"After Becoming the Protagonist's Scumbag Alpha Ex-Wife" (ABO) - Chapter 6

“Qin Ran, since it’s come to this, I’ll return all the jewelry you gave me. From now on, let’s just be professional—nothing more than a boss and her subordinate.”

Qin Ran had just been wondering how to bring this up when Su Yuecha suddenly said it herself.

Her eyes shimmered with tears, but her expression was resolute. She looked like a snow lotus blooming alone atop a high, unreachable mountain—untouchable and proud.

Since she was already planning to take Su Xiaorong away and Qin Ran had been so firm in her decision, there was no reason to hold on to those trinkets anymore.

Sure, she liked them—giving them back felt like tearing a flesh from her bone—but they weren’t what she truly wanted.

If she really wanted jewelry, she could buy it herself.

Su Yuecha slowly removed her earrings, necklace, and the brooch pinned to her sweater and laid them out on the table. Her cheeks were streaked with tears, but her expression remained stubborn. With her sweet, delicate features and petite frame, she looked so heartbreakingly fragile that any Alpha would’ve softened at the sight.

Any Alpha but Qin Ran.

The woman showed no reaction at all.

Qin Ran hadn’t expected Su Yuecha to give the jewelry back on her own. She could sense the sadness and grievance beneath her words.

Judging by her expression, she really didn’t seem to care about the jewelry at all.

Su Yuecha was highly educated, beautiful, and could have her pick of suitors. Maybe she really didn’t need to be anyone’s mistress.

Doing it for love?

Well… that had nothing to do with her anymore. If that’s how Sue Yuecha wanted to frame it, so be it.

If this was all just an act, then Qin Ran had bought it.

She actually kind of liked this sweet, innocent “white lotus” act—it would make things a lot easier going forward.

“Alright,” Qin Ran said. “I’ll be waiting for you to return the rest. If there’s nothing else, you can go. A’Mei, are their things packed?” she called toward the back.

Before A’Mei could answer, little Su Xiaorong came running out.

She’d been napping in the room earlier, and when she woke up to find the grown-ups still talking, she’d stayed inside to play.

“Mama, Mama! Why are you taking me away? I don’t want to leave—I want to live in the big villa! Didn’t you say this is our home? That this house belongs to me too? Auntie Qin, please tell Mama not to take me away!”

Her little voice rang out as she ran over, words tumbling out rapidly before Su Yuecha could even stop her.

The little girl was adorable—her doll-like looks, her bright, clear voice—even if her tone was a bit bratty, it only made her seem more innocent.

Qin Ran didn’t dislike children. They were shaped by the adults around them—capable of being raised right or wrong.

She had no intention of holding a grudge or hurting a child.

Xiaorong was undeniably cute, but her personality clearly left something to be desired. That wasn’t Qin Ran’s responsibility, though—she wasn’t about to take on the job of raising her.

“Su Yuecha, is that what you’ve been telling her?” Qin Ran ignored Xiaorong and turned to the mother.

“It must’ve been Aunt Su’s nonsense. I never said that. She’s just a child—don’t take her words seriously. I’ll teach her. We’re leaving now.” Su Yuecha cast a resentful look and pushed the blame onto her maid.

“Mama, Mama—” Xiaorong started to protest, but Su Yuecha quickly grabbed her.

“Help me carry our things. I’ll take you somewhere fun today, but you have to behave,” she said with a mix of firmness and coaxing as she pulled Xiaorong back toward the bedroom.

Qin Ran watched the two of them go and let out a quiet sigh.

What a mess.

Hopefully, once she got back all the luxury items that the transmigrator had given to Su Yuecha, she could finally cut ties with her for good.

She remained in the living room, waiting for them to come out.

“A’Mei, walk Miss Su and the child out. Call a taxi for them,” she said when she saw Su Yuecha pulling a suitcase and holding Xiaorong’s hand.

Su Yuecha’s eyes were red as she looked at Qin Ran. So that was it. She really meant to kick them out—she wasn’t even sending a car.

Su Yuecha gave a cold laugh inside.

Just wait until Qin Ran’s next heat comes. When she delivered the jewelry then, she could invite her out somewhere private and release her pheromones—Qin Ran wouldn’t be able to resist it.

Right now, she wouldn’t dare let any Omega mark her during a fragile divorce—A’Mei was just a Beta, after all. Qin Ran had no choice but to rely on suppressants.

Su Yuecha was confident: in just a few days, Qin Ran would come crawling back to her.

And she? She’d return to this multi-million-dollar villa, just like before.

“Auntie Qin, sob sob, I don’t want to leave you. You’re my favorite. I want to go play with you,” Xiaorong said tearfully after being prepped by her mother.

Qin Ran felt a twinge of discomfort at the sight.

The transmigrator had been an awful person, but she’d truly loved Xiaorong. That had left its mark. Even though Qin Ran didn’t feel much affection for the child, she also didn’t want to hurt her.

“Be good, okay? Your mama’s free today—she’ll take you to play. Don’t you want that? I’m busy, so I can’t come with you. A good kid understands when adults are busy. Are you a good kid?” Qin Ran asked gently.

“I… I am,” Xiaorong sniffled.

“Good girl. Say goodbye and have fun with your mama,” Qin Ran said with a wave.

“Bye-bye, Auntie Qin! Come get me back soon, okay?” Xiaorong waved sadly.

“Uh…” Qin Ran didn’t answer.

With Wen Yirou already on the edge of the darkness, if Xiaorong ended up emotionally scarred too… who knew what kind of little villain she’d become.

Still, Qin Ran hadn’t done anything wrong to Xiaorong. Hopefully, the kid would forget her soon and live happily ever after.

Su Yuecha didn’t say goodbye either. She simply pulled her reluctant daughter away, walking slowly.

No matter how slowly they walked, they never heard a word asking them to stay.

Qin Ran turned away and didn’t look back. As she reentered the living room, she noticed a small head peeking from behind the wall. The moment she looked over, it ducked out of sight.

Little Wen Yirou had likely seen and heard everything just now. Who knew how much she understood?

At least the distractions were gone now. Time to start building some goodwill properly.

Earlier, while looking into Aunt Su’s thingsAunt Su, Qin Ran had found a box full of cash, coins, and paper notes.

*****

Little Rou Rou loved money, didn’t she? Stuffing her piggy bank with all this would definitely make her happy.

Qin Ran smiled at the thought, picked up the box, and walked over to the corner where Rou Rou was hiding.

The girl was facing the wall, peeling at the wallpaper like she thought it could hide her. She hugged her Peppa Pig piggy bank tightly like it was the most precious thing in the world.

“Mind if I add some money to your piggy bank?” Qin Ran asked, holding up a bright red 100-yuan note.

Rou Rou blinked her big round eyes, unsure of what exactly the note was—but Qin Ran had said it was money. After watching her for a few seconds, she slowly shifted the piggy bank and pointed the slot at Qin Ran.

Even a mosquito was meat—so long as she kept hold of the piggy bank, she could accept the deal.

Qin Ran folded the 100 yuan note and slid it into the slot between Peppa Pig’s ears.After slipping in one red bill, Qin Ran noticed the little girl still didn’t look all that happy. She folded another one and tried again, watching the child’s expression carefully this time. Still no excitement. In fact, her eyes weren’t even on the red bills—she was staring at the box instead.

Inside the box, there were still a few paper bills left, but mostly coins. No more red notes.

Could it be that this little one didn’t even recognize the value of different bills and just thought coins were more powerful?

Qin Ran picked up a coin and tried dropping it into the piggy bank.

Rou Rou’s eyes visibly lit up.

She tried another one—her eyes sparkled even more.

So Qin Ran went all in and began feeding the coins into the piggy bank one by one.

The whole process was so ridiculous it made her want to laugh.

Turns out the little one didn’t understand money at all. She probably didn’t even think paper was counted as currency and thought only coins had value.

Even among the coins, her absolute favorite was the brass-colored 0.5 yuan. She didn’t even react as strongly to 1-yuan coin.

Such a tragic case of financial illiteracy… If she’d at least gone to kindergarten, this wouldn’t be happening.

After stuffing in all the coins and bills, Qin Ran looked at the child. She saw her squinting with joy, hugging the piggy bank tightly to her chest. Her chubby little cheek rubbed affectionately against its rounded ear, as if it were her greatest treasure.

A tiny smile finally bloomed on her face, and two sweet little dimples appeared on her round cheeks.

So she really was a soft and sweet little girl.

Qin Ran couldn’t help but smile too.

Well, that’s one goodwill-boosting skill unlocked: Operation Win Over Rou Rou—success.

But the moment Rou Rou noticed Qin Ran watching her, she immediately wiped the smile off her face, clutched the piggy bank even tighter, and turned her face to the wall like she was doing time-out and scratching at the wallpaper.

Qin Ran had just been about to say something to her when hurried footsteps echoed from the hallway—it was A’Mei.

“What’s going on?” Qin Ran asked, looking toward her.

“President Qin, Miss Wen is having another episode. Do you want to check on her?” A’Mei asked quickly, still slightly out of breath.

A’Mei looked nervous, but after everything Qin Ran had done today, her opinion had changed quite a bit. That was the only reason she dared to come report it the situation of Miss Wen.

In the past, whenever Wen Qingyun had an episode, Qin Ran would stay as far away as possible.

“I’ll go. You keep an eye on Rou Rou,” Qin Ran said after a brief pause. “See if there are any new clothes that fit her. If not in her room, check Su Xiaorong’s old room—that stuff was originally Rou Rou’s anyway.

Check everything inside and out. Give her a bath and change her into something decent—what she’s wearing now is just unacceptable. If nothing fits, go buy some. Put it on the account.”

She took a breath. Some things had to be faced eventually.

“Alright, I’ll get on it right away,” A’Mei nodded, hesitating a little as if something was on her mind.

“If you’ve got something to say, just say it. No need to keep it in,” Qin Ran said calmly.

“Um… President Qin, Miss Su and Xiaorong have already left in the taxi. And about Miss Wen… when she has an episode, she might lash out, but she doesn’t mean to. She’s just not well. It’s the illness… I don’t think she really wants to hurt anyone. If you’re going to see her… maybe try to be a little gentle? I—sorry, I’m probably overstepping…”

A’Mei looked flustered and nervous.

Technically, she had no right to speak up like this. But after everything she’d seen today—how Qin Ran had helped her, how she seemed different from the person A’Mei had thought she was—she couldn’t help but say something. She didn’t want another conflict to erupt when Qin Ran went to see Miss Wen.

“I was too focused on work before and overlooked a lot of things. It’s good you reminded me. I’ll keep that in mind. And going forward, if there’s anything on your mind, just say it,” Qin Ran replied. “Now that Aunt Su waAunt Sus gone, I’ve noticed you’re quite thoughtful. Let’s try letting you take care of Rou Rou for a while.”

A’Mei immediately nodded.

“Rou Rou, I’m heading out for a bit,” Qin Ran turned and said gently to the little girl, who had been peeking at her from the corner. “Play with Sister A’Mei, okay?”

Then she turned and walked away.

A’Mei stood still for a moment, staring at Qin Ran’s back.

This version of President Qin—gentle, reasonable—really was different from the woman she’d known before today.

Maybe… President Qin was finally starting to care about this home.