Chapter 41 Shang Qiyue rarely acted like this
Mu Yan turned around and saw Shang Qiyue leaning against the sofa, his face pale, his lips dry, a thin layer of sweat on his forehead, and his brows tightly furrowed.
He seemed a little unhappy.
Is it because I'm feeling unwell?
Alphas in their vulnerable phase are typically irritable, easily angered, and extremely possessive and aggressive.
But Shang Qiyue looked as if he was just sick.
The word "but" was obviously inappropriate, because Shang Qiyue looked extremely uncomfortable. However, Mu Yan still felt a little bit of relief, though not entirely kind of a feeling.
He had originally prepared himself to be tormented for a whole week, feeling like he was dying.
Because of this less-than-kind sense of relief, he felt even more guilty towards Shang Qiyue.
"Is it because of your illness?" Mu Yan reached out to help him. "Let me help you to bed to rest for a while."
He looked a whole size smaller than Shang Qiyue, and Shang Qiyue found it a little funny.
"You're too weak. I'll rest for a bit and then I can go by myself."
Mu Yan reached out and touched his forehead, which was alarmingly hot. He quickly got up to find a thermometer.
When Mu Yan returned, Shang Qiyue was no longer on the sofa. After thinking for a moment, Mu Yan entered his room without knocking and handed him the thermometer: "Would you like to have your temperature taken?"
"Actually, measuring it is useless; this is how it is during my susceptible period..."
Despite saying this, Shang Qiyue still took the thermometer and put it in his mouth, glanced at Mu Yan, and said sullenly, "Don't laugh."
“…Sir, I wasn’t laughing.” Mu Yan clearly didn’t understand why Shang Qiyue would say something like that out of the blue, but he still answered seriously.
"I brought up the medicine you just took. Are you going to take it now? Will taking a little more help?"
"No need," Shang Qiyue said, his voice muffled as he held the thermometer in his mouth.
Shang Qiyue slowly took out the thermometer, glanced at it, and read 38.7℃: "You can't take too much of that medicine at once, and it's not very effective, it just makes you feel a little better. It's about 40 to 38 degrees Celsius."
Mu Yan took the thermometer he handed over, saw the astonishing number, and was so shocked that she looked at it again from a different angle.
It's almost 39 degrees Celsius.
Even the last time he went to the hospital for an IV drip and felt so unwell that he felt like he was going to die, his fever only reached 38 degrees Celsius.
"Stop looking, it's like this every month, I'm used to it. Come up and lie down with me for a while." Shang Qiyue wearily lifted his eyelids and glanced at him.
Mu Yan obediently responded, first helping Shang Qiyue change his clothes, tucking him into the blankets, and then changing into his pajamas and lying down as well.
Shang Qiyue held him tightly, as if bones were touching bones and hearts were touching hearts.
If Shang Qiyue has to get a fever like this every time he's susceptible to illness, he must be feeling quite uncomfortable.
Has he been living like this all these years?
"Baby." Shang Qiyue buried his head in Mu Yan's chest, inhaling his scent with satisfaction.
The freshly baked bread has a natural buttery aroma.
Shang Qiyue felt less tightness in his chest. Although the high fever had almost killed his appetite, Mu Yan's pheromones made him feel particularly comfortable.
Mu Yan simply patted his shoulder gently, as if coaxing a child to sleep.
"Don't leave even if I fall asleep here."
Mu Yan agreed softly.
The night was deep, and only a dim bedside lamp was on in the bedroom. The light fell on Shang Qiyue's slightly furrowed brows, making his pale face even more noticeable.
He slept very restlessly, his breathing was shallow and heavy, and his forehead was covered with layers of sweat. Occasionally, he would twitch his fingers, as if he were unconsciously grabbing at something.
Mu Yan lay down beside him, her fingers on Shang Qiyue's back loosening and then curling up again, before finally hugging him back.
This Shang Qiyue is so different from usual. Even just an hour ago in the car, he was a completely different person.
He had gradually figured out how to deal with Shang Qiyue in that situation, but he didn't know how to deal with Shang Qiyue now.
Shang Qiyue is somewhat vulnerable now and needs to be taken care of.
He tentatively touched Shang Qiyue's burning forehead. Even though he was asleep, he seemed very uncomfortable. Was it because he was sweating a lot?
He picked up a towel from the bedside, wrung out some warm water, and carefully wiped the sweat from the other person's forehead.
Upon realizing that his arms were empty, Shang Qiyue let out a groan, as if he was about to wake up, but quickly fell back asleep, still without opening his eyes.
After wiping away the sweat a few times, Shang Qiyue fell into a deeper sleep, and Mu Yan gently smoothed away his furrowed brow.
I don't have to go to work tomorrow, but what about the day after tomorrow? Should I ask for leave the day after tomorrow?
He's already used up his leave during his susceptible period this month, and Shang Qiyue had previously used the excuse of other departments transferring staff to keep him away from work for more than a week.
Mu Yan was a little conflicted, but he was also tired today, and he fell asleep before he could come up with a solution.
On the second day of his feverish period, Shang Qiyue was still feeling groggy and didn't get up until noon. Mu Yan knew that people with fevers don't have much of an appetite, and worried that his cooking wouldn't be good enough, so he ordered seafood porridge from the hotel that Shang Qiyue usually ate at.
Shang Qiyue probably had a poor appetite, and only realized halfway through the meal that it was the same restaurant he usually ate at.
"The seafood porridge here is very expensive, why didn't you ask me to order some?" he asked Mu Yan in a hoarse voice.
“It’s alright, you’ve already given me a lot of money…” Mu Yan thought for a moment and then added, “I have money.”
Shang Qiyue chuckled softly: "Why can't you learn to take advantage of me?"
“I have already… received a lot of benefits,” Mu Yan said earnestly, looking at him.
So much money, the brother's job, and the father who was a gambling addict being taken care of.
He was already very, very satisfied.
He didn't feel at ease holding onto so much money. He felt much more comfortable spending it on Shang Qiyue.
"You have to go to work tomorrow, right? You don't need to take time off for me. You seem to have missed several days at the company this month. I can help you take time off, but it's too frequent and not a good idea."
Mu Yan had actually thought of these things as well, but when Shang Qiyue brought up these reasons for him to go to work, he hesitated instead.
"Sir...do you not need anyone to take care of you?"
"No need to take care of me, I just have a fever. It's been like this for over ten years, I'm used to it."
"Are you alone here...? Should we call Assistant Luo and ask him to take you home? There should be someone there to take care of you."
“I have a housekeeper at home. But it doesn’t matter whether I have her or not. I’m an adult. I can order takeout by phone. There’s nothing to take care of.”
More importantly, he wanted to stay here.
This has the flavor of Mu Yan.
During his susceptible period, the effects of this pheromone on him are particularly pronounced.
He used to suffer terribly during his vulnerable period, feeling like he was going to die. He had a hard time sleeping at night and his head ached so badly it felt like it was going to split open.
But this time, with Mu Yan around, I felt much better than before. I only had a fever and a headache, but I was able to sleep at night.
He actually wished he could lock Mu Yan at home and never leave him for a second, but there would be another time after this vulnerable period, and he didn't want to have any unpleasantness with Mu Yan.
Mu Yan is not someone that can be easily replaced. Even without pheromones, he is gentle, obedient, and beautiful. Shang Qiyue wants Mu Yan to stay by his side for a longer time.
“Next time you’re in your most vulnerable period, I’ll take a day off to be with you, okay…” Mu Yan looked at Shang Qiyue, feeling particularly guilty. “I really can’t find the time this month… I’ve already used up my menstrual leave… I’ll definitely be with you next month, okay? I’ll take my menstrual leave to be with you.”
"I promised from the beginning that I wouldn't affect your work," Shang Qiyue said calmly. "But let's see if I can avoid working overtime and come back earlier. I'll feel much better if I can smell your scent."
"Thank you, sir..." Mu Yan felt both guilty and grateful. "I'm sorry... I'll definitely come back as soon as I get off work..."
"Hmm." Shang Qiyue replied listlessly, "Do you get off work at six? Everyone's off work at this time, so it might be hard to get a taxi. Keep Luo Cheng's phone number, and I'll ask him to pick you up."
This was the first time Shang Qiyue had mentioned to Mu Yan that he could smell Mu Yan's pheromones.
Mu Yan searched for Shang Qiyue's illness on Baidu. In one post, he saw someone say that pheromone disorder is essentially a pheromone recognition disorder, and that ordinary alphas and omegas can obtain a lot of useful information through pheromones.
For simple things, you could ask whether the other person is an alpha or an omega, whether they are in their fertile period or in heat, or whether they have a permanently marked partner. More complex things could be asked, such as their mood, age, or physical condition. However, this requires a top-tier alpha or omega to do.
Patients with pheromone disorders often cannot do these things; for a significant number, they may even find the pheromones of the opposite sex unbearable. Recognizing extremely low levels of pheromones is a unique ability of top-tier alphas, much like their exceptional physical strength and hearing.
Betas also possess very small amounts of pheromones, but everything is about quantity. Even tap water can be toxic, regardless of quantity. Therefore, a very small percentage of top-tier alphas suffering from pheromone disorders can smell the pheromones on betas.
Despite growing up in a village full of betas, Mu Yan had fantasized many times as a child about differentiating himself into an alpha. If he could differentiate into an alpha, he might be able to attend military academy; he passed the physical exam and his grades were good enough. Military academies provided room and board, and even offered a monthly stipend. With a family member attending military academy, his mother and brother would also be looked up to.
Mu Yan was actually a little curious about what his pheromones smelled like, even though knowing this didn't change the fact that he had now differentiated into a beta.
But Shang Qiyue didn't seem comfortable, and he didn't want to offend him at this time.
“Okay,” Mu Yan wrote down Assistant Luo’s contact information according to the number Shang Qiyue gave him, and then confirmed it again. “Okay, sir, I will definitely come back as soon as possible.”
He thought for a moment, then quickly added earnestly, "I'll leave as soon as it's time to get off work."
Shang Qiyue couldn't help but smile at his serious expression.
Do you know what you look like right now?
Mu Yan tilted his head slightly, paused for a moment, and asked, "What do you think I look like, sir?"
"Like parents who promise to be the first to pick up their kindergarten children after school, but you are much more serious than them. My mom used to often do this to me, but she still had the nanny pick me up in the end. The nanny didn't dare to push her way to the front, and I was always one of the last to leave."
[Author's Note]
Commissioning articles is like opening a blind box – so exciting! I wanted to commission someone to create a character for Xiaoyan, but it backfired [crying emoji]. So I angrily ordered QQ characters instead, and I'm sure this time it won't backfire!
I defied the rules and reverted chapters 1, 12, and 19 back to their original state. When the reports caused me to lose my ranking, I felt like I never wanted to edit again. Now, I feel like I'm back to my old self. If no one reports me, I'll leave it like this until Monday and then rewrite it into an abridged version.
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