DL Chapter18

It wasn’t until half a month later that Min Zhi returned to the villa.

 

As he had expected, the Omega had already left, and there was not a trace of Fang Fengzhi’s pheromones left in the air.

 

The housekeeper was in the kitchen preparing dinner and didn’t ask much about Fang Fengzhi’s departure.

 

“Sir, will you be having dinner at home tonight?”

 

Min Zhi nodded. “I’ll be staying here from now on.”

 

His phone rang, and while checking the message, he headed upstairs. The housekeeper suddenly spoke from downstairs, “Mr. Fang left something for you. I’ve placed it on the table…”

 

Min Zhi paused for a moment. His face remained expressionless as he glanced briefly toward the guest room before pulling his gaze away.

 

He returned to the bedroom and saw a small paper bag on the table. It was probably something the Omega had left for him. Min Zhi couldn’t think of what it could be, so he walked over and opened it.

 

Inside was a tie, identical to the one he had lent to Fang Fengzhi before. Though it didn’t have a tag, but Min Zhi knew it was a new one.

 

There was no trace of Fang Fengzhi’s scent on it.

 

Fang Fengzhi was eating alone in his apartment, mechanically chewing his food, living the same day-to-day life as before.

 

He had been away from Min Zhi’s villa for almost a week already.

 

The day he returned, he felt a mix of nervousness and a hidden hope, wishing that Fu Baiqi would notice he wasn’t home and angrily yell at him. That way, it would somehow prove that his husband still cared for him. But the reality was that there was only one pair of slippers at the door, exactly the same as the day he left.

 

This meant that Fu Baiqi hadn’t come back at all during this time.

 

The house felt like it was filled with dust, every corner was dirty. It was a rare weekend, but Fang Fengzhi felt restless, a sense of unease brewing in his heart. He opened the window, planning to tidy up, as if doing something would help. Otherwise, he would soon be consumed by loneliness.

 

Loneliness?

 

He suddenly thought of the way he saw his husband with Bai Zhen at the hospital that day, and a numb, dull pain grew in his heart.

 

He reached up to touch the gland on the back of his neck, which was intact and smooth, showing no signs of any previous marks. Then he looked at the ring on his ring finger.

 

The fact that he had been marked by someone else, even climaxing under their control, made it impossible for him to face Fu Baiqi. Even though the mark had completely faded now, just thinking about his encounters with Min Zhi left him feeling overwhelming guilt. Moreover, seeing the two of them together that day, it seemed that Fu Baiqi had probably been with Bai Zhen all this time.

 

He had made up his mind. When Fu Baiqi came back, he would talk to him about getting a divorce.

 

As Bai Zhen had said, after all these years, he was just the later third party. Although Fang Fengzhi didn’t feel that way, he had indeed severed their future together.

 

If that’s the case, then it’s time to sever ties with Fu Baiqi.

 

As he was tidying up, he accidentally found something buried at the bottom of the cabinet. An old notebook, its pages slightly yellowed, remained empty with nothing written inside. This was something that Fu Baiqi had given him many years ago.

 

Fang Fengzhi would always remember that day.

 

The first time he met Fu Baiqi, who had come from the city, he thought Fu Baiqi was very handsome. His small town was so tiny that it was impossible to find anyone else who looked as good as him. At that time, they were both still minors and had not yet reached the age of differentiation. Fu Baiqi’s grandmother was close to his family, so he was asked to show Fu Baiqi around.

 

Fu Baiqi clearly didn’t want to go with him, but it seemed like he disliked being surrounded by the noisy crowd of relatives even more. So, he reluctantly put on his backpack and followed Fang Fengzhi out.

 

Along the way, Fu Baiqi remained distant, answering with nothing more than a simple “mm” or “oh” to any questions, refusing to say a word more. When they reached a stone table and chairs in the neighborhood, he walked over alone, took out his homework, and ignored Fang Fengzhi completely.

 

Fang Fengzhi was somewhat afraid of him but couldn’t bring himself to leave. In a hurry, he ran back home to grab his little notebook and returned to sit beside Fu Baiqi. They quietly wrote and drew together, with Fang Fengzhi occasionally sneaking glances at Fu Baiqi.

 

After Fu Baiqi finished, he walked off by himself. Fang Fengzhi quickly grabbed his notebook and hurried to follow him.

 

After all, they were still children. Being followed so closely by Fang Fengzhi annoyed Fu Baiqi. He suddenly stopped, turned around, and said in a slightly irritated tone, “Stop following me.”

 

At that time, Fang Fengzhi was still shy and timid. Being directly confronted with Fu Baiqi’s obvious disdain scared him into silence. His fragile pride was deeply hurt, and he felt utterly embarrassed. In a panic, he turned around and tried to run away, but after just a few steps, he missed his footing and fell down the stone steps.

 

Fortunately, the stone steps weren’t very high, just a few steps, but it still hurt him quite a bit.

 

Fu Baiqi was startled when he saw this and quickly stepped forward to help him up. “Are you okay?”

 

Fang Fengzhi was in so much pain that he couldn’t say anything. He looked at the person who had been so stern just moments ago and then at the notebook that had been torn because of his fall. The sight made him feel a mix of pain and sadness, and before he knew it, tears welled up and he couldn’t hold them back anymore.

 

This was the first time Fu Baiqi had experienced such a situation. He thought Fang Fengzhi must be in intense pain and didn’t know what to do. He looked over to check if Fang Fengzhi had hurt himself anywhere, and while doing so, he took out some paper to gently wipe away his tears.

 

After crying for a short while, Fang Fengzhi stopped. The sight of the handsome boy gently wiping his tears made his heart flutter, and he forgot about the pain in his body.

 

He picked up the notebook beside him, blinked, and the last tear fell down.

 

He heard the sound of a backpack zipper next to him, and the next moment, a notebook was placed in his hands.

 

The handsome boy squatted in front of him and said, “This one is new. Take it, and don’t cry anymore.”

 

Fang Fengzhi stared blankly at him, forgetting the coldness the person had shown earlier. All he could think about now was how kind this person was.

 

He looked at the boy who was very close to him, his heart pounding wildly. Without thinking, he suddenly leaned in and kissed his cheek.

 

The boy froze for a second, his face instantly turning bright red. He shoved Fang Fengzhi away with force, cursing a few harsh words. Without saying anything else, he ran off toward home, leaving Fang Fengzhi standing there alone.

 

But Fang Fengzhi didn’t feel sad.

 

He had received the tissues and the gift from the boy he liked, and he had given the boy the most precious love he could offer at that moment. He felt happy.

 

Unfortunately, the next day, the handsome boy left the small town.

 

Fang Fengzhi wondered when he would see him again.

 

He waited for a long time until Fu Baiqi’s parents approached him, asking him to meet their son as a way to repay the medical fees for his mother. At first, he didn’t take it seriously. Although he believed in the concept of pheromone matching, he was only going with the mindset of giving it a try. But the moment he saw Fu Baiqi, he immediately recognized him.

 

He changed his mind. He wanted to marry him.

 

Fang Fengzhi placed the notebook into his suitcase.

 

Thinking back on his past dreams and the two years of marriage, he still felt a sense of sadness. He had always thought that love could be cultivated over time. But in the end, he realized that Bai Zhen’s presence in Fu Baiqi’s heart was something he could never replace.

 

He placed the notebook into his suitcase. Once everything was fully settled and said, he would leave.

 

He had originally planned to leave once everything was said and done, but in the afternoon, he received a call from Fu Baiqi’s mother, asking him to join them for a meal. The location was set at a café not far from Fu Baiqi’s office.

 

When he got there, Fu Baiqi’s mother had not arrived yet. Fang Fengzhi felt a little nervous. In addition to being nervous because of Fu Baiqi’s mother, another reason was that he was afraid of meeting Min Zhi.

 

He nervously found a secluded place to sit down, and a moment later, Fu Baiqi’s mother came over.

 

“Mom.”

 

The woman nodded at him, looked him up and down, and said without being polite, “Has Baiqi not marked you yet?”

 

Fang Fengzhi nodded somewhat awkwardly.

 

The woman impatiently took a sip of her coffee. “Fang Fengzhi, I really don’t know what to say to you.” She looked extremely angry, yet reluctant to lose her temper. “A hundred percent match rate — even the heavens are on your side, yet you just don’t know how to fight for it?”

 

Fang Fengzhi lowered his head, his hands clasped together. “It’s not like that…”

 

“Mom, Baiqi has someone he likes. I… it’s just not going to work between us.”

 

“Who is it?”

 

“Is it that Bai Zhen?”

 

“I know that child, he’s truly a good one. It’s just a shame that his pheromone compatibility with Baiqi isn’t as high as yours.”

 

She looked at the somewhat pale face Fang Fengzhi and decided to comfort him a little. “I called Baiqi yesterday. He said they’ve already broken up and won’t be in contact anymore.”

 

“What?”

 

He stared blankly at Fu Baiqi’s mother. Although she was an Omega, she was always straightforward in her actions and didn’t like beating around the bush. Since she said they had broken up, it meant they really had.

 

But was Fu Baiqi willing?

 

The woman’s hand suddenly covered the back of Fang Fengzhi’s hand as she looked at him. “Fengzhi ah, I will help you. This year, you need to stand up for yourself and have a child with Baiqi.”