A Scummy Divorcee Alpha: Ex-Wife’s Top-Tier Soothing Agent - Chapter 12

After hanging up the phone, Boss Zuo’s good mood didn’t last long.

She received a call from an unknown number—a familiar voice.

“Bring her back, or I’ll come to see you both.”

The moment her suspicion was confirmed, Zuo Yijia wanted to interrogate, to mock, to become hysterical. But her throat felt as if it were stuffed with wet cotton, and the veins on the back of the hand gripping her phone bulged.

Thud!

The phone hit the door panel with a dull, heavy sound.

A moment later, she regained her composure and stepped out of the inner room. Putting on the coat Secretary Liang handed her, she said as she walked: “Cancel the evening schedule. Take me back to rest.”

Secretary Liang: “President Zuo, which ‘home’ are we going to?”

Zuo Yijia paused, shooting him a chilly glare.

In truth, Secretary Liang’s question stemmed entirely from years of professional intuition. Sure enough, halfway through the drive, the boss in the back seat had a change of heart and waved a hand.

“Turn around.”

“Go pick up… that person.”

Secretary Liang calmly produced the location data he had prepared long ago.

It was in the opposite direction, thirty or forty kilometers away. The driver took a shortcut, hurrying as fast as he dared, and arrived just in time to see a group of people walking out of the restaurant.

“I didn’t realize you were the type to chase after someone who doesn’t want you,” Lou Xuehan whispered with a fake, mocking smile as she walked beside Du Wan.

Du Wan was still zoning out and didn’t have the energy to deal with her.

Lou Xuehan stomped her foot and left in a huff.

“It’s out of our way to take you back, isn’t it?” Jiang Ni, who had been bowing and scraping to see off the big shots, switched faces the moment she looked at Du Wan. “Anyway, since you have a ‘private driver,’ just call a cab yourself.”

Chai Tingyan: “Sis, what do you mean by that?”

Jiang Ni shot back: “Is it out of your way too?”

Pure, blatant bullying.

Chai Tingyan was young after all; her face flushed bright red. She ran through every insult she knew in her head, rolling up her sleeves to stand up for Du Wan.

Du Wan snapped out of her daze and quickly held her back.

“Sis is right.” She had long been fed up with this two-faced manager. She grinned and said sarcastically, “Since we aren’t ‘traveling the same path,’ we certainly shouldn’t be sharing a ride.”

“You’ll regret this.” Fearing the backer behind Du Wan, Jiang Ni didn’t dare make her words too ugly. She led her group and strutted away.

Du Wan didn’t care. Based on her observations, a manager’s power wasn’t great enough to arbitrarily decide an actor’s fate.

Besides, she didn’t have time to worry about that now. One word from the “Arowana” could make her life and her money vanish into thin air. The mermaid’s attitude was clearly the bigger concern.

Du Wan parted ways with Chai Tingyan at the intersection. A black business van followed silently behind her.

Du Wan walked alone along the roadside, so frustrated that everything looked wrong. A fallen leaf? Kick it. A pebble? Flick it. A puddle? Stomp on it.

Zuo Yijia had stepped out of the car and witnessed the entire “road rage” episode from behind.

Zuo Yijia: “…”

“Who does that fish think she is? Just because she’s pretty, she thinks she can do whatever she wants?” Du Wan punched a tree trunk. A startled bird fluttered away, and leaves fell in a rustling shower of liquid gold light.

Zuo Yijia raised an eyebrow, a look of amusement crossing her face.

Du Wan stomped hard on a puddle, sending water splashing. She continued her verbal venting: “The whole world has to revolve around you! Overbearing! Savage! Despotic! Dictatorial! I’m not going to listen to you!”

Zuo Yijia’s face went dark.

“I won’t let beauty cloud my judgment!” Du Wan looked up and suddenly began to stammer in fright. “Zuo-Zuo-Zuo… Boss Zuo…”

“Overbearing, savage, despotic, dictatorial.” Zuo Yijia stepped out from the shadows with her arms crossed, sneering. “So, you have quite a few complaints about me.”

Du Wan was so embarrassed she wanted to crawl into a sewer. “Hahaha—” I’m dead. Just bury me now.

“And why is that?” Zuo Yijia answered her own question calmly. “Because I turned a blind eye to your ‘seduction,’ you’ve become so ashamed and angry that you’ve resorted to slandering me.”

Du Wan: “…”

Seduction? When? Why wasn’t I informed?!

Whatever. Better start sucking up. Du Wan bowed and scraped with a forced smile: “Boss Zuo is magnanimous! You wouldn’t lower yourself to the level of a lowly person like me!”

As she bowed, she couldn’t help but pinch her nose. How much did this fish drink today? The alcohol scent is way too strong.

“Hmph.” Zuo Yijia looked at her sideways, her exquisite little chin lifting slightly. “Get in the car.”

Du Wan answered instantly: “Coming!”

Zuo Yijia’s gaze dropped, filled with undisguised disgust. “Take off your shoes first.”

Du Wan clutched her shoes and tried to crawl into the very back row of the car.

“The second time,” Zuo Yijia held up two fingers, curling them slightly. “The second time you’ve tried to attract my attention.”

“You know your old tricks don’t work anymore, so you’ve learned these low-class methods from somewhere.”

“Full of holes. Naive. Ridiculous,” she said with disdain.

Du Wan: “…”

What a bizarre logic… she’s definitely drunk, right?!

I can’t take this. Just you wait.

Without a word, Du Wan stuck her rear in the air and crawled forward: “If Boss Zuo wanted to sit with me, why didn’t you say so sooner!”

Zuo Yijia shoved her into a corner, grabbed a bottle of perfume from the storage basket, and sprayed it frantically. She frowned in deep disgust. “Who knows how many people you hooked up with tonight. Stay away from me!”

Du Wan rubbed her nose and let out a string of sneezes. She lifted her arm to sniff herself but couldn’t smell anything. Then again, she had never been sensitive to pheromones—was there even a difference between those and perfume?

“I swear.” Du Wan raised her hand to show her loyalty. “Tonight, I only seduced Boss Zuo.”

Zuo Yijia turned her back to her, the tips of her ears seemingly turning red. For once, she didn’t snap back.

The bitter-sweet fruit scent of the perfume tangled with the mellow aroma of wine on Zuo Yijia, filling the cabin.

The car drove over a bumpy stretch of road, rocking up and down. Du Wan felt drowsy. She forced her eyelids open and peeked out the window, suddenly realizing something was wrong.

“Boss Zuo, this doesn’t look like the way back home?”

Zuo Yijia pressed a button, and the view outside the window turned pitch black. The light inside the car dimmed significantly. She lowered her gaze, her lashes casting a semi-circular shadow that made her eyes look deeper and more somber.

Du Wan thought in terror: It’s over. This fish finally couldn’t restrain her killing intent and is taking me to the wilderness to butcher me.

“Haven’t you always wanted to meet my family?” Zuo Yijia propped up her long legs. She lifted her eyelids, a hint of mockery and malice hiding in her gaze. “I’m making your dream come true today. Are you happy?”

Du Wan: “Ah… huh?”

Am I supposed to be happy? Should I give a toothy grin?

“I’m warning you: do not try to inflate your own worth or have any ulterior motives.” Zuo Yijia’s soft body pressed tightly against the leather seat, moving closer with the fluid grace of a fish in water. “I won’t give you a single chance.”

Du Wan: “…”

Understood. I’m just a human air freshener, and I’m treating you like an ATM.

Please, whatever you do, don’t give me a chance.

“Remember this: our relationship is strictly limited to the contract. There will be no further development.” Zuo Yijia continued her lecture. “Put away those little schemes of yours. It makes me feel disgusted.”

Du Wan turned her head and secretly rolled her eyes. Watching this fish wagging her tail in a show of dominance made her want to climb over her head and play a prank.

“Then what about… right now—” Du Wan cleared her throat and blinked innocently, gesturing for the woman to look down. “What kind of relationship is this?”

Half of Zuo Yijia’s body was leaning into Du Wan’s arms, one hand was cupping Du Wan’s chin, and their limbs were entangled in an extremely ambiguous posture. To any observer, they looked far from “simple.”

Zuo Yijia: “…”

Her face flushed crimson instantly. Before she could even glare at Du Wan, her first instinct was to check if the partition to the front seat was closed.

Secretary Liang, in the passenger seat, had already thoughtfully considered this for his boss. He silently put on noise-canceling headphones, ignoring the driver’s hesitant, questioning look.

He said, “Don’t be too jealous. You can’t wear these.”