Take a Whiff: The Alpha's Hidden Scent | Chapter 73 | Thirteen Birthdays Together | Novela.app

When one is swimming in the ocean of knowledge, they tend to lose all track of time. Or so Jiang Wei claimed. After everyone had dizzily drifted through several cycles of that ocean, Tang Zihe’s birthday finally arrived without fanfare. The day before his birthday, however, brought a piece of "invigorating" "good news." Once the New Year’s Eve gala on the 30th concluded, they would have a three-day New Year’s holiday plus a weekend—since the 31st happened to be a Saturday. Then, the moment they returned to school on the 4th, they would begin the brutal gauntlet of final exams. Three consecutive days of testing, followed immediately by the winter break. A small minority, like Tang Zihe, felt that it didn't really matter when the exams were; taking them early meant starting the break early. The vast majority of ordinary students, however, were cursing the heavens and the earth, protesting that they weren't ready to be dragged to the execution ground just yet. Of course, there were also people like Jiang Wei, for whom such news went in one ear and out the other. He didn't take it to heart at all. After all, to him, the weight of the final exams was far less than that of Tang Zihe’s birthday. The next morning, Tang Zihe had just finished washing up and returned to his dorm when he heard a bleary-eyed Xia Shan wish him a happy birthday. "Morning..." Ding Banfan was also sitting on his bed, yawning, looking like he might collapse back into a deep sleep at any moment. "Hap... Happy birthday, Brother Tang..." Tang Zihe looked at his two roommates, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. "If you have the energy for that, you might as well get up and brush your teeth. Don't be late. You'll have plenty of time to perform at lunch." Meanwhile, in another dormitory building, Jiang Wei flipped out of bed, brimming with energy. After a long period of self-hypnosis, even the fact that his backpack currently held that pink-and-blue "hot potato" of a performance costume couldn't hinder his light footsteps. He was even wearing the sunglasses Tang Wanbai and the others had specifically bought; he looked quite cool. As a dutiful boyfriend, the first surprise he intended to give Tang Zihe today was breakfast. Usually, Jiang Wei would wake up and wash up at the very last second, only to find Tang Zihe waiting for him downstairs or in class with breakfast in hand. He felt that, at least on his birthday, Tang Zihe should get to enjoy that kind of treatment for once. To this end, he had even woken up thirty minutes earlier than usual just to snag the best beef wide noodles made by the school’s chef. When Tang Zihe reached the bottom of his dormitory building, he was truly stunned by the scene before him. Anyone would find it hard not to do a double-take upon seeing a boy sitting on the flowerbed outside the male Alpha dorms in a bold, splayed-out posture, wearing sunglasses and looking like he was trying to impersonate a mob boss from the last century. It was even more striking because this person was a boyfriend he could recognize at a single glance. Jiang Wei, however, maintained a level of confidence akin to burying his head in the sand. He firmly believed that as long as he wore sunglasses, no one would recognize him. He grandly motioned for Tang Zihe to sit beside him and enjoy the "breakfast of love" he had brought from the cafeteria. "Happy birthday." Jiang Wei timed his blessing perfectly for when Tang Zihe was slurping his noodles. After speaking, he asked happily, "Am I the first person to say that to you this morning?" "No," Tang Zihe replied after a few seconds of silence, choosing to reveal the merciless truth. "Xia Shan and Ding Banfan said it this morning before they could even fully open their eyes." As he spoke, he used his peripheral vision to carefully observe the expression on Jiang Wei's face. He reached an obvious conclusion: those two goofballs had just been added to Brother Jiang's assassination list. Tang Zihe decided to be merciful and save his two roommates' lives. "But it’s fine. I can just treat what they said this morning as hot air." *That way, you're still the first.* Jiang Wei was very satisfied with Tang Zihe’s tactfulness. Human emotions are always a two-way street. When Jiang Wei and Tang Zihe arrived at the classroom together, Jiang Wei was also momentarily stunned by the sight at their desks. Tang Zihe, on the other hand, walked to his seat with practiced ease. Adopting the principle of "the less I look, the better," he tried to sort through the gifts on and around his desk as quickly as possible. He then stuffed them all into his student locker in order of size. During the process, Jiang Wei caught a few glimpses and noticed there were nearly twenty small boxes in the drawer alone. Fortunately, the gifts weren't bulky, finally giving the long-unused locker a purpose. Judging by Tang Zihe’s practiced movements, he had clearly been through this many times before and planned to dispose of the items quietly later. "You already have a boyfriend, so why are you still receiving so many gifts?" Jiang Wei propped his head on his hand, watching Tang Zihe clear the desk like a whirlwind, still feeling a bit dissatisfied. "Do these people not respect me at all?" "No, this is actually the restrained result of your fearsome reputation having spread throughout the school, Brother Jiang," Xia Shan said as he sat down in front of them, a piece of bread in his mouth, completely unaware that Tang Zihe had saved his life that morning. "Last year, he received more than twice this many gifts. Brother Tang couldn't fit them all in his own locker, so I graciously offered half of mine just so he could clear them out." "On the contrary, I cleared out my locker for him in advance this year, and what happens? Hah," Xia Shan mumbled, still chewing. "This lord here is no longer single, so he doesn't need me anymore." "It's okay," Jiang Wei said after a long silence, his thoughts seemingly drifting far away. "Your day will come too." "You mean being in a relationship?" Xia Shan shook his head. "Forget it. I don't have those worldly desires for now. I'll wait until my grades are as good as Brother Tang's." *Poor kid,* Jiang Wei thought, giving Xia Shan a look of silent pity. *Then you'll probably be waiting for the rest of your life.* "Happy birthday, Brother Tang! May you have many more days like this, and may every year be as good as today!" "Wishing Brother Tang a life as long as the Southern Mountains and fortune as vast as the Eastern Sea!" "Wishing Brother Tang perfect scores in every subject of the Gaokao!" "Wishing Brother Tang gets more handsome every year!" ... A group of them had found a spot in the center of the cafeteria's second floor. They placed a ten-inch chocolate cake in the middle of the long table and began taking turns offering Tang Zihe their sincere birthday wishes. Xia Shan and Jiang Wei acted as the hype men, even encouraging students at other tables to join in. Tang Zihe’s fame was widespread anyway, and since this was the last chance in their senior year, everyone found it amusing and was happy to cooperate. Thus, the second floor echoed with rising and falling shouts of "Happy Birthday to the God of Study!" "Just sit still," Tang Zihe said, pressing Jiang Wei back into his seat as the latter tried to stand up for the third time. Looking at the lively scene in the cafeteria, Tang Zihe felt a bit of a headache coming on. "Why do I feel like you're more excited about my birthday than I am?" Everyone sitting around them had taken turns giving their blessings, leaving only Jiang Wei, who had managed to slip through the cracks. Now that everyone had started singing the birthday song for the guest of honor, he finally leaned in and whispered the birthday wish he had spent so much effort thinking of. "Because it's your birthday, and I'm happy," Jiang Wei said, his face flushed with excitement. He cleared his throat and hooked an arm around Tang Zihe. "Tang Zihe, this is the thirteenth birthday I've spent with you. Even though we missed some in the middle, it doesn't matter. From now on, this number will only increase every year." "Make a wish, make a wish, hurry up." Jiang Wei urged Tang Zihe as soon as he lit the candles. Open flames weren't allowed in the school; if they were caught, no one at the table would escape punishment. Tang Zihe pressed his palms together and closed his eyes. His expression softened, looking surprisingly devout. "Say, if I take a picture of Brother Tang like this, print it out, and stick it on my dorm wall to worship every day, do you think I'd get twenty extra points on the final exam?" Xia Shan asked, his hand itching to reach for his phone. "I think you'd be punched into the wall by Brother Tang first, so hard they'd have to scrape you off," Ding Banfan replied with utter coldness. Xia Shan sheepishly withdrew his hand. At the same time, Tang Zihe lowered his gaze and blew out the two candles shaped like the number 18. Amidst a round of cheers, everyone moved on to their favorite and most anticipated part: cutting and eating the cake. With two strokes of the knife, Tang Zihe cut out the two largest pieces of cake, placing them on plates in front of himself and Jiang Wei. The others turned a blind eye to this, silently telling themselves that as long as they got some, it was fine. Tang Zihe finished cutting the cake efficiently and set the plastic knife aside, indicating they should pick their own pieces and not start a fight. Then, he sat with Jiang Wei, chatting idly. After the meal, Jiang Wei and Tang Zihe took a slow walk around the track. He scanned the area and, seeing no sign of the Dean or any other teachers who enjoyed breaking up couples, he boldly took Tang Zihe’s hand. Tang Zihe took advantage of a curve in the track to shift their grip, interlacing their fingers. They walked a full lap in silence before Tang Zihe spoke up slowly. "I suddenly want you to fulfill one of my wishes right now." As if he had guessed what Tang Zihe was thinking, Jiang Wei asked, "Do you want to repeat your birthday wish to me?" "I can't?" came the counter-question. "No, of course you can, but I don't think you should waste one of your two chances like that. After all, you'll probably only get to be a 'Genie' twice in this lifetime," Jiang Wei said, swinging their joined hands, clearly in a very good mood. "But... even though wishes lose their magic if you say them out loud, I will stay by your side until the very end of my life." "You were the one who personally pulled me back to your side. So, in the future, even if you get annoyed or tired of me, I'm going to stick to you. Don't even think about shaking me off." "Good." Tang Zihe took advantage of a moment when no one was looking to brush aside the hair on Jiang Wei's forehead and press a light kiss there. "Nothing would make me happier."