Be Good and Hide Your Pheromones (GL , ABO) - Chapter 5
Perhaps there really was some unspoken rule among alphas.
At the very least, after returning from the student council, Zong Qing was no longer targeted by Liang Feiyu.
Peace, at last.
Glancing at the unfamiliar face now seated beside her, her new desk mate, Zong Qing picked up her textbook, finally able to focus on her studies.
The afternoon passed uneventfully.
Tengyang High’s evening self-study session consisted of two classes. By the time the last bell rang, the sky outside had already darkened.
At around 9:40 p.m., Zong Qing descended the school building’s steps, arms full of books.
Near the school gate, tucked in a quiet corner, she spotted the car that had dropped her off that morning.
“You’re late.”
She had been waiting in the car for quite some time. Wen He frowned as she watched the person climb in from the right side.
Their school’s evening self-study session ended at nine o’clock sharp.
Yet nearly fifty minutes had passed before this person finally showed up.
“I still have homework to finish when I get back! If you’re this slow next time, I won’t wait for you.”
With an annoyed huff, Wen He tapped the front seat, signaling the driver to go.
“Let’s go, Uncle Liu.”
Perhaps the student council was just too well-known at Tengyang High.
News of today’s incident where someone had been hauled off by the council had already spread throughout the school.
Not long into the ride, Wen He, unable to contain her curiosity any longer, eagerly asked, “I heard a transfer student got into a fight with that troublemaker from Class 3 and was taken away by President Xi Huan.”
“Was that you?”
Transferring during the sensitive second year of high school wasn’t common.
And especially not today.
No matter how Wen He thought about it, it had to be this person.
Sure enough.
Zong Qing nodded.
“Yeah, because of some reasons.”
She was vague, not planning to elaborate.
“Anyway, it’s been resolved,” she said.
“Oh my god! That’s Xi Huan we’re talking about! Tell me everything.”
As a devoted member of Xi Huan’s fan club, Wen He’s eyes sparkled, her earlier annoyance with Zong Qing completely forgotten.
“Where did she take you? What did she say?”
“Is she really as gentle and kind as an older sister? You have to tell me!”
Listening to her cousin’s excited questions, Zong Qing raised an eyebrow, skeptical about the description of Xi Huan as a “gentle older sister.”
Was this the same Xi Huan?
“She just asked about the reason for the fight and made Liang Feiyu write a 10,000-word self-reflection.”
Keeping her expression blank, Zong Qing tried hard not to dwell on it.
But the more indifferent she sounded, the more Wen He zeroed in on the key point.
“Liang Feiyu got a 10,000-word punishment then what about you? What did she do to you?”
Zong Qing: “…”
The memory she had been suppressing for so long suddenly surged back without warning.
Time seemed to rewind to that office. She could still smell that domineering, distinctive pheromone lingering in the air.
Zong Qing’s thoughts wandered, she couldn’t help but ponder.
What punishment had she received exactly.
Probably…
Being defiled in a place too embarrassing to mention.
“Hey hey hey!”
Watching the increasingly strange expression on the person beside her, Wen He sharply detected a hint of scandal from her flustered appearance.
Instantly.
She felt utterly disturbed.
“You’re actually blushing. What were you thinking about?!”
“Good heavens, what did you do to President Xi?!”
The moon-like figure in her heart might have been defiled by some ‘country bumpkin.’
Puffing up her cheeks in anger, Wen He grew even more resentful toward Zong Qing.
“I’m not blushing…”
Her chaotic thoughts were shattered into dust.
Zong Qing instinctively touched her face, it didn’t feel warm at all.
“Stop talking nonsense!” She had no choice but to make up an excuse: “I got scolded really hard.”
“Why does Liang Feiyu have to write a 10,000-word reflection while you just get a light scolding?!” Narrowing her eyes, Wen He didn’t buy it at all.
“I didn’t do anything wrong!”
The moment the fight was mentioned, Zong Qing suddenly regained her confidence.
Tugging at the worn-out strap of her backpack, she declared righteously, “When I transferred classes today, I never intended to fight, Liang Feiyu provoked me first and even released pheromones. That’s why she got punished with a reflection.”
“So, I’m not at fault. The fight wasn’t something I wanted.”
She was merely forced to defend herself.
“Hah? Who’d believe that?!” Wen He sneered. “Don’t think I don’t know.”
“Back at No. 19 High, you were constantly picking fights and causing trouble.”
When it came to Zong Qing’s dark history, as one of her relatives, Wen He knew far more than outsiders.
This person had always been a troublemaker at school.
That’s why she refused to believe Zong Qing would change after transferring.
“Just remember this, the president is someone you can’t even dream of.”
Thanks to her deeply ingrained image, Xi Huan had successfully become the dream lover of every Omega at Tengyang High.
Mention her name, and not a single Omega wouldn’t wish to be her destined partner.
Xi Huan’s destined partner.
That would practically be the chosen one.
It definitely wouldn’t be someone like Zong Qing.
Thinking this, Wen He couldn’t hide the disdain in her eyes.
With a cold snort, she turned her head away, leaving Zong Qing with nothing but the back of her head.
Clearly, she was furious.
Her perfectly fine cousin was angry again. Zong Qing rubbed her nose, both amused and exasperated.
For a while, the car fell into silence once more.
By the time they got home, it was already past ten.
Rushing ahead from the garage, Wen He, still fuming, didn’t wait and went straight to the dining table.
“Why so angry? Where’s your sister?”
Having been waiting in the living room for the two to return, Uncle Wen was the first to notice his daughter’s mood.
Glancing around, he spotted Zong Qing trailing not far behind.
Only then did he rise from the sofa and head toward the dining table.
“Xiao Qing, you’re back…”
“Hurry up and wash your hands for dinner!”
…
“Okay.”
Responding to her uncle’s enthusiastic greeting, Zong Qing nodded without protest.
Setting down her backpack, she went to wash up.
A few minutes later.
Wen He, still seething, glared at Zong Qing sitting across from her, pouted, and began tattling.
“Dad, you have no idea how awful Zong Qing was today.”
“She got into a fight with classmates as soon as she entered the classroom.”
Before she could finish her complaints, Father Wen from across the table couldn’t take it anymore and interrupted.
“How dare you speak like that?! She’s your cousin! You call her ‘elder sister,’ understand?”
Referring to her directly as “Zong Qing” like that showed absolutely no manners.
“I…”
Never expecting to be scolded by her father over a mere form of address, Wen He felt her anger boil over instantly.
“She’s not my sister! I refuse to acknowledge someone like her as family!”
This so-called ‘cousin’ from the slums, she would never accept her!
Besides…
“Dad, you’re horrible! You know perfectly well she’s just a—”
—BANG!
Chopsticks slammed onto the table with a loud crash.
Wen He’s impulsive words were cut short.
Fingers trembling slightly from the impact, Father Wen’s face turned ashen, his expression terrifying.
“Shut your mouth!” he thundered. “She is your sister!”
“Waaah…”
Having been pampered and spoiled her whole life, this was the first time Wen He had ever been treated this way by her father.
Her mood instantly plummeted to rock bottom; she couldn’t bear this injustice any longer.
“Sniff! won’t, I just hate her.”
With those words, Wen He pushed away from the table without finishing her meal.
Wiping her tears, she fled the dining room sobbing.
Thus concluded the dramatic scene.
Watching his daughter leave in distress, Father Wen heaved a long sigh.
“Wen He never thinks before she speaks.” Giving Zong Qing a complicated look, he forced a strained smile. “Don’t take it to heart, Xiao Qing.”
“Mmm, it’s fine.”
Sitting motionless like an outsider, Zong Qing tightened her grip on her chopsticks and responded impassively.
What Wen He had been about to say…
Everyone presents knew perfectly well.
Even this uncle who appeared to be defending her, she probably didn’t truly care either.
“Let’s eat…”
Taking the initiative to serve herself a portion, Zong Qing lowered her head and ate in silence.
“…Alright.”
The apology on the tip of his tongue remained unspoken.
Father Wen pressed his lips together and simply said nothing.
The girl sitting not far away
was his sister’s only child in this lifetime.
A child born out of coercion.
The deeper the despair, the greater the pain.
The atmosphere at the dining table was suffocating.
After quickly finishing her meal, Zong Qing stepped out into the living room.
The Wen family’s house was the most luxurious and exquisite place she had seen in over a decade.
A three-story home with spacious front and back yards formed a sizable villa.
Strolling past the swimming pool in the rear garden, Zong Qing followed the glow of the streetlights to a spot near the wall.
There stood a row of three storage rooms.
The one on the right had been cleared out to serve as her bedroom.
Even so, this storage space dismissed by Wen He was far more spacious than any room Zong Qing had lived in before.
At least there was enough space for a desk.
Turning on the desk lamp and setting down her backpack,
Zong Qing sat in her room, listening to the chirping of insects outside as she began her daily study review.
Summarizing her coursework every night
was Zong Qing’s secret to maintaining her grades.
She wasn’t a genius, hard work was the only way she could achieve high marks.
The curriculum at Tengyang High was vastly different from that of Nineteenth High.
To keep up with the pace here, Zong Qing had no choice but to put in extra effort.
Experimental, advanced, standard.
The three-tiered class system reflected academic excellence.
Since she had already transferred, Zong Qing was determined to aim for the best.
The top class, the finest education, the highest grades.
That was her goal.
She had always excelled at Nineteenth High.
Here, she would do the same.