Xu Lanxi wanted to give Ye Xunshu a lesson, to teach her that her mouth was not just for talking. Seeing that the girl could barely hold on, she withdrew her pheromones at the appropriate time. After all, pheromones could not only trigger an Omega’s heat but could also affect an Alpha.
Still, the scents of mugwort and sweet osmanthus continued to linger in the air.
Xu Lanxi ordered the cameraman to close the Water Mirror. The cameraman was confused; seeing Ye Xunshu hunched over on the ground, he wanted to step forward to ask if she was feeling unwell, but Xu Lanxi pushed him back.
“The production crew cannot interfere at will. Have you all forgotten that?”
“But Miss Xu, Miss Ye looks like she might be”
“What of it?” Xu Lanxi crossed her arms and glanced at Ye Xunshu, blocking the staff to prevent them from approaching. “I only said a few words to her.”
“Xunshu-Sister is in a bad mood and wants some peace and quiet. You all go out first; we will stop filming for now.”
The staff were stunned, momentarily unsure of what to do.
Xu Lanxi said coldly, “There are too many people.”
The production crew had no choice. Thinking that Xu Lanxi surely would not do anything extreme to Ye Xunshu, they retreated outside while keeping a close watch on the movements inside.
Once everyone had exited the room, Xu Lanxi finally squatted down beside Ye Xunshu and asked, “How much longer do you want to be like this?”
Ye Xunshu clutched herself, pursing her lips in silence.
“I have retracted my pheromones for quite a while now. You should retract that osmanthus scent of yours too.” Xu Lanxi pinched herself to stay clear-headed. “It has not reached a severe level yet. Do you want to endure it yourself, or let me”
“No.”
Ye Xunshu kept her head down, coldly spitting out those two words. The icy tone reached Xu Lanxi’s ears, and she could easily feel the absolute rejection within them. Xu Lanxi was slightly annoyed, but she endured it. She did not want to blow the situation out of proportion either.
“Then endure it yourself.” Xu Lanxi stared at Ye Xunshu’s lips, which had turned red from her biting them. Her gaze gradually deepened, and finally, when Ye Xunshu was off guard, she placed her hand on the girl’s neck.
Feeling something warm suddenly placed on her neck, Ye Xunshu was startled and forcefully slapped Xu Lanxi’s hand away.
“Stay away from me.”
Xu Lanxi could feel that the person in front of her was deeply affected by the pheromones; even the slap was weak, as if she had not eaten.
Just now, when she brushed aside a few stray hairs on Ye Xunshu’s neck, she indeed saw a shallow tooth mark. Fu Yi had already given her a temporary mark. Judging by how the mark was nearly fading, it was likely bitten on their wedding day.
She curled her lips, stood up, and smiled. “What a pity. This young lady has no hobby of defiling someone’s purity.”
The two stayed in the room for a moment longer. Calculating the time, the influence of the pheromones should be nearly over. Ye Xunshu regained some strength and could barely stand by leaning against the shelf.
Xu Lanxi looked at her and laughed softly. “Your Fu Yi-Sister has not come to find you this whole time. I wonder, were you thinking of her in your heart just now?”
Ye Xunshu only raised her eyes to glance at her, then turned her head away without answering.
Xu Lanxi said, “You”
Just as she was about to say something, Fu Yi suddenly ran in from outside.
Fu Yi had been walking fast the whole way, and toward the end, she was almost running. Seeing the cameramen at the entrance of the rouge shop, Fu Yi’s heart beat even faster. Without a second thought, she rushed inside.
Then, she saw Ye Xunshu crouching on the ground.
The scents in the room were mixed. Even though they were already very faint, as an Alpha, she could capture the pheromones of another Alpha. The scent of mugwort.
Clearly, she had liked it when she was in the Upper Realm, but now it only triggered her disgust and hostility.
Upon seeing her, Xu Lanxi felt half guilty and half hostile.
Fu Yi knew exactly what the situation was at a single glance. Ye Xunshu’s eyes were filled with moisture as she cast a dazed look toward her, as if she had not reacted yet. Why would she come here?
Before she could react, Fu Yi had already walked up to her in a few steps. The fierce gaze she had when looking at Xu Lanxi softened at this moment, becoming gentle. “Can you walk?”
Ye Xunshu said nothing, closed her eyes, and shook her head. A drop of water flowed down her cheek.
Fu Yi was certain. She reached out to gently wipe away the tear stain and said, “I will carry you.”
After saying that, she squatted down with her back toward Ye Xunshu.
Seeing Fu Yi’s posture, Xu Lanxi suddenly felt insulted. Was she going to snatch the person away right in front of her?
Without thinking, she pointed at Fu Yi. “You are taking her away? There is no such rule in the production crew. Fu Yi, your Beta is Zhou Ying”
“Rules are meant to be broken.”
Fu Yi picked up Ye Xunshu on her back and only cast a single look toward Xu Lanxi.
That look was so cold it seemed like she wanted to kill. The surrounding air froze instantly. Xu Lanxi felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar and froze on the spot, even forgetting that she was also an Alpha. She only felt instinctively that she was no match for the Alpha in front of her.
It was like a law of nature: the strong obtain the weak, and Alphas compete with each other for an Omega. The weapon of this competition was their respective pheromones. Therefore, when Alphas smelled each other’s pheromones, they would involuntarily feel hostility toward one another. Hostility without reason.
But at this moment, Fu Yi did not release any pheromones. Even though she smelled Ye Xunshu’s osmanthus fragrance, Fu Yi endured it and did not release hers.
Xu Lanxi remained frozen on the spot, not because of pheromone suppression at all. It was merely Fu Yi’s gaze that fixed her there. Intuition told her that although Fu Yi said nothing, she was very angry right now. If she said anything more, it might be a scene she could not control.
Xu Lanxi watched the two of them leave, not daring to say another word from beginning to end. Even a wild beast, when encountering another equally strong opponent, will shrink back due to fear.
In the live room, the viewers who had been complaining because Xu Lanxi’s segment was interrupted finally saw the scene when they switched to Fu Yi’s live stream.
[Miss Fu is finally here!]
[So, what exactly happened to Ye Xunshu? Why did Fu Yi suddenly carry her on her back?]
[Why are the Little Rabbit’s eyes so red? Did Xu Lanxi bully her?!!!]
[I have a bold idea. Looking at Ye Xunshu’s reaction, Xu Lanxi couldn’t have released pheromones, could she?]
[No way, no way. Then she is way too much of a jerk!]
[Sister Fu Yi’s line “Rules are meant to be broken” was so cool I could die!! Everyone says Fu Yi has a bad temper, but don’t you think the Big Bad Wolf protecting the Little White Rabbit is such a good ship? She even called Ye Xunshu “Little Rabbit”!]
[I love that look of a wolf cub protecting its food!]
[Is Xu Lanxi trying to compete with Fu Yi for the title of “Number One Jerk Alpha”?]
[Releasing pheromones randomly? I remember the shop owner is an Omega, right? What did she do in a past life to run into Xu Lanxi?]
[Where is Fu Yi taking Ye Xunshu?]
[The Little Rabbit endured it alone for so long, my heart aches. But, hurry up and let the Big Bad Wolf take a bite and it won’t hurt anymore!]
Fu Yi felt she was truly too stupid. How could she have thought that Xu Lanxi wouldn’t dare do anything just because a cameraman was present?
The cameramen were all Betas; they couldn’t smell the pheromones.
“Sister, why did you come over?”
Shouldn’t she be with Zhou Ying?
Hearing the soft, weak voice from behind her, Fu Yi’s mouth moved faster than her brain: “If I didn’t come to find you, were you planning to let Xu Lanxi take a bite out of you?”
There was a hint of anger in those words, but she was mostly angry at herself. As soon as the words left her mouth, Fu Yi realized her tone was inappropriate.
Sure enough, the Little Rabbit huddled on her back moved her head, her hair brushing against the scent-suppressing patch. Fu Yi’s entire body felt a bit off.
“Sister, don’t be mean to Xunshu. Xunshu didn’t want to be marked by her.” The voice was soft and tender, carrying the grievance that only comes after being scolded.
It struck Fu Yi right in the heart, one beat at a time.
Fu Yi: “…”
She might as well just die of her own stupidity!
The Little Rabbit was the victim here; why was she being so harsh?
“I, I wasn’t being mean to you.” Fu Yi tried her best to salvage the situation, softening her tone as much as possible: “It’s fine as long as you’re okay.”
Ye Xunshu: “…”
The person on her back moved again but didn’t speak.
Fu Yi didn’t find Ye Xunshu heavy at all, carrying her through the marketplace like that.
“Do you want to go back?”
Enduring pheromones for so long was quite damaging to the body.
“I came too late.” Fu Yi lowered her head, her voice tinged with self-reproach. “We’ve walked so much; is the injury on your leg okay? Let’s go back to the cabin and rest.”
Ye Xunshu shook her head and said, “Isn’t Sister going to find Miss Zhou?”
Fu Yi didn’t want to hear anyone else’s name right now. She had absolutely no interest in Zhou Ying anyway. “Let’s not talk about other people, okay?”
Ye Xunshu was slightly stunned and replied, “Okay.”
After a few seconds, Ye Xunshu said, “Xunshu doesn’t want to go back yet.”
Fu Yi’s footsteps paused. She turned her head, wanting to ask where she wanted to go, but before the words could come out, something soft touched her ear.
It felt somewhat familiar.
It seemed to be…
In this carrying position…
It was Ye Xunshu’s lips.
Fu Yi: “…”
Ye Xunshu quietly moved away and let out a laugh with a slight nasal tone: “Sister is still so fond of being shy.”
“Ah.” Fu Yi was flustered, not knowing whether to walk or stay still. Her grip loosened for a moment, nearly dropping Ye Xunshu.
“You… then is there anywhere else you want to go?” Fu Yi cleared her throat. “I’ll take you.”
“Let’s wander a bit more.” Ye Xunshu said in her ear, “The date lasts the whole day. It would be such a waste to go back so early.”
The word “date” reached Fu Yi’s ears, but it stirred a strange sensation in her heart.
She was technically on a “date” with Zhou Ying too, but when she was with her, she was thinking about Ye Xunshu’s safety.
Now that her “date” partner had become Ye Xunshu, and she saw this person safely and healthily by her side…
Why did it seem like… like…
Her head was still full of her?
Fu Yi replied, “Okay.”
“Then I’ll take the Little Rabbit around some more.”
Ye Xunshu laughed softly, leaning quietly against Fu Yi’s back.
The Qiqiao Festival was approaching, which was the Qixi Festival of the Upper Realm.
The Alphas and Omegas of the Lower Realm also treated this day as a special occasion.
Fu Yi carried Ye Xunshu, watching the people around them bustling with preparations for tomorrow’s festival.
As if possessed, or perhaps just to break the quiet atmosphere between them…
She asked a question: “Did you… did you miss me?”
Ye Xunshu didn’t react immediately: “What?”
Fu Yi looked at the little rabbit dough figurines on a vendor’s stall.
“When you were feeling unwell, did you miss me?”
When your desires were being stirred by another Alpha’s pheromones, were you thinking that any Alpha would do, or…
Did you whisper my name?