To Marry My Little Chestnut - Chapter 5

Yu Yan’s eyelashes were damp. Panic-stricken, he nestled in Zheng Tingyang’s arms, sobbing for a long time. The scent from the gland on the back of his neck drifted everywhere, causing all the Alphas in the vicinity who could smell it to search for the source of the fragrance.

Realizing what was happening, Zheng Tingyang cupped the back of Yu Yan’s neck with his palm, took off his jacket to cover him, and pulled him tightly into his chest. His cold, thin gaze swept across the ward with an invisible pressure that was suffocating; those nearby quickly averted their eyes.

Secretary Lin rushed down to report that a private suite had been arranged.

Haicheng’s surgical medical care was excellent, and the doctors were professional. They quickly diagnosed that his body was sensitive due to pregnancy and that he had suffered an allergic reaction to the scent-blocking sticker. The doctor instructed that he should try to avoid going out around his estrus period in the future. The nurse carefully bandaged his palm, unable to resist stealing a few extra glances at him during the process.

Yu Yan was still badly shaken. He cautiously stroked his protruding little belly, his lips pursed and his dimples deep. Tears occasionally splashed onto the back of his hand, making even strangers feel heartache for him.

He looks so young—did he get pregnant this early?

When the nurse later saw on the medical record that Yu Yan was twenty-four, she was amazed; his “baby face” made him look barely like an adult.

“Is the baby okay?” Yu Yan asked hurriedly, his heart finally slowing down, though he was still hiccuping from the crying.

Zheng Tingyang inspected his newly bandaged hand and gently wiped away the tear stains on his face. “Does it still hurt? Do you want a pain relief pump?”

“No,” Yu Yan sniffled. “That will make the baby slow-witted. It does not hurt that much.”

The implication was that it did hurt, but he could endure it.

“Even if the baby is slow-witted, I can still raise them. It does not matter.”

“It is okay… it really does not hurt much…” Yu Yan wiped his eyes, though his voice was still trembling with pain.

Zheng Tingyang took a deep breath, suppressing a trace of anger in his eyes. He turned and signaled Secretary Lin to find the nurse and get the pain relief pump anyway.

Yu Yan himself could not remember exactly how he fainted. He had spent the afternoon playing with Orange. Because the shop had received a new shipment of lilies—which are toxic to cats—he had opened the windows wide for ventilation. The combination of the allergy and the cold wind had brought on a sudden, aggressive fever.

There was only one delivery order that evening. He was halfway through it, still trimming flower branches, when he collapsed. The paper cutter in his hand had sliced open his palm as he fell, leaving a pool of blood.

Premium Omegas do not have great blood coagulation; the higher the pheromone concentration, the “softer” the constitution. Omega pheromones can actually inhibit the clotting process.

Yu Yan had not originally intended to tell Zheng Tingyang. He only started crying out of fear because of the stomach pain on the way to the hospital, and he only realized later that his hand hurt, too. He was terrified. He was not someone who could handle crises; when the storm came, he had nothing but helplessness and tears.

Yu Yan knew he was useless, but he did not want Zheng Tingyang to think he was useless. Now it seemed he had truly been “raised in a cage” by his father for too long and had become a truly incompetent person.

Thinking about it made him miserable. He did not understand why he was such a failure—a grown man who could not even carry a baby properly. His eyes reddened again, and his little belly trembled along with his sobs. “I always mess up these small things…”

Zheng Tingyang knelt in front of him and carefully wiped his tears. “Carrying a baby is very hard. You are working while pregnant; you are doing great.”

Yu Yan asked in a muffled, soft voice, “Really?”

“Really.”

“Thank you… for not finding me a burden.” He puffed out his cheeks slightly in apology, looking like a little fish blowing bubbles.

Zheng Tingyang did not mind the perceived distance. He rubbed Yu Yan’s head. “You are welcome.”

A moment later, Zheng Tingyang brought in several doctors to check Yu Yan’s abdomen. Zheng Tingyang’s grim face was so intimidating that the doctors thought some critical emergency or incurable disease had occurred. After using a stethoscope for a while, the doctor’s expression became one of helpless realization.

Zheng Tingyang thought a more detailed examination was needed because Yu Yan kept saying his stomach hurt.

The doctor said, “It might not be that kind of stomach pain.”

Yu Yan’s face grew even paler. Zheng Tingyang thought the man was a quack and nearly gave Secretary Lin a look to have him dragged out.

The doctor added, “It should be a stomach ache from hunger.”

Yu Yan trembled in Zheng Tingyang’s arms and wiped his eyes. “Huh?”

Hungry?

Oh. He had finished all the milk tablets Zheng Tingyang gave him and forgot to eat. No wonder he was dizzy; he was just hungry.

“You need nutrition during pregnancy. If the father is a Beta and cannot provide pheromones, you can usually take some nutritional supplements to relieve gland imbalance. Omegas have weaker constitutions; the family needs to pay more attention. Low blood sugar is not a small matter; you must take it to heart. Go home and stay in bed more, and eat more protein.”

Normally, a pregnant Omega needs a large amount of pheromones as nourishment, often supplemented through the reproductive chamber during estrus. If the partner is a Beta, the Omega needs extra care because the baby’s only source of nourishment is the parent’s own body. An Omega’s body is more delicate and requires more pampering, nutrition, and rest.

The doctor instructed while glancing at Yu Yan’s chart. “Your weight is below the normal level. That is not good. Were you preparing for pregnancy before this?”

Yu Yan realized the truth late. He clumsily wiped his tears, his face white from the stomach cramps. He felt this was a massive embarrassment. Who gets so hungry their stomach hurts without even realizing why?

His ears turned bright red. He sobbed twice and tried to leave the man’s embrace, only to find he was already being held firmly.

“We were not preparing. If his hunger is this severe, is there a problem with his stomach or intestines? Will the check-up take long?” Zheng Tingyang asked.

The doctor raised an eyebrow, thinking this husband was exceptionally observant. Pushing up his glasses, he said, “Normal hunger would not be this severe. It could be a gastric spasm. Has this happened before? There is no history of gastric disease in the record.”

Zheng Tingyang patiently stroked Yu Yan’s soft hair. “Tell the doctor. Have you had this before?”

His tone was very calm, without any hint of mockery, just a husband concerned for his wife.

Yu Yan blinked and thought carefully. “Occasionally. It was not as painful as today.”

“Did you go hungry before? Or was it morning sickness?”

Yu Yan lowered his eyelids, not knowing how to answer. It seemed difficult to speak of. Zheng Tingyang reached out and rubbed his head, comforting him. “It is okay.”

He called the doctor out to talk. From his suit pocket, he took out an individually wrapped milk tablet for Yu Yan to suck on; the secretary had already gone out to buy food. Zheng Tingyang tucked Yu Yan in before stepping outside.

Yu Yan touched his belly, then touched his heart. His tight heart and nerves had actually become relaxed and calm because of Zheng Tingyang’s arrival. It felt as if, now that Zheng Tingyang was here, he was no longer afraid.

The doctor’s reminder had made him suddenly remember the cause of his stomach problems. When the Yu family first went bankrupt, he was terrified the debt collectors would find him. He hid at home, not daring to open the door or go out. He was so hungry he was dizzy. Later, he was passed around by debt collectors; the condition must have started then.

Looking at his body—which went on strike after missing just two meals—Yu Yan could not help but feel annoyed at his own uselessness. He did not want to be sick, and he did not want to be a headless fly worrying about the baby, but that is how Omegas are. They can only be like this.

Looking up, he could only see the back of Zheng Tingyang talking to the doctor. The man’s broad shoulders blocked most of the glass. He could vaguely see the doctor’s troubled face, though he did not know what they were discussing.

Outside in the hallway:

“The situation you mentioned is possible. Prolonged hunger is a major cause of stomach disease. An Omega’s body is more fragile during pregnancy. Regular prenatal check-ups will help. You need to pay attention to a three-meal-a-day menu. The most important thing for stomach disease is ‘nourishing’ the stomach.”

Zheng Tingyang nodded. “Understood.”

The doctor wrote a prescription and told him to go downstairs to get the medicine. Since he had no pheromones and could not give his partner more comfort during pregnancy, many hormonal supplements were added to Yu Yan’s medicine to relieve his discomfort.

Zheng Tingyang looked down at the paper in his hand, his face darkening.

Further away, a doctor in a white lab coat who had been chatting and laughing with the nurses at the station glanced in his direction. Dashingly informal with a lollipop in his mouth, he strolled over.

“Holy crap! Why are you here?” The man’s eyes widened in shock. He peered tentatively into the ward and saw the dazed Omega lying there. His mouth nearly dropped open wide enough to fit an egg. “You didn’t… you didn’t actually force him, did you?!”

“Zheng Tingyang, pick a better time to go crazy. He’s pregnant! Is that not your seed in there? Did you really force him?? How did you end up in the hospital? Where is he hurt?”

“Is the baby still there?”

Zheng Tingyang grabbed the man’s collar and pulled him aside. “Do not scare him.”

The man’s wrist was twisted, and his back hit the wall with a thud. He winced in pain. “Ow—take it easy…”

The badge on the white coat read: Chief of Psychiatry and Psychology — Jing Chen.

Zheng Tingyang rubbed his brow. “He does not know you. He is afraid of strangers. I am warning you: do not talk to him.”

Jing Chen smirked. “Ooh, I am so scared. If I talk to him, you won’t throw me into the high seas to feed the sharks, will you?”

Zheng Tingyang gave him a look that said ‘consider the consequences,’ and Jing Chen immediately raised his hands in surrender. He knew exactly what this man was like when he lost it and had no desire to provoke a madman.

“What is actually going on? Why the long face? Why has the dosage increased even after the wedding? You married the person you’ve had a crush on for over a decade—aren’t you happy?”

Zheng Tingyang’s expression softened slightly. “I am happy.”

“I am just afraid of being happy too soon.” He rubbed his temples irritably. He had spent years fighting and killing at the docks, and now he was being driven to distraction by an unborn brat. How could one child be this much trouble?

Jing Chen tentatively peered through the glass to observe the Omega inside. “He looks so obedient. No wonder you like him. If it were me, I would like him, too.” As soon as the words left his mouth, Jing Chen felt the murderous aura behind him and begged for mercy.

Jing Chen knew this man was both crazy and ruthless; otherwise, he could not have climbed from a penniless laborer to the President of Changhang in just five years. He had seen the news today, too; the interior of Guangmao Group must be like a headless fly. Zheng Tingyang was a new CEO with a deep mind and a talent for biding his time, appearing indestructible.

Who would have thought that five years ago, such a man had knocked on the door of his psychological clinic, the skin on his neck cut open and bleeding profusely, hysterically asking what organs he needed to remove or transplant to become an Alpha?

People undergo a second differentiation at sixteen. Glands that develop later are organs embedded in the human body. Normal Alphas and Omegas face a high risk of paraplegia if their glands are removed. A Beta can never become any other gender.

Just as a human body cannot survive with three kidneys simultaneously:

A Beta can only be a Beta.

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