Chapter 13

Li Xi froze for a moment and looked up.

With over a 90% compatibility rate, the pheromone changes between an Alpha and an Omega couldn’t be hidden from someone standing this close.

Ying Zhiyu spoke logically: “It’s not recommended to use suppressants after drinking.”

In their past life, their first temporary marking had happened on a blazing highway.

Just like the time from the Biomedical University to the Civil Affairs Bureau, they had encountered a terrorist attack in the car.

Li Xi checked his firearm and ammunition while expressionlessly ordering Ying Zhiyu to bite him.

After the suppressant injection, there would be a period of drowsiness, but the circumstances then didn’t allow Li Xi to lose focus even for a moment.

That was their fourth year of marriage.

For the first three years, they lived together like strangers.

Ying Zhiyu knew Li Xi had married merely to quell scandals and gain access to the board, and that it was Ying Zhiyu’s clean background and education that Li Xi valued.

But this lifetime was different.

The trust modification clause in the prenuptial agreement, the moonstone watch appearing at the wedding ceremony a full ten years earlier than expected…

Ying Zhiyu thought maybe some things no longer needed decades of mutual testing.

Li Xi looked at the “polite” Alpha in front of him, asking about marking, and briefly wondered if he’d imagined it.

He prided himself on reading people, but this person kept defying his expectations.

Ying Zhiyu didn’t care how Li Xi looked at him.

He went on boldly, spewing nonsense: “After all, I came back from the future. Our marriage is good, and we have two kids…”

Before he could finish, a burning arm pulled him toward the bed.

…

Li Xi felt as though his body and mind had separated.

The more his body succumbed to pleasure, the clearer his mind became.

He knew his heat was approaching.

He had taken a cold shower, and as icy water ran over him, he couldn’t shake the image of the Alpha standing in the closet, removing his rings before the bathroom door had closed.

Li Xi had long noticed Ying Zhiyu’s hands.

Long, slender fingers, evenly proportioned joints.

Hands perfectly suited to the Alpha’s image and aura.

Before removing his wedding band, Ying Zhiyu took off the wristwatch. The Alpha’s wrist was prominent, knobby, sinewy, with blue veins standing out…

Li Xi’s breathing grew heavier.

Those hands, unforgettable in his mind, now swayed before his eyes.

With the fangs at his neck retreating, Li Xi lifted his head. The Alpha’s slightly damp handsome face entered his vision.

Li Xi stared for a few seconds, then flipped over and pinned him down.

The Alpha hesitated for a moment.

Li Xi said nothing, curling his fingers around the damp strands of the Alpha’s hair and moved in.

Later, the heat spread from the headboard to the foot of the bed, the sofa, the carpet…

When they shifted to the carpet, Li Xi knelt on the soft wool, glancing toward the closet.

On the jewelry tray, Ying Zhiyu’s watch and ring lay quietly next to Li Xi’s own, paired and intertwined.

Li Xi disliked looking at the back and preferred facing Ying Zhiyu.

Tracing the Alpha’s smooth profile with his fingers, Li Xi thought indifferently: an Alpha this clever is a real hassle.

It might have been easier if Ying Zhiyu were a bit less sharp.

After all, brains don’t earn money, but hands could still serve as models.

Yet he quickly reconsidered. If not hands, the Alpha’s face was more valuable.

The body was good too.

Could make a male model.

—

At 5:40 a.m., Ying Zhiyu opened his eyes.

In reality, it had only been around five o’clock when they had returned to bed after cleaning up, but yielding to the biological clock, Ying Zhiyu had lain there with eyes closed for over half an hour before reluctantly sitting up.

Late summer turning to early autumn brought early mornings.

The Li family estate offered not only the most beautiful sunsets but also radiant sunrises.

Ying Zhiyu walked onto the terrace. Morning light had just crept over the horizon. The air was already cool for the season, but he didn’t mind, standing quietly in the gentle mountain breeze.

He actually had a fleeting thought about having a cigarette.

In their past life, knowing Li Xi disliked smoke, Ying Zhiyu had deliberately antagonized him by smoking.

He hadn’t smoked habitually; he did it precisely because Li Xi disliked it.

Those subtle acts of provocation had been a regular feature in the first three years of marriage.

But this lifetime, for his own health, he wouldn’t smoke again.

He recalled last night.

This bridal suite was the same as in their past life.

But in their previous marriage, they had never spent a full night together. Even during the later eight years of cordial respect, Li Xi only came to him during heat. Ying Zhiyu had always believed that not sharing a bed overnight was mutual respect.

Yet last night, he realized he had been wrong.

Even with heat approaching, he had asked Li Xi to protect him during toasts, and Li Xi, despite being in heat, had shielded him.

Even without believing his “time-travel” story, Li Xi had accepted the excuse and willingly pulled him onto the bed.

Li Xi hadn’t even imposed restrictions on fully marking him.

Ying Zhiyu would never consider that a single bite of ice cream, a bottle of wine, perfume, or two buns this lifetime was any great sacrifice.

In their past life, Li Xi had never once asked him to leave in the middle of the night.

It turned out that many things were simply unspoken by Li Xi, and Ying Zhiyu had misunderstood.

He didn’t have to leave because Li Xi wouldn’t say it.

He wouldn’t say, “I’m in heat, I can’t protect you.”

And just like this lifetime, the legal registration, the wedding, the marking—it all happened naturally.

It also turned out that as long as Ying Zhiyu asked, Li Xi would provide.

The trust agreement, the meteorite watch, the shielding from drinks…

Well, the first two, Ying Zhiyu hadn’t even explicitly asked for.

It was just… they had never communicated smoothly before.

The sliding door to the terrace behind them made a sound.

“Why are you up so early?” Li Xi’s voice was husky with the first stirrings of wakefulness, or maybe for some other reason.

“Not used to sleeping?” he asked.

Ying Zhiyu didn’t turn back, gazing at the morning light, and answered offhandedly: “Actually, the data on my IQ test report was wrong.”

Li Xi walked over, his tone slightly raised at the end, giving a soft, “Hmm?”

It sounded lazy, as if he didn’t particularly care that Ying Zhiyu’s IQ test results were incorrect.

Ying Zhiyu explained: “I purposely answered some questions wrong during the test. The record said my IQ was 120, but I remembered all the questions and ran a simulated test at home. It turns out my IQ should be 140+.”

“Have I ever mentioned this?” Ying Zhiyu turned his head. “I have a photographic memory.”

His tone was calm; what could have sounded like a boast came out almost matter-of-factly, so it didn’t seem impressive.

Li Xi didn’t ask why he had answered incorrectly on purpose. He paused, then said, “No, now I know.”

Ying Zhiyu smiled and turned back toward the morning light.

The sky was fully bright now.

Golden sunlight fell across his face as he explained, “My brain never stops working. I’m always thinking, analyzing, exploring problems, so it’s hard for me to reach deep sleep. Any change in sound or light wakes me immediately.”

So it wasn’t that he couldn’t get used to sleeping.

“What if someone else is beside you…” Li Xi asked suddenly, “would it affect your sleep?”

Ying Zhiyu froze for a moment.

At that instant, he realized the unspoken reason why Li Xi never told him to leave but also never explicitly told him to stay.

In their past life, Li Xi had known about his sleep issues.