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Wen Ran froze for a couple of seconds, then straightened up and turned around. Song Shuangang's hand dropped away.

"Oh my god," He Wei said theatrically, covering his mouth. "What's going on here?"

Gu Yunchi turned back as if it had nothing to do with him, pulled a hand from his trouser pocket, and pressed the elevator button.

"Young Master, why aren't you saying anything?" He Wei, never one to miss a chance to stir the pot, patted Gu Yunchi's back a couple of times. "Did you drink too? Are you feeling unwell? Let me pat you on the back."

"Why don't you ask Chi Jiahán why he's not talking to you," Gu Yunchi said.

"We're all brothers here, what's the point of hurting each other like this?" He Wei chuckled dryly, rolled his eyes, and walked off. "You go on ahead. I'm going to find Heyang—he talks nicer than you do."

Ding—the elevator arrived. Gu Yunchi walked in and swiped his keycard. Wen Ran snapped out of it and hurried forward, holding the door open. Song Shuangang was behind him, looking like Wen Ran was about to jump into a fire pit with his eyes closed. He asked hesitantly, "You two… are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine." Wen Ran turned and smiled at him. "I'm heading back to my room now. Thanks again for earlier."

"Okay." Song Shuangang's gaze flickered between the AO Test pair for a moment. "Then be careful."

"If you're not getting in, don't waste my time," Gu Yunchi said coldly, impatient.

"I am." Wen Ran stepped into the elevator immediately.

The doors slid shut. Before Wen Ran could even organize his thoughts, they opened again—Gu Yunchi's room was just one floor below the banquet hall.

Gu Yunchi walked off without a backward glance. Wen Ran reacted and jogged out after him. "I need to talk to you."

Sure enough, Gu Yunchi completely ignored him, walking straight to his door, swiping his card, and pushing it open. Seeing he was about to be shut out, Wen Ran quickly put a hand against the door. In his haste, he accidentally bumped into Gu Yunchi's back. Gu Yunchi turned around, frowning. "Don't touch me."

Scolded into instant deflation, Wen Ran was left awkwardly half-in, half-out of the doorway. "I'm not here to harass you," he said carefully. "It's really something important."

Gu Yunchi crossed his arms and looked at him expressionlessly.

"I just heard Wei Lingzhou talking to someone named Shao Peng in the hallway. Wei Lingzhou said they'd stirred the grass and startled the snake, that they were too impatient. He said they needed to wait for the right opportunity and plan carefully. That Shao Peng guy said they wanted revenge."

Not surprised by this, Gu Yunchi only lowered his eyes slightly after hearing it, his gaze unclear. He let out a soft, derisive snort. "It's a wonder we didn't send them off to their next life. And they still want revenge."

"Also, I almost got spotted by Wei Lingzhou. I'm afraid he'll check the surveillance. If he does, he'll definitely see me eavesdropping. Could you tell the hotel not to let anyone access the footage?"

"Anything else?"

"No." Having relayed everything to Gu Yunchi, Wen Ran immediately felt a lot more at ease. He studied Gu Yunchi's expression. "What's wrong? Are you angry?"

His left hand was braced against the door, revealing the faint scar on the back from that car-jumping incident. Luckily, his skin was pale, so it didn't look too gruesome. Gu Yunchi's gaze lingered very briefly on the scar. "Which eye of yours sees me angry?"

"I guessed. It's good if you're not." Even as he said it, Wen Ran was still worried Gu Yunchi was upset by Wei Lingzhou and Shao Peng's conversation, so he made an awkward attempt to agree. "Wei Lingzhou really is a dead man. Last time he was talking behind your back, saying you have a bad temper."

"Was he wrong?" Gu Yunchi didn't seem to care at all. "Why are you getting worked up over him badmouthing me?"

"I'm not that worked up. It just doesn't feel good to hear." Wen Ran said, "And I didn't know he was this awful before."

"Now you know." Gu Yunchi lifted his eyelids. "My advice? Stay away from him. He's probably already on guard against you."

Suddenly getting a friendly warning threw Wen Ran off a little. "Weren't you the one who told me to try flirting with him?"

"Forget that kind of trash. I know your brain's faulty, but you don't have to believe everything you're told."

"I didn't believe it, I was just asking." Wen Ran thought of the look Wei Lingzhou had given him not long ago. It would be a lie to say he wasn't scared. "If he finds out I was eavesdropping, I feel like he'd kill me."

"What's there to be afraid of? Going together means you'll have company."

"Going together… you mean Song Shuangang?" Wen Ran suddenly remembered and explained, "He didn't hear anything. He saw me eavesdropping and called out to me. Then Wei Lingzhou noticed, and I had to pretend I'd had too much to drink and felt sick."

"What's that got to do with me?" Gu Yunchi wore an expression that said 'you're so noisy.' "Why do you talk so much?"

"It seems like I can't help talking a lot around you. I don't know why. I'll talk less next time." Wen Ran shifted a step back, peeking out with one eye while holding onto the door. "Then I'll go. Have a good rest. Remember about the surveillance."

Gu Yunchi glanced at him. "My memory isn't that bad."

Reassured, Wen Ran stepped back and gently closed the door.

Back in his room, fresh out of the shower, the doorbell rang. Wen Ran checked the peephole—it was Gu Peiwen's Beta assistant and a female Omega. He opened the door.

"Sorry to disturb you. The Chairman instructed us to have a few formal suits tailored for you, so we need to take your measurements."

"Huh? Oh… okay. Please, come in."

Wen Ran stood somewhat stiffly by the sofa. The Omega took his measurements meticulously, recording each one. The whole process only took a few minutes, and then the two of them left.

As soon as he closed the door, Chen Shuhui called. Wen Ran felt a little nervous. "Mom?"

"You went to Lu Heyang's birthday party?"

"Yes."

"I saw the photo of Chairman Gu greeting you. I imagine every guest tonight already knows who you are." Chen Shuhui laughed softly. "It's a very good sign. It means the Gu Family isn't planning to keep it hidden for much longer."

"Keep… what hidden?"

"The relationship between the two families. I suspect the Gu Family is about to make their next move." Chen Shuhui said, "It seems Chairman Gu is quite satisfied with you. But don't slack off. He still values Gu Yunchi's opinion very much. So even if you can't make Gu Yunchi happy, at least don't get into conflicts with him. Get along well, understand?"

"I understand."

He couldn't guess what the Gu Family's next move would be, and didn't dare to try. Since the car crash and the incident on the path, Wen Ran sensed the relationship between the two sides had entered a delicate, relative balance. At the very least, he hadn't seen that raw, genuine disgust on Gu Yunchi's face anymore. Now it was just sarcasm, sharp words, mockery, coldness, annoyance, disdain, contempt, put-downs… It was already much better.

Even without Chen Shuhui's emphasis, Wen Ran didn't want any more friction with Gu Yunchi. He didn't want Gu Yunchi to hate him, or be unhappy because of the families' affairs. He even found himself inexplicably thinking, why does Gu Yunchi always seem so displeased? It'd be nice if he could be a little happier.

But it's probably just displeasure with me. Once I'm gone someday, maybe Gu Yunchi won't have any troubles.

The activity for the tenth day of the summer camp was an ocean deep dive. Considering safety, students with no deep-diving experience started training a few days in advance. Wen Ran, who had a mild fear of deep water, was physically and mentally exhausted by it, going to bed early every night. He thought he'd even gotten a bit tanner.

A few days later, on a sunny afternoon, everyone set off together on a yacht. While everyone else was on deck enjoying the breeze and the sea view, Wen Ran, with the pilot's permission, entered the cockpit. He'd always studied charts on screens before, all theory. Today he got to see the real thing.

Seeing Wen Ran was very interested and seemed to have a decent understanding of ship structure, the pilot chatted with him. They hit it off a little too well. If the yacht hadn't been carrying over a dozen lives, the pilot might even have let Wen Ran try steering.

Wen Ran only left the cockpit as they neared their destination. It was the first time he'd talked this long with a stranger, and he felt he'd made great progress. He went to the foredeck and looked over. Gu Yunchi and Lu Heyang were leaning against the railing chatting, wearing sunglasses.

He glanced the other way. He Wei had his sunglasses flipped backwards on the back of his head and was still pestering Chi Jiahán, who looked like he wanted a nap and didn't want to listen anymore. He raised a hand to cover He Wei's mouth, but probably got his palm kissed for his trouble. He jerked his hand back and slapped He Wei's shoulder.

When they reached the dive site, everyone put on their scuba gear. Those with diving certificates went in on their own. Beginners like Wen Ran, with no certificate, had to rely on dive guides to take them down one-on-one, staying in the shallows for the experience—a depth suitable for Wen Ran, with plenty of light, not enough to trigger his phobia.

Slowly descending, Wen Ran watched the fish, nervous all the while. The last time he'd seen so many beautiful fish was at the aquarium. It was a weekend. Wen Rui was busy gaming with friends and couldn't go. Chen Shuhui was on tour abroad. Wen Ningyuan carved out an afternoon from his packed schedule and took Wen Ran to the aquarium. The huge tanks scared Wen Ran a little, but he couldn't help looking curiously.

"When you grow up, get your diving certificate, and you can go see the fish in the ocean yourself," Wen Ningyuan had told him.

Even though he still didn't have a diving certificate, he could still see fish in the ocean now. Weightless, his brain started secreting endorphins and dopamine, easing some of the tension and fear. Wen Ran tilted his head back. Among the swimming fish, the sky above the sea was like a bright mirror.

It was actually unexpected. Wen Ran had thought he'd be unsuited for group activities like this, better off hiding in a dim little room secretly drawing. But that wasn't the case. He'd seen incredibly vast scenery. It was like he was living, just like everyone else.

Descending to about eight meters, Wen Ran and his dive guide stopped. A sea turtle swam slowly past in front of them. Wen Ran watched it, mesmerized, and only then noticed two other divers not far away.

At eight meters deep, in nearly identical wetsuits, Wen Ran recognized one of them instantly as Gu Yunchi. The other was probably Lu Heyang. The two certified Alpha dive buddies continued descending to deeper water. The sea turtle waved its front flippers and followed them down.

Half an hour later, the dive guide brought Wen Ran back up to the yacht. Once on board, Wen Ran felt instantly relieved. He took off his gear, sat on the diving platform drying his hair, one leg crossed, the other dangling in the sea.

He was too busy gazing at the horizon to notice anything underwater, until something icy suddenly grabbed his ankle and yanked it down. Caught completely off guard, Wen Ran let out a terrified shriek, scrambling backwards in a panic.

Gu Yunchi pushed himself up onto the diving platform and climbed ashore, removing his mask and regulator. Water droplets rolled continuously from his hair. In the golden sunlight, the Alpha's body, wrapped in the wetsuit, showed perfect lines. Gu Yunchi slicked his soaked bangs back, revealing his eyes and brows.

Wen Ran looked up at him, still shaken. "Was that you grabbing my foot just now?"

"Thought it was a rope." Gu Yunchi said it lightly, taking off the rest of his gear and grabbing a clean towel to dry his hair.

Lu Heyang surfaced shortly after and went to the rest area for water. To avoid being mistaken for a rope again, Wen Ran safely tucked both feet up. Then he said, "I saw you underwater."

"Does my wetsuit have writing on it?" Gu Yunchi looked like he wasn't buying any attempts to get chummy.

"No writing. I just recognized you." Wen Ran offered evidence. "When you two were descending from around eight meters, was there a sea turtle following you?"

Gu Yunchi didn't even think about it. "No."

"There wasn't?" Wen Ran started to doubt himself. "Then maybe I saw wrong."

"You had the mind to watch sea turtles," Gu Yunchi said. "I thought you had a fear of deep water."

Wen Ran had no memory of when he'd ever told him about his fear of deep water. He was very puzzled. "I do. But I can overcome it, as long as I don't go too deep. But how did you know?"

But Gu Yunchi ignored him and walked off toward the other end.

Once everyone was back, the yacht set off for the wharf. The sun was about to set. The blue-gold sea surface shimmered and undulated. Everyone stayed in the stern cockpit rest area, admiring the sunset and off-gassing nitrogen.

Wen Ran went and got two bottles of water. He found Gu Yunchi on the foredeck and offered him one. "Do you want some water?"

"No."

"Oh." Wen Ran withdrew his hand. "You're not wearing your wristband, are you?"

Why would you wear a wristband diving? Another pointless question. Gu Yunchi shot him a look.

"I'm not wearing my neck ring either, just a waterproof patch. I can smell a little bit of your pheromone." Even though he'd been raised as an Omega, due to his past lack of contact with peers and proper physiology education, Wen Ran still maintained a Beta mindset, with extremely low sensitivity. In front of an Alpha like Gu Yunchi, he didn't know to avoid topics like pheromones, a sexual hormone. He asked bluntly, "Can you smell mine?"

"Your pickup lines are that bad," Gu Yunchi commented. "Go learn some better ones."

"That's not it." Wen Ran thought he was mocking his flirting skills and explained, "I wanted to ask you, what does my pheromone smell like to you?"

He wanted the answer too much. He'd asked last time, but Gu Yunchi had been in one of his moods and told him to get lost. Today he finally had another chance to bring it up. Wen Ran just didn't know that an Omega asking an Alpha this question was practically equivalent to making a blatant sexual advance.

Gu Yunchi ended this kind of, to him, clumsy and low-level flirtation with two merciless words: "It stinks."

Wen Ran stood frozen in the sea breeze for a moment. "I'll go now."