PHWM Chapter 43.2

The Xingguan meeting didn’t last long.

 

Huo Lan concisely arranged the necessary matters, had the secretarial department compile the documents, and then had his assistant drive him back to the villa.

 

“Mr. Liang is asleep,” the butler came forward to greet him, “He just fell asleep not long ago and hasn’t woken up yet.”

 

The meeting had taken some time, and Huo Lan was worried about Liang Xiao, so he had sent the butler back first.

 

The butler arrived earlier than him and found Mr. Liang, who had lost his dreams and withered, on the way. Not understanding the situation, he sent him back to the bedroom: “Mr. Liang doesn’t seem to be in good spirits today.”

 

Huo Lan frowned slightly and nodded: “I see.”

 

“Are we still not letting Mr. Liang use suppressants?” The butler hesitated for a moment: “Mr. Liang seems quite uncomfortable with such active pheromones.”

 

Huo Lan: “No.”

 

Seeing Liang Xiao suffering like this, of course he felt heartache.

 

But he couldn’t soften his stance.

 

Liang Xiao had been using specialized suppressants for years. Even if they were highly effective, after so many years of use, he must have developed some drug resistance.

 

Liang Xiao probably sensed this himself, instinctively adjusting the dosage and frequency according to his pheromone levels. Huo Lan had checked his usage, and found he could barely manage with one dose a week, often needing additional temporary supplements in between.

 

Using suppressants this way, how could there not be side effects?

 

Now that they’ve discovered this, they need to find a way to reduce his suppressant usage, ease off for a few months, and hopefully restore some of his gland’s sensitivity to suppressants. Then they could appropriately reduce the dosage.

 

“Mr. Liang isn’t very good at taking care of himself,” the butler thought for a moment and sighed along, “If it weren’t for you—”

 

Huo Lan: “It’s not that.”

 

The butler was taken aback: “What?”

 

Huo Lan closed his eyes, instinctively unwilling to think too much about Liang Xiao’s experiences over these years.

 

It wasn’t that Liang Xiao didn’t know how to take care of himself.

 

He simply had no choice. If he didn’t push himself to the limit, he couldn’t survive. And pushing himself meant relying on suppressant after suppressant, overdrawing his health.

 

This couldn’t be blamed on him.

 

How Liang Xiao had gotten through these years, what he had encountered—even thinking about it briefly was like a knife to the heart.

 

Huo Lan suppressed the turmoil in his chest and instructed the butler: “For the next few days, send work to the bedroom as usual. No video conferences. Report anything important in writing.”

 

The butler nodded: “Understood.”

 

The butler hesitated: “But—”

 

Huo Lan: “What?”

 

“Please don’t overwork yourself either.”

 

The butler hesitated before advising him softly: “Do get some rest.”

 

Without suppressants, every time Liang Xiao’s pheromones fluctuated, he would need to rely purely on temporary marks for comfort.

 

The omega’s pheromones were incredibly active during heat, causing trouble day and night. Liang Xiao was certainly not comfortable, and Huo Lan hadn’t properly rested his eyes for days, which wasn’t easy either.

 

“It’s Mr. Huo who’s having a hard time,” the butler said.

 

Huo Lan felt the butler was worrying about the wrong person: “I’m not having a hard time.”

 

The butler looked at him with concern: “But—”

 

“No need to say more,” Huo Lan said, “I don’t need rest.”

 

Alphas have much stronger physical constitutions than ordinary people. As long as they’re not troubled by pheromones, they rarely fall ill or become weak.

 

Huo Lan’s temporary marking of Liang Xiao also helped relieve the pheromones in his own body. Over these days, the symptoms of his susceptible period were gradually easing, and he didn’t feel he needed rest.

 

The butler didn’t dare to persuade him further. He opened the bedroom door for him, arranged the documents that needed approval, and quietly left.

 

Huo Lan closed the door.

 

The bedroom was quiet. The daylight outside was thoroughly blocked by curtains, and the bedside lamp gave off a soft light.

 

Liang Xiao was curled up at the head of the bed, sleeping while hugging something, with a book loosely held in his hand.

 

Huo Lan rarely saw him reading, and inexplicably felt a sense of gratification. He walked over quietly and held the book in his hand to look at the cover: “…”

 

“Contemporary Medical Knowledge Encyclopedia.”

 

Liang Xiao wasn’t sleeping soundly and suddenly woke up: “Who—”

 

Liang Xiao was slightly stunned, looking at Huo Lan who was holding his book: “President Huo, what’s wrong?”

 

“…” Huo Lan: “Headache.”

 

Liang Xiao choked a bit and coughed twice.

 

Huo Lan really didn’t want to see this book. He rarely acted so coldly and decisively, confiscating it from his hand and putting it deep into a drawer.

 

Liang Xiao felt a bit guilty, remembering the past incident. He couldn’t help but want to laugh, holding it back with great difficulty.

 

He had entered the study with dreams, but couldn’t focus on President Huo’s bookshelf of books. Remembering the only book he had some connection with, he had asked Duan Ming to find and bring it over to flip through.

 

Before falling asleep while struggling to read, Liang Xiao had vaguely realized that asking President Huo to read this book, which had once been used as a weapon, wasn’t really appropriate.

 

He just didn’t expect their President Huo to return so early.

 

Liang Xiao didn’t have time to destroy the evidence. Watching Huo Lan half-squat to lock that drawer, he really couldn’t hold back anymore. He turned and buried himself in the blanket, laughing for a while.

 

Huo Lan put away the key, suppressing the unpleasant memories in his mind, and stood up to return to the bedside.

 

Liang Xiao was still weak. After laughing for a while, he had no energy left. He lay on his back on the bed, rubbing his eyes, with little stars swimming in his vision.

 

Huo Lan embraced him, helping him sit up slightly and lean against his shoulder: “Want to read a book?”

 

Liang Xiao was surprised he still remembered, and after a long pause, he cleared his throat with his ears burning: “…Yes.”

 

Huo Lan raised his hand to wipe the cold sweat from Liang Xiao’s forehead: “What do you want to hear?”

 

Liang Xiao was stunned: “I can choose myself?”

 

Huo Lan didn’t understand what was strange about this, met his gaze, and nodded.

 

Liang Xiao opened his mouth, but quickly stopped himself.

 

…For a moment, he even thought about asking his agent to provide a couple of erotic novels.

 

This idea was just a fleeting fancy. Liang Xiao tried to imagine the scene, but before it could fully form, he melted into President Huo’s arms.

 

“Not feeling well?” Huo Lan frowned, felt his forehead, and leaned down to check the pheromone indicator on his wristband.

 

“No, I’m fine,” Liang Xiao came to his senses and was about to speak when he suddenly realized he was still holding something. “President Huo.”

 

Huo Lan looked up.

 

Liang Xiao coughed once: “…This.”

 

He had given gifts to people in the industry before, but never something this personal, especially to someone so special.

 

Liang Xiao rarely didn’t know what to say. He cleared his throat and decided to let the recipient figure it out himself. He closed his eyes, steeled himself, and directly pushed the set of pajamas into Huo Lan’s arms.

 

Liang Xiao kept his eyes tightly shut, holding his breath.

 

…

 

Liang Xiao couldn’t hold it anymore, took a breath, and opened one eye.

 

President Huo was sitting on the bed holding what he had given him, unchanged from before.

 

He didn’t seem to have any reaction.

 

Liang Xiao hesitated for a while, then gathered his courage: “President Huo?”

 

Huo Lan startled, brought back by his voice. He looked down at the set of clothes in his arms.

 

The style suggested they were pajamas, already washed, with the tags carefully removed.

 

The fabric felt soft and slightly warm in his hands.

 

Huo Lan looked up, meeting Liang Xiao’s gaze. He tried his best to understand his meaning for a while, then gently placed the pajamas beside the bed.

 

Huo Lan hesitated for a long time, then raised his hand to touch the collar of the pajamas Liang Xiao was currently wearing.

 

Huo Lan took a deep breath, closed his eyes briefly, and turned his gaze away, slowly unbuttoning the first button of Liang Xiao’s shirt.

 

“…President Huo.”

 

Liang Xiao was waiting for him to be moved, but he didn’t expect their President Huo to be moved to this extent. He quickly grasped the hand at his collar: “This isn’t appropriate.”

 

Huo Lan frowned, stopping as Liang Xiao held his hand.

 

Liang Xiao stammered: “It’s, it’s broad daylight.”

 

In broad daylight, he couldn’t tarnish their President Huo’s reputation without reason.

 

Liang Xiao had intervened once, feeling he had done right by the butler. He tremblingly moved his hand away and closed his eyes heroically.

 

He had tried his best.

 

If their President Huo unbuttoned one more button, it would no longer be something he could control.

 

Liang Xiao’s heart was racing. He was even considering whether he should confess his feelings passionately before the situation became uncontrollable.

 

As he tossed and turned restlessly, Huo Lan instead furrowed his brow and withdrew his hand: “Don’t move.”

 

Liang Xiao was startled: “I can’t move at all?”

 

“It’s not convenient,” Huo Lan tried hard not to look at him, “I can’t remember exactly…”

 

Liang Xiao was stunned for a moment and opened his eyes: “Huh?”

 

Huo Lan paused briefly, meeting his gaze.

 

Huo Lan: “It’s not—”

 

Liang Xiao: “It’s not what?”

 

“You want me to—”

 

Huo Lan was used to being self-disciplined and courteous, and he was especially respectful towards him. He couldn’t easily say such frivolous words, but he tried his best: “Change… your clothes for you.”

 

“It was my improper thought,” Huo Lan frowned deeply, “I shouldn’t have been so forward with you.”

 

Liang Xiao’s heart sank with a thud: “…”

 

Liang Xiao exhaled weakly, thinking to himself that this was indeed too forward: “…That’s not it.”

 

Liang Xiao really couldn’t understand: “I want to change into pajamas, so I deliberately gave you the clothes for you to help me change?”

 

Huo Lan couldn’t understand either, but he didn’t dare to ask, silently averting his gaze.

 

Liang Xiao held back for a while, then seeing their President Huo rarely embarrassed, he couldn’t help but laugh.

 

Liang Xiao chuckled and sighed, his heart aching with a bittersweet tenderness.

 

“President Huo.” Liang Xiao gently tugged at his sleeve, “Has anyone ever given you a gift before?”

 

Huo Lan was stunned.

 

“Not the business kind, like sports cars, suits, or watches.”

 

Liang Xiao looked at him: “Just… from friends.”

 

Liang Xiao actually wanted to be more forward, but afraid of scaring him, he glossed over it: “The kind of gift friends give.”

 

Huo Lan stared at him blankly, his lips moved but no sound came out.

 

Liang Xiao fully understood now, rubbing his forehead and tugging at the corner of his mouth: “The pajamas…”

 

Liang Xiao smiled: “The pajamas weren’t bought for me.”

 

“A few days ago,” Liang Xiao said vaguely, “I earned a bit of money.”

 

As he spoke, Liang Xiao felt he had never used a measure word so precisely before.

 

These past few days, watching President Huo work in the bedroom, Liang Xiao had actually considered cutting the pajamas shorter and wearing them himself when faced with the millions in cash flow.

 

Now he was glad he didn’t.

 

“It’s not an expensive thing,” Liang Xiao smiled, “Just for fun. If you don’t like it, you can put it away…”

 

Huo Lan suddenly stood up.

 

Liang Xiao was stunned for a moment, then looked up, watching their President Huo rush out with the pajamas in a daze.

 

Liang Xiao finished his sentence in a trance: “…that’s fine too.”

 

“Does he dislike it that much…”

 

Liang Xiao rubbed his eyes, a bit confused, and lay back down to think carefully.

 

He had worried Huo Lan might not be used to new clothes, so he had specially washed them once, and even removed all the tags that might be uncomfortable.

 

He hadn’t told anyone, but he had even dried them himself with a hair dryer in the bathroom.

 

Liang Xiao carefully reviewed which part of the process went wrong, thought even more carefully, and suddenly realized that in all the days they had known each other, President Huo indeed hadn’t worn pajamas much.

 

Pajama phobia.

 

Childhood trauma, perhaps he had watched a horror movie about pajamas.

 

Liang Xiao let his imagination run wild, feeling regretful and sighing deeply.

 

…If only he had known, he would have bought a walnut cracker instead.

 

President Huo had been gone for an unusually long time.

 

Lying on the bed with nothing to do, Liang Xiao had already imagined ten lifetimes of nightmares where little Huo Lan battled with pajamas.

 

Liang Xiao opened his eyes after imagining the final scene of young Huo Lan battling the pajama monster, and sighed.

 

…

 

No matter what, sending a carefully chosen gift that backfired was somewhat disappointing.

 

Feeling a bit melancholy, Liang Xiao hugged himself and patted his shoulders twice. Hearing the door, he turned his head to look.

 

The butler closed the door and carefully entered.

 

Liang Xiao couldn’t understand: “It can’t be that bad, can it?”

 

The butler was stunned: “What?”

 

“I just sent a pair of pajamas,” Liang Xiao said in disbelief. “Is President Huo so angry that he doesn’t want to see me personally anymore?”

 

Liang Xiao looked at the white-haired butler and said understandingly: “Did he send you to sleep with me? There’s no need, I can sleep well alone. I might draw little figures of President Huo on the bathroom mirror though, so please ask someone to clean it tomorrow…”

 

“What are you saying—” The butler listened in confusion for a while, then suddenly realized, “The pajamas were from you?”

 

Liang Xiao confessed: “Yes.”

 

The butler understood.

 

Huo Lan had just firmly stated that he didn’t need sleep, then suddenly changed into a set of pajamas from somewhere and told everyone he was going to sleep in the bedroom with Mr. Liang today.

 

Even the head of security was called to hear this, and nervously asked in a low voice what President Huo meant, wondering if it was a hint that their security for Mr. Liang wasn’t tight enough and they needed to post guards at the door and outside the windows at night.

 

Now, President Huo, who was only accepting written reports, was wearing those pajamas in the Huo residence office, holding an emergency video conference with Xingguan’s management team.

 

“It’s alright now.” The butler let out a long sigh of relief and sincerely thanked Liang Xiao, “Thank you.”

 

Liang Xiao was still thinking about Huo Lan, feeling a bit dejected: “What?”

 

“Mr. Huo—” The butler didn’t know how to explain, and smiled a bit awkwardly, “Mr. Huo has never been so happy before.”

 

Liang Xiao was stunned for a moment.

 

Liang Xiao carefully recalled Huo Lan’s demeanor when he left, but couldn’t see any connection to happiness.

 

Except for “President Huo’s anger level dramatically increased, and all excited people were fired.”

 

“Mr. Huo is…”

 

The butler took a low breath, his chest so warm he almost choked up: “He’s so happy he doesn’t know what to do.”

 

The butler added: “He’s never been happy in this house before.”

 

Liang Xiao recalled the past events the butler had told him about, and after a moment of silence, his heart sank. He nodded without saying anything.

 

“Thank you,” the butler expressed gratitude again. “Can you sleep with Mr. Huo today?”

 

Liang Xiao was confused: “Isn’t President Huo sleeping with me?”

 

“Mr. Huo hasn’t calmed down yet…” The butler was familiar with Huo Lan’s temperament. “Once he calms down, he’ll surely regret it, thinking his earlier actions were too forward with you.”

 

Liang Xiao: “…”

 

Butler: “When Mr. Huo regrets, he punishes himself.”

 

Liang Xiao: “…”

 

Butler: “Every time he punishes himself, he forces himself not to do what he wants to do most.”

 

“What Mr. Huo wants to do most,” the butler’s logic was exceptionally clear, “is to sleep with you.”

 

Liang Xiao was convinced: “…You’re right.”

 

“So,” the butler pleaded with him with difficulty, “it still depends on you…”

 

Liang Xiao numbly continued: “Depends on me being shameless.”

 

The butler immediately let out a long sigh of relief: “Correct.”

 

“…” Liang Xiao nodded weakly: “I understand.”

 

What the deputy director of Tianxing TV said when he stormed into Xingguan was probably entirely correct.

 

Seducing the country to ruin.

 

Liang Xiao looked at his shadow, feeling a bit sad. He comfortingly hugged himself, rubbed his face, and took a deep breath.

 

He put on his clothes, swayed out the door, and went to seduce his President Huo.