Chapter 43
Chapter Forty-Three
As the door opened, Xu Ziyan looked over and saw four figures leisurely walking in. The first two were a middle-aged couple dressed in gold and silver, and the last two were two young men. Although it wasn't obvious, Xu Ziyan could tell at a glance that they were Alphas.
The middle-aged man and woman were a typical male Alpha and female Omega pairing.
Xie Wei stepped forward, a polite yet distant smile on her face: "Aunt, Uncle, it's been a long time. I heard last time that Uncle was sick and hospitalized. Are you feeling better now?"
Xie Linchun squinted at his eldest nephew in front of him. A year had passed, and the already outstanding man had become even more eye-catching. From his appearance and physique to his speech and manners, he was superior to his two sons behind him in every way.
Moreover, it's a top-tier Alpha.
Speaking of this, Xie Linchun was so angry that she gritted her teeth. She had never liked her cousin's wife. Not only was she an Alpha, but she was also very capable. Since she came, the Xie family's entire business had been revitalized and even made further progress.
In her opinion, after marriage, whether Alpha or Beta, one should settle down at home to be a wife and mother. Instead of being like Xie's mother, who is successful in both business and love, making Xie Linchun seem utterly worthless in comparison.
As a result, Xie Linchun found his cousin's wife annoying in every way, and inevitably targeted her in many ways when they were together.
Later, she gave birth to two sons, both Alphas, which finally allowed Xie Linchun to hold his head high in front of his mother. After all, unlike Omegas, Alphas have an extremely low chance of being able to reproduce.
But then, Xie's mother also became pregnant and gave birth to a top-tier Alpha.
Needless to say, ever since Xie Wei was born, Xie Linchun has never been able to hold his head high in front of Xie's mother.
If she could, she would never want to step into the Xie family's doorstep in her entire life, but there was nothing she could do. The current head of the Xie family was Xie's father, and her current husband was someone who had married into the family. The annual visit and New Year's greetings were unavoidable social obligations.
Xie Linchun replied casually, "It's been fine for a long time."
She then led her husband and two sons familiarly into the living room.
She was pondering what lines to use to feign politeness with Xie's mother when she looked up and saw an Omega she had never seen before sitting on the expensive leather sofa in the Xie family's living room, besides Xie's mother who had a half-smile on her face!
Xie Wei has been outstanding all these years, but he has never dated anyone, not even for casual flings. He has a clean and tidy life, which is hardly like a normal Alpha.
Xie Linchun often comforted himself with this matter, thinking that there might be some unspeakable reason behind it.
But at this moment, she was speechless as she looked at the young and handsome Omega on the sofa.
"Oh, let me introduce you." Xie's mother smiled calmly, "This is the boyfriend that Xiaowei brought back, his name is Xu Ziyan."
Sensing the tense atmosphere in the air, Xu Ziyan glanced at the other person and tentatively stood up, saying, "Hello, Auntie. Hello, Uncle."
Xie Linchun forced a smile: "...Hello."
His face was as black as charcoal.
Xu Ziyan sat back on the sofa and finally understood why Xie Wei had told him to go back to his room after dinner.
He really wants to go back now!
Nearby, Xie Wei, her uncle and two cousins began discussing company matters, while Xie's mother also started talking to Xie Linchun.
Xu Ziyan took out his phone to kill time aimlessly when suddenly he keenly sensed a gaze fixed intently on him. He initially thought it was Xie Wei, but then thought it unlikely and looked up in surprise.
But he discovered that the one watching him was none other than the younger of Xie Linchun's two Alpha sons.
He wasn't embarrassed when he was discovered; he even nodded and smiled.
Xu Ziyan was puzzled, but didn't think much of it. She nodded back and continued looking at her phone.
Not long after, Xie's father rushed back from the company. Compared to Xie's mother's enthusiasm, he was clearly not interested in probing into his son's marriage, asking only a few casual questions before stopping.
It was lunchtime, so the group moved to the restaurant.
Although Xu Ziyan received a lot of polite exchanges, whether genuine or not, because of Xie Wei, he was still a guest and didn't say much during the meal.
Xie Wei, on the other hand, was scrutinized from head to toe: how was the team's performance? How was the management? How much profit was there? How much assets had been added this year? What big deals had been closed?
Then, he abruptly changed the subject and began to boast.
Xie Wei wasn't as taciturn as Bai Chen in the team, but he wasn't talkative either. Yet now, faced with one set of persuasive tactics after another, he handled them with ease, and even silently shielded Xu Ziyan from a lot of questions and drinks.
Xu Ziyan truly lacked eloquence and was incapable of engaging in mind games and scheming with a group of people who were spewing lies in every three sentences. Therefore, he couldn't help but admire Xie Wei even more.
The table was laden with a dazzling array of dishes, and they tasted delicious. Unfortunately, in this atmosphere, Xu Ziyan couldn't eat much. After filling her stomach a little, she put down her chopsticks.
Seeing Xie Wei chatting enthusiastically with others, he didn't say anything about leaving first. Besides, such behavior wouldn't be very polite and could easily leave a bad impression. Xu Ziyan only thought about it for a moment, but didn't really intend to do it.
Unexpectedly, Xie Wei, who was talking to her cousin-in-law about the newly signed entertainment company just a second ago, turned around and smiled as she pinched his wrist: "Have you finished eating?"
Xu Ziyan's eyes widened slightly, surprised that Xie Wei could still care about her every move despite being so busy: "...Alright."
"Then let's go to my room and rest first." Xie Wei's smile was much more genuine and gentle than when she was socializing earlier. "The one on the far left upstairs."
"So thoughtful." Xie Linchun raised an eyebrow, her smiling tone carrying a hint of sarcasm. "You've only been dating for a short time, haven't you?"
Xie Wei pulled Xu Ziyan aside, smiled, and avoided the question, saying only, "He hasn't had a good rest these past few days, and he's tired now, so let him go upstairs and get some sleep."
Xie Linchun gave a soft snort and said nothing more.
Xu Ziyan, under the gaze of a table full of people, left the restaurant almost as if fleeing in panic.
As he climbed the stairs, the noisy conversation had faded into the distance. He finally breathed a sigh of relief and felt much more relaxed.
His phone vibrated, and when he took it out, he saw it was a message from Xie Wei.
[Xie Wei: The computer is in the study inside. Password: xxxxx. Play with it as you like.]
--
After finding Xie Wei's room and pushing the door open, Xu Ziyan finally understood what the "inner room" meant.
Upon entering, the first thing you see is a spacious and bright living room, furnished with sofas, coffee tables, and all kinds of furniture. Through the floor-to-ceiling windows, you can see the lush green pines and cypresses in the courtyard outside.
Passing through the entryway, you'll find a kitchen, bathroom, two bathrooms, a bedroom, a study, and a storage room. It's safe to say this is a completely independent apartment.
...This room is really big.
Xu Ziyan curiously walked around the room, looked at all the photos on the cabinet, and then sat down on the sofa to continue playing on her phone.
He was inclined to be polite, but scrolling through his phone alone was just too boring. After a short while, he got up and went to the study.
Following the password in the message, Xu Ziyan turned on his computer. While waiting for the resistance client to update, he gently tapped the keyboard in front of him twice.
He prefers the softer red switches, but Xie Wei prefers the tactile black switches, which require more force to press, produce a louder sound, and feel more powerful.
Next to the computer screen was a light-colored photo frame containing a fluffy, chubby little white kitten... Was it Xie Wei's cat?
Xu Ziyan stretched out her finger and tapped the kitten's pink nose.
A short while later, the game finished updating. It was probably a game setting issue; after opening the interface, it automatically logged into Xie Wei's account.
Shining's ID flashes a pale gold light in the top left corner of his profile—a symbol of being number one on the real-time leaderboard.
Xu Ziyan looked at the familiar game interface in front of him and suddenly felt completely lost.
What he should do now is politely log out.
But looking at the flashing ID in front of him, Xu Ziyan couldn't take his eyes off it for a moment. He gripped the mouse as if possessed and slowly moved it to the "History" button.
This is one of the most distinctive features of the game; it saves all game records and chat logs from the past five years and automatically compiles data such as: "In year xx, you had a total of xxx critical hits, with a critical hit rate of xx percent. In year xx, your most frequently matched friends were xxxx, and your total game time was xxx hours."
This data is considered personal privacy, so only the account owner can view it. It also makes it convenient for some veteran players to reminisce about the past.
Just as Xu Ziyan was about to click, the chat in the friends list suddenly started beeping.
【Seamy: ? ? ? 】
[Seamy: Captain, why are you online so early?]
Xu Ziyan suddenly realized that she had just tried to secretly look at Xie Wei's chat and game history to investigate Xie Wei's past and present interpersonal relationships. She felt a surge of shame and hurriedly logged out of the account.
He logged back into his account, clicked the queue button, and rubbed his temples while supporting himself on his arms.
It was lunchtime, and with the high score, it was hard to find a match. Xu Ziyan was just about to look for something else to read to kill time when she heard two beeps; the chat in her friends list was ringing.
It's Shen Xiao again.
[Seamy: Hey—what a coincidence! The captain just logged on briefly, but I tried to talk to him and he didn't reply. Then he logged off again for no apparent reason. And then you logged on right away.]
Xu Ziyan's heart tightened: Had Shen Xiao figured something out?
Before the thought could even surface, Shen Xiao spoke again.
[Seamy: This shows that you and the captain are truly a match made in heaven; even your timing for logging in and out is so perfectly in sync.]
[Seamy: So, no duo queue, I can't stand those random healers.]
Xu Ziyan usually found Shen Xiao's absent-mindedness quite troublesome, but now she found his silly antics particularly endearing, and even her attitude towards him became more amiable.
Ice: Sure, add me.
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