Chapter 37: Greedy Demands

Faced with a drunkard who wouldn’t give up until he got what he wanted, Fu Rangyi was helpless. He had no choice but to turn his head and kiss him on the cheek.

“Is that okay now?”

Zhu Zhixi scratched his face, not quite satisfied, even a little confused, as if the taste was gone before he could even register it. But he really didn’t have the strength to stay on his tiptoes any longer. His heels hit the ground, and he leaned back against Fu Rangyi again.

“Where did you park the car?” Fu Rangyi asked, taking advantage of his momentary compliance. “Do you remember?”

As if tickled, Zhu Zhixi squirmed, rubbing his head against Fu Rangyi’s chest. It took a while for his brain to finally process the question. He raised a hand and pointed.

“Over there…”

That was too vague. Fu Rangyi didn’t really believe him, but he still supported him and started walking in the direction he pointed. But after just a few steps, Zhu Zhixi suddenly broke free and stumbled towards the side of the road.

“Hey, where are you going?” Fu Rangyi quickly followed.

“I… I want to ride a bike,” Zhu Zhixi mumbled. “Ride a bike, go home.”

“Where’s the bike?” Fu Rangyi was completely bewildered. There wasn’t even a single shared bike on the side of the road.

“Here!” Zhu Zhixi shouted, pointing at the white bicycle icon painted on the ground.

That was clearly the sign for a non-motorized vehicle lane.

“Ride…” Zhu Zhixi’s legs gave out, and he almost fell to the ground. Fu Rangyi quickly grabbed him, pulled him up, and held him in his arms.

“Zhu Zhixi, that’s not a bicycle.”

“It is.”

“Alright, it is…” Fu Rangyi changed his tack, completely helpless. “But this bicycle is too short. Your legs are long, it would be uncomfortable to ride.”

“Short?” The drunkard was somewhat convinced, looking up blankly.

“Yes, it’s almost on the ground, it’s too low.”

His round eyes darted around. A spark of inspiration hit Zhu Zhixi. He suddenly tilted up his drunken face and wrapped his arms around Fu Rangyi’s waist.

“Then I’ll ride you. You’re tall.”

Fine. Fu Rangyi didn’t hesitate for too long. He jumped into the pit he had dug for himself, squatted down, and piggybacked Zhu Zhixi.

“Hold on tight,” he said, adjusting the person on his back.

How could he be so thin?

“Zhu Zhixi, can you please eat properly in the future?”

Hearing his name, Zhu Zhixi rested his heavy head on Fu Rangyi’s shoulder, his chin propped up, and responded nonsensically, “It’s delicious, your cooking is delicious.”

Fu Rangyi was at a loss. “I’m telling you to eat on time.”

Zhu Zhixi started to feel wronged. “I-I come out to eat as soon as you call me.”

“What if I don’t call you? What if I’m not here?” Fu Rangyi asked. “You just won’t eat?”

“How could you not be here…” he mumbled confusedly. “Are you going to dig dirt?”

Fu Rangyi wanted to laugh, but he couldn’t quite bring himself to. He had finally managed to correct this guy’s schedule and get him to eat three meals a day properly. But now it seemed that with Zhu Zhixi’s self-control, it would probably be hard to maintain.

Thinking too far ahead, Fu Rangyi told himself.

“Are you really going? When?” Zhu Zhixi was still pressing.

“I’m not going. I’m not on this one,” Fu Rangyi said, not wanting to continue the conversation. He asked again, “Is it this direction? Are you sure you remember correctly?”

“Mmm…” Zhu Zhixi lifted his head slightly. “Turn right, then, go straight… then, turn left…”

Following his instructions, Fu Rangyi carried the drunkard for ten minutes, but still couldn’t find his car.

Strictly following a drunkard’s instructions was stupid enough.

Light snow began to fall again. Zhu Zhixi raised his hand, using his palm as a small umbrella to shield him from the snow.

Fu Rangyi looked up and saw his hand, so he temporarily stopped. “Aren’t you tired? Put your hand down.”

“No…”

“Hold on to me, it’s more stable this way,” Fu Rangyi coaxed him, and started walking again, his eyes searching for Zhu Zhixi’s car. “Otherwise, I feel like you’re about to fall.”

“Oh.” Zhu Zhixi was obedient this time, putting down his hand and wrapping his arms around his neck, burying his face in Fu Rangyi’s neck. He kept sniffing and rubbing, his cool nose burrowing into the side of Fu Rangyi’s neck.

Fu Rangyi was a little uncomfortable and tried to dodge. “Don’t move, be good.”

Zhu Zhixi really stopped moving this time, as if he were frozen. After a while, he spoke sullenly, “You find me annoying.”

“If I found you annoying, I would have left you on the side of the road, right?”

“You’re going to leave me on the side of the road?” Zhu Zhixi’s tone was even more aggrieved.

Fu Rangyi realized that one couldn’t use rhetorical questions when communicating with a drunkard. So he modified his usual sentence structure and softened his tone. “Of course not. I’m taking you home now.”

He returned to the previous question. After thinking for a moment, he added, “You’re not annoying at all. You’re very likable. Everyone loves to tease you. When you talk, everyone is very happy. I’ve only ever met one person like you.”

Zhu Zhixi rubbed his side neck again. When he spoke again, his tone was a little more clingy.

“You’ve been acting so strange lately.”

Fu Rangyi was slightly taken aback. For some reason, he felt a little uneasy. He inexplicably thought of what Zhu Zhixi had said in the car before they went to the Fu family for dinner.

[That’s why I feel it’s so easy for us to get along.]

Zhu Zhixi wasn’t as simple and innocent as he appeared on the surface. He was very good at hiding things. He looked warm and friendly, but in reality, he would get tired of others’ affection. Once he sensed it, he couldn’t get along with them easily anymore.

“Strange?” Fu Rangyi became cautious and started asking rhetorical questions again.

Zhu Zhixi nodded a few times on his shoulder, then suddenly used his cool nose to nuzzle the collar of his knit shirt, rubbing against the skin of his neck. It was very itchy.

“You don’t talk harshly anymore. I’m not used to it. It feels like… sugar sprinkled on a razor blade. I don’t dare to lick it, afraid of cutting my tongue.”

What kind of description was that?

A few days ago, Zhu Zhixi had given him a whole lecture, accusing him of speaking harshly and always being unhappy. He had remembered all of that and was seriously trying to improve.

Why is he not used to it now that I’ve changed?

“What’s there not to dare to lick?” Fu Rangyi’s voice was very low.

As soon as he finished speaking, his nape was suddenly licked. Right on the gland.

In that instant, Fu Rangyi’s whole body went numb, his pores tingling. An Alpha’s biological instinct was aroused, and every muscle in his body tensed up. He almost subconsciously let go.

It wasn’t until Zhu Zhixi became unstable and hugged his neck tightly, letting out a muffled question from his nasal cavity, that Fu Rangyi quickly steadied his breathing, readjusted Zhu Zhixi on his back, turned his head to avoid his lips, and asked in a hoarse voice, “What are you doing?”

“You told me to lick it!”

“…”

“Don’t just lick anywhere. The gland… is very sensitive.”

Clearly, trying to reason with a drunkard was even more foolish than strictly following a drunkard’s instructions. It even had the opposite effect.

The next second, he learned his lesson. A sharp pain shot through the back of his neck. More than pain, it was the tingling numbness brought on by the stimulation of the gland that was more intense.

He never would have dreamed that the gland of this so-called S-class Alpha would one day be bitten by someone, and that person was a small Beta.

“Zhu Zhixi, are you crazy?”

The little madman was still giggling, proudly and loudly proclaiming, “I’ve marked you!”

“What kind of mark is this…” It’s about the same as being bitten by a mosquito.

Zhu Zhixi drunkenly flopped back onto his shoulder, leaned close to his ear, and said in what he thought was a fierce tone, “Last time, you bit me. I’ve finally gotten my revenge.”

Another series of hums and whimpers.

“Mmm, a little top Alpha, you can tie him up whenever you want, mark him whenever you want, huh.”

“Does it hurt?” Zhu Zhixi blew on it for him, but he blew in the wrong place, right into his ear.

Fu Rangyi was extremely helpless. It was itchy and uncomfortable, and he couldn’t get away. “It doesn’t hurt. Just calm down.”

“It must hurt. I was almost dying from pain…”

This time, he finally found the right spot. And so, his nape was licked again. A soft, wet tongue, warm and hot, slid over the broken skin on the back of his neck, back and forth over the gland, licking like a small animal—right there on the bustling street.

That tingling, swelling numbness came again. Fu Rangyi’s brows were furrowed, and a thin layer of sweat covered his forehead. His expression was relatively calm, but his fingertips had long since betrayed him, trembling slightly, subconsciously gripping Zhu Zhixi’s thigh tightly.

What’s the difference between this and doing it on the street? Fu Rangyi’s breathing was rapid. He couldn’t continue walking.

Forget it, he’s a Beta, has no common sense, failed physiology class. I can’t hold it against him.

I can’t not hold it against him anymore.

Fu Rangyi directly lifted him down. The drunk rabbit let out a yelp and almost fell on his butt, but he didn’t. Fu Rangyi caught him just before he fell and scooped him up in a princess carry.

Passersby stared.

Let them stare. It’s better than getting hard on the street.

The drunkard was still nuzzling into his chest, babbling clingily, “Sweet… I’m the first…”

Fu Rangyi let out a long breath, steadied his breathing, and tried to ignore the electric shocks coming from the back of his neck, focusing on finding the car. His efforts paid off. After wandering around, he finally found Zhu Zhixi’s white LS500.

Zhu Zhixi was just as unruly in the car. His eyes were blurry, but he insisted on helping him fasten his seatbelt. After fumbling for a long time, his hands brushing against Fu Rangyi’s side, Fu Rangyi couldn’t take it anymore. He grabbed his two mischievous paws with one hand, and with a click, buckled the seatbelt himself.

“Thank you, it’s fastened.”

“Hehe.” Zhu Zhixi giggled foolishly, then lunged forward to hug him again. His hand accidentally hit the small hanging heart-shaped pendant. This time, he became docile.

Not only did he sit back in the passenger seat, but he also raised his hand and spoke to the small heart, “Hi, Mom.”

Fu Rangyi had been a little anxious, but in that instant, his heart softened.

Who knew that Zhu Zhixi would start “introducing” the next second. “This is your daughter-in-law!”

Fu Rangyi: “…”

“Quick, say, ‘Good evening, Mom.'”

“…Good evening, Mom.”

What kind of warm and absurd scene was this?

Finally back home, Fu Rangyi felt more exhausted than if he had dug dirt for ten days straight, both physically and mentally. He helped Zhu Zhixi onto the sofa, changed his own coat, washed his hands, and poured a large glass of honey water, bringing it over to feed him.

“You shouldn’t have drunk today,” Fu Rangyi said, watching him take small sips, nagging him. “You have a check-up tomorrow. Many of the tests won’t be accurate with you like this.”

He can only drink more water to speed up his metabolism.

“Not accurate… forget it.” Zhu Zhixi didn’t want to drink anymore. He flopped onto the sofa, his eyes vacant. “If it’s detected, I’ll be sad again.”

“Don’t talk nonsense.” Fu Rangyi put the water down, helped Zhu Zhixi up, and took off his heavy coat.

But Zhu Zhixi wouldn’t let him. “Mine!”

“…The heat is on, it’ll get hot in a bit,” Fu Rangyi coaxed him gently. Only then did Zhu Zhixi let go, leaning against his shoulder.

The static electricity made a faint sound, as if it flowed along the fibers to Fu Rangyi’s skin. Zhu Zhixi once again nuzzled against the side of his neck, this time not just with his nose, but also with his lips.

He didn’t understand Zhu Zhixi’s intention, or was this how he was when he was drunk?

What about when he’s drunk in front of others? When he’s not around?

Fu Rangyi dodged, holding his chin with his hand and moving him away.

His gaze turned a little cold, his eyes lowered, staring at Zhu Zhixi’s flushed face. “Aren’t you a Beta? Why are you suddenly in heat too?”

Zhu Zhixi tilted his face up, letting him pinch his chin, not speaking. His rapid breathing also slowed down. After a while, as if he had finally connected to the signal, he suddenly smiled.

His crystal-clear eyes were now as if covered by a layer of mist, staring straight ahead. But his chin pressed down, his moist lips brushing against the web of his thumb, parting slightly, and enclosing the thin layer of skin.

The mole on the web of his thumb was gradually swallowed. Fu Rangyi had a strange association. It felt like his heart was being swallowed bite by bite.

His teeth sank in, biting down neither lightly nor heavily.

A hole was torn in his heart. A secret pleasure accompanied by a sourness gushed out. He should stop this now. He knew that, but his throat was dry and hoarse, unable to utter a single word. It was like picking up a bad habit again. Fu Rangyi was half-willing, and in the end, chose to indulge.

He watched the drunkard with a clear mind, watching his tongue explore, circling his mole. Whether it was due to inexperience or dizziness, Zhu Zhixi missed the target several times.

“Where are you licking?” Fu Rangyi asked in a cold voice.

Zhu Zhixi smiled again, still tilting his face up, sticking out his tongue.

In that instant, a strange thought came to him. He reached out his left hand and pinched the small tip of his tongue that was sticking out.

But it was too soft and slippery, like a small fish that couldn’t be caught. He was too persistent. By the time he realized it, his fingers were already stirring inside his wet mouth.

“Mmm…” The foreign sensation made Zhu Zhixi frown slightly, his eyes filled with confusion.

What is he doing?

Fu Rangyi came to his senses and pulled out his wet fingers. But Zhu Zhixi seemed to have gotten addicted to the game, and like someone who had tasted something good for the first time, he actually chased after him.

But he got the wrong finger. His lips enclosed the tip of his ring finger.

He rolled his tongue, swallowing and sucking down to the base of the finger. His smooth teeth knocked against the ring band, which gleamed with a cold metallic light, making a faint sound.

His tongue swept over the gemstone, bit the metal, and inch by inch, he took off his wedding ring.

For some reason, Fu Rangyi felt insecure, as if he had lost the most stable connection to this marriage. He stared at the little drunkard holding the ring in his mouth, dazed for a moment, then reached out to him.

“Give it back,” he commanded.

Zhu Zhixi blinked, processing for a moment. Having had his fun, he stretched his head over and obediently spat the ring into his palm.

Before Fu Rangyi could close his hand and clench it, that fluffy little head lowered a little more, and his tongue came out, licking the soft flesh in the center of his palm that had been encircled by the ring.

His endurance was about to crumble.

He pinched Zhu Zhixi’s cheek. “Why are you so bad?”

The bad guy clearly didn’t think so. He broke free from his hand and even lunged over to hug his neck. “I’m not bad. I’m a Beta. What’s there to be afraid of? There are no pheromones. I won’t induce you… your rut…”

You really think it won’t?

The absence of pheromone inducement is even worse.

There’s no excuse at all.

Fu Rangyi reached out, wrapped his arm around Zhu Zhixi’s back to steady him, and with some annoyance, undid the flashing bracelet, tossing it onto the sofa.

“Kiss me quickly. Kissing me is very safe…”

“Mmm, safe,” Fu Rangyi repeated in a low voice, letting him rub against him. Like a fair prosecutor, he slowly questioned him, “So right now, are you just having a drunken fling, or do you want to extend your life?”

“Hmm?”

He had expected Zhu Zhixi to say, “I don’t know,” lightly, carelessly, vaguely. Just like when he had asked, “Do you think we won’t fall in love with each other?”

But in fact, Zhu Zhixi was even better than before. He hummed for a long time, clearly not wanting to give a single word. In the end, he actually just nuzzled up from the side of his face and pressed his lips against his on his own accord.

Fu Rangyi dodged, holding the back of his neck. “Answer me.”

Zhu Zhixi was a little ticklish. He just smiled, not speaking, his eyes misty.

This person had always been cunning. But Fu Rangyi thought, what was the essential difference between the two options he had given? Whether it was to extend his life or a drunken fling, neither was the answer he wanted.

Ha, he didn’t even dare to put the answer he wanted in there.

“What’s our relationship now?” Fu Rangyi was desperate with himself, so he changed the question.

“We’re married,” Zhu Zhixi smiled even more happily, like a child. “Fake,” his tone rose slightly, his tongue curling with a hint of playfulness. As if this were something very fun.

But Fu Rangyi’s voice grew heavier.

“Can a fake marriage do these things?”

No.

He answered himself in his heart, clinging to the last shred of his bottom line.

Zhu Zhixi was starting to get impatient. His hands around his neck tightened, like a rope strangling his internal organs.

“It’s a breach of contract, right? I know, but… I can compensate you with money. How much do you want?”

Fu Rangyi looked at him faintly, his eyes a little lost. These were the game rules he had set. What fault did Zhu Zhixi have? Now he was just reaping what he had sown.

The person in his arms seemed to have burned into a fire. Every part of his skin that he touched was painfully hot, but he was unwilling to let go. The more it hurt, the more he couldn’t bear to.

There are countless butterflies in this world. Not every one is born in a beautiful rainforest.

No. He’s not a butterfly at all, just a moth that has lost its head at the sight of light and fire.

He laughed dazedly. “What I want is too much. You can’t give it.”

He had indeed complicated things between adults. It was mutual. Anyway, Zhu Zhixi would forget everything the next day. He could also pretend it never happened.

But Fu Rangyi just didn’t want to. He was sick, but at least he wasn’t having an episode right now.

After speaking, he broke free from Zhu Zhixi’s soft arms, stood up, and intended to leave, to calm down before coming back to take care of him. But his hand was grabbed.

Zhu Zhixi’s eyes were downcast, as if he were about to cry. He was like a petulant child, having tried all his tricks, and finally resorting to being unreasonable.

“Fu Rangyi, you don’t have to kiss me, but, you can’t wipe other people’s faces, you can’t give your clothes to others to wear, you can’t call others…” He was confused, and suddenly stopped, frowning. “Forget it, you can, of course you can, but it has to be after I’m dead.”

He suddenly raised his hand, stammering out the countdown on it. “It’s not long now, 41 days, 13 hours, 24 minutes…”

“Shut up.” Fu Rangyi pushed him down on the sofa and kissed him forcefully, like a wild beast, deep and painful, pinching his chin, biting his lips. He wished Zhu Zhixi would struggle. If he struggled just once, he would stop immediately.

But Zhu Zhixi didn’t. He even hooked his arms around Fu Rangyi’s neck with satisfaction, wanting to press closer, so much so that he almost lifted his upper body. He kissed back, licked, and panted in a daze, not forgetting to speak.

“There’s a smell of smoke… did you smoke? How come I didn’t know you smoke?”

“So much, I don’t know…”

Fu Rangyi didn’t want to answer these questions. He just silently, forcefully kissed him. Their teeth clashed, their tongues intertwined, deeper and hotter. And so the kiss gradually deviated from pain and awkwardness, churning out honeyed water, a pleasure that was hard to conceal.

He could clearly taste the faint, metallic sweetness. It must hurt, right? But Zhu Zhixi’s voice trembled as he said, “Fu Rangyi, you’re so good at kissing, it feels so good…”

The punctuation between the words was a low moan of pleasure, panting, and the sound of wetness. Intermittent. Clingy.

His soft hands kneaded the gland on the back of his neck.

A reckless, lawless Beta, inducing him without pheromones, using tantrums and rolling on the floor to seduce, even marking him with a bite.

But he was helpless, his mind muddled, lured into lighting a cigarette he had quit for three years, and seduced into losing his self-control. Degenerate. Falling into a pathological desire. He finally admitted that he really wanted the touch of these hands, wanted to hug him tightly, and most of all, wanted to be…

“Are you also afraid that I’ll die?”

The desire was interrupted. The knife stabbed in again.

He really wanted to know how this person could say that word so easily, again and again.

Fu Rangyi’s eyes stung. He bit his tongue, making Zhu Zhixi whimper in pain. His fingertips dug into the back of his neck, almost breaking the skin.

He was very rude. “If you want to kiss, then kiss. I’ll give you whatever you want. But don’t talk about death. Do you understand?”

Those hazy, drunken eyes turned red, looking at him with some grievance. Finally, Zhu Zhixi nodded.

Fu Rangyi lowered his head, about to kiss him again, when he suddenly spoke.

“Don’t be so fierce.”

Taking a deep breath, Fu Rangyi softened again. A new round of self-reflection. A deeper level of degeneration.

He whispered “sorry,” then, as requested, changed his mode, lightly touched his slightly swollen lower lip, and asked, “Like this?”

But Zhu Zhixi shook his head again.

“I want your tongue…” His waist was so soft it was about to melt into a puddle, but he raised his legs and wrapped them around his waist. “Like, during the rut.”

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Author’s Note:

I’ve turned your marriage of convenience into a mutual crush.