Chapter 17

Qiao Yan and Zhou Yi arrived near her car, where a man about the same age as Zhou Yi and a little boy were sitting.

This looks like a vacation, but chasing snow on the coldest day is indeed quite dangerous.

"It took me a lot of effort to bring this car here, but it was all worth it." Zhou Yi smiled as she opened the car door. "Let me introduce you to my husband and son, Lin Huai and Zhou Yang."

"I had no idea you already had a child." Qiao Yan looked at the lively little boy.

“I was too busy before, and even if I told you about your situation back then, you probably wouldn’t remember it very well.” Zhou Yi started the car and pointed to the child in the back seat. “But he knows you, and he loves it when I tell him those stories.”

The hovercar sped out of the passage and in the blink of an eye, it had arrived in a world of ice and snow. The feeling was completely different from that of being inside the house. The slight swaying of the hovercar made it feel as if the person was outside.

"Wow!" Zhou Yang exclaimed, pressing his face against the car window as he looked at the storm outside. He turned to Qiao Yan, who was sitting next to him, and asked in a very familiar manner, "Sister, have you ever been to a place like this before?"

His eyes were sparkling. Qiao Yan looked out the window and said, "Not yet."

"Then...are you scared?" Zhou Yang moved closer. This was the first time he was meeting Qiao Yan in person; she had only appeared in his mother's stories before. Now she was real, a real person!

How should I put this? Zhou Yi turned to look at her, wondering what she was going to say.

"A little scared?" Qiao Yan looked out the window. "Without the hovercar, we would probably lose our way very quickly. But if we weren't wearing thermal clothing, we would probably suffer from hypothermia as soon as we went out."

"Huh?" Zhou Yang was a little surprised that she was afraid, but the child quickly said firmly, "I'm not afraid, I'll protect you!"

Zhou Yi laughed heartily in the front seat, then lifted the opaque layer of the car cover to bring people and nature closer to each other as much as possible. The wind and snow swept across the entire planet like gods, and the hovercar in the middle of it was like a duckweed drifting with the wind on the Great Cold Star.

Whenever faced with these challenges, Qiao Yan always felt incredibly insignificant.

Zhou Yang knew he was in the safest environment, and seeing such a scene would only leave him in awe.

"Mom, can we go out now?" Zhou Yang asked the person in the front seat.

"Didn't your sister Qiao say that if you go outside now, you'll get hypothermia and die very quickly?" Zhou Yi made a face, but unfortunately Zhou Yang wasn't scared at all.

Qiao Yan now understood whose side Zhou Yang had taken, and she chuckled softly, covering her lips.

The car was moving very fast, and as it was getting dark, we could see the intense beams of light emanating from the elevators of the extremely tall starship in the distance.

"See, I told you, hoping the road would be repaired by now is a waste of time. Snow and wind are the norm on this cold planet. We'll be there soon," Zhou Yi said to the people in the back seat, noticing that Zhou Yang had fallen asleep on Qiao Yan's lap.

"I'm so sorry to have to ask you to take care of the child," Zhou Yi said to her. "He grew up listening to my stories about the Expeditionary Force, so it's probably like listening to fairy tales. I even got him a long leave for this trip, and he was already overjoyed. When he heard that Qiao Yan was also on Da Han Xing, he was particularly surprised and asked me if I was the Qiao Yan from that story."

Qiao Yan patted Zhou Yang's head. "I didn't find it troublesome at all. It's very cute."

As they got closer to their destination, Qiao Yan opened her terminal and sent a message to Nan Yayin: "I'll be home today."

It should still be dark at this time. After sending the message, Qiao Yan scrolled back through the records, stopped typing, and simply closed the interface.

Zhou Yi parked the car in the parking lot, hugged Qiao Yan, and said, "Keep in touch after you get home. Maybe Zhou Yang can get into Bai Luxing's university when he grows up."

Qiao Yan smiled and said, "It's definitely possible. Have a pleasant journey ahead."

She had already booked her Starship ticket for this time slot while she was on the train. Now that she's on the train, it won't be long before she gets home, probably around noon.

Qiao Yan was eager to go home, so after saying goodbye, she hurriedly ran towards the elevator.

There weren't many people boarding the starship at this time, and she quickly completed the process and entered the elevator. The elevator on the Great Cold Star was transparent on all sides, and she watched herself getting further and further away from the ground. She couldn't even see Zhou Yi driving away anymore. All she could see was a dark white, and she couldn't tell if it was clouds or snow.

Even after she was seated on the starship, she was still marveling at how she was actually already home.

I turned on the home security camera; the house was completely dark. I had finally found some peace after sending that thug to the police station.

Xiao Lu wasn't in the living room either. She was adjusting the security camera footage when she saw some things piled up on the kitchen island. Switching her perspective, she realized it was flour and a book.

Baking for Beginners - Book 1

So that's how he got the flour on his face. Qiao Yan smiled and thought that he really liked cake.

She didn't turn off the monitor, but watched as the living room gradually brightened. Warm yellow light shone through the gap in the curtains, gradually turning into a bright yellow. The light rain that had been falling for so long in the new district had finally given way to sunshine.

Before leaving, Qiao Yan parked the hovercar in the Starship Port parking lot, making it convenient for her to go home.

"Going home." The hovercar drove out of the starship port, sunlight streaming in through the windows, and she leaned back in her seat, feeling a long-lost sense of peace.

As they were nearing home, Xiao Lu's terminal kept buzzing with warnings, informing her that extremely high concentrations of pheromones had been detected in her house. Qiao Yan asked where the warnings were coming from, and Xiao Lu replied that they came from the study.

Qiao Yan didn't have time to unpack her luggage before stepping into the house. She could smell the sage even downstairs.

She thought to herself that Shu Juan's predictions always came true; she didn't know whether to call her a jinx or a prophet. Luckily, she had Xiao Lu buy the inhibitors beforehand, but why hadn't she given them to him?

Xiao Lu's mechanical arm can grasp shovels and kitchen knives, but it cannot perform injections, so Qiao Yan arranged for her to take care of Nan Shuyin.

Qiao Yan had no choice but to take matters into her own hands. The closer she got to the study, the stronger the aura became. Before going up, she injected herself with an inhibitor, regardless of whether it would work or not.

She pressed the doorknob, and the first thing she heard was a series of heavy breaths. The air seemed devoid of oxygen, the fresh scent of herbs filling the entire study. Nan Yayin lay face down on the desk, desperately resisting the overwhelming desire.

His eyes were filled with tears, and the cloth that had been wrapped around his stall was now rolled up to his arm, covered with dark marks from his tears that hadn't completely dried.

Fortunately, it was easy to touch the soft flesh on the back of his neck now. As soon as Qiao Yan's hand touched it, he felt the burning heat, as if the tip of a needle would melt.

Qiao Yan slowly injected the medicine. Throughout the entire process, Nan Ya Yin didn't jump up or resist. Good, she was very obedient. If she were sober, she would definitely jump onto the table to resist right now.

The inhibitor wouldn't take effect so quickly, and Nan Yayin was still breathing rapidly. She couldn't take a second injection of the inhibitor; he would feel very uncomfortable once it took effect.

Qiao Yan knew of another method that was very effective against Omegas in a special state: Alpha pheromones. Anyone's pheromones would do, as long as they were Alphas.

Qiao Yan unbuttoned her collar, the sweetness of cream overpowering the fresh scent. She leaned against the desk, concealing the fleeting displeasure that crossed her mind.

She had thought the pheromones would take effect faster, but Nan Yayin seemed to be feeling even worse.

His cheeks were flushed, and his hair clung to his face with sweat. Qiao Yan wiped his face with a tissue. Sweat and tears mingled, and he seemed to be trapped in a nightmare, unwilling to open his eyes.

Qiao Yan touched his forehead; it was still burning hot.

She now realized how little she knew about Omegas. Nan Yayin was probably about to faint from the heat. Qiao Yan's hand was cool and comfortable, and he unconsciously hugged that hand and rubbed his face against it to cool it down.

Qiao Yan was about to call the hospital for emergency help when she noticed that the temperature on his forehead had dropped a bit.

She put down the terminal, cupped his face in her hands, and Nan Ya Yin's eyes seemed glued shut with tears. The sweat she had just wiped away reappeared, sliding down her cheeks and neck and into her clothes.

"It's so hot." Nan Yayin's voice sounded like it had been torn apart, so hoarse that Qiao Yan could hardly recognize her. "It's so uncomfortable."

He grabbed Qiao Yan's arm; it was icy cold, like touching a block of ice.

Whether it was the inhibitor or the pheromones, it seemed to finally be having some effect. Qiao Yan felt the burning sensation on his body slowly subsiding, and his breathing was no longer so rapid.

"Nan Yayin," Qiao Yan called to him, "Can you wake up?"

The room was filled with the scent of pheromones, but Qiao Yan's eyes remained clear, and even his voice seemed to suppress his anger.

Nan Ya Yin heard someone calling him and responded weakly. His mind was a mess, and he was soaking wet. He felt so uncomfortable that he wanted to lie down, but someone was propping up his head. How annoying!

If it weren't for the pleasantness of her voice, he would have bitten her right now.

Qiao Yan relaxed only after he responded, still conscious. Just as she was about to let go, Nan Ya Yin clung to her and pulled her close, burying his head in her neck and nuzzling her back and forth. His breath was still warm, burning half of her neck.

In this situation, you can't argue with people. Qiao Yan could only squat down and pick her up. She put her arm around her and sat her down on a chair. Nan Ya Yin was lying in her arms.

He smelled the scent he liked and pressed his head closer and closer to hers, almost sticking to her body.

Qiao Yan took a tissue and wiped away her sweat, cleaning every part of her body that her hand could reach.

She then put down the tissue and sent a message to Shu Juan, asking, "Can an Omega take a shower after their heat cycle ends?"

Before receiving any news from Shu Juan, Nan Ya Yin was already unhappy. He had felt something cool and soft touching him, but now it was gone.

“Continue…” Nan Yayin said with her eyes closed.

Qiao Yan: "......"

Qiao Yan took out some paper to wipe him down, and Shu Juan quickly replied, "He can wash, but it's endless, it's going to last almost a week anyway."

"It feels like having a fever."

"He's just behaving like he has a fever. Don't give him too many suppressants or fever reducers, they're useless. If all else fails, wait until he's lucid in the middle of the night and ask if he wants a temporary labeling, that's more effective." Shu Juan guessed that Nan Ya Yin had an accident, but it happened much earlier than she expected.

“I think his fever is almost gone, so he doesn’t need a temporary labeling,” Qiao Yan replied.

"That's fine, as long as he doesn't keep burning up the fever." After sending that message, Shu Juan added, "Didn't he take the suppressant right away? If he's been holding it in for a while, it'll be more uncomfortable. By the way, how did you get home? Isn't there a blizzard on the Great Cold Star right now?"

Qiao Yan was relieved to know he was alright. She turned off the terminal and felt his breathing near her neck calm down. "It's alright."

She murmured, holding him in her arms and gently patting his back.

"It will be ready soon."