Chapter 30: Applying Medicine

In the end, Wen Xi still withdrew.

However, before leaving, she fulfilled his silent wish by sending the fluid he didn’t want to leak out even deeper inside him.

Cheng Si’s heart rate couldn’t drop for a long time. He felt as if he had consumed too much, his stomach filled to the brim by her. He reached out to kiss Wen Xi’s eyes with a fawning tenderness; her eyelashes were long and curled, and he licked her thin eyelids until they were hot and flushed.

At such close proximity, Cheng Si finally saw traces of passion in those deep, bottomless dark eyes. Encouraged, his damp kisses trailed down from her eyes, eventually stopping at the corner of her lips, where he clumsily tangled his tongue with hers, exchanging pheromones.

They kissed for a while.

Wen Xi was still dwelling on her subpar “performance” from earlier. Her expression wasn’t great. She rested her thumb on the gland at the back of his neck, rubbing it with a half-smile. “Where did you learn all that dirty talk?”

Cheng Si let out a low moan as she pressed down. It was painful yet comfortable, like being soothed. His ears turned red as he replied, “I heard it a lot… so I picked it up.”

When he occasionally worked as a designated driver for guests leaving the club, driven by alcohol and desire, many young couples couldn’t help but do something in the car. Cheng Si had encountered such scenes several times. Though he maintained professional decorum by keeping his eyes forward, those suggestive words had unconsciously drifted into his mind.

Wen Xi nodded. She decided that next time, she would do him in a car—so he wouldn’t need to learn from others.

Not long after they finished, the food Luo Wanran ordered arrived. Wen Xi had the delivery person leave it at the door and waited until they had walked far away before going out to retrieve it.

She first found the Omega suppressor inside the bag and handed it to Cheng Si. He didn’t take it, saying he had bought some when he came. Originally, those had been intended for her.

Wen Xi glanced at the brand he had bought. It was some unknown label; the effect was likely poor. She tossed it into the trash and told him, “Use the ones Wanran bought.”

Cheng Si opened his mouth as if to speak, but after two seconds of silence, he suppressed the urge to retrieve them. He lowered his eyelids and injected the suppressor himself.

Wen Xi took the remaining items out. Wanran had purchased meals specifically for Omega nutritional recovery—light and easy to digest—as well as several tubes of ointment. Wen Xi read the instructions; the effects seemed similar enough. After eating a bit with Cheng Si, she told him to go shower, after which she would apply the medicine.

Meanwhile, Jin Ping sent a notification to the class group: they would be heading back tomorrow morning.

Wen Xi was now certain they needed to rest while the special period was momentarily receding. Otherwise, when the next wave hit, there would be no chance for sleep. Wen Xi didn’t mind, but she felt that if Cheng Si didn’t rest, he might faint again.

Cheng Si followed her instructions obediently. He pursed his lips and slowly moved to the edge of the bed. His walking posture was unnatural. After a few steps, something leaked out, the heat of it making his heart hitch. He froze instantly, turning back to look at Wen Xi with a sense of helplessness.

“Why are you looking at me?” Wen Xi hardened her heart. “I’m not helping you wash.”

“I’m not asking for help,” Cheng Si’s voice sounded dejected, almost inaudible. “It… leaked out anyway.”

Wen Xi: “…” She let out a small “tsk.” Since it was meant to be comforting, she used a deliberately impatient tone: “What does it matter? I’ll give you more next time anyway.”

Having received a promise, Cheng Si revealed a fleeting smile. Even though the shower was difficult, he didn’t frown.

From outside, through the frosted glass, Wen Xi saw him touching the injuries on his body, occasionally hissing in pain. He leaned his hands against the tiles, taking several seconds to recover before continuing.

After watching for a moment, Wen Xi looked away irritably. she leaned over to find her phone to ask Pei Huanzhou when he could deliver the sedatives. After some searching, she found it under the pillow.

The moment she turned on the screen, she saw a missed call from Pei Huanzhou. The status bar showed “Declined.” She checked the time and realized it was shortly after she had contacted Luo Wanran for food.

In other words, while she was in the shower, Cheng Si had taken the liberty of hanging up on Pei Huanzhou. Had he taken her words as a mere suggestion? How did he dare?

Wen Xi’s face turned cold. The tiny bit of tenderness that had just emerged vanished instantly.

A short while later, Cheng Si finished his shower and walked slowly out of the bathroom. Water droplets still clung to his body, trailing down his chest. The cool air made his skin flush, turning his chest into something resembling red pomegranate hard candy. He looked up, unexpectedly colliding with Wen Xi’s icy gaze.

Wen Xi was on the phone. Seeing this, Cheng Si’s already pale lips turned even whiter.

“How long have you been here? Have you had dinner… You’ve been waiting for two hours? I understand…” “Where? The lobby of this hotel?” “Wait for me, I’m coming down.”

Wen Xi always spoke softly and gently to Pei Huanzhou—a tone Cheng Si had almost never heard. He was momentarily dazed until that final sentence hit him like an unexpected blow, making it hard to breathe again.

After hanging up, Wen Xi stood. She was already dressed. Her curly hair looked beautiful even when tied up casually. Even her face was clean, her expression returning to its usual cold, aloof state.

“Don’t harbor hostility toward Pei Huanzhou,” Wen Xi said flatly, her gaze toward him nothing short of stern. “I told you.”

“I don’t have… hostility,” Cheng Si rasped. “I just…”

“You didn’t take the liberty of hanging up on him?” Wen Xi interrupted him with dissatisfaction. “If something important had been delayed, could you take responsibility?”

She had always thought “puppies” were only hard to train at the very beginning. She hadn’t expected this one to be so stubborn for so long.

Cheng Si knew he had messed up again. He couldn’t help but defend himself: “If I had answered, you would have left sooner, wouldn’t you?” He looked at her as if seeking confirmation for a question he already knew the answer to. If I had answered, would you have continued with me? Would you have eaten dinner with me? Would you have held me and kissed me? Would you have promised me a ‘next time’?

Wen Xi remained silent, looking at him without a word. The answer was obvious.

“So what?” Wen Xi said. “Dreams always have to end.”

“I know dreams end,” Cheng Si said in a muffled tone, looking resigned. “But I wanted to stay with you a little longer before the dream ended.” He added in a whisper, “Even if it was just two more hours.”

Wen Xi stared at him for a long time, her emotions unreadable. She squeezed her knuckles, forcing herself to look away. In the end, she said nothing, leaving him only with her silhouette. There has to be a punishment, she thought. She couldn’t keep letting him go like this; her puppy was far too good at pushing his luck.

Wen Xi stood in the drafty stairwell for a while, letting the sea breeze dissipate the pheromones on her body before heading downstairs.

It was evening. The sky was a burning red, the sunset breathtaking, and the sea surface was dyed a shimmering pale gold. Pei Huanzhou was sitting in the glow, one hand supporting his slender neck, gazing out the floor-to-ceiling windows toward the sea.

“Sister-in-law,” Wen Xi walked over and stood in front of him, blocking his view. “You’ve waited a long time.”

“It’s fine. I haven’t seen the sea in a while; it brings back a lot of old memories.” Pei Huanzhou snapped out of his daze and pushed a bag across the table. “This is what you wanted.”

Wen Xi reached for it, but found Pei Huanzhou holding onto the bag. She looked at him in confusion.

“If you have an Omega now, you really shouldn’t use this medicine anymore,” Pei Huanzhou frowned with concern. “The side effects are so severe; constant injections aren’t good.”

Wen Xi’s expression froze. “You know?”

Pei Huanzhou nodded. “I was in surgery this morning and forgot to charge my phone. By the time I saw your message, it had died. When I was nearly here, I called you but it was hung up, so I went to the room number you gave me. I was going to knock.”

“Why didn’t you?” Wen Xi asked.

Pei Huanzhou said somewhat awkwardly, “While the soundproofing is good, if you listen closely, you can still hear… some movement.”

Wen Xi pursed her lips, a flash of annoyance and embarrassment crossing her brow. She felt even angrier at Cheng Si’s boldness.

“That’s why I’m saying, if you have an Omega, you don’t need these injections,” Pei Huanzhou said. “If you mark him on time and get Omega’s comfort, an Alpha’s control over pheromones becomes much more proficient.”

“Aren’t you going to ask who it is?” Wen Xi stared at Pei Huanzhou, trying to find a trace of care on his face. “Aren’t you worried he’ll ruin our plans?”

“I trust your choice, and I trust you can handle it.” Pei Huanzhou let out a long breath, a gentle smile appearing on his cold face. “Our Xiao Qi has finally grown up.”

For some reason, Wen Xi felt a very uneasy intuition. Because Wen Su had been found in the sea, Pei Huanzhou hadn’t approached the seaside once in all these years. Yet today, he had sat calmly for two hours in a hotel directly overlooking the ocean.

“I haven’t grown up,” Wen Xi denied urgently. “I still need you. You can’t just stop caring about me.”

Pei Huanzhou remained non-committal, still smiling gently. “Go back up. Don’t keep him waiting too long. And… when you bite the back of his neck, remember to be a little gentler. Alphas often fall into the trap of thinking ‘harder is better,’ but a mark can be successful without so much force.”

“…” Hearing such teasing from Pei Huanzhou made Wen Xi’s ears burn. Especially since he was a gland specialist.

Wen Xi pursed her lips. “I don’t plan on marking him.”

Pei Huanzhou’s eyes widened slightly in confusion. “Why?”

Wen Xi lowered her eyes, a hint of masking in her tone. “He’s not being good.”

After seeing Pei Huanzhou off, Wen Xi carried the small bag of medicine back to the room.

Before opening the door, she remembered what Pei Huanzhou had told her: an Omega in heat who has received an Alpha’s pheromones cannot be neglected, or they might suffer a stress reaction. Wen Xi felt this shouldn’t happen to Cheng Si; after all, he didn’t seem like a fragile Omega.

Thus, when she pushed the door open and met Cheng Si’s hollow eyes, she momentarily thought she was seeing things.

Cheng Si was curled on the bed, his usually straight spine like a broken branch in the frost. He was clutching a piece of clothing—the very school uniform that was supposed to be in the trash, stained with marks from both of them.

He held it so tightly, half his face buried in the fabric, looking like a sickly prisoner absorbing her faint scent. He whispered her name over and over in a low voice, as if he no longer dared to hope he would be heard.

“I’m here,” Wen Xi replied faster than she expected.

The air was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Cheng Si listlessly opened his eyes. Seeing her, he blinked slowly as if confirming he wasn’t dreaming. Once he realized it was real, those eyes—so fierce yet so capable of love—shimmered with moisture.

It was only then that Wen Xi finally saw the fragility of an Omega in Cheng Si. Because it was so hidden and restrained, it was particularly shocking.

“How did you come back?” Cheng Si’s voice was nearly hoarse, like sandpaper. “I thought you were gone.” “The trip isn’t over yet. Where would I go?” Wen Xi said.

Cheng Si asked cautiously, “Then… are you still mad at me?” “I am,” Wen Xi said. “I’m still going to punish you.”

Cheng Si: “How?”

Wen Xi didn’t answer. She tossed the school uniform aside with a look of distaste. Cheng Si’s hand reached out weakly, reluctant to let it go, but was stopped by a single glance from her. She asked flatly, “Have you applied the medicine yet?”

“I don’t think I need it,” Cheng Si said. “I have a good constitution; it’ll heal soon.” “Is that so?” Wen Xi gave a short laugh. “I thought you were in a lot of pain.”

Cheng Si said it didn’t hurt, then under Wen Xi’s gaze, he instinctively changed his tune. “A little. But I can handle it.” He clearly didn’t want her to feel burdened.

Wen Xi was opening a tube of pain-relieving ointment and squeezing some onto her hand. Hearing this, she stopped and said casually, “Fine. Then there’s no reward.”

The sudden words left Cheng Si a bit dazed. He asked blankly, “Isn’t it a punishment? Why would you give me a reward…”

“Punishment and reward are separate. The punishment is for being disobedient,” Wen Xi approached him, inspecting his injuries. “The reward is for being honest. But since you aren’t being honest—”

“It hurts!” Cheng Si urgently grabbed her retreating hand, his reflexes suddenly sharp. He stared at her, looking slightly aggrieved. “Wen Xi, it hurts.”

In his focused gaze, Wen Xi saw her own reflection magnified. Only her silhouette. She looked for a few seconds, let out a silent sigh, and told him, “Then lift up a bit. I’ll help you apply the medicine.”

Her finger pressed against the injured areas. No matter how lightly she applied it, stabs of pain still came through. Cold sweat broke out on Cheng Si’s forehead, and he hissed low.

Wen Xi used one hand to apply the medicine and the other to hold his neck. To distract him, she kissed him deeply until the medicine was fully applied. When she tried to straighten up, she felt her fingers entangled by his “tentacles.”

She looked at him with amusement.

“Stop sucking it in,” Wen Xi said, her voice heavy with teasing as she whispered into his ear. “We have to go back to school tomorrow morning. I can’t be too intense, or you won’t be able to take it again.”