The Bite Guard and the Bloodstained Call

For a split second, the air seemed to freeze.

Wu Qie’s hand never reached Lin Zuwen.

The hand gripping his wrist had its thumb pressed right against his artery.

So when Wu Qie turned his head and looked at him, Zhao Shu could clearly tell—

This Beta wasn’t intimidated in the slightest.

His heartbeat hadn’t even quickened.

“Let go.”

Teacher Wu’s voice remained as gentle as ever.

“You’re hurting me.”

Zhao Shu didn’t release him.

He had originally intended to fling the hand away immediately.

But now that Wu Qie asked, he suddenly didn’t want to.

Why should he listen to him?

Who did he think he was?

The Alpha’s handsome face hardened.

His eyes darkened.

The familiar scent of tequila flared again, spreading dominantly through the air.

The first to react was an Omega girl in the class.

Rolling her eyes, she pulled out a pheromone-sensitivity control wristband from her bag, strapped it on, and turned it to the highest setting.

Then the lower-ranking Alphas began reacting.

Some showed discomfort.

One turned to open the window.

A braver one called out cautiously, “Brother Shu.”

“What?”

Zhao Shu snapped his head around irritably.

His grip on Wu Qie’s wrist tightened unconsciously.

Wu Qie sucked in a breath from the pain, eyebrows lifting.

“Zhao Shu… student, please control your pheromones.”

“The scent is… rather strong.”

“If it continues to spread, it may trigger adverse reactions among other students with special secondary genders, potentially escalating into a violation of public health regulations…”

Law enforcement might swarm in and throw you into an isolation room.

With a hefty fine waiting.

As a Beta unaffected by pheromone density, the black-haired young man spoke evenly.

Professional.

Full of teacherly virtue.

Zhao Shu didn’t want to hear another word.

He whipped his head back toward Wu Qie.

Seeing that calm face still lecturing him made him even more irritated.

He yanked Wu Qie forward suddenly.

Caught off guard, Wu Qie bent forward.

The overwhelming scent of tequila engulfed him.

For a split second, he felt like he’d been rubbed head to toe with dog smell.

His brows finally knit slightly.

“Mm…”

From the corner beside them, Lin Zuwen suddenly let out a strained groan.

The confrontation shattered instantly.

Zhao Shu turned sharply.

Lin Zuwen lay slumped over his desk, eyes shut, drenched in sweat.

An unnatural flush spread across his pale cheeks.

Zhao Shu froze for a heartbeat.

He released Wu Qie’s wrist without thinking and called out, “Lin Zuwen.”

Frowning, he leaned down.

Lin Zuwen cracked his eyes open weakly.

“A Shu… I… I feel awful…”

The hoarse murmur made Zhao Shu’s frown deepen.

Even a blind man could see something was wrong.

He reached to haul Lin Zuwen up and take him to the infirmary.

But before he could touch him, Wu Qie stopped him.

“What are you doing?”

Zhao Shu asked darkly.

“Don’t touch him.”

“He’s about to differentiate.”

Wu Qie answered.

The class fell silent.

Then erupted.

Differentiation referred to the process of transitioning from primary s*x—male or female—to secondary s*x: Alpha, Omega, or Beta.

During this time, Betas felt little discomfort due to gland regression—though Wu Qie privately questioned that phrasing.

But for those becoming special genders, the process was painful.

A gland would form at the back of the neck, secreting pheromones unique to the individual.

Physical changes followed.

Alphas would grow taller, stronger, more overtly masculine.

Omegas would develop reproductive organs symbolizing fertility.

It was an intimate, vulnerable stage.

Schools usually handled pre-differentiation students carefully.

Those with medical evaluation reports predicting imminent differentiation were often allowed to stay home.

It was rare for a student to begin differentiation in class.

Even rarer for someone like Lin Zuwen.

Wu Qie directed several sturdy Beta boys to help lift Lin Zuwen from his seat.

As they moved, he asked casually, “Wasn’t he supposed to be resting at home during this period?”

Zhao Shu stood uselessly aside.

He bumped into Wu Qie’s shoulder accidentally.

Wu Qie steadied himself by gripping the desk.

Zhao Shu’s gaze lingered for one second on the reddened wrist.

When no one answered, Wu Qie turned impatiently toward him.

Only then did Zhao Shu realize he’d been distracted.

“The hospital said next week,” he muttered.

“Oh.”

Wu Qie nodded.

“Then thanks to you, it came early.”

Zhao Shu: “……”

Wu Qie: “The dog—”

He corrected smoothly.

“—the pheromone scent. Rein it in.”

Zhao Shu’s sharp ears caught that word.

Dog.

He nearly exploded.

Did this man just call his scent dog smell?

But by then, Lin Zuwen was being carried out.

His rage clogged in his throat.

The classroom chaos drew in school leaders.

They rushed in, saw the harmless-looking Beta teacher, visibly relaxed, thanked him, then rushed out again.

Students followed the commotion.

Soon only a handful remained.

Zhao Shu among them.

Used to being surrounded wherever he went, the young Zhao heir felt strangely unmoored.

He hadn’t meant to cause Lin Zuwen’s differentiation to accelerate.

His gaze returned to Wu Qie.

The black-haired Beta stood by the desk, rubbing his swollen wrist gently.

“Enough.”

Zhao Shu scoffed.

“I didn’t even use force. You think you’re some fragile Omega?”

Wu Qie glanced at him.

Didn’t answer that.

Instead he asked, “Did you bring a bite guard?”

A bite guard was a physical restraint device for Alphas.

It prevented them from marking Omegas during heat or pheromone instability.

High-end models could regulate pheromone output.

Zhao Shu had always scoffed at them.

Only unrestrained mad dogs needed bite guards.

Now he was being labeled exactly that.

He looked down at Wu Qie.

A head shorter.

His irritation reached such a peak it turned icy calm.

He tilted his head slightly.

“Are you looking to die?”

The light question silenced the remaining students instantly.

They turned in fear.

Wu Qie didn’t budge.

“No.”

“No one looks for that sort of thing.”

He raised his chin slightly.

Calm.

“Why are you raising your voice after causing trouble?”

“What trouble?”

“Pheromone assault on a classmate.”

Wu Qie gestured toward the door Lin Zuwen had exited through.

“Physical assault on a teacher.”

He lifted his visibly swollen wrist.

Zhao Shu sneered.

“Oh. And?”

“What can you do to me?”

…

So Zhao Shu’s guardian was called.

…

When he first heard the punishment, Zhao Shu laughed out loud.

From childhood, many had tried challenging the Zhao family’s authority.

Teachers, even.

He’d been summoned for parent meetings countless times.

His mother was dead.

His father lived abroad, effectively absent.

Zhao Guipu was too busy for trivialities.

The family butler always attended.

A formality.

No real consequence.

So in the office, Zhao Shu calmly asked the biology teacher for afternoon tea.

The biology teacher found two nougat candies.

Zhao Shu unwrapped one lazily.

Across the desk with the leather globe, Wu Qie sat and dialed a number.

The phone rang twice.

It was answered.

“A Qie? What’s wrong?”

The deep, magnetic voice was painfully familiar.

Zhao Shu: “……”

Was this a joke?

…

Wu Qie calmly reported that Zhao Shu had failed to control his pheromones, causing a classmate to be hospitalized.

He glossed over his own injured wrist lightly.

Zhao Shu scoffed inwardly.

This was peak busy hours.

There was no way his brother would bother.

But the man on speaker paused.

Then asked gently, “A Qie, turn on video. Let me see your hand.”

Zhao Shu and Wu Qie both froze.

They added each other on social media and started a video call.

Wu Qie awkwardly rolled up his sleeve to show his wrist.

“It’s not serious,” he said softly.

Zhao Guipu stared at the redness.

After a moment, he said warmly, “That was rude. An Alpha shouldn’t treat a Beta like that.”

Wu Qie rubbed his nose.

“It’s fine. Male Betas aren’t that fragile.”

Zhao Guipu smiled.

Then asked for the phone to be handed to Zhao Shu.

…

The door to an empty adjacent office was closed.

Zhao Shu took the phone.

“I told you he’s fine. I’m fine.”

He looked up.

The man on the screen had already dropped the gentle smile.

His face was expressionless.

“Zhao Shu. I’m busy.”

The tone shift was instantaneous.

“This noon you lied about training just to eat with that Lin boy. And now this. When will you grow up?”

Before Zhao Shu could argue, the camera shifted.

The phone was set aside.

He realized his brother wasn’t alone.

In the conference room, a bruised middle-aged man was dragged forward.

Zhao Guipu sat down.

Crossed his legs.

In the same calm tone, asked why the company’s bidding documents had been leaked.

The man sobbed.

Begged.

Ill mother.

Sick spouse.

He needed money.

“Of course.”

“We live in a lawful society.”

“What could I possibly do to you?”

Zhao Guipu said calmly.

Then picked up a golf club.

In one smooth motion, he shattered the man’s arm and leg.

No hesitation.

The scream nearly split the ceiling.

Zhao Shu lowered the volume instantly.

He glanced at the office door.

Still closed.

Outside the glass, Wu Qie sat grading homework.

His neck exposed under fluorescent lights.

His regressed gland visible.

Vulnerable.

Unprotected.

The violence on screen ended.

The man thanked Zhao Guipu through tears.

For sparing him prison.

He was a Beta too.

In Zhao Shu’s eyes, he and Wu Qie were no different.

Equally naive.

Both believed the head of the Zhao family was kind and reasonable.