I Heard I’m a Scummy Alpha? [Transmigration] - Chapter 28

When Qin Lifeng returned, Younger Brother B was nowhere to be seen. The one who had just lost his match, Younger Brother C, stood stiffly beside Qin Lifeng’s seat, face pale, legs trembling.

Though Qi Yunwei pitied him, the thought that—had he won—he might have shadowed Yan Zui and carried messages back to Qin Lifeng made her sympathy vanish without a trace.

Qin Lifeng sat down with a cold face. Seeing Younger Brother C standing nearby, he asked impatiently,

“Standing here like a door god? Hurry up and get ready. Or do you plan to lose as well?”

Little Brother C stammered, his voice shaking.

“B-Brother Feng, I, I just lost to Zhou Xiao.”

Qin Lifeng froze for a second, then his face darkened.

“You really lost?” he asked in a low, heavy voice.

Younger Brother C was too frightened to answer.

Qi Yunwei spoke up from the side.

“He really did lose. Both Yan Zui and I can vouch for it.”

Yan Zui turned to Qin Lifeng and said,

“Zhou Xiao’s skills are impressive. Lifeng, you don’t need to keep feeling guilty about resigning so suddenly.”

Qin Lifeng looked past Qi Yunwei at Yan Zui and forced a smile.

“You’re right. Now I can be at ease.”

Of his three men, Qin Lifeng had dismissed one in advance, and the other two had lost. Rage burned in his chest. He wanted nothing more than to drag them back for a beating to vent his anger. But with Yan Zui still here, and his plan not yet complete, he knew that creating trouble would only make it harder to see her again. He swallowed his fury and stayed to continue watching the matches.

Watching was only an excuse—eighty percent of the time, Qin Lifeng’s eyes never strayed from Yan Zui.

The final match was between two of Huang Wang’s friends, one of whom was Zhou Xiao—the one who had defeated Qin Lifeng’s man.

Qi Yunwei noticed: the other twenty percent of Qin Lifeng’s attention was fixed on Zhou Xiao, his gaze full of suspicion and calculation.

When the match ended and the referee declared Zhou Xiao the winner, Yan Zui immediately offered him a generous employment contract. Zhou Xiao signed without even glancing at it.

Qin Lifeng suddenly said,

“President Yan, isn’t it reckless to sign without reading the contract? Is someone like that really fit to be your bodyguard?”

Before Yan Zui could respond, Zhou Xiao frowned.

“Sir, first of all, I don’t skip reading every contract. Second, the reason I didn’t read President Yan’s is because I trust her. She’s a boss who’s both beautiful and kind-hearted. I know she would never play tricks on me in a contract.”

Qi Yunwei interjected,

“Zhou Xiao, this is President Yan’s former bodyguard. He stayed by her side for more than a year. He only said that out of concern.”

Zhou Xiao had to look up slightly—Qin Lifeng was half a head taller—but his aura wasn’t the least bit weaker.

He retorted instantly,

“Mr. Qin, you were with President Yan for over a year and still don’t trust her character? How can you question whether she’d cheat someone who’s about to protect her?”

He shook his head in disappointment.

“No wonder you were dismissed. With that kind of distrust, no matter how strong you are, a boss wouldn’t want to keep you around.”

Qin Lifeng’s chest heaved with fury. He ground his teeth.

“Of course I trust President Yan. And for the record—I wasn’t dismissed. I resigned of my own accord.”

Zhou Xiao immediately pounced on the slip.

“You resigned? From such a good boss? Are you out of your mind?”

“I!” Qin Lifeng was so choked with anger he couldn’t get a word out, his face alternating between black and red.

Then Zhou Xiao gave a shy grin and delivered the killing blow.

“Actually, I should thank you, Mr. Qin. If you hadn’t resigned, I wouldn’t have had the chance to become President Yan’s employee.”

“Mr. Qin, thank you.” Zhou Xiao’s expression was utterly sincere.

Qin Lifeng could no longer maintain his composure. His eyes burned red, as if he might leap up and kill Zhou Xiao at any moment.

But Zhou Xiao, whether out of fearless bravado or true confidence in his own strength, did not back down in the slightest. He met Qin Lifeng’s glare head-on, utterly unflinching.

Just as the standoff was about to explode, Yan Zui spoke.

“Lifeng was by my side for seventeen months. He worked diligently and never made a mistake. Many people in the company became his friends. If it wasn’t for an urgent family matter, I would never have let him go so easily.”

Her voice was serious. Qin Lifeng froze, the bloodshot red in his eyes gradually fading.

Yan Zui continued,

“Zhou Xiao, if there are things you don’t understand in the future, you can ask Lifeng. I’m sure he’ll be glad to teach you.”

Zhou Xiao nodded at once.

“President Yan, I’ll make sure to learn well from Mr. Qin.”

He then turned to Qin Lifeng and said apologetically,

“I’m sorry, Mr. Qin. I was just too excited earlier, and my tone may have been inappropriate. I’ll apologize here in front of President Yan and promise never to repeat it.”

With Yan Zui present, Qin Lifeng couldn’t afford to bicker with a junior bodyguard. Doing so would only elevate Zhou Xiao while diminishing himself.

“It’s understandable,” he said stiffly.

“Mr. Qin, you’re really too kind. Just like President Yan said. I do have many things to ask you about work. Would it be alright if we exchange contact information?”

Zhou Xiao eagerly pulled Qin Lifeng aside to add him on WeChat and consult him, and in that instant, the storm seemed to dissipate into thin air.

Watching Zhou Xiao with interest, Qi Yunwei chuckled.

“Your new bodyguard is quite something.”

He was skilled, quick-witted, bold yet careful, able to bend and stretch as needed. He even dared to provoke someone like Qin Lifeng—and not only survived, but managed to come out smiling.

“You just saved his life,” she added. Qin Lifeng was notoriously vindictive, never letting a grudge go unavenged.

The Qin family had cleaned up their image through their security company, but their ties to the underworld had never been severed. Many who had offended Qin Lifeng had disappeared without a trace.

If Yan Zui hadn’t intervened, Zhou Xiao might not have made it out of the pavilion before being kidnapped for Qin Lifeng to vent his anger on.

Even with Zhou Xiao’s strength, two fists couldn’t fend off four hands. It was only a matter of time before Qin Lifeng struck back.

Yan Zui said calmly,

“I can protect him now only because Qin Lifeng still has designs on me and doesn’t want to lose face. But if the day comes when he loses interest, no amount of pleading on my part will make any difference.”

Qi Yunwei hadn’t expected Yan Zui to speak so candidly to her, and for a moment, she felt oddly moved.

This felt like a real, heart-to-heart conversation. She couldn’t help but say,

“I truly hope he loses interest in you soon.”

Qin Lifeng’s love was a disaster. Anyone who touched it would suffer.

Yan Zui’s eyes glinted.

“You seem to know quite a lot about Qin Lifeng, don’t you?”

It was only because Qi Yunwei had kept warning her that she had finally hired a private investigator—who discovered that Qin Lifeng was, in fact, an Alpha.

Qi Yunwei’s dark eyes brightened slightly, clear and unguarded. She said naturally, “Maybe it’s just that I’m a little smarter and like to observe. I can’t know these things out of nowhere. Everything I told you, I thought through carefully—they were things worth doubting.”

“Is that so.” Yan Zui’s tone was cool, giving no hint of whether she believed Qi Yunwei’s explanation.

At that moment, Qin Lifeng, having exchanged contact information with Zhou Xiao, returned to say his farewells.

There was a trace of reluctance in his eyes as he gazed deeply at Yan Zui, as though trying to etch her face into his memory. “President Yan, I have to go.”

Yan Zui gave a slight nod. “Until next time.”

Once Qin Lifeng left, Zhou Xiao patted his chest in relief. “That was terrifying. The presence of an Alpha really isn’t something us Betas can easily endure. I almost caved just now.”

“You knew he was an Alpha?” Qi Yunwei asked in surprise.

Zhou Xiao explained, “Huang Wang told us. He said Qin Lifeng was clearly an Alpha, but in order to get close to President Yan, he illegally used pheromone suppressants to pass himself off as a Beta. That kind of behavior is just too despicable—no decent person could stomach it. That’s why I couldn’t help but stand up to him.”

“Also, thank you for saving me, President Yan.” Zhou Xiao added sheepishly.

Yan Zui replied, “You helped me too. It’s only fair.”

Zhou Xiao then called his two brothers over and introduced them. “My brothers are all strong. If there’s related work in the future, I’d appreciate your referrals, President Yan.”

“Of course,” Yan Zui said.

With her bodyguards now settled, there wasn’t much else to do today.

Yan Zui told Zhou Xiao to go prepare and officially start tomorrow.

After Zhou Xiao left, Qi Yunwei checked the time and turned to Yan Zui. “We’re always eating Uncle Jiang’s cooking. Since we’re already out, why don’t we have dinner outside today? My treat.”

Yan Zui walked toward the entrance of the pavilion, her interest mild at best. She asked casually, “What kind of food?”

“I saw a restaurant online. They do pretty good Qiuhai cuisine.”

People from Qiuhai were famous for their love of sweet-and-sour flavors.

Yan Zui’s mood lifted slightly. She pressed her red lips together in a reserved smile. “We can try it.”

When Zhou Xiao started work the next day, she saw Qi Yunwei bringing lunch to Yan Zui at the office and assumed she was her life assistant or something similar. The following morning, when she drove to Yan Zui’s apartment to pick her up, she noticed Qi Yunwei was there too, which only confirmed her assumption.

After getting out of the car, Zhou Xiao greeted Qi Yunwei warmly right in front of Yan Zui. “I still don’t know your name. Let’s add each other as friends.”

Qi Yunwei sensed that Yan Zui seemed a little displeased. She glanced sideways at her but couldn’t read any emotion from her beautiful, detached expression.

Taking out her phone, she added Zhou Xiao on WeChat, then said to Yan Zui, “If you want anything in particular for lunch, send me a message. Otherwise, I’ll just let Uncle Jiang decide.”

“Mm.” Yan Zui responded lightly.

Zhou Xiao was baffled. Qi Yunwei dared to speak so casually with President Yan? Wasn’t she afraid of being fired?

After closing Yan Zui’s car door and watching Zhou Xiao drive her to the company, Qi Yunwei returned to her room and resumed work.

Around ten in the morning, she received a WeChat message from Yan Zui. It was just the name of a dish—the same Qiuhai dish they had tried yesterday.

Smiling, Qi Yunwei typed back: “Got it.”

Yesterday at dinner, Yan Zui had kept reaching for that dish. It was obvious she liked it.

Knowing her foodie tendencies, Qi Yunwei had already told the butler about the ingredients they’d need earlier that morning.

At noon, she brought the meal to the company and knocked on the door of the president’s office. It was Zhou Xiao who opened it.

Zhou Xiao beamed when she saw her. “Yunwei, you’re here. Come in!”

Yan Zui was in the middle of a video conference with her headset on. No one happened to be speaking at the moment, so Zhou Xiao’s voice slipped right into her ears. Yan Zui couldn’t help but glance up.

She saw Zhou Xiao warmly pulling Qi Yunwei by the arm into the office, then seating her on the sofa before sitting down beside her to chat.

Yan Zui : “…”

Yan Zui’s red lips pressed together, her deep-blue eyes dimming slightly.

Wasn’t Zhou Xiao being a little too forward? He and Qi Yunwei had only met yesterday, and yet today he was already acting so familiar.

Qi Yunwei also found it odd—Zhou Xiao was being unusually enthusiastic.

Zhou Xiao asked curiously, “Yunwei, how long have you been delivering meals to President Yan?”

“Over two weeks,” Qi Yunwei answered.

Zhou Xiao was startled. “Only two weeks on the job?”

Qi Yunwei frowned slightly at her choice of words. On the job? It did sound like employment. But then again, Yan Zui gave her a million a month. Other than the pay being outrageously high, it wasn’t all that different from a job.

Zhou Xiao leaned in closer, looking at her with admiration. “Wow, you’ve only been working two weeks and you can already interact so naturally with President Yan? Amazing. I can barely breathe in her presence.”

“Do you have any tips for getting along with her that you can share?”

Qi Yunwei chuckled. “There’s no secret. Actually, Yan Zui has a really good temperament. You’ll understand once you spend more time with her.”

Zhou Xiao’s eyes widened. “You just call President Yan by her name?”

Qi Yunwei froze for a second at the question, realizing Zhou Xiao might have misunderstood.

Before she could figure out how to explain, Yan Zui finished her meeting and walked over, sitting across from Qi Yunwei.

It seemed she had overheard their conversation. Her deep-blue eyes flicked to where their arms nearly touched, and she said calmly, “Zhou Xiao is with me every day. There’s no need to hide our relationship from him.”