SDT 17

SDT 17 It Was Intentional

…

Yu Xiaowen stood before the mirror. He felt he looked thinner than before, his haggard appearance growing more pronounced.

After hanging up that afternoon, Yu Xiaowen wrestled with complex emotions for a long time before suddenly experiencing a moment of clarity.

Where had his moral scruples gone? Right. He hadn’t even touched him yet. He wanted to embrace him, kiss him, sleep with him like in his dreams. Just moments ago he’d been regretting what he hadn’t done, and now the chance was back.

Lu Kongyun would end up with someone else sooner or later. If not now, then later. He’d share an umbrella with a sophisticated, elegant Omega in the rain, not for work. He’d wear a bite-blocker during his rut, not for work. He’d have everything.

Except for him.

Even Lu Kongyun, who has everything, won’t remember him. Not at all. What’s there to remember about an blackmailer?

And he can’t even remember himself if he wanted to. Yu Xiaowen could already see the soup made by Meng Po¹ stacked on the snack stall set up by the Grim Reaper at the corner ahead.

He felt it clearly in advance, that he would end up with nothing. So, his moral bottom line dropped again.

Before drinking that soup, he’ll make sure he get his fill of meat first.

“Yu Xiaowen,” he urged himself again and again in the mirror, “the dead hold the highest authority. I grant you the privilege to trade your untimely demise for the right to live without shame until your dying breath.”

…But wasn’t this terribly unfair to the other person? Why should Lu Kongyun have to embrace him, kiss him, sleep with him?

Yu Xiaowen’s summoned courage was like a poorly tied balloon. It looked big, but it leaked out so damn fast.

Thunder rumbled outside the window once more. It reminded Yu Xiaowen of another stormy night, in the pavilion of the Orange Garden, Lu Kongyun’s face as calm as death. He looked down at him, like an animal, aroused by his pheromones.

…If he were a wild dog in heat, and Lu Kongyun entered his body with that deathly calm expression, how humiliating would that be? He might as well just reincarnate.

Yu Xiaowen turned on the faucet, cupped his hands to splash cold water on his face. Then he grabbed a handful of icy water and poured it roughly over his lower body, trying to sober it up too.

Tak!

The overhead light flickered a few times before coming back on, then emitted a crackling sound before plunging into complete darkness. That was just how things were in Wax Apple Lane, unstable voltage was hard on light bulbs, and Yu Xiaowen was used to it. He reached for a towel to wipe his face, then stepped out of the bathroom.

The victim sat on the sofa fiddling with his phone. Seeing Yu Xiaowen emerge, he lowered his hand and looked up.

He crouched under the TV cabinet, sticking his butt out as he rummaged through the bottom drawer. After a moment of fumbling, he felt the cool water he’d just poured over his second brother trickle down his thigh. He quickly wiped it away, then looked back at the victim.

The victim was staring at the pitch-black TV screen.

Yu Xiaowen pulled out a shoebox filled with odds and ends, straightened up, and tugged his T-shirt back into place. He retrieved the light bulb and pushed the box back.

The victim’s phone vibrated in his hand.

“Do you need help?” the victim asked him.

“Not at all,” Yu Xiaowen replied. He unwrapped the new bulb, dragged a stool to the bathroom, stepped onto it with one foot and the higher sink counter with the other, and began unscrewing the old bulb.

A pool of white light appeared beneath the stool, on his thighs, over his body, and along his raised arm, finally settling at the bulb’s position.

It was the victim’s phone flashlight.

“Thanks,” Yu Xiaowen said. He removed the old bulb, holding it between his teeth, and deftly screwed the new one into place.

The victim’s phone vibrated again.

“Hey, you’re still so busy after work,” Yu Xiaowen mumbled, the light bulb clenched between his teeth.

The other person didn’t respond. Yu Xiaowen looked down. The victim stood in the doorway, looking up at him.

He thought, whether looking up or down, this person’s expression and gaze always seemed unreadable.

“What happened to you this afternoon?” the victim suddenly asked.

“…Nothing much,” Yu Xiaowen replied dismissively.

The victim: “Is that so?”

Yu Xiaowen tightened the light bulb, suddenly eager to see if this face would show any unexpected emotion. So he let out a startled cry, deliberately stumbled backward, and fell.

The victim rushed forward, his arms catching Yu Xiaowen’s weight. He held him close as his back slammed into the shower stall behind them, the combined weight making a loud thud.

Yu Xiaowen was a bit stunned. Of course he wouldn’t have fallen,,with his skills, performing a staged fall from a stool was child’s play. But the victim had ruined his act, making him look like a clumsy fool who couldn’t even change a light bulb properly.

He hurriedly pulled the bulb from his mouth, about to ask Lu Kongyun if he was hurt, but the other man beat him to it with a cold tone: “Yu Xiaowen, I know you did that on purpose.”

“…”

So Yu Xiaowen wiped the silver thread from the corner of his mouth and gave the other man a smile.

“Yep, I did it on purpose. An officer like me wouldn’t be that clumsy.”

The victim’s eyebrows gradually furrowed in the dim light spilling from the living room.

The phone, flipped upside down on the sink, vibrated again, repeatedly, like it had gone mad.

Yu Xiaowen: “Aren’t you going to check your phone? It’s been vibrating nonstop.”

Victim: “I know.”

The victim propped the bathroom door open with a fingertip, slowly pushing it away from himself. The area bathed in living room light shrank until it became a sliver. With a click, the narrow space plunged into complete darkness.

“…What’s wrong?” Yu Xiaowen asked. …He thought he caught a faint trace of the other’s pheromones, but it was elusive, barely there. He instinctively touched the back of his neck.

Gradually, in the darkness, he couldn’t tell if the heat on his face came from the other person.

“You know my rut isn’t completely over yet.” The voice gave away his location. It was right beside him.

“No, I didn’t know.” Yu Xiaowen took a step back, holding the sink for support. His breath came in rapid gasps as he pressed on the suppressant patch at the base of his neck.

Victim: “These two liquids have different textures.”

Yu: “…What liquids?”

“This one.” Several cool fingertips suddenly brushed across the inner side of his thigh.

The contact lasted only an instant, yet Yu Xiaowen’s leg trembled uncontrollably. He held the sink tightly, biting his lip to hold back the sound caught in his throat.

Victim: “Don’t you think tap water is too slippery? Or do you assume I’m a virgin who knows nothing, easily fooled by appearances?”

Yu Xiaowen seemed to suddenly grasp the meaning behind the victim’s mention of texture. A surge of heat ignited within him: “…Your mind is filthy! That water is… because…”

He took a step toward the door, only to be swept sideways by a grip around his waist. One arm was pinned against the sink. Yu Xiaowen felt the victim’s hard metal belt buckle jab his side briefly before pulling away.

Victim: “Where’d you think you were going? Why do you always provoke me first, then try to run?”

The other hand pressed down on his waist.

“You think you’re so good at manipulating people? Then go ahead and try. I don’t care. After all, an Alpha from the Lu family can mark a lowly Omega, even forcibly mark someone of the same sex, without having to take responsibility.”

A stunned silence fell.

Then Yu Xiaowen’s tone turned slightly cold. He chuckled softly, sniffed, and said in a low, hoarse voice, “Oh? Then why don’t you try?”

Victim: “…”

The phone on the sink continued to vibrate.

Victim: “Order?”

Yu Xiaowen felt the hollow beneath his tailbone thrust upward forcefully. A jolt of electricity shot through his spine from that spot, paralyzing him. He nearly collapsed to his knees, but the person behind him caught him.

The voice behind him said, “Which one do you want to try?”

Yu Xiaowen straightened his back, his voice trembling. “Heh. Which one do you know how to do? Virgin.”

The victim: “…”

Another phone vibration overlapped. Yu Xiaowen immediately pulled his phone from the waistband of his underwear, illuminating both their faces. The screen showed a call from Chen Zihan, head of the Major Crimes Division.

The victim glanced at the text on Yu Xiaowen’s phone screen. Then asked, “How’d your phone end up there?”

“You, cough, you’re right next to me. Of course my phone… can’t be out of reach.” Yu Xiaowen answered the call as he spoke, “Sorry, I need to take this.”

He cleared his throat, quickly opened the bathroom door, and made his way toward the living room, holding the wall for support.

“…Hello, cough.”

“Xiaowen, how’s your rest?” The voice on the other end sounded agitated and loud. “Were you sleeping?”

“Awake.” Yu Xiaowen sat down, wedging the stool between his legs to steady himself, catching his breath. “Go ahead.”

Chen Zihan: “We found the guy we lost last time. He showed up at S House Club yesterday!”

“…What?!” Yu Xiaowen jumped up, stumbling into the bedroom.

He hastily pulled on his pants, his body still trembling as he stumbled. While fastening his belt, he demanded, “When did this happen?”

“I’m heading over immediately!”

Yu Xiaowen grabbed a syringe from the drawer and slipped it into his pocket before bursting out of the bedroom, his expression now grim. He snatched a short-sleeved jacket hanging on a coat rack: “I need to… go out. Want to come?”

“…” The victim scanned him up and down.

Then glanced out the window: “It’s pouring. My books can’t get wet. I brought them because of you.”

Yu Xiaowen: “Leave them here. Pick them up next time. Or I’ll deliver them to your workplace another day.”

Silence.

The victim: “Deliver it to my home.”

“Alright.” Yu Xiaowen had already slipped on his shoes and retrieved an umbrella from the storage cabinet by the door. “Let’s go.”

…

Downstairs, the blackmailer quickly handed the umbrella to Lu Kongyun, climbed into the driver’s seat of a dingy gray sedan, and rolled down the window: “I’m leaving now. Thanks for helping me learn how to read the files today. We’ll be in touch.”

He turned his phone toward Lu Kongyun, displaying an eight-hour countdown reset timer. “See? It’s working.”

The blackmailer chuckled. “Oh, and from now on, ‘Goodnight, sweetheart’ has to be a voice message.”

Lu Kongyun frowned, staring at his face while gripping the umbrella handle tightly. He remained silent.

The blackmailer’s gaze drifted uncertainly. After a moment of hesitation, he scratched his palm with his fingertips: “…Tonight was a misunderstanding.”

Lu Kongyun still didn’t speak, only watching the blackmailer.

“…” The blackmailer looked back at him, his lips suddenly trembling. Then he reached out the car window, grasped Lu Kongyun’s umbrella-holding hand, his voice slightly hoarse: “It’s pretty cold in the rain. Don’t catch a chill.”

He quickly wiped his eyes, turned the wheel, backed out of the parking space. Finally, the old sedan sputtered away, its exhaust trailing behind it as it laboriously roared off. It grew farther and farther away, turning a dim street corner, then vanished completely from Lu Kongyun’s sight.

After staring at the car’s departure point for a while longer, Lu Kongyun walked toward his own vehicle. Once inside, he adjusted his wristband again, propping his forehead against it as he sat in silence for a long moment.

Who am I??Where am I? Where did I come from? And where am I going?

His body and heart felt cold.

He licked his canine teeth. Then, subconsciously, he touched his tailbone, making sure no fur had grown there. Though it was nonsense, this so-called doctor had a strange feeling, he always felt that the moment he entered a state of heat, he was about to turn into a dog.

Fierce and stupid.

Years ago, he mentioned it to a sage at an academic symposium. The sage told him it stemmed from a transcendent “contemplative” consciousness. Declaring him a perceptive and compassionate human, the sage asked if he wished to convert.

After calming down, with the wristband’s assistance, he finally felt that canine nature vanish. He then checked Gao Yuting’s messages. He had sent numerous alerts and missed calls.

The last message read: What’s going on? Did you get an Omega pheromone injection from a sensitive individual?

Lu Kongyun replied: I booked an appointment for tomorrow morning.

Gao Yuting: Too late. All I can say is, if you can attend the training normally, I’ll spell my name backwards.

Lu Kongyun tapped the screen loudly with his fingertip: I authorize you to perform gland removal surgery on me.

Gao Yuting: …

Gao Yuting: Young Master Lu, stop joking. I’d like to live a few more years.

Gao Yuting: What’s gotten into you? Did something major happen? Should I come see you?

Lu Kongyun: No need.

Lu Kongyun: Tell me how to fix this.

Gao Yuting: You know the quickest solution.

Gao Yuting: 1. Sleep with your rut target, mark them temporarily, and have them help you get through the susceptible period.

Gao Yuting: 2. Come with me to the S House Club.

Gao Yuting: Of course, you won’t choose either. Given your current condition, as a doctor, I still advise you to carefully consider participating in the training.

Lu Kongyun stared at it for a moment.

He replied with a number: 2

1. Meng Po is the goddess of oblivion in Chinese mythology, who serves Meng Po Soup on the Bridge of Oblivion or Naihe Bridge. This soup wipes the memory of the person so they can reincarnate into the next life without the burdens of the previous life. ↩︎