What's Wrong with This Alpha? - Chapter 64

Chapter 64 – Empty-Handed Trick

Xu Liang’s trial concluded just before the final exams.

His purchase of the inducer only resulted in a written apology and fifteen days of detention, as there was still no clear legal classification of omega inducers as narcotics or other illegal substances.

However, a heinous incident from his ninth-grade year, where he had lured an omega, resurfaced. Now that he was over eighteen and of legal age for criminal responsibility, he was sentenced to five years in prison.

Xu Huifang’s husband received the same five-year sentence, while she herself avoided imprisonment but was saddled with another massive debt.

Her son, Xu Xiaochao, had destroyed Sheng Yunze’s wristwatch, valued at over three million yuan.

Initially, Xu Xiaochao played with the watch himself. Later, his father took it to work to show off for a few days. During a visit to a brothel, he bragged about it to a shampoo girl. Somewhere along the line, something went wrong. By the time the watch was returned to Sheng Yunze, it was shattered beyond recognition.

When the police summoned Sheng Yunze, Xu Huifang and her son were still causing a scene at the station.

Tears and snot flew as she clung to Xu Xiaochao, cursing their fate. When Sheng Yunze entered, her eyes nearly shot venomous darts of hatred, as if she wanted to pierce him through.

Xu Huifang had no idea about the price of Sheng Yunze’s watch. When Xu Xiaochao snatched it from him, Sheng Yunze didn’t react, leading her to believe it was a cheap, few-hundred-yuan timepiece.

Her husband, a shrewd man himself, pretended ignorance about women’s lack of watch knowledge and played with it for a few days.

After Xu Xiaochao broke the watch, Xu Huifang didn’t give it much thought. When Sheng Yunze entered, she erupted in a tirade, cursing him and claiming he would face divine retribution for ruining her family.

As she ranted, she began recounting her years of hardship since leaving the countryside to work, how difficult it was for a woman to raise two children alone, how exhausting it had been, and how she couldn’t go on after her husband was imprisoned.

Xu Huifang was skilled at these theatrics. She had once attempted to jump from the Second High School building, only to be talked down by the police. Now, she was causing a scene at the police station.

Faced with Xu Huifang’s unreasonable outburst, everyone felt awkward and helpless.

Sheng Yunze sat across from her and spoke slowly, deliberately, “Your husband and nephew are in jail because of their own actions. Even Xu Liang’s biological mother hasn’t said a word. What right do you have to cry? Are you crying over the loss of your three hundred thousand yuan compensation?”

Xu Huifang was somewhat afraid of Sheng Yunze. Despite his young age, she could tell he was no pushover.

Her family had been torn apart by Sheng Yunze’s actions. The thought filled her with overwhelming hatred, almost eclipsing her fear. “You little bastard!” she screamed. “Is this what they teach you in school? To go around ruining people’s lives? Destroying families? What’s that watch even worth? So my son broke it—so what! You just want me to pay, right? Three hundred yuan? Three thousand? Huh? This old woman won’t give you a single cent! You ruined my husband’s life like this—do you even have a conscience? What am I supposed to do now…?”

Xiao Liu, the police officer handling the case, hesitated before telling Xu Huifang the truth.

Her tears still wet on her face, she heard Xiao Liu say the market value of Sheng Yunze’s watch was estimated at around four million yuan. Her face turned as white as paper.

At first, she refused to believe it, convinced the police were colluding with the wealthy to extort her. She questioned multiple officers and even hired an appraiser. Only after the appraiser presented the official valuation did Xu Huifang collapse onto the floor, paralyzed by shock.

The appraiser confirmed the watch could be repaired, but the exorbitant repair costs were far beyond Xu Huifang’s means.

Sheng Yunze sat quietly, enjoying Xu Huifang’s stunned expression.

Her son, Xu Xiaochao, continued to whine and clamor. “Mom, the watch is broken anyway. Just pay for the repairs! I want this one—get it for me!”

Xu Huifang remained silent. Xu Xiaochao turned to the appraiser. “How much to fix the watch?”

“Around three hundred thousand,” the appraiser replied.

Three hundred thousand—that number again.

Xu Xiaochao casually ordered Xu Huifang, “Mom, we still have that apartment in our hometown, right? We never go there anyway. Just sell it! I want this watch. One of my classmates has one, and I want one too.”

Slap! The sound of a heavy slap echoed through the police station, followed by Xu Xiaochao’s earth-shattering screams and sobs.

Xu Huifang’s strength was considerable. The force of her slap sent Xu Xiaochao sprawling to the floor, his right cheek swelling grotesquely.

“You still dare to ask for it!” Xu Huifang glared, her face contorted with rage and humiliation. Unable to meet Sheng Yunze’s gaze, she turned away, gasping roughly. Her chest rose and fell in ragged, labored breaths, like a dying patient struggling in a hospital bed.

Having seen enough, Sheng Yunze stood up. The appraiser offered amicably, “I’ll contact you regarding the compensation procedures.”

Xu Huifang spoke stiffly, “My son… my son is still young and doesn’t understand. You see… our family can’t afford to pay three hundred thousand right now. I’ve already scolded Xiaochao. You don’t really need the money, do you?”

Sheng Yunze smiled faintly. “Don’t you have a house back in your hometown?”

Xu Huifang’s lips turned slightly purple.

Sheng Yunze continued, “It’s true I don’t need three hundred thousand, but you must pay. If you can’t raise your son properly, you can join your husband in prison and discuss where your parenting went wrong.”

Three days later, Xu Huifang paid the three hundred thousand.

Sheng Yunze then did something unexpected.

He tore open the bag containing the cash. In the frigid December air, he dumped all the money into the river right in front of Xu Huifang.

Xu Huifang screamed and plunged into the water with a splash.

Red paper bills scattered across the surface, some still fluttering in the air.

Sheng Yunze stood on the bridge pier, glanced down at her, and said coldly, “You can keep whatever you manage to salvage. Better start fishing.”

“Seriously?” Duan Yi asked, his hands and feet freezing as he worked on his homework. He shook his hands and stomped his feet, turning to Jiang Wangshu with a curious expression. “Xu Huifang must be out of her mind. Winter swimming in this weather? She’s lucky she didn’t end up in the hospital!”

Jiang Wangshu chuckled, glancing at Sheng Yunze. The latter was focused on his exam paper, completely oblivious to their conversation, his signature white headphones blasting music as he maintained his usual “Brother is too noble for you mortals” energy-saving mode.

Hao Shanshan sighed dramatically. “That’s karma for you. I heard her frostbite is pretty severe. It’ll probably take her at least half a year to recover.”

Jiang Wangshu’s saintly instincts kicked in, and he felt a pang of sympathy. “That’s actually kind of pitiful.”

“Pitiful my ass,” Hao Shanshan retorted. “Didn’t they think of President Duan when they tried to frame him? If they’d succeeded, Duan Yi would have been in even worse shape!”

Jiang Wangshu’s saintly instincts vanished. “Damn it, she’s getting off too easy!”

Duan Yi, uninterested in Xu Huifang’s fate, slumped onto his desk, staring at his exam paper. The letters twisted into tadpole-like shapes, dancing before his eyes like figures in a surreal dance, “I don’t want to study…”

With final exams looming, Duan Yi’s motivation had plummeted. He was probably sleeping twelve hours a day.

The colder it got, the more layers Duan Yi wore, bundled up like a ball. Jiang Wangshu watched him struggle to turn around.

“President Duan, someone’s looking for you outside!” Pingtou roared.

“Why are so many people looking for you outside?” Jiang Wangshu asked.

Duan Yi, eager to escape his end-of-term studying, leaped to his feet and bolted for the door.

As he reached the doorway, he shouted, “Can’t we get some fresh air in this classroom? Xiaobang’s meat bun smell from this morning still hasn’t cleared! I didn’t notice it inside, but now that I’m out here, it’s unbearable! What is this, some biohazard experiment? Open the windows!”

Jiang Wangshu slowly directed Hao Shanshan to crack a window open a sliver, just enough to appease Duan Yi.

Duan Yi turned and headed to the rooftop, surprised to find Meng Tian waiting for him. He paused, his steps slowing as an awkwardness settled between them.

Meng Tian spoke first. “Duan Yi, thank you.”

“Huh?” Duan Yi rubbed his nose, seizing the opportunity to break the ice. “You came all the way here just to thank me?”

Meng Tian nodded.

“There’s no need,” Duan Yi said after a moment. “I couldn’t really help you.”

Instead, it thrust you into the eye of the storm.

A tiny thorn pricked at Duan Yi’s heart. Whenever he saw Meng Tian, it trembled, reminding him of the terrible mistake he had made.

But Meng Tian shook her head. “No, it wasn’t you. I… I wanted to tell you myself.”

Duan Yi listened patiently as she continued, “You were the first… the first person to reach out to me.”

She spoke haltingly, “When I was in middle school, I always wondered… why no one would help me. I wasn’t… I wasn’t that unlikeable, but everyone… everyone refused to help. Even just… give me a hand, like this…”

“If someone had just given me a hand, I would have felt like I could… I could keep going.”

Meng Tian tilted her head to look at him. “I know helping me might have been… a casual thing for you, but for me, it was different.”

What seemed like a small, convenient gesture to you could be a turning point that changed someone else’s life.

Duan Yi couldn’t fully grasp Meng Tian’s words, but he nodded along anyway.

Then he asked, “Are they still bullying you?”

Meng Tian replied, “Yes.”

Duan Yi’s fist clenched.

“But I… I won’t let them bully me anymore,” Meng Tian said firmly. “I used to always wish someone would help me, but I realized the only person who can truly help me is… myself.”

“Things I thought I could never do… when I actually did them, they weren’t as hard as I imagined.”

Meng Tian seemed to recall the moment she spoke beneath the national flag. In that instant, a conviction she had never felt before surged through her, along with the courage to stand against the world.

It’s not that hard, Meng Tian thought. Speaking up loudly, saying no firmly, bravely expressing my thoughts.

It’s not that hard. It’s not that hard.

Straighten your back. Unfold your petals.

When you face the wind and rain head-on, you might find they aren’t as terrifying as thunder and lightning. Grit your teeth and endure, and when you look back, it’s just another storm weathered.

Meng Tian said to him, “Thank you.”

Not for protecting me.

But for showing me I can protect myself.

Meng Tian added, “I’m sorry.”

For choosing the wrong way to handle things because of my cowardice.

Duan Yi, thoroughly embarrassed, stammered, “I don’t deserve…”

I’ve messed everything up. I haven’t done anything right.

Duan Yi felt a bitter taste in his heart.

“You deserve it,” Meng Tian said, lifting her head. Duan Yi finally met her gaze.

Her bangs had been cut much shorter, revealing eyes that had been hidden beneath them—clear and bright.

A spark of vitality and fresh life radiated from her eyes, blooming across her face with lightning speed.

“In a good mood, huh? Feeling like you’ll ace the exam?” Jiang Wangshu teased, watching Duan Yi return to the classroom. Curious, he asked, “What did Meng Tian want? Why do you look so radiant? No wonder my water tasted green earlier—Secretary Sheng was washing his hair at my desk!”

“You drank someone’s shampoo water?” Duan Yi asked, his tone dripping with disgust.

Jiang Wangshu quickly changed the subject. “It’s just a figure of speech, Xiaoduan! Hurry up and grind through more practice tests. You’re the entire class’s hope now! Whether we can trick Old Class Teacher into that Ice World day trip after finals depends entirely on you!”

The Ice World day trip—the skating rink on the third floor of Yintai Mall, right next to Second High School.

It had just opened recently. Rumor had it the owner was the childhood friend of the college classmate of Old Class Teacher’s wife’s younger sister.

The moment it was announced, the students of Second High School erupted in excitement—and so did their counterparts from neighboring Seventh High School.

Ice rinks were always associated with early romance and girlfriends.

This year, several popular teen romance movies featured scenes at ice rinks, fueling endless fantasies among adolescent boys.

Who wouldn’t want to take their girlfriend for a spin on the ice?

This brilliant invention of couple skating was practically designed for romance!

Just imagine a beautiful, delicate omega stumbling into your arms, blushing shyly because of their poor balance…

Jiang Wangshu continued, “Those idiots from Class Two actually think they can compete with us! Have they even seen who’s in our class?”

He pointed dramatically at Sheng Yunze.

The incident had occurred the previous Thursday.

Third Year Class 1 and Third Year Class 2 shared the same corridor. If Class 1 was the Competition Class, Class 2 was its reserve team.

After nearly a semester of simmering rivalry, tensions finally boiled over as the end-of-term exams approached.

The reason? Class Two students believed that Duan Yi, the “dead weight” in Class One, would drag down their average scores, ensuring Class Two’s victory.

Class One students couldn’t tolerate being insulted like that—having their Class President publicly humiliated!

That afternoon, the corridor transformed into a chaotic spectacle of insults and taunts, a true “Zu’an Great Stage” performance.

After the shouting match, they laid down the gauntlet, vowing to settle the score with their final exam averages.

Somehow, the Old Class Teacher and the Second Class Homeroom Teacher caught wind of the feud. These two were notorious for their mahjong sessions and their love of stirring up trouble, so they decided to place a bet.

The class with the higher average would win a free day trip to Yintai Ice World.

Hao Shanshan clutched her chest dramatically. “Our class does have Secretary Sheng! But Mom, my dad’s in our class too! The legendary man who can single-handedly drag our average down by two whole points!”

All eyes silently shifted to Duan Yi.

Duan Yi felt their gazes prickling his skin and a sudden pang of guilt.

“Aaaah! I’ll study! I’ll study! Can I start revising right now?!” Duan Yi scrambled for his paper and pen.

After a few minutes, he got stuck on a problem and tugged at Sheng Yunze’s sleeve.

Sheng Yunze had maintained his aloof, dignified demeanor all morning, waiting precisely for this moment.

He snorted derisively and turned to face Duan Yi.

Duan Yi clasped his hands together, his eyes shining with pleading. “Gege, please teach me! I can’t repay this kindness in this lifetime… I’ll have to offer myself to you instead…”

Sheng Yunze removed his headphones and spoke calmly, “Just offer yourself? How exactly? Be specific.”

Duan Yi: =口=!

…You’re trying to get that for free!