MVCFO CH16

It must be the pheromones.

Lin Xiangqiang found the most reasonable explanation for all of Lu Cong’s abnormalities—

It was all because Lu Cong’s pheromones were too special, causing him to lose rational thinking and become confused after releasing too much of them.

It was like a computer occasionally freezing up, and after a reboot, some errors would automatically be fixed.

He couldn’t be like this all the time.

…But what exactly was “like this”?

Lin Xiangqiang couldn’t put it into words either.

He began to subconsciously compare the Lu Cong in front of him to the usual Lu Cong.

There was no denying that, in Lin Xiangqiang’s impression, Lu Cong had always been a very good person.

To his parents, Lu Cong was a precocious and sensible child who never caused worry; to Lin Xiangqiang, he was a reliable, loyal, and comforting friend; even to all their classmates and teachers, Lu Cong was the perfect class monitor without a single flaw.

Lu Cong’s virtues were objective—anyone who knew him could feel his goodness.

He was like some exemplary answer defined in a code of conduct, the standard of a “role model” people could imagine.

Reserved and steady, dependable and reliable, gentle and appropriate, upright and kind.

Lin Xiangqiang could use countless words of praise to describe the current Lu Cong.

But…

Sometimes Lin Xiangqiang felt like he couldn’t understand Lu Cong.

Lu Cong wasn’t the type to express himself much. He wasn’t particularly passionate about anything, but he also wasn’t too averse; always lukewarm, neither hot nor cold. It was as if anything was fine, nothing mattered, and his expression was always kept between a smile and indifference.

Some thought he was gentle; others found him aloof. Lu Cong didn’t care about others’ opinions, always calm and composed, showing no emotions. It was hard for others to discover his true feelings.

Even though Lin Xiangqiang was so familiar with him, he couldn’t claim to really understand Lu Cong.

Sometimes, when it was a holiday and Lin Xiangqiang wanted to give Lu Cong a more novel gift, he would think for a long time, and in the end usually chose something conservative.

Not because he feared Lu Cong wouldn’t like the gift, but because he was afraid Lu Cong would smile and accept it even if he didn’t like it, then put it in the most conspicuous spot in his room.

Lu Cong was exactly that kind of person—he never made Lin Xiangqiang feel troubled or pressured when they were together.

Perfect to the point where it was almost impossible to find fault.

But in fact, Lin Xiangqiang was sometimes curious inside—

Did the emotionally stable Lu Cong really never want to vent? When would he get angry, sad, disappointed? Was he like himself, pretending to be happy during the day, but sometimes secretly crying in bed?

Lin Xiangqiang couldn’t find the answers to these questions from the flawless Lu Cong he usually saw.

But now, the Lu Cong in front of him seemed to reveal some cracks.

…

Although Lu Cong’s current behavior was largely influenced by pheromones,

Although now he had become fiercer than usual—somewhat cold, unreasonable, rough, and domineering, speaking faster and more boldly than Lin Xiangqiang,

This Lu Cong was very easy to understand.

Lin Xiangqiang saw many fragile expressions on his face, countless emotions he could decipher from those eyes.

This kind of Lu Cong might not be perfect, but it seemed… not unacceptable either.

“This is… okay, too.”

After much thought, Lin Xiangqiang softly said, tentatively offering an answer.

But just as he was about to add “but it can’t be like this all the time,” he suddenly felt his body being lifted off the ground.

Lu Cong heard what he wanted to hear and grabbed Lin Xiangqiang’s slim waist, easily lifting him off the table. His knee pressed between Lin Xiangqiang’s legs, seemingly supporting his weight but actually forcing him to lean against him.

“Wait—” Lin Xiangqiang panicked, grabbing Lu Cong’s shoulder in alarm.

His toes couldn’t reach the floor, his body half lifted by Lu Cong, suspended there unable to stand or sit, his entire weight and balance supported by Lu Cong.

“Don’t do this, Lu Cong, I can’t stand…” He tried to find a support point for a long time but failed, finally giving up and collapsing onto Lu Cong’s shoulder, breathing heavily.

“You said it’s okay.” Lu Cong’s palm firmly held Lin Xiangqiang’s lower back, his knee nudging upward.

“I didn’t mean ‘okay’ like that!”

Lin Xiangqiang’s current position was almost like sitting on Lu Cong’s lap. His body trembled, unstable, “This position is weird.”

The two embraced, necks touching, and if Lu Cong leaned over just a bit, he could mark Lin Xiangqiang in an instant. But he didn’t.

He slowly kissed around the gland area, his thin lips transmitting a body heat that was far from calm, lightly nibbling back and forth.

“You’re too tense, relax.” Lu Cong’s other hand slipped under Lin Xiangqiang’s shirt, touching the smooth delicate skin of his back beneath the fabric, as if soothing, or exploring.

“Yanyan, you have a waist dimple.”

Lin Xiangqiang didn’t believe Lu Cong just noticed the waist dimple today—they had been completely honest with each other countless times since childhood, even once bathing in the same tub; if anything, he would have seen it long ago.

“…Ugh.” Lin Xiangqiang shivered pitifully in his embrace. “Don’t touch, it’s ticklish.”

His waist dimple hadn’t suddenly appeared today, but it was indeed the first time Lu Cong had touched it with his own hand.

Soon, his fingertips pressed on the sharp vertebrae of Lin Xiangqiang’s spine, each ridge vanishing as Lin Xiangqiang’s body twitched and arched.

Lu Cong seemed addicted, touching for a long time.

No matter how much Lin Xiangqiang pushed him, Lu Cong ignored it, disregarding his refusals, his eyes holding a mischievous smile.

“Mmgh…” Lin Xiangqiang was really ticklish, shaking like a sieve, almost unable to endure, finally letting out a frustrated but weak scold,

“Lu Cong, I’m really mad now, you better let go immediately, I’m going home!”

Almost at the same time, Lu Cong withdrew his hand.

“…?”

Because he obeyed so quickly, Lin Xiangqiang, who had been prepared to get angry, was momentarily stunned.

He had been so reckless just moments ago—why was he suddenly so obedient now?

“Sorry.” Lu Cong lowered his eyes, looking sad, his voice low and gloomy. “I shouldn’t have made you angry.”

His attitude was very sincere, even pitifully humble. “I thought some things might be wrong if I did them, but if I did nothing, there would never be a right possibility. I wanted to try… but I still did it wrong, sorry.”

Lu Cong’s words stabbed sharply into Lin Xiangqiang’s heart.

What had Lu Cong done wrong?

Wasn’t he worried from the start about unpredictable accidents like this, so he secretly gave himself suppressants?

He had already been working hard to avoid these “mistakes,” and it was Lin Xiangqiang who encouraged him to try.

Lin Xiangqiang told him, “Even if you’re wrong, it’s okay.”

But now, Lin Xiangqiang was about to get angry again.

Looking at him, Lin Xiangqiang suddenly felt guilty.

After his parents passed away, Lin Xiangqiang lost contact with unfamiliar relatives. The most important person beside him was only Lu Cong.

They should be the closest people, close enough to forgive anything the other did. But now, in front of Lin Xiangqiang, Lu Cong became cautious and wary.

To put it another way, Lu Cong had hardly ever made mistakes over all these years, much less any small slip-ups. He was such a cautious and gentle person.

He did so many right things—what harm was there if he made a mistake once?

He had been perfect for so long, what was wrong with being a little “bad” now under the influence of pheromones?

The more Lin Xiangqiang thought, the more consistent the logic became—

It’s just touching the spine and poking the waist dimple, ticklish but bearable. Why get mad at Lu Cong?

“You haven’t done anything wrong, Lu Cong.”

Lin Xiangqiang pressed his lips together, calming his inner nervousness, and finally took the initiative to hug Lu Cong’s neck, comforting him, “I… was just a bit unaccustomed earlier. You know I’m very ticklish; I wasn’t really mad at you.”

Lu Cong finally lifted his eyes and looked back at him, suspicion still in his gaze: “Really?”

Lin Xiangqiang gave him a forgiving smile: “Really, I’m not angry. Don’t be sad or blame yourself. Do whatever you want, I don’t mind—hey???”

Lin Xiang felt dizzy when he was thrown onto the bed.

His body rolled twice, and when he opened his eyes, he found himself locking a deep, intense gaze with Tom Cat on the pillowcase.

What just happened?

How did he fly from the desk to the bed?

“Does it really not matter what you do?” Lu Cong’s voice sounded above his head.

Lin Xiang looked up and was startled to realize that the once anxious and uneasy expression on Lu Cong’s face was completely gone.

In those eyes, there was an undeniable signal — one of a long-suppressed tension ready to launch a fierce attack!

All Lin Xiang could think was four words:

Lu! Cong! Is! Acting!

But before he could find a chance to escape, Lu Cong had already leaned over him, blocking the light and cutting off any possibility of fleeing, cornering him against the bedpost with no way out.

“It’s not that it doesn’t matter at all, it still matters! Wait—”

A string suddenly tightened in Lin Xiang’s mind.

He stiffened his neck and looked at Lu Cong. When someone is bluffing, they tend to unconsciously raise their voice, “Don’t come closer! What do you want to do?!”

“Marking.” Lu Cong’s answer instantly deflated Lin Xiang’s bravado. He retorted, “What else did you think it was?”

Lin Xiang’s expression shrank back: “…Oh, right.”

Seriously, why make such a sudden fuss over marking?

It scared him a little.

Lin Xiang really wasn’t used to this kind of Lu Cong.

In the past, Lu Cong would always discuss things with him before doing anything, asking for his opinion, never expressing his own desires proactively.

Even when doing homework, he’d ask which subject Lin Xiang wanted to do first, and then would comply and follow Lin Xiang’s lead.

Lin Xiang once joked that Lu Cong was like a personal robot, and Lu Cong didn’t deny it, joking back, “Then you can set me as the program you want.”

But the Lu Cong in front of him now seemed infected by a virus, running rules Lin Xiang had never seen before.

Or maybe it wasn’t a virus at all.

Lin Xiang strangely thought: it was more like some compressed file had been unzipped.

Luckily, Lu Cong still remembered the marking.

Lin Xiang was convinced that both of them were hostages trapped by pheromones. Swept up in this storm, both got drenched. No one could avoid it.

But as long as the marking was done, everything would be fine.

An AO temporary marking was not just biting the neck or exchanging pheromones. During the marking process, the Omega’s glands secrete soothing pheromones to help the Alpha calm the boiling heat inside.

Although Lin Xiang’s glands currently had no secretion or release function, the pheromones accumulated inside could achieve the same effect.

So once the marking was completed, Lu Cong would return to normal.

Holding this thought, Lin Xiang obediently flipped over and lay face down under Lu Cong, burying his face in the pillow’s crevice and exposing a large area of skin on the back of his neck, presenting his neck in the most convenient position for biting.

“Bite then.”

Once bitten, it would be over.

He had no idea how he looked to Lu Cong at this moment.

The soft fabric of his homewear fit close to his body, outlining the gentle curves hidden beneath his slender frame.

The hem was wrinkled and bunched awkwardly around his waist, unable to cover the small, round, and perky little peaks beneath. One could easily imagine the soft feeling of grasping them.

Lu Cong’s eyes darkened silently as he looked down at the unsuspecting Lin Xiang. His Adam’s apple bobbed, suppressing a surge of uncontrollable heat; the pheromones swelled again.

The entire room transformed into a prison of desire with no escape.

Lin Xiang also felt the surge of pheromones, but his reaction was much smaller this time. Obviously, he too had begun to be affected and instinctively craved what he wanted.

“Lu Cong.” He urged anxiously, wriggling his body a little, “Come on, hurry up.”

In the end, he couldn’t hold back. Lu Cong’s hand landed on a spot Lin Xiang had longed to be touched.

The person beneath shuddered sharply.

The hot, rough palm covered Lin Xiang’s waist, slipping beneath the fabric, lifting up his shirt. Lu Cong’s hand brushed over the two small, delicate indentations in the soft, pale skin.

This was a spot he had touched not long ago.

Lin Xiang’s fingers curled slightly, wanting to move but unable to. Clearly, he was trapped by the Alpha’s overwhelming pheromones, and could only complain in a voice as soft as a whimper, “…Ticklish.”

“You’re just too sensitive.” Lu Cong supported himself on one hand beside Lin Xiang, slowly leaned down, and with the other hand circled from his lower back to the front, scooping Lin Xiang up.

Lin Xiang let himself be manipulated completely. Not only was his body weakened by the pheromones, but he was also too lazy to resist, wanting Lu Cong to take full charge of the marking.

The position was different from what Lin Xiang had imagined initially.

Lu Cong lifted him from behind and parted his knees, making him kneel between Lu Cong and the wall, his hands grabbed together, raised above his head, and pressed against the wall.

Such a strange posture, Lin Xiang felt dizzy thinking about it. He seemed to have become the filling inside a sandwich cookie. There was a whole big bed, so why press him against the wall? So cramped.

But he soon understood Lu Cong’s intent.

It was a position with no escape — no freedom anywhere on his body, completely under Lu Cong’s control.

When Lu Cong’s fangs touched his glands, Lin Xiang sensed trouble, right up to the moment the bite sank in.

“Ah!”

This marking was deeper than ever before, so deep that although it caused no physical pain, Lin Xiang still feared and begged wildly, “Don’t bite so deep, Lu Cong, be gentle… it hurts.”

“It won’t hurt.”

To prove he wasn’t lying, Lu Cong licked off a bead of blood and released more pheromones.

Then he bit down again, the canines embedding in Lin Xiang’s body, piercing his last defense.

“Hngh…”

Lin Xiang reflexively arched and struggled, but behind him was the immovable Lu Cong, and in front was the cold wall.

He could go nowhere, forced to endure this fierce exchange of pheromones.

Although it really didn’t hurt as Lu Cong said, the strong sense of penetration made Lin Xiang nearly cramp. No matter how pitifully he begged, all he got was Lu Cong’s even more rampant pheromones and increasingly fierce marking, licking and biting beyond limits, again and again.

The Omega in his arms softened like a puddle; no matter what happened, he wouldn’t resist. Lu Cong couldn’t help but leave more and more marks that belonged to him on Lin Xiang.

“Inhib… inhibitor… Lu Cong… ugh…” Lin Xiang stammered, finally managing to say the whole sentence after a long struggle, “Or… maybe… you should just give me an injection…”

Lu Cong slowly withdrew his sharp teeth but his lips still pressed against Lin Xiang’s mottled neck, his voice hoarse: “Too late.”

Lin Xiang, someone who rarely cried, shed tears, but Lu Cong showed no mercy.

He bit so deeply, held him so tightly. Lin Xiang felt like he was suffocating, tilting his head back to gasp, sobbing and scolding Lu Cong, “Crazy… man…”

“You caught me.”

Lu Cong actually laughed.

Lin Xiang lost consciousness midway, but when he woke, the marking hadn’t ended.

He timidly, almost about to cry, said, “I don’t want to be marked anymore, I can’t take it, Lu Cong, I’m uncomfortable…”

“Don’t act pitiful, Yanyan.” Lu Cong grabbed his chin with one hand, gently caressing his lips, “I know it doesn’t hurt.”

It didn’t hurt, but the discomfort was real.

Not the uncomfortable kind, but the kind of discomfort that comes from being too comfortable.

But Lin Xiang didn’t dare say that.

His body seemed no longer his own, reacting in many strange and excessive ways. Lin Xiang was scared and tried to hide his body. He didn’t know if Lu Cong noticed but pressed tightly against the wall, enduring another wave of pheromone fusion.

From a treatment perspective, this temporary marking was already long completed.

Lin Xiang was soaked inside and out with Lu Cong’s pheromones.

But Lu Cong discovered something strange.

He smelled a faint, elusive, delicate fragrance on Lin Xiang’s body.

Though Lin Xiang always smelled nice.

He loved cleanliness, changed clothes every day, rubbed essential oils into his hair after washing, and applied moisturizer after showering. These were small habits his mother had taught him when she was alive.

But Lu Cong was familiar with all Lin Xiang’s usual scents. He knew what he just smelled wasn’t those.

At least, not just those.

So Lu Cong was entranced, biting deeper and lingering longer on Lin Xiang’s glands, continuously searching for that faint scent.

Finally, he found the source and confirmed what it was.

Then Lu Cong ended the marking and reined in his pheromones.

He cradled the already fainted Lin Xiang in his arms, greedily inhaling that scent almost hidden in the air.

“It’s your pheromones, Yanyan.”
He lowered his head and kissed the soft cheek of the sleeping Omega. “So sweet.”

Like coconut milk with honey.

The next morning.

When Lin Xiangqi walked into the classroom, everyone turned to look at him.

“Whoa! Isn’t it just October? Why does our Brother Qi look so weak already?”

Today, Lin Xiangqi was wearing a turtleneck sweater and a big mask that covered nearly half his face.

“Got a cold? Come here, I’ve still got a packet of 999 [cold medicine], I’ll make it for you!”

“Zhou Yang, put that away! Don’t think I don’t know — that packet’s been sitting there for almost two semesters. Are you trying to poison Lin Xiangqi?”

“Why does Lin Xiangqi’s school uniform look so big today? Did he shrink, or did the clothes puff up?”

“You’ve got such a sharp tongue. Just wait — he’ll come slap you. Brother Qi’s slaps could kill. Just you wait.”

Everyone started talking at once, and the classroom quickly became noisy.

Normally, Lin Xiangqi would’ve joined right in with their chatter.

But today, he was unusually quiet.

He walked straight to his seat and sat down silently without a word.

Lu Cong followed closely behind, holding Lin Xiangqi’s schoolbag in his hand.

After Lin Xiangqi sat down, he let out an involuntary cough. Lu Cong silently took out a thermos and a small packet of pre-measured medicine from the bag and handed them to him.

“Take it now?” he asked Lin Xiangqi.

Lin Xiangqi didn’t look at him, just shook his head with downcast eyes.

Lu Cong still didn’t leave. He reached out to feel Lin Xiangqi’s forehead, but Lin Xiangqi suddenly dodged away. As if nothing happened, Lu Cong said in a casual tone, “I’ll go ask for leave.”

“No need…” Lin Xiangqi quickly grabbed his hand.

As soon as he opened his mouth, his hoarse voice startled the nearby Chen Qiutian.

Chen Qiutian said, “Qi, you really caught a cold? What’s up with your voice? Tonsillitis? I can’t even recognize you. Maybe listen to the class rep and go home to rest?”

Lin Xiangqi opened his mouth under the mask, hesitated for a while, then decided not to say anything.

He stood up and pulled Lu Cong’s hand, walking out with him.

As the two of them disappeared through the classroom door, a group of students — led by Chen Qiutian — huddled together sneakily.

Everyone tried to finish their homework quickly while speculating:

“Did they have another fight? The vibe feels off.”

“Doesn’t seem like it. Last week when they had a cold war, Qi completely ignored the class rep. But today, he still talked to him. Doesn’t seem right.”

“Chen Qiutian, got any insider info?”

“Yeah, yeah, spill it, man. If there’s something going on, you have to tell us. I can’t take another week like last one — it was hell.”

What they called “hell” referred to last week’s cold war between Lin Xiangqi and Lu Cong.

It sounded like a private matter between two people, but in reality, the entire class was affected to varying degrees.

Lu Cong, being the class rep, was the teachers’ most trusted student — a strict rule-enforcer, second only to the homeroom teacher in terms of authority.

But Lin Xiangqi usually acted as a buffer.

After all, he was one of the most notorious rule-breakers in class.

Take the simplest example.

If Lin Xiangqi barely made it to class on time, then naturally Lu Cong, who always came with him, would also arrive late. That gave the rest of the class more time to finish their homework.

If Lin Xiangqi snuck out to play basketball at noon, Lu Cong would most likely follow him, giving the rest of the students a chance to sneak off too.

And the most outrageous — if Lin Xiangqi suddenly decided to have the whole class play games or watch a movie during evening self-study while Lu Cong was supervising, as long as no one else objected, Lu Cong would turn a blind eye. Even if they got caught, he’d take the blame.

With a class rep like this, Class 7 of Grade 12 usually lived a smooth and happy life.

But everything changed last week.

Lu Cong not only moved the homework collection time to before morning study, but also strictly recorded anyone who was late or skipped class. During evening study, he watched everyone like a hawk and didn’t allow anyone to whisper.

The scariest thing was —
He even started helping the homeroom teacher crack down on early dating.

Several potential couples in class didn’t even get a chance to start. They were too scared to even make eye contact, fearing the cold gaze of the class rep.

And the root of all this evil — was Lin Xiangqi!

Seeing everyone so worried, Chen Qiutian casually copied an answer onto his homework and said, “Relax, they won’t fight again.” The biggest obstacle to my OTP is already out of the picture!

The others didn’t know where his confidence came from and remained skeptical.

“Seriously? When Lin Xiangqi dragged the class rep out, he looked kinda pissed. What if it’s the start of WW2?”

Chen Qiutian wagged his finger. “Nah nah nah, you don’t understand Qi. If he were really mad, he wouldn’t even give the class rep a chance to show concern. From how he looks now, he’s more like… shy.”

“You’re full of crap. What on earth could make Lin Xiangqi feel shy?” someone scoffed. “He could turn a public apology under the flagpole into a stage performance. That guy’s face is so thick, I don’t even bother mocking him anymore.”

Chen Qiutian replied, “You don’t get it. The thicker someone thinks their skin is, the cuter they are when they actually get shy.”

“I said there’s no need to go to Dr. Tang.”

Lin Xiangqi tugged at the overly tight collar of his sweater and deliberately looked in the opposite direction of Lu Cong as he spoke.

“Going to the hospital just means doing the same old tests. I feel fine now! Just a little fever, a bit of coughing, sore throat — nothing serious, haha.”

Lu Cong frowned slightly, reached out to tug down the back of Lin Xiangqi’s collar, revealing a small section of his neck. Underneath were three whole blocking patches, and even they couldn’t completely cover the shocking mottled marks underneath. “Your gland…”

“Shh!!!” Lin Xiangqi jumped up the moment he heard that word, clapping his hand over Lu Cong’s mouth. His reaction was so exaggerated that he looked around in panic before whispering, “Don’t say that word! I’m a Beta at school, don’t blow my cover!”

Lu Cong looked at him for a while, then softly said, “I’m sorry.”

Lin Xiangqi accidentally met his eyes and quickly retracted his hand, then spoke very fast:
“Alright, you really don’t need to dwell on it, and don’t blame yourself for what happened yesterday. I get it, I get it — you weren’t in your right mind, you didn’t know what you were doing, right?”

Just as Lu Cong was about to speak, Lin Xiangqi interrupted again:
“Let’s not go to Dr. Tang’s today, alright? We’re in our senior year — academics come first. We can’t just keep taking leave. Let’s wait until the weekend and go get checked together then.”

He blamed it on school, but in truth, Lin Xiangqi didn’t want to go to the hospital because he was afraid Dr. Tang Luyu would ask about the whole marking process and check the “injuries” left on his body.

Just thinking about it made Lin Xiangqi uncomfortable.

Lu Cong had bitten too deep into the gland. The bite marks and scabbed-over marks wouldn’t fade for at least three to five days.

But that alone wasn’t enough to stop him from going.

The real problem was… there were other bite marks.

God knows why Lu Cong bit those places. Wasn’t a temporary mark supposed to be on the neck?

Yet when Lin Xiangqi woke up, there wasn’t a single unmarked spot on him — even the inside of his thighs… had two little red dots.

He initially tried to convince himself that the red spots without teeth marks were just from late-autumn mosquitoes that hadn’t died off yet.

But…

One or two could be excused.
There were just too many “mosquito bites” on him. Anyone who saw them would find it suspicious.

Even he was horrified when he saw them. He couldn’t even imagine what Dr. Tang would think.

“Then let her come over tonight,” Lu Cong casually added. “We don’t have monitoring equipment at home, so she can’t do a full checkup — but she can at least take a blood sample and check your gland condition. Is that okay?”

Last night, during the marking, Lu Cong released far more pheromones into Lin Xiangqi than was necessary for a standard treatment. Anything done to excess can easily lead to adverse consequences.

Moreover, Lu Cong still remembered the faint scent of coconut milk he had caught.

He wouldn’t be at ease until he got it checked.

After hearing that, Lin Xiangqi’s round eyes shifted quickly beneath his bangs. He asked in a small voice, “Just a blood draw? No other exams?”

He tried hard not to show what he was really thinking, but Lu Cong knew exactly what he was afraid of.

Lu Cong lowered his gaze, his voice deep: “Just a blood draw.”

“Alright then, we’ll ask Dr. Tang to come over. I can pay the house call fee myself this time,” Lin Xiangqi cleared his throat, but his voice was still hoarse.

There was no helping it—he had shouted too loudly last night when Lu Cong bit into his gland, and it had strained his voice. Fortunately, it didn’t hurt.

Lu Cong didn’t mention the inhumanly high fee Dr. Tang Lu Yu usually charged. Instead, he said, “Your condition is valuable for her research. She’ll waive the entire fee. You don’t need to worry about it. And since I released too many pheromones last night, I had planned to ask her over anyway.”

That statement struck a nerve in Lin Xiangqi.

He instinctively shrank his neck a little, then nodded in agreement. “Oh, right. That really should be checked.”

Since they had reached a conclusion, it was time to head back to the classroom for class.

But Lin Xiangqi kept his head lowered, clearly lost in his own chaotic thoughts. He picked at his fingernails and tugged at the cuffs of his school uniform, as if he was struggling with something difficult to say.

Lu Cong silently waited for him for a while. When the bell rang, he finally reminded him it was time to go.

At that moment, Lin Xiangqi suddenly seemed to steel himself, stomped lightly on the ground as if to boost his courage, then finally asked the question that had been on his mind for a long time:

“Lu Cong, last night… when you were like that, did you know what you were doing?”

It was actually a fairly simple question—just a yes or no.

But Lu Cong didn’t answer immediately.

He looked at the small part of Lin Xiangqi’s face that wasn’t hidden by the mask. After a long pause, he finally replied slowly, “I knew…”

Lin Xiangqi’s eyes widened instantly, his pupils even trembling.

Lu Cong continued, unhurriedly, “…part of it.”

“Huh?” Lin Xiangqi blinked and asked curiously, “What do you mean?”

“I was aware at first.” Lu Cong’s tone was calm and composed as always, his face giving nothing away. “Later, not so much.”

No one would doubt him. He looked like someone who never lied.

“Right? Right! …Whew.” Lin Xiangqi visibly relaxed, as if a heavy weight had been lifted from his heart. Even his breathing became lighter. “So later, you didn’t know what you were doing at all. Haha.”

Good. Good—Lu Cong didn’t remember.

So all those bite marks and red spots all over Lin Xiangqi’s body—on his chest, abdomen, thighs, and other strange places—it didn’t matter!

If he didn’t remember, it was like it never happened!

Lin Xiangqi let out another laugh, “Haha, let’s go, time for class.”

He walked ahead, visibly relieved.

Lu Cong followed behind him, his gaze shadowed, as if his mind was being drawn back to a certain moment from the night before.

That slender, soft waist that trembled at the slightest bite… and skin that retained every kiss as a lingering mark.

The sensations were still vivid.

How could he possibly forget?