A Disguised Scum Alpha Marked Her Aloof Ex-Wife - Chapter 21.1

In the VIP seats, Bai Shuzhou looked down indifferently at the entire venue, a faint uneasiness lingering at the tip of her heart. She had not felt this way for many years; it was like scratching an itch through a boot, a subtle yet unidentifiable irritability swirling around as the moonlight sank.

Her gaze fell upon the exhibition platform but did not focus, until an attendant presented a pair of double-fish jade pendants, causing her slender brows to furrow slightly.

Xiao Yu. Zhu Yu.

The woman at her side attentively offered a thin blanket. “Your Highness, please rest. Having me here is enough. Every single guard member is someone I personally trained; it is absolutely foolproof!”

The crowd Bai Shuzhou worried about was never this ragtag bunch. She asked in a low voice: “Over at the Imperial Star…”

“Feng Jiyan says all is well, so that fellow shouldn’t be a problem either.”

Iselia curled her lip. Though she was loath to admit it, that devious fox Feng Jiyan was undoubtedly her most formidable rival.

If that bastard Zhu Yu hadn’t burst onto the scene out of nowhere to supplant her, Bai Shuzhou’s choice would have naturally been between her and Feng Jiyan.

Feng Jiyan was fiercely ambitious, aiming for the position of Prime Minister, and since her mother controlled the Royal Academy of Sciences, the Emperor held a certain wariness toward the Feng family.

Unlike them, her family were steadfast royalists, and she was childhood friends with Bai Shuzhou; no matter how one looked at it, she was the most suitable match.

But it didn’t matter. Zhu Yu had already vanished, and that position would be hers sooner or later.

Iselia was in an exceptionally pleasant mood. Seeing that Bai Shuzhou’s gaze toward the double-fish jade pendants was a bit strange, she waved her hand grandly and bid a high price, intending to buy them as a gift for her.

Yet the furrow between Bai Shuzhou’s brows deepened, and she said coldly: “No.”

After a pause, facing her inexplicably fluctuating emotions, she added expressionlessly, “It is merely an ordinary antique sharing the same name; how dare it be crowned with the legend of the double-fish jade pendant.”

“Exactly!” Iselia changed her tune quickly, feeling a bit vexed. Indeed, what treasure had Bai Shuzhou not seen? “How could anyone like such an inferior thing!”

Bai Shuzhou lifted her eyes gloomily, darting a glance at her, and said nothing.

Her tail flicked rather irritably.

Backstage, the medical team and engineers were equally busy.

The treatment of captives and commodities was naturally different. Those hideous wounds would impact the presentation, and no one would want to buy a dying person.

Fortunately, word had been sent ahead, so the injuries on her face were not severe. The wounds on her body were much easier to handle; layer after layer of medical gel was smeared over them to cover them up, like piecing together a shattered plaster statue.

Her cheap, ill-fitting shirt was removed, making the unlicensed star pirate physician’s eyes light up. She took the opportunity to touch the girl’s core muscles, clicking her tongue in admiration.

No wonder Zhu Yu, a D-grade Alpha, could defeat so many top-tier competitors. The lean lines of her arms alone were sleek and beautiful—any less would be too thin, any more too fierce; her current youthful aura was just right.

It really is better to be young!

The physician sighed softly: “A pity you were so unfaithful, otherwise the Princess wouldn’t have abandoned you, right?”

Zhu Yu was visibly different from those pampered nobles. She was a blade of grass that grew wildly; there was a tan line on her arms, and faint stretch marks on her thighs. Even when squeezed to the absolute limit, she would tense into a resilient arc.

The woman loosened the restraints a bit and wiped away the cold sweat that kept bead-forming on her. If she applied gauze directly, it would seep into the wounds and hurt terribly.

Suddenly, her wrist was grabbed. The physician wanted to call for help in terror, secretly cursing herself for being too soft-hearted. This was that ruthless, unblinking Zhu Yu, after all! Moreover, she had been injected with a reagent; who knew what she might do in a state of frenzy!

But the girl merely held her wrist and called out softly: “Sister?”

“I feel very unwell, can you…” She hesitated for a long time, ultimately swallowing down that somewhat greedy request for a kiss. “Can you hold me?”

During her last drunken episode, Bai Shuzhou had enveloped her with her vines just like that. Though her gaze was icy, her movements were very gentle; she poured hot water for her and even guided her ability to heal, a soft light rippling between their touching skin.

A hug would make it stop hurting. Just being near brought peace of mind.

Her very presence was her best analgesic.

Sensing the woman’s faint resistance, Zhu Yu curled her fingers, releasing her grip with restraint and disappointment, and asked in a low voice:

“Are you angry? I’m sorry.”

That hand finally dropped away.

On her wrist, there was no familiar tiny red mole.

Zhu Yu widened her eyes, instantly snapping out of her half-waking state, only then realizing she was not in that familiar small shack, and the woman before her was not Bai Shuzhou.

Indeed, how could Bai Shuzhou be here?

Thank goodness she wasn’t here.

The physician had already reached her hand out, only for Zhu Yu to dodge away using both hands and feet, sliding to the other side like a liquid cat, with resistance practically written all over her face. That hand paused awkwardly in mid-air.

Zhu Yu blinked, extended her hand too, and shook it.

“Thank you. Can you give me some water?”

It was a very bizarre handshake.

The star pirate physician never expected her to do this, yet it felt so natural, as if the inherent opposition and differences between them did not exist at all—just extending a hand meant they could share a shake.

According to the rules, she shouldn’t give her water.

But according to the rules, they shouldn’t have shaken hands either.

It was too strange.

Fine, it was just a cup of water. The physician looked around, secretly filled a flask, and was about to hand it to her when a pair of leather boots suddenly appeared beside them. In her panic, she nearly dropped the flask.

But a pair of rough hands caught it.

The newcomer still had bandages wrapped around her head, her gaze heavy. The physician stood up in a flurry. “Lord Caland, why are you here?”

“I came to take a look. You step down first.” The woman’s voice was raspy, carrying the nasal tone of someone who hadn’t fully recovered from severe injuries—injuries that were precisely courtesy of Zhu Yu.

“Understood, but…” The physician glanced at Zhu Yu and still couldn’t help but meddle, “Try not to beat her anymore. She is going on stage soon; it will be hard to handle.”

The woman gave an “mhm.”

With the precedent of the hundred birds escaping, the entirety of Paradis was now heavily guarded by troops. Caland stared intently for a moment, then pressed the flask against the girl’s lips.

“Drink.”

The reagent had already begun to take effect, and Zhu Yu’s pheromones gradually leaked out uncontrollably—very faint, entirely different from the thick fragrance in the shack that day.

Caland faintly sensed something amiss. This was not the pheromone an Alpha warrior should possess; it was too clean and gentle. A person’s emotions are reflected in their pheromones; suffering this kind of treatment, it was impossible for her to have no resentment whatsoever.

It was almost as if… it was being shielded by something.

Zhu Yu stole a careful glance at Caland, and without any hesitation, immediately began to gulp down the water.

“Aren’t you afraid I poisoned it?” Caland asked.

They were enemies, after all.

Zhu Yu said: “You are different from the others.”

“How am I different?”

“You are a warrior,” Zhu Yu paused. “A warrior does not strike the weak.”

Alright, that line was pure nonsense. She was just incredibly thirsty; she had to survive.

Caland was silent for a moment. “I used to be.”

She lifted the flask a bit higher to make it easier for Zhu Yu to swallow, and said in a low voice: “My memory is somewhat chaotic. They say it was I who defeated you… No, it wasn’t like that. I lost.”

“Why didn’t you kill me?” This question had plagued Caland for a long time. Lying in the medical pod, replaying her chaotic memories over and over, she once thought she was going crazy.

The doctor said it was a memory disorder caused by a heavy blow to the head, but Caland would not forget; she would never forget her every failure. It was precisely by this that she endured her most painful dissociative state.

Zhu Yu did not know what Nan Gong had done to her. This question had been asked by Black Hat before, only the situations of the two were now completely reversed.

Zhu Yu thought about it and said softly: “Life is very precious.”

Caland fell into silence once more. She was like a boulder blocking Zhu Yu’s path, but then, with extreme slowness, cracks began to appear.

“You are a warrior.” Ultimately, she repeated Zhu Yu’s words, very firmly.

“Am I?” Zhu Yu began to smile. “I thought I was quite useless. So many things I promised, I didn’t manage to do. When I fail, I start making excuses, imagining all the hateful things are just a dream.”

For the things she was unwilling to believe, she would have a million reasons to make excuses; by tricking herself, she could still feel happy.

Most of the time, she lived in her own tiny world.

With a stomach full of words and nowhere to say them, Zhu Yu wanted to despise herself. Why was she talking so much to an enemy? Did she honestly expect to turn her through talk therapy?

A heroine should maintain a cold, silent dignity, unyielding until death—that was a true female warrior, not like her, unable to control her urge to speak when sad just to keep herself conscious.

“I’m quite happy you came to chat with me.”

Thought driving the vibration of her vocal cords felt like a cheap little loudspeaker playing music in her throat, coughing, of very poor quality, but she wasn’t as afraid this way.

In this strange and dangerous environment, she was all alone, yet her former enemy turned out to be the most familiar.

Everyone said the Empire and Bai Shuzhou had abandoned her, trying to use this to screw into her deepest insecurities and wounds, churning, grinding the pain into a bloody mess.

But she would never believe those cold data streams! Bai Shuzhou hadn’t personally said she detested her.

Her thoughts were chaotic, and Caland was also like an anchor in her memory, reminding her that after dealing with the star pirates that day, they had sat down to eat together, and at night Bai Shuzhou’s fingertips had tapped lightly on the back of her hand, guiding her to heal the wounds.

Zhu Yu lifted her face to look at Caland: “You are a good person. Can you help me pass a message out?”

Caland asked: “Is it for… your wife?”

This was the first time anyone had referred to Bai Shuzhou that way in front of her.

Zhu Yu felt she was very despicable, like a thief, but she still couldn’t help but feel happy. Just like the metallic taste of blood rising between her lips and teeth, she could still sneak a taste of sweetness.

She nodded hard.

Caland: “No.”

Well, she’d poured her heart out for nothing. Zhu Yu smiled again. What a complete failure! She had never even succeeded at bargaining.

Caland said in a low voice: “But I can allow you to die with dignity.”

“…”

Zhu Yu widened her eyes. Wait, wait, I’m not ready to die yet! This isn’t a final testament!

Caland looked at her: “A low-grade Alpha like you has likely never experienced a dissociative state, right? Fractus is no ordinary aphrodisiac.”

How hurtful. Why did everyone have to append “low-grade” when insulting her? Clearly, D-grade and E-grade were the norm!

“Spiritual disorder, out of control. After entering a dissociative state, you will wish you were dead. That is a kind of… void.” A flash of pain crossed Caland’s resolute features.

Zhu Yu couldn’t comprehend what a void was. She only wanted to live, even if it was painful.

No one stays miserable for a lifetime; if you endure, the sun and the hearth smoke will always rise.

As long as she survived tonight, she would be free. Nan Gong had promised to send her back, and when the time came, they would have plenty of time to talk slowly.

If—just saying if—Bai Shuzhou truly detested her… it would just be returning to square one. She had been prepared to leave from the very beginning.

Her body temperature was still climbing, and a strange, restless heat rippled out from deep within.

When Bai Shuzhou was in her rut, did it feel like this too?

It was fine until she thought of it, but within the surging, sour surge of affection, fragmented images from her memory leaped up: her thin, crimson lips; her icy eyes filled with tears. Unable to hold it in, a suppressed gasp escaped her throat.

The tips of her ears flushed red instantly.

How—how could she have so many inappropriate thoughts about her!

The young girl experiencing love for the first time was having this feeling for the very first time; it was no longer a hazy kiss—just touching would cause her heart to race for ages.

—She wanted her.

Zhu Yu was startled by this bold thought. She could only tell herself over and over that it was just the hormones, just the reagent.

Would she be brought onto the auction stage in this state, broadcasted live across the entire galaxy?

What if she couldn’t control herself and shouted Bai Shuzhou’s name?

This realization made the girl’s slender frame shudder violently. It was too shameful; her most hidden desires shouldn’t be sliced open like this. It would be far more agonizing than physical pain.

She had gone from a universally revered great heroine to an Imperial wanted criminal, then reduced to a star pirate’s captive…

Zhu Yu finally realized: they didn’t just want to humiliate her; they wanted to use her to humiliate the Imperial Royal Family.

If Bai Shuzhou saw the live broadcast, what would she think of her?

She specifically didn’t want her to see such an inferior side.

Her thoughts shifting, Zhu Yu bit her lip fiercely and forced her hand out to tug at Caland’s sleeve, exuding the rogue aura of ‘if you don’t agree, I won’t let go,’ and said in a soft voice:

“Sister, one last favor, please.”

As the auction process advanced slowly, a black-clad attendant walked out from the highest box. A moment later, the Paradis Boss appeared. Taking a deep breath at the doorway, her face plastered with a welcoming smile, she pushed open the door.

Iselia kept her arms crossed, observing the venue’s movements the entire time. Even though the inner field had identity blurrers, as long as one observed carefully, plenty of useful clues could still be gathered.

Someone was about to lose their composure.

This was Paradis‘s first live broadcast, a gathering of tycoons, and everyone was anticipating the final mystery treasure.