Even if he wasn’t scared, An Xun had to act the part. His acting skills were getting more and more polished, and he hunched his shoulders, looking down at his toes, pushing his natural innocent and pure look to the max.

Bo Xiangzhou stared at him, reflecting on what he had done. What part of him scared An Xun?

He thought about it for a while, replaying the scene from earlier, and realized that his tone might have been too much, like how he spoke to subordinates who had made mistakes.

“Sorry, I was a bit tense just now, so my tone was a bit harsh. Did I scare you?” Bo Xiangzhou felt a bit odd. Just a few days ago, this guy was blatantly staring at him, and now he was acting as timid as a quail.

An Xun, not following the usual script, responded, “Yes…”

Bo Xiangzhou was momentarily speechless, unsure whether to praise An Xun for his honesty or scold him for being too cowardly.

The omega in front of him had his face scrunched up. Bo Xiangzhou asked, “Are you in pain? Should I call the family doctor?”

“No need.” An Xun tried to move his calf and sucked in a cold breath, “It’s just a leg cramp.”

Bo Xiangzhou thought for a moment, “Can you still walk?”

Are you kidding me? Do I look like I can walk?

“Sure…” An Xun lowered his eyes. He wanted to build the perfect image in front of Bo Xiangzhou—fragile but resilient, a little silly but strong. Just like the sweet and innocent characters in the novels he read.

Upon hearing this, Bo Xiangzhou withdrew the hand he was about to use to help him and stood quietly to the side, coldly watching as An Xun hobbled down the stairs, occasionally tearing up from the pain.

An Xun cursed Bo Xiangzhou in his heart. I must be blind to think this dog of an alpha is handsome. All alphas are the same, and Bo Xiangzhou is worse than those scummy flirts at least they know how to care for people.

An Xun stopped and thought about sitting down on the stairs, refusing to move.

This life is just too damn hard.

Bo Xiangzhou watched for a while, and his expression softened slightly.

Legally, An Xun was his omega, and as his alpha, Bo Xiangzhou had to take responsibility for everything about him.

No matter what, he couldn’t treat An Xun like any ordinary omega.

After convincing himself, Bo Xiangzhou bent down, intending to scoop An Xun up in his arms. But before he could do so, An Xun waved his arms and hopped down the stairs on one leg, leaning on the railing. His movements were quick and agile, as if he wasn’t the same person who had been acting so pitiful just seconds ago.

An Xun turned around to see Bo Xiangzhou standing there motionless, looking like an idiot.

Of course, that last part was something he only dared to say in his head.

The family doctor arrived quickly. When Uncle Lin led the doctor in his white coat over, An Xun was still dumbfounded. He was sipping on soy milk, with some grease from a fried spring roll still on the corner of his mouth. He licked it clean with his tongue and asked, “President Bo, you have…”

Before he could finish his sentence, he stopped himself and kept a calm face, “President Bo, are you feeling unwell?”

Bo Xiangzhou, calm and composed, replied, “No, after breakfast, the doctor will check on you.”

Check on who?

Still not getting it, An Xun was left confused.

It wasn’t until he was about 80% full and sitting obediently on the sofa with his hands on his knees, looking like a good boy, that the doctor finally said something.

“Ma’am, is your calf still cramping?”

An Xun, with a few big question marks on his forehead, glanced over at Bo Xiangzhou, “This doctor…”

“Yeah, he’s here for you,” Bo Xiangzhou said.

An Xun got it now and temporarily forgave Bo Xiangzhou. This alpha wasn’t all bad, after all.

Then another thought hit him. He nervously pulled his hand back into his sleeve and asked weakly, “President Bo, is this doctor a Chinese medicine doctor or a Western one?”

“Western,” Bo Xiangzhou replied, confused, “Why do you ask?”

“No reason. I’m just scared of Chinese medicine,” An Xun said.

Bo Xiangzhou, back to handling his business, replied, “Both Chinese and Western medicine have their benefits. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

The doctor, feeling a bit neglected, repeated his earlier question with a blank expression, “Ma’am, is your calf still cramping?”

“A little.”

After a quick examination, the doctor came to a conclusion: calcium deficiency.

An Xun couldn’t believe it. He even started to suspect that this young doctor with a high hairline but plenty of experience might be a quack.

He voiced his doubts, “That can’t be right. I rarely get cramps, maybe once a week at most.”

The doctor didn’t respond, but Bo Xiangzhou seemed to believe him immediately. He instructed Uncle Lin to pick out several high-end calcium supplements for An Xun to rotate through.

An Xun quickly said, “Actually, I’m fine…”

Bo Xiangzhou replied calmly, “You are fine. If you weren’t, you’d be in the hospital. Now sit still and listen to the doctor, An Xun.”

His tone left no room for argument, so An Xun begrudgingly shut up, though he still wanted to resist.

He didn’t want to take those supplements—he hated that kind of thing.

Back at the An family, the way Mother Chen treated him compared to An Xin was like night and day. An Xin was born prematurely and had always been frail, so Father An and Mother Chen doted on him like he was a treasure, throwing all kinds of supplements at him while demanding that An Xun yield to him in everything.

He had realized early on where he stood. He was the invisible one in the family, while An Xin was their precious child.

He never provoked An Xin on purpose, but his position was awkward. Spoiled and unreasonable, An Xin had disliked him since they were kids, mocking him for being a shameless freeloader. An Xun was angry and frustrated, and several times, he almost wanted to slap An Xin’s mouth shut. But he couldn’t. He knew that his place in the An family was as fragile as living under someone else’s roof. If An Xin was unhappy, he could easily be discarded.

An Xin’s favorite pastime was showing off in front of him, flaunting the expensive nutritional supplements that had been carefully selected from overseas.

Ever since then, because of An Xin, An Xun had developed a strong dislike for everything An Xin liked, including the supplements he used.

Thinking about this, An Xun clenched his fingers, his knuckles turning slightly white as hatred filled his lowered eyes.

Bo Xiangzhou gave a slight nod, and before An Xun realized it, the large living room was suddenly quiet, leaving only the two of them.

The weather was warm today, and An Xun was lightly dressed. Through the thin fabric, Bo Xiangzhou could vaguely see his protruding shoulder blades, evidence of how thin he was.

With a soft sigh, Bo Xiangzhou asked, “What are you thinking about, being so lost in thought? I’m just telling you to take some calcium supplements, yet you act like I’m trying to harm you.”

“I don’t want to take them.”

Bo Xiangzhou softened his tone, “Look at how thin you are, not a bit of flesh on your bones. You have to take them. I hear from Uncle Lin that you don’t eat much and are malnourished, yet you won’t follow the doctor’s advice. Or are you plotting to extort some money from me?”

“No way,” An Xun replied.

If he wanted to extort Bo Xiangzhou, he wouldn’t need to use this method.

Bo Xiangzhou didn’t argue with him, instead checking his meticulously crafted watch, “Aren’t you late for work?”

“Yeah.” An Xun’s gaze shifted to the million-dollar watch on Bo Xiangzhou’s wrist.

He remembered that Bo Xiangzhou wasn’t wearing this watch yesterday, but it still cost more than he made in a month.

Any resentment he had quickly disappeared in the face of that kind of money, and An Xun’s eyes lit up.

To be honest, he wanted to touch it, just to experience a million up close.

Bo Xiangzhou noticed his expression, “Do you like it?”

An Xun nodded honestly.

“This style doesn’t quite suit you. I’ll have someone pick out a few more suitable ones and send them over in a few days,” Bo Xiangzhou said as he adjusted his sleeve, “Since you’re already late, why not just take the day off? If you don’t like being cooped up at home, you can go out with a friend and do some shopping. If you see something you like, let me know.”

An Xun asked dumbly, “President Bo, are you paying?”

Bo Xiangzhou shot back, “Who else?”

So rich, so generous. An Xun immediately forgave Bo Xiangzhou for his earlier coldness.

Bo Xiangzhou stood up, “It’s getting late. I’m heading back to the office. Take it easy and make sure to take your supplements.”

“Can I skip the calcium pills?” An Xun asked, squirming a little.

“No.”

An Xun’s face instantly fell, his delicate features tinged with displeasure.

After Bo Xiangzhou left, An Xun stretched his still slightly aching leg and slowly made his way upstairs.

As expected, his boss didn’t approve his leave request.

He tried the same trick again, and this time, his boss got so angry that he docked half of his salary for the month.

An Xun didn’t care in the slightest. The little bit of money he earned was nothing compared to the million-dollar watch Bo Xiangzhou wore.

He even wanted to tell his boss to just fire him already. Keeping such an unmotivated employee and wasting time on lectures was a waste for both parties.

He sank into his soft bed, with two pillows propped up under his head, watching dramas while pestering Tao Nian, who was at work.

[Gulu Gulu]: Nian Nian, I almost died of fright today.

[Gulu Gulu]: A family doctor came to the Bo residence. He looked so mature and steady, I thought he was a Chinese medicine doctor. You know how they say there are no secrets in front of a Chinese medicine doctor? I almost thought I was done for.

About half an hour later, Tao Nian replied.

[Nian Nian]: Are you sick?

[Gulu Gulu]: No.

An Xun explained everything that happened that morning, and Tao Nian, taking the risk of getting caught at work, carefully analyzed the situation for him.

[Nian Nian]: I don’t know why, but Bo Xiangzhou’s words sound like something you’d say to a son.

[Gulu Gulu]: What do you mean?!

[Nian Nian]: You’ve been living together for over a week, sleeping in separate rooms with no physical contact. He seems distant toward you, but he still takes care of you in some ways. That’s not how someone treats a partner. Either he doesn’t like you at all and ignores you, or he likes you and kisses you every night.

[Nian Nian]: No matter how I think about it, I can’t figure out Bo Xiangzhou’s weird, inconsistent behavior. It’s like he’s raising you like a kid he’s taken in. He cares, but not really.

An Xun paused the drama he was watching on his tablet.

[Gulu Gulu]: What if that’s just his personality?

Tao Nian shot back.

[Nian Nian]: Would you say so much to someone you don’t care about? Look at his tone—sometimes coaxing, sometimes lecturing. I wouldn’t talk like that. If I were him, I’d say, “Eat it or don’t, I don’t care, as long as you don’t die.” Giving you a million a month is already being responsible.

[Nian Nian]: An Xun, darling, you and Bo Xiangzhou have a nine-year age gap. Think about it: when he was in college, you were only nine years old. Imagine if you met a sweet, well-behaved thirteen-year-old now. Wouldn’t your heart soften? You’d speak softly and wouldn’t be able to say a harsh word.