A Scummy Alpha and An Award-Winning Omega Actress Fell in Love After an Arranged Marriage - Chapter 65

The scene at the charity gala was a sea of shimmering lights and flowing silk. Sheng Lan arrived fully prepared; her mission tonight was to “de-mine” the path for her somewhat dim-witted Alpha friend, Yu Cheng.

According to the laws of the universe, members of the “vicious supporting female” camp rarely met a good end. Since Sheng Lan, the “butterfly,” had flapped her wings, Yu Cheng’s trajectory hadn’t exactly improved—she had shifted from chasing stars to “sleeping with” them. This gave Sheng Lan a sense of crisis. They were living in an entertainment industry novel, after all; who knew if Yu Cheng had picked a “femme fatale” who would bring her to ruin?

Having failed to get a straight answer from Yu Cheng, Sheng Lan had done her own screening. With Liang Jiao’s help, she had invited all eight “White Lotus” candidates—those pure-looking, deceptive types—to tonight’s gala. Now, she just had to observe Yu Cheng’s reaction to confirm the culprit.

Ordinarily, Sheng Lan could have used the names to recall the plot, but her memory was limited to the “Scum Alpha’s” subjective perspective and her eventual tragic end. She was effectively flying blind. The same applied to Lu Xueyin’s past; she didn’t even know if that shower video actually existed. In the original book, the Scum Alpha had simply started the abuse the moment the rumor surfaced, never bothering to investigate.

Sheng Lan wanted to extinguish the fire at the source. She couldn’t do the legwork herself without attracting attention, so she delegated the investigation to Yu Cheng.

“You’re using me as a private eye?” Yu Cheng grumbled. “A person of your talent should do more,” Sheng Lan replied earnestly. “Besides, look, I didn’t even ask Meng Qing.” Yu Cheng let out a loud laugh, taking a shot at Meng Qing. “She should ask her sister to help fix her brain.”

By 8:00 PM, the gala was in full swing. Sheng Lan, riding the high of Trial Love Period, was the center of attention on the red carpet.

She and Yu Cheng stood at the end of the entrance corridor. It was the perfect spot: they could “greet” every guest while staying slightly out of the main livestream’s direct focus. Sheng Lan stood there with a professional smile like a glamorous hostess. Yu Cheng, though annoyed by the spot, stayed huddled behind her, terrified her “secret girlfriend” would spot her on camera.

“Be generous and we’re sisters; keep hiding and you’re just my date,” Sheng Lan threatened under her breath while nodding to guests. “I’m not Lu Xueyin, that doesn’t work on me,” Yu Cheng shot back.

Watching the “rebellious daughter” beside her, Sheng Lan’s thoughts took a sharp turn into the future. She wondered if Lu Xueyin could handle a daughter this stubborn and slow. The thought spiraled until she realized she hadn’t even named their future children yet.

She quickly pulled out her phone and sent a message to Lu Xueyin: [Mountain Wind]: Would you want an Alpha daughter?

Lu Xueyin, currently checking the trending topics in the dressing room: “…”

She stared at the screen, speechless. Since the gala started, Sheng Lan’s name had dominated the trends. One particular poll caught her eye: “What will Sheng Lan auction off?”

A popular choice was the “tacky” rose quartz medal from the show. Lu Xueyin watched fans in the super-topic bidding enthusiastically for it, and she silently screenshotted the page, a sour feeling rising in her chest.

Then came the hashtags: #SocialButterflyShengLan, #HostessShengLan, #ShengLanHasAwakened.

Seeing Sheng Lan at the door, smiling and chatting with those eight “White Lotus” candidates, Lu Xueyin’s fingers tightened. It reminded her of the saying: “In order to hug you, I hugged the whole class.”

Even knowing Sheng Lan was on a mission, seeing the “Double Alpha” or “Childhood Bestie” fan-edits of Sheng Lan and Yu Cheng made her feel suffocated. Especially when she saw a photo of Sheng Lan looking at Yu Cheng with a mix of maternal exhaustion and indulgence.

When she finally saw Sheng Lan’s message about a “daughter,” Lu Xueyin waited until Sheng Lan put her phone away in the livestream before replying coldly: [Kou Jin]: I haven’t considered it.

A second later, she saw Sheng Lan pull her phone out on screen and wink mischievously at the camera, as if catching Lu Xueyin’s gaze through the lens.

Her phone buzzed. [Mountain Wind]: Caught you.

Lu Xueyin’s entire face turned beet red despite the cold AC in the room. “Teacher Lu? Are you okay? Is it hot?” a staff member asked. “Yes, a little,” Lu Xueyin stammered, getting up to find Jiang Ling just to escape the awkwardness.

Inside the hall, Sheng Lan tucked her phone away, unable to hide her grin.

“Who did you catch? Did you find her?” Yu Cheng asked eagerly. Sheng Lan patted her shoulder. “I caught my precious one. As for your ‘White Lotuses’ come on, since they’re all here, let’s go meet them.”

Since the two are currently in a tactical “collaboration phase,” the management of their CP (Couple) hype is handled through coordination between their managers.

Lu Xueyin rarely interferes with Jiang Ling’s work, but Jiang Ling knows that behind that cold exterior lies a sensitive heart. Whenever they meet, Jiang Ling makes a point to explain the strategy.

“I originally suggested shifting the heat onto Sheng Lan’s friend, Yu Cheng,” Jiang Ling explained. “I checked her, she’s young, wealthy, and a heavy spender in the idol world. She’s thrown money at almost every rising starlet and has two million followers; she’s not exactly a private citizen.”

Lu Xueyin gave her a look of disapproval.

Jiang Ling coughed. “Liang Jiao said no. She said Sheng Lan isn’t in the habit of using her friends as shields. So, this time, they’re splitting the heat evenly. It’s more time-consuming, but the PR team is scrubbing the messier hashtags and replacing them with standard charity event coverage.”

Once they finish the “praise” phase, any anti-fans trying to dig up dirt will have nothing to do with them. Lu Xueyin looked away, satisfied.

Jiang Ling sighed. “It’s expensive to do it this way.”

Lu Xueyin cared about money even more than Jiang Ling did. She didn’t ask about the trending topics; instead, she asked, “What’s an appropriate price for an auction item?”

Lu Xueyin did charity work, usually small, consistent donations. Since entering the industry, she had let Jiang Ling manage her budget to save for major events. Because her family background was public knowledge, fans knew she didn’t have it easy. Her early years were marked by low pay, and later, company cuts left her with little. She usually avoided auctions because the uncertainty was too high.

“For someone like you, 800,000 to 1.2 million is the sweet spot,” Jiang Ling analyzed. “Any lower looks bad; any higher and you can’t sustain the expense for future events. For Sheng Lan, though, it’s a million-dollar minimum. Her ‘rich heiress’ persona is set in stone, and she’s known for her generosity. If she goes below that, her fans will suffer the consequences from anti-fans.”

The auction officially began. Yu Cheng, sitting next to Sheng Lan, finally let her secret slip.

Sheng Lan discovered the identity of the mysterious girlfriend: Jia Tian.

The name triggered a flicker of memory from the original novel. Jia Tian was a newcomer signed by the director of Lu Xueyin’s upcoming film. In the original plot, she was a petty but dangerous antagonist. Driven by a crush on the protagonist Alpha, Mu Qing, she harbored intense malice toward Lu Xueyin, who was under Mu Qing’s protection.

In the original book, Jia Tian was the “catalyst” for disaster. She would:

• • Swap Lu Xueyin’s skincare products to cause allergic reactions.

• • Sabotage her costumes to cause public embarrassment.

• • Most dangerously, destroy Lu Xueyin’s suppressants and jewelry, forcing Mu Qing into “heroic” situations.

Worst of all, it was Jia Tian who sent anonymous tips to the “Scum Alpha,” claiming Lu Xueyin had been marked by someone else. This led to the brutal climax where the Scum Alpha forcibly marked Lu Xueyin and surgically removed her gland.

Sheng Lan closed her eyes. It was absurd yet consistent. In a novel, characters only interact with other characters; there are no “innocent” bystanders. It made perfect sense that a “vicious supporting female” like Yu Cheng would fall for a “villainous cannon fodder” like Jia Tian.

Seeing Yu Cheng staring at her phone with a lovestruck expression, Sheng Lan tested the waters: “Does she really like you?” “It’s a transaction,” Yu Cheng scoffed, feigning indifference. “Why talk about love? Love costs too much.”

Yeah, right, Sheng Lan thought, watching her friend’s obvious infatuation. This is not going to end well.

Sheng Lan spent over a million dollars during the second half of the auction to fulfill her “public service” duty. She skipped the post-gala banquet, no longer interested in networking.

She met with Yu Cheng to finalize the plan for the “shower video.” Given Jia Tian’s involvement, Sheng Lan modified the plan: Yu Cheng would find a trusted stranger to pose as an anti-fan and offer a high price for the video. They would even pretend to “bond” over hating Lu Xueyin to gain the seller’s trust.

Returning home, Sheng Lan also met with her Alpha mother, Sheng Yan, hoping to use more discreet family resources for a private investigation.

Before going to bed, Sheng Lan remembered the rumors about her auctioning off the rose quartz medal. She spent the rest of her night under the perfect lighting, taking over a hundred photos and videos of the award.

Late that night, she posted a perfect grid of nine photos to Weibo, tagging Lu Xueyin with a simple caption: [Mountain Wind]: Not selling it. [Heart] @LuXueyin

But she sent a different version, a screenshot of her draft privately to Lu Xueyin. The caption on the screenshot read: Check out my precious one. [Rose] @LuXueyin

Whether the “precious one” referred to the sparkling crystal or the woman behind the screen was a secret only Sheng Lan knew.

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