Top-Tier Omega: Chasing Alpha to the Crematorium – Chapter 2

The Two-Year Agreement

Ming Yu!

Song Qingpei’s eyes widened instantly, but after a moment, she slowly calmed down. A sense of resigned certainty washed over her—with Ming Yu’s power, she was bound to be found. It was only a matter of time.

            

But no matter what, her daughter was the only family she had in this world. She would never let Ming Yu take her away.

She took a step forward, warily sizing up the old acquaintance she hadn’t seen in two years.

Ming Yu was as beautiful as ever. Her long, silky black hair was casually tied up, revealing a slender neck and fair collarbones. She was elegant and noble, a faint but distant smile on her face, just as cold as she had been after regaining her memories.

            

My wife died two years ago, Song Qingpei thought. Stop deluding yourself.

The intense sorrow rising in Song Qingpei’s heart gradually faded in the face of Ming Yu’s indifference. Feigning ignorance, she probed, “Admiral Ming Yu, what do you want?”

Ming Yu didn’t even spare her a glance. Her gaze swept delicately past Song Qingpei and landed on Song Song’s little face, studying her closely. For a moment, her calm, detached expression wavered.

            

After a long pause, she knelt down and opened her arms toward her daughter. “Songsong, come here. Let me see you.”

Song Song looked up at Ming Yu, her dark, round eyes filled with curiosity, but not fear. This pretty auntie looked like the person she had just seen on the screen.

She couldn’t help but take a step forward. “Auntie, I’ve seen you before. Are you Mama’s friend?”

            

Ming Yu’s expression soured at the word “Auntie.” She shot Song Qingpei a venomous look, her eyes brimming with murderous intent.

But not wanting to scare her daughter during their first meeting, she suppressed her surging anger and forced a gentle expression. “Songsong,” she said softly, “I’m your Mommy.”

“Mommy?”

            

Song Song froze, looking confusedly at the nervous Song Qingpei beside her. She leaned in and whispered in her ear, “Mama, didn’t you say Mommy died?”

Song Qingpei was speechless.

Back then, the little one was always crying for her mommy, and Song Qingpei did harbor some resentment toward the wife who had abandoned her. So, she had casually said, “Your mommy went to heaven.” She never expected it to be repeated so bluntly in front of Ming Yu, the “deceased” herself.

            

As expected, Ming Yu’s face instantly turned cold, her glare as sharp as frost.

Song Qingpei brazened it out, pretending not to see. What was said was said.

The little girl next to them seemed oblivious to the tense atmosphere, her little mouth still chattering away. “Mama, say something. This pretty auntie isn’t a liar, is she? Is she going to kidnap me and sell me?”

            

Ming Yu couldn’t take it anymore. “Song. Qing. Pei,” she said through gritted teeth.

“Why are you yelling? Trying to show how loud you can be?” Song Qingpei muttered under her breath. “Our daughter was always crying for her mommy. I had no choice but to say that.”

Ming Yu was so angry she lost her composure. She pointed a finger at Song Qingpei and raged, “So you told our daughter I was dead?”

            

Feeling a little guilty, Song Qingpei pulled Song Song closer and coaxed her softly, “Songsong, it’s true. She is your Mommy.”

Her mommy wasn’t dead. This amazing auntie was her mommy. She wasn’t a poor child with no mommy.

Song Song blinked her big eyes, looking back and forth between Song Qingpei and Ming Yu. With innocent confusion, she asked, “Are you really my Mommy? Then why did you abandon me and Mama?”

            

The question made Ming Yu choke, and the fire in her heart was instantly extinguished.

She couldn’t explain adult matters to a child. Back then, while she was suppressing a rebel army, her mech had unfortunately crashed. It happened to be during her heat, and by a strange twist of fate, she had relations with this low-grade A, Song Qingpei, and even had a daughter.

Song Qingpei was unworthy of marking her, let alone having her child. The moment she regained her memories, her first instinct was to erase this humiliating past. But she never imagined that Song Qingpei would be audacious enough to run away with their daughter.

            

Now, two years later, her daughter was a stranger to her. If she used force to take her away, would her daughter resent her? For a moment, the decisive Admiral found herself hesitating.

It was all the fault of this despicable low-grade A, Song Qingpei. She would not let her off lightly.

Unfortunately, she couldn’t show her true colors in front of her daughter right now. Ming Yu concealed her murderous intent, walked over to her daughter, and patiently explained, “Songsong, Mommy didn’t leave you. Mommy… went to…”

            

“Mommy went to fight pirates, to protect more people.”

Song Qingpei suddenly interjected, coaxing with a smile, “Songsong, didn’t you just see Mommy fighting pirates on the big screen? You even said Mommy was pretty and amazing, a great hero.”

Ming Yu shot her a strange look, surprised that Song Qingpei would help her lie.

            

Song Qingpei was focused on her daughter, so she didn’t notice her gaze.

“Oh, right! I saw that!”

Song Song’s eyes lit up. She suddenly remembered the mech model Song Qingpei had given her and immediately took it out, holding it up to Ming Yu and gesturing excitedly. “Did Mommy pilot a tall, big mech like this to fight the pirates? Mommy is so cool! Songsong wants to pilot a mech and fight pirates in the future, too!”

            

Hearing the word ‘Mommy’ from her daughter’s lips, the usually stoic Ming Yu felt a pang of emotion.

She awkwardly patted her daughter’s shoulder and promised with a serious expression, “Okay. Mommy promises you. I’ll take you to pilot a real mech in the future, how about that?”

“Okay!”

            

Song Song bounced with excitement and held out her hand to Ming Yu. “Pinky promise.”

Ming Yu looked momentarily lost. She didn’t know what a pinky promise was.

Seeing this, Song Qingpei silently extended her own pinky finger and hooked it with Song Song’s, providing a quiet demonstration. Ming Yu’s expression flickered, but she followed suit.

            

“We have to seal it with a thumbprint, too,” Song Song said, pressing her thumb against Ming Yu’s as she chanted, “Pinky hook, hang, one hundred years no change.”​¹

Following these childish actions, a faint smile appeared on Ming Yu’s cold face.

Song Song reminded her, “Mommy, you haven’t said it yet.”

            

Ming Yu reluctantly whispered along, “Pinky hook, hang, one hundred years no change.”

Watching this heartwarming scene, Song Qingpei felt a sharp pain in her heart.

This was the family she had always longed for. But the Ming Yu who had regained her memories looked down on her. The two of them were destined to fight over their daughter’s custody, yet she couldn’t bear to let the ugliness between the adults harm their child.

            

She softened her tone and coaxed, “Songsong, Mama has something to talk about with Mommy. Can you go play in your room for a little while?”

Song Song tilted her head and thought for a moment, then finally nodded obediently. “Okay, Songsong will wait for Mama.”

Song Qingpei breathed a sigh of relief and took Song Song’s hand, leading her to the children’s room. At the doorway, Song Song turned to look at Ming Yu, then stopped and asked quietly, “Mommy, are you going to leave again soon?”

            

Ming Yu was taken aback and blurted out, “Does Songsong not want Mommy to go?”

Song Song shook her head. She pouted her little lips and said earnestly, “Songsong wants Mommy.”

“Then will Songsong come with Mommy?” Ming Yu probed, seizing the opportunity.

            

“Okay!” Song Song laughed happily, then turned to Song Qingpei. “Mama, you said we were going home to pack. Were you going to take me to find Mommy?”

Feeling Ming Yu’s sharp gaze on her, Song Qingpei was at a loss for words.

This little padded jacket of hers was really full of holes.​² Song Qingpei paused for a second before quickly ushering her daughter into the room.

            

“Alright, Songsong, you play by yourself for a bit. We’ll come play with you after we’re done talking.”

Song Qingpei took a deep breath, silently steeling herself before turning to face her former wife, now the high and mighty Admiral of the empire.

The door was already closed. Outside stood soldiers armed with live ammunition.

            

Ming Yu had already turned and seated herself on the sofa, legs crossed, back straight. One hand rested on her knee while the other lightly tapped the back of it, a picture of leisure.

Seeing this gesture made Song Qingpei even more nervous. She gritted her teeth and walked over, forcing herself to remain calm.

Before she could say anything, Ming Yu suddenly spoke. “Song Qingpei, why did you help me just now?”

            

“I just didn’t want Songsong to think she was abandoned.”

Ming Yu sneered. “So you told her I was dead.”

“…” Song Qingpei was speechless for a moment, then tried to argue, “Being dead is different from being abandoned.”

            

“How is it different?”

“She would be very sad if she were abandoned. She’d think something was wrong with her, that she wasn’t worthy of love. But being dead… that’s an unavoidable force. She would only be sad, but it wouldn’t be because her mommy didn’t want her.”

As Song Qingpei spoke, her expression slowly dimmed.

            

Ming Yu glanced up at her, her eyes clear and cold, as if she could see right through her.

Her next words were even more piercing. “I heard you’re an orphan. Is that how you comfort yourself?”

Song Qingpei’s face changed. She never thought Ming Yu would be so cruel as to poke at her scars. Disappointed and furious, she said, “I genuinely want to have a civil discussion with you about our daughter. Do you have to be so nasty?”

            

Ming Yu said mockingly, “Song Qingpei, you stole my daughter. What kind of nice things do you expect me to say?”

Hearing this, Song Qingpei’s breathing hitched. “Songsong is my daughter, too,” she retorted.

“I gave birth to her. What right do you have to take her away?”

            

Ming Yu stood up from the sofa, a storm brewing in her cold eyes. She enunciated each word clearly, “According to the Alliance Marriage Law, for a child under the age of five, custody is preferentially granted to the Omega who gave birth. Song Qingpei, if you fight me for custody, what do you think your chances are?”

That sentence drained all the color from Song Qingpei’s face.

Her heart pounded wildly as a huge wave of fear washed over her. Ming Yu was still going to take their daughter away from her, and this time, she was powerless to stop it.

            

Her lips trembled, and it took a long while before she could force out a sentence. “You were the one who insisted on cutting all ties with me back then. I had no choice but to run away with our daughter. You can’t be so unreasonable.”

“Hmph,” Ming Yu scoffed, a hint of ridicule in her eyes. “Who was the one who ended up snatching our daughter? Who was the one who separated me from my daughter for two years? What? Now you want to talk about being reasonable?”

“I… I…”

            

She wanted to say that she knew Ming Yu. If their daughter was taken by her, she would never see her again in this lifetime. Ming Yu would absolutely sever all contact between them.

But she was afraid that saying so would only provoke Ming Yu further and harm the negotiations to come, so she could only suppress her inner fury.

Ming Yu looked at her, her eyes filled with disdain. “Song Qingpei, be smart. Give me back my daughter, and I can give you anything you want.”

            

“Impossible,” Song Qingpei refused flatly. “Songsong is the only family I have in this world. I can’t give her up.”

At that, Ming Yu suddenly smiled.

Watching her smile, Song Qingpei’s blood ran cold.

            

Ming Yu’s smile was stunningly beautiful. She spoke slowly, “Song Qingpei, what right do you have to negotiate terms with me?”

In a negotiation, you can never let the other party get the upper hand.

Song Qingpei steadied herself and said calmly, “On the strength of the two years of affection between me and our daughter. She can’t leave me. She won’t go with you obediently.”

            

This was exactly what Ming Yu was worried about. She had been hit right where it hurts.​³

Seeing her chance, Song Qingpei continued to press her case. “Let’s not involve the child in the grudges between us adults. I know you resent me for secretly taking our daughter away. But if you were in my shoes, you probably would have done something even more drastic. You would have taken her and never let me see her again, and it would have been next to impossible for me to even find you, wouldn’t it?”

Ming Yu snorted coldly, clearly acquiescing to her point.

            

Song Qingpei continued to persuade her, “Songsong is our daughter. We both want her to be happy. Why don’t we let bygones be bygones for now? Songsong can continue to live with me, and you can come see her whenever you want.”

“Song Qingpei, you really have some nerve,” Ming Yu said, laughing coldly.

“Then what do you want? As long as you agree to let me stay by our daughter’s side, I’ll agree to anything.”

            

“Terms?” Ming Yu narrowed her phoenix eyes, a strange glint passing through them. “Song Qingpei, since you’re using the two years of affection with our daughter as a bargaining chip, then I’ll grant you a fair chance. Come back to Planet Lan with me. Let me spend two years with our daughter as well. After two years, we’ll let her choose who she wants to be with. How about it?”

Song Qingpei was stunned. She never expected Ming Yu to propose such a plan. Was there some kind of trick?

Seeing her expression change, Ming Yu asked impatiently, “Tell me your choice.”

            

At this point, she didn’t really have a choice. If she angered Ming Yu, she could just take their daughter by force. This was already a relatively peaceful solution, and the one that would cause the least harm to their daughter.

Song Qingpei pressed her lips together and gritted her teeth. “Fine. I agree.”

A two-year term, after which their daughter would choose who to live with.

            

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