Becoming a Scum A in an Old-School Melodramatic Novel - Chapter 38

Lin Qinghan had prepared the food early. After having a meal with her little one, she took a taxi to Shen Xian’s company. She knocked on the company door, and it was Yuan Zhenzhen who opened it.

Yuan Zhenzhen had seen Shen Tian just the day before, so when she saw a young woman holding Shen Tian standing outside the company, a flicker of awkwardness passed across her face before she quickly concealed it. “Tian Tian? Are you here to see President Shen? Come in.”

Lin Qinghan also looked Yuan Zhenzhen over. She was an Omega, and looked quite young. Nodding to Yuan Zhenzhen, Lin Qinghan entered with Shen Tian in her arms.

Yuan Zhenzhen knocked on Shen Xian’s office door, and a voice came from inside, “Come in.”

Only then did Yuan Zhenzhen push open the office door. “President Shen, Tian Tian is here.”

When Shen Xian saw Lin Qinghan and Shen Tian, she instantly lit up with joy, her tone lifting as she spoke. “Little President Shen came to bring me lunch, huh?” As she spoke, she walked over and took the child into her arms, then turned to Lin Qinghan with a smile. “Thank you, Qinghan, for bringing me food.”

“As if. Tian Tian wanted to come play with you and only brought the food along on the way,” Lin Qinghan replied, though the corners of her lips couldn’t help curling up slightly.

Shen Xian grinned knowingly, but didn’t say anything. Lin Qinghan gave her a light pat and said, “Alright, stop fooling around. Let Tian Tian down to eat. The food should still be warm.”

Shen Xian smiled and said, “Okay then, Little President Shen, help me with work for a while.” As she spoke, she placed the child on her executive chair. The large chair made the little one look even smaller and out of place, but Shen Tian sat there very seriously, which made Lin Qinghan laugh.

The office door had never been closed, and Yuan Zhenzhen was still standing outside. Seeing that she was still there, Shen Xian walked over and asked, “Is there something else?”

“Oh, no, President Shen. I’ll get back to work now,” Yuan Zhenzhen said quickly, closing the office door behind her.

Back at her own desk, Yuan Zhenzhen seemed a bit downcast. Since they were all young, the others couldn’t help being curious and came over.

“Who was that holding Tian Tian? Is that President Shen’s wife?” Yan Qiang asked curiously.

“Of course! If she’s holding Tian Tian, she must be the boss’s wife,” Li Xing laughed, nudging Yan Qiang.

Song Min noticed Yuan Zhenzhen wasn’t in high spirits and nudged the two guys. “Alright, you two are so gossipy. Stop prying into President Shen’s personal life.”

“Tch, she’s obviously President Shen’s wife. Why can’t we talk about it?” Yan Qiang muttered as he and Li Xing returned to their desks.

“Zhenzhen, are you okay?” Song Min asked with concern.

“I’m fine, really. What could be wrong? Let’s get back to work,” Yuan Zhenzhen replied with a smile.

Only then did Song Min return to her own seat.

Meanwhile, Shen Xian had opened the lunchboxes and started eating the dishes Lin Qinghan brought. There were three layers in total — one with stir-fried shrimp and diced cucumber, one with spicy stir-fried pork, and a layer of plain rice.

After a few bites, Shen Xian said to Lin Qinghan, “Qinghan, your cooking is getting better and better. It’s way better than the takeout I order.”

Lin Qinghan chuckled. “You talk too much. Eat and stop running your mouth.”

She walked over to Shen Tian, who was sitting on the executive chair playing with a little green turtle toy. Leaning against the desk, she pinched Shen Tian’s cheek. “What’s Little President Shen doing, so focused?”

Shen Tian looked up, her big eyes staring at Lin Qinghan, and earnestly explained, “Mom is playing with Mommy, so Tian Tian is playing with Little Green Turtle.”

Lin Qinghan’s ears turned slightly red. “When is Mom playing with your Mommy? You little rascal, Mom is playing with you.”

Shen Tian blinked her big eyes at Lin Qinghan and then smiled, revealing her adorable dimples. “No need~ Tian Tian has Little Green Turtle. Mommy has no one to play with — that’s so pitiful~”

Shen Xian almost burst out laughing while listening to the conversation as she ate, barely holding it in. She agreed with the little one, “Exactly, it’s so sad eating all by myself here.”

Shen Tian nodded seriously while playing with the turtle, showing her agreement.

Lin Qinghan looked at the big and little ones and couldn’t help but laugh. “Well then, you two sure have everything arranged perfectly for me.” She said this as she returned to the sofa.

Seeing Shen Xian still smirking, Lin Qinghan stretched out her leg to kick Shen Xian’s shoe and glared at her. “What are you laughing at? Besides, how are you alone? That girl who opened the door earlier, I saw she’s an Omega.”

Shen Xian nodded, not catching her implication. “You mean Yuan Zhenzhen? Yeah, I think she’s an Omega. But what does that have to do with me? We’re just boss and employee.”

Lin Qinghan gave her a look and let out a small humph, muttering under her breath, “You better be.”

Shen Xian nodded firmly — what else could it be but a professional relationship?

In the afternoon, the little family of three went home from the office together. Shen Xian made dinner that night, while Lin Qinghan sat in the living room watching cartoons with their daughter.

That evening, Fang Jinglan received a call from her younger sister, Fang Jingping, saying that her husband, Zhao Jianye, was in such pain from his right leg that he couldn’t walk. He had necrosis of the femoral head and needed a hip replacement. Fang Jinglan was anxious and said over the phone, “Jingping, when are you planning to admit him to the hospital? I’ll have Shen Xian drive over to pick you up.”

Fang Jingping was a little surprised. “Shen Xian? Second Sis, did you buy her a car again?”

“No, she bought it herself. She even started a small company. Jingping, Shen Xian has really changed. Just a few days ago, she gave me thirty thousand yuan for living expenses,” Fang Jinglan quickly explained.

Fang Jingping paused for a moment, but in the end, she held back the words she wanted to say. “Second Sister, there’s no need for Shen Xian to drive us. We’ll just take a taxi to the hospital tomorrow.”

“Will that be convenient for you? Do you need us to come help?” Fang Jinglan asked again.

“It should be fine, Second Sis. Don’t worry. We’ll see tomorrow if we can get a bed in the hospital,” Fang Jingping replied.

The two sisters chatted a bit longer before hanging up.

Fang Jingping said to her daughter beside her, “Xiaoyan, do you think Shen Xian has really changed for the better?”

“Everyone hopes she has, but I’m afraid she’s just pulling another scam to trick Second Aunt again.” In the past, Shen Xian had often asked Fang Jingping for money — sometimes just | tens | or | hundreds |, sometimes | over a thousand |. Fang Jingping gave it to her out of consideration for her second sister. However, most of the time, Fang Jinglan later paid the money back on Shen Xian’s behalf.

The original Shen Xian also had a terrible attitude when borrowing money, acting like her aunts and elder female relatives owed her by default. What she said the most to Fang Jingping was, “Third Aunt, give me some money. I’ll pay you back in a few days.”

Or she would make up stories — claiming she hit someone with her car and needed money, or that she had to treat someone to a meal the next day. In short, she used every excuse possible.

After going to Fang Jingping’s house many times, Shen Xian would take the money and leave, only for Zhao Xiaoyan to argue with Fang Jingping afterward. They were just an ordinary family — how could they keep up with Shen Xian’s constant demands for money? One time, Shen Xian went to Fang Jingping’s house at night to ask for money. Coincidentally, that day, Fang Chengqian was on night shift, and Yan Qinqin didn’t care about the old man at all, so Fang Jingping had gone to the old man’s place to keep him company and wasn’t home.

Shen Xian didn’t have any money on her, yet still took a taxi to Fang Jingping’s house. You have to understand, Fang Jingping’s family was always frugal — she and her daughter usually took the bus when going out. But Shen Xian was different; taking taxis was her norm. She even owed over | 2,000 yuan | in taxi fares to a cab in her neighborhood, which Fang Jinglan eventually paid off for her.

She knocked on the door, and when Zhao Xiaoyan heard it was Shen Xian outside, she asked what she wanted. Shen Xian casually said her phone had died. Of course, Zhao Xiaoyan didn’t believe her and replied, “If your phone’s dead, why don’t you go home and charge it? What are you coming to me for?”

In the end, Zhao Xiaoyan didn’t open the door, because she knew that if Shen Xian showed up at ten at night, there was only one reason — she wanted money. Opening the door would just lead to an argument, so there was no point in wasting her breath.

As a result, now whenever Zhao Xiaoyan hears anything about Shen Xian, she assumes it’s nothing good.

The next morning, when Zhao Xiaoyan and her family tried to get a taxi, several cars they hailed refused to take them the moment they saw Zhao Jianye had a bad leg. It took nearly half an hour just to find a ride.

Fang Jingping was helpless. She had five siblings. The eldest sister lived in another city, and among the remaining four siblings, only Fang Chengqian had a car. But Fang Jingping didn’t want to ask this brother for help, afraid that Fang Chengqian and Yan Qinqin would use it as an excuse to make a fuss later. After thinking it over, she remembered what Fang Jinglan told her the day before about Shen Xian.

Fang Jingping looked at her daughter and asked, “Should we call your Second Aunt? Otherwise, what do we do? No one wants to give us a ride.”

Zhao Xiaoyan didn’t want to deal with Shen Xian, but there was no other choice, so she nodded.

Fang Jingping called Fang Jinglan, “Second Sister, we’ve been trying to get a taxi for half the morning but couldn’t. If Shen Xian isn’t too busy, can she help give us a ride?”

“Sure, I’ll call Shen Xian now,” Fang Jinglan replied, and immediately called Shen Xian. “Shen Xian, your Third Uncle’s going to be hospitalized. Can you help take them there?”

Shen Xian had just dropped off her child and Lin Qinghan when she received Fang Jinglan’s call. “Alright, Mom. I’ll head over in a bit.”

Speaking of Third Aunt, Shen Xian couldn’t help but recall all the awful things the original version of her had done. Back when she was in middle school, Fang Jinglan had rented a small house in Linhai City so Shen Xian could focus on her studies. At that time, Fang Jinglan and Shen Wenkang worked in a nearby county, and the house she rented was in the same courtyard as Fang Jingping’s home.

Fang Jingping had helped take care of the original Shen Xian quite a bit back then. But while Fang Jingping’s family was out, Shen Xian once stole | 300 yuan | from their house. At the time, 300 yuan was half a month’s salary for Zhao Jianye.

Zhao Jianye had long thought Shen Xian wasn’t a good person, but Fang Jingping still believed in her then, insisting Zhao Jianye was just making baseless accusations.

Shen Xian sighed at the memory. The original her really did owe her aunts and uncles a lot.

After informing a few employees at her company that she wouldn’t be coming in today, Shen Xian drove to Fang Jingping’s place. Zhao Jianye was already sitting on the steps waiting.

Necrosis of the femoral head has several stages. In the early stages, the pain is bearable, but it gets worse over time. Zhao Jianye had used up all his strength just to get downstairs and could only sit on the ground while waiting for a ride.

Shen Xian drove into the neighborhood and parked right in front of their apartment building. She got out of the car and said, “Third Aunt, let’s go. I’ll drive you there.”

“Ah, thank you so much.” Third Aunt’s whole family were honest folks. They never liked to trouble others if they could help it.

“It’s no problem. Third Aunt, if there’s anything I can help with, just give me a call,” Shen Xian said with a smile, helping Zhao Jianye into the car.

At the hospital, Shen Xian even helped them register, queue for X-rays, and get a number. Fortunately, the orthopedics department still had some beds available. Shen Xian rented a wheelchair from the hospital lobby and helped get Zhao Jianye settled in a hospital room.

Zhao Xiaoyan planned to head home and pack things for the hospital stay. “Mom, you stay with Dad. I’ll go back and grab the washbasin, thermos, small blanket, and other stuff.”

Shen Xian looked at Zhao Xiaoyan and said, “I’ll drive you, and bring you back after.”

Zhao Xiaoyan thought of how she hadn’t let Shen Xian in the house the last time, and now Shen Xian was helping like this. She felt a bit uneasy. “No need. I’ll just take a cab back later.”

Shen Xian, knowing the plot of the original story, had a good idea of what Zhao Xiaoyan was thinking. She broke the awkwardness with a laugh. “It’s fine. No need to take a cab when there’s a car at home. Come on. Third Aunt, you stay and take care of Third Uncle. I’ll help bring the stuff over.”

On the way back, Zhao Xiaoyan sat in the passenger seat feeling a little awkward. Shen Xian helping out like this made her really regret not letting Shen Xian into the house that night. Shen Xian also didn’t know what to say to Zhao Xiaoyan, and the two remained silent the whole way.

After they arrived downstairs, Shen Xian followed her upstairs. Zhao Xiaoyan opened the door and looked at Shen Xian, her eyes slightly red.
“Sis, I’m sorry about what happened that time. I shouldn’t have refused to let you into the house.”

Shen Xian gently patted Zhao Xiaoyan’s shoulder.
“That’s all in the past. Besides, the way I looked back then — if I were you, I probably would’ve done the same. Xiaoyan, you don’t need to feel guilty about what happened before. I made too many mistakes in the past. Your reaction was completely normal.”

Hearing Shen Xian’s words, Zhao Xiaoyan still started to cry. Shen Xian pulled a tissue from her bag and handed it to her.
“You’re already 24 and still crying? Wipe your tears. Let’s turn the page on the past — we have to look ahead. Alright, let’s pack up. Auntie and Uncle are still waiting.”

Zhao Xiaoyan looked at Shen Xian and nodded. She truly felt that Shen Xian had changed. You can usually tell what kind of person someone is by looking into their eyes. The old Shen Xian seemed clever, but her eyes were always darting around. The current Shen Xian truly felt like a big sister — someone who gave off a sense of security and reliability.

“Mm-hmm. Sis, thank you,” Zhao Xiaoyan said, wiping her tears.

“There’s no need to be so polite with family. Which thermos should we bring…”

In no time, the two who had cleared the air finished packing up everything they needed to bring to the hospital. The atmosphere was much better on the way back. Shen Xian even comforted Zhao Xiaoyan for a long while, telling her that hip replacement surgery was now quite common. The main causes were usually excessive drinking or long-term use of steroids.

Zhao Jianye ended up like this because of drinking. He had always treated his wife and daughter very well, but no matter how much they tried to persuade him, he couldn’t give up alcohol. He drank with all three meals a day, and that’s how things got to this point.

Shen Xian helped Zhao Xiaoyan carry everything upstairs and left her phone number with her before leaving to pick up the little one and Lin Qinghan.

As she watched Shen Xian leave, Zhao Xiaoyan said to Fang Jingping,
“Mom, I really think… Shen Xian has changed.”