“Oh, shameless third wheel!” Lu Chengyue blurted, firing a broadside. “All mistresses deserve to die!!!”
???
Lu Ningshuang realized she’d barely started, and Lu Chengyue was already more outraged than her.
Lu Fugui declared.
Of course~!
Had she never heard “when one attains the Dao, even their chickens and dogs ascend to heaven”?
Blocking Lu Ningshuang’s rise meant cutting off this poor relative’s path to wealth and glory. They all deserved to be strung up under streetlights and baked for three days and nights!!
Touching her cousin’s live-in Alpha status was digging at Lu Fugui’s roots!
No forgiveness!!!
“So you wanna send a female Beta to deal with them? That one’s an Alpha, probably a bit lecherous too. You don’t want your person getting bullied?”
Lu Chengyue rattled it off like a machine gun.
A stunned Lu Ningshuang, who didn’t even need an excuse: “…Right.”
Lu Chengyue, the pro, replied directly, “Got someone.”
“So, what kind of Beta do you want to hire? Any specific requirements for appearance and personality? Young ones—how old exactly? And what about that Alpha you’re sending her after—what’s his type?”
“Also, the most important point—”
“How’s the pay?”
Lu Ningshuang, still in a state of stunned silence, blurted, “Huh?”
Lu Chengyue scolded her sternly, “This is a crucial matter for you—put some heart into it!”
Lu Ningshuang was naturally looking for such a person to deal with Huo Yunyi.
She simply didn’t care about a lot of trivial things, but that didn’t mean she had no temper at all. Yesterday, Huo Yunyi had bullied her right to her face, so this time, Lu Ningshuang clearly wasn’t going to go easy on him.
As for the original Huo Yunyi…
Although Lu Ningshuang had awakened to the plot and had a general character profile of him, she hadn’t met the real person yet and didn’t fully understand him.
Moreover, she had discovered that the personalities of characters in the plot often didn’t match their real-life manifestations.
For example, Qin Yushu.
In the original plot, after a one-night stand with the male lead Alpha Huo Yunyi—despite the “strong x strong” label—from the subsequent developments, it was clear that because Huo Yunyi wasn’t as capable as her at first, she helped him a lot.
Oh.
To Qi Jingming, this probably counted as another “lovestruck brain” behavior.
But now, after actually interacting with her, Lu Ningshuang realized that for Qin Yushu, career came above everything. She didn’t touch romance, though desire could be something to play with.
A total big-shot female lead career woman.
—Or maybe it was because she wasn’t her official partner.
In any case, the one currently bound to the System and the one she was about to deal with wasn’t the original “Huo Yunyi” with his incubus-like charm that could make President Qin lose her wits. For Lu Ningshuang, that was absolutely a good thing.
As for this new transmigrator…
Tempt him with a woman, and he would definitely fall for it. With that brain of his, he wouldn’t even suspect a thing—he’d just think it was his own charm.
Now that he had money, looks, and the System as his golden finger, wasn’t it only natural that all the women in the world loved him?
Nailed it!
Totally.
Answering Lu Chengyue’s questions, Lu Ningshuang said, “Age between 20 and 24. Looks have to be stunning—pure desire type preferred, glamorous or aloof works too. Has to be jaw-dropping at first sight… No girl-next-door types; not enough firepower!”
“But personality-wise, gentle and considerate. Even if aloof, she has to show some tenderness toward him, making it seem like he’s the only one getting special treatment…”
Earlier, to understand the transmigrator male’s mindset, she’d read male-oriented novels and found these two types were must-haves.
The red rose versus white moonlight rivalry, with everyone cheering below and critiquing this or that.
What could she say?
The girls or Omegas written in those novels simply didn’t exist in reality.
Hard to judge—good luck to them.
“As for pay…”
Lu Ningshuang did some quick calculations. Whether from her part-time job or the pocket money from her cousin, it wasn’t enough, but after becoming the phoenix man, President Qin had given her a generous phoenix man allowance.
Totally worth splurging here!
Plus, considering that playing “deeply affectionate” with the transmigrator male already qualified as an occupational hazard, Lu Ningshuang quoted an especially lavish price.
“Tentatively fifty thousand for a month. If she does well, gets useful intel, there’s a bonus too.”
“Too low?!!!” A shocked cry rang out from beside her.
Hm?
Lu Ningshuang looked up and saw Lu Chengyue’s eyes sparkling—not the usual shine, but like in anime, her eyes turning into money shapes that could pop out.
Super exaggerated!!!
Lu Ningshuang jumped in fright. “Fifty thousand?”
“This job’s mine! I mean, I’ll definitely find someone to handle this perfectly for you. Rest assured.”
Lu Chengyue guaranteed it, slapping her chest. “Dealing with a third wheel? That’s my specialty.”
Lu Ningshuang: “Alright.”
The car picking her up had arrived, so Lu Ningshuang bid farewell to Lu Chengyue, only instructing her to send over the WeChat contact once she found a suitable candidate, and she’d talk details with them.
Lu Chengyue was practically patting her chest promising no issues. Even as she left, Lu Ningshuang felt like she’d forgotten something?
What was it?
Lu Fugui: A WeChat alt account? Piece of cake~ She’d snag that fifty grand and the ocean-view place for sure!
Since it was money her cousin had earned through “selling herself” (?), she’d earn it with tears in her eyes.
That way, the money wouldn’t be lost but returned to them in another form.
Money cycle.
Back in the car, Lu Ningshuang was still pondering how to deal with the System and Huo Yunyi.
A mere transmigrator idiot posed no threat. The real key was the System behind him.
But from what she could see so far, though the System was dissatisfied and disrespectful toward Huo Yunyi and had its own schemes, it still relied on him to get things done.
It had pulled out the original Huo Yunyi—who knew where it dumped him—and replaced him with this transmigrator idiot to take over the body. While that served its purposes, it also made things easier for Lu Ningshuang.
—This transmigrator was way easier to handle than the original ruthless Huo Yunyi.
Now, the initial setups were all in place, just waiting for the harvest.
As for those Lover Gu or Head-Lowering Techniques…
Lu Ningshuang wasn’t really lovestruck! Of course they weren’t for Qin Yushu!!
She planned to test them on Huo Yunyi.
Not for the Beta woman she was hiring—to face a scumbag like Huo Yunyi was already an injury. If it actually worked, she’d be stuck with him for life—what a nightmare?
Didn’t Huo Yunyi love Alpha-on-Omega lit and fear gay stuff?
Then she’d just grab some nasty-personality male Alpha, dose both him and Huo Yunyi, or throw in some non-human like a pig or dog…
She was just a weak, pitiful, soft-rice-eating elite phoenix man~
What bad intentions could Little Phoenix Man A have?
Just curious if extreme conditions could spark cross-species love. 🙂
As she pondered, Lu Chengyue sent over the WeChat contact.
Lu Ningshuang glanced at it. Nickname: Jiaojiao.
Clear Moon Jiaojiao?
Looked like the perfect white moonlight that transmigrator Huo Yunyi couldn’t refuse.
“So fast… Fugui’s efficiency is top-notch.”
Lu Ningshuang sighed, then added her. They chatted all the way, settled terms, and she sent the first deposit.
Suddenly, Lu Ningshuang realized—
She, Qi Facai, Lu Fugui…
The three of them scheming together—didn’t sound all that legit?
Even had a bit of villain vibes?
What Lu Ningshuang didn’t know was that the two experts Qi Jingming was recruiting were none other than her little aunt and her partner, little aunt-in-law—the high-IQ moms of Lu Chengyue’s side.
One family of four, three taken down.
If she knew, Lu Ningshuang would surely shout: When it comes to being villains, the Old Lu Family is absolutely pro!!!
Lu Ningshuang happily returned to the villa.
As soon as she entered, she saw Qin Yushu still downstairs. Hearing the noise, the woman looked up at her, but the atmosphere felt off.
Lu Ningshuang froze for a moment but still changed her shoes and walked toward Qin Yushu as usual.
“What’s wrong?”
Brave little dog, fearless!
She hoped Housekeeper Nangong would look up and give her a hint, but the housekeeper kept her head buried low, offering no cues.
Qin Yushu, on the other hand, gave her a half-smile sidelong glance. “Youyou had a fun time out?”
“It was alright, actually.”
Lu Ningshuang immediately toned down her cheer and added, “Hey, I’ve got a family group—wanna join? Snag some red envelope wool?”
News of Lu Ningshuang’s marriage had reached the Old Lu Family!
Even Grandpa Lu, off somewhere enjoying himself, popped up and chewed out Lu Ningshuang’s dad, Lu Yezhou, hard—daughters-in-law and granddaughters were treasures, not to be scolded, so he took the heat as the son!
But they hadn’t spilled that she was a phoenix man yet. Old Lu got cowed by the scolding and admitted the other family was well-off, with Little Shuang staying there lately.
The old man, calling himself a worldly veteran, didn’t care—he immediately had someone pull his granddaughter-in-law into the group.
They were family now; how could they exclude the newcomer?
Hurry up!
Qin Yushu’s dark eyes stared at Lu Ningshuang’s face for a while, then the half-smile faded.
She neither smiled nor frowned, and suddenly didn’t seem as dangerous as before.
All good?
Not agreeing?
“Alright, I’ll go talk to—”
As Lu Ningshuang spoke, Qin Yushu handed over her phone, saying flatly, “You add it.”
“Goodie!”
Lu Ningshuang was thrilled, snatching it happily, only to get stuck at the fingerprint unlock.
Lu Ningshuang: QAQ
Glancing back, Qin Yushu wasn’t going back to work but watching her. Lu Ningshuang got it instantly.
This time, she plopped onto the long living room sofa, not like the cramped single-seater in her rental.
Lu Ningshuang scooted over sweetly, nuzzling up to Qin Yushu with a soft, sugary whine, “Sis~ Dearest sis~ Help me out~~”
This Alpha was way too good at coquetry.
Qin Yushu held out through the first call, but she kept repeating shamelessly.
Amid her busy work, Qin Yushu seemed helpless against the onslaught and casually extended a hand.
Lu Ningshuang looked.
Qin Yushu didn’t look up, still immersed in her tasks. Lu Ningshuang took her hand.
The Alpha had just returned, carrying a hint of outdoor chill, but when it touched Qin Yushu’s skin, she neither dodged nor flinched, letting her hold it as the pad pressed down on the screen.
—Like the vermilion seal of an ancient marriage contract.
Pressed down, bond formed.
For life.