🍒CHAPTER 36: “You can’t always be the one taking advantage of me, right?”

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What Shen Shuyi wanted to help Xie Chen Zhou become was a “normal” Alpha. Of course, if he was willing, he could also live as a “normal” Enigma. But in the present, society’s recognition of the Enigma gender was extremely low. All Enigmas chose to hide what they were, and countless of them ended up either in prison or destroyed by extreme psychological torment. This only proved how difficult it was to truly establish oneself openly as an Enigma in this world.

Of course, if one day technology advanced enough to eliminate the physical and mental impact of pheromones on human instincts and health, then things might be different. But for now, the only medications available to deal with pheromone effects were the limited few already known.

So Shen Shuyi decided that he would pursue clinical medicine, continue on through graduate studies and research, focusing on the connection between neuroscience, glands, and pheromones. He wanted to try with his own methods, to prove that gender psychology was not meaningless.

The old Shen Shuyi had always drifted along aimlessly. Even though he had chosen a future path, he had never known where exactly it would lead, because he was always so ordinary. In this world, aside from his third brother, no one seemed to notice him.

But now he knew. There was someone who had noticed him, someone who had been paying attention to him since middle school. Shen Shuyi didn’t care if others thought that person was dark or twisted. As long as Shen Shuyi believed he wasn’t, then to him, he never would be.

Yet in the end, his relationship with Xie Chen Zhou still retreated back to where it had been. After all, Shen Shuyi had completely passed through his heat period. Saying this felt a little unfair to Xie Chen Zhou, but in truth, if he wanted to help restore Xie Chen Zhou’s condition, then it was better not to be too indulgent. This was something Shen Shuyi had recently confirmed.

So he told Xie Chen Zhou that his words and actions from before had only been the impulse of his heat period, that Xie Chen Zhou shouldn’t take them to heart. He hoped they could maintain their agreement as before, and that when Xie Chen Zhou met someone he truly liked, Shen Shuyi would still bring up divorce.

Would Xie Chen Zhou be willing to let him go then?

When Shen Shuyi said this, he saw the redness at the bottom of Xie Chen Zhou’s eyes, smelled the pheromones that filled the room, wrapping around him completely. He forced himself to stay calm and pretended not to notice anything.

Until Xie Chen Zhou said lightly, “As you wish.” Then he turned away and had several more surveillance cameras installed in the villa.

Shen Shuyi had already grown used to walking naturally under the gaze of the cameras scattered across the house.

That evening, when Shen Shuyi came home from work, the Xie residence had virtually no blind spots left in its surveillance. Xie Chen Zhou always knew where in the house he was. But that didn’t matter. Xie Chen Zhou had said before, the cameras could be turned off whenever Shen Shuyi wanted.

After dinner together in the dining room, Shen Shuyi went upstairs, switched off all the cameras covering the rooftop terrace and gym, and then called Uncle Qian up.

Before long, Xie Chen Zhou came up as well, arriving even before Uncle Qian.

“Mr. Xie?” Shen Shuyi was on the terrace setting up a projector, his phone playing a health lecture video. Turning back, he paused what he was doing. “Sorry, it’s a school assignment, involves some academic confidentiality… I didn’t want to disturb you in the basement, so I chose to watch out here. The weather’s nice, the evening breeze is cool. Would you like to join me?”

Uncle Qian soon followed, carrying a bowl of freshly washed blueberries and cherries.

Shen Shuyi picked up a cherry and handed it to Xie Chen Zhou. The dark, glossy fruit carried the faint fragrance of his fingertips as it was passed into Xie Chen Zhou’s palm.

Xie Chen Zhou looked at him. Shen Shuyi lowered his head slightly, and from this angle Xie Chen Zhou could see the small gland at the back of his neck, the one that always tempted him to inject his pheromones there.

Shuyi was his now. There was no need to rush. Xie Chen Zhou reminded himself. He had endured for so long already, why would he fail now?

He looked at Shen Shuyi deeply, then turned and left. As he walked away, the heavy fragrance of magnolia brushed past Shen Shuyi’s nose, heating the gland at his nape. Almost, almost it had been so close.

For Shen Shuyi now, Xie Chen Zhou’s pheromones were the most potent stimulant, their effect immediate and overwhelming. No other Alpha’s or Enigma’s pheromones had ever stirred his glands like this. He had encountered quite a few since returning to work, yet never once had his glands reacted.

It seemed that this temporary gland of his could only be marked by Xie Chen Zhou, and it was very likely that it would only ever respond to his pheromones.

That was a useful piece of knowledge. Shen Shuyi decided to record it down later.

“Master really has such deep feelings for young Mr. Shen…” Uncle Qian said with emotion, watching Xie Chen Zhou’s retreating back. “In this house, almost no one dares to go against him, except for you.”

Shen Shuyi didn’t want to waste words. “Uncle Qian, let’s talk business.”

Half an hour later, the cameras were turned back on.

Xie Chen Zhou came upstairs again. Uncle Qian had already gone down.

Shen Shuyi was in the gym’s locker room, changing clothes, intending to exercise a little. He hadn’t expected that the very moment the cameras were reactivated, Xie Chen Zhou would already be on his way up. Without even checking where Shen Shuyi was, he first searched the terrace, then one room after another, until he finally pushed open the locker room door.

It had only been half an hour, yet Xie Chen Zhou was already restless. His possessiveness could not allow Shen Shuyi to leave his sight for so long. At night, his need for control was always strongest.

Shen Shuyi quietly noted down this discovery, then checked the time. Nine o’clock. Should he end things here, or should he find the right balance between restraint and release?

He turned to look at Xie Chen Zhou. His shirt was half off, exposing his pale waist as he sat on the bench, back to the door. The delicate dimples on his lower back stood out, and around them were the scattered marks Xie Chen Zhou had left a week ago. Shen Shuyi hadn’t realized his skin scarred so easily, but since those places were never exposed, Xie Chen Zhou had indulged himself there. Just as the bruises were about to fade, they were the most visible, finger-shaped impressions still clearly overlapping.

Xie Chen Zhou began releasing an excess of pheromones. Shen Shuyi couldn’t take much more. He chose honesty with himself, stood, pulled at Xie Chen Zhou’s shirt hem, and pressed him back against the wall as he said, “Mr. Xie, close the door. I don’t want anyone walking in suddenly.”

Not only did Xie Chen Zhou shut the door, but with a click, he locked it completely.

In the end, there was no exercising done. Instead, there was a different kind of exertion, and Shen Shuyi’s not-yet-recovered waist nearly broke again.

The next morning, he woke up in Xie Chen Zhou’s bed.

Xie Chen Zhou was already up and washing. The pheromone concentration in the bedroom was impossible to judge, but Shen Shuyi tried to pull open the heavy curtains, struggling to wake himself. No matter how exhausting the night had been, he still had to work. He couldn’t keep taking leave. Today’s tasks were heavy, and he had bought a pile of exam prep books to squeeze in whenever he could.

Stretching, he nearly twisted his waist again. Stumbling back, he tried to fall toward the bed, but long arms caught him. Xie Chen Zhou had finished washing, looking fresh, not even a trace of stubble on his face.

Held by the waist, Shen Shuyi looked up. “Mr. Xie,” his lips moved, words forming, though Xie Chen Zhou was distracted and didn’t hear. “Have you been busy lately?”

When there was no answer, Shen Shuyi waved a hand in front of his eyes. “My eldest brother is sponsoring an off-road racing event in Chongwan District. I heard you have a resort there? It’s a two-day event. He said he’d like to invite us to watch together.”

“Do you want to go?” Shen Shuyi asked. “I know that attending my family’s events always makes you uncomfortable, but I want you to relax. I don’t have the kind of network my father, my stepmother, or even my siblings do. I can’t think of any other way to help you unwind… If you don’t want to-”

Before he could finish, Xie Chen Zhou bent down and kissed him.

“??” Shen Shuyi muffled, “Mmmm?”

He was kissed breathless, unable to understand why, so early in the morning, after simply speaking normally, Xie Chen Zhou would suddenly lean in like that.

“Go,” Xie Chen Zhou said, satisfied, finally releasing him. “But… where exactly did you say?”

“??” So he hadn’t even been listening?

His focus was far too scattered. Could it be that his condition had worsened again?

But when Shen Shuyi studied him carefully, he realized that Xie Chen Zhou’s complexion was far better than before. The shadows under his eyes were gone, and though he couldn’t gauge the pheromone concentration in the room by feel, he was certain that after the kiss, Xie Chen Zhou’s pheromones had remained stable.

That was good. It meant his efforts were working. Even if he was groping his way forward, at least there was hope.

Shen Shuyi was so pleased. After all the professional study he had done, this was the first time he truly felt a sense of accomplishment through Xie Chen Zhou. Unable to help himself, he cupped Xie Chen Zhou’s handsome face and gave him two playful kisses in return.

“You can’t always be the one taking advantage of me, right?” he said.

“?” Xie Chen Zhou blinked.

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*Translator: thank you for reading 💋