“Leng Xuelang?”
“Leng Xuelang?!”
Jiu Yi had not misseen. Leng Xuelang had truly vanished from the room into thin air, entirely without a sound.
The metallic scent of blood grew increasingly pungent in the air. The lone gunshot from outside sent a sharp, throbbing ache through Jiu Yi’s temples. She immediately ordered her people to investigate!
Two minutes earlier.
Leng Xuelang was still in the room.
She felt she truly shouldn’t be expending her care on someone who didn’t value her at all.
In a situation like this, her usual recourse would either be to handle Jiu Yi, making her disappear from her sight permanently or use every means necessary to force her into submission. She would absolutely never allow Jiu Yi to treat her this way.
But as things stood, she couldn’t deceive herself. She also didn’t want to watch Jiu Yi and Nie Yu leave together as if no one else were there.
Especially when Nie Yu had looked at Jiu Yi with such deep concern, had been unable to resist reaching out to hold her hand, and had even… kissed her. It was something Leng Xuelang found impossible to accept.
Though loath to admit it, Leng Xuelang had already decided in her heart that Jiu Yi was her prey. Even if the prey tasted terrible, even if it had to be kept caged, it was still her prey. She would never let go.
Yet, everything Jiu Yi was currently doing was actively testing her boundaries.
Because of this, her serpentine tail swept out in an attack with almost zero hesitation. Whether it meant knocking Jiu Yi unconscious or something else, she was not going to let Jiu Yi walk out of this room unscathed.
But before her tail could connect, the doctor attending to her suddenly spoke up. “Director Jiu, please wait a moment.”
Leng Xuelang’s tail paused in mid-air, halting its advance.
The doctor looked at Jiu Yi with immense anxiety. “Could you find an Alpha for this Omega lady? She can’t handle any more suppressors, or her gland will be completely ruined.”
【Yes, yes, Host! Don’t be so stubborn! Ahhh!】 the system shrieked.
“Is there no other way?” Jiu Yi turned around, still avoiding looking at Leng Xuelang as she asked.
“No,” the doctor replied, incredibly frantic, though with so many people around, it wasn’t the place to elaborate. “Only a marking can stabilize her body right now.”
“She refuses to let anyone mark her,” Jiu Yi stated matter of factly.
【If you do it, it will work, Host!!!】
“Look at her disgust meter towards me. Just now when I tried to mark her, she was trembling so hard I couldn’t even line up to bite her gland. Forcing a marking on her now will only backfire.”
【But who else can you find right now? Are you just going to watch her suffer? She already had it rough enough being treated like that by your nephew, boohoo~】
“Heh.”
Amidst the silence, Leng Xuelang was the first to let out a cold chuckle. It carried a strange, mocking edge that made everyone’s heart tighten.
Sure enough, Leng Xuelang directly threw the coat that had been draped over her body right back at Jiu Yi.
She had intended to stand up and walk out, but her eyes caught a sudden glimpse of a dark gun barrel appearing at the window. It was aimed directly at Jiu Yi’s position, ready to fire!
With almost no thought, Leng Xuelang used her serpentine tail to block the muzzle. Simultaneously, her entire body threw itself outward. The gunshot rang out, and her figure vanished entirely.
Her disappearance from the room was so sudden that the system immediately went into a frenzy:
【Ahhh, Host! Her disgust meter hit 100! Help, help! There are only two hours left until the protagonist blackens! Not only is she gone, but she’s blackening too!】
“Where is she now? What exactly happened just then?” Jiu Yi re-entered the room and noticed a pool of blood outside, yet Leng Xuelang was nowhere to be found.
【She likely ran into the attackers. I can barely detect her location, but she’s just outside not far away. Host, you still have a chance!】
At this point, Jiu Yi couldn’t care less about who was right or wrong. She was genuinely worried about Leng Xuelang. Controlling her wheelchair, she headed toward the direction the system indicated.
Jiu Yi herself was temporarily safe. Nie Yu had called the police and ordered men to draw the kidnappers away. Under these circumstances, if the kidnappers didn’t retreat soon, they were practically asking for death.
But there was no guarantee against stragglers who had slipped through the net.
Otherwise, how could Leng Xuelang have vanished?
Even so, Jiu Yi’s path out remained largely unobstructed.
It was just that this broken body of hers was truly… infuriating. After steering the wheelchair only a few meters away, she turned right back to the doctor and demanded an antidote injection.
“But the side effects of this temporary antidote are immense, and it only lasts for six hours. Doing this is highly dangerous,” the doctor disapproved, feeling that Jiu Yi was being entirely reckless.
“It’s better than having her vanish… and potentially be injured.” Jiu Yi’s tone left no room for argument, urging the doctor to hurry.
Listening from the side, Nie Yu felt an uncomfortable ache in her heart. “I’ll go look for her on your behalf. Why don’t you go back first? It’s started snowing outside.”
Hong Kong was a subtropical region, yet it was surprisingly snowing in the winter, perhaps a quirk of the author’s whimsical world-building.
“I will go myself,” Jiu Yi remained firm in her decision, comforting her. “I’ll be back shortly, no need to worry.”
Nie Yu wanted to say more, but turning her head, she saw Jiu Yi’s special assistant, Xin Tang, with tears welling up in her eyes. Xin Tang was murmuring under her breath: “Oh my god, this is so beautiful to watch. My boss truly loves Leng Xuelang~ She’d rather suffer the physical backlash just to find her quickly.”
Nie Yu: What kind of timing was this to be shipping a couple?
In the end, the doctor couldn’t sway Jiu Yi and could only administer the shot. This temporary antidote was indeed a recent development and hadn’t been refined yet, one could easily imagine how dangerous it was.
But Jiu Yi couldn’t care about that now. Even if the situation was largely under control, no one knew if there were rogue elements left behind. If a cornered kidnapper set their sights on Leng Xuelang while she was in her heat, the consequences would be catastrophic.
Jiu Yi absolutely could not let anything happen to her.
The temporary antidote took effect rapidly. Before long, Jiu Yi stood up from her wheelchair. Her face was somewhat pale, and Nie Yu looked at her with a strange blend of worry and sorrow.
She didn’t know the exact nature of Jiu Yi’s feelings for Leng Xuelang, but she could certainly tell that Leng Xuelang was entirely exceptional to her. This kind of exceptionality… was oddly enviable.
Even as her close friend, she had never experienced such blatant, protective favoritism from Jiu Yi.
It wasn’t a pleasant feeling.
But at this moment, she couldn’t say a word and could only watch blankly as Jiu Yi departed.
【Host, Leng Xuelang went into the nearby woods! I don’t know if she’s hurt!】 The moment she stepped outside, the system immediately provided directions.
True to Nie Yu’s words, snow had begun to fall. Though it wasn’t heavy, the temperature was plummeting rapidly.
Leng Xuelang had been wearing so little earlier without even a coat, and she was in the middle of her heat, staying out in this weather was incredibly perilous.
Jiu Yi’s anxiety heightened. Right now, finding her was the only priority.
Following the system’s guidance, she eventually reached the location where Leng Xuelang was supposed to be hiding, but she saw no one.
By then, a thin layer of snow had gathered on Jiu Yi’s shoulders, whitening her hair and eyelashes, making her look even more like some ethereal spirit of the mountains.
“Where is she?” Jiu Yi scanned her surroundings. She couldn’t find anyone, nor could she even scent any pheromones.
【That’s impossible. I clearly… clearly detected her right around here. She has to be here.】
【Ahhh, Host, watch your back! There’s a snake!】
The system’s warning had barely landed when a snake appeared in Jiu Yi’s hand. She pinched it firmly by its vitals and threw it far away with a sharp twist of her wrist.
【Host, you’re amazing!】
“Snakes aren’t hibernating in winter and are out attacking me instead?” Jiu Yi felt the situation was growing increasingly bizarre.
【Maybe it’s just a coincidence.】
Jiu Yi remained noncommittal. She took a few more steps forward, trying to locate Leng Xuelang, and called out her name. “Leng Xuelang, where are you? Here, kitty, kitty!”
【Host, please be serious. She’s not a cat or a dog.】
“Heh.”
She walked a bit further: “How about I personally read the employee handbook to you? Once we go back, you can officially start your position. I’ll give you triple compensation, and isn’t your relative still needing medical treatment? I’ll arrange the best specialists for you.”
Jiu Yi knew Leng Xuelang hated when she spoke like this. She was doing it on purpose to draw her out.
At the same time, she scanned the path for any signs of blood, terrified that she might actually be injured.
However, Leng Xuelang still refused to show herself. Instead, a massive snowball came hurtling directly toward Jiu Yi’s position!
【Good heavens! Host, watch out!!!】
Jiu Yi was agile, she dodged it almost instantly.
In the next moment, she heard a sharp crack from above, the sound of a snapping branch. Looking up, she saw Leng Xuelang, whom she had been searching for everywhere, tumbling out of a tree, entirely unable to halt her fall!
Meeting Jiu Yi’s startled gaze, Leng Xuelang felt a profound wave of humiliation. She resolutely turned her head away, she was a snake anyway, falling wouldn’t kill her.
“Did you… assume I would definitely come looking for you? You’re quite capable, climbing trees in high heels, are you? Running out here to throw a tantrum during your heat. And what was that gunshot about? Are you hurt…”
“What do you care?! What does it have to do with you! Who are you to me! Do you really think you’re my boss? Even if you are, why on earth should I listen to you!”
Hearing Jiu Yi’s merciless, accusing words, the strange sense of grievance in Leng Xuelang’s heart built up higher and higher. How could she possibly be captured by those kidnappers? Let alone be shot by them!
Who did they think they were?
Wasn’t she just staying out here to clear her head? Was she supposed to just stay there and watch this bastard Jiu Yi act all intimate with her dear friend?
She wouldn’t even mark her. She had absolutely no use for an Alpha like that!
“Are you done yelling?” Jiu Yi asked calmly after letting her vent.
“No! I could keep yelling all afternoon!” Leng Xuelang provoked deliberately.
“Is this the reason you don’t want anyone else to mark you?” Jiu Yi didn’t seem to realize it was a sarcastic remark and spoke entirely straight.
She took the opportunity to check her body over. Finding no injuries, she let out a slight sigh of relief.
Leng Xuelang found any mention of marking incredibly irritating. “Is the great Director Jiu perhaps incompetent at marking? If you are, just say it early. I won’t laugh at you.”
“You were shaking so violently just now that I couldn’t even pinpoint your gland.” Jiu Yi felt she was being utterly unreasonable. She lifted Leng Xuelang’s chin to force her to look her in the eye. “What exactly are you afraid of?”
“Me, afraid? Are your eyes blind?” Leng Xuelang sneered back sharply. “Or are you just using my supposed fear to cover up the fact that you’re incompetent? Give me an astronomical hush-money fee, and I might just keep your secret for you.”
Jiu Yi let out a soft sigh and stopped speaking. Instead, she set her down, turned around to leave, and decided to just let the bodyguards watch over her.
【Host, are you leaving?】 The system felt the two of them… truly defied explanation. They simply rubbed each other the wrong way entirely.
It began to question whether it had made a mistake trying to pair them up.
“If I don’t leave, am I supposed to stay here and keep taking insults?”
【But why do I feel like… she’s using reverse psychology to get you to mark her?】
“How is that possible? She truly believes I’m incompetent.” Jiu Yi knew better than anyone.
【Then shouldn’t you properly prove to her that you can do it?】
“Why are you so insisted on me being with her? Is it necessary?”
If things were developing naturally, Jiu Yi wouldn’t mind entering a relationship with Leng Xuelang. But it clearly wasn’t the case right now, and she was thoroughly exhausted by it.