Pretending to Be an Alpha in an All-Alpha Boy Band - Chapter 26

Chapter 26: Applying Medicine (first update + second update + 40k nutrient solution extra update)

—— What supreme shura scene?!

—— To be honest, I never expected JH to take the initiative and look for ○… I just love watching the cool guy play the third. [hehe]

—— But YMX has a really good temper. I feel like he’s the kind of guy who, even if he found his wife cheating with a teammate, would quietly swallow it and then remind the teammate to use protection…

—— So if JH goes too far, YMX will be standing there feeling sorry for his wife and telling JH to go easier? [covering face]

When Ying Mingxi came back he changed his clothes, and the sight on the sofa directly in front of him suddenly crashed into view. His gentle face looked momentarily stunned; then, considerately, he closed the door.

“What happened?” Ying Mingxi asked with concern. “Did you accidentally fall on someone again? How could you be so careless, Shiyuan?”

Yuan Shiyuan got down from the sofa and was fastening his bathrobe belt when he paused.

He shot a glance at the other: “Cut it out. I told you, you don’t look anything like your brother when you act like that.”

—— Good grief! Thought it was the older brother, but it’s the younger one!

—— Oh my, YMC acted so convincingly… I didn’t notice at all that he was pretending. Little Yuan could actually recognize it at a glance, even from so far away!

—— This proves Little Yuan is extremely perceptive. I’m curious — the Little Yuan who can tell the brothers apart at a glance, when they come in one at a time, can he still tell which one is the older brother and which is the younger? [silly grin]

Exposed, Ying Mingche completely dropped the act. He glanced at Jiang Heng, then returned his gaze to Yuan Shiyuan’s face.

“Second time, right?” he said with a half-smile. “First it was Bo Jin, now it’s Jiang Heng. Don’t tell me this time you ‘accidentally’ fell on him too?”

Jiang Heng frowned. Second time?

Had Ying Mingche seen Yuan Shiyuan “fall” on someone else before? And that someone had been Bo Jin?

What a coincidence — he had also seen the scene of Yuan Shiyuan “falling” on Bo Jin…

Yuan Shiyuan answered honestly: “It really was an accident.”

He couldn’t even be bothered to change his excuse.

An inexplicable surge of anger mixed with a bit of hurt rose up. Ying Mingche couldn’t understand why Yuan Shiyuan couldn’t even be bothered to lie to him this time. It was the second time — he couldn’t even be bothered to invent a new lie!

Refusing to give up, Ying Mingche stepped forward and grabbed Yuan Shiyuan’s wrist. “Then I want one too.”

“You kept ‘accidentally’ falling on them, so I want one too,” he urged. “Hurry and accidentally fall on me.”

Ying Mingche sat on the sofa, legs long and spread, already ready to receive.

Yuan Shiyuan fell silent and said, “Are you sick?”

He was a purebred straight A — why would he sit on another A’s lap? The previous incidents could be chalked up to accidents; he couldn’t help those. But to have him, fully conscious and in control, deliberately sit on a man… might as well stab him through and through.

Of course, with a knife, not with a dangerous big orange paw.

Still, if the team required them to perform and the fans wanted to see it…

He might be willing to endure it for a bit.

“Hurry up, hurry up,” Ying Mingche pressed, insisting on equal treatment.

Ying Mingche reached out with a large hand and simply pulled Yuan Shiyuan onto his lap. Yuan Shiyuan hadn’t even settled, hadn’t even reacted, when another large hand lifted him up again.

Yuan Shiyuan: ??

Why was he being carried around like a little plush doll?

Jiang Heng stepped in front of Yuan Shiyuan and said coldly, “Don’t go crazy here.”

“How funny. What standing do you have to say that? Are you the owner of this room?” Ying Mingche retorted. “Isn’t the other owner of the room my brother?”

“You’re in my brother’s room, showing no awareness that you’re a guest, and putting on that kind of act.” His tone grew more mocking.

—— Still, but, ymc, you’re not the other owner of the room either. [covering face]

—— Wait, the amount of info in their conversation just now is a bit much? What do you mean ymc ran into him a second time? The last time was Brother Huo? Oh my god Brother Huo gets to enjoy this kind of thing in private?

—— ymc seems to know a lot of inside stuff. When they were dividing rooms just now, he even said something about “last time hiding in the wardrobe”… why was he hiding in a wardrobe?

—— Doing shameful things while silently thinking: Sorry Little Yuan, I did something bad to you. [yellow heart]

—— Holy crap you Scepter boys are like this in private??

—— If these silver demons form a team, I really won’t feel safe about my precious. Little Yuan promise me—when you sleep keep your waistband fastened, don’t let bad As touch you, no poking, no hugging, no rubbing. [big cry]

“There’s a limit to joking.”

When the atmosphere reached a breaking point, Yuan Shiyuan’s one remark reduced it to team banter. He leaned out halfway and asked, puzzled, “Why are you the only one here?”

There were only two key cards: one to insert for power in the room, and the other had been taken by Ying Mingxi. That was why Yuan Shiyuan had instinctively assumed the newcomer was Ying Mingxi—only he and Ying Mingxi had key cards.

Could Ying Mingxi have given his key card to Ying Mingche?

“I’m not enough by myself?” Ying Mingche said resentfully. “What, you want me to call the whole team over? This place is so small—do you think it can fit everyone?”

Although the suite was large, six S-rank alphas crammed together would still feel cramped. He added in a dry tone, “You’re being too greedy.”

Yuan Shiyuan: “I was just asking.”

First Jiang Heng came, then Ying Mingche. He’d thought they might be doing a team-building thing, or that a task card had appeared in the room and they needed to move on to the next step.

“Do you guys have any task cards or anything? My room doesn’t—I checked every corner.”

Jiang Heng: “I haven’t gone back to check yet.”

Ying Mingche: “I don’t have one either. I checked the other rooms too—none.”

No task cards? No NPC-driven segment? Then what were they recording?

Yuan Shiyuan thought: unless the process had already advanced without them knowing. So the production team wasn’t worried at all, letting them run around like headless flies.

Ying Mingche couldn’t stand being ignored; he looped a finger through Yuan Shiyuan’s bathrobe belt. “You only care about task cards, you don’t care about me.”

“I’m feeling really unwell—maybe a fever—so I came to find you.”

“Is that so? How tall?”

Ying Mingche blurted out, “192.5.”

“Uh.”

“Huh?”

Yuan Shiyuan said, “Actually nobody asked.”

Yuan Shiyuan’s indifferent tone immediately irked Ying Mingche. He steered the conversation back to the beginning, dredging up old grievances and insisting Yuan Shiyuan “fall” onto him once.

“You insist on bringing up the old stuff?” Yuan Shiyuan said. “Fine, I’ll bring up old business too. I heard you on the rooftop when you were on the phone that time.”

“Want me to help you remember what you said?” Jiang Heng looked over, and the danmaku was full of guesses about what Ying Mingche had said. Yuan Shiyuan’s face carried a smile—he didn’t come off as accusing so much as teasing.

That attitude only made people more curious.

Ying Mingche suddenly froze; his memory replayed quickly. The alpha’s superior recall let him instantly capture the scene from that day.

“I…” he abruptly lost his nerve. “I was wrong.”

“Oh.”

“Don’t be mad at me,” Ying Mingche said. “That wasn’t my true feelings…”

“That just proves you’re a habitual liar,” Yuan Shiyuan said, deliberately keeping a stern face. “How do I know whether what you’re saying now is sincere?”

“Of course it is!” Ying Mingche saw Yuan Shiyuan’s expression turn serious and didn’t even dare raise his voice; he anxiously searched for a way out.

It was the first time Yuan Shiyuan had seen Ying Mingche so flustered. He found it amusing and couldn’t hold back a smile.

“Alright, I was lying to trick you,” he said. “I’m not mad.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

Ying Mingche didn’t believe him.

He knew his own worst traits better than anyone and knew what a bad person he could be. If someone discovered his true colors, they wouldn’t keep liking him—and they certainly wouldn’t allow him to come near them.

Yuan Shiyuan’s indifferent, as-if-it-wasn’t-a-big-deal attitude after brushing the matter off only made Ying Mingche more anxious. Yuan Shiyuan was pleasant to everyone; he always had the same gentle temper.

Ying Mingche would rather Yuan Shiyuan be angry with him—to show a different, special side—but he worried he couldn’t soothe him.

He felt conflicted and torn.

He was excellent at reading other people’s emotions; seeing that Yuan Shiyuan didn’t resist his closeness, he nervously asked in a low voice, “You’re really not mad? You won’t ignore me later?”

Yuan Shiyuan countered, “Will you behave?”

“Yes.”

“I mean, will you do whatever I tell you to do?”

“Whatever you tell me to do, I’ll do.”

“You won’t resist?”

“Absolutely not.”

—Training a dog is this simple.

—Little Yuan played that card. [thumbs up]

—What has this turned ymc fans into? [cry-laugh]

To Yuan Shiyuan’s surprise, Ying Mingche was unusually obedient this time.

After spending some time together, he had a rough understanding of Ying Mingche. Ying Mingche was like a naughty, rotten little rascal—the more you forbade him from doing something, the more he would want to do it, as if deliberately seeking attention.

With this type, ignoring them won’t make them stop. Yuan Shiyuan needed to respond a few times: give a slap, then give a candy—mixed tactics.

Otherwise Ying Mingche would only get more excited.

“Fine, that’s what you said. I’ll remember. I’m not mad this time, but next time it’s not guaranteed,” Yuan Shiyuan said. “You can stay here, but don’t make noise, and don’t make jokes that harm team unity.”

“Behave a bit and I won’t be mad.”

After all, he was still backing Jiang Heng.

Ying Mingche shot an annoyed look at Jiang Heng; Jiang Heng, on the other hand, was pleased to be defended by Yuan Shiyuan. Ying Mingche had only teased Jiang Heng a few times—no harm done.

“Okay.” Ying Mingche didn’t dare lose his temper with Yuan Shiyuan. He asked, “Can I lie down on your bed and rest for a bit? I’m not feeling well.”

“You’re really unwell.” He put on a pitiful face.

Yuan Shiyuan nodded and allowed it. Then he asked, “You showered already, right?”

“Of course I did!”

“Then play by yourselves.” Yuan Shiyuan glanced at Jiang Heng, who hadn’t left yet. “I’m going to shower first.”

After Yuan Shiyuan went into the restroom to shower, the atmosphere in the reception room grew a bit awkward.

The more Ying Mingche looked at Jiang Heng, the more annoyed he felt, but remembering Yuan Shiyuan’s words just now, he didn’t continue to provoke.

He pretended to look around the suite, walked a full circle, and then deliberately flopped down on Yuan Shiyuan’s bed.

Was it because it was a suite? Why did Yuan Shiyuan’s bed smell so especially nice and feel especially soft?

Once his thoughts went blank, Ying Mingche reminded himself again: Yuan Shiyuan had really been mean to him.

But he felt a little pleased.

The fact that Yuan Shiyuan was only harsh with him meant he was different—otherwise why would Yuan Shiyuan be strict only with him?

He was happy for a while, his brows and eyes falling into a hint of disappointment. Still, he wanted Yuan Shiyuan to be a little kinder to him…

The faint fragrance drifting from the bedding briefly emptied Ying Mingche’s mind, triggering a submissive instinct.

He turned his head slightly and sniffed the pillow.

No mistake—the scent was from Yuan Shiyuan’s hair.

Ying Mingche without hesitation buried his face in the pillow, inhaled blissfully, then rubbed his nose against the pillowcase.

—?? Stalker fan?

—ymc do you know you really look like ss when you do this…

—Whoever ymc met was Little Yuan, going overboard is basic operation.

—No no no, this is epic-level fan behavior.

—Totally a bystander, are fans this bold now? Not even pretending, huh?

The danmaku scrolled like crazy. Ying Mingche was completely absorbed, immersing his face in the pillow’s hollow.

Water ran in the shower; a faint, elusive pheromone wafted from the direction of the bathroom, making him jerk his head up and, almost without thinking, lick his canine.

So good…

The light scent flowed in like the mist of an early morning, hovering at his nostrils, compelling him to chase it uncontrollably—he could even feel himself getting addicted.

But this was clearly an Alpha’s pheromone… no, not entirely.

There seemed to be something else mixed in.

Threads of it, barely there, like morning dew at dawn.

If he lost focus even for a moment, it vanished.

Ying Mingche was entranced by that ephemeral aroma. When he suddenly came to his senses, a tall figure was already standing in front of him.

Yuan Shiyuan had finished showering; droplets ran down his neck and into the opening of his robe. His face was shrouded in a damp warmth—obviously he had only just stepped out of the shower.

Ying Mingche inhaled deeply without meaning to.

So fragrant.

“You still haven’t left?” Yuan Shiyuan tilted his head and looked at Jiang Heng in the reception room. “You haven’t left either?”

He thought for a moment and asked, “Are you planning to sleep here tonight? In the reception room?”

Jiang Heng: “Is that okay?”

“It’s okay…” Yuan Shiyuan hesitated.

“Alright, then I’ll sleep here tonight,” Jiang Heng said. “There’s a folding bed in the wardrobe.”

Yuan Shiyuan: “…Fine.”

Ying Mingche looked at Yuan Shiyuan with hopeful eyes, but Yuan Shiyuan was merciless: “Go back and sleep.”

Ying Mingche was about to speak, but remembered he shouldn’t make Yuan Shiyuan angry, so he shut up immediately. “I’ll just lie down for a bit. I’ll go once you fall asleep.”

How believable that statement was, no one knew.

Yuan Shiyuan remembered something else: “Does Struggling to Survive livestream sleeping too?”

“Yes,” Ying Mingche said. “They almost put live broadcast equipment in the toilets.”

Yuan Shiyuan: “…”

He was a little worried. “I don’t sleep very well…”

When Yuan Shiyuan was little he slept well, mainly because the welfare institute beds were small and there was little space to move.

After being adopted by the Yuan family, his life and conditions improved. Yuan Xing and her husband were the indulgent type, and they gave him and his brother a two-meter bed, letting them roll and play all over it.

When Yuan Shize was little he clung to him, was clingy and insecure, and insisted on being held to sleep. That made Yuan Shiyuan get used to sleeping with something hugged, or draping his legs over a bolster or a plush toy.

They had all come onto the livestream at the last minute, with no pajamas prepared—so right now they only had bathrobes and disposable underwear.

“Really? You don’t sleep well?” Ying Mingche didn’t believe it. “You look like such a good kid.”

“But if you’re really scared, go find the captain. He’s pretty sensitive to cameras; if he comes and looks, he’ll definitely be able to find where the livestream equipment is.”

“The show Struggling to Survive hides cameras very well. Ordinary people wouldn’t be able to find them.”

But it was so late—Pei Yanbing should be asleep by now, right?

Yuan Shiyuan tentatively tapped Pei Yanbing.

Yuan Shiyuan: Captain, are you asleep?

Pei Yanbing replied quickly: Not asleep.

He asked: Want to chat?

Yuan Shiyuan: If you have time, could you come to my room?

Pei Yanbing: Now?

Yuan Shiyuan: Mm-hmm.

Pei Yanbing: Ying Mingxi isn’t there?

Yuan Shiyuan: How did you know?

Pei Yanbing: Okay.

The top of the screen showed “typing” a few times; he seemed to hesitate, then sent: Okay.

A minute later, someone knocked on the door.

When the door opened, Pei Yanbing first saw Yuan Shiyuan, then… Jiang Heng and Ying Mingche standing behind him.

Pei Yanbing silently thought: So Ying Mingxi really isn’t here.

“Captain, my sleeping position is ugly and I sleep very deeply. I’m worried the livestream footage won’t look decent… Could you help me find the cameras?” Yuan Shiyuan’s eyelids were heavy with sleep, but he still forced himself to speak. “I want to grab something to cover them.”

Pei Yanbing: “Okay.”

Pei Yanbing really was sensitive to cameras.

In just a moment, every camera in the bedroom was neutralized.

—Cover my eyes with tonic!! [crying]

—Captain, I hate you, I curse you to never get Little Yuan in your life. [furious]

—I want to watch Little Yuan sleep! Where is my beautiful Little Yuan? [devastated][bawling]

—Am I the only one worried about Yuan’s pigudrum being safe… These S-rank As won’t act in front of cameras; if the cameras are covered… [screaming]

—An A sharing a blanket with Yuan—would they secretly attack him? Yuan sleeps poorly; he might wake up to find all his clothes gone and not even suspect, thinking he somehow lost them. And he sleeps so deeply, no matter what happens he won’t wake up; he might even think it was a bad dream…

—Perfect timing and conditions—born with the sacred water-boiled body. [covering face]

“There are actually this many cameras!” Yuan Shiyuan hadn’t expected the production team to hide them even in the tissue box. “Thanks, captain.”

“Hope I didn’t disturb your rest?”

Pei Yanbing: “No. I’m not asleep.”

Ying Mingche leaned against the wall, arms folded, sneering. He couldn’t help but mock, “It takes more than a minute to take the elevator from upstairs to downstairs, right? Captain’s legs are really long—arrived in a minute. Did you run down the stairs?”

“Now that you’re here, why leave? Stay and sleep together.”

Pei Yanbing: “Okay.”

—????

—You boy groups really are…

—And this is in front of livestream cameras. Can’t even imagine what they’re like off-camera…

—Please, release the footage; I have a feeling something wild will happen tonight.

—So worried about my wife’s little pigudrum.

—Just thinking about Little Yuan having to take four (Ying Mingxi should come back, right? If not, then only Brother Huo will be at the starting line), my chest aches, tears are coming out of my mouth. [bawling]

Jiang Heng slept on the folding bed, so Pei Yanbing had to take the sofa in the reception room.

Fortunately the sofa was big enough.

Yuan Shiyuan glanced and thought: don’t even mention fitting Pei Yanbing—there would be more than enough room even if he lay down too.

The lights were turned off; the surroundings were pitch dark, with only a dim night-light emitting a faint glow.

Yuan Shiyuan instinctively curled deeper into the blankets.

With the cameras all covered, he felt a little safer—no longer worried about any indecent footage leaking out.

He tucked the quilt in and didn’t forget to drape a small towel over the little plush doll on the bedside.

Ying Mingche said sourly, “The little plush doll is more important than me.”

“Of course,” Yuan Shiyuan replied. “But you’re important too—we’re teammates.”

Ying Mingche only heard the first half selectively; he was instantly appeased and nuzzled Yuan Shiyuan like a dog. “Did you just lie down on the bed?”

“I was a bit sleepy a moment ago, so I lay down and dozed off.”

“No wonder you smell so nice,” Ying Mingche murmured. “Why do you smell like that?”

“You really sound like a pervert.” Yuan Shiyuan yawned lazily. “Bathe more often and be a hygienic Alpha—then you’ll smell nice too.”

“I’m clean too,” Ying Mingche said. “But not like you—everywhere on you smells good.”

The scent wasn’t strong, but it was addictive, as if it exerted an instinctive pull on him. He always felt Yuan Shiyuan was a little movable cake—something he wanted to slowly lick and savor, and at the same time swallow whole.

As an S-rank Alpha, he rarely had such uncontrollable thoughts.

“I can’t take it, I’m so sleepy.” Yuan Shiyuan was getting drowsy. “I’m going to sleep. You should go back later. Brother Mingxi hasn’t returned yet—remember to leave him the room card…”

“Oh, he met an injured little animal on the ship and is helping. He might not come back tonight.”

“Brother Mingxi is really kind.”

“What about me? What about me?”

“You’re a person too.”

Ying Mingche was dissatisfied with that answer: “If I’m a person, could I be a dog?”

Yuan Shiyuan glanced up and gave him a sidelong look, chuckling softly: “That was your idea.”

“……”

Ying Mingche said, “You’re biased. You’re so good to my brother.”

“Can’t be bothered.” Yuan Shiyuan rolled over, turned his back to Ying Mingche, hugged a bolster, and closed his eyes. “I’m sleeping. Remember to go back later.”

“Oh.”

“You’re kicking me out.”

Yuan Shiyuan focused on falling asleep and refused to engage.

Perhaps Ying Mingche was just being perverse—Yuan Shiyuan’s colder he got, the more indifferent he seemed, and that only excited him.

With his excellent night vision, he could clearly make out strands of pink hair close by and the slender neck between them.

Ying Mingche probed closer, sniffed slowly, and quickly pinpointed the source of the scent.

It was coming from inside the blankets.

Without hesitation, Ying Mingche crawled into the quilt to search for the scent’s origin.

Brother Mingxi’s room card was missing, so he had one reissued by the waiter.

On the way back, his breathing was uneven; his whole body was controlled by strange sensations.

The special transmission he felt prevented him from keeping a gentle expression.

What on earth was Ying Mingche doing?!

Ying Mingxi’s thin lips pressed tightly together as he struggled to stay calm, though his mind grew increasingly chaotic.

When the card swiped and opened the door, by the dim night-light Ying Mingxi saw two people on the bed. Yuan Shiyuan was sleeping deeply, curled quietly in a corner with his nose buried in the pillow; the small exposed patch of his nape glowed with a delicate sheen.

On the other side, the bedding was mounded high as if someone had pulled the covers snug over head and tail. As it shifted slightly, the sheets and blanket rustled.

“What are you doing under the covers?!” Ying Mingxi lowered his voice, a note of accusation in it.

When the quilt was pulled back, the S-rank pheromone mixed with Yuan Shiyuan’s scent hit Ying Mingxi in the face, leaving him momentarily stunned.

Ying Mingche, having stayed under the covers too long, had a sickly, unnatural flush across his whole face. He was breathing with difficulty; his high nose bridge was rubbed pink, and his brows and eyes were full of an eerie satisfaction.

“What can I do?” a lazy voice said with a husky edge, every word soaked in aftertaste. “He really smells so good…”

“Brother, you can feel it too, right?”

“Especially his legs…too bad the bolster’s in the way, I can’t smell them clearly.”

Their exchange was audible only to themselves.

Ying Mingxi felt it, of course.

And very clearly.

Although he couldn’t see directly, the sensations transmitted through their shared empathy reproduced almost everything in his mind as if he were there, involuntarily evoking the same impulse Ying Mingche had—to bite down.

It was so strange.

Ying Mingxi looked at the big bed again.

His younger brother was lying in the spot that had originally been his.

“You can go back,” he gave the order to leave.

But Ying Mingche had no intention of getting up. “Brother, we’re family, we don’t need to be so particular, right? We’re sleeping no matter where—just let me sleep here.”

All his life, Ying Mingxi had been the one to give in.

Like many people’s stereotyping, the older one should be tolerant and sensible, while the younger one seemed entitled to special treatment.

Since childhood, Ying Mingche had known how to charm people and had shown the Alpha tendency to be competitive. He liked to fight for things; to him, only what was taken was the best.

Ying Mingxi didn’t care about those things—he would give up toys, snacks, and such. The caregivers always said he was sensible, a good big brother. Only he knew that the things he relinquished were the ones he didn’t mind or value.

This time, Ying Mingxi refused gently but firmly: “I drew this room.”

Ying Mingche froze.

“If you really want to stay here, fine.” Ying Mingxi—sounding magnanimous—offered another option. “There’s space on the living room sofa. If worst comes to worst, you can sleep on the floor beside the bed.”

Ying Mingche lifted his eyes to him.

Two identical faces, their gazes clashed wordlessly in the air.

Ying Mingxi said softly, “Those are the rules of the game.”

“I guess Shiyuan also doesn’t like people who break the rules.”

“…”

Ying Mingche couldn’t understand why he should humiliate himself and sleep on the floor by the bed.

Just because he was afraid Yuan Shiyuan would get angry?

Ridiculous. Was he really afraid of Yuan Shiyuan getting mad?

…Turns out he actually quite was.

Ying Mingche knew very well that if he didn’t behave, Yuan Shiyuan truly wouldn’t forgive him.

Worried about waking Yuan Shiyuan, Ying Mingxi only took a quick shower.

Yuan Shiyuan was sleeping soundly, but when Ying Mingxi quietly lifted the quilt and slipped in, he mumbled and opened his eyes groggily.

“Did I wake you?”

“No…”

Yuan Shiyuan forced his eyes open, recognized Ying Mingxi, and spoke very softly, “Mingxi— I…”

“Hmm?”

“I’m a little itchy…”

Yuan Shiyuan hadn’t been awakened by noise but by an allergic itch. His sleep was usually deep; he wouldn’t have woken unless that itching—like feathers lightly tickling beneath his skin—was strong enough to rouse him.

“Where does it itch?” Ying Mingxi lowered his voice.

Yuan Shiyuan also found it hard to say exactly where; half his face was still buried in the pillow, his cheek pressed into a soft curve.

“I have ointment…” He paused for a moment, then said in a drifting voice, “in my backpack.”

Yuan Shiyuan had specifically gone to the pharmacy.

The doctor, after hearing his description, suggested it might be allergic dermatitis. During the summer heatwave, airborne floating fluff and pollen can cause the skin to itch and redden.

The doctor prescribed ointment.

“Okay, I’ll get it for you.”

Ying Mingxi fetched the ointment, returned to the bed, and naturally said, “Shiyuan, shall I put it on for you?”

Normally, Yuan Shiyuan would have refused—after all, the person before him was Ying Mingxi, not the younger brother who had cared for him since childhood.

But he was unbearably sleepy now, and in his drowsiness—without fully realizing it—he said, “Okay.”

This was an imported medicine that required two tubes used together. Ying Mingxi sat on the edge of the bed and carefully read the instructions when a rustling sound came from behind him.

“Brother Mingxi,” Yuan Shiyuan said, “I’m ready.”

Ying Mingxi turned his head in puzzlement; his pupils suddenly widened.

In the dim nightlight, the scene before him seemed like a slow-motion shot from a movie. Yuan Shiyuan spread his knees, lifted the hem of his trousers with his left hand, and pressed the reddened, allergic patch of skin with his right—fully exposing it to him.

A peculiar fragrance floated right to his face, and Ying Mingxi was distracted for a moment.

“Okay.” His breathing quickened a little. “This is where it’s allergic, right?”

“Mm…” Yuan Shiyuan said, then, as if overcome by weight, lay back down. He seemed to fall asleep again.

Ying Mingxi kept his promise and applied the ointment for Yuan Shiyuan.

The reddened area was small, only a patch on the inner side. Perhaps due to the allergy, the already thin translucent skin looked even more delicate.

Ying Mingxi applied the ointment gently, careful not to wake Yuan Shiyuan—but judging by how deeply he slept, even if Ying Mingxi had used a bit more force, Yuan Shiyuan probably would not have woken.

A thin, even layer of ointment was spread over the dry, fine inner skin. The milky ointment melted with the warmth, forming a glossy film over the slightly reddened allergic patch.

Maybe the medication worked quickly, bringing a gentle calming effect and easing the discomfort. Yuan Shiyuan felt comfortable; even in sleep he turned his head to lightly bite curled fingers, his toes slightly hooked.

An ordinary sight, but in Ying Mingxi’s eyes… it was especially alluring.

He thought to himself: as expected, someone with a heart (i.e., with desire) sees everything as filth (Translation note: 心脏的人，看什么都脏 — a figurative, somewhat crude thought implying sexualized perception).

His thoughts drifted again: what was that scent?

Why did it smell so good?

Ying Mingxi sniffed his fingertips. Even covered by the medicinal herb scent of the ointment, he could still detect a faint, delicate fragrance on his fingertip…

His gaze settled thoughtfully on the allergic patch.

After hesitating for a moment, Ying Mingxi still parted it to take a look.

There was nothing unusual.

Maybe he was overthinking it.

Ying Mingxi quietly tidied and put away the ointment.

To prevent Yuan Shiyuan from biting himself, Ying Mingxi considerately took out Yuan Shiyuan’s finger, revealing a wet, glossy mark.

The moment he looked stunned, Yuan Shiyuan suddenly bit him.

A strange electric sting of pain swept through him.

Ying Mingxi’s breathing instantly went awry as he stared at the wound on the web of his hand.

At that moment, as if sensing something, he suddenly turned his head. A tall figure was leaning against the wall, almost merging with the darkness.

Pei Yanbing had been standing there at some unknown time, and for an unknown length of time.

And Ying Mingche, who was sleeping on the floor by the bed, seemed to sense something in his dream and abruptly opened his eyes.