Hua Zhi didn’t know when Xie Shimian had carried her back to the room.
Her body clung to Xie Shimian’s, fingers gripping tightly around her neck.
“Sister.”
Hua Zhi gazed dazedly at the ceiling, tears slipping from the corners of her eyes onto the bedsheet.
“Zhi’s mind wandered.”
Xie Shimian smoothed her long hair. “You can still space out at a time like this? I must not be trying hard enough.”
Hua Zhi snapped back to reality as the scent of an Omega emanated from her glands.
Her entire body felt as though it had been bathed in warm water, all her strength drained away.
“Mmm…”
The little kitten buried her face shyly against Xie Shimian’s neck.
Xie Shimian held the soft girl in her arms. “Was the ceiling that interesting?”
Hua Zhi’s face flushed crimson as she tried to push her away, only to be pulled even closer.
“Don’t move. Let me hold you for a while.”
Xie Shimian pressed her teeth against Hua Zhi’s gland, leaving behind a mark, a temporary claim.
The Omega’s pheromones thoroughly neutralized the restless Alpha pheromones raging within Xie Shimian.
They soothed her overly strained nerves, and her headache vanished instantly.
The dark circles under her eyes faded, and the exhaustion weighing down her body gradually dissipated, replaced by a deep tenderness for the Omega in her arms.
After being marked by an Alpha, an Omega would instinctively submit from the depths of their heart. Many argued that this was unfair to Omegas, and numerous scholars had attempted to alter this genetic flaw.
But few knew that when an Alpha marked a highly compatible Omega, their devotion would be no less than the Omega’s.
Submission was mutual neither was superior.
Hua Zhi gathered her courage. “Sister, why didn’t you give me a permanent mark?”
She knew Alphas were most indulgent right after such moments.
Xie Shimian’s voice was hoarse. “Hmm? Do you want to be with me that badly?”
An Omega could only accept one permanent mark in their lifetime unless their Alpha died.
Hua Zhi lightly nipped at Xie Shimian’s lips with her kitten-like fangs. “I do.”
As long as it was her savior, she was willing to give her entire life.
But her savior would surely meet countless Omegas better than her…
Xie Shimian kissed the corner of her brow. “Don’t say silly things. You’re still young, there’s a long road ahead.”
“Oh, right,” the satisfied and lazy Alpha murmured as she held her little lover. “No other pillow talk?”
Hua Zhi suddenly remembered. “There’s a maid in the manor. She said in the car that I was a…”
Filthy, degrading words spilled from Hua Zhi’s rosy lips, far uglier than what the maid had uttered.
Xie Shimian: “She’s already been dismissed. Think of someone else.”
The kitten was shocked: ?!
Her savior knew?! Then did she realize Hua Zhi had exaggerated just now?
The Alpha indulged her. “No rush. Take your time.”
She carried the kitten to the bathroom, nibbling at Zhi’s ear as she whispered, “No matter when you think of it, it’ll count.”
Hua Zhi thought to herself, what if I could stay with Sister forever?
Would she agree? Probably not.
Her savior would find an Omega of equal standing to marry, and they’d have an adorable little pup.
If Hua Zhi was lucky enough to remain by Xie Shimian’s side, she’d likely end up as a troublesome mistress to the rightful wife.
“Sister.”
Xie Shimian responded gently. “Why are you crying? Did I hurt you earlier?”
Hua Zhi pleaded urgently, “If Sister is satisfied with me, can you always come to me in the future?”
Xie Shimian turned on the shower to test the water temperature. “What nonsense are you talking about? Who else would I look for besides you?”
Indeed, it was always easiest to talk to an Alpha after such moments. Xie Shimian had almost completely forgotten the original plot of the story by now.
The young girl in her arms wasn’t the future big boss who would come after her life, just a simple little girlfriend.
Xie Shimian kissed the top of her head under the shower. “Be good, don’t be afraid. Big sister will take care of you.”
Ever since coming to the Xie family, the little Omega had been deeply insecure, something Xie Shimian had noticed.
Hua Zhi let out a kitten-like whimper, her sapphire-blue eyes misted over by the steam.
If this moment could last forever, Hua Zhi would give anything for it.
“So the pheromone levels have returned to normal?” Xie Shimian asked the doctor. “No more headaches, and my mood’s stabilized too.”
The doctor checked the test results. “All indicators are normal. The toxin has been suppressed.”
The languid Alpha was strikingly beautiful, her upturned phoenix eyes exuding endless charm.
The scent of fruity rum mixed with lemon nearly overwhelmed the doctor.
Struggling to maintain composure, the doctor asked, “Miss?”
Xie Shimian: “What kind of poison requires an R-rated solution with me? Is it from the Flower Market?”
Doctor: “What R-rated solution?”
Butler: “What’s the Flower Market?”
“…”
Xie Shimian waved her hand. “Never mind. Go check on Hua Zhi, she’s running a fever, over 40 degrees. I can already smell the aroma.”
The butler standing nearby was puzzled. “Hua Zhi doesn’t have any pheromones, does she? Or is my old nose failing me?”
Xie Shimian glanced at the thermometer. “It’s the smell of barbecue. Just needs a sprinkle of cumin.”
Butler: ?
Hua Zhi in bed: “.”
The doctor thought to himself that this seemed rather impolite.
Xie Shimian bent down to carefully apply a gland patch to Hua Zhi, who had buried her head under the blankets, and said softly,
“I’m heading to the company for a bit. I’ll be back later. There are freshly baked cookies in the kitchen.”
The Omega, still half-asleep, sensed the Alpha’s pheromones and nodded unconsciously.
Xie Shimian smiled, casually changed into another coat, and stepped into the swirling snow outside.
The capital planet was blanketed in white. Xie Shimian’s collar and shoulders grew damp, and she swapped her half-gloves for wrist-length lambskin ones.
At the entrance of Xie Corporation’s office.
He Yuying walked into the third conference room. “You!”
Xie Shimian smiled faintly. “Mom.”
He Yuying’s stern expression softened. “I heard you made it through your rut smoothly.”
Xie Shimian replied gently, “Thanks to Hua Zhi. She’s been wonderful.”
He Yuying knew her daughter’s preferences surrounded by pretty faces all the time but never marking any due to low compatibility. That didn’t mean she wasn’t the romantic type.
“Now that you have Hua Zhi, behave yourself. Stop messing around in unsavory places.”
Xie Shimian obediently nodded after the scolding. “Don’t worry, I’m a very loyal person.”
He Yuying didn’t buy it. “All Alphas are the same.”
The meeting began.
Vice President Xie Shan sat beside Xie Shimian, pulling a sheet of paper from the folder.
“The general manager is right. Global Brain has a new chairman. The previous one, after causing a scene at our group, was shot in his bedroom that same night.”
Everyone in the conference room turned to look at Xie Shimian.
Even He Yuying was no exception.
Xie Shimian said coolly, “Have we found out who’s behind Global Brain?”
The Alpha sitting across from Xie Shan pulled up a document. Though dressed in a suit, his bulging muscles were impossible to conceal, a hulking Alpha with a military background.
“She’s an official from the Empire’s Ministry of Finance. Here’s her photo.”
Xie Shimian’s lazy gaze sharpened the moment it landed on the photo.
“Does the CEO know her?”
“She looks somewhat familiar.”
“That’s normal. You’ve probably seen her at palace banquets.”
Xie Shimian thought to herself: No, at first glance, her bone structure resembles Hua Zhi’s.
Tsk, my little kitten is really something else.
Xie Shimian narrowed her eyes as she lit a cigarette, savoring the lingering scent of Hua Zhi’s bitter-lemon pheromones on her skin.
The memory of the soft, clingy girl in her arms, whimpering and wrapping her arms around her neck to keep her from leaving, flashed through her mind.
Xie Shimian absentmindedly adjusted her cuff, only to pull out a long, silky strand of Hua Zhi’s hair from her shirt sleeve.
Xie Shimian: …Ew.
She’d accidentally worn the coat she’d given Hua Zhi.
The meeting attendees: ?
Her mother lowered her voice. “You’re distracted. What are you thinking about?”
Xie Shimian twirled the strand of her little girlfriend’s hair, lost in a daze. “I was just thinking… how cute my girlfriend is.”
I miss her. I want to—
Her head throbbed. Ugh, the love-struck brainrot is setting in.
Mother: ?