Xi En was temporarily out of danger, but he was unable to leave the intensive care unit.

No one but the medical staff was allowed to enter, so Xi Lei could only remain outside.

A figure in a white uniform flashed by not far away. Xi Lei thought it was his father’s attending physician, so he hastened over to ask about Xi En’s condition.

But it wasn’t until he got a clear glimpse of the man’s face that he realized he had the wrong person. He was about to turn around and leave when he heard a familiar name come from the doctor’s mouth.

“Ling Yi’s surgery is being rushed. I’ve performed more than a dozen simulated surgeries to increase my chances of success. Why should I let that guy be the lead surgeon? If the surgery fails, who will be held responsible?”

“If you ask His Highness Oser to postpone the surgery because preoperative examination indicators don’t meet the requirements, do you think he’ll agree, Doctor Pat?”

Only then did Xi Lei notice the young nurse beside the doctor named Pat.

Pat shook his head fretfully: “There is absolutely no way to stop His Highness Oser. He wishes he could send Ling Yi to the operating table right this instant.”

Nan Ting: “I’ve never heard of an operation that transforms an Alpha into an Omega, let alone anyone attempting it. Is your research truly scientific? It’s still not too late to go to His Highness Oser and say it’s a mistake.”

“He’ll kill me!”

“You’ll kill Ling Yi!”

The voices of the two gradually faded away. Xi Lei had vaguely heard sixty to seventy percent of it, and that amount of information was sufficient to shock him.

Ling Yi was going to undergo surgery?

What did they mean about an Alpha transforming into an Omega?

What would happen if the surgery failed?

He recalled the suggestive atmosphere between Ling Yi and His Highness Oser, the hand on Ling Yi’s leg, and his quick glimpse at the inside of the vehicle.

He thought back in shock to the conversation they’d had when rescuing his father, when he thought Ling Yi was talking nonsense.

—What can you do for your sponsor?

—Sleep with him!

Xi Lei shuddered, his ignorance transforming into understanding.

Before his brain could provide any instructions, his legs were already moving.

For safety reasons, Oser had moved Xi En and his son to the underground level. Xi Lei knew roughly which direction Ling Yi’s room lay in, but he’d just thought that Ling Yi was provided that space to rest, and didn’t think about it deeply at all.

“Student Xi Lei!” someone called to him from behind.

Xi Lei stopped: “…..Captain Tang De?”

Tang De approached with a friendly smile: “I was just looking for you. Where are you going?”

“I…..” Xi Lei calmed himself down. “I’m going to find Ling Yi.”

“That’s perfect. Ling Yi has been busy lately and might not have time to see you, so His Highness Oser asked me to give you this.”

Xi Lei took a folder from Tang De and opened it to reveal a sheet of paper and a check.

“I did some research and found out that Ling Yi was adopted by your father when he was six years old. Listed here are the basic expenses of raising someone from six to twenty-three years old, including living expenses, child support, and education.”

“The amount on the check should be enough to cover the entirety of the Xi family’s expenses while raising him. Of course, there is also a labor fee as a thank-you to your father for taking care of him for so many years.”

“You won’t need to worry about the cost of your father’s treatment. He can enjoy the best medical resources here until he makes a full recovery.”

Xi Lei picked up the check, and his hands began to tremble when he saw the amount on it.

“If you’re not satisfied with the amount, it can be increased. His Highness Oser intends to try his best to meet all of your requirements.”

“His Highness Oser wants us to accept this check and sell Ling Yi. Is that what you mean?”

“How can you say that? Human trafficking is illegal. You can take it as a thank-you for raising Ling Yi. His Highness Oser hopes that with the receipt of this gift, you will not interfere in Ling Yi’s private affairs. This is the ideal outcome.”

“Captain Tang De!” Xi Lei could no longer control his emotions. “My father raised Ling Yi for over ten years and never thought about asking for anything in return. If my dad knew that I took this money, even if he’s unconscious, he would unplug the ventilator and get up to beat me!”

“It’s true that Ling Yi and I don’t get along. I’ve disliked him since we were kids. But no matter how bad our relationship is, we’re still family. Would Captain Tang De sell his family for money?”

Xi Lei tore the check to pieces in front of Tang De.

Tang De looked with regret at the torn scraps of paper on the floor.

“Student Xi Lei, your ambition after graduation is to join His Highness Oser’s guards, right?”

“That’s right. His Highness Oser is my idol. Ever since I was old enough to understand, my life goal has been to join the guard and loyally serve His Highness Oser.”

“You are very ambitious, and also quite competent. I’ve checked the internal selection results, and yours are very promising. Barring anything unexpected, you’ll soon receive an admission notice. This is a critical period in your assessment, so I hope you won’t make a mistake on matters of principle.”

Tang De patted his shoulder and said: “That’s all I have to say. Think on it carefully.”

. . . . . . 

Ling Yi had just put a dot down on paper when the door was kicked open.

“Don’t sign it!”

Ling Yi looked at Xi Lei in astonishment: “Why are you here?”

Tang De arrived right after him and met the eyes of Oser, who wore a grim expression.

A good thing had been ruined at the last moment. He spoke in an unkind tone: “You can’t even keep an eye on one student.”

Tang De quickly bowed his head and apologized. “I’m sorry, Your Highness. This person suddenly rushed in here like crazy. I really couldn’t stop him.”

Xi Lei took a couple of steps forward, and said angrily when he saw the writing under Ling Yi’s pen: “Do you know what this is?”

Ling Yi gave him a strange look: “Of course.”

“And you’ll still sign it knowing that?”

“What else?”

Xi Lei was flabbergasted at this question. After a moment, he turned to ask the person next to him: “Your Highness, you are someone I admire. I’m very grateful that you saved Ling Yi and my father, but aren’t you exploiting someone now? This is not the Crown Prince I know!”

Oser leaned back in his chair with his arms spread, crossing his long left leg over his right as if stretching.

Only Tang De, who knew Oser best, recognized this as a sign of his receding patience, and quickly grabbed Xi Lei.

“Don’t disturb His Highness right now. Let’s talk about it outside.”

Xi Lei broke free from his hand, and Tang De clamped down on his other arm. Neither of them noticed the unconsciously rising concentration of pheromones in the room.

A hand touched Oser’s chest, and the pheromones quickly reaching a critical point slowed down.

“Your Highness, I’d like to say a few words to this idiot alone.”

Oser’s gaze fell back to the person at his side.

Ling Yi stroked his chest softly, with an air of intimacy.

“After all, he’s my adoptive father’s son and my nominal brother. He has a misunderstanding about Your Highness, so I’ll persuade him.”

Xi Lei kicking in the door had made quite a racket, and Pat also ran over when he heard the noise, finding Oser alone in the room.

“What’s going on? Where’s Ling Yi?”

“He went up to the rooftop with his good brother,” Oser replied disdainfully.

“The rooftop?” Pat was surprised. “How could you let him go to a place like that? What if someone sees him?”

“Tang De is there. He’ll handle it.”

He seemed calm, but Pat could sense the resentment he was forcibly suppressing. Afraid of bursting the balloon, he proceeded cautiously.

“That’s good. I trust Captain Tang De’s work.”

His eyes then swept across the informed consent form on the table, and he picked it up to take a look.

“Ling Yi probably hasn’t signed it yet. There happen to be some clauses in it that I want to change—”

Oser saw him fall abruptly silent, and glanced over knowingly.

Pat stared blankly at the signature on the last page. After a long moment, he timidly turned it over to show Oser.

“He signed it.”

. . . . . .

On the rooftop of the Royal Medical College, Captain Tang De tactfully ordered all of the guards to keep their distance, leaving space for the two brothers to talk privately.

Ling Yi lay over the wall so that the upper half of his body swayed back and forth in the air.

“The moon is so beautiful tonight. I can’t remember the last time I saw it.”

Xi Lei was preoccupied, and had no time to appreciate the moon.

“Did you know the surgery will transform you into an Omega? You won’t be an Alpha anymore afterwards. Did His Highness Oser force you into this? Is that why he saved Dad?”

Ling Yi listened to his rapid-fire questions and turned around.

“Do you smoke?”

Xi Lei stared in surprise as he pulled a pack of cigarettes and a lighter out of his pocket: “…..Where did you get these?”

“I stole them from His Highness Oser’s pocket just now.”

“…..” Xi Lei was speechless. “Why are you always like this…..forget it.”

“Oh, I forgot. You’re a model student who would never violate school rules.”

Ling Yi took out a cigarette and lit it smoothly, tossing the rest onto the ledge.

“If the military academy wasn’t so strict, I would have wanted to try it a long time ago. Today I finally got my wish.”

He took a deep drag, imitating Oser as he let the smoke diffuse into his lungs before letting it out slowly.

At last, he felt the comfort of being surrounded by his own pheromones. They had been stifled by Oser’s for so long that he’d almost forgotten what his pheromones smelled like. 

“No wonder the instructors always smoke in secret together. Is this the joy of being an adult Alpha?”

Xi Lei found it unbelievable that Ling Yi could remain calm in such a situation.

“Ling Yi, if this is involuntary, we can escape. When Dad wakes up, we can all flee abroad, or…..to another planet.”

Ling Yi rudely blew a mouthful of white smoke into his face.

“Another planet? Which one, ah?”

“Tianxiu!” Xi Lei said without hesitation. “Dad has already made all of the arrangements. We were initially planning to rescue you at the execution grounds and take an interstellar pirate ship to sneak you into Tianxiu. No matter how long Lu Hulun’s reach is, he wouldn’t dare send people to capture you on Tianxiu!”

Ling Yi laughed speechlessly: “Tianxiu is a planet ruled by war machines. Avoiding danger by taking refuge in the most dangerous place in the entire galaxy? Is Lu Hulun as terrifying as the people of Tianxiu?”

“The most dangerous place can also be the safest place. Apart from Tianxiu, is there any place that could strike fear into the heart of surnamed Lu?”

Ling Yi said half-jokingly: “Of course there is. Such as…..the Crown Prince’s bed?”

Xi Lei’s face flushed again: “Be serious!”

Ling Yi stopped laughing and said: “Let me ask you – when you kicked in the door today, did you ever consider that your greatest ambition in life, joining His Highness Oser’s guard, might have reached a dead end?”

“…..Of course I did.”

“Did you take Uncle Xi En’s illness into consideration? Even when he’s discharged from the hospital, he’ll still need to rest. And did you consider that Xi Lan is only fourteen years old, yet you expect him to live a nomadic life in exile?”

“……”

For each question he asked, Xi Lei’s expression grew more solemn.

Ling Yi: “I was the one who took the initiative to request this transformation.”

“Why?”

“Because I don’t want to die. That’s all.”

Ling Yi tilted his head to the other side: “If I hadn’t enjoyed teasing you about His Highness Oser’s weaknesses and watching you lash out in anger, I never would have known how obsessed he is with having an Omega. I was afraid he wouldn’t take the bait, so I used every method to lure him in, using all the knowledge I’ve learned from certain films.”

The corners of Xi Lei’s mouth twitched.

“I initially planned to use His Highness Oser to escape the death penalty. Naturally, I had my heart set on fleeing as soon as I found a chance. He’s the eldest son of the emperor, and I’m a wanted criminal.”

“Later on, I found that I had made two mistakes. One was that I thought Lu Hulun would be more merciful, and the other was that I thought His Highness Oser was too simple.”

Xi Lei struggled with his conscience for a long time before coming to a major decision. He said through gritted teeth: “If….if this deal must be made, I…..I’m also an Alpha.”

Ling Yi: “…..Ha?”

Xi Lei stammered: “What I mean is, Xi En is my father and Xi Lan is my brother. Although Dad raised you even though you’re not related by blood, you nearly lost your life protecting Xi Lan, so you no longer owe our family anything.”

Ling Yi stared at him blankly, even forgetting to shake the ash from his cigarette.

After a long moment, he couldn’t help but laugh out loud. The laughter came from the bottom of his heart, as if making up for a three-month dearth of joy in one go.

Xi Lei was annoyed by his laughter: “What are you laughing about?!”

Ling Yi wiped his tears and asked: “Tell me the truth – is the real reason you want to replace me out of a sense of responsibility, or do you actually have unrealistic thoughts about your dream man?”

Xi Lei was so angry that his face turned red: “How could I have such improper thoughts! My…..my feelings for His Highness Oser are just spiritual worship. I have no dream man. Don’t talk nonsense all the time!”

Ling Yi finally stopped laughing: “It’s not that I don’t want to make your wish come true, but I’ve already gone too far.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’ve bent His Highness Oser.”

Seeing Xi Lei’s disbelief, Ling Yi added: “He has a hunting reaction toward me.”

Xi Lei’s eyes blew wide.

A hunting reaction was the most direct physiological indicator of an Alpha’s desire. Before marking, an Alpha would carefully lick their canine teeth to ensure that they were sharp enough to pierce the gland of their prey in an instant.

An Alpha’s verbal displays of affection may be insincere, but a hunting reaction never lied.

Ling Yi pushed his hair back in distress: “Didn’t I tell you I had to use a lot of tricks? I don’t know how I accidentally — it’s said that if you look at a person who’s lacked love since childhood for even three seconds, they’ll fall in love with you. How could I have known that he, a crown prince of noble birth, would be so lacking in love, ah?”

“Simply put, before I messed with him, he probably just wanted an Omega. But now, his goal seems to be more clear-cut – to the extent that I think he would probably send troops to Tianxiu to capture me.”

Xi Lei stiffened in reaction to this. After a long moment, he grabbed Ling Yi’s box of cigarettes from the ledge and lit one in despair.

Ling Yi laughed: “Model student, how many times have you violated school rules today?”

Xi Lei smoked fiercely, with hatred in his eyes.

“Ling Yi, I’m just a military academy student with no background. If I said I wanted to deal with the Prime Minister of the empire, wouldn’t that be overestimating my abilities?”

“You may not have a background, but I will. As long as I survive this operation, the Imperial Crown Prince will be my background.”

Xi Lei turned his head, and something seemed to flash through his eyes under the moonlight.

“Is there really no other way?”

“Xi Lei, the reason the two of us don’t like each other is because we have different values. You have a strong sense of morality and a conservative mindset. I’m different – if necessary, I can even use my body as a bargaining chip.”

“But the more I give out, the more I need to take back. If I’m using myself to gamble, survival isn’t all that I want.”

“Then what do you want?” Xi Lei asked.

Ling Yi’s eyes went cold: “I want Lu Hulun dead.”

. . . . . .

“Have you finished discussing with your brother?” Oser asked Ling Yi, who emanated a chill from the rooftop.

“Xi Lei and I rarely communicate calmly for more than ten sentences. We often start to argue after only a few words. Thanks to Your Highness, we were able to have a good discussion this time.”

“Oh, by the way, I’ll give these back to you.”

When he placed the pack of cigarettes and the lighter in Oser’s hand, Oser just glanced down and said: “Naughty.”

“This was my first time smoking.”

“How was it?”

“Fantastic. It’s a pity that my first cigarette as an Alpha will also be my last.”

Ling Yi looked as if he had fulfilled his final wish and had no more regrets.

“Your Highness, I’m ready.”

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Chapter 12 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 14