Chapter 157 Lan Zhe Special Feature (Part 3)
By the time the two of them came out of the traditional Chinese medicine clinic, it was already dark.
My mother called: "Xiao Zhe, aren't you off work yet?"
"I'm off." Lan Zhe hesitated slightly. "A friend of mine had some trouble, so I accompanied him to see a doctor. We just finished."
"Alright, dinner's almost ready. Bring your friends over for dinner." The mother was a little surprised. Although her son had become a senior executive, in his own words, "most of them are just fair-weather friends, not people you can get close to." But surely those who accompanied her to the hospital must have some connection?
"It might be inconvenient." Lan Zhe turned to look at Zou Xunjing.
The weather was gloomy and cold. Omega tightened the scarf around his neck. His arm, which had been set up, hung loosely, and the exposed fingertips were slightly pale.
"Wait a moment." Lan Zhe covered the microphone, then asked Zou Xunjing, "What are you going to eat later?"
"Order takeout when you get home."
"My mom asked me to call you over, are you going?"
Zou Xunjing was quite surprised. After a moment of shock, he asked, "Auntie, you don't recognize me, do you?"
"I don't know him."
Zou Xunjing paused for a moment: "I don't want to put you in a difficult position, do I?"
"If it's too difficult, I won't ask."
Zou Xunjing: "Thank you. Is it convenient for me to go to the supermarket?"
"Of course, I also need to buy some things."
The two moved quickly. Lan Zhe scanned the list his mother had sent over the container, while Zou Xunjing picked up fruit and bird's nest.
Unable to reach an agreement on the bill, they decided to each pay their own way.
Lan Zhe helped him into the car, and after he sat down, Zou Xunjing said while fastening his seatbelt, "This is my gift for visiting your home. What's the point of making you pay for it?"
"OK."
Arriving home a dozen minutes later, Lan Zhe's parents assumed their son's friend was an Alpha. However, as soon as he entered the house, he revealed a beautiful and flawless face, exuding an air of refined elegance from head to toe. Moreover, he was clearly an Omega at first glance.
Mother:"……"
Why didn't you say so sooner?!
The father hurriedly went to make tea, while Zou Xunjing stood at the kitchen door with the gifts he had brought: "Auntie, where would be a convenient place to put them?"
Mother: "Let Lan Zhe come! Quickly, put him down!"
Lan Zhe saw that he was using his other healthy arm, so he didn't say anything, took the arms, and put them into the refrigerator one by one.
"Go have some tea!" the mother said hurriedly. "Don't just stand there."
"Okay, sure."
As soon as Zou Xunjing left, his mother grabbed Lan Zhe and pulled him close. The force was so great that Lan Zhe wondered if this was still his weak mother who couldn't even open a soy sauce bottle cap.
"You didn't say on the phone that she was an Omega!"
Lan Zhe understood something from his mother's expression and was both amused and exasperated: "You've misunderstood, Mom. That really is my friend."
"You..." The mother hesitated, then asked, "Is that possible?"
“It’s not possible right now.” Lan Zhe said seriously, “He’s a nice person, and we’ve done business together, so we naturally got to know each other. I was worried that it would be inconvenient for him to eat alone as an Omega tonight, so I thought of inviting him over. It would be the same for anyone else.”
The mother was slightly disappointed: "What a disappointment. I was just wondering why. Such a handsome Omega."
Just in time, I made radish and pork rib soup today. My mother is a great cook. After taking a bite, Zou Xunjing praised it highly, which made his mother, who was initially embarrassed, beam with pride.
After the meal, Zou Xunjing played two games of chess with Lan Zhe's father. When it was time to part, the father was reluctant to leave, saying that he would come again next time.
Zou Xunjing readily agreed.
Lan Zhe changed into slippers and said, "I'll take you."
Once downstairs, the wind wasn't so urgent anymore, and it even brought a rare gentle warmth compared to the past few days.
There was an artificial lake nearby, and Zou Xunjing, having eaten his fill, suggested taking a stroll around it.
"I haven't eaten this much in a long time." Zou Xunjing patted his stomach: "Auntie's Kung Pao Chicken is absolutely amazing."
Lan Zhe chuckled: "If you can't eat it, you don't have to."
"I'm not forcing you, it's just that I'm greedy." Zou Xunjing was quite happy because the atmosphere with Lan Zhe was finally less awkward. It was like a taut string gradually relaxing, and even the air flowing into his throat felt much more comfortable.
Of course, Zou Xunjing didn't think that coming to Lan Zhe's house for a meal meant their relationship was different, but at least they could be friends.
Lan Zhe was worried about him because Lan Zhe himself was a very good person.
The two sat on a bench, discussing very ordinary topics. But as Zou Xunjing sensed, the atmosphere had become more relaxed, and there was no need to consider the difference in their social status. At the same time, Zou Xunjing put aside his hidden thoughts and spoke frankly about some of his work-related troubles without any probing or consideration.
In areas where Lan Zhe is familiar, he will share more of his experience.
Setting aside arrogance and prejudice, the two actually got along quite well.
"It's getting late." Lan Zhe stood up. "Let's go back."
"Um."
Zou Xunjing lives alone outside. At first, his family disagreed, but Zou Xunjing insisted on living there.
“Sometimes I feel quite helpless,” Zou Xunjing said. “On the one hand, I am grateful for my family’s attention to me, but on the other hand, I feel that the weight of it is too heavy. It’s much better now. When I was a minor, my brother would call me if I was out for more than half an hour.”
Neon lights flashed by outside the window, and Lan Zhe asked, "Has something happened?"
“It wasn’t me, it was my roommate.” Zou Xunjing’s tone was somewhat somber. “I lived in the dorm for half a semester in high school. He was my bunkmate. He didn’t come back after evening self-study. Later, the dorm supervisor went to look for him and found him cornered in the woods by three Alphas from outside the school. Actually, he’s usually quite good at fighting, but you know, he’s pheromone-suppressed. Luckily, nothing serious happened, but ever since then, my family has stopped letting me live there.”
“That makes sense,” Lan Zhe said. “No one would feel at ease hearing about something like this.”
Omegas of Pei Wu's and Guan Yan's caliber only take the next step when absolute safety is guaranteed.
As they were talking, they arrived at the foot of Zou Xunjing Tower.
"It's too late, so I won't invite you up for tea. Let's do it another day," Zou Xunjing said.
"Okay, be careful."
"You too, be careful on your way back."
Lan Zhe only drove away after seeing Zou Xunjing enter the living room on the first floor of the apartment and turn on the light.
Zou Xunjing took a nice, relaxing shower.
He had been struggling and upset for several days, but after seeing Lan Zhe today, he felt relieved all at once.
To be precise, it was when Lan Zhe invited him to his home for dinner that he realized the problem he had been so insistent on wasn't actually that important.
Because now is not a good time.
Lan Zhe was focused on his career, and Zou Xunjing also had his own plans. He just thought that if fate allowed, perhaps they wouldn't have to wait until he was thirty-three.
It's nice to occasionally see Lan Zhe from just a few streets away.
Even if the result is not satisfactory, Zou Xunjing will be disappointed, but he will not regret it.
The crowd was bustling, and many people were swept along by the current, rushing to the next station in a daze. Zou Xunjing felt that he was at least clear-headed, even if one day in the future he would be soberly watching Lan Zhe have a love affair that had nothing to do with him.
Just make a graceful exit when the time comes.
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