Becoming a Scum A in an Old-School Melodramatic Novel - Chapter 6

After finishing her work at the office, Lin Qinghan, worried about her daughter, said a quick goodbye and rushed home. As soon as she walked in, she smelled the aroma of food coming from the living room. Shen Xian was placing a plate of shrimp with nuts on the table. Seeing Lin Qinghan return, the corners of her lips slightly lifted. “You’re just in time. Come eat.”

Shen Xian went back into the kitchen. After thinking for a while, she only served two bowls of rice. After all, considering the things she had done, Lin Qinghan probably wouldn’t want to sit at the same table and eat with her. As long as the two of them — mother and daughter — could have a proper meal together, it would be enough.

Carrying the bowls of rice over, Shen Xian set them down. Shen Tian noticed there were only two bowls and, pursing her lips in confusion, looked up at Shen Xian. “Mommy’s not going to eat with me and Mom?”

Shen Xian glanced at her little one, then at the expressionless Lin Qinghan, and smiled to reassure Shen Tian. “Mommy still has things to do, so I won’t stay. You eat with Mom, okay?”

A trace of disappointment flashed in Shen Tian’s eyes. She looked pitifully at Shen Xian and then at Lin Qinghan.

Shen Xian patted Shen Tian’s little ponytail and was about to leave when Lin Qinghan glanced at the two — one big, one small — and, while picking up some food, casually said, “If you’re not in a hurry, just eat with us. There’s too much food for Tian Tian and me to finish alone.”

Shen Xian, who had been heading for the door, immediately brightened with a smile. After all, all those things in the past were done by the original version of her body. To say she wasn’t affected at all would be a lie. Even though her ex-wife was cold, the child’s attitude toward her had changed a lot.

“Well, it’s not that urgent. I’ll stay and eat with Tian Tian, then go.” Shen Xian smiled and turned back to the kitchen to serve herself a bowl of rice and sat down opposite Shen Tian.

Shen Tian beamed a sweet smile, carefully picked out a neat row of shrimp, and sweetly said to Shen Xian, “Mommy, the shrimp is yummy. Tian Tian likes it.”

“I’m glad you like it. Mommy will make it for you again next time. The chicken wings are good too — try some.” Shen Xian picked up a chicken wing and placed it in Shen Tian’s bowl. The two, big and small, shared a warm moment together.

As Shen Xian was playing with the little one, she suddenly felt a chill from a cold stare. Turning her head, she met her ex-wife’s icy gaze. Even though she had met all kinds of big shots in her past life, she was still startled by Lin Qinghan’s look. Her hand shook, and she reflexively picked up a chicken wing and placed it in Lin Qinghan’s bowl. Smiling awkwardly, she said, “Qinghan, you should eat too. The chicken wings are pretty tender today.”

Lin Qinghan pushed the chicken wing that Shen Xian had placed into her bowl to the side. Looking up, she glared at Shen Xian, her eyes full of warning. “I don’t like people putting food in my bowl. It’s unhygienic.”

Shen Xian looked at Lin Qinghan, feeling uneasy. She meekly picked the chicken wing back out of Lin Qinghan’s bowl and placed it into her own. She put on what she thought was a friendly smile and said, “Ah, I didn’t think it through. I’ll eat it myself.”

Then she saw Lin Qinghan’s face grow even darker. Her own heart began to pound wildly. With Lin Qinghan’s current [-130] favorability rating toward her, Shen Xian felt like she was walking a tightrope. But still — wasn’t it Lin Qinghan who said food placed by others was unhygienic? So why was she even angrier after Shen Xian took it back? Shen Xian had been a strong and capable CEO in her previous life, but as a perpetually single straight woman, how could she possibly understand why her ex-wife was angry?

Better to just obediently lower her head and eat, and try not to provoke her any further.

But of course, Shen Tian was still watching them eat happily. “Tian Tian hasn’t been this happy in a long time — with Mom and Mommy both here.”

Shen Xian’s heart tightened. She said softly, “Okay, from now on, Mommy will often keep Tian Tian company, okay?”

Shen Tian swallowed her mouthful of food, cheeks bulging, and shook her little ponytail. “Okay. Mom has to be there too.” As she spoke, she gave Lin Qinghan a big smile.

Lin Qinghan’s lips curved slightly as she smiled at Shen Tian, then immediately turned her head and glared coldly at Shen Xian again.

Shen Xian’s heart sank. It was Tian Tian who said she wanted them both together — not her — so why was she the one getting glared at? She no longer had the calm composure she used to when playing the domineering CEO. Just a furrow of Lin Qinghan’s brow was enough to throw her heart into disarray.

Luckily, the meal was finished without further incident. After dinner, Shen Xian rushed to wash the dishes. Lin Qinghan let her do it and happened to glance at the fruit platter on the coffee table. It had a variety of fruits, both big and small. “Tian Tian, who bought the fruit on that platter?”

Tian Tian was in such a good mood after dinner — there were her favorite shrimp and chicken wings, and Mom and Mommy were both there. She bounced into Lin Qinghan’s arms and said sweetly, “Mommy bought it. There’s one that looks like a crescent moon. It’s called mangosteen. Tian Tian likes it.”

“Okay, Mom will buy it for you. Go play. Mom will clean the living room.” Lin Qinghan’s gaze darkened. Even with her gentle features, the shift in her tone could chill someone to the bone. So this was why Shen Xian had been acting so attentive these past few days — what exactly was she planning? No matter what her intention was, Lin Qinghan wasn’t going to believe a word she said anymore.

She got up and opened the fridge, finding that many of the vegetables, meats, and fruits were all freshly bought. She glanced at the wide variety of fruit, but when her eyes landed on the oranges, her expression turned grim.

Shen Xian really hadn’t changed. Back then, whenever she wanted money from Lin Qinghan, she would release her sweet orange-scented pheromones. Since Lin Qinghan had been completely marked by her, her body would soon go weak. Not wanting to be touched, Lin Qinghan would end up giving her money just to get rid of her. Later, whether she opened the door or not, she would spray pheromone blockers throughout the house whenever Shen Xian came over. That way, she wouldn’t be affected by her scent.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to remove the mark, but erasing a complete bond cost 30,000 yuan. Where was she supposed to get that kind of money? So she had just stopped caring about it.

Today, she had been careless. Lin Qinghan retrieved the pheromone blocking spray from the bedroom and sprayed the house thoroughly. Only when the room was filled with the scent of the blocker did she feel slightly relieved. Then she took all the oranges out of the fridge and went into the kitchen.

Inside, Shen Xian was covering her nose while putting away the dishes. She had no idea why the entire house suddenly smelled like air freshener. As she turned around, she saw Lin Qinghan standing coldly at the kitchen door, staring at her. Shen Xian shivered and asked, enduring the strange scent, “What’s going on? What’s that smell in the room? It’s kind of weird…”

“It’s nothing. Weren’t you used to the smell before? Also, I don’t want to see oranges in my house ever again. You don’t need to bother with things like this anymore. You’re not welcome here. Take your oranges and leave,” Lin Qinghan said coldly.

Shen Xian immediately saw that the favorability she’d worked so hard to raise had dropped back down to [-140]. She didn’t even dare say a word in protest. She quickly took the orange that Lin Qinghan handed her and replied, “Alright, I’ll go now. Don’t be mad, please don’t be mad. If there’s a mistake, it’s definitely mine. Just don’t make yourself sick from anger.”

With that, she walked out of the kitchen, patted Shen Tian — who was playing on the sofa — and said, “Tian Tian, it’s getting late. Mommy will come see you again tomorrow. I’m heading out now.” As she spoke, she gently ruffled the little hair tuft on top of Shen Tian’s head, forced a smile toward Lin Qinghan who was staring at her coldly from behind, and walked out the door.

Shen Tian stared at the closed door for a long time, lips pressed together, seemingly lost in thought.

Only after Shen Xian left did Lin Qinghan finally let out a sigh of relief. As long as that person was nearby, she would become like a startled bird. She sighed again, turned on the exhaust fan in the house, and let it blow away both the scent of the blocking agent and Shen Xian’s lingering smell.

After leaving, Shen Xian was completely puzzled. She hadn’t done anything wrong — had even been busy all night — yet Lin Qinghan’s favorability still dropped by [‘10′] points. Clearly, she still didn’t understand women.

That night after returning home, Shen Xian received a call. A loud, brash voice came through the phone,

“Sister Shen, it’s Ah Qiang. Why haven’t you come around these past few days? The guys have been waiting for you. Without you around, no one’s been in the mood.”

Shen Xian thought for a moment before recalling this character from the original novel. He and the original Shen Xian were cut from the same cloth — spending their days eating, drinking, and having fun. But Zhao Qiang was much smarter than the original. He knew she liked hearing flattering words, so he and a few of the guys would sweet-talk her, trick her into spending money. Whatever they were doing, Shen Xian would always end up footing the bill.

Imitating the original’s slightly roguish tone, Shen Xian said, “I’ve been losing a lot lately, kinda tight on cash. How about you guys lend me some? We’re friends, right — no interest or anything?”

“Ah, Sister Shen, you know how we are. Our pockets are cleaner than our faces. Maybe try asking someone else,” Zhao Qiang replied, squeezing out a few fake chuckles.

“Mm, alright then. I’ll hang up now,” Shen Xian said with a cold expression and put down the phone. What kind of trashy friends were these people from the original Shen Xian’s life?

On the other end, Zhao Qiang put down his phone and cursed, “Damn that bitch, still trying to borrow money from me. If she weren’t so generous with her spending, none of us would’ve hung out with her! Borrow money from me? She might as well just drop dead. Bad luck.”

“Calm down, Brother Qiang. Looks like she’s got no more money to bleed. And she’s just an alpha — we can’t even have fun with that. If she were an omega, though, with that soft and delicate look, what a waste.”

“Yeah, let’s not talk about her anymore. No one’s going to care about her once she’s broke. Let’s go — let’s find someone else to treat us to drinks. Time to rope in a few more suckers.”

“Right, let’s go, let’s go.”

The next day, Shen Xian did her usual housework in the morning and only headed to the kindergarten in the afternoon to see Shen Tian. Shen Tian was no longer so unfamiliar with her. She ran over with little bouncing steps and hugged Shen Xian’s leg.

Shen Xian was completely melted by how cute the little one was. She quickly picked her up. “Did you miss Mommy?”

“Yes, Tian Tian missed Mommy,” the girl replied, smiling with two sweet dimples.

While the mother and daughter were waiting for Lin Qinghan, Shen Xian received a phone call — from Lin Qinghan.