Chapter 39: The Married Beta Applies a Mask to Her Arm

Chapter 39: The Beta Spouse Treats an Arm Bite

Bai Yu settled into the car, kitten in arms. "Can we take it to the vet first? If you're busy, just drop me somewhere with cell service, and I can hail a taxi myself."

Situ Jing started the car. "Do you believe in Jesus?"

Bai Yu: "No, why?"

Situ Jing sneered, "What a waste. If you did, you’d probably be an angel by now."

Soaked to the bone, his custom leather shoes caked with yellow mud, the car reeked of rain and dirt, and the rear bumper was scratched—it truly couldn't get much worse.

And yet, that dirty little kitten still ended up in his car.

The kitten shivered, letting out a couple of soft meows.

"Good kitty, we’ll get you to the hospital soon."

Bai Yu gently stroked the kitten’s head. Noticing Situ Jing’s grim expression, he added, "It’s not like I pick up every stray animal. I just happened to see this one."

As the car sped onto the main road, Situ Jing’s tone remained icy. "Is that so?"

Bai Yu recalled an embarrassing childhood memory and decided to share it to lighten the mood. "When I was ten, I found a nest of eggs in the woods. Not knowing what bird they belonged to, I brought them home for our hen to hatch. Guess what came out?"

"Not interested."

"Snakes! Bai Li was terrified when she went to collect the eggs that day. After that, I never picked up eggs again."

Situ Jing’s eyes darkened. He sighed and turned the steering wheel. "Sometimes, I really want to crack open your head and see what’s inside."

Bai Yu lowered his head and muttered softly, "You don’t need to understand. You’re only using this body anyway."

"What did you say?" Situ Jing glanced at Bai Yu.

Bai Yu met his gaze innocently. "Nothing."

Situ Jing tapped the steering wheel with his knuckles. "I heard you."

Bai Yu fell silent, unsure how Situ Jing would react.

"You’re right. Whether you stay with me for a long time or a short time, nothing will fundamentally change between us. A sponsor is a sponsor, and a fool is a fool. From start to finish, it’s always been a transaction—money for goods."

As he spoke, Situ Jing’s expression showed no sign of easing. If anything, his eyes grew even darker.

He believed his state of mind was unchanged. Any subtle shifts or compromises were merely due to his medical condition.

Jiang Ming had said that Betas couldn’t provide pheromone comfort to Alphas, so having Bai Yu as a companion would only intensify the withdrawal symptoms after his rut. Using Bai Yu was simply making the most of what was available—it was only natural.

His anger stemmed from Bai Yu defying his wishes for the sake of a dirty little kitten.

"You’re the only one who dares to neglect your sponsor like this. If you keep this up, you won’t have a chance to stay by my side in the future," Situ Jing said coldly.

A closer look would reveal that Bai Yu showed no fear or guilt over missing an opportunity. Instead, he seemed relieved, as if granted a reprieve.

Bai Yu carefully concealed his relief and focused on the kitten in the basin.

As they passed through the eastern development zone and headed toward the main city, cell service returned.

Situ Jing rolled up his damp sleeve, revealing several red, swollen bites on his sturdy forearm, each about the size of a thumb. "Look."

Bai Yu’s mind went blank. He leaned closer to examine Situ Jing’s arm. "How come I don’t have any? It can’t be from the kitten. You must have been bitten by some bugs outside. They look like mosquito bites."

"What’s the point of saying that now?! Who drove to the eastern development zone? You’d better pray I don’t catch malaria or dengue fever!"

Bai Yu gritted his teeth. He couldn’t hold back any longer.

Ever since getting into the car with the kitten, he had been trying to ease the tension, but Situ Jing had remained sullen, his words growing increasingly infuriating.

"Is it really that serious? Acting like you’ve never been bitten by a mosquito before. Are you some delicate fairy who only drinks dew, so fragile that a couple of mosquito bites will kill you?! If we die, we die together!"

Situ Jing scoffed dismissively, no longer caring about the bites. "You’re ridiculous, you know that? Who are you to me? What right do you have to die with me? You’re not even worthy of being buried with me! People are born different. I’m an S-class Alpha born with a silver spoon in my mouth. Where do you come from? How can your life compare to mine?!"

Bai Yu glared at Situ Jing. "It was just a figure of speech. Do you really think I want to die with you? Dream on! I don’t even want to spend an extra second with you while you’re alive, let alone lie in a grave with you. Maybe I wasn’t born as lucky as you, but I don’t envy your life at all. What’s so great about being an S-class Alpha or an Omega? Betas are the freest!!!"

What nonsense!

Bai Yu fumed, turning back to his seat and staring out the window with the kitten basin in his arms.

Situ Jing snorted. "Good."

After a while, Bai Yu glanced back and noticed the bites on Situ Jing’s arm had swollen even more, now about the size of a thermos lid, growing redder the more he scratched.

Situ Jing’s home was cleaned daily by professionals. Even in summer, not a single mosquito could be found. Had he really never been bitten by a wild mosquito before?

Perhaps, but rarely.

What if it wasn’t a mosquito bite after all?

Regardless, if Situ Jing got sick, it would disrupt his work, and that wouldn’t be good.

Bai Yu stole glances at Situ Jing’s arm, a growing sense of unease stirring within him.

Situ Jing took a photo of his arm and sent it to Jiang Ming, planning to ask what kind of bite it was and whether he needed medication. But Jiang Ming didn’t answer.

Bai Yu stared at the weeds flashing by outside the window and suddenly pointed to a cluster of wild plants by the roadside. "Stop the car, stop!"

"What are you trying to pick up now?"

"Nothing. It’s an herb that can treat insect bites. Applying it will help."

Situ Jing glanced at the swollen bites and eventually pulled over. "You’d better not mistake the plant. I don’t want to be poisoned."

"I’ll use my phone to identify it. We have signal now." Bai Yu got out, picked a few leaves, and used his phone to scan the plant. He ran back to Situ Jing. "Look, it’s Artemisia annua."

The screen displayed: Artemisia annua has antimalarial, anti-endotoxin, antiviral, analgesic, and anti-inflammatory properties.

Bai Yu crushed the Artemisia annua in his hands, extracting its green juice, then lifted Situ Jing’s arm and applied it to the swollen areas.

Situ Jing watched Bai Yu’s movements without stopping him.

Bai Yu’s wet hair clung to his pale neck, his lowered eyelashes casting a shadow. His submissive demeanor and the faint scent of fig soothed Situ Jing’s restless mood, though his fingertips were cold.

After applying the Artemisia annua juice, Bai Yu bit his lip and looked up at Situ Jing. "I’m sorry."

Situ Jing’s gaze drifted to Bai Yu’s lips. His fingers twitched, and he abruptly pulled his now-green arm away. "Now you apologize."

Bai Yu: "Does it still itch?"

Situ Jing: "You can try it yourself."

Bai Yu sat sideways, watching Situ Jing's arm. "Besides Artemisia annua, I can't think of any other way to bring down the swelling quickly. Should we head back to the city, go to the emergency room first, and then take care of the kitten?"

Situ Jing looked at Bai Yu with a gaze that brooked no argument. "Why are you even asking? Don’t forget, in this car, there’s only one master, and that’s me. Do you really think I’d prioritize taking a dirty little kitten to the vet before treating my own arm?"

"……" Bai Yu stared at Situ Jing’s stern profile. "Can you tell me what happened with the car accident?"

Situ Jing let out a light sigh. "Close the door and let’s go."

The door shut, and the black Maybach continued down the road as the rain gradually let up.

Situ Jing’s face betrayed little outward emotion, leaving Bai Yu to speculate about what had transpired.

"Did you hit another car on your way back to find me? I heard the sound of screeching brakes in the alley… I never thought you’d come back for me. The roads are slippery in the rain—it was so dangerous. Luckily, it was just the car’s paint that got scratched, and you weren’t hurt. Otherwise, I’d have felt guilty for a long time."

Situ Jing cut him off. "Enough. Don’t let that dirty little kitten get out, or I’ll send both it and this car to the scrapyard to be crushed."

Bai Yu glanced down at the kitten, curled up obediently in the basin. "It won’t."

After entering the main city, Bai Yu and Situ Jing went to the nearest hospital emergency room.

The swelling on Situ Jing’s arm had already subsided somewhat, now only the size of a coin.

Bai Yu carefully examined his arm, fingers lightly brushing over it. "How does it feel? Still itchy?"

"No."

Situ Jing disliked being bitten by insects, and the noisy, crowded hospital environment irritated him. But strangely, he found himself enjoying seeing Bai Yu worried like this.

Especially in front of that dirty little kitten chomping on a sausage, it gave him a feeling of superiority.

By now, most of the anger in Situ Jing’s heart had faded.

After the emergency room doctor examined Situ Jing, he sat at the computer, typing while lost in thought to record the details.

Bai Yu asked, "Doctor, how is it?"

The doctor said seriously, "Fortunately, you came in time, otherwise—"

Bai Yu: "Otherwise?"

Doctor: "It would’ve cleared up on its own."

Bai Yu looked at Situ Jing. "……"

Situ Jing shrugged. "It’s fine as long as it’s nothing serious."

Doctor: "For ordinary mosquito bites, just apply some insect repellent lotion or wash with soap to stop the itching. You two shouldn’t come to the emergency room for such trivial matters in the future."

"Any other questions? If not, you can leave. Please close the door on your way out."

After leaving the hospital, Bai Yu and Situ Jing took the kitten to an animal hospital.

The vet said that aside from having fleas and a slight fracture in its left hind leg, the kitten was in decent shape. It just needed a bath and vaccinations.

While waiting for Babao to be treated, the two went to a luxury hotel and got a presidential suite to shower and change.

On their way back from Jintai Mountain, Situ Jing had said he had to work overtime at the company today, so Bai Yu assumed he would head to the office after showering and changing.

When Bai Yu came out after his shower, he noticed Situ Jing hadn’t left. "Aren’t you going to the company to work overtime?"

Situ Jing replied nonchalantly, "No need."

Bai Yu stopped drying his hair with a towel. "There's no need?"

Situ Jing opened his cigarette case, took out a cigarette, and placed it between his lips. With a click, he lit a flame and looked at Bai Yu through the warm glow.

"Because of the delay in the west development zone, I lost a project worth over ten million. I plan to get compensation from you. How about that?"

Bai Yu repeated "over ten million" in his mind and stood up. "Can’t it be salvaged?"

Situ Jing blew out smoke. "If it could be salvaged, would I still be here?"

Bai Yu gripped the towel, took two steps toward him. "You didn't actually come back for me, did you? The rain didn’t last long. What do we do now?"

Seeing Bai Yu’s worried expression, Situ Jing’s anger completely vanished, and he continued teasing him. "Like I said, I’ll make up for it through you."

Tears sprang to Bai Yu’s eyes. "…Me?"

Over ten million—that much money. How long would it take to pay it off? How long would he have to stay by his side? Eighty thousand a month, nine hundred sixty thousand a year… at least ten years!

By then, he’d be over thirty. Would he still be able to start a family and live an ordinary life?

Situ Jing drew Bai Yu into his lap, peeling off his bathrobe like peeling the petals from a bud. Bai Yu’s body trembled as he kept asking, "Did you really lose that much money? Was it really tens of millions?"

"Yes." The man kissed him, lifting Bai Yu to face the window.

Bai Yu closed his eyes tightly and took a deep breath. "Will your father ask what happened?"

Situ Jing didn’t answer.

"I’m sorry, I… I'll never drive your car again. Can you tell me exactly how much was lost—"

"Quiet." Situ Jing covered Bai Yu’s mouth.

Tears streamed down Bai Yu’s face. He didn’t understand—how could Situ Jing still be in the mood for this after such a huge incident in just one afternoon?

Situ Jing looked so relaxed, his phone hadn't rung often, and he’d casually lost a project worth tens of millions, yet he pinned all the blame on him. Was this entirely his fault?

"Whimper…"

Two warm, wet tears fell onto Situ Jing’s palm.

Situ Jing released his hand, turned Bai Yu around, and seeing his tearful, aggrieved expression, paused for a moment.

He thought teasing him would make him more cooperative—why did he cry so easily?

After such a chaotic day, unusually, Situ Jing found a shred of patience to explain to Bai Yu. "I was teasing you. Nothing was lost."

Bai Yu looked bewildered and asked again, "No loss?"

Situ Jing held Bai Yu, wiping the tears from the corners of his eyes, and said gently, "Don’t worry. Even if I were busy, there’s no project worth tens of millions that needs to be discussed on a weekend."

They'd already lost too much time—going to the company at 3 p.m. was pointless. He’d have to reschedule the work for tonight. So now, he should finish what needed to be done at night before letting him go.

"Why did you lie to me?!" Bai Yu shoved Situ Jing forcefully.

Situ Jing hadn’t expected such a strong reaction. Though he wasn’t moved, he stared fixedly at Bai Yu, his lips pressed into a tight line.

Bai Yu was also stunned—he had never resisted Situ Jing like this before. But he was truly angry. Imagine if you were only six months away from being released, finally free, and then because of taking a wrong turn while driving, ten years were added to your sentence—only to be told it was all a joke. Who wouldn’t be furious?!

You're so despicable!

Bai Yu clenched his fists, his chest heaving, unsure whether to charge forward or back away—fuming but also slightly intimidated by the tall man staring him down.

The room fell into silence, broken only by the faint sound of slippers brushing against the carpet and the honking of cars from the street outside.

The silence didn’t last long before Bai Yu heard the man’s low, mocking laugh.

In a dizzying whirl, Bai Yu was pushed down onto the bed by Situ Jing. The soft mattress bounced twice, but Bai Yu still let out a frightened cry, "Ah!"

Situ Jing pinned his struggling hands above his head. "You dare get angry? Who told you to just walk into someone else’s home? You believe anyone—how could you be sure they were good people?"

"Can’t I even tell good from bad? I’m not that stupid! According to you, aside from yourself, everyone in this world is a bad person, people-eating monsters!"

"If you hadn’t followed them into that shabby alley, my car wouldn’t have gotten scratched. The repair cost is at least several hundred thousand, and I even had to pay that fatso hauling frozen goods two hundred thousand. Look what you’ve done—because of you driving, I lost a million, made me get drenched in the rain, and left me covered in mosquito bites. My life has never been this humiliating, all thanks to you. Can’t I even demand a little payback?!"

Bai Yu gasped rapidly, tears welling in his eyes. "A million?"

"Yes! Are you satisfied now?"

Money—Situ Jing noticed Bai Yu was extremely sensitive to numbers, whether it was his sister’s medical bills, the prices at high-end restaurants, the hundred-yuan ticket to the aquarium, the fabricated loss of a multi-million project, or the car repair costs.

A glint of mockery and coldness appeared in Situ Jing’s eyes.

"What kind of look is that?!"

Bai Yu struggled fiercely, pushing against Situ Jing and even scratching his shoulder. "You could’ve left—it was your choice to come back for me! Why did you have to come back? Mmm—"

Situ Jing cut off Bai Yu’s incessant talking with a fierce, almost biting kiss, holding his cold waist tightly and burying them both under the covers.

Amid the stifling, intense space under the blankets, no matter how Bai Yu kicked and struggled, he couldn’t break free from the man’s restraint.

Gradually, soft, muffled sobs emerged from the constantly moving blanket bundle.

*

Secretary Zhou, resting at home, was comfortably lying on the sofa video-calling his partner when he suddenly received a call from his boss.

Secretary Zhou air-kissed his partner through the screen, hung up, sat up, cleared his throat, and only then dared to answer. "Boss?"

The familiar stern voice replied on the other end, "Feeling better?"

Secretary Zhou was puzzled. Why was the boss suddenly showing concern? What good thing happened while he was away?

"Resting for a couple of days has helped a lot."

Situ Jing: "Good. I sent you a location. Go immediately and take the Maybach to the dealership for repairs. Have the entire car cleaned three times and sanitized with UV light."

Secretary Zhou: "???"

Situ Jing: "Also, Jiang Ming isn’t answering my calls. Tell him he can kiss his year-end bonus goodbye this year, and he’s banned from using Yanting’s golf course from now on."

Car repairs and looking for a doctor—what happened...

Secretary Zhou: "Boss, did you get into an accident?!"

Situ Jing: "Just the car's damaged. Don't mention this to the chairman."

Secretary Zhou: "Got it, Boss."