Foolishly Flirting with the White Moonlight Leads to Being Marked - Chapter 22.1

The food really was about to get cold by now. Yan Fu still had many things he had not explained. Secondary differentiation was extremely dangerous. For people with poor constitutions, it was a calamity.

Either one bit through the cocoon binding them and turned into a butterfly, or they died bloated inside the cocoon. There were not many cases of secondary differentiation in the country, and Yan Qingqiu’s situation was extremely rare. Everyone in the household had to raise their guard one hundred and twenty percent.

Yan Fu put down the mouse and keyboard and ate something. He could not help asking with concern, “Have you felt uncomfortable anywhere lately?”

Yan Qingqiu instinctively looked at Song Qingre, thinking she had leaked her identity. Yan Qingqiu held her phone and typed a string of gibberish on it. “I’m fine. It’s just hot, so I get dizzy sometimes.”

Yan Fu thought of the report: during secondary differentiation, an Omega’s body would remain in a persistently high-temperature state. High fever could lead to loss of reason, causing scattered requests to be marked.

Very dangerous.

Yan Qingqiu withdrew her gaze from Song Qingre and looked at Yan Fu again. Yan Fu’s calm and composed expression frightened her. Feeling troubled, she said softly, “I’m hungry. Can I eat?”

Yan Fu nodded and asked the head chef to cook. The butler asked, “Sir, should we clear your food?”

Yan Fu finished the steamed egg with shrimp, planning to eat a little more with them. The maid cleared away the dishes, and Yan Fu said, “Uncle Dong, sit down and eat too.”

Four people sat at one table, all staring at Yan Qingqiu. Yan Qingqiu’s heart thumped wildly. The atmosphere at the table was strange. She really wished someone would say something to break the awkwardness.

The table was quiet, and Yan Qingqiu felt restless.

Because there had never been an Omega in the house before, the head chef had always cooked according to Alpha tastes. He rarely made meals specifically suited for Omegas, so he specially searched online for a tutorial on meals for Omega differentiation. He cooked while reading.

He had once been a five-star chef and had even won a God of Cookery Award. Now he had to follow a tutorial to cook. It was quite a blow to his career.

The head chef read it once, added his own specialty, then carried it out and specially placed it by Yan Qingqiu’s hand. “Miss, please try it.”

Yan Qingqiu was in a very good mood. She nodded. When the maid brought over flower water, she washed her hands in it. She froze slightly. “There didn’t used to be petals added, right?”

The maid was very quick-witted. “These are freshly picked flowers today. They’re best for soaking in water and moisturizing the skin. I thought I’d let Miss try it. If you don’t like it, I’ll change it for you.”

Yan Qingqiu glanced at Song Qingre’s basin. There were no petals in her basin, which made Yan Qingqiu seem delicate and fussy. But… she lifted her hand and sniffed lightly. Her fingertips tapped against the tip of her nose. The faint rose fragrance was refreshing and soothing. She said, “In the future, add rose petals to Miss Song’s basin too.”

The maid looked toward Song Qingre. Song Qingre wiped her fingers with a handkerchief and said thank you.

Yan Qingqiu then looked at Yan Fu’s basin. Yan Fu said, “I don’t need them. You young girls can use them.”

Yan Qingqiu used her chopsticks to eat the food beside her hand, then held a spoon and brought it to her lips. Everyone seemed to be especially caring toward her. She felt a little moved.

Her lips pressed lightly together. Perhaps because she was in a good mood, the food she brought to her mouth also tasted sweet and fragrant. As she ate, she glimpsed the chef beside her from the corner of her eye. For some reason, she felt his gaze was rather eager, as if he especially wanted to be praised.

She could understand why. Today, Yan Fu had returned, which meant their direct superior had returned. They were all impatient to perform in front of the boss.

“It’s quite tasty.” Yan Qingqiu kindly praised him without being stingy at all. “Your skills have improved.”

The head chef’s mood exploded. He could not help wanting to clap.

He had finally figured out a problem that had troubled him for a long time. It was not that his skills had deteriorated. It was that Miss had differentiated, and her tastes had changed, which was why she always found fault.

Yan Qingqiu did not understand why he was so moved. It made it seem as though if she did not eat one more bowl of rice, she would be letting down the farmers who planted the crops.

It was not that she thought it was especially delicious. When she first transmigrated here, she had not eaten many high-end dishes in her original world. After transmigrating, she ate wildly whenever she could. After eating like that for a month, she had gotten tired of it and become picky toward delicious food, trying to nitpick so the head chef would make something vegetarian.

Today’s food suited her tastes better. A bowl of fresh vegetable porridge opened up her taste buds.

“Serve me another bowl.”

The head chef took the bowl and went to serve her.

Yan Qingqiu hinted in passing that there was no need to make all kinds of tricks with the dishes every day. Sometimes simple home-style dishes were good enough. She had not dared mention it before because she feared exposing herself, afraid others would misunderstand it as: a wild boar unable to appreciate fine grain.

“In the future, you can make more dishes like this. These flavors are pretty good.”

The head chef nodded. “All right. I’ve noted it down.”

He thought: As expected of a delicate and soft-bodied Omega. She could not eat the rough rice that Alphas usually loved.

He had entirely forgotten that today’s rice was yesterday’s rice. There was no difference at all.

Song Qingre sat opposite Yan Qingqiu and ate slowly and gracefully. Every time her gaze turned toward Yan Qingqiu, it was very soft. Only after looking, she would pick up a tissue and wipe her mouth to hide the corners of her lips.

Yan Qingqiu did not understand what it meant and felt that she was inexplicable.

After the meal, Yan Fu’s phone rang nonstop. They were all calls from the company. Yan Fu’s brows furrowed, and he said, “Xiao Re, come to my study later.”

Song Qingre answered softly.

Why was Yan Fu looking for her? Everyone present knew perfectly well except Yan Qingqiu.

Song Qingre went upstairs and directly said, “Uncle, don’t worry. I’ll take good care of her.”

The company’s matters were making Yan Fu’s head spin, and he could no longer look after his daughter’s situation. He patted Song Qingre’s shoulder. “I’m troubling you too much.”

Song Qingre said, “It’s no trouble.”

She behaved very steadily, leaving Yan Fu slightly dazed.

Yan Fu could not help thinking of the first two years after his wife passed away. At that time, his daughter had only been one or two years old, and because company matters kept him impossibly busy, the neighboring family had helped take care of her. The two families had always been close. The Song family could be said to have cared for his daughter even more than he did. Only, in the past few years, his daughter had acted as if she had gone mad, rebelling crazily. In order to pursue Fu Ye, she had badly hurt Song Qingre’s heart. If not for his mild temperament, he truly would have beaten this daughter to death.

“If she doesn’t listen, then discipline her. You don’t need to tell me.”

“How could I hit her?” Song Qingre smiled. “Qiuqiu is my younger sister, after all. No matter how much she fusses, I won’t raise a hand against her.”

Parents might say they wanted to hit their children, but how could they really bear to let others hit them? Otherwise, with Yan Qingqiu’s behavior these past few years, she would have died eight hundred times over.

Yan Fu’s heart warmed even more, and a faint sense of guilt toward Song Qingre rose in him.

“If Qiuqiu becomes an Omega, it won’t be difficult for the two of you to get along anymore.” Yan Fu hinted, observing Song Qingre’s expression.

Song Qingre only said, “Even if she differentiates into an Omega, she is still my younger sister.” She was very measured. Even though Yan Fu wanted to matchmake them, she stopped at the boundary.

Secondary differentiation… heat period…

Song Qingre said, “I only want her to suffer less. I haven’t thought about anything else.”

The more she said this, the more regretful Yan Fu felt, thinking his daughter had hurt her too deeply.

“If there’s nothing else, I’ll go downstairs first. I need to go to the company today. A few days ago, I made an appointment with a friend to help design a bar.”

“All right.”

Yan Fu walked out and saw her off for a few steps. Looking down, he saw Yan Qingqiu still sitting downstairs, her eyes staring upstairs the whole time. Once Song Qingre came out, she stared at Song Qingre again. Her gaze was restrained, but one could still read a bit of warning in it.

“Butler, come upstairs for a moment,” Yan Fu said.

Yan Qingqiu sat below and thought: Is it almost my turn?

She kept thinking hard. Had Song Qingre complained about her?

The butler went upstairs. What Yan Fu discussed with him was company matters.

“Is it related to the Fu family?”

Yan Fu sighed deeply and told him the whole story. The Yan family worked in skincare products, an old brand. A few years ago, it had quite a market, and everyone liked affordable products. Later, internet-famous products rose up, and everyone began pursuing all kinds of exquisite, gorgeous, expensive skincare products.

An old brand like the Yan family’s had less and less competitiveness. Even with the name of a domestic brand, people still liked chasing brands hyped into high prices by online influencers.

Because it had always been the same old product, the Yan family’s price could not be raised either. If he raised it too high, even he would feel it was unconscionable and would directly smash his original signboard. For a period of time, they had nearly been unable to hold on. But being trapped like this was not a solution either. The Yan family definitely had to cater to the market and customers’ needs, preparing to develop some high-end products. Against the pressure of all the shareholders, he invested in a laboratory. Now, the product was almost complete, but who knew that the Fu family, who had originally invested in their project, would withdraw their funds?

They had originally invested one hundred million. This suddenly forced Yan Fu into a dead end. Even if there would be penalty fees for breach of contract, they would still have to file a lawsuit. If the lawsuit dragged on for a year or half a year, how could the Yan family afford to wait? If this continued, they might directly go bankrupt.

Yan Fu was mentally and physically exhausted. He had to stabilize the company, other investors, and shareholders. Right now, he wished he could split himself in half so he could handle both domestic and overseas matters.

The Fu family had also said that the main reason for withdrawing funds was that his daughter was disobedient, making trouble with Fu Ye and even hitting Fu Ye. The implication was that Yan Qingqiu should go apologize.

The day before he returned to the country, Fu Ye had even called, saying that if Yan Qingqiu had not treated marriage like a game, getting engaged one moment and canceling it the next, he would not have been so ruthless. The Yan family ending up like this could not be separated from Yan Qingqiu’s troublemaking.

The butler asked, “Then how do you plan to resolve this? Will you have Miss apologize?” That was what the Fu family hinted at openly and secretly. Today, they had also sent word asking Yan Fu to bring Yan Qingqiu along for a meal so they could properly discuss the matter.

Yan Fu was angry that his daughter had failed to live up to expectations, so angry his chest hurt. He calmed down and said, “I hope she really has woken up this time. If she jumps back and forth again, then let her do as she likes. From now on, she can stop acknowledging me as her father. I don’t have such a disappointing daughter.”

Hearing him say this, the butler understood. Yan Fu did not plan to bring his daughter to the appointment. Yan Fu said, “This matter can’t be blamed on Qiuqiu either. It was me who fell into Fu Ye’s trap back then and accepted that one hundred million. Otherwise, today’s matter wouldn’t have happened. Facts prove that my judgment back then was correct. Fu Ye isn’t honest. The two of them quarrel a little and he withdraws funds. If they marry in the future and have conflicts as husband and wife, who knows what he’ll do. This kind of man cannot be accepted.”

Men understood men best. If a man did not cherish his wife before marriage, one could not expect him to do so later. He even used funds to pressure his future father-in-law. Yan Fu snorted coldly and slammed his hand hard on the table. “He’d better have the ability to withdraw. Once I get through this crisis, see if I don’t deal with him. He’s making it seem like I, Yan Fu, am selling my daughter.”

“Please calm down.” The butler soothed his emotions and poured him a cup of tea. Yan Fu held the teacup and sighed. “I still think Xiao Re is good. Never mind that she grew up by my side—Qiuqiu practically grew up in her house. It’s just a pity her parents passed away early. Otherwise, truly, I would definitely go to her family to talk about this matter. Besides, in the past few years, Qiuqiu was disobedient and kept hurting her heart. Xiao Re has stayed overseas all these years. I feel very guilty toward her, and I didn’t feel comfortable bringing this matter up again. Ai, if the two of them could be together, that would be good. I really feel guilty toward Xiao Re.”

The butler naturally knew his considerations. “I have been observing. When Miss Song first came back, she was very cold toward Miss. Now she often teases her. I think there’s hope…”

A rare smile appeared on Yan Fu’s face, then he said worriedly, “Let’s not consider this matter first. I’ll resolve the company issue first. If the two of them really get together, I can’t hold them back. Otherwise, if they get together while burdened by debt, it won’t last long in the future either.”

Yan Fu was a businessman, and he saw everything very clearly and realistically. If there were problems on his side, Song Qingre would be under great pressure. Song Qingre’s career had just started, and she had a bright future ahead. There was no need to rush and pierce through this layer first. Let things happen naturally and secretly matchmake them.

“As for you, pay more attention usually and help matchmake them more. Let Xiao Re stop always treating Qiuqiu as a younger sister. They’re already this grown up. No need for that sisterly set.”

The butler said directly, “I have been paying attention lately.”

Of course, he did not directly say it was because Yan Qingqiu made him recall the past every day. Now he was updating Yan Qingqiu’s story and had developed the habit of taking notes casually.

Yan Fu said, “Don’t tell Qiuqiu. I’ll think of a way regarding this matter. Cut any household expenses that can be reduced, but Qiuqiu’s portion should remain as usual. Don’t treat her harshly. She still has to be given the best.”

The butler answered yes and closed the door as he came out. Yan Qingqiu stood up, stretching her neck, and asked, “Is it my turn?”

“Mm? Oh, no. Don’t worry. Sir only mentioned some arrangements.”

Yan Qingqiu let out a breath of relief.

The butler smoothly said, “Later, your room needs sterilization. I’ll take you outside to walk around.”

“Fine.” Yan Qingqiu also felt that staying at home was stressful.

Outside, the gardeners were cleaning flowers, and some were pulling weeds. The small pond at the entrance was also being cleaned again. The swing board beside it had been fitted with a soft cushion.

Yan Qingqiu had never imagined that after a wealthy family’s life became refined, it could still become this refined.

She asked the butler, “Was the house always like this before?”

The butler thought she had discovered something and asked, “Yes. What’s wrong?”

Yan Qingqiu shook her head. These people really were slacking off at work. When she was at home, they dealt with things casually, but the moment Dad returned, they immediately worked hard.

She turned her head to look at the butler. She had originally thought the butler was the most serious, but unexpectedly, he also followed along in being lazy. The household expenses were over a million a month, yet they still slacked off. Yan Qingqiu thought, if she were the boss, she would fire them all.

The butler did not know the little calculations in her heart and asked, “Then what do you think?”

Yan Qingqiu said seriously, “From now on, the house has to maintain this condition. What kind of life were we living before? It was so sloppy. If anyone slacks off again next time, don’t blame me for being impolite.”

“All right.” The butler noted it down. As long as she liked it. As expected of a delicate and soft-bodied Omega. If Yan Qingqiu were not still lively and jumping around, he would have wanted to reach out and support her.

Yan Qingqiu turned toward the flower garden. Usually, she only looked at it, but now she went over and sniffed. After being tidied, the flower garden smelled even more fragrant. She said, “Pick some flowers and send them to my room…” After speaking, she paused. “Send the flowers to Sir’s room first. Put some citrus, oranges, and things like that in my room.”

The butler did not ask further. Yan Qingqiu had thought up a stomach full of excuses, afraid the butler would ask why. Unfortunately, the butler did not ask at all, and she even felt puzzled.

Yan Qingqiu walked around once. Through everyone’s hard work, the house had undergone earth-shaking changes, and the air was full of scents she liked.

Yan Qingqiu sat on the swing and swung her legs. Today, she wore a loose tank top and shorts, with flip-flops on her feet.

The butler asked, “Are you hot, Miss? Would you like to go inside and eat some shaved ice?”

Yan Qingqiu was indeed a little hot. She asked, “Where’s Song Qingre?”

The butler pointed to the second-floor balcony. A woman was sitting on the balcony. Her hair was coiled up, and at the back of her head was a black butterfly hair clip. A few disobedient strands of black hair had escaped from the clip. Song Qingre wore a leather choker around her neck. She held an oil painting brush and painted seriously. From time to time, she looked downstairs, her gaze landing on Yan Qingqiu…

Yan Qingqiu asked, “Is she painting me?”

“I’m not sure. Do you need me to go take a look?”

Yan Qingqiu said, “Forget it. Don’t forget my shaved ice.”

The butler asked, “Strawberry flavor or blueberry flavor?”

“Are the flavors this monotonous? I want mixed flavors. Squeeze some condensed milk on top and add some fruit.” Yan Qingqiu frowned. She was almost tired of eating the things made at home.

The butler suddenly understood. That was right. Miss was now an Omega. Naturally, she could not be casually dealt with like before. “All right. I’ll have the head chef make it for you.”

After the butler left, Yan Qingqiu looked upstairs. It was not that she disliked Song Qingre painting her. On the contrary, she liked it very much. The problem was that she was angry at Song Qingre and held a grudge in her heart. The more Song Qingre wanted to paint her, the more she moved around everywhere on purpose, moving here and moving there. Only when the butler delivered the shaved ice did she finally sit obediently on the swing.

Yan Qingqiu ate a few mouthfuls of ice and asked, “Why hasn’t Xingxing come yet? Call and ask.” Staying at home alone was too boring. Mainly, she could not talk to the servants, and she also did not want to chat with Song Qingre.

Very soon, she did not even have the chance to chat with Song Qingre. Song Qingre changed into formal clothes and left by car. Soon, Yan Fu also went out.

At one glance, they were both going to work.

Only Yan Qingqiu was left at home. She held the ice and said, “Look, everyone is working, and I’m the only one idle. Isn’t that not very good…”

“It’s fine. After all, you don’t know how to do anything, and you love making mistakes. Not working is pretty good too,” the butler answered honestly.

“…You saying that makes me so angry.”

“Something seems to have happened to ER,” the butler changed the topic.

ER was the company Su Xingjie worked at, full name Earl of Roses. In the past, it had been a company on the verge of bankruptcy, and even the name had not been impressive. After Su Xingjie turned the tide, people also began saying the name was noble. Its abbreviation was ER.

The butler said, “It seems something happened to a model Miss Su signed.”

He lowered his voice and said, “The model took drugs. Yesterday, she got high at the hotel and vomited and caused a scene. She lay in the bathtub foaming at the mouth. Her manager called Miss Su to solve it. Miss Su arrived late, and reporters got the news earlier than she did. She’s currently blocked at the hotel.”

Yesterday, Yan Qingqiu had been immersed in the matter of Dad coming home and still did not know about this. Su Xingjie had not told her either.

She took out her phone and searched online. The trending topic was gone, but many netizens were speculating, and quite a few marketing accounts were reposting. This matter had quite a large impact.

The model who got into trouble had been heavily signed by Su Xingjie, and company resources had been used to promote her crazily. She was considered the face of Su Xingjie’s company. Now that she was in trouble, Su Xingjie’s company’s brand image was ruined. If this was not handled well, it would also affect sales over the next few months.

Yan Qingqiu knew nothing about business and knew even less about Su Xingjie’s company. Back in the real world, she had liked reading celebrity gossip and had often followed along in cursing idiot celebrities who took drugs. People like that were a waste of national resources just by being alive.

Moreover, she had always believed that for artists like this, most of the people around them knew. Maybe they even knowingly broke the law and helped cover it up. Su Xingjie would definitely be dragged down. She searched again, and sure enough, many people were even scolding Su Xingjie.

Yan Qingqiu frowned as she read. She knew what kind of person Su Xingjie was. Su Xingjie only cared about design. Although her worldview could be a little crooked when it came to Yan Qingqiu, her other values were very normal and had no problems.

The butler asked, “Would you like to call and ask again?”

Yan Qingqiu shook her head. “She must be busy enough to run herself ragged right now. I won’t disturb her.”

As she spoke, she lifted her head and looked at the sky. It seemed like it was going to rain.

Yan Qingqiu held the cup and went inside.

Just in time, the maid at home was collecting clothes. Yan Qingqiu had originally been about to go straight upstairs, but after walking two steps, she stopped. Her gaze accurately caught the black lace tie on the floor. It seemed like something Song Qingre often wore around her neck.

She had searched it on Baidu. This was an Alpha suppression collar, used to block Omega pheromones while also filtering the pheromones released by Alphas.

Yan Qingqiu went over to help and picked it up. She had to say, Song Qingre’s pheromone scent was truly strong. Even after being washed so cleanly, there was still residue. It smelled so fragrant.

Thread by thread, it was especially like chilled orange juice in summer.

A woman like Song Qingre was more like strong liquor, the kind that made one dizzy and drunk after one sip.

As she thought this, she sniffed it once. Addictive. She sniffed it again. To put it secretly, she really wanted to ball the suppression collar up and swallow it in one bite.

Perhaps the legendary differentiation was taking effect. Her body was always very hungry, hungry enough to want to devour an Alpha alive.

Yan Qingqiu could not resist leaking out a tiny bit of pheromone. She stuck out just the tip of her tongue. Suddenly, she thought: in terms of strength, she could not beat naturally powerful Alphas. But what about other areas? For example, sneak attacks. If she rushed up and touched the back of an Alpha’s neck, would the Alpha not be taken down by her?