Ruan Shuyang wasn’t stupid. After being alerted by Chi Ye, suspicion naturally arose, though he hadn’t shown it in front of Chi Ye.
Later, he carefully felt the necklace around his neck, tracing the barely perceptible unevenness.
A tracking device, he knew, though he’d never spoken of it.
He vaguely sensed Pei Siyue’s controlling nature, certain the device had been placed by him.
He was willing to accept it.
There was no such thing as love without cost in this world, no kindness without reason. He wasn’t truly sheltered in an ivory tower; fate had already battered him for over a decade.
If Pei Siyue’s kindness came with the condition of monitoring his whereabouts, then he was willing to accept it.
His life was essentially a straight line between school and home; there was nothing he couldn’t tell Pei Siyue.
He had noticed the tracker long ago but never mentioned it.
But he truly hadn’t known that enigma pheromones could control someone without their awareness.
What terrified him most was mental manipulation—the tragedy of Yu Xianbo’s life stemmed largely from it.
Pei Siming froze, his joints stiff like a stage puppet as he slowly turned to look at Ruan Shuyang. He seemed unable to believe the other knew and had tolerated it all along.
Ruan Shuyang suddenly asked Pei Siming softly, “Do you know how I met him?”
His voice was faint, as if it might shatter at the slightest breeze. “The night you gave me to Lu Zheng, he saved me. Then, to help me survive the heat induced by Lu Zheng’s pheromones, he marked me.”
“Without you, I might never have met him. If Brother controlled me with his pheromones, then you are the one who started all of this.”
The faint words landed on Pei Siming like a thousand-pound weight. He staggered, collapsing unsteadily to the ground as if drained of all strength, his shoulders slumping.
“If Brother truly is the demon you describe, then you pushed me into his clutches with your own hands.”
“I’ve always been good at reading people. I can tell almost instantly whether someone means me well or ill,” Ruan Shuyang said, looking at Pei Siming sitting on the ground, his eyes filled with sorrow. “Back then, I felt you meant me no harm.”
“But now I see how foolish I was.”
When Ruan Jianchuan ordered him to follow that day, he hadn’t refused or fled. Partly because Ruan Jianchuan wouldn’t tolerate refusal, partly because he believed Pei Siming wouldn’t harm him.
But he hadn’t expected his own foolishness—his blind trust in his instincts—would lead him to take the hardest fall of his life.
Pei Siming forced a smile uglier than tears. “That door was me. I deliberately left it open.”
“If you’d run out that night and begged me for help, I wouldn’t have stood by and watched.”
“I… I was just too stupid. Stupid enough that it took me so long to realize how much I cared about you.”
Ruan Shuyang, however, offered a chilling smile—part mockery, part scorn. Such an expression rarely graced his clean, delicate features, leaving Pei Siming frozen in place.
“You always said your brother wasn’t a good man. But no matter how bad he is, he’d never give away an omega.”
Pei Siyue respected omegas more than anyone.
Pei Siming had no rebuttal. He opened his mouth but couldn’t utter a single word.
“I once dreamed of becoming a beta.”
But now it was impossible.
“You destroyed my dream.”
That night truly changed his entire life.
If Pei Siming hadn’t taken him to that club, he wouldn’t have been driven into heat by Lu Zheng’s pheromones. He wouldn’t have fled desperately, crashing into Pei Siyue’s arms, and he wouldn’t have met Pei Siyue.
If he hadn’t fallen into a false heat, Pei Siyue’s temperament would never have led him to mark him on their very first meeting.
Perhaps he could have truly lived out his days on the cheapest suppressants, becoming a beta whose glands and reproductive tract had completely atrophied.
He believed being a beta was better than being an omega—no torment of heat cycles, no risk of being induced into heat by an alpha’s pheromones, no lifelong marking, no forever carrying another’s trace.
But all of that, every single bit of it, had now become a delusion.
Ruan Shuyang stood frozen for a moment before suddenly turning back, sensing something. He saw Pei Siyue standing not far behind them, his expression dark and his jet-black eyes unfathomable.
The towering enigma stood behind them, seemingly calm, yet his pheromones pressed down on Pei Siming so heavily it took his breath away.
To Ruan Shuyang, Pei Siyue’s pheromones now felt like a storm raging beneath the ocean, its towering waves capable of drowning everything in their path.
Pei Siyue extended a long, powerful hand, the veins on its back faintly visible beneath the skin.
Ruan Shuyang heard him say, “Softie, come here.”
His expression was icy, his tone firm, yet beneath the surface lay a hidden fragility.
Pei Siyue was worried—worried that if he didn’t go, he might truly believe Pei Siming’s words.
He closed his eyes briefly and took a deep breath, about to step forward when Pei Siming suddenly grabbed his hand.
Pei Siming desperately clutched his hand. “Don’t go. My brother is controlling you. You’re under his mental influence right now. You think all your actions are voluntary, but you’re actually being affected by his enigma pheromones without realizing it. You—”
Ruan Shuyang didn’t turn back. He firmly shook off Pei Siming’s hand.
Omegas weren’t known for their strength, yet Pei Siming couldn’t hold onto Ruan Shuyang’s hand anymore. Pei Siyue’s pheromones were suffocating him, leaving him no choice but to let go.
Ruan Shuyang walked slowly, step by step, reaching out to grasp Pei Siyue’s hand.
For the first time, Pei Siyue’s large hand felt slightly cold. He immediately clasped Ruan Shuyang’s hand in return, his warmth gradually spreading through the contact.
Two bodyguards appeared behind Pei Siyue at an unknown moment, immediately pulling away Pei Siming, who remained dazed and confused, unable to comprehend why Ruan Shuyang had approached.
Watching Pei Siming disappear from sight, Ruan Shuyang slowly lowered his head, falling into an unusual silence.
He gradually loosened his grip on Pei Siyue’s hand.
Just as his hand was about to fall limp, Pei Siyue clasped it back, his voice calm. “You’re still sick. Go home early.”
Pei Siyue took a step forward, but Ruan Shuyang remained rooted to the spot.
He didn’t move, didn’t lift his head, his arm limp as Pei Siyue pulled him along.
Pei Siyue halted, turning to look at Ruan Shuyang, who kept his head bowed, only the top of his woolen cap visible.
Ruan Shuyang tried to pull away.
Winter was cold, yet never had Pei Siyue felt its chill so bone-deep, so utterly penetrating.
“Brother.”
Ruan Shuyang’s voice carried faint breaths, his fingertips trembling slightly as if terrified of what was to come.
“I… I’m better now. I want to stay at school tonight.”
The words barely left his lips when Pei Siyue’s pheromones erupted violently. The surrounding pheromones surged to terrifying levels,
Ruan Shuyang seemed startled, hisshoulders jerking back as his breathing grew cautious.
Though his pheromones teetered on the edge of chaos, Pei Siyue’s voice remained steady: “Why?”
Ruan Shuyang offered no pretense. “I want to leave your pheromones behind and think clearly about what I truly feel.”
When he was near Pei Siyue, or rather, in places saturated with his pheromones, he always felt unable to think rationally, as if Pei Siyue’s scent clouded his judgment.
He could feel it clearly.
He just wanted to find a quiet place to sort his thoughts.
Fearing Pei Siyue might misunderstand, he emphasized, “Brother, I truly just need to sort things out. I’ll be back tomorrow.”
Pei Siyue looked at Ruan Shuyang and suddenly asked, “Do you regret ever meeting me?”
Because Ruan Shuyang had once considered becoming a beta.
Ruan Shuyang froze. This was something he hadn’t considered before, and for a moment, he didn’t know how to respond.
Not getting an immediate answer, Pei Siyue didn’t want to hear it. He feared he might lose control if he did.
He closed his eyes, considering half-forcing Ruan Shuyang to return with him. But then, the expression on Ruan Shuyang’s face when he had said “I know” earlier flashed through his mind.
So docile, so quiet, like a doll devoid of any self-awareness.
Ruan Shuyang had always known.
He suddenly let go and walked away without looking back, afraid that if he didn’t let go now, he wouldn’t want to, and would take him back directly.
Moreover, he sensed he might lose control of his pheromones.
These past days, his pheromones had simmered like a volcano ready to erupt, held back only by sheer willpower. Now, that restraint was finally breaking.
The chaotic pheromones surged like erupting magma, capable of scorching others and harming himself.
Ruan Shuyang heard the footsteps gradually fade away. Summoning his courage, he lifted his head only to see Pei Siyue’s receding figure, almost vanishing from sight.
In the blink of an eye, Pei Siyue was completely gone.
After the last class of the afternoon ended, the university campus slowly came alive. The surrounding area gradually filled with the sounds of other students chatting and reciting their lessons.
Amidst the bustling campus, Ruan Shuyang felt only loneliness and chill.
Though today’s weather was noticeably warmer than last week’s.
He pulled his down jacket tighter, sniffed, yet still felt the cold wind seeping through the fabric, creeping into his bones.
As dusk fell, the clear, tranquil sky faded from sunlight, turning into a heavy, oppressive deep gray.
Ruan Shuyang grabbed a quick bite at the cafeteria for dinner, then headed to the library to quietly do his homework and review his notes.
The longer he stayed away from Pei Siyue’s pheromones, the clearer his mind became—and the more he craved that scent.
He knew full well his body now truly depended on Pei Siyue’s pheromones. It wasn’t just for healing; as Pei Siyue had mentioned, their genes instinctively yearned for higher-grade pheromones.
Once exposed to genuine enigma pheromones, anyone would become utterly captivated.
Ruan Shuyang pondered this.
Was he destined to remain dependent on Pei Siyue’s pheromones forever? Bound to cling to him for the rest of his life?
What if… what if Pei Siyue no longer wanted him…
The mere thought of this possibility felt like his heart was being torn apart, suffocating him with unbearable pain.
Tears fell silently onto the library desk.
Knowing his body craved something beyond his control, he too felt fear—fear of an unknown future.
A gentle pat on his back made him wipe his tears and turn. Chi Ye stood behind him, his expression serious.
It wasn’t convenient to talk in the library. Chi Ye gestured toward the café downstairs.
Ruan Shuyang assumed Chi Ye had something important to discuss and promptly stood up to follow him downstairs.
It was evening, and the café was sparsely populated. They found a corner table and sat down. Chi Ye ordered two cups of vanilla milk.
After the drinks arrived, Chi Ye asked, “Did Pei Siyue bully you? Why were you crying in the library?”
Ruan Shuyang froze, then realized Chi Ye had seen him crying.
He didn’t know how to explain it. Facing Chi Ye’s concern, he only murmured, “He didn’t bully me.”
It was just that so many things weighed on his heart, and he didn’t know whom to confide in.
Seeing Chi Ye’s concerned gaze, he couldn’t help but confide, “Senior, I just remember wishing I could be a beta back then.”
“In high school, the doctor warned me that if I kept using the cheapest suppressants, my glands and reproductive tract would completely atrophy. I knew that, but I didn’t care. I thought being a beta would be fine.”
No pheromones, no mating season troubles, and certainly no risk of being induced into heat—unlike omegas, who carried that fatal weakness.
They belonged to two different worlds. Ruan Shuyang had never approached such a prodigy before, let alone considered engagement.
He only wanted to cleanly distance himself from the Ruan family. Being a beta was fine.
“But it was ruined.”
Ruined by Pei Simin.
Had Pei Siming not brought him to meet Lu Zheng, he wouldn’t have been lured into a false heat by pheromones, wouldn’t have encountered Pei Siyue, and Pei Siyue wouldn’t have marked him.
His glands and reproductive cavity wouldn’t have begun developing due to stimulation from the enigma pheromone.
He wouldn’t have become obsessed with the enigma pheromone.
And, of course, he wouldn’t have met Pei Siyue.
When Pei Siyue asked if he regretted meeting him, he was actually quite lost.
Without meeting Pei Siyue, he might have lived a different kind of ordinary, mundane life—not as recklessly brilliant and vibrant as now, but free from the troubles of omega pheromones.
Chi Ye listened quietly, able to guess roughly what had happened to Ruan Shuyang.
Ruan Shuyang had initially been Pei Siming’s fiancée, but the engagement was later dissolved due to Pei Siming’s fault—a fault likely tied to Ruan Shuyang’s inability to become a beta.
He murmured softly, “Don’t trouble yourself so much. Since things have come to this, you should focus more on the future. Dwelling on the past is pointless.”
“Whether you’re a beta or an omega, as long as you’re happy, that’s what matters.”
Ruan Shuyang replied with a faint smile, “I know, senior.”
Yet an unshakable worry lingered in his heart.
“Junior,” Chi Ye suddenly brought up another matter, “After graduating next year, I’ll be heading to M Country for my master’s. I’ve already received the offer.”
Ruan Shuyang immediately said, “Congratulations, senior.”
Chi Ye gazed at Ruan Shuyang, his tone earnest. “Junior, I hope you always possess a free spirit, and that you’re forever happy and content.”
“If you ever feel stifled here, come find me in M Country.”
“Freedom…” Ruan Shuyang murmured softly, his almond-shaped eyes fixed on Chi Ye as he asked, “Senior, do you think I’m free right now?”
Chi Ye sensed something had transpired between Ruan Shuyang and Pei Siyue that he didn’t know about. Though he secretly wished the two would break up, after being awakened by Chi Heng and gaining clarity on many matters, he ultimately couldn’t bring himself to speak words that betrayed his conscience.
“You are free,” Chi Ye affirmed, his tone unwavering. “Those who aren’t free carry no spark in their eyes.”
Ruan Shuyang finally broke into a genuinely happy smile—one that radiated both serenity and warmth.
“Senior, you’ll find happiness too. You’ll meet someone wonderful.”
Just then, his phone buzzed with several messages. Ji Huai informed him that Pei Siyue had something to give him and was waiting downstairs at the dormitory.
His heart tightened. Fearing something was wrong, he immediately bid farewell to Chi Ye, rushed upstairs to get dressed, grabbed his things, and hurried down to the dormitory entrance.
Ji Huai waited under the streetlight at the dorm entrance. Spotting him, he handed over a box. “Mr. Pei asked me to give you these medicines. He said even if your temperature returns to normal, you should complete the full course to consolidate the treatment effects.”
Ruan Shuyang took the box, murmuring his thanks before asking, “Where… is Brother?”
“I don’t know,” Ji Huai shook his head. “Jiang Wu gave me the box. I have no idea where Mr. Pei is either.”
After leaving campus, Pei Siyue didn’t go home. Instead, he stopped by the company first to brief Jiang Wu and Cheng Yi on matters. Since he wouldn’t be in the office for the next few days, he wanted to handle all pending business in advance.
Both Jiang Wu and Cheng Yi, both Alphas, could sense the violent pheromones radiating from Pei Siyue. It felt like he might lose control any second, transforming from a suit-wearing thug into a full-blown savage. Terrified, they dared not step into the office.
Jiang Wu stood at the office doorway listening to the work assignments. Afterward, he stammered nervously, “Boss, what happened? Are you about to have an episode?”
He knew Ruan Shuyang had been ill these past few days. If something serious had happened to Ruan Shuyang, he dared not imagine how severe his boss’s condition might be.
Pei Siyue stared expressionlessly at Jiang Wu, offering no reply.
Risking his life, Jiang Wu suggested, “Boss, if you can’t control your pheromones, maybe we should go to the research institute to extract some… or… or prepare an emergency plan in advance.”
He avoided saying “restrain yourself beforehand,” but the implication was clear—Pei Siyue would understand.
Rather than risk losing control during the sensitive period, it was better to restrain oneself and endure it alone in a corner.
After finishing his work, Pei Siyue informed Jiang Wu: “We’re not going to the research institute.”
Going to the lab to let others extract his pheromones would be like handing over his lifeline to others. Pei Siyue, with his intense need for control, would never allow such a thing.
Jang Wu watched nervously as Pei Siyue left the company late at night alone with his car keys, a sense of foreboding settling over him.
Watching his boss like this, Jiang Wu feared he might truly lose his mind. He dared not imagine how terrifying Enigma’s susceptibility period could be.
He forced himself to ignore the possibility of Enigma’s retaliation and messaged Ruan Shuyang: “How are you feeling now? How’s that fever from before?”
It was already past ten at night. Ruan Shuyang lay in his dorm bed, curtains drawn, yet sleep eluded him.
He craved Pei Siyue’s pheromones, and he craved Pei Siyue himself.
Reflecting now, he realized he had indeed become gradually addicted to Pei Siyue’s scent, unable to live without enigma’s pheromones.
At first, he only needed it for treatment, but later, even when not ill, he longed for the other’s scent.
He wasn’t stupid. He could guess that Pei Siyue had deliberately engineered this outcome, consistently offering his pheromones from the very beginning to make him gradually dependent.
There was no escape now.
If the enigma pheromones were a massive cage, then he was already locked inside, unable to leave.
In everyday life, whenever he hesitated over decisions, Pei Siyue would use pheromones to coax him, guiding him toward the choices he desired.
Before he was awakened to this, he hadn’t considered it. But looking back on the past few months after regaining clarity, such instances had indeed occurred many times.
Just as Pei Siyue had said, the other man certainly wasn’t a good person in the traditional sense.
Of course, he’d never expected Pei Siyue to be genuinely virtuous—only that he treat him well.
Pei Siyue had treated him exceptionally well.
He’d bought him a house and a car, supported his career. Without Pei Siyue, he wouldn’t have this peaceful, contented life now.
Perhaps he’d still be agonizing over how to sever ties with the Ruan family, fretting over his daily expenses.
Brother…
Ruan Shuyang murmured silently within his heart.
His phone vibrated with several messages. He pulled it out and saw Jiang Wu’s message, feeling somewhat surprised.
Ruan Shuyang: My illness is cured. Why ask?
Jang Wu: Boss seemed off. Thought you might be having an episode. Worried something was wrong with your health.
If it’s not health-related, then did you two fight?
Had to be a huge fight—the kind where you split up?
Otherwise, I just *can’t figure out* why the boss would have an episode.
Ruan Shuyang jolted upright in bed. “An episode?”
Ruan Shuyang: Does my brother have some hidden illness?
Jiang Wu: …It’s the sensitive period.
Jiang Wu: The boss’s pheromones are off. I suspect his sensitive period is approaching.
Ruan Shuyang: Got it. I’ll go check on him.
Jiang Wu: …?
Jiang Wu: Wait—if the boss is truly in his sensitive period, you shouldn’t go. It’s dangerous. Let him handle
Ruan Shuyang: Got it. I’ll go check on him.
Jiang Wu: …?
Jiang Wu: No, if he really is in the susceptible period, you shouldn’t go. It might be dangerous for you. Let him endure it alone. Just call to comfort him.
Ruan Shuyang: It’s fine.
Enigma doesn’t have a fixed susceptibility period. It only triggers during times of extreme emotional fluctuation or intense emotional states.
So was Pei Siyue experiencing extreme emotional fluctuation or intense emotions?
Ruan Shuyang hadn’t even noticed, because he felt Pei Siyue had been quite calm at the time—just with an overwhelmingly strong pheromone pressure.
Had he already been teetering on the edge of susceptibility?
Suddenly, he felt deeply concerned.
Enigma’s susceptibility phase likely resembled that of an Alpha—triggered either by prolonged pheromone buildup or emotional instability causing pheromone chaos. The most effective remedy was to soothe the individual’s pheromones.
Thus, a marked Omega could alleviate an Alpha’s susceptibility phase.
He was an omega marked by Pei Siyue. If the other man entered his vulnerable period, he should be able to help.
Pei Siyue had always satisfied his pheromone needs whenever he required them, and had always helped him through every false heat.
If Pei Siyue truly entered a vulnerable phase, Ruan Shuyang wanted to be there for that Enigma whose pheromones might now be chaotic and turbulent.
Just as Pei Siyue had always been there for him.
Even though he knew it might be dangerous.
An alpha with a pheromone surge struggles to control their emotions—how much more so an enigma, whose pheromones are stronger and more dangerous.
He would go anyway.
It might be foolish, it might bring danger upon him, but he was willing to trust Pei Siyue.
Pei Siyue was the enigma who had dedicated himself to developing post-marking medication for omegas and pheromone-blocking materials.
He was also the enigma who had always strived to grant him freedom.
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