PTBC chapter 39

After finishing hotpot, it was almost midnight. Considering Zong Yi’s dazed state, Xia Yan decided to indulge him a little. He stopped by a convenience store to buy beer and low-calorie snacks.

The two retreated to Zong Yi’s room.

As Xia Yan unpacked the items on the table, he grabbed a piece of chicken jerky and took a bite, gesturing with his chin. “Alright, spill it. What’s going on?”

Zong Yi grabbed one of the beers Xia Yan brought, popped it open, and took a long swig. Foam spilled over the rim as he drank nearly half the bottle in one go. Then, looking at Xia Yan with a blank expression, he dropped a bombshell.

“Zhao Ye confessed to me.”

Five simple words.

At first, Xia Yan didn’t fully register them. Oh, a confession? That made sense. Despite Zong Yi’s emo mother hen tendencies, he was handsome and soft-spoken—an attractive combo.

But then… Zhao Ye?

“Wait, what?”

“Who?!”

Half a minute later, Xia Yan finally processed what he heard, his eyes widening in shock.

“Whoa, hold on. Who did you say?”

He confirmed in disbelief, “Zhao Ye? The Zhao Ye from your team? The one who came to drop us off at the set with Xu Cong?”

Zong Yi nodded solemnly, affirming the answer.

“Wow…” Xia Yan let out another exclamation, momentarily at a loss for words. He could only marvel, “Impressive.”

The air in the hotel room turned quiet once more.

Xia Yan took a moment to digest the revelation, mentally replaying the brief two-hour car ride to the filming set. Zhao Ye’s hesitant demeanor, his inexplicable hostility, the hand he almost reached out to touch Zong Yi but retracted, and Zong Yi’s desperate attempts to avoid him—all of it suddenly made sense.

So it wasn’t just him being blind and oblivious all along.

After some thought, Xia Yan remarked to Zong Yi, “Man, I didn’t expect it. You’ve even managed to bag an alpha. Are you two planning on becoming the poster boys for a forbidden AA romance?”

Zong Yi immediately threw a peanut at him.

“Of all people, you’re the least qualified to say that,” Zong Yi snapped. “Forbidden, my foot. Weren’t you raised in a dual-alpha household?”

Fair point. Xia Yan nodded in agreement.

Due to his family background, he had no bias against AA relationships and was even avant-garde enough to support them. However, in his twenty-plus years of life, he had been so straight before differentiation that he could never imagine dating an alpha himself.

Looking at Zong Yi’s distressed expression as he nervously messed up his usually neat brown hair, Xia Yan decided to tone down his teasing and asked, “When did this happen?”

“After we joined the casting crew,” Zong Yi replied weakly. “Actually, there were signs before. He’d do some…” Zong Yi paused awkwardly, his face inexplicably flushing. His voice dropped a few notches. “…some pretty over-the-top things. But he never said anything outright.”

Xia Yan thought to himself, I really don’t want to know what those things are, or how ‘over-the-top’ they are.

He reminded himself he was Zong Yi’s responsible, dependable friend—not a nosy paparazzo with a camera in hand. He would respect Zong Yi’s privacy…

Who was he kidding? He was dying to know.

But he couldn’t bring himself to ask.

“Until after we joined the crew,” Zong Yi continued, his expression growing more dejected. “Remember how I took leave a few days ago? It was that day. Zhao Ye confessed to me.”

As Zong Yi spoke, he raised his hand to cover his face. He wished this was just a bad dream. Who gets confessed to by a team member three years younger than them? He had always seen Zhao Ye as a younger brother.

And now? Their brotherly bond had turned into something else entirely.

This was a disaster.

Lowering his hand, Zong Yi anxiously asked Xia Yan, “Do you think this is my fault? Zhao Ye didn’t have a happy family growing up, and after joining the company, he’s always relied on me. I’ve always favored him a little, so maybe he’s confused familial love with romantic love.”

Xia Yan raised a hand, stopping Zong Yi’s rambling.

“Zong Mom, while I understand your protective instincts, please stop trying to pin the blame on yourself,” Xia Yan said calmly. “Zhao Ye is a mentally and emotionally sound adult. He’s responsible for his own actions. Your concern for him is just you fulfilling your duties as a team leader. His falling in love with you is his unusual preference, not your fault.”

Zong Yi muttered quietly, “It’s not that unusual…”

Xia Yan finally opened his can of beer, took a sip, and asked, “So, what are you planning to do about it?”

Being confessed to by a teammate was catastrophic, sure, but it had to be dealt with somehow. Leaving it unresolved wasn’t an option, especially with Zhao Ye clearly being persistent. Over the past few days, the frequency of his texts had skyrocketed, leaving Zong Yi looking utterly drained on set.

Zong Yi also knew he couldn’t avoid the issue forever. He looked at Xia Yan with pleading eyes. “That’s why I wanted to get your advice. Your family is a dual-alpha household, right? How did your dads get together?”

What?

Xia Yan furrowed his brows in confusion. Was that even a logical connection?

“What do my dads’ relationship have to do with this?” he asked, bewildered. “How would that be useful to you? Right now, you should be thinking about how to tactfully reject Zhao Ye.”

The room fell into an awkward silence.

Looking at Zong Yi’s conflicted face, Xia Yan asked incredulously, “Wait a second. Don’t tell me… you’re actually considering saying yes?”

Zong Yi hesitated, shaking his head. “No, it’s just that… I want to understand what Zhao Ye is thinking. After all, it’s rare for an alpha to like another alpha. I just want to figure out why he feels that way…”

His voice trailed off, and he stared at the pull-tab on his beer can. Lowering his voice further, he added, “…And if I reject him, will he be really devastated?”

Xia Yan’s mouth twitched. “Why do you care? He’s an adult; he can handle it. The real issue here is you. Think about the hundred ways a team relationship could go wrong. If you two manage to stay together without breaking up, fine. But the moment you break up, trust me, your group will be on the verge of disbanding. Who can stay calm and professional with an ex in the same team?”

Zong Yi’s thoughts seemed clearer now. “If I reject him, will the team really be safe? What if he can’t take it and does something irrational? Wouldn’t that make the group fall apart even faster?”

Good point.

Xia Yan was stunned.

Since debuting, his career had been smooth sailing. He had never encountered a calamity of this magnitude.

Feeling genuine sympathy for Zong Yi, Xia Yan patted his shoulder and clinked their beer cans together.

He offered a half-joking suggestion: “How about you get Zhao Ye a therapist? Maybe his feelings for you are just a big brother complex. If corrected, he might still have a chance. Or better yet, find someone who matches his preferences. ABO gender doesn’t matter; Set him up on a few blind dates. Who knows? He might transfer his feelings to someone else.”

Zong Yi nodded, half-understanding.

He vaguely felt that Xia Yan’s suggestions seemed like terrible ideas, but he couldn’t come up with anything better…

….

An hour later, the television in Zong Yi’s room was on, playing a newly released matchmaking reality show. Xia Yan and Zong Yi stared at the screen intently, studying how the participants rejected suitors they didn’t like.

But the more they watched, the more disheartened they became. Every phrase the participants used had already been said by Zong Yi to Zhao Ye. It hadn’t worked.

That guy was as stubborn as a turtle biting onto iron, refusing to let go.

Xia Yan, hand deep in a bag of snacks, had thrown all thoughts of dieting out the window. He sighed sincerely, “This problem of yours is impossible. Not even Einstein could solve this; no one can save you.”

Zong Yi knew this as well, and his spirits sank even further.

Seeing his dejected state, Xia Yan couldn’t help but comment, “Look at you. This is what being too nice gets you. Take me as an example—I’ll never have your kind of trouble. My team isn’t exactly peaceful, but at least I don’t have to deal with this kind of situation.”

Zong Yi raised an eyebrow in disbelief. “Really?”

“Of course,” Xia Yan replied confidently. “Who would dare?”

He had absolute faith in his reputation within the group. Any kid daring to confess to him would get figuratively skinned alive.

But Zong Yi continued to look at him with a knowing expression.

“Come on,” Zong Yi sneered. “You have the most CP fans in your group, and they’re all wildly popular. Especially you and Xu Cong.”

“So what?” Xia Yan remained calm. “That’s just fans messing around. I even visit the fan forums sometimes. It’s all nonsense. Like Xu Cong using a red pen to sign something because red is my support color. They even obsess over that. It’s ridiculous.”

He was well aware.

If fan rumors were to be believed, he was basically the ultimate playboy with dozens of partners.

“That’s not true,” Zong Yi slapped his thigh and said, “Your fan forums are a mess. The real gold is in private Weibo groups and Douban discussions.”

As he spoke, Zong Yi got excited. “Wait, let me share a few links with you. I’ve carefully saved them all. They’re absolute gems.”

Xia Yan thought, ~You sure have energy for this. Your own mess is a tangled disaster, yet you’re still in the mood to gossip about me.

Out of pity for Zong Yi, who was drowning in chaos, Xia Yan didn’t stop him from sending links.

But when Xia Yan’s phone vibrated dozens of times in a row, his expression completely changed.

What was all this—

“108 Reasons to Ship CongYan.”
“100 Glances of CongYan: ‘In a Sea of Thousands, I Only Look at You.’”
“Sweet Moments Compilation: Countless Heart-Racing Moments of Xu Cong × Xia Yan!”
“Stop Denying! Just Admit You’re Dating Already! Marriage Certificates Only 9.9—I’ll Pay 99 for Your Happily Ever After!”

And more, mixed with countless Douban discussion threads from true fans and trolls alike.

Xia Yan even found a dedicated scandal forum about himself.

He stared at Zong Yi, utterly speechless.

His long fingers scrolled down the pages slowly—half a minute passed, and he still hadn’t reached the end.

“Captain Zong,” Xia Yan said gravely, “be honest with me. What exactly have you been looking at behind my back?”

He sneered. “Is Forest not giving you enough work? You’ve got time to browse all this garbage?”

Zong Yi guiltily averted his gaze. “It’s not garbage… I just… may have… shipped you and Xu Cong a little.”

He cautiously held up a pinky finger to emphasize a little.

Xia Yan crushed the empty beer can in his hand with a loud crunch.