The Ex-Wife of the Scumbag A Who Abandoned the Female Lead - Chapter 7

Compared to the first time she was driven out of her home, at least her attire was decent this time. Shi Nuocen glanced back at the European-style villa and couldn’t help but mock herself inwardly.

Carrying her suitcase, she wandered aimlessly. Along the way, many taxi drivers slowed down as they passed her, craning their necks to call out, “Miss, need a ride?”

Shi Nuocen waved them off. The drivers seemed visibly disappointed, and some muttered under their breath, likely assuming that someone dressed in designer clothes would be an easy fare, only to find her unexpectedly frugal.

She used to criticize Ru Xi Cheng for being stingy with money, but now she was the one being judged.

Perhaps it was true that fortunes changed.

As she passed through a long, narrow alley, a man in a baseball cap suddenly darted out, snatched her suitcase, and bolted. The man moved swiftly, and Shi Nuocen frowned, immediately breaking into a sprint to chase after him!

In the past, she wouldn’t have bothered running such trivial possessions weren’t worth her effort. But now! Stealing from her was like challenging her very existence, threatening her life!

Screw that bastard!

Shi Nuocen tailed the man closely, chasing him through several streets. But the thief was as slippery as an eel, constantly ducking into secluded, shadowy alleys!

Realizing she couldn’t afford to waste time, she swiftly grabbed a broom leaning against a wall, raised it high as if to throw it, and narrowed her eyes like a hawk or a leopard. Unexpectedly, the thief slowed down, turned around, and while panting heavily, raised his middle finger at her with a mocking grin!

Shi Nuocen sensed they had reached his turf.

Sure enough, in the next moment, a group of street thugs swaggered out from the dark alley. They were shirtless, wielding baseball bats, and their leader smirked at her, pointing at the thief clutching her suitcase. He slammed his bat loudly against the ground and snarled, “You’ve got some nerve, girl! Chasing him all the way here alone? He’s my underling, and you’ve made him suffer. If I don’t teach you a lesson, how am I supposed to keep my reputation on the streets?”

Compared to the thief, Shi Nuocen was only slightly out of breath. She took a deep breath, straightened her posture, and tilted her neck slightly, her long hair sweeping sharply through the air. “Hah! Though I may be down on my luck, I’m not someone you can mess with. If you don’t want to spend the next ten days or half a month in the hospital, return my things and back off!”

“Well, well, this girl talks big! Take this!” The leader’s eyes glinted fiercely as he charged at her, swinging his baseball bat.

But Shi Nuocen tossed the broom aside and met him bare-handed. She spun gracefully, evading his most aggressive strike, then formed her hand into a blade and struck. With a loud crack, the bat, as thick as a teacup, snapped in two!

The leader stared at the broken piece on the ground, swallowing hard, and yelled, “Damn, are you even a woman? How can you fight like that? Are you a man in disguise?”

His raised voice carried not only shock but also a hint of fury.

Shi Nuocen felt utterly exasperated. Without halting her assault, she struck his neck and declared loudly, “We’re in the ABO era, and you’re still stuck on male and female? You deserve to be beaten!”

“And what’s wrong with being a woman?” Shi Nuocen raised an eyebrow with a spirited smile, swiftly moving behind the thug before launching a flying kick. As she landed, her dress fluttered gracefully, and dust rose around her. “A woman can still make you cry for your parents!”

“Wh-what arrogance! No matter how strong you are, you’re just one person, we’re a whole group! Everyone, attack!” The leader, clutching his painfully sore neck and barely able to stand straight, quickly rallied his underlings.

Facing the onslaught of chaotic strikes, she remained composed, her steps shifting like a nimble butterfly. A confident and sharp smile never left her lips. A self-assurance that made her grow stronger with each challenge, her moves appearing increasingly formidable. In contrast, the thugs grew weak-limbed and retreated step by step.

The robber, clutching the suitcase, watched the one-sided situation with rising dread. In a moment of panic, he impulsively smashed the suitcase open and shouted in a trembling voice, “You bitch! Even if I can’t take it, I won’t let you have it back. I’d rather destroy everything!”

He grabbed the exquisitely packaged skincare products from the suitcase and hurled them at the wall with all his might. However, the packaging was too sturdy, and despite sweating profusely, he failed to break them. Undeterred, he stubbornly focused on the delicate bottles, sitting down on the grimy ground, unscrewing each cap one by one, and pouring their contents out.

Skincare worth 200,000 yuan, barely used properly, was now spilled across the ground. Milky white and golden liquids, emitting a rich, high-quality fragrance, mingled with mud and dust.

After destroying the bottles, the robber turned his destructive urges toward the clothes. Pulling a pair of scissors from the suitcase, he snipped away with sharp snap sounds, reducing the expensive fabrics to tattered strips.

“You’re asking for death!” Shi Nuocen roared.

Seeing her furious expression, the thugs broke out in a cold sweat but, to save face, stiffened their necks and cheered the robber on. Soon, however, they realized in terror that the woman’s combat prowess seemed to have doubled.

Shi Nuocen held back no longer. Every move she made was precise and forceful, dislocating joints with ease, her eyes blazing like raging flames.

She dislocated the robber’s arms and jaw, ensuring he could never steal or spew filth again. Turning, she kicked the back of his knee, a crisp crack echoed as his thigh and shin bones misaligned. The grown man let out muffled, agonized screams, collapsing rigidly to the ground, drool dribbling from his slack jaw.

Shi Nuocen pressed her foot firmly on the robber’s face, her expression stern as she turned to survey the others. “Now, who’s next?”

The thugs, horrified by their companion’s state, stood frozen like wooden chickens. When they finally snapped back to reality, they dropped their clubs one by one, their knees buckling as they knelt on the ground.

“Madam, we were blind! Please show mercy and let us go!”

“Heh.” Shi Nuocen sneered coldly. “Want to leave? Not a chance! You’re all going straight to jail!”

“No way!” One of them attempted to resist, starting to straighten his knees halfway. But Shi Nuocen, as if she had eyes in the back of her head, lightly kicked a baseball bat on the ground. It flew through the air, striking him squarely on the forehead. Instantly, he saw stars, his consciousness rattled, unable to recover for a long while.

The remaining thugs exchanged glances, each seeing the despair of “our lives are over” in the others’ eyes: this woman was clearly a trained martial artist, with at least over a decade of skill. They had truly kicked an iron plate this time!

“After hunting geese all your life, you finally get pecked by one! You should have expected this day!” Shi Nuocen scolded as she dialed the police, kicking the disheveled thugs a couple of times. “Kneel properly! No looking around!”

The thugs immediately hung their heads and slumped their shoulders, quiet as chickens.

Soon, the police arrived. After a friendly exchange with Shi Nuocen and praising her courage, they took away the group of thugs and the half-paralyzed robber.

In the now empty deep alley, a breeze swept through, stirring up dust and the strong fragrance of skincare products.

Shi Nuocen stood in place, staring at the chaotic mess of destroyed items in her suitcase. Despite her naturally detached emotions, she couldn’t help but feel stung and aggrieved. Tilting her head to look at the sky, she gave a wry smile.

Suddenly, light yet hurried footsteps echoed from the alley entrance, accompanied by the crisp scent of citrus from the approaching figure.

Shi Nuocen glanced sideways and was surprised to see her ex-wife, wearing a wide sun hat and a purple face mask.

“Why are you everywhere these days?” The words slipped out the moment Shi Nuocen recognized her. It was indeed strange. They hadn’t crossed paths for years.

Ru Xi Cheng studied her for a moment and remarked, “I thought you’d be crying.”

Shi Nuocen spread her hands in surprise, as if to say, “How could you think that?” “I don’t cry. I haven’t cried since elementary school, okay?”

She took two steps forward, gesturing with her fingers to show a tiny distance, her tone tinged with pride. “A setback this small? Hah, you’re seriously underestimating me.”

“If only you’d cry for me once,” Ru Xi Cheng murmured.

“Huh?” Shi Nuocen genuinely didn’t catch it.

“Nothing.” Ru Xi Cheng pulled down her mask, a relaxed smile playing on her lips as she hinted, “If you can laugh, of course no one wants to cry.”

“By the way, why are you here?” Shi Nuocen eyed her ex-wife suspiciously, scrutinizing her from head to toe.

Ru Xi Cheng put her mask back on and said only two words: “Got lost.”

“You got lost pretty far, huh.” Shi Nuocen tossed out the casual remark, then touched her earlobe. A somewhat guilty gesture. “Well, um, lend me some money? I haven’t eaten yet.”

Ru Xi Cheng glanced at her, then motioned with her chin for Shi Nuocen to follow, turning and heading in the other direction.

Feeling the emptiness in her stomach, Shi Nuocen had no choice but to trail along. She estimated that her ex-wife, with her billions, would surely treat her to a lavish meal. But they stopped in front of a roadside noodle shop.

Her ex-wife turned around, eyes sparkling, and declared generously, “Order whatever you want. It’s on me.”

Shi Nuocen’s lips twitched. She pulled Ru Xi Cheng’s arm and whispered, “Seriously? You’re this rich, and you’re treating me to a roadside stall? Can’t you be a bit more generous?”

Ru Xi Cheng crossed her arms and shot her a sidelong glance. “I’m being plenty generous. If you can eat ten thousand or even a hundred thousand, a million worth of noodles here, I’ll pay without a blink.”

“Ten thousand? A million? I’m not a pig!” Shi Nuocen realized her ex-wife had truly turned wicked. Devious through and through.

But she refused to be suppressed by her ex-wife like this. Grabbing her ex-wife’s hand, she strode quickly down the long street, all the way into the dimly lit alley. Along the way, the shifting light and shadows enveloped them in silence, as if they were performing in an old silent film.

When they reached a relatively clean white wall in a quiet spot, Shi Nuocen stopped, turned around, and met Ru Xi Cheng’s gaze. Suddenly, she reached out, bracing one hand against the wall beside Ru Xi Cheng’s neck while the other gently traced the curve of her ear. Her fingers hooked onto the thin white strap of the mask and slowly pulled it down. As she did, her knuckles brushed against the soft cheek, the smooth, jade-like texture making her fingertips linger. It seemed to stir the person in front of her, causing her pink lips to part slightly and her breath to catch.

Shi Nuocen leaned in closer, adopting a posture meant for a heartfelt conversation. Their breaths gradually intertwined, and the light in her eyes shifted. “Look at you,” she said softly. “It’s been so long since we last met, and with all our shared history, can’t you be a little nicer to me? For example—”

Before she could finish, her ex-wife turned her face away, leaving only a stubbornly pursed lip and the outline of her chest rising and falling unevenly.

Was she angry? The thought flashed through Shi Nuocen’s mind, and the next second, she heard her ex-wife’s cold voice:

“Shi Nuocen, during the three months we were married, I never spent a single cent of the Shi family’s money. Every time I treated you, it was with everything I had earned.” But you never cherished it. Ru Xi Cheng took a deep breath, leaving those last words unspoken.

Shi Nuocen, however, felt somewhat bewildered. “But I never asked you to do that. I gave you several black cards back then, and you never used them.” So, how is this my fault?

“Never mind. There’s no reasoning with you. You simply don’t understand anything.” Ru Xi Cheng lifted her head and glared at her, her cheeks flushed red with anger, her breath coming in soft, agitated puffs that brushed against the other’s slender neck.

“Alright, I know you have strong self-respect, but we were married. What’s mine was yours. There was really no need for you to act that way.” Shi Nuocen found the sight of her ex-wife’s flushed face oddly endearing, like a ripe cherry. Without thinking, she fell back into old habits, reaching out to playfully pinch Ru Xi Cheng’s soft, pink cheek, just as she had before their divorce.

The sudden gesture left them both stunned.

After a moment, Ru Xi Cheng seemed to recall something. Her clear, autumn-like eyes drifted toward the other’s long legs as she brought up an old grievance from not long ago: “That day in the car, you said your legs have always been your own, that they never belonged to me.”

Hearing this, Shi Nuocen arched an eyebrow slightly, crossed her arms, and smiled. “Now you’re deliberately twisting my words. How can legs and money be the same?”

They stood there, glaring at each other, and fell into a shared silence.