After Being Deceived, I Married Someone Else and Had Children Chapter 76

But Zuo Shihuan didn’t know, sometimes, the simpler something is, the harder it is to face it clearly, especially for the one who cares the most.

The more Gu Heng understood, the less he dared to look.

He had countless chances to take a good look, to remember that person’s beautiful face but every time, his gaze only brushed past in haste, always stopping on Zuo Shihuan instead.

Part of it was that no one but Zuo Shihuan ever caught his eye. The other part came from a sour, complicated jealousy he couldn’t even begin to explain.

He had never imagined he could feel such deep envy toward an Omega.

He refused to look too closely—resenting and hating the existence of someone else who could stand rightfully beside Zuo Shihuan, while he himself could not bear to see them together, looking as perfect and well-matched as everyone said, “a talented man and a beautiful woman.” Least of all did he want to see Zuo Shihuan treating her with that same tender gentleness.

As if he were the one intruding, the one who had ruined the harmony of that engagement banquet.

Outwardly, he’d seemed aloof, too proud to even glance their way. But inside, he’d been consumed by a fear and anxiety he’d never felt before—that the kind of delicate Omega he usually looked down on would, so effortlessly and with everyone’s applause and blessings, take away the one person he could neither let go of nor have.

Gu Heng had crushed every obstacle that had ever stood before him, his fists tearing down barrier after barrier—but never had he felt so powerless.

His fists were clenched, yet he couldn’t protect his most precious treasure.

He couldn’t restrain the panic and killing intent rising in his chest, and yet—he didn’t dare even look at the Omega beside Zuo Shihuan. He was truly afraid that if he did, his jealousy would lose all control, and he might actually kill that person.

But his pride forbade it.

Even in his hatred and jealousy, he knew she was an innocent civilian. His pride and his principles would never allow him to harm a citizen of the Federation. Hurting her, even a little, would only be an act of helpless rage—not something that would change anything.

If Zuo Shihuan hadn’t chosen him, then even if that Omega disappeared, nothing would change.

Thankfully, in the end, Zuo Shihuan had chosen him.

The moment he did, Gu Heng’s world burst open with light—hope and joy flooding in. Yet even as he snatched Zuo Shihuan from the engagement banquet and held him tight, anxiety still lingered in the back of his mind.

Even in his joy, knowing that Zuo Shihuan had chosen him, he couldn’t stop caring about that Omega woman’s existence. Even if she did absolutely nothing, it was enough to make Gu Heng feel on edge, defensive—ready to fight ghosts in the shadows.

He wanted to erase every trace of anyone else from Zuo Shihuan—wanted every mark on him to belong to Gu Heng alone.

But now, things seemed to be taking a turn in the direction he least wanted.

The moment he heard Zuo Shihuan’s ambiguous, teasing words—as if he really still felt some lingering affection for that ugly engagement ring, and for the Omega behind it—Gu Heng nearly broke.

He clenched his jaw tight, too proud to let even a choked sound escape, but his eyes went red all the same. Hoarsely, he asked, “You really care about that Omega so much?”

Blinded by emotion, Gu Heng couldn’t see what was right in front of him—couldn’t see that the so-called Omega fiancée was actually his friend Ji Shenwen’s girlfriend, Yu Lizhu. Just as he couldn’t see that Zuo Shihuan was teasing him.

The more you care, the blinder you become.

Gu Heng, who had been through so much training and so many missions—always arrogant, unruly, and sharp—was completely undone by a single sentence from Zuo Shihuan. Using all the techniques and psychological theories he’d once relied on to see through deception, he carefully studied every expression and gesture Zuo Shihuan made… and the more he looked, the more uneasy he became.

When Zuo Shihuan smiled at him, he thought that smile was perfunctory, dismissive—as if confirming the one thing he most dreaded to face.

He didn’t realize that in this moment, Zuo Shihuan’s eyes and heart were full of only him. There was no one else.

Zuo Shihuan looked at Gu Heng—his reddened eyes, his pale face—and a flicker of regret passed through his gaze. Maybe he had gone too far. Softening, he took Gu Heng’s trembling hand in his own, lifted his eyes, and said with a gentle, helpless smile, “Can’t you really tell?”

“I don’t know. I really don’t know, and I can’t tell what you’re thinking, Zuo Shihuan. Do you really care that much about that ugly ring? Or is it because… it was from that Omega woman?”

Gu Heng’s voice was hoarse, his eyes red, his nose flushed. Too proud to blink, afraid that if he did, the tears burning at the corners of his eyes would fall.

The words scraped his throat raw, so much that he could taste blood.

And yet, even then, he couldn’t bear to pull away from Zuo Shihuan’s hand—clinging to that small warmth like it could soothe him—while his mind spiraled toward the worst. He braced himself for Zuo Shihuan to say the one thing that would shatter all his hopes.

Sure enough—

Right in front of him, Zuo Shihuan raised the hand with the ring and gently kissed it, eyes warm with affection.

Gu Heng’s pupils contracted. His heart sank halfway into despair.

He no longer held out any hope. He waited, numb, for Zuo Shihuan to say whatever final words would destroy him completely.

Whatever it was, if Zuo Shihuan thought that would make him give up, then he was underestimating him.

At worst, he would simply take Zuo Shihuan back to the Empire by force. After all, robbery ran in his veins—it was in his blood, something to be hated and despised.

Gu Heng let out a bitter, self-mocking smile, then his expression hardened. His hand clenched into a tight fist.

Then he heard Zuo Shihuan say, softly, with a faint smile—

“The only reason I kept this ring… is because you, Gu Heng, were the one who first put it on my finger. No other reason.”

—See? Of course.

Gu Heng’s heart gave a sharp twist. He almost laughed, bitterly—of course that was why Zuo Shihuan kept it—wait.

Because of who?

It wasn’t for that Omega woman.

Nor for anyone else—could it really be for him?!

In an instant, Gu Heng jerked his head up, his bright black eyes staring fixedly at Zuo Shihuan, a trace of cautious disbelief flickering within them.

Zuo Shihuan let out a helpless laugh. “Otherwise, what reason do you think there could be, idiot? You really can’t tell there’s no one else but you? Or is my acting that good—that I just wanted to tease you a little, and you still couldn’t tell?”

Gu Heng continued to stare at him, unease and lingering fear in his gaze. “You’re really not lying to me? Or… is this another joke?”

Zuo Shihuan simply hinted bluntly, “Haven’t you noticed who the Omega I was engaged to today actually is? Didn’t you bother to find out which family the Zuos were allying with, or the name of the bride at the engagement banquet?”

Gu Heng’s face fell, his tone cold as he pressed his lips together. “So what if I didn’t? I couldn’t care less who that person is.”

If he truly didn’t care, he wouldn’t be acting like this.

Zuo Shihuan rubbed his forehead in exasperation and simply revealed the answer. “You know Yu Lizhu, right? My friend. You’ve met her a few times.”

At the mention of that equally unpleasant Omega woman, Gu Heng instinctively frowned and asked suspiciously, “I know her, so what? She attended your engagement banquet too?”

Attended? That’s putting it mildly.

Zuo Shihuan rubbed his forehead again and sighed deeply. “Mm, now I’m convinced—you really didn’t see. Actually, Yu Lizhu was quite close to me. Very close.”

Close enough that we were about to exchange rings right in front of you.

How did he still not notice?!

Was Yu Lizhu’s appearance so ordinary, or was Gu Heng face-blind? But that couldn’t be—Zuo Shihuan had never seen any sign of visual impairment from him.

At the very least, Gu Heng could insult his father, Zuo Zoujian, with pinpoint accuracy—so much so that his father’s face would flush red, looking like he needed a blood pressure check. There was clearly nothing wrong with Gu Heng’s eyesight.

Gu Heng only gave an indifferent “oh,” though a flicker of confusion crept in. Why had Zuo Shihuan suddenly brought up that Omega woman, Yu Lizhu?

His impression of Yu Lizhu had always been that of an annoying burden tied to Ji Shenwen—an irritating, spoiled socialite from a Federation elite family. A clingy Omega who refused to stop pestering her subordinate lover. Barely counted as Zuo Shihuan’s acquaintance.

Who would have thought she’d end up as Ji Shenwen’s girlfriend—constantly interfering with his missions, wasting time chatting and flirting, a nuisance of a Federation Omega woman.

And Yu Lizhu probably saw him the same way—an obstacle standing in the way of her seeing Ji Shenwen.

In short—

They mutually disliked each other.

Even with Ji Shenwen and Zuo Shihuan between them, he and Yu Lizhu were oil and water—mutually repelled, mutually irritated. The best way to coexist was to never speak or meet again in this lifetime.

Still, since Yu Lizhu was Zuo Shihuan’s friend, and Zuo Shihuan had mentioned her, it would seem too cold and heartless if Gu Heng didn’t at least pretend to care.

Even if he truly couldn’t care less.

So—

Gu Heng tried to feign politeness, forcing out, “Oh, I know her. How’s she been lately?”

Zuo Shihuan cast him a long, meaningful look, unable to stand the other’s total cluelessness, and sighed again. “I don’t know if Yu Lizhu’s doing well lately—but she was about one step away from exchanging rings with me before a certain Beta crashed the engagement, ruined everything, and stole away the Alpha groom who was supposed to be hers.”

“Do I still need to introduce her to you? My ex-fiancée—the one cleaning up our mess right now?”

The sheer amount of information hit Gu Heng like a blow.

He fell silent instantly, clasping his hands together, furrowing his brow with a grave expression. “If this is another joke,” he said solemnly, “then it’s really not funny.”

Zuo Shihuan, however, could tell he’d finally gotten through to him. Seeing Gu Heng’s stubborn disbelief, he couldn’t help but chuckle, breaking the last of Gu Heng’s illusions.

“I wasn’t joking much to begin with. I never really hid it—anyone could’ve found out who my supposed Omega fiancée was. I just didn’t expect that when she was standing right in front of you, Gu Heng, you still didn’t notice. Even Yu Lizhu saw you and told me to go find you.”

Gu Heng’s expression twisted, complicated and speechless.

Truthfully, he really hadn’t looked carefully—or maybe it was because Yu Lizhu had changed her style, wearing a veil and heavy makeup, making her unrecognizable.

But one thing he was sure of—

No wonder he’d felt an instinctive dislike toward that Omega bride at first sight. His subconscious had already known. It was Ji Shenwen’s annoying girlfriend, Yu Lizhu. No matter how many times he looked at her, he’d never find her pleasing to the eye.

And he’d been sulking, jealous, and making a fool of himself over her for so long.

…How utterly embarrassing.

Gu Heng covered his face in regret, head bowed, ears burning red, wishing he could delete this mortifying episode from existence.

Zuo Shihuan couldn’t help laughing out loud, tears gathering in the corners of his eyes as he teased, “There’s just one thing you said wrong—it actually is pretty funny.”

Now he finally understood why Gu Heng always teased and provoked him before—he’d thought Gu Heng just had a wicked, mischievous nature, but apparently, there was some logic to it after all.

At least now, seeing Gu Heng’s red-faced, frustrated expression, Zuo Shihuan genuinely found it amusing—and oddly satisfying.

So satisfying, in fact, that his fingers itched to take a picture of this scene—to keep it as blackmail material for next time Gu Heng annoyed him.

If it weren’t so obvious to pull out his communicator and take a photo—if he weren’t afraid Gu Heng would notice and fly into a rage—Zuo Shihuan would already have snapped an entire album of Gu Heng’s blackmail-worthy expressions.

Even if he couldn’t take a photo, it didn’t stop Zuo Shihuan from engraving this scene firmly in his memory.

Zuo Shihuan’s light brown eyes curved with amusement as he half-squinted at Gu Heng, who was covering his face, too mortified to look up. Through the gaps between his fingers, one could vaguely glimpse those black eyes—usually sharp and defiant—now filled with frustration and regret.

Gu Heng’s coarse black hair, tousled from his own rough hands, stuck up messily. The tips of his ears, exposed beneath the disarray, were flushed red. His young, handsome face was tinged with patches of embarrassed color, jaw clenched so tightly it looked as though he might grind his teeth to dust.

Zuo Shihuan almost worried he would actually crack a tooth.

In this moment, Gu Heng—ashamed of his own stupidity—looked especially quiet, especially flustered. Even his usually deep, cold eyes had shed their habitual arrogance, revealing a kind of raw, unguarded youthfulness. He looked for once like an impulsive, earnest young man—so much so that even his blunders made it hard to scold him.

Come to think of it, Gu Heng was only a few years younger than him. If Zuo Shihuan hadn’t dropped out back then, he’d be graduating university right about now, while Gu Heng would be just entering as a freshman.

Zuo Shihuan mused to himself—

If Gu Heng ever called him senior, that would certainly be interesting.

Too bad that, judging from his personality, Gu Heng had probably been a troublemaker at school too. A polite “senior” was likely something that would never come out of his mouth.

In a way, Zuo Shihuan guessed right.

During his time at Imperial Academy, Gu Heng did have a reputation for being a troublemaker—but not because he sought out conflict. Rather, people who couldn’t stand him for no reason always came to pick fights.

Those were years when the Empire was at constant war with the Zerg. Even as a student, Gu Heng had to conceal his identity, often missing classes to travel to the front lines. During the height of the fighting, he didn’t set foot in Imperial Academy for three months straight.

Countless battle reports, intelligence briefings, and classified operations awaited his handling—any delay could mean the lives of Imperial citizens. On one front he was piloting a mech to repel a swarm of low-grade Zerg invading an agricultural planet; on another, a higher-order Zerg would suddenly appear, trying to seize dominion.

Ever since the Zerg Queen had been gravely injured, communication with her had nearly ceased.

Many Zerg tribes believed the Queen was dying. In that leaderless chaos, several intelligent high-level Zerg attempted to seize power—vying for food, territory, and genetic resources to evolve further.

Those precious resources had always been under the Queen’s control.

But the wounded old Queen refused to die, dragging out her life for nearly ten years without recovery, hiding herself from her kind—and thus preventing the birth of a new Queen.

Without a Queen to lead the Zerg horde in plundering other planets, the intelligent Zerg were too busy fighting for dominance to manage the starving lower ones.

Most of the lesser Zerg, desperate to survive, scattered outward to scavenge. Yet limited by their instincts, lacking guidance from a Queen or coordination with other tribes, they would devour all living things on a planet and then starve to death, unable to travel further.

Some, driven mad by hunger, even turned on their own kind—invading the territories of other Zerg.

This in turn enraged the intelligent Zerg tribes, who took up arms to drive out these brainless scavengers. But though the lesser Zerg were considered expendable cannon fodder—looked down upon as dumb and inferior—they were thick-skinned, resilient, and ferocious fighters.

Many intelligent Zerg underestimated them, only to have their wings torn off and their bodies devoured by the very creatures they once despised.

When Imperial scouts reported these developments, Gu Heng watched the chaos among the Zerg with detached satisfaction.

If possible, he would even take advantage of their internal strife—strike while they were weakened, further eroding their power.

But before he could act, the Zerg civil war had already scattered them everywhere, and some were foolish enough not to recognize Imperial territory.

These scattered Zerg swarms were small in number, easily wiped out by local Imperial forces. Yet the Empire’s borders were vast—always with a few gaps for Zerg to slip through and wreak havoc among civilians. That alone forced Gu Heng to rush around endlessly, quelling outbreaks.

At his busiest, he didn’t even have time to eat—sustaining himself on high-concentration military nutrient fluid that could last for days.

After so long relying on those, just smelling it made his brow tighten and his tongue turn bitter before the first sip. He spent day and night on the move, fighting from one end of the Empire to the other, his body hardening and thinning from exhaustion.

Even his coursework was managed remotely: Ji Shenwen would record assignments and send them to him, and Gu Heng would complete them in his mech during brief moments of rest between battles, sending them back for Ji Shenwen to submit to the professors.

There was no time for campus trivialities—no memory for names or faces of those who, inexplicably, seemed to pick fights with him.

Eventually, fed up, Gu Heng beat them all into submission in one go, and they finally quieted down.

By the time he was nearing graduation from Imperial University, he’d never really experienced a normal campus life.

Before entering, Ji Shenwen had been officially assigned to act as his “friend.” Four years later, upon graduation, Ji Shenwen remained his only friend.

Ji Shenwen had even accompanied him to the Zerg front a few times, missing several university courses—but every time Ji Shenwen returned, he was surrounded by friends, warmly greeted by everyone.

Gu Heng, meanwhile—just standing there—was enough to make others shrink away. No one dared to ask where the “death god” had been.

Sometimes, Gu Heng imagined what a normal campus life would be like.

He didn’t need to be a social butterfly like Ji Shenwen—just one or two steady, kind friends he could talk to would have been enough. People who wouldn’t, out of jealousy, pick fights for no reason; people who wouldn’t turn distant after he disappeared for a while.

He’d thought about it carefully.

His expectations sounded simple—but anyone who had lived his life would know just how difficult that really was.

In truth, Gu Heng was self-aware enough.

How could he possibly find a friend who could tolerate his awful temper? The ones who stayed around him only did so because he was the Imperial Crown Prince. Even when he disappeared for months without explanation, they wouldn’t question what he’d been doing, wouldn’t resent him, and would wait for him without complaint—never taking offense at his cold neglect when emergencies arose.

If it had been him, Gu Heng thought, faced with a friend that unreliable, he would’ve cut ties the very first time they stood him up without reason.

So, long ago, Gu Heng had already given up on making friends at university.

***

But if there were a world where both Zuo Shihuan’s and Gu Heng’s wishes could come true—

A world without the division between the Federation and the Empire.

In that world, Zuo Shihuan hadn’t dropped out because of illness. Instead, his excellent grades had earned him the admiration of his professors, allowing him to continue into graduate studies at the same university. His old roommate had just graduated and moved out, and the dorm supervisor informed him that a new student would be moving in.

Months passed, and still there was no sign of this new student. Eventually, Zuo Shihuan had completely forgotten about it.

Until one day.

He had just finished showering in the dorm, a clean white towel covering his damp hair, and was about to resume his studies, book open in front of him, when—

The sound of a key turning in the lock startled him.

Zuo Shihuan froze. He was the only one with a key. The dorm supervisor would never come in without warning. His first thought was—a thief? He hesitated, debating whether to grab something to defend himself—

When the door suddenly swung open.

In stepped an Alpha man, strikingly handsome, his features refined and aristocratic. His cool, distant black eyes swept over the dorm room with indifference. He seemed ready to drop his suitcase and leave again—until his gaze finally landed on the room’s only occupant.

A wary young man stood there, a comically white towel perched on his head, a thick textbook on Mecha Maintenance clutched in front of him like a shield. His fluffy black hair was still dripping water, his freshly washed skin faintly pink. Those round, light brown eyes stared at him, serious yet a little meek.

To Gu Heng, no number of books could protect the other man—it was completely futile.

But watching this startled, tense stranger—so cautious, like a small animal cornered by an intruder, yet trying hard to stay composed as he lowered the book and extended a hand in politeness—somehow amused Gu Heng.

With quiet steadiness, the man said,

“Hello, I’m Zuo Shihuan, a first-year graduate student in Mecha Maintenance. The dorm supervisor should have told you—I’m the dorm head. If you have any questions about living here, you can come to me.”

For some reason, Gu Heng found this serious, earnest senior unexpectedly adorable. The corner of his lips lifted in a mischievous smile.

Suddenly, the dull university life seemed much more interesting. Maybe he’d stay on campus for a while after all.

He reached out decisively to shake the offered hand.

Zuo Shihuan, meanwhile, was eyeing him suspiciously, wondering if this newcomer was going to be a troublesome freshman. After all, anyone who’d skipped the first few months of the semester and then showed up out of nowhere—looking this proud, beautiful, and blatantly arrogant—was bound to be difficult. He was just about to withdraw his hand to avoid awkwardness when—

It was grabbed firmly.

Zuo Shihuan instinctively flinched, tried to pull back, but couldn’t. Forced to meet the newcomer’s eyes, he found himself staring at a young man whose beauty was too refined, too noble to belong to an ordinary person—and who was smiling at him with a brilliance like sunlight on glass.

“Nice to meet you, senior—”

That kind of face could enchant anyone at a glance; beauty so sharp it became a weapon.

Zuo Shihuan’s heart skipped two beats. Hugging his book tightly, he took a deep breath of its ink scent to clear his head, forcing his mind back to calm as he began introducing the dorm.

“That’s your bed. The dorm has hot water 24 hours a day, and the washroom is over there. If you haven’t been to campus before, I can show you around tomorrow. If you have any questions—even about your studies—you can come to me.”

“Got it. Thank you for taking care of me, Senior Zuo Shihuan.”

“You’re welcome. If you don’t have any other questions, I’ll get back to what I was doing.”

Gu Heng sat down on his bed, his deep, amused eyes fixed on his senior. Then he said slowly, “Senior, I just have one last question.”

Zuo Shihuan was tidying his desk as he replied, “Go ahead, I’ll answer if I can.”

“Why do you have a scent on you? What’s your gender, Senior?”

“I’m a Beta.”

Zuo Shihuan frowned slightly, sniffing at his sleeve and collar, and when he couldn’t detect anything strange, he added, “I probably just smell like the body wash I used after showering. I’m definitely a Beta. Otherwise, the school wouldn’t have assigned us to the same dorm.”

“Is that so? I understand, Senior.”

Then suddenly, Zuo Shihuan paused, furrowing his brows as if realizing something. He turned toward his new roommate with a strange expression and said, hesitatingly,

“You’re not one of those people who read ridiculous campus novels, are you? The kind that imagine a beautiful young Omega disguising themselves as a Beta and sharing a dorm with someone, and then—something inappropriate happens? Please don’t let your imagination run wild. The school has very strict regulations—there’s no way such a mistake could happen. You’ve already missed a few months of classes, so you should focus on catching up instead.”

A shadow of amusement crossed Gu Heng’s dark eyes, and his smile deepened.

“How could that be? Of course, I can tell you’re not an Omega.”

But that was about all he was sure of.

Because even though his background check confirmed that this senior was indeed a Beta with excellent grades and spotless conduct, Gu Heng had clearly caught a faint, sweet trace of pheromone on him—one that tugged at his instincts.

It wasn’t Omega pheromone.

If someone had gone so far as to plan years in advance, planting a Beta with a pheromone scent like this—one not even belonging to an Omega—right into his arms…

Then Gu Heng had to admit—whoever was behind it had quite the cunning mind.

“Then that’s fine. I’ll head to the library later. If you want to sleep early, you can turn off the lights first.”

“Alright, senior.”

Before turning away, Zuo Shihuan took another glance at the new junior sitting on the bed, smiling at him with that mild, obedient expression — oddly endearing, even.

Not a trace of the arrogance and defiance he’d shown when he first entered the room could be seen.

He didn’t notice that the moment he turned around, the obedient young junior’s expression instantly shifted. Those cold, proud black eyes lifted to scrutinize his back, filled with curiosity and calculation, though they detected no abnormality in this “senior.”

Gu Heng’s curiosity only grew stronger.

The corner of his mouth curved upward, his smile becoming brighter—and far more dangerous.

Zuo Shihuan suddenly shivered for no reason.

He sniffled, thinking maybe his damp hair had made him cold. As he touched the slightly raised skin at the back of his neck, he frowned, wondering why that patch had been itching lately.

Could it be an allergic reaction?

Can’t wait until next week to see more? Want to show your support? Come to my Patreon where you can get 5 or more chapters of After Being Deceived, I Married Someone Else and Had Children right away ! Or go donate at Paypal or Ko-fi to show your appreciation! :)