Has the Boss Bost His Temper Today? - Chapter 17

“Are you sure you don’t feel uncomfortable anymore?”

“I feel much better now.”

“Are you certain you didn’t bump into anything else on your body?”

“I’m really fine.” Duan Shiming stopped in front of his door. He looked at Chu Yanzhou. “If President Chu is really that worried about me, why don’t you come inside with me, and I’ll strip naked so you can check?”

Chu Yanzhou: “No, I’m not that worried.”

“But you looked very worried about me.” Duan Shiming took the room card from his pocket and opened the door. “Are you sure you don’t need me to take off my clothes for you?”

Chu Yanzhou: “…”

“Haha, just kidding.” Duan Shiming turned around and clasped his hands together, bowing slightly toward Chu Yanzhou. “Thank you for the rescue, boss”

“Don’t go around saving people so casually in the future.”

Duan Shiming straightened up, only to have his hand pulled toward the other. “?”

Chu Yanzhou turned over his palm and saw that the gauze was slightly soaked with blood, likely pressed against during the fall. “People with pheromone disorders are exceptionally sensitive to the pheromones of Alphas and Omegas during their rut or heat periods. You’re a Beta and can’t smell pheromones, but if it weren’t for the chip blocking the interference, you would have been in big trouble. You shouldn’t go saving people when you encounter such things.”

“I was just”

“Even ‘just’ doing it isn’t okay.” Chu Yanzhou said with a dark face, “I don’t care about others, but you have to weigh your own importance. Nothing is more important than yourself.”

He had to give the “privileged connection” some face; if the kid got injured again, it would be a major headache for him.

Duan Shiming listened to Chu Yanzhou’s lecture, knowing it was meant well, but he didn’t like being controlled. However, Chu Yanzhou had just helped him, and without him, things probably would have been rough.

His eyes drooped and the corners of his mouth twitched, filled with a stubborn, muffled frustration. “Oh.”

Seeing him like this, Chu Yanzhou guessed that if he said two more words, this guy would get upset again. “Go inside and rest.”

Duan Shiming turned his back to him and took out the room card.

Without turning around, it was fine, but as soon as he turned, one could see more intuitively how oversized the sportswear was on Duan Shiming.

The shoulder lines had sagged halfway down his arms, the collar made his neck look slender and delicate, his upper body appeared thin, and the hem hung loosely, covering his thighs. One could see at a glance the vast difference in their skeletal structures; it looked as if he were being wrapped in the other man’s embrace.

Chu Yanzhou instinctively averted his gaze, letting it land on the fire hydrant on the wall.

With a beep, the door opened.

“I’m going in then?” Duan Shiming held the doorknob and turned his head to look at Chu Yanzhou, only to see him staring at the fire hydrant. “I’m going to sleep now?”

Chu Yanzhou was snapped back to reality. Seeing Duan Shiming’s head tilted in confusion, he said, “Call me if anything happens.”

Alpha pheromones couldn’t be used recklessly, or one would suffer the consequences.

“Okay.”

The door clicked shut, and Duan Shiming leaned against the back of it, letting out a heavy breath.

He lowered his head, pulled the collar of the clothes up with both hands, and buried his face inside. He took a deep breath, his eyes gradually becoming glazed and watery.

…This scent smells so good, it feels so comfortable to breathe in.

It turned out the scent on Chu Yanzhou’s clothes was even stronger, feeling more comfortable than when he usually stood close to him.

Chu Yanzhou looked at the closed door. Having experienced a brief moment of mental fire-fighting, he stood in silence for a while before taking his phone from his pocket and dialing a number.

“Check Duan Shiming’s medical records for me.”

The voice on the other end was surprised. “Wait, you’re checking him again?”

Chu Yanzhou: “Are you checking or not?”

“Checking, checking. I’ll get back to you tomorrow.”

“Mm, hanging up.” He ended the call and walked back to his own room.

He didn’t realize until he stepped inside that the room was filled with Duan Shiming’s citrus and lime pheromone scent, even stronger than what he usually smelled.

Chu Yanzhou closed the door, walked to the bar, picked up the red wine, poured himself another glass, and drank it in one gulp to suppress the surge of emotions at the back of his neck.

He put down the glass, sat on the living room sofa, turned on the holographic projection, and uploaded the surveillance video from earlier. The 3D light and shadow instantly filled the living room, making it feel like he was right there.

Then, he watched it over and over again.

Especially the part where the leather shoe hooked the wine bottle, he bent down to pick it up, then raised an eyebrow with a smile and smashed it toward the waiter.

At the same time, the image of that “greedy cat” pressing his face against the clothes to smell them earlier involuntarily surfaced in his mind.

[There’s a flowery scent.]

[Freesia, so fragrant.]

The citrus and lime in the air lingered for a long time, invading his five senses like a nameless fire pressing against his chest.

This guy was part of the “pheromone disorder” population, the most expensive illness to treat. Ordinary people couldn’t afford to raise a child with such a genetic defect; the mortality rate was extremely high. The chip alone was worth tens of millions, and the annual medical and nursing costs were in the millions or tens of millions, not to mention this guy was a Type-A Beta, making treatment even more difficult.

And then there was Director Zheng’s instruction to take care of him.

So who exactly was this guy, and why was he placed by his side?

If at first he suspected it was to stop him from reclaiming the company, now that the projects were moving along without obstacles, what was the purpose of keeping Duan Shiming near him?

Chu Yanzhou stared at the figure on the screen, swallowing the wine lingering in his throat with a slow, forceful gulp.

The next morning.

Ding-dong—

Duan Shiming thought it was breakfast. He was starving, so he ran to the door with excitement and opened it.

To his surprise, Ji Huaichuan was standing there.

“Good morning, Secretary Duan.” Ji Huaichuan lifted the kraft paper gift bag in his hand, watching Duan Shiming with a gentle gaze. “I couldn’t think of any other way to thank you, so I brought you some gifts for your convenience.”

Duan Shiming: “.”

He was truly fed up. Chu Yanzhou said he deserved to be hit for his infidelity, yet he ended up saving the guy. Seeing him now made him feel like he had been foolish.

Just then, Ji Huaichuan took a step forward, instantly closing the distance.

Duan Shiming flinched, jumping back a step and raising his hand to block him, his eyes full of wariness as he looked at Ji Huaichuan. “…What’s wrong?”

Ji Huaichuan was amused by his reaction, his eyes filled with tenderness. “Nothing, I just wanted to come in.”

Duan Shiming spread his arms, gripping the doorframe with both hands, shook his head, and said in a low voice, “Mr. Ji, let’s just forget about this, you don’t need to take it to heart”

Before he could finish, the Omega bent down and ducked right under his arm into the room.

Duan Shiming’s hands flew open as he stood flat against the door in shock. “(OvO)!!!”

He was terrified of even a tiny bit of physical contact that could be used against him.

Ji Huaichuan walked into the room with the gift bag. He turned around to see those round, clear almond eyes watching him warily a huge contrast to the way he looked while fighting yesterday.

“I’m truly grateful to you, Secretary Duan.”

Duan Shiming managed a forced smile. “I-is that so?” He felt restless and uncomfortable. He pointed toward the outside. “How about I call President Chu to come over and keep you company?”

“I’m not here for him, I’m here for you.” Ji Huaichuan walked to the living room with the gift bag, set it down, and sat on the sofa with his legs elegantly crossed. “I said, I’m here to thank you.”

Duan Shiming: This setup didn’t look like a simple “thank you.” His mind was full of everything Chu Yanzhou had said.

“Aren’t you going to close the door? What if someone sees?” Ji Huaichuan tilted his head.

Duan Shiming was about to say it was cooler with the door open, but then he thought he saw the lobby manager’s shadow. He slammed the door shut with a loud bang and leaned against it nervously, letting out a sigh of relief.

The manager shouldn’t have seen, right?

If the manager saw Chu Yanzhou’s fiancé in his room.

Outside the door, the lobby manager who was about to look for Chu Yanzhou: “?”

He paused and looked at room 3202 with hesitation. Wasn’t this President Chu’s little secretary’s room? What was that noise just now?

Ji Huaichuan let out a warm and bright laugh, which instantly dissipated the pressure from his recent work.

Seeing Ji Huaichuan laughing so happily on the sofa, Duan Shiming felt even more depressed. “Can’t you guys solve your own problems?”

“Yanzhou even told you about our business?”

Duan Shiming sighed and went to the bar to make himself some coffee. If he could, he wouldn’t have listened.

Ji Huaichuan turned his head. “How old are you this year?”

“30.” Duan Shiming put the coffee beans into the machine. He supported himself with both hands on the marble counter, staring at the coffee as it dripped.

The bar faced a large window with an excellent view. The morning sun poured into the room, landing on the young man in the white shirt as if coating him in gold.

This small face was heroic and beautiful, not possessing the innate gentleness of an Omega nor the sharpness of an Alpha. He carried a peaceful temperament that drifted between the two.

A small head, straight shoulders, a narrow waist, tall stature, and good body proportions, even just leaning casually against the bar, he could catch anyone’s eye.

Beautiful things are pleasant to look at.

Ji Huaichuan turned slightly and looked at him with a smile. “You’re 21.”

Duan Shiming poured the coffee into ice water, picked up the glass and took a sip, then leaned back against the marble edge, looking at Ji Huaichuan in the living room. “You’re a member of parliament, investigating someone is easy for you.”

But he probably didn’t find much.

It was impossible for anyone to easily discover his true identity.

Ji Huaichuan’s eyes followed his every move. “I just wanted to see if I could start with you to help me pursue Yanzhou.”

Duan Shiming tilted his head back, finished the coffee in one gulp, and placed the cup upside down on the washer. “This is between you two. What an outsider says won’t have any influence on your decisions.”

Ji Huaichuan’s lips curved upward. “True.” A smart kid.

Duan Shiming washed and dried his hands before walking out from the bar. “I’ll take your gifts. You should leave now, it looks bad.”

Ding—

Ding—

“Shiming, it’s me.”

Chu Yanzhou’s voice came from the visual doorbell screen.

Duan Shiming froze and looked toward the door in shock. “(OvO)!!!”

Ji Huaichuan leaned against the back of the chair, a playful look appearing in his eyes. “Ah, Secretary Duan, it’s my fiancé. Do I need to hide?”

Duan Shiming felt like he was going to pass out. “Hide for… what? We haven’t done anything!”

“After all, I am Yanzhou’s fiancé. Being in a single Beta’s room doesn’t seem very good.”

Duan Shiming looked at Ji Huaichuan in disbelief, beginning to lose it. “You’re just realizing this now!! Didn’t I just tell you that? You were the one who insisted on coming in!!”

He seriously suspected these two were taking out their relationship frustrations on him!!

Ji Huaichuan raised an eyebrow and smiled without a word.

The door flew open.

Chu Yanzhou was about to say he wanted to take his little secretary to breakfast, only to see that Duan Shiming’s expression was poor. He looked very irritable, like he had swallowed a firecracker. He thought the boy was still feeling unwell.

“Are you feeling okay?”

Duan Shiming gripped the doorframe, staring resentfully at the Chu Yanzhou outside. “President Chu, please take your fiancé away, thank you.”

Chu Yanzhou’s face suddenly darkened. He frowned and strode into the room, seeing Ji Huaichuan sitting elegantly on the sofa.

“Morning, dear fiancé.” Ji Huaichuan raised a hand and waved at Chu Yanzhou.

“What are you doing here?” Chu Yanzhou’s voice was cold. “Don’t you know this is my secretary’s room?”

“I know, I specifically came to find Secretary Duan,” Ji Huaichuan said.

Duan Shiming felt like he was seeing stars.

Chu Yanzhou completely failed to understand this Omega’s behavior. “What do you want with him?”

Ji Huaichuan stood up. “He saved me yesterday. If it weren’t for him, my gland might have been bitten. Shouldn’t I come to thank him personally?”

Chu Yanzhou said, “There are many ways to show gratitude. Did you have to come to his room?”

Ji Huaichuan walked up to Chu Yanzhou and stopped, meeting his gaze. “Isn’t coming to the door to say thank you the most basic way to show gratitude?”

Chu Yanzhou said coldly, “Is it coming to say thank you, or is it that you’ve taken an interest in him? Do you think I don’t know? Can’t you go a day without a man?”

The moment their eyes met, the air seemed to freeze.

Duan Shiming: “…”

He silently pulled the door shut. Family scandals shouldn’t be made public; whatever they had to say, they should say it behind closed doors. He seemed to remember there were sunflower seeds on the coffee table; he’d grab a handful to snack on.

So, he hugged the wall and tiptoed around from the other side.

To his surprise, just as he reached the table and bent down to grab some seeds, his wrist was suddenly gripped.

Duan Shiming’s body shook. He slowly looked up, catching Chu Yanzhou’s gaze. “…?”

“What did he just do to you?” Chu Yanzhou’s voice was as cold as ice, every word carrying weight.

Duan Shiming gripped the seeds tightly. “He… he didn’t do anything.” He pointed toward the gift bag with his other finger. “He just thanked me for helping him yesterday and gave me”

Suddenly, that hand was also grabbed.

With a clatter, the seeds in his hand scattered all over the floor.

Duan Shiming: “(OvO)!!!”

Ji Huaichuan gripped the other wrist and looked up at Chu Yanzhou. Meeting the Alpha’s dark expression, he smiled and said, “Yes, I just came to give him some gifts. Are you that bothered?”

Chu Yanzhou’s face was frozen. “He is a single Beta. What will the media say if they catch this?”

“Do you think I’ll be caught?” Ji Huaichuan laughed.

Chu Yanzhou tightened his grip on the delicate skin in his palm. He could feel him shaking and thought he was scared; luckily, he had come. “You won’t be caught, but what about him? You know very well our agreement hasn’t ended. If this gets out, you can handle it, but what about his reputation? Ji Huaichuan, you are still as selfish as ever.”

Ji Huaichuan laughed, but there was no warmth in his eyes. “I’m selfish? If I were selfish, I wouldn’t have chosen to help you when you were at your lowest!”

“And what disgraceful things have you done in this relationship?”

“It’s a normal physiological need!!”

“A normal physiological need? One on the left and one on the right? Or both together? You’re far too greedy.”

“Our agreement is just a fake. Our private lives don’t affect our cooperation at all.”

“No, this has already affected my reputation. Once this agreement is over, I won’t care if you have three or four people.”

“What, have you forgotten we are in a community of interests? I haven’t secured the Governor’s position yet. Once I have it, I can give you as much money as you want. Can’t you endure for just three more months?”

“I can’t endure, and don’t make empty promises. I want it now.”

The two engaged in a war of words, and the person standing in the middle felt like a megaphone.

Duan Shiming was caught in the middle, his toes curling uncomfortably in his shoes, his head throbbing from the noise.

He tried to pull his hands back, but the two of them held him so tightly that he suddenly lost his temper.

“Hey.”

That impatient “Hey” made the two in the standoff stop. They both looked toward Duan Shiming.

“Stop arguing.” Duan Shiming pulled his hands back. He rubbed his reddened wrists and looked at the two in front of him without expression. “You two are a perfect match. I wish you a long and happy life together and many children.”

Chu Yanzhou: “…”

Ji Huaichuan: “…”

Seeing them fall silent, Duan Shiming’s anger flared up. He pointed at the seeds scattered all over the carpet. “And can I ask, who is going to deal with these seeds on the floor? You pick them up, or you pick them up?”

“Yes, there are cleaners or robots, but I have to contact the housekeeper. But this is my room; the housekeeper will think I threw them. They certainly won’t say it to my face, but in their hearts, they’ll be grumbling about how someone staying in such an expensive room is littering. Their manners are! Truly! Terrible!”

“Just who is the one with terrible manners!”

He was pointing at the mulberry to revile the locust.

Looking at this lively, beautiful face in a fit of rage, the two of them were momentary dazed.

“So, who’s picking them up?” Duan Shiming asked with a cold face, pointing at the seeds on the carpet.

Chu Yanzhou saw his cold face and wide eyes, looking just like a ruffled little puppy. He couldn’t let him stay angry; he had to smooth his fur.

He bent down. “I’ll pick them up.”

Ji Huaichuan: “…?”

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