Facing Chi Zhuo’s cold, indifferent back, Ji Chenxi laughed happily behind him, his voice light and playful as he called out, “Brother Chi Zhuo, why are you leaving the moment you arrive?”
Chi Zhuo kept walking ahead, icy as ever, not even bothering to reply.
Ji Chenxi quickened his pace to follow. “What’s wrong, Brother Chi Zhuo? Are you mad? Or did I say something I shouldn’t have?”
“If Your Highness could at least wipe that smile off your face when you say things like that, I might believe you.”
Ji Chenxi raised an eyebrow slightly. “Maybe I was born with a smiling mouth. Besides, why does smiling mean I’m lying?”
Chi Zhuo didn’t bother with him anymore and just strode forward.
“You’re heading to the West District transfer station, right?” Ji Chenxi asked.
Still no reply.
Ji Chenxi wasn’t exactly anxious, but his urge to tease eased up a little. His smile faded some, and he spoke more seriously. “Planning to trigger a hidden mission over there and make a big haul? This time, First Military Academy sent out an S+ alpha. The waters are pretty muddy, and there’s also a strong acquaintance there.”
That “acquaintance” was none other than Bai Anran. Anyone who could go back and forth with Chi Zhuo in that black-covered book, trading blows like that, was never going to be just a pretty face. That S-rank omega was far stronger than most people imagined—including Que Qi. The reason they were labeled S-rank was only because the current testing system was designed mainly for alphas. It couldn’t accurately measure omega levels at all. Judging someone by spiritual power and physical strength alone was far too narrow.
Ji Chenxi almost admired himself. He never thought he’d live to see the day when he teased someone and then tried to smooth things over by talking about serious business.
When he still didn’t get a response, Ji Chenxi obediently shut up.
He followed behind Chi Zhuo and lifted his hand, meaning to grab Chi Zhuo’s hand, but in the end, his fingers only caught the edge of Chi Zhuo’s sleeve.
Chi Zhuo’s face wasn’t as cold as Ji Chenxi had imagined. When that hand tugged pitifully at his sleeve, the corner of his lips curved up just a little, a hint of a smile showing. But when the person behind him started shaking his sleeve and calling, “Brother Chi Zhuo,” he deliberately stayed silent.
At that moment, Chi Zhuo fully understood why Ji Chenxi loved playing these little games.
The clingy kitten had ridiculously thick skin. After calling his name and still getting no answer, he simply started calling out different titles one after another.
“Mr. Chi, maybe turn around?”
“Brother Chi Zhuo?”
“Hmm, unnamed sir?”
“Baby, just look back once?”
“…”
After a whole round of nonsense, Chi Zhuo was finally annoyed by the endlessly clingy cat. “Stop it.”
A soft chuckle came from behind. Ji Chenxi toned down the excitement that had crept back into his voice and said in a perfectly normal tone, “Brother, turn around and look at your personal item, will you? You’ve gone three minutes and forty-nine seconds without properly looking at him.”
That clear, easy voice, balanced right between youth and adulthood, finally made a certain cold-hearted Mr. Chi turn his head. “Don’t do that again.”
“Mm.”
Ji Chenxi’s expression gave nothing away—no one could tell whether he’d actually taken it to heart or not. He nodded, looking sincere enough, but asking a big cat who loved playing hard to get to give up his little habits was honestly asking too much. Chi Zhuo didn’t press the matter.
He kept walking forward, but after a few steps, he reached out and pulled the hand that had been hooked on his sleeve into his own, gripping it tightly.
“Brother Chi Zhuo, what’s this?” Ji Chenxi asked.
Chi Zhuo didn’t even look back, just kept striding ahead with him. Ji Chenxi was just about to laugh at how unromantic the man was when Chi Zhuo’s low voice drifted back from the front.
“Keeping hold of my personal item. Shouldn’t let anything valuable get lost.”
Ji Chenxi laughed. “You didn’t do this on purpose, did you?”
“What is Your Highness talking about? I don’t quite understand.”
Ji Chenxi laughed even harder. “Why are you copying me now?”
“Aren’t two people supposed to learn from each other and push each other forward? I believe that in the future, we’ll both learn a lot from one another.”
Ji Chenxi pictured that scene and felt like it’d be a bit too much to watch, though the smile still stayed on his lips. “Then does that include being tolerant of each other? Can I expect Mr. Chi to be a little more tolerant with me going forward?”
“Sure.”
“You’re really not holding back at all,” Ji Chenxi said, laughing.
“The feeling’s mutual. I still can’t compare to Your Highness.”
Ji Chenxi gently swung the hand Chi Zhuo was holding. “Why do I feel like you’re insulting me?”
“Absolutely not.”
Hearing the unspoken “yeah, that’s exactly it” hidden in that “absolutely not,” Ji Chenxi laughed again. “Mr. Chi, haven’t you noticed we’re being a little too close right now?”
“Are we? Seems fine to me.”
“I mean, there’ll be recording drones flying by soon. One freshman, one graduate, tangled up like this—doesn’t that look bad? Really makes you wonder, is this the downfall of public morals, or a total collapse of ethics?”
“Your Highness,” Chi Zhuo called his name first, then added calmly, “if you don’t know how to use idioms, you don’t actually have to force them.”
“That’s misusing them? I think they fit pretty well.”
Chi Zhuo finally turned back to look at Ji Chenxi again, his eyes dark and heavy. “Then if I don’t let Your Highness see what a real ‘downfall of morals’ looks like, wouldn’t that be disappointing?”
Staring straight into that dangerous gaze, Ji Chenxi didn’t retreat at all. Instead, he grabbed Chi Zhuo by the collar and kissed him.
Danger always sent adrenaline rushing through his veins. Ji Chenxi loved kissing Chi Zhuo most when things felt risky—it gave him the feeling of a kiss stolen right on the edge of death.
“I’m really looking forward to it.”
Hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters. (๑>ᴗ<๑)
