Chapter 02
“It’s him.”
Wu Xing dragged the stranger off his tricycle and handed him over to Dr. Zhu.
Dr. Zhu put on white latex gloves, turned the man over, and reached out to examine the gland on the back of his neck.
He was an Alpha.
Zhuâs slender fingers, encased in white latex, checked the unconscious patientâs vital signs.
“Dr. Zhu, he suddenly fainted.”
“Could it be a stroke?”
Wu Xing hovered around Dr. Zhu, rambling nervously.
Zhu found it somewhat amusing. He picked up his penlight, lifted the manâs eyelids, and took a look. As he examined him, he raised his gaze and asked, “By the way, who is this?”
Wu Xing, standing to the side, shook his head and replied, “I don’t know.”
Dr. Zhu continued his examination and smiled, “Did you pick him up on the road?”
Wu Xing thought for two seconds; it seemed that was exactly what had happened. He nodded awkwardly.
Soon, Dr. Zhu took off his gloves and said, “Heâs fine. Theyâre all minor injuries.”
Hearing Dr. Zhu say this, Wu Xing immediately felt relieved.
“Then why did he faint?”
Dr. Zhu raised his left eyebrow and replied calmly, “Heâs probably just starving.”
Wu Xing: …
Dr. Zhu gave the man a glucose injection and sat down.
Wu Xing sat down nearby, patting his chest and saying, “As long as he’s okay.”
Dr. Zhu used disinfecting gel to wipe his hands, staring at Wu Xingâs blue shirt, which had been stained by the homeless man.
The blue short-sleeved shirt had been washed until it was somewhat faded, and the collar was loose and baggy, having completely lost its shape.
“Dr. Zhu, when will he wake up?”
Dr. Zhu cast a glance at the unconscious Alpha and said lightly, “Soon, I imagine.”
Wu Xing nodded, walked over to the treatment bed, and used a damp tissue to wipe the man’s face.
The Alpha, with his eyes closed, felt that warm, clean, soapy scent again and his nose twitched slightly.
He slowly opened his eyes and saw a stranger’s face inches away, holding a damp tissue and wiping his lips.
A tiny drop of water fell between the man’s thin, M-shaped lips.
The Alpha’s irises were like dark gray glass marbles; his long, narrow eyes were watery, cold, and emotionless.
“You’re awake?”
As Wu Xing spoke, he pulled his hand back, only to have his wrist grabbed by the Alpha lying on the bed.
He struggled twice, but couldn’t pull away, so he simply let him hold it.
“Who are you?”
The Alpha sat up on the treatment bed, looking around the environment with vigilance.
Dr. Zhu pulled back the curtain between the beds, which was exactly the scene he saw.
Wu Xing looked at that excessively beautiful face; the deathly pallor only added a sense of fragility to the Alpha.
The manâs appearance was the polar opposite of Wu Xingâsâsharp, striking, and incredibly handsome. If he weren’t ill, he would surely be radiant and imposing.
The Omega stared at the clean, pretty face after being washed and began to stutter.
“I… my name is Wu Xing.”
Dr. Zhu crossed his arms, leaned against the wall, and spoke coldly, “You fainted, and this person saved you and brought you here.”
After getting a good look at the man’s features, Wu Xing felt that he must have encountered some sort of misfortune.
What kind of homeless person would walk the streets with a face like that?
“Who are you? Where is your home?”
The Alpha frowned, his headache returning. He released Wu Xingâs wrist and answered, “I don’t know.”
Dr. Zhu pulled Wu Xing to his side and whispered into his ear, “Looking at him like this, he might be a gigolo from some high-end club in the Central District.”
“Don’t go looking for trouble.”
Wu Xing paid the medical bill and prepared to leave.
“Dr. Zhu, sorry for the trouble.”
The Alpha was sitting on the treatment bed with his legs pulled up to his chest. When he saw Wu Xing was about to leave, he suddenly panicked and reached out to grab him.
“Don’t leave me.”
His heart softened suddenly.
Wu Xing had said those words many times when he was a child.
Wu Xingâs footsteps paused, and he looked back at this complete stranger of an Alpha.
Chapter 2: The Apprentice
The place where Wu Xing lived was a small two-bedroom apartment. The floor wasn’t high, and the decor was old, but its advantage was the good location, very close to his wonton shop.
He was back late this time, and looking at the wall clock in the living room, he estimated that his apprentice, A-Qiang, had already gone to bed.
Half of the kitchen window was open, and the pitch-black night air poured in with the wind, making a faint, whistling sound.
The Omega gently turned on the faucet to wash his hands, then tied on his gray striped apron, the ties resting against his firm, lifted buttocks. He then took out the wontons he had wrapped that morning.
The skins of the small wontons were tough and thin, revealing the light pink color of the meat fillingâthey were the result of him carefully selecting from several different shops.
One by one, the wontons, like paper-folded goldfish, swam into the boiling, bubbling water. They weren’t boiled through, but rather blanched to perfection.
In the bottom of an enamel bowl, Wu Xing added lard, light soy sauce, rice vinegar, seaweed, dried shrimp, cilantro, and a dash of salt and MSG, before pouring over his secret high-quality broth.
The fresh meat wontons slowly sank beneath the surface of the soup, and a simple, comforting aroma rose up in the small kitchen.
The gray tie loosely knotted around his waist swayed with Wu Xingâs busy movements, outlining the curves of the Omegaâs body.
Half of the polished glass partition separated the kitchen from the dining area.
The dirty Alpha sat very straight, his body far from the back of the chair, just watching the person who had picked him up prepare a meal for him.
The scene before him was novel and strange to the Alpha. Although he had lost his memories, he felt inexplicably that he had never experienced anything like this in his life.
The manâs gaze traveled from Wu Xingâs slender, white neck downwards, landing on the gray tie that was about to come undone, and he narrowed his eyes unconsciously.
Two bowls of wontons were placed on the tableâone by Wu Xingâs hand and the other pushed toward the stranger.
The wonton soup was steaming, blocking the space between them as the mist slowly dissipated.
“Eat,” Wu Xing handed him a pair of wooden chopsticks and a porcelain spoon.
The Alpha must have been hungry for a long time; when he swallowed the first wonton, he couldn’t even taste the flavor.
He only felt the warmth and smoothness soothing his restless, empty stomach.
That glucose injection had only provided the Alpha with energy, but it hadn’t truly satiated his hunger. This bowl of piping hot wontons made him feel as if he had returned to the mortal world.
Wu Xing used his spoon to gently push aside the cilantro on the soup surface, glancing occasionally at the stranger eating the wontons.
Even though the Alpha was eating quickly, it didn’t look unsightly; on the contrary, it made one feel more appetizing just watching him.
Seeing this, Wu Xing understood the meaning of “a sight for sore eyes” for the first time, and he felt ridiculous for his own absurd thoughts.
The Alpha finished the wontons in his bowl quickly, then held the white ceramic bowl with both hands to drink the soup, as if the food Wu Xing made was some priceless delicacy not to be wasted.
“Slow down, be careful not to choke.”
The bowl full of wontons was licked clean, like autumn wind sweeping away fallen leaves; not even a scrap of seaweed was left.
“Don’t you remember anything at all?”
The amnesiac Alpha held the empty bowl blankly, feeling heat spread throughout his body, every pore glowing with unprecedented comfort.
“I don’t remember.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the door to the small apartment was suddenly pushed openâit was his apprentice, A-Qiang, returning home.
“Xing… Xing-ge?”
A-Qiangâs face was flushed red, his eyelids were drooping, and he let out an incredibly loud, drunken hiccup, looking like a total layabout.
Wu Xing frowned and asked, “A-Qiang, where have you been?”
A-Qiang pursed his lips and said, “Went for some drinks with a few buddies.”
“Some?”
The smell of alcohol on the Beta was enough to make a person dizzy; it was definitely more than just a little.
But the wonton shop wasn’t open yet and A-Qiang wasn’t officially on the clock, so Wu Xing couldn’t say much. He asked, “Where did you go drinking?”
This time it was A-Qiangâs turn to frown, and he said impatiently, “At that place, ‘Night Run’ or something. Xing-ge, I’m going to sleep.”
Wu Xing would pass that bar when he went to the construction market to pick up materials. It was decorated very upscale, and it was obvious that the prices weren’t cheap.
A-Qiang was someone Wu Xing had met when he was working as a chef at a restaurant. He wasn’t a bad person, just a bit lazy.
When he heard that Wu Xing was going to open his own shop, he had simply quit his job.
“Since I’m going to be an apprentice anyway, I might as well follow Xing-ge.”
Those words from A-Qiang still rang in his ears. At the time, they had made Wu Xing feel touched, but now he couldn’t help but suspect that A-Qiang was only following him because he provided room and board.
The drunk A-Qiang swayed back and forth on his way to his room, looking like he was walking on invisible clouds.
The Alpha had been silently observing their interaction. This A-Qiang called him ‘Xing-ge’ and should be younger than the Omega, so why did he look older?
A-Qiang finally noticed the stranger in the corner. He frowned in confusion and asked, “Xing-ge, who is this?”
“I picked him up on the road.”
A-Qiang became interested, leaned in front of the Alpha, and giggled, “Where can you pick up such a pretty person? Pick one up for me, too.”
The smell of alcohol hit the Alpha full in the face. Seeing this, Wu Xing pulled A-Qiang aside and said, “Go take a shower. You have to go to the shop to clean up tomorrow.”
A-Qiang reluctantly said, “Oh,” and asked, “What about you?”
“I have things to do tomorrow.”
A-Qiang knew when to stop and went to take a shower, nearly falling in the shower stall because he was too drunk.
Wu Xing rubbed his forehead, feeling like no one gave him any peace of mind.
When it was the Alphaâs turn to come out of the shower, there were no extra bath towels to use, so he was simply bare.
He stood there at the entrance of the shower room, his black hair still dripping with water, looking like a big dog that had been drenched in the rain.
