Chapter 2

Even Lin Xu, who was usually slow on the uptake, knew something had gone wrong and eagerly approached.

Shu Qingyou shot her a warning look with her eyes, forbidding her from getting closer.

Lin Xu felt a bit frozen out and stood awkwardly at a distance. She was puzzled too.

“Sister, listen to me. I-I’ve already reined in my pheromones. I really don’t know how they leaked out again.”

She touched the slightly swollen gland at the back of her neck, which showed signs of heating up.

Lin Xu could control it, but she couldn’t muster any physiological response.

It felt instead like she had separated herself from her gland.

Completely numb.

Although Lin Xu no longer released pheromones, the residual ones didn’t let Shu Qingyou off the hook.

Back then, it was precisely Lin Xu’s pheromones that had coaxed Shu Qingyou into losing control.

Shu Qingyou staggered past Lin Xu on unsteady feet and found a suppressant in the bedside table.

The sharp needle plunged fiercely into her neck.

Clarity gradually returned to her eyes, and her breathing steadied to a normal rhythm.

A trace of worry crept into her brows. She wasn’t even in her heat cycle, yet her physiological reaction had been overwhelmingly intense.

Lin Xu watched the whole process in stunned silence. What had she just done?

She had induced heat in a strange woman!

She sniffed the air at the tip of her nose. The pheromones lingering in the room carried an orange scent?

A bit panicked, her peripheral vision inadvertently caught sight of the other woman’s daughter, Shu Rong.

Shu Rong looked like a little fawn, her big eyes filled with confusion.

This was a huge blunder. She couldn’t stay here anymore—Lin Xu’s mentality collapsed.

Maybe she should just leave first to show respect.

Although she had nothing to her name, it seemed like there were no other options right now.

She located the direction of the front door and tiptoed toward it.

She hadn’t taken a few steps before she was called out.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

Hearing that icy voice, Lin Xu knew things had gone south.

She scratched her head, straightened her back like a flagpole, and slowly turned around.

“I’m just going out for a stroll, just a quick one.”

Shu Qingyou gave her a glance, then walked into the kitchen to clean up.

She squatted down, her slender white fingers carefully picking up every shard.

Lin Xu wanted to warn her not to cut her hand but held her tongue, annoyed at her own overstepping behavior just now.

Anyway, she didn’t dare move a muscle.

She watched unblinkingly as Shu Qingyou tied up the trash bag, even remembering to stick a “Caution: Sharp Fragments” label on it.

Then she poured the liquid from the stainless steel pot into a plastic container and placed it in the fridge to chill.

Lin Xu sat awkwardly in silence next to Shu Rong.

Shu Rong let out a fluffy, startled whimper, and Lin Xu quickly raised a finger to her lips.

“Shh, keep it down. Your mom’s angry.”

Lin Xu muttered to herself inwardly. This kid was probably not quite right—ever since seeing her, she’d been hiding away.

Just as Lin Xu was growing restless, Shu Qingyou said indifferently, “Go to the hospital tomorrow. Don’t wander off, or you might get lost.”

The next day.

“It’s like this: the initial diagnosis is mild concussion from impact. Most people experience short-term memory loss, but it usually recovers after some time.”

The doctor’s glasses reflected the computer screen as the mouse slid over the CT scan images.

Concussion from impact.

Lin Xu’s heart skipped a beat. Could Shu Qingyou have seen her showing up to collect a debt and bashed her head to cause the concussion?

Shu Qingyou, beside her, stayed much calmer and rationally asked a question.

“What about the pheromones being out of whack?”

The doctor nodded.

“Yes, certain neural functions are disrupted, leading to Pheromone Neural Barrier Syndrome. No need to worry too much—the perception will gradually improve. Avoid gland stimulation in the future and get plenty of rest…”

The doctor went on to explain the syndrome’s details, with incomprehensible names and a bunch of terminology.

Lin Xu, whose logic was already muddled, grew even more confused.

She only grasped the gist.

The pathways for perceiving pheromones were blocked, making it impossible to stably receive Alpha-Omega pheromone signals.

To that end, the hospital specially prescribed inhibitor patches and suppressants tailored to Lin Xu’s body.

As they walked out of the hospital doors, Lin Xu grew more and more indignant the more she thought about it.

She suspected Shu Qingyou might be the culprit behind her amnesia.

Feeling guilty, that’s why she brought her here for treatment. Lin Xu huffed heavily behind Shu Qingyou’s back.

Shu Qingyou turned back in confusion.

Just then, her pocket vibrated. She ignored Lin Xu’s little tantrum.

She opened her phone, and the screen prominently displayed her sister Shu Wan Ning’s name.

[Sis, I’m coming home today to hang out for a couple days, keep you and Rongrong company. Oh, and I want braised fish, sweet-and-sour ribs…]

A long list of dishes followed, but it was clear how excited Shu Wan Ning was.

Shu Qingyou gripped her phone, her slender fingertips rubbing the screen.

Shu Wan Ning’s disgust toward Lin Xu ran bone-deep.

Coming back at this time would inevitably lead to a clash.

The consequences didn’t bear thinking about.

Lin Xu bounced over to her side, hovering uncertainly.

“Sister, did you accidentally hit my head, or maybe while driving, you didn’t pay attention and knocked me into this concussion?”

A cold wind carrying frost swept in, and Shu Qingyou’s eyelashes trembled lightly.

She pulled her coat tighter. Frail and sickly since childhood, she feared the cold, and after differentiating as an Omega, her constitution was even weaker than most—looking as delicate as a paper figure, liable to topple in the wind.

She sidestepped Lin Xu, leaned against the car hood, and replied to her sister’s message.

[Don’t come.]

She lifted her eyelids again.

Lin Xu stood there with an air of aggressive bravado, wearing a suit jacket over the plain white long dress Shu Qingyou had given her.

Two thin spaghetti straps hooked over Lin Xu’s rounded shoulders, rubbing them red against her snow-white skin.

At 175 cm tall and slender, she towered half a head over Shu Qingyou.

The skirt hem barely reached her knees—not quite the right fit overall, making the Alpha’s chest look a bit snug.

In the past, Lin Xu had always worn custom-tailored clothes delivered to her door, turning up her nose at anything from Shu Qingyou.

She stood with arms crossed, not intending to drop the subject.

Shu Qingyou paused, as if the past had replayed before her eyes.

But she had long grown accustomed to Lin Xu’s unreasonable behavior.

Shu Qingyou’s eyes remained calm as she shook her head at her.

In truth, Lin Xu was quite apprehensive and didn’t want the pretty sister to have hurt her at all.

She harbored some inexplicable emotions, instinctively trusting Shu Qingyou from the bottom of her heart.

With the affirmative denial, Lin Xu’s expression changed in an instant. She grinned and eagerly opened the driver’s door for Shu Qingyou.

“Then let’s go to the police station and find the cops.”

Even if they couldn’t catch the perp, she needed to let her family know she was safe.

“No.”

“Huh, why not?”

Shu Qingyou exhaled a puff of white mist, hands tucked in her coat pockets. She really couldn’t explain it to her.

She clearly remembered Lin Xu’s uncompromising warning before losing her memory.

[Listen up, Shu Qingyou! No calling the police, no going to the hospital, or you’ll regret it!]

She couldn’t even beg properly.

The name used to register Lin Xu at the hospital had been borrowed from her sister’s.

Lin Xu was truly in dire straits.

In the hospital parking lot, the two women of contrasting styles—one frail, one bold—stood on the grassy area, drawing frequent glances from passersby.

Shu Qingyou: “Get in the car first.”

There was a faint, elegant fragrance inside the car.

Lin Xu wasn’t in the mood to appreciate it.

She noticed Shu Qingyou’s knuckles whitening on the steering wheel and thoughtfully turned on the car heater.

Shu Qingyou realized Lin Xu’s adaptability was extraordinarily strong.

A normal person faced with unfamiliar surroundings and people would have been wailing by now.

Shu Qingyou’s lips parted, and without batting an eye, she wove a half-true, half-false lie.

“The night before last, you told me you were being chased by enemies. It was an emergency—you needed my help, like hiding you away.”

Lin Xu in such a pathetic state? She should count herself lucky.

Scum Alpha getting her comeuppance.

Being hunted for revenge?!

Lin Xu’s jaw nearly dropped. It was the 21st century—could this cliché still play out?

It took her several minutes to digest this outrageous information, still hardly believing it.

But Shu Qingyou spoke so earnestly and seriously—there was no reason to lie.

She had brought her to the hospital and gotten her medicine.

Lin Xu’s nerves, slow as they were, had her glancing around warily, afraid a killer might pop out.

She shrank her neck.

“So, where are you going to hide me?”

She hadn’t expected to actually fool Lin Xu.

Shu Qingyou’s tone was even: “I don’t know.”

Lin Xu panicked, her peach-blossom eyes instantly misting over as she clutched the seatbelt tightly.

“Sister, you have to help me!”

Lin Xu fully unleashed her shameless, clingy side.

“Look, I’m all alone, dirt poor—except you owe me money, and there’s no IOU…”

Mentioning the IOU, Lin Xu had a little scheme in mind and paused, waiting for Shu Qingyou’s reaction.

She couldn’t say there was zero response—those thin eyelids did flutter slightly.

Lin Xu probed further.

“Can I, like, stay at your place?”

A red light ahead; Shu Qingyou braked.

“…Hm?”

Good acting, really putting on a show, she thought.

Lin Xu quickly added.

“I guarantee I’ll control my pheromones perfectly, one hundred percent.”

Shu Qingyou counted down the red light timer; the yellow appeared, and she released the brake.

Seeing Lin Xu’s dejected look, she sighed lightly. “Alright.”

In the cramped car interior, pheromones dissipated quickly—especially from someone like Lin Xu with gland issues.

The moment Shu Qingyou agreed, Lin Xu felt lightheaded with relief.

She should say thanks.

Lin Xu leaned her upper body a bit closer toward Shu Qingyou.

Suddenly, she caught Shu Qingyou brushing aside the hair blocking her view.

Below the outer corner of her eye hung a faint brown tear mole.

Her long hair usually concealed it, but now it was fully exposed.

Shu Qingyou’s usual aloof demeanor took on an extra touch of allure because of that mole.

Lin Xu’s breath hitched.

She remembered her recent promise of perfect pheromone control.

She immediately reined in her stray thoughts.

Lin Xu’s heart raced up and down as she secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

She hadn’t paid much attention on the way there, but on the return trip, Lin Xu took in the scenery intently.

The hospital was on the city outskirts; as the view receded, tall buildings gave way to low houses.

Deep green and withered yellow hillsides appeared in sight.

Lin Xu thought to herself pensively. No wonder she had sought out Shu Qingyou before losing her memory.

Who could find her in this backwater town?

Still, thinking of having to live here long-term…

Sorrow welled up unbidden.

She finally understood Shu Qingyou’s warning last night about not wandering off.

Lin Xu hung her head, glumly twisting her fingers.

She didn’t even want to get out of the car when they reached the doorstep.

But she didn’t dare openly complain.

Lin Xu opened the car door with a muffled voice.

“Who knows how long it’ll take for my memory to recover?”

The next second, a chill hit her neck.

Shu Qingyou handed her a bottle of purified water.

In a cold voice: “Here—press it tight.”

Lin Xu saw she meant the gland area and her face heated up instantly.

She had noticed after all. Lin Xu hurriedly pressed the inhibitor patch firmly.

She chugged a big gulp of water too.

Taking the chance to properly size up the house: a two-story flat-roofed brick house with a ginkgo tree in the front yard.

Tsk, really basic.

Shu Qingyou pressed the key fob to lock the car with a short beep.

Turning back, she caught the disdain in Lin Xu’s eyes.

“With your background, raised on delicacies and luxuries, drunk on extravagance—this is indeed a huge drop for you.”

“Huh?”

The water went down the wrong pipe, and Lin Xu coughed.

That sentence carried massive information.

Her eyes lit up.

“Sister, you mean I’m from a rich family?!”

Dark clouds loomed, a gust of wind rising.

It lifted the hem of Shu Qingyou’s clothes.

She turned to gaze at the distant misty peaks.

After the time it took to brew a cup of tea.

Facing Lin Xu, she gave a mocking smile.

Then she lowered her gaze and typed on her phone with one hand.

Lin Xu increasingly felt that Shu Qingyou was hiding depths.

Her cold detachment somehow soothed her in a strange way.

Shu Qingyou’s pale, slender fingers gripped the phone and handed it to Lin Xu.

“Don’t you want to know who you are?”

The mountain wind matched Shu Qingyou’s cool tone perfectly.

Lin Xu looked down; the screen blared:

[Lin Group Executive Leadership Smoothly Transitions; Lin Xu Successfully Takes Over as Chairman…]

Below was Lin Xu’s photo and personal profile.

She stood center stage under the banquet lights.

In a black evening gown, fine high heels, holding a crystal flute of champagne.

A platinum diamond necklace adorned her collarbone; her brows and eyes were boldly striking, exuding the arrogant flair of youthful success.

Everything screamed refined nobility.

Lin Xu was utterly shocked.

This went beyond just “rich”!

And this commanding woman was… her?!