An hour later, the two of them got into the same car. Shi Wei Yue, with her sharp eyes, recognized it as the Porsche that Wen Ruxing had sent to pick her up from the restaurant that day.
As a recent college intern who wasn’t from a wealthy family, Shi Wei Yue naturally knew nothing about luxury cars. She could only tell from the sleek, streamlined design and the exquisite paint job that the vehicle was expensive. That night, under the dim lighting and in her nervous state, she hadn’t taken a close look at the car. Only now did she notice a tiny sticker beneath the Porsche logo.
It looked like a pink long-eared rabbit.
But before she could get a better look, Wen Ruxing grabbed her by the arm.
“Get in.”
The car was a six-seater business vehicle. This time, Wen Ruxing didn’t sit beside her but took the single seat in the middle. As soon as she got in, she unfolded a portable desk in front of her, adjusted the angle of the fill light, and without even greeting the driver, opened her handbag to reveal the pristine corner of a document. She pulled out the entire folder, found the one she needed, and spread it flat on the desk.
Shi Wei Yue hadn’t even noticed when she had brought the documents along.
The text on the document was densely packed like ants, yet Wen Ruxing didn’t seem the least bit bothered. She read through it word by word, a pen in hand, circling and marking as she went.
It probably wasn’t a contract she was reviewing, but she was extremely focused. From Shi Wei Yue’s side angle, the woman’s elegant profile was mostly obscured by her thick, long hair. The strands framing her face were curled into delicate waves, not a single one out of place.
As the formidable antagonist Alpha from the original story, Wen Ruxing had an overwhelming presence especially when she was working seriously, exuding an air of detachment that kept others at bay. Even though it was daytime, she had turned on the light to adjust the brightness, likely to prevent eye strain.
A pair of gold-rimmed glasses perched on Wen Ruxing’s nose, adding to her cold, ascetic beauty. Her fair skin, upon closer inspection, was flawless so smooth it seemed to have the fine fuzz of a peach, glimmering faintly gold under the sunlight. Whether it was natural or the result of meticulous care, her complexion showed no visible pores or blemishes. The light makeup she wore only enhanced her perfection, leaving no room for criticism.
Bored, Shi Wei Yue spent a long moment studying the woman beside her before concluding that, regardless of her personality, Wen Ruxing’s face was undeniably stunning. Even after the car started moving, Wen Ruxing sat ramrod straight. The choker around her slender neck had been removed, revealing a swan-like neck as white as polished jade.
A swan neck and squared shoulders such visually perfect posture was rarely natural and usually the result of dedicated training. Wen Ruxing’s elegant demeanor and poised movements suggested she regularly practiced sculpting exercises like Pilates.
Shi Wei Yue was slightly prone to motion sickness, but Wen Ruxing’s driver handled the car so smoothly, and since she didn’t have the habit of looking at her phone in the car, she felt fine throughout the ride.
The car left the bustling city and entered the ring highway, heading toward the suburbs. As the scenery outside changed, Shi Wei Yue rested her chin on her hand, curiously observing the view, enjoying this rare moment of quiet relaxation. The interior of the car was silent, save for the occasional voice of the electronic navigation system:
“Speed detection ahead. Entering Weigang District. One kilometer to destination.”
Wen Ruxing had been reviewing documents the entire journey, nearly an hour long. The trip wasn’t short, no wonder they had to set out early. Shi Wei Yue stretched lazily in her seat and, seeing Wen Ruxing showed no intention of putting away the file folder, couldn’t help but ask:
“Aren’t you going to give your eyes a break? Aren’t you tired after reading the whole way?”
A rustling sound followed as Wen Ruxing flipped a page without looking up, her tone indifferent:
“Miss Shi, not everyone has as much free time as you.”
Shi Wei Yue: “…”
As the novel’s greatest antagonist, Wen Ruxing was indeed a workaholic overachiever except when she fell headfirst into the trap of love upon encountering the male lead.
The Wen family’s main business was real estate, a path carved out by the older generation but no longer pursued by the grandchildren. With the real estate market declining in recent years, their side ventures leaned toward the increasingly prosperous entertainment industry, though they hadn’t abandoned property entirely. Previously, a failed deal in their core business had led to trouble, forcing them to seek help from the Shi family, who had some connections. That was how Wen Ruxing ended up with the original protagonist.
However, Wen Ruxing would later carve out her own path. Her screenplays brimmed with creativity and sharp wit. As a screenwriter and director, she enjoyed relative freedom in the entertainment industry, good scripts were rarely overlooked, so she feared no one.
Watching Wen Ruxing seize even these fragmented moments during the journey, Shi Wei Yue felt like a slacker in comparison. Just as her competitive spirit flared up, the car turned into a winding driveway, revealing an opulent villa in clear view.
**
In the original novel’s plot, to highlight the female lead’s endearing personality, Shi Wei Yue and Wen Ruxing served as foils, both thinly written characters whom everyone disliked. The Wen family treated Wen Ruxing with indifference; today’s gathering was merely a formality. When the car stopped at the entrance and Wen Ruxing stepped out, she encountered a stylish young woman who merely nodded at her.
Shi Wei Yue had exited the car earlier, beating the driver to open the door for Wen Ruxing. She seemed unbothered by the latter’s sarcastic remarks during the ride and even offered a polite hand to steady her.
The woman wore a beige chiffon gown paired with a pale white knit top, casual yet elegant. Two delicate fabric flowers draped softly at her waist, mirroring the small pear blossom embroidery at Shi Wei Yue’s collar. Standing together, they looked like a perfect pair.
Wen Ruxing’s heels today were also high, bringing her nearly level with Shi Wei Yue’s petite pumps. Shi Wei Yue estimated they were about seven or eight centimeters, slender stilettos adorned with rhinestones, their shimmering surfaces like scattered stars, glistening under the sunlight.
“Thank you.”
Wen Ruxing, seemingly unaccustomed to such heels, nearly stumbled after a few steps. Fortunately, Shi Wei Yue reacted swiftly and caught her. Even as a woman, an Alpha’s strength was considerable. Wen Ruxing, slender and caught off guard, was pulled back and almost tumbled into Shi Wei Yue’s arms.
It was then that Shi Wei Yue caught a faint, cool fragrance.
The scent was quite faint, likely the pheromones of an Alpha. Shi Wei Yue had heard that Wen Ruxing’s pheromones carried the fragrance of kapok flowers. The scent of kapok was subtle, with a natural, cool freshness, somewhat reminiscent of the crispness of grass after rain. It wasn’t aggressive, belonging to the more peaceful variety, completely at odds with her personality.
For some reason, Shi Wei Yue seemed to catch faint traces of freesia within that cool kapok fragrance. That scent was the complete opposite of kapok sweet and alluring, yet almost imperceptible. In comparison, the kapok was more pronounced, while the freesia hid within its layers, flickering in and out of perception.
Shi Wei Yue couldn’t hold Wen Ruxing for too long and soon released her, so their contact had been brief. What lingered afterward was more of an aftertaste.
Kapok mixed with freesia? She had never heard of pheromones combining two floral scents like this. Even if she wasn’t originally from this world, Shi Wei Yue knew that pheromones didn’t work that way.
The only explanation was that the gland itself stored pheromones, and an external factor had blended in, resulting in the mingling of two distinct scents.
Seizing on this possibility, countless thoughts flashed through Shi Wei Yue’s mind in an instant.
Had Wen Ruxing secretly been with an Omega behind her back?
Wen Ruxing was an out-and-out villain. Aside from later falling for the male lead in the story’s plot, she was also notorious for being indiscriminate,equally drawn to Alphas and Omegas. Shi Wei Yue felt her speculation wasn’t entirely unfounded, and a faint thrill stirred within her.
If this were true, and she could obtain evidence, it would mean she had leverage over the main antagonist.
Lost in her thoughts, she soon arrived at the villa’s entrance, where a maid guided them to the dining room. Their timing was perfect, many had already gathered inside, aunts and uncles filling the space, nearly all accompanied by their spouses and children.
Chattering children were led away by servants to a separate room, while a large round table in the center was already set with dishes, waiting for everyone to take their seats.
Shi Wei Yue wasn’t particularly comfortable in this kind of atmosphere.
Though it was a family gathering, many were drinking. Nearly all the adults at the table raised their glasses, passing around bottles of strong liquor. The noise grew increasingly boisterous, filled with uninteresting conversations. Shi Wei Yue barely spoke, quietly listening to the chatter.
Large families were complicated. Even a simple meal like this was rife with veiled barbs, lacking the warmth and harmony of an ordinary household. Shi Wei Yue ate in silence, while Wen Ruxing, seated beside her, cast her an indifferent glance before paying her no further mind.
They had been married for half a year. The original owner had accompanied her here twice before, though she had only agreed to attend without engaging much with Wen Ruxing’s family. Even on their wedding day, she had worn an icy expression, perfunctorily toasting the Wen family.
The Wen family didn’t particularly like her, and most of them had inherited a tendency to bend with the wind. In the past, when Shi Wei Yue still held some influence at home, the Wen family had at least shown her respect despite their dissatisfaction. But now, with rumors circulating that most of the family fortune would likely fall into her sister’s hands and given Shi Wei Yue’s own lack of ambition, content to coast along, the family couldn’t even be bothered to maintain appearances.
No one offered Shi Wei Yue a toast, but someone called out Wen Ruxing’s name. From the earlier introductions, it seemed to be some sort of distant cousin. Wen Ruxing shook her head in refusal, but the person persisted. With no other choice, she replied helplessly:
“I can’t drink liquor with such a high alcohol content.”
“Why not?”
As soon as the words left her mouth, an older man on the other side immediately shook his head. His appearance was refined, his voice gentle, but his words carried none of that warmth, only the lecturing tone of an elder:
“Ruxing, that’s not right. You’re an Alpha, how could you possibly not be able to handle a little alcohol? So many elders are gathered here today for this rare occasion. Aren’t you just refusing to give face?”
Wen Ruxing froze for a moment, unmoving, her expression shifting from resignation to barely concealed displeasure. Yet the others seemed completely oblivious. The man’s wife also urged:
“She’s talking to you.”
The glass of liquor was held aloft in someone’s hand, suspended midair, waiting for Wen Ruxing to rise and accept it. The woman’s beautiful features gradually frosted over, but for some reason, she couldn’t bring herself to fully lash out.
She had alcohol intolerance and truly couldn’t drink high-proof liquor. When she first came of age, a whole table of people had pressured her into drinking until she was hospitalized, lying in a daze for an entire day before recovering.
After that, everyone knew she couldn’t drink, yet they still found ways to force her. Sometimes, if she didn’t drink too much, she wouldn’t end up in the hospital, but she would break out in itchy red rashes.
Suppressing her anger, Wen Ruxing thought of her grandmother, who was still under these people’s control. The old woman had no power or influence, and legally, she had to rely on these descendants for support. There was no choice but to swallow her temper.
But her deliberation lasted only a few seconds. Soon, she felt someone beside her stand up, a pale, slender arm reaching over her head to take the glass.
What was she trying to do now?
Shi Wei Yue had humiliated her in public more than once before. None of it had been anything major, but it was enough to make her seethe. After the drugging incident, Wen Ruxing’s trust in her had plummeted. Seeing her take the glass, her first instinct was to recoil.
Yet, as the woman pulled her up from her seat, her wrist flicked lightly and the expensive liquor, worth tens of thousands, splashed precisely onto the feet of the loudest instigator. The sharp, rich aroma of baijiu filled the air, while the remaining half-glass reflected the woman’s crescent-moon eyes, curved in amusement.
Shi Wei Yue guided her forward a couple of steps, took a symbolic sip, then raised her arm and “respectfully” poured the rest at the man’s feet.
It was the gesture used to offer libations to the dead.