Chapter 35 Part 2

As the sun dipped below the horizon, Liu Su finally wrapped up on set.

She called Zhu Lexing first—no answer. Then she reached out to Yan Mian, who kindly shared the address of a dessert shop. “Lexing’s in line.”

By the time Liu Su arrived, the pair stood outside a whimsically decorated ice cream shop, each holding a soft-serve cone.

Zhu Lexing asked on reflex, “This won’t cause any issues, right?”

Yan Mian replied offhandedly, “Did you poison it?”

Zhu Lexing shot back, “…Why even ask that?”

Yan Mian said, “My body’s not that fragile.”

Zhu Lexing eyed her. “Then why didn’t you say so earlier?”

Yan Mian recalled the earlier scene, paused for a moment, and smoothly changed her words. “My body isn’t that fragile most of the time.”

Zhu Lexing: “…”

After they got into the car, Liu Su seemed to remember something and reminded them. “Oh, right, Xingxing. We’re heading to the hospital later too, and Mianmian should come along.”

Zhu Lexing’s hand paused as she pulled out a wet wipe. “Why are we going to the hospital?”

She realized the answer right after asking. In the end, it was still about the pheromone imbalance. By the time she handed the wet wipe to Yan Mian, the latter had already replied to Liu Su. “Okay.”

Zhu Lexing averted her gaze from the way Yan Mian wiped her hands.

This was a private hospital that seemed to specialize in treating A/O pheromone disorders. The walls were lined with profiles of various doctors.

The nurse apparently recognized Liu Su. Though excited, she didn’t say much and spent the walk introducing the doctor they’d booked. Zhu Lexing thought being a nurse here must be exhausting—not just memorizing data, but also doctor bios.

Waiting in the office was a middle-aged female Omega.

Zhu Lexing’s general situation was already detailed in her medical records. The doctor only asked Liu Su a few questions about daily habits before sending her out to wait, leaving just Yan Mian and Zhu Lexing behind.

The doctor got straight to the point. “What kind of contact have you two had over the past month? Hugs, hand-holding, kissing… probably not the last one. I don’t sense such intense lily of the valley pheromones on you.”

Her questions were so direct that Zhu Lexing was momentarily at a loss for words.

Yan Mian, on the other hand, replied calmly, as if she’d anticipated it. “Hand-holding… five times. Hugs twice—one wasn’t a proper hug. It was just her leaning against me from behind while I was grabbing something.”

As she listened to Yan Mian recount it all, Zhu Lexing’s mind began to wander.

She’d clearly wanted to avoid any contact with Yan Mian, so how had they ended up holding hands five times?

Who had sabotaged her plan!

The doctor asked, “Did you use pheromones at any point during that time?”

“No.” This time, their answers came in perfect unison.

The doctor wasn’t surprised. “In that case, have the Omega wrap the Alpha in her pheromones while you hold hands.”

Zhu Lexing: ??

These doctors’ treatments were way too bizarre!

Pheromones picked up from casual contact were nothing like actively releasing pheromones to do something.

The former was mere “contact.” The latter skipped contact altogether and interacted with you directly.

The doctor added, “If the pheromone levels in the room get too high, the machine will automatically detect it and spray inhibitor spray. No need to worry.”

Even so, Zhu Lexing’s face still flushed red.

The words reminded her of a news story she’d seen once: a teacher forcing two bickering students to hold hands in public to make them friends again.

She’d found it amusing at the time and scrolled past without a second thought.

Who could’ve imagined she’d one day be the amusement herself!!!

And right at that moment, Yan Mian finished hesitating and extended her hand toward Zhu Lexing.

Zhu Lexing: “…”

Zhu Lexing felt like she’d sacrificed far too much for the world.

The doctor left the room.

The girl’s palm was pale and slender, her knuckles especially prominent from how thin she was.

Yan Mian said, “Zhu Lexing, don’t resist my pheromones in a bit.”

Zhu Lexing: “…” What kind of dangerous thing was that to say?

She might gripe inwardly all she wanted, but Zhu Lexing knew Yan Mian was stating a fact. Alpha pheromones were far more aggressive than an Omega’s. If she pushed back, Yan Mian might accidentally slip into heat from the reaction.

Twilight draped a hazy yellow veil over everything. The lily of the valley pheromones slowly spread through the air, faint at first—like a gentle breeze rustling through a bed of lily flowers. It also made Zhu Lexing aware of another Alpha pheromone that grated on her nerves. She frowned. “…This should be good enough, right?”

Yan Mian subconsciously tightened her grip on Zhu Lexing’s hand. “Is it?”

She didn’t seem entirely sure herself. Before she knew it, that faint scent had grown thicker, turning cloyingly sweet.

Zhu Lexing tried to pull away, but Yan Mian gripped her hand even tighter. “I get it… just wait a second—”

Why were her lines getting weirder by the second!

Zhu Lexing thought the world might as well end.

While she stewed in her frustration, the pheromones in the air faded noticeably. Clearly, Yan Mian had figured out how to control them within minutes.

When Zhu Lexing squeezed Yan Mian’s hand, the only pheromones she sensed came from the Omega. But when she loosened her grip—or when Yan Mian’s pheromones grew faint—the other Alpha’s stood out sharply.

At first, Zhu Lexing didn’t grasp the point of this “hand-holding therapy.”

Not until a few minutes later, when she clearly felt the Alpha pheromones in the air diminish a little.

Zhu Lexing: “…”

It actually worked.

Lost in thought, she noticed Yan Mian suddenly reach out with her right hand, as if to grab the water glass on the coffee table.

Zhu Lexing quickly said, “I feel better now. Just go tell them we’re done for today—no more pheromones—”

But Yan Mian pulled her hand back.

She turned to look at Zhu Lexing. Zhu Lexing clamped her mouth shut. Yan Mian asked, “Really? You feel better?”

Zhu Lexing: “…What else?”

Yan Mian said, “But I don’t think we’ve done it long enough. Let’s wait a bit more.”

If she’d come up with some excuse to fool Zhu Lexing, the Alpha might’ve naively bought it.

But Yan Mian didn’t even bother with a pretext. She refused outright.

Zhu Lexing stared at her, pondering for a few seconds before reaching a very typical overconfident Alpha conclusion.

Yan Mian actually wanted to hold her hand!

The doctor returned a few minutes later.

Yan Mian was politely asked to step out. After listening to Zhu Lexing’s thoughts, the doctor spoke bluntly. “Your condition is quite special. Ever since the symptoms were detected, you haven’t spent any extended time apart from an Omega.”

Zhu Lexing finished the doctor’s words in her mind.

So, now they wanted the two of them to separate and see just how serious her condition was?

The doctor continued, “That’s why you should keep up this kind of contact. Once you naturally fall in love and get married, the illness will resolve itself.”

Zhu Lexing: ??

What kind of conclusion was that? It felt entirely too arbitrary, like something decided on a whim!

Zhu Lexing felt as though she’d heard the words but hadn’t truly absorbed them.

When she pushed open the door, Yan Mian was waiting in the corridor. She gazed out the window, her expression serene, as if deep in thought. Staring at her profile, Lexing inexplicably felt like she’d leaped from one pit straight into another.

Until Yan Mian lifted her eyes and smiled at her.

“Let’s go,” she said warmly. “Auntie is waiting for us.”

In that instant, Lexing forgot everything else and happily trotted along behind her.

The doctor and Liu Su settled on a treatment plan. Every so often, Lexing would undergo “Hand-Holding Therapy” with Yan Mian, under someone else’s supervision.

Even though the name and the method both sounded utterly bizarre, it didn’t cross any lines. As long as it could cure her illness, Liu Su wasn’t about to pass it up.

After the two of them had completed two rounds of hand-holding therapy, there was just under a week left before school started.

That night, Qiao Qiao sent Lexing a cryptic message.

【19，you and me，wind，receive 1！】

Lexing struggled through a difficult translation.

—7 p.m., you and Yan Mian, Shi Ruofeng’s house, reply 1!

Lexing glanced at the time. It was six in the evening.

She went silent for a few seconds, then sent back a 【2】.

After hearing Qiao Qiao’s idea, Yan Mian had just one question. “Why do I have to go too?”

Lexing: “…”

Lexing had only confided her illness to Qiao Qiao.

After all, right now she could only detect Alpha pheromones, so the only people she needed to guard against were Alphas.

Qiao Qiao, uncharacteristically refraining from jokes after hearing the story, sent Lexing a barrage of hug emojis. From then on, she treated Yan Mian like Lexing’s portable medical kit, making sure the two of them were never separated in any of her plans.

Today was no exception.

But Lexing couldn’t very well say that to Yan Mian.

She could only reply, “She… probably thinks you’re close with Li Nian and hopes you can give her some advice.”

Yan Mian blinked. “What kind of advice?”

Lexing: “…She likes Xu He and wants to confess to her.”

Lexing had assumed Yan Mian would be as surprised as she’d been upon first hearing it.

But Yan Mian’s response was merely, “Is that so? I always thought Xu He would be the one to confess first.”

Zhu Lexing: ??

Wasn’t Qiao Qiao a prospective scum Alpha herself? How had this turned into a mutual crush pure-love story?

Yan Mian said, “Xu He mentions Qiao Qiao to me from time to time.”

Lexing’s attention shifted unconsciously. “You chat privately with Xu He too?”

Yan Mian gave her a few seconds of that half-smile. “Am I not allowed?”

Lexing was stumped, unsure how to respond, when Yan Mian asked again, “You don’t want me chatting with her?”

Lexing thought to herself that there was nothing to want or not want about a Beta and an Omega chatting—

But she replied righteously all the same. “No. I didn’t say you can’t.”

Yan Mian said, “But your expression doesn’t look too happy.”

Lexing: “…”

Was that her fault? She’d been completely expressionless! Was looking a bit unhappy also a crime now—

“Of course. If it’s not allowed, there’s no helping it.” Yan Mian gazed at Lexing, her tone indifferent. “I’ve already been chatting with her.”

Under Yan Mian’s stare, Lexing felt like the next words out of her mouth would be—

“Of course.” Yan Mian smiled gently. “If you want, I can chat with you too.”

Lexing: “…”