Chapter 10
Annie's usually steady hands trembled slightly as she turned to meet Zhuang Xiaoyue's gaze with a suspicious look. Zhuang Xiaoyue saw the hidden meaning in her eyes, rubbed her forehead, and turned away, trying her best to act like she was just a passerby.
Annie didn't move for a long time, and Pei Xingzhi assumed it was because she wasn't skilled enough, secretly grumbling that Zhuang Xiaoyue was digging traps for him every day. But since this was a place recommended by Zhuang Xiaoyue, it wouldn't be good for him to just leave, so he could only take out his phone to search for examples and show them to Annie.
Annie looked at the screen with unease. The screen was filled with all sorts of blue and green "emo" (a subculture characterized by flamboyant and outlandish fashion) styles. The photos looked like the kind that would have led the trend among teenagers more than a decade ago.
“Your aesthetic sense… is a bit peculiar…” Annie hesitated, then looked at Zhuang Xiaoyue for help.
She could refuse the order, but she couldn't ruin her reputation with this kind of haircut.
Zhuang Xiaoyue received her gaze and had no choice but to step forward.
“Annie, you can just dye your hair a very eye-catching color. My friend just feels that she looks too innocent and wants to look more mature.”
"That's roughly the idea. Anyway, as long as you look intimidating, that's fine!" Pei Xingzhi nodded in satisfaction when he saw that Zhuang Xiaoyue finally understood what he meant.
"Any other requirements besides this?"
"I need to look fierce and edgy, the kind of person you wouldn't dare approach from a distance!"
Xie Nanyi likes obedient people, so he's determined not to go along with him. He doesn't want to be inexplicably tied to Xie Nanyi.
I don't know if Annie understood what he meant, but judging from her confident demeanor, it probably was.
Dyeing hair is a very time-consuming process, and Pei Xingzhi didn't waste any time during the break. He opened the confession wall and began collecting information on the characteristics of people who had been rejected by Xie Nanyi.
"Xiaoyue'er, I think I need to get my ears pierced later."
Zhuang Xiaoyue was dozing off nearby when Pei Xingzhi's words instantly snapped him awake. He rolled his eyes, wondering what this guy was up to now.
"What's wrong now?"
"Getting my ears pierced is bad luck for my husband, so Xie Nanyi won't pursue me."
Pei Xingzhi's words caused everyone present to fall silent for a minute, and they all gave him a thumbs up.
"Can."
Having received a positive response, Pei Xingzhi perked up and continued scrolling through his phone, searching for his next target.
"I think I could get a lip piercing, or a tongue piercing, or..."
"Before you get stabbed, you should think about whether your parents will kill you with it."
Hearing Pei Xingzhi's words made Zhuang Xiaoyue feel a dull pain all over his body. He stepped forward and took the phone from Pei Xingzhi's hand, cutting off his idea of continuing to torture himself.
He originally thought Pei Xingzhi was just a little annoyed by Xie Nanyi's pursuit, but only now did he realize just how much Xie Nanyi had driven Pei Xingzhi.
They've almost turned a perfectly good young man into a monster.
"Then forget it..." Pei Xingzhi belatedly realized that his belated rebellion might elicit a huge reaction from his parents, after all, they would make a big fuss even if he accidentally fell and scraped his skin.
Unlike Pei Xingzhi, Annie is a human being with normal aesthetic sense, so it was impossible for her to cut the visually striking shape that Pei Xingzhi expected. However, considering Pei Xingzhi's requirements, the final product was a dazzling red.
Pei Xingzhi has fair skin, and this flamboyant hair color only accentuates his superior looks. The wispy strands of hair falling loosely to his eyebrows give him a doll-like, delicate appearance. Annie didn't cut his long hair short, but rather styled it into the currently trendy mullet.
His hair was naturally curly, with the ends curling up naturally and gleaming under the light, making him look like a holy angel descended to earth.
"Wow—" Zhuang Xiaoyue was stunned for a moment, and only came back to her senses after Pei Xingzhi patted her a few times.
"How can you be so handsome?" Zhuang Xiaoyue cupped her face in her hands, acting like a lovesick fool. "I'm about to fall in love with you."
"I don't do gay relationships! Don't even think about it!" Pei Xingzhi is now extremely resistant to the word "love," and can't even bear to hear it.
Zhuang Xiaoyue rolled her eyes in disgust and shut up about the matter again.
It was already night when the two left the barbershop. The barbershop was near a small night market close to the school, and the two bought a lot of snacks and ate them as they walked back to school.
The Confession Bridge is the only way for the two of them to return to their dormitory. Almost every day, someone confesses their love here, and today is no exception.
The two had eaten a bit too much for dinner, so they stopped to watch the commotion along the way.
The two who confessed their love were an AB couple, and they were also drawn together by the existence of the mark.
When the topic of imprinted love comes up, onlookers naturally think of Xie Nanyi and Pei Xingzhi, who are currently very popular at school. Once someone starts a conversation, others will naturally chime in, and the focus of the chat quickly shifts from the two who just confessed their feelings to Xie Nanyi and Pei Xingzhi.
Upon hearing his name called, Pei Xingzhi pulled his hat down further and dragged Zhuang Xiaoyue towards the dormitory, afraid that they would discover that the person at the center of the conversation was right beside him.
It was still early, and Zhuang Xiaoyue didn't want to go back to her dorm, so the two of them took a detour to the school's coffee shop. Pei Xingzhi had just eaten too much, and after running a few steps, his stomach felt a little uncomfortable. He rubbed his stomach and leaned on the table to digest.
Zhuang Xiaoyue had a good appetite and even ordered a small cake as dessert. The two sat side by side at the bar, and Pei Xingzhi felt utterly exhausted.
"Xie Nanyi doesn't seem like a bad person, so why do you hate him so much?" Not only Zhuang Xiaoyue, but almost everyone in the school who knew that Xie Nanyi was pursuing Pei Xingzhi was curious about this question.
In their view, the pheromone compatibility between the imprinter and the AO is the same, a bond that is bound together from birth, an instinct that no one can resist.
No one can resist the attraction of pheromones or markings; no one can break free from this. Moreover, markings are absolutely positive evolutionary for Betas, as their existence allows Betas to develop feelings and bond with Alphas or Omegas, who are superior to them.
Ironically speaking, this evolution might allow them to achieve a class transformation. After all, if it weren't for the existence of the imprint, who would care about the ubiquitous Betas?
Although Zhuang Xiaoyue is an Omega, due to his inferior pheromones, he received almost no better treatment than a Beta from a young age. Therefore, even he couldn't understand why Pei Xingzhi would reject a high-quality Alpha and do all sorts of things to refuse his pursuit.
Pei Xingzhi didn't know how to answer Zhuang Xiaoyue's question.
He seemed to have no reason to refuse Xie Nanyi.
As everyone thought, Xie Nanyi was far superior to him in every way.
If he accepts Xie Nanyi's advances, he can enjoy the treatment that all Betas dream of, and he can enjoy all the privileges he has ever hoped for.
His current refusal seems to make no sense.
But why did he agree to Xie Nanyi's advances?
Before this, he and Xie Nanyi were strangers; he knew nothing about Xie Nanyi, and he did not love her. Xie Nanyi's pursuit of him was merely driven by the imprint, and she did not love him either.
Not to mention that he wasn't Xie Nanyi's engraver at all.
He didn't know why his name appeared on Xie Nanyi's name. He was more inclined to believe that it was a prank by the young master Xie, just to tease him.
"Xiaoyue." Pei Xingzhi pursed his lips, unsure how to answer his question.
"Xie Nanyi is certainly not bad, but I am not bad either. He is an excellent person, and so am I."
"Everything I have now is due to my own strength. I have the ability to accomplish everything on my own, so why should I bind my name to another stranger according to some mark? I don't like Xie Nanyi, and I don't want to wrong myself by being with him because of something that doesn't even exist."
Pei Xingzhi's words were too vague and ethereal, and Zhuang Xiaoyue didn't quite understand what he was saying. She nodded silently while biting her fork, indicating that she understood.
Pei Xingzhi realized that he hadn't listened at all, so he sighed, ordered a coffee to keep himself going, and continued to catch up on his homework that night.
After ordering his coffee, Pei Xingzhi took out his phone to pay, but when he reached behind him, he found nothing.
He lost his phone.
Pei Xingzhi was extremely unwilling to believe this cruel reality; it seemed like he hadn't encountered a single good thing lately.
The waiter was staring at him with sharp eyes. Pei Xingzhi forced a very ugly smile and tugged at Zhuang Xiaoyue next to him, asking her to pay for him.
The person next to him took out his phone to pay, and then handed Pei Xingzhi's phone to him.
Pei Xingzhi looked at the pair of slender fingers that clearly did not belong to Zhuang Xiaoyue, and looked up in confusion only to see Xie Nanyi's face.
Pei Xingzhi turned around in a panic, only to find Zhuang Xiaoyue sitting at the table inside, replaced by Xie Nanyi, whom he least wanted to see at that moment.
Zhuang Xiaoyue clasped her hands together above her head and bowed apologetically to him. Pei Xingzhi got up, wanting to confront him, but Xie Nanyi pressed him back down as soon as he stood up.
The shop assistant cast a gossipy glance his way. Pei Xingzhi didn't want to be on tomorrow's confession wall, so he gave Zhuang Xiaoyue the middle finger and sat down anyway.
"When did you arrive?" Pei Xingzhi asked, his tone sharp and full of malice.
"You were just talking," Xie Nanyi replied truthfully.
He only intended to return Pei Xingzhi's phone, but unexpectedly overheard his monologue.
"You heard that, right? I don't like you, and I don't want to accept your advances. Can you please stop bothering me?" Having already said it, Pei Xingzhi was too lazy to pretend to be friendly anymore.
He had already been quite blunt; if Xie Nanyi knew what was good for her, she probably wouldn't bother him anymore.
"I know you don't like me, and I don't like you either." Xie Nanyi's answer surprised Pei Xingzhi.
He could certainly tell that Xie Nanyi didn't like him, but the fact that the person who had been pursuing him so intensely that morning was now saying those words so calmly still made him feel somewhat disconnected.
“Like you, I also hate the constraints of the imprint, but my father doesn’t think so. He thinks it’s like destiny, a will that no one can defy.”
"So what?" Xie Nanyi rambled on and on, and Pei Xingzhi couldn't grasp the main point of his words at all.
"So my father required me to unite with my imprinter, even if we were complete strangers to each other."
"Who is your father? What right does he have to interfere in my affairs?" Pei Xingzhi tossed his hair, looking displeased.
"This hair color suits you very well."
"What?"
Xie Nanyi covered her mouth and coughed lightly, then continued the previous topic.
“Since we’re already seen as bound by this relationship, let’s go with the flow and put on a show for them. I need Pei to help me deal with my father’s investigation, and at the same time, Pei can make full use of the Xie family’s connections.”
"Why should I agree to this? I can accomplish what I want to do even without you." Pei Xingzhi frowned. This cooperation seemed to be of no use to him at all. Apart from ruining his reputation, he couldn't think of any benefits.
"Pei, you can think about it." Xie Nanyi wasn't in a hurry and gently told Pei Xingzhi to consider it himself.
"No need to consider it, I won't agree." After saying that, Pei Xingzhi got up and pulled Zhuang Xiaoyue, who hadn't finished eating her cake, out of the coffee shop.
Pei Xingzhi's coffee wasn't served until he left, and Xie Nanyi picked it up and took a small sip.
The sour taste seemed to have been extracted from Pei Xingzhi.
It wasn't very tasty, but he didn't dislike the flavor.
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