After the Scummy Alpha Marked the Crazy Beautiful Heroine - Chapter 48.2

“Yuxuan is the only one who does us proud,” Chi Shu said with a sniff, casting Chi Leya a disdainful look as the girl settled beside Chi Yang.

“Jie, you don’t like this, do you?” Chi Leya whispered, gently pushing her small bowl toward Chi Yang.

Chi Yang glanced at her, fingers pausing, then began dumping piece after piece of pork into her bowl until a little mound had formed.

“Take them all.” She even scraped the last bits of sauce in.

Across the table, Chi Ran scoffed. “Grandmother’s dead and she didn’t shed a single tear. All that doting on her was wasted.”

“I didn’t tell her yet. I didn’t want to distract her from the competition,” Chi Yue replied coolly.

As CEO of Minghe Group and their grandfather’s right-hand, it was almost certain the company would be handed to her, with or without a will.

And even if there wasn’t, the board would still back her.

To Chi Yue, these relatives were nothing but losers. She had no patience to waste on their petty squabbles.

But Chi Qing had quietly been acquiring Minghe shares over the years, and Chi Ran had been making moves with Mo Tian in secret. While Chi Yue still held the voting power, if those two managed to secure majority control, the final outcome would be far from certain.

Chi Shu gave a hollow laugh. “Second Sister really knows how to keep her composure.”

Chi Qing caught the covert exchange between Chi Yang and Chi Leya, then noticed Chi Zao reaching for the Buddha Jumps Over the Wall stew. Without hesitation, she picked up the clay pot and set it in front of Chi Yang.

“Yangyang, didn’t you always love soup? Drink up.”

Chi Yang stared at the pot, locking eyes with Chi Leya. Finally, she gave a blank nod.

“Soup alone won’t help you grow. Eat more meat—you’re skin and bones.” Chi Qing intercepted another dish, this time braised pork, and set it in front of the two girls.

Chi Zao’s mouth fell open. “She’s twenty-seven already! What’s there left to grow?”

Chi Yang nodded solemnly. Hugging the clay pot, she said, “I grew a centimeter this morning.”

Chi Qing chuckled warmly and ruffled her hair. “Good girl.”

“Mom! Look at her! She’s taking everything I like!” Chi Zao whined.

“Enough,” Chi Ran snapped, still smarting from the earlier jab about Yuxuan. Watching her child sulk only deepened her resentment. She pinched Chi Zao’s arm and said, “At least you have a mother who cooks for you. Can’t you let someone else have some?”

Chi Qing’s gaze shifted to Chi Yang. She noticed the way her eyelashes fluttered ever so slightly when Chi Zao cried out “Mom.” Quietly, she tossed a piece of braised pork into her mouth, then raised a hand to pat Chi Yang’s back—just once, gently—before letting it fall.

By the time dinner ended, it was past nine.

Chi Leya rubbed her swollen stomach, pulled out her phone, and typed:

【#SoCloseYetSoFar#

“If you knew I carried heaven’s punishment and iron chains on my back, if being with me meant a battle of life and death, if everything you hold dear would be shattered—
would you still choose to walk toward me?”】

Through the tall glass windows, she looked out at the thin figure sitting in the cold by the green cedar tree. Turning back, she added another line:

【“But what if I don’t want to shackle you at all?”】

…

When Chi Qing stepped outside, Chi Yang’s ears were red from the cold. She sat on the swing, hands resting on her knees.

Chi Qing draped a coat over her shoulders.

Chi Yang lifted her head, dazed at first, then her scattered gaze slowly focused as she accepted the coat and pulled it on.

“What are you thinking about?” Chi Qing asked softly, holding the swing’s rope.

“About when I was little,” Chi Yang replied.

Chi Qing assumed she was thinking of their mother and was about to comfort her.

But Chi Yang pointed at a stone bench nearby. “I used to sit there, watching Chi Yuxuan play on this swing while Grandma pushed her.

“I thought it looked so fun, but Yuxuan never let me touch her things. Just now, I suddenly wanted to know what it felt like.”

“And?” Chi Qing asked. “Was it fun?”

“Not really. I’m grown up now.” Chi Yang leaned against the rope, her voice flat. “The things I wanted so badly as a child but couldn’t have… once you finally can, it doesn’t matter anymore.”

After a moment, she sighed softly. “So what are we all still holding on to, year after year?”

Chi Qing’s lips curved faintly, the sound of her voice carrying a sigh. “Yes… what are we still holding on to?”

The wind swept through, rustling the cedar leaves. When the clouds broke, a crescent moon hung overhead, its pale light spilling onto the ground, stretching their shadows long until they overlapped as one.

“I saw you barely touched your soup,” Chi Qing said, rubbing her eyes lightly. “When you were little, you loved soup the most.”

“It’s not as good as the soup Pei Jiuyao makes.”

Chi Qing chuckled lowly. “And here I thought you just didn’t have an appetite.”

Chi Yang lifted her head. “It never ends with them, does it? I remember you’ve collected quite a bit of Minghe’s stock over the past few years. With Grandma gone and no will left behind, this could actually work in our favor. If Chi Leya is willing…”

“It won’t be easy to get her to budge. Her mother passed away early, and her Omega mother who remarried abroad has long since stopped looking after her. She still needs money to feel secure.”

It was clear Chi Qing had no intention of starting with Chi Leya.

Chi Yang’s grip on the rope in her hand tightened abruptly. “Then what will you do? If you can’t secure Minghe’s controlling voice, the first thing they’ll do is short your company.”

Chi Qing lowered her voice. “I recently found out that twelve percent of Minghe’s shares are in the hands of Grandma’s illegitimate daughter.”

“An illegitimate—”

“Shh!” Chi Qing made a silencing gesture. “Shen Xinyi is still investigating. If we can track her down before they do…”

“Do you need my help?” Chi Yang asked.

Chi Qing ruffled her hair. “The time for you to help me has long passed—unless you’re willing to quit the industry now.”

Chi Yang batted her hand away and turned her head aside.

“Alright.” Chi Qing dug a car key from her pocket. “I know you don’t want to stay here. Go to the hospital and see Pei Jiuyao.”

Chi Yang blinked at the car key. “What about them?”

“You’ve still got me.” Chi Qing deliberately lifted the key out of reach when Chi Yang stretched out her hand. “Do you want it or not?”

“So childish!” Chi Yang snatched it away in one motion.

________________________________________

“Yaoyao, Yaoyao, wake up!”

A woman’s urgent voice pierced the air.

Pei Jiuyao groggily opened her eyes and rubbed them hard with the back of her hand.

White light surrounded her.

She sat up instinctively, glancing around. Outside the window, the sun blazed in a cloudless sky. The room was packed with balloons and bouquets.

She looked down—she was still in a hospital gown.

Someone suddenly cried out, “She’s awake!”

The room exploded into chaos. Several people rushed out, shouting as they went: “Go call the doctor!”

A face loomed suddenly close.

“Chi Yang?” Pei Jiuyao’s gaze was unfocused, her voice a faint murmur.

“Who are you calling?” A pat landed on her shoulder. A woman clutched her tightly, voice trembling with sobs.

Her head throbbed.

Pei Jiuyao summoned all her strength to push the woman off, eyes widening.

A doctor in a white coat shone a light into her pupils, forcing her to squint. Reflex tears spilled from her eyes.

Again she whispered, “Chi Yang?”

“Dr. Zhou, what’s happening to her?”

“The patient just woke up—she’s disoriented. Give it some time.”

When the doctor left, a pale-faced woman sat back down and pinched Jiuyao’s cheek as though to bring her back.

Voices clamored all around:

“Yaoyao, do you recognize me?”

“And me, Yaoyao?”

“You don’t know who I am either?”

A blur of faceless women drifted past her vision like silhouettes.

Nausea rose. Pei Jiuyao clutched her chest and retched.

Her body jolted—she shot upright.

It was dark now.

The hospital wall in front of her glowed stark white.

“Yaoyao, you’re awake!” A woman’s voice, trembling with joy, echoed in the ward.

“Xiao Li…”

Before she could say more, the woman bolted out the door, screaming, “Dr. Zhou! Yaoyao’s awake!”

Pei Jiuyao stared blankly at the doctor examining her. “Where… is this?”

“Yaoyao, half a year ago a chandelier fell and hit your head. It was a miracle you survived.” Tears welled in the woman’s eyes as she pressed her hands to her chest. “You… you still remember your mother, don’t you? Please tell me you do…”

“Of course I remember.” Jiuyao reached out and clutched her hand, throat tightening. “M… Mom?”

The woman broke down in sobs. “You don’t know how terrified I was. The doctors said you might never wake up, that you could become a vegetable! I thought I’d lost you. From now on you’re never living alone again—I’m moving in with you!”

“It’s alright, Mom.” Jiuyao felt dazed.

So… she was back?

But she hadn’t finished her mission yet. There were still so many things…

Did Chi Yang’s confession somehow count as completing it?

That fast? That suddenly?

Inside her mind she shouted, 7023?

Suddenly, a torrent of voices flooded the ward.

Old friends, her agent—everyone crowded in.

“Yaoyao! You scared us half to death!”

…

Later, Jiuyao sat in her room, still dazed.

In the kitchen, Ming Hui busied herself cooking. When the aroma drifted out, she called, “Yaoyao, dinner’s ready, come eat.”

Jiuyao’s fingers twitched. She slipped on her slippers and shuffled to the dining table, sitting down stiffly.

Since waking, she’d been slow, sluggish. But after half a year bedridden, that was normal—the doctors said it would pass.

Ming Hui handed her chopsticks with a gentle smile. “Eat more, sweetheart. You’ve lost weight.”

“Oh.” Jiuyao set the chopsticks in her bowl and sat motionless.

Ming Hui’s heart ached. Her lively, spirited daughter had turned into this… What if there were aftereffects?

She quickly picked up some dishes and placed them in Jiuyao’s bowl. Jiuyao stared at the food, eyes dim. After a long pause, she finally lifted the chopsticks and chewed slowly.

The table felt oppressively quiet.

Ming Hui swiped at her eyes, praying her brilliant daughter wasn’t… impaired.

But even so, she was already grateful—grateful her daughter had woken up at all.

Trying to lighten the mood, she said, “Do you still remember the CEO of Qinghong Tech?”

Jiuyao hesitated, then answered, “Of course. We used to collaborate a lot.”

Ming Hui leaned in, tone conspiratorial. “Well, something strange happened lately. Her daughter—she’d been in a coma for eighteen years. Just a few days ago, she suddenly woke up.”

“Eighteen years?” Jiuyao was startled.

“That’s right. They’d nearly given up hope, then suddenly—miracle. Isn’t it uncanny?” Ming Hui smiled as she dropped more food into Jiuyao’s bowl.

“What’s her daughter’s name?” Jiuyao asked.

“It’s in the news.” Ming Hui unlocked her phone, scrolled, then looked up. “Chi Qing.”