After Becoming the Scummy Alpha in a Substitute Romance - Chapter 111

That morning, as usual, Jian Ya opened the chat software she had personally coded, ready to begin her daily video call with Shen Shuyi.

In truth, ever since she realized she had no way of stopping the original personality from taking control, she had already prepared herself for the worst.

She had even started planning to gradually reduce the time she spent on video calls with Shen Shuyi.

If she truly couldn’t return to herself, she wanted Shen Shuyi to begin adjusting.

Especially today.

Even when their usual meeting time arrived, she was still under the original personality’s control.

When she finally regained control, she rushed into the bathroom to shower, afraid Shen Shuyi might notice something was wrong. Still wearing her bathrobe, she answered the video call.

Earlier, when Shen Shuyi didn’t receive the call from Jian Ya at their regular time, unease had already started creeping in.

She sat in front of the computer, waiting. On the screen were the messages she had sent, each one showing growing concern.

[Shen Shuyi: I’m done with work.]

[Shen Shuyi: Are you there?]

[Shen Shuyi: Jian Ya?]

Usually, Jian Ya responded within seconds. But this time, there was nothing.

Shen Shuyi was aware of her condition, and her mind immediately began racing. Had the other personality taken over?

If that was the case, was Jian Ya in danger?

As these thoughts filled her mind, her hands and feet began to grow cold.

Finally, after fifteen minutes, Jian Ya appeared.

When the video connected, Shen Shuyi noticed right away that Jian Ya’s hair was still wet, and her face showed clear traces of apology.

Her voice sounded the same as always, but Shen Shuyi noticed a slight distance in her tone.

“Sorry,” Jian Ya said with a soft laugh. “I dozed off in the bathtub while I was bathing. Lost track of time.”

As she spoke, she let out a yawn.

That careless tone and subtle sense of detachment made Shen Shuyi feel a little uncomfortable.

Still, she didn’t press. Instead, she asked gently, “Didn’t sleep well?”

Jian Ya nodded. “Not really.”

“Then why don’t you rest for a bit?” Shen Shuyi offered.

“No. I want to talk to you,” Jian Ya replied immediately.

She still sounded like herself—just a little stubborn and slightly clingy.

Hearing that familiar tone eased some of the tension in Shen Shuyi’s heart.

Jian Ya seemed a little tired. She rested her arms on the desk, poking absentmindedly at a small decorative figure beside her as she asked, “You said yesterday your experiment had some problems. Did you figure them out today?”

She had just asked casually to keep the conversation going, but after she spoke, she saw Shen Shuyi smile.

Jian Ya’s eyes flickered.

That smile meant the problem was probably solved.

She felt genuinely happy for Shen Shuyi, and her mood brightened too.

It was strange. These days, the constant conflict with the original personality had drained her completely. She barely had the energy or motivation to do anything. But whenever she saw Shen Shuyi smile, she couldn’t help but smile too.

Today, Shen Shuyi really did seem happy. It might have been the first good day she’d had in a long while.

She slowly began sharing the reason behind her good mood.

“I met someone,” Shen Shuyi said softly. “Someone who’s very talented and full of ideas.”

She was thinking about the young researcher she had met at the lab. The first time she saw Tang Yin, she had her hair in a messy ponytail and a youthful energy in her eyes.

At first, Shen Shuyi had been unsure. Tang Yin looked young, maybe even unreliable. Someone that energetic didn’t seem like a good match for her research standards.

But after getting to know her, she realized Tang Yin wasn’t what she seemed.

She was full of courage, driven, and determined. But at the same time, she had a calm mind, sharp instincts, and acted with precision.

When they discussed technical concepts, Tang Yin demonstrated knowledge far beyond what her age would suggest. Her ideas sometimes sounded unconventional at first, but when you thought about them more carefully, they offered a whole new perspective.

It was one of her suggestions that had helped Shen Shuyi solve the very problem she had been struggling with.

What made Tang Yin even more remarkable was her humility, a quality not often found in someone so young and gifted.

To Shen Shuyi, she was the first person—besides Jian Ya—who had ever impressed her so deeply.

As Shen Shuyi spoke about Tang Yin, she didn’t notice the way Jian Ya’s expression shifted.

A flicker of stiffness crossed Jian Ya’s face. Then came the bitterness.

Tang Yin.

Jian Ya smiled bitterly, her chest tightening with frustration and helplessness.

So that was it.

No wonder the original personality had suddenly gained so much control.

It was because Tang Yin had appeared.

Tang Yin, the female lead of the original story, the true fated Alpha meant for Shen Shuyi.

Of course she was exceptional.

After all, she had been created by the original author to be the perfect match for Shen Shuyi. She was thoughtful, gentle, and could give her the strongest support in her career.

In the novel, it was Tang Yin who rescued Shen Shuyi from her emotional abyss, healing her pain with warmth like sunlight, and staying by her side through everything.

No matter what happened, Tang Yin gave Shen Shuyi her best.

No wonder the original personality had suddenly become more active.

It all made sense now.

Tang Yin had entered the picture.

The true heroine of the story had finally arrived.

And she, the uninvited visitor in this story, it was probably time for her to step aside and leave.

This was never meant to belong to her. No matter how hard she tried, no matter how much she longed for it, it would never be hers.

This was fate. A predetermined fate.

In that moment, Jian Ya felt a sharp pain in her chest. Her nose and eyes began to sting.

She could feel the heat rising, flooding into her eyes.

Just before the tears could fall, she quickly shut off the camera.

Her movements were so fast that Shen Shuyi didn’t even catch what was happening before the screen went black.

But in that instant, something deep inside Shen Shuyi told her something was wrong.

She quickly typed.

[Shen Shuyi: Jian Ya?]

Jian Ya wanted to reply, but her vision was already too blurry.

Her fists clenched tightly. Her left hand pressed against her chest as she felt her heart pounding in a way that felt entirely different from before.

She was breathing hard, but no matter what she did, she couldn’t stop the wave of pain surging through her.

Through her tears, she could still make out the words Shen Shuyi had sent.

The messages were no different than usual.

She could feel, clearly, that Shen Shuyi cared about her.

But in this moment, she had never felt so powerless. It had never been more obvious to her that fate was beyond her control. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t change a thing.

Shen Shuyi’s concern was right in front of her.

And yet Jian Ya felt they were worlds apart.

She gritted her teeth and began typing with trembling fingers:
“Sorry, I’m really tired today and don’t think I can stay up. I just want to rest for a while.”

A simple sentence, but because her vision was blurred by tears, she had to retype it several times just to make sure it had no mistakes.

After sending it, she didn’t reply again. She closed the laptop.

Leaning back in her chair, she tilted her head and placed the back of her hand over her eyes, letting the tears fall freely.

On the other side, Shen Shuyi stared at the screen.

The call had ended too abruptly. Jian Ya’s response had been far too strange.

This had never happened before.

What was going on with Jian Ya?

A wave of helpless panic rose in Shen Shuyi’s chest and spread through her entire body.

Her hands and feet turned cold. For once, her mind was completely blank.

Something had definitely happened. But why?

She closed her eyes, trying to calm herself down so she could think clearly.

But no matter how she tried, all she could hear in her mind was one question:
What happened to Jian Ya?
How is she now?

She thought she had seen a brief flash of pain in Jian Ya’s expression before the camera shut off.

Was she in danger?

Was it the other personality taking over again?

Thoughts came rushing in, one after another. Shen Shuyi couldn’t stay calm any longer. She clenched her jaw, slammed her laptop shut, and grabbed a pen and notebook from nearby, forcing herself to stay rational.

She began writing down everything that had happened today—and even in recent days—word by word.

Her handwriting was deep and forceful. Several strokes ripped straight through the paper.

But she didn’t stop. She kept recalling, kept writing.

As a medical researcher, Shen Shuyi was seen by many as one of the top minds in her field. But she had never in her life felt so lost and helpless.

She knew nothing.

She had no control over any of it.

Jian Ya, what’s really going on with you?

Her writing grew more and more frantic. This was unlike her. Her handwriting, just like her personality, had always been calm and precise.

But now, she couldn’t care about any of that.

She kept recalling clues, writing them down one by one.

Finally, she wrote down two characters: Tang Yin.

The pen suddenly stopped.

Could it really be because of that?

Shen Shuyi froze, eyes filled with frustration.

She had never been in a relationship before, but she had listened to Ni Ruoyun talk endlessly about her chaotic love life.

One thing she remembered clearly was how much Ni Ruoyun hated when her girlfriend complimented other people in front of her.

Most of their fights had started because the other person praised someone else.

Shen Shuyi had never understood that mindset. To her, excellence was objective. There were standards to measure it by.

But love wasn’t.

Love was a subjective feeling. Sometimes, she even thought it was completely irrational.

She had simply forgotten to think about that today. She had let her guard down and spoken without caution.

So what could she say now?

In the past, she would have dismissed that kind of mindset as immature. She never agreed with it.

She had even tried to reason with Ni Ruoyun during those arguments, though it always made things worse.

Still, she never changed her view.

But now, there was only one thought in her mind:

She didn’t want Jian Ya to feel hurt.

What should she do?

Shen Shuyi didn’t know. She wasn’t someone who usually asked others for help, especially not with emotional matters.

She had never imagined that one day, she’d be in a situation where logic didn’t help, and comfort not reason was what mattered most.

Her hands hesitated over the keyboard. She typed, deleted, and retyped several times.

Finally, she sent one message:

[Shen Shuyi: I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have mentioned Tang Yin. I just wanted to share more with you today. I admire her, but not more than I admire you. I have no feelings for her beyond respect. Jian Ya, the one I like is you. I’ll wait for you to come back.]

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