Xu Jiu felt his limbs becoming stiff and weak, and his mind starting to blur. He wanted to release his pheromones to suppress these Alphas.
But when he tried, his gland hurt so badly that the pain split his soul in half like a broad sword, separating his confidence and courage from his body.
The iced tea He Ranran gave him was spiked. The sweetness diluted the drug’s taste. He Ranran drugged him. This was the bloody truth staring Xu Jiu in the face.
He Ranran was obviously working with these Alphas.
Xu Jiu felt dizzy and swayed. The Alphas’ mockery crashed over him like waves.
“Looking like that, you dare harass our Ranran?”
“We need to teach you a lesson. You don’t know your place. Good thing we have lots of Alphas here who haven’t gotten any action in a while.”
“Look at that powder on your face. What kind of Alpha are you?”
Xu Jiu’s tongue was getting stiff. He could barely speak. With his last bit of strength, he gripped the baseball bat tightly while pinching his thigh hard, trying to stay conscious through the pain.
The pain worked. Xu Jiu cleared his head a bit and swung the bat at the lead Alpha’s face like lightning. Afraid he wouldn’t have enough power, he even jumped to add force.
If you’re going to hit, hit the weakest spot. Xu Jiu aimed for the eyes, smashing the Alpha’s eyeball. He gave a soft laugh watching the Alpha howl in pain.
Seeing Xu Jiu still had strength, several Alphas rushed to hold him down. Xu Jiu swung the bat wildly, scaring them back momentarily.
Xu Jiu threw the bat at them, making the Alphas retreat. He seized the chance to run, but the drug kicked in and he collapsed, his consciousness blurring.
He found a knife in the corner and stabbed himself frantically. When the pain hit, his mind cleared a bit.
An Alpha grinned viciously as he grabbed Xu Jiu’s ankle, pulling him close.
“You can’t escape now.”
Xu Jiu heard the maddening sound of a zipper. He grabbed the knife and stabbed wildly. His world turned crimson. He couldn’t hear anything from outside.
Xu Jiu was scared and desperate. He was completely alone, as if standing at the edge of the world.
In eighteen years, he had never been this scared or hopeless. He lay between life and death, not knowing if his next step would lead to survival or death.
When Xu Jiu finally stopped, exhausted, the Alphas had all ran away. He was covered in blood, and beside him lay an Alpha, bloody and unconscious.
But whether from the drug or not, Xu Jiu couldn’t see. His world was pitch black. He couldn’t see any light. He didn’t dare stop moving, afraid the Alphas would drag him into the abyss the next second.
In this overwhelming fear, Xu Jiu heard Chen Songyan’s thoughts. Chen Songyan was nearby.
Chen Songyan: [Where are you!? Please be okay.]
Chen Songyan’s thoughts pierced through the darkness like an arrow of light.
In his despair, Xu Jiu finally saw a glimmer of hope, but he could no longer make a sound. Despite his burning throat, he mustered all his strength to shout:
“Chen Songyan!”
Blood gushed from his ruptured throat. That single shout drained all his strength, the warm blood garbling his cry.
After shouting, Xu Jiu started coughing blood. It dripped from the corner of his mouth, forming a small pool on the ground.
Chen Songyan’s thoughts disappeared. When Xu Jiu thought Chen Songyan didn’t hear him and was about to fall into despair again, he caught the familiar scent of snow cedar, the comforting snow cedar.
Chen Songyan’s heart burned seeing Xu Jiu lying in the pool of blood, his hand still moving mechanically. Chen Songyan’s heart ached so much he almost cried.
More troubling was that the Alpha beside them had stopped breathing.
Xu Jiu’s voice was tiny and hoarse from his painful throat, so Chen Songyan leaned in close to listen.
Xu Jiu’s eyes stung as tears fell one by one onto Chen Songyan’s hand, each drop striking his heart.
Crying, Xu Jiu said, “Chen Songyan, I can’t see.”
Chen Songyan called an ambulance while gently rubbing Xu Jiu’s back, rocking him gently as of coaxing a child.
“I’m here, Xu Jiu. Don’t cry, don’t be afraid. I’m here. How could you not see? We haven’t even seen a doctor yet. If you can’t see, then you can’t see. I’ll take care of you from now on.”
“Xu Jiu, don’t be scared. There’s no one around anymore. I’ll protect you. I called an ambulance. We’ll sleep and you’ll be able to see again.”
Xu Jiu cried and held Chen Songyan tight, burying his head in Chen Songyan’s neck. He was like a frightened polar bear cub, only the breath of family could make him feel safe.
He Ranran watched this scene from the side, secretly laughing. He hated Alphas the most, especially arrogant ones like Xu Jiu. Why did they think all Omegas in the world liked Alphas?
Just as he was gloating about the Alpha finally getting taught a lesson, he felt a chill down his spine. A huge hand gripped the back of his head, lifting him up and pressing his face against the wall.
In his fury, Gu Ji crumpled his love letter into his pocket with one hand. His sleeve burst open, revealing his pale arm with bulging muscles. The veins on his forehead popped out, and his usually proud face was ice-cold.
Blinded by rage, Gu Ji’s voice was as cold as a demon from hell.
“Is it funny? What are you laughing at?”
He Ranran froze.
Gu Ji’s eyes turned red as he punched the wall next to He Ranran’s head.
“Answer me!”
“Don’t think about leaving. What did you give Xiao Jiu just now?!”
The ambulance and Xu Jiu’s family arrived quickly. They looked at each other in dismay seeing the lifeless Alpha on the ground, but eventually called the police.
The iced tea Xu Jiu drank contained Omega drugs and “soft water.” After the drugs wore off, his eyesight and vocal cords would recover.
The only troublemakers were the Alpha’s family. Although police initially ruled it as excessive self-defense, they caused a huge disturbance at the hospital, loudly calling Xu Jiu a murderer, severely damaging his mental state.
Later, more Alphas came forward to speak up.
In an alley without cameras, it was one person’s word against another’s.
They claimed Xu Jiu had worn makeup to seduce them. The lawsuits dragged on endlessly.
The Xu family was stretched thin, caring for Xu Jiu, dealing with all these unreasonable Alphas, while trying to manage their improving business.
They paid the Alpha’s family over a million yuan, but they still wouldn’t let it go, demanding Xu Jiu’s life for the death.
When Chen Songyan visited Xu Jiu during his recovery, it was very late. Xu Jiu slept restlessly, with “murderer” spray-painted in red outside his hospital room.
But Chen Songyan found it strange. Xu Jiu woke up as soon as he arrived and stared at him eagerly.
Xu Jiu lay with his head tilted, his soft cheeks pressed against the pillow, looking pitiful. His messy strands of hair stuck up like a fluffy West Highland terrier.
Chen Songyan had planned to just peek in and leave, but how could he go when Xu Jiu looked like this?
Chen Songyan put his backpack by the door. He was about to sit in the chair by the bed, but Xu Jiu kicked it over.
Chen Songyan sat on the edge of the bed instead. He looked down at Xu Jiu, who sat up. They gazed at each other for a second before embracing tightly. Xu Jiu squeezed so hard that Chen Songyan immediately sensed his lack of security.
So he released his pheromones as much as possible. Filtered through the neck ring, the snow cedar scent in the room was faint but soothing, not overwhelming for Xu Jiu. Xu Jiu let out a long breath.
“Chen Songyan, you know? I’m dying of boredom. All my friends are at school. You saved me, but you didn’t come see me.”
“Chen Songyan, do you know what’s happening outside? My parents don’t stay with me either, they just drop off food and leave quickly.”
“Chen Songyan, are my parents busy because of me? I can feel they’re dealing with those flies because of me.”
Chen Songyan’s heart ached seeing Xu Jiu’s watery eyes. He gently stroked Xu Jiu’s back, unwilling to mention his troubles.
“I’ll come see you every night from now on. Adults always have a lot to deal with. We just need to focus on ourselves.”
“But Chen Songyan, whenever I go out, that Alpha’s parents harass me. They call me a murderer and bother my parents too. My parents still have to manage the business. They must be so tired.”
“I worry a lot. I keep thinking. What if the water he gave me caused permanent damage to my gland? What if I turn into a Beta or Omega? How can I protect my family then?”
“If I think more about it – if I’d been more careful as an Alpha, considered things more before acting, wasn’t so rash and impulsive, was more cautious – would this have happened?”
Chen Songyan: “You’re overthinking. It’s simple. That Omega deliberately set you up. Some people are just born rotten, and they’re not worth your energy. Even I wouldn’t have been able to avoid a situation like that.”
Xu Jiu nodded, though he only half-understood. Chen Songyan knew that Xu Jiu would have to find his own way out of this. No matter how much he said, Xu Jiu might not fully take it in.
Chen Songyan glanced at his watch and realized half an hour had already passed, but Xu Jiu showed no signs of letting go. Unable to bear seeing his young lover suffer, and with his watch constantly buzzing with notifications, Chen Songyan simply took it off and stuffed it into his pocket.
Near midnight, Xu Jiu finally fell into deep sleep, soothed by Chen Songyan’s pheromones. Only then did Chen Songyan reluctantly pick up his backpack and leave.
When he got home, Father Chen was waiting on the sofa with a transfer notice on the table.
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