YPSSS Chapter 10

When it came to researching topics he didn’t understand, Xia Shiruan had always been a man of action.

The next day, he grabbed his bag and umbrella, threw on a thin UV protection jacket, and headed toward the museum following the subway map.

The weather was still quite hot with strong sunlight. Despite Xia Shiruan’s careful sun protection, by the time he nearly reached the subway station, he could feel his forearms burning from the sunlight.

He let out a soft sigh and pulled his UV jacket up a bit higher.

It seemed his body had indeed undergone some changes after his presentation. It wasn’t just his imagination.

Because it was summer break, everywhere was crowded. Even though he had applied plenty of medical suppressants before leaving, he could still clearly distinguish the various scents around him.

The subway was packed with people. Within just five minutes of entering, Xia Shiruan had already picked up the scents of hotpot, watermelon, candy, lettuce…

The scents of food were still bearable, but some of the stranger ones made it impossible not to look around.

Xia Shiruan had always been a steady person. In the past, he rarely engaged in behaviors like looking around or secretly observing strangers in public places. But ever since gaining these new instincts, despite his best efforts to control himself, he often found it difficult to resist.

For instance, right now, he was extremely curious about what the owner of that hot and sour noodle pheromone looked like…

After much hesitation, Xia Shiruan lifted his head and pretended to casually glance in the direction of the scent—

Only to meet a pair of round eyes staring at him without blinking.

Xia Shiruan was startled, his eyes widening. If the train car hadn’t been so crowded, he might have jumped back several steps!

The owner of those eyes was a tall young man wearing a black face mask that revealed only his eyes. Seeing Xia Shiruan’s dramatic reaction, he froze for a second before breaking into a smile that made his round eyes crinkle. He stepped closer to Xia Shiruan and asked with amusement in his voice, “You’re Xia Shiruan, right?”

As he got closer, that hot and sour noodle scent grew stronger, but thanks to the medical suppressants, while Xia Shiruan could identify the scent, he didn’t find it unpleasant.

Xia Shiruan was stunned, unsure how this person knew him. He nodded and said, “Yes, and you are…?”

Before he could finish, the young man pulled down his mask, revealing a bright, handsome face. He grinned widely and said, “It’s me, Chen Rongxin! Ruan-ge, don’t tell me you don’t remember me!”

Even if he could ignore that familiar set of perfect white teeth, that energetic cry of “Ruan-ge” was unmistakable.

Xia Shiruan searched his memories for a few seconds before finally recalling a small bald kid who loved wearing floral shirts.

During some summers in the past, that kid had always followed him and Xie Ji around.

In his memory, that child had been quite the crybaby and rather short. In fact, except for his loud voice, nothing matched up with the tall, slim Alpha with the hot and sour noodle scent standing before him.

“You’re… Xiao Xin?” Xia Shiruan asked.

“Who else would I be?” Chen Rongxin touched his somewhat flashy ponytail and smiled, “You finally remembered me!”

Xia Shiruan nodded very slowly, still somewhat dazed.

Chen Rongxin was as familiar as ever. Once he realized Xia Shiruan remembered him, he pushed through the crowd to squeeze next to him, talking non-stop.

He first mentioned that he’d been attending a military boarding high school these past few years and was about to start university. Then he mentioned seeing Xia Shiruan at a game release event recently, which was why he recognized him right away today, but he didn’t dare to confirm it since Xia Shiruan had kept his head down.

“But Ruan-ge,” Chen Rongxin said after rambling for a while, noticing Xia Shiruan’s lack of reaction, he couldn’t help but bring up something that had always puzzled him. “why did you stop hanging out with Xie-ge later?”

This had always been something Chen Rongxin was curious about.

During those summer breaks when Xie Ji and Xia Shiruan spent time together, Chen Rongxin had been their regular companion whenever they went out.

Back then, he had been clumsy and cried easily, so no one wanted to play with him, and even the newcomer Xie Ji had made him cry. It wasn’t until Xia Shiruan actively included Chen Rongxin, who had been poking at bugs by the roadside, during one of their outings that they all became close.

But then Xia Shiruan suddenly disappeared.

Xia Shiruan thought for a moment and answered truthfully, “Xie Ji stopped looking for me.”

Xia Shiruan had never been the type to actively maintain relationships. When Xie Ji stopped paying attention to him, he never met with Chen Rongxin alone again either.

“Huh?” Chen Rongxin’s mouth fell open in surprise. After a while, he awkwardly mumbled, “Oh, I see.”

They both fell silent, unsure what to say next.

The once small and skinny kid who always had a runny nose had now presented into an Alpha, half a head taller than Xia Shiruan. Neither of them quite knew how to handle this change.

Perhaps because he had presented into an Omega, Xia Shiruan felt an instinctive resistance toward unfamiliar Alphas. He stepped back slightly, gave Chen Rongxin a polite smile, and lowered his head.

From Chen Rongxin’s angle, he could see the slender, pale curve of his neck.

“Ruan-ge,” Chen Rongxin suddenly remembered something and asked, “So you really presented into a Beta?”

Xia Shiruan was caught off guard by the question. The reflexive “yes” almost left his mouth before he suddenly realized that answer had stopped being true three days ago.

Just as he was wondering how to respond without shocking the other person, Chen Rongxin continued on his own. “You’re really amazing! A Beta getting into the Department of Particle Physics at Science University, that news spread all the way to my neighborhood! My parents lectured me about it for ages, telling me to learn from you.”

Xia Shiruan smiled and said, “It’s not that impressive.”

“It totally is!”

The earlier awkwardness completely disappeared as Chen Rongxin started chattering again, continuing until they reached Xia Shiruan’s stop.

A ding sounded in the train car, and Xia Shiruan came back to his senses, and said he needed to get off.

“Where are you going?” Chen Rongxin glanced at the station name and asked, “Central District? Going to see a movie?”

This area was called Central District, and besides the museum, it had quite a few restaurants and shopping areas, as well as movie theaters.

Xia Shiruan paused for a moment before saying, “Mm.”

Chen Rongxin nodded and waved good-naturedly, “Alright then, see you next time, Ruan-ge.”

–

Before entering, Xia Shiruan couldn’t help but wonder why such a large, luxurious museum located in the bustling downtown area was so quiet. Aside from him, there seemed to be almost no one else visiting.

He only encountered a couple while buying tickets. They seemed surprised to see him alone, whispering to each other while glancing his way.

A friendly female staff member promptly came out to receive the three of them, enthusiastically guiding them through the museum while introducing the models displayed in glass cases.

The glass cases were transparent and elegant, with tall bases and soft lighting inside.

Each model had a bilingual plaque that provided detailed information about its significance.

“This is a needle model of the first successfully presented Alpha in human history, made at a one-to-twenty scale,” the staff member explained in a light, sweet voice. “Notice this particular feature. It’s different not only from Betas but also from most modern-day Alphas.”

The couple who entered with Xia Shiruan was an Alpha and an Omega. They seemed bored, yawning as they listened to information they had probably heard a hundred times in their school’s biology classes.

In contrast, Xia Shiruan stood out by listening attentively while taking notes on his phone.

At the third model, Xia Shiruan asked politely, “is it okay to take photos?”

“Oh, yes, of course.”

Xia Shiruan snapped a photo with his phone and then raised his hand again. “Excuse me, I have a question.”

“Yes? What is it?” the staff member responded.

Checking his notes, Xia Shiruan asked, “You mentioned this was the first successful Alpha presentation. Does that mean there were unsuccessful cases before?”

The couple stared at him as if he were an alien, probably wondering why anyone would come alone to such a place and earnestly take notes and ask questions as if it were a serious academic pursuit.

The staff member was surprised but quickly composed herself. “Oh, absolutely! Evolution doesn’t happen overnight. In fact, archaeologists have proven that pheromones existed before the first officially recognized Alpha appeared.”

Encouraged by his questions, the staff member became noticeably more animated in her subsequent explanations, going into such detail that the couple grew impatient. Finally, they couldn’t help but ask, “When can we enter the experience hall?”

The staff member paused, giving them a knowing look before saying, “Alright, we’ve covered most of this. Please follow me.”

The couple finally perked up, their faces full of anticipation as if they were getting to the main event.

Xia Shiruan couldn’t help but glance at them.

Something felt off.

This sense of unease wasn’t explained until he sat in the space capsule simulator and had a life-sized, muscular Alpha model spread his legs while pressing down on him…

The electrode patches attached to his temples supposedly simulated over 40% of the excitement an Omega feels when being marked during heat. Xia Shiruan felt an electric current shoot from his spine to his gland, and then his entire body went numb.

He thought a 3D educational science museum would at most feature 3D models. Never did he imagine that this so-called “education” would actually be hands-on physical experience.

Seriously, was this really necessary??