A Fishing-Type Omega Always Wants to Possess Me - Chapter 17

Yu Mianzhou stood directly behind the door, her expression perfectly calm.

Most of the intense mint pheromones in the room had already subsided, leaving only the faintest trace lingering beneath Gu Wanlan’s nose.

Gu Wanlan immediately looked past her and swept her gaze across the room.

The space was not especially large and could be taken in at a glance.

The door to the walk-in wardrobe stood open. The clothes inside were somewhat disordered, and several suitcases lay open across the floor.

It truly did look as though Yu Mianzhou had been packing, just as she claimed.

There was no one else inside.

Yu Mianzhou watched her silently, her back perfectly straight, like an emotionless statue.

She neither stopped Gu Wanlan nor offered an explanation.

Only after thoroughly inspecting the room and confirming that nothing seemed unusual did Gu Wanlan’s suspended heart inexplicably settle.

A moment later, however, guilt belatedly rose within her.

“I’m sorry, Mianzhou. I was too anxious just now. I was afraid something had happened to you, so I acted recklessly.”

She had attempted to force her way into someone else’s room and had looked around as though conducting a search.

Her behavior had been extremely presumptuous.

Yu Mianzhou shook her head. Her voice was flat and devoid of any fluctuation.

“Miss Gu, what did you want to discuss about last night’s project proposal?”

Her distant tone left Gu Wanlan momentarily speechless.

“It’s—It’s nothing urgent. You should finish packing first. We can discuss the proposal later.”

Despite saying that, her feet seemed filled with lead, and she remained rooted to the spot.

She pressed her lips together but ultimately could not resist asking softly:

“Mianzhou, have you noticed the smell inside your room?”

“It’s a new perfume,” Yu Mianzhou answered immediately. “Mint scented. They said it smells similar to pheromones and helps keep you alert.”

So that was it.

Gu Wanlan nodded, privately thinking that she had been far too suspicious.

Yu Mianzhou heard an extremely faint rustling sound from inside the wardrobe.

A smile appeared on her face, but there was nothing warm about it. It resembled a programmed expression on a machine.

“Is there anything else, Miss Gu?”

The intention to dismiss her could not have been clearer.

“No, that’s all.”

Gu Wanlan returned to her senses and turned to leave.

“Continue packing. I won’t disturb you any longer.”

After going downstairs, Gu Wanlan had just reached the corner of the second floor when she stopped and called to a maid below.

“Your Eldest Young Miss entered her room quite some time ago, but there hasn’t been any movement.”

She frowned, an appropriate degree of concern appearing on her face.

“I’m afraid something may have happened to her.”

The maid’s face immediately turned pale.

“Please wait a moment, Miss Gu! I’ll get the spare key!”

She soon returned at a run with a ring of keys.

Gu Wanlan took them and hurried to Jiang Zhi’s bedroom door. She inserted the appropriate key and was about to turn it when—

Click.

The door was pulled open from inside.

Seeing Jiang Zhi standing before her with a faintly gloomy expression, Gu Wanlan was first startled, then released a complete sigh of relief.

She could not stop herself from stepping forward and gripping Jiang Zhi’s wrist.

“Zhizhi, thank goodness you’re all right. You nearly frightened me to death.”

Her gaze traveled across Jiang Zhi before she asked:

“Why did you suddenly change your clothes?”

Jiang Zhi’s gaze slowly moved down from Gu Wanlan’s face.

It passed over the hand tightly gripping her wrist before finally settling upon the ring of keys in Gu Wanlan’s other hand.

The corner of her mouth lifted slightly into an extremely faint, icy smile.

Her voice was as soft as a feather.

“There’s nothing for you to do here. You may leave.”

Those words were directed at the maid behind Gu Wanlan, who had kept her head lowered and hardly dared breathe.

The maid looked as though she had been granted a pardon and immediately bowed.

“Yes, Eldest Young Miss.”

Once the maid left, Gu Wanlan visibly relaxed and smiled gently.

“Why wouldn’t you open the door earlier? What were you doing inside? You have no idea how worried I was—”

She never finished.

In the next instant, the keys were snatched from her hand.

With a flick of her wrist, Jiang Zhi hurled the ring of metal keys directly into Gu Wanlan’s face.

The sharp teeth scraped across her jaw, leaving behind a thin line of blood.

The keys then fell to the floor with a clear metallic clang.

A warm bead of blood emerged.

Gu Wanlan froze completely, as though she had been encased in ice.

Then she heard Jiang Zhi speak.

“Who gave you the courage to enter my room?”

Her voice remained gentle, carrying no discernible anger.

Yet it resembled a sharpened knife, precisely slicing apart Gu Wanlan’s courteous and refined facade.

A bone-piercing chill ran down her back.

Panic spread from her spine into every limb, leaving her entire body numb and even making her breathing cautious.

She seemed to become an entirely different person.

All the pride and dignity belonging to a top-tier Alpha shattered completely before Jiang Zhi, leaving behind a submissive desire to please her.

“I was only… worried about you.”

“I don’t need your concern.”

Jiang Zhi laughed coldly.

“You only need to complete the tasks I assign you.”

She stepped closer, forcing Gu Wanlan backward with her presence.

“Remember your position.”

Gu Wanlan’s eyelashes trembled.

Her lips parted, but in the end, she produced only one quiet syllable.

“…All right.”

Jiang Zhi told her to take the keys and get out of her sight, then shut the door.

The heavy panel separated her from everything outside.

Jiang Zhi turned and looked toward her wardrobe.

Inside was a hidden passage leading to Yu Mianzhou’s room upstairs.

The ivory dress she had just removed still lay across the bed.

She remembered how, amid Gu Wanlan’s frantic knocking, Yu Mianzhou had coldly picked her up and thrown her into the pitch-black passage.

Jiang Zhi pressed a hand against the waist she had struck during the fall.

After several seconds of silence, she suddenly laughed.

As though she had gone mad with anger.

That little brat was actually carrying medicine around with her.

Was she really that wary of Jiang Zhi?

But everything in the world had its limits.

How many times could that medicine suppress her?

Sooner or later, Jiang Zhi would live to see the day Yu Mianzhou lost control completely.

Yu Shu had hardly left the Jiang residence during the years she lived there.

Yu Mianzhou had finally returned, only to announce that she was moving out after staying for merely a few days.

Perhaps something about it had struck a nerve, because Yu Shu suddenly began imitating other mothers and offering concern and advice.

“Mianzhou, once you find somewhere to live, you must tell me. I want to visit and see the place.”

Her voice trembled as she held Yu Mianzhou’s hand.

“When you’re living alone, remember to take good care of yourself. Don’t always stay up late, and eat your meals on time.”

Before they left, she even held Joyce’s hand and seemed reluctant to let either of them go.

“Can’t you stay for a few more days?”

Pleading filled Yu Shu’s eyes as she looked at Yu Mianzhou.

Joyce glanced at her.

Yu Mianzhou merely stood quietly nearby, her expression indifferent, as though she had not noticed her mother’s plea at all.

Joyce therefore had no choice but to comfort Yu Shu with a smile before finally convincing her to let them leave.

Yu Shu seemed to realize that Yu Mianzhou had already made up her mind.

She wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and retrieved an insulated food container from the kitchen.

Pressing it into Yu Mianzhou’s hands, she said earnestly:

“Mianzhou, you’re no longer young. Settle down with Joyce soon. Once you’re married, my life will finally be complete…”

Yu Mianzhou directly accepted the container, turned, and left with Joyce.

Inside the car, Joyce remained silent for a long time.

Eventually, she said:

“Your mother doesn’t seem to want you to leave.”

Yu Mianzhou knew that although Joyce appeared thoughtless and carefree, like a spoiled young heiress, she was actually extremely perceptive.

She glanced toward the insulated container on the back seat.

Inside were the sweet fermented-rice dumplings Yu Shu had woken early to prepare specially for her.

They had been Yu Mianzhou’s favorite dessert as a child.

“I left whether she wanted me to or not,” Yu Mianzhou said.

“Doesn’t that make you sad?” Joyce asked.

“There’s nothing to be sad about.”

Yu Mianzhou had long accepted the fact that compared with her own daughter, Yu Shu loved wealth and status more.

It was only human nature.

She had become accustomed to it long ago.

Joyce asked again:

“Then why do you look so unwell?”

Yu Mianzhou could not stop herself from pressing her lips together.

The scent of lychee seemed to remain upon them, sweet, cloying, and scorching.

That wet heat lingered like a brand she could not erase.

“It may be a side effect of the special medication,” she said.

Special medication?

Joyce distinctly remembered that Yu Mianzhou’s rut was not due for another ten days.

Why would she suddenly need to take that?

She found it strange but did not question her further.

Over the next several days, Yu Mianzhou continued looking at apartments.

Joyce asked around and found three that met her requirements. In the end, Yu Mianzhou chose one close to the company.

Although it was not especially large, the surroundings were quiet and pleasant. More importantly, it was near the office, making commuting convenient.

Yu Mianzhou had been abroad for so long that she did not possess many belongings at home.

Joyce also helped purchase numerous daily necessities.

Just like that, Yu Mianzhou settled into the modest apartment.

She did not return to the Jiang residence to collect the rest of her things.

Her life seemed to become peaceful for the time being.

Yu Mianzhou poured all her energy into her work.

She liked the sensation of working.

Every number and every line of logic was visible and clear.

By the time she returned to her senses, another weekend had arrived.

Yu Mianzhou was working at her desk.

She originally had a private office, but recently she had suddenly moved outside and begun working in the open area with everyone else.

Ling Yuetao approached and asked whether she truly would not attend the Qingye Orchestra’s concert that evening.

If Yu Mianzhou wanted to go, Ling Yuetao could try to obtain another ticket.

“I’m not going. I don’t have time.”

Yu Mianzhou moved her gaze away from the computer.

“You all go. As we agreed before, you can take paid leave this afternoon.”

Ling Yuetao let out a disappointed “Oh” and was about to leave when a voice came from the office entrance.

“Excuse me, is Miss Yu Mianzhou here?”

Everyone turned toward the sound.

A woman in a dark-blue suit stood at the doorway, wearing exquisite makeup and a smile.

Ling Yuetao did not identify Yu Mianzhou immediately. Instead, she asked warily:

“Why are you looking for her?”

The woman took out her identification, and her smile deepened.

“I’m a manager from the Qingye Orchestra. Miss Yu Mianzhou previously entered one of our orchestra’s prize drawings and won the grand prize.”

Her words immediately aroused everyone’s curiosity.

The manager continued:

“The grand prize consists of several SVIP tickets for tonight’s performance. Not only are the seats excellent, but the guests will also be permitted backstage to interact closely with the musicians.”

“What?!”

Ling Yuetao’s eyes lit up, her voice filled with disbelieving excitement.

“SVIP tickets?! Does that… Does that include meeting Jiang Zhi?”

The manager nodded politely.

“Of course.”

The instant she said that, everyone in the office looked over.

How popular was Jiang Zhi?

Two years earlier, there had been a public vote for the nation’s first-love Omega.

It had originally been intended for celebrities in the entertainment industry. Then one of Jiang Zhi’s fans had a sudden idea and uploaded a video of one of her performances.

In the video, Jiang Zhi emerged from the mist in a white dress, arriving together with Songcheng’s first snowfall.

In only one night, she surpassed every celebrity candidate by an overwhelming margin of twenty million votes and took first place.

From that day onward, Jiang Zhi became synonymous with the nation’s first-love Omega and gained countless admirers.

Whether Alpha or Beta, anyone who had seen Jiang Zhi perform found it difficult not to be drawn to her.

Lunn suddenly spoke, expectation filling her voice.

“How many tickets are there? Can all of us go?”

They were SVIP tickets!

Then she remembered that Yu Mianzhou had just said she was unavailable and hesitated.

“Mianzhou, this afternoon…”

The manager seemed to have anticipated the question.

“Please don’t worry. There will be enough tickets for everyone. However, Miss Yu Mianzhou is the official winner. If she does not attend personally, I’m afraid the tickets cannot be redeemed.”

She looked respectfully toward Yu Mianzhou.

“Miss Yu, are you free this evening? If so, a private car is already waiting downstairs and can take you and your friends directly to the performance venue at any time.”