Captured By The Cold Detective (BL)-Chapter 435: Sweet Scent

"Are you sure you have not forgotten anything? Admission ticket, student ID, pen, pencil, eraser, ruler? How about snacks and water? Do you have enough? There is a convenience store nearby, Gege can quickly run there if you need something. How about it? Also, if you can’t find your exam room, don’t hesitate to ask the people around you, okay?"

He Juan continued to ramble as he walked Mu Yuze to the examination venue, unable to keep his nervousness and anticipation at bay. When Mu Yuze did nothing but stare at him, he raised a brow and asked funnily, "...What?"

"I was nervous at first," Mu Yuze remarked with a deadpan face. "But seeing you like this, I feel calm now."

He Juan was torn between laughter and tears when he heard that. "I’m glad to be of help. But seriously, are you sure you don’t need anything else?"

"I will be fine, Gege. Don’t worry about me."

"How can I not worry?" He Juan grumbled under his breath. He reached out to fix Mu Yuze’s messy collar and took a step backward to admire the boy from head to toe. A smile tugged on the corner of his lips. "I don’t think I have ever seen you in such formal clothes before. As expected, Xiao Ze is really dashing."

"W–What kind of nonsense are you saying again?" Mu Yuze shot him a glare before he quickly averted his gaze, his earlobes tinted with crimson.

Right now, he was dressed in a neatly ironed white collared shirt, black slacks, and closed-toe shoes. A few days ago, He Juan had taken him for a haircut until his bangs fell shortly over his forehead, making him look even more youthful and refreshing. The longer He Juan looked, the more he liked what he saw. His prediction had been correct – Mu Yuze would really grow up to be a national heartthrob! How could someone be so handsome and adorable at the same time?!

Clearing his throat, He Juan tore his gaze away in case he could not resist the urge to smother the boy in a bear hug. Looking around, he noticed that many other students had also arrived, mostly accompanied by their parents. This was no longer an unfamiliar sight to He Juan, as it had also been like this when he accompanied He Xie to his own examination venue three years ago.

"You’re sure you have gotten everything, right?" Upon receiving Mu Yuze’s nod, He Juan smiled and urged him to enter the building. "Go. Do your best, but remember not to stress yourself out too much. Well, if it’s Xiao Ze, Gege is confident that he will pass with flying colors." He had seen the last of Mu Yuze’s test papers from Teacher Wei, and the boy had nearly achieved a perfect score in every subject, except for the essay section in the language test! He was brilliant— no, a prodigy!

"En, I will do my best." Mu Yuze nodded, fiddling with the strap of his backpack. He called out gingerly, "Gege..."

"Hmm?"

His gaze remained fixed somewhere on He Juan’s collar as he murmured, "No hug?"

He Juan blinked, taken aback, before he burst out into laughter. "Come here," he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around the boy, giving him a tight squeeze. "Good luck, Xiao Ze. You can do it. Gege will wait for you outside, okay?" he whispered his warm encouragement into Mu Yuze’s ear, and when the boy nodded, He Juan caught a whiff of sweet fragrance emanating from him.

The scent lingered on the tip of He Juan’s nose even after Mu Yuze had retreated and waved him goodbye. He smiled and waved back, only turning away to return to his car when the boy vanished into the building. As he rubbed his nose, a thought crossed his mind,

’Has Xiao Ze changed his shampoo? It smells good.’

***

He Juan had no doubt that Mu Yuze could get into any school he wanted, but he was still overwhelmed with joy when the exam results day arrived and Mu Yuze was officially accepted into the first school of his choice. And he had even placed fifth among the high scorers in the entire province!

It was hard to believe that just a year ago, this was the same boy who had failed a grade twice.

He had initially planned to throw a celebration party together with He Xie’s graduation, alas He Xie was already grown up now and chose to mingle with his friends instead, leaving He Juan alone in Mu Yuze’s company. As his little brother was occupied with opening his clothing store, He Juan had to take a raincheck and agreed to introduce the two of them another day.

In a blink of an eye, three more months breezed by and summer gradually surrendered to the touch of autumn. The leaves blushed with shades of russet and gold, and people started dressing warmly.

At first, He Juan had been worried that Mu Yuze would not be able to adapt well in his new school, but he was relieved to discover that Zhong Yun, Mu Yuze’s buddy from the dojo, was attending the same school as well. He had heard enough from Mu Yuze to know that Zhong Yun would definitely take care of him just fine.

Meanwhile, He Juan remained busy with his investigation into the facilities in Yuyang. Though they had obtained the location of the old facility from Mo Feng, they decided to hold off on taking action to prevent the ringleader from catching wind of their activities. It would be best if they could raid both facilities at the same time.

Three months of intense searching had finally paid off as they stumbled upon a new lead.

"Really?" He Juan let out an incredulous laugh when he heard the news from Marius. "Another bar?"

Right now, they were back in the villa, where Marius, Ye Qiu, and the children had been temporarily staying. The once-messy office had been tidied up, and the board was once again full with pinned information and maps of various provinces in China.

Marius shrugged, equally helpless. "You know it’s the best place for information trading and shady dealings. This time," he gently tapped his knuckles on the board where the photo of a bald middle aged man with a sturdy build was pinned. "Our target is a bartender nicknamed ’Jay’. His deceased brother was one of the special forces soldiers who died during the mission to exterminate the mutated Alphas. I’ve done a bit of a background check, and I found out some interesting things. It appears that he has been living off temporary jobs and moving from one place to another frequently. As if..."

He Juan finished the sentence, "As if he is hiding from something – or someone."

Marius nodded. "The possibility that he might know something is high. He’s worth a try. It’s just that... the bar he works at is a bit... unique," he added with a grimace.

"Oh?" He Juan raised an intrigued brow. "How unique?"

Marius cleared his throat and glanced at Ye Qiu who was listening intently, and upon receiving a questioning look from the other, he finally sighed and revealed what he had discovered so far, "Hearsay, the bar offers special service where Alphas can ’buy’ the time of their Omega or Beta staff for a limited period each day. And it seems like we can only meet Jay... if we engage with this service."