Chapter 2 – I… I actually have someone I like.

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Song Yan looked at the menu handed to him and gave a small nod.

Xie Chenyu confirmed the order with a tap, closed the screen, and started chatting casually. After a few rounds of small talk, he finished his initial observations: timid, shy around strangers, introverted—though it remained to be seen if he was more open around familiar people.

Finally, he brought up the real topic. “What do you think about this marriage?”

Song Yan thought, Does he even need to ask? Of course, I don’t want it.

But his maternal grandfather had worried himself sick over him all these years, never having a peaceful day. He didn’t want his grandfather to worry about him anymore, so he could only accept it.

He pinched his fingers: “I…I always listen to my grandfather.”

So if it doesn’t work out on my side, it’s up to you.

He bit his lip. “And… what about you?”

Xie Chenyu said: “I listen to my grandfather.”

Song Yan: “……”

After saying that, Xie Chenyu also fell into a brief silence.

Both thought: Well, then all this effort today was for nothing; it was completely useless.

Xie Chenyu knew that with Song Yan’s submissive personality, whatever trouble he (Chenyu) caused next would be pointless, so he had to switch to another plan.

Meanwhile, Song Yan, seeing no signs of rejection or resistance from the young master across the table, figured that unless something drastic happened, this marriage was going to happen. So, he too prepared to roll out his backup plan.

Just then, there was a “click” and the door opened.

The server entered, placing dish after dish on the table, then quietly closed the door again.

The two sat across from each other with a steaming spread of food between them, locked eyes for a second, then silently picked up their utensils and began eating—each adjusting their “persona” mid-bite.

A touch of nonchalance entered Xie Chenyu’s cordiality as he began to subtly probe Song Yan’s views on marriage. He suddenly noticed Song Yan gripping his cup tightly and taking a deep breath, which made him pause.

Song Yan mustered his courage to glance at him, then fearfully lowered his head again, clutching the cup even harder. Xie Chenyu stared at his pale fingertips for a few seconds, then proactively asked, “Do you have something you want to say?”

Song Yan’s body trembled. He hesitated, then said, “I think you’re… a good person.”

Xie Chenyu’s spirits lifted. He accepted the “good person” card without hesitation: “Yes, I am.”

“So I don’t want to hide it from you,” Song Yan took another deep breath and finally said, “I… I actually have someone I like.”

Xie Chenyu thought: Fantastic!

He had thought it was a done deal, but unexpectedly, things took a turn. He immediately comforted him thoughtfully: “I understand. Don’t worry, I’ll go back and tell my grandpa to cancel the engagement.”

Song Yan secretly thought, This young master really isn’t willing either. He tried hard to make his eyes red: “My compatibility with him is very low. My maternal grandfather told me to break up with him and marry you. In this situation, can you… can you take the initiative to break off the engagement?”

Xie Chenyu considered it: “That’s tough.”

This marriage wasn’t what the outside world thought it was—not even what the Song family believed.

Its original purpose was actually for treatment.

Song Yan suffered from Pheromone Deficiency Syndrome. Patients with this condition have abnormal pheromone secretion, causing their health to fluctuate. Mild cases only require a few injections, while severe cases experience neurological dysfunction, uncontrolled hormones, and can even lead to organ failure.

And coincidentally, Song Yan suffered from the most severe type of the disease; it was said that only twelve patients existed across several star systems combined.

Fortunately, “Pheromone Deficiency Syndrome” was a popular research topic with many experts, and a solution was quickly found: extracting Alpha pheromones to create a reagent and injecting it into the Omega’s gland.

An Alpha’s pheromones have a powerful calming effect on Omegas. With consistent injections over two to three years, the patient should gradually recover. But there was one major requirement—the match rate between the Alpha and Omega must be at least 80%.

In the matching system, a score over 50% is considered passable. Reaching 80%? Not easy. And the system only compares pheromones between two people who both submit them—it doesn’t do matchmaking on its own. Plus, this isn’t some kind of public service like blood donation. Alphas don’t usually store their pheromones in the system, so trying to find someone that way is basically impossible.

Even worse, Song Yan’s parents had an exceptionally high compatibility score, which meant he’d inherited elite genes. But the better your genes, the harder it is to find someone highly compatible. Harder than finding a rare blood type.

Since his illness began, his maternal grandfather, Old Mr. Qin, had never stopped looking for someone.

As he was about to turn 18 and enter the severe stage of the illness, Old Mr. Qin anxiously sought out all the connections he could think of, hoping they would help him search. The Xie family was the first stop.

Old Mr. Qin and Old Master Xie had only a superficial acquaintance back then, but since it involved a life, Old Master Xie readily agreed and first screened within his own family.

Although the final synthesized medicine would contain Alpha pheromones, Old Mr. Qin and Old Master Xie would never do something as unreasonable as “marry you because I saved your life”. 

However, unexpectedly, the compatibility was 99%.

This highest value deeply struck a chord with both of them.

They’d only ever heard of a few couples in the galaxy with a 99% match—and that was only through news reports or gossip. This was the first time it had happened in their own families.

Old Master Xie was immediately moved due to his heir problem, while Old Mr. Qin considered Song Yan’s well-being.

After the reagent injection, the Omega’s gland would contain Alpha pheromones. There were two ways to remove them: first, after recovery, find a stronger Alpha to override them, or second, undergo surgery to wash them out.

However, with a 99% compatibility, the difficulty of both methods and the harm caused to the Omega would multiply. Old Mr. Qin couldn’t bear to let Song Yan go through that.

A 99% compatibility, a match made in heaven. They believed the children would surely develop deep feelings, but the prerequisite was to bring them together. 

Coincidentally, Song Yan’s mother and Xie Chenyu’s mother were best friends and had once joked about forming a family alliance. This was truly a fated connection.

So, the two old men, each with their own intentions, put their heads together and turned “saving a life” into a “marriage alliance.”

Therefore, at the root of it all, it was the 99% compatibility’s fault… Inside the private room, the newly minted fiancé and fiancé exchanged glances again, wondering why their compatibility with the person opposite was so high.

Song Yan held his cup, continuing to feign melancholy, and choked out the main point: “I… I will break up with him, but I need time to adapt…”

Xie Chenyu’s second plan happened to be about their post-marriage life, and he became even more considerate: “It’s fine, you don’t have to break up. I support ’emotion theory’. High compatibility doesn’t necessarily mean anything.”

He suggested, “I know you’re unwilling, and I’m actually being forced into this too. Since it’s come to this, to report back to our families, why don’t we set up an agreement?”

Song Yan’s previous rambling was primarily to pave the way for their post-marriage life. He pretended to be confused and asked, “What agreement?”

Xie Chenyu said, “A marriage agreement. Once you recover, we’ll divorce.”

As he spoke, he pulled out the drafted terms and kindly discussed them with Song Yan.

Song Yan shed a bit of his “timid” facade and gradually became engrossed in the discussion.

Clause by clause, the agreement came together—until they reached a crucial point.

Song Yan immediately covered the back of his neck: “We agreed this is just for show. I… I won’t let you bite me.”

After all this talk, he took the opportunity to peel off another layer of his “timid” act. And just in case that damned 99% started working against him, he added a warning: “The only person I want biting me is brother Gangzi.”

Oh, the person this boy likes is called Brother Gangzi, they are a perfect match.

Xie Chenyu reassured him: “Don’t worry, I’m not into your type.”

Song Yan looked at him, half in doubt.

The red marks at the corners of his eyes hadn’t completely faded, and paired with his wary expression, he looked like a rabbit.

Xie Chenyu was about to laugh when he suddenly remembered that damned 99%. Worried that being too much of a “nice guy” might cause this little rabbit to transfer his affections, a thought sparked: “To be honest, I also have someone I like.”

Song Yan thought this was good news and lowered the hand that had been covering the back of his neck: “Really?”

Xie Chenyu said, “Of course, it’s real.”

His gaze softened, “Her name is Elizabeth Linda, the most beautiful Omega.”

Song Yan was instantly empathetic, his expression full of deep emotion. “I get it. My Brother Gangzi is the strongest and best-looking Alpha!”

Xie Chenyu recalled his own brother’s romantic history and borrowed a few lines: “My Elizabeth loves flowers. Every time she stands in a sea of flowers and smiles at me, I feel like I’m seeing an angel. I’ve even personally painted several oil paintings for her. In the future, I want to hold an art exhibition about her.”

Not to be outdone, Song Yan dug into his limited collection of idol drama clichés and said, “My Brother Gangzi is the campus heartthrob. Tons of people like him, but he only treats me special. He even helps me with my homework.”

“My Elizabeth is also exceptionally good to me,” Xie Chenyu’s gaze was distant, “She knows I have no choice but to marry you and hasn’t blamed me. She said she’d wait for me.”

Song Yan’s face was filled with emotion, almost tearful: “When I wanted to break up with Big Brother Gang, Big Brother Gang also said he’d… he’d wait for me forever!”

The two of them boasted about their respective “white moonlight”, adding the lover issue into the agreement. After signing it online, they were both satisfied.

Xie Chenyu saw that this little rabbit was not as shy as at the beginning when he mentioned Brother Gangzi, and dared to actively express his ideas. He guessed that Song Yan might be a love-brained person who grows strong for love.

Meanwhile, Song Yan listened to Xie Chenyu describe their dates and artistic dreams, and figured this young master might be a bit of a sensitive, literary youth type.

The love-brained man and the literary youth finished their meal happily and started to work. Xie Chenyu personally sent Song Yan back to the Song family residence.

The Song family head was still at work, and the mother and son at home didn’t know how Song Yan and Third Young Master Xie’s meeting had gone. Neither of them had napped.

Hearing the car outside, the two couldn’t help but go look. They then saw the dazzling, colorful duo and almost couldn’t maintain their expressions for a moment.

The noblewoman had gone out for an errand in the morning and Song Yan had already left when she returned.

She recognized Song Yan’s outfit as her own son’s handiwork and suppressed the urge to lecture him, greeting them with a beaming smile.

Xie Chenyu simply exchanged greetings with them and gently looked at Song Yan: “Tired? Go in and rest. We can talk again after you wake up.”

Song Yan gave a soft “mm” and stood still at the doorway.

Xie Chenyu chuckled. “Go on, I’ll watch until you’re inside.”

Song Yan really wanted to act embarrassed and blush, but he didn’t know how. So he just gave Xie Chenyu one last look and obediently went into the house.

Xie Chenyu quietly watched him until the figure disappeared inside, then turned to the mother and son nearby, politely declined their invitation to come in, and drove away.

Love at first sight—this was the baseline they had established for their marriage today. It allowed them to protect their “white moonlight” loves while also being the easiest way to report back to their families.

Xie Chenyu was called over by his grandfather as soon as he got home. He saw the two little rascals who had tracked him also standing in the room.

Old Master Xie asked, “What do you think?”

Xie Chenyu answered without thinking, “Excellent.”

The two teenagers, who had witnessed the “miracle,” their eyes shining, thought, Just as expected!

Old Master Xie eyed him suspiciously: “Really?”

“Of course,” Xie Chenyu smiled blissfully. “From the very first moment I saw him, I knew he was the one.”

He slipped into his poetic mode. “It’s the feeling that when you see him, everything around you pales in comparison. Grandpa, do you know that feeling?”

Old Master Xie:  “……”

Nonsense. With that outfit, it’d be strange if you could see any other colors.

He stared at his grandson’s flamboyant getup in silence, not particularly eager to understand any of this.