Chapter 50: Secretary Shen, As You Wish
Shen Chi looked at him sluggishly. What entered his vision was a cold yet gentle face.
He overlooked the morbid obsession in the man’s eyes, feeling only that, at this moment, he seemed like a good person.
“It’s… okay?”
“Really…?”
Lu Chenzhou’s expression darkened progressively amidst his unconscious murmurs. Right now, the pheromone monitor bracelet on his wrist was already emitting a sequence of beeping alerts, its flashing red warning light indicating his dangerous state. Yet, on the surface, he maintained the demeanor of an elegant gentleman. To entice his prey into throwing himself into his arms, he demonstrated the absolute peak of patience.
“Yes, it’s fine.”
“However, if you mind…” He deliberately let go of Shen Chi’s hand, entirely withdrawing his released pheromones at that exact moment.
Instantly, Shen Chi felt like a fish out of water. Upon realizing the man had pettily taken back his pheromones, he felt so aggrieved that tears nearly spilled from his eyes.
Why did he let go of his hand?
Did he not like him anymore?
Lu Chenzhou looked down at everything like a cold, detached bystander, yet also a gentle guide. “Secretary Shen, the initiative is in your hands. If you are unwilling, no one can force you. Furthermore, you can call it off at any time.”
Shen Chi was currently on the verge of a breakdown. When had he ever suffered such inhumane torment? He could only clutch at Lu Chenzhou for help.
But since the man had let go once before, when Shen Chi reached for him again, he did so with utmost caution, looking like a pitiful little thing.
He tugged at Lu Chenzhou, though even he couldn’t explain what exactly he wanted to do.
With his eyes brimming with tears, he looked like an abandoned puppy.
Lu Chenzhou suddenly laughed. His fingers tapped idly against the back of the other’s neck.
A Beta’s nape was smooth, without any slight protrusion. An Alpha being attracted to an Omega was hardwired into their genes, but an Alpha being attracted to a Beta was a choice of the soul.
“Secretary Shen, what should I give you?”
With his fingertips lightly tapping the nape of Shen Chi’s neck, Lu Chenzhou acted like a highly patient hunter, waiting for his prey to take the bait voluntarily.
“A… mark?”
The hesitant voice lacked certainty, but at this moment, the corners of Lu Chenzhou’s lips curled up completely.
“Secretary Shen, as you wish.”
Shen Chi’s pupils contracted sharply.
He didn’t even know how to describe the sensation. He only felt his mind go entirely blank, save for the system’s frantic screaming.
A moment later, a dense scent of gunpowder began to overwhelm him from all directions, brutal and terrifying. Shen Chi became a pitiful little creature swallowed whole. This despairing experience triggered an immense sense of crisis within him.
His lips trembled. He vaguely remembered Lu Chenzhou saying that he could call it off at any time.
“Enough…”
He practically cried it out, but in reality, those two words were so faint they were nearly inaudible.
However, Lu Chenzhou heard them.
Blinking his dark eyes, the coaxing words from moments ago turned entirely into lies at this very second.
In a place hidden from Shen Chi’s sight, Lu Chenzhou’s madness and morbid obsession were completely unleashed.
His hand gently caressed the crying youth in his arms, but the depths of his eyes were like a rising ocean tide, wishing nothing more than to submerge the boy completely.
How could it ever be enough? In this lifetime, he would never have enough.
With his final shred of consciousness, Shen Chi only remembered forcing his eyes open, trying to discern something, but he ultimately couldn’t fight his instincts and blacked out.
Lu Chenzhou contentedly gathered the boy into his arms. Then, he buried his head into the crook of Shen Chi’s neck and took a deep breath.
Shen Chi was a Beta, yet Lu Chenzhou unexpectedly caught a hint of lemon scent. Coupled with the tears clinging to the corners of Shen Chi’s eyes, he felt like a tart little cake—he had truly been bullied terribly.
First time strange, second time familiar, the third time felt just like coming home.
When Shen Chi opened his eyes again, a glance at the familiar layout around him told him exactly where he was.
The guest room of Lu Chenzhou’s villa.
This didn’t surprise him.
That guy loathed his tiny, broken rental apartment so much; there was no way he would step foot in it again.
Shen Chi rested on the soft bed for a long time before managing to pull back the blanket with difficulty. Though it was a minor movement, it drained a significant amount of his strength. As he forced himself to sit up, a fine sweat broke out on his forehead.
He opened his hands and looked at his familiar palms, feeling that something had changed. He murmured, “Was it just a pseudo-heat? How could my body become this weak?”
The system made its return, letting out a sharp screech, [Oh, my socks, my darling, are you finally awake and lucid?]
After a temporary marking, Lu Chenzhou’s pheromones remained pooled inside his body and wouldn’t dissipate anytime soon. Shen Chi rubbed his temples. His entire body felt out of sorts, and he couldn’t help but feel like he had become overly sensitive and needy.
“System, was I physically modified while I was unconscious?” Why did he feel an inexplicable wave of melancholy upon waking up and not seeing Lu Chenzhou?
He didn’t know that this was a trait unique to Omegas. A marked Omega would become extremely fragile; if they couldn’t find their Alpha, they would feel sorrowful and even cry from a sense of grievance.
The system fell silent for a moment before saying cautiously, [Never mind the modifications, I think things are looking a bit bad.]
Shen Chi asked, “Bad in what way?”
The system replied, [How much do you remember from right before you passed out?]
Shen Chi’s head was a jumbled mess, as if stuffed with all sorts of things, but trying to sort through them left him completely clueless at the moment.
Spurred by the system’s reminder, he suddenly had a rude awakening. “I let Lu Chenzhou bite me?!”
The system nodded heavily, [Yeah. At the time, I honestly thought you’d been possessed by some evil spirit.]
This time, it was Shen Chi’s turn to let out a sharp screech of his own.
The moment he shrieked, the guest room door was pushed open.
Dressed in loungewear, Lu Chenzhou lacked his usual corporate sharpness and looked a bit more genial. Seeing Shen Chi, the corners of his lips curved up as he teased, “Secretary Shen, the moment you wake up, you start imitating a screaming rubber chicken greeting the dawn?”
Shen Chi’s face flushed a deep, explosive crimson.
Granted, he had only been bitten on the neck, but the sensation had been so overwhelming that seeing Lu Chenzhou now made his entire body feel deeply awkward and restless.
He cleared his throat. Lu Chenzhou had already walked over to him, naturally reaching out to check his forehead.
This intimate gesture startled him so much that his whole body froze.
In the past, he definitely would have instinctively swatted the man’s hand away. But this time, following the temporary mark, he actually felt an urge to lean in and nuzzle against his palm.
Shen Chi’s eyes widened in sheer disbelief.
He really would have preferred being possessed by an evil spirit!
“P-P-President Lu.”
Lu Chenzhou practically radiated a blissful aura. Hearing this, he chuckled softly. “S-S-Secretary Shen?”
Shen Chi: “…”
