The Frail, Alluring O Always Wants Me to Mark Her (GL) - Chapter 24: 024

It was like falling into a boundless dream.

Until she opened her eyes, Yan Mian still couldn’t hear any sound.

Until a suppressed female voice sounded: “Is she not awake yet?”

It was very familiar, but Yan Mian couldn’t quite remember the owner of the voice.

“She has already differentiated; how could she recover so quickly?”

In the haze, a person’s shadow seemed to appear before her eyes.

Yan Mian felt her thoughts tremble. The next second, she struggled to open her eyes.

The hospital room was spotlessly clean, with a heavy smell of disinfectant. The warm sun was gentle. Qiao Qiao leaned by the window, biting an apple taken from a flower basket, and casually asked, “What about you?”

Zhu Lexing had peeled half an apple, sliced it, and placed it on a plate. Hearing the question, she paused before replying, “I don’t know.”

Last night, not long after Yan Mian fell asleep, the police arrived.

The two were sent directly to the hospital. The doctor gave them a full body check-up, and the results were simple: Yan Mian had not experienced any accidents during her forced differentiation and had become an Omega.

As for Zhu Lexing, there was nothing wrong with her.

She hadn’t stayed in Shi Ruofeng’s room for too long, and her urge to differentiate had been delayed by the inhibitor.

She felt like her bones were dislocated and was in severe pain until dawn.

But the pain an Omega felt was much more intense than hers. Looking at Yan Mian’s face, Zhu Lexing felt it was nothing after all.

Qiao Qiao sighed: “Aiy—it’s really tough on you. Why are you peeling so much? It will oxidize soon. Haven’t you had enough?”

Zhu Lexing: “Didn’t I see that you like eating it? You eat, you eat.”

Qiao Qiao felt that Zhu Lexing was truly “viciously motivated.”

She looked at her watch and said, “The police will be here soon, right? To take your statement. I heard Lin Yang hasn’t admitted to anything at all.”

Zhu Lexing sneered: “If she admitted it, she’d have to stay in jail for at least ten years.”

The bar’s surveillance was broken, and the hotel’s surveillance was also broken. The Lin family was like a signal blocker; wherever they went, there was no surveillance. Everyone seemed to have been bought off in advance, claiming complete ignorance of everything.

The argument between the two at the bar was also too far away, and besides Li Nian, no one was willing to come forward as a witness. On the contrary, many people saw Zhu Lexing threatening Lin Yang with the glass handle. The whole night, everyone was going in circles over this matter.

Lin Yang was equally well-prepared this time.

She fashioned a persona of a deeply devoted lover for herself, claiming the only reason she went to the bar was because she liked Zhu Lexing so much and just wanted to see her.

Her stubborn denial sickened Zhu Lexing.

Anyone with eyes could see she was lying, but even when someone asked other questions, Lin Yang would just squeeze out a few crocodile tears and ask for Lin Song.

Zhu Lexing had anticipated Lin Yang’s stubbornness.

“Disgusting,” Qiao Qiao was also extremely disgusted with Lin Yang’s actions. She frowned and then asked, “What about your dad? Is he just letting her get away with this? Although Yan Mian wasn’t hurt, but…”

Zhu Lexing continued to peel the apple: “Who knows?”

After Lin Qingxing arrived, Zhu Lin had a brief outburst, grabbing the other party’s collar and angrily stating: “If anything happens to Xiao Mian, I won’t let you get away with it.”

But under Jiang Yue’s persuasion, he quickly calmed down and soon voluntarily apologized to Lin Qingxing, claiming he was too impulsive. Since the truth hadn’t come out yet, there was no need for conflict.

The situation was subtly one-sided.

Zhu Lexing wasn’t at the scene, but hearing Li Nian’s description this morning, she felt that the development was just too normal.

Even Yan Mian’s biological mother acted this way, so why should outsiders stand up for her?

But does “normal” mean “correct”?

Qiao Qiao was about to say more, but a low, hoarse female voice interrupted her: “…Water.”

Zhu Lexing paused, reacting first. She brought the pre-prepared straw to Yan Mian’s lips. Drinking directly might wet her clothes and require close contact, so a straw was the best option.

Qiao Qiao said, “Well, I won’t bother you two anymore. Get some rest, Yan Mian.”

After she left, only the two of them remained in the room. Yan Mian drank only a little and stopped.

Zhu Lexing set the water down, sat beside her, was silent for a moment, and then pulled the blanket up higher.

“The police are already investigating yesterday’s matter,” Zhu Lexing said. “Someone will come to you later… to take your statement. Just tell the truth; it’s nothing.”

Yan Mian looked at Zhu Lexing’s face. The girl’s eyes were full of unconcealed concern. All that remained of last night’s memory was a faint blur. Perhaps, she only remembered that the last person she leaned on was Zhu Lexing.

The one who injected the inhibitor was also Zhu Lexing.

She had no reason to harm her.

Yan Mian parted her lips and suddenly said, “I smelled another Omega’s pheromones in the room yesterday.”

Zhu Lexing said, “That was Shi Ruofeng. The one… Lin Yang mentioned before.”

Zhu Lexing only got a rough understanding of Shi Ruofeng’s background after Qiao Qiao came.

It was another messy chapter in a wealthy family’s history.

Shi Ruofeng was only brought back to the Shi family after the death of her mother, who was a “mistress.” She was similar to Yan Mian in personality, isolated and cold, but with exceptionally good grades. However, unlike Yan Mian, she had more than just “Zhu Lexing” to deal with.

Shi Ling, an Alpha with a reproductive obsession who wanted to extend his bloodline, was determined to have affairs with everyone. The illegitimate daughters he sired could form a board game group, and most of them were brought back to the Shi family at a young age.

Even with only half of the bloodline, living in the Shi family for a long time made them believe they were the masters of the Shi family.

Facing Shi Ruofeng, even though they shared a similar status, these people showed open hostility towards her.

Yet, Shi Ruofeng had nowhere to go.

She was a Shi family member, flowing with Shi family bl00d, a caged bird with clipped wings.

No one could protect her, and no one was willing to.

This life continued until recently when Shi Ling experienced an accident with an investment, losing all his family wealth. His houses were auctioned off, and Shi Ling was close to jumping off a building to end his life. But Lin Song claimed he could lend Shi Ling a sum of money.

The money wasn’t enough to clear the debt, but it was enough to give Shi Ling some breathing room.

He had only one request.

Shi Ruofeng had to go with him.

By the time Qiao Qiao got to this part, Zhu Lexing could no longer control her fury.

But Qiao Qiao explained, “She’s fine, and she won’t be in danger.”

Zhu Lexing then remembered Shi Ruofeng, whom she saw last night. The girl was clearly just entering her differentiation period. If Lin Song had really done anything to her, she wouldn’t have differentiated only last night.

Zhu Lexing did not intend to tell Yan Mian all of this.

Yan Mian was very sensitive and empathetic. Given her generally poor physical condition, Zhu Lexing didn’t want to upset her with a tragic story.

All she offered was a dry comfort: “Li Nian is with her. She’s fine.”

Yan Mian wasn’t clear on Li Nian’s role in the whole affair.

But judging by Zhu Lexing’s tone, Li Nian was clearly safe, which relieved her.

Yet, in the next second, her heart was half-raised again.

Yan Mian looked at Zhu Lexing and suddenly said, “Zhu Lexing.”

“…Hmm?” Zhu Lexing immediately snapped back to attention. She remembered Yan Mian calling her this way last night, seemingly about to say something, but never did. “What is it?”

Yan Mian said: “The mess…”

The door opened.

Two men in uniform stood outside, somewhat surprised: “Is she awake? Then let’s go to the station together to give a statement.”

“Lin Song is already here.”

On the way to the police station, Zhu Lexing was still thinking about the ins and outs of the matter.

First, why did Yan Mian go to the hotel? Who asked her? Lin Yang? Impossible.

If Lin Yang had asked her directly, Yan Mian would rather seek help from Qiao Qiao than go straight there.

The previous experience was enough for Yan Mian to realize Lin Yang’s ruthlessness.

Second… this matter could not be unrelated to Lin Song.

But the whole incident happened too suddenly, and various logics did not conform to common sense. For example, why were Yan Mian and Shi Ruofeng in the same hotel? Why did Lin Yang suddenly provoke them? And why did she deliberately give Zhu Lexing the wrong room number?

If they were all separated, Zhu Lexing couldn’t have found them alone.

There were too many unreasonable points. When rationalized, it looked like a chaotic scheme decided on a whim.

Based on the brief contact last time, Zhu Lexing didn’t think Lin Song would be such an impulsive person.

He should be well aware that if he were also implicated in this matter, the single charge of “deliberately causing an Omega to differentiate early” would be enough to crush the Lin family.

Although she knew the two of them were psychos, and psychos were the least in need of logic.

Zhu Lexing still felt that something was fundamentally wrong.

When they met Lin Song, he would most likely deny everything.

Being unscrupulous was their greatest skill.

Lin Song was not in the detention room.

He didn’t have an alibi and was only brought in for questioning, so of course, he didn’t need handcuffs.

Unexpectedly, Lin Yang was also beside him, calmly drinking tea, though a hint of nervousness occasionally showed in her eyes.

The two looked relaxed, as if they were having afternoon tea.

Zhu Lexing stated directly: “Why is she not locked up? Didn’t I say that she—”

Lin Song interrupted her: “I generally understand what Lexing is saying, that Xiao Yang caused Yan Mian’s early differentiation. But she was at the Centrifugal Force Bar all night. Her only reason for seeing you was her affection for you. It’s one thing for you not to accept her, but what kind of behavior is threatening her with a knife in public?”

“Yan Mian is fine, but if something had happened to her because of you, what would your actions count as?” Lin Song said, “A murderer?”

He started with a long tirade, giving Zhu Lexing no chance to refute, immediately pinning a “attempted murder” label on her.

He was so practiced it was as if he had done it thousands of times before.

But who couldn’t preemptively label someone?

Zhu Lexing completely ignored his question and retorted, “Lin Yang mentioned before that you were planning to introduce Shi Ruofeng, an Omega predicted to differentiate, to me. That suggests you are the one who could contact Shi Ruofeng. Why did she appear at the hotel yesterday? Why did she also differentiate early?”

“Besides Shi Ruofeng, how many other Omegas have you dealt with using such methods?” Zhu Lexing said coldly. “Do you know they could have died? A murderer calling me a murderer.”

“Do you have any shame?”

Her aggression made Lin Song speechless for a moment.

Another person asked, “Mr. Lin, what is your relationship with Shi Ruofeng?”

Lin Song regained his composure in a few seconds and said casually, “I am only looking after Ruofeng on behalf of Uncle Shi. She has been living in my villa in the suburbs. The villa has surveillance cameras and servants. I have only gone to see her a few times during the day over the last few months, and each time was very brief.”

“As for why she went out, I don’t know,” Lin Song said. “And I won’t ask.”

“Instead, it’s you.”

Lin Song suddenly turned his head, his gaze deep, but his tone softened: “Lexing. Why did Yan Mian and Ruofeng differentiate early as soon as you arrived? According to you, there were Alpha pheromones in the room. But when the police arrived, there were only Omega pheromones in the room.”

“Everyone present, except you, is a Beta and cannot smell pheromones. Of course, whatever you say sounds reasonable,” Lin Song said. “You should know that some Alphas will use their pheromones to force Omegas to differentiate. The process can be long or short, and there is more than one person who denies it happened after the fact.”

Zhu Lexing suddenly realized what Lin Song was trying to say.

Shi Ruofeng was a pawn, a tool used by the Lin family to secure connections. But she was neither an adult nor had she differentiated, making her very dangerous and not easily mentioned to outsiders.

Lin Yang brought her up to Zhu Lexing because Lin Song wanted to build a good relationship with the Zhu family.

However, no one had expected Zhu Lexing’s body to suddenly get a new soul.

She didn’t want to “claim” Shi Ruofeng; instead, she wanted Shi Ruofeng to return to a normal life. As soon as she asked Zhu Lin about Shi Ruofeng’s whereabouts, Lin Song realized the exposure of the matter and wanted to find an opportunity to move Shi Ruofeng.

Yan Mian’s incident was the perfect opportunity.

If Zhu Lexing had truly walked into Shi Ruofeng’s room because of Lin Yang’s words… how could a Beta, who couldn’t smell pheromones, know the truth?

They could blame everything on Zhu Lexing, claiming she wanted to harm the two Omegas, deliberately using her pheromones to induce their differentiation, and then injecting herself with an inhibitor to clear her name.

This way, they could get rid of the burden that was Shi Ruofeng.

This line of conspiratorial thinking was enough to shock Zhu Lexing herself.

Standing in front of Lin Song, she felt too naive. In her anger, she even wanted to yell at the system: [What happened to the promised wealthy-family Mary Sue? Is this how you abuse the protagonist? Can you at least do something?]

The system’s answer did not disappoint her this time: [The system can generate a video based on the host’s memory within three days, which will also include conversations with NPCs.]

Zhu Lexing paused.

In that case, even if there was no evidence now, once the system’s video was produced, at least Lin Yang couldn’t escape.

The door was suddenly knocked at this moment.

Lin Song saw Zhu Lexing’s silent, clenched fists and assumed she couldn’t think of a response, chuckling internally. No matter how unruly she was, she was still just a young girl.

Lin Song finally looked back, and what met his eyes was Yan Mian holding her phone.

She had changed back into her casual clothes, her hair tied up in a neat, decisive ponytail.

The next second, she stepped aside. Li Nian stood behind her. Facing all the eyes in the room, she was silent for a few seconds before saying, “I recorded it.”

Someone vaguely asked, “Recorded what?”

Li Nian struggled to keep her voice calm: “I said, I recorded Lin Yang’s threats to Zhu Lexing at the bar last night.”

For a moment, the entire room was silent. Lin Song looked directly at Lin Yang. Lin Yang could no longer sit still and said in astonishment: “What are you talking about? I only said hello to Zhu Lexing last night. Threaten, you—”

“I…”

The recording suddenly played, interrupting Lin Yang’s words.

The recording had been edited into segments at the request of the prepared Yan Mian.

The sounds faded, and the recording ended.

Lin Song calmly said, “I suspect this so-called recording is synthesized. I—”

“Are you going to look for a lawyer?”

As he spoke, his voice was interrupted once more.

A woman wearing sunglasses, a trench coat, and a scarf stood behind Yan Mian, wrapped up like a movie star.

“Isn’t that what you were going to say? I’ll give you a similar sentence. After this, talk to my lawyer.”

The woman took off her sunglasses, revealing her exquisite features. When she looked at Zhu Lexing, her voice softened: “Let’s go.”

Zhu Lexing had seen this face many times online.

Liu Su.

The biological mother of “Zhu Lexing.”

When contacted some time ago, Liu Su had said she still had some time before filming ended. Clearly, after the incident, Zhu Lin didn’t dare to hide it from Liu Su. The other party rushed back overnight, her complexion visibly tired.

She couldn’t articulate her feelings for a moment and walked towards the woman, but halfway there, she looked back at Lin Song again.

The man’s face was ashen for the first time, as if he had run into a wall. He took a few steps forward: “Miss Liu, I think there’s still room for negotiation in this matter. I—”

“I already said it.” Liu Su patted Zhu Lexing’s shoulder lightly and put on her sunglasses again, coldly: “Your trick of intimidating children doesn’t work on me. Talk to my lawyer if you have business. Isn’t it just being unreasonable?”

“Who doesn’t know how to do that?”

Li Nian hesitated, seeming to consider whether to mock Lin Song a little more, but feared his retaliation.

Zhu Lexing pondered for a few seconds and decided to make the embarrassing and socially awkward gesture for her—

She used both hands to pull down her eyelids, giving him a direct eye-roll, and said coldly, “Who doesn’t know how!”

After leaving the police station, Liu Su was still somewhat surprised by Zhu Lexing’s actions just now.

She immediately half-squatted down and hugged Zhu Lexing.

She had a very faint scent of cedar perfume on her. Her embrace was exceptionally warm, making Zhu Lexing feel like she was about to melt—

“Lexing.” Liu Su spoke with a muffled voice, her hand still cupping her head, lovingly stroking her hair. “Mom is late. Don’t be afraid. With Mom here, no one will bully you.”

The more she spoke, the tighter she held her. In her arms, Zhu Lexing felt her breathing tighten.

Zhu Lexing didn’t want to literally melt and quickly struggled. But Liu Su thought it was a playful resistance and hugged her a little tighter: “Xingxing—”

Zhu Lexing took a deep breath: “Mom—”

Liu Su: “Mom is here! Mom loves you!”

Zhu Lexing: “…”

I said, don’t you movie queens have some sense of boundaries!

Hugs are fine, but can you not be so tight!

During her struggle, Zhu Lexing’s gaze wandered and landed on Yan Mian.

The girl’s eyes had been fixed on the two of them. Noticing Zhu Lexing’s gaze, she paused.

After a while, Yan Mian chuckled softly.

Zhu Lexing: “…”

Zhu Lexing suddenly gave up resisting.

She thought this was actually pretty good.

It would be even better if Liu Su hugged her a little looser.

“You must be Xiao Mian, right?” Liu Su hadn’t forgotten Yan Mian. Finally releasing Zhu Lexing, she greeted her: “Let’s go. It’s still early. I’ll take you two shopping—”

Yan Mian paused, not expecting Liu Su to ask about her. Just as she was about to refuse, Zhu Lexing spoke up: “She was still in the hospital this morning and is a little tired. She should rest now.”

Liu Su said, “Well, health is most important then.”

As she spoke, Zhu Lin finally arrived, albeit late. He had received the news but came too late. Noticing the figures, he clearly paused: “Su—Liu Su.”

Liu Su lightly patted Yan Mian’s shoulder, motioned for her and Zhu Lexing to sit in the back seat, stood up alone, and looked at Zhu Lin.

In the end, Liu Su did not go back to the Zhu family home with the others.

Zhu Lexing wasn’t clear about what she and Zhu Lin talked about. She only learned afterward that the reason Yan Mian went to the hotel was that she received a text message from her phone number.

In Yan Mian’s and Zhu Lexing’s text message history, Yan Mian often received many one-sided insulting texts. But recently, this content had lessened significantly. That’s why Yan Mian turned back when she suddenly saw one.

She wanted to confirm.

She was trying to believe Zhu Lexing.

Zhu Lexing thought back to her actions that day: “………………”

How could this be?

What was even more shocking was that the number truly belonged to the original Zhu Lexing.

But after Lin Yang started getting jealous of Yan Mian, she actively asked for the original owner’s phone number.

It was just a number. As long as it could appease her, the original owner couldn’t be bothered.

Who would have thought that Lin Yang would use this number to start contacting Yan Mian directly?

…No wonder Liu Su never picked up the phone when she called her before.

Zhu Lexing was greatly shocked and increasingly felt that the two members of the Lin family were sick.

Apart from that, Lin Yang didn’t reveal much more.

The lawyer was still moving forward. Liu Su promised the two of them that she would personally handle the matter, and it would definitely not be easily dismissed.

But regardless, the matter had to be forcibly concluded for the few students involved.

Zhu Lexing only remembered Shi Ruofeng just before she was discharged from the hospital and came to visit.

In a few days, Li Nian had already become familiar with Shi Ruofeng. When Zhu Lexing arrived, Li Nian was also peeling an apple, but her technique was clearly not as good as hers. Yet, Shi Ruofeng calmly watched her actions, occasionally responding to her words.

Everything seemed to have returned to peace, except for Shi Ruofeng, who was still living an unstable life.

She couldn’t return to the Shi family; it was a nightmare for her.

Zhu Lexing initially wanted to let the other person live at the Zhu family’s house too. She didn’t mind living with Shi Ruofeng, but as soon as the thought occurred to her, she remembered that she would differentiate into an Alpha.

And Shi Ruofeng was an Omega.

Living with two Omegas in the same house… might lead to misunderstandings.

Moreover, Shi Ruofeng wasn’t willing either.

“I still have a little money,” Shi Ruofeng said concisely. “I can rent a room outside the school.”

There weren’t many Omegas within the school, and if she stayed in the dorms, she would have to be with Betas.

The Beta hotel incident had already left her traumatized, and she couldn’t accept a communal living environment.

Zhu Lexing could only say, “If you need… money, just tell me.”

Shi Ruofeng looked at her and said after a while, “Thank you.”

After Zhu Lexing left for home, Li Nian said, “Zhu Lexing… well… at least recently, she’s been very nice.”

Shi Ruofeng had heard how bad the past Zhu Lexing’s temper was, but what she saw today was completely different.

She nodded and suddenly said, “Thank you.”

Li Nian casually replied, “You and Mianmian are so alike. When I first met her, she also liked to thank me all the time.”

Shi Ruofeng thought she was going to correct her way of speaking and paused, wondering how to make amends, but Li Nian smiled and said, “But! You’re welcome.”

If you insist on always saying thank you…

Then I’ll just keep saying you’re welcome.

Shi Ruofeng stared at her smiling face and said after a while, “Mhm.”

On the first day back at school, Yan Mian found many things in her desk drawer. They were either gifts or love letters, all from people who belatedly discovered Yan Mian’s charm and finally dared to express their feelings after the holiday.

Yan Mian was clearly at a loss.

Zhu Lexing watched from a few rows away, feeling mixed emotions.

The system hadn’t notified her of any change in favorability, but Yan Mian would proactively smile at her.

Her relationship with Yan Mian seemed to have not changed at all, yet, due to the brief intersection of their pheromones, the ambiguous connection made even they themselves unable to clearly define it.

Just as she was resting her chin on her hand and idly daydreaming, Song Yingying turned in her homework.

Seeing Zhu Lexing, Song Yingying’s eyes lit up: “Lexing!”

Yan Mian’s matter was temporarily suppressed. Liu Su had her own plans, and Zhu Lexing didn’t want to interfere casually, but she had also obtained the video from the system and decided to release it at an appropriate time.

But Song Yingying still heard the rumors from Qiao Qiao’s side. She first glanced at Yan Mian, confirming she was alright, and then said, “Are you okay?”

Zhu Lexing, who hadn’t been cared for much, was deeply moved.

Who said no one cared about her! Here was one!

Song Yingying said, “The test scores were released two days ago. You did very well.”

Zhu Lexing: “…”

Hearing the first half, Zhu Lexing wanted to say don’t talk about disappointing things when I’m happy, but the second half, “did very well,” made her mind pause, feeling even more touched.

No pain, no gain. The chicken soup was telling the truth.

Flipping through the test papers a few times, Zhu Lexing thought of Yan Mian again: “…Hmm, what about her?”

There was only one person she would refer to this way.

Song Yingying understood and showed a slightly envious expression: “First place.”

Zhu Lexing thought Yan Mian’s grades were good… but first place was far beyond her imagination. She was increasingly shocked by the other person’s intelligence. The next second, she heard Song Yingying say, “I just went to the office and saw Shi Ruofeng. She said she wants to retake the exam.”

Zhu Lexing: “…Ah.”

Song Yingying said, “Her grades are also very good. If her score was counted in this exam… she’d probably be in the top five.”

Zhu Lexing thought of her 493rd place and pondered for a few seconds, feeling she should be kicked out of the protagonist group.

She was bringing shame to the protagonist group!

Halfway through, Song Yingying suddenly remembered something and took out a letter: “Oh, someone asked me to give this to you this morning.”

The envelope was pink and only had one sentence written on it—

“To Zhu Lexing”

It seemed the sender was afraid Zhu Lexing wouldn’t open it; there was a small heart after “Xing.”

Zhu Lexing was just a little envious of Yan Mian opening love letters. Now that she had received one, her heart was nervous, and her hands were trembling—

After opening it, the paper inside was far from being as pink as the cover, not proper at all, looking like a page casually torn from a rough draft.

There was only a hastily written sentence on it.

—Thank you.

Zhu Lexing: “………………”

Song Yingying saw it too and pondered for a few seconds: “At least it’s not cursing you.”

Zhu Lexing: “If it were cursing me, the suspicious targets would be much fewer.”

The most suspicious person is Zhou Yang!

Although it wasn’t a love letter, what was written wasn’t a curse either.

Zhu Lexing still happily accepted it.

Zhu Lin and Jiang Yue had left a few days ago, not forgetting to transfer a large sum of pocket money to Zhu Lexing before leaving.

As for Jiang Yue, she didn’t say anything to Yan Mian. She didn’t even look back at Yan Mian as she left. In the end, it was Liu Su who lightly patted Yan Mian’s shoulder and said gently, “I’ll take you out for a walk.”

Zhu Lexing suspected that this was the only comforting phrase she knew.

Liu Su was busy with work locally and often returned late at night, but if Zhu Lexing called her, she would still respond immediately.

Zhu Lexing wasn’t fond of leisure and didn’t lack food or drink. The money Zhu Lin gave her was mostly useless, so after some thought, she decided to spend it on Yan Mian.

Zhu Lexing was still seriously contemplating the specific use during dinner.

The front door opened, and Zhu Lexing snapped out of her thoughts.

Yan Mian stood at the doorway. The dim twilight projected from behind her, casting a beautiful, long shadow.

“…Is Auntie still at work?” She walked in slowly and closed the door.

Zhu Lexing acknowledged her and then said, “If you want to eat, I’ll first—”

“If you’re not busy with other things,” Yan Mian hesitated and said, “Let’s eat together.”

Zhu Lexing’s movement to stand up paused.

“And I have something to give you,” Yan Mian said.

This sentence made Zhu Lexing sit down completely.

She cautiously looked at Yan Mian without asking, but Yan Mian had already taken a letter out of her bag.

The same pink envelope, but the content inside was completely different from what Zhu Lexing had received. The letter paper had a fragrance, and the handwriting was earnest and elegant. Zhu Lexing skimmed through it. The content was simple.

The letter was written by a sick online friend who had accidentally seen the stage play performed by the two of them online and was inspired. Unable to find Yan Mian’s social media, she could only write a letter to express her gratitude.

And this letter was entrusted to her friend at No. 1 High School for delivery.

The word count wasn’t high, but the sentences were very sincere, making Zhu Lexing feel a sense of warmth too.

But thinking of the “Thank you” she had received: “…”

Forget it. Who said hearing “Thank you” doesn’t count as “Thank you”? It’s good to be thanked at all! People should be content and happy!

Zhu Lexing returned the letter to Yan Mian and casually said, “I hope she… recovers soon.”

Yan Mian put the letter away, but suddenly asked, “And what about you?”

Zhu Lexing paused: “What about me?”

“Injecting the inhibitor,” Yan Mian said after a few seconds of silence, “Did it not hurt?”

After being injected with the inhibitor, her suspicion of Zhu Lexing had already been greatly reduced.

When the truth completely came out, while her suspicion vanished entirely… she also found that her feelings had become much more complicated.

To say she hated her… that had long faded.

To say she liked her and had completely forgotten the harm was too false, and Yan Mian couldn’t do it either.

Yan Mian had intended to just let it go until the end of high school. Until today, when Li Nian told her how violently painful Shi Ruofeng’s reaction was to the inhibitor injection and then casually mentioned Zhu Lexing, she learned about Zhu Lexing injecting the inhibitor into herself.

In Zhu Lin’s words, Zhu Lexing was very afraid of pain. Any wound would be magnified countless times by her. That’s why Zhu Lin was so alarmed when Zhu Lexing’s arm was scratched last time.

Yan Mian thought about the body she was leaning against before she passed out, in the darkness, with their breaths intertwined.

Zhu Lexing seemed to be trembling too.

Zhu Lexing was unaware of Yan Mian’s thoughts.

She only felt that Yan Mian had instantly turned on a light in front of her.

With a “snap—”

The world lit up.

Zhu Lexing said a little awkwardly, “Of course not… er, a little, but not much.”

A complete denial would be too out-of-character (OOC). She could admit it, but not too much.

After all! Zhu Lexing was someone who was going to differentiate into an Alpha. What was a little pain in the face of wind and rain!

Yan Mian smiled: “Thank you.”

She had said thank you many times, both genuinely and falsely. Whatever her intention, each time it was unconscious.

But this time, her tone was full of genuine sincerity.

Zhu Lexing heard it.

She twitched her lips: “Don’t be so dramatic. Let’s eat.”

But she thought in her heart, it’s okay.

As long as it’s for Yan Mian, Zhu Lexing is fine with anything.