After the Scumbag Alpha Heard her Inner Thoughts - Chapter 40

Chu Muqing had no experience with these things.
Back when she was in the U.S., she often sought advice from Xu Chengke.

Xu Chengke once told her that girls cared a lot about a sense of ceremony—that a confession should happen at a proper location, accompanied by a bouquet or a ring to express sincerity.

At the time, Chu Muqing found it cheesy and outdated.
A confession like that sounded like something young couples would do—and she alone was probably older than the two of them combined.

While scoffing at the idea, she still kept thinking about how she should tell Su Wanqing her feelings.
No matter how she thought about it, she couldn’t find the right opportunity.

She missed her so much that she couldn’t focus on her work overseas.
After several sleepless nights and sacrificing some business interests, she managed to wrap things up half a month early and return home.

She hadn’t expected to come back to such a mess.
The violence that lurked inside her was slowly awakened—but every time she heard Su Wanqing’s name, she forced herself to stay rational.

After holding on for so long, waiting for Su Wanqing to finally wake up, all the talk about ceremony, flowers, and rings—Chu Muqing threw it out the window.

She simply said what was in her heart—and Su Wanqing listened quietly.

The speech she had mentally rehearsed countless times was forgotten.
Her words came out clumsy, jumbled.
Chu Muqing didn’t even know if Su Wanqing could truly understand her feelings.

“Why aren’t you saying anything?”
Seeing Su Wanqing stay silent, Chu Muqing grew more uneasy.
“If you don’t want to agree, that’s okay. We can take it slow, at your pace,” she added quickly.

Su Wanqing lowered her head, looking at her.

These past few days, Chu Muqing had stayed at the hospital the whole time, barely sleeping.
The dark circles under her eyes were faint but noticeable, and there were red veins in her sharp gaze.
Normally so proud and untouchable, Chu Muqing was now crouched in front of her, seriously confessing.

“I…” Su Wanqing started.

Chu Muqing fixed her eyes on her, feeling a little nervous—desperately wanting to know the answer but terrified it might not be the one she wanted.

For a moment, she even forgot how to breathe.

“To be President Chu’s girlfriend—who could possibly say no?”
Su Wanqing said lightly, echoing what she had once told that “green tea” rival.

Chu Muqing forced herself to breathe properly and asked again, a little awkwardly,
“You… you really mean it?”

Su Wanqing: “…”

She couldn’t help wondering if Chu Muqing had been trained too much by Xu Chengke—how had she become so slow and clumsy?
Where was the sharp, unbeatable CEO she knew?

In her mind, she had always imagined Chu Muqing’s confession would be something fierce, like gripping her chin and saying:
“Woman, what could you possibly be dissatisfied with about being with me?”

Unbeknownst to her, Chu Muqing actually caught the faint trace of her silent complaint.
She frowned slightly, thinking, Maybe the setting really isn’t romantic enough after all…

But in the end, the result was what mattered.

Su Wanqing reached out and grabbed the hand resting on her knee.

“Chu Muqing,” she said seriously,
“words this cheesy—I’ll only say them once.”

“I like you.”

“I’m willing to be your girlfriend.”

As soon as she said it, Su Wanqing quickly let go of Chu Muqing’s hand, lay back down, and pulled the covers up over half her face.

Her movements were so quick that Chu Muqing stood there, stunned.

But she didn’t do anything to force the moment—just reached out and gently patted Su Wanqing’s back.

“You have a good rest. I’m going to meet with Lu Qinghe to discuss some work.”

Under the covers, Su Wanqing gave a muffled “Mmm,” her voice low and adorably soft.

Chu Muqing lingered for a few more seconds, then finally left the hospital room.
She went to find Cheng Zhuo, giving him a very serious instruction: “Keep an eye on her.”

Cheng Zhuo, originally meant to just stay on shift occasionally, had now been stuck in the hospital for four or five days because of her demands.
And he was a married man, too.

Cheng Zhuo flatly refused to continue sacrificing himself.

Chu Muqing ignored him completely.

—

At Lu Family Group, inside Lu Qinghe’s office.

Xu Chengke and Chu Muqing had changed into less conspicuous clothing and quietly entered under the guidance of an assistant.

Lu Qinghe’s belly was slightly showing now. Although her movements were still fine, she looked a bit clumsy. She pulled out a chair and sat down.

Xu Chengke placed a throw pillow behind her before standing respectfully behind Chu Muqing.

“Are you sure it’s safe for you to come here so openly?” Lu Qinghe asked nervously. “I thought we agreed to meet at a restaurant.”

Chu Muqing said it wasn’t necessary.
She deliberately wanted to create the illusion that Lu Qinghe was still in active contact with her.
Gu Heng was suspicious by nature—only when something looked problematic would he feel safe about it.

“So what now?” Lu Qinghe asked.
“He says the contract must be signed tomorrow.”

Chu Muqing crossed her legs and casually swirled the tea in her hand.
“Then go sign it.”

“And take me with you.”

The plan had started half a month ago, back when Lu Qinghe first reached out to Su Wanqing.
Chu Muqing had already set things in motion.

Ellen and Amy were fighting for power.
It wasn’t really Chu Muqing’s concern which one won—she just needed Amy to trust her.

Both were seasoned players.
Amy knew what Chu Muqing wanted, and Chu Muqing knew exactly what Amy was thinking.

Amy wanted to use Chu Muqing to steal Ellen’s assets, minimizing the rift between the siblings while salvaging their family business.
Chu Muqing, meanwhile, intended to use Amy to earn money.

With profits at the forefront, the two sides put past grudges aside.

Over six months, Chu Muqing had developed three business lines.
Profits multiplied over tenfold.
Once she had enough capital, she rushed back to China without wasting a day.

As for the Gu family—
They were already a spent force, a crossbow at the end of its drawstring.
The only way left to save themselves was by throwing money at the problem, waiting for the industries to rebound.

But Chu Muqing knew the Gu family’s financial situation inside and out.

She had Lu Qinghe stall Gu Heng for half a month to completely drain his cash flow.
Now the trap was set—it was time to reel him in.

After going over a few final details with Chu Muqing, Lu Qinghe had her assistant escort them out through the back door.

Xu Chengke circled around the city twice in the car, making sure they had shaken off any followers, before heading toward the hospital.

—

By evening, the sun had set and the hospital room grew dim under the fiber-optic lights.

Bored, Su Wanqing sipped on the fish soup Chu Muqing had specially ordered for her, feeling a little too full.

She pulled on a jacket and pushed open the hospital room door.

“Eh? You’re back already? Did you finish talking with Sister Lu?”

“More or less,” Chu Muqing said.
“You’re heading out?”

“The room’s too stuffy. I want to go downstairs for a bit.”

“Have you eaten?”

“Yeah,” Su Wanqing nodded, then asked curiously,
“Where did you get that fish soup? It was delicious.”

“If you liked it, next time I’ll take you to the restaurant.”

At some point, Xu Chengke had very tactfully slipped away.

Chu Muqing rummaged through her suitcase, changed into casual clothes, put on a mask and cap, and said,
“Come on, I’ll walk with you.”

—

There was a small garden downstairs, fitted with all sorts of elderly-friendly exercise equipment.

Su Wanqing had never used them before and didn’t know their names.
Watching the elderly couples exercising happily, she grew curious and wanted to try it herself.

She waited patiently until the old folks vacated a piece of equipment and then carefully climbed onto it.

It was one of those walking-assist machines—stand on it, hold the railings, and simply “walk” without any real effort.

Chu Muqing stood silently nearby.
At her height of over 1.7 meters, she was ready to catch Su Wanqing in case she slipped.

After a few minutes, Su Wanqing found it boring and hopped down, continuing her exploration.

Ahead was a long corridor, a series of connected round arches, reminiscent of a child’s kaleidoscope.
Inside were four long benches placed at intervals.

Su Wanqing picked a bench and sat down.
Chu Muqing, like a large silent shadow, followed and sat down beside her.

The scent on Chu Muqing wasn’t just her pheromones—it also carried a faint, clean fragrance.

Like bedsheets sun-dried on a summer day: warm, crisp, and fresh.

Without thinking, Su Wanqing naturally leaned against Chu Muqing’s shoulder.

The sun slowly set, fading from a blinding white to a rich, caramel hue.
Occasionally, a few cooler tones would blend in, creating flashes of pink, before everything finally dimmed into darkness.
After the sky turned pitch-black, the moon quietly climbed into place.

The entire process took no more than twenty minutes.

“Chu Muqing, have you ever heard of the ‘Twenty-Minute Park Effect’?” Su Wanqing suddenly asked.

Chu Muqing shook her head.
She had never paid attention to those strange little theories.
“No.”

“It’s simple,” Su Wanqing explained.
“Spending twenty minutes in a park, even doing nothing at all, can help reduce stress and boost feelings of happiness.”

“Didn’t you feel anything after being here for twenty minutes?”

To be honest, Chu Muqing did feel a bit happier.
It was rare for her to spend time without thinking about work, without planning for the future—just strolling leisurely with Su Wanqing.

For that half-hour, the world belonged only to them.

“I’m happy because I’m with you,” Chu Muqing said quietly, “not because of any twenty-minute effect.”

Su Wanqing: “…”

Leaning against her shoulder, Su Wanqing stiffened a little.
She didn’t know why, but Chu Muqing could always say things like that with such a calm face—like it was nothing at all.

And yet… she probably didn’t even realize it herself.

Su Wanqing sat up straighter.
“What’s going on with the Gu family now? Sister Lu is still pregnant—don’t put too much pressure on her,” she said worriedly.

“Honestly, I think it’s fine even if you can’t take the Gu family back. I have Lanqing now. I can support both of us just fine.”

“I’m only reclaiming what belongs to me,” Chu Muqing said, reaching out to gently pinch her chin and turn her face towards her.
“What, don’t trust your wife?”

“I didn’t mean it like that…” Su Wanqing muttered.

She was just afraid—afraid of accidents.
In the original storyline, Lu Qinghe’s ending hadn’t been good.

“Lu Qinghe and her partner haven’t been together that long, right?” Chu Muqing asked.

“Only a few months,” Su Wanqing confirmed.

But they had known each other for a long time.
It was always Cheng Zhuo handling her hospital check-ups ever since Lu Qinghe began pretending not to be an Omega.

“And they already have a kid on the way?” Chu Muqing asked meaningfully.
“When are you going to give me one?”

“…”
How did the conversation jump straight to having kids?

No way. She wasn’t ready!

“I haven’t even finished having fun yet,” Su Wanqing mumbled under her breath.

【The Chu family is Beicheng’s most prominent family. Isn’t it kind of unacceptable not to have children?】

【I heard Old Master Chu really values bloodlines—and prefers Alphas if possible.】

【But she really doesn’t want to have kids… Would Chu Muqing mind?】

Su Wanqing kept grumbling to herself, but every word was caught by Chu Muqing.

Of course, Chu Muqing was only joking.
Originally, the family issues hadn’t been fully settled.
Su Wanqing had also needed surgery for her gland problems.

It had been a long time… since they had done anything intimate.

She was an Alpha, a top-tier S-Class Alpha—and with her wife right beside her, she still had to hold back from doing anything.

It wasn’t about the result.
It was about the process—the shared bond, the intimacy, the simple act of being together.

“Qingqing, I’m joking,” Chu Muqing said, afraid she might take it too seriously.
“Whether you want kids, and when—you decide. It’s entirely up to you.”

“Really?” Su Wanqing looked up.

“Mhm,” Chu Muqing said firmly.
“When have I ever lied to you?”

Su Wanqing blinked her round, deer-like eyes—bright and soft—and her pink lips opened and closed slightly.

Chu Muqing was instantly mesmerized.

Unable to resist, she tightened the hand still holding Su Wanqing’s chin and pulled her closer, kissing her.

The only thing between them was the thin blue fabric of Chu Muqing’s mask.

Su Wanqing hadn’t expected it.
She reflexively closed her eyes.

Chu Muqing, realizing she was still wearing a mask, frowned in frustration.

Su Wanqing giggled softly beside her.

They only stopped when Su Wanqing’s phone rang from her bag.

She pulled it out and glanced at the caller ID, whispering to Chu Muqing,
“It’s my brother. I’ll take this.”

“Jiejie, are you okay? I heard you were hospitalized!” Su Ningxuan’s worried voice came through.

“Don’t panic. I’m fine,” Su Wanqing reassured him.

“I’m starting my summer break tomorrow—I’ll be flying back to see you!” he said eagerly.

“Okay,” Su Wanqing replied warmly.

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