Chasing Husband
The third basement level of Shaw Private Hospital didn't appear on any floor plan. Dr. Li led Shao Wei through a series of security doors requiring iris scans. With each floor, the air grew increasingly icy, as if stepping into the belly of some giant creature.
"He insisted on meeting here," Doctor Li whispered, his fingers rubbing the pass nervously. "The third basement floor is his private research area. Not even Patriarch Shao has permission to enter."
Shao Wei remained silent, reaching into his pocket to confirm the small stun gun he'd received from Li Wei was still in place. On his other hand, there were still traces of Si Qi's blood, which had dried into a dark red scab.
The final door slowly opened, revealing a hemispherical white space. A holographic projection hovered in the center, displaying two spinning DNA strands, surrounded by a constant flow of data. Dr. Chen stood at the control console with his back to them, his white lab coat glaring against the blue light.
"Ah, No. 8." He didn't turn around, his voice distorted like an electronic device. "You arrived 27 minutes earlier than expected. I guess that girl Li Wei has told you some... incomplete stories?"
When Shao Wei stepped into the room, he immediately noticed the huge surveillance screen on the wall - half of it was occupied by the image of Si Qi lying in the intensive care unit, and the other half was Shao Lin's real-time location, showing that he was in a building on the other side of the city.
"Just state the conditions," Shao Wei said coldly, "How do you remove the chip?"
Dr. Chen finally turned around. Up close, he looked even more haggard than he had in the abandoned lab, his eye sockets sunken, yet his eyes shone frighteningly bright, like two burning coals. "Impatient, unlike you." He tilted his head to examine Shao Wei. "Number 9's influence is more profound than expected. Interesting."
He walked to the console and pulled up a set of brain scans. Shao Wei recognized one as Si Qi's, another as Shao Lin's, and the third...his own.
"Look here," Dr. Chen pointed to the same area in all three sets of images. "A tiny device near the hippocampus. It's not just a chip, it's a complete neural access point. Theoretically, it can receive and execute any command, as long as it knows the right frequency."
Shao Wei stared at the images, his stomach twisting. "You performed brain surgery on me without my knowledge?"
"Not just you." Dr. Chen chuckled, "All the experimental subjects received implants at the age of five. You only remember the routine physical examination." He called up a blurry surgical video. In the video, the young Shao Wei was lying quietly on the operating table, his eyes wide open but lifeless, like a puppet.
Shao Wei's fists clenched until they crackled. He had deliberately erased the memory, but his body seemed to remember it—a phantom pain shot through the back of his neck.
"Conditions," he said again, his voice low and dangerous.
Dr. Chen sighed, as if disappointed in his student's dullness. "Science isn't a transaction, No. 8. It's understanding." He tapped on the keyboard, and the holographic projection transformed into two rotating mannequins—Shao Wei and Shao Lin. "You twins are a breakthrough. Identical Alpha twins, gene editing further enhances compatibility, and with a neural link..." His eyes gleamed with enthusiasm. "In theory, one can become a perfect extension of the other."
A cold realization struck Shao Wei: "So you separated us. Making Shao Lin hate me... was it to test the strength of our connection?"
"Brilliant!" Dr. Chen applauded. "Hate is more enduring and stronger than love. And Number 9's hatred...ah, it's a work of art." He pulled up a set of data charts. "Even overseas, he can still sense your emotional fluctuations. When you first met Si Qi, he couldn't eat for three days—pure jealous rejection."
Shao Wei recalled Shao Lin's words: "'I'm saving you'"... Turns out those weren't just crazy talk. In Shao Lin's twisted perception, getting rid of Si Qi was truly liberating Shao Wei.
"What about Siqi? What role does he play in the experiment?"
Dr. Chen's smile faded. "An unexpected variable. His genes should have made him a perfect match for Number 7, but no one anticipated the development of genuine emotions between you two." He spat the word with disgust. "Emotions are a contaminant of the experiment."
He pulled up another set of data, showing the curve of Siqi and Shao Wei's pheromone compatibility changing over time. It had risen steadily in the first few years, as expected, but at a certain point it suddenly began to grow exponentially.
"Look at this inflection point." Dr. Chen pointed at the mutation. "After that 'chance encounter' in Kyoto three years ago. This is a theoretically impossible growth pattern. Your pheromones began... to evolve, creating new compounds. This disrupted all predictive models."
Shao Wei's heartbeat quickened. So their attraction wasn't just programmed; it was something deeper, more real, something beyond even the experimental design.
"How to disable the chip." Shao Wei asked for the third time, his voice already taking on the commanding tone of Alpha.
Dr. Chen seemed momentarily stunned by this aura, then smiled strangely. "Two methods. Physical removal—the success rate is less than 20%, and there's a high probability of causing damage to the frontal lobe. Or..." He paused, "reset the command override. This requires one Alpha to completely submit to the other, on a neural level."
"explain."
"Simply put, Siqi must voluntarily accept your permanent marking—not just at the pheromone level, but also through the reconstruction of his synapses." Dr. Chen pushed his glasses. "It's like handing over his autonomy to you. Of course, in theory, this is impossible. An Alpha's instinct will resist any form of submission."
On the surveillance screen, Si Qi's heartbeat suddenly quickened, as if he had heard these words. Shao Wei stared at the beating dot, his chest tightening. Would Si Qi, the proud Alpha to his core, agree to such terms?
"What if I refuse?"
Dr. Chen's expression turned grim. "Then, when the next command is activated, the chip will execute the final protocol—glandular self-destruction, along with 40% of the nervous system. It will be painful, long, and fatal." He turned to the console. "Choose, No. 8. Surrender or die."
The room fell silent, the only sound being the hum of the equipment. Shao Wei, staring at the holographic projection of himself and Shao Lin, suddenly realized a horrifying truth: This experiment had never been about solving the Alpha fertility problem. That was a cover. The real goal was to create an Alpha soldier who could be absolutely controlled, a weapon system that could be perfectly manipulated by another.
"Military funding," he blurted out.
Dr. Chen's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Getting smarter. Yes, all the funding for Phase II comes from 'special channels.' Imagine an Alpha army without free will, controlled by a handful of commanders via neural links..." His voice trembled with excitement. "The perfect weapon."
Shao Wei felt a wave of nausea. He, Shao Lin, Si Qi, and the other experimental subjects had been designed from birth to be killing tools. Their so-called "emotions" were merely a byproduct of the control mechanism.
"I need to see Siqi." He finally said.
Dr. Chen considered it for a moment, then nodded. "Okay. But his first command upon waking is already preset—kill you. Only you can temporarily interrupt the signal through physical contact." He handed Shao Wei a small syringe. "This is a nerve sedative. You'll have 30 seconds to convince him. If you exceed that time... I recommend escaping."
Shao Wei took the syringe and turned to leave, but heard Dr. Chen's last words:
"Oh, there's a little surprise. Number 9 is on his way to the hospital as well. You three will finally be reunited... before death or surrender."
The lights in the intensive care unit were blinding. Si Qi lay in the center of the bed, wired to various tubes, the back of his neck wrapped in thick gauze. His face was as pale as paper, but his breathing was steady. Shao Wei stood by the bed, his fingers gently touching the exposed skin, feeling for warmth and evidence of life.
"When will he wake up?" Shao Wei asked the doctor on duty.
"It could happen at any time." The doctor adjusted the infusion rate. "The gland is severely damaged but not completely destroyed. Strangely, his pheromone levels are higher than before the operation, almost double. There's no medical explanation."
Shao Wei thought of what Dr. Chen had said about "self-evolution." Perhaps Siqi's body was somehow adapting to the injury, even taking advantage of it. The thought gave him a glimmer of hope.
After the doctor left, Shao Wei leaned over and whispered in Si Qi's ear: "No matter what happens, remember that the snow in Kyoto is real. So are my feelings for you."
Si Qi's eyelids fluttered, but he didn't wake up. Shao Wei was about to say something else when an alarm suddenly rang out throughout the entire floor. Red warning lights began flashing, and an emergency announcement came over the radio: "Safety lockdown activated, all personnel evacuate immediately. I repeat, evacuate immediately."
Shao Wei's first reaction was to protect Si Qi, but then the door to the ward was flung open. Li Wei rushed in, his left arm hanging awkwardly, blood on his face.
"Shao Lin is here!" she gasped. "He's hacked into the hospital system and released all the gaseous anesthetics on the experimental floor. Dr. Chen is trapped in the main control room!"
Shao Wei's heart stopped beating. "What kind of gas is this? What effect will it have on the patient?"
"Alpha pheromone enhancer mixed with sedative." Li Wei checked Siqi's monitor. "It's not a direct danger to him, but it will speed up the awakening process... and the chip instructions will be activated immediately."
As if to confirm her words, Si Qi's body suddenly convulsed violently, and the brain waves on the monitor turned into sharp jagged patterns. His eyes fluttered open, his pupils fully dilated, as black as the abyss.
"Back off!" Li Wei pulled Shao Wei back, "He doesn't recognize you now!"
It was too late. With astonishing speed, Si Qi tore off the wires and lunged at Shao Wei. They slammed into the wall, Si Qi's fingers gripping Shao Wei's throat like a pair of iron pliers. His expression was completely unfamiliar, filled with pure murderous intent.
Shao Wei didn't resist, but raised the syringe with difficulty and pointed it at the back of Si Qi's neck. Just as the needle was about to pierce, Si Qi's other hand grabbed his wrist with such force that it almost broke the bone.
"Si...qi..." Shao Wei struggled to squeeze out the name, "It's me..."
There was no response. Si Qi's pupils remained dark, and his fingers continued to tighten. Shao Wei's vision began to darken, and Li Wei's screams and more sirens rang in his ears in the distance.
Just as he was about to lose consciousness, the door to the ward was flung open again. A new wave of pheromones washed over him—a blend of cedar and sandalwood, but with a sharp, metallic aroma that Shao Wei had never smelled before. The scent caused Si Qi to pause for a moment.
Shao Lin stood at the door, his blond hair shining brightly under the red alarm lights. His eyes were fixed on the two men struggling, his expression twisted with anger and a strange kind of pain.
"I've changed my mind," he whispered. "He can't just kill you, brother. That would be too easy for you."
As Shao Lin approached, the metallic pheromones grew stronger with each step. Strangely, Shao Wei felt his body responding—his pheromones overflowed uncontrollably, mixing with Shao Lin's to form a new, complex scent.
Si Qi's body suddenly trembled violently, and the hand that was pinching Shao Wei loosened. He turned to look at Shao Lin in confusion, as if disturbed by this unfamiliar combination of pheromones.
"Now!" Li Wei shouted.
Shao Wei took the opportunity to plunge the syringe into the back of Si Qi's neck and pushed down the plunger. Si Qi's eyes widened for a moment, then he fell limp and was caught by Shao Wei.
"30 seconds!" Li Wei reminded, "Say something quickly!"
Shao Wei placed his forehead against Si Qi's, holding his face in his hands: "Si Qi, listen to me. The chip is controlling you, but you can resist. Remember the snow in Kyoto, remember the sapphire cufflinks you gave me, remember..." His voice choked, "Remember that you were my own choice, not programmed."
Siqi's pupils contracted and expanded, as if he were engaged in some kind of internal struggle. His lips trembled as he uttered a few words with difficulty: "...Kill...me..."
"No!" Shao Wei hugged him tightly, "Let's solve this together. Dr. Chen said that as long as you voluntarily accept my—"
"No!" A sharp voice interrupted him. Shao Lin stood a few steps away, his face pale. "Don't say that word! Surrender? To him?" He pointed at Si Qi, his fingers trembling with anger. "What is he? A designed match! I am your blood relative, your other half!"
Shao Wei was shocked to find tears in Shao Lin's eyes - this seemingly cold and ruthless man was now trembling like an abandoned child.
"Shao Lin..." He tried to get closer, but Si Qi in his arms suddenly spasmed.
"The time is up!" Li Wei warned.
Si Qi's pupils were once again engulfed by darkness. He let out a painful howl, clutching his head with both hands, as if something had exploded inside. At the same time, all the electronic equipment in the ward failed. The lights flickered a few times before going out completely, leaving only the red emergency light providing a faint illumination.
"The chip has entered the final protocol!" Li Wei shouted in the darkness, "He's going to self-destruct!"
Shao Wei desperately hugged Si Qi tighter, releasing the maximum concentration of pheromones. To his shock, Shao Lin also knelt down and joined this strange embrace. The pheromones of the three intertwined and merged in the darkness, forming a brand new compound that had never been predicted in the laboratory.
Si Qi's struggles weakened. His pupils returned to normal, and he looked blankly at Shao Wei, then turned to Shao Lin, a flicker of understanding in his eyes: "...you... together..."
A strange three-way connection formed at that moment. Shao Wei felt fragments of memories that didn't belong to him flood into his mind—Shao Lin's lonely nights in his overseas foster home, Si Qi's silent tears at his mother's funeral... And through the trembling contact of their bodies, he felt that Shao Lin and Si Qi were also receiving his memories.
This connection lasted only a few seconds, and then with a loud bang, the ward door was completely blown open. Heavily armed security personnel rushed in, led by the disheveled Dr. Chen.
"Stop! Stop now!" he screamed, clutching some kind of transmitter. "You're ruining years of research!"
But it was too late. When the three of them separated, Si Qi's eyes had regained clarity, though he was extremely weak. He touched the back of his neck and looked at Shao Wei in confusion: "...The chip...is gone..."
"Impossible!" Dr. Chen rushed forward and used a portable scanner to examine Siqi's neck. "The chip is still there, but the signal... is gone?" His voice was sharp with shock. "What did you do?!"
Shao Lin staggered to his feet, his face strangely calm. "We did something you didn't expect. The pheromones of the three Alphas merged, creating a new neurochemical environment." He looked at Shao Wei, and for the first time, hatred was gone from his eyes. "Emotions do contaminate experiments... by creating variables that go beyond your model."
Dr. Chen's face turned pale. He frantically manipulated the console, then let out an inhuman scream: "Data! All experimental data is being automatically deleted! No!" He grabbed his hair and roared hysterically, "You were supposed to be perfect weapons! Twenty years of hard work!"
Security personnel had to restrain the distraught scientist, who was dragged away, still ranting insanely about the military and world order.
Li Wei checked Si Qi's vital signs and breathed a sigh of relief. "The chip is still there, but it's completely inactivated. It's like it's been overwhelmed by some stronger signal." She looked at the three of them curiously. "Theoretically, this shouldn't be possible..."
Shao Wei didn't explain. He himself didn't fully understand what was happening. But when his eyes met Si Qi's, and then Shao Lin's, he felt a new understanding—not through a chip or experimental design, but some more primal, more real connection.
"Thank you." Si Qi said to Shao Lin with difficulty, his voice so hoarse that it was almost inaudible.
Shao Lin's expression was complicated for a moment, then he returned to his usual indifference: "It's not for you." He turned and walked towards the door, "I just don't want that lunatic to win."
Before he left, Shao Wei stopped him: "Shao Lin...what should we do now?"
The blond Alpha stopped at the doorway, not turning back. "I don't know. But remember, brother... our connection is deeper than they designed. No matter how far away, I can find you."
Then he disappeared into the shadows of the corridor.
The alarm was lifted, and the hospital gradually returned to normal operations. Medical staff poured into the ward and began to perform a comprehensive examination on Si Qi. Shao Wei retreated to a corner, watching all this, and suddenly felt an unprecedented fatigue.
Li Wei quietly walked over to him: "Not all the data was deleted." She handed over an encrypted hard drive, "I saved some of it. Including this."
Shao Wei opened the only file on the hard drive, a video. In the video, Si Qi's young mother stood in a laboratory, looking serious at the camera and saying:
"If you see this, the experiment has gotten out of control. Remember, Alpha's connection is not only a power, but also a danger. When two stars come too close..." Her image flickered, "one will be consumed. Protect your light, Siqi."
The video ended. Shao Wei looked up at Si Qi lying on the hospital bed and saw that he was looking back at him, his eyes filled with the same doubt and determination. Whatever lay ahead, they would face it together.
Outside the window, the first rays of dawn's sunlight pierced the clouds. On the distant skyline, a blond figure stood on the edge of a tall building, clutching another encrypted hard drive. The label read, "Project Ω: Domination Protocol."
The game has just begun.
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