MWMM Chapter 75: Is Shen Ci Deliberately Keeping His Distance?

Yan Yuzhou sat alone on the hospital bed. Shen Ci had gone with Fan Qidao to get him some medication, specifically, gland maintenance medicine.

He touched his gland. It was quiet, completely still, with no sensation at all. That previous warmth he had felt seemed like nothing more than an accident.

A long while passed before Shen Ci returned. For some reason, Yan Yuzhou felt that there was something different in Shen Ci’s gaze. It was very complex, as if he were observing him.

His intuition told him that Shen Ci was hiding something from him.

“Mr. Shen, my illness…” Yan Yuzhou probed cautiously.

“It’s nothing serious, most likely an aftereffect of the complete marking,” Shen Ci’s tone was indifferent. “You were in too much pain that day, which led to psychological stress disorder. That’s why your gland is so sensitive.”

After speaking, Shen Ci gently pulled Yan Yuzhou into his embrace and planted a doting kiss on his forehead.

Yan Yuzhou only half-understood. He obediently tilted his head up, still a little confused. “Then why can’t I smell your pheromones?”

Shen Ci’s hand, which had been stroking his hair, paused briefly. But it was only for a moment before he returned to normal. “It’s nothing. Just another symptom of the stress reaction.”

“Oh…” Yan Yuzhou nodded. Hearing Shen Ci say this put his mind at ease.

“Zhouzhou,” Shen Ci spoke, his voice carrying an inexplicable weariness, making Yan Yuzhou look up at him again. “For the sake of medical progress, if you feel anything unusual in your body, you must tell me honestly. No more hiding, understand?”

Yan Yuzhou instinctively felt that Shen Ci was angry. In a panic, he resorted to his ultimate trick—acting spoiled. He clung to Shen Ci, wrapping his arms around him in a tight hug. “Mr. Shen, I got it. Before… before, I thought you had just used too much suppressant spray, so I wasn’t deliberately keeping anything from you.”

Before Shen Ci could respond, Yan Yuzhou tilted his chin up, flashing him a sweet, innocent smile, as if trying to cover up his guilty conscience.

The corners of Shen Ci’s lips twitched slightly, his gaze dark and unreadable, filled with an emotion that was difficult to decipher. But in the end, faced with Yan Yuzhou’s coquettish smile, his expression softened, and his lips curved up slightly in return.

Yet, at that moment, a sudden chill ran down Yan Yuzhou’s spine.

For some reason, his body instinctively rejected Shen Ci’s embrace. They had only been in close contact for less than a minute, but his gland suddenly throbbed in pain, as if sensing danger—warning him to stay away from this man.

The feeling startled Yan Yuzhou. Instead of obeying his body’s warning, he went against it, tightening his arms around Shen Ci’s waist even more.

But the pain only worsened. It was as if some deep, primal instinct was screaming at him: This person—don’t get close to him.

Just as he was gritting his teeth to endure it, he was abruptly pushed away—without warning.

Stunned, he looked up, meeting Shen Ci’s sharp, unfriendly gaze head-on.

“You’re already shaking this much, what are you still holding back for?” Shen Ci’s expression showed a trace of reluctance, but he still gritted his teeth and took a step back.

Yan Yuzhou was hurt by Shen Ci’s distancing action. Enduring the pain, he tentatively reached out, wanting to get off the bed and pull Shen Ci back. But just as he made a move, Shen Ci’s sharp voice stopped him.

“Don’t move.”

Shen Ci’s tone was firm and unquestionable, making Yan Yuzhou’s heart ache. He pouted but insisted on moving anyway.

Without hesitation, he jumped off the bed, ignored Shen Ci’s warning, and ran straight to him, then burrowed into his arms.

His gland began to sting again, as if pricked by needles.

Shen Ci was stunned by the sudden hug, as if afraid to break this moment—he didn’t dare to move at all. After a brief silence, Yan Yuzhou heard him sigh.

“Zhouzhou, be good, or your body will suffer for it.”

In the end, Shen Ci still forcibly pried him away and took a step back, automatically maintaining some distance.

Even though Shen Ci’s gaze was warm and his tone was gentle, Yan Yuzhou’s eyes still welled up uncontrollably with mist. He pouted.

“What the heck, we’re already completely marked, and I can’t even hug you?”

After saying that, he turned around and started packing his things on his own.

Shen Ci stood a short distance behind him, watching silently, a storm surging in his eyes.

—

Lately, Yan Yuzhou had been feeling a bit withdrawn.

Ever since they returned from the hospital that day, Shen Ci hadn’t shared a bed with him. In fact, they had barely seen each other lately. It seemed like Shen Ci’s company had suddenly become overwhelmingly busy.

Sometimes, he didn’t even come home at night.

Looking at the table full of cold food, Yan Yuzhou felt a deep sense of disappointment.

He couldn’t shake the feeling that Shen Ci was hiding something from him. But every time they spoke on the phone, Shen Ci was always exceptionally gentle, comforting him with utmost patience—his voice filled with a tenderness that made Yan Yuzhou feel as if he was the most cherished person in the world.

Thinking about their phone call before bed last night, Yan Yuzhou suddenly missed him terribly.

After asking Sister Song for a thermal food container, he reheated the meal and packed it inside. Then, without asking for permission, he went to Shen Ci’s company on his own.

As he walked into the office building, many people greeted him along the way. It seemed that the employees all recognized him, addressing him warmly and affectionately—

“Good evening, Madam President.”

Yan Yuzhou stepped out of the 20th-floor elevator, his face flushed with excitement. He hurried toward the CEO’s office, which he had visited a few times before, his steps impatient.

Arriving at the office door, he knocked lightly. The man’s voice inside was firm and cold.

“Enter.”

Yan Yuzhou steadied his breath, then pushed the door open and walked in. Inside, Shen Ci sat alone at his desk, his crisp shirt making him look even more handsome and refined. When he saw who had entered, his gaze flickered with surprise.

But there was also an unmistakable hint of delight in his voice.

“Zhouzhou, what brings you here?”

As he spoke, he stood up from his seat and walked toward him. His slightly quickened steps betrayed his eagerness—until he suddenly stopped a few steps away from Yan Yuzhou.

Yan Yuzhou’s eyes dimmed for a brief moment at Shen Ci’s distancing action. But he quickly pulled himself together, put on a smile, and lifted the thermal food container in his hand.

“Look what I brought you! You’ve been working overtime at the company, you probably haven’t eaten properly, right?”

Without waiting for a response, he took the initiative to place the container on the coffee table next to the sofa. One by one, he set out the carefully prepared dishes from Sister Song, then turned to Shen Ci—who stood stiffly nearby—and grinned.

“What are you standing there for? Here, eat.”

Shen Ci smiled indulgently and sat at the far end of the sofa.

Yan Yuzhou’s heart sank.

Why did it feel like Shen Ci was deliberately keeping his distance?

It was nothing like before, when they were so affectionate with each other. Now, both of them were preoccupied with their own thoughts as they finished eating.

Just as Yan Yuzhou was tidying up the thermal container, Shen Ci spoke.

“I’ll have Xiao Wang drive you home.”

The lukewarm tone of that sentence made Yan Yuzhou’s hands freeze mid-motion.

The grievances he had been bottling up could no longer be contained. In an instant, he shot up from the sofa.

His eyes were slightly red. He took two steps toward Shen Ci, but when he met his gaze, he found it filled with a strange, complicated emotion—one that unsettled and alarmed him.

Holding back his emotions, he choked out, “Aren’t you going to hug me?”

Shen Ci used to cling to him every chance he got, never letting go. But now, they had been face-to-face for so long, and he hadn’t even received the most basic embrace.

For a brief moment, hesitation flashed across Shen Ci’s face.

But in Yan Yuzhou’s eyes, that hesitation only meant one thing—he didn’t want to hug me at all.

Before Shen Ci could respond, Yan Yuzhou puffed up angrily and declared, “Hmph, as if I even care about your hugs! You’re not coming home? I’ve been living just fine without you!”

Then, under Shen Ci’s increasingly dark expression, Yan Yuzhou grabbed the thermal container, puffed out his cheeks, and boldly added, “If you’ve got the guts, then when my heat comes, don’t come back either! Just let me burn to death on my own!”

With that final outburst, he stomped toward the door without looking back.

Yanking it open, he stormed off.

—

After leaving Shen Ci with those harsh words, Yan Yuzhou left in a huff.

The office was now empty, leaving Shen Ci standing there alone, lost in the lingering scent of peach blossoms.

Without a word, he walked to the floor-to-ceiling window and silently watched for a while.

From his vantage point, he saw his omega leave the building in a hurry.

But instead of heading toward the parking lot, Yan Yuzhou went straight to the roadside. As he walked, he lifted a hand to wipe at his eyes.

Shen Ci’s heart clenched in pain.

He stood there in silence, watching as Yan Yuzhou flagged down a taxi.

The moment the car drove off and disappeared from his sight, Shen Ci’s face showed a trace of helplessness.

Taking out his phone, he dialed a number.

“Old Fan, is there still no breakthrough on the special medicine?”

__________________________________________

T/N: Praying for a medical breakthrough.