IMAO Chapter 71

Ji Rong secretly glanced at Horace, who was sitting across from him, his face calm and serious. Horace’s eyes held a hint of a smile as he looked at him gently.

Damn, who could resist that!

His stepfather’s affection extended to him so gently. How could he let his father be a scumbag! He wouldn’t allow it!

“I haven’t heard about any special rewards this year,” Ji Rong said softly, hand curled into a fist.

Horace smiled. “It was just added recently. They’ll announce it in a few days.”

This stepfather seemed well-informed about many things. His background must be extraordinary, Ji Rong thought pensively as he glanced at his father, Ji Chong.

“I’m done eating.” Ji Rong set down his cutlery. Just as he reached for a napkin, Horace held out a white napkin. After a moment’s hesitation, Ji Rong accepted it with thanks.

“No need to be so formal with me,” Horace said.

Ji Rong: …You just want to be my dad! QAQ

Catching his father’s sideways glare, Ji Rong felt a twinge of hurt. Despite knowing his father was completely devoted to his stepfather, seeing it firsthand still stung. He shook his head slightly in resignation.

Noticing Ji Rong’s forced politeness, Horace felt deeply disappointed but understood this was their first official meeting. After years of separation, it would be difficult for his son to immediately accept someone who had been absent for eighteen years.

“I’m going back to training. You guys can take your time,” Ji Rong explained.
Ji Chong’s eyebrows shot up, ready to scold him, but the person beside him elbowed him and said, “Okay…”

As Ji Rong stood and adjusted his clothes, preparing to leave, the man who bore some resemblance to him asked in a negotiating tone, “Could we exchange contact information?”
Ji Rong: “…”

As Ji Rong remained silent, the man’s face instantly turned gloomy. Ji Rong frowned slightly, pursed his lips, and asked, “What’s your contact number?”

“Huh?”

“Your contact number? Or you can add mine?”

“Yes!”

After exchanging contact information, Ji Rong left Ji Chong and Horace alone.

Ji Chong asked Horace, “Did you mean it earlier when you said you’d return to Noth with me?”

Horace hummed in response, his gaze lingering in the direction where Ji Rong left.

Ji Chong’s current mindset was entirely ‘If I’d known my son would be this useful, I would have used him sooner,’ regretting not bringing his son over as a tool earlier.

Seeing Horace’s low spirits, Ji Chong wrapped an arm around him and consoled him softly, “He just needs time to adjust. He’ll come around.”

Horace hummed again, then after a pause asked Ji Chong, “When did you tell him?”

“About me,” Horace clarified, worried Ji Chong might not understand.

Ji Chong shook his head. “I never did.”

“Then how did he know?”

“It’s obvious from looking at you both. You look quite alike.”

Horace hesitated before letting out a soft “oh.”

Taking a deep breath, Horace said, “Ji Chong, I need time to handle matters with Hoyt. I won’t be able to see you often during this period. I’ll be busy for quite a while.”

Ji Chong gazed adoringly at his Omega and asked, “Do you need my help?”

Horace shook his head. “No, I can handle it myself. Just wait for me for a while.”

He added seriously, “Don’t investigate my affairs. I’ll explain everything later, including everything from the past.”

Seeing Horace’s determination and promise to explain why he left, Ji Chong could only nod. “Alright, I’ll wait for you.”

“It’s time for me to go,” Horace said, having lost his appetite.

“Leaving already?” Ji Chong asked.

As Horace stood up, he noticed Ji Chong’s visible displeasure and playfully tapped his forehead. “I already agreed to go to Noth with you. Why worry about these few days?”

“You didn’t agree for my sake,” Ji Chong said sourly. “You agreed for Ji Rong’s.”

Jealous even of his own son… Horace was speechless.

After Horace left, Ji Chong had no reason to stay at the hotel. He tidied himself up and returned to the Silver Palace.

Several military officers resting in the Federation residence’s living room secretly observed Ji Chong upon his return from his days-long disappearance, keenly detecting unfamiliar pheromones on him.

After Ji Chong left, He Chuan swallowed and asked his colleagues, “You all smelled that, right?”

“Yeah… we did…”

“Damn, those pheromones were incredible. It’s on par with the Marshal’s! I can’t handle it!”

“Double A relationship confirmed. It’s not that Omegas aren’t attractive enough, it’s just the wrong gender!”

Although Ji Chong had gone upstairs, his hearing was sharp enough to hear the conversation downstairs.

He raised an eyebrow and sniffed the lingering scent of Horace’s pheromones on himself. What was wrong with their noses?

His lover’s pheromones blended with woody aromatic notes, intoxicatingly rich, with a delicate and lasting essence. It was the most enchanting scent he’d ever encountered.

Just as Ji Chong opened his room door, Alfonso’s voice drifted over. “So you finally decided to return? I thought you’d disappeared.”

“?” Ji Chong glanced at Alfonso.

“You haven’t been back for days,” Alfonso said with a slight cough.

“I’m here on vacation. I went out to enjoy myself.”

“With that person from the banquet?” Alfonso’s eyes curved like crescents, full of curiosity. “Are you serious about this? Are you planning to marry him?”

Ji Chong nodded openly, without a hint of denial.

“So he’s the one?”

“Yes.”

“Not looking for Ji Rong’s Omega father anymore?”

Ji Chong smiled. “What’s there to look for?” He already was the one.

Alfonso: “…”

Ah… damn.

All that previous devotion was fake!

Ji Rong’s room wasn’t far from them, and he happened to overhear Alfonso and Ji Chong’s conversation.

Ji Rong felt as if something had clutched his heart, leaving him with an unbearable ache.

After a while, hearing the sound of a door closing, Ji Rong had just settled onto the sofa when his communicator chimed.

****: I know it’s difficult to suddenly accept my existence, and that’s perfectly normal. I’m sorry for barging into your life like this. I wanted to ask if you’d like to stay in Hoyt, but I knew you wouldn’t want to. Naturally, you prefer the Federation since you’ve lived there all your life. I’ll go to the Federation, to Noth, with your father. I hope one day I’ll hear you call me Dad.

Ji Rong hadn’t saved Horace’s contact information, but he knew who sent the message. Remembering his father’s words outside the door, a sudden inexplicable anger flared within him.

Ji Rong: The dinner was merely out of courtesy. I hope you understand that.

After sending the message, Ji Rong took a deep breath and called Jiang Yuan before logging into Star Wars.

They entered Star Wars together. Jiang Yuan sensed something was off with Ji Rong today, but seeing the match invitation window, he couldn’t bring himself to decline.

One game after another after another.

Jiang Yuan lost track of how many games he’d played with Ji Rong. He even felt that he was running out of energy.

Early the next morning.

“Ahhhh!!!!” Ji Rong screamed.

“What’s wrong?” Hearing the cry, Jiang Yuan rushed out wearing only his pajamas.

Ji Rong’s door was open, and he was dodging around the bed from someone.

Jiang Yuan pushed the door open and froze when he recognized the extra person in Ji Rong’s room.

“Damn it, you little brat, I’m going to beat you to death today!” Ji Chong’s stomach hurt with anger. He wanted to talk with his lover this morning, but hearing Horace’s hoarse voice and pressing for details, he learned about the message Ji Rong sent last night.

“How is this my fault?” Ji Rong’s voice was deeply aggrieved. “You never told me he was my Omega father!”

Ji Chong: “Hah! You said you knew!”

Ji Rong: “I thought he was the stepfather you found for me!”

Ji Chong: “Stepfather? Say that one more time, I dare you. I’ll definitely beat you to death today!”

Ji Rong: “Fine, go ahead. I’ll tell my dad you beat me.”

Ji Chong: “…”

Everyone who had rushed over: ???

Jiang Yuan: ???

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