Old Madam was so delighted by his call that she forgot her original purpose and followed An Xun downstairs.

Uncle Lin didn’t interrupt their conversation at the side, and she naturally didn’t know the fake news about Bo Xiangzhou’s business trip, assuming he had gone to work as usual.

As soon as Old Madam arrived, she brought a bunch of things with her. Uncle Lin found a few people to help bring them down and set them up, and then he served a cup of tea that Old Madam liked.

Old Madam took a sip and asked, “Xiao Xun, how do you plan to celebrate your birthday next month?”

Why does everyone keep asking me the same question? Shen Qingrang also called to ask yesterday.

An Xun replied, “Haven’t thought about it yet, was hoping my husband would decide, but it seems like he doesn’t know either.”

“How can you let him decide on your birthday? It’s okay to follow his advice on minor things, but you should make your own decisions on important matters.”

Old Madam’s tone sounded reproachful, but only An Xun knew she was actually thrilled.

An Xun felt a bit embarrassed under her gaze, “I’ve decided, I just want a simple celebration. Too many people give me social anxiety.”

“You’re going to face many big occasions in the future, you need to work on this fear of people,” Old Madam said. “Since neither of you have decided, how about Grandma helps you out? An alpha can’t possibly understand an omega’s thoughts.”

Are you here for this reason?

An Xun followed with a smile, “That would be great.”

Old Madam decisively said, “Then let’s have it at the old house, no guests, just our family. What do you say?”

“I’ll listen to Grandma.”

Old Madam’s face beamed with a smile, “I was chatting with a few old friends the other day, and the topic of their families came up. It’s such a mess, especially the marriages of their grandchildren, always worrying about finding the right match or dealing with incompatible temperaments, it can turn into a huge argument with just a word. You, on the other hand, are so well-behaved and sensible, you make me worry-free.”

An Xun tilted his head and smiled shyly.

Old Madam paused and touched his cheek, “You’ve lost weight, I almost didn’t recognize your profile.”

An Xun was stunned, was his profile really that chubby before?

Realizing her imprecise wording, Old Madam corrected herself, “Grandma’s getting senile, I misspoke. Have you been sick recently?”

“No, I’m not that frail.”

“But I heard from Xiangzhou that you’ve been having your old problems every now and then.”

“He’s exaggerating, don’t believe him,” An Xun casually lied, “It’s too hot these days, nothing tastes good, and yet I thought I was gaining weight.”

Old Madam pinched his wrist, “Gaining weight? You’re almost too thin to have a shape.”

“I have a shape.”

Old Madam resigned, “I can’t win against you. I’ll have Xiangzhou keep an eye on you.”

“He can try, but I won’t listen.”

Taking it as a joke, Old Madam chided, “You child.”

Old Madam had to visit the hospital for a check-up and stopped by to see him. She didn’t stay long before leaving. She insisted on not letting An Xun accompany her and waited until he went upstairs before she allowed someone to help her into the car.

The perfect lie went unused, and An Xun felt somewhat guilty. He didn’t want to deceive such an elderly person, but he had no choice.

·

Bo Xiangzhou’s “business trip” was dragging on. Uncle Lin couldn’t help but ask during dinner.

An Xun had anticipated this and came up with a response, “He encountered some emergencies over there, very busy, sometimes even forgets to reply to my messages.”

Uncle Lin didn’t fully believe it, feeling something was off with that excuse. President Bo was known for treating people well; it was unlikely he’d forget to reply no matter how busy.

Suppressing his doubts, he went to care for the small kumquat tree that Bo Xiangzhou had left in a corner.

Not at work, but busier than being at work. An Xun downloaded a venting game recommended by Tao Nian and got hooked, playing until the early morning.

Feeling slightly feverish, he turned down the air conditioning, rolled over, and continued playing until his glands heated up and pheromones uncontrollably burst forth, signaling the start of his heat.

With the help of alpha suppressants from the previous two instances, he didn’t feel the pain this time, just an indescribable change in his body.

He still had a few suppressants left, checking the expiration dates, which were nearing. Unsure, he checked the official website; they were usable, but their effectiveness would be significantly reduced.

Uncertain about his control after tonight, he took two shots, leaving the rest for when the efficacy completely diminishes.

Having lain down long enough, he felt disgusted with himself for doing nothing. After venting his frustrations, he opened his computer, made a résumé, searched for companies throughout the night, and found a few decent positions to apply for.

Tao Nian wanted him to join his company, and he was inclined to do so, but the position available was in human resources. He didn’t want to work in HR again—it was a thankless job. With a heavy heart, he parted ways with Tao Nian.

His sleep schedule was reversed; he didn’t sleep at night and slept during the day. When it was bright outside, he finally felt sleepy. An Xun had prepared a glass of water on his bedside table, easily reachable, and placed a fever reducer from the medicine box next to his pillow before locking his room and going to sleep.

This heat was merciful; the rejection reaction was still there, but it didn’t render him immobile. He woke up with a flushed face and took the medicine. At the same time, he glanced at the day’s news on Weibo.

The pushed Weibo post was a video of Bo Xiangzhou at a charity event last night.

Alpha, distinguished among a crowd of business tycoons, his gaze sweeping across in the final seconds gave An Xun a tangible feeling of being seen through the screen.

He didn’t care.

He tapped on the screen, indicating his disinterest in this post.

What he cared about was whether Uncle Lin knew and how he would cover it up, how big of a lie he would need to deceive completely.

Damn alpha, you left so smoothly, leaving me to handle the mess. How can you be mad at me!

The air conditioning was set low, and he hadn’t noticed any abnormalities before falling asleep, forgetting to turn it off. After a night of cool air, his throat felt dry and itchy, probably catching a cold.

He coughed a few times, sprayed nearly half a bottle of barrier agent, and casually went downstairs, drinking a couple more cups of warm water to avoid the inquisitive butler.

Back in his room, he received messages from the job application software. Several companies had thrown olive branches at him. He checked their qualifications online; all were newly established at the beginning of the year, with one even having a regulatory penalty.

With such poor credentials, how dare they recruit.

An Xun didn’t respond.

He had sent resumes to six companies in the early hours. “Long Yue Technology” replied the fastest, offering social insurance, weekends off, no overtime, and straightforward salary discussions. He quickly added HR on WeChat and arranged an interview.

[Nian Nian]: Xun baby, be a strategist for your brother.

Receiving Tao Nian’s message, An Xun was first surprised, then curious.

With his current state, how was he qualified to be a strategist? He hadn’t even figured out half of an alpha’s thoughts in the past half month.

[Gulu Gulu]: Tell me, I’ll help if I can.

[Nian Nian]: Ridiculous, someone confessed to me this morning.

[Nian Nian]: I don’t know which blind person left a bunch of red roses on my desk, and wrote a letter I couldn’t understand on the card.

An Xun enlarged the picture sent by Tao Nian; it was English calligraphy “Fiction” still wet with ink.

[Gulu Gulu]: He must be suffering, fancying you, an unromantic guy.

[Gulu Gulu]: It’s a song title, quite spirited, you’ll understand his intent once you listen to it.

Sensitive omega during the heat, An Xun thought of another layer—had Bo Xiangzhou distanced himself because he fell for another omega during his business trip in the bustling city?

He searched online for Bo Xiangzhou’s past, directly asking Shen Qingrang would be easier, but he didn’t want to startle the snake. Online rumors about him were scant, mostly celebrities creating scandals or media fabrications, nothing of value.

[Nian Nian]: After listening, I feel it must be a young guy, I’m too old for such sweet stuff.

[Gulu Gulu]: The way you talk, you sound like you’re seventy or eighty.

[Gulu Gulu]: Right, your mental age is indeed around seventy or eighty.

[Gulu Gulu]: Can you guess which young guy it is? If you guess, send me a photo to check for you.

Tao Nian disdainfully tucked away the flamboyant red roses, feeling it was a prank. It was the first time his colleagues saw him blush like that.

[Nian Nian]: Check yourself, I didn’t say I wanted to date. I don’t trust your taste either.

An Xun had nothing to say to that; he too had lost confidence in his own judgment.

·

Jiang City was hit by a heavy downpour, the sky dark and clouds heavy, with purple lightning occasionally flashing across the distant horizon, the sound painfully loud.

He looked out the car window, the roads flooded, causing traffic jams. Jiang City had not issued a work suspension notice, meaning those who should be working still had to go.

But this only applied to ordinary workers; he didn’t know if Bo Xiangzhou was at the company.

[Nian Nian]: Baby, are you really going to talk to him about divorce?

[Nian Nian]: He might not have someone he likes, you could still talk it over with him.

An Xun coughed.

[Gulu Gulu]: He’s ignoring me, what is there to talk about? Everything has come to this, what else is there to say.

[Gulu Gulu]: Besides having someone he likes, I can’t think of any other reason. He has a home but doesn’t return, forcing me to leave, I can’t shamelessly cling on.

This was the result of several days of thought.

He had planted a seed of doubt in his heart, and several nights of anxiety had nurtured it into a towering tree.

He was uncertain, but he indeed had thoughts of divorce. He couldn’t stand the current atmosphere; it was too exhausting to maintain.

Tao Nian’s attempts to console were futile; he wanted An Xun to let go of his damned affection and live off Bo Xiangzhou’s money comfortably.

[Nian Nian]: Then wait until your fever subsides before going, you’ve been burning up for days, what if it worsens after this trip?

His fever wasn’t high, just a persistent low-grade fever that tormented him for several days without subsiding.

An Xun’s head felt dizzy; he simply changed his position and leaned against the cool car window.

[Gulu Gulu]: My fever is because I took suppressants, not because of the weather.

[Gulu Gulu]: Enough, no more talk, I’ve arrived at his company. The life of the rich isn’t for me. Once I hit Bo Xiangzhou hard with a divorce settlement, I’ll take you on a year-long vacation abroad.

The wind outside was strong, causing his umbrella to tilt and sway. He wrapped up tightly, not wanting people to see his pale and haggard face, wearing a black fisherman’s hat.

He had only told Tao Nian about his visit, hadn’t made an appointment or notified the front desk of his identity, and was rightly stopped by the front desk.

He didn’t want to find Bo Xiangzhou; his WeChat moments and profile changes were clear enough hints, he couldn’t possibly misunderstand.

An Xun only recognized one of the three assistants, Assistant Feng, and this visit was purely a gamble, betting that Assistant Feng would come down.

After what felt like a long time, he spotted Assistant Feng among the crowd.

He approached and softly called out, “Assistant Feng.”

Assistant Feng, seemingly in disbelief, confirmed several times; the omega in front of him looked significantly different from the one he had seen before, much thinner.

An Xun asked, “Is President Bo in the company?”

“He’s not, went to meet with a partner, should be back soon,” Assistant Feng pitied his boss who was ‘cuckolded’, but still maintained a professional demeanor, “Madam, would you like to go up and wait for President Bo?”

“Hmm.”

A few nearby employees who heard him call her ‘Madam’ were shocked, their eyes filled with astonishment as they watched his retreating figure.