This Alpha Is So Devoted to His Wife - Chapter 41

The sudden downpour caught the entire camping family off guard. Everyone who was hiking got drenched. They had to wash up in the RVs and then take shelter in the tents, listening to the drizzle.

Lu Xinghe finished his shower in the RV and walked over to his tent, towelling his hair. When he bent down to enter, he saw Duan Yuluo sprawled on the air mattress. His hand was still poised as if holding a pen, but his head was resting on the pillow, fast asleep.

A flash of his waist was revealed unintentionally beneath the hem of his shirt, blindingly white.

Helplessly, Lu Xinghe walked over and knelt beside the air mattress. He pulled the shirt down to cover the exposed skin, then sat on the edge of the bed and gently rolled Duan Yuluo onto his back. But the guy immediately wrapped his arms around Lu Xinghe’s waist, burying his face downwards to sleep between his legs.

“…” Damn it.

Just as he was about to pick Duan Yuluo up again, his peripheral vision caught sight of the tablet by the pillow. The screen was still lit, displaying an incomplete painting.

It was him.

The same drawing he had seen last time.

He stayed frozen in that position. The youth sleeping soundly between his legs had steady breathing. His gaze remained fixed on the portrait. He was incredibly conflicted. After much agonizing, he reached out and tapped the top left corner of the tablet, exiting the drawing.

He just wanted to see what Duan Yuluo usually drew. Last time, he claimed he even drew Jiang Yichen, which made Lu Xinghe furious.

But…

This little liar.

Exiting the drawing interface, the main gallery page was full—full of drawings of the same person. As he scrolled down, and kept scrolling, he saw dozens of drawings: swimming, doing homework, sleeping on the desk, skateboarding, playing basketball, and more… All rendered with the meticulous detail of an illustration.

They were all him.

There were only drawings of him, not a single extra person. Why did Duan Yuluo tell him he also drew others?

“…Ngh.”

Lu Xinghe heard a sound coming from his lap. Startled, he immediately tapped back to the previous drawing. He looked down and saw Duan Yuluo’s face was flushed, suggesting he was in a deep sleep with no signs of waking up, the sound merely an involuntary noise.

His intense nervousness slowly subsided, only to be replaced by a different kind of tension.

He looked down at the boy sleeping soundly on his lap, tracing the contours of that plump, pillow-smushed face. He was fair, pretty, and looked incredibly obedient in his sleep. His heart was pounding a confused rhythm he couldn’t comprehend.

Wait, why?

Did I just get used to drawing him?

“Lu Xinghe, come out and fish—”

At that moment, Duan Yifan’s voice came from outside the tent. Lu Xinghe looked up and shot him a fierce glare. “Cub is sleeping. You and your booming voice need to be quiet.”

Duan Yifan, who had bent down to push the tent flap aside, froze. He carefully peeked in and saw Duan Yuluo sleeping on Lu Xinghe’s lap. “He’s sleeping again so early?”

“He’s probably tired.” Lu Xinghe gently returned the youth to the air mattress, grabbed a blanket from the side, covered his stomach, and slowly stood up to leave. He slapped Duan Yifan’s face as he pulled him out. “Come here. I need to talk to you.”

“Jeez, you’re a prince, at least try not to be so rough. No wonder Cub doesn’t like you.”

“You want to fight, huh?”

“I’m just stating a fact.”

The sky, after the rain, was finally brightened by the sun, creating a pleasant collision of nature’s freshness and mild sunshine. Under a sun umbrella by the campsite, Duan Yuluo’s two fathers were discussing the day’s lunch menu.

By the stream, the trio of youths was fishing.

“Lu Xinghe, so did you find out anything?” Jiang Nianqiao baited her hook, cast it into the stream, and patiently waited for a bite.

“I got a general profile,” Lu Xinghe said, holding his fishing rod in one hand and propping his face up with the other, deep in thought. “He said he’s pretty much all-around: athletic, swims, fences, skateboards… handsome, too.”

Duan Yifan and Jiang Nianqiao looked at each other, as if a thought had occurred to them simultaneously.

Lu Xinghe seemed to recall something, throwing his fishing rod down in a huff. “He even said he wants to marry him, and even more outrageously, he said he wants to have babies for him!”

“Wow, that’s crazy.”

“I’d be mad too. That’s my wife. How dare someone try to steal him?”

Lu Xinghe was already angry, but hearing Duan Yifan say this made him swallow hard. He tried to stay calm. “W-what are you talking about, wife?”

“Do you not like Cub?” Jiang Nianqiao asked.

Duan Yifan followed up: “If you don’t like him, you have no right to stop Cub from pursuing the person he likes.”

“Who says I don’t like him?” Lu Xinghe didn’t bother to be coy. Hearing them ask, he admitted immediately: “Yes, I do like him.”

More than just like; “like” wasn’t enough to describe it.

“Then why don’t you confess?”

“The weather isn’t right.”

Duan Yifan and Jiang Nianqiao: “…” What a ridiculous excuse.

Suddenly, a faint scent of rose drifted over—an overflow of Omega pheromones.

Lu Xinghe reacted almost reflexively, standing up so fast his small stool was kicked over. He sprinted back to Duan Yuluo’s tent. Sure enough, he saw that Duan Yuluo was not well. He was sitting up dazed, his face alarmingly flushed.

The entire tent was filled with the scent of Omega pheromones. It wasn’t very strong, but it was highly noticeable to him.

“What is it, Cub? Are you uncomfortable somewhere?” Seeing how red Duan Yuluo’s face was, he put his hand on his forehead. It was burning hot. He cursed himself; it must have been from the rain they got caught in. “You have a bit of a fever.”

“I feel a little dizzy.” Duan Yuluo was sitting up, feeling weak all over. His body wasn’t in too much pain, but the most uncomfortable area was his nape. That’s what woke him up. He grasped Lu Xinghe’s hand and placed it on the back of his neck.

“Xingxing, it hurts here. Can you check it for me?”

The nape gland under his palm was hot, but the position was even hotter.

Lu Xinghe’s fingers trembled. He took his hand away. Seeing Duan Yuluo expose his nape to him without any guard, he took a deep breath, then sighed softly. “Cub, you’re an Omega. You can’t casually expose your nape to an Alpha. You need to learn—”

As he checked Duan Yuluo’s nape, he realized his marking was gone.

He couldn’t smell his Alpha pheromones there anymore.

The temporary marking had expired.

“Learn what?” Duan Yuluo turned to look at him, seeing Lu Xinghe stop mid-sentence and look a little crestfallen. “What’s wrong? Why that expression?”

Lu Xinghe tried to sound nonchalant. “Nothing. It’s just that our marking wore off. You might be feeling a bit under the weather. But now you’re your own Omega again.” He pulled Duan Yuluo’s collar up, turned to leave. “I’ll tell your fathers you have a fever. We should head back.”

Duan Yuluo sat still, watching Lu Xinghe’s retreating back. He lowered his head, pinching his throbbing forehead with one hand and tightly gripping the blanket beside him with the other, silently processing the disappointment Lu Xinghe had given him.

So it expired. Did he run away so quickly because he felt relieved of a burden?

No, he couldn’t let Lu Xinghe get off this easily.

Due to the sudden fever, the camping trip had to be cancelled temporarily.

In the car, Duan Yuluo leaned against the window, dozing off. He looked at Lu Xinghe sitting beside him, scooted over without a second thought, creating some space in the middle, and then rested his head directly on Lu Xinghe’s lap, closing his eyes.

Lu Xinghe: “…” Caught completely off guard by the lap pillow, he didn’t know where to put his hands. Then he saw Duan Yuluo turn, bend his legs, and bury his head into Lu Xinghe’s abdomen. “!!!”

“Let me borrow your lap to sleep. I’m a little tired,” Duan Yuluo said with his eyes closed, his voice slightly muffled from the congestion. He directly buried his face into Lu Xinghe’s waist. He loved Lu Xinghe’s scent.

Lu Xinghe dared not move an inch.

He had thought that since their temporary marking had worn off, he could be a bit more restrained in his dreams at night. But now, with Duan Yuluo hugging him like this, he was just giving him more material for his dreams.

Jiang Nianqiao’s gossip-loving soul was ignited. She sat in the back, leaning over the seat back, smiling, and poked Lu Xinghe’s shoulder.

Lu Xinghe knew exactly what she was curious about. He subtly shook his head without speaking, not wanting to wake Duan Yuluo.

Just then, his hand was grasped and used as a pillow for the slightly hot cheek.

He looked down.

Duan Yuluo’s eyes were closed, his hand gripping his, his face resting on his hand. He looked fast asleep.

Lu Xinghe turned his face away, supporting himself on the car window with his other hand. He subtly took a deep breath, shifting his gaze. He didn’t dare look at Duan Yuluo again. He had promised Luo Yudan that no matter what, he had to wait until after high school graduation. He had to hold it in, even if it killed him.

Otherwise, he’d be back to beat him up.

In his heart, he could only silently pray, Cub, stop testing me like this.

He couldn’t stand the test at all.

He was completely unaware that Jiang Nianqiao had captured this scene with her phone, a photo Lu Xinghe would buy back at a high price years later.

Night.

“The fever isn’t from the rain. When a temporary marking fades, it can cause this brief period of sexual dependence withdrawal. It’s a form of the body’s self-protection, where a high fever helps completely metabolize the last of the Alpha pheromones. There’s no need to worry too much or get an injection. He’ll recover after a couple of days of rest.”

“Okay, thank you, Dr. Lin. Also, Dr. Lin, we wanted to ask if his physical fitness would significantly decrease after differentiating into an Omega?”

“The decrease won’t be too noticeable. Because he inherited the genes from you and Mr. Duan, he’s a Class A Omega, so his physical condition is still very good. I think you need to focus more on his emotional well-being and stress levels…”

Duan Yuluo lay on his bed, facing away from the family doctor and his fathers, silently hugging his blanket, pretending to be asleep.

He buried his face in the blanket. His head felt heavy from the fever, but the phrase kept repeating in his mind:

【No.】

After an unknown amount of time, he felt his father pat his head, telling him to rest well. Soon after, he heard the door slowly close. He opened his eyes, reached for his phone on the bedside table, and opened a chat window.

The contact was saved as A Star.

His hand hovered above the voice call button. He stared at the star for a long time. Finally, he tapped the video call button for Lu Xinghe.

According to his “Stalking Strategy,” this step was to use his sick state to say confusing things and deliberately test the other person.

On the other side.

In a large study, Lu Xinghe, freshly showered with damp hair, sat at his desk. He spread out the specially purchased love letter paper. The pink rose-patterned paper carried a faint fragrance.

He took out a new pen, a sense of ritual in his serious expression, and wrote a familiar phrase on the paper:

【Nice to meet you.】

—My dearest little doll

Just as he finished writing, he heard the custom ringtone he set for Duan Yuluo. The sound startled his pen, causing him to instantly snatch up the paper. He cleared his throat and answered the video call. The moment the video connected, he saw Duan Yuluo lying on his side, his cheek resting on the pillow, his eyes wet and slightly red, looking utterly aggrieved.

His heart instantly seized up. “What’s wrong, Cub? Why are you crying?”

Duan Yuluo sniffled, his voice catching. “I like you.”

Lu Xinghe shot up from his seat.

The next second—

“Jack, I like you.” Duan Yuluo held the phone up to his face. His tear-soaked eyes gazed at Lu Xinghe on the other end. Hidden within the moist depths was the most genuine emotion, seeming both true and false. “…Why don’t you like me?”

Tears rolled down his cheek.

Lu Xinghe: “…!!!” Damn it, which Jack? He was already his anti-fan! He looked sternly at Duan Yuluo, who had mistaken him for someone else. “Duan Yuluo, are you conscious right now? I’m Lu Xinghe, not that… Jack. And don’t you dare like anyone who makes you cry.”

“Aren’t you Jack?”

Lu Xinghe looked at the guy on the screen. He must be delirious from the fever. His pale cheeks were an unnatural blush, even his eye corners were tinged with red. His eyes were moist and shimmering, his brow slightly furrowed, making him look utterly pitiful.

“So you’re not my Brother Jack…” Duan Yuluo sighed, feigning disappointment.

Lu Xinghe was so angry he nearly jumped. He exploded: “Duan Yuluo!!! You can’t just call anyone ‘Brother’! Count how many older brothers you actually have!!!”

Duan Yuluo watched the fuming Lu Xinghe on the other end, the corner of his mouth curving slightly in a concealed smile. He rested his head on his arm. “Luo Yudan is my brother.”

“And who else?” Lu Xinghe’s eyebrows were furrowed enough to catch flies.

“And…” Duan Yuluo leaned closer to the camera, staring at him. “Brother Xingxing.”

That soft call of ‘Brother Xingxing’ was like the gentle kneading of a kitten, melting his heart entirely. The ‘Brother’ suffix sounded even more sweetly childish with his feverish, muffled voice.

Lu Xinghe’s Adam’s apple bobbed. After staring at Duan Yuluo’s face for a long time, he finally answered, “Yes, you need to remember. You only have two older brothers. One is Luo Yudan, and the other is me.”

“Not true,” Duan Yuluo shook his head. “You’re not my biological brother.”

Lu Xinghe frowned further. “How am I not? Haven’t I been taking care of you since we were little? Didn’t I put on your shoes, socks, and clothes? I’m the best to you.”

Duan Yuluo laughed softly. The fever made him look slightly tipsy, his eyes curving with his smile, his gaze hazy. “I only have a biological brother and a lover brother. Which brother are you, Brother Xingxing?”

Lu Xinghe’s heart gave a sudden thump.

Not good.

If this kept up, Luo Yudan’s warning—the one from the special forces soldier—might soon be rendered useless.