After the Corporate Slave Beta and the Top Alpha Married - Chapter 22

Ji Yu struggled to wake up from bed, his mind still a bit blank, yet he instinctively reached out to touch the back of his neck.

The once smooth and fair skin now felt slightly uneven; it was the mark left by Shang Yuanzhou’s bite yesterday.

It had been very painful when it first happened. Ji Yu was naturally sensitive to pain, and being suddenly pierced by it, he had cried quite embarrassingly.

He even began to feel a sincere admiration for those delicate Omegas how could every one of them endure the agony of being bitten by an Alpha? Permanent markings were one thing, as they only involved one bite. But temporary markings required countless bites over time.

However, Shang Yuanzhou hadn’t lied to him; the bleeding was indeed minimal. Only a few drops of blood seeped out, and none of them even trickled down his neck Shang Yuanzhou had swallowed them all.

When Shang Yuanzhou lifted his head from the nape of his neck and Ji Yu turned to look, the tall, handsome man’s lips were stained with a drop of blood deeper and more vivid than his natural lip color.

Combined with his pale red eyes and the silver-white wedding suit, he looked exactly like an elegant, mysterious vampire from an illustrated book who seduced human hearts.

He had slowly wiped the blood from his lips with his thumb, an action carrying an indescribable sense of… lust.

As those deep, pale red eyes lifted slightly, Ji Yu felt for a moment that he was about to say, “Thank you for the meal.”

How strange. Why would he have such a thought? It was clearly impossible. Shang Yuanzhou likely repulsed the idea of biting someone’s neck especially a Beta’s so why would he say something like that?

Sure enough, when he spoke, his tone was full of concern: “Are you alright? Does it hurt much?”

“In the coming days, you’ll likely accompany me to various banquets quite frequently, most importantly the internal Shang family gatherings. This should last us through this period; we won’t need a second one for a short while.”

His words implied a desire to delay the next bite indefinitely, which comforted Ji Yu. Although he had been bitten, the fact that Shang Yuanzhou was equally resistant to the act gave him a sense of “comrades in misery.”

Ji Yu waved his hand and, feeling a bit ashamed, took a tissue to wipe his tears before handing another to Shang Yuanzhou: “There’s blood on your hand, wipe it.”

Shang Yuanzhou took the tissue. “Do you want to shower and rest? It’s been a long day. You worked hard.”

Ji Yu nodded. Because he had just been crying, he was too embarrassed to stay in the living room and retreated to the bathroom.

The memory of yesterday ended there. Naturally, Ji Yu didn’t know that after he left

Shang Yuanzhou carelessly tossed the tissue into the trash. He pressed his blood-stained thumb to his lips, licking and swallowing that drop of blood with a look of satiation.

Ji Yu shook his head, clearing last night’s thoughts from his mind. While washing up, he couldn’t help but twist his head in an awkward position to look at his neck in the mirror.

It had indeed been painful when it happened. Normally, a wound like that should still sting the next day if touched. Yet, before Ji Yu had even gone to sleep last night, the sensation had mostly vanished.

Because of his awkward angle, he couldn’t see the whole bite, only the edge of it. The crimson mark on his flawless, jade-like neck looked exactly like a trace left after some ambiguous, intimate affair.

The explicit comments he’d read online flashed back into his mind: “An oblivious Beta walking into a crowd covered in dense pheromones, with everyone knowing he’s been ‘thoroughly loved’ except for him…”

Now it wasn’t just pheromones; he even had a bite mark.

Ji Yu regained his composure and lowered his hand. He picked up his rinsing cup and squeezed out some toothpaste with a natural motion. Actor’s fake scandals to promote their work; this is the same. It’s all work. All… work.

In the mirror, the young man’s face was expressionless, but his soft black hair couldn’t hide his bright red ears, which peeked out like two conspicuous red tips.

Ji Yu returned to his room to change. Although it was the second day of his “newlywed” life, his leave was over. He had to go to the office today.

However, he felt like he was forgetting something. He stood up to check the time on his phone, only to freeze.

His phone!

He had left his phone in the hotel room and forgotten to take it. There had been too much chaos yesterday; after returning, he’d showered and slept, completely forgetting about it.

The clock on the living room wall ticked silently. He was already running late for work, with no time to go to the hotel to retrieve it.

Shang Yuanzhou was no longer in the house; he had likely already left for the office. Ji Yu hurriedly grabbed some cash from a wallet in a drawer, put on his shoes, and ran out the door.

Without a phone, he had to hail a taxi on the street. As the elevator descended, Ji Yu grew anxious. It was the morning rush hour; if he waited too long for a cab, he was guaranteed to be late.

But when he stepped out of the building, he saw a familiar car parked nearby. It was Shang Yuanzhou’s car. Before Ji Yu could even approach, the car drove toward him and the window rolled down. Inside was one of Shang Yuanzhou’s drivers.

Shang Yuanzhou had three drivers. Ji Yu still couldn’t match all their faces to their names, though he had a slight impression of the “snitch” driver. He usually just followed Shang Yuanzhou into the car; he’d heard their names mentioned but rarely had a chance to speak with them. Ji Yu would never proactively start a conversation; socially, he was only a step above having social anxiety.

Fortunately, the driver was cheerful and enthusiastic: “Madam, President Shang had business and went to the office early. He asked me to bring another car to take you to work.”

Ji ‘Madam’ Yu: “…”

He summoned all his acting skills, offered a polite smile, and accepted the title. “Then I’ll have to trouble you.”

“No trouble at all,” the driver chuckled as Ji Yu got in. “This is my job. President Shang said before he left that you might be tired from yesterday and might come down late. He told me to watch the time and knock on the door if it got too late. I was just about to go up, but I was worried you’d feel like I was rushing you. President Shang really knows you well, Madam.”

This was the first time Ji Yu had been in Shang Yuanzhou’s car alone, and thus his first time alone with the driver. He hadn’t realized the driver was so enthusiastic so much so that it was overwhelming.

Hearing “Madam” over and over made Ji Yu squirm in the backseat. “Please, just call me Ji Yu.”

“How could I do that? Are you not used to it, Madam? Then I’ll call you Mr. Ji. You can call me Uncle Liu.” As he spoke, he pulled out a paper bag and handed it to Ji Yu during a red light. “President Shang asked me to order breakfast from Miaozhai. Mr. Ji, please eat in the car.”

Ji Yu took it, but before he could take a bite, the driver continued: “This is the first time I’ve seen President Shang so attentive to someone. Guessing you’d be down late and remembering you hadn’t eaten so you could have time for breakfast on the road… More importantly, President Shang has a bit of a germaphobia. Last time, a business partner’s Omega son wanted a ride, but because he had a box of pizza, President Shang refused because of the strong smell. You’re the first person allowed to eat in his car.”

Ji Yu suddenly felt the soup dumplings in his hand were scalding. He spoke calmly, “Uncle Liu, have you ever considered being a butler?”

“A butler?” Uncle Liu was genuinely surprised, checking Ji Yu’s expression in the rearview mirror. “Mr. Ji, you must be joking. I’m not the type to be a butler.”

Ji Yu shook his head. “No, I think you have potential.”

The perfect potential to be the butler in a CEO drama who says, “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen the Young Master smile like this.”

Compared to this veteran driver, Ji Yu felt his own “young butler” role was lacking.

Amidst his surprise, Uncle Liu began to doubt himself. “Mr. Ji, do you really think so? Butlers earn much more than drivers. But President Shang already has a butler; he probably doesn’t need a second one. Though I don’t know why President Shang suddenly moved to such a small place, the butlers at the villa are still there. Besides, this place probably couldn’t even fit a butler.”

Ji Yu paused mid-bite. “You said President Shang lived in a villa before moving here? The one at the Shang family estate?”

The driver was surprised. “You didn’t know, Mr. Ji? Old Mr. Shang told President Shang to move out of the estate previously…”

Ji Yu took a sip of milk. It wasn’t the kind from a supermarket shelf but a glass bottle likely bottled by Miaozhai itself. It tasted rich and unlike any milk Ji Yu had ever had. Listening to the driver, he silently bit the straw.

So, it turned out the conversation he’d “accidentally” overheard that day was common knowledge. He’d thought he’d stumbled upon some deep, dark secret of a wealthy family.

“But the estate is a massive manor; the villa was President Shang’s private residence,” the driver marveled. “I don’t know what whim possessed him to move here. He’s been living here for over a month and hasn’t gotten bored of it.”

Ji Yu froze. “You mean… President Shang only moved here suddenly over a month ago?”

Over a month ago exactly when Shang Yuanzhou had approached him about the contract.

The timing was too perfect. But why would Shang Yuanzhou leave a spacious, luxurious villa to live in a neighborhood like this? It couldn’t be that he didn’t want Ji Yu living in the villa… surely not. Shang Yuanzhou didn’t seem that petty, and it was only one room. Or was it because he didn’t want his private domain intruded upon?

That didn’t make sense either. The butlers lived there; what was one more person? It would be better than cramped living for one to three years.

So why? No matter how he thought about it, it didn’t add up.

It couldn’t be that there’s something in the villa he doesn’t want me to see, could it? Or does the CEO think ‘loving’ means playing house as an ordinary couple?

Ji Yu took a sip of milk to steady himself. He thought: It’s time for the real ‘President Shang’ to watch a few episodes of CEO dramas.

Shang Yuanzhou’s acting was top-tier his concern for his “beloved partner” was Oscar-worthy but his plot development was concerning.

Ji Yu made up his mind. He would ask Shang Yuanzhou tonight why they moved here. He’d try to find out the reason and see if he could lobby to move back to the villa.

It wasn’t that he wanted to live in a mansion, but Ji Yu valued his personal space. Even though they were now friends, he still wasn’t used to sharing a roof. The space was small; he often bumped into Shang Yuanzhou. One would be heading from the living room to the bedroom while the other was heading from the bathroom, and they’d have to squeeze past each other in the hallway.

Not to mention the times he forgot to lock the door while showering, thinking the other was out, only for Shang Yuanzhou to suddenly return. Or picking up laundry and accidentally wearing Shang Yuanzhou’s clothes, or his own clothes being taken by Shang Yuanzhou only to be tossed by the housekeeper. Even the water cups bought by the housekeeper all looked the same. Sometimes, he’d just finished a cup of water and set it down, only to turn around and see Shang Yuanzhou drinking from it, thinking it was a clean cup.

The villa, regardless of anything else, was spacious much, much larger. If they could escape this situation, it would be for the best.