I Heard I’m a Scummy Alpha? [Transmigration] - Chapter 12

When Qi Yunwei returned to the living room, she sat down, picked up the remote from the coffee table, and turned on the TV. She randomly switched to a channel, fixing her eyes on the screen as if she was engrossed in the program. In reality, her mind was busy chatting with Xiaoman.

Qi Yunwei: [The tech here is ridiculously outdated. I even have to turn on the TV manually. It’s been days since I landed in this book world, and most of that time has gone into figuring out how to operate these primitive gadgets.]

Xiaoman: [Master, I still have the codes you wrote years ago. Although they were deleted for being too outdated, I can recover them. With just a few tweaks, they’ll work with the appliances here. Very convenient.]

Qi Yunwei hadn’t expected such a pleasant surprise.

Xiaoman was referring to the program she wrote at fifteen for a fifty-year-old model robot. Soon after, the interstellar government deemed that robot a potential threat to human safety and launched a galaxy-wide recall and destruction.

With the robot gone, her code had become useless, and she quickly moved on to studying more advanced systems.

“Xiaoman, restore the code.”

Xiaoman: [Master, I just tried. Restoring the code requires an external energy source. I can’t use the energy I’ve already absorbed.]

Qi Yunwei sighed. [Fine. I’ll go find Yan Zui at noon.]

Since she was stuck in this world with no idea when—or if—she could ever leave, she might as well make her living conditions more comfortable.

Just then, the butler emerged from the kitchen with a pot of flower tea and a plate of delicate pastries. He set them in front of her and said warmly, “Miss Yunwei, if you need anything at all, just let me know.”

As it happened, Qi Yunwei did need something. “Uncle Jiang, Yan Zui once told me she doesn’t like the cafeteria food at her company. I was thinking of bringing her lunch today.”

She lowered her gaze, looking a little embarrassed. “But I can’t cook. Uncle Jiang, the meals you make would definitely suit her taste, so I’d like to trouble you to prepare something for her.”

The butler beamed. “That’s no trouble at all. What would you like me to make for the young lady?”

Qi Yunwei froze. She had no idea what Yan Zui liked to eat, so she quickly sent a thought to Xiaoman: [Does the novel ever mention Yan Zui’s favorite food?]

Xiaoman: [Yes, Master. In a scene where Yan Zui reminisces about her childhood in despair, she recalls liking sweet-and-sour dishes. But her family rarely made sweet food, and she only got to eat it at her grandparents’ house during New Year. After they passed away, even that stopped.]

Qi Yunwei blinked in surprise. The more she thought about it, the more illogical that detail sounded.

“Miss Yunwei?” the butler prompted gently when he noticed her zoning out. “Have you decided on the menu?”

Shaking off her thoughts, Qi Yunwei replied, “Let’s do sweet-and-sour spare ribs, scrambled eggs with tomatoes—with sugar—and a lotus seed and white fungus soup. Rice as the staple.”

The butler’s expression wavered, as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.

“Is it not doable?” she asked.

“Not at all. I can cook all of those. It’s just, Miss Yunwei, I’ve never seen the young lady eat sweet dishes before. Back at the hillside villa, the maids never prepared them either. She doesn’t seem fond of sweets. Perhaps you’d like to choose something more to her taste?”

Qi Yunwei kept her face perfectly calm, replying naturally, “I know she didn’t like them before. These are my favorites. I’ve heard that after marriage, couples’ tastes gradually align. I just wanted to test that out.”

The butler looked troubled. “That might happen after living together for a while. But you and the young lady only just got married.”

Qi Yunwei thought it over. “You’re right, Uncle Jiang. How about this—leave the scrambled eggs unsweetened. One sweet dish, one savory dish. That should work, right?”

“Of course.” The butler let out a quiet sigh of relief.

Good thing she listened. Otherwise, if the newlyweds argued over food preferences, that would be troublesome.

After the butler left for the nearby supermarket, the apartment fell quiet again.

Now that she didn’t have to worry about slipping up, Qi Yunwei turned off the TV, leaned back against the sofa, and resumed her chat with Xiaoman.

[By the way, Xiaoman, do you know what ‘good news of pregnancy’ means? Yan Zui’s reaction when she heard it was a little strange.]

Xiaoman: [Master, judging from the context, it means pregnancy.]

[Pregnant???] Qi Yunwei nearly jumped. [You’re saying Yan Zui could get pregnant? But we’re both women!]

Xiaoman: [Master, in this novel’s setting, there are six genders: male and female Alphas, Betas, and Omegas. Any Alpha—regardless of s3x—can impregnate an Omega. Since you, as an Alpha, marked Yan Zui, it’s theoretically possible for her to conceive.]

[?] I could make Yan Zui pregnant???

Qi Yunwei’s head spun. [But all I did was bite her once and then I just held her while sleeping last night. How could that lead to pregnancy?]

Xiaoman: [Master, was that bite on the bump at the back of her neck?]

[Yes. She smelled so good, I couldn’t resist.]

Xiaoman: [That was her gland. In the ABO world, biting the gland is called marking. It’s a serious act.]

Xiaoman then patiently explained the six-gender ABO system and its rules, condensing the relevant details from the novel.

[Wait. You just said an Omega can only ever be marked by one Alpha in their lifetime. So what about Yan Zui and those other Alphas?]

Xiaoman: [Being forced into relationships with them caused her immense psychological trauma. Physiologically, her body rejects any pheromones except those of her first marker. The rejection leads to excruciating pain.]

Qi Yunwei’s brows knitted tightly after a long silence. [This world is twisted.]

Yan Zui’s situation was far too tragic.

She had to find a way to help her.

She had marked Yan Zui. That meant she bore responsibility—she owed her.

But those other Alphas were all powerful and influential. To protect Yan Zui, she would first need to strengthen herself.

Glancing down at her frail body, Qi Yunwei grimaced. Weakness was a liability in everything. Right then and there, she resolved to train.

She got up from the sofa, pushed open the door to the gym, and stepped inside. Looking at the rows of gleaming machines, she exhaled softly and walked in.

Since it was her first session, she didn’t push herself too hard. She jogged on the treadmill at 6 km/h for ten minutes before gasping for air and slamming the stop button.

Xiaoman: [Master, you’re done already?]

In her original world, Qi Yunwei never worked out for less than an hour.

[This body’s too weak. I need to take it slow.] Qi Yunwei admitted, cheeks flushed red.