Chapter 3 Even Alphas Need to Be Well-Behaved...

Why do you want to buy hair growth tonic?

Hu Qing's eyes widened like saucers, her face filled with disbelief.

“You know, all my hair was burned off. When people come to visit, I’ll have plastic surgery and take off my hood. If they see my bald head, I’ll be very sad.” A dejected tone came from inside the helmet.

"Hair is an apha's dignity, you know what I mean."

Hu Qing couldn't bear to see her idol sad, so she immediately vowed that she would complete the task tomorrow.

"Go ahead and don't worry, I can take care of myself," Hengxing said, watching him run out of the ward with steady yet hurried steps.

She jumped out of bed, walked to the bathroom, and once again took off the medical helmet from her head in front of the sink, leaning forward while supporting herself on the countertop.

The Alpha in the mirror had golden eyes that shimmered under the white overhead light, like the first rays of sunlight on a rippling lake. Her brow bone was high but relatively straight, softening the sharpness of her eyes and adding a touch of approachability. Although her eyebrows weren't fully grown, they were a light color and already had a low profile, so the overall appearance wasn't significantly different.

With his dazzling golden eyes and other equally handsome features, even with his slightly edgy golden buzz cut, it's clear that Hengxing has a good-looking face.

Hengxing himself was aware of this.

Based on her years of experience in the service industry, a pretty appearance is more likely to win the favor of strangers than enthusiastic service.

When the shipyard owner was drunk, he told her that since she started working there, their sales had increased by nearly 30%. The best time to do business at his cake shop was when she helped out in the evenings.

Tomorrow night, when the two caregivers change shifts, it will be the time when she is least monitored, and having a nice face will make it easier for her to run away.

She scratched the back of her head.

I need to grow my hair out first, otherwise I'll look like someone just released from the Imperial prison.

*

"Star, wake up!"

The curtains were drawn back, and sunlight leaped over the railings into the room, scattering like golden fragments onto the small, curly-haired girl on the bed.

After the man in the apron finished drawing the curtains, he walked to the bedside, reached out and rubbed a messy head on the bed, the tangled curly hair covering the entire pillow.

"Get up quickly, I have to go to the shop. I just baked a few small cakes. Give them to your friends at the shipyard. They've taken care of you all these years, so you should thank them."

"The boss should be thanking me." The curly-haired girl rolled over and buried her head in the pillow.

"Be good." The man poked the back of her head.

"Okay, what flavor is it?"

"Strawberry flavored."

"They are Alphas, so they don't like strawberry flavor."

"I know you kept the strawberry flavor for yourself, and gave the chocolate and matcha flavors to them."

The man chuckled, "Star, nobody said Alphas can't like strawberry cupcakes..."

"Marshal, Marshal, Marshal..." Suddenly, a noisy chanting sound came from my ears.

The dream dissipated.

Hengxing frowned and struggled to open his eyes, then sat up unsteadily.

Hu Qing quickly came up to help her, "Why did you get up so late today? We need to go check on your mechanical leg in fifteen minutes."

Advanced medical helmets have an automatic facial misting function.

A cold wind blew, and after Hengxing regained consciousness, Hu Qing led her to get a checkup.

Looking at the data, the doctor said, "Your adaptation is excellent."

It could even be said that it was better than expected; on her, the mechanical legs looked more natural than real legs.

"Will I need to replace the prosthetic leg in a few years?"

"It depends on your specific needs. The mechanical leg you installed has a lifespan of over sixty years, but products are being updated very quickly these days, and newer, better products will inevitably be developed in the future. If you are interested, you can come to the hospital to have it replaced yourself."

Back in the ward, Hengxing removed a nutrient solution tube and inserted it into the feeding port of his helmet.

"Marshal, I've bought the hair growth medicine you requested. The reviews say it's very effective; if you apply a thick layer for two hours, your hair will grow 20 to 30 centimeters." Hu Qing handed her a small blue box.

While Hu Qing went to complete the handover procedures in the afternoon, Heng Xing went to the restroom and applied hair growth cream in front of the mirror.

The box contains a small wooden stick, like an ice cream stick. The correct way to use it is to spread the hair growth cream evenly on your head.

However, Hengxing didn't have that much time to apply the ointment, so he chose to apply it directly with his hands, then put on the included hair cap and medical helmet.

Failure to follow operating instructions will always have consequences.

In the afternoon, she watched in disbelief as the hair on the back of her hand, where she had applied the hair growth cream, grew wildly. The growth rate and length were pushing the boundaries of her understanding, a veritable biological miracle.

There were no sharp objects like knives in the ward.

He couldn't borrow it from Hu Qing either, because he thought he would only use the hair growth cream after he took off his helmet during the plastic surgery.

After the hair on his hands stopped growing, Hengxing tearfully plucked it out one by one with brute force.

Some say that Alphas never cry, which must be because they've never plucked their own body hair.

it hurts.

It really hurts.

The existence of the little wooden stick certainly has its own reason.

Seeing such remarkable results on the hands, the effects on the head are self-evident.

It will definitely be better!

Yeah, right.

After the curly hair on her forehead dried, it lightly covered her eyes; she had originally thought it would at least reach below her nose.

Anyway, something is better than nothing.

She put on the helmet.

In the evening, it was Hu Qing's shift change time.

Hengxing put his arm around his shoulder. "Let's go, I'll see you off."

He was flattered and deeply moved, and said, "You should go to bed and rest now."

"Okay, I won't lie to you, I want to go down and feed the fish." Heng Xing coldly pushed him in the back.

That's more like it.

What are your plans after this?

"I might go back to school to pursue a PhD. The hospital is too complicated and not suitable for me."

When are you leaving?

"Tickets for tomorrow afternoon."

"Hu Qing, change the tickets to the evening, let's leave earlier."

Heng Xing's tone suddenly became serious and solemn, and his current image finally matched the image of Marshal Si Yun that Hu Qing remembered.

During the two weeks she spent with her, Hu Qing always felt a sense of disconnect.

In the video, the marshal is cold, powerful, and stern, but the marshal next to him often makes funny jokes with him, and he goes downstairs every day to catch fish without paying.

"Marshal, I feel that you are not quite the same as before."

Perhaps because he was about to leave, he let himself boldly ask the truth. Or perhaps the Alpha beside him had been acting too "amiably" lately, making him not realize the serious consequences of offending him.

"Isn't it reasonable for someone's mindset to change after a serious illness?" Heng Xing asked pointedly.

"That's true." Hu Qing nodded in agreement. "Let's stop here. You should go back now."

"Remember to leave tonight."

"Okay, take care of yourself, I'll be going now."

Hengxing stood there, watching him walk out of the gate of the Ninth Sanatorium.

Hu Qing boarded a flying vehicle bearing the logo of Chunquan Hospital, and as he looked down from the window, he saw Heng Xing waving at him.

As the spacecraft gradually shrank into a tiny dot of light and disappeared into the distance, Hengxing followed and walked out of the Ninth Sanatorium. The registration device by the gate flashed blue, recording the time of her last entry and exit.

It was colder at night than during the day, and the temperature was dropping recently. The cold wind was blowing against her trouser legs. Her highly intelligent mechanical legs were very sensitive to pain, and Hengxing felt that her ankles were as cold as ice.

She forgot that there was outdoor heating in the Ninth Sanatorium, and it was indeed a bit cold to walk out like that.

Hengxing's destination was at the border of the Third Sanatorium Area and the Ninth Sanatorium Area, about a 20-minute drive away.

Lifting the artificial turf on the ground reveals a round manhole cover underneath. Finding the switch nearby and pressing it causes the cover to slowly slide to the left and retract, leaving only a round opening.

Hengxing climbed down into the cave and stepped onto the protruding stones on the wall.

This was a piece of gossip she'd gathered while running around the hospital all week.

Who would have thought that the largest black market on Spring Spring Star was actually located beneath Spring Spring Hospital?

One of the three major urban legends of Spring Spring Star:

Patients staying in the first and second sanatorium areas could often hear faint voices coming from below; it was the weeping of the wronged souls who had died in Chun Quan Hospital.

That's utter nonsense.

It's purely because the first and second sanatorium areas are located under a free trade zone, where there's a lot of haggling, and the sounds just happen to reach overhead.

Below the Ninth Sanatorium Area is a cluster of small clinics that specialize in doing shady services that hospitals can't handle.

Stepping on the uneven red brick slabs, the ground was very wet, but the streetlights were dim, making it impossible to tell whether it was blood or sewage. Hengxing found his target by looking at the small advertisements on the roadside.

"Sharp Eyes Clinic"

Compared to other small clinics, this shop was practically deserted.

In the cramped shop, there was a deformed yoga mat. A disheveled woman was lying on the mat, shaking her legs and playing on a terminal. From Heng Xing's angle, he could see fleshy images on the virtual screen, which were not healthy images.

"Darling, you're here!" The woman looked up and saw Hengxing, then stood up and rushed towards her.

"Don't try to get close to me," Heng Xing said coldly.

"As we agreed before, if you remove the tracker on your leg, I'll give you this helmet."

"Alright, don't be so cold!" Xiao Ci clipped her hair back and put on the white coat that was hanging on the wall and had been washed until it was yellow. "If you don't believe me, go outside and ask around. Everyone says that I, Dr. Xiao, am the most trustworthy. This is a good reputation that I have built up over many years of practicing medicine."

Xiao Ci was previously a top-level doctor at Chunquan Hospital.

A patient's father, unable to afford the surgery, made a deal with her, offering to exchange his left eye for the procedure.

Xiao Ci, who has a fetish for collecting eyeballs, readily agreed to pay for his surgery and help him save her child. However, when she tried to fulfill her promise, he denied it and took her to medical court.

She was later fired from the hospital and eventually opened a small clinic on the black market.

Xiao Ci was an outstanding student from the best medical school in the empire, with superb skills, but his prices were bizarre; he always asked for his left eye as payment for the consultation.

Last time, she took a liking to Hengxing's medical helmet.

Actually, it's not just helmets...

Hengxing took off his helmet, shook his head, and brushed the stray hairs from his forehead back. His curly hair was sticking up because of the static electricity from the helmet.

"You know I don't need the helmet." Looking at her face, Xiao Ci licked his lips.

“I’m not interested in Beta.” Heng Xing looked up and met dozens of eyes on the wall.

They were soaking in glass bottles, and at that moment they were all staring straight at her.

"It's just a fun little design," Xiao Ci said with a smile, leading her into the inner room.

The interior and exterior have completely different designs. Compared to the greasy and cramped storefront, the clean and high-end operating room appears much more upscale.

"The locator is stuck in the simulated nerve, so the mechanical leg can't be anesthetized. It might hurt a little, but please bear with it." After she lay down, Xiao Ci picked up the scalpel and began to work.

It is indeed a bit painful.

Hengxing looked up at the sky.

I should have waited until now to pluck the hair on my arms, so I wouldn't have had to suffer twice.

“Honey, you know what? Seeing you suffer always makes me inexplicably happy.” The excellent doctor, Ms. Xiao, tried to distract her.

Heng Xing: "I understand, after all, you're a pervert who loves collecting eyeballs."

"impossible."

"Oh, okay."

Xiao Ci remained silent, and the pain became unbearable again.

Hengxing felt like a sealed glass bottle, with boiling water sloshing inside but unable to flow out.

"So, why did you put Beta last?" she asked.

Under the regulation of hormones in the body, the Beta nature should be closer to that of a Beta.

"I said I like good-looking people, but there are too few good-looking people among the Betas."

Does the Imperial Research Institute have any research projects in this area?

"No, it's all based on my personal experience. Objectively speaking, I've probably seen more good-looking people than Alphas, since most good-looking Omegas are kept at home by their partners."

Xiao Ci persisted, "Of course, you're still the most beautiful!"

Heng Xing: "Impossible."

Xiao Ci: "Oh." *Sob*

After leaving the clinic, Hengxing went to the private trading area and bought several sets of clothes, all simple styles, as well as a second-hand space button, ring-shaped, with the yellow paint on the surface already worn away.

It's very cheap, only 100 Star Coins.

There are indeed some reports that suggest there's a reason why things are cheap.

The vendor argued, "Don't you think this is retro? Young people these days like this kind of thing."

Hengxing: ...

"I know this is to remove personal marks from the surface. Did you steal this spatial button?"

The uncle opened his mouth...

The man fell silent.

"How much is that terminal?" Hengxing asked, pointing to another item on the plastic sheet.

Five thousand star coins.

"Too expensive."

The middle-aged man asked her hesitantly, "How much are you going to give me?"

"five hundred."

"Little sister, that's too cruel."

Heng Xing: "That's true."

"That five hundred and fifty."

The middle-aged man sighed, "This business won't work."

Heng Xing picked up the terminal and examined it for a moment. "Yours has also had its markings removed. If you convert it to the price of the space button, it's five hundred."

The middle-aged man said mysteriously, "This terminal is different; it contains an account."

Heng Xing didn't take it seriously: "If the original owner logs in using a different terminal, your account will be kicked out."

"He can't use the terminal anymore," the boss said ambiguously.

"Don't worry, everything is clean, they won't find you out."

Heng Xing had already logged into his own account on the terminal in his hand, and it would be easy to be discovered once the Si family started investigating.

"Is 560 okay?"

The middle-aged man shouted, "At least three thousand."

"Okay, two thousand five hundred, let's be friends."

After a two-minute standoff, Hengxing took his old terminal, priced at 2,100 yuan, to the repair area to fix it.

After nearly an hour, the shop owner wiped the sweat from his brow, adjusted his glasses, and said, "I can't find it. I suspect there really wasn't anything there in those six months."

Hengxing remained silent.

"Then please help me destroy the account and data on this terminal."

"Okay, do you want it recycled? My recycling fee is the highest in the entire black market. I can charge two thousand for your condition."

"No, I'll keep it myself," Hengxing said.

While the boss was working, he looked up and noticed her staring curiously at the monitor outside.

"That's where desperate criminals make their money. They list the people they want to kill and their rewards. The higher the reward, the higher the ranking. If someone takes the job, the next job will move up and take that spot."

The reward at the top of the screen has reached 300,000 Star Coins. The murder target is a 23-year-old Omega whose name is marked with an asterisk.

Suddenly, a second ascent covered it, as if everything had never existed.

*

In the travel area, there are spaceship drivers who can take orders and help transport customers to places that Imperial starships cannot reach.

The small planets near Koze Star have also been contaminated by the Zerg to varying degrees, and no one lives there anymore. All the air routes to that area have been abandoned.

If Hengxing wants to go back to the ruins of Keze Star, he can only take a private spaceship. There are also some more formal options, but the informal ones are cheaper.

The man sitting in the chair smoking saw Heng Xing walk in his direction, and he nudged the shoulder of the person next to him.

"Finally, I can have some money to spend."

"Stop playing around, quickly call the mine."

A note from the author:

Xingxing's hairstyle is a frizzy, golden curly hairstyle.