RBNR Ch26: Qin Bao almost jumped up in pain

Qin Bao had already prepared himself mentally, but he still flinched when yelled at: “…”

Alright, he admitted that exposing his identity in a place like this indeed required courage.

Qin Bao didn’t move, and Feng Chengyu’s gaze fell on him.

The officer’s voice also became more stern: “Remove your mask, show your ID, please cooperate.”

There was no way out.

Qin Bao hesitated and raised his hand.

At that moment, Feng Chengyu, who had been watching coldly, suddenly spoke, “Wait, underage Omegas must be inspected by someone of the same sex and their parents must be notified.”

Qin Bao replied in a cold voice, “I’m an adult.”

It was fine to say he was underage, but notifying his parents was absolutely not acceptable! He came to this place on his own, made a mistake and admitted it, but why involve others?

Also, even though he was still wearing a mask and his face couldn’t be seen, shouldn’t Feng Chengyu, of all people, know whether he was underage?

“Is that so.”

Feng Chengyu’s expression didn’t change, looking at him with a hint of disbelief.

The officer was shocked that an underage Omega dared to enter such a place: “Mr. Feng, this…”

Feng Chengyu said, “Leave it to me.” Then he looked at Qin Bao and, using a tone one would use with a stranger, commanded, “You, come with me.”

Qin Bao was very annoyed, but at least he didn’t have to reveal his face in public, so this could be considered a stroke of luck. He wondered if Feng Chengyu had already recognized him.

That night, Feng Chengyu had bitten his gland, creating a temporary mark between an Alpha and an Omega, causing a short-term bond. Although a few days had passed and the mark should have mostly metabolized, Feng Chengyu had bitten so hard that some residue might still remain.

Qin Bao had snapped at Feng Chengyu over the phone, so he should be angry. Why was he helping him instead?

…Was Feng Chengyu actually a nice person?

They passed through the chaotic scene of the anti-vice raid.

Seeing Feng Chengyu personally leading someone, many people present gave Qin Bao curious looks, thinking he must have committed a serious offense.

The friends who had come with Qin Bao dared not object, only able to watch helplessly as he was taken away.

They walked past the ring and the booths, arriving at a corridor that led from the second basement level to the first. There, a few Omega officers were indeed stationed, inspecting the staff responsible for the area.

Qin Bao wondered if he had miscalculated, thinking maybe Feng Chengyu hadn’t recognized him after all.

“Mr. Feng.”

“Mr. Feng.”

The officers greeted Feng Chengyu.

Feng Chengyu merely nodded in acknowledgment, continuing to walk without stopping. His image had always been cold and inscrutable, earning people’s respect without question.

Qin Bao was becoming increasingly confused.

Finally, Feng Chengyu stopped in a secluded spot.

The lighting here was dim, with large mirrors on the walls, eerily reminiscent of that night at the banquet.

Multiple reflections of them appeared in the mirrors. Feng Chengyu turned and calmly said, “ID.”

He was half a head taller than Qin Bao, looking down at him somewhat condescendingly.

Qin Bao: “…”

He had misunderstood; this man was doing it on purpose.

Clearly asking Qin Bao to show his ID, Feng Chengyu’s hands remained in his black coat pockets, not moving, and his gaze was not as stern as before.

“Feng Chengyu, have you recognized me?” Qin Bao asked. “If you have, stop pretending.”

There were no cooperating Omega officers here, nor anyone else. Feng Chengyu was acting as if he were simply performing his duty, clearly asking the obvious.

“Afraid of mistaking you.” Feng Chengyu wasn’t annoyed at being exposed. “You’re still wearing a mask.”

The mask was uncomfortable. Qin Bao had intended to take it off, but hearing Feng Chengyu’s words, he instantly decided not to, glaring at him with bright eyes from beneath the mask.

Feng Chengyu gazed into those angry eyes. After a few seconds, his tone softened considerably: “Why are you in a place like this?”

Qin Bao didn’t even think: “I didn’t know—”

Then he immediately changed his words, “No, what does it have to do with you?”

After a moment of silence, Qin Bao had a flash of inspiration: “I came to find romance.”

Feng Chengyu’s gaze grew cold again. Qin Bao, stubborn as ever, even when caught, still joked, “Aren’t you a major official? Why are you here? Were you unlucky enough to get caught by the police? Be careful you don’t make headlines tomorrow.”

“I’m here to assist with the investigation.” Feng Chengyu said. “I don’t usually indulge in such activities.”

Qin Bao: “…”

Yes, I know you maintain a good reputation. That watch is a fine example; even if you fool around… you only do it with someone you’re engaged to.

“Quite a coincidence finding you here.” Feng Chengyu asked, “What’s the likelihood of that? How often do you come here in a month? What do you play?”

He was being nosy.

“At least five or six or seven or eight times a month.”

Qin Bao lied through his teeth.

“There are so many fun things, playing with bunny girls, playing with Alphas, having them do pole dances. Not just this place, I frequent other spots in the capital too. If you’re interested, I can recommend some to you.”

Feng Chengyu nodded, “Alright, recommend one. Which place has the best pole dancing?”

Qin Bao fabricated, “…For pole dancing, it’s definitely SISI. They have a bigger stage.”

“I didn’t know your company taught that.” Feng Chengyu’s eyelashes lowered slightly, his gaze sweeping over Qin Bao’s body, “I can see that pole dancing really helps with core strength.”

Qin Bao was stunned: “…”

Was this Feng person making a dirty joke?

At that moment, a man wearing glasses appeared in the distance: “Mr. Feng—”

Qin Bao recognized him as Feng Chengyu’s secretary, Lin Zi, whom he had seen in the news.

Feng Chengyu nodded to Lin Zi, indicating he was aware, and Lin Zi quickly left.

It seemed Feng Chengyu was indeed here to assist with the investigation and couldn’t leave for too long. Qin Bao didn’t want to stay with him any longer, so he pretended to be nonchalant: “You’ve checked, and you know I’m not underage. Can I go now?”

Saying this, he prepared to leave.

Feng Chengyu grabbed his arm, not teasing him this time: “Can we talk? I’m free at eleven.”

The physical contact made Qin Bao shiver slightly, his heartbeat uncontrollably accelerating.

Feng Chengyu’s scent, a mix of milk and daffodils, invaded Qin Bao’s nostrils… It turned out the temporary mark hadn’t completely faded, though the Omega’s pheromones had significantly weakened.

Talk about what?

The events of that night?

Qin Bao didn’t dare. Honestly, he couldn’t handle being alone with Feng Chengyu at this moment; he might end up getting close again.

He shook off Feng Chengyu’s hand and, pretending to be somewhat annoyed, looked at him: “Mr. Feng, who cares when you’re free?”

After saying that, he turned his face and walked away.

Feng Chengyu reached out and hooked a finger around the collar of his jacket.

Qin Bao stumbled and, startled, suddenly jumped up.

Tall and slender, paired with a black cat mask on his face, he looked just like a cat whose fur had been ruffled.

Feng Chengyu withdrew his hand, the icy demeanor slightly softened, seemingly amused.

Seeing his expression, Qin Bao’s face under the mask turned red all the way down to his neck. Angrily, he stormed off.

*

As soon as he walked out of the club, Qin Bao immediately threw the mask into the trash can. Places like this deserved to be shut down. Zou Jiudong was a scumbag, and it was no surprise that his business was so rotten.

However, thinking of Feng Chengyu’s reaction just now made Qin Bao grit his teeth in anger.

Why was he always teasing him?

Did he have no sense of boundaries?

His phone rang, and it was Mr. Qin calling. Qin Bao, remembering Feng Chengyu’s remark about notifying parents, suspected that Feng Chengyu might have done something behind his back, and answered the call.

He wouldn’t admit it, anyway, since Feng Chengyu had let him go and had no evidence.

But Mr. Qin’s call wasn’t about that. Instead, he sternly told Qin Bao, “Finally willing to answer the phone? Your grandfather had a high blood pressure episode and nearly passed out just now. Come home immediately.”

Upon hearing this, Qin Bao had no time to think about Feng Chengyu. He hailed a cab and rushed home.

The traffic was a bit heavy, and the car was moving slowly. He was restless, urging the driver several times.

When he arrived at the Qin residence, the courtyard was quiet. Qin Bao hurried inside, and when he reached the living room, Mr. Qin was standing stunned on the stairs: “Your grandfather is in the study.”

Why wasn’t he lying in bed but sitting in the study?

Without time to think, Qin Bao rushed upstairs in a few strides and entered the study: “Grandpa?!”

The old man was sitting in a high-backed chair, leaning on a cane, his face stern and looking quite spirited. There were no signs of illness or fainting.

Qin Bao immediately realized he had been tricked.

Turning around, he saw Mr. Qin had already locked the study door, leaving only him and his grandfather inside. There was no escape.

The old man squinted: “I hear you just want to play with Chengyu and don’t intend to marry him?”

Qin Bao: “…”

Guessing the reason, and knowing this was inevitable, he stiffened his neck: “Yes.”

The old man scolded: “Kneel down.”

Qin Bao: “Why?”

The old man didn’t speak. Qin Bao, feeling defiant, slowly knelt down.

Seeing his stubborn expression, the old man pointed at his face: “He has kept himself pure for you for years. If you hadn’t provoked him, it would be fine. But now that you’ve taken his purity, you’re just going to walk away and say you’re done?”

Qin Bao felt like he was hearing a fairy tale: “What purity? In this day and age, what’s the big deal about being a virgin? Besides, I didn’t force him. He was willing. Why should I be responsible?”

The old man, furious, shouted: “You little bastard! If you didn’t want to take responsibility, you shouldn’t have slept with him!”

Qin Bao, feeling wronged, said, “But I didn’t know you had arranged an engagement between us. Who remembers things from childhood? I forgot about it long ago.”

“You forgot, did you? Fine. Now I’m officially informing you. Can you remember now? You two were betrothed as children. Growing up and being attracted to each other shows that you’re a good match. What’s wrong with fulfilling the engagement naturally?”

Qin Bao’s eyes turned red: “There is a problem. I’m not a commodity to be used for trading benefits and manipulated at will.”

The old man: “What trading benefits? There are no benefits between me and Grandfather Feng. If it weren’t for him dragging me out of the trenches under fire, I wouldn’t be alive today. You wouldn’t exist if not for him. Now you’re playing with his grandson. How am I supposed to face him after I’m gone?”

“Fine, let’s say I didn’t intend that.” Qin Bao said, “But Grandpa, I’m not stupid. I know this is a political marriage. Can you deny that aligning with the Feng family isn’t beneficial for you and for him? With you backing him, he’ll climb higher, and the higher he goes, the more beneficial it is for you. It’s not just you and Dad, even Grandpa is eager to please him. Do you think I don’t see that?”

Kids grow up.

The old man was taken aback by his question, then sternly said, “Yes, what you said is true, but that’s not the cause of it. We didn’t choose him because of his career—”

Qin Bao interrupted, his words pouring out without thinking: “Also, it’s not mutual attraction between me and him. I was affected by pheromones at that time, and he was there… If I had known about that relationship, I wouldn’t have touched him. I would have found someone else.”

These words were unbearable. The old man was furious, standing up abruptly.

This time, he didn’t just stomp the floor but brought his cane down heavily on Qin Bao.

“I’ll beat this sense into you! Where did you learn these disgraceful ideas? I shouldn’t have let you go into modeling! I’ve heard about the debauchery in that circle. It’s true! You’re not allowed to go there again!”

The cane struck so hard that Qin Bao almost jumped up but endured it: “Grandpa, you’re so hypocritical. If it had been someone else with me that night, would you still make me responsible? You would have broken my legs already!”

The old man, unable to argue, became angry and struck again with the cane: “Fine! Fine! I’ll break your legs now!”

The cane fell repeatedly.

Raindrop-like strikes landed on Qin Bao’s body.

“I told you not to fool around, not to mess with the entertainment circle! I told you not to play with emotions! I told you to be responsible! You’ve disgraced the Qin family!”

“Yes, I’ve disgraced you. Then kick me out!” Qin Bao finally couldn’t hold back, “I won’t be a Qin anymore!”

The old man: “You unfilial son! Listen to what you’re saying! Apologize to me and then immediately take responsibility and marry Chengyu!”

“I won’t marry! Even if you beat me to death, I won’t marry. If you want to marry, you marry him,” Qin Bao retorted. “Why should I repay such a huge favor?! I just won’t!”

Hearing the commotion upstairs, Mr. Qin quietly left, and Mama Tao stood downstairs wiping her tears, with other servants not daring to go up and intervene.

The old man, tired from hitting, leaned on his cane and panted heavily.

Probably inherited from him, Qin Bao was very stubborn. After taking dozens of blows, he didn’t change his tune, just stood there with a stiff back, silently shedding tears.

“Go to your room and reflect!” The old man pointed at the door and shouted, “Without my permission, no one is allowed to let you out!”