After Becoming a Scummy Alpha, I Refuse to Get Divorced - Chapter 27

Before stepping away from the table, the second sister, Du Linwu, yielded her seat to Fu Chensi.

“Chensi, this is Little Zhu’s first time playing, so take it easy on her. Watch out, or Shiyu might just devour you with her eyes!”

Linwu spoke as if she were looking out for Zhu Qingran. But the moment the “Green Tea” childhood friend sat down, Zhu Qingran’s heart skipped a beat—and not in a good way.

Fu Chensi’s gaze was far from simple. If Zhu Qingran didn’t know better, she’d suspect this woman had fallen in love with her at first sight.

Good grief! My heart and soul belong to my wife! Big Sister Childhood Friend, don’t look at me like that! Stop it!

Zhu Qingran tried her best to focus and ignore Fu Chensi. However, the other woman was determined to make her presence felt.

“Linshuang and Mom are always two souls with a single thought, which makes Little Zhu seem a bit isolated. Since it’s her first time, I’ll team up with her. All my wins will count toward her score. If we keep sticking paper on her, Little Zhu’s handsome face won’t see the light of day. What do you all think of my proposal?”

Fu Chensi played the role of the kind “neighborly sister” perfectly, offering to win back some dignity for Zhu Qingran. Everyone was in high spirits, so they nodded in agreement. Though Zhu Qingran suspected Fu Chensi was plotting something big, she couldn’t afford to be petty. She offered a quick “thanks” and focused on the game.

Against all odds, after a long stalemate, Zhu Qingran actually won a round.

“I won?”

She stared at the cards on the table, then at Du Shiyu. Shouldn’t her wife be celebrating this glorious victory with her? Why did Shiyu’s expression look so heavy?

Zhu Qingran sensed something was off. But a second later, as everyone urged Du Shiyu to help peel a paper strip off her face, she truly understood the meaning of “extreme joy turns to sorrow.”

“Yowch!”

The moment the strip was ripped off, Zhu Qingran nearly cried out for mercy. She gazed at Du Shiyu with tearful eyes, her grievance practically overflowing. Startled by her expression, Shiyu felt a pang in her heart and was about to suggest they stop playing.

“Little Zhu can’t leave the table yet! This game was set up specifically to welcome you. If you leave, the fun is over for us.”

Her mother-in-law, Lin Zhi, nipped Du Shiyu’s suggestion in the bud. Since the matriarch had spoken, Zhu Qingran wasn’t about to be a sore loser.

“For the sake of the baby’s good genes, I’m staying until the end! I want to show my kids that their parent is a resilient, legendary figure who never gives up!”

After this bold declaration, she resumed shuffling.

Over the next few rounds, victory eluded Zhu Qingran entirely, but Fu Chensi was a true pro. By the time eight paper strips had been ripped from Zhu Qingran’s face in quick succession, her skin felt like it was on fire. She was seconds away from begging “Sister Shiyu” to blow on it to make it better.

“Ah Ran is a good kid—very tough. It even looks painful to watch those strips come off. So, Ah Ran.”

The second sister, Linwu, had been enjoying the show for a while. She had confirmed that Zhu Qingran’s terrible card skills were genuine and required no acting. She spoke up now, appearing like a ray of sunlight piercing through the clouds of Zhu Qingran’s facial agony.

Unfortunately, the sun usually burns.

“Ah Ran, to help ease the pain, I’ve decided to distract you. Trust me, I have experience. Whenever my back ached from playing the cello, I’d use this method.”

For the next half hour, every time Du Shiyu moved to peel a strip, Linwu would bombard Zhu Qingran with questions about “tacky” nail art accessories.

“Ah Ran, do you think pink diamonds all over would look ‘bling-bling’ enough?”

“Ah Ran, what about a red-and-green color scheme?”

“Ah Ran, do you know any nail salons that can stick a miniature villa onto a nail? Or maybe a cello?”

“Ah Ran, does your group want to start a project for ‘swappable’ press-on nails?”

“Stick! Them! All! On! Looks! Great! AHH!”

Finally, with one last yelp from Zhu Qingran, the inner circle of paper strips was cleared. But a massive outer ring still remained.

Du Shiyu couldn’t watch anymore. Her brow was deeply furrowed; she was clearly no longer amused. Sensing the shift, the second sister cleared her throat and took a “tactical” sip of water. The eldest sister suddenly rubbed her temples, claiming her eyes were blurry from playing too long.

“Jingtan, my back is acting up. Maybe we should wrap up Little Zhu’s ‘brain development’ for today?”

The moment Lin Zhi mentioned her back, the father-in-law, Du Jingtan, immediately began massaging her shoulders.

“The kid’s brain can be developed slowly; there’s no need to suffer for so long,” Jingtan said dotingly, kneading Lin Zhi’s waist before waving the “children” away. “Little Zhu, no more cards today. Let’s get ready for dinner.”

Dinner! Zhu Qingran, having been “bullied” at the card table for two hours, was indeed starving. However, the father-in-law’s idea of dinner seemed different from hers.

Are noble counts so high-level now that they live off the northwest wind?

Zhu Qingran sniffed the air. Surely the pain in her face hadn’t cost her her sense of smell? Did the “northwest wind” smell like steak or pastries? Because she couldn’t smell a thing.

She tried to make eye contact with her wife, but Du Shiyu reached out and grabbed an apron that had been hanging behind Zhu Qingran’s chair.

“Dad, Mom, Sisters—what would you like to eat? Ah Ran and I will go prepare it.”

As her wife gestured for her to raise her arms to tie the apron, Zhu Qingran finally understood the “homecoming” protocol. Her father-in-law’s words hadn’t been a suggestion; they were a direct order to get to work.

“We have a guest today and we’re in a good mood, so let’s keep it simple: ten hot dishes—a perfect ten. As for the fruit platters, desserts, drinks, and cold appetizers, you youngsters can improvise.”

With the orders delivered, the father-in-law smiled, announced she was taking her “beloved” for a shoulder massage, and whisked her upstairs by the waist. The eldest sister claimed an interest in nail art and dragged the second sister off to pick designs. Fu Chensi stepped aside to take a phone call, not even looking their way.

On her first day home, the great CEO of IO was being sent to the wet market.

Looking at Zhu Qingran’s domineering, tailored suit, Du Shiyu sighed and dragged her to her bedroom to change into some loungewear.

“Dinner is usually at 5:30 PM. We never eat leftovers, so the portions must be exact. Plus, my parents dislike flashiness, so we’ll take the small electric commuter car. The seafood is freshest at this hour, and everyone loves crab roe noodles—that can be one of the dishes or the main course.”

Du Shiyu was clearly flustered. She mumbled to herself while helping Zhu Qingran into the loungewear and tying her apron, not forgetting to gently blow on the red marks left on Zhu Qingran’s face.

“They did it on purpose. First no lunch, and now this for dinner. I should have seen it coming! This is too much!”

Her pampered wife was grumbling with a touch of pique, showing a side of herself Zhu Qingran had never seen before. Her eyes were rimmed with red—it was hard to tell if it was from anger or if she was about to cry.

Zhu Qingran found her absolutely adorable. The nagging of a little wife, the protective complaints, it was perfect.

“Wife.”

Zhu Qingran didn’t want to interrupt, but she couldn’t help herself. Du Shiyu was so cute that if she didn’t speak now, she might just lose track of time and kiss her right then and there.

“What are you calling ‘Wife’ for? Did you remember everything I said?”

Du Shiyu gripped a giant grocery bag in one hand and pulled Zhu Qingran toward the door with the other. They reached the parking area and stopped in front of a small four-wheeled electric car. Shiyu opened the driver’s side door to hop in.

“You’ve definitely never driven this. I’ll do it. Keep an eye on the time; we have to be punctual to grab the fresh—mmph.”

Her wife wanted to say “grab the fresh produce,” but Zhu Qingran only wanted to grab the chance to kiss those non-stop, chattering lips.

Zhu Qingran leaned down slightly, sealing her pampered wife’s lips with a moist kiss.

The moment their lips met, every member of the Du family peeking out from the windows was stunned.

“That Little Zhu is something else. Skipping lunch just to fill up on a meal of Shiyu instead!”

After the eldest sister, Du Linshuang, let out a surprised “Ooh,” the second sister immediately peered out as well.

“Eldest Sister, what do you think about putting their kissing or wedding photos on my nails? This pair is my sister and sister-in-law, after all! Shiyu chose quite a decent one in Little Zhu.”

The second sister spoke in high spirits, but the eldest sister shook her head.

“Your nails are so small; a photo like that would be a blurry mess. If you’re going to do it, just do a close-up of their lips pressed together. Now that would be sexy!”

“Eldest Sister, you truly are a woman of the world. I’ll listen to you! —Wanted: High-price bounty for a lip close-up of IO’s President Zhu and her wife kissing!”

Just as that message popped up online, a certain President Zhu brought the little electric car to a steady halt and charged straight into the wet market.

“Beautiful lady, do you want some beef?”

“Beautiful lady, how about a bag of the freshest bamboo shoots?”

“Beautiful lady, look at my crabs! The roe and fat are incredibly thick!”

The moment Zhu Qingran entered the market, she was surrounded by an overwhelming wave of enthusiastic shouts. This time, she didn’t let her wife lead; instead, she took the lead herself. During her years as a working-class girl, tasks like this were nothing to her.

It’s just buying groceries. Watch as Little Zhu conquers the market.

“Are these eggs free-range? If they aren’t, I don’t want them!”

“Give me two pounds of pork ribs—the prime cut. My mother-in-law only gave me 200 yuan. You ladies are so beautiful, elegant, and generous, surely you can help a sister out during her difficult trip back to the in-laws!”

“Brother, give me three potatoes. I’ll take some green beans, too!”

In short, Zhu Qingran entered the market as if she were returning home. Du Shiyu watched in a daze as the shopping basket filled up in record time, complete with “bonus” garlic and spring onions tossed in by the vendors.

The menu she had carefully planned didn’t seem to have a single ingredient in common with what Zhu Qingran was actually buying.

“Ah Ran, I’ll pay for the groceries. You don’t have to make things so hard for yourself. Is your allowance running low? Once we’re back home, I’ll increase it for you. You.”

Du Shiyu was worried that a penniless Zhu Qingran was descending into despair. This was a woman who didn’t blink when buying designer bags, yet here she was, haggling with market vendors.

Will you take 1.50 for the potatoes?

Can you round down the price of the ribs?

If you do, I’ll come back next time.

“Wife, how can you spoil me like this? Do I look like the type to take money just to squander it?” Upon hearing this, Zhu Qingran turned serious for a split second before instantly melting into a “kitten” by her wife’s side: “But if you just want me to go grocery shopping, I wouldn’t mind if you gave me an extra five yuan! That way, I could bring you back a candied hawthorn stick or a bowl of shaved ice. Of course, you have to remember to give me a bite—the bite you’ve already tasted. That’s the only way it’ll be sweet!”