RBNR Ch49: Because I think Xiao Bao is very obedient

Feng Chengyu, accused of being the “smelliest,” didn’t argue with Qin Bao and instead dragged him into the bathroom for a shower together.

After drying their hair and putting on bathrobes, Feng Chengyu started taking calls.

On the other end was likely Feng Chengyu’s aunt, Director Feng of the Imperial Security Department, Feng Ruian. The tone suggested they were discussing business.

Qin Bao went downstairs to find his phone, intending to text Shan Yiming.

Last night’s events with Shan Yike were explosive, and Shan Yiming had already rushed to the hotel today. Qin Bao wanted to check on the situation.

Finding his phone, he saw several unread messages from Shu Helan.

[Bao  Bao, has your husband returned?]

[Why can’t I reach him?]

[If he’s back, let me know he’s safe.]

Shu Helan’s sense of boundaries was inconsistent. He hardly ever messaged Qin Bao, usually just liking his WeChat Moments posts, but always starting with “your husband.”

Qin Bao stared at “let me know he’s safe,” then turned to the foyer.

He walked to the foyer cabinet, where a cold weapon lay on the surface—completely black and intimidating.

Qin Bao replied to Shu Helan: [He’s back, talking on the phone, so his phone is unreachable.]

Shu Helan replied instantly: [Rushing back to catch an affair? No missing limbs, right?]

Qin Bao: […]

What affair?

Shu Helan: [Just kidding. He trusts you. Just drank a ton of vinegar.]

Nonsense.

Qin Bao guessed Shu Helan had seen the rumors about him and Mo Xiao and ignored his teasing.

Then he thought of something else: [Are you and An Qingyan together?]

Shu Helan: [Sort of. Why?]

Shu Helan: [Since you’re his friend, got any tips for me?]

Qin Bao: [No.]

He didn’t like meddling, and both An Qingyan and Shu Helan were older than him. What right did he have to give tips? Besides, An Qingyan didn’t seem ready to settle down, and Qin Bao didn’t know what Shu Helan’s plans were.

Qin Bao: [Wish you happiness.]

Ending his chat with Shu Helan, Qin Bao opened his conversation with Shan Yiming and sent a message: [Are you still at the hotel?]

“Bao Bao.”

Feng Chengyu’s voice startled Qin Bao.

Turning around, he saw Feng Chengyu coming downstairs. “What are you doing?”

Still standing by the foyer cabinet, Qin Bao said “nothing” and put away his phone. As Feng Chengyu approached, Qin Bao asked, “Were you in any danger?”

Feng Chengyu hugged him from behind, resting his chin by Qin Bao’s ear. “What’s wrong? Worried about me?”

There was a decorative mirror on the wall with sconces on either side.

In the mirror, Qin Bao saw Feng Chengyu smiling. Maybe he had good news from his aunt, as he seemed in a particularly good mood.

“Who’s worried about you? Just asking,” Qin Bao muttered. The fresh bite mark on his neck from the Alpha’s recent marking made him crave Feng Chengyu’s embrace. “Didn’t you say there are bodyguards outside?”

Why bring a gun and have bodyguards if there was no danger? Why would friends demand he check-in?

Feng Chengyu explained, “Everyone who returned to the capital for the meeting has security detail. The border tension requires routine measures from the Security Department. No need to worry.”

Qin Bao nodded, half-believing.

Feng Chengyu took the gun, placing it in Qin Bao’s hand. “Do you know how to use it?”

With his grandfather a general and his father once serving in the Imperial forces, if Qin Bao were an Alpha, he’d undoubtedly be trained the same way. Feng Chengyu guessed Qin Bao was no stranger to guns.

Sure enough, Qin Bao glanced at him, “Of course.”

Then he freed his hand from Feng Chengyu’s grip, slightly clumsily removing the magazine, checking it, and reloading it while adjusting the safety.

Feng Chengyu chuckled, “Bao Bao, are you planning to kill your husband?”

Qin Bao: “…”

What a shameless man. If he were to kill, it would be a stealth attack.

Feng Chengyu reset the safety, placing the heavy gun back in the cabinet, out of Qin Bao’s reach. “I’m leaving tomorrow morning, back next week. What are you doing next week?”

Qin Bao: “Not sure.”

Probably paying rent. They had chosen a studio location and found a manager through connections. Other tasks were entrusted to Jin Si, and the administrative procedures were quite cumbersome.

Feng Chengyu asked gently, “If you have plans, could you tell me?”

Qin Bao became wary. “Feng Chengyu, are you asking me to report to you?”

Feng Chengyu mimicked Qin Bao, “Mm-hmm.”

To be fair, this reunion after their separation felt rather heartwarming. If they were truly married, it could be described as a blissful reunion after a short separation. As for Feng Chengyu, he was practically flawless as a spouse.

Qin Bao felt his resolve weaken and thought that he might as well reply to Feng Chengyu’s messages every time he sent one. It wouldn’t hurt just to move his fingers.

But then, his phone suddenly chimed with a notification.

Without thinking much, Qin Bao took out his phone to read the message. It was a reply from Shan Yiming: [I’m still at the hotel, when are you coming?]

Feeling the person behind him pause their breath, Qin Bao realized that the chat bubbles looked a bit suspicious.

He quickly replied: [Tomorrow.]

Feng Chengyu asked, “Last night, did you go to the hotel because of Shan Yiming?”

“Yeah,” Qin Bao said. “Something came up.”

Expecting Feng Chengyu to ask more, Qin Bao preempted, “It’s something serious. Shan Yiming has helped me a lot before. He’s like a brother to me—”

Feng Chengyu interrupted, “Got it.”

As if respecting Qin Bao’s request for freedom, “I can go out with whoever I want,” Feng Chengyu didn’t press further, and Qin Bao saw no need to explain.

However, the next day, he couldn’t make it to the hotel to meet Shan Yiming.

Because he underestimated the possessiveness of an S-Class Alpha.

The morning after waking up, Qin Bao was pinned down and ravaged by Feng Chengyu, leaving him covered in the Alpha’s scent, making him too embarrassed to meet Shan Yiming. After all, he couldn’t just tell someone to take a suppressant out of nowhere.

Qin Bao gritted his teeth, resentful, “Don’t you have work…meetings to attend?”

“First with you, then the meetings,” Feng Chengyu said as he put on a fresh shirt, looking bright and refreshed. “The schedule is quite reasonable.”

What a rogue!

How did he ever think this guy was an untouchable flower?

Qin Bao felt indignant and decided he would never sleep with Feng Chengyu again. After all, even a contractual marriage could be a sexless one.

He finally met Shan Yiming on the third day, arranging to meet at an outside café. Shan Yiming arrived first and saw Qin Bao approaching from a distance, fully equipped with a hoodie and mask.

It had been four or five months since they last met, and Qin Bao had changed somewhat.

Removing his hoodie and mask revealed his still-proud but now slightly more mature face. At nineteen, Qin Bao had grown up.

As soon as he sat down, Qin Bao asked, “What did the doctor say?”

Shan Yiming ordered a drink for him, remembering his favorite: caramel macchiato.

“The evaluation didn’t pass,” Shan Yiming said. “They said her stress is too high, leading to a psychological desire to change gender to escape the pressure. The preliminary diagnosis is that she doesn’t truly have gender dysphoria or identify as transgender. She needs further adjustment and observation.”

Adolescent desires to be transgender need to be taken seriously.

After returning to the capital, Shan Yiming contacted his family for the first time in four years because of Shan Yike. His father calmly discussed solutions and personally picked up Shan Yike from the hotel, taking her to see a doctor.

Qin Bao was puzzled, “Too much stress? Is it because of school?”

“No, it’s because of me,” Shan Yiming said. “After I left, they placed all their hopes on Yike. Since she’s also an Alpha, all the responsibilities that were supposed to be mine were imposed on her. Maybe in her subconscious, being an Omega seemed a lot easier. But she was wrong. In modern society, AOs are equal, especially in families like ours. There’s actually no difference between an Alpha and an Omega.”

He then looked deeply at Qin Bao.

“Xiao Bao, I want you to talk to her again. She has always idolized you and might be willing to listen.”

Qin Bao hesitated. “Okay.”

He almost thought Shan Yiming knew something more.

Shan Yiming felt quite apologetic for the media’s slander caused by Shan Yike’s situation.

After chatting for a while, they inevitably brought up the incident where she stabbed a classmate with a pencil.

The other person was also an Alpha, with a background no worse than the Shan family. Although he was repeatedly verbally bullying her, Shan Yike ultimately hurt him, potentially leaving his hand disabled. She nearly got into serious trouble for intentional injury. Shan Yiming’s father personally apologized and the school expelled her, leaving her currently on a break from school.

Qin Bao asked, “If after observation, Shan Yike really wants to become an Omega, would your father agree?”

Shan Yiming countered, “What do you think?”

Both fell silent.

Not wanting the conversation to turn heavy, Qin Bao knocked on the table, “Pull yourself together, Shan Yiming! Don’t tell me you’re suddenly feeling guilty and thinking about quitting the team to take on responsibilities. That’s their moral coercion. Both you and Shan Yike have the right to resist. Don’t let me look down on you!”

Shan Yiming pretended to be pained, “I’m not, it’s not that serious.”

Then he changed the subject to something lighter, “Tu Yisen has a few days off for the New Year. Did he tell you?”

“As if he didn’t. He’s been broadcasting it to the world,” Qin Bao said with a smirk. “He mentioned it several times. Such a pest.”

Shan Yiming laughed, “He hasn’t even come home in triumph yet, but he’s already afraid we won’t give him a grand welcome.”

Qin Bao said, “I’ll make the reservations. I’ll make sure to give him a splendid celebration.”

They didn’t chat for long, as Shan Yiming had to rush back to the team, and Qin Bao had an appointment with Jin Si to check out the studio.

Qin Bao hailed a cab from the roadside, gave the address to the smart system, and looked back at the rearview mirror, seeing Shan Yiming’s figure becoming smaller. The issue with the wallpaper was behind them, and their interactions were as before, which made Qin Bao feel content.

He opened his phone and saw Feng Chengyu’s message sent that morning at the top of the chat.

F: [Flight at twelve.]

The message was already three or four hours old.

Feng Chengyu really had lowered his pride, constantly reporting to him, which seemed quite pitiful.

Qin Bao hesitated for a moment, typed a few words, and sent: [Just met with Shan Yiming, now heading to the studio.]

Then he turned off his phone and put it back in his pocket.

The car was a bit warm, and his face felt hot. He reached out to grab the floating smart assistant in the front row. “Hey, did you turn on the thermostat?”

The smart assistant immediately displayed the thermostat settings page.

Qin Bao still felt a bit hot. Feng Chengyu’s Dingxun avatar lit up with a new message.

F: [Got it.]

Then the Dingxun screen showed: “F” poked you.

Qin Bao: [What do you want?]

F: [Just pretending to pat your head.]

How childish. Qin Bao, annoyed: [I told you I’m not a dog. Can’t you understand that?]

F: [Because I think Xiao Bao is very obedient.]

Qin Bao set the smart assistant’s temperature control to the lowest setting: “……”

If he felt any more pity for Feng Chengyu, he really would be a dog.

*

At the appointed location, Jin Si was already waiting there. “Qin Bao—”

With the weather turning cold, Jin Si bought two cups of hot coffee and handed one to Qin Bao.

“Thanks.” Qin Bao took it and went upstairs with Jin Si. “Next time, don’t wait for me, just go up.”

Jin Si insisted, “Going in together gives it a sense of ceremony.”

The studio location was suggested by Jin Si. She took some time off to run around for a few days. Despite her introverted nature, she was very attentive, considering everything for Qin Bao. This was the first time they were visiting the place in person, and Qin Bao was satisfied with everything.

After signing the contract with the person in charge and paying a large amount of rent, Qin Bao walked around the house, planning the layout.

Jin Si, who was responsible for internal affairs, was even more excited than Qin Bao. “When are Brother Meng and Xiao Xu coming? Let’s discuss everything together!”

Qin Bao shattered her immediate work expectations. “Xiao Xu won’t be leaving his job for a few days, and Brother Meng is just a nominal advisor. He’s only helping me review contracts and can’t take on work. He’s just temporarily helping out.”

Jin Si was surprised. “Brother Meng has a new artist to manage?”

“No, he’s managing, not leading,” Qin Bao said. “You know Lu Cheng’an, right? Brother Meng is his manager.”

Jin Si nodded enthusiastically. “Lu Cheng’an! I know him. He’s very popular. I love watching his ‘Food God’s Growth Story,’ and he and his boyfriend Mi Fei are so sweet. I love them!”

“Mm.” Qin Bao lazily responded. “So you see, he’s very busy. He wouldn’t have agreed to help if he didn’t know my mom. The fact that he’s helping us streamline processes and offering advice is already a big help.”

Jin Si was still cheerful. She was very happy to be “starting a business” with Qin Bao. She diligently took notes on the items to be purchased, and she and Qin Bao agreed to meet at school.

After she left, Qin Bao stood by the studio window for a while, looking at the view below.

He knew that the studio was still an empty shell. Besides a manager, they needed a financial officer, legal counsel, marketing personnel, and many other positions. Only when those people were in place would the studio be officially established.

His excitement was not much less than Jin Si’s, but he felt more confusion.

A few days ago, a famous producer, Sister Lü, contacted him, saying she had a movie and wanted to invite him to audition.

Having met only once, he was flattered that she extended such an invitation. He feared he might mess it up and worried the opportunity might slip away.

It would be great if someone could help him.

As if sensing his thoughts, Qin Bao’s phone suddenly rang.

The screen displayed a name he hadn’t seen in a long time: his manager for five years, Brother Lu.

___

Author’s Note:

Time to speed up the pace. Time skip mode activated.

Everyone, get ready, let’s go—