After the Corporate Slave Beta and the Top Alpha Married - Chapter 9

After watching several romance movies until two in the morning, Ji Yu’s head was a foggy mess. His dreams were filled with the two protagonists acting out scenes of love—only in the dream, the leads had his and Shang Yuanzhou’s faces.

Ji Yu was startled awake right at the moment he proactively wrapped his arms around Shang Yuanzhou’s neck to kiss him. Watching Shang Yuanzhou’s beautiful, cold face drawing closer and closer, he snapped awake.

He struggled to reach for the phone on the nightstand. After glancing at the time, he retreated back into the covers. It was only six in the morning; it was still very early. He closed his eyes peacefully, intending to sleep a bit longer.

Twenty minutes later, Ji Yu opened his eyes again. He couldn’t sleep. He simply couldn’t fall back asleep.

He finally kicked off the covers and got up. He walked into the bathroom, where the sound of splashing water rang out, followed shortly by the whirring of a hairdryer. His hair was meticulously styled, and he brought out the suit he had only worn once. It was, after all, the first time in his life he was getting a marriage certificate, even if it was a fake one. Since he couldn’t sleep anyway, he might as well spruce himself up.

Ji Yu made himself a breakfast that could be described as sumptous, then headed out when the time was right. At nine o’clock sharp, he arrived at the entrance of the Civil Affairs Bureau. Seeing the bright red sign with the words “Marriage Registration,” Ji Yu gave a small smile. It was a very novel experience.

“Ji Yu.”

Ji Yu turned around and his eyes immediately lit up. As a Top Alpha, Shang Yuanzhou’s appearance was undeniably handsome. Today, he had clearly made a special effort with his styling: an silver-white suit paired with a matching gemstone brooch and ruby cufflinks. His hair was styled with wax, fully revealing his sharp brows and eyes. His pale-red pupils complemented the rubies on his sleeves perfectly; he was exceptionally dazzling.

Ji Yu offered a sincere compliment: “A-Zhou is very handsome today.”

Fortunately, I had a whim to clean myself up, otherwise…

Ji Yu couldn’t help but smile. Shang Yuanzhou looked at him: “What are you thinking about?”

Ji Yu wasn’t coy and said directly: “I was wondering if we’d look like a pheasant paired with a phoenix in the photos.”

Shang Yuanzhou: “Do I look that much like a pheasant?”

…? !!

Ji Yu: “Of course not! Do I look like a phoenix then?” How can such a big CEO have zero self-awareness?

Shang Yuanzhou shook his head. “You look like a sparrow.” He looked down at Ji Yu. “A pheasant and a sparrow—that’s a good match too, right?”

Ji Yu couldn’t help but laugh. “A-Zhou, no need to comfort me, don’t belittle yourself.” “Shall we go in?”

Shang Yuanzhou watched his retreating back, his gaze dark and heavy. Ji Yu had long forgotten that he once compared himself to a sparrow; only Shang Yuanzhou remembered. And Shang Yuanzhou himself was no “good person”—he was no phoenix.

The staff at the Civil Affairs Bureau processed their paperwork with a mix of surprise and curiosity. When the bright red seal was stamped down and the marriage certificate was finally in his hand, Shang Yuanzhou still felt a sense of unreality.

His thumb brushed over the raised texture left by the stamp; the uneven feel made Shang Yuanzhou rub it repeatedly. He saw Ji Yu lean over to curiously look at the certificate in his hand. “What’s wrong? Is there a problem with the stamp?”

“No.”

The moment Shang Yuanzhou spoke a single word, he realized how hoarse his voice was. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he spoke slowly: “There’s no problem.”

The thing he wanted to rub and grind repeatedly wasn’t this raised seal, but Ji Yu’s pale lips. He wanted to press his thumb heavily against them and pin the man against that red wall to kiss him to death, just to offset this feeling of unreality.

Being unable to do anything made Shang Yuanzhou a bit restless; his hand instinctively wanted to clench. Realizing he was holding the marriage certificate, he stiffened his body and slowly let go.

“Move into my place today.” “Am I moving in to live with you today?”

The two spoke almost simultaneously. Shang Yuanzhou gave an imperceptible smile. “Good. Do you need to pack?”

Ji Yu: “I’ve already packed. Not much, just one suitcase.” Since he had woken up so early, he had finished everything he had planned.

“Give me the address, and I’ll bring my things over tonight?” Ji Yu thought for a bit. “You’ll be home tonight, right?”

Shang Yuanzhou: “Move over now. It’s still early. I’ll drive you.”

Ji Yu didn’t think much of it, assuming “driving” meant the chauffeur would take them both. It wasn’t until he stood before an empty car that he realized “driving” meant driving in the literal sense.

“How about I drive, President Shang?” Looking at Shang Yuanzhou heading for the driver’s seat, Ji Yu spoke up tentatively. A second later, he changed his mind: “Actually… never mind.” Such an expensive car—if I scrape it, I can’t afford the repairs.

Shang Yuanzhou glanced at him sideways. “President Shang?”

Ji Yu pursed his lips. “I figured there was no one else around.”

Shang Yuanzhou leaned across him, his arm nearly encircling Ji Yu’s waist. As the person beneath him suddenly grew tense and stiff, he pulled out the seatbelt. Click. The light sound of the buckle snapping shut rang out.

Shang Yuanzhou said flatly: “You need to get used to it. If you get too used to the formal title, you might slip up when there are many people around.”

His pheromones had already expanded instantly within the cramped space of the car like hyenas, swarming toward Ji Yu, tightly surrounding the oblivious Beta and clamoring to invade. On the surface, he still spoke to Ji Yu calmly.

He calmly retracted his hand and sat up straight. On the hand gripping the steering wheel, the veins stood out clearly, and his fingers pressed deep marks into the leather.

Ji Yu murmured an apology. Shang Yuanzhou didn’t look at him; his expression was cold and his tone was stiff: “No need for apologies.”

It wasn’t until Shang Yuanzhou suppressed his internal restlessness and slowly retracted his pheromones that he realized Ji Yu hadn’t spoken for a long time. The Beta sat stiffly in the passenger seat, looking as nervous as a child waiting to be scolded for a mistake.

Realizing his coldness had scared the man, Shang Yuanzhou felt a trace of annoyance. Fortunately, it wasn’t long before they arrived at Ji Yu’s rented apartment.

“I’ll go up with you to help with the luggage.” Without waiting for a refusal, he followed him out of the car.

Ji Yu’s apartment wasn’t large. The living room seen upon entering felt warm and comfortable, with a fluffy rug and vigorously growing green plants—it felt exactly like Ji Yu himself.

Shang Yuanzhou exercised self-control and did not step into Ji Yu’s bedroom. Ji Yu really didn’t bring much: just some clothes and his laptop, all of which fit into one suitcase.

Shang Yuanzhou looked at a potted plant that had clearly been well-cared for and asked, “Aren’t you taking this?”

Ji Yu: “Ah, no need. I won’t be giving up the lease on this place yet. I’ll come back to take care of it when I have time.”

Shang Yuanzhou: “I see.” He gave a small smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

Ji Yu had assumed that given Shang Yuanzhou’s status, he would live in a manor or at least a villa. At the very least, it should be a sprawling penthouse. That way, even if they lived together, the house would be so big they wouldn’t have much chance to run into each other.

But as they entered the residential complex, he had a bad premonition. When Shang Yuanzhou used his fingerprint to open the door, that premonition reached its peak.

The apartment before him was larger than the one he rented, but only a bit larger. It only had one extra guest bedroom and a study. It was a very standard two-bedroom, one-living-room layout. The guest room was just enough for Ji Yu to stay in.

It was hard to imagine the CEO of the Shang Group living in such a place. It wasn’t that it was bad; it was just that the status didn’t match. Any family with a slightly better background would live in a larger house.

Perhaps seeing the shock on his face, Shang Yuanzhou explained: “I was kicked out of the old manor before the Old Man died. I’m staying here temporarily.”

Ji Yu had happened to “eavesdrop” on this fact before. He was always clumsy in social matters, so he squeezed out a dry: “Don’t be sad.”

Shang Yuanzhou’s mouth curled in an enigmatic smile. “I’m not sad.” “Since you took leave, rest well at home today. Things will be very busy starting tomorrow—photos, the wedding feast, cocktail parties… many things are waiting for us.”

Ji Yu was stunned. “We have to take wedding photos too?” Two grown men taking photos—that’s too meticulous.

“Mm,” Shang Yuanzhou said flatly. “All the procedures must be followed.”

From the marriage certificate to the wedding feast, every step is real. Then who can say our marriage is fake?

While Ji Yu went into the guest room to unpack his clothes, Shang Yuanzhou walked into the master bedroom. He placed the marriage certificate into the nightstand. After a thought, he took it out again. He walked to the study, pulled out the bottom drawer, turned the dial on a safe, and solemnly placed the marriage certificate inside.

After finishing this, Shang Yuanzhou walked out of the study as if nothing had happened. He knocked on Ji Yu’s open door. “I have to head back to the company. Rest well.”

He was truly busy. Because he hadn’t brought a driver, he couldn’t process documents in the car; this half-day had been squeezed out of his schedule. The reason for not bringing a driver was simple: he didn’t want to bring extra people when he registered his marriage with Ji Yu.

By the time Shang Yuanzhou finished his work and returned home, it was very late. The physical stamina and energy of a Top Alpha were incomparable; even after working at high intensity for so long, he was still full of energy.

He used his fingerprint to open the door, and seeing another pair of shoes in the entryway made him pause. The fact that Ji Yu was now living with him hit him like a tidal wave. And today—he had married Ji Yu.

The scent of bitter wine spread through the room. Shang Yuanzhou’s pheromones were restless, and his mind was exceptionally excited. His footsteps moved silently through the hallway, stopping at Ji Yu’s bedroom door.

Separated only by a wall, his pheromones clamored to tell him the person inside was sound asleep. Driven by some ghost or god, Shang Yuanzhou placed his hand on the doorknob. Click. It wasn’t locked. It opened easily. It felt like silent permission.

Influenced by his pheromones, the man unreasonably viewed it as a form of seduction. Despite Betas clearly having no pheromones, Shang Yuanzhou felt the entire room was filled with Ji Yu’s scent.

He let out a low chuckle. “So slutty.”

In the quiet room, this small sound didn’t alert the sleeping person. Shang Yuanzhou leaned down obsessively. Guided by the faint moonlight, he pressed a kiss onto those pale lips.

We’re married now. Let “Husband” have a kiss.