When an Alpha is Marked by One of His Own Kind

Chapter 24

Qian Bao, sitting nearby, looked up from fishing through the soup base for the tripe she'd just thrown in. "'Sure' what?"
Shen Qiao didn't answer. He gazed at Lu Zhe. Not only had he said 'sure', he'd even let his lips curl into a faint smile. It was like a silent provocation, a daring invitation. In Lu Zhe's eyes, that smile ignited all the blood in his veins. His pulse roared in his ears.

He practically couldn't sit still.

...he wanted to put Shen Qiao in his place, without a single care for where they were or who was watching.

Qian Bao looked back and forth between the two of them a few times, wanting to get to the bottom of the mystery that was brewing between them. She absently fished through the pot of spicy soup with her chopsticks, failing to find anything. She didn't even manage to pluck out a single dried pepper.

It was a long while before she came to her senses and remembered what she was supposed to be doing. "Ah!" she cried out softly. "Oh my god, my tripe!"

Shoving the issue of Shen Qiao and Lu Zhe out of her mind, Qian Bao hastily grabbed a small straining spoon in her left hand and fished through the soup. When she finally found the tripe she'd thrown in earlier, it had already curled and shriveled. It was much smaller than it had been when she first tossed it into the pot; clearly, it had been overcooked.

Qian Bao puffed out her cheeks. Despair was written all over her face. As someone who loved fresh hotpot, there was very little in the world that distressed her more than overcooked tripe.

Next to her, Old Wo and Er-Hua were fighting about which one of them had cooked a slice of fatty beef.

"I just put that one in. You already fished up the ones you put in earlier, alright?"

"Hah? Okay, fine. You say you put it in? Then call its name, see if it runs to you."

The atmosphere at their table was warm and lively. Everyone was focused on eating and snatching all the meat they could get their hands on. No one paid any more attention to Lu Zhe and Shen Qiao.

Lu Zhe ladled out half a spoon of the spicy soup and mixed it into his dipping sauce bowl. A light, soft smile remained on his lips as he meaningfully murmured to Shen Qiao, "You did that on purpose."

He spoke with certainty, seeing straight through to Shen Qiao's true intentions.

Shen Qiao declined to comment. His gaze fell upon the spicy soup pot, helplessly drawn in by the aromatic scent. In the end, he couldn't resist. He had to pick up a piece of tripe and scald it in the spicy pot, just to have a taste.

He had, indeed, done 'that' on purpose. For one thing, he knew Lu Zhe wouldn't actually lose control and do anything untoward to him in front of a table of spectators. For another thing, Lu Zhe had taken so many opportunities to provoke him and tease him in front of other people. And whenever Shen Qiao wanted to take revenge, someone or something would come up and steal away the chance.

There were some words that just weren't as sweet after the right time for them had passed.

He firmly held onto the piece of tripe with his chopsticks and swished it through the soup, ignoring the ostentatiously heated gaze Lu Zhe cast his way. He diligently counted to fifteen seconds in his head, then took out the lightly curled piece of tripe. He blew on it a few times, then carefully nibbled at the very edge.

At exactly that second, Lu Zhe leaned over to him-

Shen Qiao instantly sensed his approach. He paused mid-bite and glanced over at Lu Zhe. The corners of his eyes twitched, filling up with a silent sort of defensiveness.