I Heard I’m a Scummy Alpha? [Transmigration] - Chapter 29

“Your relationship?” Zhou Xiao looked puzzled. Could it be that aside from being President Yan’s personal assistant, Qi Yunwei was also somehow related to her by blood?

Qi Yunwei smiled faintly, winked at Zhou Xiao, and said, “Actually, I’m being kept by President Yan.”

Zhou Xiao froze. “K-kept?”

Before Qi Yunwei could spout more nonsense, Yan Zui spoke up: “Qi Yunwei is my legal partner.”

Zhou Xiao: “???”

Zhou Xiao was even more shocked than if she had really said she was being kept.

It took him a long moment to regain his composure. He looked at Yan Zui, trying to find the slightest hint of a lie in her expression, but there was none.

When he glanced back at Qi Yunwei, she was smiling radiantly, her eyes shining, with not the faintest sign of wanting to clarify.

“So, President Yan,” Zhou Xiao swallowed nervously, “does that mean Qi Yunwei is the lady of the house?”

Yan Zui’s expression remained cold as she inclined her head. “You could say that.”

“My marriage would affect the company’s stock price, so for now this matter remains confidential.”

Zhou Xiao immediately raised his hand in a solemn vow. “President Yan, don’t worry. I absolutely, absolutely won’t breathe a word to anyone!”

Yan Zui’s gaze shifted to where his raised hand had brushed against Qi Yunwei. Following her line of sight, Zhou Xiao saw it too. His face blanched, and he scrambled to his feet, retreating to the single-seater sofa across the room.

Oh no oh no oh no—he had actually sat shoulder-to-shoulder with the boss’s wife right in front of President Yan! Was that why she revealed their true relationship—to stake her claim?

At this point, Zhou Xiao was fully convinced that Qi Yunwei and Yan Zui were legally married.

If President Yan could get jealous, then there was no room left for doubt.

Once Zhou Xiao had moved away, the tight coil inside Yan Zui finally loosened.

She didn’t know when it started, but she had developed a strange possessiveness toward Qi Yunwei. In her heart, she had come to believe Qi Yunwei belonged to her alone, untouchable by anyone else.

At the same time, Yan Zui was very clear: this possessiveness had nothing to do with affection.

Her lashes lowered, veiling her eyes.

Perhaps it was simply because sleeping in Qi Yunwei’s arms each night gave her the best rest she’d had in years, and she had begun to treat Qi Yunwei as nothing more than a doll-like possession.

After more than a week of effort, using the most advanced tools available in this world, Qi Yunwei finally managed to create a rough prototype of an intelligent robot.

Xiaoman gazed enviously at the half-meter-tall robot with fully assembled limbs sitting on the table. 【I wonder if Xiaoman will ever have a body again.】

Qi Yunwei replied: [Don’t worry. This is just an experimental model. Its joints aren’t nearly as flexible as your original body. Once I have enough money to buy finer tools and make better parts, I’ll build you a body identical to the one you had outside this world.]

Xiaoman immediately lit up. 【Thank you, Master.】

【Even if I can’t attach to the body in the end, it doesn’t matter. Because it will carry your intention. And besides, being able to stay by your side all the time now already makes me super happy.】

Qi Yunwei chuckled: [Sweet little thing.]

Then, for a moment, her mind drifted—Yan Zui’s future child would surely inherit her mother’s beauty. Just how adorable would that child be? Their voice would probably be sweet too, calling to her in the same soft, milky tone Xiaoman used.

Snapping back to focus, Qi Yunwei booted up the intelligent robot program on her computer. A simple test showed the basics worked fine—the robot could hold a conversation and move, though its responsiveness was lacking. It couldn’t risk moving quickly with objects attached. Once she improved its sensitivity, speed would also increase.

The foundation was sound. While nowhere near the intelligence level of interstellar-era machines, it already surpassed the most advanced smart products available in this world.

Over the next few days, Qi Yunwei began modifying the household appliances, linking them to the robot so that in the future they could all be controlled through it.

Since she couldn’t cook herself, and with the butler about to leave, she worried Yan Zui would have nothing to eat. So she even wrote programs allowing the robot to control pots and stir-fry meals, with recipes drawn mostly from Yan Zui’s favorite dishes.

Qi Yunwei’s days were fulfilling—exercise, tinkering with appliances, delivering meals to Yan Zui. Before she realized it, the one-month arrangement they had agreed upon had come to an end, and the day came for the butler to leave.

It happened to be Sunday. Yan Zui, off work, decided to personally drive the butler home.

Until now, the butler had no idea what Qi Yunwei had been secretly working on. With him gone, she could finally tackle the kitchen without interruption—she couldn’t risk delaying Yan Zui’s meals the next day.

As he was leaving, the butler looked reluctant. “Miss Yunwei, take good care of Miss. She’s very kind, only a little cold on the outside. She’s an Omega—just be a little more yielding to her.”

Qi Yunwei smiled. “Don’t worry, Uncle Jiang. I’ll make sure Yan Zui never suffers the slightest grievance.”

Yan Zui glanced at her at that.

The butler patted Qi Yunwei’s arm. “After so long, I can see you’re a kind Alpha too. Leaving Miss in your care puts my mind at ease.”

Yan Zui drove the butler back to the mid-level villa. With Yan Zhao and He Ran both away, she quickly turned back home.

They had left a little after eight in the morning, and by the time she returned it was already past eleven.

Entering the apartment, Yan Zui didn’t see Qi Yunwei in the living room, but she did hear noises from the kitchen. Could it be that Qi Yunwei was cooking?

Walking in, she saw four different pots lined up on the island counter. Qi Yunwei was busy “modifying” them one by one with her tools. Beside her lay a cutting board rigged with sensors and even a knife.

On one pot, a flexible mechanical arm had been installed, complete with a spatula.

Yan Zui paused in silence, then walked over. “What are you doing?”

Qi Yunwei was attaching a ladle to the soup pot’s robotic arm. At Yan Zui’s voice, she looked up with a bright smile. “Yan Zui, you’re back! Look at this automatic stir-fry pot I made—pretty cool, right? Tomorrow you’ll get to taste its cooking.”

Yan Zui frowned slightly. Surely Qi Yunwei was joking.

A pot that could stir-fry food by itself? Impossible.

But Qi Yunwei was clearly enjoying herself, so there was no point in dampening her spirits. If the pots broke, they could always buy new ones.

From her demeanor, it was obvious Qi Yunwei had no real cooking skills—otherwise why go to such lengths to make an “automatic stir-fry pot”?

Yan Zui began seriously considering hiring a cook or a live-in housekeeper to prepare meals and keep the place tidy.

Leaving Qi Yunwei to her kitchen experiments, Yan Zui knew they wouldn’t be having a proper homemade lunch today. With a sigh, she pulled out her phone and ordered takeout instead.

The restaurant was nearby, so within half an hour the food had been delivered right to their door.

Yan Zui saw on the app that the delivery driver had arrived. When she heard the doorbell she walked over and opened the door.

The door eased open to reveal Yan Zui’s face — her fluffy curls spilling over her shoulders, skin like snow, lips stained red, and those blue-black eyes cold as ice. The delivery bag in the courier’s hands caught the light and reflected her indifferent gaze.

The delivery guy almost forgot how to breathe. He forced his face back to a healthy color and stammered, “H-hi, your delivery.”

“Thanks.” Yan Zui took the food and shut the door.

Her extreme beauty vanished behind the closed door, and the courier couldn’t help feeling a little deflated; he kept glancing back over his shoulder as he walked away.

The dining room and kitchen shared one space, but Qi Yunwei had torn through both, leaving them in disarray. Yan Zui couldn’t stand the mess — out of sight, out of mind — so she set the dishes on the living room coffee table.

She went to call Qi Yunwei to eat, but Qi Yunwei, still bent over a screw, didn’t look up. “You go ahead,” she said. “Just leave me a little.”

Over the past month Qi Yunwei’s complexion had cleared from a sallow yellow to a clean, pale translucence. Sweat dotted the tip of her upturned nose; her lips were pressed together in concentration. Sunlight poured through the kitchen window and haloed her with a soft glow.

Yan Zui watched her for a long moment, then turned back to the living room to eat.

By the time Yan Zui finished and watched the mid-day news for a while, Qi Yunwei still hadn’t stopped fussing.

When the news ended and nothing else on TV interested her, Yan Zui decided to relax in the study with a book.

She reached the study door, turned the knob and pushed it open — and found a half-meter-tall mechanical figure standing on the desk opposite.

“Huh.”

Yan Zui remembered seeing Qi Yunwei assembling parts the other day. Could this be it?

So this was the “little toy” the butler had mentioned.

She walked over to inspect the little robot. It was finely made — not a mere toy, really, more of a collectible figure. Its mechanical head was round, its cheeks painted with cute rosy circles. Yan Zui reached out and tapped the robot’s forehead with a pale fingertip. “Pretty cute.”

As she looked, the robot’s eyes lit up with a milky glow and a babyish mechanical voice came from its opening-and-closing mouth: “Thank you for the compliment — you’re beautiful too.”

“It talks?” Yan Zui blinked in surprise, then shrugged it off. Maybe the voice was pre-recorded; there were plenty of toys like that in department stores.

Xiao Jiu is the owner’s first-generation intelligent robot. It can not only converse but also manage all the household appliances.

Yan Zui’s indifferent pupils brightened with interest. “It can predict likely conversations. Qi, why did you name it ‘Xiao Jiu’ — the number nine?”

Xiao Jiu tilted its head. “Not the number nine. The ‘jiu’ in Xiao Jiu is the ‘jiu’ for the drink that makes people drunk.”

Yan Zui paused. Why would Qi Yunwei pick that name?

Her expression cooled. She had no desire to keep chatting with Xiao Jiu, so she pulled a classic from the nearby bookshelf and sat down on the round sofa to read.

Xiao Jiu’s eyes flashed; after straightening up and resuming its normal stance, it turned toward Yan Zui and opened its mouth slightly, a faintly wronged look on its face.

Yan Zui flipped to the last page she’d been on and tried to read, but her mind would not settle. She kept wondering why Qi Yunwei had named the robot Xiao Jiu, and a single page took forever to get through.

She looked up and found the robot facing her with that pathetic expression. “When did it turn around? A robot can feel wronged now?”

She set the book aside and walked back to Xiao Jiu. “What’s wrong?”

After she finished modifying every pot, Qi Yunwei tidied the kitchen and came out to eat.

On the living-room coffee table there was one serving of vegetables, one of rice, and some fruit and dessert. Two empty boxes lay in the trash bin. It was obvious Yan Zui had only eaten one dish and left a whole, untouched portion for her.

Qi Yunwei felt a little touched. She planned to go to the study and connect Xiao Jiu to the kitchen appliances before eating.

But when she pushed the study door open, she found Yan Zui seriously chatting with Xiao Jiu.

Xiao Jiu was saying it was upset; Yan Zui was trying to coax it.

Qi Yunwei couldn’t help smiling and walked over. “Is the little toy I made any good?”

“You predicted the conversation pretty well,” Yan Zui said. “Xiao Jiu could catch most of what I said.”

Then, almost offhand, she asked, “Why the name Xiao Jiu?”

“Just felt right,” Qi Yunwei replied. The name popped into her head when she was deciding and it sounded nice, so she kept it.

Yan Zui breathed a small sigh of relief.

She only wanted to keep their relationship purely financial for now. If Qi Yunwei started to think otherwise, it would complicate things.

Dinner was takeout again. After eating, Qi Yunwei returned to the study to tinker with Xiao Jiu while Yan Zui stayed in the living room watching the news.

Her phone buzzed twice. Yan Zui picked it up: a WeChat from Huang Momo.

Huang Momo: Zuizui, I just remembered — is tonight your monthly cycle? Is Uncle Jiang gone?

Yan Zui: He’s gone.

Huang Momo: Congrats, congrats, you can finally sleep by yourself!

Yan Zui: Not tonight.

Huang Momo: Why not? [confused emoji]

Yan Zui: Heat most likely tonight. Qi Yunwei needs to mark it.

Huang Momo: !

Huang Momo: Hang in there. What can you do — we’re Omegas, sigh.

Before going to bed, Qi Yunwei finally finished tuning Xiao Jiu and was eager to see it in action the next day.

Remembering she hadn’t moved her things from the master bedroom to the guest room, she quickly tidied the guest room and went back to the master to fetch her things — only to be met by a familiar, sweet scent the moment she stepped in.