Chapter 68: You Are My Boyfriend

Stepping outside, the unexpected chill invigorated Wen Qi. Beside him, Quan Mo kept his head down, silent, leaving Wen Qi unsure how much of his words had registered.

As they approached the parking area, Wen Qi spotted a figure in the distance, choosing style over warmth, standing in the cool evening breeze. Unsure how long the person had been waiting, Wen Qi hurried over.

"Why didn't you wait in the car?"

As he spoke, Wen Qi obediently let Ji Yaoming help him into his coat. Quan Mo stood silently a hundred meters away, the wind ruffling his hair. When Wen Qi turned, Quan Mo waved, then his smile faded, and he turned right, walking away along the road, vanishing from sight moments later.

"That kid," Wen Qi mumbled, then sighed again, quickly urging Ji Yaoming to head home. Once Ji Yaoming was settled in the driver's seat, Wen Qi noticed he had grown quiet once more.

"Why didn't you come in to eat?"

Ji Yaoming hummed in response, tapped his fingers on the steering wheel twice, and started the car. "I felt out of place there."

The night scenery outside the window flashed by. Wen Qi felt the warmth from the car and his coat. "There's nothing inappropriate about it."

"Besides, I really don't like eating leftovers."

Ji Yaoming chuckled softly.

Wen Qi had no other thoughts, just that some young master habits were indeed hard to break.

The ride was smooth. Wen Qi hesitantly raised a hand and scratched his neck a couple of times. "Quan Mo, well... he said he likes me."

The hands gripping the steering wheel whitened, yet Ji Yaoming merely said calmly, "And then?"

"What do you want to hear?"

Ji Yaoming sneered, "The truth."

"The truth is, I don't think he's right for me. I really admire his talent in military matters, so if I had to put a label on it, it's appreciation."

"Appreciation, is it?" Suddenly, the brakes screeched, and Wen Qi lurched forward. The next second, the car came to a quiet stop outside an entrance. He glanced inside, seeing a large screen projecting an old black-and-white film from some unknown era.

After the license plate was verified, Ji Yaoming, still cold-faced, slowly drove in and parked behind a few scattered cars.

"Do you remember me?" On the screen, a tear-filled omega leaned over the bedside, watching the alpha slowly open his eyes. The alpha's gaze was vacant, as if looking at a stranger.

"This alpha suffered a major blow after his parents died unexpectedly. Since then, his memory has been intermittent. The omega is his lover," Ji Yaoming explained. "He forgot everything about her too."

"The omega never left him, even when he sought out other omegas or did something hurtful during his memory loss."

As Ji Yaoming spoke, the characters on screen began to move in and out together, eating and living together.

"The omega took great care of him, and the alpha seemed to develop feelings too. There were indeed changes—he went from openly seeing others to doing it secretly. When others asked about his relationship with the omega at home, he would stammer and evade, avoiding the subject."

Ji Yaoming suddenly turned to him and asked, "This alpha is truly terrible, isn't he?"

Wen Qi nodded. "Although the memory loss isn't his fault, still..." Wen Qi met his gaze. "Why did you bring me here?"

"Because I'm angry."

After a moment's thought, Ji Yaoming added, "Because I'm afraid."

Wen Qi watched the characters in the movie argue, unsure what Ji Yaoming was afraid of.

"Afraid that everything is a lie." Ji Yaoming tilted Wen Qi's chin and turned his head. "Afraid that you're like this alpha, that even the memory loss was a lie from the very beginning."

"You beast!!" The omega was unnervingly calm in the heavy rain, while the alpha knelt on the ground, begging for a chance. "So you've been lying to me from the start... How could you... How dare you!!"

"You said you appreciate Quan Mo." The giant screen showed sudden rain, the sound effects blending with the real scene outside. Wen Qi listened to the sound of tires rolling through puddles as cars left. "Then what about me? Can you define what I am to you?"

Ji Yaoming stared stubbornly into his eyes.

"You rejected my proposal," Ji Yaoming's voice was very soft, and Wen Qi held his breath. "But you allow my advances. Is it because you think Ji Dufeng's recent death has made me need comfort?"

Wen Qi lowered his eyes, the cuff of his suit jacket, covering half his palm, now crumpled from his grip.

Watching the rain outside, not stormy, just steadily falling, Ji Yaoming said, "I was only upstairs for five minutes."

"So you..." Wen Qi frowned and looked at him. "Why didn't you come in?"

"What would I do in there? I heard all I needed from outside." He raised his hand and placed it on Wen Qi's head, idly twirling a lock of hair. Wen Qi didn't pull away.

But he pressed his lips together, his eyes glistening. "How foolish. If you're going to eavesdrop, shouldn't you listen till the end?"

"Didn't want to," Ji Yaoming lowered his hand, looking at him wearily. "Didn't like what I heard."

"Yes, Quan Mo asked me why I wouldn't give him a chance."

Ji Yaoming pursed his lips. "I'm sure it was like that alpha, just making excuses—"

"I told him I only love you."

Silence fell in the car. Wen Qi sat up straight, fists resting on his thighs, his gaze fixed on the person whose hand covered his mouth as he leaned against the window.

So he didn't see the smug smile hidden under that palm.

"Oh," Ji Yaoming looked at him indifferently. "That alpha said the same thing to the omega after cheating."

"I really told him!" Wen Qi frowned. "You know I don't lie to you."

"Given the previous blind date incident, your word doesn't carry much weight."

Wen Qi: "...This time it's true." His voice trailed off. "I said I love you."

"Then why did you say it to Quan Mo?" Ji Yaoming leaned in, tilting Wen Qi's chin up with his hand, forcing him to meet his gaze. Wen Qi said seriously, "He asked for a reason. He wouldn't believe anything else, so I had to tell the truth."

Ji Yaoming shook his head.

"Wrong." Then he turned his head and brushed a kiss to the slightly parted corner of his lips, then gently nuzzled. "What I'm asking is, why didn't you say it to me?"

Wen Qi froze.

"I want to hear it. Say it to me in the future; saying it to others is useless." Ji Yaoming drew him in, resting his head against his. "So, I love you, and you love me. Then what am I to you?"

"..." Wen Qi looked into his serious eyes and suddenly got annoyed. He pushed him away abruptly and said, "Captain, the great First Unit Chief Executive Officer."

Ji Yaoming, left holding empty air: "..."

The car suddenly started and sped off like a shot. Wen Qi was startled, and before he could complain, he heard a murmured voice from inside the car: "You know me so well, knowing I'd rather hear it in bed."

Wen Qi: "...Boyfriend. You're my boyfriend."

Ji Yaoming smiled, "Try again. I'm the captain."

Wen Qi gazed out the window, for the first time having the thought of jumping out of the car.

***

The next day, as soon as he opened his eyes, Ji Yaoming leaned in and kissed him on the eyelids.

"Say you love me."

Still half-asleep and disoriented, Wen Qi muttered to the person propped up beside him, "Love you."

Pleased with himself, Ji Yaoming got out of bed and said, "I ordered breakfast. I just got an emergency meeting notice, so eat by yourself and drive yourself over later."

Wen Qi finally became more alert. "How will you get there?"

Ji Yaoming, already dressed neatly, pulled the person on the bed into more kisses, leaving fresh red marks over old purple ones. Wen Qi knew clearly that he couldn't wear low-collared clothes again today.

"Lu Sien is picking me up. I'm heading out."

As instructed, Lu Sien opened the door only to see his superior following closely behind Wen Qi, reluctant to leave.

Exasperated, Lu Sien knocked loudly on the door a few times, and Ji Yaoming finally stepped out, glancing back repeatedly.

"Marshal Holleschel is already stirring up trouble early in the morning," Lu Sien remarked as they walked, observing his boss's unusually pleased expression, which seemed almost surreal.

When they were both seated in the car:

"Today is the first day of our relationship," Ji Yaoming said, raising an eyebrow. "Wen Qi and I."

Lu Sien: "..."

He wanted to tear off the steering wheel and shove it into Ji Yaoming's mouth!

Of course, he could only imagine it.

"Headquarters has started a top-down investigation into anyone related to Ji Dufeng. Even the slightest connection will be thoroughly scrutinized," Lu Sien took a deep breath. "Although you were the first to be targeted after the incident and the first to be cleared, headquarters is volatile now, so..."

"Regarding the involved personnel, four people have been arrested in the past few days, including our old acquaintance, General Hua Aide," Ji Yaoming flipped through the summary documents Lu Sien brought. "Hua Aide was in charge of munitions. He replaced genuine weapons with inferior ones and funneled all the illegal profits into Ji Dufeng's experiments."

"Headquarters is in chaos right now. No one would come to me with this kind of information at such a critical moment," Ji Yaoming put away the documents. "At least, no one smart would."

Upon arriving at the office, Ji Yaoming immediately connected with Holleschel. He raised an eyebrow, noticing it was just the two of them.

"Marshal."

Holleschel, with his neatly combed silver hair, showed a rare expression of distress on his usually resolute face. "Yao Ming, I'll get straight to the point. According to the current investigation, were you subjected to pheromone experiments by Ji Dufeng?"

Ji Yaoming nodded calmly. "If it's against regulations, I'm willing to cooperate with a suspension."

"No, no, no," Holleschel waved his hand dismissively. "That's not an issue. Just keep doing your job. I'm only asking because headquarters is a mess lately. I had hoped to make a smooth transition in six months, but it seems it's still too early."

Ji Yaoming didn't believe the marshal had used a military line just to complain. "So, what important matter did you need to discuss?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Holleschel sighed.

"...Resubmit the application for post-war soldier honors and the supporting documents. Make sure to mark it urgent." His sigh seemed like a buffer before making a difficult decision. After a moment, he said heavily, "This time, I'll approve it."

Just then, a few knocks sounded on Holleschel's office door.

A smile tugged at Ji Yaoming's lips as he said to him, "I submitted the documents half a month ago. By my estimate, they should have arrived by now."

***

Author's note: Dear readers, we're counting down to the end of the main story [hugs].