Chapter 3

Chapter 3

An Nuo had harbored these concerns ever since he learned of Lu Yunyan’s “condition.”

Was this truly a secret he was meant to know?

And once he knew, could he ever truly escape unscathed?

But at the time, his worries hadn't led to any concrete conclusion.

He had naively believed he could handle it.

That he could face reality like an adult, bravely letting go of unnecessary fantasies.

But—

Belief is one thing; reality is another.

The current situation proved his judgment was lacking, his resolve not firm enough to navigate the complexities of reality.

He was not only naive but also foolish.

To actually trust an Alpha he’d only met a few times, to believe sweet words that rivaled declarations of love, and fall into such a dangerous trap.

It was utterly mortifying.

The exquisite dessert before him now seemed like poison coated in honey. An Nuo remained silent for a long, long time before finally responding.

“...If I refuse, will you punish me?”

“...”

Punish.

Lu Yunyan looked both surprised and amused, likely not expecting An Nuo to use such a word.

What could he say?

It was indeed a word An Nuo would use—and quite endearing.

A strange flutter stirred in Lu Yunyan’s heart: “That depends on how you define ‘punishment.’”

An Nuo pondered for a few more seconds: “...Then perhaps, you’d retaliate?”

Whether it was punishment or retaliation, both made Lu Yunyan sound less than benevolent.

What word would come next?

Threaten? Coerce?

Pressure and entice? Harass relentlessly?

“Hard to say, but I don’t think it would come to that.”

Lu Yunyan smiled: “Because before it reaches that point, I’d exhaust every means to persuade you to agree.”

Though Lu Yunyan still smiled, An Nuo could no longer perceive any warmth in that expression.

Only the suffocating pressure born from the Alpha’s inherent gender advantage.

An Nuo sighed inwardly.

Until just moments ago, he had genuinely believed Lu Yunyan was different, but it turned out he was no different at all.

Taking a deep breath, An Nuo looked up at Lu Yunyan, as if having made a firm decision.

“...Alright, actually, I can give you my answer right now.”

Hearing this, Lu Yunyan’s smile faded, a hint of surprise in his eyes.

Based on An Nuo’s earlier reaction, he had expected it would take at least a few days for him to come to terms with it. He hadn’t anticipated a final decision in mere minutes.

“I can agree to your terms, but—”

An Nuo looked at Lu Yunyan with focused intensity, his tone serious. He tried hard to maintain his composure, seemingly unwilling to appear at a disadvantage, and deliberately left his sentence hanging.

He successfully piqued Lu Yunyan’s interest.

The moment An Nuo uttered “agree,” no matter what conditions followed the “but,” Lu Yunyan would spare no effort to fulfill them.

“But there are many things we need to clarify first. I also have additional conditions that you must agree to.”

Lu Yunyan nodded: “That’s a very reasonable request. You can tell me what they are first.”

An Nuo quietly exhaled in relief.

Thanks to Lu Yunyan’s sudden revelation of his true nature, he could now state his demands in a more businesslike tone.

If Lu Yunyan had the audacity to threaten him, why should he hold back?

“The first thing is, how will you ensure the An family won’t find me?… I need to know the method. It can’t be that I’ll have to spend my life hiding, right?”

“Let me think.” Lu Yunyan lightly tapped the table with his fingers. “How about directly ruining their family? That would be the most permanent solution. Would you accept that?”

“...”

An Nuo’s eyes widened—of course he couldn’t accept that.

There was no need for such brutality.

He merely wanted to distance himself from that family. No matter how much he resented them, he didn’t wish them dead.

“...Of course not! I just want to leave them!”

Not have them utterly annihilated.

Lu Yunyan quickly amended: “Just a joke. How could I possibly do such a thing?”

“...”

But An Nuo didn’t believe he was joking.

His expression had been so earnest moments ago, as if, had An Nuo agreed, the matter would have been settled then and there.

“Don’t worry. You won’t need to do anything. Just go on with your life as usual. The An family won’t bother you. I’ll persuade them in my own way.”

“But as for the methods—that part, I can’t disclose.”

An Nuo fell silent for a few seconds and didn’t press further.

As long as it wasn’t total annihilation, perhaps it was better for him not to know.

“...Will there be a time limit?”

What if it became ineffective after a few years?

Lu Yunyan said, “Don’t worry, there’s no time limit, with lifelong after-sales service. You’ve made a great sacrifice for me, so not just this matter—if you encounter any trouble in the future, you can come to me.”

Lifelong after-sales service.

Whether it was truly achievable or not, at least it sounded reassuring.

“Alright, then the second thing... I hope this marriage can be kept private.”

Lu Yunyan’s expression instantly turned cold, as if displeased: “Why?”

An Nuo felt a bit nervous but tried to appear calm: “Because the impact would be huge. I’m still in school and don’t want to attract too much attention...”

Although there were plenty of married Omegas and Alphas at school, Lu Yunyan’s status was too prominent. An Nuo didn’t possess the mental fortitude to handle such scrutiny calmly.

After all, their contract marriage would last at most three years.

If they were to announce it to the world now, An Nuo couldn’t even imagine how much gossip he’d have to face after the divorce.

“Our marriage is only for treating your condition... There’s really no need to make it public, is there?”

Good, well said.

That’s quite bold.

An Nuo silently encouraged himself.

“And once it’s public, the happiest would definitely be my family. They’d try every means to exploit this connection to gain advantages from the Lu family... Do you want to see that happen?”

An Nuo certainly didn’t want to see it.

If possible, he hoped the An family would gain zero benefits from this marriage.

Lu Yunyan remained silent, clearly disapproving of the decision.

But seeing An Nuo unwilling to back down, holding his ground, he finally agreed: “Fine, I agree.”

An Nuo breathed a sigh of relief: “These must be written into our contract.”

“Don’t worry, they will be,” Lu Yunyan said. “Any other requests? Anything else?”

An Nuo shook his head: “No, just these two.”

Lu Yunyan looked at him seriously: “At this stage, I’ll do my best to agree to any request you make. Are you really only asking for these two?”

“...”

But these two were the most important things An Nuo cared about and needed to confirm.

Because what he wanted most, he had already obtained from the start—Lu Yunyan himself.

Although on the surface, it seemed like only An Nuo was sacrificing himself to treat Lu Yunyan’s pheromone imbalance.

But An Nuo’s agreement also stemmed from his own personal motives—the biggest factor being his belief that Lu Yunyan could become his weapon.

A weapon against the An family and to save himself.

Just by catching Lu Yunyan’s attention at the banquet that night, he received unprecedented special treatment upon returning home.

At that moment, An Nuo realized that even Lu Yunyan’s attention alone was enough to become a weapon—let alone having Lu Yunyan himself?

It was a strange feeling.

He knew his father’s sudden concern and attention were fake, hypocritical, and with ulterior motives, yet he no longer felt panicked or suspicious. Instead, he accepted it with a sense of ease.

Even when facing his brother’s sarcastic remarks, he felt a strange confidence.

Before, he could only endure, not daring to resist, bottling up all his negative emotions.

But with Lu Yunyan, his brother’s taunts were laced with resentful jealousy.

Every sarcastic remark seemed to question why Lu Yunyan would choose him, when there were so many better Omegas out there. Why him?

An Nuo was too embarrassed to say it outright, but he felt a deep sense of vindication.

He had given in to temptation arranged by fate; even if it was a trap, he was willing to jump.

After all, his situation was already bad enough. At least he mattered to Lu Yunyan.

If Lu Yunyan was using him as a treatment, then he could also use Lu Yunyan as a tool or weapon.

Although the cost... was his own body, An Nuo quickly came to terms with it. Opportunities to change one’s fate always come at a heavy price. Who could gain such a huge benefit for free?

Coincidentally, his gland had issues, his estrus cycles were irregular, and as long as there was no marking or penetration of the reproductive cavity, the chance of pregnancy was almost zero—the risk was very low.

Perhaps this opportunity was tailor-made for him?

An Nuo touched behind his ear: “As for other requests, I really can’t think of any for now... But since you said that, it feels wasteful not to ask.”

Then he said: “How about you owe me one? I’ll bring it up when I think of it later?”

He was quite bold.

But he might as well try—there’s nothing to lose if rejected.

Fortunately, Lu Yunyan agreed very readily: “Fine, we’ll write that into the contract too.”

An Nuo felt once again charmed by Lu Yunyan, starting to think he was quite generous.

Though his methods were a bit underhanded, when it came to rewards, he was accommodating—he agreed to everything.

An Nuo quickly stopped his rambling thoughts: “...So it’s settled then? Once you finalize the contract, we’ll meet again to discuss the next steps?”

“No need.”

“...Huh?”

“The contract was prepared long ago. We just need to modify a few clauses, which won’t take much time. I’ll call the lawyer over.”

“...”

“Once the contract is amended and signed, we can go register our marriage.” Lu Yunyan glanced at the time. “There’s still plenty of time today—it’s completely doable.”

“...”

An Nuo widened his eyes.

“Don’t worry, my lawyer is very professional. If there’s anything you don’t understand, he’ll explain it clearly to you.”

An Nuo thought to himself that it wasn’t a matter of understanding, but rather that things were moving a bit too fast?

Were they really going to register their marriage just like that?

Wait?

Could they really accomplish all these important things in a single day?

Just how impatient was Lu Yunyan, anyway?

Was he that afraid An Nuo would back out?

“Once the marriage takes effect, you’ll be able to legitimately move in, right?”

“Think about when you want to move. Let me know in advance, and I’ll come pick you up myself.”

“...”

Then An Nuo realized with some dismay that he wasn’t any less impatient than Lu Yunyan in this regard.

“...Would today work?”

He lowered his head and asked softly, “If today is too rushed, would tomorrow be alright?”