The Reborn Scummy A and the Sickly O Got Together - Chapter 43

The scandal involving Qin Yan and Lu Jia, which had the entire nation riveted, had now been over for nearly two months. After the fallout, Qin Yan reportedly sought out a study-abroad agency and, without waiting for the summer in the capital to end, packed his bags and left China for university on the other side of the world.

At the dinner table, Lu Xi, ever quick with the latest gossip, brought up the matter with a smirk, laying out the reason plainly: “How could he stay in China after this? If he went to university here, everyone would know him as the cuckolded second son of the Qin family.”

Lu Jia, the petite and fragile omega girl, shrank further into herself at the table.

Lu Xi wasn’t about to let her off the hook, dragging out her name in a teasing tone: “Lu Jia!”

“Qin Yan ran off abroad, far away where no one knows him. The gossip here won’t reach him, no one there will recognize him as the disgraced second son of the Qin family. But what about you?”

Lu Ping, who had recently broken up with his girlfriend, felt his temple throb violently at the mention of “cuckold.”

The girlfriend in question was the literary-minded woman he had pursued, indeed a beta, who had only reluctantly agreed to date him after nearly a month of his efforts.

Lu Ping had taken to pontificating at home about the importance of education: “The ancients were right books hold golden houses and fair maidens within their pages. You see, being well-read earns you respect.”

The words sounded lofty, but coming from Lu Ping’s mouth, they lost their gravitas.

Unfortunately, this “fair maiden from the books” seemed to have little aesthetic appreciation for alphas. Despite Lu Ping’s lavish gifts and dogged pursuit even forcing himself to read obscure, convoluted books to keep up with her tastes.

Feng Baiming privately complained to Luo Mingyue: “They’re all just bourgeois literary pretensions, the kind of books artsy types love to flaunt on social media.”

This included slogging through two notoriously dense works, One Hundred Years of Solitude and The Lover, which Lu Ping had painstakingly read cover to cover, even memorizing the absurdly long character names just to impress her.

Lu Xi remarked to Lu Le: “If Big Brother had put this much effort into his college entrance exams, he’d have at least gotten into a top-tier university out of sheer determination.”

But in truth, before he even started pursuing her, Lu Ping had made a critical blunder, he’d mistakenly bought a bestseller titled Amitabha, Mwah from the bookstore’s top-seller list and tried discussing it with her, nearly provoking her into thinking he was mocking her.

Even as a beta, she refused to tolerate such an insult and nearly came to blows with him, intent on teaching this arrogant alpha a lesson.

Despite such missteps, Lu Ping’s persistence paid off for about a month. Then she showed up with a shorter omega girl who looked like her clone and apologized: “Turns out I still prefer omegas. The alpha gender just doesn’t suit the literary aesthetic.”

Lu Ping was stunned: “Why can’t alphas be literary types?”

The beta woman shrugged. “Call it gender stereotyping.”

Since he hadn’t yet grown tired of her, Lu Ping pleaded with her to stay but to no avail. The relationship left him with nothing but two months of playing the part of a pretentious intellectual.

After the breakup, he donated all his books to the library, and Lu Le pointed out bluntly: “So you got cheated on, huh? She already had a new boyfriend before you even officially broke up. Bro, that’s some premium-grade cuckoldry right there.”

Hearing the term “cuckold” at the dinner table immediately struck a nerve with the emotionally fragile Lu Ping. Biting into his steamed bun, he whimpered, “Don’t say those words again, big bro. My fragile heart can’t take this suffering.”

Lu Xi rolled her eyes while Lu Jia timidly refrained from retorting. Finding the conversation uninteresting, Lu Xi turned her attention to Luo Mingyue, only to notice Feng Baiming also observing her seemingly-perfect-but-actually-ordinary sister.

The siblings weren’t blind – Feng Baiming’s current closeness with Luo Mingyue spoke volumes about certain possibilities.

After being cautioned by their grandmother, the three siblings had unanimously adopted a tacit approval regarding this matter, carefully avoiding any teasing that might disrupt their grandmother’s apparent plans for this ideal match.

Privately, Lu Xi complained to her brother with frustration: “Look at all your past relationships – combined, they still couldn’t measure up to how pleased grandmother is with just this one Feng Baiming.”

Lu Ping agreed: “Rare sight indeed. Is Mingyue finally waking up? Can’t deny they look like the perfect golden couple from those old sayings when standing together. Did they both grow up drinking celestial dew or something? Same five grains as everyone else, yet they turned out this ridiculously good-looking.”

Lu Xi was speechless – while she referenced Feng Baiming’s prestigious background, her brother was hung up on appearances.

If her elder brother didn’t mind, then neither would she play the overeager matchmaker. If Luo Mingyue could actually date and even marry into the Feng family, that would be her own achievement.

But Lu Jia had also noticed the special dynamic between Feng Baiming and Luo Mingyue. During her month-long confinement, she’d repeatedly wondered: how did what should have been merely an embarrassing incident escalate to such catastrophic proportions?

She’d initially worried about the photos ruining her carefully crafted innocent persona – the perfect image she’d designed for marrying into high society. The photos themselves weren’t the issue; she wasn’t foolish enough to share anything truly compromising. When Qin Yan publicly circulated them, she thought that was the worst outcome and had prepared damage control.

But when the scandal exploded into tens of millions of views, nobody cared about the photos anymore. Her humble origins were exposed, and she became the internet’s poster child for gold-digging manipulators.

The realization made her vision darken – this wasn’t just reputation damage, Lu Jia understood. This was the annihilation of her future prospects. What elite family would accept such a notorious daughter-in-law now?

Since her confinement ended, she’d avoided Luo Mingyue, secretly resenting her for failing to stop Qin Yan.

Now, watching her equally-unloved “sister” across the table, Lu Jia saw Luo Mingyue smiling warmly – at the perpetually aloof Feng heiress who usually regarded the world with icy detachment.

Deciding to extend an olive branch, Lu Jia softened her voice: “Sister Mingyue.”

Luo Mingyue’s smile faded, but she gazed at Lu Jia with a deep, unwavering intensity that held no pretense. Seeing this, Lu Jia relaxed slightly.

In a soft voice, Lu Jia said, “I’ve been cooped up at home for so long without going out, and now autumn is almost here. The seasonal new arrivals have probably been in stores for over half a month. In a couple more days, winter collections will start appearing.”

Luo Mingyue simply watched Lu Jia calmly, waiting to see what she would say next undoubtedly an invitation to go shopping together. Lu Jia was skilled at apologies, often saying sorry pitifully over trivial matters.

Like if she accidentally bumped someone’s arm, she’d whimper, “I’m sorry, did I hurt you?”

But when truly angry like ignoring Luo Mingyue for two months, she wouldn’t actually apologize. Instead, she’d hint at reconciliation in this roundabout way.

Disgusted, Luo Mingyue thought to herself, I really had that “straight alpha syndrome” in my past life, thinking Lu Jia was just innocent and meek. Now, seeing it from an outsider’s perspective, she’s a master at playing the victim.

She was tempted to retort sharply: Aren’t you afraid of being recognized and photographed if we go to the mall now? Do you really think no one would spot you offline?

But instead, she smiled with utmost gentleness. “You’re right, Jiajia. You haven’t stepped out all summer. When are you free? I’ll go with you to shop for new clothes.”

Suddenly, Feng Baiming interjected, “Mind if I join you two?”

Luo Mingyue froze, her expression momentarily flustered as she lowered her gaze.

To Lu Jia, it was unmistakable. Her fingers clenched tightly on her lap never had she despised someone so much, wishing they would vanish from the world instantly.

“Big Sister Mingyue used to often go shopping with us omegas and betas, carrying bags for us,” Lu Jia said with a fragile smile. “If Big Sister Baiming wants to come, I’ll invite some omega friends too.”

“You still enjoy shopping with omegas? And you’re this chivalrous?” Feng Baiming glanced at the little alpha, who refused to meet her eyes.

Like a puppy facing a tiger, Luo Mingyue no longer dared to provoke Lu Jia and could only mutter meekly, “I need clothes too. When friends go together, it’s natural for an alpha to help carry bags.”

“Ah, I see. Young people love trendy brands,” Feng Baiming nodded understandingly before politely asking Lu Jia again, “So, you wouldn’t mind one more? It won’t feel too crowded or noisy, right?”

As an honored guest of the Lu family, Lu Jia had no choice but to agree though she looked as if she’d suffered a grave injustice. “Fine. If Big Sister Baiming wants to go with Big Sister Mingyue, then it’s alright.”

Witnessing the two omegas vying for one alpha, Lu Xi and Lu Le decided to jump in, dragging along the heartbroken Lu Ping, who had been moping at home. And so, the entire family plus Feng Baiming marched off to the mall for a shopping spree.

By the end, Luo Mingyue and Lu Ping were nearly collapsing on the mall floor. The ten-story shopping complex was packed with luxury brands, jewelry, and cosmetics. The omega ladies insisted on visiting every floor, even dragging Lu Ping into menswear stores to pick outfits for him.

After being forced to try on ten different outfits and endure endless critiques, Lu Ping outright refused to buy a single piece of clothing that day.

Thus, Luo Mingyue became the ladies’ second doll. They loved new clothes and beautiful jewelry for themselves, but deep down, they also enjoyed dressing up their doll.

After walking through ten floors of the shopping mall, Luo Mingyue felt she could rename the experience “Miracle Mingyue Travels the World.”

Lu Ping was already exhausted, sprawled out in the store’s rest area, clutching a cup of hot tea handed to him by a clerk. With teary eyes, he asked her, “Little sis, aren’t you tired? Watching you change outfits has practically given me eyestrain.”

Luo Mingyue, with her tall frame and long legs, was practically a walking clothes hanger. Except for overly cute styles, she could pull off any outfit like a model.

Every time she stepped out of the fitting room, even Feng Baiming couldn’t help but steal a few extra glances.

Other customers were even more direct: “Do you have another one of what she’s wearing? Get me the same size.”

Finally taking a break, the girls sat in a jewelry store browsing the season’s new arrivals. Holding a cup of hot tea, Luo Mingyue for the first time since her rebirth, treated Lu Ping with unusual kindness. “You asked if I’m tired?”

Lu Ping pondered. “You’re a female alpha, and honestly, you seem to be enjoying yourself.”

“I don’t want to step foot in a mall for clothes shopping ever again this year,” Luo Mingyue murmured, staring at the steam rising from her tea. Whether it was the heat or something else, Lu Ping thought he saw tears glistening in his little sister’s eyes.

Sympathetic, he stretched out an arm and patted her shoulder. “I totally get you now. At this moment, we’re the two most pitiful souls in the world!”

It was during these lighthearted moments that Luo Mingyue felt Lu Ping and the others were truly her family, adding warmth and liveliness to her life. Much of the joy and laughter in her days indeed came from her brothers and sisters.

This time, however, she only smiled faintly, still happy, but no longer letting that happiness settle in her heart. When it came to family in this life, she decided it was better to expect nothing. That way, there’d be no room for disappointment.

The amusing part came when they returned home in the evening. The omega ladies also complained about sore feet, declaring they’d spend the next day in bed.

Even Feng Baiming, rubbing her eyes, bid her goodnight: “Go to bed early. Don’t stay up reading novels.”

Seeing the usually composed Miss Feng drowsy and disoriented was unexpectedly endearing. Luo Mingyue smiled tenderly, leaning down to reply, “I’ll definitely sleep early tonight.”

Not far away, a pair of eyes took in the scene, perfectly manicured nails digging into palms. The girl turned and retreated to her room, only to reappear at Luo Mingyue’s door past ten o’clock, when the entire household was likely too exhausted to stay awake.

Hearing the knock, Luo Mingyue opened the door to find the girl standing there in a thin, pale blue silk nightgown. Somehow,  she had expected this.

Lu Jia’s nightgown clung to her figure, caught between youthful delicacy and budding maturity.

In the dead of night, her pale face and unnervingly dark eyes fixed on Luo Mingyue without blinking. Then, abruptly, she smiled, a bleak, miserable smile.

“Jiajia, what’s wrong? Come in first?” Luo Mingyue asked softly, her tone genuinely concerned.

But Lu Jia refused. Tears welled in her eyes as she whispered, “Mingyue-jie, have you fallen for Feng Baiming?”

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