Strategy to Tame My Dimwitted Older Sister A - Chapter 43

But Bai Xia quickly dismissed this filthy thought from her mind.

She even felt a twinge of guilt.

In her past life, she would never have entertained any such thoughts about Chu Nanqiao. Although Chu Nanqiao was an omega and she was an alpha naturally drawn to each other’s pheromones her feelings for Chu Nanqiao had never gone beyond friendship. Nothing more.

Not only had she never had such thoughts, she hadn’t even considered them.

So what was going on today?

Bai Xia wondered if her upcoming rut was making her unusually susceptible to Chu Nanqiao’s omega identity.

But she had calculated the dates her rut wasn’t due for at least another week. That meant she was having these thoughts about Chu Nanqiao without the influence of her rut.

This was terrifying!

No, no, that wasn’t the important part. The real question was, why was she having these thoughts about Chu Nanqiao?!

Chu Nanqiao was the one who had killed her in her past life! She should be avoiding her at all costs, so how could such a horrifying idea even cross her mind?!

Could it be that she had some kind of masochistic tendency?!

Bai Xia began to question her entire existence.

As she carefully tucked the tissue under Chu Nanqiao’s heel, she mentally interrogated herself, growing more and more disturbed the deeper she thought.

Chu Nanqiao noticed her strange expression and asked, “Xiaxia, what’s wrong?”

Caught like a criminal red-handed, Bai Xia jolted in panic and quickly denied it. “N-nothing! Why would you think that?”

Perhaps because she was an omega, Chu Nanqiao had always been sensitive to emotions. She could tell Bai Xia had been lost in thought just now.

But if Bai Xia didn’t want to talk about it, she wouldn’t press further.

“Oh.”

“You don’t believe me?”

Chu Nanqiao wanted to say, I believe you, my foot, but as a young lady, she tried to avoid vulgar language. Otherwise, it might become a habit, and if she accidentally slipped up in important settings, it would be utterly embarrassing.

So she simply smiled and said, “I believe everything you say, Xiaxia.”

Bai Xia was certain Chu Nanqiao was secretly mocking her that teasing expression was way too obvious, and now she was blatantly lying to her face. “I get it. You don’t believe me at all, you’re just trying to humor me.”

Chu Nanqiao hurriedly defended herself. “I’m not! I do believe you?!”

“Your face says otherwise.”

“I… Fine, okay, I don’t believe you.”

Bai Xia had known as much, but she couldn’t blame Chu Nanqiao. After all, she had lied first, it was only natural Chu Nanqiao wouldn’t trust her. “But I really am fine. If you don’t believe me, I’ll be really sad.”

Chu Nanqiao was about to respond when the tissue under her foot brushed against the wound, making her wince with a sharp “Ah!”

“Did I touch the wound? Does it hurt?”

“It’s not too bad.”

“How could it not hurt? I’ve had blisters before they’re awful. But hang in there, I’ll finish padding it soon.”

“Okay.”

Bai Xia lowered her head and continued working quietly.

I don’t know if every omega has skin this flawless, but when Bai Xia touched Chu Nanqiao’s ankle, it felt less like human skin and more like something impossibly smooth so delicate it seemed like water could be squeezed from it.

But it wasn’t just her feet. Chu Nanqiao’s entire body was like a porcelain doll pale, silky, and carrying the faint citrus scent of her pheromones. She was practically a divine masterpiece.

This instantly reminded Bai Xia of the nights in her past life when she had slept beside Chu Nanqiao.

Back then, Bai Xia had already graduated, while Chu Nanqiao was in her fourth year of university. Coincidentally, Xu Qing and Chu Muqing were away, and it was the first time Chu Nanqiao had brought her home to stay the night. Following the principle that alphas and omegas shouldn’t be too intimate, Bai Xia had intended to sleep in a separate room. But Chu Nanqiao had been afraid of the dark since childhood and couldn’t sleep alone. After wrestling with the dilemma and mentally preparing herself for a long time, Bai Xia finally agreed to share the bed.

To prevent any mishaps, she had placed a barrier of blankets between them. Yet, the next morning, she woke up to find Chu Nanqiao clinging to her like a body pillow. Still half-asleep, Bai Xia had reflexively run her hand down Chu Nanqiao’s back, only to be so startled she tumbled right off the bed.

Thankfully, Xu Qing and Chu Muqing were away on business and didn’t witness it. Otherwise, they might’ve thrown her straight into a frying pan.

Though it had been a false alarm, looking back now, Chu Nanqiao’s skin really had been exquisite every inch of it so perfect it was impossible not to want to touch.

Bai Xia froze mid-thought.

Having that kind of thought earlier was bad enough, but now? Why was she reminiscing about all her past experiences with Chu Nanqiao?

This line of thinking was way too bizarre!

To stop herself from spiraling further, Bai Xia quickly pulled out another tissue and cushioned Chu Nanqiao’s other heel before standing up.

“There. It shouldn’t hurt to walk now.”

Chu Nanqiao bent down to inspect it, then tentatively took a few steps. It definitely didn’t hurt as much as before, though the tissue brushing against the wound still stung faintly something that would have to be properly treated at home.

“Th-thank you, Xiaxia.”

“No big deal. No need to be so polite.”

Chu Nanqiao sat back down and patted the spot beside her, the invitation obvious.

But Bai Xia felt awkward sitting next to her now, especially after all those messy thoughts. Being close to Chu Nanqiao again might just make her imagine even more.

She had to nip this in the bud.

“I’ll just stand here with you. Don’t worry, I’m not tired.”

Chu Nanqiao didn’t push her. Standing was fine too at least this way, for the next half hour, she could keep looking at Bai Xia’s face. “O-okay, then.”

Bai Xia stood opposite her, and as the previous topic died, an awkward silence settled in. She scrambled for something else to say.

After a moment, she asked, “Actually, I have a question for you, junior.”

Chu Nanqiao stared at her like an infatuated fool. “Go ahead, Xiaxia.”

Bai Xia said, “So, Junior Chu Nanqiao, do you know Junior Li Ai?”

Chu Nanqiao didn’t know why Bai Xia suddenly asked this, but she answered truthfully anyway, “I know her. Xiao Ai is my childhood friend and bestie. Just now, she helped me chase away that annoying Ruan Manxiang. If it weren’t for her, I would’ve been bullied long ago.”

As she spoke, Chu Nanqiao lowered her eyes.

Her expression didn’t look as good as before, and it didn’t seem like an act.

“This Ruan Manxiang bullied you?”

Bai Xia remembered Ruan Manxiang. In her past life, they had met at school not long after this. She was also a very attractive alpha, a strong-willed woman who adored Chu Nanqiao. Every time it was Chu Nanqiao’s birthday, Ruan Manxiang would gather many expensive gifts for her. She was also very friendly toward Bai Xia and often encouraged her to find her destined omega.

After Bai Xia graduated and started working, although Ruan Manxiang didn’t care for her as meticulously as Chu Nanqiao did, she would still frequently message her to check in. She seemed like a decent person.

Of course, as a fellow alpha, Bai Xia knew the main reason Ruan Manxiang did this was to gather information about Chu Nanqiao’s preferences through her. That way, she could tailor her efforts to win Chu Nanqiao’s heart.

But this ulterior motive wasn’t a big deal. As an alpha herself, Bai Xia understood. The fact that Ruan Manxiang even bothered to show concern for her was, in a way, quite commendable.

Moreover, in her past life, Chu Nanqiao had seemed to think quite highly of Ruan Manxiang. Why was she suddenly badmouthing her in this life?

Chu Nanqiao slowly raised her head. She didn’t really want Bai Xia to know about her unpleasant experiences, yet at the same time, she longed for Bai Xia to know everything about her.

People were always so contradictory.

“Yeah, she bullied me.”

Bai Xia still found it hard to believe because she knew Ruan Manxiang genuinely adored Chu Nanqiao. She had done many seemingly foolish things for her things one wouldn’t bother with if they didn’t truly care.

Could it be, as the saying goes, the more you like someone, the more you want to tease them?

That was entirely possible.

Otherwise, based on her past impressions of Ruan Manxiang, she couldn’t possibly be the kind of person Chu Nanqiao was describing.

Besides, if an alpha bullied an omega and was seen or reported, they would undoubtedly be scorned by other alphas forever.

No, forget other alphas given how much Xu Qing and Chu Muqing doted on Chu Nanqiao, if they found out about something like this, they’d probably bury the offender on the spot.

There was no way they’d let Ruan Manxiang continue treating Chu Nanqiao like this.

“Junior, if she really did bully you, why didn’t you tell your parents? They’re your closest family. If an alpha bullied you, your parents would never let her off.”

Chu Nanqiao hesitated before saying, “I didn’t tell them.”

No wonder.

Wait, no.

Given Chu Nanqiao’s current temperament quick to anger and even quicker to give the cold shoulder, how could she possibly tolerate Ruan Manxiang’s disrespect?

Bai Xia was genuinely curious and cautiously asked, “Why didn’t you tell your parents?”

Chu Nanqiao hesitated once again, pausing for several minutes before speaking. ” I don’t want them to constantly worry about me. I want to be able to handle everything on my own. That’s, why I didn’t tell them. Besides, Xiaxia, you probably didn’t know Ruan Manxiang is the eldest daughter of the Ruan family and their future heir. If I had said anything, it would have caused tension between our families.”

Bai Xia hadn’t considered this angle before.

She truly hadn’t known that Ruan Manxiang was the Ruan family’s heiress. She only remembered meeting her at school and growing closer because of Chu Nanqiao. Everything else had led her to assume Ruan Manxiang was just an ordinary alpha a simple, ordinary alpha who had a crush on Chu Nanqiao.

But now, hearing Chu Nanqiao’s words, the events of her past life suddenly took on a different meaning when she looked back.

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