Chapter 53

We cannot sit idly by and wait for death.

The moment the first syllable escaped her lips, Wei Jiangxue's heart was completely at peace.

Her hand holding the microphone stopped trembling. She had a feeling that her performance today would be even better than in her usual practice sessions.

Wei Jiangxue sang an old folk song, performed in the local dialect. The lyrics are simple, telling the story of a fisherwoman's daily life and troubles, and the melody is light and cheerful.

The room fell silent. The various glances that had been directed at people before the performance vanished, replaced by pure appreciation. The restlessness settled in her singing, and prejudices slowly dissipated.

It wasn't until Wei Jiangxue stopped singing that the staff and judges present seemed to wake from a dream, and they burst into applause.

Wei Jiangxue had just finished singing, slightly out of breath, with a faint blush on her face. She bowed in the direction in front of her, picked up the microphone, and waited for the judges' comments.

But the voices weren't coming from in front of Wei Jiangxue, and she immediately sensed something was wrong.

The next second, she heard someone jogging over, helping her turn around: "You just took a few steps, so your orientation is a little off."

"..." Wei Jiangxue gave an awkward laugh and bowed again, "Thank you, teachers, my performance is over."

She overheard them whispering, and then an older judge announced the results: "Contestant number eighty-eight, Wei Jiangxue, after discussion by the judges, your performance... is impeccable, unanimously approved!"

Wei Jiangxue thanked them happily and left the venue with the help of the staff. She found Mi Rui'an, who had been waiting for her backstage.

"I've advanced!" As soon as the staff left, Wei Jiangxue grabbed Mi Rui'an's hand and shook it vigorously.

“I saw it.” Mi Rui’an hugged her, the scent of roses tinged with a hint of freesia. “She performed exceptionally well. Anyone who doesn’t pass must have poor judgment.”

“If you want me to fail to advance, then it would be unless Mi Feng… Bai Rong tries to sabotage me again and bribes the judges.” Wei Jiangxue relaxed her body and rested her chin on Mi Rui’an’s shoulder. “Actually, I was so nervous on stage, but I think strength is the most convincing thing. If I fail here, everyone will believe the lies of the online trolls that Bai Rong hired, so I can’t lose.”

“You’re right, singing is the most honest language.” Mi Rui’an tightened her arms and whispered in her ear, “A beautiful win.”

With Mi Rui'an's encouragement, footage of the audition recording for the "Voice of Heaven" program in Linyue City was leaked online ahead of schedule.

As one of the more well-known contestants, Wei Jiangxue's performance naturally garnered a lot of attention.

The hashtags #WeiJiangxue'sVoiceIsSimplyDivine#, #Mom,ThisIsAHeavenlyVoice#, and #WeiJiangxueTheGeniusOfFace# quickly gained popularity. The pre-competition criticisms and doubts seemed utterly powerless in the face of Wei Jiangxue's audition videos, even stirring a protective instinct in many who had just met her.

Wei Jiangxue had no time to pay attention to the chaotic comments; she simply held Mi Rui'an in her arms, feeling the intoxicating Omeg essence.

As her heartbeat nearly synchronized with hers, Wei Jiangxue turned her face away and casually asked, "So your heat cycle is about to start, right?"

"Yes, what's wrong?" Mi Rui'an snuggled against her, clearly having guessed what Wei Jiangxue meant, but she just wouldn't speak.

“…Then I can help you,” Wei Jiangxue said hesitantly.

"Oh? Help me with what?" Mi Rui'an teased her on purpose.

"Helping you... resolve your heat cycle is just a way of repaying you for being there for me during my heat last time." Wei Jiangxue said, blushing. She had really thought about it many times before coming up with such a perfect solution.

Mi Rui'an herself said that she was not used to the Omega inhibitors available on the market. She would have adverse reactions when she injected them into her body. The mildest reaction was a rash, and the most severe reaction was a serious illness.

No available Alpha dared to approach her, so in the past, when she went through heat cycles, Mi Rui'an always tried her best to get through them on her own.

After listening to her story, Wei Jiangxue felt a pang of pity and finally made up her mind to tell her that she would help her deal with her heat cycle.

Wei Jiangxue had read the book; during heat, she only needed to provide Mi Rui'an with her own Alph essence and offer appropriate comfort. It didn't have to go all the way; she could do it perfectly well!

But just as she mustered her courage, Wei Jiangxue felt a little hesitant... Why does Mi Rui'an always tease people?

Wei Jiangxue covered her face shyly, feeling Mi Rui'an's fingers prying her hands open so that her face could be revealed again.

"Don't be shy," Mi Rui'an laughed. "I won't joke like that next time, thank you. Rather than getting through it on my own, I'd much rather ask you to help me with my heat."

"So what exactly is the time?"

“It should be in the next few days, but I don’t know if it’s because we had sex during your heat cycle last time, but it hasn’t come yet. Maybe it’s been delayed?” Mi Rui’an said uncertainly. “Every time I’m in heat, I stay at home for more than half a month and don’t go anywhere. You don’t need to worry too much about me. It won’t cause any problems if it’s a little late.”

Wei Jiangxue shook her head: "I'm just worried it will be bad for your health. You really shouldn't try to tough it out on your own anymore. I can help you. Luckily, you don't reject my pheromones, and I'm not afraid of you either."

"Yes, I will definitely listen to you. I will stay home and wait for you during my heat."

*

If she could go back to yesterday, Wei Jiangxue would definitely warn herself to be careful when going out.

In the evening, she declined Mi Rui'an's offer to have a maid run errands for her so she could buy some snacks and get some fresh air.

Anyway, the environment is familiar, it's just in the neighborhood, what danger could there be? Besides, Bai Rong, who is considered a threat, has been losing ground recently under Mi Rui'an's instigation, so he shouldn't bother them.

Wei Jiangxue thought to herself that after finishing her shopping at the supermarket, she had unconsciously walked a little further. Since she was already there, she figured she might as well check out some other shops outside.

With 233 around, there won't be any problems.

She directed 233 to lead the way, and inexplicably turned into the mall, then came out carrying large and small bags.

She couldn't take any more, so Wei Jiangxue prepared to head home.

As she walked along the quiet tree-lined path toward her neighborhood, a black van with no markings silently drove up behind her.

By the time 233 realized something was wrong, several well-trained men in black had already gotten out of the car, covered Wei Jiangxue's mouth, knocked her unconscious, and took her away.

233 could only immediately send a signal to Mi Rui'an at home, reporting where the group of men in black had taken Wei Jiangxue.

When Wei Jiangxue woke up again, she was tied to a chair and unable to move.

Fortunately, it wasn't on an operating table, so there was no risk of being dissected.

Wei Jiangxue breathed a small sigh of relief, but her nerves immediately tensed up again.

There's absolutely no one else but Bai Rong who would kidnap her! What is Bai Rong trying to do?

Wei Jiangxue still felt a dull ache in the back of her neck, and hersed softly. Her arms must have been tied to the armrests of the chair with restraints. She wondered if Bai Rong hadn't informed his men, because the people who had brought her here had even blindfolded her—a completely unnecessary step.

She smelled a strong odor of formaldehyde and metallic rust, along with a familiar, unpleasant smell—the smell of "Mi Feng," the smell of Bai Rong.

Okay, the guess was confirmed. So, where is she? And why isn't anyone talking to her?

After waiting quietly for a while, the answer came to her mind—Wei Jiangxue felt that she was the only person in the room at the moment.

[System 233: Whoa, host, you're awake! Don't worry, I've already called the protagonist; she'll be here to rescue you soon!]

Wei Jiangxue's mind raced: [My head is throbbing so badly, I almost forgot about you. Thank you, and could you tell where we are?]

But before 233 could give the answer, another person's voice rang out in the empty room.

"woke up?"

Listening to it now, Bai Rong's voice has an indescribable strangeness.

It was probably processed with a voice changer, right?

Lost in thought, Wei Jiangxue decided to wait and see what Bai Rong was planning: [233, let's analyze the escape plan first.]

She still feigned fear towards Bai Rong: "Who are you? What do you want?"

"...Has anyone ever told you that your acting is terrible?" The voice on the radio was sarcastic.

[System 233: The host is currently located in an enclosed underground space in the suburbs. It is determined that this building belongs to the underground laboratory jointly owned by Mi Feng and Bai Rong. The building has ten floors in total, seven above ground and three below. The host is in an empty room on the third basement level. The emergency exit is 10 meters from this room. If the escape is successful, the host can reach the boundary between the basement and the first floor within one minute.]

Wei Jiangxue was taken aback: "Why the border?"

Facing Bai Rong, she suppressed her feigned fear: "I'm not an actress, no one has ever said I have bad acting skills, you're the first. So, who are you?"

[System 233: There's an access control system that requires a password, and I'm still working on cracking it urgently. Mi Rui'an is also on her way. Host, there's no need to worry. We can patiently wait for rescue; there's no need to actively try to save ourselves.]

That won't do; Wei Jiangxue doesn't want to put all her eggs in one basket.

Moreover, this matter is most likely related to Mi Rui'an. If Mi Rui'an is coming, the person behind the scenes might even be happy.

Wei Jiangxue decided to stop bothering 233 who was deciphering the code and focused on chatting with Bai Rong: "What's your purpose in capturing me? I have no money, and my life is worthless. I don't understand what you value in me. Why don't you show yourself, and we can have a good talk? Maybe we can reach an agreement?"

"Who I am is not important. And you, actually, are not that important either." Bai Rong, unaware that his identity had been exposed, laughed nervously. "I'm just curious if you can lure her out. It seems that your presence makes that child willing to endure the pain of her heat to come out."

As expected, the important person was Mi Rui'an. Wei Jiangxue's heart sank.

Moreover, according to Bai Rong, Mi Rui'an is now in heat...

Was it because he was worried about her? Wei Jiangxue had heard that sometimes, excessive emotional fluctuations in Alphas or Omegas could cause their menstrual period to arrive earlier.

Bai Rong didn't want to say anything more to her, so he left after saying, "I have guests to entertain. You can stay here and relax. Don't worry, I won't kill you."

Wei Jiangxue didn't have time to think about anything else and quickly dialed 233: [Have you cracked the access code yet? Is Mi Rui'an about to arrive? I can't just let her come to rescue me!]