The Lost Omega Heiress is Pregnant with My Child - Chapter 23

Put it on for me now.

But I had temporarily marked her and promised to protect her, to treat her well, to stay together no matter what happened.

They had come to the border hospital for a better life.

Now things had turned out this way, Shi Anzhi had never anticipated it.

Shi Anzhi remained silent for half a minute. She stayed not because she owed Shen Tingxue anything, but because she still held love for Nian Xue in her heart.

That suffocating feeling surged within her once again.

Seeing Shi Anzhi silent, Teng Ying sighed quietly. “Do as you please. But let me remind you, Ding Sha.”

Before she could finish, Teng Ying’s voice abruptly vanished.

Shi Anzhi glanced at her terminal screen, it had gone completely black.

In this world, the upper-class elites underwent neural interface implantation surgeries, essentially embedding communication devices that allowed direct thought-based communication and holographic projections in their minds. Only the impoverished in the slums still used telephones.

Her physical terminal was a secondhand device bought from a flea market. The intense radiation in Zone R severely interfered with electromagnetic signals, making terminal connections highly unstable.

But for it to suddenly black out like this was a first.

Shi Anzhi stared at the screen, guessing it was due to the outdated model. Moreover, residents of Zone R weren’t even eligible to access the Special Zone’s official high-speed network.

She resignedly set the terminal aside.

The house fell back into dead silence.

＊

Early in the morning, Shen Tingxue was summoned by her mother to the old mansion for a meal. Dining was just a pretext probing and pressuring her were the real intentions.

Shen Tingxue was already weary of such days.

She had just sat down and taken a few bites when Yan Ni spoke up anxiously, “Now that the entire public knows about your engagement to Jiang Qi, I’m worried something unexpected might happen.”

Shen Tingxue calmly spread blueberry jam, waiting for her mother to continue.

“Those lessons, do you still remember them?”

Yan Ni set down her fork and looked at Shen Tingxue. “With the wedding approaching, I’ll have Mrs. Fen come over a few more times. Make sure you review properly.”

At this, Shen Tingxue couldn’t help but laugh.

She forked a piece of scrambled egg and ate it, offering no immediate response to Yan Ni’s words.

Sometimes she didn’t understand how her mother had become like this.

As a child, Yan Ni had forced her to study pharmacology with extreme rigor. From a young age, Shen Tingxue had spent more time in the laboratory than anyone else in the Shen Corporation, and testing drugs on herself was commonplace.

It was arduous, but Shen Tingxue accepted it willingly. To inherit the Shen family’s wealth, she ought to learn these things.

But later, Yan Ni gradually changed. She began to resent her daughter’s Omega identity and wanted to bear an Alpha to please Shen Hong. Unfortunately, she had difficulty conceiving, which was why Shen Tingxue never had a younger sibling.

Yan Ni seemed possessed sometimes fragile, sometimes cold, sometimes obsessive. She no longer spoke of “taking Mom away with you when you’re strong,” but instead stood by Shen Hong’s side, endorsing his theory of Alpha superiority. She demanded that Shen Tingxue be an obedient and understanding Omega, even deliberately undermining her authority.

At first, Shen Tingxue tried to awaken her mother, but she soon realized it was impossible.

When Yan Ni brought in Mrs. Fen for “lessons,” Shen Tingxue understood with despair that her mother was already “dead.”

Now, her plans were at a critical juncture. She had long given up hope that her mother would ever return to normal.

She didn’t consider herself and Yan Ni to be allies.

With complex emotions, she attended those lessons partly to avoid arousing Yan Ni’s suspicion, and partly out of genuine curiosity about what kind of existence she had become in Yan Ni’s mind.

Her mother, obsessed with power and status, treated her as a pawn to exchange for influence. To please her future husband, she had actually come up with such a method.

She was astounded.

When she had been stranded in the slums, her memories were chaotic, her mind regressed. Looking back on the dreams from that time, Shen Tingxue realized how deeply she had feared all of this.

The fear of being abandoned by her mother, the fate of becoming a plaything.

Fortunately, she was not Nian Xue.

She was Shen Tingxue.

Shen Tingxue’s face showed no expression. At times, she wondered if Yan Ni was deliberately trying to provoke her, only to then use her pain to comfort herself.

So she would never show any vulnerability in front of Yan Ni.

“No need, Mother,” Shen Tingxue said, suppressing her emotions. “The Super Alpha Project is under tight deadlines. The Governor’s Office is pressing hard, and I truly don’t have time for such lessons.”

Yan Ni frowned, as if about to say something.

Shen Tingxue interrupted, “Where is Father? I haven’t seen him.”

“He went to the laboratory,” Yan Ni mentioned. “Last night, the researchers reported the death of Test Subject No. 13. He rushed to the lab as soon as he woke up this morning.”

Shen Tingxue’s heart tightened. “Such a minor matter, I could have handled it. Why did Father go personally?”

“The Governor lashed out at him again,” Yan Ni said, her expression darkening with resentment. “I hope that once the research succeeds, our Shen family will no longer have to live under someone else’s thumb.”

Shen Tingxue wiped her mouth, said nothing more, and stood up. “I’ll go to the lab to see what’s happening.”

On her way to the laboratory, Shen Tingxue attempted to retrieve Shen Hong’s latest medical report.

She communicated with Chu Yi in her mind.

[How long has Father been here?]

Chu Yi replied quickly.

[Miss, nearly half an hour.]

Shen Tingxue pondered. Shen Hong would soon experience physical discomfort, how dare that old man still go to the lab in person.

A year ago, she had begun laying the groundwork for her own plan. To prevent Shen Hong from interfering, she had given him something.

She had developed a gene-specific allergen targeting only Shen Hong, releasing it through the lab’s air circulation system. The dosage was extremely small, ensuring it would not be detected.

As long as he stayed in the lab, the allergen would first attack Shen Hong’s respiratory system, then cause capillary dilation and mucosal edema.

With numerous chemicals in the laboratory, tracing the source was extremely difficult. Shen Tingxue had also bribed Shen Hong’s personal physician to mislead him into believing he was allergic to the material of the protective suits.

After passing through several layers of security codes, she donned the highest-level sterile protective suit, walked through a long protective corridor, and stood before a thick pane of isolation glass.

Shen Hong, also in a protective suit, was already there, discussing something with the researchers.

On the other side of the glass was the core experimental area.

Several burly Alpha test subjects were restrained in specially designed chairs, connected to countless tubes, their expressions pained.

Upon seeing Shen Tingxue, a researcher reported, “Miss, Test Subject No. 13 died last night due to gland overload.”

Shen Hong stared at the data screen on the glass wall, his brow furrowed, his tone irritable. “The effectiveness of the S-3 Stabilizer is getting worse!”

He turned his head, scrutinizing Shen Tingxue. “Tingxue, when exactly will the S-4 model you’re leading produce results?”

“Father, you know that research at this level of genetic agents can’t be rushed.”

Shen Tingxue’s voice remained calm as she responded, “Every failure consumes Alpha embryos worth hundreds of millions and a complete set of top-tier prosthetics. The current progress is already quite fast.”

Somehow, Shen Hong had started feeling short of breath every time he visited the lab lately. Hearing this familiar excuse, his voice suddenly rose sharply: “I don’t care what methods you use!”

“The wedding date is approaching soon. Before then, you must deliver a finished product that will satisfy the Governor.”

“Otherwise, you’re well aware of the consequences, the Shen family cannot bear them.”

Shen Tingxue quietly watched Shen Hong’s face, her expression concerned. “Father, your neck is turning red again.”

Hearing this, Shen Hong scratched his increasingly itchy neck and muttered vaguely, “I’m getting old.”

“Father, your health is what matters most.”

Shen Tingxue softened her voice, her eyes filled with genuine-looking concern. “Leave everything here to me.”

Shen Hong stared at Shen Tingxue for a long time before speaking, seemingly with heartfelt sincerity. “Alright, Tingxue. You’ve grown up. Don’t let me down.”

After saying this, he could no longer endure his physical discomfort and hurriedly left.

Seeing Shen Hong off, Shen Tingxue let out a sigh of relief.

She spent the entire morning immersed in the lab. Having been away for so long, she now needed to personally oversee every aspect of progress. Besides monitoring the project, she also had to assess whether any of her subordinates had ulterior motives.

What she was doing was no different from snatching chestnuts from the fire not a single step could be taken lightly.

In the afternoon, she received a communication from Yu Yiyang.

[Tingxue, you’re back! So glad you’re safe. It’s my birthday tonight will you come?]

Yu Yiyang was the eldest daughter of the Yu family, which controlled the empire’s largest entertainment and media conglomerate. Skilled at manipulating news and entertainment, the Yu family nevertheless held no real power or influence. In the Special Zone where strength ruled, they had to play both sides.

Yu Yiyang was considered a prominent socialite in the Special Zone. Shen Tingxue needed her help to build momentum and gather intelligence, so they maintained contact.

Theirs wasn’t exactly a friendship.

[By the way, Li Mei will be there too,] Yu Yiyang reminded.

Shen Tingxue stared at the message.

This birthday party, while framed as a gathering, felt more like an excuse for the Special Zone’s wealthy circles to assess her current situation and gauge the Shen family’s standing.

Tossing the documents aside, she realized she’d been under intense stress for too long and suddenly missed A Beibei.

Opening the holographic screen, she checked on the situation at home.

Shi Anzhi was tinkering with the terminal. Soon, a notification chimed in her mind.

[New call intercepted.]

Eavesdropping on Shi Anzhi’s calls was almost too simple for her just a casual side task. After a moment’s thought, she began playback.

She half-listened to the conversation between Shi Anzhi and Xiao Qu, occasionally zoning out while following Shi Anzhi’s tone.

In her memory, that dog was yellow, quite ordinary-looking neither particularly loyal nor protective. Not very useful to keep. Why did Shi Anzhi like it so much?

Later, the person answering the call changed to Teng Ying.

Shen Tingxue also looked up, listening carefully. She didn’t have a favorable impression of this doctor.

Back in her youth, she’d visited revelry clubs with a group of wealthy, spoiled heirs. Compared to the Special Zone’s boxing matches, the ones in District R were far more thrilling designed to thrill wealthy patrons like them, they pushed everything to life-or-death extremes.

She remembered that the winner of that night’s match had a prize of one million credits. Yet the time Anzhi won, she barely received fifty thousand.

Who knew how much Teng Ying, as the middleman, had skimmed off the top.

When she heard Teng Ying claim that she was the one who had taken the necklace, Shen Tingxue let out a cold laugh. So that was why her necklace ended up in Ding Sha’s hands Anzhi had simply skipped over the part where Teng Ying took it.

Only a fool like Anzhi would willingly let Teng Ying leech off her like that.

Anzhi was so skilled in combat if she had used force to threaten Teng Ying, that slick middleman, she could have thrived in District R. But she probably never even considered it.

Hearing Teng Ying talk about wanting Anzhi to return, she began to pull herself out of her indifferent state.

“Can I even go back now?”

Shen Tingxue abruptly zoomed in on Anzhi’s expression on the screen. One second, two seconds she stared intently.

Did Anzhi want to leave?

Impossible.

She saw a flicker of pain, helplessness, and hesitation cross Anzhi’s face. That hesitation disgusted her. She cut off the communication signal in the room, shutting Teng Ying out of their world.

She hadn’t even settled things with Teng Ying yet.

With the signal gone, Anzhi looked momentarily lost, staring at the terminal.

Shen Tingxue continued watching Anzhi, calming her own emotions.

Remembering last night’s plan to take Anzhii shopping for clothes, she connected to the smart assistant and activated the task in advance.

In the bedroom, the silent space was filled with sound once more.

Blue data streams exploded again. For the first time, a lifelike holographic projection of the smart assistant appeared before Anzhi only the upper body, with features subtly resembling Shen Tingxue’s but with short hair.

Anzhi stared at that face for a few seconds, stunned.

[Miss An, hello. I am Miss’s personal smart assistant, Xiao Yu,] Xiao Yu said with a smile.

[Miss has asked me to select clothes for you.]

As she spoke, Xiao Yu projected a massive virtual wardrobe in front of her. [What style do you prefer?]

Anzhi looked at the comfortable, clearly expensive clothes before her. “I…”

She remembered the dress she bought for Nian Xue in District R that style was considered rare even in the slums. So this was the kind of life Shen Tingxue used to live?

A virtual wardrobe. The gap was so vast she could hardly imagine it.

“I don’t need any,” she said.

[This is Miss’s order,] Xiao Yu tilted her head.

[As someone belonging to Miss, your appearance also represents her dignity.]

Anzhi’s heart felt as if pricked by something.

Her eyelashes trembled slightly. “Then, something simple will do.”

[Understood,] Xiao Yu nodded.

[Now, I will activate the fitting mode for you.]

As soon as she finished speaking, the entire room was surrounded by screens, enveloping Anzhi. A blue beam scanned her body, and the next second, a three-dimensional holographic image matching her figure appeared in the center of the room.

[Body data scan complete. Now, please select your preferred style.]

Countless outfits began rapidly changing on the holographic figure like a slideshow.

Perhaps because Anzhi remained silent, Xiao Yu automatically selected over a dozen outfits casual wear, work clothes, suits, pajamas, and more.

But the last set was distinctly different.

The upper body was a pure black silk shirt with a slightly low neckline, revealing a generous expanse of collarbone and chest. The cuffs resembled retro lantern sleeves, tightly cinched at the wrists with silver chains.

The lower body consisted of form-fitting leather shorts that hugged the skin up to the upper thighs, accentuating the long, slender lines of her legs. On her feet were a pair of black lace-up combat boots.

Shi Anzhi couldn’t help but find the outfit peculiar. Though the materials leaned toward a cold, rigid aesthetic, the generous exposure of skin and the restraining silver chains lent the ensemble a somewhat erotic undertone.

She had never seen anyone dress like this in the R District. Frowning slightly, she said, “I don’t need the last set.”

Xiao Yu seemed to ignore her words as a voice chimed in.

[All styles confirmed. Connecting to the molecular printer and aerial orbital drone. Estimated delivery in half an hour. Please be ready to receive.]

Shi Anzhi pressed her lips together and muttered a quiet “thank you.”

She added, “Hello, I don’t need the last set. Please don’t print it.”

Shen Tingxue had been watching Shi Anzhi the entire time. She had selected all the outfits herself, the first dozen or so based on Shi Anzhi’s usual style, and the last one as her own personal indulgence.

Seeing Shi Anzhi’s bewildered expression, she couldn’t help but laugh, feeling a wave of relief wash over her.

Reconnecting to the Shen family’s signal, she transmitted a message to Shi Anzhi: “I’m the one who wants you to wear it.”

“Shi Anzhi, put it on for me now.”

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