Chapter 56: Pheromone Blocker Ring

 

When Shen Bumian woke up, he felt a little dizzy. As his memory returned, he realized he had actually let Qin Luzhi temporarily mark him!

Shen Bumian glanced at his terminal. He had actually slept for more than three hours; it was already noon.

He was a little hungry. He didn’t know where Qin Luzhi had gone; he wasn’t in the room. Shen Bumian hesitated for a moment and decided to go downstairs to see.

He stopped at the second-floor staircase. On the living room sofa, three pairs of eyes were staring straight at him.

Qin Zui, Gu Yixi, and Qin Yang were sitting neatly on the sofa. The light screen TV was off, and the only sound in the living room was an occasional noise from the kitchen.

The three of them sat upright and still, as if they were in some important interstellar conference. For the first time, Shen Bumian felt his scalp tingle from being stared at.

In the end, it was Gu Yixi who smiled and asked Shen Bumian to come sit. Shen Bumian felt even dizzier. What was with this family interrogation vibe?

Hearing the noise, Qin Luzhi came out of the kitchen, carrying a bowl of soup which he placed in front of Shen Bumian.

“Lunch will be a little while. Have some soup first.”

Qin Luzhi’s tone was so natural that Shen Bumian didn’t react for a moment. “Ah? Oh, okay.”

He lowered his head and took small sips of the soup, trying to ease the atmosphere. He suddenly remembered that he hadn’t said he was staying for lunch. What was he to do? With Qin Luzhi having said everything, what could he possibly say?

Qin Yang hadn’t expected his little brother to be so bold. They had only been out for a short trip, and he had already managed to spirit Mianmian away to their house.

With such powerful pheromones in the air, they knew what had happened without needing to be told. Moreover, Mianmian was wearing Qin Luzhi’s shirt and had an inhibitor patch on the back of his neck.

Qin Yang raised an eyebrow at Qin Luzhi, his eyes full of amusement, clearly saying, I never thought you, who look like such a gentleman, were actually such a beast!

Gu Yixi was talking to Shen Bumian, trying to get him to relax and treat this place as his own home.

Qin Zui looked thoughtful. Mianmian didn’t seem to like Qin Luzhi. Could it be that Qin Luzhi had forced him?

Although the Qin family certainly had the power to do so, they would never allow such behavior!

Qin Luzhi saw through their thoughts in a single glance. “What are you thinking? With this much time on your hands, you might as well go on a few more patrols.”

At that, Qin Yang and Qin Zui knew they had been overthinking it. But the pheromones didn’t lie, which meant something had still happened that morning.

Qin Luzhi shooed the three of them upstairs, leaving only Shen Bumian in the living room. Without them, Shen Bumian would be more at ease.

Shen Bumian did indeed breathe a sigh of relief. With the elders present, he kept getting the mistaken impression that he and Qin Luzhi had been caught by their parents, which made him very uncomfortable.

Shen Bumian finished his soup and placed the bowl aside. “Um, this morning was an accident, but thank you anyway. I… I should be heading back now.”

Shen Bumian didn’t look up at Qin Luzhi, missing the disappointed look in his eyes, which quickly returned to normal. “You’re welcome. Why don’t you stay for lunch before you go? You must be hungry too.”

Shen Bumian secretly glanced at Qin Luzhi and, seeing that he didn’t seem to mind, quietly breathed a sigh of relief. A temporary mark… he felt like something had changed.

“No, it’s okay. My dad is home today. I should go back. Thank you.”

Shen Bumian thanked him again. This time, Qin Luzhi didn’t say anything. He faintly lowered his gaze and wiped the water droplets from his hands with a tissue.

“Okay, I’ll walk you out.”

Without waiting for Shen Bumian to nod, he opened the door and changed his shoes.

Shen Bumian had no choice but to follow him out. He didn’t change his shoes and, remembering the carpet he had dirtied, was thinking of how to bring it up. But Qin Luzhi seemed to have read his mind.

“It was my oversight. Someone will wash the carpet. Don’t worry about it.”

Qin Luzhi explained that someone came to clean the house every day. Shen Bumian thought about how his own home was also tidied daily, and with a sigh of relief, he walked out.

He didn’t let Qin Luzhi walk him too far. Shen Rufeng, having probably heard from Shen Yi that Shen Bumian was at the Qin residence, had come to pick him up personally.

He was currently at the nearby starship docking platform. He saw Shen Bumian’s figure from a distance and rushed over.

“Mianzai, are you okay? Let’s go, let’s go home.”

Shen Bumian shook his head to show he was fine, exchanged a glance with Qin Luzhi, and left with Shen Rufeng.

Qin Luzhi just stood there, watching Shen Bumian’s retreating back until it was just a dot, before turning to return to the Qin family estate.

As soon as he opened the door, he ran into the same three from before, helping themselves to the dishes in the kitchen.

Qin Luzhi cooking was already his limit; they didn’t expect him to serve the food as well. It was better to do it themselves.

Gu Yixi: “Sigh, how did I end up with such a useless son? He can’t even get someone to stay for a meal. My heart is cold.”

Qin Yang: “Sigh, how did I end up with such a useless little brother? He’s already given a temporary mark and still can’t get the person to stay for a meal. All his efforts were wasted.”

Qin Zui: “Mm.”

Qin Luzhi: …

“Why don’t you all see what you’re eating before you talk?”

In the end, the meal was finished in silence. When Qin Luzhi returned to his room, he found something on his bed that didn’t belong to him.

Shen Bumian’s neck ring.

Noble omegas on the First Planet would wear neck rings. They were more effective than inhibitor patches and, to a large extent, prevented any leakage of pheromones.

Moreover, only the omega themselves could open it. If it were forcibly opened by someone else, an alarm would sound, and the location would be automatically sent to the military police and their family’s terminals.

Noble omegas were people of status and position, not to mention the families behind them. No one would be foolish enough to cross those families.

Neck rings were expensive. Some non-noble omegas also wore them, but they were in the minority.

Qin Luzhi had seen many omegas wear this item, and he had never felt anything. But on Shen Bumian, it was inexplicably ascetic, making one want to rip it off.

Qin Luzhi rubbed the object in his hand; it still carried the scent of Shen Bumian’s pheromones. He must have forgotten it in his haste to leave.

Suppressing the desire in his heart, Qin Luzhi placed it in a velvet box, put it in a drawer, and locked it.

As for Shen Bumian, Qin Luzhi thought he would send him a new one.

Meanwhile, on the starship, without his neck ring, the scent of Agave assaulted Shen Rufeng’s brain, making him very irritable.

The inhibitor patch couldn’t suppress anything. Every trace of the pheromone was telling Shen Rufeng that his precious son had been temporarily marked by someone.

But he couldn’t bear to be angry with Mianzai, so he had to redirect his anger towards Qin Luzhi. He had to admit, Shen Rufeng was starting to regret the marriage alliance.

He had thought Qin Luzhi was different from other Alphas. He had long heard of that prodigy’s aversion to omegas.

That was why they had been willing to form an alliance with the Qin family. Firstly, since Qin Luzhi disliked omegas, he wouldn’t have any other ideas about Mianzai. Secondly, even if he did dislike omegas, the Shen family would not let Mianzai be wronged.

But now, it seemed things were deviating from their original plan.

The Agave pheromone made Shen Rufeng want to pick a fight with someone. He secretly released his “Snow on the High Peaks,” but the moment a little of his pheromone was released, the Agave forcefully enveloped Shen Bumian.

It prevented him from being affected by other pheromones. It was only then that Shen Bumian realized just how powerful Qin Luzhi’s pheromones were.

He was a little embarrassed. He could actually feel his father’s anger. “Dad, I’m sorry.”

Hearing Shen Bumian’s words, Shen Rufeng’s heart rose. He quickly comforted his precious child. How could this be his fault? “Mianzai, don’t apologize. It’s Dad’s fault.”

When they got home, Shen Bumian went to his room, tore off the inhibitor patch, and put on a different neck ring. This time, the Agave scent was completely blocked. Shen Rufeng’s expression also improved a little.

However, the aftereffects of Shen Bumian’s fever period were still present. When the scent suddenly disappeared, he felt a little disappointed in his heart.

Qin Luzhi’s mark was very complete; the scent would probably take three or four days to dissipate completely.

But because of this, for the first time, Shen Bumian got through his fever period without taking an inhibitor and without any discomfort at all.

To get through it without suffering just from a single mark… Shen Bumian actually felt it was quite worth it.