The Unattainable Flower Pulled Down from the Pedestal by Universal Dislike – CH19

Chapter 19

At the beginning of August, Grandfather thought that Tan Ning was bored at home, so he brought him a few pots of flowers to tend.

Sitting in the courtyard, Tan Ning stared blankly at the flower buds that hadn’t yet bloomed. Sometimes he felt the sunlight was too harsh and moved the flowerpots to a different spot. Other times, he thought the shade was too cool and they weren’t getting enough sun, so he moved them back.

In this way, moving them back and forth, he spent the entire afternoon.

When Grandfather returned from playing mahjong and saw Tan Ning sitting alone in the courtyard, he sighed, grabbed a stool, and sat down. “What about your friends from when you were little? Why not ask them out to get together?”

Tan Ning shook his head.

“You keep shaking your head all day; your neck’s going to turn into a rattle.”

So, Tan Ning lowered his head to look at the ground.

Fanning himself with a palm-leaf fan, Grandfather asked puzzledly, “You weren’t like this when you were little. How did you grow up to become so silent?”

Not knowing what to say, Tan Ning used the tip of his shoe to nudge the bottom of a flowerpot.

Grandfather sighed.

Friends from childhood… Tan Ning couldn’t find any of them. Xuan City was too small. The story of “a wife bringing her child to catch her cheating husband, scaring him into fleeing onto the street and getting hit by a car” had become an enduring topic of gossip in the old town of Xuan City. From elementary to high school, over those ten-plus years, whenever Tan Ning felt he was about to forget that scene, some ill-intentioned classmate would bring it up with a smirk.

“Hiding in the closet, huh, Tan Ning!”

“Be careful crossing the street, Tan Ning!”

There was always someone reminding him that it was he who reached out his hand, opened the closet door, and caused his father’s death.

So he would never proactively reach out again.

“You’re in love, aren’t you?” Grandfather suddenly said, breaking Tan Ning’s train of thought.

Tan Ning froze, instinctively holding his breath.

“That night, I heard noises from my room—it was a boy, right? Seemed like he came by car. Where’s he from?”

“No, I—” Tan Ning almost rushed to deny it.

“What’s the big deal?” Grandfather said with a smile.

Tan Ning frowned. “I’m not in love, no.”

“What’s wrong? Is the boy from a wealthy family? Or is there an age gap? What’s the difficulty? Tell me.”

Looking at the few flowers that were slow to bloom, Tan Ning felt a mess inside, suddenly unable to bear the scorching heat. Sweat dripped from his temples. He thought: There is a difficulty, one that can never be overcome.

Tan Ning didn’t want to talk about it. He had deliberately forgotten this matter for a long time, but now it resurfaced.

His memory returned to a year and a half ago.

At Lin Qi’s house.

That day, Lin Qi had finally finished a set of practice exams. He threw down his pen and excitedly ran downstairs to play. As he went down, he asked his mother, “Are we going to Uncle’s house next week? Will Cousin be there?”

Tan Ning’s pen paused slightly, and he instinctively glanced at his phone screen.

Lin Song’an hadn’t contacted him today. Tan Ning turned his phone face down with a stern expression.

After grading the exams, Tan Ning waited for a long time but Lin Qi didn’t return to the bedroom. So he went out to look for him. Just as he reached the staircase landing, he heard Lin Qi whining, “You’re the omega! I don’t want to differentiate into an omega! I want to be an alpha like Cousin!”

Mrs. Lin said helplessly, “What’s so good about being an alpha?”

“How is it not good? If it weren’t good, would you be praising Cousin every day, saying how excellent he is?”

“Do you have grades as good as Brother Song’an? Brother Song’an won awards in math competitions when he was young. Of course, he deserves praise; it’s not because he’s an alpha.”

“Cousin is a level-nine alpha. I don’t care; he’s awesome! I want to be like him.”

“Awesome how? He can’t even decide his own marriage in the future.”

“What do you mean?”

“An alpha of Song’an’s level not only has rut periods more frequently than ordinary alphas but the pain is also doubled. General relief medicines don’t work. Only after he becomes an adult and forms a complete bond with an omega of high compatibility will the situation improve. But high compatibility doesn’t mean he likes that person. In the future, he might end up like your uncle and aunt. Would you want that?”

“I don’t want that!” Lin Qi immediately shook his head. “I don’t want to be like Uncle and Aunt. Uncle said that he had a beta girlfriend at the time, but Grandpa and Grandma wouldn’t allow them to be together, so he had no choice but to marry Aunt.”

“What nonsense is your uncle telling you?”

“You won’t tell me, so of course I ask Uncle.” Lin Qi put his hands on his hips, raising his head. “If I were Cousin, I’d insist on being with a beta. I don’t believe it—can’t I decide my own affairs? Cousin must think so too.”

“What does a child know?” Mrs. Lin tapped Lin Qi on the head. “Go study quickly; don’t keep Teacher Tan waiting.”

Lin Qi went upstairs with an ice cream, but at the landing, he bumped into Tan Ning. “Teacher Tan, why are you standing here?”

Tan Ning’s face was pale. He said, “I was about to come look for you.”

“Oh.”

Back in the bedroom, the phone on the desk was ringing.

Tan Ning guessed who was calling but didn’t answer.

The vibration wasn’t loud, but it was annoyingly disruptive, like the incessant cicadas on a summer night, making people restless.

Seeing Tan Ning pressing his lips tightly together, Grandfather slapped his thigh in frustration. “You really drive people crazy, kid. I can’t be bothered with you. What’s for dinner? Just the leftover pumpkin porridge from this morning.”

Grandfather walked halfway and then turned back. “When does school start?”

“I’m going back on the 25th.”

“Oh, then I’ll buy some pastries for you to take—the walnut cakes you loved when you were little.”

A few kilometers away on Shengying Street, there’s a pastry shop whose best-selling item is walnut cakes. When he was young, Tan Ning actually loved eating them, but knowing his grandfather was short on money, he never mentioned it.

Later, during the New Year, Yue Ying bought walnut cakes for Bebe and happened to pass by and shared some with Tan Ning. Tan Ning acted indifferent, sitting on the sofa watching TV. Grandfather thought he didn’t like them. But after Yue Ying left, when Grandfather came out of the kitchen, he saw Tan Ning squatting by the coffee table, eyes fixed intently on those few pastries.

Only then did Grandfather realize that Tan Ning liked them.

This child was so strange—the more he liked something, the more he pretended not to.

So every festival thereafter, Grandfather would line up to buy them.

Tan Ning replied with a “Hmm,” and said sullenly, “Thank you, Grandfather.”

*

August quickly came to an end.

On the 25th, early in the morning, Tan Ning went to an ATM at the bank and withdrew 20,000 yuan, stuffed it into an envelope, and placed it beside Grandfather’s pillow.

All these years, his living and tuition expenses had come from Grandfather’s pension. Although Yue Ying occasionally sent money, the grandfather and grandson still lived frugally. Fortunately, Tan Ning was sensible; he didn’t eat snacks or spend money carelessly—easy to support.

After starting university, Tan Ning began working part-time and no longer needed Grandfather to send him money. Each time he came home during breaks, he would give Grandfather some money. Actually, Grandfather wasn’t exceptionally good to him—just made sure he didn’t starve or freeze—but occasionally he would show some “grandfatherly love,” and Tan Ning was content.

After placing the envelope properly, Tan Ning dragged his suitcase and carried the pastries that Grandfather had lined up early to buy, and left alone. Passing by next door, he called out, “Grandfather, I’m heading back to school.”

From inside came the clattering sounds of mahjong and Grandfather’s response: “Got it, be careful on the road.”

Dragging his suitcase, Tan Ning walked to the bus stop and took the bus to the station. At the station entrance, a group of ticket scalpers swarmed around, chasing after Tan Ning and asking if he needed tickets. No matter how cold his expression was, they kept pestering him. As he carried his suitcase down the steps, he grew annoyed by a middle-aged man following him, and in his haste, he almost fell.

But someone reached out just in time to catch him.

“Watch where you’re going, classmate,” Lin Song’an smiled as he helped him up, taking his suitcase. “I’ve been following you from Tianqiao Gardens, but you didn’t look up even once.”

Tan Ning was a bit dazed. “Why are you here?”

“Why can’t I be here?”

The ticket scalpers nearby saw such a tall and strong alpha like Lin Song’an and immediately dispersed.

“I guessed you’d return to school today, checked the tickets to confirm the time, and waited at the alley entrance for you. But you didn’t even notice my car. I even honked, but you didn’t stop.”

With a smile in his eyes, Lin Song’an looked at him. Tan Ning’s eyes were stung by the sunlight; he hurriedly lowered his head, trying to take back his suitcase, muttering, “Time’s almost up; I need to go through security.”

Without another word, Lin Song’an pulled him toward his car. “What security? There’s a free shuttle service here.”

Lin Song’an held Tan Ning’s arm with one hand. It seemed casual and relaxed, but in reality, it was like iron; Tan Ning couldn’t break free at all.

He was practically pushed into the front passenger seat by Lin Song’an. Once Lin Song’an got in and closed the door, before Tan Ning could react, Lin Song’an leaned over, pressing against him, kissing him fiercely, almost venting, and answered his own question: “Why did I come? The reason is simple—I missed you.”

Hearing this, Tan Ning suddenly began to struggle.

But Lin Song’an seemed to have anticipated his resistance and had already grabbed both his wrists, trapping him in his arms. The kiss moved from Tan Ning’s lips to his ear, then to his neck. Outside, it was scorching; inside the car, it was hot and stuffy. Everywhere he touched became soft and hot, damp all over.

Tan Ning thought of the bottle of perfume Lin Song’an had given him, imagining how intense that sandalwood scent would be when ignited.

“Don’t you miss me at all?”

Tan Ning hated hearing Lin Song’an say such things. Clearly, they had a tacit understanding—not to mention these things. He said angrily, “What’s wrong with you?”

“Over a month without seeing you. What do you think is wrong?”

“Lin Song’an!”

“My rut period came suddenly last week, and you weren’t there.”

Tan Ning suddenly stiffened.

“You clearly promised to help me with my rut periods.”

“When did I—”

Lin Song’an buried his face in the crook of Tan Ning’s neck, rubbing against him with fatigue. “Tan Ning, my rut periods seem to be becoming more frequent and uncontrollable. It’s very uncomfortable.”

At the mention of this, Tan Ning became even more restless, struggling desperately in Lin Song’an’s arms. If he were really a cat, Lin Song’an’s face might have been scratched by now.

But Lin Song’an seemed to be sulking too, insisting on kissing him.

Chasing, entangling, refusing to let go.

“Why?” Tan Ning’s voice trembled.

Lin Song’an pressed his forehead against Tan Ning’s. “Why what?”

“We agreed.”

Lin Song’an pretended not to know. “Agreed on what?”

Tan Ning lowered his eyes. “Not to have that kind of relationship.”

“What kind?”

Tan Ning turned his head to look outside the window. “A romantic relationship.”

Lin Song’an grabbed his chin, forcing him to meet his gaze. With a cold face, he denied, “No, we didn’t agree. You were the one who wanted to break up. I didn’t want to lose you, so I agreed to be this inexplicable friend with benefits.”

“I’ve always only wanted to be in a relationship with you.”