Chapter 55: A Match Made in Heaven
Fu Rangyi seriously reflected on it for a long time, but no matter how he thought about it, he had never done anything capable of thrusting someone’s reproductive cavity into existence. He knew his own limits. It absolutely had not reached that point.
This most likely had not been caused physically.
Compared with him, Zhu Zhixi seemed more like the culprit, much guiltier. “We… we didn’t really do anything.”
Director Wang pushed up his reading glasses. “You gave such a detailed account just now, and now you’re retracting your confession on the spot? Should I bring a court stenographer with me when I see patients from now on?”
“I’m not retracting anything. You misunderstood me.” Zhu Zhixi rubbed his nose. “What I mean is, we didn’t do anything special. Just what everyone else does, that’s what we did…”
Hearing this, Fu Rangyi’s vision nearly went black. He quickly cut in and asked, “Director Wang, is it because I injected too many pheromones and stimulated his recessive gland?”
Director Wang nodded. “Although the pheromone and endocrine test results aren’t out yet, based on my experience, that’s most likely the case.”
“In fact, a large number of Betas don’t completely lack glands. When we talk about recessive development, we’re really referring to function. To put it simply, their glands are like an extinct volcano, and pheromones are magma buried underneath. Although these glands are generally very small and buried very deep, they mostly still retain a physical form. Some can even produce trace amounts of pheromones, but they’ve completely lost the ability to release them.”
He pulled up the gland image from earlier and circled an area. “Little Zhu’s gland is different. Before, it was only about the size of a tiny pearl, but its growth position is special. It’s extremely close to the subcutaneous layer. To put it plainly, it’s very shallow. I suspect this is hereditary.”
Zhu Zhixi paused, then said blankly, “Yes. The doctor who operated on my mother before also said her gland was positioned very shallowly.”
Fu Rangyi frowned. “There shouldn’t be hereditary issues in other aspects, right?”
“Not at present,” Director Wang continued. “Because his gland is very shallow, it’s easily stimulated. You just said that there have been repeated temporary marking behaviors during this period, so pheromones must have been injected, correct?”
Fu Rangyi admitted, “Yes.”
“When was the earliest time pheromones were released?” Director Wang asked again.
Zhu Zhixi counted, answering vaguely like a student who had not paid attention in class. “Around… last week…”
Fu Rangyi was somewhat helpless. “Late December. I did it during my susceptible period.”
Oh, right. There was also that time during his susceptible period. Zhu Zhixi patted his own head.
The moment this was said, Director Wang immediately understood. He slapped his pen onto the desk. “No wonder. I was wondering how it could have developed so quickly. From late December to after New Year, that makes sense.”
He added, “You yourself are an SA. According to your last test results, your pheromone rating is outstanding even within the entire S-class range. It’s perfectly normal for your pheromones to induce development. And all pheromone indexes double during an Alpha’s susceptible period.”
“As for you, you also have malignant susceptible-period syndrome. Due to pathological reasons, all your indexes would surge explosively. Ordinary SAs can’t compare to you at all. It’s equivalent to your pheromones causing violent tectonic movement beneath him, reviving an extinct volcano. This situation is special among special cases. It would be impossible for something similar to happen with anyone else.”
Zhu Zhixi understood. “Ah, so only Fu Rangyi can make my Beta gland develop a second time.”
“Correct.” Director Wang nodded. “Your position is special too. With another Beta, he might not be able to do it either. That’s why I said this is special among special cases. You two are one-to-one.”
For some reason, Zhu Zhixi inexplicably became happy again and turned those words over and over in his heart. One-to-one, special—doesn’t that mean the two of us are made for each other? We’re a perfect match.
Director Wang was also quite happy. Not for any other reason, but because standing before him was a living paper.
Zhu Zhixi asked again, “So, after Christmas, I’d already been quietly developing? Then why didn’t I grow taller too?”
“This is your sex gland, not your pituitary gland.” Director Wang looked as if this child was beyond saving.
“Will secondary gland development harm him in any way?” Fu Rangyi’s expression was serious.
Zhu Zhixi also nodded. “Right, Director Wang. Recently my lower abdomen has felt dull and uncomfortable.”
“It’s fine. Come for regular follow-ups. Eat more protein. Temporary marking can continue. No sex for a week.”
Zhu Zhixi: “Huh?”
Fu Rangyi reached out and helplessly covered his mouth.
“You should restrain yourselves a little anyway,” Director Wang reminded them.
We’ve already been restraining ourselves, okay? To a ridiculous degree. Zhu Zhixi retorted inwardly.
Director Wang continued, “Your reproductive cavity was previously atrophied and closed. Now it’s in a developmental stage, and the cavity opening is also growing, so there will be soreness and mild pain. Later, there may also be some pheromone-related abnormal reactions. Those are all normal. Just come back for follow-ups. Think of it this way: when teenagers grow taller during puberty, their legs ache too.” After saying that, he added, “But you won’t grow taller.”
Zhu Zhixi: “…Well, thank you so much.” Height judge.
“I’ll prescribe you some medicine. It should help relieve the discomfort.”
Fu Rangyi thought and thought, but still asked, “Then… since he has developed a reproductive cavity, can he conceive?”
Both Zhu Zhixi and Professor Wang looked at him, though their expressions were quite different.
Director Wang rubbed his chin. “Do you two want to conceive? That… won’t really work.”
Fu Rangyi let out a breath of relief.
“His reproductive cavity has developed, but it developed very poorly.”
Hearing this, Zhu Zhixi felt as if a rock had hit him on the head. He could not smile.
“Look here. There’s only one fallopian tube, and it’s closed. That’s basically self-sterilization. The comprehensive exam last time also showed underdevelopment of the hypothalamus and insufficient hormone secretion… Simply put, he can’t ovulate. Even if he did, the egg couldn’t be delivered. Oh, and the reproductive cavity lining is also underdeveloped, which means there’s no soil either. Even if Guanyin herself showed up with a child, the embryo wouldn’t implant. This is basically full-pathway infertility.”
Ha. After listening, Zhu Zhixi actually laughed outright.
Then what does my reproductive cavity growing out even count as? Does it count as Fu Rangyi being amazing?
Fu Rangyi released a huge sigh of relief. “So there’s no possibility at all, correct?”
“What? Are you trying to treat infertility?” Director Wang frowned at the images, clicking his tongue a few times, his expression grave as he muttered, “If this could be treated successfully, that would be another top journal paper.”
Zhu Zhixi: “Another?”
Professor Wang coughed. “Difficult. Even Betas with all indexes intact have difficulty conceiving. As doctors, we don’t recommend it either. As for your case, don’t even think about it. You’re destined to have no children. My advice is to let it go.”
After they came out, Zhu Zhixi stuck both hands into the pockets of his coat, jabbed Fu Rangyi’s waist with his elbow, and asked with a grin, “Now you can relax?”
Fu Rangyi wanted to laugh and subconsciously said, “The one who should really relax is probably the family planning commissioner.”
Zhu Zhixi was confused. “Who?”
Fu Rangyi: “No one.”
Zhu Zhixi chased him and asked for a long time, but Fu Rangyi refused to say it. Based on his understanding of these two brothers, if he told Little Zhu this nickname today, tomorrow Little Zhu would run to his brother-in-law’s office to laugh at him, and the day after tomorrow the family planning commissioner would come over to kill him. He did not want to invite trouble.
“Before I leave, I’ll make you more good food to nourish your body.” Fu Rangyi finished speaking. “High-protein food. Beef? Or stewed chicken soup…”
Zhu Zhixi turned his face sideways and watched Fu Rangyi, who usually never looked at his phone while walking, now seriously searching for what foods were the most nourishing. The screen was full of all kinds of recipes, a dazzling variety. Something suddenly stirred in his heart.
Fu Rangyi suddenly turned around again, as if he wanted to go back.
“What are you doing?” Zhu Zhixi grabbed him.
Fu Rangyi said, “I’m going to ask Director Wang if there are any health supplements or tonics suitable for your developmental stage.”
Zhu Zhixi blinked. “It’s just growing a reproductive cavity. Nothing I eat could be faster than you injecting pheromones, right?”
“It’s not about speed. I’m worried your nutrition won’t be enough.” Fu Rangyi said this very seriously.
Zhu Zhixi still did not let go of his arm. After a moment of silence, he said, “Before… when I was in Africa, there was a period when I kept getting sick. One illness got better, and another came along. Anyway, my health was really bad.”
The topic came out of nowhere, but Fu Rangyi looked at Zhu Zhixi seriously.
He asked, “What happened?” Seeing Zhu Zhixi’s backpack strap slip down, he reached out and took the bag off directly, carrying it himself. Inside the bag were the missing-dog posters Zhu Zhixi had printed.
“There wasn’t any special reason.” Zhu Zhixi smiled. “The animal protection conditions over there weren’t very good. Although working with wild animals was really interesting, the environment was too wild, so it was easy to get infected.”
“To be honest, I really didn’t think it was a big deal back then. It was just a pile of little problems. I was too lazy to tell my dad and my brother. Those two make a huge fuss over everything.”
Zhu Zhixi lowered his eyes. “I hate being treated like I’m delicate.”
“Especially by some Alphas. Because there’s a natural physiological difference, they often take extra care of me. Honestly, I’m grateful, of course, but it really isn’t necessary. I think I’m pretty strong.” Zhu Zhixi said frankly, “And nothing really happened, right? Although I was sick for a long time, I recovered, and I completed all my work.”
Fu Rangyi smiled. “You really are amazing.”
“But seeing you just now, so careful when asking the doctor questions, then coming out and immediately worrying about nourishing my body…” Zhu Zhixi stopped and looked at him. “For the first time, I realized that I actually like being taken care of too.”
He thought about it, very keenly finding the reason, then added, “Maybe because… the way you take care of me doesn’t come from the pity of someone physiologically stronger looking down on someone weaker.”
It was very pure love.
He realized that Fu Rangyi’s own fragility and sensitivity instead neutralized the innate dominance and arbitrariness in Alpha genes, giving him a special charm different from everyone else.
Fu Rangyi smiled and stepped forward to hug Zhu Zhixi. “In many ways, you’re stronger than I am. Your core is stable, your energy is high, your vitality is vigorous. Even when facing the worst situations, you can always find a perspective that makes you positive again. Those are all things I lack.”
That is why I’m drawn to you. Or rather, anyone would be drawn to you.
Fu Rangyi lowered his head and looked at him. Though there was not much expression on his face, his tone was soft. “I’m honored that I can make you like this kind of care.”
The corners of Zhu Zhixi’s mouth could not stop rising. In the busy hospital corridor, he wrapped his arms around Fu Rangyi’s waist.
“You really did listen to what I said seriously,” he whispered. “If it were the old you, you definitely would’ve said: I really don’t know what Zhu Zhixi is so happy about every day.”
Fu Rangyi was somewhat helpless. His greatest strength was correcting his path in time to ensure progress. Besides, the Foster Care Manual could not have been written for nothing.
“I’ll take that as a compliment too.” He released his arms from the hug, took Zhu Zhixi’s hand, and led him to pick up the other test results and medicine.
“It was a compliment. Ah, right.” Zhu Zhixi stood on tiptoe and leaned close to his ear. “Since it’s infertility anyway, from now on you don’t need to wear…”
Fu Rangyi did not even turn his face. From the word “since,” he predicted what would come next, reached to the side, and pinched a certain little villain’s cheek.
“We’ll consider that after one week,” he said in an ordinary tone, a slight smile curving his lips.
Fine. It just so happened that the business trip was coming up too. There would be physical distance between them. Whether that counted as good news or bad news, Zhu Zhixi could not figure out.
Zhu Zhixi could not understand how this man managed to control his physiological desires so freely. He controlled them so well, like a robot. Weren’t top Alphas all sex-addicted monsters?
Most of the time, Zhu Zhixi felt that he was consciously seducing him. But on second thought, it seemed Fu Rangyi had been the one baiting him all along, giving him a little, but never enough, so that he would keep thinking about it.
They took the elevator to the second-floor laboratory department, and Fu Rangyi scanned the form. There were surprisingly many people waiting to collect test results, forming a long line. Fu Rangyi looked at the seats not far away; one had just opened up. He led Zhu Zhixi over.
He instructed, “Sit here. I’ll go line up. I’ll be back soon.”
“Hey.” Zhu Zhixi tugged his hand. “Give me the backpack. Don’t carry it.”
“Okay.” Fu Rangyi put the bag down and went alone to line up for the results.
Zhu Zhixi placed the backpack behind him, turned his head, watched Fu Rangyi walk to the end of the line, then took out his phone and snapped a photo of his back.
Bored, he played with his phone for a while, chatted with Liang Yi’en, then played with his fingers. He stared at the countdown in his palm. His gaze moved down, and he began playing with the beaded bracelet on his wrist, touching each bead one by one like a Buddhist disciple.
But very soon, he noticed something was wrong. Most of the beads on this bracelet were icy blue, but only one was white. On the inner side, there was a tiny number printed on it—one had to turn it over to see it. It was the adoption number.
Moving the bead aside, he discovered that it said NO.99.
Eh? Zhu Zhixi stared at it, and his head tilted.
That’s not right. Mine was clearly 66. Back then, I even thought the number was very auspicious.
If not for the NO. prefix, he really would not have been able to tell the difference.
Wasn’t Fu Rangyi the one who had restrung it after it broke? Thinking this, Zhu Zhixi stood up directly and walked straight toward Fu Rangyi with his wrist extended, wanting to ask him what was going on. But just as he had taken two steps, he suddenly heard someone call him from behind.
“Young man?”
Zhu Zhixi turned around, searched with his gaze, and finally met the eyes of an old woman with white hair. She was hunched over, her forearm raised. She had just finished having blood drawn, and her right hand was pressing a cotton swab against the crook of her left arm.
The old woman smiled kindly, nodding her chin toward the seat and reminding him with good intentions, “You forgot your bag.”
“Oh, right.” Zhu Zhixi smiled and scratched his hair, ran back to get the bag, then supported the old woman’s arm. “Please sit. Slowly.”
“Thank you.” The old woman sat down and looked up at him with a smiling face.
Zhu Zhixi looked at her, frowned, then suddenly froze.
Wait.
“Aren’t you… aren’t you the granny who fainted on You’an Street?” Zhu Zhixi’s eyes lit up. He crouched down and said to her, “What a coincidence! I didn’t expect to see you again.”
The other party also froze. She focused carefully on the young man’s face before her, her tone uncertain when she spoke. “Are you the handsome Beta boy who helped me back then?”
“Yes!” Zhu Zhixi was pleasantly surprised. “You hadn’t woken up back then. I was in a hurry and had something to do, so I left first. I never expected we’d meet again. Is your health all right? Are you here for a blood test?”
“I’m fine. Old problems. Just a follow-up.” The old woman smiled so widely her mouth could hardly close, reaching out to pull him up. “Get up, quickly. You’re my lucky star, my great benefactor. It was all thanks to you. Otherwise I’d have left this world long ago.”
“Please don’t say that!” Zhu Zhixi still crouched on the ground, smiling as he said auspicious words. “You’re going to live to a hundred. Since you say I’m your lucky star, and we’re so fated that we even met while seeing a doctor, that means you’re blessed too.”
The old woman smiled. Remembering something, she said, “The emergency doctor told me that you paid the emergency fee and medical expenses. I’ve been thinking about this all along. Perfect, now that we’ve met.”
As she spoke, she freed the hand holding the cotton swab and unzipped the small bag close to her body. “I can’t let you pay for nothing. I still have to thank you for saving my life.”
Seeing this, Zhu Zhixi panicked and immediately stood up. “No, no, no, that won’t do. It wasn’t much money! How about this? Buy me a popsicle later. Really, I’ve been craving ice cream.”
“That won’t do, child. Listen to me. One thing is one thing. I’ll buy you ice cream too.” As the old woman spoke, seeing Zhu Zhixi holding a large bag, she simply tugged at the zipper of his backpack, wanting to stuff the money inside.
“Really, no, I don’t want it. Ah, please listen to me.”
When the line was almost at his turn, Fu Rangyi turned back and glanced over, then was startled.
What is Zhu Zhixi doing? And who is this old lady? Why is she fighting Zhu Zhixi over his bag?
“Hey, handsome, it’s your turn. Hurry up and scan the form,” the person behind him reminded.
Fu Rangyi could only deal with this side first, waiting for the old machine to slowly print the test results.
“Oh, how are you so strong!” Zhu Zhixi did not dare use force. Seeing that the stack of money was about to be stuffed in, he freed one hand to steady the old woman while using the other to take his backpack away. But the old woman was still tugging on it. With this back-and-forth, the bag was pulled straight to the ground.
The zipper was open, and the contents spilled out with a rustle, scattering all over the floor. They were all his missing-dog posters.
Zhu Zhixi immediately crouched down to pick them up. The old woman also wanted to help, so he quickly helped her sit properly in the chair.
“Please sit still. It’s just a few things. I’ll tidy them up in no time. Don’t worry.”
“Look at me. I meant well and caused trouble instead.” The old woman was a little uneasy, bending over to look around. “Don’t miss anything.”
“It’s nothing important. Just paper.”
As she looked, her expression suddenly changed. She reached out, her fingertips trembling, and grabbed the poster in Zhu Zhixi’s hand.
“This… this…”
Hearing that, Zhu Zhixi’s tone changed. Startled, he lifted his head. “What’s wrong? Are you all right?”
The old woman’s lips trembled faintly. Her eyes were full of confusion and surprise as she stared at the photo on the poster. “Isn’t this my Snowball?”
Author’s Note:
Do you still remember that on the first-snow night, when Little Zhu went to build a snowman in the middle of the night, he muttered to himself, “Let’s make another snowball,” and suddenly froze?
Let’s rewind time to that very second. Little Zhu, holding the snowball: Eh?
Snowball’s soul inside his body: Eh? Are you calling me? It’s me! I’m Snowball! Hurry and pat my head! Bouncing, bouncing.
——Mini Theater: Follow-up after the forum post full of Teacher Fu’s photos was deleted——
The moderator rejected Fu Rangyi’s complaint. Reason: The campus forum is anonymous. How can you prove you are the person in question? Please provide the corresponding proof.
Fu Rangyi, while waiting in line, received this reply and was quite speechless.
How am I supposed to prove that I am myself?
With reason, evidence, and rigorous logic, he typed a long reply and finally attached a screenshot of his teaching system before sending it over.
Half an hour later, the moderator replied: Sorry, all of this can be Photoshopped. Professor Fu is so busy that he definitely wouldn’t look at posts on the campus forum. Besides, he has a gentle personality and is very tolerant toward students. He definitely isn’t someone who would fuss over things like this. Of course, we will go ask Teacher Fu about it. Thank you for your report. For now, we will not delete the post.
Fu Rangyi laughed from anger.
Why can’t I go on the forum? I go on the forum for academic exchange. All the posts I reply to are academic discussion threads.
They really know how to flatter someone into silence.
That afternoon, a student actually messaged him privately.
[Teacher, teacher, have you seen this thread?]
[These are photos of you from back when you were in school. There are even military training photos. It’s really popular. Would you feel bothered by it?]
This sounded exactly like a probe.
Fu Rangyi immediately typed: Any normal person would feel bothered, right? So many photos…
But before he finished typing, a new message came in.
[Teacher, you’re usually so busy that you definitely don’t take photos. You can keep this thread as a memento. You can send it to your lover and reminisce together about your youthful campus days! He’ll definitely like it too, since he didn’t get to participate in that time. If it were gone, he’d definitely feel regretful.]
Half an hour later, Fu Rangyi logged into his forum account, opened the complaint page, and clicked withdraw complaint.
