Chapter 16

Lin Xu was astonished that Shu Qingyou could remain so calmly smiling even as she pinned her beneath her body.

In the past, once Shu Qingyou realized she couldn’t break free, she would simply resign herself to it.

Lin Xu would drag it out mischievously when she was really into it.

Her two fingers remained still as she gazed with interest into Shu Qingyou’s starry eyes, misty with desire.

She made a gesture that both of them understood all too well.

“Beg me.”

Lin Xu wasn’t used to spewing vulgarities, but during sex, all sorts of crude words would tumble out of her mouth.

Whenever they got together, their pheromones could easily reach levels that made them dizzy and disoriented.

Shu Qingyou had a naturally pale complexion, her refined and otherworldly features flushing red during intimacy like she’d been dusted with rouge, her skin soft and delicate.

Unexpectedly, she had remarkable endurance, while Lin Xu was always aggressive and unrelenting.

Shu Qingyou merely bit the back of her hand until it broke the skin and bled, refusing to meet Lin Xu’s gaze, let alone beg piteously with a wagging tail.

Often, Lin Xu wasn’t satisfied with that. Her hand, slick with pheromones, would roughly force Shu Qingyou’s pointed chin upward.

“Look at the sorry state you’re in. It’s laughable—none of my friends beg their goldfinches like this.”

She loved seeing Shu Qingyou’s alluring and charming face, loved exposing her uncontrolled side.

She loved using force.

It brought pleasure beyond the physical, satisfying her psychologically as well.

She wanted to probe Shu Qingyou’s limits, but her impassive attitude made Lin Xu feel like she was punching cotton—futile effort.

At that moment, Shu Qingyou was utterly composed, showing no fear.

“Get up.”

Shu Qingyou’s smile didn’t reach her eyes. Lin Xu was already somewhat lost, disoriented and dazed as she lowered her head, holding her breath.

“Who are you?”

She stared a few seconds longer, displeasure rising in her heart as she shook her head and murmured.

“Shu Qingyou wouldn’t dare refuse me. Playing hard to get, maybe—but not you. You’re not her.”

Her breathing ragged, Lin Xu’s feverish face nearly pressed against Shu Qingyou’s.

Shu Qingyou tried to move her pinned wrists, but Lin Xu’s fingers clamped down like iron vices.

Shu Qingyou suppressed the surging desire flooding her body, emphasizing word by word.

“Let go. It really hurts.”

Lin Xu had no idea how to cherish the fairer sex. In front of Shu Qingyou, she shed all pretense, devoid of any grace—like a hungry tiger pouncing on its prey.

If it had been the amnesiac Lin Xu, there might have still been a hint of an innocent girl, but now she was like an animal in heat, deaf to everything, acting purely on instinct.

Utterly loathsome.

Lin Xu rubbed her marking fangs, an itchy, sour sensation prickling her. “You’re defying me? Shu Qingyou, know your place.”

Shu Qingyou keenly sensed Lin Xu’s intent. When she ground her teeth like that, it usually meant Shu Qingyou was about to get marked again.

Going along with it, Shu Qingyou voiced the words she’d held back for years: “Fine, let’s talk about status. I’m all ears. What exactly is our relationship?”

Lin Xu froze for a moment, her grip loosening slightly. In her memory, Shu Qingyou was taciturn and never argued back.

She remembered one time when Lin Xu called Shu Qingyou in the early hours of the morning, ordering her to come to a nightclub private room.

The neon-lit venue was a mess of smoke, booze, and fawning women, the room filled with filthy talk.

Lin Xu knew Shu Qingyou had never been to a place like this, nor tried strong liquor.

Shu Qingyou wore a fresh, innocent white dress, her long hair neatly draped behind her, like a figure stepped out of an art exhibit—elegant and refined.

She was from a completely different world than Lin Xu and her crowd.

A drunken friend with messy bedhead hair joked, “President Lin’s kept Omega is so pure?”

Lin Xu figured at that point their relationship was just that of sugar mommy and kept woman. She shot Shu Qingyou a glance, while the escort Omega beside her clung seductively to Lin Xu’s arm.

“Faking it. She’s wild in bed.”

“Heh, tell us more.”

Her friends could barely contain themselves, eyeing Shu Qingyou with greasy stares.

“Yeah, lots of tricks.”

Lin Xu irritably skipped the explanations, filling a glass with clear, potent liquor herself, a cigarette dangling defiantly from her lips.

She stubbed out the smoke and stood, the flickering lights casting shadows over them. Shu Qingyou’s dark lashes lowered, casting a small shadow on her eyelids.

In her high heels, the Alpha exuded enough pressure to make other Alphas kneel and beg for mercy.

Shu Qingyou had to tilt her chin up to see Lin Xu’s disdainful expression.

Lin Xu stared at her snowy skin and serene beauty, her tranquil eyes flickering faintly like an invisible hand slowly clenching her heart.

She had to exhale deeply to shake off the urge to take Shu Qingyou home right then.

To keep her all to herself, ravish her thoroughly…

Yet she couldn’t control the impulse to destroy Shu Qingyou as well.

Besides, she hated Shu Qingyou. From the moment she’d first heard the name, she’d planted a seed of revenge in her heart.

Unfortunately, the Shu family was sparse—just three people: the two Shu sisters and a negligible, octogenarian elder on the verge of death.

No close relatives to speak of. Lin Xu’s fledgling seed of hatred didn’t even have fertile soil.

She couldn’t just kill all three to vent her rage, could she?

“Drink it all.” Lin Xu smirked. “In one go.”

Shu Qingyou’s gaze flicked between the swirling liquor in the glass and Lin Xu’s face before she decisively gripped the cup, her fingertips brushing Lin Xu’s skin.

“Let go.”

As cool as ever. Lin Xu sneered, “Don’t rush. I mean this whole bottle too.”

The crowd perked up at that, starting to jeer and cheer.

“Drink! Drink! Drink!”

Shu Qingyou had only tried alcohol once before, something under ten percent ABV. Even half a glass had made her skin itch.

She’d looked it up online: alcohol allergy—mild cases caused red, itchy skin; severe ones led to vomiting or hospitalization.

Lin Xu knew this and was doing it on purpose to torment her.

The weight on her hand vanished. Lin Xu blinked in a daze, refocusing. Shu Qingyou had already downed the small glass and slipped past her.

Amid the crowd’s incredulous gasps, Shu Qingyou picked up the freshly opened 750ml bottle of vodka and chugged it straight down her throat.

Lin Xu turned around. The stuff was 50% ABV—spicy, stimulating, with a brutal afterburn. As the bottle emptied, liquid seeped from the corners of Shu Qingyou’s mouth.

Her fingers gripped the bottle tightly, veins bulging, her skin flushing with rapidly circulating blood, her face blooming into a gorgeous crimson.

The jeering crowd fell deathly silent, only the spotlights humming faintly.

After what felt like forever, Shu Qingyou gasped heavily, her lips glossy and moist.

She politely set down the empty bottle and, amid Lin Xu’s silence, struggled to stay upright, meeting her eyes.

Lin Xu’s lips parted and closed, her palms digging into her flesh until the pain went numb.

Finally, she squeezed out fragmented words from her throat.

“Hm, not bad.”

Her friends gaped, eyes wide with disbelief. “Damn, President Lin, your Omega looks fragile but she’s something else!”

“President Lin, get a few more bottles—let’s see more of the show!”

Lin Xu had been growing agitated since Shu Qingyou picked up the bottle. She wore a sleeveless white dress; now red rashes dotted her shoulders and arms.

But the woman said nothing, lips pressed tight, as if blocking out the surrounding noise.

Lin Xu felt a massive dark cloud brewing in her chest, heavy and oppressive, but the rain refused to fall.

Fury boiled over.

She grabbed Shu Qingyou’s arm and dragged her outside, movements rough and impatient.

What the hell was Shu Qingyou showing off for?! Staring her down so coolly and arrogantly?!

She could barely stand, yet she insisted on holding out—who was she putting on a show for?!

And was she brain-dead? Knowing it could kill her and still not refusing!

On countless nights, Lin Xu had numbly told herself it was Shu Qingyou’s fault, that no matter how miserable she got, she deserved it—this was the debt she had to pay.

All because Shu Qingyou’s mother had killed hers while sober, then fled the scene and gotten into another accident, leaving only insurance payout.

But a mother’s debt passed to the child—it was only right.

Recalling this only made Lin Xu dizzier, her temples throbbing painfully.

She finally released Shu Qingyou, irritably pounding her head. “What relationship could we possibly have? Dreaming of gilding your own face!”

As the saying went, in vino veritas. Shu Qingyou figured there was some truth to it—Lin Xu was no different from being drunk. Fortunately, her gland was already faulty.

The concentration of her floral pheromones dropped.

The restless, scorching factors in Shu Qingyou’s body quieted somewhat.

But the spot where Lin Xu pressed against her was impossible to ignore.

Like an electric shock. She bit her lip—she’d need to buy more underwear…

Four years, and still this sensitive.

While Lin Xu clutched her head in pained whimpers, Shu Qingyou shifted her legs.

“Hm, no relationship suits me just fine.”

She was tired of any entanglement with Lin Xu, having deeply learned that getting close to her brought misfortune.

The sticky sensation slid between their skin as Shu Qingyou exerted effort to rise.

She had no intention of giving Lin Xu medicine, but she couldn’t just let her die in her house.

Shu Qingyou smoothed the wrinkles from her clothes. Lin Xu sprawled on the bedding like a puddle of mud.

A dark water stain marred the light sheets, right where Lin Xu’s face pressed.

Shu Qingyou was somewhat speechless. She remembered Lin Xu being quite clean-freakish—what had she gone through to turn into this inhuman mess?

Whatever. What did it have to do with her? Shu Qingyou tossed out, “Remember to take your medicine. Then leave once you’re done.”

As Shu Qingyou turned to leave with peace of mind, Lin Xu sensed a vast emptiness. She wailed, clumsily hugging Shu Qingyou’s slender waist.

“Don’t go! Don’t go! You’re not allowed to go!”

Sobs poured out, intensifying. Shu Qingyou felt stabbing pain at her waist.

Looking down, she was torn between laughter and tears. Not only did Lin Xu cling tightly, she was also nibbling at her waist with intermittent bites.

Was Lin Xu a dog?

Shu Qingyou was pinned in place. She coaxed gently, “Be good, okay?”

“It’s been four years. Let’s both keep some dignity.”

Lin Xu buried her head in Shu Qingyou’s clothes, soaking them damp. She didn’t respond directly, just sniffed her scent, finding it comforting.

Her head didn’t hurt anymore, except she was still feverish.

Shu Qingyou let her hold on for a while. Neither spoke.

The bedside lamp cast a dim yellow glow slantingly over Lin Xu’s drooping head, her fuzzy hair making her look like an abandoned animal.

Lin Xu’s pajamas were a total mess, but she refused to let go.

Shu Qingyou couldn’t figure her out. These past few years, she rarely felt this powerless loss of balance.

She no longer had the energy to try understanding Lin Xu. No matter what, she couldn’t keep being tied down like this.

Shu Qingyou compromised. “You’re not clear-headed right now. Once your fever breaks, we’ll talk.”

Lin Xu wanted to burrow her whole head into Shu Qingyou’s embrace, mumbling muffledly, “Really?”

“We’ll talk it out clearly.”

The bitten spot throbbed with dull pain. Shu Qingyou didn’t need to look to know it’d bruised. Helplessly, when had Lin Xu developed a biting habit?

Shu Qingyou picked up the strip of fever reducers nearby, squeezed out a pill, and held it between her fingers.

“Be good and take your medicine.”

“Okay.”

Lin Xu dazedly popped the pill onto her tongue, chewed twice, and her face scrunched up like a bitter gourd.

Shu Qingyou quickly fed her water, patting her back to soothe her and prevent another freakout.

As if forgetting something important, Lin Xu gulped down the water in confusion, then flopped back onto the bed. She didn’t dwell on it, hugging the quilt and falling instantly asleep.

The woman was getting bolder by the minute—out like a light the moment she decided to sleep.

Shu Qingyou’s waist still ached. She rubbed it twice, sighing inwardly.

She hoped Lin Xu wouldn’t bite her again once she woke up.