Kill The Marriage Chapter 12
Chapter 12: The Whole Story
“Well, you didn’t exactly earn a small amount before, and you have four parents to mooch off of, so tiding over this period shouldn’t be a problem. I’ll listen to the details when I get back from physical therapy. If I don’t leave now, I’ll be late.”
With that, Ren Zhong packed up the relevant documents needed for his physical therapy and set off for the rehabilitation center.
Waiting until Ren Zhong got back to talk? Wouldn’t the daylilies be cold by then? Shang Liwei plopped her butt down on the sofa and pulled Zhang Qingyuan into a chat.
Zhang Qingyuan’s gaze involuntarily darted back and forth between Shang Liwei and Mi Tong’s purse right beside her butt. It was truly a heart-stopping experience.
“…Why are you dressed up like a penguin?” Shang Liwei complained.
Zhang Qingyuan pulled out a tissue and wiped the sweat off his forehead, his lies becoming increasingly polished. “I went to the cooling room to fix the air conditioning earlier.”
The two didn’t dwell on the topic of the puffer jacket for too long, moving on to the reason behind Shang Liwei’s unemployment.
“I got fired by the research institute because they needed to protect themselves.” She casually picked up the lime water Mi Tong had been drinking and took a sip. “My research results severely contradicted the direction the government is promoting. If they were published, the consequences would be quite dire.”
Hearing that her research went against the government’s advocacy, Zhang Qingyuan suppressed the excitement in his heart. Adopting a casual, conversational tone, he asked neutrally, “How dire?”
“Oh, just dire enough to completely overthrow the worldview of the vast majority of people. A few hundred years ago, I reckon I would have been tied to a stake and burned as a witch.”
Shifting gears, she dropped her playful tone. “Put it this way: someday in the distant future, the traits of the Alpha and Omega genders will inevitably disappear, and everyone will turn into Beta men and women.”
A flash of astonishment crossed Zhang Qingyuan’s eyes. “Are you saying that the continuous decline in the birth rates of Alphas and Omegas over the last ten years is because… Alpha and Omega gender traits are destined to be phased out through evolution?”
The genders that had always been considered more “noble” and “powerful” had, in fact, long since reached a dead end.
Shang Liwei nodded. “Exactly. Only a steady, conservative developmental strategy ensures the highest survival rate and is most likely to be retained. Unstable traits like the distinct heat cycles and susceptible periods belonging to As and Os are no longer suited for modern life.”
She added, “But this is a matter for the very distant future—something for the grandkids’ grandkids’ grandkids, many generations down the line. It has nothing to do with us in the present. What’s closer to us, what’s enough to impact the present, is something else entirely.”
“What is it?” Zhang Qingyuan asked.
She replied, “The Compulsory Marriage Matching Act and the operating mechanism of this society dictate that Alphas sit at the top of the pyramid, Omegas are precious yet degraded reproductive resources, and the bottom-tier Betas are the most numerous ‘worker bees.’ But is that really the truth?”
Zhang Qingyuan pondered for a moment before saying, “Not necessarily. Deconstructing the world from the perspective of vested interests will inevitably result in a distortion of facts.”
“Exactly.” Seeing that the other party was a sensible person who could be reasoned with, Shang Liwei continued, “Regarding Omegas, particularly male Omegas, the truth is very likely entirely different from our established societal understanding.”
In order to make the originally obscure content simpler and easier to understand, Shang Liwei chuckled sleazily and told a story from the animal kingdom.
…
Spring has arrived, and once again, it is mating season.
The victimized male snake, “Little Zhang”, had a slender snake body, beautiful patterns, and two hard, spiky balls.
Today, he was going to court his dream snake. As long as one egg in the other’s clutch was his, “Little Zhang” would have successfully completed his reproductive mission as a male snake.
However, on his way to court the goddess snake, he encountered a snake blocking his path.
It was a beautiful “female snake” emitting sweet female pheromones, instantly replacing the goddess snake’s position in Zhang Qingyuan’s heart.
“Little Zhang” eagerly coiled around this “female snake.” Amidst the other party’s delicate, alluring, and half-hearted cries of “Yamete,” he bullied her, loved her, and conquered her. Afterward, he pulled out ruthlessly, marking and leaving this female snake who would surely lay eggs for him.
He thought, the baby snakes born would definitely be very beautiful, right?
Little did he know, that pretty “female snake” not only had a slender snake body and beautiful patterns just like him, but also possessed two hard “spiky balls” just like his.
Having squeezed “Little Zhang” completely dry, the male snake retracted his female pheromones and found the real goddess snake, having her lay a unique clutch of snake eggs for him.
This was “Zhongzhong.”
A cunning and multifaceted Omega, an evolutionary genius and mastermind.
“Zhongzhong” endured humiliation, slept on brushwood and tasted gall. At the cost of his own chrysanthemum, he exhausted his competitor’s stamina, stole their genetic information, and became the ultimate winner.
Meanwhile, the deceived male snake, “Little Zhang”, was still thinking about letting “Zhongzhong” lay snake eggs for him again next year.
…
“…” Zhang Qingyuan felt like he was being subtly insulted, and he had ample evidence to prove it.
However, through the other party’s teasing, he seemed to understand what she was trying to say.
Shang Liwei explained, “The true nature of a male Omega is highly likely to use pheromones to masquerade as a female and confuse competitors. As a gender tasked with passing on genetic information, the male Omega is not a dodder plant that relies on an Alpha; they might even be in a competitive relationship with Alphas.”
“There have been news reports and sociological papers describing how many male Omegas, after being ‘marked,’ cannot fool around with other Alphas, yet can cheat with female Betas and female Omegas… Could this be the reason?” Zhang Qingyuan looked thoughtful.
Shang Liwei nodded in affirmation, adding, “Male Omegas are creatures prioritizing the transmission of genetics above all else. Thus, they slowly evolved, utilizing the semen of other male snakes inside their bodies to get themselves pregnant, leaving behind offspring that unequivocally belong to them. Dual plugs, double insurance.”
This was the hypothesis she had formulated based on gender research conducted on a certain species of snake.
A new theory powerful enough to overturn the fixed perceptions of an entire society is usually branded as “heresy” in the beginning.
“No wonder your supervisor was so eager to fire you…” A chill ran up Zhang Qingyuan’s spine. “If this kind of thing were proven true, it would cause massive social upheaval.”
Shang Liwei shrugged. “Who says it wouldn’t?”
She slumped down diagonally onto the sofa. “I feel like I need to hold off a bit longer before telling Mi Tong about this. Can I hide out here at the Captain’s house for today?”
When she said the word “Captain,” she deliberately placed extra emphasis on it.
“Of course, no problem.” Zhang Qingyuan chuckled helplessly. “I still have guests upstairs. Please make yourself at home. If you’re thirsty or hungry, there’s everything in the fridge. If you need anything else, just send me a message.”
She was quite content and at ease. “Got it, thanks for the hospitality!”
With that, she expertly turned on the TV screen casting and immersed herself in online media, just like all old, unemployed wash-outs.
It looked as if Shang Liwei was already a salted fish lying flat, completely incapable of making any more waves.
But after Zhang Qingyuan went upstairs, she sneakily pulled out her phone, opened an email address labeled “Mysterious Hacker,” and prepared to write a reply.
…
Zhang Qingyuan slowly walked up the stairs step by step, sorting out his thoughts.
This bombshell news not only had a massive impact on his action plans, but it also shook the very way he thought about this world.
He needed to take a moment to process.
Reaching the second floor, he took a deep breath.
Only then did he remember that he still had two rather significant troubles waiting for him to resolve here.
Zhang Qingyuan decided to ditch his sister for a moment and check on Lawyer Mai first.
No one in the study, no one in the gym, no one in the storage room, no one in the guest bathroom…
“She couldn’t have hidden in the Captain’s room, could she?” Zhang Qingyuan knocked on the door a few times and pushed it open.
Inside the door, in Ren Zhong’s room, his sister was hugging Lawyer Mai’s thigh, bawling her eyes out.
A small soup pot had overturned onto Ren Zhong’s favorite little rug, soaking the carpet in the scent of frozen wontons and seaweed-egg-shred broth.
“Sister Mai, your immense grace and virtue, this lowly woman will never forget! You truly are a living Bodhisattva to Xiao Heng and me!” His sister wiped away snot and tears, nearly rubbing them all over Lawyer Mai’s suit pants.
Zhang Qingyuan: “…”
His world had truly collapsed way too many times in a single day!
Left without a choice, Zhang Qingyuan could only bring out his sense of responsibility as a virtuous wife and clean up the mess himself.
He first peeled his sister off Lawyer Mai’s leg and used a tissue to wipe clean her tear-stained face. Then, he fetched a basin of water and some detergent, hand-washing the non-machine-washable rug on the spot, scrubbing the carpet while simultaneously multitasking to handle business.
“Before this, I only knew she was Zhan Heng’s girlfriend. I truly had no idea she was your sister.” Lawyer Mai pushed up her glasses.
Zhang Qingyuan wiped the sweat off his forehead. “And I only learned about her ‘glorious’ deeds today.”
“And as for me, I also only found out today that Lawyer Mai is a member of KFM.” His sister grinned cheekily.
KFM, short for Kill Force Marriage.
This organization consisted of a group of people working against the Compulsory Marriage Matching Act. Its existence had only one purpose: to dismantle the compulsory matching marriage mechanism.
Lawyer Mai was unexpectedly open-minded about it. “I am a firm celibate. There is no place for love in my life plans, yet I was forced into a matched marriage. The boy who married me is a very good kid, but I can’t give him the feelings and responses he wants.”
She recalled, “When he proactively confessed this relationship, he also said that between them, it’s nothing more than ‘she can give what I want, and I can give what she wants’. It’s a very simple matter. If it weren’t for compulsory marriages and difficult divorce procedures, things wouldn’t have developed like this.”
Beep!
A childish computer notification sound ruined the current atmosphere.
“Sorry, that’s mine.” His sister dug out a laptop from her dirty satchel. “I’ll mute it right now…”
However, after flipping open the laptop screen, she froze.
“What’s wrong?” Zhang Qingyuan asked her.
His sister chuckled “hehe” and turned the screen around. “Look, Shang Liwei has decided to join us.”
Translator’s Note:
- Daylilies will be cold (黄花菜都凉了 – Huáng huā cài dōu liáng le): A common Chinese idiom meaning something is too late, or the prime opportunity has passed.
- Endured humiliation, slept on brushwood and tasted gall (忍辱負重、卧薪嘗膽 – Rěn rǔ fù zhòng, wò xīn cháng dǎn): Famous idioms referring to King Goujian of Yue, meaning to endure great hardships and humiliation in order to bide one’s time for revenge or to achieve an ultimate goal.
- Chrysanthemum (菊花 – Jú huā): A common Chinese internet slang term for the anus.
- Salted Fish (咸鱼 – Xián yú): Slang for a person who lacks ambition, has given up, or prefers a lazy, laid-back lifestyle (“lying flat”).