Half an hour later, they finally arrived at the address provided by Dr. Li, and as expected, Dr. Li’s junior was waiting for them.
Dr. Li’s junior, named Tu Lan, was a male omega with a very gentle round face. He appeared much kinder than Dr. Li.
Once Tu Lan received Xia Yan, he accompanied him for a full check-up.
Tu Lan had already been briefed on the situation over the phone and expected to meet a very serious patient. However, when he saw Xia Yan, he was momentarily stunned.
Xia Yan looked okay. Although he was still suffering from the side effects of differentiation, his face was pale, and there was a weakness to him, but compared to what Tu Lan had expected — someone who couldn’t even walk — Xia Yan was much better.
“Just from the physical examination, your problem doesn’t seem too severe. The red spots on your body have noticeably faded,” Dr. Tu Lan said gently. “It’s possible that the medication you took has started to take effect. However, for safety’s sake, I still need to draw some blood and do a pheromone test to make sure there’s no issue we might have missed.”
Xia Yan nodded.
But he couldn’t help but share with the doctor, “I don’t know if it’s the medicine working or if it’s my teammate’s pheromones having an effect.”
The doctor’s hand froze for a moment, and he looked at Xia Yan in confusion.
Xia Yan continued, “I always feel bad for half an hour after taking the medicine, just like I told Dr. Li over the phone. But on the way here, I smelled my teammate’s pheromones. He’s an alpha, but strangely, I didn’t feel repelled by his pheromones. I actually felt comfortable, and my symptoms eased…”
He spoke while pulling Xu Cong over. “It’s him, doctor.”
Dr. Tu Lan raised his eyebrows.
He looked Xu Cong up and down. As an omega, he was more sensitive to pheromones. He could still smell the lingering sandalwood scent on Xu Cong, strong and aggressive. He didn’t like it, but it blended well with Xia Yan’s scent.
A guess had already formed in his mind, and he quickly prepared another test form, much simpler than the one for Xia Yan.
“You should also get your pheromones tested,” he said to Xu Cong.
After saying that, he took Xia Yan away for the check-up.
To avoid drawing attention, he did everything himself, but he didn’t bother with Xu Cong.
Now, with the night deepening and the hospital relatively empty, Xu Cong quickly returned to Dr. Tu Lan’s office after getting his blood drawn.
None of them were small-time celebrities. With their striking faces, it was not ideal for them to run around outside.
Jiang Chuxin also stayed there.
Although there was no real reason for him to be at the hospital, he stubbornly refused to leave, choosing instead to stay as a sort of guard at the door.
In the small doctor’s office, there were two alphas who didn’t get along, and the window of the door was covered with a small curtain, isolating the room from the outside.
The atmosphere in the room felt thick like glue, nearly impossible to move.
Xu Cong was texting Bai Yu.
Bai Yu was already on his way. He had received Dr. Li’s frantic calls, and it was hard to say if Dr. Li had been intentionally making him rush, but he immediately jumped out of bed.
Xu Cong was updating him, telling him not to worry.
But Bai Yu seemed to be on the verge of an anxiety attack. He even started to regret if he hadn’t been sincere enough when burning incense recently or if the direction of the table at his house was wrong, which might have caused so many troubles for Xia Yan recently.
Xu Cong: “…”
It wasn’t that serious.
Jiang Chuxin, sitting with his arms crossed, coldly watched Xu Cong texting.
He had nothing to do now. It was late, and his friends were either indulging in fun or sleeping.
The only living creature within a ten-meter radius from him was Xu Cong.
He looked at Xu Cong coldly and suddenly asked in a chilling tone, “I say, you and Xia Yan—one’s an alpha, and one’s an omega. Although you’re teammates, shouldn’t there be some distance between you?”
Xu Cong had just closed the chat with Bai Yu, and his phone screen now showed an old news article about a beta in another country suddenly differentiating into an omega.
He looked up at Jiang Chuxin with a gaze full of undisguised hostility.
Jiang Chu Xin still had his arms crossed.
Under Xu Cong’s gaze, he felt uncomfortable, because if it came to a fight, he certainly wouldn’t be a match for Xu Cong.
But he still maintained an indifferent attitude, no longer having the foolish demeanor of a country bumpkin from the variety show.
He lifted his chin and said without courtesy, “Xia Yan used to be an alpha, so he doesn’t know any better, but you should. Even though you two are different genders, you’re hugging each other like this without any sense of boundaries. Are you treating him like a buddy, or do you have ulterior motives for Xia Yan?”
Xu Cong stared at Jiang Chuxin for a while.
He thought about what Ling Du had said, realizing he hadn’t concealed his feelings for Xia Yan well enough.
Two people had already figured out his intentions toward Xia Yan that night.
But he wasn’t flustered at all. Instead, he arrogantly responded, “What’s it to you?”
Jiang Chuxin was stunned.
He didn’t expect Xu Cong to admit it so openly.
“You’re disgusting…” His expression grew more repulsed. “Xia Yan still thinks of you as a buddy. You two are even in the same group. You’re really despicable.”
Xu Cong leisurely looked at Jiang Chuxin. “Whether I’m despicable or not, that’s between me and Xia Yan. It’s none of your business.”
Xu Cong’s dark eyes were filled with obvious mockery. “You can try telling Xia Yan to stay away from me, to guard against me, and maybe even kick me out of his life. Let’s see if he will listen to you.”
Jiang Chuxin was dumbfounded. He had never met such a shameless person before.
He looked at Xu Cong in disbelief. “You’re just relying on Xia Yan’s trust in you…”
“Yes, I am relying on the fact that Xia Yan can’t live without me,” Xu Cong calmly interjected. “I’ve been with him since we were teenagers. I’ve been there for every moment of his life. So no matter what you say or do, Xia Yan will always choose me.”
“But you…” Xu Cong slightly tilted his head, giving Jiang Chuxin a sarcastic look. “Why are you so concerned about Xia Yan’s matters? He has beaten you up before and had no mercy on you. So why do you care about him so much?”
Jiang Chuxin immediately looked like he had been stepped on the tail: “Who cares about him?! I just…”
But when he met Xu Cong’s cold and mocking gaze, it felt as if his throat was being choked, and the rest of his sentence suddenly went silent.
Xu Cong, his legs crossed, arms resting on the armrest, already had a height advantage over Jiang Chuxin even while sitting. His broad shoulders and straight legs, coupled with the natural arrogance in his posture, made his presence commanding.
He looked down at Jiang Chuxin, his voice cold: “You’d better keep your filthy thoughts to yourself.”
“You’re not the first alpha to be attracted to Xia Yan, and you won’t be the last. But I advise you not to waste your time with pointless fantasies. Xia Yan would never like someone who’s been rude to him, who has bullied his teammates, and who’s so weak they can’t even handle his pheromones. Even if you follow him to the hospital, what good does it do? Has Xia Yan even looked at you?”
The final sentence was the knockout blow.
Jiang Chuxin’s face even turned pale.
To say he had deep feelings for Xia Yan seemed somewhat far-fetched—it was more of a strange fantasy that had emerged from a dark cave by the sea.
And the faint scent of roses that quietly entered his dreams sometimes made him feel disoriented, unable to believe that he could care for such a fierce omega, but he couldn’t help but steal glances.
He knew he had little chance, but everyone has their small fantasies.
But now, that little fantasy had been ruthlessly shattered by Xu Cong.
Including the unspoken admiration he had been hiding.
“He doesn’t like me, so what? Does that mean he’ll like you?” Jiang Chuxin blurted out in anger.
He was frustrated, as his inner secrets had been exposed, leaving him feeling embarrassed.
Xu Cong’s expression remained unchanged.
He recalled that Ling Du had asked him a similar question earlier that night.
But since the person in front of him was Jiang Chuxin, his answer was different.
He curled his lips slightly and said in a low voice, “It’s hard to say, but at least for now, the one by his side, occupying an important position, is me.”
For the next hour or so, neither of them spoke another word.
Jiang Chuxin silently scrolled through his phone, his expression dark as if he were trying to set the screen on fire. Xu Cong, on the other hand, took a medical journal from the bookshelf and started reading about cardiac bypass surgery with a blank expression.
As the clock ticked on, the office door finally opened again, and Dr. Tu Lan, with his round face and good temper, entered, relieving the tense atmosphere between the two alphas who clearly couldn’t stand each other.
“Xia Yan’s test results are out,” Dr. Tu Lan began. “There are no major issues. His symptoms have subsided, and there’s no damage to his glands. Physically, he’s fine. However, he is still a bit weak, so I’ve arranged a hospital room for him on the 17th floor, room 1703. He needs to be under observation for a day, but he can be discharged tomorrow if everything looks good.”
Dr. Tu pushed his glasses up and then addressed Xu Cong, “Your pheromone test results aren’t out yet, so you’ll need to wait a little longer. But in the meantime, you can visit the patient upstairs.”
Hearing this, Xu Cong immediately stood up. “Thank you, Doctor. I’ll go check on him now.”
Jiang Chuxin hesitated for a moment but eventually stood up as well. Once again, like back at the seaside inn, he ended up squeezing into the same elevator as Xu Cong.
Xu Cong glanced at him and said indifferently, “Your shamelessness never ceases to amaze me.”
Jiang Chuxin’s face flushed, but he stubbornly retorted, “I’m following you to ensure you don’t get any alone time with Xia Yan. No matter how righteous you sound, there’s no guarantee you won’t take advantage of him. Once your manager arrives, I’ll leave.”
This response surprised Xu Cong slightly. He gave Jiang Chuxin a sidelong glance but said nothing.
