The Top-Tier Alpha Is Lured and Captured by a Green Tea Merman - Chapter 16

Five days later.

Pei Yan’s heat had finally ended. He woke up splayed across Xie Yu’s body.

He gave the still-sleeping Xie Yu a weak, powerless glare and pressed his palms against Xie Yu’s chest, trying to push himself up. This single movement exhausted nearly all of his remaining strength, and with a soft thud, he collapsed back onto Xie Yu’s chest.

Pei Yan’s mind was a chaotic haze. Was an Omega’s heat always this terrifying?

He felt sticky and greasy all over, an incredibly uncomfortable sensation, yet he couldn’t move. After the “nonsense” of the past few days, he was effectively paralyzed.

Just then, Xie Yu woke up. Pei Yan immediately ordered, “Carry me to the bathroom.”

Xie Yu was more than happy to oblige. His face was a picture of deep satisfaction; even after five days of “hard labor,” he showed no signs of fatigue, appearing as vigorous and energetic as ever.

He carried Pei Yan into the bathroom but didn’t put him down. Instead, he kept Pei Yan firmly trapped in his arms, smiling mischievously. “Brother, you have no strength left. Why don’t I wash you instead?”

Without waiting for Pei Yan’s consent, he filled the bathtub with water and stepped in, still holding Pei Yan.

As soon as Xie Yu sat down, the water surged and overflowed the tub, completely full. Upon contact with the water, the greasy, disgusted feeling in Pei Yan’s heart gradually cleared into a sense of refreshment.

Xie Yu leaned close to his ear, his breath scorching. “Brother, I heard… you might get sick… let me help you…”

Pei Yan’s relaxed expression suddenly tightened. He tried to scramble out of Xie Yu’s arms, but because he had no point of support, he plunged into the water and choked on a large gulp.

“Cough, cough…”

Xie Yu hurriedly pulled him out, tucked him back into his embrace, and rubbed his back to help him breathe. He laughed, “Brother, why are you so scared? I’m not going to eat you. I know your body can’t handle any more.”

Pei Yan glared at him. His eyes, brimming with tears from the coughing, held no deterrent power; if anything, they stirred Xie Yu’s desires again. Xie Yu bit Pei Yan’s ear, his voice low and restrained. “Brother, you’d better not look at me like that, or I’m afraid I won’t be able to stop myself.”

As if sensing something, Pei Yan’s body subconsciously trembled.

This beast!!

Xie Yu knew that Pei Yan truly couldn’t endure any more, so he finished the cleaning quickly and efficiently. By the time they were done, Pei Yan had fallen back into an exhausted sleep.

Looking at his utterly spent state, Xie Yu let out a heavy sigh. He used a towel to dry Pei Yan, dressed him in a bathrobe, found a cleaner room, and tucked him into bed.

Not long after, Pei Yan began to burn up. His consciousness blurred; he felt as if he were floating in the air, sinking into soft piles of clouds with no solid ground beneath him.

Xie Yu’s expression turned solemn. The first mutation had arrived.

A dense, prickling sensation of itching and pain radiated from his legs. Pei Yan broke out into a cold sweat from the discomfort, struggling and twisting his body. He tried to curl up to scratch his legs, but Xie Yu pinned him down firmly, preventing him from moving to ensure he didn’t hurt himself.

Pei Yan started crying from the pain, tears flowing uncontrollably. He sobbed, “My legs hurt so much… uu-huu…”

Xie Yu tenderly licked away his tears. “It’s okay, it’ll be over in a moment.”

Fearing Pei Yan might harm himself, Xie Yu pressed Pei Yan’s head against his shoulder. “Bite me if it hurts, just don’t hurt yourself.”

The moment the words left his mouth, Pei Yan bit down hard on his shoulder, while his hands unceremoniously clawed at Xie Yu’s back.

Xie Yu didn’t flinch. He gently stroked Pei Yan’s spine, releasing soothing pheromones. After an unknown amount of time, Pei Yan finally calmed down and fell into a deep sleep.

Xie Yu let go of him and got up to check his legs.

His legs could no longer truly be called legs; they were showing signs of merging in the middle. The surface was covered in a faint, thin membrane, and small, delicate scales were faintly visible.

Xie Yu reached out, but retracted his hand just before touching.

A newborn mermaid tail is extremely fragile.

For some reason, Qi Lan’s words suddenly popped into his head: “Not all humans can calmly accept mutating into another species.”

Xie Yu remained silent for a long time, turning his head to look at the sleeping Pei Yan.

He didn’t know how his brother would react when he found out, but he didn’t regret it.

It was already afternoon when Pei Yan woke up again. He slowly sat up and scanned the bedroom, but Xie Yu was nowhere to be found.

Did he go downstairs to cook?

He had to admit, Xie Yu’s cooking skills had improved by leaps and bounds. He was completely different from the version of himself who couldn’t even chop vegetables properly the first time; Pei Yan wondered when he had even learned.

Just then, Xie Yu opened the door and walked in. Seeing him awake, he smiled. “Brother, time to eat.”

As he spoke, he walked over and picked Pei Yan up. He carried him downstairs to the living room, but instead of placing him on a chair, he kept Pei Yan sitting right on his lap.

Pei Yan frowned, struggling slightly. “I’ll sit on a chair.”

Xie Yu circled him with one arm and said warmly, “Brother, the chairs are hard. You’ll be uncomfortable if you sit there.”

Having said that, he placed his other hand on Pei Yan’s forehead to check his temperature.

Fortunately, the fever was gone.

Pei Yan looked at him and teased, “Based on your body temperature, wouldn’t everyone seem like they have a fever to you?”

Xie Yu’s lips curled into an ambiguous smile. “I know your temperature well, Brother. One touch and I can tell if you have a fever.”

Pei Yan rolled his eyes at him and pointed to the dishes on the table, acting a bit spoiled. “I’m hungry. I want to eat that.”

“Alright.”

Xie Yu responded and began feeding him according to his requests.

After finishing the meal, Pei Yan felt a bit drowsy again. Xie Yu untiringly carried him back upstairs, tucked him in, and waited quietly for him to fall into a deep sleep before going back down to wash the dishes.

Originally, a housekeeper had been scheduled to come at fixed times for cooking and cleaning, but Xie Yu had vetoed it. An Enigma’s sense of territory and possessiveness is far stronger than an Alpha’s.

He could clearly perceive anyone entering the villa. Whether as an Enigma or the King of the Deep Sea, he would not allow anyone to intrude upon his territory while he was marking his mate.

Luckily, the fridge was well-stocked, enough to last them through this period.

The two stayed in the villa for two more days before returning home.

The butler met them as soon as they arrived. He froze for a second when he saw Xie Yu smiling and greeting him, but recovered instantly. “Young Master, nothing went wrong during this rut, I hope?”

Pei Yan shook his head. “No.”

“That’s good.” The butler sighed in relief, then suddenly remembered: “Oh, right. Young Master, a Mr. Chen Ci came looking for you.”

“Chen Ci?” Pei Yan was confused.

The butler explained, “The person you brought back from the Northern Base.”

The smile on Xie Yu’s face stiffened.

Why did Brother bring him back?

Wasn’t he supposed to set him up with Lu Xiao? Why did he bring him into the house?

Pei Yan remembered now—it was that Omega. “Did he need something?”

After all, he was the one who brought him back; he couldn’t just ignore him.

The butler said, “He said he found a job and a place to stay, so he won’t be troubling you anymore. Oh, he left the night before you returned.”

Pei Yan was stunned. “Did he leave an address?”

“No,” the butler said. “But he left a phone number.”

“Fine. I’ll give him a call when I have time.”

“Also…” The butler hesitated.

Pei Yan turned. “What is it?”

The butler said reluctantly, “Mr. Pei has arranged for you to have dinner with the Little Prince tomorrow. The time and place have already been set.”

Pei Yan: “…”

Heh. He just got back, and Pei Li is already this impatient.

“I understand. Tell him I’ll be there.”

After saying that, he went up to the study to handle his affairs. He had originally taken leave because his heat was approaching, and with everything that happened since, his workload had accumulated quite a bit.

While he was “cramming” his work in the study, Xie Yu was downstairs being surrounded by the concerned maids.

“Xiao Yu, these past few days must have been hard on you. You didn’t get hurt, did you?”

“Xiao Yu, I heard that when doing that kind of thing, you have to clean up thoroughly, otherwise the leftovers will cause a fever. The Young Master helped you clean up, right?”

“Oh, my poor Xiao Yu, being tormented by the Young Master for five days must have been exhausting. Tell Auntie what you want to eat…”

“What are you saying?” The butler, a staunch defender of Pei Yan, couldn’t stand hearing anything negative about his Young Master. “The Young Master isn’t as rough as you think!”

The maids, used to this, pursed their lips. “We didn’t say the Young Master was bad, we’re just discussing the facts.”

Xie Yu remembered that Pei Yan had told Lin Qingyu that he was an Alpha. He wouldn’t go against Pei Yan on such a small matter, so even if it sounded illogical, he said, “I am an Alpha.”

As soon as these words came out, everyone present was shocked. The maids looked at Xie Yu with even more pity, and even the unwavering butler showed a hint of hesitation. He eventually patted Xie Yu’s shoulder. “It’s really been hard on you.”

Xie Yu blinked. “…”

The butler timed it perfectly to brew a cup of tea for Pei Yan, but Xie Yu intercepted him as he was about to take it up.

“Uncle Xu, let me do it.”

Butler: “…” Why does it feel like my position is under threat?

The maids stifled their laughter. “Xiao Yu, you’re so virtuous. The Young Master will surely like you.”

Xie Yu said shyly, “I hope so.”

He entered the study with the tea. Pei Yan was working urgently and hadn’t looked up once. Even when he sensed a shadow looming over him, he didn’t stop his hands. “What is it?”

Xie Yu replied, “Nothing much.”

Hearing Xie Yu’s voice, Pei Yan said dismissively, “If it’s nothing, you can go out.”

“But Brother… I don’t want to go out.”

“Then find a place to sit. I’ll be busy for a long time. If you’re bored, find a book to read.”

“…”

When the noise stopped, Pei Yan thought he had left. The next second, he was suddenly lifted into the air. The feeling of weightlessness made his heart skip a beat, and in an instant, he was sitting in Xie Yu’s lap.

Xie Yu held him, looking completely innocent. “Sitting for so long must be tiring, Brother. Sit on me instead.”

Pei Yan: “…” Is this guy sick in the head?

But since he couldn’t break free, he simply surrendered. Actually, working like this once in a while wasn’t bad.

However, snuggling in a warm embrace while working—though comfortable—makes it easy for the mind to wander. Sure enough, in less than half an hour, Pei Yan leaned against Xie Yu and fell fast asleep.

Looking at Pei Yan’s peaceful sleeping face, Xie Yu let out a soft laugh and pulled him even tighter into his arms.