Chapter 6

Alphas are visual animals. Xie Ruheng's eyes lit up when he saw Tang Bai's innocent outfit, and his heart surged. Scientifically speaking, the nerve activity in the hypothalamus was stimulated, secreting a large amount of dopamine, which made the little beast in Xie Ruheng's heart beat wildly: "Sorry to have kept you waiting for a long time."

Tang Bai ran over, her face flushed, and she was a little out of breath as she spoke: "No, no, I just got here~ This is a dessert for you~"

The soft and sweet feeling mixed with feather-like gentle breathing made Xie Ruheng's legs go limp.

Yes, in front of his dream lover, the hot-blooded Xie Ruheng, who had never been in love, was like a novice facing a top-level master, and he fell to his knees in an instant.

Pretending to be calm, Xie Ruheng took the exquisitely wrapped gift bag and replied in his sweetest voice, "Thank you."

Expression, the reservedness of a male god.

Voice, the male god's Su Yin.

Action, the gentleman of male god.

Perfect.

Tang Bai, who didn't know the truth, couldn't help but sigh in his heart that Omega Light had reached a new level of beauty today, and then happily sat on Xie Ruheng's suspension car.

Along the way, Tang Bai asked about Xie Ruheng's well-being, "Brother Xie, you will be starting formal military training in a few days. Have you bought sunscreen? I know a product with a very high sunscreen index, and also a very useful repairing cream..."

Seeing that Xie Ruheng was not in high spirits, Tang Bai became anxious, "Even if an omega is naturally beautiful, he still needs to pay attention to maintenance. Brother Xie, look at me, how is my skin?"

Xie Ruheng: “…?”

Xie Ruheng looked at the pretty little face so close to him. Her skin was white with a rosy glow, genuine creamy skin without a single flaw, so tender that he wanted to suck it.

Tang Bai held up her little face with both hands and introduced it in a coquettish voice: "Isn't it very white, smooth and shiny~"

Xie Ruheng's throat rolled as he nodded honestly.

"Although my good skin is partly due to my innate advantages, acquired maintenance is also essential. Brother Xie, do you understand what I mean?!" Tang Bai blinked desperately, as if emitting a cute light brain.

Xie Ruheng couldn't help but smile and nodded.

I understand, I know that you are a delicate little omega who is naturally beautiful and knows how to take care of yourself.

The two people, who were talking at cross purposes, smiled at each other and continued their conversation happily.

Time passed quickly without us noticing, and the suspension car passed through the wall between the city and the slums. The scenery outside the window changed from the bustling city to the old, dirty and messy slums.

A flock of birds flew over the lead-gray houses, garbage was scattered everywhere on the roadside, and a man hunched over, groping for a garbage bag, looked like a stray dog.

Tang Bai looked out the window curiously, his palm pressed against the car window, his amber eyes clearly reflecting the simple and desolate slums, "Is this the slum?"

There is a high wall separating the slums from the urban areas. Our understanding of the slums comes not only from the Internet and that mysterious novel, but also from people working at the bottom of society. Some people who come from the slums will find ways to cross the "wall" and work in the urban areas.

Jobs such as cleaners, garbage disposal workers, and septic tank drivers usually employ people from the slums.

Other jobs will try to avoid hiring people living in slums, even if they offer low wages, but they are already considered to be dishonest, of low quality, and lazy.

However, if they are good enough, they can break the stereotype with their own strength. Although they cannot have a lucky life like Xie Ruheng, it is not difficult for them to work as a waiter or cook in a hotel or as a maid in a rich family.

Tang Bai thought the slums were really as dirty, messy and dilapidated as those photos circulating on the Internet, but now it seems not so bad?

As if seeing Tang Bai's confusion, Xie Ruheng explained: "This is not the real slum. It is the outer circle of the slum, the place closest to the wall. Most people living here have jobs in the town. As long as they work hard and strive for half a lifetime, they may be able to buy a house in the city and leave here."

On the Internet, everyone generally referred to this place as a slum. The magical novel did not introduce these settings in detail. It was the first time that Tang Bai knew that the slums were divided into an inside and an outside.

Tang Bai looked at Xie Ruheng curiously, "What does a real slum look like? Can I go inside and take a look?"

"It's very dangerous there, not suitable for an omega like you. A stray bullet might pass by your ear in the next second."

Not suitable for an omega like me?

Thinking of the power of Omega Light, Tang Bai bowed his head in front of the boss in a miserable state.

Her thick, curled eyelashes drooped down and she blinked aggrievedly. The watery light in her eyes was soft and pitiful, and she looked like she was about to cry in the next second.

But in fact, these are just the big watery eyes of the cute little omega.

Xie Ruheng: “......!”

The scene of Tang Bai crying when they first met was still vivid in my mind. He kept saying things like, "If it's just for material, the outer circle is enough." But when he spoke again, he said calmly, "I'm here, no one will hurt you."

If this sentence was said by someone else, Tang Bai would just think it was arrogant and greasy, but this sentence was said by the Omega Light!

Xie Ruheng in the book would never make such a promise casually. As for the supporting cannon fodders who overestimate their own abilities and want to commit suicide, Xie Ruheng's attitude is always "It's none of my business."

Tang Bai raised his head quickly, looked at Xie Ruheng with starry eyes, and said in a sweet voice full of trust: "I know Brother Xie will protect me~ I will also be a good boy and not cause any trouble for Brother Xie!"

Big brother, big brother, look at me, my dog-leg posture is standard~

As a normal alpha with a sense of vanity, Xie Ruheng was very pleased with the admiring gaze from his dream lover, and his mentality changed instantly -

From agreeing passively in the beginning just to prevent Tang Bai from crying, he now is eager to show off his alpha power in front of the omega he likes!

Tang Baidian turned on the computer, opened the notepad, and recorded the materials outside the slum. He also turned on the video function.

"You can take photos and videos here, but you can't take photos or videos once you're inside."

The inner areas of the slums are full of filth and corruption. The red-light district, underground arena and black market are three places that cannot be advertised.

Currently, there is a delicate balance between the forces in the slums and the federal government. However, if photos and videos are circulated online and attract public attention, the federal government will send federal police even if it is just for the sake of face, and interests will inevitably be sacrificed.

Seeing Tang Bai's bewildered look, Xie Ruheng explained, "If secretly filming is discovered, it will lead to a fatal disaster."

Before the feds can send anyone to deal with it, the voyeur will be dealt with by the angry ghetto forces.

Secret photography incidents have occurred before, but when the miserable fate of the secret photographers was made public, few people dared to violate these unspoken rules.

Tang Bai obediently turned off the video function and watched the environment outside the window gradually become worse. The most obvious thing was the houses. Regardless of whether the houses in the outer area were gorgeous or not, they were at least normal houses built with reinforced concrete.

As the suspension vehicle drove deeper into the interior, the concrete house turned into a simple shed built with wood. Going deeper, the shed turned into a shabby tent. Tang Bai even saw children with sallow faces in the wooden and cardboard boxes.

"Is this their 'house'?" Tang Bai said in disbelief, "What should we do if a storm comes? This kind of 'house' will collapse if it's blown. Can it really keep us out of the storm?"

"If it's blown down, just sleep on the ground." Xie Ruheng said calmly.

Many people in the slums have never left their homes in their entire lives, and they consider it a blessing to be alive.

A suspended car two meters above the ground slowly floated over a cardboard box. A thin child looked up at them, his dull eyes slightly lit up with curiosity.

Tang Bai was stunned for a moment, and suddenly the description of Xie Ruheng's childhood in the novel popped up in his mind:

"A ghostly face emerged from the crowd. He quietly raised his head and stared at the suspended car in the sky. The light from the taillights was projected into his dark phoenix eyes, like a misshapen black pearl gleaming faintly."

Before becoming an underground arena racer, Xie Ruheng had a long period of wandering. He was different from the zombies in the slums, and also different from those children who were curious about the outside world. When he saw the suspension car passing over him, the young Xie Ruheng thought...

Sooner or later, he will trample all of this into the mud.

People are born to be rebellious, nothing more than this.

"This is 'Garbage Street'. Those who live on Garbage Street are the lowest class of the slums. The sick, the elderly, orphans, the disabled, and drug addicts all live here." Xie Ruheng's voice is full of magnetism. He usually speaks with a lazy tone, but this time he was particularly cold and restrained, like cold and hard metal.

Tang Bai watched the people rummaging through the garbage and bit his lower lip lightly. Even his dog was unwilling to smell the garbage, which was dirty and smelly and contained so much bacteria.

Even though it was briefly mentioned in the book, Tang Bai was still shocked when he saw this scene: "...Won't they get sick if they eat this?"

"Yes. But those who don't have garbage stomachs are all dead. Those who are still alive are those who can eat, know how to eat, and are good at eating." Xie Ruheng calmly stated the cruel truth.

"Pickling out edible garbage is also a skill. Picking out food residues, heating it at high temperature, adding seasonings..." As if recalling something, he frowned slightly and picked out a matcha macaron from the dessert bag that Tang Bai gave him.

Through the black gloves, he couldn't perfectly feel the touch of this exquisite little thing, but the dark green color with a faint sheen and the pleats on the cake like the hem of a lace skirt all hinted at its deliciousness.

She slightly opened her light-colored thin lips and swallowed the high-sugar dessert in one gulp. The overly sweet taste perfectly covered up the rotten smell of the food in her memory.

The tip of his scarlet tongue slowly licked the food residue on his pale teeth. Xie Ruheng commented, "It tastes good."

Huh? Is Xie Ruheng also a sweet tooth?

Tang Bai observed Xie Ruheng's expression with sparkling eyes. After confirming that there was not a trace of reluctance on his face, he said happily: "Then I will make you a dessert with this sweetness next time~"

The setting sun shone on Tang Bai through the car window, as if giving him a layer of golden edges that were out of tune with everything he saw.

With the tip of his tongue pressed against his canine teeth, Xie Ruheng stared at Tang Bai steadily. He suddenly wanted to eat something again. What was surging in his heart was the long-lost hunger, the hunger that had permeated almost his entire childhood.

Children in slums are always hungry. Even Xie Ruheng went hungry for a long time when he was a child.

During that time, he always felt that there was a mouse living in his heart, gnawing at his body in endless hunger.

Prolonged hunger can drive people crazy. Extremely hungry children don't care about what is decent. They are like rats in a stinky sewer, searching for food everywhere. But even if they are digging for food in the garbage dump, those edible meat scraps, moldy bread... are precious foods that cannot be snatched away at will.

When mice are extremely hungry, they will even attack prey that is stronger than themselves with red eyes.

That time, Xie Ruheng, who had been hungry for two days, wanted to break into a store to steal.

He saw a cat through the glass, lying on a rocking chair. He didn't know what rare breed of cat it was, but the cat had fluffy snow-white fur, pink paw pads, and a bow tied around its neck.

At the same time, he also saw his own reflection in the glass window.

Comparing the two, the superiority and inferiority are self-evident.

A cat can live better than him.

This realization made the rat in Xie Ruheng's heart stir again, gnawing at his heart again and again, full of bloody, negative emotions that were too shameful to be seen.

Xie Ruheng once thought that he was feeling hatred at that time, but until this moment, when he looked at the omega in front of him with a cat-like demeanor, he realized that he had an instinctive desire and obsession for people or things with this kind of attitude.

I'm so hungry...