The cutting winter wind howled through the air, sharp as blades. This year, the snow fell heavier than ever, blanketing the courtyard so deeply that even the areas just swept clean were quickly covered again in a thin white layer.
Fu Xu pressed the broom against his chest, cupping his hands and breathing warm air into his numb fingers.
“What are you dawdling for?” A harsh male voice barked from behind him. “Can’t you see everyone’s waiting for you to clear the path? You’re not dead yet, so stop pretending.”
A lash of a whip followed the words, the sharp crack slicing through the cold air.
The strip of cowhide, lined with barbed hooks, struck across Fu Xu’s already reddened hands, tearing open the skin and leaving several bloody welts.
His snow-dusted lashes trembled faintly. Slowly, painfully, Fu Xu turned his head toward the figures standing not far away. At their head stood a richly dressed woman, elegant and cold. His mother.
“What are you looking at?” the boy beside her sneered, the same one who had struck him. “Staring at our dear mother won’t make her pity you. Be smart and hurry up with that broom. Maybe she’ll even spare you a glance.”
Fu Jiaze swung the whip again, letting it crack a few times in the air before curling his lip. “Tomorrow you’re marrying into the Shen family in my place. If I didn’t need you alive, I’d make you lick this snow clean with your tongue today.”
He drew out the word “lick” with deliberate cruelty, as if letting Fu Xu use a broom was already a mercy.
Fu Xu lowered his eyes and said nothing. He tightened his frozen fingers around the broom handle and continued sweeping, one slow stroke after another.
The snow melted slightly beneath his effort before another layer fell, erasing the traces of his work.
What was he still expecting? That his mother might speak up for him?
Yes, once upon a time, when he had just been brought back to the Fu family, he had hoped for that. He had hoped to be like other children, to receive even a little warmth from his mother.
When he learned that Fu Jiaze was going to be married, he had dared to hope again. He thought that once Jiaze left, he would be the only child left at home. Perhaps then his mother might finally look at him.
He only ever wanted a little love. Just a little.
But instead, Fu Jiaze had shed a few false tears, and their parents decided that Fu Xu would take his place.
The reason was simple. The Shen family’s heir was ill, and they did not want Fu Jiaze to suffer.
The Shen family was an untouchable giant within the empire. The current head of the family was a rare Alpha among Alphas, exceptional in every sense. But fate had a cruel sense of humor.
The man had developed a condition known as pheromone disorder, which drove him into violent, uncontrollable madness during his attacks. It was said that more than one Omega sent to him had already died.
For years, he had managed to remain mostly lucid through medication. That was why the arranged marriage had been delayed.
But now, as his illness worsened, the Shen family had insisted on proceeding, and the Fus could no longer refuse.
Fu Xu had been brought back from the orphanage for this very purpose, to take the place of their cherished son.
After all, he was nothing more than a defective Omega. If the Fus had ever truly cared about him, they would not have abandoned him the day he was born.
The wind and snow bit through the seams of his oversized coat, stinging his skin. Fu Xu tugged the garment tighter, but the cold still seeped in. He coughed a few times, the faint taste of blood rising in his throat.
He did not know how much time had passed. His movements grew mechanical, his body running on habit alone. Eventually, the courtyard was cleared. Fortunately, the snowfall had stopped, allowing him to finish before he collapsed.
Fu Jiaze kicked at the remaining snow and gave a snort. “That’s enough. If you die, I’ll have to marry instead.”
He grabbed Fu Xu by the collar and dragged him back to the storage shed, tossing him a piece of hard, dry bread. “Listen. When you get there, don’t you dare cause trouble. If Mother hears a word of complaint, she’ll hate you even more. Got it?”
Fu Xu curled up in a corner, his thin body trembling. He nodded stiffly. After all these years, he had stopped expecting kindness. Even if he went through with the marriage, his mother would never look at him, not even once.
He only wanted to stay alive. Maybe, if he survived, someday he might live like a normal person.
But that was a dream too far for an Omega. In this world, where Omegas were many and worthless, being abandoned by one’s family or husband meant only one fate: being dragged to a breeding facility, turned into a tool.
He had once seen it with his own eyes. A wandering Omega had been caught by men in black. Months later, that same person escaped, his belly cut open, a long wound gaping across his abdomen.
The men caught him again, ripped the fetus from his body, and spat, “Damn, another Omega.” Then they kicked him into a filthy ditch. No one cared when his body rotted there.
That image still haunted Fu Xu’s dreams, leaving him cold with terror.
He did not know what kind of man the Shen patriarch was, but someone who had once killed an S-class Alpha with his bare hands could only be described as brutal. Fu Xu laughed softly to himself. He was merely jumping from one fire pit into another.
Still, as long as he was not sent to a breeding center, it could not possibly be worse than now.
Cold air slipped through the cracks of the wall. His feverish body trembled as he coughed violently, a thin line of blood seeping from the corner of his mouth. Fu Xu quickly wiped it away with his sleeve.
No one could see. If Mother noticed, she would only be angry again.
At some point, his vision went dark, and he fainted. When he opened his eyes again, the sky outside was already pale with dawn.
The wooden door creaked open with a sharp groan. His mother, Bai Yunting, stepped in, her every movement graceful and deliberate. Two servants followed behind her, all looking down on Fu Xu as if he were filth.
“The Shen family’s people are here,” she said lazily, turning a jeweled hand to inspect her manicured nails. “Find him something to wear and send him off.”
She did not even spare him a glance. Her voice was calm and cold, as if she were saying, It would be best if you died on the way there.
The servants, unfamiliar with his size, brought clothes that were far too large. Years of malnutrition had left Fu Xu painfully thin; even the smallest shirt hung loosely from his shoulders.
“That will do. The Shen family’s in a hurry. They won’t care.” Bai Yunting wrinkled her nose and turned to leave.
The servants dragged Fu Xu out and pushed him toward a sleek black car. Inside sat a man who glanced at him from the window, his gaze impassive and cold. “Get in,” he said curtly.
Fu Xu turned back once, twice, then lowered his head and stepped into the car.
At the Civil Affairs Bureau, the Beta clerk recited the formalities while shuffling through papers. “For marriage registration, if the Alpha isn’t present, we can’t take the ID photo. We’ll need a letter of authorization.”
As he spoke, his pen moved briskly across the form. “Sign here.”
Alphas were growing fewer every year. No one knew when it had begun, but newborns were now overwhelmingly Omega, nearly eighty-five percent. Alphas barely made up five. Worse still, Omega pheromones were declining in quality.
To boost the birth rate, the law now allowed any Alpha to marry and have children, no matter the circumstances. Even keeping multiple Omegas outside marriage was tacitly permitted, as long as it might increase Alpha births.
Fu Xu took the pen and carefully wrote his name, stroke by stroke.
The name Xu had been chosen by the orphanage director, who had hoped that his life would one day have a story worth telling, and someone to share it with. But in the end, Fu Xu had neither a story nor anyone to listen to it.
The assistant handed the paperwork to the clerk, who scanned the documents and soon produced two small red booklets.
“We’ll keep the marriage certificates for now,” the assistant, Zong Yuan, said, tucking them away. He pressed a hand to his earpiece and gestured for Fu Xu to follow. “Drive faster,” he told the chauffeur. “Deliver this Omega as soon as possible.”
The car sped through the streets. The motion made Fu Xu dizzy, his breathing uneven. The windows were shut tight, and the air was thick with the heavy mix of Alpha pheromones and suppressant, a cloying, suffocating scent.
When they finally stopped, Fu Xu barely realized they had arrived before he was pushed out.
Before him stood a grand villa, its high walls guarded by a steel gate with a facial recognition lock.
“Requesting activation of safety mode,” a mechanical voice intoned from the gate’s console. “Warning: Alpha pheromone concentration nearing critical level.”
Zong Yuan swiped his card to open the gate and shoved Fu Xu inside. “Second floor,” he ordered.
He did not follow. Fu Xu took a deep breath, forcing his stiff legs to move forward.
The moment he stepped inside, a raw, inhuman roar echoed from upstairs.
A crash sounded, shattering glass, and then a figure emerged from the wreckage of the second floor’s bulletproof window, his face half-shifted into a monstrous form.
Shen Louchen.
The molten gold lines beneath his skin pulsed like flowing lava. The veins on his neck stood out starkly, and the air around him seethed with violent pheromones that made Fu Xu’s vision blur.
“Get out,” Shen Louchen snarled. His claws dug deep into the marble pillar beside him, leaving cracks that splintered through the stone. Shards flew through the air, one grazing Fu Xu’s forehead.
Warm blood slid down his face and traced a path to the corner of his lips. Still, he stepped forward.
“So you are the Omega Grandfather sent here to bring me luck?” Shen Louchen’s voice was flat and cold. His eyes carried no warmth, only the faintest glint of disdain.
The oversized shirt hanging from Fu Xu’s shoulders rippled in the draft, revealing a frail frame so thin that his ribs were visible with every shallow breath. He looked as though he might faint at any moment.
Such a weak Omega. Like all the others before him, he would probably lose his mind before long.
“Yes,” Fu Xu whispered. His heart pounded so violently that it hurt. The Alpha’s pheromones pressed down on him like a physical weight, so heavy that every breath burned in his chest.
“Get out,” Shen Louchen said again, his tone sharp as a blade. “I do not need any Omega.”
His icy voice echoed through the vast hall, slicing through the silence. Fu Xu rubbed at his eyes, his body trembling from a cold that seemed to seep straight from his bones.
How many times had he been rejected like this? It seemed he was born only to be despised, to be thrown away, always without exception.
Still, he tried once more. His voice was barely audible. “Mr. Shen… I… ”
“Do not make me repeat myself.”
Shen Louchen’s pupils contracted. His gaze darkened dangerously as his clawed hand slammed against a red button on the wall.
Moments later, Zong Yuan appeared at the foot of the stairs. “Master.”
“Take him out,” Shen Louchen ordered coldly.
“Yes, sir.”
Zong Yuan grabbed Fu Xu by the arm and began to drag him away. Frowning, he glanced at his phone, wondering where to send the boy. The marriage certificate had already been registered; sending him back to the Fu family was impossible.
Yet the master’s other properties were out of the question as well. Bringing another’s scent there would only contaminate the space and risk worsening his condition.
Fu Xu stopped walking. He already knew what awaited him. His voice was weak but steady as he said, “I… can I stay?”
It was his first time facing something like this, and though fear trembled in his chest, he clung to the last fragile thread of hope. He did not want to go to the breeding center.
The Fus had abandoned him. He had nowhere else to go. If he wanted to live, his only chance was here.
“I would like to stay,” he said again, a little louder this time. “Please, may I?”
Zong Yuan frowned. “You are not a suitable Omega. I will contact the nearest breeding facility and arrange for a divorce procedure.”
Before delivering him, the old master had said that this time the family head needed a genuine partner. But even now, Shen Louchen had refused without hesitation.
Fu Xu looked up at the second-floor balcony. His pale neck strained as he whispered, “Please… just let me wait a little. Please.”
He had heard that during attacks, those with pheromone disorder were not truly conscious of their actions.
If he waited, perhaps Shen Louchen would recover. And if, after that, he still wanted Fu Xu gone, at least Fu Xu could leave knowing he had tried.
He did not want to die.
The sky darkened, and the air smelled of rain. Zong Yuan hesitated, then finally released his grip.
So the Omega wanted to prove his resolve? Wanted to show how steadfast he was? Fine. Let him try. Sooner or later, he would be the one begging to be taken away.
Night fell, and the wind carried the first drops of rain, cold and relentless. Fu Xu’s thin shirt soaked through almost instantly, clinging to his skin. Each drop struck like a needle against his fevered body.
A flash of lightning split the sky, followed by a deafening crack of thunder. Fu Xu flinched, his shoulders trembling uncontrollably.
Just a little longer, he told himself. Endure a little longer.
Upstairs, Shen Louchen pushed the last syringe of suppressant into his arm and exhaled shakily. He turned toward the window, his golden eyes distant.
Spring has come again, he thought. I wonder if I will live to see the next one.
Then, through the curtain of rain, he noticed a small white figure standing outside, frail and wavering, like a lone water lily adrift on the storm-tossed sea.
“Who is that?” Shen Louchen pressed his wrist communicator.
Zong Yuan’s voice came through the earpiece. “It is the Omega for the marriage ritual, sir. He refused to leave. The breeding center staff will arrive tomorrow to take him by force.”
Shen Louchen’s eyes darkened. His claws gouged deep into the wall beside him.
“Bring him in,” he said.
✦ ✧ ✦
Vynellia
[Translator]
☕ A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR THE TRANSLATOR
Coffee is technically a form of emotional support.
☕ BUY THEM A COFFEE →
✧ (づ｡•ㅅ•｡)づ ☕ ✧
✦ thank you for reading ✦
Next →
ChaptersChapter 1 · Substitute MarriageChapter 2 · PleaseChapter 3 · Thank you, Mr. ShenChapter 4 · Mr. Shen, are you going to throw me away?Chapter 5 · You don’t have to please me in everythingChapter 6 · Is This For Him?Chapter 7 · Do you know you don’t have long to live?Chapter 8 · But what about you? What will you be then?Chapter 9 · That’s a vehicle from the logistics department.Chapter 10 · What do you take my Shen family for?Chapter 11 · Can I bite your gland?Chapter 12 · He is not my “medicine catalyst”Chapter 13 · Who is that Alpha?Chapter 14 · Perfectly matched omegaChapter 15 · Perhaps you could call him, baby?Chapter 16 · That’s… Fu Xu’s scent?Chapter 17 · It was made by the masterChapter 18 · Abusing a pregnant omega is a serious crime.Chapter 19 · Mr. Shen is the best alpha.Chapter 20 · Family elderChapter 21 · Shen Louchen’s berserk periodChapter 22 Part 1 · You are my wifeChapter 22 Part 2 · You are my wifeChapter 23 · Aren’t we mutually in love?Chapter 24 · Which alpha did you go to see?Chapter 25 · Fu Xu, tell me you like meChapter 26 · Could Mr. Shen possibly have a little crush on him?Chapter 27 · Get out!Chapter 28 · Stay close to meChapter 29 · Mr. Shen and I are a legally married coupleChapter 30 · Spit it outChapter 31 · He’s been acting increasingly strangely latelyChapter 32 · Do you listen to everyone except me?Chapter 33 · Monthly ExamChapter 34 · Parent Teacher MeetingChapter 35 · The classroom was cold at nightChapter 36 · Court deathChapter 37 · Wife, Kiss meChapter 38 · This omega trying to steal a kiss from him?Chapter 39 · His omega turned out to be a little cunning.Chapter 40 · Is this little omega taking advantage of him?Chapter 41 · “Madam Shen” is your trump card, understand?Chapter 42 · Mr. Shen, I don’t know how to wear it…Chapter 43 · HusbandChapter 44 · Why is Shen Louchen acting like a peacockChapter 45 · I won’t abandon you, and I never willChapter 46 · Omega with a 92% match rateChapter 47 · Are you waiting for him?Chapter 48 · How can someone magically transformChapter 49 · Now it’s all good, two kids.Chapter 50 · Mr. Shen, will you regret it then?Chapter 51 · What is regret?Chapter 52 · If you’ve got the guts, say it again!Chapter 53 · That’s my milk teaChapter 54 · What he wanted to replace was the alphaChapter 55 · How do you know I’m not part of Mr. Shen’s plan?Chapter 56 · Why don’t you just kill me?Chapter 57 · Are we sending him away?Chapter 58 · Are you angry?Chapter 59 · Inhibitor or marker?Chapter 60 · Let Fu Xu mark himChapter 61 · There should be limits to joking, right?Chapter 62 · Do you really not like Young Master Lian?Chapter 63 · Will you still love me after I go to school?Chapter 64 · You are the best husband in the worldChapter 65 · Extra 1Chapter 66 · Extra 2