DMPSA CH 3

Chapter 3: Striking Up a Conversation

He had said he wouldn’t return, but just a few days later, Yue Qi found himself back at the tea house. His desire to pet the cat far outweighed any jealousy or bitterness toward the lovey-dovey couple.

The winter holiday had started, and the Spring Festival was just around the corner. Everywhere was bustling with festive cheer. The Night Owl Tea House was no exception, doing brisk business. By 9 p.m., the place was packed. Standing at the entrance, Yue Qi craned his neck, trying to spot an available seat.

“Hey, Xiao Qi, you’re here!” Su Qing greeted him warmly, acting as though they were old friends. Poor Yue Qi had no idea who this “Xiao Qi” was, even glancing over his shoulder to see if someone else was behind him.

“I’m talking to you! Who else are you looking for?” Su Qing came up to him, smiling. “There are only bar seats left. You’re alone, right?”

It was a perfectly normal question, but Yue Qi couldn’t help feeling slightly annoyed. What was that supposed to mean, “still alone”? What’s wrong with being by himself? Annoyed as he was, he still nodded and allowed Su Qing to lead him to a seat at the bar.

“Have you had dinner yet? What would you like to order?” Su Qing asked. “Our chef is in today, so you can order anything from the menu.”

“I want that Kung Pao Chicken Noodles with Soy Egg I had last time,” Yue Qi replied.

“Shh!” Su Qing’s eyes widened in alarm. Pressing a finger to his lips, he whispered, “Don’t let the chef hear that! He gets furious when I mess around in his kitchen. Says I ruin food. If he finds out I made that for a customer, he’ll scold me to death.”

“He’s already found out,” Qin Yang interjected coolly as he walked by. “Haven’t you noticed how spotless the kitchen has been lately? Not a single scrap of leftover food.”

“What? He knows?” Su Qing’s face was a picture of terror. “Your Majesty, have mercy! This humble servant admits his mistake…” He raised his voice into a melodramatic falsetto as he turned and darted into the kitchen, pleading for forgiveness.

The “Your Majesty” in question was the tea house’s head chef, an old friend of Su Qing’s who was known for his cold, stern demeanor. Su Qing had begged him for ages to help out at the tea house. If his antics really drove the chef away, the tea house might end up serving nothing but tea in the future.

Yue Qi was stunned, watching the owner, Su Qing, flee the scene like a coward, his expression shifting instantly as he escaped into the kitchen. Stifling his laughter, Yue Qi lowered his head and pretended to study the menu.

“What are you eating?” Qin Yang asked, standing coolly by the bar, an order pad in hand.

“Huh? There’s a ‘Cat Special’ on the menu? I’ll have one of those. The little paw icon here, it’s your signature dish, isn’t it?” Yue Qi’s voice still carried traces of suppressed amusement.

“Do you have a cat?” Qin Yang asked.

“I don’t. Didn’t I tell you before? I can’t keep cats,” Yue Qi replied.

“Then don’t order the ‘Cat Special.’ It’s for cats.” Qin Yang flipped the menu over, his slightly disdainful look making it clear he thought Yue Qi lacked basic observation skills. Tapping twice on the menu for emphasis, he added, “Although all our cat food is healthy and natural, I’d still recommend you order something meant for humans.”

This time, it was Yue Qi’s turn to feel embarrassed. Flustered, he hastily pointed at a random dish. “I’ll take this.” Qin Yang deftly wrote down the order and sent it to the kitchen before returning to the counter.

When Su Qing emerged from the kitchen, his expression carried a mix of relief and guilt, as if he’d just narrowly avoided being scolded to death. Catching Yue Qi’s gaze, he playfully winked at him. But before Yue Qi could react, Huadian suddenly started meowing loudly, startling both of them.

They simultaneously turned toward the sound. Huadian had struggled free from Table 2 and leaped to the floor, darting straight into Su Qing’s arms. Moments earlier, Su Qing had caught sight of the girls at that table tugging at Huadian’s tail and ears, laughing loudly and making teasing comments. As he picked up the trembling, wronged kitten, he gently patted it to calm it down. Noticing Yue Qi’s longing, tender gaze at the cat, Su Qing shoved Huadian into his arms without hesitation.

Su Qing then walked over to Table 2. The young women, unaware of their mistake, squealed with delight when they noticed Qin Yang glancing in their direction from the counter. Some even waved at him, clearly thrilled to have caught the attention of a handsome guy.

As Yue Qi comforted the slightly shaking Huadian, he overheard Su Qing sternly reprimanding the girls for teasing the cat, explaining that such behavior could harm the animal.

But the girls weren’t paying attention at all. Their focus was entirely on Qin Yang. They nodded absentmindedly while giggling and shoving each other before asking Su Qing a flurry of questions about him.

It turned out that Qin Yang had recently participated in a TV singing competition audition, and his appearance had been broadcast. The girls, who had visited the tea house before, recognized him. Back then, they’d already been captivated by the handsome young man but hadn’t mustered the courage to approach him. Now, seeing him on TV with the potential to become a star, they couldn’t hold back anymore. They rushed to the tea house, eager to become his first fans before he became famous.

They bombarded Su Qing with questions, talking over each other: Did he have a girlfriend? Could they get his autograph? Take a photo with him? Add him as a friend?

Su Qing’s face turned bright red, enraged by the girls’ careless attitude toward the cat. Scowling, he shot a glare at Qin Yang behind the counter, as if blaming him for the situation.

“…?” Qin Yang, utterly baffled by the glare, walked over to ask what was going on. The girls grew even more excited as he approached, covering their mouths and giggling uncontrollably.

“They just randomly grabbed Huadian’s tail and scared him,” Su Qing said, turning his head and speaking softly to Qin Yang, “I told them not to, but they didn’t listen. It seems they’re your fans, you should talk to them.”

Unlike Su Qing’s serious expression, Qin Yang was thrilled to learn he had fans. He didn’t seem to have any intention of reprimanding them. Surprised and flattered, he greeted the girls, “Hello, hi!” Seeing him act this way, Su Qing, irritated, walked away to attend to another table.

The girls, seeing Qin Yang approach them, became shy and bashful, clearly proud of teasing the handsome guy.

“You smell so good! Are you an Alpha? Is your heat period coming soon? We’d be happy to help!” They boosted each other’s courage, laughing loudly, no longer hiding their excitement.

Yue Qi, who had been paying attention to table two, was taken aback. Is this how young people behave nowadays? Without any shame, openly flirting with strangers about their scent and asking about their heat period? To be blunt, this was sexual harassment, and worse, it was clumsy sexual harassment.

When he first came to the Night Owl Tea House, Yue Qi had already known that both Su Qing and Qin Yang were Betas. They had no Alpha or Omega scent at all. Though he didn’t know why Qin Yang had used an Alpha scent spray today, Yue Qi was sure that the sharp, sunlight-like scent was not genuine Alpha pheromones; it was just a cheap synthetic Alpha fragrance.

The girls were probably Betas, and not very smart ones at that. A real Omega wouldn’t be unable to distinguish between perfume and pheromones because pheromones are meant to attract, and they have a molecular structure that resonates with Alpha and Omega interactions. Perfume, on the other hand, is just a pleasant fragrance.

The fact that even Betas could smell the pheromone-like scent meant there was something strange going on. Such an Alpha or Omega would release pheromones so strong that even Betas could detect them. In normal situations, Betas wouldn’t be able to smell the scent of an Alpha or Omega at all.

These girls acting like Omegas, offering to help an Alpha during his heat, was foolish. If they were really Omegas and he was actually in his heat period, there wouldn’t be any time to help a cat; there would have already been a dramatic situation with pheromones filling the air!

Yue Qi shook his head. After tormenting the cat and annoying Qin Yang’s lover, the girls had completely lost any chance of gaining his favor.

To Yue Qi’s surprise, Qin Yang, in a polite manner, gently scolded the girls a bit, telling them to be gentle with the cat. Then he spent the rest of the time talking about his audition experience, flattered by his fans’ compliments. They surrounded him, taking photos and asking for autographs, keeping him busy with their attention.

Yue Qi was baffled as he watched. Meanwhile, he had managed to calm Huadian, who was now comfortably napping in his arms. Su Qing came over to serve the food. “Here’s your green pepper beef fried rice. Oh, Huadian’s asleep, thanks for helping out.” He took the drowsy cat so Yue Qi could eat.

The unpleasantness had faded since Huadian had calmed down. Su Qing, smiling, casually spoke to Yue Qi, “You like green peppers, huh? I like them too.”

“…”

Yue Qi stared at the plate of food in front of him. “Heh… well, green peppers… are nutritious.”

He regretted not paying attention to the menu earlier and randomly pointing at something that turned out to be his nemesis.

He really didn’t like green peppers.

But since he had just said last time that he wasn’t picky with food, and he had indeed ordered it himself, he decided to force himself to eat it bite by bite to avoid wasting food.

His mood was so bad that he lost interest in observing Qin Yang and his fans any longer.

However, while he lost interest, others were still very much interested.

Jiang Manling, who had visited the Night Owl Tea House for the first time today, had been observing Qin Yang ever since she entered the door. For the past few hours, she had been writing and scribbling in her little notebook and had secretly taken a few pictures of Qin Yang with her phone.

No one had noticed her actions, but when Su Qing realized something was off, Jiang Manling had already been a regular at the tea house for nearly half a month.

By now, the woman had secretly started making advances on Qin Yang.

(To Be Continued…)

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