Transmigrated as the Scumbag Alpha’s Gorgeous Wife Who Keeps Trying to Seduce Me - Chapter 44

The next day was Saturday. It was also Christmas Eve.

After breakfast, Chi Lengzhao said she needed to go to the office. Shen Zhixi was surprised when she heard that.

Hua Zi smiled and said, “Today is Christmas Eve. Miss Chi, why not just work from home?”

Chi Lengzhao replied, “No, it’s more convenient to work at the office. If I need to look something up, I can access the materials right away.”

She didn’t dare stay at home. Even when she was in the study, she could faintly smell laurel—the scent of Shen Zhixi’s pheromones. That fragrance seemed to linger constantly, as if it were always tempting her, drawing her closer and closer.

She couldn’t do it. She shouldn’t. And she was afraid.

Housekeeper Zhou gently tugged on her sleeve. “Miss, let me walk you out.”

Chi Lengzhao paused for a moment, realizing that Housekeeper Zhou wanted to say something.

As they walked together into the garden, she asked, “Housekeeper Zhou, is something wrong?”

Housekeeper Zhou said softly, “Miss, today is Christmas Eve. Please don’t forget to come home early for dinner. Young Madam has prepared a gift for you.”

A gift?

Only then did Chi Lengzhao truly realize that tonight was Christmas Eve, a day when many couples and young married pairs exchanged presents. She suddenly realized that she hadn’t prepared anything for Shen Zhixi.

She had always been alone during Christmas Eve. Over the years, it had simply become a habit.

But now she remembered. She was married to Shen Zhixi. She was no longer alone.

“I understand,” she replied quietly.

Housekeeper Zhou watched the car drive away and sighed silently in her heart.

Miss Chi had always been known for being carefree. She never stayed home during the three days of Christmas. In the past, she would never have dared to say anything. But now, Miss Chi was married, and her relationship with the Young Madam seemed to be going well.

Since the wedding, Miss Chi had become more reliable. Even so, Housekeeper Zhou still hoped that she would settle down emotionally and at least spend her first Christmas Eve after marriage at home with her wife.

Whether Miss Chi would take that advice to heart, Housekeeper Zhou didn’t know. She shook her head gently. No one could be sure.

The office, usually filled with people working overtime on weekends, was completely empty.

No one else had come in—just her.

Chi Lengzhao smiled faintly. That made sense. Even if you’re single, you don’t want others to know you spent Christmas Eve working overtime.

But she wasn’t really working. She was browsing online for a gift.

Even Pantao, the cat, had a gift from Tong Yan. It was handmade, too. How could she have forgotten?

She felt terrible. Chi Lengzhao realized how careless she had been with Shen Zhixi.

She had completely forgotten to prepare a Christmas present.

Feeling frustrated, Chi stood up. She stared out the window for a while, then sat down again, only to get up and pace the room. Her mind was restless, and no matter what she did, she couldn’t calm herself down.

Annoyed, she pulled the curtains shut, trying to trap herself in darkness, in a space where she could shut out everything, even sound.

Suddenly, her elbow bumped into something. There was a sharp sound as something hit the floor.

Chi Lengzhao froze and turned her head. A small green plant had fallen.

It was a succulent, probably placed there by her assistant, Xiao Mi.

Its chubby little leaves had scattered across the floor. The roots had come out of the soil, leaving a mess of dirt on the ground.

Seeing such a cute little plant broken because of her own carelessness made Chi feel guilty. She crouched down to clean it up, gently propping the plant back into the soil. She gathered the fallen leaves and set them aside, planning to return them to Xiao Mi on Monday.

Each little leaf was plump and full, like a tiny water-filled life. She couldn’t bring herself to throw them away. She carefully arranged them one by one, lining them up neatly. As she looked at them, an idea suddenly came to her. Her eyes lit up.

She quickly picked up her phone and called Xiao Song.

“Xiao Song, take me to a flower shop.”

The bell above the door rang as they walked in. The shopkeeper greeted her with a warm smile.

“Hello! Looking for something special? We have red roses, blue enchantresses, lilies…”

During the Christmas season, flower shops always did good business. This one was filled with all kinds of flowers and greenery. The selection was wide, and of course, the prices were higher than usual.

Chi Lengzhao asked, “Do you have any succulents?”

It wasn’t until the third flower shop that she finally found one she liked.

It had a round green top, with two chubby, stick-like leaves that looked just like long bunny ears. It was absolutely adorable.

“What is this called?” she asked.

“That’s Monilaria obconica, also known as ‘Little Bunny,’” the shopkeeper explained. “It’s very easy to care for. It doesn’t need much water, loves sunlight, but when the weather gets cold, you need to keep it indoors to stay warm…”

“How much is it?”

“The small ones are 38 yuan, the regular size is 58. The large ones…”

“And this one?”

“That one is 168 yuan. It’s a bit more expensive, but the shape is perfect. It’s rare to find one with two heads this big and this healthy.”

“I’ll take it. Please wrap it up,” Chi said without hesitation.

She didn’t mind the price. This one really was cute, and the small flowerpot it came in had a simple, elegant design.

Chi Lengzhao walked out of the flower shop feeling satisfied, hugging the “Little Bunny” succulent in her arms. She could already imagine the smile on Shen Zhixi’s face when she saw those adorable “bunny ears.”

Just as she stepped out, it was already 1:30 in the afternoon. As soon as she got into the car, she received a call from Pantao.

“Zhao, could you bring me something to eat on your way here? I just woke up and haven’t eaten yet.”

“I want roast goose. Two of them. From that place on Chunhui Road. They don’t do delivery.”

Chi Lengzhao didn’t hesitate. She told Xiao Song to drive straight to Chunhui Road. She stood in line to buy two roast geese, then stopped by the pizza shop next door and picked up a large box of pizza. With the food in hand, she headed to Xue Pantao’s place, planning to enjoy a late lunch or afternoon tea together.

When she arrived, she found another girl there. She looked about twenty, with a bold punk style and blue-dyed hair.

“Zhao, this is the tech genius I told you about—A Duo. A Duo, this is the person dearest to me!”

A Duo greeted her cheerfully, “Hi, Sister Zhao!”

Chi Lengzhao nodded. “Hello.”

“Don’t let her age fool you. She’s still in school, but she’s a real expert. When it comes to computers, there’s nothing she can’t do.”

Chi Lengzhao smiled. “I’ll be counting on you later, then. I brought a hard drive with me. I forgot the password and wanted to see what’s inside.”

A Duo replied easily, “No problem at all.”

Chi then asked, “Are you two hungry?”

Both girls answered at once. “Starving.”

“I brought roast goose and pizza.”

“Yay! Zhao, you’re the best!” Pantao excitedly fetched some beers and handed one to Chi.

“I’ve still got work this afternoon, so I won’t drink,” Chi said.

Pantao grinned. “Zhao, I have to say, ever since you got married, you’ve completely changed. You’re so disciplined now. I really admire that!”

Chi Lengzhao smiled faintly. “Alright, let’s eat. Roast goose doesn’t taste good when it’s cold.”

The two girls were clearly starving and didn’t bother with appearances, devouring the food in no time.

Chi watched as they demolished most of the roast goose and pizza. Since she hadn’t had lunch herself, she could only sit there hungry, watching them eat.

While they were busy, Chi walked around the room, looking at her surroundings.

On the table were several books—veterinary textbooks, including internal and external medicine for small animals, some even in English.

The books looked new, likely just purchased.

Chi casually picked one up and smiled. “Not bad, Pantao. You’re working hard. Does Manager Tong know how serious you’ve been lately?”

Xue Pantao blushed instantly, as if someone had caught her red-handed. “It’s nothing like that. I was just flipping through them… just in case Xiao Mei doesn’t feel well, I can check her over.”

Chi didn’t push her. She patted her shoulder and said, “Dr. Xue, I wish you success in your studies. If our Zai Zai catches a cold or has an upset stomach one day, we’ll be counting on you.”

“Of course. Zai Zai is my boy too! Even if he’s a boy I gave away, he’s still my boy.” Pantao scooped up Xiao Mei the cat and added, “My little darling, don’t be jealous. I love you the most.” Then she ignored whether Xiao Mei liked it or not and kissed the top of her head, smearing goose grease all over her orange fur.

A Duo commented, “Xiao Mei’s all dirty now.”

Pantao waved it off. “So what? I’ll give her a bath later. She’ll be clean and beautiful again.”

She kissed Xiao Mei a few more times.

Chi Lengzhao shook her head. Most likely, Pantao would bring Xiao Mei to Tong Yan’s shop for a bath—just as an excuse to see her.

After everyone had eaten, A Duo got to work. She connected the hard drive to the computer and started unlocking it.

Chi watched her move like a pro hacker. It didn’t even take a minute to crack the password.

“It’s done. You can access everything inside now.”

A Duo stepped aside without needing to be asked.

Pantao, holding a big bowl of instant noodles, stood behind Chi. “Zhao, what are you looking for?”

She made no effort to hide her interest and seemed ready to go through the contents with Chi like it was her own drive.

Chi turned to her. “Why are you eating instant noodles again? Didn’t you just have roast goose?”

“I wasn’t full. That wasn’t nearly enough.”

“Eat somewhere else. I can’t stand the smell of instant noodles.” Chi wrinkled her nose in disgust.

Pantao mumbled an “Okay,” picked up her noodles, and walked away.

Inside the hard drive were several games and a lot of photos.

Most were selfies. Some were group pictures of the four of them, the old “Four Angels” crew, usually at night—at bars or restaurants, eating and partying.

There were also many photos of her with Si Yu, clearly taken during intimate moments.

There were photos of them hugging, laughing together, holding hands, and even playing music—Chi on keyboard, Si Yu as the lead singer.

Chi flipped through them quickly. Besides the photos, there were also a lot of videos.

She glanced over at Pantao and A Duo, who were now playing video games on the couch. The noise from the game filled the room and was a bit overwhelming.

Chi put on her headphones and randomly clicked on a video.

Even before the image loaded, she heard unmistakably intimate sounds. A second later, the screen showed a female Alpha pressing a female Omega down, biting into the gland at the back of her neck. The Omega began to lose control…

Under normal circumstances, Chi might have watched calmly. But today, she quickly shut the video, yanked off her headphones, and took a deep breath.

She lowered her head and exhaled slowly. After a moment, when her heartbeat had settled, she continued looking through the hard drive.

This time, she opened a different folder. Inside were two photos and a small diary-like program.

When Chi saw the two photos, she froze. The woman in them was Shen Zhixi.

One showed her back as she sat in the garden. In the other, she was reading a book with her head down, her expression calm and serene. Both were taken from a distance, clearly without her knowing.

Because her face wasn’t clearly shown, the focus of the photos didn’t seem to be the person but the feeling the scene conveyed.

Chi found it strange. The original Chi Lengzhao never treated Shen Zhixi as someone she loved deeply. Why would she take pictures like this and keep them all this time?

She tried opening the diary program, but it required a password.

Clearly, this had been something deeply personal and meaningful to the original Chi.

She tried using the original Chi’s birthday. It didn’t work. She didn’t attempt a second time.

When the game ended, Chi asked, “A Duo, there’s another password here. Can you help me unlock it?”

A Duo put down her controller and walked over. Pantao followed, her bowl of noodles already empty.

“Zhao, what’s this? Why’s it so mysterious? And how come you don’t remember the password?”

Chi gave her a look. “Didn’t I tell you? I hit my head and possibly got a concussion. I was in the hospital for days.”

Pantao looked regretful. “Zhao, that was our fault—me and Hanzi. We should have gone to see you earlier. Next time you get hurt—”

“What do you mean, next time?”

“Well, if you get hurt again, you’ll end up in the hospital, and we can be the first ones there to visit you.”

“Get lost.”

A Duo said, “I unlocked it. But it needs facial recognition too. Zhao, just scan your face. I won’t hack this part.”

Chi looked into the webcam. The scan passed quickly.

It was a diary-like digital notebook. She could flip through entries, add or delete photos, even bookmark pages.

The earliest entry was from ten years ago.

The first page began with a sentence:

“Mom is dead. Dad ignores me. My aunt hasn’t come to see me once in over ten years. I don’t want to see her either. I’m fifteen this year.”

For some reason, reading that sentence hit Chi with a wave of dull pain. Her eyes began to sting.

She pictured a small girl sitting alone in a dark room, hugging her knees.

Her mother had died. A strange man suddenly showed up, claiming to be her father. Even her grandfather, who had always refused to see them, came by.

But she hadn’t wanted to see any of them. No one.

Her mother was dead. Gone forever.

Why didn’t they come earlier?

What was the point of coming after she had died?

How cruel. How unforgivable. She would never forgive them.

Chi blinked and took a deep breath, suppressing the ache in her chest. She understood that what she was about to uncover was the heaviest part of the original Chi’s life.

She slowly moved the mouse and closed the program. Then she set a new password for it: XXXX1224.

Christmas Eve, in the year XXXX, was when another Chi Lengzhao had come and opened this file.

She didn’t continue reading.

At least, not yet.

She wasn’t ready.

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