When the Second Gender first awakened, the world was plunged into a long period of chaos. The monthly ruts and heats caused Alphas and Omegas immense suffering. Crime rates soared, and the relationship between Alphas and Omegas became fraught with tension.
Fortunately, with the passage of time and the advancement of technology, these special periods could now be stabilized with medication to occur only once a year. For the other eleven months, one could pass the time peacefully by taking suppressants in advance. However, doctors advised that to avoid violating natural physiological needs and damaging the glands, Alphas and Omegas should designate the time of their original onset as their annual special period and refrain from using drugs to suppress their needs during that time.
At the same time, they encouraged Alphas and Omegas to find suitable partners as soon as they reached adulthood. Through pheromones and an active adult life, they could smoothly navigate these special periods.
**I. Hua Yi**
"Xiao Yi, your rut is coming up soon. Don't forget to handle it."
One morning, Hua Yi managed to sleep in at her dormitory, not waking up until nine o'clock. When she picked up her phone, she saw a WeChat message from her mother.
No wonder she had been feeling irritable and fatigued lately. She hadn't been paying much attention to the date and had nearly forgotten about it.
Hua Yi had never felt a strong desire for intimate relationships. Her parents both worked in the legal profession—one focused on criminal law, the other on matrimonial disputes. Both were demanding fields filled with endless cases. Consequently, amidst her parents' constant overtime, Hua Yi had grown up seeing the files left on their desks. From a young age, she had witnessed the many complex facets of human nature.
She wasn't afraid of the hysterics or the dark crimes seen in court; instead, she felt a deep pity for the victims. Later, she saw someone at the courthouse gates—someone whose family had been destroyed by a killer, someone who had lost their mind and, despite appealing multiple times, had lost their case due to a lack of evidence. That person had collapsed on the ground, wailing in despair, heedless of the stares of others.
In that moment, Hua Yi knew what her dream in life should be. She understood the significance of her parents' work. Even though they were strict with her and lacked tenderness or the time to accompany her, she no longer harbored resentment. As she grew older, her personality became more like theirs: rational, upright, and detached from personal desires.
To help single Alphas and Omegas safely navigate their special periods, there were many agencies on the market that provided double-blind anonymous channels. These allowed individuals to soothe one another through pheromones delivered via small windows. Since one would inevitably be stained with the other's scent, which could affect their daily lives, the agencies provided providers—especially Omegas—with high compensation and absolute privacy protection.
Since Hua Yi reached adulthood, her parents had found a reliable agency for her, allowing her to contact them whenever the need arose.
During her first rut, the pheromones coming through the window had been tinged with fear and inexperience. But when she released her own scent—the cold, crisp fragrance of green bamboo—to convey her goodwill, the other person quickly calmed down. The other person's pheromones were also a light fragrance; Hua Yi always felt the scent was familiar, though she couldn't quite remember which plant it came from.
She had to admit she was satisfied with that experience. The other person was very gentle, and such gentleness was a rare treasure in her own home.
This year was her second rut, and she chose to return to the same agency.
"Hello, I would like to book a service for 10:00 AM the day after tomorrow. Please arrange a match as soon as possible."
Sometimes Hua Yi even thought that if she could solve the inherent problems of her gender this way for the rest of her life, without wasting time on relationships, it would be a very efficient choice. She only wanted to finish her studies as quickly as possible and start her internship at her parents' law firm, so she could bring a spark of hope back to the eyes of those who had lost it at the courthouse gates.
**II. Xie Bing**
Xie Bing’s first rut occurred on the eve of the College Entrance Exam.
In the deep mountains, everyone was closed-off and conservative. Rarely did anyone teach Xie Bing about such physiological matters. She had returned from school to her old house in the village to pack her things and prepare to leave the mountains for the exam. However, due to an abnormal irritability, she nearly got into a fight with a fellow villager she had been at odds with since childhood.
It was Xie Yun, a neighbor living next to her parents' former home, who happened to pass by and stop them.
Xie Yun was a very unique presence in the village. She was an Omega whose parents had been very loving. When she suddenly declared that she didn't want to start a new family or become a tool for reproduction and labor in someone else's house—that she preferred living alone—her parents hadn't blocked her. They respected her choice and protected her from the village gossip.
Unfortunately, while the two were up in the mountains cutting wood, they were caught in a mudslide and passed away. Without her parents' protection, Xie Yun grieved for a long time. Later, people advised her that if she was afraid of being lonely, she should find someone to marry while she was still young. She continued to refuse.
A single Omega was very conspicuous in the village. It was inevitable that some Alphas with nowhere to vent their desires would harbor ill intentions. It was Xie Bing who, unable to sleep one night, had gone outside to use the restroom and noticed the commotion next door. She rushed into Xie Yun’s house and saved her.
After that, Xie Yun often invited her over for meals. Although she wanted to help Xie Bing with her schooling, her parents' funeral expenses had exhausted her savings, leaving her with the will but not the means.
"Is your rut coming soon?" Xie Yun asked, smelling the unusually strong scent of autumn chrysanthemum in the air. She studied Xie Bing’s flushed face and frowned.
"Huh?" Xie Bing was still a bit dazed. She had only seen the term in her school’s physiology textbooks, but her school was small and had never offered the course; all spare time was used for core subjects.
"You’re about to turn eighteen, right? Alphas experience their first rut around this age. It lasts for seven days and needs to be handled properly." Xie Yun felt the situation was tricky.
"What should I do? The exam is almost here. I don't have a week to spare..." Xie Bing felt a chill in her heart. If she missed the most important exam of her life because of this, she would regret it for the rest of her days.
"Normally, your parents should have prepared measures for you in advance, using medication to adjust the timing. But..."
"But my parents died a long time ago," Xie Bing finished, lowering her head.
*No, I absolutely cannot miss the College Entrance Exam. This is the only chance I have in my life. If I lose it, I’ll never have the opportunity to leave these mountains, nor will I ever have the chance to get close to that person.*
"Auntie Yun, please help me. Is there any other way to deal with this rut?" She pleaded, clutching Xie Yun’s sleeve, desperate for an answer from her elder.
Xie Yun hesitated, a flicker of indecision crossing her face, which Xie Bing immediately caught.
"I’ll do anything. I can bear any price," she insisted.
Xie Yun sighed and brought a box of medicine from her room, placing it before Xie Bing.
"This is an emergency suppressant specifically for Alphas. Ever since that time... I’ve kept this at home. It should be able to delay your rut. But it might cause great harm to your body. If there are side effects..."
Xie Bing didn't wait for her to finish. She took the syringe and injected it directly into her gland.
"Auntie Yun, I don't care about any of that. I just want to take the exam and go to the world outside."
**III. Yu Tianwu**
Yu Tianwu was very aware that her rut was approaching. After all, it was something her family had been monitoring and anticipating.
Her parents were both A-list celebrities, consistently popular and considered a model couple in the industry. When she was very young, Yu Tianwu had followed them onto various parenting variety shows. Back then, she understood nothing; she was simply happy to be close to her parents. As long as she acted well-behaved, she would receive everyone’s love and praise, and her parents would treat her better.
It wasn't until she was about to start primary school that her grandparents requested her exposure be reduced so she could have a normal childhood. Only then did Yu Tianwu gradually fade from the media's view.
Six months ago, her family had already begun making arrangements for her rut.
"This is a photo of Director An’s son. He also turns eighteen this year. You two can get to know each other."
"Okay."
"Movie King Wang from my film crew has a younger brother. He’s about four years older than you, single, and very interested in you. Tianwu, do you want to add him on WeChat?"
"Okay."
"We were talking about you with CEO Qu at a banquet recently. You remember Uncle Qu, right? He visited us a few years ago and even held you. He mentioned his son will be an adult in another year and joked about our families becoming in-laws!"
"Is that so?"
"Father, Mother, you can arrange it. I’ll listen to you."
Yu Tianwu sat quietly to the side, a submissive smile on her face. If it was an Omega, it didn't matter who it was. It was nothing more than the mutual satisfaction of pheromones.
On the day Yu Tianwu’s rut officially broke out, she lay on her bed, feeling every emotion swelling, expanding toward the brink of explosion. She lay there mechanically, her soul floating in the air like a pitying God, watching the struggling body below.
The door was pushed open. Her Omega mother entered, leading a boy whose face was flushed red. As soon as the boy smelled the pheromones in the room, he instinctively released his own from his gland, entangling them with the scent of cold winter plum emanating from Yu Tianwu.
"Tianwu, this is Director An’s son. He’s liked you since he was little. These two days are his heat as well. You two children can spend them together. Remember to be gentle with Xiao An."
Her mother smiled warmly and pushed the boy toward the bedside.
Yu Tianwu released her tight grip on the bedsheets and signaled her friendliness to the bewildered boy. She nodded to her mother. "Alright, Mother."
Satisfied, her mother left and closed the door.
Yu Tianwu beckoned, and the boy shyly walked over.
"I’ll have to trouble you, but I won't touch you. Don't worry."
The boy’s eyes widened, and the fear hidden deep in his heart gradually dissipated. Although the Alpha lying on the bed was clearly in the middle of a rut—the time when one is least controlled by reason—he inexplicably chose to believe her.
Later, to satisfy their parents' scrutiny, Yu Tianwu apologized and, with his consent, lightly bit the back of his neck, leaving a very shallow temporary mark.
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