Stirrings

Chi Li had been getting close to Si Jinyan for nearly three months, yet he still had not made much progress.

Si Jinyan almost never discussed work at home. He left early and returned late, taking care of Chi Li as though he were keeping a small pet to warm his bed.

Chi Li appeared free to move about the estate, but he was absolutely forbidden from entering several rooms involving confidential matters.

He had no reason to suddenly go out. The estate was enormous, and the back garden alone was enough for Chi Li to wander around in. The butler kept everything in perfect order; whatever he needed was only a word away.

Over the past few days, Si Jinyan seemed to have run into some trouble. He had not returned for several days, but he found time to call Chi Li.

In the brief few seconds, Chi Li heard noisy, seemingly argumentative voices from the other end of the call. One deep, furious voice came through clearly: "Are you trying to strip me of...!"

That was where it ended. The call was hung up, but Chi Li's heart gave two violent thumps.

Chi Li thought, If only I could get into Si Jinyan's office.

If there was truly no other way, he might have to take a risk and sneak over to have a look. At the very least, before this mission ended, he had to bring back some valuable information.

That day, Si Jinyan told Chi Li he would not be coming home.

With no need to wait for Si Jinyan, Chi Li washed up and went to bed early.

He flipped through a collection of Great Empire history, passing the time while criticizing which parts did not match the historical record and which were attempts at whitewashing meant to deceive the public. Beside him were two books about Si Jinyan's achievements, though most of them were filled with exaggerated praise.

Still, one or two passages struck Chi Li as odd. One relatively old biography read:

"Appearing out of nowhere..."

"Like a living Buddha who saved the world..."

"On that battlefield, he was shrouded in silver-black light, like an envoy from hell... He was a bloodthirsty humanoid weapon, yet he brought the dawn's light to the Empire's long-suffering people..."

"A humanoid weapon?" Chi Li murmured.

The mention of humanoid weapons suddenly stirred up some distant memories. Long ago, there had been news reports about insane organizations researching inhumane weapons. They had used terms like "humanoid weapons," and some people even claimed to have seen such monsters, throwing everyone into panic. Later, those rumors had swiftly been wiped out and suppressed.

Chi Li would not assume there was any connection between the two based on that alone. After all, those old reports sounded like the alarmist claims and actions of certain cult organizations.

Putting everything else aside, Si Jinyan's stern face, forever set in a hard expression, was quite imposing. It could probably intimidate plenty of people.

Chi Li came back to himself and began picking apart the details in the book again.

The book's exaggeration was obvious. It practically portrayed Si Jinyan as a living god.

Yet several passages revealed information that sharply pricked Chi Li's sensitive nerves.

Some things were not necessarily fabricated from nothing. Once the layers were peeled away, connections between events could be found in the smallest traces.

The book said Si Jinyan had "appeared out of nowhere," making him sound almost mythical, but that only raised a larger question. Where had Si Jinyan been before that? Someone so outstanding had been completely unknown and unrecorded before that campaign.

Chi Li searched for records of Si Jinyan's earlier exploits in the military, but there were pitifully few. Even when records existed, they were usually mentioned in passing.

Records of Si Jinyan's family were even scarcer. They only said that Si Jinyan came from a military family and that his parents were martyrs.

But Chi Li had never heard anyone in the estate mention Si Jinyan's family, and Si Jinyan himself had never spoken of them either.

All records related to Si Jinyan seemed to begin with that war against Loran.

This book was no longer being reprinted. Chi Li had secretly asked the butler for help, saying that he truly wanted to learn more about Si Jinyan. Only then had he obtained biography after biography of Si Jinyan, eventually finding this old one.

Its cover boasted that its sales had surpassed a million copies in a short time, so there should have been no reason for it to suddenly stop being printed.

Chi Li rapidly sorted through the information in his mind, piecing it together bit by bit. As though he had thought of something, his breathing suddenly quickened.

His instincts told him that Si Jinyan himself might be hiding an even bigger secret.

When drowsiness began to overtake him, Chi Li closed the book and returned it to the bedside table. Just as he was hazily about to drift off, he suddenly felt an inexplicable heat.

The heat spread from his heart to his limbs. Chi Li frowned in irritation, his breathing growing rapid, followed by a faint but unmistakable craving.

Chi Li suddenly wanted Si Jinyan's pheromones.

The moment that thought emerged, Chi Li abruptly became a little more awake.

It was probably a side effect of omega pheromones.

He had intended to suppress the thought as he had before, but tonight, it was like a tiny sapling that had pried open a crack in stone and begun growing with vigor.

Chi Li tossed and turned, unable to sleep. After struggling groggily for three hours, he suddenly sat up, opened the door, and headed toward Si Jinyan's master bedroom.

Si Jinyan's bed was the place where the pheromones were strongest in the entire room. Having made his decision, Chi Li lay down on Si Jinyan's bed almost without hesitation, resting on Si Jinyan's pillow and wrapping himself tightly in the blanket saturated with Si Jinyan's pheromones.

Chi Li took a deep breath of air steeped in sandalwood-scented pheromones, and it felt as if his entire chest had been freed from its previous heat.

Unable to help himself, Chi Li rubbed against the soft pillow like a lazy cat. He would leave tomorrow morning, before the butler came in to clean.

Thinking that, surrounded by the steady scent of pheromones, Chi Li's consciousness slowly sank into sleep.

At the master bedroom door, Uncle Yuan looked at the small figure curled up on the bed, then at Si Jinyan beside him.

Si Jinyan had returned shortly before dawn. His face was expressionless as he looked at the figure on the bed.

Uncle Yuan hesitated, then said, "Sir, I'll wake him."

But Si Jinyan stopped the butler, who was about to enter. "It's fine. Go take care of your work."

Chi Li dreamed that he was on a giant spiderweb, tightly wrapped in tough strands. He could not move and could barely breathe. A gigantic spider slowly crawled toward him from afar. He had expected to see an incomparably hideous insect face, but in an instant, he saw Si Jinyan's face...

Chi Li, struggling to breathe beneath Si Jinyan's heavy arm, suddenly opened his eyes. The instant he did, Si Jinyan's magnified features appeared before him.

It connected seamlessly with his dream. Still not fully awake, Chi Li's breath caught.

Si Jinyan's features seemed like a masterpiece meticulously sculpted by the Creator. Defiance, steadiness, and an innate authority all showed vividly on that face. Even while sleeping with his eyes closed, he resembled a fierce beast resting in wait, without losing even the slightest bit of his majesty.

Only after several seconds did Chi Li slowly come back to himself. This was Si Jinyan. Si Jinyan was sleeping beside him. He was in Si Jinyan's room.

Chi Li abruptly realized that Si Jinyan had returned last night.

When had he come back? How had Chi Li failed to notice again? He could not help wanting to knock some sense into his increasingly dull nerves.

Si Jinyan was still asleep, and Chi Li, left staring helplessly, wanted to sneak off the bed.

Chi Li had only turned and shifted a few inches toward the edge when a strong arm seized him and pulled him back.

He glanced over his shoulder at Si Jinyan. Si Jinyan's eyes were still tightly shut, but he had clearly been awake for a long time!

Who knew when Si Jinyan had woken up? Chi Li wriggled, no longer shrinking back. "I want to get down..."

The man behind him did not react. Chi Li shifted again. He really needed to use the bathroom. "Marshal..."

Just as he was about to continue, Chi Li suddenly froze. Then every muscle in his body stiffened. Something was pressing against him.

Si Jinyan was like someone holding a soft cream cake, except that the cream cake was still restlessly squirming around.

Si Jinyan's low, hoarse voice sounded by Chi Li's ear. "Try moving again?"

If Si Jinyan got started, he would not stop easily. Chi Li immediately behaved himself like a quail.

Then the back of his neck suddenly turned hot.

Chi Li's eyes trembled.

The omega in his arms looked at Si Jinyan pitifully. "Marshal, I need to go to the bathroom."

Like he was begging for mercy, tiny flecks of moisture glimmered in the omega's beautiful eyes. He clearly looked aggrieved, yet the sight made Si Jinyan's gaze darken.