I Heard I’m a Scummy Alpha? [Transmigration] - Chapter 115

After the banquet, Qi Yunwei went to Huang Momo’s place to pick up Yan Zui.

When they got home, Qi Yunwei told her about Wen Fu’s invitation.

“He seems to be using your past to lure me in,” she said. “This visit to his house won’t be simple.”

Yan Zui’s brows knitted, her expression cold. Qi Yunwei reached for her hand—it was icy to the touch.

“Don’t worry,” Qi Yunwei said softly. “If you don’t want to go, I’ll just refuse him.”

Yan Zui kept her gaze fixed on a point in the distance for a long moment before finally speaking.

“No need. If I don’t go, how will I find out what kind of game he’s playing?”

She turned her hand over, gripping Qi Yunwei’s in return. Her voice was low and steady.

“There’s something I’ve been avoiding telling you—not because I didn’t want to, but because I didn’t want to relive it. I never thought my father would tell Wen Fu about it.”

She took a quiet breath.

“I actually had an older sister. Her name was Yan Qing—she was three years older than me. When I was twelve, we went hiking together and were kidnapped. When the police came to rescue us, she was killed.”

Qi Yunwei’s chest tightened. “Because you survived, your parents blamed you for her death?”

Yan Zui shook her head. “No. My sister and I were kept in two adjoining rooms. I could hear everything from the other side. The kidnapper said the police were closing in. He hadn’t planned to hurt us, but my sister saw his face—so she had to die.”

“After he killed her, he came into my room. He told me he liked my face and that when I grew up, he’d marry me. Then, he let me go.”

Her lashes lowered, her tone eerily calm as she continued,

“My parents were devastated when they learned my sister was gone. They pitied me at first, told me not to blame myself. But after I came back from giving my police statement, their eyes changed. They started to hate me.”

Qi Yunwei’s throat felt dry. “Why?”

“When I was young, I didn’t understand,” Yan Zui said softly. “It wasn’t until I left for college that I realized, maybe they’d heard parts of my statement and confused cause and effect. They must have thought the kidnapper targeted us because of me—because he liked my face. So in their minds, my sister died because of me. I was the reason they lost their beloved daughter.”

Her lips curved faintly, but there was no smile in her eyes.

“My cousin Yunqing—even though he’s a boy—looks a lot like my sister, and my parents adore him. My aunt probably heard the story from them and decided I was to blame too. That’s why she treats me so coldly.”

“When I found out,” Yan Zui murmured, “I started doubting myself too. Was it really my fault? Did the kidnapper choose us because of me? But when I recalled the details carefully, I realized he didn’t see my face until after we were kidnapped. It had nothing to do with me. It was just bad luck.”

Qi Yunwei’s voice softened. “You never tried to talk to your parents about it? Maybe they just misunderstood.”

Yan Zui gave a light, indifferent laugh.

“I grew up being hated by them—I got used to it. Besides, I have no proof. What could I possibly say to make them change their minds? They’d probably just think I was lying to dodge responsibility.”

She looked down. “There’s no need.”

If Wen Fu hadn’t brought it up, Yan Zui would never have told Qi Yunwei any of this.

Just as she said—there was no need.

After all these years, she no longer cared whether her parents loved or hated her. Telling the story now would only trouble Qi Yunwei for nothing.

Qi Yunwei brushed her fingers gently across Yan Zui’s eyes, which shimmered faintly with tears.

“Who says there’s no need? Clearing my Yan Zui’s name is absolutely necessary.”

The novel’s plot never mentioned anything about Yan Zui being kidnapped as a child, so by logic, this must have been part of the story’s endgame—and that kidnapper was likely the final villain who tormented her.

“Do you remember anything about the kidnapper?” Qi Yunwei asked. “Did the police find any clues?”

Yan Zui smiled faintly at Qi Yunwei’s worried tone. “No. I was blindfolded the whole time, and he used a voice changer. I couldn’t even tell if he was male or female. I hadn’t differentiated yet back then, so I couldn’t tell if he was Alpha, Beta, or Omega. The police found no trace of him at the scene. He was very cautious.”

She let out a quiet chuckle. “On my eighteenth birthday, I stayed awake all night, terrified that he’d suddenly come back to make good on his promise to marry me. But nothing happened that night. Eventually, I stopped thinking about him.”

Qi Yunwei realized she wouldn’t get any more information out of Wen Fu than she had from Yan Zui, and decided she would just decline his invitation the next day.

The next morning, Qi Yunwei got up early, washed up, and worked out. When she returned, she found Yan Zui still fast asleep.

She bent down and pressed a soft kiss to her eyelid. Yan Zui’s lashes fluttered faintly but didn’t open.

“You look tired,” Qi Yunwei whispered beside her ear. “Sleep in for once.”

Yan Zui murmured a sleepy “mm” and turned over, drifting off again.

Qi Yunwei couldn’t help but smile. It seemed that letting go of the past had finally given Yan Zui some peace—and a good night’s rest.

At the office later that morning, Qi Yunwei had just sat down and was about to call Wen Fu to decline his invitation when her phone rang first—it was Yan Zhao.

In the past, when Qi Yunwei hadn’t known why Yan Zhao and He Ran were so cold toward their own daughter, she had still treated them respectfully as her in-laws.

But after what she’d learned last night, she could no longer see them as anything but strangers.

Your underage daughter suffers a misunderstanding that could’ve been cleared up with a single question—and you didn’t even bother to ask? Or did you just never care to?

Qi Yunwei guessed that even before Yan Qing’s death, Yan Zhao and He Ran had already favored the elder daughter. They’d loved her more than the younger one, which was why they so readily decided that Yan Zui was to blame.

If their love had ever been fair, they would have at least tried to understand their younger child instead of condemning her outright.

“What is it?” Qi Yunwei asked coolly.

Yan Zhao froze at her tone, then said after a pause, “You and Yan Zui haven’t come home for a while. Next week is her birthday—why don’t you both come back and celebrate?”

“There’s no need,” Qi Yunwei said flatly. “We already have plans to celebrate at home.”

Yan Zhao hesitated, swallowing his irritation. Qi Yunwei’s current status and attitude made her someone he couldn’t afford to offend.

He forced his voice to stay calm. “A daughter’s birthday is also her mother’s day of suffering. Your mother went through so much to give birth to her—it’s natural that she’d want to celebrate together, like every year before. If she doesn’t come home, your mother will be heartbroken.”

“With all due respect,” Qi Yunwei replied, her tone cutting but steady, “every meeting I’ve had with you two since our marriage has been unpleasant. And given how you treat Yan Zui, I’d say her not coming home would probably make her mother even happier.”

“Nonsense!” Yan Zhao snapped. “Yan Zui is her own daughter—how could she possibly be happy if she doesn’t come home? Who’s been feeding you lies to sow discord between us? Whoever it is, don’t believe them!”

Qi Yunwei arched an eyebrow, voice laced with irony. “It was Yan Zui who told me.”

“…” Yan Zhao fell silent.

“Even if she hadn’t,” Qi Yunwei continued, “anyone with eyes could see that you despise her—or maybe even hate her. How absurd, hating your own child. If Yan Zui didn’t resemble her mother so much, I might’ve thought she was adopted. At least then your hatred would make sense—it wouldn’t be your own blood you were turning against.”

“You don’t need to explain,” she said sharply. “I know you think you have your reasons, that she deserves your resentment. But have you ever thought about it the other way? Yan Zui was innocent. That tragedy wasn’t her fault. Why didn’t you hate yourselves for failing to protect your elder daughter? Why not hate the murderer? Instead, you chose to hate the only person who was blameless—and never even told her why.”

For a moment, there was stunned silence on the other end. Then Yan Zhao’s voice came through, incredulous:

“She actually told you that? How could she say that to anyone?”

Qi Yunwei’s voice turned cold. “You could casually tell your good friend Wen Fu, but she can’t tell her lawful wife?”

Yan Zhao’s tone rose in anger. “Who told you I ever said anything to Wen Fu? That matter has only ever been known to our family! For ten years, I haven’t breathed a word of it to anyone!”

In that instant, something flickered in Qi Yunwei’s mind—an unsettling realization.

She steadied her breath and said quietly, “Maybe you told him while you were drunk—and just don’t remember.”