Lu Ningshuang: “…”
The others: “…………”
The five-and-a-half-year-old “old slave” Lu Jiaojiao blinked innocently, her two chubby paws clasped together in a salute, and continued reciting the obscure words she had seen on TV.
“Drifting through half a lifetime without encountering a wise ruler—if the lord does not disdain me, I wish to pledge myself as—Second Sister-in-Law!”
She was young, so none of her actions were quite up to par.
She called it half-kneeling, but it was really just a slight bend of her knees. Even so, for her short little legs and her plump body bundled up in layers of clothes against the early spring chill, it was quite an effort.
The aloof President Qin was once again amused by the Old Lu Family’s signature comedic genes. The somewhat distant look in her eyes from confronting the Alpha softened into a gentle curve, making her already radiant and uninhibited Omega face even more stunningly beautiful.
Qin Yushu said, “No need to bow.”
The little girl was still wobbling unsteadily, barely propping herself up, when Qin Yushu raised a hand. Zhou Shu, acting as her bodyguard at the moment, promptly handed over the checkbook and a pen to his boss.
President Qin quickly wrote it out, signed it, bent down slightly, and graciously handed it to the little girl.
“What’s your name?”
Lu Jiaojiao opened her mouth wide. “Jiao Jiao… Little Jiao Jiao is my nickname, my full name is Lu Zhuixing, meaning chasing stars.”
“Jiao Jiao…”
Qin Yushu merely repeated the two words, but Lu Jiaojiao thought she was being called and looked up.
“Mm~”
Her little arms and legs—oh, right now Lu Jiaojiao was calling herself an old slave, so perhaps her old arms and legs couldn’t hold up anymore. She retracted them and stood up, round and plump, revealing a face that was unmistakably handsome, characteristic of the Old Lu Family’s striking features.
Qin Yushu looked at her spirited, handsome little face. “Why do you have a name like Jiao Jiao?”
Lu Jiaojiao took the “paper” that Qin Yushu handed her.
Without any knowledge to draw on, she didn’t recognize it as a check and just thought Second Sister-in-Law had given her an ordinary piece of paper.
The little one was puzzled inside, but the Lu Family upbringing was impeccable. She still accepted it politely with both hands.
—She really suffered from being uneducated.
Big Brother had taught her before.
Sisters’ boyfriends or girlfriends were all family, so if she liked her sisters, she had to respect their loved ones too.
First rule: Don’t embarrass them in front of outsiders. Jiao Jiao remembered it all~
So she answered obediently, “Second Sister named me. She said Jiao Jiao cried a lot as a baby, so the name ‘Jiao Jiao’ (Delicate) fit. Then Big Brother and the sisters all agreed~”
“Oh~”
Qin Yushu’s tone lifted at the end as she repeated “Lu Jiaojiao” once more. “Good name.”
No one knew if she truly thought it was good or if she was just supporting her wife.
“I think so too!”
Lu Jiaojiao beamed with pride. No one knew how two aloof types like Little Aunt and Little Aunt-in-Law had produced such a social butterfly.
Her sister Lu Chengyue could blame it on needing money, but Lu Jiaojiao was purely gifted.
The little girl happily scampered off, and Qin Yushu also stood up, her gaze flicking toward Lu Ningshuang.
When she said “Jiao Jiao,” especially “Lu Jiaojiao,” the Alpha’s body seemed to tremble faintly.
Now her eyes fell back on the little one. Lu Jiaojiao ran over happily, about to speak, when the next second…
Lu Ningshuang covered her mouth.
Lu Ningshuang: “You’d better not say any more of those weird words.”
She was afraid Lu Jiaojiao’s next line would be “How can a man born between heaven and earth live in depression under others?”—and then President Qin would deal with her for sure.
Lu Jiaojiao blinked. “Oh.”
She waved the “waste paper” in her hand and asked in a tactful, non-offensive way, “Second Sister, do you think Big Sister will be happy if I give this to her?”
Lu Ningshuang glanced at it.
One hundred thousand yuan!
Qin Yushu really didn’t skimp on kids—this was worth half a month of her initial contract money!
The social butterfly Jiao Jiao was the luckiest!
Lu Ningshuang nodded without hesitation. “Super happy.”
“Like that, huh…”
Lu Jiaojiao propped her chin with her short little hand, blinking her eyes. She knew the thing in her hand was valuable but didn’t ask how much—anyway, she couldn’t keep it.
“Then I’ll give half to Second Sister and half to Big Sister.”
Lu Ningshuang hadn’t expected her to be so generous, but it fit Lu Jiaojiao’s sweet, naive youngest-sibling persona. She couldn’t help asking, “What about Big Brother?”
Lu Jiaojiao waved her hand dismissively. “No problem. Big Brother said boys have to endure hardship and toil, but Jiao Jiao is a Lu family girl—I can take it just as well as any boy! So Big Brother definitely can too.”
Lu Ningshuang: “…”
Brother Facai’s class on masculine virtue was—a huge success!!
Lu Jiaojiao’s earth-shattering cry also interrupted the standoff between Qin Yushu and Ji Yanran.
“What happened?” Qin Yushu asked.
She came with her own principal, putting her on a whole different level. Now that she was handling the matter, she was far more reliable than Lu Ningshuang, the former troublemaker turned parent.
Lu Ningshuang had learned it all from Qi Jingming.
—Today, Brother Facai, the head of the Lu Family, hadn’t appeared, but his legend was everywhere.
The teacher explained.
It was simple enough.
As a new transfer student, Lu Jiaojiao was snow-white and adorable, outgoing and generous, smart and quick-witted.
When Lu Ningshuang said earlier the little girl wasn’t smart enough, she meant compared to her family’s geniuses, but vertically, Lu Jiaojiao’s IQ and EQ crushed her peers.
So, not long after arriving, she won over most of the class—boys and girls alike.
She charmed everyone!
Among them, the pretty girl Rui Rui really liked her. But the little bully Ji Hengyu always pestered her, and the girl didn’t like the domineering boy. Once Lu Jiaojiao arrived and sat nearby, the girl immediately started playing with her.
Ji Hengyu felt heartbroken and jealous, betrayed and abandoned, viewing Lu Jiaojiao as the despicable villain who stole his spot!
So during afternoon playtime, Ji Hengyu approached Lu Jiaojiao and demanded she leave the girl, spouting some first-come-first-served bandit logic. But was Lu Jiaojiao so easily fooled?
She blinked and responded logically and reasonably, “If you want to play with Rui Rui, just tell her yourself. One friend doesn’t mean only one good friend.”
Ji Hengyu had come to her precisely because the girl rejected him. He saw it as provocation, got angry, and shoved her with both hands.
He was furious and shoved hard.
Lu Jiaojiao had been standing at the edge of a small slope—not high, just about thirty centimeters—but falling could still be dangerous if she hit something.
However…
The little girl was sturdy!
She didn’t budge.
Lu Jiaojiao realized belatedly, “Oh, you’re bullying me.” Then she dropped the ball in her hands and raised her own.
“Then I’ll push back too.”
The Old Lu Family rule—withstand! No! Losses!
Better to hurt the other than yourself.
Little Ji Hengyu hadn’t expected Lu Jiaojiao to be so bold. Caught off guard, he toppled backward onto his butt. He was stunned at first, then shame rushed in, his face reddened, and he jumped up to shove again.
But without fail, Lu Jiaojiao ruthlessly pushed him down each time.
“Boring.”
Soon, the little one tired of the “game” and turned to leave. This attitude became the final straw for Ji Hengyu, who froze, then burst into loud wails.
That drew the teacher, who called the parents…
Even Lu Ningshuang was impressed after hearing it. Her silly little cousin was that capable?
Lu Jiaojiao said, “Later I thought he was just playing with me, so I wasn’t mad anymore. Didn’t expect him to be such a sore loser.”
Lu Ningshuang: “Yeah, better stay away from that kind of personality in the future.”
Lu Jiaojiao: “I know. Rui Rui told me she hates Ji Hengyu. He always pulls her hair. How can a boy touch a girl’s hair? Girls style their hair so pretty, and he messes it up… so rude.”
Lu Ningshuang: “Our Jiao Jiao can’t do that.”
“Mm-hmm, I know. Big Brother told me. Now I’m super popular in kindergarten~”
Lu Jiaojiao added, “Oh, right, my new friends said they don’t like Ji Hengyu much either. He’s bad-tempered and gets mad when he loses games…”
The siblings’ whispers weren’t avoiding outsiders at all, including the subject, little Ji Hengyu.
He was already humiliated hearing the story retold. Now Lu Jiaojiao’s words made the spoiled young master wail again. He threw himself on the ground, rolling and kicking regardless of who walked by, throwing a full tantrum.
“I don’t want to see Lu Jiaojiao! I don’t want to see Lu Jiaojiao! Kick her out of kindergarten! She’s just a poor kid—why’s she in the same kindergarten as me!”
“Nooo! Kick her out! Out out out—”
“Or I’ll go home and tell Mom and Dad, Grandma and Grandpa to make this kindergarten go bankrupt! Shut down!!! My mom will punish you all, just wait!!”
Lu Ningshuang and Lu Jiaojiao exchanged a look.
Whoa~ They were so scared.
Both their eyes showed “bratty kids are trouble” and… pure entertainment vibes.
Even the teacher and principal looked uncomfortable, especially the principal. She became head of the kindergarten because she loved children and the work.
Most kids were adorable little angels, but some were little demons—not innately bad, usually the parents’ fault, through words or influence. Sending them to kindergarten didn’t fix it; it just affected others.
Ji Hengyu seemed just proud and antisocial usually, but he harbored these thoughts!
The kindergarten could handle him, but turning him around would take time. And with parents undoing it at home…
Parents always mattered more than teachers.
If he kept influencing other good kids…
The principal glanced at Lu Jiaojiao’s expression.
This one was different—a famous genius angel baby, with top-tier parents…
Lu Jiaojiao walked over to the writhing, rolling Ji Hengyu, standing a bit back to avoid kicks or scuffs.
Then.
She spread her hands dramatically.
“Of course it’s because I’m smart! Smart babies like me get paid by the school to attend, while you have to pay to come. So pitiful.”
Ji Hengyu shrieked, “I have money! I have money! You poor ghost, you’ll always be poor!”
Lu Jiaojiao wasn’t upset at all; she looked gentlewomanly, even excited, rattling off lines.
“But Sister says poverty can be changed with effort. If you do nothing, even with money, you’ll just eat up the mountain.”
“Waaah waaah ahhh—”
Though Lu Ningshuang watched the little one, to prevent the soft bundle from getting kicked or knocked down—which would hurt—Qin Yushu sent Zhou Shu over with a look to protect her.
Poor?
Lu Jiaojiao was her little dog’s sister, cousin. Her parents had even sent wedding blessings.
“Principal He.”
Qin Yushu applied subtle pressure. “Having a child raised like this in the kindergarten makes me seriously doubt if it’s right for Fu Junyi to be taught here and grow up healthy.”
“President Qin, we’ll handle this seriously.”
Principal He’s kind face turned stern; clearly, she took it seriously, not just placating Qin Yushu.
“I hope so.”
Over there, Ji Hengyu kept rolling and ranting incoherently; the teacher was at a loss.
Suddenly, a pair of long, straight legs appeared beside him and kicked him.
“Get up.” The voice was lazy and wild.
Ji Yanran hadn’t used much force, but the sudden action was startling enough to scare the dirty little rolling kid stiff.
Ji Hengyu recognized the speaker’s voice. After a brief silence—children often instinctively knew who they could provoke and who they couldn’t—his mind was still dazed, but his body stopped rolling first. Then, he hesitated and slowly climbed to his feet.
His custom-made, luxurious little suit was wrinkled and filthy, far more disheveled than Lu Ningshuang had been when she first arrived.
Lu Jiaojiao turned back to her second sister and said without lowering her voice, “He’s so dirty.”
“To think someone actually enjoys rolling around on the ground.”
Ji Hengyu shot her another fierce glare. For a child, that look was downright scary.
Lu Ningshuang stepped forward to block it.
Ji Yanran paid no mind to the child’s feelings. “Go apologize.”
Ji Hengyu stubbornly lifted his head, his eyes still gleaming with unyielding spirit. “Mom said you’re my sister, and you have to help me…”
Ji Yanran finally turned her gaze to her own little brother. They were a decade or so apart in age, and she’d spent the last few years abroad, seeing him at most over video calls. Naturally, there wasn’t much bond between them.
She looked down and smiled, but it wasn’t warm at all—only chilling.
“Ji Hengyu, do you think Mom will come faster if you call her, or will I beat you first?”
Ji Hengyu’s small body trembled.
“Parent of Ji Hengyu, you can’t discipline a child like this…” The teacher, softening, tried to intervene, but Ji Yanran silenced her with a single glance.
“It’s after kindergarten dismissal time—past your working hours. I hope the teacher won’t interfere with how we handle things at home.”
The Alpha had been unyielding and overbearing from start to finish, acting with ruthless dominance.
She ignored Ji Hengyu as he wiped away his tears and shifted her gaze to Lu Ningshuang across from her, issuing a direct order.
“Go apologize to the Lu sister over there.”
Lu Ningshuang: ?
What does this have to do with me?
Lu Jiaojiao: ?
Wasn’t he the victim? Fine, making Second Sis run over there once more is still his fault anyway.
Sigh.
No real problem there.
Qin Yushu, however, suddenly stepped in front of Lu Ningshuang, blocking the child’s path and Ji Yanran’s line of sight.
She glanced at the sniffling Ji Family kid. “Children’s matters should be settled between children.”
One was an Omega, the other an Alpha—both stunningly beautiful.
However.
With age, experience, and her rising status in recent years, Qin Yushu’s allure was now subtly veiled within her brows and eyes, contained and refined.
Her presence was more intimidating, naturally integrated, to the point where one overlooked the exquisite beauty of her features.
Ultimately…
That floral charm, sweeter than honey and intensely captivating, was reserved only for the closest people to see and taste.
No one else stood a chance!
Ji Yanran, still very young and in her arrogant prime, had spent these years in the freer, more open abroad. Her aura was boldly outward, reaching a flamboyantly unrestrained peak.
Anyone could see it, touch it.
This didn’t mean Qin Yushu was inferior—Ji Yanran was merely at the novice stage. It was like a street punk facing a societal elite: intimidating at first glance with a brick or steel rod, but utterly helpless against a single blow from the latter.
Ji Yanran raised an eyebrow, not hiding her intense hostility toward Qin Yushu at all.
“President Qin, what identity are you speaking to me from?”
Lu Jiaojiao perked up her little ears. This question I know!
“Didn’t you hear just now?” she said in her milky voice. Now with two people backing her up, she could be as fierce as she wanted~ “Let me say it again: this is my second sister-in-law! You better watch your mouth, or… or my second sis will beat you up! I’m telling you, my second sis is super strong!”
Whether it was because Ji Yanran didn’t want to argue with a child or because she was fed up with her annoying little brother, she now found Lu Jiaojiao a bit more pleasing.
Hearing the child’s provocative words, she even smiled—a rare gentleness, even nostalgia, softening her arrogant face. Her voice was low and husky. “I know.”
No one knew better than her—Lu Shuangshuang, she—
Lu Jiaojiao was utterly baffled, but Qin Yushu’s beautiful eyes narrowed dangerously.
The familiarity in the other’s tone irked her.
Deeply irked.
Perhaps not so inexplicably.
Lu Ningshuang also stepped forward, taking Qin Yushu’s hand. As they clasped hands and lifted them, they revealed the rings on their ring fingers to everyone’s view.
The little dog had finally seized the chance to flaunt it publicly. Heh heh.
She then turned to Ji Yanran.
“You’re the one who should.”
Lu Ningshuang’s tone was utterly impolite. “Don’t casually latch onto relationships. We don’t even know who you are—you’ve been yelling nonstop since you got here. I didn’t have time to watch your sibling drama, but you should be the one to speak politely to my wife!”
She really would throw hands!
And…
Wife.
Ahhh, finally a chance to say this word in public!
Wife, wife, wife, wife, wife, wife, wife… Hey! My wife~
Spinning with joy.jpg
Ji Yanran was naturally among those present. Seeing the Alpha and Omega’s intertwined hands—especially the rings on their ring fingers—her eyes gradually turned bloodshot, blazing red.
Qin Yushu watched her little dog with a lip curl and soft laugh, while casually twisting her finger to make the ring even clearer for the other woman.
From every angle, every direction—take a good, close look.
One trip abroad, and this purchase was worth it.
Married to the little green tea for a while now, President Qin’s acting was still mostly terrible, but she’d picked up a bit of the green tea essence occasionally.
Just a bit.
Enough to be useful.
…Right now, it was.
She didn’t even need to act—her little dog was plenty capable, catching the opponent off guard. Glancing over with a sidelong look—
This one seems even more clingy than the one from the banquet last time.
Tch.
Lu Jiaojiao looked from one to the other, then suddenly had a flash of inspiration. “My second sis and second sister-in-law are a match made in heaven, perfect for each other. Who are you, some monster popping out of nowhere? What right do you have to object!”
Then, with her short little legs, she laboriously squatted down again.
“Your Majesty, this old slave pledges to serve you unto death!”
