Chapter 9
Qin Yao believed he was not a pervert, but this time, he might have actually been tempted by the momentarily lingering pheromones.
It was just a brief moment of distraction, then he immediately became serious: “There’s no way there could be an omega student here. If an omega’s pheromones were leaked, we need to report it to the school.”
Zhang Wenyi had just blurted out his observation subconsciously, and he wasn’t even certain that the scent he detected was truly from an omega’s pheromones.
There are no omega students in the alpha university, and the omega faculty members who are married have all mated. If there was truly an omega student going into heat on campus, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Reporting the situation to the school, the two of them then went to find Professor Yan.
“This is the list for the meeting later.” Standing in front of the desk, Yan Hao crossed his arms, then placed one hand down to push the list on the desk towards the two students: “The School of Business has the most internship positions, so you don’t need to attend too many of the meetings this afternoon. I’ve signed your names up.”
“What is this meeting for?” Zhang Wenyi picked up the list, seeing that there were only about 20-odd people, with one or two students from each college.
“The internships will start next week, and the school is preparing to assign tasks according to the company’s requirements,” Yan Hao raised an eyelid to look at Qin Yao: “The company is your family’s, so it’s more convenient to let you take the lead as the group leader.”
Qin Yao chuckled: “Professor Yan, even though Qin Sr. is my father, you know he’s never given me any special treatment.”
Yan Hao sat back down in his chair, closing his eyes to rest: “Who said this is giving you special treatment? Letting you be the group leader is my idea, Zhang Wenyi will be the deputy group leader to assist you.”
“What does my father think?” Qin Yao took the list and put it away.
Yan Hao opened one eye to glance at him, then closed it again: “How many more questions do you have? Being the group leader is my decision, do you have a problem with it?”
“No problem.” Qin Yao still had that faint smile-like expression, though he understood Yan Hao’s intention. His father’s company was the one he was most familiar with, so having him lead the group of interns would save a lot of trouble.
It’s just that Qin Yao generally didn’t like being given tasks, and if it weren’t for wanting to maintain a good relationship with Professor Yan, who was on good terms with his father, he really wouldn’t want to take on the troublesome position of group leader.
After all, who would want to be a free ox?
…
At noon, Bai He received a message from Secretary Li, saying that there was an internship meeting in the afternoon, and he needed to attend.
The School of Ideological and Political Sciences only had him as the student assigned for the internship, so naturally, he was the only one going to this meeting.
He simply dealt with his lunch, sitting on the sofa to check information. The place he would be interning at was the leading company in S City, Jinyu. The name might give the impression of a gem-related business, but in fact, it was a massive technology company, with departments beyond just technology, also developing real estate, games, and other branches.
As an intern from the School of Ideological and Political Sciences, Bai He’s assigned department definitely wouldn’t be any of those. His major was not a match.
Secretary Li didn’t clearly specify which department Bai He would be assigned to, only telling him to prepare.
The employment prospects for Ideological and Political Sciences are broad but relatively singular. Bai He was unsure if in this world, the Ideological and Political Sciences major would be the same as in his previous world. The political system in this world must have differences, as the human genders were not just divided into male and female, but an ABO world, with six true gender types: male alpha, female alpha, male beta, female beta, male omega, and female omega.
With several additional gender types, the political system could not possibly be identical to his previous world, so the Ideological and Political Sciences major might play a role in more areas.
Putting down his phone, Bai He rubbed his neck. He was feeling rather sleepy at the moment, and looked at the time – there were still over two hours until the 4 pm meeting.
He dragged his body to the room, intending to rest a bit.
His condition today was strange. Bai He knew he was physically weak, but not to the point of feeling this drowsy. He set an alarm for 3:30 pm, but when it went off, he didn’t even want to get up.
He was still very sleepy, and a bit dry-mouthed.
Bai He sat up and massaged his aching neck. His body felt devoid of strength, so he slowly got up to get a glass of water.
Checking the time, it was almost time for the meeting. Bai He didn’t want to walk over, as he felt so weak and limp, without any motivation to move.
He took a taxi and arrived at the large lecture hall just as the meeting was starting. The front row was already occupied by about 20 students, and Bai He, facing the gazes of the others, found a seat in the corner.
More students trickled in, and once everyone was present, the Vice President in charge of the meeting began to speak.
The content was nothing out of the ordinary. After the Vice President finished, the responsible teacher explained the internship work details. When it came to the School of Ideological and Political Sciences, the teacher paused for two seconds, then raised his head to scan the audience: “Where is the intern from the School of Ideological and Political Sciences?”
Bai He lifted his eyelids, putting down his pen and raising his hand slightly. The teacher on the podium looked at him: “You’re a beta?”
The surrounding students all turned to look at him. Bai He furrowed his brow and nodded.
The teacher pondered for a moment, then leaned over to whisper a few words to the Vice President. He then turned back to Bai He: “We won’t go into the details of your internship work here. We’ll discuss it privately after the meeting.”
There were murmurs in the audience. Bai He’s brow furrowed deeper. This invisible atmosphere in the air made him very uncomfortable. He had actually sensed many subtle things earlier.
On the surface, everyone interacted harmoniously, and the media constantly emphasized ABO equality, seemingly having no gender discrimination. But the underlying prejudice and discrimination still existed.
He didn’t know why some people always looked at others with a superior attitude. Where did this sense of superiority come from? The biases hidden in various aspects really irked Bai He.
“Teacher.” A lazy voice interrupted the alpha teacher who was about to continue speaking. The owner of the voice drawled: “What can’t be said now? Why does it have to be private?”
Bai He looked towards the source, finding it was Qin Yao.
The alpha’s stature was unusually tall, standing out among the other alphas. Even sitting, his long legs seemed cramped.
Qin Yao’s words made the teacher on the podium furrow his brow. The Vice President beside him chuckled amiably as he took over: “For the Ideological and Political Sciences major, there are some confidential company department-related contents that we can’t disclose here.”
The Vice President, a beta, smiled benevolently like the Maitreya Buddha, very able to win over the crowd: “Speaking of which, Qin Yao, you should know the department that can liaise with ‘the top’.”
Comprehending, Qin Yao nodded with a smile: “I do know a bit about that.”
“Well, then there’s no problem. Teacher, please continue.” The Vice Dean patted the teacher behind the podium, his demeanor still cheerful and unperturbed.
Bai He didn’t understand their conversation, but his phone next to his right hand moved a bit. He picked it up to look, finding a message from Qin Yao.
Insomniac: [The department he mentioned, the private discussion does need to be handled more appropriately.]
Bai He was taken aback. He looked up at the alpha sitting far away, and Qin Yao had already put down his phone, leaning back in the chair and casually chatting with the alpha beside him.
Bai He averted his gaze and looked at the message again.
Was he trying to explain something to him?
A strange feeling flashed through his mind, and the annoyance he had felt earlier dissipated a bit.
“Alright, we’ve told you all the details. The internships will start next week, students please prepare according to the requirements.” The speaking teacher picked up a water glass and took a sip, then checked the time: “As mentioned, the company has arranged personnel to provide work guidance at the club next to the school. Each college needs to send one or two students, and unless necessary, do not drink. Well then, Bai He, the private discussion will also be with the company department personnel, at the same club location.”
“That’s it for today, the meeting is adjourned.”
After the nearly two-hour meeting ended, Bai He stood up to leave, only to be called by someone behind him.
Qin Yao and another alpha approached: “Going to the club? Wanna go together?”
Bai He paused for two seconds, then nodded.
The club next to the school was quite formal. There was a bar-like zone, providing alcohol and karaoke, as well as a coffee shop reading area, and private rooms for business discussions. Being able to thrive so close to the school was largely due to its safety. The owner did not allow any illegal transactions, the management was very strict, and it had gained the favor of many students and teachers.
Entering through the main entrance, they explained their purpose at the front desk, and the receptionist gestured for them to go to the business discussion area on the left.
Along the way, Bai He saw several familiar faces, students he had seen in the meeting room. He found the room labeled with the School of Ideological and Political Sciences, greeted the two alphas behind him, and pushed the door to enter alone.
No one had arrived yet, so Bai He sat down and took out a small notebook to review study points.
Soon, the door opened, and a female student in formal attire walked in, carrying a stack of documents. Bai He stood up and greeted politely: “Hello.”
“Hello, hello, sorry for the delay.” The girl smiled at Bai He, gesturing for him to sit: “Please, have a seat.”
The two of them sat down facing each other, and the girl placed the thick stack of documents on the table, then picked up the menu: “What would you like to drink? I’ll treat you, as an apology for being late.”
Bai He was about to say no need, but paused and said: “Lemon water is fine.”
The girl nodded, scanning the QR code to place the order, then put down her phone and began to introduce herself: “Hello, I’m Xia You from the Government Affairs Department of Jinyu Company. We handle matters related to corporate-government relations, etc.”
Bai He caught the words “government” and “affairs”.
He politely nodded, reaching out to give a light handshake: “Hello, I’m Bai He, a junior student from the School of Ideological and Political Sciences.”
The girl released her hand, smiling: “I know you, you’ve been the top student in the Ideological and Political Sciences department these past few years, quite famous.”
Bai He smiled wryly: “You’re joking, those are just academic records, nothing special.”
He inwardly sighed, as those achievements were not his own, and the courteous words he was saying were also the truth.
“You’re so humble.” Xia You calmly regarded Bai He: “May I ask your gender?”
Another question about gender. Bai He’s discomfort increased a little, but he revealed no emotion: “Beta.”
“Hmm… not an alpha?” Xia You’s gaze locked onto Bai He’s face, her tone gentle, without any trace of prejudice, but Bai He disliked this topic, and even though he had his facial expressions under control, the fleeting displeasure was still captured by Xia You.
“Does the company discriminate against employees based on gender?” Bai He looked directly into Xia You’s eyes: “If so, then I’m afraid I’m not an alpha, and I don’t think gender is a factor in determining a person’s efforts and achievements. If the company prefers alphas, then I must say, your requirement is quite absurd.”
Xia You was silent for two seconds, then propped her chin and smiled: “I don’t know if other companies discriminate based on gender, but our company definitely doesn’t, otherwise President Qin would have to criticize us.”
The slightly irritated Bai He was taken aback.
“Sorry, the previous questioning was necessary.” Xia You wrote a few notes in her notebook, then looked up: “Let me reintroduce myself, I’m Xia You, an omega.”
The remorse in her eyes was genuine. The omega spoke slowly: “What we need are not just people with strong professional knowledge, as that is secondary. We need people with a strong inner core and correct social thinking.”
Bai He was perplexed, and Xia You continued to explain: “If your response to my previous question had shown any bias towards the three ABO types, such as ‘although I’m not an alpha, I’ll work hard to catch up to outstanding alphas,’ I would have immediately rejected your internship opportunity.”
Bai He’s eyelashes trembled. He now understood Xia You’s meaning.
Xia You smiled: “Of course, this is not a bias against alphas, just an example. Some people who think they are superior exist among all six ABO genders.” She spoke seriously: “I gave that example because the number of products our company produces and successfully launches is countless. But many products are criticized for violating ABO rights, which is where our department comes in to negotiate with the government.”
“Our products are definitely fine, but those criticisms come from all kinds of ridiculous reasons. For example, we produced a portable suppressor collar to help omegas reduce the pain and damage caused by the traditional suppressor needles on their glands. But someone stepped forward to say that the pheromone collar restricts the relationship establishment between alphas and omegas, and will lead to a decline in AO pairing rates, you know, the government always has reasons to claim that children born this way have stronger genes.”
“Think about it carefully, why do these rebuttals against our products arise? It’s simply because they’re harming the interests of certain self-righteous people.” Xia You tapped the pen on the notebook: “In this society, while it appears that everyone is equal, it is not so. The hidden hierarchy has already corroded the hearts of some people. Our products are fighting against this, so we can’t possibly hire people who already have those hierarchical mindsets.”
Bai He understood. He thought of the original owner. No matter how hard he studied, even if he was called a genius, as soon as his beta gender was mentioned, all his efforts seemed in vain. The beta gender, in this society, was like being labeled as mediocre, impossible to shake off.
“So am I considered to have passed the assessment now?” Bai He asked.
“Completely passed!” Xia You stretched her limbs, beaming joyfully: “I was even worried, if you hadn’t passed, we wouldn’t have any new hires, and without new hires, our department would be worked to death!”
The atmosphere relaxed, and the water he had ordered was just delivered. Bai He sipped the lemon water.
He paused, narrowing his eyes at the glass.
The taste was not like lemon water at all?
“Then let’s go over some things you need to pay attention to.” Xia You’s words brought Bai He back to his senses, and the taste of the lemon water was pushed to the back of his mind.
After about half an hour, the work guidance was completed. Bai He watched as Xia You hurriedly left. He lowered his head, realizing the lemon water in the glass had been unknowingly drained.
He felt a bit dizzy. Bai He gathered his belongings and left the private room, walking towards the club’s exit.
…
“Huh?” Qin Yao looked at the glass in his hand: “Why is this lemon water? Where’s the drink I ordered?”
He put down the glass and went to stand at the bar, reordering the low-alcohol drink, then returned to the high stool, noticing that Bai He had come out of the adjacent private room.
Bai He had his head lowered, his bangs covering his eyes. He seemed to be floating as he walked towards the club’s exit, then suddenly collided with the glass door.
Qin Yao: …?
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