Honest Beta gets scammed

Li Qing stood in front of the coffee shop menu, feeling a little numb.

He just wanted to find an excuse to get out of He Xiangchen's place. He thought the prices of this shop would be similar to those of other milk tea shops, but when he looked up, he recognized all the words on the menu, but none of them were familiar when put together.

Americano, latte, cappuccino... the names sound fancy, and the prices are even more fancy, with the cheapest cup costing over forty yuan.

Forty-odd yuan is enough to buy several kilograms of pork back in my hometown!

He stood there dawdling for ages, looking around but unable to make up his mind. Luckily, it wasn't rush hour and there was no one in line behind him, otherwise he would have been exposed by the looks he received from the people behind him.

He Xiangchen walked over from behind and stood beside him. His gaze swept over the menu before landing on Li Qing, his expression somewhat subtle. He chuckled softly, "You want to drink this?"

Li Qing felt a little guilty, but since she was already there, she couldn't very well admit that she was faking it.

With a stiff neck, Li Qing nodded reluctantly, then looked around and said to the clerk, "Hello, I'd like one of those, an Americano."

He had just glanced at it quickly; this name was the shortest and the cheapest.

After ordering, he realized he couldn't eat alone, so he turned to He Xiangchen and asked, "What would you like to drink?"

Upon hearing this, He Xiangchen paused slightly, silently observing Li Qing for a while. He was now genuinely wondering if this country bumpkin was doing it on purpose.

Seeing that Li Qing's expression didn't seem fake, He Xiangchen smiled and slowly said, "...Then I'll do the same as you."

Li Qing noticed that He Xiangchen's expression was a bit strange, but she didn't think much of it and immediately turned to the clerk and said, "Hello, another one of the same."

I scanned the QR code to pay, and with a "beep" from my phone, I lost eighty-eight yuan.

Li Qing felt a pang of pain.

Soon, the two cups of coffee were ready. Li Qing picked up one cup and handed the other to He Xiangchen.

Back in his hometown, he rarely drank beverages. Even milk tea was something Li Hao introduced him to after he came to Beijing. Coffee was a completely new thing to him; he had only ever seen it on TV before, where urban white-collar workers would have one in their hands and buy it every day, making it seem very high-class.

He took a sip from the small opening on the lid of the cup.

The next second, a bitter taste instantly swept through my entire mouth, from the tip of my tongue all the way to the back of my throat.

Li Qing's features scrunched up. He smacked his lips, moved the coffee cup a little further away, as if looking at something incomprehensible.

I glanced around and saw that the other customers drinking coffee in the shop all looked normal, and some even seemed to be enjoying themselves.

Is it my fault?

Li Qing frowned, lifted the lid of the cup a crack, and leaned in to smell it.

It tasted completely different from what I had drunk; the aroma of coffee was rich and mellow, instantly filling my nostrils, and Li Qing's expression changed slightly.

Why does this smell so familiar?

Li Qing closed his eyes and sniffed carefully again.

Isn't that...

He immediately realized what was happening, and abruptly turned his head to look at He Xiangchen, who was drinking coffee to the side.

He Xiangchen noticed his gaze, turned his head, and saw him staring at him in shock. He smiled and asked, "What's wrong?"

Li Qing felt a surge of heat spreading, her neck turning red all the way to the tips of her ears.

He could usually smell He Xiangchen's pheromones; he knew they smelled sweet and pleasant, possibly from some kind of food, but he never really investigated what they were.

But just now, he found out!

No wonder! No wonder He Xiangchen looked at him so strangely just now!

In front of an Alpha, actively buying or giving away items with the same pheromone scent as that Alpha is a highly suggestive act and is common sense in society.

Li Qing's lips trembled slightly. He leaned closer to He Xiangchen, his voice barely audible, like a mosquito's hum.

"I... I've never had coffee before, I didn't know..."

"Um?"

He Xiangchen raised an eyebrow, pretending not to hear clearly, and leaned slightly closer to him.

A handsome face suddenly approached, causing Li Qing to freeze instantly and instinctively take a step back.

Seeing Li Qing's face gradually turn red and almost flushed, He Xiangchen seemed not to have understood Li Qing's words and laughed, "Oh, you've never had it before? How does it taste? Is it good?"

Li Qing was so startled by his words that his hand trembled, and he almost crushed the coffee cup. The coffee inside the cup sloshed, and the brown liquid spilled out from the gap in the lid, landing on the back of his hand.

Seeing this, she quickly put the lid back on the cup, then glared angrily at He Xiangchen.

He suspected that He Xiangchen was deliberately teasing him, and he had evidence!

Instead of stopping after being glared at by Li Qing, He Xiangchen laughed even harder, his shoulders shaking as he pulled a few tissues from the table next to him and handed them to Li Qing, his voice still full of laughter.

"Just kidding, just wipe it off."

Li Qing took the tissue, wiped her hands a few times, then threw the tissue into the trash can and walked away side by side with He Xiangchen.

The two walked to the elevator.

While waiting for the elevator, Li Qing endured it for a while, but finally couldn't hold back. He turned his head and looked at He Xiangchen seriously, saying, "...Don't be so frivolous in the future. Today it was me. If it were an Omega, they would definitely misunderstand."

Upon hearing this, He Xiangchen sighed softly.

"Sorry, it's a habit. It's easier for me if I'm a little frivolous and act like I'm addicted to sensual pleasures. Don't take it to heart. I'll try not to do it next time."

Σha!

Li Qing's expression froze instantly.

A buzzing sound went through his mind.

In an instant, a tragic picture is drawn: a young master from a wealthy family who is being suppressed has no choice but to pretend to be a womanizer and a playboy in order to survive the persecution of his illegitimate son and the indifference of his family, so as to lull his enemies into a false sense of security and protect himself.

What's this called again? "Enduring hardship and biding one's time"? "Seeking peace through filth"?

Thinking about it this way, He Xiangchen's previous behavior of having women on both sides at the Shengxin Club suddenly made sense!

Li Qing thought back carefully. He had been pushed into the private room and thought He Xiangchen was some kind of lecherous monster. But now that he thought about it, it was the other people in the room who started it all. He Xiangchen himself hadn't actually done anything. In the end, it seemed that He Xiangchen was the one who helped him out of the predicament.

Li Qing's eyes flickered intensely.

He looked at He Xiangchen again and saw that the other man had his head slightly lowered. The light shone from the side of him, casting a shadow on his handsome face. His narrow eyes, which were usually filled with smiles, seemed to hold a hint of bitterness at this moment.

This is clearly the look of someone touching a sore spot!

Li Qing gasped.

Oh, I'm so damn awful!

Li Qing felt a lump in his throat and couldn't utter a single word.

After He Xiangchen offered this excuse, he wondered why Li Qing had suddenly stopped talking. Turning his head, he saw that Li Qing had a wrong expression on his face, full of regret and self-blame, and his eyes were full of sympathy and guilt as he looked at him.

He Xiangchen was slightly taken aback.

When Li Qing saw him looking over, his lips moved, but in the end, he could only offer a dry reassurance: "You don't need to apologize. I was just saying it casually. You don't need to take it to heart."

He Xiangchen had no idea what Li Qing was thinking, but it was clear that the outcome was very favorable to him.

So he went along with it, gave a slight smile, and remained silent.