I Heard I’m a Scummy Alpha? [Transmigration] - Chapter 68

Qi Yunwei waited five or six minutes, but Huang Momo still hadn’t replied.

She grew a little puzzled. Could it be that even Huang Momo couldn’t figure it out?

Qi Yunwei: If you don’t know either, I can think about it more, or just ask her directly after she gets off work tonight.

Huang Momo: No need to ask her. I already know the reason.

Huang Momo: But before I tell you, can you explain why you’re so concerned about whether Zuizui is angry?

Qi Yunwei: She’s my wife. Of course I care.

Huang Momo: But you said your marriage was fake.

Qi Yunwei: “…”

Huang Momo: Do you like Zuizui? Be honest. I won’t tell her.

Qi Yunwei: Mm. I like her. I’ve been trying to pursue her recently, so I don’t want to upset her.

Qi Yunwei: She’s actually cold outside but warm inside—very softhearted. Usually it’s easy to coax her. But this time, for some reason, no matter how I tried, it didn’t work. That’s why I came to you for help.

Huang Momo stared at her screen, feeling like the ultimate fool. These two clearly had mutual feelings, and here she was, stuck as the go-between while being force-fed dog food.

Honestly, she could solve everything just by telling Qi Yunwei that Yan Zui also liked her. That would make everyone happy.

But Yan Zui had forbidden her to say so—she wanted to experience what it felt like to be chased.

As her best friend, Huang Momo could only comply.

So she sold Qi Yunwei out in an instant.

Huang Momo: [Picture] Tsk tsk, she really is pursuing you. Relax, you’ve already got her tied down. No one’s divorcing here, not now, not ever.

Yan Zui: [smile emoji]

Huang Momo: “…”

Damn it. She had just gone through a breakup, so why was she eating this much dog food and enjoying it?

After chatting with her best friend, Huang Momo hurried back to Qi Yunwei.

Huang Momo: I think Zuizui is angry because your attitude was too casual. Marriage isn’t something you can treat lightly, even if it’s a fake one. You should know she used to be against marriage altogether, so the fact that she agreed was a very serious step for her. But you spoke so offhandedly—of course she’d be upset.

Huang Momo: That said, you’re right about one thing. Zuizui has a soft heart. Her anger won’t last long. After she gets off work, just don’t bring up the topic again, and it’ll be fine.

Qi Yunwei read her reply, thanked her, and decided to wait until she saw Yan Zui after work.

If Yan Zui was still angry, she would apologize sincerely.

If she had already cooled off, then there was no need to bring it up again.

The afternoon dragged on slowly from sheer idleness.

Just before quitting time, Qi Yunwei received a message from Feng Yue:

[I’ve avenged Lingling.]

She immediately called back, only to find the number had already been deactivated.

A little after five o’clock, everyone’s phones lit up with breaking news: Qin Feili, a well-known entrepreneur in Changyuan City, had died unexpectedly at the age of forty-seven.

Qi Yunwei clicked in. It reported that Qin Feili had gone hiking that morning, taken a side trail, and accidentally fallen off a cliff. After a day of searching, rescuers finally recovered his body at the bottom. The article went on to describe his vast business empire and mentioned that he had only one heir, his sole son Qin Lifeng—who was now poised to become the youngest person under thirty to enter the nation’s Top 100 Rich List.

Qin Feili had always loved hiking, often going alone once a week. His death appeared to be an accident, nothing suspicious. Public attention quickly shifted to Qin Lifeng, soon to inherit his father’s entire estate.

Ten minutes later, Qi Yunwei arrived near the Yan Corporation headquarters. Just thirty or forty meters from the building, Zhou Xiao pulled up and waved.

“Boss lady, quick, get in the car.”

Qi Yunwei opened the door and climbed in, her first instinct to check Yan Zui’s expression.

Yan Zui was reading something on her phone. Sensing her gaze, she lifted her eyes and asked faintly, “What is it?”

Qi Yunwei confirmed she wasn’t angry anymore and felt a rush of relief. As expected, Huang Momo knew her best friend inside and out.

Qi Yunwei said, “Nothing. I just wanted to ask if you saw the news about Qin Lifeng.”

Yan Zui replied, “I’m looking at it now. Apparently Qin Lifeng suddenly has five half-brothers.”

“Illegitimate sons of Qin Feili?” Qi Yunwei was shocked.

“Yes. According to media reports, each with a different mother.” Yan Zui replied.

“That doesn’t add up,” Qi Yunwei frowned. “How can anyone confirm so quickly they’re really his children? Even a DNA test wouldn’t come back this fast.”

She paused, then looked at Yan Zui. “Don’t tell me Feng Yue vouched for them?”

Yan Zui met her eyes with a confirming look.

“So the media’s news must have come from Feng Yue.” Qi Yunwei said.

The Qin family scandal became everyone’s favorite tea-time gossip. Since Qin Feili had left no will, his illegitimate sons had equal inheritance rights. His empire would now be split six ways. Qin Lifeng’s dream of being the youngest tycoon in the country was shattered overnight.

In the days that followed, Qi Yunwei continued to be attentive to Yan Zui. But she wasn’t good at chasing someone—aside from being a little more proactive, she wasn’t doing much differently. She even considered signing up for a class to learn how to court someone properly.

Unfortunately, no such classes existed.

One evening, while they were eating together, Yan Zui’s phone suddenly rang.

She glanced at the caller ID, and her eyes lit up ever so slightly.

Qi Yunwei felt a stab of unease. “Who’s calling?”

“Qiao Haiyue.” Yan Zui replied.

Qi Yunwei: “…”

Qi Yunwei knew Yan Zui was a CP fan of Qiao Haiyue, so she posed no real threat. But still—Qiao Haiyue had a chance to get close to her.

Yan Zui answered the call, speaking softly. Qi Yunwei couldn’t read her expression; all she heard were quiet “mhm”s. Just before hanging up, Yan Zui said, “I’ll have to think about it.”

“What did she want?” Qi Yunwei asked.

Yan Zui set her phone down and said casually, “She invited me to be a guest on Living With You.”

“You’re considering it?” Qi Yunwei frowned.

If Yan Zui didn’t want to, she would’ve rejected it outright. The fact that she said she’d think about it meant she really was considering.

Yan Zui’s lashes trembled slightly. “If I join, I can see Qiao Haiyue and Peng Xueyu in person.”

But that wasn’t her only reason.

She knew Qi Yunwei had been struggling with this whole “pursuit” thing. She’d even thought about turning the tables and pursuing Qi Yunwei herself, to give her a proper example to follow.

But if she acted too soon, Qi Yunwei might take it as a cue to confess immediately—and that would spoil the fun. So she hesitated.

The phone call gave her a spark of inspiration.

“Just one episode. It’ll be on the weekend, so it won’t affect work,” Yan Zui added.

Qi Yunwei could see she had already made up her mind. “Aren’t you worried about your identity being exposed?”

The president of the Yan Corporation appearing on a variety show would become a nationwide talking point—especially with her looks.

“I’ll make arrangements beforehand. There won’t be any leaks. And even if there are, we can easily suppress discussion online. Without chatter, people forget quickly.” Yan Zui was no stranger to wielding money and power.

Qi Yunwei had no more arguments. She agreed, but with conditions. “Then I’m going with you.”

Yan Zui gave a casual nod. “Although you don’t ship CPs, once you see Haiyue Xueyu’s sweetness up close, you might start shipping them.”

In truth, Qi Yunwei’s request was exactly what Yan Zui had hoped for.

The show’s intimate missions weren’t just for Qiao Haiyue and Peng Xueyu—they applied to her and Qi Yunwei as well.

Meanwhile, Yunmengze’s staff had all reported to work. Their first task was training. Qi Yunwei had already packaged all the essentials of holographic tech—except the AI core—and sent them to Wu Baizhi. The century-ahead tech was absorbed quickly by him. Whenever he had doubts, Qi Yunwei explained with clarity. Once he mastered it, he could teach the others, leaving Qi Yunwei free to take a hands-off approach.

The day before filming, both Qi Yunwei and Yan Zui received their scripts.

Since Qiao Haiyue and Peng Xueyu could each only bring one friend, Yan Zui was listed as Qiao Haiyue’s guest, while Qi Yunwei would appear as Peng Xueyu’s.

Along with their “friend” info came their assigned personas.

According to the script, Qi Yunwei and Yan Zui were strangers meeting for the first time. Yan Zui could just be herself—the aloof beauty. Qi Yunwei, however, had been given a complete makeover.

The director thought a bland show would flop, so he stacked all the conflict points onto Qi Yunwei.

Her backstory: a self-made rich first-generation. She had grown up poor, fought her way to success, and despised spoiled second-generation heirs like Yan Zui. She would speak sharply to her. But through working together on missions, she would gradually change her impression, become attracted, and by the end of filming, reconcile.

Qi Yunwei: “…” What a detailed script.

She had always known variety shows had scripts—but she hadn’t realized they could be this specific. She wasn’t a trained actress; she could act, but she couldn’t guarantee her performance.

After finishing her own simple script, Yan Zui looked up and noticed Qi Yunwei frowning deeper and deeper. Curious, she asked, “Is your role that complicated, or do you just not like the character?”

Qi Yunwei sighed. “For a professional actor it’d be easy. I’ll just do my best.”

That only piqued Yan Zui’s curiosity further. She reached over, took Qi Yunwei’s script, and skimmed it quickly. Finally she understood why she was troubled.

“Don’t worry,” Yan Zui reassured. “It’s pre-recorded and edited. If it doesn’t work, you can redo it—two, three, even five times if you need.”

That did manage to comfort Qi Yunwei somewhat.

The shoot location was in a mountain village outside Guangnan City. They had to arrive early, then act like they were just arriving on the day of filming.

After a two-hour drive, they reached the village. The director personally came to greet them. The moment they stepped out of the car, he rushed forward dramatically.

“President Yan, an honor indeed! The moment your feet touched this ground, our humble village turned to gold!”

Yan Zui replied politely, “You flatter me, Director Liu.”

After pleasantries, the director finally got serious.

“President Yan, Miss Qi, there’s something important you should know. Since this is a brand-new show, ratings are critical. For the first episode to make a splash, the production team voted—and decided it will be broadcast live.”