The Scumbag’s Redemption: Kept by Her (GL) - Chapter 3
If there were a system that displayed affection points, Ling Jiao was sure Shen Yuwei’s score above her head would be bouncing up and down like a glitched-out game.
It was probably a flashing red negative nine hundred ninety-nine.
Just the thought of it was terrifying.
Ling Jiao pressed her lips together. Her face was confident and composed, her expression proud and sharp.
“What kind of look is that? Do you really think I would install a hidden camera? You think I’d do something that stupid, something that would backfire on me?”
As she spoke, she reached out and pulled out the black device with the blinking red light. Only after confirming that she was touching a solid object did she finally let out a sigh of relief.
It wasn’t a camera.
She opened her palm.
“See? I told you I wasn’t lying. It really is just a smoke detector.”
The main difference between a smoke detector and a hidden camera was that smoke detectors had a small red light that blinked every five seconds. Cameras, on the other hand, were more subtle and usually needed special tools to detect.
What she had in her hand was definitely a sensor.
The place they were in was a restaurant, and no one could explain why there was something like this in a private room. If it were really as Shen Yuwei feared, a concealed camera would have made much more sense.
Shen Yuwei rubbed her temples tiredly.
After everything that had happened, she was terrified someone might have recorded it all. If a video ever got out, what would her family, friends, or even her fiancée think of her?
Wan Qing stood nearby, looking like she had something to say but couldn’t get the words out.
They left the restaurant around five in the afternoon. Wan Qing rolled down the window and asked, “Boss, should we head to the school or go home?”
Ling Jiao looked at the Omega beside her.
Shen Yuwei was clearly exhausted. Her face was pale and she looked like she might fall over at any moment. She was still wearing the same clothes from that morning, now wrinkled and worn.
If she returned to campus in that state, the stares from her classmates alone could tear her apart. They would gossip, speculate, and wonder what had happened to the girl who was usually so clean and put together.
Her pride wouldn’t allow her to say out loud that she couldn’t go back.
But Ling Jiao saw through her silence. She pushed Shen Yuwei gently into the back seat and ordered Wan Qing to drive.
Shen Yuwei flinched and stubbornly turned her face toward the window.
“Take us to the mall,” Ling Jiao said.
At the mall, a staff member quickly came over to welcome the three of them. Normally, Ling Jiao had people deliver everything to her and held a VVIP card. But since this was a small boutique she picked on the spot, they didn’t know her status.
Wan Qing looked a little uncertain.
Ling Jiao brushed her hair away from her face, lifted her chin, and said confidently, “I’m buying out today’s entire sales total. Close the store. Don’t let anyone else in.”
The shop wasn’t in a remote location, but because it was niche, its business depended on word-of-mouth. Its daily revenue rarely passed six figures.
The staff beamed with excitement.
“No problem at all! We won’t even let a fly through the door!”
Ling Jiao gave a satisfied nod and picked out several outfits for Shen Yuwei to try on.
Shen Yuwei stood still, unmoved. Her tone was cold.
“I didn’t earn this. I won’t take it.”
She couldn’t believe Ling Jiao had suddenly changed her behavior again and again today.
Ling Jiao dragged over a chair and sat down, her voice lazy.
“Would you rather go back dressed like that and have everyone stare at you?”
“You have two options. Try on the clothes or wear that outfit back to school. You know that even if I drive you straight to the girls’ dorm entrance, you still have to get out of the car and walk in front of people. Or would you prefer I drop you off at the Shen house instead?”
Shen Yuwei’s face turned pale.
Ling Jiao had struck a nerve.
She cursed under her breath.
“You bastard.”
Before she transmigrated, Ling Jiao really had been a wealthy heiress. She had worked in her father’s company for a time and handled many situations on her own. The pressure she now gave off was nothing like the shallow, brainless girl the original character had been.
She was someone who could actually back up her words with action.
Shen Yuwei was shocked and furious. Gritting her teeth, she picked up an outfit and stormed into the fitting room.
While she was inside changing, Wan Qing crept over quietly. She leaned down and whispered into Ling Jiao’s ear.
“Boss… there’s something I should remind you about.”
Ling Jiao paused.
“What is it?”
“You really did install a hidden camera. You said it was the best way to keep Shen Yuwei under control in the future.”
She had said it was for leverage, but the truth was it was a threat.
Ling Jiao’s mind went blank.
“Where is it now? Where did you put it?”
Wan Qing straightened up and was about to pull the item from her pocket when a soft sound came from the fitting room.
Her expression froze. She quickly lowered her hand.
As a trained assistant, she knew better than to let Shen Yuwei discover this at the wrong moment.
Shen Yuwei stepped out of the fitting room.
The room went quiet for a moment.
She looked stunning.
Ling Jiao had chosen well. The light green dress had a slightly loose fit and was paired with a sheer white chiffon cover-up. If you ignored the cold expression in her eyes, the outfit gave her a gentle, graceful look, softening her usual aloofness.
There was something still and distant about her beauty, like a snow lotus blooming on a cliff. Beautiful to look at, but impossible to touch.
Ling Jiao’s gaze held nothing but pure admiration. There was no mockery, no inappropriate thoughts. Shen Yuwei could not detect even a trace of the vulgarity she had expected to see. Her heart settled just a little.
“Like a snow lotus blooming from a cliff. Cold, quiet, and rare,” Ling Jiao said with a smile. “A beautiful dress for a beautiful girl. It suits you.”
Shen Yuwei’s fingers curled slightly at her sides. She turned her face away and muttered uncomfortably.
“I’ll pay you back. As soon as I get home, I’ll transfer the money.”
Shen Yuwei didn’t like owing people anything, especially not someone she deeply disliked.
Ling Jiao didn’t expect Shen Yuwei to suddenly lower her guard and treat her like a friend. After all, the original version of her in this world had a terrible reputation. Trying too hard to be nice might even backfire.
Ling Jiao said calmly, “Friends don’t need to say thank you.”
Shen Yuwei frowned slightly and stayed silent. It was clear she didn’t see Ling Jiao as a friend.
Ling Jiao sighed, her tone light. “Fine, just think of it as me doing a good deed for the day.”
Shen Yuwei had already decided she would transfer the money back as soon as she got home. She didn’t want to have anything more to do with Ling Jiao.
She didn’t try on any more clothes. After changing back into the new outfit, she packed the dirty one into a bag and stepped out. Ling Jiao was still sitting in the chair, chin in hand, studying her carefully.
“I still feel like something’s missing,” she murmured. Then she clapped her hands as if she had a sudden realization. “A beautiful outfit should come with the perfect shoes.”
She glanced at Shen Yuwei’s feet.
The shoes she was wearing were in no shape to be seen.
This time, Shen Yuwei didn’t object.
Most clothing shops these days carried everything—tops, bottoms, and footwear. Since they were already in a mall, buying a pair of shoes was no trouble.
After the store had been cleared out, only the two of them remained as customers. A staff member approached, eagerly explaining the different styles, sizes, and which shoes would pair well with Shen Yuwei’s outfit.
“Miss, this pair right here is one of our newest arrivals,” the staff member said, pointing to a pair of five-centimeter heels in a deep blue tone. The shoes were made of crocodile leather, and a delicate gold chain hung just above the ankle. On the left side of the chain was a small jade bead, elegant and refined, the kind of luxury anyone could recognize at a glance.
“This style sold out immediately last time. A lot of people wanted it.”
The staff member chuckled softly. “You’ve got perfect timing. We just restocked them today.”
Ling Jiao turned to Shen Yuwei. “Want to try them on?”
Shen Yuwei hesitated, her gaze falling not on the recommended shoes, but slightly to the left.
Though beautiful, they weren’t quite her style. With this outfit, she preferred something simpler—maybe classic white sneakers or shoes with a lower heel.
Ling Jiao raised her eyebrows. “It’s just a pair of shoes. Grown-ups deserve to have options.”
Back at home, Shen Yuwei had no shortage of money. A hundred pairs like this would be nothing. But she wasn’t the one paying today, and that made her pause.
Wan Qing couldn’t resist reminding her boss, “Technically, you’re not even eighteen until the end of the year.”
Ling Jiao showed no sign of embarrassment. She gave a dismissive snort. “So what? Age is just a number. Buy them.”
Shen Yuwei picked up the shoes and was about to go try them on when, suddenly, loud voices rang out from the front of the boutique.
“Why are you closing the store?”
“Ugh! Just because you have money, you think you’re better than us?”
“Exactly!”
“I’ll pay double! I want the entire store for myself!”
“Do you know who I am? You dare block me? If you don’t let me in, I’ll buy this place tomorrow and fire all of you!”
“Move!”
A commotion followed. Someone was shoved, nearly falling, while another rushed to catch her. In the chaos, a group of girls burst through the entrance. They didn’t bother looking around. They made a beeline straight for the shoe display.
The girl in front moved the fastest. As soon as she saw the shoes in Shen Yuwei’s hand, she screamed at the top of her lungs.
“Shen Yuwei! I saw those first! Drop them right now!”