Married the Abandoned Puppy Alpha - Chapter 34

Chapter 34: Sunflowers

He decided to go home!

He Xinglou woke up at six the next morning full of energy, determined to work overtime in the office and wrap up all his tasks within two days.

He couldn’t delay any longer. It would take another month to get back; counting it all up, he wouldn’t have seen Shi Qingze for three months.

This state of immersion in work was very noticeable. After noticing he hadn’t eaten all day, the neighboring survey team finally couldn’t hold back and sent their youngest Beta member to assist him.

To say “assist” was a stretch; he was actually there to fish for information.

He Xinglou had noticed the few heads eavesdropping by the door from the start, but having an extra pair of hands was a good thing for him, so he readily agreed.

“Xinglou, did you notice our captain’s feelings, so you’re planning to use work to escape?” the young kid asked, holding documents absentmindedly.

He Xinglou was wearing AI analysis glasses, carefully observing the cultural relic in his hand. Hearing this, he looked up at him. The rimless glasses made his gaze look cool and filtered; the kid blushed the moment their eyes met.

“Upload that pile of document data, and I’ll tell you.”

The kid had no choice but to return to his seat honestly, followed by the sound of rapid page-turning.

He Xinglou’s lips curled slightly—plan successful.

When the kid dizzily sent the data over, he answered briefly: “This matter has nothing to do with the captain. He is a very good person and will definitely meet someone he truly loves in the future.”

After saying it, He Xinglou froze, suddenly finding the words familiar. Weren’t these the same words he used to brush off Luo Qingzhe the morning he met Shi Qingze?

He blinked and slowly added: “However, I do plan to leave here in two days.”

Getting an answer, the kid typed away on his communicator for a long while before turning back blankly.

“Why is Xinglou leaving so soon?”

Hook, line, and sinker.

He Xinglou suppressed a smile he could barely contain.

“Classify these relic data materials, and I’ll tell you.”

The kid: “…”

Just like that, He Xinglou dangled the carrot in front of the kid while finishing today’s scheduled work ahead of time.

To achieve this goal, however, he ended up telling the whole story of how he met, separated from, and married Shi Qingze.

“You mean you two were completely out of contact for two whole years?” The kid was exhausted but still gossiping.

“It’s two years and two months now,” He Xinglou corrected with a wry smile.

The kid nodded, his expression unreadable: “So, Xinglou is in a hurry to leave because he misses him.”

He seemed unable to understand: “Since you could endure a two-year separation, why is Xinglou rushing back after only being away for two months? Isn’t it good to stay here a bit longer? Your workload isn’t even that heavy.”

He Xinglou was stunned, and only then did he realize—forget two years or two months, now that he had decided to set off for home in two days, he felt like every second was unbearable.

Exactly when did he become so inseparable from Shi Qingze?

When he separated from Shi Qingze for those two years, he was fully prepared never to see him again in this lifetime. How could he have imagined today’s situation?

During the time Shi Qingze was first taken back to the Shi family, He Xinglou also found it hard. He would curl up in his small room in the slums, unable to sleep all night.

He could still smell the residual pheromones from Shi Qingze’s differentiation on that bed. Suffering from severe insomnia, He Xinglou would dazedly hug the pillow and wrap himself in the quilt.

He didn’t understand it back then; he just thought it was separation anxiety or that the room was too cold to live in alone.

Later, after he married Shi Qingze, Shi Qingze’s rut arrived while He Xinglou was late getting home due to overtime. When he turned on the bedroom light, he found Shi Qingze wrapped tightly in the quilt, with He Xinglou’s own clothes scattered messily on the bed. Several pieces were wrinkled, held tightly in the arms of the feverish Shi Qingze.

He Xinglou found the scene familiar and remembered he had done the same.

Only then did he hear that unfamiliar term from Shi Qingze: Nesting.

He had once exhibited nesting behavior because of Shi Qingze’s departure.

Nesting is a phenomenon that only occurs after a partner leaves. When a rut or heat arrives, one subconsciously collects items with the lover’s pheromones to seek comfort.

Long before He Xinglou realized his true feelings for Shi Qingze, he was already treating him as a lover.

So that’s how it was.

The late realization felt like a hand suddenly squeezing his heart and letting go; hot, vivid blood pumped out, quickly flushing through He Xinglou’s entire body.

Back then, Shi Qingze was still stammering apologies, swearing he would tidy the wardrobe after his rut, only to see He Xinglou suddenly laugh, lean down to pull him into an embrace, and then lower his head to kiss his lips forcefully.

“Xinglou, are you still listening?” The kid’s voice brought He Xinglou back to reality.

Progress was rapid today. Not only did he finish the expected workload, but he also knocked out part of tomorrow’s portion. Now that the two had come out of the office, the sky outside was pitch black, and the neighboring office had long been empty.

The kid didn’t even realize he’d been ordered around all day. His originally tense little face was sagging with exhaustion, yet he was still chattering away.

He Xinglou buried half his face in the light gray scarf: “Mm, I’m listening.”

The kid continued the previous topic: “Anyway, it takes a long time to get back to the Imperial Capital. There’s no rush. Staying a bit longer is quite nice.”

He Xinglou found his persistence strange. They weren’t even that close; why insist on him staying? Unless…

“You’re not still trying to play matchmaker for your captain, are you?” He Xinglou didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “I’m really married. Do you want to see the registration info?”

The kid froze and shook his head repeatedly: “The captain is the captain, just ignore him!”

Then He Xinglou was even more confused.

But thinking that he would set off after finishing work tomorrow and likely wouldn’t encounter the survey team again, he didn’t press further. He just reached out and ruffled the kid’s hair, trying to drop the subject.

“Thanks for your hard work today. I’ll treat you to dinner. What do you want to eat?”

The kid let him touch his hair with shrugged shoulders, saying after a while: “…No need. The captain left me some food.”

“Alright.” He Xinglou sighed. “Then I’ll bring you some snacks tomorrow as a reward.”

He turned to leave after speaking, but after just two steps, his sleeve was tugged.

He Xinglou turned back in confusion, seeing the kid slowly raise his head, his face flushed bright red.

“I… I am now about the same age your husband was back then.”

He Xinglou: “…”

He felt this development was getting a bit scary and wanted to flee: “I heard it’s going to snow tonight. Let’s both head back quickly.”

The kid shook his head and said urgently: “Xinglou, let me finish! I didn’t dare say it before because the captain liked you, but—”

He Xinglou felt his scalp tingle with fear and subconsciously tried to break away. But the kid was brash, directly grabbing both of his wrists, struggling to make a more direct confession.

Just then, a streetlamp nearby suddenly popped and buzzed it seemed like a short circuit—and it went out instantly.

The attention of both was diverted by the noise. He Xinglou took the opportunity to pull his hands free.

He frowned at the streetlamp and caught a glimpse of a figure flashing by.

The opportunity for a confession had vanished. The two fell into an awkward silence until the sound of the kid sniffling reached his ears. He Xinglou sighed heavily again and patted the boy’s head reassuringly.

“Go back. No need to come to my office tomorrow.”

…

He Xinglou returned to his dormitory exhausted in body and mind, throwing himself heavily onto the sofa.

He never expected so many troubles to occur just as he was about to leave this planet.

Unfortunately, he was out of contact with his friends in the Imperial Capital, so he had no one to vent to. He could only tell them after he returned.

Of course, this matter absolutely could not be told to Shi Qingze, otherwise that guy would go full “puppy mode” and have a total meltdown.

The entire train of thought circled around and eventually returned to the name “Shi Qingze.”

He Xinglou felt so stifled he couldn’t breathe, so he took a pheromone e-cigarette from his pocket, walked to the balcony, and put it in his mouth.

The e-cigarette had been prepared by Shi Qingze, who said it was a custom formula based on his own pheromones. Sure enough, as the white mist escaped He Xinglou’s lips, the scent of pine instantly enveloped him.

“But it’s still not the same,” He Xinglou felt empty inside.

He went back into the room like a ghost and sniffed the items he had brought down from the starship. After two months, he couldn’t smell Shi Qingze’s scent on anything.

He didn’t even have tools for nesting.

He Xinglou was incredibly frustrated and went back to the balcony, feeling utterly wronged as he settled for the e-cigarette.

And this time, he noticed something unusual in the dormitory building opposite.

In the dormitory directly facing his room, several tender yellow flowers had actually bloomed on the balcony.

He Xinglou squinted to look. From the shape of the leaves and buds, he identified them as several sunflowers.

In the middle of winter, where would wild sunflowers come from?

And if they weren’t wild, someone had planted them there. But the building opposite was completely empty—why choose the room directly facing his to plant flowers?

He Xinglou’s heart quickened. He tried hard not to make any more baseless guesses.

He went directly downstairs.

This was his first time entering the abandoned building opposite. The bitter winter wind cut like a blade. He Xinglou wrapped his scarf tighter and stepped onto the stairs; his footsteps created hollow echoes against the walls.

He was a bit scared, but thinking “I’m already here,” he gritted his teeth and continued upward, passing countless hollow windows until he stood before the door directly opposite his room.

The door was closed, but it opened with a gentle push.

He Xinglou stepped in slowly and found traces of someone living there temporarily.

The living conditions here were even worse than his dormitory, more like a capsule room in the slums. With winter here, the wind squeezed through the cracks in the window frames; the whole room was hollow, cold, and damp, like a tomb.

There were few things in the room. Neat sheets were spread on a simple temporary bed frame, and there were toiletries in the bathroom. He picked them up and saw they were fig-scented.

There was a small suitcase in the corner. He Xinglou didn’t care about manners and opened it directly. A few simple changes of clothes were neatly folded, sleeping snugly in the box.

He gently brushed his fingertips over them; every single one carried the scent he had been craving.

“This guy…” He Xinglou’s eyes filled with tears, and he gritted his teeth to keep them from falling.

He heard distant footsteps in the hallway. The occupant of the room must be returning.

He Xinglou stood up and opened the door, intending to meet them. However, since no one lived here, the slightest sound carried far; clearly, the other person had also heard his footsteps.

The footsteps in the hallway stopped, then began running down hurriedly.

He Xinglou laughed out of anger, tears falling as his muscles twitched.

Without hesitation, he chased after them, his movements so large that dust vibrated off the walls.

Perhaps worried he might trip, the person fleeing hesitated for a second, thinking of slowing down. In that instant, He Xinglou leaned half his body over the stair railing and shouted at the other person:

“Shi Qingze!”

The footsteps stopped completely. The entire hallway fell into a sudden silence, and only the sound of He Xinglou’s own rapid breathing could be heard.

He almost thought that everything he had seen and heard was his own hallucination.

But the next second, a slender, clean hand appeared on the hallway railing, followed by someone raising their face to look at him quietly.

It was Shi Qingze.