The Foolish Wife Turned Scheming After Her Recovery - Chapter 38

Chapter 38: “Yu Yao is so disgusting.”

A few minutes later, Yu Yao stepped out of the room with Lu Zhili, who was now properly dressed. Yu Ling sat upright in the living room, staring straight at the TV broadcasting the evening news.

Yu Yao knew exactly what her sister was misunderstanding, and with a helpless sigh, she first led Lu Zhili to freshen up. Only then did she return to the living room and sit down.

“You’re just a young girl. Why do you let your mind wander like that all the time?”

Yu Ling’s ears flushed bright red. She glanced toward the bathroom, then lowered her voice and said to her sister, “Sis, you said you were going to wake her up—how did that turn into waking her up in bed?”

Yu Yao couldn’t help it. She reached out and gave Yu Ling a hard poke on the forehead with her index finger. “You’re turning everything red or white into yellow in your head. Li Li was just being clingy and acting cute. Nothing happened.”

Seeing that her sister didn’t look like she was lying, Yu Ling awkwardly realized she had jumped to conclusions. “Haha, that’s totally normal. I mean, from where I was standing, it did look pretty misleading.”

Yu Yao chuckled and leaned back with her arms crossed. “But tell me, why would your mind even go there? Do you like girls or something?”

Yu Ling grinned mischievously and leaned on her sister’s shoulder. “No idea. I just know I don’t like guys. My friend says I might be asexual, haha.”

Yu Yao reached over and ruffled her hair. “Whether you like boys or girls, just remember this—no sleeping around when you’re underage.”

“Aww, Sis! Why do you have to say it so bluntly? Now I’m all embarrassed,” Yu Ling muttered as she buried her face into Yu Yao’s neck shyly.

Yu Yao said, “What’s the big deal? Didn’t your school have s3x ed classes? Never learned about hygiene and biology? In any case, the most important thing is protecting yourself.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know.”

When Lu Zhili came out from the bathroom, she saw Yu Ling clinging to Yu Yao’s arm and being all sweet. She clenched her teeth slightly, her brows furrowing as a wave of irritation rose in her chest. She felt a strong urge to separate the two of them.

“By the way, Sis, since you and Little Lu have already gotten so close, are you two not dating yet?”

“Who says getting close means you have to date? She and I aren’t like that.”

“Sis! Didn’t expect you to be a playgirl!”

“Watch your mouth. Kids shouldn’t poke their noses into adult stuff.”

Their conversation clearly reached Lu Zhili’s ears. Even though she knew Yu Yao was trying to keep their relationship a secret in front of her sister, it still made her feel a bit sad.

Her fingers nervously twisted at the hem of her clothes, trying to ease the anxious knot in her chest. She stood silently by the bathroom door, unsure whether she should make her presence known.

Just then, there was noise from outside the door, and the two on the sofa turned to look. Yu Yao was the first to notice Lu Zhili standing frozen by the bathroom door.

While Yu Ling went to take the breakfast her mom had bought, Yu Yao walked over to Lu Zhili and gently took her hand, prying her fingers away from the now-wrinkled hem.

Yu Yao asked, “Li Li, what’s wrong? Still not fully awake?”

Lu Zhili shook her head silently. Yu Yao didn’t press further and just led her to the dining table. Then she picked up a hair tie Yu Ling had left on the counter and carefully braided Lu Zhili’s hair.

“Thanks, Ah Yao,” Lu Zhili said softly, her voice barely above a whisper.

Yu Yao smiled and was about to go sit across from her, but Lu Zhili suddenly tugged on her sleeve and looked up at her, eyes filled with unease.

“What’s wrong?”

Lu Zhili opened her mouth to speak but then noticed Yu Ling and Yu Xiulan carrying bowls out from the kitchen. She swallowed her words back down.

“It’s nothing.”

The table was full of breakfast options: takeout noodles, buns, shumai, dumplings, soy milk, and fried dough sticks, along with toast and coffee that Yu Ling had made that morning.

“Auntie didn’t know what you usually like, so I bought a bit of everything. Just eat what you want—don’t be shy.”

“Thank you, Auntie.” Lu Zhili lowered her head and began eating seriously.

Yu Yao ended up not sitting across from her but instead sat to her left. Watching Lu Zhili eat so quietly made her feel a bit suspicious.

Lu Zhili wasn’t normally like this. She liked to chatter nonstop, always eager to share every interesting thing with Yu Yao in vivid detail.

This unusual silence today made Yu Yao wonder if she had done something to upset her.

But earlier in the room, everything had been fine. Lu Zhili was still snuggling up to her and acting cute…

After stepping out…

Yu Yao’s chopsticks paused mid-air as a realization hit her.

She remembered the things she had casually said to Yu Ling on the sofa—and the sight of Lu Zhili standing quietly at the bathroom door afterward. She had thought Lu Zhili was just groggy from sleep, but in hindsight, she must have heard what was said.

Yu Yao let out a quiet sigh, blaming herself for speaking without thinking.

What she didn’t know was that Lu Zhili didn’t blame her at all. Instead, she was blaming herself.

Ah Yao had told her beforehand that their relationship needed to be kept secret. It was only natural that she’d lie in front of her sister. And yet, here she was, sulking over it.

Lu Zhili swallowed her dumpling and silently scolded herself for being immature.

Yu Yao didn’t know how to comfort Lu Zhili, so she simply pretended not to notice anything. Meanwhile, Lu Zhili, thinking her own sadness was unreasonable, comforted herself.

And just like that, the two of them awkwardly fell back into their usual rhythm.

After breakfast, Yu Ling stayed home alone to pack their things—they had a flight in the afternoon. Yu Yao took Lu Zhili and Yu Xiulan to the Civil Affairs Bureau to settle a marriage that should’ve ended long ago.

When they arrived, Yu Zhujun was crouched outside smoking. The dark circles under his eyes looked even worse than the day before.

Yu Yao figured that her senior must’ve started putting pressure on him, and the moment she saw him, whatever frustration she still had faded away.

Yu Zhujun wanted money and the house. Yu Xiulan wanted the divorce certificate. So the whole process went smoothly.

Yu Yao waited with Lu Zhili in the lobby. She was busy thinking about the next steps, while Lu Zhili, watching the smiling couples come and go, felt a pang of envy.

Wow, marriage. When would she and Ah Yao get to come here happily to get their marriage certificate?

She imagined their future wedding—it had to be in a castle, like in fairy tales, where the prince and princess get married.

Ah Yao was her princess, and marrying a princess definitely called for a castle.

While Lu Zhili was lost in her daydream, time flew by. Before long, Yu Xiulan and Yu Zhujun returned to the lobby. Yu Xiulan held the red divorce certificate in her hand, her face visibly joyful.

“We’re divorced now. When are you sending me the money?” Yu Zhujun asked, watching Yu Yao warily, afraid she wouldn’t pay him now that the divorce was finalized.

Yu Yao didn’t respond. She simply took out her phone and transferred the remaining 50,000 yuan to him.

Yu Xiulan didn’t know what Yu Yao’s full plan was, but she quietly pulled her aside and said, “Yao Yao, I’ll give you the 100,000 when we get home. You shouldn’t be the one paying for this divorce.”

Yu Yao had been sending a monthly allowance to Yu Ling and her mother—not a lot, but enough to live comfortably in Hechuan. Yu Xiulan had managed her money well and had saved enough to cover this expense.

But Yu Yao refused the money and shook her head. “Mom, you’ll handle the house transfer paperwork with him later. I’ll take Yu Ling back to Beijing first. After her college entrance exams, you two can come move there. The house is ready—same layout, three-bedroom flat.”

“Okay, Mom understands. Just take Fishie and enjoy your trip. I’ll finish things here. You don’t ever have to come back.”

Yu Yao had rented a car that morning, so she dropped her mom and Yu Zhujun off at the property office.

Standing outside, she watched her mom walk in with the paperwork, and for the first time, it felt like the heavy weight she had been carrying in her chest had finally been lifted.

“Yu Yao?”

A sharp female voice called out from behind her. Instinctively, Yu Yao felt goosebumps break out all over her skin the moment she heard it.

She gritted her teeth and slowly turned around, her face pale as she looked at the woman standing not far away. Her hands clenched tightly and trembled at her sides.

“It really is you.” The woman smiled brightly and walked over, her black Hermès bag swinging obnoxiously on her arm.

“Old classmate! Fancy running into you here. You remember me, right?” She tilted her chin proudly and did a little twirl to show herself off.

How could Yu Yao forget that face? She would remember it for the rest of her life. “Ding Yuanyuan.”

Ding Yuanyuan beamed, but the judgmental glint in her eyes was impossible to miss. “Glad you remember. You’re still just as pretty as back in school. I recognized you purely because of your face…”

Yu Yao’s hands trembled slightly, and she instinctively stepped back to put more distance between them. Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to sound calm. “I’ve got things to do. I’ll be going now.”

Ding Yuanyuan said nothing. She glanced at Yu Yao and then at the car—barely worth 200,000 yuan—and sneered before turning to leave.

She had thought Yu Yao must’ve been doing so well in Beijing. Turns out, not really.

Ding Yuanyuan took out her phone and called her husband. “Hey, honey, guess who I ran into in Hechuan today?”

Feng Anhe was in his office far away in Beijing, about to review some documents from his assistant. He gestured for the assistant to wait and smiled sweetly as he answered.

“Who is it? Must be someone big if you’re calling me to gossip.”

His assistant knew the boss was a complete wife simp and secretly admired their marriage.

“You’ll never guess—at the Civil Affairs Bureau, I saw Yu Yao! Remember her? That girl who used to cling to you back in school!”

Feng Anhe’s smile froze for a moment, but quickly returned to normal. He kept up the conversation, but his mind had already drifted back to when he was sixteen.

To that slender, delicate, and lonely figure from his past.

…

Yu Yao opened the car door and got in. Lu Zhili, seated in the passenger seat, immediately noticed her pale face and ragged breathing.

“Ah Yao, what’s wrong? Who was that just now? Did she bully you?!”

Lu Zhili had seen the woman talking to Yu Yao and laughing, so she had assumed they were friends. But now, clearly that wasn’t the case.

Anger flared up in her chest. She unbuckled her seatbelt, ready to storm out and confront the woman—but Yu Yao grabbed her arm.

“Li… Li Li…”

Lu Zhili turned around. Seeing Yu Yao trembling so badly, she gave up the idea of going after that woman and instead pulled her into her arms.

Lu Zhili had a tall, comforting frame. She wrapped Yu Yao in a firm embrace, giving her a strong sense of security.

Leaning into her, Yu Yao closed her eyes—and immediately those awful memories from the past came rushing back:

“Yu Yao is so disgusting. She even tried to seduce Feng Anhe. Doesn’t she realize how unworthy she is of the school hunk?”

“Right? Always wearing that patched-up school uniform—just embarrassing.”

“And those shoes? You guys don’t even know. Yesterday, Yuanyuan put a bit of glue under her desk, and it stuck her shoe sole to the floor. When she stood up, the sole ripped right off. I died laughing!”

“And she stinks. I sit two rows behind her. Every day, I smell her gross body odor. It’s disgusting.”

“Oh, and get this—some boys said Yu Yao doesn’t even shower after s3x. She just walks around all dirty.”

“What? She’s slept with guys?”

“Well, that’s what the boys said. I don’t know the details—I didn’t exactly go to the hotel with her or anything.”