ISMW Chapter 49

“Of course he cursed someone!”

 

The system expressed its dissatisfaction: “How dare he secretly curse people behind your back? That’s supposed to be our thing!”

 

Jian Wenxi instinctively nodded and replied, “Yeah, he cursed Kos Telo. His tone was so sarcastic.”

 

He reflected on Yu Chen’s unique way of cursing, thinking that he should learn from it—he might find it useful when dealing with his Jian family relatives or Mu Xingyu in the future.

 

But soon, Jian Wenxi let out a curious “Huh?” and tilted his head, his dark eyes glimmering with surprise: “I didn’t even mention anything—how did you guess right away that he cursed someone?”

 

Yun Xunlan paused for a moment. It wouldn’t be appropriate to tell Jian Wenxi outright that Yu Chen’s remarkable skill lies in his exceptional ability to curse people—it hardly requires guessing.

 

Just as Yun Xunlan was about to come up with another reason to cover it up, Jian Wenxi tapped his own forehead and said: “Oh, I’m so silly. You’re a couple—it’s normal for you to understand each other’s personalities.”

 

Yun Xunlan had indeed started dating Yu Chen, and he hadn’t planned on hiding it from Jian Wenxi. However, he hadn’t had the chance to say anything yet. So far, only Ni Chun should know—after all, Yun Xunlan had asked him to prepare condoms and lubricants. But how did Jian Wenxi figure it out?

 

He asked: “You already know?”

 

“Yes, it’s obvious,” Jian Wenxi said matter-of-factly. “Kos Telo dared to belittle you—how could Yu Chen, as your lover, hold back from cursing him?”

 

It was just like when Jian Wenxi saw Mu Xingyu insult Yun Xunlan—he couldn’t stand it and ended up cursing Mu Xingyu back.

 

It was all because they both cared deeply for Yun Xunlan.

 

The difference was that Jian Wenxi’s love for Yun Xunlan was friendship, while Yu Chen’s love for Yun Xunlan was romantic.

 

After hearing this, Yun Xunlan said: “Wenxi… it seems like we’re talking about two different things.”

 

“Huh?” Jian Wenxi looked confused for a moment before his face lit with surprise. “Wait—you and Yu Chen aren’t lovers?”

 

He then recalled how Yun Xunlan and Yu Chen had only used their mouths… Could it be that they weren’t lovers but just friends-with-benefits fulfilling each other’s physical needs?

 

Had he misunderstood their relationship?

 

Fortunately, Yun Xunlan clarified: “Yes, Yu Chen and I are lovers, but—”

 

“Then we’re talking about the same thing!” Jian Wenxi sighed in relief. “Alright then. Your body hasn’t fully recovered yet, I’ve already seen your ‘son,’ and Yu Chen is in his susceptible period…”

 

Jian Wenxi glanced at the alpha standing not far away, whose blue eyes were locked tightly on him and Yun Xunlan. Shifting his gaze away from the bite guard on Yu Chen’s face and back to the silver-haired youth’s features, he continued: “Alphas in their susceptible period are very possessive of their lovers. I won’t chat with you too much now. Once you’re back at the base and able to work again, we’ll talk more then. For now, go home and rest well.”

 

Yun Xunlan still felt like he and Jian Wenxi were having two entirely different conversations. But when it came to pinpointing where the misunderstanding lay, Yun Xunlan couldn’t quite figure it out.

 

He pressed his lips together lightly and agreed with the black-haired omega: “Alright. I’ll send you home.”

 

Jian Wenxi shook his head and politely declined: “No need. Just have Ni Chun take me home—that’ll be enough. If you send me yourself, your guards will have to come along too. There’ll be so many people I might actually faint.”

 

“Alright,” Yun Xunlan chuckled softly. “Then see you at the base.”

 

Jian Wenxi waved: “See you.”

 

Yun Xunlan nodded toward Ni Chun: “Ni Chun, please take Wenxi home for me.”

 

“Yes, Your Highness,” Ni Chun, quick-witted as ever, accepted Yun Xunlan’s order while naturally handing the youth’s coat to Yu Chen.

 

Yun Xunlan noticed this and praised: “Ni Chun truly understands me.”

 

This way, once they boarded the aircraft, Yun Xunlan could use changing clothes as an excuse to have Yu Chen accompany him to the changing room.

 

The system, however, expressed its dissatisfaction again: “Can he possibly understand you better than I do?”

 

“Of course not,” Yun Xunlan coaxed it. “Little Hermit, you’re the one who understands me best.”

 

“Exactly! Ni Chun only knows you want to rendezvous with Yu Chen,” the system said proudly. “But he doesn’t know we’re also planning to reclaim everything that belongs to us!”

 

“No, the mission can wait until tonight because I’ll need Yu Chen to tutor me later and then sleep with me,” Yun Xunlan refuted the system. “Right now, I just want to rendezvous with Yu Chen.”

 

The system was deeply disappointed and sternly criticized him: “You’re not as proactive about missions anymore. Your face, obsessed with male beauty, feels unfamiliar to me!”

 

Yun Xunlan refused to admit to such baseless accusations: “I haven’t started anything physical with Yu Chen yet.”

 

Besides, he didn’t have those worldly desires—how could he possibly be obsessed with male beauty?

 

Yun Xunlan reasoned with the system: “Having a good relationship with Yu Chen is also an essential part of successfully completing the mission.”

 

Thus, when he arrived at the changing room and saw Yu Chen following him inside, about to leave after placing the coat down, Yun Xunlan quickly stopped him: “Yu Chen, are you leaving already?”

 

Yu Chen had already turned around but froze in his tracks without looking back at Yun Xunlan. Facing away from the youth, he replied helplessly: “Your Highness, if I stay here too long, my colleagues might get suspicious.”

 

Yu Chen was mindful of Yun Xunlan’s wish not to make their relationship public. So after delivering the coat, he felt he should leave immediately—what reason did he have to linger in the changing room? To watch His Highness change clothes?

 

Moreover, accompanying Yun Xunlan into the changing room was already somewhat inappropriate. The coat in his hands was just an outer garment, and there were plenty of spare clothes for His Highness in the room; his coat wasn’t indispensable.

 

Yu Chen believed that preventing colleagues from suspecting his relationship with Yun Xunlan required constant attention to their behavior and actions—ensuring everything was appropriate.

 

But then he heard Yun Xunlan say: “It’s okay; you can stay a little longer.”

 

Yun Xunlan truly felt it wouldn’t matter even if all the guards discovered his relationship with Yu Chen. He had said he didn’t want to make their relationship public, but not making it public didn’t mean it had to be hidden—how could those two concepts be conflated?

 

He walked toward Yu Chen and gently held the alpha’s fingers, stepping in front of him to block his path out. His golden eyes focused on the man’s blue ones as his voice carried its usual soft hoarseness: “I feel like you don’t seem very happy today.”

 

Yun Xunlan was shorter than Yu Chen, so whenever he looked at him, he had to slightly tilt his face upward—a posture reminiscent of someone waiting for a kiss.

 

From this angle, Yu Chen couldn’t see the red mole on Yun Xunlan’s eyelid. He could only see the youth’s cheeks faintly flushed pink from prolonged mech piloting and the vivid red tongue tip exposed between his slowly moving lips as he spoke.

 

It was an irresistible temptation.

 

Only after slightly lowering his head did Yu Chen suddenly realize that he was still wearing a bite guard.

 

The frustration of not being able to kiss his lover made Yu Chen increasingly irritable. He shifted his gaze toward the coat—likely still retaining his body heat but belonging to Yun Xunlan—that he secretly wanted to bury his face in and sniff. “…Alphas in their susceptible period are always like this.”

 

It was innate, determined by genes, unchangeable, and had nothing to do with things like keeping their relationship private, not being able to kiss, or Jian Wenxi.

 

Yun Xunlan also understood that alphas in their susceptible period tend to cling to their lovers, feeling as if they might die without their lover’s pheromone comfort. Some alphas with weaker willpower might even cry—or fake crying—doing whatever it takes to attract their lover’s attention and satisfy their desire for exclusivity.

 

He wasn’t an omega, so his pheromones wouldn’t have any comforting effect on Yu Chen.

 

However, recalling Yu Chen’s reaction in the hospital when he had given him some pheromones, Yun Xunlan gently pulled Yu Chen’s hand again and asked: “If I give you some of my pheromones, will it make you happy?”

 

Yu Chen turned his face slightly, his blue eyes meeting Yun Xunlan’s gaze, the light in them dark and murky: “How will you give them?”

 

Yun Xunlan held Yu Chen’s hand, lifting his palm higher before leaning down toward the alpha’s fingers.

 

But just as his lips were about to touch Yu Chen’s fingertips, Yun Xunlan abruptly stopped and murmured: “This might hurt you if I bite…”

 

So he let go of Yu Chen’s hand.

 

Instead, he raised both hands toward Yu Chen’s face and removed the bite guard he had personally fastened on the alpha earlier.

 

Yun Xunlan placed the bite guard on the table, coincidentally pressing it down onto the coat.

 

Then he cupped Yu Chen’s face and pressed his lips against his briefly for a few seconds before pulling away. His nose remained close to Yu Chen’s as he asked softly: “How do you want me to give you pheromones?”

 

It was a fleeting kiss.

 

Light as a dragonfly skimming water, accompanied by the moist warmth of a faint lychee rose fragrance.

 

Under the influence of the Proust effect, Yu Chen was involuntarily and defenselessly drawn back into another memory—of the hospital room where he had fervently savored that rich aroma.

 

So he couldn’t be satisfied with such a fleeting touch. Even though reason told him he should leave this place now, Yu Chen ignored it entirely. Like a devout believer consumed with obsession, he leaned down again toward Yun Xunlan’s lips, seeking pheromones through soft and lingering kisses.

 

But perhaps alphas truly aren’t suited to be together—the mingling of their pheromones defied nature and couldn’t bring peace or calm. Instead, it ignited primal instincts of aggression and desires for dominance.

 

Before losing control completely, Yu Chen gently gripped Yun Xunlan’s nape and pulled him away.

 

Between them hung a shimmering thread of saliva that struggled before breaking half a second later with reluctance.

 

Yu Chen’s chest rose and fell rapidly as he tried to steady his breathing.

 

The silver-haired youth was also slightly out of breath but immediately leaned his face closer again: “Can I kiss you?”

 

Yu Chen’s ears flushed red once more—his innocence making it seem as though another alpha had been the one pressing Yun Xunlan down just moments ago. He replied hoarsely: “You’ve already kissed me; now you’re asking?”

 

Yun Xunlan chuckled but didn’t expose the fact that it wasn’t him who initiated the second kiss. He licked the lingering coolness from his lips and wiped away the moisture from Yu Chen’s mouth with his fingertips before continuing to ask: “Are you feeling happier now?”

 

Yu Chen once again turned his gaze away.

 

This time, Yu Chen’s gaze shifted to the bite guard resting on the coat. Though his eyes avoided Yun Xunlan, every word he spoke was still about him.

 

“When you said ‘good night’ to me last night…” The blue-eyed alpha’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed some of Yun Xunlan’s lingering pheromones from his lips and teeth, “What did you call me?”

 

What had Yun Xunlan called him last night?

 

“Baby.”

 

Yun Xunlan accurately gave the correct answer. Then he parted his lips and dragged out his voice, knowingly saying: “Ah… I called you ‘baby,’ and it made you happy.”

 

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 (advanced chapters available on kofi)