Lu Yixue noticed that the amount and concentration of pheromones had decreased, so she immediately wanted to stop the marking. However, she had overestimated her physical stamina.
At that moment, she simply didn’t have the strength to pull away from Pei Shijin’s embedded bite.
She had previously thought the spray sedative was an unnecessary feature, but now she was immensely grateful for it. Otherwise, she would have had to call for help.
She gently pressed the red button, and the misty sedative sprayed out.
Lu Yixue’s thoughts froze. Why wasn’t this thing aimed only at Pei Shijin?
Both of them fainted together.
Lu Yixue was woken by licking. Something soft and warm kept sliding over her right shoulder, leaving trails of wet heat.
Unable to find the gland, Pei Shijin searched around again, but with her range of motion restricted, she could only lick and nibble in that small area.
The startled Lu Yixue immediately stood up.
Pei Shijin, who was already frustrated from not finding the gland, now lost all hope and let out an angry roar.
Lu Yixue turned around to look at Pei Shijin and couldn’t help but press a hand to her forehead.
Pei Shijin’s nose tip and chin had received the same treatment as her right shoulder—they were all slick and wet.
She gently wiped Pei Shijin’s face clean with wet wipes, then put the Bite Stopper back on her.
The hospital bed returned to its flat position. Lu Yixue took off her shoes and sat astride Pei Shijin. Her expression still appeared as cool and composed as ever, but her flushed red earlobes betrayed her inner tension.
Her fingers slipped under the clothing, and Lu Yixue took a deep breath before pulling them back out.
She released Pei Shijin’s right arm. It still wasn’t feasible for her to take full control alone.
The instant she let go of the right arm, half of Lu Yixue’s waist was gripped tightly. For the first time, she felt just how intense Pei Shijin’s desire was.
Outside the ward, the waiting people shifted from standing to sitting, then back to standing, squatting, leaning against the wall, and pacing back and forth…
Time ticked by slowly, and Gao Ye’an’s anxiety mounted second by second. Her fingers unconsciously fiddled with the strap of her handbag until it was nearly frayed.
Cases of susceptible period Alphas losing control and killing weren’t rare each year. Leaving A-Xue alone in a room with Pei Shijin was still too dangerous. Gao Ye’an’s mind kept flashing with all the news stories she had seen.
Just as she could no longer hold back and prepared to have someone break down the door, it opened.
Lu Yixue had already changed into clean clothes and seemed to have returned to her elegant and refined eldest young lady state. “I’m hungry. I want to eat wontons—the ones you make.”
Gao Ye’an didn’t understand Lu Yixue’s meaning at first, but Lu Yixue spoke again. “No time?”
“I have time. I’ll have someone buy the ingredients right now.” Gao Ye’an felt as if she’d been hit by a pie from the heavens, dazed and delighted. This was the first time her A-Xue had ever proactively said she wanted to eat something she made.
As a mother, this feeling of being needed by her child was truly captivating.
Gao Ye’an floated away happily, completely forgetting what she had originally wanted to say as she went off in a daze to make the wontons.
Dr. Feng watched with her mouth agape. The madam had been so anxious just moments ago, and now she was cured just like that.
“Come take a look at her condition.” Lu Yixue saw Gao Ye’an off, then turned to Dr. Feng.
“Alright.” Dr. Feng smelled air freshener the moment she entered the room.
Lu Yixue had endured the soreness in her waist, the pain in her legs, and the ache in her mouth to clean up the scene thoroughly. Even the scent of pheromones had vanished completely.
Pei Shijin’s condition was relatively calm at the moment—at least she wasn’t struggling anymore.
As soon as Dr. Feng approached, her aggression flared up again, displaying the irritability of territory being invaded, eager to drive away the intruder.
Tsk, Dr. Feng really wanted to take a photo of Pei Shijin in this state and show it to her once she sobered up.
What a gentle little girl she usually was, turned into this by the beastly instincts of an Alpha.
Dr. Feng didn’t check the instrument data—her senior sister was monitoring that. She only examined the state of Pei Shijin’s gland.
The gland was slightly swollen, a bit more than before. The pheromones an Alpha injected into an Omega’s body would partially remain in the Omega, partially dissipate into the air, and partially return to the Alpha.
Normally, intake was less than output, but perhaps because the gland had been so depleted, it chose to harvest aggressively and centralize.
This truly was a miraculous organ. Temporary Mark might even aid in gland recovery. Dr. Feng decided to tell her senior sister to research it.
It would be best if it could help little Pei, and it might lead to another top-tier publication. Though there might be disputes over authorship. Since President Lu knew about this, she would surely bring in other doctors.
The doctors trained by the Lu Family mostly specialized in Omega glands, but they could extrapolate to Alpha glands as well. And with the Lu Family’s power and influence, they could invite renowned experts too.
Dr. Feng herself didn’t care; she worked at a private hospital and didn’t need publications for promotion. Her senior sister would probably fight fiercely over it.
Little Pei was pursuing a graduate degree herself and might want the credit too.
Wait, wait, where had her mind wandered? Dr. Feng patted her head. Her senior sister had been nagging about publications lately, and she was starting to get brainwashed.
Lu Yixue saw Dr. Feng’s annoyed expression and thought something had gone wrong, so she anxiously asked, “What’s wrong?”
“It’s nothing,” Dr. Feng nearly forgot there was a living person beside her. “Little Pei hasn’t eaten for a long time, right? See if she can take food; otherwise, we’ll have to use nutrient injections.”
“Does she have any dietary restrictions?” Lu Yixue breathed a sigh of relief, her expression returning to calm.
“I gave a list to the nutritionist.” Dr. Feng said.
Even so, Lu Yixue still asked for a copy of the list and memorized it.
She had given Pei Shijin too little attention before, and now she had this somewhat pathological overcompensation, wanting to know everything about her.
Lu Yixue didn’t analyze her own thoughts. She was simply doing what she wanted to do now, without that attitude responsibility chart.
While Lu Yixue was looking down at the list, Dr. Feng happened to glimpse her nape and sucked in a sharp breath.
The swollen gland looked like it had several sharp puncture wounds—painful just to look at. “Put some medicine on that spot.”
Lu Yixue was stunned. Though Pei Shijin’s actions this time had been quite wild and rough, it hadn’t reached the point of needing medication.
Wait, the spot Dr. Feng meant was… “The gland?”
“Yeah, it looks terrifying.” Dr. Feng said with lingering fear.
“Mm, have someone come apply medicine.” No one noticed Lu Yixue’s reddened ears.
Soon, the nutritionist delivered two breakfast portions—one for Pei Shijin and one for Lu Yixue. No one had told her otherwise.
Since Lu Yixue wanted wontons and wasn’t hungry enough to snack despite her hunger, she handed the breakfast to Dr. Feng.
Dr. Feng gladly accepted; she had planned to eat at the cafeteria anyway.
Even if completely turned into a beast and controlled by primal instincts, eating to satiate hunger and replenish energy was instinctual for all creatures.
Pei Shijin was ravenous and ate quickly with ferocious posture.
She nearly bit through several pairs of chopsticks.
If a finger were stuck in there, it might get chewed to pieces.
Lu Yixue sometimes truly didn’t understand how a mere gland could enhance the human body to such a degree.
After differentiating as an Omega, Lu Yixue had felt it firsthand—her strength had diminished. She had later built it back up through training, but it still couldn’t compare to an Alpha’s.
When Gao Ye’an arrived with the food box, she happened to witness Pei Shijin biting through a chopstick. It startled her so much that her legs went weak, and she leaned against the door.
The door creaked.
Lu Yixue turned her head and saw Gao Ye’an force a smile. “Thanks.”
“No need to be polite.” Gao Ye’an managed a strained smile. “Try it quickly. It’s been a while since I made them; my skills might be rusty.”
In fact, Gao Ye’an had been an eldest young lady since birth, never lifting a finger to do housework. She had only cooked a few times to bond with Lu Yixue, with no real culinary skills.
She walked over, pulled a mobile tray table in front of Lu Yixue, and opened the food box.
The aroma wafted out immediately. With precisely measured recipes and hands-on chef guidance, the taste wouldn’t be off.
“It smells great.” Lu Yixue’s smile became a bit more natural.
She took the spoon from Gao Ye’an. “Have you eaten yet?”
“Not yet.” Gao Ye’an shook her head, a hint of expectation in her eyes.
“Then let’s eat together, if you don’t mind.” Lu Yixue said.
“Alright.” Gao Ye’an immediately pulled out a second spoon.
Mother and daughter rarely shared a meal, not just because of Lu Yixue’s germaphobia, but because their relationship hadn’t reached that point.
Eating at the same table every day had been the portion Lu Yixue allocated to her mother in her list of responsibilities.
The aroma reached Pei Shijin’s nose, and she began to grow restless again right after stuffing her stomach full. “Eat! Want to eat!”
She was so urgent that she even spoke human words.
Lu Yixue couldn’t help but laugh. “Looks like these wontons really are delicious.”
The wonton ingredients weren’t on Dr. Feng’s restriction list, but there were more seasonings, so to be safe, she still asked Dr. Feng.
After confirming Pei Shijin could eat them, Lu Yixue scooped up a wonton, blew it cool, and tried to feed it to her. But the large wonton and spoon were blocked by the Bite Stopper.
Her tongue tip poked out of her mouth, straining to reach it, stretching thin. The bite guard’s metal gleamed with saliva, oddly erotic.
Lu Yixue’s earlobes quietly reddened again. “Wait a moment. I’ll take off your Bite Stopper.”
The nutritionist’s prepared foods were all small pieces that chopsticks could deliver, so she hadn’t removed Pei Shijin’s bite guard earlier.
“She…” Gao Ye’an felt it was dangerous and wanted to stop her, but Lu Yixue moved quickly, and the Bite Stopper was already on the tray table.
Gao Ye’an stared at the rigid Bite Stopper, swallowing all her words.
Why did little Pei’s susceptible period have to have malignant symptoms? Sigh, and so severe too.
If not, she would have loved for little Pei to always stay by A-Xue and Mingzhu’s side.
Lu Yixue completely missed Gao Ye’an’s melancholy. She scooped up another wonton and fed it into Pei Shijin’s mouth.
Pei Shijin gobbled the wonton and spoon in one go, her lips clamping the metal handle.
“Let go.” Lu Yixue tugged gently but couldn’t budge it. Afraid of hurting Pei Shijin’s mouth, she didn’t dare use force and could only hope Pei Shijin understood.
Pei Shijin didn’t understand at all, but she still released the spoon—because she chewed and found it unchewable, and licking yielded no flavor. It was clearly a foreign object.
She kept the wonton, her left cheek bulging prominently, while disdainfully pushing the spoon out with her tongue.
The bulge on the left rose and fell with her chewing motions, surprisingly cute amid her fierce expression, a bit like a little squirrel.
Lu Yixue watched Pei Shijin intently. She rarely had chances like this before. Pei Shijin always averted her gaze the second after meeting hers, looking elsewhere.
Once or twice might be coincidence, but nine or ten times was deliberate. Back then, Lu Yixue had no interest in probing the reason, only upholding respect and understanding.
If you don’t want to meet my eyes, then I won’t look at you either.
Now, she suddenly felt that her past self had missed out on so much.
The food box had plenty of wontons, but Pei Shijin’s nutritious meal was a controlled portion. Lu Yixue only fed her two.
After that, even when she clamored for more, Lu Yixue treated it as mere background noise.
The meal filled her up completely. Lu Yixue thanked Gao Ye’an again and specified she wanted braised pork ribs and grilled fish for lunch.
She didn’t say Gao Ye’an had to make them herself, but after this meal, Gao Ye’an’s enthusiasm for cooking soared.
Cooking for her daughter by hand, seeing her eat her fill and praise the taste—it brought immense joy that went straight to Gao Ye’an’s head.
She tidied up and rushed off to prepare the next meal.
Lu Yixue’s goal was to give Gao Ye’an something to do, to keep her occupied so she wouldn’t worry excessively about Pei Shijin.
In her view, Gao Ye’an and Pei Shijin were always on the same side. Their similar personalities and ways of handling things sometimes made her feel that those two were the true mother and daughter.
