Delicate, Yet Shamelessly Freeloading [Quick Transmigration] Chapter 25

Chapter 25: Alpha with Pheromone Disorder (25)

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Shui Que was forced to watch a New Year’s holiday promotional video about the dangers of early relationships.

 

Afterward, there was continuous snowfall. After finishing their final exams, they arrived at the high school’s last winter trip for their senior year.

 

Next year, they would plan their own winter trips for the holiday in college.

 

Maybe because everyone was reluctant to leave the city, the winter trip voting result ended up being a trip to the northernmost part of the city, Chengshan.

 

Chengshan was the highest peak of the entire eastern coastal mountain range, known as the “First Peak of the Coast,” standing almost 2,000 meters above sea level, surrounded by endless mountains and windmills. The resort at the foot of the mountain was a popular destination for influencers.

 

It was still before spring break, so the resort wasn’t very crowded yet.

 

The five-day winter trip was spent enjoying all the resort’s amenities, and they had almost explored the local street food and folk markets by the third day.

 

Shui Que was a bit superstitious. While browsing the folk culture street, he bought a bracelet. The old man at the stall kept changing his pitch: first, he said it could bring peace and safety, then he said it could help with academic success. Later, when an Alpha came over to speak with Shui Que, he immediately claimed that buying two bracelets would ensure mutual affection and a long-lasting relationship.

 

In short, he used every trick in the book to sell his bracelets.

 

He only wanted to buy two for peace—one for himself and the other as a gift for Song Qin.

 

His suitcase was now packed with all the little trinkets he had collected over the past three days.


But the Alpha traveling with him was clearly more interested in the old man’s words about “lasting forever.”


“These two, are they good?” Lu Fengchi asked, picking out two red bodhi seed bracelets.


Shui Que’s fair skin would look good with the red color.


He judged this instinctively.


Shui Que thought for a moment, then picked up two identical ones. “Then, let’s go with these four.”


Lu Fengchi raised an eyebrow. “?”


“Who do the other two belong to?” he even guessed. “Are we supposed to wear two on each wrist?”


It wasn’t impossible; if they wore them on both wrists, maybe the effect would double and last longer.


“I’ll give one to my brother, and the other one to Qu Jiuchao,” Shui Que said.


He seemed completely unaware of what it meant that he and the other three were all wearing the same red bodhi seed bracelets.


Lu Fengchi frowned, his attitude firm. “No.”


What was this?


Seeing Shui Que look at him in confusion, he could only say, “I’ll pick another one for our brother.”


Shui Que: “?”


Whose brother?


Lu Fengchi continued to select carefully, suddenly his eyes lighting up. “How about this one?”


It was a tiger’s eye stone, obsidian, and black sandalwood strung together, simple and unadorned.


It seemed like it would suit the current head of the Song family perfectly.


If Qu Jiuchao hadn’t mentioned it that night, Lu Fengchi wouldn’t have realized that Shui Que was Song Qin’s brother.


After all, the two of them looked nothing alike.


The fair-skinned, red-lipped boy looked nothing like the kind of Alpha the Song family could raise.


He had thought all the Song family members were like Song Qin—standard, cold, distant, and aloof.


He couldn’t imagine Song Qin and Shui Que having a friendly, respectful brotherly relationship. Shui Que probably didn’t have a good time at home, since he rarely mentioned his brother, and besides…


Song Qin’s controlling nature was too strong.


Shui Que was just his younger brother, and though he was an adult, he couldn’t even kiss someone without being dragged back home.


It had been almost half a month since Shui Que had kissed anyone; every time, he said his family would find out.


Which normal older brother would check his younger brother’s lips every day to make sure no other man had kissed them?


Shui Que also thought Lu Fengchi had good taste, so he paid for the three red bodhi seed bracelets and the new one Lu Fengchi had picked.


“Alright, here you go.” Shui Que easily slipped the bracelet onto Lu Fengchi’s wrist, instinctively comparing it to his own, realizing that Lu Fengchi’s wrist was almost two full circles thicker than his own.


Was there really much difference between Alpha and Alpha?


Maybe it was because he had a naturally small bone structure, but Shui Que’s wrist looked so slender that even an Omega could easily restrain him using it.


Seeing Shui Que had also put on the bracelet, Lu Fengchi was very satisfied with their matching bracelets, since this was the first gift Shui Que had given him.


Could it be considered a token of affection?


But…


What about the last one?


Shui Que put the ancient bracelet in his backpack but slipped the final bodhi seed bracelet into his pocket, seemingly for convenience when meeting the intended recipient.


Five minutes later.


Lu Fengchi’s face darkened as if ink could drip from it.


Hidden behind his glasses, his gaze swept, almost imperceptibly, over Shui Que and Lu Fengchi’s bracelets, and his fingers nervously traced the bodhi seed bracelet on his own wrist.


”Thanks, I really like it.” In the end, he simply thanked Shui Que without changing his expression.


It was an entirely unexpected response.


Shui Que’s pupils widened for a moment, and his surprise was impossible to conceal.


What was going on with these two?


Had he deliberately chosen the same bracelet?


How could they not notice that he was dating both of them at the same time?


Was he dating two clueless fools?


Not satisfied with their reactions, Shui Que lifted his wrist again and grabbed Lu Fengchi’s hand.


“Isn’t it beautiful?” He stared eagerly at Qu Jiuchao, then glanced at Lu Fengchi, expecting some kind of reaction. “We three all look perfect with these bracelets!”


In the end, he was disappointed.


Qu Jiuchao responded in a calm tone, “Hmm, good taste.”


What did that mean?


Why wasn’t he being questioned like in a drama, where the cheater is confronted and slapped while saying, “We’re done!”


Shui Que didn’t understand why things in real life didn’t play out like they did in 8 PM dramas.


Then Chen Jian came over. As soon as he arrived, everyone’s attention was immediately drawn to him. He completely missed the peculiar atmosphere between the three of them and excitedly asked, “Shui Que, where did you get these bracelets? They’re really pretty. I want to buy one too.”


With Chen Jian’s encouragement, for some strange reason, half of their class ended up buying the same bracelets.


Shui Que: “…”

 

*

 

After trying all the nearby attractions and experiencing the indoor ski slope at the resort, Chen Jian suggested going skiing up the mountain.


This was indeed the perfect season for skiing in Chengshan. From a distance, the snow-covered mountain was thick with snow.


To make it more romantic, someone proposed camping up the mountain.


Since it was their last group winter trip, the teacher leading them allowed it.


The weather was still good in the daytime, but by evening, the wind suddenly changed, turning cold and fierce.


Shui Que and the others got separated from the main group.


He turned on his phone’s flashlight, the screen lit up, showing it was 4:30 PM, yet the sky was so dark that it was almost impossible to see anything.


“There’s no signal…” Shui Que bit his lip and raised his phone to show the other two.

 

Lu Fengchi held onto his hand, a heavy bundle on his back. “Don’t worry. We can set up the tent and make do for the night. We’ll head down the mountain when the sun rises tomorrow.”

 

Qu Jiuchao glanced at their hands intertwined, and with a cool tone, said, “It might not be that simple.”

 

“The wind has changed direction, and there’s a possibility of a snowstorm. That’s why the main group headed down early.”

 

“The last cable car down is at 4:00 PM. It stops operating in snowy weather. If the snow gets heavy tonight, we won’t be able to catch the cable car tomorrow. Walking down could be dangerous. A slight misstep and there could be an avalanche.”

 

Perhaps noticing Shui Que’s uneasy expression in the dim light of scattered flashlights, Qu Jiuchao paused for a moment. He tried to look on the bright side. “Of course, they know we haven’t caught up. If they head down, they’ll look for a rescue team. This kind of thing must have happened before in Chengshan. We just have to wait for the rescue team.”

 

“We should find a sheltered spot to set up camp and ride out the night.”

 

For once, Lu Fengchi, who usually didn’t get along with him, didn’t say anything. The sky had grown dark, and they couldn’t see very far. The three of them had no choice but to use their phones’ flashlights and press forward, searching for a spot with less wind.

 

The path, which had a bit of mud from the daytime melting, was covered by fresh snow in the evening. Shui Que trudged along, stepping deeply and shallowly in the snow. He wasn’t carrying much weight, just his small backpack, but with the thick down jacket he was wearing, it gave the impression he might trip any moment.

 

Lu Fengchi led the way, stepping on the fallen branches and breaking them.

 

Qu Jiuchao, expressionless, picked up a handful of dry twigs and leaves, and melted snow dripped from between his fingers.

 

He had brought a lighter, though he wasn’t sure if they’d be able to start a fire in these conditions.

 

To be honest, they were all from wealthy families, and even when doing extreme sports, they had dedicated facilities and professional staff to assist them. This kind of experience was truly rare for them.

 

“Do you want me to carry you?” he asked, noticing Shui Que’s heavy breathing. He seemed to be losing strength.

 

Shui Que, who didn’t normally do much physical activity, had already exceeded his usual limits for the day.

 

The delicate-looking young man shook his head. He gritted his teeth and persevered until they found a safe spot.

 

They were lucky. They found a sheltered cave. The ground inside had old ashes, and there was a small pile of unburnt wood and twigs, which could at least be used as firewood.

 

This was probably a resting spot for former forest rangers or hikers.

 

Qu Jiuchao found two discarded instant food packaging bags in a corner. The plastic had nearly disintegrated from the wind and weather.

 

Lu Fengchi was quick with his hands. He was able to set up the tent while managing to start a fire. Shui Que was nearby, trying to help, but every time he tried to assist, Lu Fengchi frowned and told him to sit down.

 

His down jacket had snow on it, and it was scratched, wet, and dirty. He needed to take it off and dry it by the fire.

 

Shui Que still had his sweater underneath, so he sat by the fire in his apricot-yellow knitted sweater, holding his jacket close to the flames, letting the wet side dry.

 

When the coats were nearly dry, he gathered both of their jackets and held them by the fire to warm them.

 

The firelight cast a rosy glow on his face.

 

When the jackets were returned to him, they carried Shui Que’s scent—not from pheromones, but from the sweet fragrance that seemed to come from his soft, tender skin.

 

Their dinner was simple: compressed biscuits and chocolate energy bars, with a bottle of mineral water.

 

Shui Que usually got sleepy early, and after today’s exhaustion, he was the first to crawl into the tent, ready to sleep.

 

Lu Fengchi and Qu Jiuchao exchanged a few words outside, and after deciding the first half of the night would be Qu Jiuchao’s watch and the second half would be Lu Fengchi’s, they didn’t speak further.

 

To keep the fire going all night, they needed to conserve the dry twigs. The fire wasn’t very strong, so Qu Jiuchao decided to go back inside the tent to get his jacket.

 

His cold, piercing gaze landed on Lu Fengchi, who was lying next to Shui Que.

 

Shui Que, who was starting to doze off, saw Qu Jiuchao come in and sat up, grabbing his hand.

 

He hadn’t heard the watch schedule and didn’t know that Qu Jiuchao was just coming in to get his jacket. He was still thinking about the progression of his own storyline.

 

Like a typical character from a romance novel, he patted the empty space beside him and said, “We can sleep together.”

 

His face had a faint red mark where his cheek pressed against the sleeve of his jacket, and holding his jacket, with his soft, tender body all sweet and fragrant, he said this in a pretty voice.

 

Qu Jiuchao looked at him.

 

Did he really not understand what might happen if other random men were in his place, alone in this remote wilderness?

 

Did he need to wait until someone kissed him to the point that his lips couldn’t even close before realizing the danger?

 

Qu Jiuchao had definitely understood Shui Que’s subtle advances during this time.

 

What did he expect his reaction to be?

 

His cool fingertips slipped under Shui Que’s apricot-yellow sweater and brushed over his flat stomach, which hadn’t had much to eat, making it soft and warm.

 

His waist was slim, and his abdomen soft.

 

Qu Jiuchao spoke in a calm voice, “Can you handle it, with the two of us?”

 

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Huge shoutout to @candycorns2 on Discord for commissioning this! The chapter will be posted regularly, show your support for Ciacia at Kofi.

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