After the Scummy Alpha Marked the Crazy Beautiful Heroine - Chapter 39.2

“No wonder they call you the entertainment industry’s No.1 Alpha. Tsk.” The actor unabashedly gave her arm a squeeze. “So, do you have a girlfriend?”

Pei Jiuyao had just saved the photo she opened. She looked up blankly, then glanced at Chi Yang.

Seeing that Chi Yang didn’t seem inclined to answer, Pei Jiuyao curved her lips slightly.

“Not yet. But there’s someone I like…”

“Oh? Then that’s fine. Should we add each other?” the actor asked, pulling up her social app. When Pei Jiuyao didn’t move, she added, “Might be useful for future collaborations.”

“…Alright.” She had no reason to refuse—this was the same circle, after all. And since Chi Yang was right beside her, adding someone in front of her hardly seemed like an issue.

Once they finished exchanging contacts, Chi Yang started walking back, and Pei Jiuyao followed, phone in hand.

It had been a long time since she’d checked her supertopic. What had once been a tiny, niche corner with only a few thousand fans was now bustling—hundreds of new posts flooding in at a glance.

Looking closer, nearly all of it stemmed from Lin Leyi’s photo. It had been edited with all kinds of romantic filters, clipped into CP videos, fueling endless shipping frenzy.

#SoCloseYetSoFar

(OOC warning)

“Their first encounter was a reckless storm.”

Back when Pei Jiuyao, barely a teenager, became Chi Yang’s disciple, she never knew her master was a god descending to the mortal realm to endure a love tribulation. To her, if such a deity could bow her head for her sake, then even stealing the stars and moon would be worth it.

And Chi Yang, despite carrying the weight of heavenly law, could not resist her adorable, earnest pupil—her heart overflowing only with her. Inevitably, she too fell into the sea of love.

…

Later, even knowing it was a destined calamity, she willingly became Chi Yang’s furnace cauldron, indulging day and night, drowning in tenderness.

…

If the heavens are unjust, then she would cut down the heavens themselves, and elope with her beloved.

Pei Jiuyao couldn’t help but chuckle, quickly taking a screenshot.

Chi Yang glanced back.

“What’s so funny? You look awfully pleased.”

“Nothing. Just came across a funny little story.” Pei Jiuyao swiftly locked her phone.

This kind of explicit, violent, CP-focused fluff can only be kept in private—it must never be shown to the main characters.

Chi Yang huffed softly and pulled her hand out of Pei Jiuyao’s pocket.

When they returned, Ye Ci and Jiang Tian were already waiting in the car, each handing them a hand-warmer.

Chi Yang took a sip of hot water. Just as they were about to leave, Sheng Xia and her assistant jogged over carrying bags.

She stood at the door, her smile as radiant as ever.

“Miss Chi, Miss Pei—we’ve been looking for you all over the set.”

Instinctively, Pei Jiuyao shifted to stand slightly in front of Chi Yang.

Sheng Xia placed the bags onto the car.

“Some local specialties my mom sent me. I’ve been distributing them around the crew—you two were the last ones I hadn’t found.”

“Are you heading back today?” she asked, rubbing her frost-reddened hands.

Chi Yang nudged Pei Jiuyao aside a little.

“Director Lin wants a ‘New Year’s Eve dinner’ tonight, so we’ll probably leave tomorrow morning. What about you?”

“I’m heading out in a bit. Got a schedule early tomorrow.”

Chi Yang smiled lightly. “You’ve worked hard.”

“Then see you after the New Year. Happy New Year!” Sheng Xia waved cheerfully.

“Happy New Year,” they echoed.

When the car door closed, Pei Jiuyao pushed the things in her arms toward the back. Chi Yang glanced at her.

“I can’t shake the feeling you’ve been acting strange around Sheng Xia lately.”

“Have I?” Pei Jiuyao’s guilty tone gave her away.

“What exactly is going on between you two? Did you do something behind my back—something you wouldn’t dare admit?”

“What could I possibly have done that can’t be seen in the light of day?” Pei Jiuyao sighed helplessly.

Chi Yang tilted her head, eyeing her skeptically. “Do you think I believe that?”

Pei Jiuyao pressed her lips together, guilty as charged.

Not wanting Chi Yang to overthink and spiral into other suspicions, Pei Jiuyao hesitated, then decided to explain.

“Remember when Song Qi exposed you as an Omega? We all thought she must have been working for someone.”

Chi Yang’s brows drew together. “Don’t tell me you suspect Sheng Xia?”

“Sheng Xia’s the one who ran into you and injured you. Isn’t it natural I’d suspect her?”

“You mean you’ve never once doubted her?” Pei Jiuyao asked curiously.

Chi Yang’s voice dropped. “I know Sheng Xia’s character. And besides—”

“Besides what?”

Chi Yang looked up at her. “Haven’t you ever thought it could be Qiao Lu? She doesn’t get along with you, she’s an Alpha, and her relationship with Mo Tian isn’t bad. If I was Mo Tian, she’d be my first pick.”

“Qiao Lu and Mo Tian get along?” Pei Jiuyao was stunned. “So you’ve suspected Qiao Lu from the start… and that’s why…”

That’s why she hadn’t made any moves—because she already knew who was pulling the strings.

“But honestly, I think Qiao Lu’s too stupid. Making her a spy would only drag Mo Tian down with her.”

Chi Yang let out a cold laugh. “Funny. I thought maybe you just couldn’t bring yourself to pin the blame on Qiao Lu—seeing how passionately the two of you were kissing.”

Pei Jiuyao: “…”

“That was acting!” Pei Jiuyao quickly hooked her arm through Chi Yang’s and rubbed against her shoulder with a pout. “And she’s the one who threw herself at me.”

“And just now?” Chi Yang asked coldly.

“Just now?” Pei Jiuyao tilted her head. “What about just now?”

“You said you didn’t have a girlfriend. Then you went and added someone on WeChat—and spent the whole ride laughing at your phone.”

Wait… don’t tell me…

Was Chi Yang… jealous?

That sharp, haughty kind of jealousy?

“I only added her because it would’ve been weird to refuse—since we’re in the same industry. And I was laughing at my phone because I stumbled across one of our photos.”

She pulled out her phone and tapped the screen. “See? This one. Looks good, right?”

Chi Yang gave it a brief glance.

“People online say we look like master and disciple here.” Pei Jiuyao leaned close, grinning. “Master, don’t be mad at your poor little disciple.”

Chi Yang let out a short laugh. “You don’t look like any proper master and disciple to me.”

Of course not—this was the sort of explicit, adults-only master–disciple pairing no kids were allowed to see.

Pei Jiuyao quietly put her phone away.

“As for the girlfriend part… I’d love to admit it. But honestly, I don’t even know what we are.” She blinked at Chi Yang and asked softly, “So tell me—what are we?”

Chi Yang turned her head away. “All of a sudden, I’m not so sure Sheng Xia’s impossible after all.”

Uh… was that a subject change or a hard swerve?

Pei Jiuyao had no choice but to follow along. “Why do you say that?”

“At first I thought it couldn’t be her because Mo Tian would never work with an artist from Xingchong.” Chi Yang raised her eyes to Pei Jiuyao, her tone even. “Because she hates Xingchong.”

“Hates them?” Pei Jiuyao thought that sounded about right. Mo Tian hated the Chi family too, and she carried herself like she hated the entire world.

But for Chi Yang to single out Xingchong—it had to mean something more.

“Because Bai Zhi is Enigma.”

Pei Jiuyao frowned. “And what on earth is that supposed to be?”

Chi Yang chuckled lightly. “I reacted the same way the first time I heard it.”

“They say there are only three cases worldwide. It’s considered an evolved form of Alpha. Take you, for example—even though you advanced into a triple-S Alpha, at the end of the day, you’re still just an Alpha. You can only mark Omegas.”

“But Bai Zhi can mark Alphas. And her pheromone compatibility with Mo Tian is a staggering 99%.”

Pei Jiuyao blinked. “So… basically like us?”

Chi Yang nodded. “Alphas like Mo Tian pride themselves on their power and status. To be marked is humiliation. But she ended up being crushed beneath Bai Zhi. Call it karma, maybe.”

“The funny part is—her only way to break free from Bai Zhi is to mark an Omega, marry one. But Mo Tian is incapable of marking.”

Pei Jiuyao faltered. “…Incapable?”

So that’s why she kept playing with Alphas?

“She wasn’t born that way. The day Bai Zhi differentiated, Mo Tian suddenly lost that ability. It was as if…”

Chi Yang’s voice slowed, then softened. “As if it was a gift from the gods, given to Bai Zhi.”

“So if it really is Sheng Xia, there’s only one explanation—that Bai Zhi and Mo Tian are working together. But either way, it’ll have to wait until after the New Year to test.”

Chi Yang suddenly turned her gaze on Pei Jiuyao, her expression cool.

“Do you think there really is a Creator in this world? Why are some born to stand above the rest, while others are trampled into the dirt? Why are some destined to command, and others destined to belong?”

Maybe what she really wanted to ask was—am I, too, a gift the gods gave to you?

Pei Jiuyao placed her palm over Chi Yang’s eyes, leaned down, and brushed a kiss against the corner of her lips.

“Maybe I’m the gift the gods gave to you.” She drew her hand back.

Their eyes met.

Chi Yang’s lashes trembled. Her voice was low, almost a growl. “Then are you willing to be mine alone? If you were born for me, would you accept that? Would you?”

Would you?

Pei Jiuyao fell silent.

Because she knew she wasn’t going to stay in this world. And yet—she wanted nothing more than to stay by Chi Yang’s side.

—Host, don’t lose yourself in the role.

But Pei Jiuyao had never thought of it as a game.

Maybe Chi Yang was right. Maybe she and Chi Qing really were the same kind of person—in every possible sense.

Chi Yang kept one hand tucked inside her pocket, fingers clenched tightly around something, forming a hard, round shape.

After a long pause, she let go, reached out, and ruffled Pei Jiuyao’s hair.

“It’s fine. Take your time.” She rubbed her palm again. “I know people aren’t objects, and no one should ever be owned. I just… need someone who belongs to me completely.”

“But if you can’t, that’s fine too. At the very least, you’re my… contractual partner.”

She lifted her head, forcing a smile. In her palm, the object she had been clutching had pressed a perfect circle into her skin.

________________________________________

Back at the hotel, after the four of them packed their things, Pei Jiuyao and Chi Yang curled up together for a short rest. By nightfall, Ye Ci called them downstairs.

Lin Leyi was already waiting. The moment she spotted Chi Yang, she pulled her into an embrace. “It’s ridiculously hard to pin you down for a meal.”

“Not at all, Director Lin. Once we’re back in Haishi, just say the word—I’ll be there.”

Chi Yang laughed and tugged Pei Jiuyao closer to her side.

As they stepped out into the night, a sharp gust of wind swept past, making them all instinctively pull their coats tighter.

Ring ring—

A shrill ringtone suddenly broke the air. Chi Yang reached into her pocket. “Sorry, it’s my phone.”

She pulled it out. The name Chi Qing lit the screen. Her brows knitted faintly.

Lin Leyi’s eyes flicked over, then quickly looked away.

“Sorry, let me take this.”

Chi Yang lifted the phone to her ear.

Standing beside her, Pei Jiuyao watched her face darken with every second of the call—until at last, she hung up.

“Director Lin, I’m sorry… but it looks like I won’t be able to make this dinner after all.”

Her hand clamped around Pei Jiuyao’s arm, her voice heavy.

“My sister just collapsed.”