The Beta from the Countryside (27)

One of Xue Ci's slippers had fallen to the floor when he was lifted onto the table.

Now he had a slipper on one foot and the other was bare, making him look a little comical.

If they were measuring his thigh, there was no need to do it on the table.

That was what Xue Ci thought.

But after a glance at the man's sharp jawline, he pressed his lips together and swallowed the words.

"Xiao Ci." Gu Ling leaned closer, his voice low and husky. "Could you lift your leg?"

"...Mm."

Xue Ci didn't realize how strange those words sounded in this situation and obediently lifted his leg.

The measuring tape quickly wrapped around his thigh, squeezing up a small fold of soft flesh.

The young man was thin but not gaunt. His snow-white, smooth skin was soft and warm, delicate enough that a firm press would leave a red mark.

Alphas usually presented themselves as respectable, but under the influence of pheromones, they retained some animal instincts.

Biting the back of their mate's neck, marking them, leaving traces, knotting to increase the chances of conception... these were all things they did.

Especially highly possessive Alphas.

Xue Ci's knee rested against the man's suit trousers. Through the fabric, he could feel the high body heat and taut muscles. It was hot and hard against him, making him very uncomfortable. His leg instinctively drew back, only to be held in place by a hand.

Gu Ling was very strong. He leaned down slightly, bringing their eyes level.

"Xiao Ci," he called softly, the emotions in his dark eyes hard to read.

Perhaps because he knew the man wasn't the ill-tempered type, Xue Ci wasn't afraid.

"Your trousers are rubbing against me. It's uncomfortable."

Gu Ling glanced at the young man's pink-and-white knee, said, "Sorry," and took a step back.

Measuring his thigh was a simple matter. Xue Ci sat on the table, wondering whether they needed to measure his inseam for custom clothing, when a voice suddenly sounded beside his ear.

"Xiao Ci's skin has turned pink."

Wh-what...

Xue Ci froze, and the text message from his harasser inexplicably surfaced in his mind.

-[Baby, you're so sensitive. Your skin turns pink at the slightest touch.]

Heat kept rising to his ears. Although he knew his eldest brother hadn't meant it that way, Xue Ci still felt a little embarrassed.

Especially when he was sitting on the table, his feet dangling in the air, leaving him feeling insecure.

His lashes trembled slightly. Suppressing his embarrassment, he forced himself to explain calmly, "It's always been like that."

Gu Ling gave a quiet hum. "How has your skin hunger been lately?"

Xue Ci answered honestly, "Much better than before. I can bear it on my own now."

Gu Ling nodded. "Do you still need desensitization therapy?"

The thought of his last treatment made Xue Ci's scalp tingle. He didn't want to experience that suffocating feeling again. "I should be almost better. Sorry for troubling you, eldest brother. There's no need anymore."

He had put it tactfully, but Gu Ling still looked a little disappointed. "Do you dislike me that much, Xiao Ci?"

Xue Ci paused, then immediately said, "No. You've been very good to me, eldest brother."

"Then why don't you need me anymore?"

Xue Ci hesitated for a few seconds before answering honestly, "That kind of treatment makes me a little uncomfortable... Besides, if you're going to get married someday, eldest brother, it wouldn't be right."

Gu Ling stared into his eyes. "I won't marry anyone else."

Huh?

Before Xue Ci could make sense of what he meant, the phone lying nearby began vibrating nonstop.

His thoughts interrupted, he glanced at the screen. They were all WeChat messages.

"Eldest brother, are you done measuring?" Xue Ci urged him.

Only then did Gu Ling lift him down, though he showed no intention of leaving.

The messages kept coming. Thinking something urgent had happened, Xue Ci opened them and found they were all from Xin Yue. Xin Yue was bringing board games and had sent photos, asking which ones he should choose.

Xue Ci enlarged the photos and read the details carefully.

The man who had been cast aside frowned. "Is that the classmate who won you a plushie last time?"

Xue Ci's attention was entirely on WeChat, and he gave a vague hum of assent.

"Did he ask you out?"

The low, husky voice was carefully controlled, but it still betrayed a hint of jealousy he couldn't suppress.

"Mm. We're going to the hot springs this weekend."

With his head lowered, Xue Ci didn't notice the dangerous look in the man's narrowed eyes.

"Just the two of you? For how many days?"

Xue Ci thought the Gu family might all have an inquisitive streak. He had already seen this tendency to get to the bottom of everything in Gu Xu; the only difference was how much they talked.

He volunteered the details to the man. "For the weekend. Besides Xin Yue, Gu Xu and second brother are going too."

Gu Ling frowned.

He was the only one left out.

"Where?"

The hot spring villa Xin Yue had booked was in Fog City's resort district. Xue Ci gave Gu Ling its name, though he didn't know its exact location himself.

"It's a little far." The man bent down and glanced at the chat window, where messages were still popping up. After a moment's thought, he said, "I'll drive you there."

Board games covered the floor of the spacious room. They were all from Xin Yue's private collection, and one of his few hobbies.

The hot spring trip would last two days, so he and Xue Ci could spend an entire weekend together.

Though the original two had become four, his mood was largely unaffected.

Xue Ci had never played board games before, so Xin Yue picked out a few beginner-friendly ones and sent him photos to choose from.

Five minutes later, Xue Ci replied: [Eldest brother is worried it might not be safe, so he said he'd drive us there tomorrow morning. Is that okay?]

Xin Yue froze, picturing Gu Ling stroking Xue Ci's head.

Although he hadn't seen Gu Ling's expression clearly, such an intimate gesture showed that Gu Ling didn't simply see Xue Ci as a younger brother.

But perhaps he was overthinking it.

Xue Ci was staying with the Gu family, and Gu Ling was a few years older. It was only natural for him to worry about his safety.

Xin Yue put the thought aside and replied, "Okay."

The two continued discussing board games. Afterward, it belatedly dawned on Xin Yue-wouldn't that make him the only outsider in the car? How was that any different from entering the family home?

The night before a trip, Xue Ci would be too excited to sleep. He thought it was because he hadn't seen much of the world, but 11 explained that it was called elementary school field trip syndrome, and that many people had it.

Gu Ling had helped pack his luggage, including his underclothes, so Xue Ci had nothing to do.

They were leaving at eight the next morning, so he forced himself to go to sleep.

The system ball lay beside his pillow, playing forest white noise. Xue Ci reached out and stroked its round belly, and after tossing and turning a few times, he gradually grew sleepy.

He slept deeply.

The next day, Xue Ci felt someone nudging his arm and telling him to get up. He instinctively dodged to the side, mumbled something indistinctly, then hid under the covers.

The corners of Gu Ling's lips lifted. "Xiao Ci?"

A moment later, Xue Ci reluctantly emerged from beneath the covers.

The young man's body clock clearly wasn't set for getting up at this hour. His eyes were open, but he still looked dazed. By the time he was fully awake, he found himself standing at the sink.

11: [Host, Gu Ling carried you into the bathroom. He's beside you now, putting toothpaste on your toothbrush.]

Xue Ci: "?"

Before he could look to the side, Gu Ling had already held the toothpaste-covered toothbrush out to him. "Xiao Ci, open your mouth."

It looked as though he intended to brush his teeth for him.

Xue Ci had been used to being looked after since childhood, but not to the point of having someone help him wash up. His face immediately grew hot, and he said awkwardly in a quiet voice, "Eldest brother, I can do it myself..."

"Awake?" The man wore a gray shirt today, his hair falling loosely over his forehead. The soft bathroom lighting made him look less sharp and unapproachable than usual.

He stared at the young man's reddening earlobes, abandoned the idea of brushing his teeth for him, and put the toothbrush in Xue Ci's hand instead.

Xue Ci thought Gu Ling would leave once he was awake, but the man apparently still wasn't reassured and stayed right where he was.

Surely he wasn't so helpless that he couldn't even wash up.

Xue Ci lowered his eyes. With his mouth full of foam, he couldn't very well argue for himself.

Gu Ling wasn't looking directly at Xue Ci, but observing him closely through the mirror.

He was used to acting swiftly and decisively and cared only about efficiency in everything he did. His employees all followed his pace, and his two younger brothers were both Alphas, neither of them slow-moving people.

Xue Ci was quite unlike anyone he had met.

He had a good temper, did everything slowly, and was a little slow to react.

Time seemed to slow down around him, as though someone had pressed a button.

Gu Ling was the complete opposite of someone with that personality. Yet he didn't know when he had become unable to take his eyes off Xue Ci.

At first, he had only thought that Xue Ci had lost both parents and had been terribly bullied by his relatives. Coupled with his pitiful appearance, Gu Ling had wanted to take good care of him as a younger brother.

But somewhere along the way, things changed.

Now he wanted to take care of him as his wife instead.

However, Xue Ci currently seemed oblivious to matters of the heart. Gu Ling didn't want to act on impulse and make things worse, so he hid his feelings and focused on taking good care of him first.

"Xiao Xue Ci."

Duan Xingyan had arrived early. After going up to the second floor, he found the bathroom door half-open and caught sight of half of Xue Ci's little face through the gap.

He was in an exceptionally good mood, but when he came closer, he discovered Gu Ling standing behind the door too.

"Brother."

Duan Xingyan had recently been trying to accept the Gu family. His words and expressions were no longer as sharp as before; instead, he had become more forthcoming.

Gu Ling gave a hum of acknowledgment.

There was now one more person in the bathroom.

Why did they have to crowd in here?

Xue Ci was genuinely puzzled.

Were they afraid he didn't care about hygiene and would deliberately skip brushing his teeth and washing his face?

The early bird got to see Xue Ci.

Gu Xu was the last to get up. He wanted to squeeze in at the same sink with Xue Ci, but his two older brothers sent him to the bathroom downstairs.

Xin Yue had arrived early that morning too.

As the person who had organized the hot spring trip, he was now the only guest.

He sat waiting in the living room. He hadn't visited for a while, and the Gu family's villa had changed considerably. Soft blankets and cushions were stacked on the sofa, and a row of brightly colored comic books sat on the TV cabinet.

He didn't need to think to know they must have been prepared for Xue Ci.

Xin Yue secretly took a photo of the comic book titles, planning to buy the same ones when he got back so he'd have something to talk about with Xue Ci.

He had just put his phone away when he heard light footsteps upstairs.

He looked up, and a little glutinous rice ball wearing a bucket hat and a pale yellow shirt came into view.

Xue Ci quickly ran downstairs, his cheeks flushed, and excitedly told Xin Yue that he had been so worked up he hadn't slept well last night.

Xin Yue stared at him for a long while before coming to his senses as though waking from a dream.

He looked like a little immortal who had descended to the mortal world.

No one could blame him for staring.

If not for the people following Xue Ci, Xin Yue really would have wanted to pick him up and spin him around a few times.

Xue Ci was timid. If he were lifted into the air, he would probably be both happy and scared, and might even cling tightly to Xin Yue's neck.

Xin Yue put the strange thoughts away and cleared his throat awkwardly. "I didn't sleep very well either."

Gu Xu cut in. "Then why don't you go home and get some more sleep? We can go with Xue Ci."

Xin Yue: "..."

He ignored Gu Xu and greeted the other two members of the Gu family instead.

The Gu family's driver had long been waiting outside. With so many people going, they had prepared a minivan. Xue Ci didn't have to worry about the luggage, so he was the first to get in, choosing a window seat in the back.

Before long, everyone had taken a seat.

The hot spring resort was in the suburbs of Fog City, a two-hour drive away. Xue Ci opened his backpack and handed out snacks to everyone.

The atmosphere in the car was pleasant throughout the journey. Everyone bickered occasionally and discussed what they would do once they arrived.

After they reached their destination without incident, Xue Ci stretched and urged Xin Yue, who was beside him, to get out of the car. He didn't notice the strip of his snow-white, slender waist exposed to the air.

The hot spring hotel Xin Yue had booked was privately owned. Its name sign was hidden, and from the outside it looked more like a villa.

The temperature was high, and Xue Ci's little face beneath his hat was dewy with sweat and flushed pink. After getting out, he ran to the trunk to fetch the luggage, but he didn't get a chance to carry a suitcase. Even the backpack on his shoulders was taken by Xin Yue.

No one seemed willing to let him do any heavy lifting.

Maybe they had been bribed by the snacks he'd given them.

Duan Xingyan had brought a parasol. He didn't have much luggage, so he walked over to Xue Ci and held it over him.

The group entered the hotel lobby.

Xue Ci had thought Gu Ling was simply worried about everyone's safety and would leave after dropping them off. To his surprise, when they reached the front desk, Gu Ling had also booked a room and was staying there.

"I happen to have a client here. You go and enjoy yourselves." Gu Ling helped Xue Ci take off his hat. The heat had flushed the young man's cheeks pink.

Xue Ci nodded, completely unaware that the man was lying. "Then I hope work goes well, eldest brother. Should we call you when it's time to eat?"

To keep up the lie, Gu Ling said, "That depends on my client's schedule."

Xue Ci gave a small "Oh."

Whether it was to make a good impression in front of an elder or not, Xin Yue was especially composed today. "Lunch is from eleven to one. How about I make a group chat so it'll be easier for everyone to message each other?"

Gu Xu urged him, "Add me first."

He was finally going to be added to the group.

Although he'd said he had a client, Gu Ling still volunteered to join the group chat. He had also come because he was worried Xin Yue might have improper intentions, but Xin Yue hadn't behaved inappropriately at all today. Reassured, Gu Ling let the young people go have fun and returned to his room to work.

Before leaving, he reminded Xue Ci, "Don't drink alcohol, and don't run off."

After nodding, Xue Ci cautiously ventured, "Can I drink fruit wine?"

The boy's eyes sparkled with a hint of anticipation, and Gu Ling couldn't bear to disappoint him. "You can have a little."

Sure enough, now that he had permission, Xue Ci smiled.

After Gu Ling left, the others checked in one after another. Xue Ci's room was on the second floor, while the rest were on the third. He reached for his suitcase, but Gu Xu beat him to it.

Gu Xu said, "I'll go to your room with you first."

Duan Xingyan and Xin Yue agreed. They said it was crowded during summer vacation, and what if some bad person took the opportunity to drag him into a room? They wouldn't feel at ease until they saw him enter his room with their own eyes.

Xue Ci thought there were surveillance cameras all around, so there was no need to worry. Seeing that Gu Xu had no intention of giving him the suitcase, he pressed his lips together and went up to the second floor with everyone.

As they waited for the elevator, someone suddenly called from behind them, "Xue Ci?"

Xue Ci turned at the sound.

Huh?

Had Xie Yishu come to soak in the hot springs too?

He quietly asked 11, [Xie Yishu came on his own. I should be able to talk to him, right?]

Xie Yishu had helped him a lot. It was a little rude of him to ignore him like this.

11: [Yes, Host. None of this was part of the original plot. You just need to avoid getting too close to him. He's also one of the protagonists, so you might be able to trigger a random mission and earn points.]

Relieved, Xue Ci waved at Xie Yishu.

Xie Yishu quickly walked over, but as soon as he approached Xue Ci, Gu Xu stopped him, looking displeased. "What are you doing here too?"

Xie Yishu answered in his usual tone, "I came with my family. They had something to do and just left, so I'm staying here for a couple more days."

He looked at Xue Ci. "Did you all plan to come together?"

Xue Ci could hear the disappointment in Xie Yishu's voice. He felt very sorry toward him. After all, they were all roommates, and anyone would feel upset about being the only one left out.

Feeling a little guilty, Xue Ci immediately invited him. "Then do you want to join us? Xin Yue brought some board games. Want to play?"

Xin Yue very much wanted to say there was no need to invite Xie Yishu, and his face was full of impatience, but since Xue Ci had already asked, he didn't object.

Xie Yishu looked at the others.

Every dog was trying to ingratiate himself with Xue Ci.

His smile grew even gentler. "Sure."

The elevator soon arrived, and they got in.

Xue Ci said, "Then we'll call you when we play."

The elevator doors closed, and the smile gradually faded from Xie Yishu's eyes.

They grew inscrutable and gloomy.

The room on the second floor was by the villa's windows and was very spacious. The group entered and checked every corner again.

After entering the room, Xue Ci sat down and was just about to change his shoes when a message popped up on the phone he had set beside him.

He lowered his eyes and froze when he saw the message. His shoulders trembled involuntarily.

That person hadn't messaged him in a long time.

But when they did, the message was strange.

[Three Alphas. Can baby handle them?]

Author's note:

Baby... probably can't handle them, waaah.