She said she was stronger—but how could he possibly compare to her? This person controlled himself so tightly that, outside of moments of passion, he almost never released even a trace of pheromones.
Qiu Zheng felt that Wen Yan was acting a bit strange.
He kept looking at her, calm eyes, yet with a certain indescribable stickiness. Watching him like that made her hands, which had been relaxed on the steering wheel, unconsciously tighten.
While waiting at a red light, she turned her head to look at him. That glance seemed to shock him like an electric jolt, and he quickly averted his gaze.
“Sorry,” he said, “I was too tired just now and couldn’t control myself. Did my pheromones bother you?”
Oh, so it was the pheromones.
“Not really.”
The car restarted. After a short while, Wen Yan’s voice came again: “Let’s have a meal together later.”
It sounded casual, probably just a polite suggestion, Qiu Zheng thought, considering it was already past mealtime.
“No need,” she refused directly. “I’m not hungry anymore.”
She really wasn’t—she had eaten a bit too much earlier and was slightly full.
Wen Yan didn’t respond this time.
The ride to the company was silent. Qiu Zheng returned the car keys, and her car was parked not far away. “I’ll head back first, then.”
“Mm.”
Wen Yan responded but didn’t move, just standing there, watching Qiu Zheng get into her used car she bought for a few tens of thousands—dark blue, a little dusty.
In the WK Group parking lot, among all the luxury cars, it looked out of place.
He thought about the joy she had shown while driving his car. In his own villa, he had plenty of luxury cars, most barely ever used.
Should he pick one out for her?
No… better to buy her a new one. He didn’t know what kind of car she liked.
The thought surfaced, then he quickly suppressed it.
He couldn’t… interfere too much in her matters. Their relationship was a contractual one—everything had to follow the agreement to avoid unexpected complications.
Qiu Zheng’s car passed by him.
Seeing that he hadn’t moved, she rolled down the window, showing her face.
“Goodbye,” she said with a smile.
Without waiting for a response, as if she naturally assumed he wouldn’t react, the car drove off without stopping, eventually disappearing from sight.
For a long while, Wen Yan murmured softly, “Goodbye.”
Goodbye—for over half a month.
Coincidentally, Qiu Zheng was thinking the same thing.
After this meeting, she could have peace for over two weeks. Plus, the novel she was serializing was nearing its conclusion—she could plan a little trip.
But… she still needed to prepare herself. Going out really required courage.
Back in her apartment, Qiu Zheng was searching for her keys to open the door when the door next door suddenly opened.
Startled, she instinctively looked over. A middle-aged woman came out carrying two bags of trash.
It was the neighbor auntie, a kind woman who always had a smile on her face. When Qiu Zheng first arrived, she had taken good care of her.
“Oh, little Qiu, just got back from outside?” She greeted me warmly.
Qiu Zheng smiled back. “Aunt Luo, are you off to work?”
“Yes, I am. By the way, I just came back from the market—do you want me to bring anything for you?”
“No, no need,” Qiu Zheng quickly refused. She wasn’t used to bothering others.
This building was originally designed for rentals, so there were single rooms, single apartments, and family units.
The residents were quite varied.
Qiu Zheng’s next-door neighbor was a family with children. The two adults worked and took care of the kids.
“Oh, by the way, that beta guy I mentioned last time—aren’t you going to meet him?”
Hearing this, she tightened her grip on the keys. Aunt Luo was nice but loved matchmaking; this was her biggest fear.
But she smiled on the surface. “I’m busy recently, I probably won’t have time.”
Aunt Luo knew Qiu Zheng wrote novels. When Qiu Zheng first arrived, she went out daily for odd jobs. Later, she stayed in all day. Aunt Luo worried a bit, so Qiu Zheng shared some details.
She was reliable and didn’t spread rumors, only noting what a cultured person she was.
“Oh, I know you’re busy. But a young lady alone isn’t easy—having someone to look out for you is good.”
Sigh, once married, who knows who takes care of whom.
Thinking this, Qiu Zheng finally took out her keys. “Next time, Aunt Luo.”
Just as she was about to open the door, Aunt Luo spoke again.
“Did you see the notice from the property management?”
“What?” Qiu Zheng paused.
“They sent a notice in the group chat today. Water will be cut off tonight until tomorrow morning. Little Qiu, you really should join the group and get to know people.”
Qiu Zheng hadn’t joined the chat. If she hadn’t known in advance, it would have been quite inconvenient.
“I didn’t get it, thanks for letting me know.”
“No problem, I’ll go first.”
“Okay.”
Qiu Zheng entered her apartment, first filling two buckets with water and topping up the water dispenser. Once done, she sat down and began researching this pheromone disorder.
After filtering out countless cancer-related ads and finding useful information, Qiu Zheng summarized:
A high-level Alpha’s pheromones also indicate a high-level mental capacity. This manifests not only as a dominating aura and control over others but also as intense mental focus and overuse of the brain.
But there are side effects—this pheromone disorder.
Alphas are the most powerful group in this world. Naturally, their problems are treated as major issues.
Research on treatments has never stopped.
Currently, the most common method is omega pheromone soothing. The higher the compatibility, the better the effect.
In simpler terms for Qiu Zheng: their pressure is too high, leading to mania, needing a psychologist to guide them.
Reading this, Qiu Zheng thought, fortunately, fortunately, Wen Yan didn’t specify her. If he had, how would she have handled it? She really shouldn’t have spoken up.
But… Why was Wen Yan so opposed to the hospital’s pheromone soothing?
She recalled reading small posts online, and her mind was flooded with strange thoughts. She quickly searched for “pheromone soothing” again.
There were even videos…
Huh? Videos too?
With a bit of nervous curiosity, she clicked it open. Result… tsk, perfectly normal. Just two people sitting there, nothing happening, no contact at all.
Qiu Zheng didn’t even know why she was disappointed.
She patted her head.
What was she thinking? It was a legitimate hospital, after all.
So why would Wen Yan resist it?
Stubborn man, she didn’t understand.
In the following days, Qiu Zheng returned to her usual routine—writing, watching dramas, cooking. She even finished the series Rose Trap that Kang Ya had recommended.
All for the main characters’ looks and chemistry.
But at the Wen family, things weren’t so peaceful.
At the Wen family’s old mansion, Wen Qingsheng sat on the sofa with a dark expression. After a while, his secretary came over.
“Chairman, we’ve figured it out,” the secretary said hesitantly, pausing before continuing, “It’s… Young Master.”
Wen Qingsheng looked up. “Wen Yan?”
“Yes.”
“What did he do?”
“I took a photo.”
“You mean… Wen Yan went to all that trouble, hacking into my phone, just for a photo?”
“Yes.”
Wen Qingsheng felt a bit short of breath.
His phone had been hacked a few days ago. It didn’t have any company secrets or private matters, but the Wen family’s cybersecurity system had failed. Naturally, it had to be investigated.
And now it is traced back to his own grandson.
“Bring me my phone.”
He had to ask the grandson what was going on.
The secretary respectfully handed over the phone. Wen Qingsheng is called Wen Yan.
No answer.
He was probably still in the lab, so he didn’t pick up.
Wen Qingsheng hung up, thinking he roughly knew which photo Wen Yan had taken. He opened his photo album, looking at the saved picture.
In the photo, Wen Yan stood behind Qiu Zheng, wearing a subtle, stiff smile. Yet there was a certain indescribable compliance and gentleness in it.
He felt both annoyed and amused. “This brat… if you wanted it, just say so. Could I have refused?”
The secretary also noticed. “Young Master is probably… shy about it.”
Hearing this, Wen Qingsheng’s smile faded, and he finally sighed. “It would be fine if she were just being shy with me. But I worry… if he rejects this compatibility so much, he might even deceive himself. It’s so rare to have one…”
He paused.
The secretary seemed to understand his concern. “Maybe the Young Madam can help him resolve this?”
“Let’s hope so.”
After leaving the lab, Wen Yan saw the missed call—it was from Grandpa. He probably guessed what it was and didn’t call back.
He had stayed up almost all night in the lab, yet he was still inexplicably energetic. Exiting the call log, his fingers instinctively tapped on the chat with Qiu Zheng.
Their chat history still stopped before the last hospital visit.
No contact had happened since. Likely, until his next sensitive period, there would be no further communication.