Transmigrated as a Scum Alpha: Now I Have a Wife via the Heartless Dao - Chapter 34

The words fell, and for a moment, no one replied. It felt as if the scene had been paused, with an awkward silence spreading quietly, making the atmosphere turn strange.

Yu Qianyan instinctively wanted to step forward to shield Rong Shu, but she suddenly remembered that Rong Shu had been wearing a mask on the day of the wedding. Qi Yan should not have seen her before, so there was no need for any cover. Only then did she suppress the urge to step out, though her body swayed slightly. Apart from Rong Shu, no one else noticed this “this is not the place where the silver is buried” attempt to hide her intentions.

The atmosphere was deathly silent. Even though there were only five people present, the way their gazes collided managed to create over a dozen different dynamics.

First, Yu Qianyan looked at Rong Shu with concern, and after Rong Shu keenly captured it, Yu Qianyan received a comforting look in return.

Afterward, Yu Qianyan looked at Qin Zhiyu, only to find her examining Zhu Lanjun with great interest, looking foolishly infatuated, which left her speechless.

Zhu Lanjun did not pay attention to Qin Zhiyu’s gaze. She was curiously looking at Qi Yan, though there was no admiration or appreciation in her eyes. It seemed as if she just wanted to get to know the new next-door neighbor who was majoring in All-Out Command. She quickly lost interest, however, and cast the same clear gaze toward Yu Qianyan and Qin Zhiyu in turn. Meanwhile, Qi Yan’s gaze, after a rough sweep of Rong Shu, remained glued to Zhu Lanjun, her eyes bright and filled with hidden meaning.

Taking advantage of the moment Yu Qianyan was not paying attention, Rong Shu subtly observed Qi Yan and Zhu Lanjun. Then, when she looked at Zhu Lanjun with confusion, she happened to make eye contact with Qin Zhiyu, who was constantly studying Zhu Lanjun. The latter’s eyes flickered as she looked at Yu Qianyan, seeming a bit embarrassed about being caught red-handed. Seeing this, Rong Shu understood everything.

Yu Qianyan glanced coldly at Qin Zhiyu, then shifted her attention back to Qi Yan. However, Qi Yan suddenly looked at Yu Qianyan at that moment, offering her a polite, temperature-less smile, before turning to Qin Zhiyu with the same expression. Finally, her gaze fell back on Zhu Lanjun, leaving Yu Qianyan and Qin Zhiyu to exchange a puzzled look, both sensing that this unexpected encounter was not a coincidence.

On the other side, Zhu Lanjun had already ended her curiosity about the three Alphas and turned to look gently at Rong Shu, as if she intended to say something to her. Rong Shu, feeling a bit unnatural, avoided her gaze and looked fixedly at Yu Qianyan.

After going back and forth, circling around several times, Qi Yan was finally the first to get fed up with this inexplicable situation. She was the first to break the deadlock by playing a safe card, making small talk with Yu Qianyan and Qin Zhiyu.

Dormitory allocation at Qilin Military Academy had always followed the rule of gender first, then major. Yu Qianyan, Qin Zhiyu, and Qi Yan were all female Alphas and also in the All-Out Command major. Although their social statuses differed, they all belonged to the ruling aristocratic class. As long as someone brought up a topic, everyone could chat calmly.

That was the logic, anyway.

And then, Qi Yan opened her mouth and said, “I haven’t congratulated you on your marriage yet, Miss Yu! I heard that you and your Omega are very close, so close that you didn’t even want to go on a honeymoon, spending months at home intimately. Miss Rong must be deeply captivated by your charm. It’s a pity you are at school now, Miss Rong must be missing you dearly at home, hahaha!”

Yu Qianyan: …

Rong Shu: …

Qin Zhiyu: …Good heavens, she is so good at talking. As expected of the Third Imperial Highness, you really have a way!

Qi Yan laughed a few times, only to find that Yu Qianyan was not showing satisfaction like she usually did when flattered, nor was she embarrassed or dissatisfied because her newlywed privacy was being discussed in public. Instead, she and the short-haired girl were expressionless as they looked at her, both falling into an even deeper silence.

The atmosphere seemed even weirder.

Qi Yan was baffled, vaguely feeling that she might have brought up something she shouldn’t have. Perhaps Yu Qianyan had argued with that Rong Shu before school started. Feeling a lump in her throat, she immediately changed the topic and the target.

“I heard that Miss Qin has also been getting quite close to an Omega from the Rong family recently. Why, could it be that you and Miss Yu are so close in private that you even had an agreement to become sisters-in-law, hence why you would even choose your marriage partners from the same family? Hahaha…”

Yu Qianyan: …How exactly did she manage to step on a landmine with every single sentence?

Rong Shu: …6.

Qin Zhiyu was shocked before she even finished listening. She immediately and anxiously peeked at Zhu Lanjun’s reaction, and only after discovering that Zhu Lanjun still had that expression of being lost in thought did she breathe a sigh of relief. She turned to Qi Yan with a look of “dare to be angry but dare not speak,” her face turning green with frustration.

Although Qi Yan was not close to Yu and Qin, she had long heard of their reputation for being wild and their deep friendship, which was why she made small talk based on their usual style of doing things. She had stepped on a landmine by mentioning Yu Qianyan’s marriage, but she thought that openly joking about Qin Zhiyu’s flirtatious nature and secretly praising their relationship would be fine. Just as she was feeling proud of her quick wit, she was caught off guard by that look from Qin Zhiyu, and only then did she realize, a beat too late, that she had probably mentioned the wrong person again.

Suffering two defeats in a row, Qi Yan found that her glittering Imperial Highness status seemed to be failing her here for some reason. While she was embarrassed and puzzled, she also felt a sliver of anger at the other party for being unappreciative.

What are these two losers doing? Why aren’t they following the script?

However, considering her own plans, Qi Yan had to suppress the annoyance in her heart and attempted to open a topic for the third time, aiming her gaze at Rong Shu.

Rong Shu silently turned her head away, refusing to make eye contact.

Qi Yan narrowed her eyes and took a deep look at this Beta who was dressed so conspicuously but lacked any awareness. She pinned her last hope on Zhu Lanjun.

She tentatively opened her mouth, “I don’t know who this classmate is?”

“Ah?” Zhu Lanjun was caught off guard by being named. She froze for a moment, then said slowly, “My name is Zhu Lanjun.”

Qi Yan waited and waited, but did not wait for Zhu Lanjun’s follow-up. She felt disdainful immediately, thinking that a country bumpkin is indeed a country bumpkin. It must have taken massive, unearned luck for a commoner Beta to get into Qilin Military Academy by exception and become her classmate, yet she was still this ignorant and arrogant. If it weren’t for the principal praising Zhu Lanjun’s talent, she wouldn’t have lowered herself to greet such a person.

However, being ignorant had its benefits, and people with slow wits were the easiest to trick.

Moreover, although this Zhu Lanjun was a Beta, she was actually quite good-looking, both pure and ethereal. Coupled with that slow, natural, and naive disposition, she was unexpectedly quite alluring.

A Beta… that actually seemed pretty good. They couldn’t be marked, wouldn’t get pregnant easily, wouldn’t cause that much trouble, and were easy to handle.

Qi Yan smiled gently on the surface, but her view of Zhu Lanjun kept changing. Just as she was about to speak to Zhu Lanjun again, trying to appear approachable, she saw the other person suddenly frown. Then, she tugged on Rong Shu’s clothes and whispered to Rong Shu that they were going to be late for registration.

Zhu Lanjun’s voice was indeed not loud, but she couldn’t help that the people present were all of a high level, and they heard it all clearly.

Qi Yan’s face dropped immediately. The repeated social rejection greatly offended her noble self-esteem. She wasn’t actually good-tempered or easy to get along with. As the Emperor’s favorite daughter, she had plenty of capital to be arrogant. Let alone second-generation heirs like Yu Qianyan or Qin Zhiyu, even heads of noble families like Yu Qishan or Xiong Weian had to be polite when they saw her. Being able to hold back until now was already reaching the limit of Qi Yan’s tolerance.

Rong Shu had been secretly observing everyone’s reactions and was the first to see the change in Qi Yan’s expression. She immediately gave Yu Qianyan a look.

Yu Qianyan understood. Before Qi Yan was completely provoked, she quickly stepped in to smooth things over.

“I didn’t expect that Zhiyu and I would be so lucky to live so close to the Third Highness, and coincidentally be in the same major. The Third Highness is proficient in both literature and martial arts. If Zhiyu and I have any questions we don’t understand in the future, I’m afraid we will have to rely on the Third Highness to be generous with her guidance.”

As soon as these flattering words were spoken, Qi Yan’s expression improved immediately. She began to feign humility with Yu Qianyan, saying that she couldn’t offer guidance and that everyone was a freshman and on the same level. She also praised Yu Qianyan and Qin Zhiyu one by one.

After receiving the signal, Qin Zhiyu realized what was happening and quickly joined the camp of commercial mutual flattery, taking over from Yu Qianyan to chat happily with Qi Yan.

Qin Zhiyu was someone who, whenever she wanted, had a mouth sweeter than honey. In just a few moments, she had coaxed Qi Yan into a state of high spirits, as if she couldn’t wait to become sworn sisters on the spot. Qi Yan was then led by Qin Zhiyu toward the registration office, quite bewildered.

Yu Qianyan knew that Qin Zhiyu was intentionally trying to lead Qi Yan away, and Rong Shu could naturally see the deeper meaning, so they followed behind, walking slowly at an extremely leisurely pace.

The interesting thing was that Zhu Lanjun, who had just been worried about being late for registration, chose to walk slowly with Rong Shu this time, showing not a hint of hurry.

Rong Shu was quite surprised by Zhu Lanjun’s reaction throughout the process, and Yu Qianyan was the same, not being able to resist glancing at her several times.

Zhu Lanjun’s expression remained very calm. She did not turn her head to look at Rong Shu, who was holding her arm, but walked at the same pace as Yu Qianyan and the others. It wasn’t until they were left far behind by Qi Yan and Qin Zhiyu, and the two figures were no longer visible, that Zhu Lanjun asked leisurely, “What do you want to say?”

Yu Qianyan hesitated for a moment and tested, “What do you think of Qi Yan?”

“Not much.” Zhu Lanjun’s speed of speech was still very slow, which inexplicably made people feel that she was being quite serious. “I don’t like the way she looks at me. It’s weird, so I don’t want to walk with her.”

After she finished speaking, Zhu Lanjun turned her head to look at Rong Shu. Her gaze was much gentler now, and she said to Rong Shu, “Little Li, I know you and Miss Yu know each other. If you two have anything to say, I’ll wait for you at the registration place.”

Rong Shu reacted for a moment before she remembered that her current alias was Jiang Yuli. She nodded at Zhu Lanjun.

It was only after Zhu Lanjun’s figure also disappeared that Rong Shu withdrew her slightly complex gaze and walked side by side with Yu Qianyan.

Zhu Lanjun’s guess was both right and wrong. They did indeed know each other, but there was nothing to say right now.

Of course, they were very willing to cherish this time alone.

The dormitory doors on both sides of the corridor were soundproofed. Apart from Yu Qianyan and Rong Shu, no one else was opening doors to go in or out, so there was only the sound of their footsteps clicking along the corridor.

When they were almost at the end, Yu Qianyan suddenly chuckled, drawing an inquiring look from Rong Shu.

“May I ask, why did you choose the alias Jiang Yuli for yourself?”

Rong Shu shot her a look from the corner of her eye, and as she walked down the stairs without turning her head, she explained, “My biological father, an Omega, had the surname Jiang. As for Yuli… aren’t cats the best at catching birds?”

Yu Qianyan was speechless with laughter. Copying Zhu Lanjun’s tone, she elongated the sound, said “Oh,” and then quickly caught up to Rong Shu, continuing to walk side by side in the empty and narrow corridor.