Acting as the Powerful Background Character in a Scummy Alpha Novel - Chapter 28
It was a good idea, but if she wasn’t there, would that stop the drama from happening anyway?
Standing by the window of the main building, Jing Shen watched the crowd bustling over at the side wing. Just as she was considering whether to head over, she saw Xiao He—who had gone to the side wing earlier—walk out. Butler Lin followed closely behind, and they headed straight back to the main building.
By right, Xiao He was supposed to host Xiao Shuyuan’s coming-of-age ceremony today, and she had promised to do so early on. Now that it was about to start, why had she suddenly returned? Did she forget something?
Hurrying downstairs, Jing Shen reached the first floor just in time to see that Xiao He wasn’t alone; Xiao Tan, Shuyuan’s father, was following her.
“Cousin, today is the child’s coming-of-age ceremony! What are you doing? Let’s hurry back!”
Xiao Tan tried to call out to her from behind, but Xiao He didn’t stop. With Butler Lin acting as a physical barrier between them, Xiao Tan didn’t dare to forcibly block her path.
At the entrance of the main building, Xiao He stopped and looked at the pursuing Xiao Tan. “If it weren’t for the fact that today is Shuyuan’s ceremony, you would already be leaving. Fittingly, I am just an outsider. You and your family should enjoy the ceremony yourselves.”
It was obvious that something had happened to make Xiao He angry. She gave Butler Lin a look, signaling him to take Xiao Tan away, before turning to enter the building.
Without Xiao He’s permission, no one could enter the main building. Standing at the door, Xiao Tan had no choice but to leave, no matter how unwilling he was; after all, with so many guests present today, he still had to save face.
Xiao He didn’t even notice Jing Shen as she headed straight upstairs. However, she seemed to have moved a bit too quickly; a wave of dizziness hit her, and she swayed, nearly falling. Fortunately, she caught the handrail.
“Sister Xiao!”
Jing Shen immediately rushed forward to support her, helping her sit slowly on the stairs to recover. “Don’t be angry. Keep your mind calm and steady your emotions.”
Xiao He held her forehead, only opening her eyes once the dizziness subsided. Seeing Jing Shen beside her, she used the handrail to pull herself up. “I’m fine.”
“I’ll help you upstairs to rest for a bit.”
She didn’t look “fine” at all. Jing Shen knew all too well how stubborn Xiao He was. Just as she tried to help her up, Xiao He waved her off.
“No need. I need to go to the study.”
Giving up on the stairs, Xiao He entered the nearby elevator. It seemed her body was indeed growing weaker by the day.
Jing Shen watched Xiao He go up and quickly followed. As soon as Xiao He entered the study, she made a phone call and closed the door.
Since she wasn’t needed inside, Jing Shen stood at the door. I’ll wait here.
Xiao He hadn’t intentionally shut Jing Shen out; it was just that this phone call wasn’t suitable for others to overhear.
“Investigate Xiao Tan’s business operations abroad. Something is definitely going on.”
Just moments ago, Xiao He had gone to see Xiao Shuyuan, who had changed into her gown—a magnificent piece of haute couture paired with expensive jewelry. She looked like a little princess and had rushed to greet Xiao He the moment she entered.
Xiao He’s mood had been quite good, and she had prepared a birthday gift for Shuyuan. But just as she was about to present it, Sun Mei took the initiative to “ask” for a gift on Shuyuan’s behalf.
“Cousin, today is Shuyuan’s coming-of-age ceremony. She’s also about to graduate high school, and her university workload will be much lighter. I was thinking, how about letting Shuyuan learn to manage company affairs while she’s in school? It would be good for her growth.”
The suggestion itself wasn’t a problem. Xiao He had been fully acquainted with the Group’s business by the age of sixteen or seventeen. If a child was interested, getting involved early wasn’t a bad thing—provided that Shuyuan only started with a branch office.
“Shuyuan, what do you think?” Xiao He wanted to hear Shuyuan’s opinion. Youth only comes once; enjoying university life is also important, and it should depend on personal will.
The joy on Shuyuan’s face from seeing Xiao He had vanished, but she maintained her smile and nodded. She had to walk the path her parents paved for her, no matter what.
Seeing that everyone agreed, Xiao He nodded. “I heard your ideal school is in Country D? There happens to be a branch office there. It’s a bit small, but you can go in and start learning.”
Before Shuyuan could nod, Xiao Tan refused outright. “Cousin, we’re family. This is your niece; how can you just brush her off with a branch office in Country D? It would be better for Shuyuan to stay by your side and learn. With you personally training her, she definitely won’t disappoint you.”
Xiao He looked at the expectant family. This request was a bit of an overreach. However, in front of Shuyuan, Xiao He didn’t want to issue a harsh denial immediately.
“We’ll see.”
Perhaps seeing that Xiao He was being “easy to talk to” today, Xiao Tan and Sun Mei were overjoyed and said impatiently, “Then this is truly the best coming-of-age gift you could give Shuyuan.”
This sentence made Xiao He instantly alert. Are these two planning to go out and broadcast this ‘gift’ to everyone? Or worse, force me to acknowledge it publicly?
Announcing Shuyuan’s entry into the headquarters to so many people at such a formal event was equivalent to indirectly admitting she was the heir. They couldn’t possibly be unaware of that.
As Xiao He was thinking, Shuyuan tugged on her sleeve. “Auntie, then can my parents be transferred back? They’ve been abroad for so long, we hardly ever see each other.”
Xiao He glanced at Shuyuan. The family’s calculation is quite loud, isn’t it? Are they playing me for a fool? Staging a performance of ‘deep familial love’ in front of me?
“I think you all misunderstood. What I meant was we can discuss Shuyuan entering the company after today’s ceremony. The gift I prepared is not that.”
She set down the actual gift, not even bothering to open it. “Alright, my gift has been delivered. I’m going back to the main building.”
Sensing that they might pull an even more outrageous stunt during the public segment, Xiao He gave them no chance to perform. She decided not to attend the rest of the ceremony. This was actually a final shred of dignity for Shuyuan; if Xiao He had publicly refused to give them face, this important day would have been remembered as the worst of Shuyuan’s life.
After speaking, Xiao He turned and walked away. Only then did Xiao Tan realize they had been too aggressive and tried to fix it, but Xiao He wasn’t interested in his nonsense. That led to the scene Jing Shen witnessed.
Xiao He rubbed the bridge of her nose. Xiao Tan and Sun Mei were desperate to return and were so urgent about making Shuyuan the heir; Xiao He wouldn’t believe for a second that there was nothing wrong. It remained to be seen how big the problem was.
Meanwhile, the side wing was in chaos. Xiao He’s sudden departure sparked a flurry of speculation. Xiao Tan returned to find Shuyuan and Sun Mei, and all three looked miserable.
Shuyuan’s good mood was completely shattered; her eyes were red, and a tear escaped with a blink.
“Xiao He is being a bit too much, isn’t she? Today is Shuyuan’s ceremony! She just left? She promised to stay—isn’t this going back on her word? Isn’t she intentionally trying to embarrass our family?”
Sun Mei used a tissue to dab away Shuyuan’s tears so her makeup wouldn’t be ruined, all while complaining about Xiao He.
“Everyone is waiting outside. What can we do?” Xiao Tan hadn’t expected that after all these years, Xiao He’s temper hadn’t changed a bit. She couldn’t tolerate even a grain of sand in her eye and would turn cold in an instant. Their preparations had gone to waste.
Sun Mei looked at Shuyuan, and a sudden idea struck her. “How about we…”
Being a long-married couple, Xiao Tan immediately understood she wanted to fake a decree—to “act first and report later.” He had thought of it too, but the problem was that Xiao He wouldn’t give them the chance.
“Impossible. Butler Lin is waiting outside right now. I suspect Xiao He anticipated this. If we pull anything today, she won’t leave us with any dignity.”
Even when he returned just now, Butler Lin had followed him every step of the way. He claimed it was to help him “calm down,” but it was clearly to prevent him from saying something he shouldn’t to the guests.
There was truly no way. Sun Mei bit her lip, hands on her hips in frustration. “She hasn’t left us with any dignity as it is! Leaving publicly before things even started—who can’t guess what happened? Poor Shuyuan, her only ceremony was ruined by her!”
Xiao Tan and Sun Mei were so focused on their immediate anger that they failed to realize that the signal sent by Xiao He’s departure was far more damaging than their perceived loss of interest.
Throughout the ceremony, though Shuyuan tried her best to appear happy and natural, the guests’ reactions were more intense than hers. The members of the Xiao family grew increasingly somber seeing that Xiao He never reappeared. The Xie family, on the other hand, was delighted; was this not a warning from Xiao He to the Xiao side of the family?
After the Mid-Autumn banquet incident, where both families took a hit because of Xie Fang and the Xiao cousin (who were still detained), the Xie family hadn’t caused any trouble this time. By doing nothing, they had gained the upper hand.
The remaining guests, realizing Xiao He wouldn’t be coming, began to prepare for their departure.
Shuyuan maintained her composure as best she could, said a few words of thanks, and began the gift-opening segment. She quickly pulled out Xiao He’s gift—a gemstone bracelet from a high-end luxury brand. She let out a breath of relief and showed it to the guests to salvage some of the face lost by Xiao He’s absence. Sun Mei took the opportunity to thank Xiao He for the gift and made up an excuse for her departure, which eased the expressions of the Xiao family members below.
She continued opening several boxes from close friends and relatives; most were expensive or thoughtful.
As she continued, Shuyuan saw a gift signed by Jing Shen. She hadn’t expected Jing Shen to give her a gift. It was a medium-sized box, and she had no idea what was inside.
With that thought, she opened it. The moment she lifted the lid, a toad hopped out. The box was filled with them.
“AH!!!”
She screamed and threw the box away. Shuyuan feared toads most of all; now, she felt like she wanted to throw away the very hand that had touched the box!
The guests were also horrified and scrambled from their seats. Screams erupted as the toads from the thrown box hopped everywhere.
Butler Lin was caught off guard by this development and hurriedly arranged for staff to catch them all. The ceremony was completely ruined. Most people simply left; after all, Xiao He wasn’t there, and they’d already seen enough of a farce to make it worth the trip.
Shuyuan felt like she could kill someone. Looking at the mess, she broke down into a fit of sobbing. Could things get any worse?
When Shuyuan had someone bring that box of toads straight to the main building, only to be blocked at the door, she collapsed further. Xiao Tan and Sun Mei tried their best to restrain her from shouting insults, urging Butler Lin to tell Xiao He immediately.
Actually, Xiao He knew about it the moment it happened. But she didn’t believe Jing Shen would do such a thing. Sure enough, hearing the commotion below, Jing Shen was called to the study and looked completely baffled.
“Sister Xiao, I didn’t send a gift to Shuyuan at all, let alone toads. I have no idea.”
There was no need for guilt for something she hadn’t done. Jing Shen denied it immediately.
“I believe you, but we still need to give Shuyuan an explanation. Come down with me. Stay behind me, and don’t worry; it’ll be fine.”
Xiao He couldn’t let the matter pass without a clear resolution. She had to find the truth, both to give Shuyuan an answer and to clear Jing Shen’s name.
The moment they met downstairs, Shuyuan nearly lost control and tried to hit Jing Shen. Xiao He reached out and pulled the girl to her side. “The matter hasn’t been cleared up. Calm down.”
Jing Shen didn’t try to hide behind Xiao He this time. Instead, she spoke up directly to remind Shuyuan, “Do you really think I’d send you a box of toads in a box signed with my own name in front of all those people? Who signs their own name to a prank? Isn’t that just looking for trouble?”
“What if you planned to use that exact excuse to talk your way out of it? The more ‘impossible’ it seems, the more likely it is! That’s exactly what you thought!”
Shuyuan pulled out the signed note. “I’ve already compared the handwriting of ‘Jing Shen’ on this note. It’s your handwriting. Look for yourself; you won’t deny your own writing, will you?”
Jing Shen took the note and looked. It was indeed her name.
“But this proves nothing. Someone could have used a signature of mine from elsewhere to forge it.” Jing Shen looked closely; it was a signature on a greeting card, written in fountain pen. The handwriting was indeed hers, but she had to figure out where it came from. When had she ever written her name on something like this?
“You’re still making excuses?!” Shuyuan was nearly dead with rage. Lately, Xie Qingyu had been incredibly well-behaved—nothing but lessons, as if he were a new person. Linchu hadn’t stepped foot in the house since Mid-Autumn. It couldn’t possibly be a prank controlled by those two with their minds, could it?
“I didn’t do it. You can investigate all you want; I have a clear conscience. I never sent a gift. You should check who actually delivered it.”
Jing Shen handed the signature to Butler Lin. “Uncle Lin, can you check the approximate age of this signature? It shouldn’t be recent. I can’t quite remember its origin.”
“I can do that, though it will take a little time.” With current technology, this was no problem. Butler Lin took the paper and nodded.
“Xiao Shuyuan, I know you’re angry. Anyone would be in a bad mood after this. But you shouldn’t blame me. Why don’t we wait for the results? I wouldn’t use a signature of mine from a long time ago to specifically sign a prank for you. Think about it; does that make sense?”
“Fine! We’ll wait and see! But I’m telling you, Jing Shen, if the investigation shows you did it, don’t blame me for being ruthless!”
After arguing for so long, Shuyuan’s initial explosive rage had finally cooled a bit. Throwing down those words, she immediately went to check the gift registry and source. She wouldn’t rest until she found the true mastermind today!
Once the others were gone, Jing Shen let out a sigh of relief. She had been afraid Shuyuan would actually try to hit her regardless of the facts.
Xiao He had said very little throughout the ordeal. Looking at Jing Shen, she had to admit the girl had surprised her today. Facing so many people with a clear, logical argument without backing down showed she had potential. It seemed her promise not to let Xiao He down wasn’t just empty talk.
However, she would investigate this herself first. Xiao He always preferred having the answers while waiting for the results.
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