Chapter 2: Scent
After a rain, the humidity in the air rose noticeably. The morning air was refreshing and pleasant, no longer as dry as it usually was.
Jiang Rong liked the dampness after rain. According to Yao Shule, that probably meant he could be considered a southerner too.
The early bird catches the worm.
After coming to this world, he especially liked the breakfast at Qin University’s Second Cafeteria. They had his favorite shaomai, as well as various kinds of rice noodles and wheat-based noodles in different flavors.
In his original world, he got along fairly well with his roommates and would occasionally bring them breakfast. His classmates were all extremely competitive and usually woke up even earlier than he did, so whenever he brought breakfast, it was only because of special circumstances. Most of the time, everyone helped each other out. University dorms were generally arranged with either two Alphas and two Betas, or two Omegas and two Betas. When Alphas or Omegas entered their rut or sensitive periods, they needed assistance, and that was when Betas became important. In fact, most of the time, Alphas and Omegas didn’t really have conflicts with Betas.
From his observations, “Jiang Rong” had an extremely average relationship with his roommates. Yao Shule and Li Yizhou maintained only a superficial connection with him. No matter what they did, they rarely invited him along. Even when students from other dorms came over, they would selectively ignore his presence.
He didn’t know why such an estranged relationship had formed.
During his first week here, when he still didn’t understand anything, this relationship naturally gave him cover. But as time went on, he still felt a sense of loneliness—eating alone, studying alone, going to the library alone, doing everything alone.
Still, Jiang Rong had already learned how to amuse himself and talk himself through things.
Ever since his parents learned that he had no possibility of differentiating into an Omega, they paid very little attention to him. At home, he was practically invisible. His parents showed more smiles to his Alpha cousin than to him.
Jiang Rong comforted himself: Jiang Rong, it’s okay. You can do this.
After reassuring himself, Jiang Rong began eating the breakfast he had ordered. Since he’d already transmigrated, he couldn’t mistreat himself. Today he had ordered bamboo-shoot shaomai. It was said to be a Jiangsu–Zhejiang–Shanghai style of eating, something Yao Shule and Li Yizhou had mentioned when debating north–south dietary differences. The food in this world was truly diverse.
Eating something he liked lifted Jiang Rong’s mood considerably.
He had also ordered a bowl of chicken broth rice noodles. When the weather was cold, a mouthful of hot soup was just right—warming both the heart and the lungs, making his whole body feel warmer.
He had just taken his first bite when a commotion sounded not far away.
At this hour, there were quite a few students in the cafeteria looking for food. Qin University was one of the top five universities in the country. Like his former classmates, most students here were extremely competitive and woke up very early.
Curious, Jiang Rong glanced over and saw his roommate—the one with top-tier looks, temperament, and popularity—walking along while nodding and greeting people.
The corners of He Siming’s lips curved slightly as he responded to everyone with impeccable courtesy. He was graceful and refined. He looked gentle, but was actually aloof, because he treated everyone the same. A mere smile didn’t make him warm. Deep down, there was a thick barrier separating him from others. Precisely because of that, the hard-to-get Senior He mesmerized juniors of all genders. Some bold ones even walked right up to him while he was lining up for breakfast to ask for his WeChat. Even if they didn’t get it, just seeing the academic idol senior’s perfect gentle smile was enough to make their whole day happy.
Sometimes, happiness came very simply—a word of praise, a simple smile.
Jiang Rong only glanced once before refocusing on his breakfast. Campus celebrities like that had never had much to do with him. In his previous university, there had been similar figures too, but they were mostly Alphas or Omegas. Betas, on the other hand, were always overlooked by society. No matter how good-looking they were, they had no pheromones. They were a group naturally isolated by society.
Even though people shouted about human rights and equality every day, social status had long since been divided into hierarchies.
He was lost in thought when two figures sat down across from him. One of them started talking on his own.
“I’m saying, He Siming, don’t you have any awareness of how popular you are? Next time you come to the cafeteria, just weld a mask onto your face. The new shoes I just bought got stepped on by who knows who, leaving a huge footprint. First thing in the morning, really kills the mood.”
He was a victim of He Siming’s popularity!
“Then don’t walk with me,” He Siming replied.
“Hey, no way. Walking with you, even the campus belle talked to me a few extra sentences.”
“Then shut up.”
The one with He Siming was his friend, Ding Yan.
Sitting across from them, Jiang Rong didn’t know whether he should greet them or not. After all, they were roommates. But according to “Jiang Rong’s” established persona, he shouldn’t greet them. He should finish eating, leave silently with a cold face, and that would be that.
At this moment, Jiang Rong felt restless.
Should he greet them, or pretend he hadn’t seen them? Maybe it was better to maintain “Jiang Rong’s” persona—just keep a cold face.
Suddenly, He Siming looked at Jiang Rong. “Jiang Rong, where do we have class later?”
Jiang Rong knew he hadn’t sat here randomly. He had seen him.
“In Siming Building,” Jiang Rong answered. He had heard that He Siming went to competitions shortly after the semester started and hadn’t attended many classes. Forgetting the classroom location seemed normal.
Ding Yan was even more surprised than Jiang Rong. “Your classmate?”
He Siming said, “My roommate.”
Ding Yan felt that his earlier remark had been somewhat rude and suddenly realized something. “Ah, you’re that invisible—”
Jiang Rong wanted to know how he evaluated “Jiang Rong.” “Invisible what?”
He guessed Ding Yan wanted to say invisible person.
Was “Jiang Rong” really that transparent?
But then again, an orphan who had to endure more scrutiny than ordinary people from a young age being out of place among classmates was quite normal. Everyone’s life and starting point were completely different, and living together inevitably led to comparisons.
Most of “Jiang Rong’s” clothes were old. His T-shirts had been washed so much they’d become thin, his durable jeans had faded to white. His notebook and phone were both secondhand. Meanwhile, the other two roommates used either top-of-the-line devices or famous brands. No wonder “Jiang Rong” had become invisible—if you weren’t eye-catching, no one would notice you.
He Siming shot Ding Yan a glance and changed the topic. “Which classroom in Siming Building?”
Jiang Rong replied, “305.” He lowered his head and continued eating his noodles, the whole time making only soft slurping sounds and not saying another word.
He Siming didn’t have much to talk about with him either, so the two of them started dealing with their own breakfasts.
Jiang Rong quickly finished his noodles and, before they were done eating, cleaned up and left the cafeteria. Once outside, he let out a breath of relief.
By the time Jiang Rong’s figure disappeared from the cafeteria entrance, He Siming had also finished his breakfast. He pushed the soy milk toward Ding Yan.
“I’m not drinking it. You can have it.”
“If you’re not drinking it, why did you order it?” Ding Yan asked.
He Siming didn’t explain.
“Are you drinking it or not?” He Siming pressed.
Ding Yan accepted it. Not taking advantage of a freebie would make one a fool. Unlike He Siming, he didn’t like drinking coffee in the morning.
“Don’t you usually get an iced Americano for your 8 a.m. class? Why did you suddenly feel like coming to the cafeteria today?”
Their school had all kinds of restaurants, plus two cafés. He Siming was a regular at those places.
“I felt like it. Is that not allowed?”
Ding Yan couldn’t understand his thinking and started talking about Jiang Rong instead. “Your roommate is way too solitary. So many people are dying to walk with you, and he acts like he’s seen some kind of flood beast. Every time I went to your dorm before, he wouldn’t even look at me.”
He Siming didn’t respond. He didn’t like gossiping about people behind their backs, especially when the person in question was his roommate.
Ding Yan knew it wasn’t that He Siming had a strong moral sense—he was just too lazy to bother. In other words, he looked down on them. These classmates weren’t on the same level as him. So Ding Yan changed the topic.
He was a chatterbox whose mouth never rested. “Old He, why does your perfume smell like peaches today? That’s way too abstract. Spray some on me too.”
He Siming said, “I don’t have a habit of using fruity perfumes.”
He rarely stayed in the dorm and never kept perfume there.
Ding Yan insisted on getting to the bottom of it. “Then is it your body wash?”
He Siming replied, “It’s a mass-market brand from the supermarket. The same one you bought with me.”
Ding Yan suddenly realized. “Damn—did you go on a date last night and get someone else’s perfume on you?”
He Siming gave him a look. “Boring.”
“How is that boring?” Ding Yan said. “You look down on the people at school, and you look down on people outside too? Don’t tell me you’re planning to stay single throughout your entire university life.”
He Siming asked back, “Who do you think I should be interested in?”
That question really stumped Ding Yan.
He smacked his lips. “The campus belle chased you and you didn’t even react. You don’t like girls—don’t tell me you like guys?”
He Siming tugged at the corner of his mouth. A trace of emotion flashed through his eyes, hard to notice.
“There’s no one worth my time.”
He stopped paying attention to Ding Yan and headed toward Siming Building.
“Damn it, wait for me!” Ding Yan shouted.
Maybe it would be good if all his fangirls and fanboys discovered his true nature. But then again, even if they did, more people might rush toward him. Humans had a desire to conquer.
Over the next few days, Jiang Rong witnessed the charm of the campus heartthrob, He Siming. Wherever He Siming had class, there were always many people waiting outside. Whenever there was a large lecture, the classroom was guaranteed to be full, and the seats around He Siming were almost always occupied.
Only then did Jiang Rong learn that He Siming was so popular that there had once been girls who went to the dorm to confess to him. Since the second semester of freshman year, he rarely stayed in the dorm, only keeping his bed and returning occasionally.
He Siming’s appeal was obvious to all. He himself was extremely outstanding. It was said that as early as his first year, he had already been arranged by professors to join a project team. He didn’t even need to attend professional courses. Right after the semester started, he went to participate in the National College Student Programming Contest and won first prize for the school.
Even though he and Jiang Rong were in the same class, there was no interaction between them. As soon as He Siming entered the classroom, he would be surrounded by classmates. Once class ended, he would leave with friends or be called away by professors. He was so busy that his feet barely touched the ground.
Jiang Rong continued quietly teaching himself the basics every day, and every day was painful.
Because “Jiang Rong” had the special status of an orphan, the school gave him a monthly meal allowance, along with national aid for impoverished students. As long as he was frugal, it was enough to get by. Before he truly understood his major, there was no way he could work part-time.
He endured each day like this. Still, there were some results to show for it.
On Friday morning, they had a professional course, and the professor assigned a group project.
“The project duration is one week,” the professor said. “In a moment, the class monitor will send out the topics. Choose one out of five.”
Then class ended.
Afterward, the class monitor posted the topics in the group chat.
At his beginner level, there was no way he could write programs on his own, let alone deal with algorithms or execution. He really wanted to cry for help.
What a terrible weekend.
Who would be willing to team up with him? How had “Jiang Rong” formed groups for assignments before?
Quite a few classmates had already successfully formed groups in the class chat.
Jiang Rong scratched his head, feeling a bit lost.
Maybe he could go back and ask Yao Shule and Li Yizhou. He’d seen them talking in the group; they probably hadn’t formed a group yet.
With a gloomy expression, he returned to the dorm, only to see He Siming.
Thinking of the group assignment, he summoned his courage. “He Siming, you—”
Just then, He Siming’s phone rang. He answered the call. “Professor, you were looking for me?”
…
By the time he finished the call, Jiang Rong was already drinking water.
“What were you saying just now?” He Siming asked.
Jiang Rong shook his head. “Nothing.”
He Siming looked very busy. He probably wouldn’t do a group assignment with him anyway. For He Siming, it would be child’s play.
He Siming packed up a few books and left. Jiang Rong slumped over the desk dejectedly.
The other two roommates weren’t there either.
Yao Shule wasn’t around, and Li Yizhou was a local student. He’d mentioned before that it was his mother’s birthday this weekend and he was going home.
Jiang Rong closely watched the group chat to see if any classmates were left without a team. He considered that after forming a group, he might just pay someone online to write the code and muddle through first.
He pondered for a long time, then rubbed his increasingly sore neck. It had been aching more and more recently, and he didn’t know why. Could it be something wrong with his sleeping posture?
As evening approached, Jiang Rong decided to eat dinner and then go to the library. Just as he was about to leave, he nearly ran into Yao Shule, who rushed back in a hurry.
Yao Shule grabbed his phone from the desk and suddenly asked Jiang Rong, “Jiang Rong, why do you smell like peaches lately? Did your clothes get peach juice on them and not get washed properly?”
“My clothes are clean,” Jiang Rong said.
“These past few days, whenever I pass by you, you’ve had that smell on you,” Yao Shule said.
Jiang Rong sniffed his sleeve. Was there really a smell?
“Forget it. Maybe I smelled it wrong,” Yao Shule said. “I’m heading out. You lock the door.”
He took his phone and left, as if something urgent had come up.
Jiang Rong guessed that Yao Shule probably wouldn’t be coming back over the weekend. He had a partner, and weekends were always spent together.
In the dorm, out of politeness and because they lived in the same space, Yao Shule would occasionally say a few words to him—but not many.
Once again, Jiang Rong could have the dorm all to himself.
Mm, that was nice.
With no one in the dorm, Jiang Rong didn’t need to go to the library.
He watched video tutorials and studied alone until nearly eleven, then showered and prepared to go to bed. He originally planned to play on his phone for a bit and learn some common knowledge that differed from his original world, but for some reason, his whole body felt sore and achy.
A fever?
Just as he was about to step onto the ladder to climb into bed, his phone rang.
It was a voice call from Yao Shule.
He pressed the answer button, and a burst of noisy, booming sounds flooded his ears.
He heard Yao Shule crying. “Wuwuwu, Li Yizhou, come pick me up!”
Jiang Rong thought he had misheard. “Yao Shule? I’m not Li Yizhou.”
Yao Shule didn’t respond to that at all. Instead, he shouted into the phone, “Li Yizhou, you bastard! I’m at that Jiangnan Bar near the school. Come quickly—I just got dumped!”
Jiang Rong quickly looked it up and replied, “Then wait for me.”
Yao Shule was probably drunk, but he still knew to send his location. But did a breakup really require getting this drunk?
Jiang Rong quickly got ready and left the dorm. His fever probably wasn’t serious. He would pick the guy up first, then buy some fever medicine.
He vaguely felt that the sudden heat in his body was strange—something not quite normal.
