Ming Jiao quickly passed the inspection and picked up her pace to catch up. The moment she stepped inside, she saw the Alpha securely cuffed to the interrogation chair.
She recognized this specific model. It was custom made for Alphas, engineered not only to shackle their hands and feet, but also equipped with a specialized device built into the distinctly high backrest to lock down the Alpha’s gland.
The gland was an Alpha’s most vulnerable weakness, no Alpha forced into this chair ever had an easy time. Yet, the Alpha sitting there right now looked completely unfazed, showing not even a flicker of pain.
Standing at the back of the crowd, Ming Jiao locked eyes with the prisoner from a distance. For a split second, she felt as though she caught a glimpse of an unusual mix of excitement and surprise in the other person’s gaze.
Hmm?
Ming Jiao knitted her brows and focused her gaze, but the prisoner’s expression had already reverted to its usual composure. That fleeting flash of anomaly almost felt like a figment of Ming Jiao’s own imagination.
However, she trusted her eyes. That momentary slip was absolutely not her mind playing tricks on her. This prison trip was proving to be far from simple.
Over on the other side, Lin Wanshuang had finished a brief briefing with Dr. Hu. Soon after, Yu Xiu and Dr. Hu began setting up the preliminary equipment for pheromone sampling, while Lin Wanshuang prepared to confront this “piece of meat on the chopping block.”
It was exceptionally quiet inside the isolated ward. Aside from the occasional clinking of equipment as Yu Xiu and Dr. Hu prepared their materials, the only remaining sound was the rustle of the protective suit fabric as Lin Wanshuang moved around.
Lin Wanshuang didn’t give the high-risk convict any extra sentimentality. Cold and detached, she surveyed the prisoner from head to toe as if evaluating a mere object.
Next to the interrogation chair sat a small utility cart holding basic medical instruments, all neatly arranged without any signs of prior use.
Lin Wanshuang picked up a compact detection device and pressed the button. A few seconds later, the display read 0% for pheromone levels in the area.
Spotless.
Turning over her hand, Lin Wanshuang passed the detector back to Ming Jiao, smoothly taking the notebook and pen from her instead to write down her observations one by one.
“An A-grade Omega truly lives up to the reputation. Not only is your pheromone level high, but you’re also beautiful,” the convict in the interrogation chair spoke, uttering their first words.
Lin Wanshuang acted as if she hadn’t heard a thing, remaining fully focused on writing notes in her book.
In contrast, Ming Jiao, who had been standing quietly off to the side, took a slightly anxious step forward, only to freeze up and force herself to step right back.
“Little sweet Omega, are you just like the others? Getting so shy that you refuse to speak?”
“Who put you in here?” Lin Wanshuang’s question shot out almost immediately after the prisoner finished speaking, leaving absolutely no time for the other party to think.
The Alpha looked momentarily stunned. “What?”
Lin Wanshuang walked up to the Alpha, using one hand to grip the prisoner’s jaw and force their mouth open. Inspecting it, she said, “You can’t see my identity bracelet, yet you determined instantly that I am an Omega. That means you must have seen me before or rather, you’ve seen my photograph.”
“They said you somehow found out the leader of this sampling team is an A-grade Omega. The person who put you in here was the one who told you that, wasn’t it?”
The skin beneath the Alpha’s eyes twitched slightly. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I just heard it from a prison guard.”
Lin Wanshuang recorded the condition of the prisoner’s oral cavity. Letting out a soft chuckle, she pulled up the prisoner’s eyelids to examine the eyeballs. “Prison guards don’t casually chat with high-risk convicts. You’re getting her into trouble.”
“I just happened to overhear the guards talking!”
“Wow, you’re actually explaining on behalf of a prison guard.” Lin Wanshuang systematically completed her physical examination of the Alpha, then stepped around to stand behind the chair. “I assumed a high-risk convict like you would harbor an equal hatred for every single guard. It turns out you have a favorite.”
“Who is it? Who managed to earn your favor?”
As her voice trailed off, Lin Wanshuang clicked open the buckle securing the back of the prisoner’s neck. She then forcefully shoved the Alpha’s head downward, exposing the most fragile area, the gland, under the cold, pale light.
Skin condition: normal. Gland condition, normal.
For a B-grade Alpha to perfectly control their pheromones without letting a single trace leak out, entirely unassisted by external forces…
This level of control was not something an ordinary high-risk convict could possess.
“Did the person who sent you all in here fail to mention one thing, that I am very smart?”