The elevator was filled to bursting, and nearly all of the floor buttons were lit. Every time the elevator stopped, the doors would open, people would walk out, and the doors would close again, a repetitious process that resulted in an extremely slow ascent.
There was a wheelchair next to Xia Wennan. He couldn’t help but glance towards it, seeing a barely conscious elderly man in it. The one pushing his wheelchair was a middle-aged woman.
The middle-aged woman was conversing with the person next to her. “I’m just a caregiver,” Xia Wennan heard her say. “What happens in their family is none of my business, is it?”
Xia Wennan frowned as he stared at the floor indicator, suddenly thinking: Aunt Zhang is just a caregiver for the Ming family. Why would she do such a thing?
The speed at which the elevator ascended was anxiety-inducing.
If Aunt Zhang was just a pawn, their suspicions would eventually lead them back to Ming Siyan.
Wasn’t it Ming Siyan who Xia Wennan and Ming Luchuan had the most suspicions about all along? Therefore, the issue at hand was essentially Ming Siyan’s motives.
Ming Siyan was an omega. Growing up, he’d been superior to Ming Sichen in every way, and the alpha Ming Sichen liked also liked him.
When the elevator arrived at his floor at long last, Xia Wennan immediately rushed out the second the doors opened.
Long-term psychotropic medication was given to Ming Sichen because his mind was clearing up before—someone out there didn’t want him to regain his senses. What were they hiding? The highest likelihood was that car accident abroad, and if the car accident was suspect, there must be something wrong with Ming Siyan.
Why would Ming Siyan want to hurt Ming Sichen? From a different perspective, it was Ming Sichen who had more of a reason to want to harm Ming Siyan. After all, the alpha Ming Sichen liked liked Ming Siyan, but if he took out Ming Siyan, then take his place—
Xia Wennan came to an abrupt halt, the words ‘take his place’ fluttering around his mind like a colourful butterfly.
Ming Sichen and Ming Siyan were identical twins. They should have thought of this deception earlier, but why hadn’t they ever suspected a thing? Because Ming Sichen was a beta and Ming Siyan an omega—there was no way a beta could disguise himself as an omega.
At this moment, the beautiful butterfly fluttering around and around Xia Wennan’s mind finally landed on Ming Sichen and Ming Siyan’s napes.
What if there had been a gland transplant?
There was no car accident from the get go. Ming Sichen—no, Ming Siyan had been tricked into travelling to Southeast Asia by Ming Sichen, and his glands had been extracted and transplanted into Ming Sichen.
As Xia Wennan dashed through the corridor, he fumbled for his phone in his pocket, wanting to call Ming Luchuan and tell him about his theory, as well as Lin Shuqiu to inquire whether betas could undergo gland transplants.
Because of how tense he was, the hand that was gripping his phone was slightly trembling. Before he could dial anone’s number, however, he had arrived at the door of Ming Sichen’s room. The room was not deserted, much to his surprise—Lu Huaiye and Ming Sichen had returned.
Aunt Zhang was nowhere in sight. There was only Lu Huaiye and Ming Sichen inside, the former bending down to lift Ming Sichen from his wheelchair and onto the hospital bed.
Xia Wennan opened his mouth to call out “Sichen”, but the words wouldn’t come out, so he just walked over to the bed in confusion and watched as Lu Huaiye lifted his body.
When Lu Huaiye took a step back and Xia Wennan got a good look at Ming Sichen’s face, his suspicions grew even stronger. “You’re not Ming Sichen,” he pointed out
Ming Sichen’s mind wasn’t all there, and he was frail and emaciated. The person on the bed had the same face, skinny figure, and lifeless expression as Ming Sichen, but he appeared to be in better health.
Upon hearing Xia Wennan’s words, the person on the bed turned his head towards him. “How am I not Ming Sichen?”
Lu Huaiye froze in place. “Sichen?”
That butterfly was abruptly magnified before Xia Wennan’s eyes, and though he felt his head spin, the fog was slowly lifting, revealing clear skies. “You’re Ming Sichen! Not Ming Siyan!”
Ming Sichen sat up. “Why is it always you?” he said as he bent over and hugged his legs, slowly exhaling.
Lu Huaiye’s brows were tightly furrowed as he silently observed them.
Xia Wennan was a little riled up. “So I guessed right, didn’t I? That tattoo on your nape—it’s to cover up the gland transplant scar. You’re no omega—you’re Ming Sichen!”
In lieu of answering Xia Wennan’s question, Ming Sichen merely stared at him for a long time before asking a completely unrelated question out of the blue: “Did you recover your memories?”
Xia Wennan just laughed and shrugged off his question.
Ming Sichen lowered his head. From this angle, his nape tattoo appeared more conspicuous.
Lu Huaiye abruptly spoke up, his voice deep and rage-filled. “Who the hell are you? You’re Ming Sichen? Where has Ming Siyan gone?”
Ming Sichen turned to look at him. “Which Ming Siyan are you referring to? Is it the one you crushed on but never dared to confess to, or the Ming Siyan you dated for over a year but eventually dumped?”
Lu Huaiye swallowed visibly. “So those two Ming Siyans weren’t the same person?” he asked menacingly as he took a step forward. He pointed at Xia Wennan. “Is what he just said true? Did you transplant Siyan’s glands? Are you actually Ming Sichen?”
Ming Sichen softly said, “Can we talk?”
Lu Huaiye’s pheromones invaded every corner of the room, carrying intense emotions. Xia Wennan noticed Ming Sichen’s pained expression. Lu Huaiye lunged at Ming Sichen’s collar. “Where did you take the real Siyan? How can you be so evil?”
Ming Sichen let out a small gasp, but kept his voice calm. “How are you going to find out where my brother is if you don’t patiently listen to me?”
Lu Huaiye tightened his grip, almost lifting Ming Sichen’s upper body off the bed.
Xia Wennan hurriedly said, “Let’s not do anything rash.”
Ming Sichen looked straight at Lu Huaiye. “Did you ever like me?” he asked.
Lu Huaiye gradually let go, but he didn’t respond until some time later. “The one I like is Ming Siyan, not you.”
A dejected look crossed Ming Sichen’s face. “I knew it.”
“Why did you do this?” Xia Wennan couldn’t help but ask. “Siyan is your brother, but you did such a cruel thing to him.”
Ming Sichen kept his frail and delicate appearance. After Lu Huaiye let go of him, he curled up on the bed, hugging his legs tightly. “I’m a beta. He’s an omega. We’re obviously identical, but my life has been so unfair since the day we were born.”
Neither Lu Huaiye nor Xia Wennan spoke a single word.
Ming Sichen’s eyes reddened. He wiped at them with his sleeve and continued, “Dad favoured him because he’s an omega. The alpha I like didn’t like me back because I’m a beta. Since I was small, everyone mocked me—why is it that, even though we’re clearly twins, I’m a mere beta while my brother is an omega?”
After that, Ming Sichen fell silent, his gaze fixed on the snow-white bed sheets beneath him.
Xia Wennan cast a glance at Lu Huaiye, only to discover that the man had no intention of speaking. He thus said, “So?”
Both Ming Sichen and Lu Huaiye glanced at him.
Noticing a trace of indignation in Ming Sichen’s eyes, Xia Wennan hastily corrected, “That’s not what I mean. I just wanted to say— please feel free to tell us all about your difficulties.”
“Are you making fun of me?” Ming Sichen said icily.
“I’m not, really,” said Xia Wennan. He then paused to think for a moment before saying, “I just think that the stuff you’ve been through is pretty tolerable, nothing too dire.”
Ming Sichen’s face twisted with resentment. “What do you know? You go around picking at other people’s scars, watching them bleed, then mocking them and denying their pain and scoffing at their tears—Xia Wennan, what does a lucky person like you know?”
Xia Wennan was immediately affronted. “How did I become this ‘lucky person’ all of a sudden? I’m a beta too, how am I luckier than you? Do you want to compete on who’s more miserable? Bring it on!”
The elevator was filled to bursting, and nearly all of the floor buttons were lit. Every time the elevator stopped, the doors would open, people would walk out, and the doors would close again, a repetitious process that resulted in an extremely slow ascent.
There was a wheelchair next to Xia Wennan. He couldn’t help but glance towards it, seeing a barely conscious elderly man in it. The one pushing his wheelchair was a middle-aged woman.
The middle-aged woman was conversing with the person next to her. “I’m just a caregiver,” Xia Wennan heard her say. “What happens in their family is none of my business, is it?”
Xia Wennan frowned as he stared at the floor indicator, suddenly thinking: Aunt Zhang is just a caregiver for the Ming family. Why would she do such a thing?
The speed at which the elevator ascended was anxiety-inducing.
If Aunt Zhang was just a pawn, their suspicions would eventually lead them back to Ming Siyan.
Wasn’t it Ming Siyan who Xia Wennan and Ming Luchuan had the most suspicions about all along? Therefore, the issue at hand was essentially Ming Siyan’s motives.
Ming Siyan was an omega. Growing up, he’d been superior to Ming Sichen in every way, and the alpha Ming Sichen liked also liked him.
When the elevator arrived at his floor at long last, Xia Wennan immediately rushed out the second the doors opened.
Long-term psychotropic medication was given to Ming Sichen because his mind was clearing up before—someone out there didn’t want him to regain his senses. What were they hiding? The highest likelihood was that car accident abroad, and if the car accident was suspect, there must be something wrong with Ming Siyan.
Why would Ming Siyan want to hurt Ming Sichen? From a different perspective, it was Ming Sichen who had more of a reason to want to harm Ming Siyan. After all, the alpha Ming Sichen liked liked Ming Siyan, but if he took out Ming Siyan, then take his place—
Xia Wennan came to an abrupt halt, the words ‘take his place’ fluttering around his mind like a colourful butterfly.
Ming Sichen and Ming Siyan were identical twins. They should have thought of this deception earlier, but why hadn’t they ever suspected a thing? Because Ming Sichen was a beta and Ming Siyan an omega—there was no way a beta could disguise himself as an omega.
At this moment, the beautiful butterfly fluttering around and around Xia Wennan’s mind finally landed on Ming Sichen and Ming Siyan’s napes.
What if there had been a gland transplant?
There was no car accident from the get go. Ming Sichen—no, Ming Siyan had been tricked into travelling to Southeast Asia by Ming Sichen, and his glands had been extracted and transplanted into Ming Sichen.
As Xia Wennan dashed through the corridor, he fumbled for his phone in his pocket, wanting to call Ming Luchuan and tell him about his theory, as well as Lin Shuqiu to inquire whether betas could undergo gland transplants.
Because of how tense he was, the hand that was gripping his phone was slightly trembling. Before he could dial anone’s number, however, he had arrived at the door of Ming Sichen’s room. The room was not deserted, much to his surprise—Lu Huaiye and Ming Sichen had returned.
Aunt Zhang was nowhere in sight. There was only Lu Huaiye and Ming Sichen inside, the former bending down to lift Ming Sichen from his wheelchair and onto the hospital bed.
Xia Wennan opened his mouth to call out “Sichen”, but the words wouldn’t come out, so he just walked over to the bed in confusion and watched as Lu Huaiye lifted his body.
When Lu Huaiye took a step back and Xia Wennan got a good look at Ming Sichen’s face, his suspicions grew even stronger. “You’re not Ming Sichen,” he pointed out
Ming Sichen’s mind wasn’t all there, and he was frail and emaciated. The person on the bed had the same face, skinny figure, and lifeless expression as Ming Sichen, but he appeared to be in better health.
Upon hearing Xia Wennan’s words, the person on the bed turned his head towards him. “How am I not Ming Sichen?”
Lu Huaiye froze in place. “Sichen?”
That butterfly was abruptly magnified before Xia Wennan’s eyes, and though he felt his head spin, the fog was slowly lifting, revealing clear skies. “You’re Ming Sichen! Not Ming Siyan!”
Ming Sichen sat up. “Why is it always you?” he said as he bent over and hugged his legs, slowly exhaling.
Lu Huaiye’s brows were tightly furrowed as he silently observed them.
Xia Wennan was a little riled up. “So I guessed right, didn’t I? That tattoo on your nape—it’s to cover up the gland transplant scar. You’re no omega—you’re Ming Sichen!”
In lieu of answering Xia Wennan’s question, Ming Sichen merely stared at him for a long time before asking a completely unrelated question out of the blue: “Did you recover your memories?”
Xia Wennan just laughed and shrugged off his question.
Ming Sichen lowered his head. From this angle, his nape tattoo appeared more conspicuous.
Lu Huaiye abruptly spoke up, his voice deep and rage-filled. “Who the hell are you? You’re Ming Sichen? Where has Ming Siyan gone?”
Ming Sichen turned to look at him. “Which Ming Siyan are you referring to? Is it the one you crushed on but never dared to confess to, or the Ming Siyan you dated for over a year but eventually dumped?”
Lu Huaiye swallowed visibly. “So those two Ming Siyans weren’t the same person?” he asked menacingly as he took a step forward. He pointed at Xia Wennan. “Is what he just said true? Did you transplant Siyan’s glands? Are you actually Ming Sichen?”
Ming Sichen softly said, “Can we talk?”
Lu Huaiye’s pheromones invaded every corner of the room, carrying intense emotions. Xia Wennan noticed Ming Sichen’s pained expression. Lu Huaiye lunged at Ming Sichen’s collar. “Where did you take the real Siyan? How can you be so evil?”
Ming Sichen let out a small gasp, but kept his voice calm. “How are you going to find out where my brother is if you don’t patiently listen to me?”
Lu Huaiye tightened his grip, almost lifting Ming Sichen’s upper body off the bed.
Xia Wennan hurriedly said, “Let’s not do anything rash.”
Ming Sichen looked straight at Lu Huaiye. “Did you ever like me?” he asked.
Lu Huaiye gradually let go, but he didn’t respond until some time later. “The one I like is Ming Siyan, not you.”
A dejected look crossed Ming Sichen’s face. “I knew it.”
“Why did you do this?” Xia Wennan couldn’t help but ask. “Siyan is your brother, but you did such a cruel thing to him.”
Ming Sichen kept his frail and delicate appearance. After Lu Huaiye let go of him, he curled up on the bed, hugging his legs tightly. “I’m a beta. He’s an omega. We’re obviously identical, but my life has been so unfair since the day we were born.”
Neither Lu Huaiye nor Xia Wennan spoke a single word.
Ming Sichen’s eyes reddened. He wiped at them with his sleeve and continued, “Dad favoured him because he’s an omega. The alpha I like didn’t like me back because I’m a beta. Since I was small, everyone mocked me—why is it that, even though we’re clearly twins, I’m a mere beta while my brother is an omega?”
After that, Ming Sichen fell silent, his gaze fixed on the snow-white bed sheets beneath him.
Xia Wennan cast a glance at Lu Huaiye, only to discover that the man had no intention of speaking. He thus said, “So?”
Both Ming Sichen and Lu Huaiye glanced at him.
Noticing a trace of indignation in Ming Sichen’s eyes, Xia Wennan hastily corrected, “That’s not what I mean. I just wanted to say— please feel free to tell us all about your difficulties.”
“Are you making fun of me?” Ming Sichen said icily.
“I’m not, really,” said Xia Wennan. He then paused to think for a moment before saying, “I just think that the stuff you’ve been through is pretty tolerable, nothing too dire.”
Ming Sichen’s face twisted with resentment. “What do you know? You go around picking at other people’s scars, watching them bleed, then mocking them and denying their pain and scoffing at their tears—Xia Wennan, what does a lucky person like you know?”
Xia Wennan was immediately affronted. “How did I become this ‘lucky person’ all of a sudden? I’m a beta too, how am I luckier than you? Do you want to compete on who’s more miserable? Bring it on!”
