In December of the following year, after nearly two years of hard work, Xu Jiu successfully landed a military civilian position in library and archives. With high scores, he was assigned to the Central District of Dragon Island, the closest place to Chen Songyan.

In January of the third year, Xu Jiu headed to Dragon Island with his suitcase. Dragon Island was a large island surrounded by sea on all sides, with spring-like weather year-round. Where the sea met the sky in the distance, ice-blue waters kissed the horizon. You could smell the ocean’s moisture in the wind, like a flat bottle of lemon soda.

Xu Jiu went to the dorm first to drop off his luggage. It was a two-person room, and he brought a gift for his new roommate. The dorm was much nicer than he’d imagined, with a private bathroom, separate wet and dry areas, individual washer and dryer, and even a TV and kitchen.

Xu Jiu looked around, feeling this was different from what he read online. Weren’t they supposed to be four-person rooms with bunk beds and desks underneath, similar to his college dorm? This was more like officers’ quarters.

In the bedroom were two single beds. One had only a bamboo mat with folded blankets on top. It looked a little simple, with three model airplanes on the nightstand. The other bed was much nicer, with sheets and quilts, even two layers of cotton padding underneath. The duvet cover was pure blue with little jellyfish printed on it.

Xu Jiu instinctively assumed he was assigned the simpler bed. The weather forecast showed the island got quite cold at night, only around ten degrees, so he lifted the bamboo mat, only to discover “Bed No. 1” painted in bright red on the headboard.

Xu Jiu was assigned bed No. 2! That bamboo mat belonged to his roommate’s bed No. 1. This roommate must be a tough guy, with a body hard enough to sleep on just a mat. Xu Jiu quickly put everything back.

He sat dazedly on his soft bed. Was this part of the civilian staff benefits? They even prepared the bedding for him, saving him a lot of trouble.

Next, Xu Jiu went to the bathroom to put away his things. To his surprise,  he found a large bouquet of wrapped roses on the sink counter. Was this a gift from his roommate…? Giving roses to a roommate was pretty weird, who does that?

Hearing the door open, Xu Jiu hurriedly grabbed the gift he’d prepared for his roommate. The next moment, as the door swung open, someone stood backlit in the doorway, the light on his shoulders like the trail of a shooting star. He carried plastic bags containing five or six boxes of what looked like takeout from the cafeteria. He called out to Xu Jiu warmly.

“Xiao Jiu.”

Xu Jiu rushed over and hugged him. “Chen Songyan!”

Chen Songyan bent down to kiss Xu Jiu’s temple, his gentle voice sounding by Xu Jiu’s ear,

“Sorry I couldn’t pick you up. I was worried you hadn’t eaten, so I went to get food first.”

Xu Jiu grabbed Chen Songyan’s tie and kissed him. Chen Songyan had never been kissed before and didn’t know what to do, so he just stood there mechanically letting Xu Jiu kiss him. Xu Jiu didn’t know either, he’d just acted on impulse, so they both just pressed their lips together.

Xu Jiu vaguely remembered Gu Ji telling him kissing involved using tongue, but he felt a bit shy. He just lightly licked Chen Songyan’s lips with the tip of his tongue. Like a spark on drought-stricken grassland that would inevitably cause a wildfire.

As Xu Jiu was about to pull away, Chen Songyan’s aura changed dramatically, like a bolt of lightning suddenly striking. He abruptly pressed Xu Jiu’s head, determined to meld Xu Jiu into his body.

Chen Songyan’s tongue pried open Xu Jiu’s teeth, frantically plundering the air from his mouth. Soon Xu Jiu couldn’t breathe. He could only weakly pound on Chen Songyan’s chest, like a drowning fish desperately flailing its tail, making muffled sounds of protest. Chen Songyan breathed air into Xu Jiu’s mouth, quickly swallowing those sounds.

Xu Jiu thought there would be a next step, but Chen Songyan released him with reddened eyes and said, “Let’s eat first. I’ll show you your work station this afternoon. We’ll talk about other things tonight.”

Xu Jiu obediently opened the boxes and started eating. Chen Songyan sat beside him, quietly watching. Feeling self-conscious under his gaze, Xu Jiu asked, “Aren’t you going to eat?”

Chen Songyan’s gaze was like candy syrup, sticking to Xu Jiu’s soul, making him dizzy with sweetness. Chen Songyan said, “I just ate. I’m not hungry.”

Xu Jiu felt so hot he could turn into a rocket and fly into space. Remembering how Chen Songyan had helped him when He Ranran tricked him before, he felt this couldn’t be coincidence either. He asked, “Chen Songyan, did you arrange for me to live here?”

Chen Songyan cleared his throat lightly. “I’m a Senior Colonel. Getting better quarters for my fiancé isn’t difficult.”

Worried Xu Jiu might think it unfair, Chen Songyan added, “Don’t worry, I got approval from higher-ups. It’s all legal.”

Xu Jiu finished eating and walked straight to Chen Songyan, straddling him. Chen Songyan gently held Xu Jiu’s waist. Xu Jiu’s beautiful eyes blinked repeatedly, like a little fox enchanting King Zhou¹refers to King Zhou of Shang, the last and most infamous ruler of the Shang dynasty, known for his excessive indulgence and cruelty. He is often associated with the beautiful and cunning 妲己 (Daji), a fox spirit (狐狸) who, in many versions of the legend, enchanted and manipulated him. . He asked, “Chen Songyan, how old are you this year?”

“Twenty-six.”

“Twenty-six? At twenty-six, you need to work hard…”

Xu Jiu’s voice got softer and softer. Thinking Chen Songyan couldn’t hear clearly, he moved closer to his ear. After speaking, he mischievously blew a breath against Chen Songyan’s ear, clearly feeling Chen Songyan’s body stiffen.

A dark light gleamed in Chen Songyan’s eyes as he asked hoarsely, “Work hard at what?”

Xu Jiu spoke to Chen Songyan with exaggerated worry. “Ah, you don’t know, my parents really want a child. It’s not easy for two Alphas, so you need to work hard, you know? You saw how my dad looked down on you last time, you need to prove yourself to him, right?”

Chen Songyan couldn’t help but laugh. He knew Xu Jiu was being naughty, but deliberately played dumb, asking, “Work hard how?”

Xu Jiu thought Chen Songyan was such a mood killer. He pretended to be angry, “Dummy, I’m not talking to you anymore. I’m going to my work station.”

As Xu Jiu tried to get up, Chen Songyan pulled him close, their hearts pressed together. Chen Songyan’s heart was beating even faster than Xu Jiu’s. Only then did Xu Jiu realize Chen Songyan had understood, and he also noticed he could no longer hear Chen Songyan’s thoughts.

After thinking for a moment, Chen Songyan said, “Let’s go the day after tomorrow.”

Xu Jiu was confused. He asked, “We’re not going tomorrow? But tomorrow’s my first day, it wouldn’t be good to skip it.”

Chen Songyan gently stroked Xu Jiu’s hair and said softly, “Tomorrow you’ll take leave. I’ll approve it.”

As he spoke, Chen Songyan picked Xu Jiu up and placed him on the bed, and began taking off his clothes. Sex between two Alphas wasn’t nearly as easy as Xu Jiu had imagined. The pain was so intense his face was wet with tears. Chen Songyan released his cedar scent to soothe Xu Jiu, but it seemed ineffective as Xu Jiu cried even harder. Chen Songyan hurriedly asked, “What’s wrong?”

Xu Jiu’s hand reached around to the back of Chen Songyan’s neck. He caressed Chen Songyan’s gland and asked, “Does it still hurt? The artificial gland.”

Chen Songyan was moved, “It stopped hurting long ago.”

From that moment in the cave, when you let me mark you, it stopped hurting.

Love is the best painkiller in the world.

After the pain subsided, Chen Songyan began to move. He gripped Xu Jiu’s butt, breathing heavily. The overwhelming pleasure made Xu Jiu lose all sense of direction as he repeatedly begged Chen Songyan to slow down, but Chen Songyan pretended not to hear. Xu Jiu’s stomach felt full and swollen with something unknown. With each deep thrust from Chen Songyan, Xu Jiu trembled. His front started to leak clear fluid steadily. Towards the end, Chen Songyan began moving without restraint, and Xu Jiu felt something wasn’t right. He tried to get up but Chen Songyan pinned him down.

“What’s wrong, am I not working hard enough?”

“No, I need to use the bathroom!”

“No need, just do it here.”

“Chen Songyan! Three, two…”

Chen Songyan hurriedly tried to carry Xu Jiu to the bathroom, but before Xu Jiu could even count to two, he couldn’t hold back anymore.

A year later, they held their wedding on Dragon Island. It was Xu Jiu’s first time meeting Chen Songyan’s adoptive father, Chen Jianyin.

Chen Jianyin was extremely serious, with eyes like knives when he looked at people. Xu Jiu barely dared to approach him for conversation. His hair was half white, his demeanor distinguished. Judging by his bone structure, he must have been as handsome as Chen Songyan in his youth.

Chen Songyan’s future was incredibly promising, and many people flattered Chen Jianyin with toasts. After drinking glass after glass, Chen Jianyin became somewhat drunk.

Xu Jiu wanted to help him back to his room, but Chen Jianyin stubbornly and sternly refused. Before leaving, he glanced at Chen Songyan’s back and suddenly started cursing Chen Songyan’s birth mother, saying how such a foolish woman could have such a good son. Xu Jiu thought there must be some grudge between them, but then Chen Jianyin said, “Chen Songyan looks like his mother.”

Despite the challenges of being two Alphas, when Xu Jiu resigned and Chen Songyan retired a year later, they returned home with a little Alpha.

Chen Songyan often found it incredible that Xu Jiu could love him. One night, Chen Songyan woke up from a nightmare and said to Xu Jiu in shock, “Xiao Jiu, I’m so lucky that you could love me.”

Xu Jiu turned and embraced Chen Songyan. “Mm, but Chen Songyan, do you know? I used to hear your thoughts. If I hadn’t been able to hear them, we might have missed so many chances.”

Chen Songyan was a bit surprised. He said, “You could hear my thoughts? No wonder you could always find me.”

Xu Jiu asked again, “Then if I couldn’t hear your thoughts, and didn’t know all the things you did, what would you have done, Chen Songyan?”

Chen Songyan chuckled softly, thinking Xu Jiu had asked a very simple question. He said, “I would have loved you until the day I died.”

“Heaven took pity on me after all. Knowing I wasn’t doing well and my love was unrequited, it specially let you hear my thoughts.”

Just then, a sharp cry came from the next room. Chen Songyan kissed Xu Jiu’s forehead before going to comfort their child.

Sunlight slipped through the gap in the curtains. In a world full of hardships, when you reach the end of your rope, love is the swift boat that carries you through.

TL Notes

• 1
  refers to King Zhou of Shang, the last and most infamous ruler of the Shang dynasty, known for his excessive indulgence and cruelty. He is often associated with the beautiful and cunning 妲己 (Daji), a fox spirit (狐狸) who, in many versions of the legend, enchanted and manipulated him.