After Appearing on a Dating Show with a Top-Star Omega - Chapter 13

After finishing the meal, Jiang Yuan placed the dishes in the pot to keep them warm.

She quietly came to the bedroom.

The blanket was puffed up into a small mound, already covering the person’s face.

The corners of Jiang Yuan’s lips curved, and she murmured softly to herself, “What if you suffocate?”

She raised her hand and gently pulled the blanket down.

The cotton blanket slipped down, revealing a fair, clean face.

Amber eyes shimmered with broken light. Once the covering was moved away, they stared straight at Jiang Yuan.

Their gazes met. They were extremely close, so close that even their breathing seemed to tangle together.

Yu Qingshi curved her eyes. “Should I… not have had my eyes open?”

Jiang Yuan’s face instantly flushed red. Thinking that her words had been heard, her face filled with embarrassment. “Qing-Qingshi, you’re awake?”

“Mm.” Yu Qingshi sat up. She looked much better. “I’m much better now. Thank you, Yuanyuan.”

Jiang Yuan’s gaze darted around, not daring to meet her eyes. “Th-then let’s eat. It’s ready.”

“Yuanyuan, wait for me for a bit. I’ll change clothes.”

After falling seriously ill, Yu Qingshi’s sleepwear had long since been dampened with sweat, leaving her sticky and uncomfortable.

“Okay. Then I’ll go bring out the dishes first.” Jiang Yuan did not look back and quickly slipped out.

Before long, the table was filled with all kinds of dishes.

Shrimp and egg custard, steamed sea bass, steamed bok choy with mushrooms, and more.

Under the warm light, everything had a soft, glossy sheen, complete in color, fragrance, and flavor.

As soon as Yu Qingshi entered the living room, she smelled the aroma rushing toward her.

She leaned closer to look. The dishes on the table were colorful, fragrant, delicate, and tempting, enough to make one’s appetite stir.

But at a glance, all of them were light dishes.

Yu Qingshi had not fully recovered from being sick, and for some reason, she felt wronged. She pouted. “Yuanyuan lied.”

“Mm? What’s wrong?” Jiang Yuan was puzzled. She lowered her eyes and looked at Yu Qingshi’s slightly puffed cheeks.

Her heart itched. She wanted to pinch them.

“These are all light dishes. They’re not delicious.” Even as Yu Qingshi said that, she honestly scooped up a bite of shrimp and put it into her mouth.

Then her eyes lit up. She scooped another bite, then another…

“Qingshi is sick, so you still need to eat something light. But…”

On the wooden table, there was one dish covered with a white porcelain plate, hiding what it looked like.

Jiang Yuan raised her hand and lifted the plate keeping it warm. Her voice was bright. “Since I promised Qingshi, there’s also this.”

The final dish was revealed. Chicken wings were wrapped in a honey-colored sauce, paired with soft, plump rice cakes. Glossy and bright, it was obvious at a glance how delicious it was.

“Rice cake and chicken wing casserole!” Yu Qingshi was pleasantly surprised. Her eyes shone as she looked at Jiang Yuan. “Yuanyuan knows how to make this too?”

Jiang Yuan felt embarrassed under her gaze. She pressed her lips into a smile. “The curry rice place still had the contact information of the previous shop. After I added them as a friend, I asked for the recipe.”

“But I changed some things. It should taste a lot lighter.”

“But…”

Jiang Yuan forced herself to withstand Yu Qingshi’s expectant gaze and cruelly continued, “You can only eat one rice cake and one chicken wing.”

“Ah?” Yu Qingshi’s voice was dejected, her tone dropping instantly.

Right in front of Jiang Yuan, she picked up a fork and speared two chicken wings at once.

Yu Qingshi held them in front of herself, her eyes bright as she signaled for Jiang Yuan to look. She seemed to be arguing sophistically: the chicken wings had jumped onto the fork by themselves.

“Can I have two?” Yu Qingshi asked weakly.

She was sick, so her voice was weak and soft. She even dragged out the ending, making it sound like she was acting spoiled.

But precisely because of that voice, Jiang Yuan, who was usually softhearted, instantly became as firm as iron. She neatly picked one away with her chopsticks. “No. You can eat more after you recover.”

“Bad Yuanyuan,” Yu Qingshi murmured softly.

She fiercely bit into the chicken wing. The meat was tender, and the rich fragrance spread through her mouth when she bit down. Paired with the sweet and spicy sauce, it was unbelievably delicious, almost exactly the same as the taste in her memories.

Yu Qingshi restrained herself, not letting it show, and continued negotiating. “When I get better, I want to eat six.”

“You can eat a hundred if you want.” Jiang Yuan placed a piece of rice cake into Yu Qingshi’s bowl, then covered the dish again, directly cutting off Yu Qingshi’s pitiful, longing gaze.

Yu Qingshi ate in small bites, her mood pleasant.

Her pheromones fluctuated along with it. The magnolia fragrance surged out freely, gradually becoming richer.

Jiang Yuan was the first to notice. She frowned. “Qingshi sprayed perfume?”

“No.” Yu Qingshi licked the sauce from her lips and shook her head in confusion.

Jiang Yuan only thought she had accidentally picked up the scent while changing clothes, and reminded her, “I smelled magnolia. You’re sick right now. Perfume contains chemical ingredients and might irritate—”

“Clink—”

The sound of metal colliding with porcelain rang out sharply, interrupting Jiang Yuan’s unfinished words.

Yu Qingshi instinctively touched her neck.

Her neck was smooth and slightly protruding, but there was nothing there.

She had forgotten to put on her suppressant patch.

When she usually went out, Yu Qingshi always wore a suppressant patch. Today, after changing clothes, she had thrown away the old one but had not put on a new one.

Jiang Yuan immediately grew nervous. She walked to Yu Qingshi’s side. “What’s wrong??? Are you feeling unwell???”

Yu Qingshi stared blankly at Jiang Yuan, not knowing what to ask for a moment. Only after a long while did she open her mouth. “You… you can smell it?”

“What?” Jiang Yuan’s eyes were clear. Still, she obediently nodded. “The fragrance? I can.”

Since Jiang Yuan was crouching beside her, Yu Qingshi could touch her by simply reaching out. She raised her hand and touched the back of Jiang Yuan’s neck. It was smooth and flat, with no gland.

Jiang Yuan tilted her head in confusion, but she stayed completely still and let Yu Qingshi move.

“A Beta… How can a Beta smell pheromones?” Yu Qingshi was shocked.

“Pheromones?” Jiang Yuan was awakened by that one word. “This… this is pheromones?!”

Ever since learning what kind of world this was, she had looked into pheromones.

Pheromones were released by Alpha and Omega glands, and only Alphas and Omegas could smell them. Betas had no glands and no pheromones, so naturally, they could not smell them.

What she smelled was pheromones?!

After staring blankly for a few seconds, Jiang Yuan suddenly understood.

She was not a Beta. She was just an ordinary person who had come to this world, and this was her own body.

“Do you have a fever? How do you feel right now? Are you uncomfortable?” The situation suddenly changed. Yu Qingshi held Jiang Yuan’s face, asking with concern. “You’re already past the differentiation period, so how could this happen? I’ll take you to the hospital right now.”

As she spoke, Yu Qingshi pulled Jiang Yuan to her feet. She did not even plan to change clothes before taking her out.

“Wait.” Jiang Yuan held down Yu Qingshi’s hand. She herself knew very clearly why this was happening.

Besides.

Jiang Yuan’s gaze moved downward and landed on their joined hands.

Yu Qingshi’s hand was small and delicate, interlocked with hers, almost burrowing into her palm.

Their palms were warm, the heat passing between them. But because Yu Qingshi was sick, there was almost no strength in her hand. She was only holding Jiang Yuan loosely.

Jiang Yuan slowly pulled her hand down. “You’re still sick. You can’t go out.”

“I’ll go by myself.”

＊

After they finished eating, the two placed the dishes and chopsticks into the dishwasher. Only after Jiang Yuan confirmed again that Yu Qingshi no longer had a fever did she leave.

She called a taxi and headed to the hospital Yu Qingshi had mentioned.

It was still that private hospital.

Doctor Lü had already learned the situation over the phone and had prepared the relevant tools.

She got straight to the point. “Miss Jiang, you can smell pheromones?”

Jiang Yuan sat awkwardly. “Yes.”

Lü Zeqing placed several bottles and jars on the table. “You don’t need to be nervous. I prepared some samples. You only need to smell them and tell me what you sense.”

She casually pointed to one.

Jiang Yuan picked it up.

The glass bottle was well sealed. From the outside, it seemed to contain nothing.

She slowly opened the stopper, and thousands of transparent molecules instantly wrapped around Jiang Yuan. She could not see them, but she could smell them.

Jiang Yuan said, “Peach?”

“Yes.” Lü Zeqing nodded, then indicated the bottle beside it.

Jiang Yuan opened it as usual. A warm, fragrant magnolia scent rushed toward her. She was a little puzzled, but still obediently answered, “Magnolia.”

Lü Zeqing smiled and nodded, then asked, “Is that all? Miss Yu said you can smell her pheromones.”

Jiang Yuan thought for a moment. “This isn’t Qingshi’s scent, but it is magnolia.”

“A little…” Jiang Yuan tried hard to choose her words. “Different. The scent on Qingshi is… colder.”

The fragrance in this bottle was gentler, and for some reason, it even carried a bit of heat.

Lü Zeqing could not hold back her smile. Mischief almost spilled out of her eyes. “This is Miss Yu’s pheromones from her heat period.”

“Bang—!”

Jiang Yuan’s hand trembled, and the glass bottle fell straight to the floor, shattering into pieces.

A blush rushed from the back of her neck all the way to the corners of her eyes, turning her completely red.

Jiang Yuan’s eyes widened. Her speech was unclear and stumbling. “Th-this, you, I, how could I…”

The bottle had shattered, and the pheromones scattered directly, filling every gap and instead wrapping Jiang Yuan even more tightly.

Lü Zeqing laughed happily. “Don’t worry, Miss Jiang. I’m a Beta. I can’t smell it.”

“This was preserved the last time Miss Yu’s illness flared up. It’s mainly used to study her condition.”

She spun the pen in her hand and said as if it were perfectly natural, “You two are a couple, and you can smell pheromones. Letting you adapt in advance means you’ll know when Miss Yu’s pheromones are disordered and when she should be given a suppressant.”

“I, I…” Jiang Yuan’s mind was a mess, unable to turn at all. Her fingers tightened, wrinkling the hem of her clothes.

Lü Zeqing had no idea and even comforted her. “You’re her partner. All of this is very normal. Don’t be shy.”

“This… I…” Jiang Yuan was completely blocked there. Her mouth opened and closed, but she could not explain, nor did she know what she was supposed to explain.

She sighed and said nothing more.

Lü Zeqing walked out from behind the desk and came behind Jiang Yuan, putting on medical gloves. “Miss Jiang, forgive the offense. I still need to touch the back of your neck to confirm whether or not you have a gland, in case this is secondary differentiation.”

Jiang Yuan nodded. She was not from this world to begin with and did not think touching the back of the neck was an offensive act.

Besides, this was a medical examination.

She obediently gathered her black hair to one side and lowered her head slightly.

The latex gloves were cold, moving down along Jiang Yuan’s neck and feeling over each section of bone.

“You don’t have a gland.” In the end, Lü Zeqing removed the gloves and made the conclusion.

Jiang Yuan adjusted her collar and still clumsily tried to act. “Then… this situation?”

Lü Zeqing shrugged. “A biological miracle. But it would be best not to reveal your situation. You might easily be captured for research.”

“Mm.” Jiang Yuan nodded, understanding clearly in her heart.

“As long as it isn’t secondary differentiation, then there’s nothing wrong with your body.” Lü Zeqing made her notes. “You can go back now, Miss Jiang.”

“Okay. Thank you, Doctor.”

As soon as Jiang Yuan walked out the door, a call came to her phone.

It was Yu Qingshi.

Jiang Yuan frowned and answered. She asked with concern, “Qingshi? Why haven’t you slept yet?”

“How is it, Yuanyuan?” Yu Qingshi’s anxious voice came through the receiver.

Their words overlapped. Both of them froze, then laughed.

Yu Qingshi answered first. “I slept too much in the afternoon, so I’m not sleepy.”

Jiang Yuan followed with her reply. “The doctor said there’s no problem with my body. It counts as… a biological miracle?”

Yu Qingshi let out a breath of relief. “As long as there’s no problem.”

“It’s late. Yuanyuan, come back quickly.”

Come back?

Jiang Yuan’s footsteps stopped.

Could she still go back?

She thought of Yu Qingshi’s illness, which had not yet fully recovered, and nodded in agreement. “Okay.”

I’ve been busy these past two days. Sorry, sorry. [I’m begging you]

Yu Qingshi really likes acting spoiled when she’s sick. Her spoiled side is beginning to show!

The dating show plot will be pushed forward soon. My idea has always been to let the two of them become a bit more familiar and ambiguous before going on the dating show. Otherwise, it would be too easy to expose them. [kiss]

Oh right, special note: I’ve recently been writing the chapter outline for the dating show, so I have to tell everyone that the dating show will also include other CPs, because I realized sweet moments and satisfying moments need contrast to bring them out. But they will absolutely be there to highlight the main CP! I won’t let the focus drift, so please rest assured! [starry eyes]

P.S. The dating show is all-female.