Apex Predator - Chap 35

On the last working day before the New Year, Shen Dai cooperated with the lawyer to finalise the legal entity change of the company.

Although the lawyer said that there were many steps left before the merger could be considered a success, Shen Dai still found the process overly efficient.

Because it had been stipulated at the beginning that this marriage would last for a maximum duration of five years, he had naturally assumed that the process would take a few years, at the very least. But it now seemed that it would most likely be completed by next year. At that point, they would no longer have any reason to sustain their marital relationship,  and all that would be left was for Qu Moyu to call for it to end.

Shen Dai knew that worrying about it was pointless, but this matter of getting Qu Moyu to like him back was truly a “race against the clock”. He just couldn’t see how it was going to be possible.

Returning home on day twenty-nine of the twelfth lunar month to accompany his Grandmother for dinner, he informed them he was going to South Africa on a business trip and would not be able to celebrate the New Year at home. This was only a half-truth, in any case, he couldn’t well let them know that he was planning to spend the New Year at the Qu residence.

While Shen Qin was washing the dishes after their meal, Shen Dai went into the kitchen.

“I just transferred some money over to you. It’s the New Year, so go get something tastier to eat. I’ll be away on this business for at least ten days this time. Make sure to look after the house and don’t forget the scheduled follow-up appointments at the hospital. If anything happens to Grandma, you can contact me at all hours.”

“You don’t have to worry.” Shen Qin gave Shen Dai a glance before venturing softly, “You still aren’t willing to call me Dad?”

Without giving him an immediate answer, Shen Dai then replied, “I hope you won’t meddle in my affairs. I can manage my own life. Just take good care of Grandma, that’s all. I will support you in your old age, but there won’t be any further association between us.”

The hands scrubbing the dishes came to a stop. Shen Qin looked at his son without blinking, his gorgeous pair of almond-shaped eyes gradually turning red. “If only your father were capable enough, he would have been good to both you, and given you all the best things in the world.”

Shen Dai shook his head, unmoved. “I stopped having any expectations from you a long time ago. But I don’t hate you anymore. Just don’t cause any more problems for us. That’s all I ask.”

He was inclined to believe his father’s words. Provided that Shen Qin had money, he would not be stingy with them. He even recalled receiving expensive toys and clothes from his father during his childhood. But Shen Qin loved himself above everyone else, and was only generous with them after satisfying his own needs. In whatever decisions there were in life, this person would always choose himself, even if it meant hurting the ones closest to him.

In his father’s heart, he was neither the beloved child nor the apple of his eye who was loved unconditionally. The greatest value of his existence was being used as leverage against You Xinghai, whether it was for affection or money. But when he was no longer of any use, he became a burden to be tossed to his grandmother and grandfather.

At this point, it made no difference whether he hated his father or forgave him. All that was left between them was his filial obligation to provide financial support.

On the eve of the New Year, Old Wu drove Qu Moyu and him up to the mountains where the old man of the Qu family was convalescing. Over the course of the journey, Shen Dai was able to gain a rough understanding of the structure of the Qu family.

Old Man Qu had two Alpha sons, along with a Beta daughter and an Omega son. The latter two had been married off much earlier, since Betas and Omegas were ineligible to inherit the family’s estate.

This year, the whole family was back for the festivities, as according to the doctor’s assessment, it was very likely to be Grandfather Qu’s last Chinese New Year.

Thinking about something, Qu Moyu smiled, “Speaking of it, because I have you this year, I can be the first one to represent the third generation and offer tea to the elders.”

Shen Dai looked at him with a puzzled expression.

“My eldest paternal uncle is the firstborn son. He has always been the first to serve tea and will conveniently bring his son along with him. My parents and I can only be second in line, since I am not the oldest grandchild after all. But now that I am married and have a family of my own, we’ll be the first ones to serve tea right after the second generation has finished.”

Listening to all this made Shen Dai’s head start to spin. He could never have imagined that prominent families in modern society were still this feudalistic. And the fact that Qu Moyu was so unexpectedly competitive, to the point of wanting to have a contest with Qu Chengchen over the matter, was something he was truly unable to comprehend.

“Doesn’t Qu Chengchen call you his Big Brother? Aren’t you the eldest grandson?” he asked.

“Yes, but also no. We also have an older Alpha sister.”

“I actually hadn’t heard about her at all.” If there was indeed another Alpha in the Qu family, they would likely be holding a prominent position within Xingzhou today. As a longstanding employee of Xingzhou, how was it possible that he had never heard of such an individual?

“She’s dead,” stated Qu Moyu, matter-of-factly.

”Ah…”

Qu Moyu slowly turned his head towards the window, gazing out at the rapidly disappearing scenery. It was clear he had no desire to continue with this subject.

The estate where Grandfather Qu was currently residing was a small-scale sanatorium. The various ramps, handrails, soundproofing installations, and low-intensity lighting that could be seen all around had been designed specifically for the elderly. And according to Qu Moyu, there was even a medical team stationed there.

“Let’s go and meet my mum and dad first.”

In the living room, Qu Moyu found Qu Shen, who was presently reading a book. Seeing them both, he gave a nod. “You’re back. Did you have a safe ride over?”

The road leading up the mountain had been covered with half-melted half-frozen snow, making it very slippery.

“Old Wu drove very slowly,” answered Qu Moyu, who then asked, “Where is my mother?”

Qu Shen took a glance out the window. “Outside, admiring the plum blossoms. And on such a cold day…” He looked towards Shen Dai. “Why don’t you go over and give her this blanket?”

“Alright, Director Qu,” answered Shen Dai. Picking up the blanket from the sofa, he then headed out into the garden. Sure enough, he found Mrs Qu in the midst of using her mobile phone to capture an image of the plum branches which had been wrapped in silver frost. In the heart of the bitter cold, every cluster was a defiant shade of crimson.

As Shen Dai set his foot onto the snowy ground, a crunching sound resonated from beneath his feet.

But she remained entirely engrossed in her photograph, her jade-white hands now visibly red from the biting cold. She was still as beautiful and graceful as ever, exuding an elegant charm. A single plum blossom standing out from all others amidst the snowy landscape.

Shaking out the blanket, Shen Dai called out softly, “Mrs Qu.”

She turned her head towards him and gave him a smile. “See how beautiful these plum blossoms are when they bloom? Some flowers are just this independent and unconventional, thriving even without a warm climate.”

“They are. Why not put on this blanket. The snow is falling and it’s too cold.” said Shen Dai, draping the blanket over her shoulders.

“It is quite cold. And you’re wearing so little. Let’s go back inside,” said Mrs Qu, breathing out a puff of white air.

While the both of them retreated into the house, Mrs Qu remained standing by the immense floor-to-ceiling windows and continued to admire the plum blossoms.

“I didn’t think that Moyu would bring you back. The Lunar New Year period is always the most boring time of the year.”

“Moyu told me that the Old Man wanted to meet with the wife of his grandson.”

“He wants to know when you can give birth to an Alpha for the Qu family.” Mrs Qu smiled. “But he still doesn’t know that your pheromone grade is only B.”

Though Shen Dai felt a little awkward, there was no way for him to politely leave.

“Don’t be fooled by his age. In fact, deep down he’s well aware of everything. He knows exactly why Moyu married you. He’s also fully aware that once he’s gone, his two eldest sons will inevitably start to fight,” she said, an unmistakable hint of mockery within her smile. “He’s desperate to maintain whatever control he can with the time he has left. It’s only now that he realises the detrimental effects of internal strife. Yet back when he was raising his children up to be fighting beasts, wasn’t he so proud of his educational philosophy?”

For a moment he had a hard time understanding why Mrs. Qu would be sharing these things with an outsider like himself. But on second thought, perhaps it was precisely that he was an outsider, who had nothing to gain personally from the matter and didn’t dare gossip about the affairs of the Qu family. At the same time, he also happened to be involved in their story, and could understand the details of the narrative she was retelling. That was why she had chosen to confide in him.

Or maybe it was just because this upper-class lady had no better outlet for her resentment.

That was exactly what it was: Resentment. Shen Dai could sense the resentment towards the Qu family radiating off her body. Though she spoke gently and softly, every word of hers contained a sting.

He was aware that he was only being used as a tool. Given that Qu Moyu could make use of him, it was only natural that his mother could as well. This worked out in his favour, since he had been wanting to gain a better understanding of Qu Moyu’s upbringing. So he simply followed her lead and asked, “Why would you say that?” His question was intentionally vague, and could have referred to any one of her statements, giving her some leeway to elaborate.

“Because that’s just how my husband and son were brought up,” said Mrs Qu, gazing at him quietly. “ Coming from a normal family, you won’t be able to understand. Someone like Xiao Yue is capable of becoming a daughter-in-law of the Qu family — you are not.”

Indeed, he had no way of refuting that statement, even on a psychological level.

Her eyes were gentle, yet there was still a sharpness about them. “I know that you and Moyu are together now. Are both of you using contraceptives?”

This made him feel even more uncomfortable. He pretended to remain calm and nodded. “We had an agreement, so we’re not going to have any children.” Pausing for a moment, he added, “You can rest assured.”

“That’s a good thing for you,” she said, wrapping the blanket more tightly around herself. “If you can’t give birth to a top Alpha, your child will be worthless to the Qu family.”

The sentence was far too callous; His heart trembled fiercely in response.

He already knew it was impossible for Qu Moyu to have a child with him. He was just an omega with a pheromone grade of B after all. For him to give birth to an A-class alpha would already be considered lucky, the odds of him giving birth to an S-class alpha were even less than winning the lottery. After all, the combination most likely to produce an S-class alpha was another S-class alpha with an S-class omega, the latter being Qu Moyu’s requirement for his future wife.

Despite all this, the utilitarianism and disregard for life manifested within those words still made him feel sick.

“Are pheromone grades all that important?” Shen Dai could not stop himself from asking. That was only half of his question. The remaining half – what he genuinely wanted to say – he kept to himself.

What he had wanted to say — was that to place the weight of one’s judgement on reproductive abilities completely disregarded all other capabilities of omegas as human beings, and he was not going to accept this system of classification which labelled him as a lower-class individual.

But he knew better than to delve into this question with one of his elders. As they came from different generations, there was just no way to reconcile the disparity in their perspectives through words.

“Of course they are. Especially in the world of Alphas,” she said, with a sigh. “Did you know that Moyu actually had an older female cousin on his father’s side? She also happened to be Chengchen’s sister.”

“He mentioned it. He told me that she was no longer around.”

“She was a lovely young woman. An A-class Alpha, which was outstanding enough to begin with. It’s a pity that…” Mrs Qu lowered her gaze, making no effort to conceal her own sorrow. “Her tragedy began the day Moyu was born, and reached its peak after Chengchen’s birth.”

“…Why was that?”

“Because she had two younger brothers that she could never hope to compete with. Despite her relentless efforts, the genetic gap was simply impossible to overcome. Though she was clearly the firstborn child of the eldest branch of the family, she had been limited to taking charge of secondary businesses at Xingzhou. For an Alpha from a privileged upbringing with a strong sense of self-worth, it was a devastating blow. No matter how fortunate and wealthy she appeared to outsiders, she could only live in state of self-doubt and unhappiness.”

Mrs Qu pressed her forehead against the icy-cold window lightly. “She died of a drug overdose, in San Francisco. At the time of her death, she was younger than Moyu.”