The Scumbag Who Bowed for Money - Chapter 5

“Alright, stop overthinking. It’s time to eat.”

Xie Yuanwei didn’t take Le Shi’s earlier comments too seriously. In fact, she wasn’t very sensitive to pheromones at all. She responded simply and sincerely. Pulling Le Shi to her feet, she also pulled out the chair for her thoughtfully. Her steps were light as she smiled and said, “Try my cooking. See how it tastes.”

“Here you go.” Xie Yuanwei’s voice stretched slightly with excitement. She ladled a bowl of soup for Le Shi and gently pushed it in front of her. Resting her chin in her hands, she looked at the omega with anticipation. “Tell me if it suits your taste.”

Le Shi picked up the spoon, took a small sip, and then immediately put the spoon down. She smiled softly and asked, “What if I don’t like it?”

Xie Yuanwei looked shocked. Her mind turned quickly before she firmly replied, “Then tell me what flavors you like, and I’ll learn to cook them.”

She spoke seriously, with no hint of joking.

Le Shi looked at her for a few moments before slowly turning her eyes away. She picked up the bowl and took another sip of soup, then began picking at the dishes.

“It tastes good. No need to learn anything else.”

Xie Yuanwei paused in surprise, then realized Le Shi had been teasing her. Still, she let out a quiet breath of relief.

Thank goodness Le Shi liked it. Otherwise, she might have been kicked out already.

The original version of Xie Yuanwei in the story had been unlikable in every possible way. The novel had followed a classic face-slapping arc, with the protagonist going from someone everyone hated to someone everyone admired. In the beginning, people would tell her to get lost. Even dogs would shake their heads at her. Well, except for her group of loyal friends.

Xie Yuanwei truly had a good impression of Le Shi. She would much rather stick close to the omega. Especially now that they were engaged and living together, and Le Shi even called this their home.

That thought alone made Xie Yuanwei feel genuinely happy. It was obvious that Le Shi enjoyed the food, so she silently promised herself never to let her go hungry again.

Her emotions were easy to read. Whenever she was happy, her eyes sparkled. Le Shi glanced at her from the corner of her eye and thought that if Xie Yuanwei had a tail, it would be wagging non-stop.

“Are you finished eating?”

Xie Yuanwei noticed that Le Shi had put down her chopsticks, so she set hers down too and stood up, ready to clean up. But Le Shi stopped her.

“You don’t need to do the dishes. I’ll have someone take care of it. It’s about time to head to the company.”

Xie Yuanwei let out a soft “Oh” and obediently placed her bowl down.

“So… we’re going to the office now?”

Le Shi was already at the door. She nodded and casually spun the car keys in her hand.

“You’re driving.”

She turned back slightly and looked at Xie Yuanwei with suspicion.

“Do you even know how to drive? Don’t tell me you’re going to speed again.”

Xie Yuanwei could tell how little faith Le Shi had in the original her. Luckily, she did have a license and could drive.

“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you’re satisfied.”

She quickly followed, not forgetting to close the door behind her.

The car Le Shi usually took to work wasn’t too expensive, around two hundred thousand yuan. Xie Yuanwei was an experienced driver, although she did need navigation.

She awkwardly mounted her phone and entered the destination. Since it was just the two of them in the car, the system voice echoed clearly through the cabin.

“Now navigating. The destination is 5.6 kilometers away. Estimated travel time is…”

Xie Yuanwei glanced at the rearview mirror and tried to laugh it off. She was about to start the car when she heard Le Shi’s cold voice.

“You entered the wrong destination.”

Xie Yuanwei froze.

She swallowed hard and turned back awkwardly.

“Wait, isn’t that the name of your company?”

Le Shi looked slightly annoyed.

“Do you think just because my last name is Le, the company must be named Le Group?”

Xie Yuanwei’s expression faltered. She mumbled softly, “I really didn’t know.”

With a click, Le Shi shut her laptop and sighed.

“Let me give you directions.”

Xie Yuanwei grinned.

“Got it.”

They arrived at the office close to two in the afternoon. Xie Yuanwei quickly got out of the car, opened the door for Le Shi, and naturally took her laptop bag. She followed a few steps behind her.

Le Shi glanced back at her a couple of times but didn’t say anything. She simply led her into the building.

Le Shi came from a powerful background, and under her leadership, the company had flourished. The elegant president walked silently ahead, not saying a word.

Following behind, Xie Yuanwei received all kinds of looks. Curious ones, judgmental ones, dismissive ones. Most were negative.

But she didn’t say a word. She pretended not to notice anything. Her eyes stayed fixed only on Le Shi.

After walking through the entire office, Le Shi finally stopped in front of a room. She spoke in a calm voice.

“Someone will take you to your workstation shortly. I have work to do. You can have dinner in the cafeteria. Once I’m free, I’ll message you.”

Xie Yuanwei didn’t know why Le Shi had chosen to make her presence known to the entire company, but she didn’t ask. She simply smiled.

“Okay. Just don’t work too late.”

She turned to leave and looked around for someone to guide her.

“Wait.”

Le Shi called out to her.

Xie Yuanwei turned back, confused, and walked closer.

“What is it? Did I forget something?”

Le Shi lowered her head. Her hair fell over her eyes, making it hard to read her expression. She spoke in a soft voice.

“Aren’t you curious why I’m doing all this?”

Xie Yuanwei paused, then replied gently.

“If you don’t want to say it, asking wouldn’t help. When you’re ready to tell me, I’ll be ready to listen.”

Le Shi let out a soft “Oh” and turned to enter her office, closing the door behind her.

Xie Yuanwei looked at the slightly swaying door for a moment, then smiled to herself and walked off to find her new workspace.

“From now on, your seat is here. Everyone in this department is pretty easy to get along with. If you have any problems, handle them yourself. President Le said not to bother her with anything.”

The assistant brought Xie Yuanwei to her desk and delivered the message with a blank expression. Xie Yuanwei listened carefully and nodded along.

Before the assistant could finish, a message popped up on her phone. She opened it, quickly read it, and then lowered her voice.

“Correction. You can go to President Le if you have any issues. She said she’s willing to hear your complaints.”

Xie Yuanwei blinked.

“Oh. Okay, got it.”

“If there’s nothing else, I’ll leave you to it.”

Xie Yuanwei nodded and sat down. She began familiarizing herself with the work. To her surprise, the position Le Shi had arranged was the same kind of role she used to do before. It didn’t take long to get into the rhythm.

She was concentrating when she suddenly felt someone tap her on the back twice. Her hand froze in place, and she slowly stopped working.

Xie Yuanwei forced a smile and turned around.
“Is there something you need?”

The person who approached was a female omega, visibly excited.
“You’re Xie Yuanwei, right? Why did you show up with President Le today?”

Xie Yuanwei paused for a few seconds, then tilted her head slightly with a hint of sarcasm.
“I’ve been such a mess lately that even my family scolded me. President Le is a good person. She helped me out.”

Since someone had come over to chat and Xie Yuanwei responded kindly, a few others soon gathered around as well.

“Why aren’t you working at your family’s company?”

Xie Yuanwei put on a mysterious expression and stretched out her words.
“Ah, you just don’t get it. If I went to Xie Corp, I’d just be wasting time. But I really admire President Le. I’m here to work seriously and prove myself.”

She looked at everyone sincerely.
“From now on, we’re colleagues. I’m just a regular employee like you. Please take care of me.”

The others exchanged glances, then responded politely.
“Of course, of course.”

They didn’t chat for long before everyone went back to their own tasks. Xie Yuanwei quietly let out a breath of relief. She sighed silently. An entire afternoon had gone by without anyone giving her any real work.

This department was usually busy. She remembered often having to work overtime when she was here before. Perhaps people still saw her as the old Xie Yuanwei and didn’t know how to assign tasks to her.

But more than anything, they probably just didn’t trust her.

Bored, Xie Yuanwei picked up her phone and began replying to random messages.

Yan Yu had texted again.

“Are you really not coming tonight? There are several gorgeous omegas who want to meet you.”

Xie Yuanwei replied:

“Shallow. I’m engaged, remember? I can’t just go out flirting anymore. Stop asking me. I probably won’t go again. Besides, I’m working now.”
She attached a photo.

Yan Yu replied:
“No way. The heavens must be watching. Our wild Miss Xie is finally settling down.”

Just as she was about to reply, a message from Le Shi popped up. It was brief.

“Come upstairs for dinner.”

Xie Yuanwei smiled and typed back:

“Coming!”

She also took a moment to respond to Yan Yu:

“I’m going to have dinner with Le Shi now. Do not disturb.”

Yan Yu only replied with:

“…”

Xie Yuanwei smiled, her eyes gleaming with joy. She walked upstairs quickly, her footsteps light. When she reached Le Shi’s office, she knocked politely on the door.

Le Shi’s voice sounded tired.

“Come in.”

Xie Yuanwei opened the door and carefully closed it behind her. She asked gently,
“Are you feeling tired?”

“I’m fine. The delivery arrived. You can eat first.”

Xie Yuanwei sat down on the sofa. She glanced around the office quickly. There wasn’t much to see. The space felt empty, lacking any personal touch. Le Shi sat in her chair, a frown on her face as she stared at the files in front of her.

Sensing her mood, Xie Yuanwei didn’t disturb her. She quietly finished the meal and was about to leave when she heard Le Shi call out.

“Xie Yuanwei.”

“Yes?”

She straightened up immediately. She looked at Le Shi, who had put down the file and was walking toward her. Her steps seemed a little unsteady.

“What’s wrong?” Xie Yuanwei asked as soon as she saw her.

Before she could finish, Le Shi sat down sideways on her lap and buried her face into the side of Xie Yuanwei’s neck.

“Don’t say anything.”

Xie Yuanwei’s hands froze in midair. After a brief moment of hesitation, she finally hugged her gently. She stayed quiet, letting Le Shi hold onto her without asking questions.

A few minutes passed before she softly asked,
“Are you not feeling well?”

Le Shi’s voice was muffled.
“No. I just don’t want to talk about it.”

“Alright,” Xie Yuanwei said quietly.
“As long as you’re not in pain. Do you want to eat something?”

“You’re so annoying.”

Xie Yuanwei didn’t back down.
“Still, it’s better to eat something. You don’t want to end up with stomach problems.”

Le Shi laughed. She propped herself up using Xie Yuanwei’s shoulders and leaned back. The two of them looked into each other’s eyes for a few seconds. Then, slightly embarrassed, she asked,

“Do you feel uncomfortable? Me hugging you like this?”

“Not at all. You can hug me however you want.”

Xie Yuanwei truly didn’t mind. Even though Le Shi had suppressants on, her pheromones were still strong. Xie Yuanwei thought they smelled really good. She also thought Le Shi was incredibly soft and warm in her arms.

“But, President Le, are you sure you’re feeling okay? Do you need my pheromones? Are you having any physical symptoms?”

She was just making conversation. In the original novel, this kind of situation was common. There were hints that Le Shi was unusually dependent on Xie Yuanwei’s pheromones.

But as soon as she said that, Le Shi’s entire body stiffened. A few seconds later, she frowned and stayed silent for a long time. Finally, she pressed her lips together and said angrily,

“Did you investigate me?”

Xie Yuanwei was completely lost. Her eyes were filled with confusion.

“What?”

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