Becoming a Scum A in an Old-School Melodramatic Novel - Chapter 13

The three of them returned home. Shen Xian called Fang Jinglan before starting to cook dinner for the three of them. After they finished eating, Lin Qinghan sat with Shen Tian at the coffee table to draw, while Shen Xian prepared a large fruit platter for the two of them.

“Alright, my two little artists, come have some fruit before continuing to draw,” Shen Xian said with a smile.

“Oooh, mangosteen! Tian Tian wants to eat that!” Shen Tian pointed at the crescent-shaped fruit in the platter, beaming.

Lin Qinghan smiled at Shen Tian and said, “Okay, Tian Tian can eat some.”

Shen Xian looked fondly at her child and handed a fork to Lin Qinghan as well. “Qinghan, you have some too. You’ve had a long day at work.”

Lin Qinghan glanced calmly at Shen Xian. A long day? Now she recognized her hard work? But where was she when she was truly struggling? When people came to their door demanding debt payments from her and Tian Tian, where was Shen Xian then? And now, she was standing there, acting like nothing had happened, saying all these kind words — did she really think she had the right?

Seeing that Lin Qinghan’s expression hadn’t changed, Shen Xian gave an awkward laugh and picked up a piece of apple with a fork to cover her embarrassment. Shen Tian, unaware of the tension between the two adults, was simply happy that both her mom and mommy were there with her. Wearing two little pigtails, she squeezed between the two, looking back and forth at Lin Qinghan and Shen Xian with a big smile that revealed her little dimples.

Shen Xian ruffled her little pigtails and said, “What are you smiling about, Tian Tian? Tell Mommy too.” As she spoke, she gave her daughter’s chubby cheek a gentle pinch.

“Tian Tian likes it like this — with both Mom and Mommy here,” she said, her little legs swinging back and forth to show just how happy she was.

Watching Shen Xian and their daughter interact, Lin Qinghan’s eyes held a faint trace of a smile. Who wouldn’t want such a peaceful life, if possible?

Just then, Lin Qinghan’s phone rang. When she saw the caller ID, her brows furrowed slightly. After letting it ring for a moment, she still answered the call and walked out to the balcony.

As she walked away, Shen Xian could already hear shouting from the phone. Shen Tian, too, was distracted by the loud voice. Seeing her mom walk away, her little mouth pouted and her cheerful expression fell. “It’s probably Grandma again. Every time Grandma calls Mom, Mom gets sad. Tian Tian doesn’t like Grandma.”

“It’s okay, Tian Tian, be good. You just focus on growing up happy. Mom and Mommy will handle the rest. Why don’t you play by yourself for a bit? Mommy’s going to check on Mom.” Shen Xian comforted her, gently patting her little pigtails.

“Mm-hmm! Mommy, you have to cheer Mom up, okay? If Mom cries, remember to give her a hug.” Shen Tian said seriously, like a little adult.

Shen Xian nodded at her daughter, though in her heart she thought, if she really tried hugging Lin Qinghan now, she’d probably get herself killed.

She walked quickly over and saw Lin Qinghan’s eyes rimmed red, arguing with whoever was on the other end of the line.

As Shen Xian got closer, she heard Lin Qinghan say, “Lin Zhixin, Lin Zhixin, do you even care about me at all? Yes, I’m his older sister, but I’m not his ATM. Just because I work hard to earn money doesn’t mean I deserve to watch him squander it all!”

Shen Xian stood just behind Lin Qinghan, who was too focused on the call to notice. From the phone came the loud voice of Jiang Fang, Lin Qinghan’s mother,
“What do you mean squander? Helping your brother is what you should do! How can you be so unfilial? I can’t believe I raised such a heartless daughter. It’s only 30,000 yuan! Don’t you know that if you don’t give your brother the money, those people will chop off his hand?! Oh heavens, what sin have I committed to have a daughter like you? You’re breaking my heart…”

Lin Qinghan’s hand trembled as she held the phone. She had expected this verbal assault when she picked up the call, but hearing it for real still chilled her to the core. Every month, she sent money home to support her parents, while her brother did nothing except leech off them. Yet their parents always took his side. Her compromises and sacrifices never earned their understanding — only more demands. The voice on the phone kept going, but Lin Qinghan couldn’t hear a single word anymore.

Shen Xian, getting angrier the more she heard, snatched the phone right out of Lin Qinghan’s hand, startling her. Shen Xian held her up as she nearly stumbled, then coldly addressed the person on the line,

“Are you insane? The Qing Dynasty is long gone, and you’re still pulling this feudal nonsense? What kind of brother eats, drinks, gambles, and fools around every day while asking his sister for money? Qinghan can give you money, but she is not obligated to support Lin Zhixin.”

“Shen Xian? Is that you, Shen Xian? I haven’t even settled the score with you for hitting Zhixin the other day! And Lin Qinghan, do you have no shame? You’re divorced, yet you still can’t leave Shen Xian behind?” Jiang Fang screamed from the phone.

“You better watch your mouth. You know who I am. If you dare send your son to ask Qinghan for money again, I’ll break his legs. A mother like you? She’s better off without one,” Shen Xian said through clenched teeth, then hung up.

Lin Qinghan’s eyes were still red. Seeing her like this, Shen Xian felt a wave of heartache. What kind of absurd people had gathered around the female lead? She gently patted Lin Qinghan’s shoulder and comforted her, “Don’t be afraid. If he shows up again, I’ll beat him again. Lin Zhixin is a bottomless pit — stop giving him money. If you want to keep supporting your parents, set up a separate bank card and deposit a fixed amount each month. When they finally come to their senses, you can give them access. Otherwise, everything you give them will end up in your brother’s hands.”

Lin Qinghan pressed her lips together, eyes red but still holding back her tears. Her hand clutched the phone so tightly it had turned slightly red.

“If it’s okay with you… can I move in?” Shen Xian asked seriously. “Don’t worry, I mean no harm. I’ll keep the pheromone blocking patches on and won’t release any pheromones. I just don’t want Lin Zhixin showing up again like that night — if he scares Tian Tian again, that’d be awful.”

Lin Qinghan nodded. Her eyes were still misty, but she kept her composure. “Okay.” She hadn’t expected to agree so easily, but in that moment, looking into Shen Xian’s eyes, she’d unconsciously said yes.

Shen Xian smiled. “Great, then I’ll go pack tomorrow and move in. Don’t be angry anymore. If your mom or Lin Zhixin calls again, just hand the phone to me. We lose because we care too much about saving face.”

“Mm.” Lin Qinghan gave a muffled response and walked off to the bathroom.

Shen Xian noticed a significant change in the number above Lin Qinghan’s head — it had risen from [‘-90′] to [“-70″]. It seemed that all her efforts these past few days hadn’t been in vain. Although her ex-wife was still cold towards her, her favorability towards her had indeed increased. On top of that, their child’s favorability had already reached [+30]. Shen Xian couldn’t help but sigh — kids really were easier to win over.

As soon as Lin Qinghan entered the bathroom, she locked the door. Leaning against it, her tears fell uncontrollably. She was human too — how could she not be hurt by what her mother had said? For a moment, she even wanted to lean on Shen Xian, the person she had once hated most, and cry her heart out. But she held back. Who knew whether Shen Xian’s recent change was genuine or just an act? She no longer dared to open her heart to anyone. She still had Tian Tian to care for. She had to stay strong.

Though she held back her sobs, her tears flowed like a breached dam, completely out of control. It took her a long time before she finally walked to the sink and turned on the tap. The icy water splashed onto her hands, mirroring the chill in her heart. She scooped up a handful of cold water and splashed it onto her face, washing away the tear stains. Only when the redness around her eyes had subsided did Lin Qinghan take a deep breath and step out.

The moment Shen Tian saw Lin Qinghan come out, she ran over and threw herself at her, hugging her leg tightly. “Mom, don’t be sad anymore. Tian Tian will cheer you up~”

Hearing her daughter’s soft, drawn-out words, Lin Qinghan finally smiled. “Seeing Tian Tian makes Mom happy. Tian Tian is the best,” she said as she picked her up.

Tian Tian giggled and rubbed her head against Lin Qinghan’s neck. She didn’t forget to include Shen Xian, either, “Mom, Mommy is really good too. You should praise Mommy too~”

Lin Qinghan glanced awkwardly at Shen Xian, then helplessly looked at her expectant daughter. With a sigh, she said, “Alright, Mommy is good too.”

Tian Tian, completely unaware of the awkwardness between the adults, looked proudly at Shen Xian with a big smile and said, “Mommy, Mom praised you!” Her expression seemed to say, Mommy, aren’t I great? I got Mom to praise you!

Shen Xian looked at Lin Qinghan, whose face was expressionless as she looked at him. Shen Xian could only give her an awkward smile. Seeing that she didn’t want to talk to him, he turned instead to smile at their daughter. After all, with a child this adorable, how could she harbor any bad intentions?

“Good job, Tian Tian. You’re amazing,” Shen Xian praised her again, making the little one so happy her short legs kicked excitedly in the air.

Seeing how adorably sweet Tian Tian looked, even Lin Qinghan couldn’t hold back anymore and let out a soft laugh.

Later that evening, while Shen Xian was brushing her teeth, she got poked hard by the disposable toothbrush — it was really sharp, and her gums almost started bleeding. She thought she might as well just replace everything with new ones. Shen Xian was confident she could double that {ten million} within a month. Plus, that naive and silly rich girl had actually transferred her another {“hundred thousand”}. Her finances weren’t as tight now.

Shen Xian called out to the system in her mind, “System, do you have any way to help my dad recover from his illness?”

“There is. But the host must pay a corresponding fee of { ‘ten million’ }. There are pills available that can aid in his recovery,” the system’s voice responded.

For some reason, even though it was the usual cold, robotic voice, Shen Xian felt like the system sounded… kind of pleased?

To the old her, ten million wouldn’t have meant much. But now, it was going to take some time to gather. Plus, the system was really sneaky. How much did she actually earn from doing its tasks? And now the system was the one making money off her. Shen Xian sighed and decided that tomorrow she would finalize the plan, sign the contract with Jiang Xi, and get the funding to move things forward.