Chapter 42 SJC

Shen Jinnian felt a chill crawl down his spine under Chen Han’s stare.

If it weren’t for the confidentiality agreement he’d signed with the testing center, he really would’ve thought someone had leaked his DNA results.

Frowning slightly, Shen Jinnian gave Chen Han’s arm a light knock and threw back a question, trying to play it off: “Don’t you already know whether he’s mine or not?”

“I was just joking.” Chen Han noticed how serious Shen Jinnian looked, and realizing how sensitive he was about the topic, quickly clarified. But then he couldn’t help grumbling, “Jinnian, why are you getting so uptight these days?”

Joking with him didn’t feel fun anymore. The usual spark was gone.

Chen Han thought Shen Jinnian would take out a 40-meter sword to chase him.

Shen Jinnian rubbed the bridge of his nose.

He casually made up an excuse: “Taking care of a baby lately. It’s exhausting.”

Chen Han didn’t doubt it for a second.

Just the dark shadows under Shen Jinnian’s eyes were proof he hadn’t been sleeping well. Even the way he talked lacked energy, and his voice had that faint stuffy nasal tone. Raising a baby really was a drain on yang energy.

Chen Han sighed along with him and tried to comfort him. “At least the DNA results are out now. Once the police find his parents, you can finally get some proper rest.”

“Mhm.” Shen Jinnian barely listened, the words going in one ear and straight out the other.

The two of them kept chatting like that, and half the class time slipped by.

Chen Han was still worrying about how to escape his blind dates.

Shen Jinnian, after everything he’d gone through recently, had a brain full of mush and wasn’t in much better shape than Chen Han.

The two of them chatted with each other for more than half of the class time.

During the lunch break, Shen Jinnian didn’t go home.

Chen Han dragged him to the school cafeteria and hyped up a new beef sauce rice stall like it was some kind of national treasure—saying the aroma was so suspiciously good, it made him want to call the cops and check what kind of illegal substance they were putting in.

Shen Jinnian had classes the whole afternoon anyway, so going home wasn’t convenient.

He figured whatever, and followed Chen Han to the cafeteria.

What he didn’t expect was to see a line at the stall that stretched out three meters long—everyone was lining up for that same beef sauce rice.

Shen Jinnian hated waiting in boring queues. He hesitated instantly. “That’s a lot of people.”

“That’s weird,” Chen Han was confused too. “It wasn’t like this yesterday.”

Seeing that Chen Han didn’t get what he was implying, Shen Jinnian gave up and plopped down onto a chair by the entrance.

He looked super lazy, clearly not in the mood anymore.

“Come on, you’re already here,” Chen Han said, dragging him up. “Sitting here alone isn’t fun anyway. What if an omega comes up to ask for your WeChat? That’d be awkward.”

Honestly, Shen Jinnian would rather be approached for WeChat.

But Chen Han had already hauled him up by the arm, so he had no choice but to be dragged along like a lifeless zombie. He took the chance to pull out his phone and check the baby videos the nanny had sent.

He watched a few clips.

Then he noticed something strange in the air around him.

It was that faint, cloying sweetness—like an omega unconsciously releasing pheromones while confessing to someone they liked.

Shen Jinnian rubbed his nose, trying to fight off a sneeze.

He looked up and glanced around, finally realizing—belatedly—that nearly 98% of the people lining up were omegas.

He and Chen Han, both tall Alphas, were like pine trees sticking out in a field of soft petals.

Shen Jinnian leaned closer to Chen Han helplessly, his scalp tingling as he stood in line for almost twenty minutes.

Finally, when it was nearly their turn, Shen Jinnian’s gaze fell on a familiar figure behind the glass counter, dressed in a cafeteria uniform.

And just like that, everything made sense.

No wonder the line was so long. No wonder there were so many omegas. No wonder the air was filled with such sweet, almost syrupy pheromones.

So the problem was the guy serving the food.

The moment Shen Jinnian saw the man, his instincts kicked in and he turned around, ready to bolt.

As a result, Chen Han quickly grabbed his sleeve and pulled him back: "You don't want to eat?"

“You didn’t tell me Gu Yan was working part-time here,” Shen Jinnian said with a frown.

Chen Han clearly knew he and Gu Yan didn’t get along, yet still dragged him here to eat.

Now they hadn’t even had a bite—just fed full on awkwardness.

“He just started today, I swear.” Chen Han hurriedly lowered his voice and tugged him back. “It was my mistake this time, Jinnian. Let me treat you, okay?”

Shen Jinnian turned, ready to scold him, but out of the corner of his eye, he saw the omega in front finish paying and walk away.

Gu Yan was waiting for them quietly.

Shen Jinnian had no choice but to bite back his words and told Chen Han to go buy the food.

Gu Yan’s gaze was searing—bold and unapologetic—as it traced every inch of Shen Jinnian’s face, his eyes filled with open heat.

Chen Han was too busy swiping the card to notice.

But Shen Jinnian, under that blatant stare, felt his ears grow hot. He nudged Chen Han, urging him to hurry and get the food so they could leave.

A low, mellow and magnetic voice sounded behind him: "Shen Jinnian."

“Shen Jinnian.”

He felt like a thousand fiery eyes had just landed on him.

He acted like he didn’t hear, not slowing down at all as he walked away.

Instead of heading to the dorms, the two of them found the quietest, most tucked-away corner to sit.

Chen Han let out a long breath once he sat down.

“Ridiculous,” he said, just as stunned as Shen Jinnian. “From what I know, working part-time at the cafeteria pays at most 18 yuan an hour. Gu Yan’s scholarship is worth at least a thousand times that. Is he seriously that strapped for cash?”

Shen Jinnian didn’t want to hear Gu Yan’s name and replied vaguely, “Don’t know. But he’s clearly low on brains.”

That guy had already pulled the stunt of making eye contact in public with him several times now.

Since he’d just pissed Shen Jinnian off, Chen Han didn’t dare talk back. He quietly pulled his tray closer and started eating.

But then his gaze swept over Shen Jinnian’s plate.

He clicked his tongue. “Seriously lacking in brains. Why is your beef three times as much as mine? So unfair!”

Shen Jinnian's portion of meat was so full that it was piled up like a small mountain. It was obvious that it was stuffed for him on purpose.

And his portion... was just a pitiful handful of beef cubes.

What kind of business runs like this?

Shen Jinnian glanced down and compared. Sure enough, his portion was way more than Chen Han’s.

Chen Han didn’t get Gu Yan’s little tricks.

But Shen Jinnian did.

Trying to win him over by giving him more food, as if offering flowers to Buddha. Probably thought it’d help him marry into the Shen family and be the kid’s future dad.

Shen Jinnian immediately shoved his plate toward Chen Han. He didn’t want a single crumb of Gu Yan’s goodwill.

Chen Han was touched to the brink of tears. “Godfather, you mean it?”

Shen Jinnian looked disgusted. “...Shut up. Don’t gross me out.”

He stared at the rice in front of him. His appetite had been off lately, and his throat hurt. Now he had even less interest in eating.

After a couple of bites, he pushed the rest over to Chen Han too.

By the end of the meal, Chen Han’s belly was stuffed round and full. He squinted in contentment and sighed, “I finally get what ‘love and hate’ really means.”

Shen Jinnian immediately looked up, with murderous intent in his eyes.

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I think I'll be busy till June. Exam season is hereeeee! 

I'm also looking for a proper job after freelancing for a while. If anyone is hiring editors, hit me up. (ಥ _ ಥ)