Divorcee O Finds Me Irresistible - Chapter 4

Since returning to China, Xu Qing hadn’t been to a bar. In her memory, these places were dens for street thugs—tattooed Mat youths who would brawl at the slightest provocation. The air reeked of alcohol and various unpleasant pheromone scents; anyone with weak willpower would descend into a frenzy, howling like a wild dog in the crowd.

Back in high school, Xu Qing had once snuck into a bar out of curiosity, pretending to be an adult. Her good looks drew the attention of several idle college students who harassed her. In the end, Xu Qing single-handedly beat them all to the ground. When the police intervened, everyone except Xu Qing wrote letters of repentance, and the incident left a criminal record for the others.

The college students were from a nearby vocational school, while Xu Qing attended the city’s top high school. Her parents both worked in government agencies. After learning the details, the police immediately reprimanded the delinquent youths, offered Xu Qing words of comfort, and even “thoughtfully” escorted her home.

Though she narrowly escaped punishment, Madam Min’s discipline grew even stricter afterward. Places like bars and karaoke lounges were strictly off-limits to Xu Qing, lest she associate with bad influences and pick up bad habits from the outside world.

Xu Qing had never disappointed Madam Min’s expectations, except for that one bar fight. She had rarely made mistakes. Even while studying abroad, she spent her days holed up in the lab, poring over data and writing papers. By the age of twenty-five or twenty-six, she hadn’t even been in a relationship. At such a young age, she was already coasting at work, waiting to walk down the aisle…

What was the point of living such a predictable, monotonous life?

Even stepping through the bar’s entrance took Xu Qing ten minutes of mental preparation.

Regulations strictly prohibited public officials from entering bars or karaoke lounges during workdays. But who cared? Could such policies truly curb corruption among officials, or were they merely for maintaining appearances?

After downing a bottle of wine, every cell in Xu Qing’s body relaxed.

She found a secluded corner where she could ignore everyone and avoid being scrutinized by curious eyes. Here, no one cared about her status, and even the dim lighting and relaxed atmosphere made her feel lighter.

On stage, a girl was singing a classic Cantonese song. Compared to the original male singer’s deep, soulful rendition, the girl’s voice was clear and pure, imbuing the song with a fresh, ethereal quality. As she began to sing, the noisy patrons instinctively fell silent, and some even pulled out their phones to record.

Xu Qing had initially been drawn in by the girl’s singing voice, but seeing her in person was an even greater surprise.

The girl on stage had brown hair styled in low pigtails. She looked petite and slender, yet she sang and danced with remarkable energy. Her denim overalls accentuated her youthful vibrancy, showcasing her beautifully shaped calves. She wore white canvas shoes, and her pink Hello Kitty socks peeked out from her ankles. Her face, no larger than the palm of a hand, featured delicate features and cat-like eyes. A faint blush dusted her pale cheeks, as if from physical exertion.

She was clearly tired from singing, but her professionalism prevented even a gasp from reaching the microphone. Xu Qing could only see the warm breath escaping her lips from afar.

Xu Qing regretted choosing such a distant seat. The distance prevented her from discerning finer details, making it impossible to tell if the girl was a high school or college student. Even if she were in college… she couldn’t be older than twenty.

As the song ended, Xu Qing realized she had been staring at the girl for so long that her cup had emptied without her noticing.

She ordered a few more bottles from the bartender, her gaze drifting to the stage between sips, following the girl’s movements. When the girl disappeared backstage, Xu Qing repeatedly glanced toward the entrance, waiting for her return.

Was it the alcohol? Xu Qing wasn’t usually the type to lose her composure at the sight of a pretty woman.

She moved to a closer seat, but as soon as she sat down, a tall man approached her. “Hey, beautiful, this seat’s taken.”

Xu Qing sized up the imposing figure, guessing he was an Alpha best left alone. She picked up her drink and moved away.

Another ten minutes passed, and the singer still hadn’t reappeared. Impatience began to simmer among the crowd. “Where’s the singer?” someone shouted. “Why isn’t she back yet?!”

“Yeah, it’s been half an hour! Boss, what’s going on?!”

Half an hour was definitely an exaggeration. Xu Qing checked her watch—only sixteen minutes had passed.

Singers were human too; breaks were normal. Besides, the girl’s stamina clearly wasn’t that of a professional. She was probably just doing this as a temporary gig.

Xu Qing idly sipped her drink, killing time as the bar grew increasingly rowdy. The young bartender nervously approached to apologize, but someone smashed a bottle and roared, “Get your boss out here! I want to see the beauty! Where is she?! Tell her to come out and sing for me!”

A pack of rabid dogs began to riot, some releasing Alpha pheromones in a desperate attempt to assert dominance and intimidate. The scent spread rapidly, causing the sensitive Omegas in the bar to flee in panic. Others, indignant, cursed, “Fucking bastard! Who the hell is releasing pheromones in a public place?!”

The main hall descended into chaos. The bartender rushed to fetch the manager, who in turn urged the singer to come out. Finally, the brown-haired girl with pigtails hurried over, clutching her guitar.

As she reentered the hall, her nostrils flared slightly, her brow furrowed, and she raised a hand to cover her mouth, silently miming a gag.

Xu Qing gasped, her heart pounding for the girl on stage.

That subtle gesture had exposed her as an Omega. How many in the bar had noticed?

The hall now resembled a circus gone mad, every creature—oxen, horses, monkeys, snakes—having left its mark. The pheromone stench was so nauseating even Xu Qing, an Alpha, struggled to endure it, let alone the sensitive, vulnerable Omegas.

The girl on stage was completely unprepared for this. Performing under such circumstances was an unbearable burden.

As she stepped out, a dark-skinned middle-aged man followed. Dressed in a suit, he settled into the chair Xu Qing had been about to take, crossed his legs, and pressed his fingertips together, revealing a bluish-red tattoo on the back of his hand. His expression was relaxed as he prepared to enjoy the girl’s performance.

The Alpha who had stopped Xu Qing from sitting down earlier now stood deferentially, pouring wine for the middle-aged man. A smirk played on the man’s lips as his gaze locked onto the girl on stage, like a predator eyeing its prey.

Xu Qing vaguely understood what was happening. Seeing the girl clutch her guitar and glance at the middle-aged man with fear, she clenched her fist and cursed under her breath, “Fvck.”

The guitar strummed, and the girl sang two lines, her voice strained and lacking the passion and vitality she had shown earlier.

“What kind of garbage is this?”

“What the hell is this? You call this singing?”

Several thugs began hurling insults, their eyes fixed on the performer, smug grins spreading across their faces.

The girl composed herself, cleared her throat, and began playing again. This time, she switched to a different key, and a mournful melody poured forth.

“Change the song! Why are you playing such depressing tunes on a day like this?”

“Exactly! Stop looking like your parents just died. Can’t you even smile?”

“Come on, give us a smile, old man!”

The crowd erupted in drunken laughter. On stage, the girl stood stiffly, her eyes as red as a rabbit’s, her lips trembling, her fingers trembling slightly on the strings.

She seemed about to do something. The knuckles of her hand gripping the guitar stood out sharply, and she took a half-step forward. But she froze, stunned by what she saw.

Bang! The man who had sneered about “dead parents” suddenly had a flower blooming on his head. A beer bottle shattered against his skull, cheap liquor and bl00d streaming down his face.

Xu Qing had materialized behind him, gripping the broken bottle by its neck, her cold gaze sweeping over the rabid pack. She spoke each word with icy precision: “Try laughing again.”

The raucous bar fell into dead silence. Xu Qing rolled up her shirt sleeves, revealing the smooth lines of her muscles. She casually grabbed another empty bottle and smashed it over another man’s head, her voice rising in a frenzy: “Laugh! All of you, laugh!”

“A bunch of animals! What kind of skill is it to bully a girl?” Xu Qing roared.

The crowd was initially stunned by her ferocity, but they quickly recovered. The men she had struck earlier roared and hurled chairs at her. The room erupted in a cacophony of crashes as chairs shattered against the floor, but Xu Qing nimbly dodged the lethal attacks.

About six or seven men had initially attacked. Some slipped on spilled alcohol and fell, while others drunkenly stepped on shards of glass. This ragtag mob lacked any coordinated attack power. Moreover, Xu Qing had trained in Muay Thai for a time and possessed the physical strength of an Alpha. She quickly subdued the rabid dogs.

Just as she thought it was over, the girl on stage shouted, “Watch out behind you!”

Xu Qing immediately ducked as a beer bottle whizzed past her head. Taking advantage of her distraction, a man with a buzz cut wielding an iron bar swung it at her skull!

In this critical moment, Xu Qing gripped the iron bar with all her might, barely stopping the skull-crushing blow. But she was now pinned against the corner of a table, unable to spare any strength to deal with the others.

Her shirt was unbuttoned low, sleeves rolled up to her shoulders. As she exerted herself, the muscles of her upper body rippled beneath the thin fabric, even the beads of sweat on her collarbone seemed particularly captivating.

Fu Shuang, her heart pounding with anxiety, couldn’t help but glance again. Her throat bobbed as she swallowed hard.

“Have the police arrived yet? Should we call them again?” she whispered to the owner, her palms already clammy with sweat.

This incident on her first performance night made her worry about securing a regular gig at the bar. While she was grateful to the person who had stood up for her, losing this job opportunity would jeopardize her plans for independent living.

“The police are on their way. This is Boss Zhou’s territory—those punks won’t dare cause any more trouble,” the manager said, winking at Fu Shuang and lowering his voice. “What about you? What are you going to do?”

Fu Shuang cautiously glanced at the man in the suit sitting calmly nearby, as if the brawl had nothing to do with him. When he noticed her looking, he offered a polite smile.

He’s even older than my dad!

A chill ran down Fu Shuang’s spine. She rushed into the fray, shouting frantically, “Stop fighting! The police are coming!”

The buzz-cut man with the iron rod panicked at the news. Xu Qing glanced over and saw the twin-tailed girl, like a frightened bird, stepping over broken glass to reach her. She threw herself into Xu Qing’s arms, her eyes red-rimmed and tears streaming down her face. “Darling, are you hurt?”

Xu Qing’s heart skipped a beat.