After Breaking Up with the Alpha Villain, I was Forcibly Marked - Chapter 11

“Xing Xiyan, how about… being with me?”

The moment those meddlesome Alphas left, Gao Yang seized the opportunity to grab the youth’s hand, pouring out his confession in one breath.

Although he had used this same routine on hundreds of different people in “practical combat,” his heart still skipped a beat uncontrollably the moment that jade-carved, exquisite face turned toward him.

“Your reason?”

The youth did not pull away from his grasp. His other hand, hanging at his side, quietly clenched into a fist, nails digging deep into his palm.

“I like you. I want you by my side. I can’t stand seeing you bullied; I want to protect you!”

The Alpha’s eyes sparkled with sincerity, his voice clear and resonant, filled with a burning fervor.

Outside the school gates.

“Young Master Xing!”

More than ten bodyguards responsible for transporting Xing Xiyan stood waiting by the hovercar. Upon seeing his approach, they gave a well-trained bow.

Xing Xiyan acted as if they weren’t there and stepped into the back seat.

Since Feike Li had been seriously injured and hospitalized, Xing Xiyan despite being a “dependent” guest with a perfect alibi had inevitably become a thorn in the side of Feike Li’s mother, Madame Ogavi. She even viewed him as the prime suspect in the framing of her son.

The bodyguards before him were protectors in name, but in reality, they were the eyes and ears used by that woman to monitor him.

As a cool breeze brushed his face, a faint, metallic scent of blood drifted through the air.

The bodyguard holding the car door for Xing Xiyan suddenly tensed his muscles. “Young Master Xing, your hand.”

Those who lived on the edge of life and death were most sensitive to the scent of blood. As “hidden pieces” carefully cultivated by the family, they could not mistake the jarring dark spots on the youth’s sleeve.

“A minor accident.”

Xing Xiyan narrowed his eyes, looking at the dried blood on his palm. The Alpha’s earnest voice flooded his mind once more.

He had seen the man long before the Alpha was standing shoulder-to-shoulder with that other man. Later, encountering those Alphas looking for trouble was merely him playing along, walking into the man’s line of sight on purpose.

He hadn’t expected the man to actually come for him.

Seeing a fresh line of blood seep from the edge of the youth’s thumb, the bodyguard stepped forward to remind him: “Young Master Xing, shall I treat the wound for you?”

“It’s fine.”

Xing Xiyan took the bandage handed to him and wrapped it skillfully around his bloodied palm several times.

“Mother Chang, do we really have to get rid of these things? What if Young Master Xing sees this when he returns? What if he blames us?”

A young maid in a black-and-white dress hesitantly picked up a planetary globe the last valuable item in the bedroom and carefully navigated around the furniture toward a nearby trolley.

As she moved, a line of small, crystalline characters emerged at the base of the globe. Anyone in the know would recognize it as the signature of Rourke, the famous interstellar artist. Rare and sought-after, this item showed that the sender had not only put in great effort but had spent a fortune to acquire it.

The small trolley was already piled high with gifts of various sizes, all in exquisite, ornate packaging.

Looking at the small mountain they had spent half the day building which they had to dispose of before the master of the room returned the young maid’s mood didn’t improve; instead, her anxiety spiked. Although he always appeared cold and reclusive, her intuition told her he was not someone with a good temper.

The middle-aged maid addressed as Mother Chang stopped her bulky frame and glared at her jittery subordinate. “Bah! You coward, scared witless by such a small thing! Just follow the First Madame’s orders. That little bastard with the tainted bloodline everything on his body belongs to the Elvage family! Even if he wanted to, he wouldn’t have the guts to blame us!”

To her, he was just a soft target. Even if she stripped the room bare, that “useless” boy wouldn’t dare move against her.

“But we didn’t get Young Master Xing’s permission…”

Ella clutched the folds of her skirt, stammering a defense. Her large, round eyes were full of unease. They were following orders, but Young Master Xing was the Patriarch’s biological grandson. They had broken into his room to find evidence of him harming Young Master Feike Li wasn’t this a bit too much?

“Since the Madame is in charge, does she need a ‘waste’s’ permission?!”

Mother Chang interrupted her impatiently. Her calloused hand grabbed a corner of the bedding. Her tone was dismissive, showing no respect for the room’s owner.

Suddenly, a set of dark clothes slid out from the grey-black bedding. With a soft thud, the metal buttons hit the hard stone floor. A faint scent of bamboo drifted from the smooth fabric, lingering in the air.

“Oh? What’s this?!” Mother Chang scooped up the clothes. Her murky grey eyes flashed with thick disdain. “I knew this little stray would be hiding something. He’s actually secretly hiding an Alpha’s clothes!”

The scent, the long and wide legs, the unique tailoring it couldn’t escape her eyes. These clothes definitely didn’t belong to the “useless” young master!

Could the owner of these clothes be related to the Eldest Young Master’s injury?!

Mother Chang’s eyes lit up as if she had discovered a state secret. She hurried to stow the clothes away, but as she bent over, she bumped into a display piece behind her, triggering a chaotic crash of falling objects.

“How unlucky.”

Looking at the mess, Mother Chang panicked for a second but quickly regained her arrogance. She barked at the maid by the door: “Girl! What are you standing there for? Come and help!”

After a long moment, there was no response.

She fixed her hair, intending to discipline Ella, but when she turned around, she was scared out of her wits.

The very person she had been mocking moments ago was standing in the doorway, framed by the backlight. His bandaged hand, lean and pale, was clamped tightly around Ella’s neck.

“Oh, Young Master Xing is back.”

Realizing he had likely heard her insubordination, a flicker of awkwardness crossed Mother Chang’s wrinkled face. However, remembering her backers, she quickly regained her usual haughtiness.

Xing Xiyan scanned the room, his gaze finally landing on the clothes in Mother Chang’s arms. Frost filled his eyes. “I said, no one is allowed to touch the things in my room.”

Used to his “all bark and no bite” coldness, Mother Chang glanced at the terrified Ella. “Young Master Xing, look at what you’re saying. We wouldn’t dare enter your room without reason. This is what the First Madame personally requested; as subordinates, we have to comply.”

“Get out.”

At the mention of Madame Ogavi, Xing Xiyan’s brow furrowed deeper, hatred surging in his eyes. Since his biological father passed away, that Omega had not only swallowed all his assets and shares under the guise of being his guardian, but had also spent years destroying his body to strip him of his inheritance rights. She had sent people to lace his food with inhibitors for three years, causing him to miss his optimal differentiation at sixteen.

Because the toxins hadn’t been cleared from his system, he still couldn’t differentiate into a second gender.

“Going, we’re going.”

Thinking he was afraid of Madame Ogavi, Mother Chang felt a surge of secret joy and tried to hide the clothes behind her back.

However, Xing Xiyan, whose eyes had never left the clothes, noticed her movement immediately.

“You are taking my clothes.”

Her intentions exposed, Mother Chang brought the clothes out and gave a stiff smile. “Young Master Xing, don’t misunderstand. I just saw they were dusty and wanted to wash them for you.”

His insistence on getting them back proved there was something suspicious.

Xing Xiyan let go of the harmless little maid and reached toward Mother Chang. “Mine. Give them back.”

“Young Master Xing, to tell you the truth, these clothes are also something the First Madame”

Mother Chang’s eyes darted around; she wasn’t about to miss such a good opportunity to report back.

However, before the name “Madame Ogavi” could fully leave her mouth, the hand that had just released Ella’s neck struck like a predator’s claw. In a blurred shadow, it clamped violently around her throat.

“My things are for me to decide.”

Xing Xiyan’s gaze was deathly cold, his voice devoid of warmth, like a venomous snake lurking in the shadows.

“How could you… you can’t kill me… I am… the Madame’s…”

Mother Chang’s toes left the ground, her eyes rolling back. Her face turned a purplish-liver color as her breathing was cut off. She endured the tightening pressure on her neck with sheer terror.

Her threats failed to evoke any fear; instead, the pressure only increased. She felt a sudden, terrifying premonition that this “useless” young master would actually snap her neck. The massive fear of impending death made her thick frame shake like a leaf. She no longer cared about the mission and tremblingly dropped the clothes.

“Don’t kill… me… clothes… back to… you…”

“…”

Xing Xiyan glanced at the clothes on the floor. The fabric was wrinkled, stained with sweat, and several threads had been pulled. A flash of murderous intent crossed his eyes.

“I… I didn’t… mean to…”

Meeting his murderous gaze, Mother Chang’s pupils shrank. She wailed incoherently, her voice coarse and desperate.

Xing Xiyan acted as if he hadn’t heard and snapped her neck, cutting off her breath forever.

“Put these things back.”

Xing Xiyan picked up the clothes. His gaze swept over a servant hiding behind a pillar to report the news, then landed on Ella, who was slumped on the ground, pale with fright. He gave the order coldly.

“Ella… Ella will do it right away!”

Startled by his cold glance, Ella forced herself not to look at Mother Chang’s cooling corpse. Shaking, she picked up the items from the trolley and placed them back in their original positions from memory, even straightening the ornaments Mother Chang had knocked over.

“Young Master Xing, everything has been returned… not a single piece is missing…”

Ella took small, trembling steps, stopping two meters away from the youth. Her back was drenched in cold sweat, and she instinctively bowed low. Fortunately, her memory was good; it didn’t take long to restore the room to its original state.

“Get out.”

Xing Xiyan stood by the window, holding a sleeve. His expression was solemn and unreadable. At her report, he paused as if sensing something.

“Yes.”

Sensing his impatience, Ella suppressed her terror, dragged the corpse away, and exited the bedroom.