Free Web NovelChapter 158: Chapter 158: The Injury on Mu Tangfeng’s Neck
Jiang Xia’s susceptibility period arrived without warning, so Mu Tangfeng locked him in his room to keep him from wandering about.
The situation was dangerous. With Jiang Xia constantly stimulated by the female, Mu Tangfeng wasn’t sure how strong his self-control would hold up, and he had to prevent him from affecting Lanlan.
The heat coursing through Jiang Xia’s body was ferocious. He realized this susceptibility period was more intense than any he’d experienced before. So, even though every cell in his body screamed for his mate’s touch, the memory of stealing a kiss from Lanlan and making her angry was enough to make him, for once, listen to Mu Tangfeng and stay in his room.
The days of his susceptibility period were even harder to endure than before. Perhaps it was because the thought of being in the same space as Shi Lan—the same house, with a scent so much like hers permeating the room—made it impossible to remain as calm as usual.
Moreover, a male in his susceptibility period becomes more aggressive and volatile toward other males, especially love rivals. That night, after Jiang Xia angrily seized him by the neck, Mu Tangfeng nearly couldn’t breathe. Reaching his limit, he grabbed Jiang Xia’s hair, shoved him away, and stormed downstairs to sleep on the sofa, not forgetting to lock the door from the outside on his way out.
Shi Lan was still awake. Perhaps feeling that Jiang Xia’s susceptibility period was her fault, she had been secretly listening for any sound from the guest room. When she heard a door open and close, she curiously opened her own and saw the sight of Mu Tangfeng heading downstairs.
A little puzzled, Shi Lan took a few more steps into the hallway and immediately spotted the figure lying on the sofa.
Perhaps because he was so tall and long-legged, Shi Lan’s sofa wasn’t quite long enough for him. As he lay there, his legs had nowhere to go, forced into a somewhat difficult, cramped position.
Shi Lan walked over, her expression puzzled. "Why aren’t you sleeping in your room?"
When Mu Tangfeng saw her, he seemed to find his current position too awkward and undignified. He immediately sat up and told her about some of the particulars of a susceptibility period and what had just happened in the room.
As she listened, Shi Lan couldn’t help but glance at the red marks on his neck. Jiang Xia must have used a lot of force. Mu Tangfeng’s skin was so well-cared for, fair and smooth, that the marks looked quite severe at first glance.
"Should I put some medicine on that?" she asked with concern.
Without waiting for a reply, she went and got the first-aid kit.
The "It’s not necessary" on the tip of Mu Tangfeng’s tongue was swallowed back down.
As a male, he didn’t think much of such a minor injury. Besides, it only looked serious; in reality, it was fine.
Jiang Xia had ultimately held back and hadn’t gone for the kill. Aside from a bit of pain at the moment it happened, he was perfectly fine now.
Still, Mu Tangfeng thoroughly enjoyed this special concern from Shi Lan.
He mulled it over for a moment but ultimately said nothing.
Soon, Shi Lan returned with the first-aid kit in her arms.
Shi Lan had always lived alone, so she made sure to keep all sorts of common medicines at home. That habit hadn’t changed after she came to this world. Even with the more advanced Treatment Pods, she still kept plenty of medicine in her Space Bag.
The medicine she currently had in the house was just a portion of what she’d taken from her Space Bag.
Shi Lan took out a basic antiseptic and an all-purpose spray for bruises and sprains, then moved closer to Mu Tangfeng.
Knowing she was about to treat the wound on his neck, Mu Tangfeng obediently tilted his head back, revealing a prominent Adam’s apple and a long, fair neck.
At that moment, a circle of red marks ringed his Adam’s apple. As she stared, three words inexplicably popped into Shi Lan’s mind: ’Adam’s apple choker.’
The marks looked as if they had been left by a choker that was fastened too tightly.
Against his fair skin, it had a kind of broken, battle-worn beauty and sex appeal.
Shi Lan froze for a moment. Mu Tangfeng, for his part, kept his neck obediently exposed, not moving a muscle. But after what seemed like too long a wait, a soft, trembling query escaped his throat. "Hm?"
She snapped back to reality, and when she realized what she’d been thinking, her face began to burn.
’I must have read too many novels,’ she thought. ’How could my mind go there?’
AAAAH!
She was screaming internally about her dirty mind, but on the surface, she struggled to remain composed. Only the faint blush on her cheeks betrayed her inner mortification.
She forced herself to stop overthinking and started to apply the medicine.
First, a quick disinfection with a cotton swab.
She took the cotton swab and began dabbing the area around his Adam’s apple.
At first, Mu Tangfeng just felt a slight, tolerable itch. But as Shi Lan moved the swab to his Adam’s apple, he uncontrollably gripped her hand.
Shi Lan looked down, meeting his gaze with her own. Mu Tangfeng’s lips were very red. Beneath his orange-yellow hair, fine beads of sweat had appeared on his temples. They clung to his pale skin, catching the light like tiny, conspicuous diamonds.
Her house had air conditioning now; it wasn’t cold, but it certainly wasn’t hot enough to make someone sweat.
"What is it? Am I pressing too hard?"
Shi Lan thought she had hurt him, and her eyes filled with apology.
Mu Tangfeng quickly shook his head, his throat a bit dry. "No."
The tip of the cotton swab was still resting on his Adam’s apple. It bobbed up and down uncontrollably a few times before he managed to say, "It just... tickles a little."
"Oh, okay. I’ll be quick then."
Shi Lan understood. Her gaze unconsciously flickered back to his Adam’s apple. Mu Tangfeng felt her eyes on him, and the muscle there moved again, unnaturally.
A flash of curiosity crossed Shi Lan’s eyes. ’So that’s what it looks like when a guy’s Adam’s apple moves.’ It was the first time she had seen it so clearly, and it was surprisingly interesting. She had the sudden urge to press her hand against it and make it stop.
But what little self-control Shi Lan had left was enough to suppress the chaotic thought, and she quickened her pace.
Mu Tangfeng leaned his entire back against the sofa, his head tipped back over the top as he tried his best to ignore the sensation on his neck.
But as the feeling on his neck faded, the fragrance lingering in the air took the opportunity to seep into his very bones, making his body go inexplicably soft. It was as if he were drunk on her scent, his unfocused gaze fixed on the ceiling light.
After what felt like an eternity, Mu Tangfeng seemed to hear Shi Lan’s voice, as if from a great distance.
"All done."
"You won’t be comfortable sleeping on the sofa. How about I make a pallet for you on the floor in the game pod room?"
"If you get tired of that, you can also just lie down in the game pod."
Mu Tangfeng’s thoughts were still drifting. He hadn’t quite heard what Shi Lan said, but he nodded subconsciously.
Seeing this, Shi Lan went to find a blanket. The house was rather bare at the moment, but luckily, she was a bit of a hoarder and had plenty of household items in her Space Bag.
She quickly tidied up the clutter in the room, stashing it all temporarily in her Space Bag. Then, she pulled out the necessary bedding from the bag. Looking at the pallet on the floor of the game pod room, she felt a pang of regret that she didn’t have a spare bed stored in her Space Bag.
Then again, the room didn’t have much spare space. A bed would be one and a half meters wide at most, so maybe it wouldn’t have been so convenient after all.
Shi Lan pressed down on the pallet with her hand to make sure it wasn’t too hard, then called for Mu Tangfeng to turn off the lights and come upstairs.
Mu Tangfeng called back in acknowledgment and was by her side in just a few quick strides.
In the guest room, Jiang Xia listened to the footsteps and Shi Lan’s voice outside. Unable to bear it, he pressed his body against the door. He subconsciously tried to open it, only to find it locked. Then he remembered this was Shi Lan’s house and he couldn’t break anything, so he could only lie down on the floor in aggrieved frustration.
He carefully moved his nose closer to the crack beneath the door, as if by doing so he could breathe in more of Shi Lan’s scent.
