After A Crazy Omega Took Me In - Chapter 3

The moment Jin Xu stepped out of Shi Lian’s car, her face went pale and she staggered several steps.

Shi Lian had been driving while emotional, so the car had sped along far too quickly. Jin Xu had rarely ridden in cars since childhood, so getting motion sickness was unavoidable. Shi Lian would never slow down or drive more steadily for her sake.

Just like now.

She walked ahead without looking back, sparing Jin Xu so much as a glance.

Jin Xu blinked and obediently followed behind her.

No matter what had happened before, Shi Lian had never lost her composure like this.

Jin Xu had seen what she was like around other people.

She looked after her juniors, spoke softly and gently, handed blankets to fans, and ordered food for them. Shi Lian was actually an attentive and patient person.

She simply was not gentle with Jin Xu.

So what exactly had happened?

What kind of situation could make her this anxious and upset?

The door in front of them opened after Shi Lian knocked a second set of three times.

What appeared before them was a pale face with dark shadows beneath the eyes.

The corners of the woman’s eyes tilted upward, and she bore a slight resemblance to Shi Lian.

“Oh, Xiao Lian is here… Haha, come in…”

The woman’s voice abruptly stopped the moment she saw Jin Xu.

“Who is she?”

Shi Lian glanced at her coldly, then immediately returned her attention to the woman before her.

She had no obligation to answer any of this person’s questions.

“Tell me. How much will it take for you to sell me my mother’s necklace?”

“Not much… not much…”

When they got down to business, the woman broke into a wide grin. Her cloudy eyes rolled a few times.

“Five million. How does that sound?”

It sounded terrible.

Shi Lian’s fingers curled unconsciously.

It was only an old-fashioned necklace, one that had not cost much. It had been the first gift Shi Lian bought for her mommy after she started working.

During the hardest year the Shi family had ever faced, when her mommy was on the brink of death, this bastard Xu Cheng had taken it away.

Now she was using sentimentality as an excuse to demand an outrageous price.

What was five million to Shi Lian?

She was rich and famous. Even the gifts she casually gave her fans were worth millions.

But she simply refused.

Her mommy was important.

Her mommy’s belongings were important too.

But why should someone like Xu Cheng—a betrayer, someone who had harmed her mommy—be allowed to live comfortably because of it?

The fluctuations in the air grew increasingly intense as Shi Lian’s pheromones edged closer and closer to losing control.

Her gaze settled upon the old necklace hooked around Xu Cheng’s little finger.

It grew unbearably heavy, and even the corners of her eyes gradually flushed red.

What should she do?

How was she supposed to handle this?

Sometimes, Shi Lian truly, desperately wanted to persuade herself to let it go.

It was only an old possession. What was there to remember for so many years?

Jin Mu had died back then.

Her mommy had died in the same year.

Xu Cheng had become this half-human, half-ghost wreck.

The people she loved were dead, but the people she hated had not met good ends either.

Was that not enough?

Why did she still have to come here just to look at an old keepsake?

Why did she continue raising Jin Xu?

Why did she force herself to look at that face she hated to the bone, day after day and night after night, just to remind herself of everything that had happened?

Who was she trying to torment?

Perhaps she simply could not let herself go.

Her arm dropped to her side, as though the weight of her entire life were about to slip from her shoulders.

But in the very next moment, the person beside her suddenly lunged forward.

A muffled crash rang out before her.

Shi Lian raised her eyes.

For a brief instant, all sound disappeared from her ears.

The young Alpha had pinned Xu Cheng to the floor. One hand covered the woman’s mouth, while the other casually lifted the necklace and held it dangling between her fingers.

“Mmph… You… I’m going to… call the police…”

“Go ahead. It belonged to Sister in the first place. You’re selling someone else’s property back to them for five million—how can you even say that with a straight face? That’s extortion.”

Jin Xu’s eyes curved as she spoke.

The harsh white light of the spacious apartment fell across her face, making her look pale and distant. The finger holding the necklace was covered in wounds that had not yet healed, faint traces of red showing against her fair skin.

Being suppressed by a high-ranking Alpha was unbearable.

Xu Cheng’s face gradually turned a dark, liver-red shade. After a long while, she coughed violently several times, then opened her mouth and burst into laughter.

Madness twisted her once-beautiful face.

“Who do you think you are… Jin Xu, right? Do you really think you’re anything good?”

“You follow her around like a dog and even call her Sister. Hahaha…”

Years of excess and alcohol had hollowed Xu Cheng’s body out, leaving her without the strength to struggle.

She narrowed her eyes, malicious amusement flickering within them.

“Do you know why she keeps you?”

“She needs something to hate. A lunatic like her needs someone to hate just to stay alive!”

“You’re Jin Mu’s descendant. You’re no more innocent than I am…”

What cruel words.

The cold light reflected across Shi Lian’s vision.

In that fleeting flash, she caught sight of Jin Xu’s eyes.

They were beautiful almond-shaped eyes, filled with a swirl of emotion.

It did not look like sadness.

Instead, there was a kind of clear realization, followed by satisfaction and a growing smile.

“Not innocent?”

That was even better.

Jin Xu climbed off the woman who was gasping so hard she could not form a complete sentence.

Her puppy-like eyes shone brightly as she walked over to Shi Lian.

In that instant, every bit of distance between them shattered.

“Sister, here’s your necklace.”

The necklace dropped into Shi Lian’s palm.

It was so light, as though all its weight had fallen directly onto her heart.

She lowered her eyes and softly said, “Thank you.”

She offered no explanation for anything Xu Cheng had said.

It was all true.

What was there to explain?

Her heart ached bitterly at that moment, and a feeling close to self-loathing swallowed her whole.

Was Jin Xu innocent?

Was Jin Xu not innocent?

And what about Shi Lian?

What role did she play in all of this?

She was the same as Jin Xu.

So when the blueberries the child had been carrying so carefully were offered to her, she instinctively slapped them away.

Only after several stunned seconds did she lower her gaze with an expression so fragile it trembled.

The blueberries the Alpha had carried all night—the ones she had protected even while confronting Xu Cheng—now lay crushed across the floor.

Shi Lian turned her head and met a pair of astonished eyes.

Then those eyes curved brightly.

“You don’t like blueberries?”

“Then I’ll buy you something else next time.”

Blueberries were actually rather expensive for Jin Xu.

Had it been anyone else—had it been one of her fans—Shi Lian would have apologized.

She would have gently crouched down and picked up the fruit, even if it had already been crushed, and placed it in her mouth.

At the very least, she would have tasted one.

Shi Lian had genuinely been loved before.

She understood love and what it meant to be loved.

She knew the weight of sincerity, even when it was hidden in the smallest details.

But the person standing before her was Jin Xu.

If it was Jin Xu, then what did it matter if her sincerity fell to the ground?

What did it matter if it was trampled and crushed?

That had been Shi Lian’s purpose from the beginning.

So the woman tightened her grip around the necklace in her pocket and walked away on unsteady feet, calm and unburdened.

The Alpha who had seemed unconcerned waited until she was gone before crouching down.

Jin Xu picked up one of the blueberries from the floor and put it into her mouth.

It was sweet, with a slight hint of tartness.

How many years had it been since she had eaten fruit like this?

Back then, she had still been loved.

So she had already been unhappy for such a long time.

She raised her eyes and met the mocking gaze of the woman across from her.

Jin Xu froze for a moment.

Xu Cheng truly did resemble Shi Lian.

Jin Xu had no way of learning anything about Shi Lian, so she could only guess blindly.

Was she a relative?

Or another mother?

Jin Xu had no obligation to interpret the emotions of someone unimportant, so she only considered it briefly.

Then she stood.

By the time she reached the ground floor, the silver-white car was already gone.

Shi Lian had not waited for her.

It was entirely expected.

Jin Xu had been the one who stubbornly insisted on following her here. She had also been the one to fall half a step behind and fail to keep up.

There was nothing to be upset about.

The moonlight was bitterly cold that night.

Jin Xu pulled her thin school jacket tighter around herself, tucked her hands into her pockets, and chose the brightest paths to walk along.

She was actually a little afraid of the dark.

She had told Shi Lian before.

That night, half of the woman’s face had been hidden in darkness. Moonlight filled the room during the power outage.

It was the first time Jin Xu had exposed her unease in an unfamiliar environment.

In the end, she was still a child.

When she felt miserable, when her fear became too much to endure, she would still seek out her sister.

Jin Xu had not expected anything.

She had only wanted to look at Shi Lian’s face amid her fear and gain the smallest sense of security from it.

But unexpectedly, Shi Lian had stepped aside and allowed her into the room.

Jin Xu had spent the entire night sleeping in a warm bed saturated with Shi Lian’s scent.

She was not greedy.

A little warmth and a little indulgence were enough to keep her heart warm for a very long time.

As for Shi Lian…

She did not intend to have a future with Jin Xu.

So she would do anything.

And she would do nothing.

By the time Jin Xu arrived home, it was already early the next morning.

Heavy mist clung to her entire body, and her lips were as pale as paper.

She opened the door with the fingerprint lock.

No one was inside the villa.

There was nothing at all.

Not even the lingering warmth from the previous night or the faint trace of the woman’s scent.

Where had Shi Lian gone?

Jin Xu lowered her eyes and sent a message to the pampered cat pinned at the top of her contacts.

Sister, aren’t you home?

She typed and deleted several times before finally sending only that polite greeting.

The message sank into silence.

There was no reply.

Exhausted, she took a shower and changed into another long-sleeved shirt that had not fully dried.

She had to go to work today.

She could not ask for leave.

She was young, and there were not many employers willing to hire her. Of course she had to perform well.

Otherwise, she might be casually discarded.

In truth, she was someone with very little sense of security.

But because she had nothing left to lose, some of the people around her mistook her for carefree and free.

She would merely smile and say nothing.

Of course someone without a home was free.

She worked part-time at a milk tea shop.

Because she was good-looking, many customers came specifically to buy milk tea from her. That also meant the exhaustion in her eyes was more noticeable.

A girl waiting at the counter cautiously studied the dark circles beneath Jin Xu’s eyes.

After a long while, she finally gathered the courage to speak softly.

“Did you not sleep well last night…?”

Jin Xu raised her eyes and looked at her.

Before she could answer, the girl blushed and quickly looked away.

“I only asked because… you look unwell. I didn’t mean to bother you…”

“Mm-hm, you’re not bothering me at all. Thank you for worrying about me.”

The Alpha behind the counter smiled brightly.

She expertly packed the milk tea and handed it to the girl.

“I stayed up really late playing games last night. I almost forgot I had a shift today.”

As Jin Xu spoke, she stared directly into the girl’s evasive eyes.

Her clear, gentle voice sounded out one word at a time.

“The next time you see me, I’ll make sure I look beautiful.”

She knew some of the people who came to buy milk tea were there to see her.

Good-looking people naturally attracted attention, and their faces were important.

So today, she was the one at fault.

That was why she had to make promises like this.

To offer hope for some vague and uncertain next time.