Part 3
Perhaps it was a pair of eyes like these that had the magic to grind down a man’s dignity, turning Qin Yichuan from a defiant top-tier mercenary into a dog begging for scraps.
His fingers ran through the other’s hair, pulling away the already loose hair tie. Jiang Zhaosheng’s long hair scattered completely, some falling into his palm and some draping over his arm.
It was itchy, like the flapping of a butterfly’s wings.
“…I like the way you look when you cry.”
Having said that, he gave Jiang Zhaosheng no further chance to react or resist. He lowered his head and sealed the lips that were slightly parted in shock.
It wasn’t a gentle soothing, but a forceful predation carrying the scent of blood, as if he intended to pour all the endurance, all the longing, and all the suppressed dark sides of these years into this kiss.
The Qin Yichuan of this moment was a completely different person from the silly dog persona he showed in public.
His pheromones were lemon-scented. Jiang Zhaosheng not only smelled them but tasted them as well.
“Do you know who I am now, Young Lady?”
Qin Yichuan swallowed the moisture in his mouth, a silver thread breaking ambiguously in the air.
He looked down at the person beneath himâlong hair scattered across the carpet, cheeks stained with the color of the sunset, eyes blurred, and lips swollen from the suction, slightly parted and panting. He looked as if he had lost his soul.
Particularly when they pulled apart, the tip of Jiang Zhaoshengâs tongue unconsciously peeked out, as if trying to make him stay.
Avoiding the thought of whether this was a habit taught to him by Shen Qiming, Qin Yichuan felt like he was going crazy just looking at those blurred eyes.
He had always wanted to know where the hot-headed, stupid, and impulsive energy he felt when facing Jiang Zhaosheng came from.
Perhaps it was the frustration of a “loser” who had failed before his “goddess” in childhood, but who grew more courageous with every setback, eventually taking the path of being a nuisance in a “can’t-get-any-worse” manner.
Jiang Zhaosheng’s hand was stained with his blood. He used his fevered brain to think for a second:
…Qin Yichuan’s blood. He can’t find out I stabbed him.
So, he quietly stuck out his tongue, licking from between his fingers to his fingertips, licking away the bright beads of blood.
Witnessing the entire process, Qin Yichuan felt as if he had been struck by lightning.
“Why are you so passionate toward me?” he caressed the other’s petal-like lips. “…This is much more honest than your mouth, Young Lady.”
“Get out…”
Jiang Zhaosheng tried to regain his usual cold hardness, but the voice that came out was so soft it made his own face heat upâit had no deterrent power whatsoever, sounding like an invitation that was pretending to refuse.
Qin Yichuan let out a low laugh, no longer giving him any chance to organize his words.
“Do you know how long I’ve been waiting for this day?”
How could he not know? All these years, he had been the stupid dog played for a fool by Jiang Zhaosheng.
If a person endlessly acts stupid in front of you, their motive becomes suspicious. Because they might be playing the fool.
Once you truly despise and ignore them, you are destined to be counter-attacked by the “fool.” At best, a piece of your flesh will be bitten off; at worst, you might lose yourself entirely.
In his first twenty years, Jiang Zhaosheng saw everyone as silly dogs. Now, lookâanyone could lunge forward and take a bite out of him.
“Ugh…”
Qin Yichuan pressed down maliciously on his lower abdomen:
“Underestimating me? My theoretical knowledge is quite extensive.”
“Ah!”
His rage? Or rather, his jealousy, brought about a near-destructive crushing force.
The rose fragrance instantly exploded with even greater intensity, as if begging for mercy, or perhaps expressing joy.
Qin Yichuan’s fingertips were calloused.
Jiang Zhaosheng wanted to bite his wrist, but he was restrained by Qin Yichuan. Finally, a thin, cold object was pressed against his cheek.
“…Bite this.”
An enticing voice sounded in his ear. The disheveled Jiang Zhaosheng held his own hair tie in his mouth, though it only served to make him a pleasing sight for the person before him.
His pearly white teeth bit down hard on the red satin ribbon, like an exquisite gift that had been unwrapped. Tears continued to roll down incessantly, weirdly reminding Qin Yichuan of the time they first met.
It turned out he had always liked the way Jiang Zhaosheng cried because of him, but not the tears of despair or rage.
“Why is it that as soon as I see you cry, I feel both excited and pained…”
Excited that his emotions fluctuated because of him, and pained that he was unhappy, almost to the point of empathizing with his suffering.
“Jiang Zhaosheng, I love you…”
Qin Yichuan seemed to be talking to himself, yet also seemed to be asking a question, his tone filled with certainty.
“No, don’t…”
Jiang Zhaosheng was utterly defeated… and couldn’t care less about his current posture. When Qin Yichuan looked up, he hurriedly tilted his head back, his lips lightly touching the high bridge of the man’s nose.
“I beg you…”
In all their years of conflict, Qin Yichuan had never seen Jiang Zhaosheng in such a soft state.
“Tell me, who am I?”
Qin Yichuan pinched Jiang Zhaosheng’s chin, forcing him to meet his gaze.
Jiang Zhaosheng’s gaze was flighty and unable to focus; he couldn’t think.
It would be a lie to say he didn’t care about the act of posing as Shen Qiming. Qin Yichuan strangely felt that if Jiang Zhaosheng could distinguish who he was, it would mean that man’s influence on him wasn’t that great.
“…Qin… Yichuan.”
It was a broken, sobbing voice.
“Very good.”
Qin Yichuan seemed satisfied.
But in the next second, a stormy surge followed.
“I’ve wanted to say this for a long time,” Qin Yichuan saw him scratching at the carpet and leaned down, kissing away the tears at the corners of his eyes, “You’re just like a cat…”
“Why cry? I’m being so gentle.”
“…Please.”
Jiang Zhaosheng’s rejection was stiff. He didn’t need a hand to restrain him, as he had no strength to resist. The sourness of the lemon stimulated him; he felt as if all the moisture in his body was being siphoned out by that high-concentration acidity.
“So you know how to beg for mercy now? I begged for mercy back when you used to stab me with flying knives. Why didn’t you ever think to stop?”
Qin Yichuan had many scars on his body, some of which were caused by Jiang Zhaosheng.
He displayed his wounds like a proud general:
“This one is because of you.”
Jiang Zhaosheng was powerless to respond.
Every time he opened his mouth, he had to swallow his saliva several times, otherwise, he would embarrassingly lose control of it like a three-year-old child.
His pheromones were simply too sour… sour to the point of bitterness. How could someone’s pheromones have this scent?
“Is this not what you wanted? My Young Lady.”
Jiang Zhaosheng was already unable to respond, leaving only instinctive catering and whimpers.
His consciousness floated. It was as if he had returned to that sweltering afternoon, tied to the railing. Only this time, the plastic rope had been replaced by sturdy, powerful arms. Similarly bound to Qin Yichuanâs side, enveloped in the lemon scent, there was nowhere to run.
The beast deep in his heart, suppressed for many years, finally broke through all its shackles, but…
Qin Yichuan looked at the miniature communicator in his hand. The sound that had just played was the notification for a highest-priority encrypted message.
[Bring him back immediately. Xiao.]
The organization’s orders were not to be defied. He had indeed come for this purposeâto bring Jiang Zhaosheng back to that place.
Or was he…?
Qin Yichuan clutched his wound. A sense of unprecedented bewilderment enveloped him.
Finally, the young Alpha slowly lowered his head, pressing against Jiang Zhaosheng’s burning forehead. Their breaths intertwined, and the scents of lemon and rose tangled together, neither giving way.
âWhat am I supposed to do with you?
In despair, he whispered hoarsely:
“…Young Lady.”
[Authorâs Note: Please, Master JJ (platform), treat me kindly! [Explosive crying] I can’t take much more of this!]
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