Huo Xingye's pheromones

The Anti-bite Ring was originally developed to protect Omegas.

Once an Omega put one on, it could effectively prevent an Alpha from losing control of their desires during intimacy and marking the Omega.

So the moment Nan Zhou said that, the live comments exploded.

[What bullshit is this little green-tea bitch spouting? Did a door slam on his head?]

[Unlike you, Film Emperor Huo is a bona fide Alpha! An Alpha among Alphas!]

[He's getting full of himself. Pretending to be an O when he's a B is bad enough, but now he's outright lying. With that presence, how could Film Emperor Huo possibly be an O?!]

But Nan Zhou's next, unfinished sentence, along with Huo Xingye's response, set off another burst of sparks in the viewers' minds.

Nan Zhou said, "Last time you bit..."

"Want to see the present I brought you?" Huo Xingye discreetly kicked the cardboard box over to the entryway.

"Sure. Let's see what kind of present has you so confident."

"I'm telling you, I'm not that easy to please."

Beside them, even the camera operator following them was a little dazed.

Had some huge gossip just dropped? That had definitely been some huge gossip, right?

Director Pei Feng sat in the control room, his face practically blooming with delight.

He'd known Huo Xingye hadn't volunteered to join their variety show for any simple reason. There was bound to be something explosive.

They'd barely started streaming, and already a massive scoop had almost dropped.

Fantastic. How could this season's ratings and livestream performance possibly be poor? The buzz was guaranteed!

"Cue the character cards," he instructed unhurriedly.

The camera operator finally came back to his senses and motioned for Nan Zhou to look at the mission envelopes scattered beside the vinyl CD.

Nan Zhou opened an envelope. "Congratulations. This season, you will be a resident bar singer who longs to write a hit song that will become your signature work. Your lover will be a bartender who works as an extra on film sets by day and mixes drinks at a bar by night."

"What is this crap?" Nan Zhou couldn't help complaining.

"Living together in this apartment, you work hard to make a living and pursue your dreams, hoping that one day you can change your fate and make those dreams come true."

He curled a finger and flicked the mission card. "This is ridiculous. My songs are hits. I don't need to long for it."

[Wait, what did Nan Zhou just say? Huo Xingye bit... Holy shit!!! Seriously? It can't be what I'm thinking!]

[Keep dreaming, you ugly thing. Mark you? You? As if you're worthy!]

[Film Emperor Huo clearly didn't even want to respond, okay? He changed the subject straightaway. Can someone stop giving himself extra scenes? Makes me sick!]

Some of the livestream's viewers, especially Huo Xingye's solo fans, were still going on about the previous topic.

They wished they could curse Nan Zhou to death with words alone.

As for the others...

[Exactly, what is this crap? An extra? You're seriously making an award-winning actor play an extra?!!!]

[Wait, what production would dare cast him as an extra? Aren't they afraid he'll completely steal the leads' thunder?]

[Nan Zhou is so full of himself. A flop idol whose only work is pretending to be an O when he's a B has the nerve to call his songs hits? Makes me sick.]

[Shouldn't the singer role go to Lu Zhou? Nan Zhou can't compose for shit!]

There was no limit to how much he disdained the role he'd drawn.

Nan Zhou didn't want to look at that mission card for even another second.

Just then, Huo Xingye took something wrapped in a clear gift bag out of his suitcase.

Nan Zhou glanced at it. His eyes widened considerably on his already disdainful face, and even the corners of his mouth twitched. "This... is for me?"

Huo Xingye didn't answer. He placed the gift in Nan Zhou's arms, that same assured, confident smile returning to his face.

Nan Zhou said, "Seriously, are you kidding me? How could a grown man like me possibly like something like this?"

"Open it and have a look."

"Do I even need to? Like opening it will make it anything other than a stuffed..." Nan Zhou's voice rapidly dropped as he opened the gift bag.

A rich scent drifted out of the bag.

It was the scent he had smelled that night.

It was the scent from the trench coat that had kept him company for several nights.

It was Huo Xingye's pheromones.

Nan Zhou's face flushed scarlet, and even his round eyes took on a moist sheen.

"Take it out and have a look," Huo Xingye prompted again.

His head a little fuzzy from his Alpha's pheromones, Nan Zhou obediently took out the stuffed toy.

This time, he was surprised again.

The toy was a Hequ Tibetan Mastiff plush with little bean-shaped eyebrows.

Before transmigrating, Nan Zhou had kept a Hequ Tibetan Mastiff named Ailong.

Ailong had a steady temperament, handsome looks, and was especially attached to him. He had spent three years by Nan Zhou's side and was a very, very important member of his family.

The plush Huo Xingye had given him, filled with his pheromones, looked remarkably like Ailong.

"Do you like it?" The man's low voice rang out, tinged with amusement.

Nan Zhou swiftly stuffed the plush back into the gift bag and tied it shut, then looked away and rubbed his nose. "It's all right..."

Fuck!

How did everything about this man appeal to him?!

Not only were his voice, looks, figure, and bearing exactly his thing, but he understood him so well, too!

[...There must be something wrong with my eyes. Why are there so many pink bubbles! Damn it! It's fake! I can't ship this couple! I... can't...]

[So sweet, aaaaaah, Mom! Nan Zhou blushing the instant he opened the gift bag was so cute!]

[He's like a prickly little kitty. Now I think Nan Zhou is an Omega again. That whole combo just left my head spinning.]

[Acting! Definitely an award-winning actor's acting! It's just an idol drama! Damn it, I'm only recording this to watch another thirty or forty times later.]

"Um... Mr. Nan Zhou..." The camera operator's tentative voice came from behind the camera again. "You haven't finished reading the mission card..."

"You read it." Nan Zhou handed the mission card to Huo Xingye.

He'd decided before coming anyway: he was going to slack off, and slack off hard.

Showing up meant he wasn't breaching his contract, and he didn't care about screen time. If he could finish filming this variety show lying down, Nan Zhou certainly wasn't going to stand.

The mission card described their first meal after moving in together. The requirements were fairly simple: the guests had to cook for themselves, but before cooking, they also had to shop for ingredients.

At the mention of cooking and grocery shopping, Nan Zhou, sprawled on a beanbag listening to music, didn't even lift his backside. "Cooking is out of the question. Order takeout. Anything's fine, except leafy vegetables."

"Mr. Nan Zhou, you can't order takeout," the camera operator reminded him.

"Look at our character profiles. How does takeout not fit?"

"..."

"If we can't, we just won't eat. Missing one meal won't kill anyone."

[Hahahahaha, I'm dying. This must be their first guest like this. Even the production team is speechless.]

[Is he putting it on or is this real? Nan Zhou is way too rough around the edges! Now that he's been exposed as not being an Omega, he can't even be bothered to pretend anymore, huh?]

[Even if he isn't hungry, won't our Film Emperor Huo be hungry? He's so selfish!]