The Scumbag’s Redemption: Kept by Her (GL) - Chapter 14
Ling Jiao’s expression was resolute and earnest, showing no hint of jest. Seeing Shen Yuwei’s bewildered gaze, she even looked around for a small knife to seal their pact with bloodas if determined to wipe the slate clean of all past misdeeds.
“I’m completely sincere,” Ling Jiao declared emphatically.
The words of refusal on Shen Yuwei’s lips were swallowed back. An outright rejection wasn’t the best solution, even if she wanted to sever all ties with Ling Jiao as soon as possible. By her usual standards for friendship, she would never have associated with someone like Ling Jiao.
But times had changed.
She was no longer the Shen Yuwei of the past.
The old Shen Yuwei couldn’t tolerate the slightest flaw one glance at Ling Jiao would have felt like biological contamination, something to avoid or ignore at all costs. Yet just moments ago, watching Ling Jiao shield her, she thought perhaps this person wasn’t as irredeemable as she’d assumed.
How could she judge someone as thoroughly rotten based on hearsay without ever truly knowing them?
Now, finally realizing they could never be together romantically, settling for friendship seemed like progress. A cold rejection might provoke backlash, and Shen Yuwei didn’t dare imagine what madness Ling Jiao might resort to.
She had to consider it.
After being exposed as not the true Shen heiress, nearly everyone had turned against her. Close friends stopped reaching out, classmates no longer invited her out, and even her fiancée, Guan Qing, ceased their daily phone calls.
If she could have a good friend by her side during this time, perhaps these past sixteen years wouldn’t feel like such a failure.
Shen Yuwei refused to dwell on the worst-case scenario.
She couldn’t believe the father who’d doted on her for sixteen years would abandon her completely, nor that her devoted fiancée would cast her aside.
As long as she treated Shen Xiaoxiao like a sister, kept up with her studies, and maintained her value as an omega, this darkest phase would pass. Friends, her fiancée, family they’d all accept her again. Life would return to normal.
Her gloom lifted slightly.
The corners of her lips curved, her eyes brightening with the first genuine smile she’d worn in days.
“Alright.”
“I’ll be your friend.”
Later, Shen Yuwei would look back on this moment countless times, filled with regret for agreeing so readily to Ling Jiao’s unreasonable demand.
But Ling Jiao didn’t care whether Shen Yuwei’s acceptance was sincere or not. The blade hanging over her head had retreated by millimeters total liberation was within reach. Start as friends, then best friends, inseparable confidantes sharing everything. By then, even if Shen Yuwei turned dark, she’d have no reason to send Ling Jiao to hell.
Ling Jiao beamed, radiant with delight. “See? Was that so hard?”
Was befriending her really such a cause for joy?
Shen Yuwei murmured, “Have you truly let go?”
Ling Jiao began lying without batting an eye: “Actually, I’ve always wanted to be friends with you. But you had so many friends around you, and you know my personality, you definitely wouldn’t want someone as notoriously unpleasant as me for a friend. Rather than groveling to please you and blend into the crowd, I thought it better to go the opposite way and leave a deep impression on you.”
“After all, hatred is also a memorable feeling.”
To atone for the sins of her past self, Ling Jiao spun such convincing lies she nearly believed them herself. Hearing this, Shen Yuwei had an epiphany: “So you just wanted to get my attention? You didn’t actually like me?”
Ling Jiao nodded quickly: “Exactly, that’s it.”
When she got this answer, for some reason, Shen Yuwei felt a faint pang of disappointment. But soon, Ling Jiao’s voice rang in her ears again.
“I’m a few years older than you, so presumptuously, let me call you ‘little sister.’ How about you call me ‘big sister’?”
Shen Yuwei: “A few years older?”
She remembered Ling Jiao was in the same school and grade as her.
Ling Jiao didn’t blink: “My mental age is older.”
Shen Yuwei reluctantly accepted this explanation, but calling someone she once loathed “big sister” felt incredibly awkward and hard to say.
It felt like she was being taken advantage of.
Ling Jiao suddenly turned serious: “Are you lying to me? You don’t actually want to be friends? Is this just a delaying tactic?”
“N-no,” Shen Yuwei stammered, embarrassed. She turned her head to look at a dark corner, the overhead light softening her features. Her trembling eyelashes magnified the struggle in her eyes.
After a long moment, Shen Yuwei steeled herself, turned back, lowered her eyelids, and softly called out, “Big sister.”
Soft and flustered.
Ling Jiao coughed lightly: “What? I didn’t hear you?”
“Big sister.”
“Louder.”
“Big sister.”
Annoyance flickered across Shen Yuwei’s face.
Only after thoroughly teasing her did Ling Jiao cheerfully respond, grinning: “Okay, okay, I heard you this time. Don’t be mad.”
Shen Yuwei lifted her gaze, her eyes sparkling like a galaxy.
“Since I called you ‘big sister,’ does that mean the money I owe you can be written off?”
Ling Jiao raised an eyebrow and said ruthlessly, “Even brothers keep clear accounts. It’s better for us sisters to settle things properly. But considering your good behavior tonight, each ‘big sister’ deducts ten thousand. How many times did you call me just now?”
Shen Yuwei quickly said, “Big sister.”
Ling Jiao smiled: “That one doesn’t count. The time limit’s expired.”
“Unless you tell me your childhood nickname. I’ll call you that from now on, ‘Yuwei’ sounds so distant.”
Shen Yuwei blinked. Faced with the temptation of money, she still firmly refused: “Let’s talk about it another day.”
Taking the hint, Ling Jiao didn’t push further.
With her debt reduced by tens of thousands, the weight on Shen Yuwei’s shoulders seemed to lighten, and she let out a soft sigh.
Ling Jiao stared at her and suddenly said, “The front hall must still be lively. Let’s go take a look. I came here tonight on an empty stomach.”
“Yuwei, considering I brought you noodles that night, you can’t let me go home hungry today, can you?”
Shen Yuwei was about to shake her head.
Ling Jiao raised her eyebrows with a smile and said, “What’s ahead isn’t some hellish underworld or monsters. What’s there to fear? Come on, I’ll take you to the feast. If anyone dares to give you trouble, I’ll beat them up one by one or two at a time if they come in pairs.”
With that, she casually pulled Shen Yuwei closer and wrapped her arm around hers.
The overwhelming pheromones of an Alpha instantly enveloped them.
Shen Yuwei stiffened, her breathing quickening. “Let go of my hand.”
“No.” Ling Jiao refused immediately. “Good friends hold hands and link arms. If we were roommates, we’d eat together, sometimes even share towels and toothbrushes, and sleep under the same blanket at night.”
“If we don’t do these things, how can we call ourselves good friends?”
Shen Yuwei hesitated, her lips parting slightly. “But—”
“Did the omegas you befriended before never do these things with you? If they didn’t, they weren’t real friends just fake, superficial bonds. Better off without them!”
“Yujiang, let’s be each other’s little angels!”