A Stand-in Alpha Awakens - Chapter 38

The phones of Jiang Lu and Liang Shuang vibrated simultaneously just as their car pulled into the parking lot next to the restaurant.

The two exchanged a glance, got out of the car, closed the doors, and subsequently turned off their cameras before tapping “Accept.”

On the shifting screen, Shao Shuyi was staring at her display with a strange expression. She appeared to be holding her phone up high; her confused eyes loomed large and then receded in the frame. “Eh? Is my signal bad? Where are your faces? I can’t see you.”

Liang Shuang turned off the speakerphone, held it to her ear, and said, “We didn’t turn on the cameras, so of course you can’t see us.”

Jiang Lu walked a few steps ahead to put some distance between her and Liang Shuang. “Shuyi, have you had lunch yet?”

Every time Shao Shuyi went home for the break, if she wanted a hot meal, she either had to fend for herself with instant food or wait at the restaurant until the staff went on break to eat with them. Right now was the peak dining hour, the busiest time for customers. When she went downstairs, she was either carrying trays or helping at the register. Eating? She couldn’t even get a breath of fresh air, let alone a meal!

She had eaten breakfast around seven and was already starving. Hearing Jiang Lu’s greeting, she felt desolate and aggrieved. “Not yet. I’m at the shop. I won’t get to eat until around three or four. What about you guys? Have you eaten? What delicious things are you having?”

Jiang Lu and Liang Shuang looked at the person on the screen with downcast eyes and pouting lips. Simultaneously, they turned on their cameras—one pointed at the restaurant’s storefront, the other at herself and the person holding a phone not far behind her.

Before the invitation to eat together could even be uttered, the Shao Shuyi in the frame let out a “Woah!” and hung up the video.

“…” Liang Shuang walked toward Jiang Lu. “Did we scare her crazy?”

Jiang Lu: “Probably not. She’s likely running down to welcome us.”

The Shao family restaurant was quite large. The first-floor lobby appeared to have over thirty four-person tables, and at a glance, it was almost full. Upstairs, there were twelve private rooms of varying sizes. On normal days it was fine, but on holidays, reservations were usually required.

Just as Jiang Lu and Liang Shuang entered, a figure came thumping down the solid wood stairs leading to the second floor.

Shao Shuyi excitedly pushed aside the staff members coming to serve and grinned like a split-open pomegranate. “I’ve got it, I’ve got it! These are my good classmates. Are there any private rooms left on the second floor?”

The staff member in uniform shook their head slightly and whispered, “They’re all full.”

“Ah? Is today some special day?” Shao Shuyi asked, surprised.

The staff member replied helplessly, “Today is Saturday.”

Shao Shuyi didn’t often manage the shop’s affairs, so she didn’t have much special privilege. Hearing this, she froze for a moment, then turned to find her parents. Seeing her mother restocking the wine cabinet in the distance, she patted the hands of Jiang Lu and Liang Shuang and darted off in a flash to beg for special treatment.

Watching Shao Shuyi’s figure move so fast it left an afterimage, Jiang Lu turned to Liang Shuang with a wry smile. “See? She has great explosive power.”

“I see it,” Liang Shuang nodded. “So, normally, she’s just pure lazy.”

Jiang Lu: “…” Unable to refute.

Shao Shuyi leaned over the counter to explain the situation, looking expectantly at her mother, Shao Xuan, who was dressed in a shirt and trousers.

Shao Xuan finished checking the receipts and turned to her daughter, whose eyes were shining like a puppy’s. She looked up to see the two Alpha girls standing in the distance, then nodded and said, “It’s their first time here; we should host them properly. But the upstairs is full… I remember one room where the guests arrived very early; they should be finishing up. How about this: you take them upstairs to hang out for a bit. I’ll tell Xiao Ge. If the room isn’t cleared in ten minutes, I’ll set up a table for you in the lounge. It’s on me.”

Shao Shuyi nodded vigorously. “Okay, Mom! Thanks, Mom!”

“Go on, don’t keep your classmates waiting,” Shao Xuan said, pulling out her phone to make a call.

Jiang Lu was too far away to see Shao Shuyi’s mother’s features clearly, but noticing she was quite a bit taller than Shuyi, she poked Liang Shuang in amazement. “I didn’t expect Auntie Shao to be an Alpha.”

“Oh? Really?” Liang Shuang was looking around, but she looked over at Jiang Lu’s exclamation. “The one in the dark blue shirt?”

Jiang Lu: “Mhm.”

Liang Shuang thought of the father Shao Shuyi occasionally mentioned, and her narrow phoenix eyes widened. “Oh! Then her dad is an Omega?!”

Jiang Lu: “Looks like it.”

Shao Shuyi returned, sensing that the looks her two classmates were giving her were a bit different. She smiled and led them toward the lounge. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

The Alpha girls behind her shook their heads in unison. “Nothing.”

Shao Shuyi was so excited by their arrival that she didn’t have time to dwell on small matters. Hearing them say it was nothing, she believed them. Beaming with joy, she led them through the corridor of private rooms. Just as she was about to explain the situation, the door to a private room on the front right creaked open.

A short-haired Omega in all black walked out with a sullen face. The Omega looked somewhat familiar, especially that eerie quality between her brows.

Shao Shuyi didn’t like the vibe. Her expression shifted slightly as she keenly sensed the irritability radiating from the other person. She tactfully stepped half a pace to the side. As she withdrew her gaze, she recalled the Omega she had encountered in the classroom on the first day of school. Her heart skipped a beat, and she couldn’t help but look back again.

Then she realized: the person before her had the same hairstyle, features, and gaze as the one in her memory. Her hair was slightly longer than when they met at the start of term, and she wore sunglasses with lenses so light they didn’t hide anything. Her skin was a shade darker—that was the biggest difference.

It was indeed the same person.

Upon realizing this, Shao Shuyi didn’t even need to look back to know that the other woman’s surprised and playful gaze was definitely fixed on Jiang Lu. Realizing this, the smile on Shao Shuyi’s face faded. She hesitated for a moment, then confirmed that the person behind her had no intention of stopping, and continued walking forward.

Liang Shuang knew more than Shao Shuyi. Having observed Su Mengrui’s attitude toward Jiang Lu both up close and from a distance, she intensely disliked her looking at Jiang Lu that way. She proactively stepped to the side to block her.

Jiang Lu was very surprised to run into Su Mengrui here. Seeing Liang Shuang shielding her, her heart couldn’t help but warm as she followed Shuyi’s lead.

Just as they were about to pass, Su Mengrui—who had been frozen in place for a long time—finally spoke: “Jiang Lu, you ruined my marriage prospects. Aren’t you going to give me an explanation?”

Liang Shuang and Shao Shuyi stopped in their tracks. Jiang Lu, sandwiched between them, didn’t change her expression at all. As if she had heard nothing, she said in a relaxed tone, “Let’s go. Why stop?”

Hearing Jiang Lu treat her like air again, Su Mengrui laughed with rage. “Heh, you’re arrogant. I really hope you can stay this arrogant forever.”

Hearing her speak through gritted teeth, Jiang Lu suddenly turned and stopped directly opposite her. “And if I don’t?”

Behind her lenses, Su Mengrui’s eyes narrowed into a dangerous arc. She tilted her head up. “Don’t challenge me, Jiang Lu. You have no idea what I’m capable of.”

Jiang Lu looked down at Su Mengrui, who was only a flick of a tongue and a tail away from being a venomous snake. Her expression was one of disgust. “How would I not know? Someone who sabotages their own Alpha out of spite and then tries to blame others—is there anything you aren’t capable of?”

“You want an ‘explanation’ from me? Su Mengrui, you really are thick-skinned.”

Su Mengrui watched the Alpha whose breath brushed against her face as she spoke. her pupils quivered, her tone carrying a threat: “Jiang Lu!”

Jiang Lu raised an eyebrow, ignoring the warning. “You all heard that, right? If anything happens to me in the future—”

The expressions of Liang Shuang and Shao Shuyi beside her changed instantly, both looking at Su Mengrui, who looked like she wanted to eat someone alive. Su Mengrui’s molars ground together audibly, but in this moment, she had no way to deal with the three Alphas before her.

She extended her index finger and jabbed it forcefully toward Jiang Lu. “Fine. Just you remember this.”

Jiang Lu stepped back the moment the fingernail was about to touch her. “I hope you remember too: as an adult, don’t keep harassing a minor. If I get annoyed enough, I really will call the police.”

Su Mengrui’s ugly complexion reached a new level. She watched the Alpha girl who walked away without looking back, her right hand clenched in a fist that trembled in mid-air.

Fine. Very well!

Not a single one of them respects me!

Fine then, don’t blame me…

Su Mengrui exhaled a breath of stagnant air and walked quickly downstairs while pulling out her phone to send a text: Send me that number I asked you for last time again!

In the lounge, Jiang Lu and Liang Shuang sat casually on the soft leather sofa, listening to Shao Shuyi introduce her family’s signature dishes. After hearing a string of five heavy dishes that Jiang Lu couldn’t eat, Liang Shuang decisively raised her hand to stop her.

“Stop, stop, stop. I’ve heard of these before; no need for such a detailed introduction. To tell you the truth, we came here today for your restaurant’s ‘fat-loss’ meals.”

“Fat-loss meals?” Shao Shuyi was baffled. “You want to eat fat-loss meals? Why?”

Jiang Lu teased her: “To lose weight.”

“Lose weight? You guys?” Shao Shuyi’s pupils shook. “No way, are you trying to drive me to despair? Huh?”

Liang Shuang burst out laughing. “She’s teasing you.”

Shao Shuyi: “…”

Jiang Lu chuckled and nodded. “Actually, I have to watch my diet; I can’t eat anything with heavy flavors. Your fat-loss meals were viral online for a while, and we thought they sounded healthy, so we came.”

“Watch your diet?” A light flashed in Shao Shuyi’s eyes as she accurately caught the point. “I didn’t hear anything about this at school yesterday. So sudden? Jiang Lu, is your rut coming?”

Liang Shuang was stunned. “Holy crap, Shao Shuyi, you’re good.”

Jiang Lu was also surprised, giving a thumbs-up to the gossipy Shao Shuyi opposite her.

Shao Shuyi waved it off sheepishly. “No, no. Just the sensitivity of someone who’s already been through it.”

At these words, the two opposite her were even more shocked. They said in unison: “You’ve had yours?”

Shao Shuyi nodded with a smile. “Yes. It happened just a few days into the summer break. To be honest, the ‘fat-loss’ meal you mentioned was actually a modification my parents made based on the nutritional meals I had during that time.”

“Then we came to the right place!” Liang Shuang clapped happily. “When mine comes, I’ll come to your place to eat too.”

While they were talking, there was a knock at the door. Shao Shuyi opened it to find the floor manager, Sister Ge. Knowing the room was clear, she immediately turned to usher the two on the sofa to follow.

Two minutes later, the three of them stopped in front of the private room Su Mengrui had just emerged from. Shao Shuyi looked at Jiang Lu awkwardly. “How about we go back and eat in the lounge?”

Jiang Lu gave the two people blocking the door a strange look and squeezed past them. “A ready-made private room? Why? Don’t take us for customers? We’re here to spend money, not to freeload. Liang Shuang has plenty of money.”

“Right, Liang Shuang?”

Liang Shuang followed her in. “That’s right. I’m so poor all I have left is money.”

Shao Shuyi let out a sigh of relief. After entering, she was the first to tear open a disinfectant wipe and scrubbed every chair that Omega might have sat on. Then she pulled an alcohol spray from a cabinet and sprayed the rotating table inside and out.

Jiang Lu watched with respect. “Wow, your family is really meticulous!”

Liang Shuang agreed. “Tell me about it. First time I’ve seen disinfection this thorough.”

“Hehe, let me tell you—and I’m not boasting—there isn’t another place in all of Liancheng with better service than ours!” Shao Shuyi said seriously as she sprayed the rest of the room. After confirming nothing was missed, she even sprayed the door handles inside and out.