The Scumbag Who Bowed for Money - Chapter 31

[Sending flowers…]

Xie Yuanwei stood up, ready to leave. She kept an eye on Le Shi out of the corner of her eye, and just as she lifted her foot, her wrist was caught by the omega. Le Shi gave a breathy laugh and said,

“Sit down. Don’t mess with me.”

“Scared again?” Xie Yuanwei raised an eyebrow, amusement dancing in her eyes. “If you’re so scared, why are you still watching?”

Le Shi scoffed. The light from the screen flickered over her face as she stared ahead, answering casually,

“Ever heard the saying? Even if you’re bad at something, you can still be obsessed with it.”

“This horror film is just all about building atmosphere. It’s just for fun.”

She sounded confident as she turned her eyes back to the screen, fully focused. But her hand remained tightly wrapped around Xie Yuanwei’s.

The movie started off violent and bloody. It told the story of a family of three living in a small town. The father had a severe drug addiction and abused both his wife and child. The main character, Su Ya, witnessed her father being killed when she was very young. Later, a debt collector came to their home, and in front of Su Ya, assaulted and dismembered her mother.

Su Ya didn’t escape either. She was dumped in a gambling den filled with chaos. She ended up begging on the streets, where she was bullied by other beggars and pelted with stones by children who lived nearby.

One day, those same children invited her out to play. Naively, Su Ya thought she finally had friends and that maybe the beatings would stop. But during a game of hide-and-seek, they pushed her down a hillside. She didn’t die or lose consciousness, but she couldn’t move.

It was raining hard that day. Her body was covered in scrapes, and a sharp branch had pierced her leg. She lay helpless on the muddy ground, listening to the other children yelling insults. Blood mixed with the rain and mud beneath her.

Just when Su Ya thought she would die, a woman saved her. The woman told her that if she wanted revenge, she had to learn how to hate.

From then on, Su Ya began studying witchcraft with the woman. Every day, she fed spirits with blood.

The entire film was heavy and dark. Rain poured constantly. The hatred in Su Ya’s eyes grew stronger and stronger. Her body was small and covered in scars, and blood stained the ground wherever she walked.

A loud thunderclap cracked through the soundtrack. Le Shi instinctively leaned back into the sofa. The room had only one couch. She had never expected anyone else would be watching with her, so the space was sparsely furnished and now felt extra cold and eerie.

She whispered, her voice tense, “What kind of ghost do you think she raised?”

Xie Yuanwei exhaled slowly.

“Probably her mother.”

Le Shi nodded slightly.

“That’s what I thought too.”

After speaking, she inched closer to Xie Yuanwei and covered her eyes with one hand. The movie had entered the revenge sequence. Su Ya’s first targets were the men who had murdered her mother. The ghosts she raised terrified them, but in the end, it wasn’t the spirits that killed them.

It was Su Ya herself.

She wore a white dress and held a hatchet. With dead eyes, she raised it high and brought it down hard, only stopping when she was sure they were no longer breathing.

Xie Yuanwei thought it would end there. But then Su Ya squatted down and began smearing the fresh blood onto her white dress. Her face twisted into something manic, and she began to laugh softly.

Hearing that laugh made Le Shi shiver. She couldn’t help asking,

“What’s happening now? Are they dead?”

“Yes,” Xie Yuanwei replied.

Le Shi cautiously opened a small gap between her fingers to peek. But just as she looked, Su Ya leaned down and licked the blood. The scene froze her in place. Her pupils trembled. She didn’t know what to do.

Xie Yuanwei immediately noticed something was wrong. The scene was indeed too intense. She quickly turned off the movie and switched on the lights.

Le Shi’s face was pale, and her breathing was uneven.

Xie Yuanwei held her hand with one hand and gently rubbed her back with the other. Her voice was soft and reassuring.

“Don’t be scared. It’s just a movie. None of it’s real.”

Le Shi blinked slowly, then reached out to hug Xie Yuanwei. After a few seconds, she laughed lightly.

“I was really scared. I never want to watch a horror movie again. Aren’t you scared?”

Xie Yuanwei shook her head.

“Not really. Just a bit gross.”

“Let’s not watch it anymore. Let’s pick something else.” She suggested gently, “I’ve been wanting to rewatch an old film. It’s actually pretty good. Do you want to—”

Before she could finish, she noticed Le Shi had already dozed off on her shoulder. Her breathing was steady. The omega had fallen asleep, completely worn out by sleepiness.

Xie Yuanwei chuckled quietly. She stood up and carried Le Shi in her arms, carefully stepping down the stairs.

She knew Le Shi had been exhausted. She had been sleeping late, and she had also recently been sick. It was time she got some proper rest.

She laid her gently on the bed and began massaging her arm.

“Wake up and take a shower,” she said softly.

Le Shi opened her eyes halfway, dazed. She stared at Xie Yuanwei for a few seconds before slowly coming back to her senses. She glanced around the dimly lit room, realizing the alpha had lowered the lighting.

She raised an arm to cover her face.

“I fell asleep? How long was I out?”

“Half an hour,” Xie Yuanwei answered in a warm voice. “I already showered. Just waiting on you.”

“I left your pajamas inside. Don’t worry about washing your hair. Do it in the morning.”

Le Shi closed her eyes again briefly before letting Xie Yuanwei pull her up to sit. She yawned and took a few seconds to finally get out of bed.

“Go ahead and sleep first. Don’t wait up for me.”

“Alright,” Xie Yuanwei said. She didn’t argue and lay back under the covers, eyes closing peacefully.

Just as she was about to fall asleep, she felt the bed dip beside her. The scent of body wash filled the air, carrying a subtle hint of peach. Xie Yuanwei turned onto her side to face Le Shi.

Even though her eyes were closed, she could feel that Le Shi was still awake.

“What’s wrong?” she murmured sleepily. She wrapped her arms around the omega and released a calming dose of pheromones.

“Are you feeling uncomfortable?”

She felt Le Shi inch closer and drape her arm over her hand. A moment later, the omega buried herself in Xie Yuanwei’s embrace. The alpha instinctively tightened her hold, but then realized something wasn’t quite right.

Xie Yuanwei opened her eyes.

“Are you scared?”

Le Shi’s body tensed for a moment before returning to normal.

“I’m too scared to fall asleep. Every time I close my eyes, I picture that scene we just watched.”

She curled her legs, knees brushing against Xie Yuanwei’s thigh. Her voice softened with embarrassment.

“I’m kind of afraid to stretch out my legs. I keep thinking someone’s standing at the end of the bed.”

Xie Yuanwei was stunned for a moment, then let out a soft laugh. She gently patted the blanket over Le Shi and coaxed her in a warm voice.

“What are you scared of? I’m here. Next time, just wake me up.”

Le Shi closed her eyes and leaned her head against the alpha’s chest.

“I can’t. It’s too embarrassing. I’m not watching horror movies again.”

“Really?”

Xie Yuanwei teased her gently.

“I don’t believe you.”

Le Shi raised a hand and covered her mouth, whispering,

“It doesn’t matter if you don’t believe me, because it’s going to be true.”

The omega tugged the blanket behind her and wrapped it around them tightly so that not even the slightest breeze could sneak in. She bit her lip and gave in.

“I want to rest my leg on you. I’ll give you three seconds to think about it.”

Xie Yuanwei tried to pull Le Shi’s hand away from her mouth, but the omega only held it more tightly, not letting go.

“You didn’t say anything. That means you agree.”

A small smile curled at the corners of the alpha’s lips in the dark.

Le Shi rested her leg across Xie Yuanwei’s. Her voice was muffled.

“Right now, I want to explain myself and tell you I’m really pitiful.”

Her body was warm, and Xie Yuanwei was still in shorts. Even though Le Shi had changed into long pants, the moment their skin touched, the alpha couldn’t help but hold her breath.

She closed her eyes and gently rubbed Le Shi’s back. She remembered that one of the reasons she wanted to cook for Le Shi in the first place was because the omega was far too thin.

She had asked her about it before, but Le Shi had answered brusquely. Clothes look good, and I look good on camera.

But Xie Yuanwei didn’t think that was a good enough reason. Since then, she had been wondering how to fatten her up just a little.

“Go on, I’m listening,” Xie Yuanwei said with a quiet chuckle.

“I’m not sleepy at all now.”

Le Shi laughed a little too.

“When I was little, my parents were hardly ever home. They used to have my uncle look after me, but he didn’t really like kids. So he would put on horror movies for me, saying the more I watched, the more people would appear.”

She let out another soft laugh.

“You don’t know how naive I was. I actually believed him. I kept watching and didn’t dare to change the channel. I could only sleep after I finished the movie. I was terrified, curled up in bed, shaking under the covers.”

“I remember once the air conditioning broke in the middle of summer. It was so hot, but I still wrapped myself up completely. I was sweating so much I nearly passed out.”

Xie Yuanwei lowered her eyes and held Le Shi tightly, her tone soft and steady.

“It’s alright now. You don’t have to be afraid anymore.”

“There’s no one else in this house. Just the two of us.”

Only the two of them, holding each other close in the dark.

Le Shi closed her eyes, her voice muffled by laughter.

“I never thought I’d sleep in the same bed with an alpha. It’s something I allowed, something I accepted. And our pheromone compatibility is so high.”

Xie Yuanwei said nothing. She simply listened.

“Have you ever been in a relationship?” Le Shi asked suddenly.

“I haven’t, but I’ve had a lot of admirers.”

Xie Yuanwei let out a small laugh.

“Do I even need to ask?”

In her twenty-seven years, she had barely given herself any time to breathe. She had always needed to survive, to keep moving forward. In a life full of pressure and work, there was no space left for desire.

Le Shi was drifting off. She yawned and mumbled sleepily.

“Yeah, that question was a waste. Next time I’ll ask something better.”

Xie Yuanwei could tell from her breathing that she had already fallen asleep. She waited until she was sure before whispering,

“Goodnight, Le Shi.”

“I’ve never been in love.”

She paused before continuing in a softer voice.

“I really want you to know, but I’m also afraid of you knowing. It’s a terrible feeling.”

“So maybe it’s okay if I just tell you quietly.”

She closed her eyes and whispered into the silence,

“This is another secret from a different Xie Yuanwei, just for you.”

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