Evil Love Appears chapter 89

Xu Jiale had just returned home in the morning and after a shower, he held Xia’an for a while, then went straight to Yixuange by taxi because Xu Lang had invited everyone to have lunch together.

When he arrived at Yixuange, Xu Lang, Murong Jingya, Jin Chu, and Nanyi, who were staying at the Junya Villa, were already in the private room.

Xu Jiale didn’t have much energy, so he nodded in greeting and then kissed Nanyi several times.

The little guy had only recently been discharged from the hospital and still needed plenty of rest, but his condition had been relatively stable these past few days.

“Daddy!” Nanyi showed his toothless grin. “Look, Grandpa Murong gave me this little bear necklace.”

As he spoke, he lifted the necklace with a bear-shaped pendant from his neck. The entire pendant was made of gold.

“Oh? Grandpa Murong gave you this?” Xu Jiale carefully examined the necklace and gave Nanyi a slight smile.

Although the gold seemed to be Murong Jingya’s style, the detail of customizing it to resemble a bear biscuit could only have been Xu Lang’s idea. Xu Jiale understood this with just one glance.

It was actually quite strange for Xu Lang and Murong Jingya to come together. Xu Lang preferred to stay in Jincheng, where he had several cats and dogs, as well as a big garden full of flowers and plants. It was quite troublesome to entrust someone to look after them, so he usually didn’t come to City B.

Previously, whenever Murong Jingya went into heat, he would come back to find Xu Lang, and Xu Jiale always felt awkward around him. So he often stayed at a friend’s place to avoid his omega father. After he went abroad to study, he no longer had to deal with this problem.

Seeing Murong Jingya was still irritating, but the annoyance was insignificant in his life now.

“Sweetie, did you sleep well? Is there anything uncomfortable with your throat?” Xu Jiale gently touched Nanyi’s cheek.

“I’m fine!” Nanyi said, using his finger to playfully tousle Xu Jiale’s messy hair. “Daddy, your hair is all messy.”

Being criticized by his own son was a bit embarrassing, so Xu Jiale quickly smoothed his hair with his fingers and apologized, “I’m sorry, I woke up late.”

Murong Jingya sat across from Xu Jiale but hardly said a word. He occasionally coughed, but he never spoke. he only frowned disapprovingly when he saw Xu Jiale’s appearance.

Xu Jiale could read the meaning in Murong Jingya’s eyes: How could he let himself look like this?

Typical Murong Jingya, as cold as ice. To him, any sign of vulnerability or fatigue was nothing but a display of incompetence.

“Didn’t sleep well? Have some tea,” Xu Lang poured a cup of chrysanthemum tea for Xu Jiale and softly asked, “How is Mr. Fu doing?”

“Other than a wrist injury, the rest of the tests didn’t reveal anything serious. I’ve already informed the hospital, and they will continue to monitor his condition. They’ll notify me if there’s anything.”

“Ah…” Xu Lang nodded thoughtfully.

He was quite concerned about the sudden appearance of Fu Jing, and he had called to inquire about the test results last night and again today. Xu Jiale had briefly mentioned the breakup with Fu Xiaoyu when he spoke with Xu Lang on the phone, but it was a brief mention, and he didn’t have the mood to discuss it in detail. So Xu Lang only had a rough idea that the Omega who had suddenly appeared yesterday was Fu Xiaoyu’s father.

However, Jin Chu and Nanyi were both sitting nearby, and it wasn’t appropriate to ask further questions.

During the meal, both Murong Jingya and Jin Chu remained very quiet. Murong Jingya was always like this, rarely speaking during meals.

Jin Chu was never comfortable around Murong Jingya, so he quietly sipped his soup.

Only Xu Lang, Xu Jiale, and Xu Nanyi chatted for a while, with most of the time spent listening to little Nanyi talking about his experiences. The little guy was about to enter the first grade and would soon be separated from his kindergarten friends. Whenever he mentioned his favorite friends Brad and Francis, his eyes were filled with reluctance. Xu Lang even held him for a while.

When everyone had almost finished their meal, Xu Jiale finally found the right moment to ask, “By the way, why did you all suddenly come to City B?”

Xu Lang turned to look at Murong Jingya and then carefully replied, “Yes, we came here today to discuss this matter with you. Your father and I will probably stay in City B for a while.”

“Oh?”

“A while back, when your father and I were abroad, we noticed that his cough hadn’t improved. So, he had a chest CT scan done, and the results showed two nodules in his left lung lobe.”

Xu Jiale’s expression suddenly became serious, and Jin Chu also froze. Only Nanyi, who didn’t quite understand, looked around.

Nodules, if harmless, were not a big issue. But if they turned out to be cancerous, it meant lung cancer. The early detection phase might make it less severe, but the uncertainty was still terrifying.

Xu Jiale instinctively glanced at Murong Jingya. He was the one who had poured tea for him and Xu Lang, showing no significant reaction.

“We are not very familiar with the medical system over there, so we brought the scan results back and had them reevaluated by specialists we know. The main goal is to determine the nature of these two nodules and whether they require a pathology examination or surgical removal.”

“What did the specialists say?” Xu Jiale immediately asked.

“They are relatively optimistic. They recommend observing the smaller nodule, but the larger one should be removed for safety. We have already made an appointment with the hospital for surgery in two weeks…”

Xu Lang’s voice was low, and he had maintained his composure throughout the previous conversation. However, when he reached this point, he paused for a moment, as if lost in thought.

Murong Jingya glanced at Xu Lang and suddenly spoke, “It’s just a minor surgery; there’s nothing to worry about. We’re here today mainly to inform you, so you don’t have to be overly concerned. Let’s finish our meal first.”

Although he used few words, he had a dominant personality. He always had the habit of getting to the point, and his demeanor remained calm, as if he were not the one who would be undergoing surgery, as Xu Lang had mentioned earlier.

Before leaving, Xu Lang took the opportunity to pull Xu Jiale to the balcony of the private room and said in a low voice, “Are you okay? You look terrible.”

“I’m fine,” Xu Jiale replied wearily, leaning against the railing.

The indifferent and emotionless demeanor of Murong Jingya made him feel stifled and irritable. It was difficult to find meaning in caring and worrying for someone like him.

Xu Lang seemed like a joke, too.

In fact, there were times when he couldn’t help but feel sorry for Xu Lang, because of Murong Jingya.

…………………

That evening, Xu Jiale received a call from Wen Ke.

The Omega’s voice sounded very anxious over the phone. Without even saying hello, he asked directly, “Fu Xiaoyu said you mentioned a breakup? Because of the child?”

“We did break up,” Xu Jiale didn’t know how to respond to this string of questions.

“Xu Jiale,” Wen Ke took a deep breath. There were some noises in the background, as if Han Jiangque was saying something excitedly. Wen Ke continued, “Are you available now? I want to come see you.”

“You’re in City B?”

Xu Jiale hesitated for a moment before speaking. Given his current state, he really didn’t want to see anyone. However, he thought that he had to face this eventually, so he agreed, “Yes.”

“Also, Han Jiangque is here,” Wen Ke’s tone was somewhat serious.

“I know,” Xu Jiale smiled bitterly, “Come to my place.”

Wen Ke and Han Jiangque had only learned about Xu Jiale and Fu Xiaoyu’s breakup earlier in the morning. Wen Ke had inquired about Fu Xiaoyu’s extended leave when he saw it on DingTalk, but Fu Xiaoyu had evasively responded with a simple “not feeling well” due to his emotional state at the time. However, a few days later, when Han Jiangque noticed that Fu Xiaoyu had changed his profile picture, deleted their photos together, and learned that he had taken leave, he realized something was amiss. He called Fu Xiaoyu for confirmation, and he finally admitted to the breakup. Han Jiangque was furious and decided to visit Xu Jiale to get more information.

As they arrived at Uloft, they were surprised to find Xu Jiale waiting outside. It was unclear how long he had been standing there, and this behavior was somewhat unusual. Xu Jiale, a tall Alpha, dressed in a deep blue T-shirt, carried only his phone and seemed to be looking at the ground as if searching for something.

When their car pulled up, Xu Jiale slowly raised his head.

The sound of Han Jiangque getting out of the car clearly reflected his emotional state. However, before he could act, Wen Ke, who was following behind, grabbed his wrist, momentarily stopping his steps. Despite the evident anger, Han Jiangque didn’t resist but stood there until Wen Ke also got out of the car, and then he held Wen Ke’s hand in return.

Xu Jiale silently observed their actions and wondered why these two men were so affectionate. However, he had always merely glanced at their interactions in jest before. Today, he watched with keen attention, even staring at their intertwined fingers for several seconds.

“Xu Jiale, what the hell is going on with you? Are you sure you broke up with Fu Xiaoyu?” Wen Ke didn’t even mention “let’s talk inside.” Although he was the one holding Han Jiangque back a moment ago, his tone was also slightly impatient.

The reasons for the breakup had already been explained by Fu Xiaoyu. The main issue now was not the reasons, but the fact that Wen Ke felt it shouldn’t end this way, no matter what.

Xu Jiale fell silent for a moment. For the first time, he discovered that answering this question was unexpectedly difficult.

Han Jiangque had moved one step closer, and his face was pale. He was clearly holding back with all his strength.

This was also because he was waiting for Xu Jiale’s answer.

Xu Jiale felt a bitter taste in his mouth. “Yes, we broke up. I…”

He hadn’t even finished his sentence when Han Jiangque broke free from Wen Ke and rushed forward to punch him in the face.

“Damn you, Xu Jiale.”

Due to his ongoing hospitalization, Han Jiangque’s muscles were still recovering, and he had lost his former champion’s demeanor. However, this punch was full of force.

Xu Jiale’s head buzzed from the blow but before he could react, Han Jiangque pounced on him again.

This 6’4″ Alpha was like a raging bear when he was angry. He pressed Xu Jiale against the nearby Tesla’s hood, causing a loud “thud.”

“What gives you the right?”

Han Jiangque was beside himself with anger. “What gives you the right, Xu Jiale?”

“Jiangque!” Wen Ke was taken aback, his face pale. He had not managed to get over to them yet when Xu Jiale shouted.

“To hell with it, Wen Ke, stay back.”

Xu Jiale’s voice was hoarse, and he held onto Han Jiangque as the two of them tumbled onto the lawn, wrestling.

As soon as they came into close combat, Xu Jiale could feel the hidden strength in Han Jiangque’s physique.

He could definitely subdue this Alpha given his still recovering state, but instead his eyes welled up with tears.

At that moment, his heart was raging, and it wasn’t so much anger towards Han Jiangque hitting him that he felt but more about the overwhelming pain caused by everything that had happened in the past few days: Nanyi, Murong and Fu Xiaoyu.

The pain reached its threshold and turned into a torrent of anger that erupted.

Grabbing Han Jiangque’s collar, just as he was about to retaliate with a tight fist, he hesitated when he saw the wounded look in Han Jiangque’s eyes, like a wounded wolf.

In the blink of an eye, he remembered the day he and Fu Xiaoyu went to H City with Han Jiangque and Wen Ke for dinner.

Fu Xiaoyu was drunk and was playfully pushing Han Jiangque’s wheelchair. Han Jiangque was being pushed around with a simple and honest look.

In reality, Princess Han was quite cute.

So was Fu Xiaoyu.

The beauty of that moment made all his anger deflate like a pierced balloon.

Fuck it.

He simply gave in.

“Bang.”

Han Jiangque punched him again.

Xu Jiale was hit on the side of his head, and his glasses fell aside. He almost bit a mouthful of grassy soil but only managed to groan and did not resist.

Another powerful punch landed, this time directly on his nose bridge.

Being hit in this spot brought an excessively painful taste, almost making him cry. He was left momentarily disoriented, unsure if he was dazed by the punch or if it was due to his glasses falling off. He felt the world spinning.

Finally, Wen Ke rushed over, pulling Han Jiangque away from Xu Jiale by his clothes.

As soon as Wen Ke got involved, Han Jiangque stopped his assault. He stood up with heavy breathing, his chest heaving rapidly.

Xu Jiale wiped the blood from his face, retrieved his glasses from the ground, and put them back on. He did so silently, his face smeared with blood, devoid of expression, deeply troubling Wen Ke.

Wen Ke was unsure how to handle the situation. He wanted to calm down Han Jiangque but was also concerned about the emotional toll it might take on him.

“Xiao Ke, I don’t want to talk to him anymore,” Han Jiangque said, his voice strained. “I want to go back and check on Xiaoyu.”

“Okay,” Wen Ke responded. “I’ll come over in a moment.”

Han Jiangque initially turned to leave but quickly turned back, approached Xu Jiale, and said firmly, “Give me the earring.”

“What?”

Xu Jiale suddenly raised his head. He had been punched in the face, and it appeared he was on the verge of retaliating.

Wen Ke, concerned, tried to intervene, saying, “Maybe we should…”

“Xu Jiale, give me the earring,” Han Jiangque said unyieldingly, word by word. “The earring is a gift for someone you love, not for someone who has hurt you.”

Though Han Jiangque had a straightforward and somewhat clumsy way of speaking, he delivered this message firmly. Xu Jiale was struck to the core by these words.

Xu Jiale stormed into the house and returned after a few minutes, handing the small blue velvet box to Han Jiangque without a word.

When Han Jiangque was about to leave, Wen Ke followed. He held the car door and gave Han Jiangque some advice in a low voice. “stay with Xiaoyu for a while, and I’ll have a talk with Xu Jiale. I’ll be over in a moment.”

This Alpha didn’t seem pleased that Wen Ke was staying longer. He had already sat in the car, but he immediately got out. “I’ll take a taxi,” he said softly. “Xiao Ke, you keep the car, and give me a call when you come over.”

“Okay,” Wen Ke patted his back.

After Han Jiangque left, Xu Jiale led Wen Ke into the house. He had been silent all along. He began by wiping the blood from his face and then prepared a cup of warm tea. He also brought out a few small tangerines.

After the two of them sat on the couch in silence for a while, it was Wen Ke who eventually broke the silence.

“I can understand your feelings regarding the child,” Wen Ke said, sighing. “I heard from Fu Xiaoyu that it was Nanyi’s asthma that made you unable to talk directly about a divorce. But did it really have to lead to a breakup? It doesn’t seem like things have reached an irreparable point.”

“Yeah,” Xu Jiale replied, speaking slowly. He hesitated over which part of Wen Ke’s question he was responding to but eventually settled on a general “yeah.”

Wen Ke couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable. Xu Jiale’s current state was far from normal. He couldn’t pinpoint what was happening, but this Alpha sitting there appeared like a walking dead person due to exhaustion.

The Xu Jiale he knew shouldn’t be like this.

Xu Jiale was the person who, during his lowest moments, could enlighten him with just a few simple words, a person who possessed a spiritual and profound understanding that seemed to have disappeared entirely.

“Xu Jiale,” Wen Ke said, “Can you talk to me? You can say anything, your feelings, thoughts, you have to say something.”

“Wen Ke, I really don’t know what to say,” Xu Jiale slowly swallowed a piece of orange, not finding it sweet. Swallowing felt somewhat relieving, and he paused, “These past few days, I constantly feel like I want to apologize as soon as I open my mouth, but I don’t know who I should apologize to.”

Wen Ke also ate some oranges, and after a while, he suddenly said softly, “But you do love him, right? I mean Fu Xiaoyu.”

Xu Jiale’s swallowing motion suddenly stopped.

That question gave him a sense of déjà vu. He remembered when Wen Ke had just divorced from Zhuo Yuan and had been sitting on the floor, tormented by the thought of whether he was still qualified to accept Han Jiangque’s love.

Back then, Xu Jiale had been the same, straightforwardly asking Wen Ke, “Do you still love him?”

The most direct question was like a surgical knife, sharp and impossible to avoid.

“Wen Ke, I love him.”

There was a metallic taste rising in his mouth.

Xu Jiale instinctively touched his nose, thinking that he might be bleeding again, but he wasn’t.

The phrase “I love him” was something he felt ashamed to say out loud, except in front of his most trusted friend. He knew he no longer had the right.

Xu Jiale’s voice trembled slightly, but he had to continue, had to say more; he couldn’t stop at that sentence.

“These days, I’ve been thinking about some strange things,” he spoke slowly. “From childhood to adulthood, I never really had a complete family, so when I saw other classmates having both Alpha and Omega parents taking them to play, to school, and on outings, I envied them immensely. So, after the differentiation, I started dating multiple times.”

“The feeling of being in love, well, after experiencing it numerous times, it just felt the same. There were sweet moments, happiness, and then arguments and breakups, not much difference. But at least, I felt like I wasn’t as lonely.”

“I got married before I was even 23. At the time, you all probably thought it was too early, right? But I didn’t think so. To put it simply, I was quite confident then. I believed I could handle relationships, and I thought I had found the right person.”

Xu Jiale chuckled self-deprecatingly. “Jin Chu, he’s been my ideal type all along. Innocent, delicate, good at being flirty, an especially sweet Omega. We hardly ever argued. Besides, he wanted a family, just like me. You know, Wen Ke, I really wanted a family, truly.”

“I know,” Wen Ke said softly.

“I genuinely thought I had fallen in love with Jin Chu.”

Xu Jiale slowly continued, “Before getting married, there were a few days when I was very uneasy. My feelings for Jin Chu were like a pot of water heated up to the point of almost boiling, but it never did. It stayed at that temperature, 90 degrees, and never reached the boiling point. But as I got closer to our wedding day, I couldn’t help but wonder, does that extra 10 degrees really exist? Who can prove its existence? Perhaps people can’t love to that extent, at least I can’t.”

“I settled, Wen Ke,” Xu Jiale’s expression contained traces of mockery and sadness. He murmured, “In that moment, deep down, I vaguely knew I was settling. But due to my longing for a family and dreams of the future, I buried those doubts. And then, that’s how a person’s entire life changes.”

“If, at that time, I could have held on a little longer, if I could have endured a few more years, would everything be different? I can’t help but think that way. Sometimes, I even want to resent it, but in the end, nobody can be blamed except myself—for not holding on.”

Xu Jiale looked up and gazed at Wen Ke, saying softly, “But at that time, I didn’t know. I thought 90 degrees were enough. No one can predict that one day I would actually meet someone who could make me reach 100 degrees.”

He closed his eyes gently.

He would always go back to that night when he met Murong Jingya, and his mood was so terrible. Fu Xiaoyu, on the balcony, forcibly held him in his arms and said, “I will always be there for you.”

He couldn’t describe the trembling feeling that coursed through his entire body. He held Fu Xiaoyu with almost trembling fear.

“Can you hold me a bit longer?”

He couldn’t describe the tense feeling when he asked that question.

It was the first time he had reached 100 degrees.

It came quite late, in his thirtieth year.

In this world, it seemed that love was the one thing that couldn’t be learned.

No matter how many books he read, how many movies and books he consumed, or how much he understood the poems that depicted love, it was all in vain.

Until it arrived, no one could be certain it truly existed.

From that day onward, with every passing second of love, he became more and more anxious.

The closer he got to genuine love, the closer he got to Fu Xiaoyu, the clearer it became— he had a sin, against himself and his child.

From the moment he chose to marry Jin Chu eight years ago, some form of misfortune was predetermined.

And all these hidden anxieties and feelings of guilt finally overwhelmed him completely on that clear morning when Fu Xiaoyu came rushing to him from Vietnam.