The Parched Land — Chapter 43
It snowed during the night. By morning, a thick layer covered the ground.
Fang Fengzhi wrapped an old scarf around his neck before walking to the villa.
When he arrived, Fu Baiqi was playing with the dog in the courtyard. Seeing him come through the gate, he approached.
From a meter away, Fang Fengzhi could already feel the Alpha’s pheromones reaching for him.
He paused.
Lately, Fu Baiqi kept releasing them unconsciously, letting them cling to him.
Fang Fengzhi had always liked the scent, yet he still tucked his face deeper into the scarf.
Looking up, he found Fu Baiqi’s expression as cool as ever, entirely at odds with those lingering pheromones.
Perhaps it was merely a habit formed during his illness.
His pheromones instinctively sought Fang Fengzhi out.
Then Fu Baiqi suddenly leaned closer, his face nearly touching the scarf.
With only his eyes showing, Fang Fengzhi looked unexpectedly endearing. Fu Baiqi had gone all night without chamomile and could not resist approaching.
Fang Fengzhi startled and hurried back several steps.
Fu Baiqi frowned slightly, apparently displeased by the rejection. But he said nothing, merely glancing at him before returning inside.
The dog circling Fang Fengzhi’s feet barked and followed.
Fang Fengzhi remained still.
His feet seemed rooted to the ground.
The shadowed look Fu Baiqi had given him left too much room for thought.
Only when the cold wind chilled his hands and feet did he stiffly enter the villa.
Warmth immediately surrounded him.
Fu Baiqi had disappeared, and no one else seemed to be downstairs. Only the dog remained.
Fang Fengzhi changed his shoes and removed his scarf. Not knowing what else to do, he sat on the sofa.
The friendly dog approached. He stroked its head and noticed an open photo album nearby.
The page showed Fu Baiqi’s grandparents at their old house.
But they were not alone in the picture.
The familiar woody scent returned.
The cushion beside him sank.
“That’s you as a child, isn’t it?”
“…”
“Yes.”
The boy had probably wandered into the frame, appearing in one small corner.
His cheeks were rounder than they were now, but his features were unmistakable.
“We met when I visited that year, didn’t we?”
Fang Fengzhi did not move or answer.
He clearly did not want to continue.
Fu Baiqi frowned, irritation briefly crossing his eyes. He watched the top of Fang Fengzhi’s head before relaxing his brow.
“Grandfather said you liked me very much.”
He had not expected Fang Fengzhi’s feelings to be genuine.
Back then, Fang Fengzhi had not differentiated. It could not have been pheromones, nor his family’s status.
For some reason, that pleased him.
Seeing Fang Fengzhi pause, he continued.
“He also said you kept asking when I would come back.”
At last, Fang Fengzhi looked up.
His gaze wavered.
“Please stop.”
His cheeks reddened, whether with distress or something else.
“That was a long time ago.”
The old flutter of affection was gone.
Hearing those memories from the person himself only made his childish love seem painfully foolish.
Fu Baiqi did not appear to understand.
He could not look away.
The Omega’s eyes shone slightly. He noticed the mole on his eyelid—something he had never thought much of before—and felt an unfamiliar stirring.
“A long time ago?”
The Alpha pheromones around them suddenly intensified.
“You kissed me then too, didn’t you?”
There was a clear hint of amusement in his voice.
Fang Fengzhi stared.
He rarely saw Fu Baiqi smile like this.
The usually cold face softened at the mouth, becoming even more attractive. Yet the feelings in his eyes—the ones that frightened Fang Fengzhi—were growing clearer.
Fang Fengzhi hardly dared move.
It was like wanting something for years without being able to buy it. Then, after finding something else that truly satisfied him, he was ready to leave—only for the salesperson to insist the first item suited him perfectly.
But he already had what he wanted most.
Fu Baiqi’s pheromones surrounded him.
Wood.
Their compatibility still made the scent comforting and pleasant.
Fu Baiqi was indeed the most suitable person.
Fang Fengzhi had loved him for years. They were even a rare pair of fated mates.
Now he was offering kindness and seeking Fang Fengzhi’s love.
They were close.
The Alpha was slowly leaning toward him.
Some said fated mates were destined by heaven.
Only when Fu Baiqi’s warm breath touched his face did Fang Fengzhi realize what he intended.
His eyes widened, and he pushed him away.
He could give all his love to only one person.
He no longer wanted the man who was supposedly his perfect match.
Nor did he want any further entanglement.
For a moment, the pheromones had swayed him. But he quickly regained his clarity.
He looked directly at Fu Baiqi.
“Are you doing this because of pheromones?”
Any affection from Fu Baiqi would become a burden now.
He wanted a clean ending.
It would be best if the man remained as detached as before.
Best if this were only pheromones.
But the answer disappointed him.
“No.”
Fang Fengzhi frowned.
He no longer wanted Fu Baiqi’s feelings. Having them forced upon him would only make things harder.
“Please don’t do this.”
The smile immediately disappeared.
Fang Fengzhi pretended not to notice.
“Didn’t you want a divorce?”
He reminded him, hoping to revive his former resolve.
“Didn’t you say you hated my pheromones? That I didn’t interest you?”
Fu Baiqi’s expression darkened, nearing anger, but Fang Fengzhi continued.
“You even sent Bai Zhen—your first love—to see me. Didn’t you?”
Their positions seemed reversed.
Once, Fu Baiqi had considered Fang Fengzhi a burden.
Now his feelings were something Fang Fengzhi did not want.
Fu Baiqi frowned, his face turning pale.
He had indeed thought little of Fang Fengzhi then.
But now he had decided to continue their life together, and Fang Fengzhi was bringing up those old grievances.
It displeased him.
Then came something worse.
“I agree now. No—I agreed last month. Have you forgotten?”
Although he had promised Fu Baiqi’s father, Fang Fengzhi could no longer contain it.
“After New Year, you should be almost recovered. We can finalize the divorce.”
He did not wait for an answer. It sounded like a notification rather than a discussion.
He turned to leave.
A hand caught his arm and pulled him back.
Fu Baiqi’s smile was entirely gone.
Angry enough to feel an urge toward something reckless, he stared at Fang Fengzhi.
“No.”
The Omega’s whims seemed absurd to him.
Before, when he wanted a divorce, Fang Fengzhi refused. Now that he no longer wanted one, Fang Fengzhi opposed him again.
“What?”
“I said no divorce.”
His grip was tight.
Fang Fengzhi’s heart lurched with a bad premonition.
Then Fu Baiqi demanded, “Have you found someone else?”
His gaze darkened. His pheromones grew oppressive and dangerous.
A chill ran down Fang Fengzhi’s spine.
He had noticed.
Fang Fengzhi forced an expression of confusion and anger, wrenching his arm free.
“What are you talking about?”
Then he hurried upstairs as though fleeing.
Fu Baiqi had thought the divorce was merely an angry threat.
He had not expected Fang Fengzhi to mean it.
No wonder someone once so compliant, so eager to stay near him, was now avoiding him.
He clenched his teeth.
For some reason, he tasted blood.
In the bathroom, Fang Fengzhi splashed cold water over his face, then stared expressionlessly into the mirror.
With Fu Baiqi behaving this way, getting divorced would be difficult.
Over the following days, he avoided him whenever possible.
New Year drew nearer.
The Fu relatives gradually returned from the city.
By the evening before the holiday, almost everyone had arrived.
Fang Fengzhi did not enjoy these gatherings.
The relatives were close, while he always seemed excluded as an outsider.
Fu Baiqi’s younger cousins disliked him especially.
Still teenagers, they deeply admired their accomplished older cousin. Somehow, that had turned into hostility toward Fang Fengzhi.
He had heard plenty of cruel remarks on previous visits.
Lately, he had been staying away from Fu Baiqi.
Perhaps because he lacked soothing pheromones, Fu Baiqi looked weak. His already fair face was unnaturally pale.
His mother wanted to blame Fang Fengzhi for neglecting him, but feared he might lose patience and leave. She restrained herself and asked her husband to speak to him.
Fang Fengzhi responded better to gentleness than pressure. Unable to be harsh with an elder, he agreed to take better care of Fu Baiqi.
The younger relatives knew none of this.
Seeing their cousin looking so ill, they naturally blamed Fang Fengzhi.
When he was alone in the living room, Fu Baiqi’s female cousin suddenly sat beside him and smiled.
“Can’t your pheromones soothe him?”
She looked at him mockingly.
“Is it because he still hasn’t marked you?”
Another teenager appeared beside her.
Fu Baiqi’s male cousin.
“If I were you, I’d have packed my things and left ages ago. How—”
“Fu Yan.”
The boy stopped.
Turning to find Fu Baiqi behind him, he greeted him obediently.
“Baiqi.”
The Alpha looked at his cousins, his expression cold.
“Watch what you say.”
Then he turned to Fang Fengzhi.
“Don’t take them seriously.”
Fang Fengzhi blinked.
He remembered Fu Baiqi’s father saying the same thing when he heard the children mocking him before.
He sighed faintly.
Only when preparing to leave did he realize how much hurt he had endured.
“Even your cousins want me to pack up and leave.”
“What do you think I should do?”
Fu Baiqi’s expression immediately worsened.
The two teenagers, who had been privately pleased, had not expected Fang Fengzhi to speak this way.
Still assuming their cousin would not take it seriously, they were preparing to enjoy Fang Fengzhi’s embarrassment when an icy voice interrupted.
“Apologize.”
They froze.
Looking up, they found Fu Baiqi watching them darkly.
“Apologize to him.”
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