Transmigrated as a Scum Alpha: Now I Have a Wife via the Heartless Dao - Chapter 36

Qin Zhiyu clutched her chest in terror, her eyes wide. “Is she a freak? We’re all Alphas!”

Yu Qianyan admitted that she had indeed intended to tease Qin Zhiyu, but once she saw the reaction, she regretted it. She shouldn’t have bothered teasing a fool, as the expression was too dim-witted and quite unseemly to look at.

“She just wants to subdue us, not plot anything untoward.”

“Oh, is that so? That explains it.” Qin Zhiyu exhaled in relief and waved her hand dismissively. “Then isn’t what she’s doing even more useless? We aren’t like hypocritical Alphas like Xiong Yi. Our reputations are already rotten, so it doesn’t matter. We won’t panic and pledge allegiance to someone just because of this. Besides, does she think we’re stupid? Using such an obvious tactic, she must be terrified that we wouldn’t guess she’s the one pulling the strings behind the scenes.”

Yu Qianyan sighed softly and glanced at Qin Zhiyu, who was pointing out the state of the world with such smug confidence, feeling a sense of how things had changed.

She used to dislike using her brain, preferring to settle things with her hands. But since arriving in this world, she had been forced to use her brain every single day. Her swordsmanship, conversely, had no place to be used, limited to practice rather than combat, and her hands were starting to feel rusty.

If this continued, and she ever returned, she feared she might be able to swindle her fellow disciples out of everything they had, even coaxing them into handing over their life-bound swords, all while they bowed and thanked her, saying, “Thank you, Senior Sister, you are so kind.”

How she missed that pure world of the cultivation realm, where people settled disagreements with a fight and lived or died by the blade. There, there were no endless schemes and twists. Especially for sword cultivators like her, what conflict of interest couldn’t be settled amicably by scheduling a duel and stabbing each other a few times to resolve it quickly?

However, no matter how much she missed it, that was the past. She no longer had the freedom to spar or fight to the death as she pleased. These nobles and royals all seemed to have thousands of schemes hidden in their hearts. A single misstep in their social circles could land one in a trap, so she had to be as careful as possible.

At this moment, Yu Qianyan suddenly understood Yu Qishan’s choices a bit better. Yu Qishan’s personality was actually quite similar to her own. It was no wonder she would rather risk her life on the front lines than waste her energy maneuvering around the human-shaped monsters on the Capital Star.

If Qi Yan was like this, what about the Emperor?

“What’s wrong? Am I wrong?” Seeing Yu Qianyan silent for a long time, Qin Zhiyu’s smug look turned slightly uneasy.

“You are both right and wrong. Or rather, what you are thinking now is exactly what Qi Yan wants you to think. This is an open conspiracy.”

“Huh?”

Yu Qianyan explained patiently, “The main point of this rumor is not the post, nor the gossip itself, but ensuring that you and I saw it and heard exactly what Qi Yan said. She knows we don’t care about such vapid reputations, but what about our families? To outsiders, I am an only daughter, debauched and useless, young and vigorous, with a strained relationship with my stern mother. I was recently forced into a marriage I didn’t want, so I must harbor a lot of resentment. As for you, you are a child of a side branch of the Qin family. Although your treatment is surprisingly good and the family head treats you as a successor, the Qin family has many people and many issues. To outsiders, you are in a difficult spot, walking on thin ice, with no real backing.”

“Plus, since you and I are close, as long as she deliberately brings up Rong Shu in front of me, she can trigger my dissatisfaction with my mother. Even if I know it is a setup, will I truly not be shaken? Won’t I start to think she actually understands me and that we are on the same side? As long as I entertain that thought, it is like a clam cracking open its shell. Anything she wants to do afterward will be twice as effective with half the effort. If I am recruited, since you are so close to me, won’t you also think Qi Yan is a good person worth trusting and associating with?”

“Furthermore, even if we delete the post, many people have already seen it. As long as Qi Yan twists the story when she talks to my mother, I have already been provoked into a temper. My mother has that kind of personality. As long as she is slightly suspicious, the household will likely be thrown into chaos. If that happens a few times, will the rift between mother and daughter be far off?”

Qin Zhiyu was not stupid. On the contrary, she was very sharp. She immediately heard the unspoken meaning in Yu Qianyan’s words.

In the past, the head of the Qin family hadn’t let her touch these kinds of matters. Qin Zhiyu usually just hung out with the original Yu Qianyan, encountering only trivial squabbles among socialites. She was used to superficial schemes, so she hadn’t reacted at first. But now, prompted by Yu Qianyan, she sank into thought, her usually playful, beautiful face showing a hint of gravity.

Yu Qianyan did not disturb her. Qin Zhiyu did not ask further questions either. She silently followed Yu Qianyan to finish the registration. It was only when they returned to the dormitory, locked the door, and were alone that she hesitantly brought up a point, “So, earlier in the hallway, when Qi Yan was easily coaxed away by me, was that also intentional?”

“I am not sure about that, but I lean toward thinking she did it on purpose. Playboys like us and people like Qi Yan and Xiong Yi have never been the same type of person. They likely look down on us, thinking we don’t have much brainpower. If you want to get on good terms with someone who isn’t very smart, the best way is to demonstrate a similar level of intelligence and show an especially enthusiastic attitude. It is easier to be accepted into their established small circle that way. If you can play the fool and make us mistakenly believe she can be duped by us, that makes it even easier to fish in troubled waters. Look, you didn’t see through her intentions when she made that scene earlier, did you?”

Qin Zhiyu’s complexion immediately turned ugly, as if someone had dumped a bucket of ice water on her while she was walking down the road, and she couldn’t find anyone to blame for the bad luck.

“How could she be so… she, she…” She stammered for a long time, unable to utter a complete sentence. She really seemed truly angered.

Yu Qianyan did not comfort her. Instead, she wondered why Qi Yan insisted on recruiting them both.

No matter how successful the divisive tactic was, she and Qin Zhiyu wouldn’t have much power in the short term. They couldn’t do anything to help Qi Yan, with Yu Qishan and the head of the Qin family weighing over them like two great mountains.

Unless… Qi Yan had a way to topple those two mountains and let them both rise to power.

But how did she intend to topple them, and why would she do that? Go to such great lengths just to let her and Qin Zhiyu inherit the titles and run errands for her? Were the Xiong father and son not enough for her to command?

Did the Emperor know about Qi Yan’s plans? What was his attitude? Was it tacit approval, support, or was he the one directing it from behind the scenes? What did he hope to gain from it?

When Qi Yan mentioned that she and the princes and princesses were a good match, was it purely flattery, or was there a deeper meaning? Was the scene Qi Xiaoxiao made at the engagement banquet simply because she was provoked by some unknown factor, or was it an attempt to target Rong Shu, making her unable to endure the grievance and actively break off the engagement?

Yu Qianyan recalled how Xiong Weian had blocked Yu Qishan on the day of the engagement and been rejected. She inexplicably felt that incident might be connected to Qi Yan’s plans.

The line of thought reached a dead end. Yu Qianyan instinctively wanted to find Rong Shu to discuss it.

Even if Yu Qishan knew something, given her personality, she likely wouldn’t reveal it to her. Rong Shu’s keenness was even higher than her own; she might be able to come up with something.

After instructing Qin Zhiyu to stay in the dormitory to deal with Qi Yan if she happened to come by, Yu Qianyan sent a message to Rong Shu to ask for her location and headed over.

Rong Shu and Zhu Lanjun hadn’t returned to their dormitory after registering; they were currently touring and walking around the school.

As two Omegas posing as Betas, if not for their respective unusual encounters, they might never have known what the interior of the Imperial top-tier Kirin Military Academy looked like in their entire lives. Now that they had the time, of course, they wanted to have a good look around.

Therefore, when Zhu Lanjun saw that Rong Shu didn’t look very happy after finishing her communication, she suggested they walk around the school, a suggestion Rong Shu immediately approved.

Kirin Military Academy could be considered one of the oldest military academies in the Empire. Therefore, although the buildings inside the school were often renovated, the overall architectural style remained slightly retro. It didn’t look like the cyberpunk style common in the interstellar era, but instead had quite a bit of ancient charm.

Trees were planted on both sides of the paths between different teaching buildings and training grounds. These trees were divided into different areas based on the style of the classrooms for the surrounding majors. In some places, camphor and dawn redwood were planted, while in others, osmanthus and ginkgo trees were planted, setting each other off and each having its own scenery.

Rong Shu walked under the tree shadows, her head lowered as she tapped on her communicator. Afterward, she looked up, her gaze slightly unfocused as she looked at the surrounding scenery, appearing lost in thought.

Zhu Lanjun spoke up abruptly, “I am a person who actually has very accurate intuition.”

Rong Shu was startled and turned her head to look at her, confused.

Zhu Lanjun said slowly, “I know you actually don’t like me very much. But that’s okay, I still like you very much.”

Rong Shu remained silent, wanting to argue something, but after hesitating, she didn’t voice any rebuttal in the end.

Fortunately, Zhu Lanjun wasn’t expecting a response anyway, and continued to speak for herself, “Although you don’t like me, you seem to like that Miss Yu very much. The communication you just received was from her, right? Did you two have a fight?”

Rong Shu finally had a reaction. She stopped walking and stared fixedly at Zhu Lanjun.

Zhu Lanjun looked back with a pair of clear, black-and-white eyes, looking candid and slightly puzzled.

Rong Shu’s phoenix eyes narrowed slightly, a hint of danger in her tone, “You seem to like her quite a bit?”

“Yes.” Zhu Lanjun answered very frankly, as if she wasn’t admitting to having a crush on Yu Qianyan, but rather praising the ginkgo tree in front of her for looking like a real tree.

Before Rong Shu’s anger could ignite, Zhu Lanjun added, “Miss Yu is very interesting. She doesn’t look like an Alpha, nor does she look like a Beta. She has no sense of belonging or pride regarding her gender, nor does she feel that she should act according to gender stereotypes and styles. She is different from everyone else in this world. She seems to just be doing herself, which is very rare, and I think it is good.”

“You two must have known each other before, right? Miss Yu is a very gentle and good person, and she is very good to you. I think she must like you a lot too. You are both very good people.”

The bubble of anger that had just formed in her heart was easily pricked by Zhu Lanjun’s words. Rong Shu felt a bit blocked, with emotions stuck in her chest, neither going up nor down. After being choked for a long while, she spoke with spiteful sarcasm, “You’ve only spoken to her a few times, and you’ve already reached so many conclusions?”

Zhu Lanjun didn’t feel there was anything wrong with herself and repeated very seriously, “My intuition has always been very accurate.”

“But Miss Yu doesn’t seem to like that Qi Yan very much.”

That statement was quite accurate. Rong Shu glanced at her, took a step again, plucked a ginkgo leaf that brushed against her shoulder, played with it in her hand for a while, and handed it to Zhu Lanjun, saying, “Qi Yan is the Empire’s Third Imperial Princess. She is outstanding in appearance, noble in status, and a very rare dual 3S-level Alpha. She is the dream lover of countless Omegas and Betas, and even some Alphas are captivated by her charm.”

Zhu Lanjun was expressionless, “Oh.”

“Do you really not like Qi Yan?”

“Yes.” Zhu Lanjun was not only expressionless but also pursed her lips tightly, the stiff curve of the corners of her mouth revealing a hint of disdain.

That was strange. Rong Shu looked at Zhu Lanjun suspiciously. How was it that everything she said seemed to be the truth?

Then how did they become a model AO couple in their past life? They were a national-level CP, right? Could it be that they were a “bickering couple” type? Didn’t get along at first, but later couldn’t extricate themselves?

Rong Shu couldn’t figure it out, so she stopped thinking about it. Since their love-hate entanglements had nothing to do with her, as long as Zhu Lanjun wasn’t interested in Yu Qianyan, it was fine.

That was her person, good or bad, she was hers. She felt unhappy if anyone else looked at her for even a second.

However, Zhu Lanjun’s blunt expression of appreciation for Yu Qianyan unexpectedly didn’t make Rong Shu feel very annoyed.

In her past life, other than that one letter, she hadn’t actually had any direct contact with Zhu Lanjun; she had only pieced together an image of her from rumors, news, and what Yu Qianyan had said.

Now that she was in close contact with her, she felt that this person was actually quite honestly naive. She didn’t seem like an Omega at all, as if she didn’t have that “love” string growing in her brain, which made her inexplicably similar to Yu Qianyan.

It was this slight similarity that made Rong Shu more tolerant of her, and she decided not to argue with her for now.

Suddenly, Zhu Lanjun stopped, turned back, pointed to a ginkgo tree not far behind them, and asked Rong Shu, “Is that Miss Yu? Is she here to look for you?”

Rong Shu looked in that direction. It was indeed Yu Qianyan, though she was a bit far away and couldn’t be seen clearly. It looked like her face was a bit red?

Seeing this, Zhu Lanjun offered to return to the dormitory first. Rong Shu didn’t stand on ceremony with her and stood where she was, waiting for Yu Qianyan to come over.

After she walked closer, Rong Shu looked carefully. Yu Qianyan’s face was indeed slightly flushed.

Just as she was about to ask if Yu Qianyan was allergic to ginkgo, Yu Qianyan showed a hesitant, wanting-to-speak-but-stopping look.

Rong Shu immediately had a bad premonition and stared tightly at Yu Qianyan’s eyes, “When did you arrive? What did you hear us say?”

Yu Qianyan looked unnaturally to the side, “I didn’t hear very clearly… just, I heard Zhu Lanjun say, uh, say that you…”

“Don’t beat around the bush!”

“She said you like me.”

Rong Shu’s expression froze, gradually turning cold as she lowered her eyelashes to hide the emotions in her eyes.

“You didn’t refute her, Rong Shu. We two…”

“You heard wrong,” Rong Shu said coldly, “I don’t mean it that way. Don’t misunderstand.”

The flush on Yu Qianyan’s face also faded. She pursed her lips, her voice light and thin, like smoke and mist, “Is that so…”

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