FIO CH37

Chapter 37: Lone Alpha

Yang Zhaoyang thought for a long time but still couldn’t figure out where the familiarity came from. Lu Fangchi just took it as a minor incident and didn’t delve into it further.

He hurried back to his hotel room to comfort someone. He wasn’t sure if it was a side effect of the “marking,” but Zhou Zheng had been acting a bit moody lately.

However, it was just a minor mood swing, and Lu Fangchi was willing to soothe it.

He got off the elevator and walked to the door, swiped his card, and the “ding” sound unlocked the door. As he stepped in, Lu Fangchi pressed the “video call” button.

The “ding-dong” prelude played for a long time, and just as it was about to hang up automatically, the call was answered. The phone screen lit up with Zhou Zheng’s handsome face. His brows were furrowed, his lips pursed, and he looked quite unhappy.

The fact that he answered the call meant he was waiting to be comforted.

He was acting spoiled.

Lu Fangchi’s lips curled into a smile as he teased, “Let me see which little doggy is unhappy?”

Zhou Zheng pursed his lips, furrowed his brows even deeper, glanced at him with a lift of his eyelids, and said irritably, “You’re the dog.”

“Oh, so he’s mine, huh?”

The alpha looked like he was choked, neither happy nor angry.

Lu Fangchi was pleased by the alpha’s reaction and laughed, his eyes crinkling. He switched the camera to the rear view, showing the entire hotel room as he walked, and then switched back to the front view when he sat on the sofa, saying, “I’m at the hotel now.”

Seeing that Lu Fangchi had returned to the hotel, Zhou Zheng’s brows relaxed slightly, and his displeased expression lessened a bit. He grumbled, “You still know how to come back,” with a tone of jealousy that seemed to seep through the screen.

Lu Fangchi laughed again, raised an eyebrow, and reminded him, “Check the time.” He pointed to the top-left corner.

Glancing at it, it was 9:05 PM. At this hour, the nightlife had just begun, and even the bars might not have started warming up yet.

Zhou Zheng avoided the main issue and began to question, “Who is he? Why were you sitting together?”

“Yang Zhaoyang, the executive president of Lu Xin, and the representative of the potential investor this time,” Lu Fangchi briefly introduced, loosening his tie as he answered the second question, “He invited me for a late-night snack.”

But now Lu Fangchi was sitting in the hotel. That meant because Zhou Zheng had hung up the phone in a huff, Lu Fangchi had canceled the dinner with the potential investor.

The arrogance on Zhou Zheng’s face instantly vanished. His lips moved, but he stopped himself mid-sentence: “So, um, did I…”

“Hm?” Lu Fangchi tilted his head, pretending not to understand, “What are you?”

Zhou Zheng bit his lower lip and decided to keep quiet.

Seeing the guilt on the alpha’s face, Lu Fangchi decided not to tease him anymore and comforted him, “It’s okay, it doesn’t affect anything. We agreed to talk in detail at the company tomorrow.”

Zhou Zheng lowered his eyelids and responded with a dejected “Oh,” his mood visibly low.

“What’s wrong, talk to me,” Lu Fangchi said.

Zhou Zheng looked up at the screen. The warm light shone on Lu Fangchi’s face. His voice was gentle, his eyes full of care, and his patient, raised eyebrows seemed to say that whatever he said now would be forgiven.

Zhou Zheng’s Adam’s apple moved, and he opened his mouth, deciding to spill everything. But just as he was about to speak, a sleepy mumble from his memory—”I think the current you is cuter”—made him stop in time and swallow his words.

Zhou Zheng’s eyelashes fluttered twice, and he nonchalantly changed the subject: “When are you coming back?”

All of Zhou Zheng’s subtle expressions were caught by Lu Fangchi. Coupled with this off-topic question, Lu Fangchi changed his original answer of “the day after tomorrow” to: “Tomorrow.”

Calculating the time, if he finished the talk tomorrow and bought the latest ticket, he should be able to get home around midnight.

“What time? I’ll pick you up,” Zhou Zheng said.

“No need, it will probably be very late. I’ll go back by myself,” Lu Fangchi waved his hand in refusal.

“No matter how late, I’ll pick you up,” Zhou Zheng raised his voice, leaving no room for argument, and countered, “Don’t you want to see me sooner?”

Wow, Lu Fangchi raised an eyebrow; this little dog had actually learned to be proud.

Alright, he bought it. The young man smiled and nodded in a doting tone, “Yes, then come pick me up.”

Zhou Zheng smiled triumphantly, and the atmosphere eased.

It was still early, and Lu Fangchi and Zhou Zheng chatted idly, engaging in a long phone call.

Most of the talking was done by Zhou Zheng while Lu Fangchi listened. There wasn’t much to share, so he watched Zhou Zheng close his computer, get up, and get ready to leave work and go home through the video.

“I’ve accumulated a lot of work, it’s busy, and I’ll probably have to work overtime for the next few days,” Zhou Zheng said as he walked, pushing open the glass door and nodding to someone outside, with faint sounds of other people greeting him.

From this angle, one could see Zhou Zheng’s clear and distinct jawline. His face was expressionless at the moment, and he looked serious, even a bit stern, when he nodded.

Lu Fangchi had a moment of daze, feeling a sense of distance from Zhou Zheng on the screen, who gradually overlapped with the Zhou Zheng in his memory.

Before his thoughts could wander too far, Zhou Zheng entered an empty elevator, and his expression softened as he looked down and asked, “How about you?”

“I’m fine, normal workload, and from now on, it’s just the investment talk,” Lu Fangchi replied.

Zhou Zheng got out of the elevator, unlocked his car, placed the phone in the holder, and started the engine.

He kept his eyes on the road, occasionally glancing at the phone screen, and said while driving, “Is it going to be a smooth talk? Will the other party mind that you stood them up today?”

“It shouldn’t be a problem. Funny enough, it turns out that I already knew him from before,” Lu Fangchi sat up straight, preparing to share more about Yang Zhaoyang.

“Hm?” Zhou Zheng signaled to turn and merged into the main road.

“It’s about a neighbor I had when I was a kid, probably from kindergarten to junior high. We were in the same class, went to school and came home together until he moved and immigrated in junior high. Back then, the internet wasn’t developed, so we lost contact, which I always found a bit regrettable. I didn’t expect that Yang Zhaoyang was that neighbor,” Lu Fangchi’s voice was filled with delight as he spoke. Childhood connections were always a soft spot in his heart.

As soon as Lu Fangchi finished speaking, Zhou Zheng slammed on the brakes. He lurched forward and then fell back, with the sound of impatient honking and flashing hazard lights coming through the video.

The sudden incident made Lu Fangchi’s heart skip a beat. His face turned anxious as he quickly asked, “What happened? Are you okay?”

Zhou Zheng glanced back, saw that he hadn’t hit anything, shook his head, and continued driving.

It seemed like a false alarm. Lu Fangchi let out a sigh of relief as his heart, which had risen to his throat, settled back down. He said, “I’ll hang up now, I don’t want to disturb your driving.”

“No,” Zhou Zheng replied.

Lu Fangchi explained, “I’ll call you back when I get home.”

The alpha didn’t respond, keeping his eyes straight ahead. His brows furrowed into a frown, and his lips were pursed, clearly in a very bad mood.

Alright, Lu Fangchi didn’t hang up but also didn’t speak anymore, just silently watched him drive through the screen.

After about ten minutes, the light in the screen dimmed, and only a vague silhouette could be seen. They must have entered the residential area.

Zhou Zheng drove into the garage, parked the car, and got out, closing the door with a “bang.”

“Does he like you?” came a sudden voice from the phone.

Lu Fangchi blinked at the dim screen, pausing for several seconds before understanding the question. Yang Zhaoyang likes me?

Lu Fangchi let out a soft laugh and teased, “Am I that desirable? Everyone likes me?”

The screen brightened as Zhou Zheng entered the building. He lowered his eyes, looking dejected: “Who knows.”

Lu Fangchi laughed again, shaking his head in denial. “He’s an alpha now.”

Zhou Zheng pursed his lips, still not very happy, and grumbled, “So am I.”

Really, Lu Fangchi shook his head in exasperation. Zhou Zheng was being paranoid.

Zhou Zheng’s mood remained low for the rest of the time, clinging to the call even while taking a shower. The sound of the water and the blurry, indistinct shadow were quite tantalizing.

Lu Fangchi turned the phone face down on the washbasin, breaking the visual feast, and walked into the bathroom to take a shower, his face flushed with agitation.

When he looked at the video again, Zhou Zheng was lying in bed with half-closed eyes, looking languid. Water droplets slid from the ends of his hair, falling onto his milky white, firm pectoral muscles, and beyond that, nothing could be seen.

Lu Fangchi’s gaze wavered, torn between wanting to look and not wanting to look, as he reminded, “Dry off before you sleep, or you’ll catch a cold.”

“Mm,” Zhou Zheng acknowledged without moving. A light blush spread across his porcelain skin, his breathing grew heavier, and his nose glistened with a sheen of sweat, causing the phone screen to sway along with his movements.

Lu Fangchi frowned and asked, “What are you doing?”

“Thinking of you,” the alpha glanced up with a lift of his eyelids, his eyes, resembling peach blossoms, glistening with moisture as if they had little hooks, pulling one into a shared abyss.

You little imp.

…

Lu Fangchi’s mind went blank, his chest rising and falling slightly. After a moment, he picked up the phone again and saw Zhou Zheng’s meaningful expression, his pupils so dark they seemed to drip with ink, a stark contrast to his earlier emotionally charged demeanor.

Lu Fangchi was stunned, “What’s wrong?”

Zhou Zheng pulled the blanket up over his face, leaving only his peach blossom eyes visible, half-lowered as he said, “Nothing,” as if he were shy.

It must have been a mistake. As Lu Fangchi’s mind raced, his phone flashed with a low battery alert, twenty percent remaining.

“It’s half past twelve, time to sleep, and your phone is running out of power,” Lu Fangchi wanted to end the call.

Zhou Zheng, buried under the blanket, shook his head, unwilling to.

“Charge it,” he said.

Lu Fangchi reached for the charger and plugged it in, asking, “So when do you plan to sleep?”

“Now. You sleep too,” Zhou Zheng blinked and added, “Just leave the video call on.”

Lu Fangchi’s brow furrowed slightly.

After a busy day, he needed some personal time to unwind. The idea of sleeping with a video call on felt like being watched, making him uncomfortable.

“The phone will get hot, and any movement when you wake up tomorrow will disturb you,” Lu Fangchi said, trying to reject indirectly.

“I have good sleep quality and I’m not afraid of noise. Once you fall asleep, I’ll put it on silent, and it won’t wake you up,” Zhou Zheng said, considerate and thoughtful, taking everything into account.

All excuses would eventually be seen through. Lu Fangchi sighed and had to tell the truth: “I don’t want to stay connected all the time.”

Zhou Zheng’s eyelashes fluttered, but he didn’t speak. He just looked at Lu Fangchi with a longing expression.

Alright, Lu Fangchi conceded, lowering his standards once again.

Public is public, and private is private.

The investment negotiations did not go as smoothly as anticipated. It wasn’t that Lu Fangchi was trying to take shortcuts based on personal connections; rather, the complexity of the situation far exceeded expectations. Unlike past investors who focused solely on outcomes without regard to the process, Yang Zhaoyang was a leader who preferred to be deeply involved. He needed to understand the development of the investment projects thoroughly, assess their feasibility, and occasionally come up with innovative ideas.

One has to admire Yang Zhaoyang’s acuity as an investor. Although he raised several rather challenging questions, they indeed helped to delve deeper and refine the discussions. This, however, meant that the originally planned three-day business trip had to be extended. Upon learning this, Zhou Zheng’s usually handsome face lengthened visibly, but he eventually agreed due to unavoidable work reasons.

Agreeing was one thing, but Zhou Zheng couldn’t help but stir up trouble from time to time. For instance, right now, the phone screen kept lighting up with a barrage of messages from Zhou Zheng.

During the meeting, Lu Fangchi stealthily took out his phone under the table to check. The screen was filled with periods.

Little Zhou: .

..

…

….

…..

The messages kept piling up, with more periods added each time, refreshing endlessly until the phone started to lag due to the sheer volume of messages.

Lu Fangchi typed out with difficulty: “In a meeting.”

Little Zhou replied instantly: “I don’t believe you.”

Lu Fangchi quietly took a photo of the conference room and sent it.

Little Zhou: [Picture]

It was the same photo Lu Fangchi had just sent, with Yang Zhaoyang’s hand circled five or six times.

Little Zhou: “In the middle of the night, at ten o’clock, two lone men having a private meeting.”

Lu Fangchi: “Really in a meeting.”

As if blind to the words, Zhou Zheng escalated the situation by sending a video call.

Without a second thought, Lu Fangchi pressed the red button to decline.

Little Zhou: ?

??

???

… Another round of screen flooding ensued.

Lu Fangchi turned off his phone, out of sight, out of mind.

To be honest, Zhou Zheng had been quite a handful lately. Even though the location tracking was on and he could see for himself, he insisted that Lu Fangchi send photos as a report, and at a frequency of one per hour. He would scrutinize the photos with a magnifying glass, taking screenshots and asking who this person was and who that person was.

Although Zhou Zheng wasn’t there in person, he had a clear picture of all the clients Lu Fangchi interacted with and his every move.

After a whole day of brainstorming and meetings, Lu Fangchi felt lightheaded and just wanted to lie down and rest in the hotel, to play with his phone and have some quiet time to himself. But Zhou Zheng wouldn’t give him that chance, insisting on staying connected via voice chat for the entire night.

And now, who was the reason for the late-night meetings and the push to catch up on progress? It was because Zhou Zheng kept throwing tantrums, constantly complaining about not coming back yet, that Lu Fangchi had to swallow his pride and ask Yang Zhaoyang to stay late for the meeting, hoping to finish the discussion sooner and end the business trip.

Zhou Zheng, on the other hand, was causing trouble without any regard for the situation. Lu Fangchi was really feeling overwhelmed.

In the midst of his frustration, the phone finally quieted down as Zhou Zheng stopped the message flooding.

After a while, it lit up again, and Lu Fangchi swiped to check.

Little Zhou: [Emoji]

A cute little girl with her hands raised high, with the caption “I know I was wrong.”

Here we go again. Lu Fangchi’s frustration turned into helplessness; he really had no way to deal with Zhou Zheng.

He always managed to push people to the brink of anger, just a spark away from an explosion, and then he would suddenly back down, showing weakness in a way that made it impossible to either let out a breath or swallow it.

Lu Fangchi reached for the cigarette pack, unable to resist the urge for a smoke.

Yang Zhaoyang, who was sitting nearby, noticed Lu Fangchi’s action and kindly suggested, “Let’s call it a day and have a cigarette together?”

“Sure,” Lu Fangchi nodded, took a cigarette, and tossed the pack to Yang Zhaoyang across the table.

Lighting up, inhaling, drawing the smoke into his lungs, and exhaling—it felt great.

The smoke curled around, blurring the vision. Yang Zhaoyang lightly tapped the cigarette with his index finger, letting the ash fall into the ashtray, and said, “Didn’t we meet your partner when we were kids?”