At 8:00 PM, the Yan residence was brightly lit.
Shen Lirong sat upright on the sofa with a gloomy face. Hearing the sound of the door opening, she said irritably, “So you have finally decided to return? Well, speak up, what kind of trouble did you cause outside that made you force An’an to… what is this look?”
Shen Lirong’s tone shifted as she looked at her eldest son in astonishment. Even though he was home, Yan Zhiheng was still wearing sunglasses and a mask. Upon closer inspection, there was even a bandage on his forehead, and his gait was slightly limping; his entire appearance was eerie.
Sensing something was wrong, Shen Lirong hurriedly stood up to greet him, looking him up and down, “What happened to your forehead? Who hit you? And your face…”
As Yan Zhiheng removed his mask and sunglasses, revealing a bruised corner of his mouth and a face covered in contusions, Shen Lirong covered her mouth and gasped in shock.
Yan Zhiheng remained expressionless, his voice low, “It was Xie Yunxie who hit me.”
“He… Xie Yunxie?!” Shen Lirong’s voice was so sharp it almost cracked. She wanted to touch the wounds on her son’s face but didn’t dare use any pressure, her expression filled with uncontrollable heartache and anger, “What right does he have to hit you? Is he crazy?”
“He is indeed a madman.” Yan Zhiheng tugged at the corner of his mouth, but the movement caused him to hiss in suppressed pain, “Mom, you asked me why I suddenly let An’an terminate his contract. That was the condition Ming Yi proposed.”
Shen Lirong frowned tightly, not understanding how this matter had become entangled with Ming Yi.
Yan Zhiheng continued, “Ming Yi said that only if An’an terminates his contract immediately and is frozen for a year will he call Xie Yunxie to plead for mercy on my behalf.”
Shen Lirong couldn’t believe what she was hearing and couldn’t maintain her composed, elegant facade, “You are his brother, and An’an is his brother, too. How could he propose such a condition? Even if Ming Yi does not like An’an, he should not…”
“But I have no choice but to agree.” Yan Zhiheng put his mask and sunglasses back on, his voice muffled, “Mom, talk to An’an properly. Do not let this matter leak for now. I will definitely compensate An’an in the future.”
“No!” Shen Lirong was incensed. Her own son had been beaten for no reason; how could she just let it go? “Are we just supposed to take the beating? Is there no justice left in this world? I am calling Ming Yi right now to ask him what is going on!”
Her own son had been beaten by her son-in-law for no reason, and not only did Ming Yi turn a blind eye, but he also seized the opportunity to propose persecuting his younger brother. How could she have given birth to such a vicious son?
Yan Zhiheng didn’t stop Shen Lirong because, deep down, he also hoped his mother could discipline Ming Yi and get him to voluntarily drop the idea of freezing Yan An.
The phone rang a few times before it was answered. Before the other party could speak, Shen Lirong asked aggressively, “Ming Yi, why did you threaten your brother like that? Do you have no regard for this family anymore?”
There was silence for a moment on the other end. Then, a low, unfamiliar male voice sounded, carrying a hint of coldness, “Oh, so it is the mother-in-law.”
Hearing this unexpected voice, Shen Lirong was startled, and her voice unconsciously lowered, “You… who are you?”
“I am Xie Yunxie.” The voice was full of a high and mighty, commanding tone, “Ming Yi is in the shower. After he comes out, I want to play a little game with him, so he probably does not have time to talk to you. If you have something to say, tell me now, and I will pass it on.”
A little… game? Shen Lirong’s face turned incredibly ugly, but thinking of the suffering her eldest son had endured for no reason, she couldn’t hold back and decided to demand an explanation from Xie Yunxie, “CEO Xie! Our Zhiheng has never offended you; why did you hit him?”
Xie Yunxie chuckled, and instead, he questioned her, “I hit him because I wanted to. Do I need a reason?”
Shen Lirong had never heard such crude and absurd nonsense in her life. She was so angry that her chest heaved violently, “You! You…”
“With all due respect, you do not really think that just because the Yan family is marrying into the Xie family, you are on equal footing with them, do you?” Xie Yunxie laughed softly, “Ming Yi was just a little pet I took a fancy to. Now that I have grown tired of playing with him, I have to find some new amusement.”
The direct insult turned Shen Lirong’s lips pale, and all color drained from her face. She leaned against the sofa with trembling hands, gasping for breath. Yan Zhiheng hurriedly reached out to support her and tried to grab the phone to hang up, but Shen Lirong stopped him.
Shen Lirong said in a trembling, stern voice, “CEO Xie, please be respectful! Although our Yan family is not as great as your Xie family, we are not something the Xie family can insult at will!”
Xie Yunxie seemed to have heard something very funny and sneered, “I let a project slip through my fingers, and you were all too happy to voluntarily send your son to my bed. Dignity? Do you deserve it?”
“Believe it or not, as long as I lift a finger, your Yan family will fall into hell completely and never recover?”
Xie Yunxie seemed to grow impatient, his tone suddenly turning gloomy, “Ming Yi is my property now, and I hope you can keep your distance from him, understand?”
“If there is a next time, this project will no longer be a collaboration.”
Shen Lirong was deathly pale, listening blankly to the “beep, beep” sounds on the other end.
The call was hung up.
Shen Lirong, feeling weak, slumped heavily onto the sofa. After sitting in a daze for a moment, she covered her face and began to weep. Yan Zhiheng gently stroked his mother’s trembling back to comfort her, but he, too, could find no outlet for his humiliation and anger.
“Tell your father!” Shen Lirong wept for a while, grabbing Yan Zhiheng’s sleeve and sobbing, “Xie Yunxie is simply going too far!”
On Xie Yunxie’s side, after hanging up the phone, Ming Yi just happened to walk out of the hotel bathroom, drying his hair. He glanced at his phone in Xie Yunxie’s hand, “Did someone call me?”
Xie Yunxie put Ming Yi’s phone back on the nightstand and said apologetically, “Your mom called. I answered it for you. You do not mind, do you?”
Ming Yi shook his head and asked curiously, “Why did she call me? Was she asking about my filming?”
Xie Yunxie said as innocently as possible, “I do not know. She seemed like she wanted to scold you, so I scolded her back.”
Ming Yi understood immediately. It must be that the matter of him threatening Yan Zhiheng had been leaked, which prompted Ms. Shen Lirong to call and question him.
Yan Zhiheng is truly a sore loser, actually resorting to complaining to the parents.
Ming Yi thought with disdain: When the small one is beaten, the old ones show up; it is truly annoying.
Ming Yi threw his towel over the back of a chair and grabbed a hair dryer.
The sound of the hair dryer was loud, making it inconvenient to talk. During the wait, Xie Yunxie had no choice but to walk around, trying his best not to let his gaze linger on Ming Yi for too long.
Originally, Xie Yunxie just wanted to drop by for a quick visit, and he planned to leave after Ming Yi finished filming. However, Ming Yi asked him if he had eaten, and as it happened, he had not had dinner yet… so when Ming Yi invited him back to the hotel for dinner, Xie Yunxie agreed as if possessed, following him all the way to the hotel.
It took time for dinner to be delivered, and Ming Yi could not stand being dirty, so he went to take a shower first. Then, Xie Yunxie received the call from Shen Lirong.
Thank goodness Ming Yi did not receive that call, Xie Yunxie thought.
Isn’t this just picking on the softest targets? I am the one who hit Yan Zhiheng, but they do not dare confront me directly and only think about blaming Ming Yi. They are truly bullies who fear the strong and pick on the weak.
I will just beat them all, and then they will be obedient.
Just as Xie Yunxie was preoccupied with thoughts of violence, he suddenly heard Ming Yi calling him.
“Can you help me spray this medicine on my back?” Ming Yi picked up a bottle of Yunnan Baiyao, signaling for Xie Yunxie to help, “I cannot reach it.”
Huh? Spray where?
Xie Yunxie took the bottle in a daze and saw Ming Yi effortlessly half-remove his bathrobe, lie flat on the bed, and trustingly expose his back to him.
Xie Yunxie: “…”
Xie Yunxie: “!!!”
Xie Yunxie hurriedly shifted his gaze to the ceiling, acting like a true gentleman, “Is this not inappropriate?”
It is too sudden! How can Ming Yi just take off his clothes like that?
“We are both men, what is inappropriate about it?” Ming Yi turned his head to look at Xie Yunxie, his eyes filled with pure confusion, “And did you not say you only like omegas?”
“That may be so…” Xie Yunxie swallowed hard, but it was difficult not to get aroused.
“Can you not do it?” Ming Yi sensed his hesitation and propped himself up to sit, “Then I will let my assistant spray it.”
Upon hearing this, Xie Yunxie instantly dropped his reserve, immediately stepped forward, and pressed Ming Yi back down without question, “I can do it. Why not? What if you catch a cold by taking your clothes on and off? I will just spray it for you.”
Ming Yi had spent the whole day filming escape scenes, and his back was covered in many bruises. The blue and purple colors scattered across his snow-white back were particularly jarring. As Xie Yunxie sprayed the medicine on the bruises, he asked Ming Yi, “Has your assistant been the one spraying the medicine for you all these days?”
Ming Yi let out a lazy “Hmm.”
The pungent smell of medicine filled the air. Ming Yi rested his chin on his arms and suddenly recalled a question that had not been answered before, “Xie Yunxie, does your pheromone smell like medicine?”
Why is he asking about my pheromone again? Xie Yunxie’s earlobes turned slightly red, “No.”
Ming Yi continued guessing, “Tobacco?”
Xie Yunxie: “No.”
“Gasoline?”
“No.”
Exhaustion seemed the only way to find the right answer, so Ming Yi changed his strategy, “Is it the smell of plants?”
Xie Yunxie gave Ming Yi a helpless glance, feeling his tooth roots begin to itch again. He licked his teeth fiercely, his voice dropping slightly, “No, it is not.”
Ming Yi: “Is it the smell of fruit?”
There are not many fruits with a strong scent.
Xie Yunxie still said: “No.”
Then what on earth does it smell like?
Ming Yi still wanted to play this “Q&A” game, but suddenly, his nape was pinched by a hand. Ming Yi’s eyes widened, and the words he was about to say were blocked in his throat.
Xie Yunxie’s eerie voice came from behind, “Do you know what asking about someone else’s pheromone scent is called, in our world?”
Ming Yi was stunned, “What is it called?”
Xie Yunxie said, enunciating each word, “It is called sexual harassment.”
“…”
Ming Yi really did not expect that in this ABO world, asking about pheromone scents had such underlying implications, so he apologized sincerely, “I am sorry, I did not mean it.”
Xie Yunxie said hoarsely, “It is okay, I forgive you.”
Although he said that, his hand on Ming Yi’s nape did not let go for a long time. After a while, Ming Yi could not help but turn his head, wanting to see what was happening.
Xie Yunxie stared at Ming Yi’s profile for a moment and, before Ming Yi could detect any more abnormalities, withdrew his hand while licking his itchy tooth roots.
His self-control was indeed much stronger. If this had been during his earlier, most unprincipled years, he would have made Ming Yi taste it personally the moment he asked the second time until he tasted exactly what the scent was.
A beta indeed cannot smell pheromones in the air, but the pheromone concentration in an Alpha’s bodily fluids is very high; relying on taste, a beta might be able to detect the scent.
Ming Yi did not notice the danger that had just brushed past him; he only felt that the spot where Xie Yunxie had pinched him was tingling, a bit strange.
Fortunately, the dinner delivered by the assistant broke the odd atmosphere. After finishing dinner, it was time for Xie Yunxie to leave.
“After Xiao Songxiong gets its vaccine, I will bring it with me next time I come to visit.”
Ming Yi nodded and smiled, “Okay.”
Xie Yunxie wanted to say more but eventually swallowed his words about wanting Ming Yi to get hurt less. Ming Yi was someone who would give his all once he decided to do something, so even if he said it, it probably would not have any effect.
On the way home, Xie Yunxie tapped his fingers on the steering wheel, contemplating a matter. By the time he reached home, he finally had a clear plan.
Opening the door, Xiao Songxiong immediately pounced out, sniffing around Xie Yunxie excitedly, but upon realizing Ming Yi had not returned with him, it lost all enthusiasm and walked back into the house with indifference.
Xie Yunxie closed the door and reached out to the cold back of Xiao Songxiong, “Xiao Songxiong, can you not welcome me a little more?”
Xiao Songxiong’s response was to chew Xie Yunxie’s slippers even more thoroughly.
Disgusting smell, tear it up! Tear it up! Tear it up!
Xie Yunxie: “…”
Ever since Xiao Songxiong was brought home by Ming Yi, many pairs of Xie Yunxie’s slippers had suffered battle damage.
Xie Yunxie could not argue with Xiao Songxiong, so he humbly found a spare pair of slippers to wear. Passing by Ming Yi’s room, he paused for a moment, then walked upstairs as usual.
Less than two weeks remained before Ming Yi fell into the sea.
He had to plan ahead.
The next day, Xie Yunxie sent a message to Ming Yi’s assistant, asking him to take a few pictures of the ankle cuffs.
The assistant quickly complied. After receiving the images, Xie Yunxie forwarded them directly to one of his fox friends.
[Make a tracking ankle cuff in this style. Rush order.]
The other side quickly sent back a teasing reply: [How long have you been married, Young Master Xie, and you already have a new little pet?]
Xie Yunxie frowned impatiently, typing expressionlessly: [The tracking chip must be the best.]
Seeing this, the system asked in confusion: [Host, what are you doing?]
Xie Yunxie explained, “Yan Zhiheng can no longer continue to farm brutality points, so after thinking about it last night, I have decided to farm some more from Ming Yi.”
The system was even more surprised: [Are you not reluctant? Before, when I asked you to say a few lines of dialogue to him, you would push back…]
Xie Yunxie sighed: “It is not like I can find anyone else, is it? And now that my relationship with Ming Yi has improved, I have no pressure to be ‘crazy’ in front of him at any time.”
The system doubted: [Really? I do not believe it.]
Xie Yunxie: “Believe what you want; my actions will prove everything.”
[That is not right,] the system said sullenly: [In the original plot, the tracker was a collar, not an ankle cuff.]
“Ming Yi is filming now; a collar is not appropriate.” Xie Yunxie gave up: “Just tell me, are they both trackers? Are they both symbols of slavery? Will they both be exposed to everyone’s eyes?”
System: […]
Forget it, just laugh it off.
Although the collar became an ankle cuff, at least the host is saying the lines; giving a few points should be fine.
Elsewhere, the Yan family.
After learning what happened to Yan Zhiheng, Father Yan was silent for a long time.
Shen Lirong cried and scolded: “The Xie family is bullying us like this, is there really nothing we can do?”
Yan Zhiheng also looked at his father in silence.
Finally, Father Yan sighed: “Finish the project first; the rest can be discussed later.”
The Yan Group had invested too much money in the project and could not afford the price of the Xie family withdrawing their capital.
Yan Zhiheng had anticipated his father’s decision, so he did not feel disappointed. He only asked: “What about An’an—”
Father Yan’s gaze deepened as he looked out the window, his eyes filled with hidden fatigue: “Just do as Ming Yi said. Ming Yi, that child… has had it hard, too.”
Yan Zhiheng had only stayed with Xie Yunxie for four or five days and had already been beaten to this state. Ming Yi had married into the Xie family; the abuse he suffered would only be more than Yan Zhiheng’s.
It was only asking Yan An to pause his schedule; compared to the project, these were small problems. As long as Ming Yi was willing to coax Xie Yunxie, what did it matter if he let Ming Yi vent some anger?
Shen Lirong’s sobbing became even louder, yet she ultimately said no words of opposition.
So, at noon that day, Yan An received a message from Shen Lirong. He opened it with great expectation, thinking that things must have taken a turn for the better, but what he saw instead was a message telling him to return home.
The expression on Yan An’s face froze suddenly.
Mom wants me to go home?
Mom does not want me to act anymore either?
Why? What exactly happened?
Yan An immediately wanted to call Shen Lirong, but this time, the call would not go through.
Yan An stared blankly at his phone, feeling that the home that had always been warm suddenly became incredibly unfamiliar.
Go home? How can I just go home like this? I still have a path to a more brilliant future in the entertainment industry.
But now, besides the Yan family, who else can help me?
As if heaven sensed his thoughts, an unfamiliar message was suddenly sent to his phone.
“I know exactly what happened to the Yan family.”
Yan An was stunned and immediately sent a message back to ask: “Who are you! What do you know?”
The other party sent a hotel address.
“5301, come to this room, I can help you.”
Yan An pursed his lips: “Who exactly are you?”
The phone vibrated, and the stranger sent a new message.
“The person who got your first kiss.”
With this message, in an instant, all memories of this person flooded Yan An’s mind.
It was a party held to celebrate his coming of age. Yan An had invited many friends from the circle, and because he was happy, he drank a little too much… then he felt dizzy, and somehow walked into the wrong room and kissed someone.
Could the person who sent this message be… him?
Yan An bit his lip. If it really was that person, perhaps there was truly a way to help himself.
Yan An struggled for a moment, but eventually, he went to the hotel address.