared about. As far as he was concerned, he had done his part, and that was enough.

Around 3 PM, Yuan Yi saw an announcement on the school’s official website. It detailed the events surrounding the ‘drugging’ incident that had happened to the original host three days ago.

The announcement was issued by the school’s news department. By the time Yuan Yi tapped into it on his smartwatch, there were already hundreds of comments. Some people were skeptical about how quickly the narrative had changed, while others believed it was plausible that Yuan Yi had simply stepped on a broken vial of someone else’s lost inducer by accident, triggering his heat.

After all, Yuan Yi had always kept a low profile at school. If there was anything about him that was high-profile, it was the fact that the campus heartthrob had taken a special interest in him.

Everyone at Jihua University knew that the campus heartthrob had once publicly stated that after graduation, he would help Yuan Yi find a specialist to perform gland surgery to change his scent. It was common knowledge—Bai Wanzhe was clearly interested in Yuan Yi.

Yuan Yi coldly observed the crowd lingering in the comment section, waiting for the campus heartthrob to make an appearance. He knew for a fact that Bai Wanzhe would never show up at a time like this.

If he did, wouldn’t that make him a spineless fool who blindly followed public opinion?

Sure enough, Yuan Yi never saw a reply from Bai Wanzhe. Instead, he received a private message:

“Xiao Yi, is what the announcement says true?”

Without hesitation, Yuan Yi blacklisted him.

Someone like Bai Wanzhe—who had no sense of responsibility, yet had the nerve to string the original host along—was the type to run faster than anyone else when things went south. A man who couldn’t even handle this much pressure could never be a reliable teammate. Honestly, he might not even be more useful than a corpse.

Yuan Yi took the time to go through his contacts, keeping those worth keeping and deleting the rest. Only after finishing dinner did he finally head downstairs again.

This time, he found that both Zhou Tandai and his wife were present.

His aunt, Fang Jing, sat across from him and said, “Xiao Yi, we’ve already contacted the Li family. But it seems the two elders of the Li family don’t have a very favorable impression of you.”

Zhou Tandai said, “I think it’s mostly because of what happened a few days ago—it affected their impression of Xiao Yi. Although Xingran went to the school today to clear things up, they might still have some doubts. But at least they haven’t outright refused to let Xiao Yi go. Tomorrow, they will be going to the military district’s general hospital for the final gene matching results. Xiao Yi, you need to go there for a more detailed pre-surgery examination as well. When the time comes, make sure to be polite. The Li elders have met countless people—so as long as you show enough sincerity and don’t say anything inappropriate, I don’t think there will be much of a problem.”

Fang Jing said, “Don’t worry. As long as you behave and listen, your uncle and I will definitely return the house your parents left behind to you.” She picked up a piece of fish for Yuan Yi and added, “Eat more. We made all your favourite dishes tonight.”

This matter was somewhat ironic. The original host had lived in the Zhou family for more than ten years, yet this was the first time the household had prepared a meal full of his favourite dishes and even urged him to eat more. But the original host would never get to taste it again.

Yuan Yi picked up the piece of fish, looked at it for a moment, then smiled and placed it into Zhou Xingran’s bowl. “It’s better if Cousin eats more.”

Goodwill laced with thorns—it seemed more fitting for these people.

The next morning at 8:30, Xingdu Military District General Hospital.

The hospital’s open outpatient department was as crowded and bustling as ever, packed with people. In contrast, the restricted research area was much quieter.

Inside the director’s office, Jian Yurou stared at the last two remaining genetic compatibility reports in her hands, feeling somewhat frustrated. She frowned and said, “Director Wu, I fully trust the test reports from your institute, but is there really no more suitable candidate?”

There were two reports—one for Li Heng and Yuan Yi, and one for Li Heng and Zhou Xingran. Both met the matching criteria, but Zhou Xingran’s was significantly higher, with a reported compatibility of over 97%. Yuan Yi’s, on the other hand, was lower, at only 91%. And yet, the Zhou family had called, insisting on marrying Yuan Yi into the Li family. It was obvious what their intentions were!

In truth, Jian Yurou wasn’t satisfied with either of these two candidates. In fact, she didn’t even want the military to be involved in this matter in the first place. She did want grandchildren, but she was more concerned about the emotional void they might experience growing up without both parents present.

If the child’s father were a particularly loving person, that would be one thing. But from what she knew, neither Yuan Yi nor Zhou Xingran seemed to be that type. Both of them were interested in an Alpha from their school named Bai Wanzhe—so if they married into her family, would their hearts even be in the right place?

Not to mention, her son was already gone.

No matter how she thought about it, this whole situation just didn’t seem reliable.

The hospital director was a mixed-blood Alpha with golden hair and gray eyes. When he smiled, faint crow’s feet appeared at the corners of his eyes, giving him a refined and scholarly appearance. He said, “Professor Jian, I understand how you feel. But we really did go through every possible match among all military families, and there is no better candidate. Besides, you know this must be done. Li Heng’s genes are unique—we have to ensure they are preserved. And didn’t you already agree to meet Commander Zhou’s nephew?”

Hearing this, Jian Yurou shot a glare at her silent husband beside her. She had agreed, but she hadn’t mentioned it to anyone else—so it had to be her husband who let it slip.

Principal Li adjusted his smart glasses with a finger and cleared his throat. “Well, everyone’s going to find out sooner or later anyway. Come on, don’t be so upset. You already agreed to meet the kid, didn’t you? Let’s just wait until you see him before making a decision. If you really don’t like him, worst-case scenario, we can go ask Father-in-law and see if we can find a better candidate from one of the other planets.”

With that, Jian Yuru picked up Yuan Yi’s report and got up angrily.

Among the four initial matches, there had actually been one she was quite satisfied with. But that person had hurriedly bonded with someone else just to avoid marrying into the Li family. She could understand. No one wanted to send their child to marry someone who had already passed away. Still, thinking about her son, she couldn’t help but feel heartache. Back when he was alive, so many people had fought tooth and nail for a chance to marry into the Li family. But now, with him gone, the truth was painfully clear—out of sight, out of mind.

Jian Yurou wiped the moisture from the corners of her eyes. Just thinking about how her son used to tease her every time he came home made her heart ache as if pierced by needles.

“Alright, don’t be angry anymore,” Li Heng’s father, Li Chengping, tried to comfort his wife. “If our family really had a delicate Omega child, you wouldn’t be thinking about sending him off to live alone for the rest of his life either.”

“That’s easy for you to say! But have you even thought about who saved that child back then?” The more Jian Yurou thought about it, the angrier she became. “This is all your fault! I was against Li Heng going to save the Cao family from the start, but you insisted! Sure, you’ve upheld your brotherly bond with General Cao, but look at what they’ve done this time! Do they even remember that when General Cao was poisoned, it was our son who risked himself to find a cure? And what did they do in return?”

“But didn’t they already say that the child has someone he likes? You can’t just go and break them up, can you?”

“That’s exactly the issue! I’ve already looked into it—Cao’s child doesn’t actually have anyone they like. It’s just that someone has been pursuing them all this time. And that pursuer’s family background isn’t any worse than ours, so of course, the Cao family jumped at the chance. What really infuriates me is their attitude! If the child truly had someone they loved or was unwilling, they could have just said so outright. Do they think I’d force their family to go through with the marriage? Instead, they played us for fools!”

“This was probably just their way of avoiding embarrassment for both sides. Alright, alright, what’s done is done—getting angry won’t change anything. Let’s just see what this kid we’re about to meet is like. I heard that while he’s a bit withdrawn, his character isn’t bad. Who knows? Maybe he’ll turn out to be a good match after all.”

“What do you mean, ‘maybe he’ll be a good match’? Even if he is, his heart is already set on someone else—can he really be sincere? Don’t tell me you don’t know what Zhou Tandai is planning.”

Li Chengping let out a long sigh. Of course, he knew. But even knowing, there wasn’t a better solution right now. He and his wife had devoted themselves to academia. Although he had served in the military in his early years, he hadn’t stayed in that world long enough to gain influence. Now, he truly regretted not listening to his father-in-law back then. If he had joined the military, at least he wouldn’t be left grasping at fragmented bits of classified information. Though he wasn’t as anxious as his wife, he wasn’t particularly satisfied with Yuan Yi either.

With their own worries weighing on them, the couple went to a nearby tea café. A virtual holographic waiter took their drink orders, and before long, a service robot arrived with a pot of red tea.

There were still fifteen minutes left until their scheduled meeting with the Zhou family.

Meanwhile, Zhou Tandai and his wife brought Yuan Yi to the parking area. As the aircraft landed, Zhou Tandai turned to Yuan Yi and said, “Xiao Yi, your aunt and I prepared some gifts for Principal Li and his wife, but we haven’t delivered them yet. How about this—you go inside first and apologize for us, let them know we’ll be there shortly.”

Yuan Yi was dressed in a brand-new outfit today, something Fang Jing had recently bought for him. The fabric carried a peculiar fragrance, one that finally masked the unpleasant scent of his original pheromones. He nodded, stepping off the aircraft and heading toward the tea café.

As the aircraft door sealed shut again, Fang Jing turned to Zhou Tandai and said, “Why didn’t one of us just wait here instead? Why send him in alone? What if he says something inappropriate?”

Zhou Tandai said, “That’s exactly why I sent him in alone—I want to see if he’ll say anything he shouldn’t to the Li family in private. I switched out his communicator this morning so we can monitor him. If this kid really has any ill intentions, it’s better for us to know early. After all, a marriage alliance is no small matter.”

Fang Jing thought about it and nodded in agreement.

At this hour, there weren’t many customers in the tea café. As soon as Yuan Yi mentioned he was looking for someone, the virtual waiter guided him to Li Chengping and Jian Yuru’s table.

When Jian Yurou saw the young Omega approaching, her eyes lit up in surprise. She had seen many beautiful Omegas before, but none quite like this one.

His complexion was fair, his features delicate and refined, but what truly stood out were his eyes—not the timid, lifeless gaze she had expected, but clear and bright, like a pristine lake reflecting polished black jade. There was an ethereal quality to his presence, his beauty rare and striking. She had seen his photos online before, but they hadn’t done him justice. In person, he was stunning.

Yuan Yi walked up to them, neither arrogant nor timid, and greeted the two politely. “Hello. Are you Principal Li and Professor Jian?”