Chapter 2

“Chi Yang, whether you believe me or not, what happened yesterday really wasn’t what I intended.” Pei Jiuyao lowered her eyes and thought about how she had felt the night before. “I think I was drugged.”

“Drugged?” Chi Yang clutched the quilt tightly and sneered. “Isn’t it always you, Pei Jiuyao, who drugs other people?”

Although Chi Yang had differentiated into an Omega, she had always been cautious. She wasn’t due for a heat anytime soon, and she had only had a small drink at a social engagement the night before. Yet she had woken up in heat on Pei Jiuyao’s bed. How could she not be suspicious?

At the thought, Chi Yang quickly looked up at Pei Jiuyao, her eyes fierce and slightly red.

Pei Jiuyao felt a little apprehensive. She had the distinct impression that if there were any sharp objects nearby, Chi Yang would have run her through already.

She nudged the phone Chi Yang had thrown at her farther away with her foot. Knowing she was in the wrong, she lowered her head and apologized quietly. “I’m sorry. No matter what, last night was my fault. Are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere?”

Chi Yang didn’t answer.

Pei Jiuyao cautiously raised her head to study Chi Yang’s expression, but her gaze involuntarily fell on her collarbones. The expanse of skin across her chest was so pale that it seemed almost silvery in the sunlight.

A strange feeling suddenly rose in her chest.

She froze for a moment, then asked awkwardly, “How about I get you some clothes first?”

The sheer white dress Chi Yang had worn the night before had been violently torn to pieces by Chi Yang herself. She had clearly been so forward last night, yet today she was fiercely hostile.

The little fox had turned into a cold beauty in [stolen content]an instant, leaving Pei Jiuyao even more baffled about what Chi Yang was thinking.

Then again, Pei Jiuyao only had to run through a few of the original owner’s terrible deeds in her head to begin sympathizing with Chi Yang.

And that was without having fully recovered the original owner’s memories.

As more memories kept surfacing, Pei Jiuyao recalled that this villa was one of the original owner’s properties. She didn’t often stay here, only coming to throw parties or… find various Omegas to spend the night with.

Unfortunately, the original owner had a gambling habit, and the property was eventually sold to pay off her debts.

Pei Jiuyao rummaged through the wardrobe, took out a shirt and a pair of soft casual pants, and handed them to Chi Yang.

Looking apologetic, she said, “Sorry, there aren’t any dresses here. My pants might be a little long on you.”

Chi Yang’s brows twitched. She stared at Pei Jiuyao, a hint of surprise in her eyes.

As far as she knew, Pei Jiuyao had many bed partners and certainly wasn’t the type to look after the other person the morning after, much less apologize.

Yet now Pei Jiuyao had actually apologized of her own accord, brought her clean clothes, and even spoken to her so gently.

Hadn’t she always hated her? Since when had she ever treated her so kindly?

But when she thought of what had happened the night before, Chi Yang’s expression remained sour. She refused to believe Pei Jiuyao had nothing to do with it.

Chi Yang quickly snatched the clothes and pulled them under the quilt.

Her cool eyes were light in color, like pale brown glass beads. She stared at Pei Jiuyao, momentarily at a loss, then parted her red lips and said coolly, “Why are you still standing here?”

“Oh.” Pei Jiuyao bent down to pick up the phone and went out, gently closing the door behind her.

She sat on the sofa and pressed the phone’s power button, but the battery was dead. A copy of The Classic of Mountains and Seas: Annotated lay on the table. Pei Jiuyao idly flipped through it and discovered that she couldn’t recognize more than half the characters.

That couldn’t be right.

Although Pei Jiuyao was an actress, she had graduated from the Chinese department of a top university. She hadn’t trained formally in acting, and even if her Chinese had gotten rusty, she couldn’t possibly have forgotten everything she learned in school.

Was her head still not clear?

Pei Jiuyao put the book down, raised her head, and knocked hard on it. A buzzing rang through her skull again, and she drew a sharp breath at the pain.

Just then, a muffled thud came from the room, followed by a pained groan from Chi Yang. Pei Jiuyao hurried to her feet and ran over. When she pushed open the door, she saw Chi Yang kneeling on one knee on the floor, having stepped on the hem of the pants.

Pei Jiuyao quickly went to help her up, chuckling. “Didn’t I say the clothes were a little long? You should have been more careful.”

Chi Yang tilted her head and glared up at her, her face full of resentment.

Pei Jiuyao immediately stopped smiling and asked cautiously, “Shall I help you up, then?”

As she spoke, she carefully took Chi Yang by the arm and gently helped her to her feet.

Chi Yang tried to struggle, but Pei Jiuyao lowered her voice and coaxed her, “Don’t push yourself right now.”

“You said someone drugged you yesterday?” Chi Yang’s voice was still icy as she leaned on Pei Jiuyao’s arm and struggled to stand.

Pei Jiuyao gave a quiet hum of agreement and obediently stood still, not daring to upset Chi Yang again.

She was half a head taller than Chi Yang and had a larger frame. Her clothes hung loosely on Chi Yang, making her look pitifully delicate, as though a gust of wind might blow her over.

After letting go of Pei Jiuyao, Chi Yang took two unsteady steps. Just as she looked about to fall, Pei Jiuyao reached out to support her, but Chi Yang instinctively pushed her away.

She failed to push Pei Jiuyao aside. Instead, her own legs gave way, and she collapsed weakly against her.

Chi Yang’s breathing instantly grew uneven. She could smell the strong pheromones that still lingered in the room.

She had received a temporary marking last night, so by rights she shouldn’t have felt this uncomfortable after waking up. Why did it seem as if she was going into heat again?

Chi Yang couldn’t help letting out a soft gasp. Embarrassment flashed across her face, and she clenched her teeth.

She tried to push Pei Jiuyao away, but her palm rested weakly against her shoulder.

Pei Jiuyao saw a flush spread across Chi Yang’s cheeks again.

Her eyes, which had initially been fierce and merciless, gradually reddened and filled ​Read on BaiLianTales​with moisture. She looked at Pei Jiuyao with an increasingly dazed expression, shrinking helplessly into her arms.

Pei Jiuyao’s breath caught. Her voice was a little panicked as she asked, “Chi Yang, what’s wrong? Are you okay?”

Chi Yang bit her lip. “Get out. Don’t touch me…”

Pei Jiuyao gently placed the back of her hand against Chi Yang’s forehead, and Chi Yang’s whole body shuddered at the touch.

“You have a fever.” Pei Jiuyao frowned slightly. “We’re going to the hospital.”

She was about to pick Chi Yang up when Chi Yang silently repeated the words “go to the hospital.” Suddenly, she wrenched herself free and fell to the floor. Ignoring the pain, she quickly scrambled back toward the bed.

“What are you afraid of? I’m not going to eat you!”

Pei Jiuyao raised her voice in her anxiety, and Chi Yang’s shoulders immediately trembled.

The fierce expression she had worn moments ago vanished. Her eyes reddened, and she murmured, “You yelled at me…”

Pei Jiuyao froze again. A moment ago, she had been a cold beauty glaring as though she wanted to cut her down. How had she suddenly turned into a helpless little fox again?

She could only move closer and coax Chi Yang gently once more. “What happened last night was my fault, but I really don’t mean you any harm. You’re sick. Let’s go to the hospital first, okay?”

“We can’t go to the hospital.” Chi Yang’s voice had grown breathy again, and the thin tips of her ears were red and translucent. Her fingers scratched lightly at the bedsheet.

Pei Jiuyao pressed her lips together.

What kind of little animal behaved like this? She wanted so badly to curl her into a ball and carry her away.

Strange. Why was she thinking that?

While she was lost in thought, Chi Yang lowered her head and said quietly, “They’ll find out.”

They… She had almost forgotten that Chi Yang was an actress too. If she took her to the hospital without thinking, wouldn’t the reporters swarm them?

Seeing Chi Yang’s skin grow redder and her gaze increasingly unfocused, Pei Jiuyao gently prompted her, “You must have a private doctor, then. Give me your phone. I’ll call for you.”

“Doctor… doctor…” Chi Yang stared at Pei Jiuyao, her lashes fluttering as her fingers tightened around her clothes.

It took about half a minute before Chi Yang took out her phone. With trembling fingers, she found a number and handed it to Pei Jiuyao.

Pei Jiuyao saw that the contact was saved as “Ying Ning.” She glanced at it, then dialed. The call was answered quickly.

Pei Jiuyao asked, “Are you Miss Chi Yang’s private doctor?”

There was a two-second pause before a very steady voice replied, “I’m a doctor, but I wouldn’t call myself her private doctor.”

“Chi Yang has a fever,” Pei Jiuyao said. “Could you please come over?”

A trace of alarm entered the low voice on the other end. “Where are you?”

Pei Jiuyao was about to give her the address when Chi Yang suddenly grabbed her wrist.

She paused and handed the phone over. Chi Yang said weakly into it, “Ningning, we’ll come to you.”

The pheromone scent in the room was strong enough to sting the nose.

Chi Yang knew that if she stayed in the villa any longer, Ying Ning would most likely arrive to find that she had lost control again and gone to bed with Pei Jiuyao.

Although Pei Jiuyao didn’t understand why Chi Yang insisted on making the difficult trip to the hospital, it was natural that she wouldn’t want to stay here after what had happened last night.

She silently went over and helped Chi Yang up, not wanting to upset her again.

Chi Yang struggled, insisting on walking by herself, but Pei Jiuyao wrapped a hand around her slender waist. “I told you, don’t push yourself right now. I won’t hurt you.”

Her body was completely out of control. Chi Yang clutched her clothes tightly, struggling to hold on to what little reason she had left in the confusion following an Omega’s marking, keeping herself from throwing herself at Pei Jiuyao.

Her voice was soft, but she still said fiercely, “Someone like you can’t be trusted.”

“I know, but right now, you have no choice but to trust me,” Pei Jiuyao replied softly.

Feeling Chi Yang grow heavier against her, her legs too weak to hold her up, Pei Jiuyao simply scooped an arm beneath her knees and lifted her into her arms. She grabbed the car keys on the way and headed for the garage.

Chi Yang let out a startled cry and bit down on her finger. The mist in her eyes nearly covered their pale, glasslike surfaces in a thin film.

Pei Jiuyao comforted her gently. “If you’re scared, hold on to me.”

With that, she carried her toward the garage.

Chi Yang believed she ought to hate this person.

But for some reason, perhaps because her body was too sensitive today and she had little control over herself while in heat, Pei Jiuyao’s voice actually sounded reassuring.

The body holding her felt reassuring too.

Chi Yang really hated being an Omega.

When she had been an Alpha, she’d had susceptible periods too, but they hadn’t occurred easily. Yet she had somehow undergone a second differentiation into an Omega, and just happened to end up with Pei Jiuyao…

Chi Yang would rather have been a Beta. An Omega’s instincts always overpowered reason. Just because the Alpha who had temporarily marked her had raised her voice at her, Chi Yang had actually wanted to cry.

The state she was in now made her feel utterly ashamed.

When Pei Jiuyao set Chi Yang down in the passenger seat, Chi Yang instinctively reached for her, but her hand stopped in midair, and she stubbornly pulled it back.

She fought the urge to embrace Pei Jiuyao, biting her finger until it bled.

Pei Jiuyao assumed Chi Yang was feeling terribly unwell but was too stubborn to ask stolen contentfor help. All she could do was stroke her hair reassuringly. “Don’t be afraid. We’ll be at the hospital soon.”

Chi Yang murmured a response and curled up in the seat.

After getting into the car, Pei Jiuyao fastened Chi Yang’s seat belt and drove to the address Ying Ning had sent.