Chapter 39: High and Mighty Alpha Young Master

“Shen Yanzhi.”

Zhou Wu’s gaze settled on his reddened earlobes.

“I want to hold you.”

They said a name was the shortest spell—and it was Shen Yanzhi himself who had taught it to Zhou Wu.

Those three words hit like an electric shock, forcing him to bite down hard on his lip.

When Zhou Wu lay unconscious, Shen Yanzhi had rehearsed it all in his mind a thousand times over.

He would scold him fiercely upon waking. He would make him pay for his reckless actions. He would reestablish the uncrossable line between them.

But now Zhou Wu was awake, saying things like this, and Shen Yanzhi found himself utterly speechless.

An overwhelming urge to embrace him surged through Shen Yanzhi’s body, so intense it nearly made him tremble.

Zhou Wu pressed his cheek close to the air vent, his warm breath ghosting over Shen Yanzhi’s ear.

That faint puff of air sent shivers racing across the skin at the nape of his neck, raising goosebumps in its wake.

Shen Yanzhi had to summon every ounce of willpower to fight back his instincts.

With no response forthcoming, Zhou Wu called out again.

“Shen Yanzhi?”

Calm down, Shen Yanzhi told himself. This was just a temporary withdrawal reaction from the marking.

“Shen Yanzhi…” Zhou Wu’s voice trailed off, softer now.

Think about what he did to you! Damn it—a whole night and day.

Zhou Wu’s expression visibly crumpled into sorrow. He shot to his feet.

Shen Yanzhi’s heart stuttered, the question almost slipping out: Where are you going?

He pressed himself tighter against the glass, his eyes tracking Zhou Wu’s every move. The other man merely approached the door of his isolation room.

The door was locked tight, of course. Zhou Wu shoved at it with all his might, but it didn’t budge an inch. Frustration twisted his features as he pursed his lips, sulking like a petulant child.

“Why do it like this?”

Yes—why? a faint voice whispered in Shen Yanzhi’s heart.

As long as there was no deep marking, what was the harm in a simple hug? Just for a little while…

No! Had his brain gone haywire?

Shen Yanzhi shook his head sharply, forcing his voice to sound cold and resolute. “Because you can’t hold me. You can’t kiss me. And you sure as hell can’t mark me!”

“Who gave you the nerve? You never had my permission.”

Zhou Wu stared at him, his eyes brimming with pure confusion, as if the sudden rejection and blame made no sense at all.

“But back then,” he said, tilting his head as he groped for the right words, “Shen Yanzhi wanted to bite me, didn’t he?”

“So why can’t I bite you?”

If Shen Yanzhi hadn’t known Zhou Wu was a simpleton, he might have taken those words for deliberate provocation.

Heat flooded Shen Yanzhi’s face despite himself. He held his ground.

“So what if I did!”

As a top-tier alpha, marking someone else was his right—his privilege. But to be marked himself? Unthinkable!

What was his status? And what was Zhou Wu? An orphan who could barely care for himself, a fool without parents.

“I deigned to bite you—that was generous enough. And you still dared…”

Zhou Wu seemed to glean the rest from his expression and trailing words. He didn’t argue further. Instead, he turned away in anger and stalked to the farthest corner of the room.

He faced the wall, his back turned stubbornly to Shen Yanzhi, refusing him even a single glance.

Shen Yanzhi snapped his mouth shut.

He was the one who’d lashed out, yet Zhou Wu’s refusal to look at him or call his name—it was unbearable.

“What are you doing over there? Come here.”

“Zhou Wu.”

No answer.

“Zhou Wu!” His voice rose without thinking, his palm slapping against the glass.

“…Is Shen Yanzhi begging me now?”

Zhou Wu’s muffled voice drifted from the corner.

Shen Yanzhi clenched his jaw, the line of it rigid.

On instinct, he released a flood of more pheromones. That crisp woody fragrance was meant to ensnare, soothe, and dominate, just as it always had.

But it did nothing.

After the marking, the scent might only make Zhou Wu feel safer, more entranced. For Shen Yanzhi, though, the fruit fragrance had become as vital as air to a drowning man—irresistible, essential.

He couldn’t win.

Zhou Wu knew full well that being cornered like this would only stoke Shen Yanzhi’s fury.

They held the standoff for a good ten minutes, Zhou Wu wondering how long the other man could last.

Shen Yanzhi pressed his forehead to the glass, his voice laced with compromise and urgency he didn’t even recognize in himself. “Yes. I’m begging you to come over…”

“Zhou Wu, be good.”

He even coaxed him in a tone he’d never used before.

“Didn’t you just say you wanted to hold me?”

Zhou Wu sounded aggrieved. “You won’t let me.”

“No—not me.” Shen Yanzhi abandoned all pride.

“It’s those medical staff outside. They’re the mean ones! Come here. We’ll figure it out together, okay?”

“…”

Zhou Wu fell silent for a moment.

Then he hugged the blanket to his chest and shuffled back over.

Shen Yanzhi kept his head against the glass, his forehead slick with fine beads of sweat.

“Like before—stick your hand through.”

He tipped his head up slightly as he spoke.

From this angle, he had a clear view of Zhou Wu gazing down at him. Those thick, dark lashes framed beautiful eyes that betrayed no emotion, overlooking him from above.

The unfamiliar sensation of inferiority, of being looked down upon, left Shen Yanzhi utterly disoriented.

A turbulent mix of shame, irritation, and thrill coiled in his chest, his breaths coming in shaky gasps.

Zhou Wu studied him for a long moment before reluctantly sliding one hand through the air vent.

What was that look in his eyes? Shen Yanzhi obsessed over it, even as his body betrayed him first.

He twisted his face eagerly, pressing his feverish cheek and the tip of his nose into Zhou Wu’s cool palm. He nuzzled it greedily, drawing in the pheromones that seeped through the skin and eased his torment.

“Shen Yanzhi.”

Zhou Wu let out a soft chuckle, laced with an innocent sort of cruelty.

“Like a little dog.”

Shen Yanzhi froze solid. He jerked his head up stiffly, humiliation burning through him.

“You…!”

But Zhou Wu played innocent, his fingers drifting to Shen Yanzhi’s lips. His thumb pushed boldly inside.

Shen Yanzhi went rigid all over, his arms quivering, his mind a battlefield of conflict. In the end, though, he couldn’t resist the surge of fruit fragrance.

He didn’t bite down. Instead, he parted his lips wider, his gaze lifting to Zhou Wu’s with reddened eyes.

Zhou Wu seemed to forgive him then. He withdrew his hand—trailing a glistening thread of saliva—but pressed his handsome face to the glass, watching.

Shen Yanzhi understood instantly. Without a word, his breaths ragged and desperate, he leaned in to kiss Zhou Wu’s mouth. His tongue darted out, all anger forgotten.

The rich fruit fragrance flushed his entire face red. He wanted more—so much more…

Suddenly, the room’s broadcast system chimed in.

“Young Master Shen… please mind your pheromone intake. Uh, otherwise, it won’t help your physiological balance recover.”

Shen Yanzhi froze solid. Only then did he suddenly remember that this ward had surveillance.

That eager way he’d rubbed against Zhou Wu’s palm earlier, practically begging… hadn’t it all been caught on camera?

He squeezed his eyes shut. For the first time in his life, he felt shame so intense he wanted to die.

By evening, Shen Yanzhi understood even better. No wonder the beds in this room were on wheels. Earlier, the doctor had even asked if he wanted his positioned by the glass wall.

He’d refused without a second thought. No need—it would make him look like he couldn’t get by without that idiot.

Now, in the dead of night, surrounded by darkness, he could only grit his teeth and wheel the bed to the glass wall himself.

Right then, the air vent for circulation was positioned directly above his pillow.

Zhou Wu seemed utterly unaffected by the broadcast. He’d already wheeled his own bed flush against the glass and was innocently resting his hand at the vent, gazing at Shen Yanzhi.

Perhaps it was that the night always cloaked shame in a veil of shadow.

In the end, Shen Yanzhi slowly gave in. With a defeated slump verging on self-destruction, he gently pressed his nose back into the fruity warmth of Zhou Wu’s palm.

Truth be told, he desperately wanted to touch himself… but all he could do was clamp his thighs together and endure, teeth clenched.

After tossing and turning forever, slick with sweat beneath the covers, Shen Yanzhi finally drifted off.

Only to dream again.

“Shen Yanzhi.” Zhou Wu’s voice was low, calling to him.

Shen Yanzhi blinked awake in a haze. Zhou Wu was pressed to the glass, that scorching length thrust through the vent, brushing his cheek.

“Suck it for me.”

Shen Yanzhi’s face burned crimson. He wanted to curse the man out, but the words stuck in his throat.

What the hell was this? So shocking—so huge.

“Shen Yanzhi…”

How could he? No way in hell!

He tried to refuse, but the overwhelming fruit fragrance tingled his scalp. His mouth fell open, and somehow, he was sucking.

Save him—he couldn’t stop.

Zhou Wu’s eyes narrowed in pleasure.

“Shen Yanzhi… I want to come.”

No way…!

Shen Yanzhi’s mind screamed refusal. Here? On his knees like a dog?

He couldn’t—not where people might see. They’d all know.

Yet he stood anyway, clumsy as a beast in heat, fumbling to line himself up. The instant fulfillment hit so hard he nearly buckled to his knees.

“Ah!” Shen Yanzhi’s eyes snapped open, chest heaving wildly.

But there was only the peacefully sleeping Zhou Wu and the ordinary ward.

In disbelief, he threw back the covers… His life was over.

On the other side, Zhou Wu cracked his eyes open and sniffed the air.

That wild dream had thickened Shen Yanzhi’s agarwood scent until it pooled across the floor, dripping in rivulets down the walls.

“So fragrant…”

Zhou Wu frowned.

“Mm, Shen Yanzhi… I feel kinda uncomfortable…”

Shen Yanzhi whipped his head toward him.

Zhou Wu’s cheeks were rosy as he squirmed beneath the blankets, then abruptly sat up.

For a split second, Shen Yanzhi thought he was really offering. But no—he just wanted to take care of it himself.

Still no good. Someone might see!

“Zhou Wu! Stop it. Put it away.”

But Zhou Wu was lost in a daze, ignoring him completely.

Fuck. Shen Yanzhi bolted out the door—his side wasn’t locked.

The on-duty nurses barely registered before he snatched the key to the next room.

“Ah, Young Master Shen??”

The doctor had asked Shen Yanzhi earlier if he wanted his door locked, but Shen Yanzhi’s pride wouldn’t allow it.

He was certain he’d never go running to Zhou Wu. How wrong he’d been.

The door swung open, and an even denser wave of fruit fragrance washed over him. Shen Yanzhi’s legs went weak—then Zhou Wu pulled him into a crushing embrace.

The sheer satisfaction dizzied him. In a heartbeat, he’d forgotten why he’d come.

When awareness trickled back, he was cradling Zhou Wu’s head, teeth grazing perilously close to breaking skin on those lips.

No—no… What the hell was he doing?

“Shen Yanzhi.” Zhou Wu’s voice murmured hot against his ear.

“No… no…”

“Shen Yanzhi…”

Shen Yanzhi felt like he was losing his mind.

His last thread of sanity rasped out a single command.

“Go… to there…”

The corner bathroom had no cameras.

But it did have a mirror.

Shen Yanzhi glanced up and caught sight of himself: face aflame, sweat-soaked bangs and lashes plastered down. The stranger staring back chilled him.

Zhou Wu’s warm palm covered his eyes.

“No, wait—”

No time for more thought. Zhou Wu sank his teeth in.

Every thought scattered to the wind…

And so another night slipped away.

Shen Yanzhi felt like death was near when daylight filtered in from outside. Someone knocked, voices murmuring.

Zhou Wu tensed, his pheromones shifting faintly. Instinct drove Shen Yanzhi to clutch him tighter, refusing to let go.

“I’m sorry…”

He heard Zhou Wu murmur it but couldn’t process.

Then, abruptly, the pleasure swelled. Shen Yanzhi’s eyes flew wide—it felt utterly different, impossibly better. Control shattered; his mind blanked as he babbled pleas at Zhou Wu.

Zhou Wu’s ears flushed pink. He bit his lip, gripped tight, and thrust down hard.

The surge brought a sharp, alien pain—like something tearing free from within.

But after the pain came ecstasy beyond measure… Shen Yanzhi shattered again, words beyond him, reduced to senseless gasps.

Zhou Wu’s face burned too. Why did the pheromones feel stronger on him now…? He was feeling it.

Too bad he had no chance to check if the knot had truly taken.

The outer door finally burst open.

“Young Master Shen. Madam is waiting outside.”

Silhouettes of burly caregivers loomed beyond the bathroom door.

Zhou Wu yanked back in a panic, hastily straightening their clothes.

…

Half an hour later, Shen Yanzhi showered in a daze, donned fresh clothes, and sank onto the reception hall sofa.

His hand drifted instinctively to his belly, a nagging ache where something deep inside had been breached.

His mother sat ramrod straight across from him, face pale with fury, eyes brimming with disapproval and banked rage.

But she hadn’t gotten the full report from the doctor. She still believed Shen Yanzhi was the one doing the marking.

“Yanzhi! You’ve disappointed me far too much. How could you act so recklessly… This is utterly irresponsible!

And the other person is just… just a complete fool who doesn’t know a thing.”

Shen Yanzhi’s mind finally began to clear, coming back into focus bit by bit.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but pride held him back. He could only grit his teeth and tacitly admit that he had marked someone else. His voice was still hoarse as he spoke.

“It was just a temporary marking.” He pressed a hand to his forehead, as if trying to reassure himself. “It’s nothing…”

“Nothing?” His mother’s voice spiked in pitch.

“Shen Yanzhi! What kind of attitude is that? Do you think you can just brush off a temporary marking like it’s no big deal? Do you even realize what this means?”

“You’re a top-tier Alpha. The one in heat was an A-grade Omega, wasn’t he? You weren’t even swayed by him, yet you turned around and marked a fool! Don’t think you can pass this off as some spur-of-the-moment impulse.”

She shot to her feet. “I can’t let you keep running wild like this any longer. Right now—immediately—come home with me! Just look at yourself. What kind of state are you in?”

Shen Yanzhi fell into a rare silence.

What had he done earlier? He truly couldn’t go on like this.

Vivid flashes of his loss of control replayed in his mind, leaving his face flushed one moment and ashen the next.

He… he needed someone else to step in. He couldn’t control himself on his own.

~~~

Meanwhile, Zhou Wu hadn’t expected Su Bai to show up at all.

The moment Su Bai spotted him, he rushed over and anxiously inspected him from head to toe.

“05! Are you okay? Did he do anything to you?”

Zhou Wu froze for a second, his gaze instinctively sliding past Su Bai’s shoulder.

“…Where’s Shen Yanzhi?”

The words struck Su Bai’s heart like an unexpected needle prick.

Su Bai forced down his emotions, reminding himself: It’s fine. It’s just the marking’s influence. 05 will snap out of it soon!

He grabbed Zhou Wu’s wrist, his tone urgent. “Forget about him. Come with me—now.”

“Where to?” Zhou Wu didn’t budge, his eyes still instinctively scanning the far end of the corridor. His voice carried pure bewilderment.

Su Bai’s heart plummeted. In the past, whenever he said “let’s go,” Zhou Wu never once asked “where to”—because being together was all that mattered. But now…

“I’m taking you home. Our home—the two of us.”

Zhou Wu’s mind was still foggy as he followed Su Bai out of the building.

He hadn’t anticipated Su Bai tracking him down here. A car was even waiting outside.

One look at the car, and it clicked. Su Bai had somehow convinced Shen Yanzhi’s mother and forged a temporary alliance with her. It was a bold move—and a risky one.

In the car, the driver silently handed over a small paper bag. “Madam prepared these drugs, just in case.”

Mrs. Shen had assumed Zhou Wu had been marked and that suddenly separating from her son would leave him in agony. So she’d specially provided some Omega medication.

Su Bai clasped Zhou Wu’s hand. “Tell Madam not to worry. I’ll keep a close eye on Zhou Wu and make sure he never sees Young Master Shen again.”

“These suppressor drugs aren’t good for the body if overused.” He paused, his ears tinting pink, but he pressed on. “There’s no need for Madam to trouble herself. If he needs anything, I… I can take care of it for him.”

Zhou Wu: ?

The driver said nothing more, simply nodding as he drove them to a nondescript apartment building on the far side of the city.

Once they’d gotten out, Su Bai met Zhou Wu’s dazed gaze and drew in a deep breath before explaining. “I told Mrs. Shen… that we’re actually lovers. It was to convince her your approach to Young Master Shen wasn’t on purpose—to shift all the blame off you entirely… I was scared just now that she might be testing us. You… you understand, right?”

Even though he figured Zhou Wu might not get it, uttering the word “lovers” still brought a flush to his cheeks.

“I’ve already lined up some tutoring gigs for the holiday. From here on out, I’ve decided… to drop out of school. I’ll find other ways to make money. I can’t keep getting tangled up with people like them. It’s too dangerous.”

“? No way!” Zhou Wu shook his head at once, his reaction quicker than Su Bai had anticipated.