The Fallen Film Queen’s Possessive Alpha - Chapter 16

“You’re really annoying.”

Zhou Qiwei had heard this whispered complaint from her nanny when she was very young, usually after failing to learn how to speak and the nanny getting scolded for it. The third child of the Zhou family remembered things early but spoke late. Every time the nanny took her to see her two mothers, Madam Zhou would complain that she “wasn’t as smart as her older sisters,” and Madam Du would blame the nanny for not being diligent enough.

Once back in their room, the nanny would roll her eyes, purse her lips, and mutter those words often while Zhou Qiwei was playing with her toys. Though it upset her, little Zhou Qiwei would also feel a wave of relief. It meant the nanny was in a decent mood, which meant she wouldn’t go hungry or be locked in her room.

When the nanny was in a bad mood, Zhou Qiwei would be left alone in the small room for hours on end. No one cared where a toddler was, as long as she wasn’t being abused or dead.

Maybe the saying “a child’s nature is evident by three” was right. The young Zhou Qiwei wasn’t a likable child, and she didn’t grow into a likable adult either. One moment, she was nestled in Song Haoyin’s arms, basking in rare tenderness; the next, Song Haoyin pushed her away, and they erupted into a fierce argument.

The reason was simple: Why did you interfere with my work?

That embrace had been so warm and soft that Zhou Qiwei’s brilliant brain overheated, and she mentioned Xu Su’s comment about Song Haoyin’s recent work struggles.

In an instant, the atmosphere shifted. The warm embrace vanished, the gentle beauty disappeared, replaced by a coldly composed Song Haoyin.

God, how Zhou Qiwei hated this feeling like happily eating pineapple ice cream, only for someone to snatch it away and force-feed you colchicine instead.

“Xu Su may have been headhunted by you, but she’s my PR director. Even though we… in business, we’re partners. That’s my work,” Song Haoyin said sternly, all traces of their earlier intimacy gone.

Not crossing boundaries was important to Song Haoyin: “If you have concerns about the studio’s operations, you can talk to me directly. Why go behind my back to Xu Su?”

Zhou Qiwei’s actions stemmed from her subconscious belief that she held the upper hand that she should, and naturally did, bear responsibility for Song Haoyin. This was influenced by their Alpha-Omega dynamic, Zhou Qiwei’s own reliance on pheromones, and the tangled, unspoken emotions between them.

“I wasn’t criticizing your work. I just cared that someone was encroaching on your resources that’s my business to handle!”

“But I don’t need this kind of handling, nor this kind of concern!”

Zhou Qiwei’s explanation sounded like an excuse, or worse like she was leveraging her Alpha status, her role as a patron, and her position as an investor to control Song Haoyin’s work, even her life.

Song Haoyin needed to maintain her studio’s independence, but if Zhou Qiwei wanted to exert influence, that independence would be as fragile as a candle in the wind. Song Haoyin didn’t dare nor did she have the confidence to resist Zhou Qiwei. Her options were painfully limited.

There was also their first time at the hotel, how effortlessly composed Zhou Qiwei had been, tossing her into the room before drifting away. The second meeting had been all about pheromones, and later, she’d taken her to Cloud Peak Villa, perfectly convincing her. Then, at the later banquet, she’d successfully brought her home to spend her rut together.

Earlier, they’d discussed Su Ye’s past little habits wasn’t Su Ye’s intention all about emotional control and possession? Then what about Zhou Qiwei? Did she want even more.

Song Haoyin despised herself for even considering that such a clever Alpha might have suffered many grievances and needed care. But this woman was clearly cunning she must have been acting all along.

“Overstepping like this, what will the studio think? What will Xu Su think? Who is she really accountable to? If our opinions clash, whose PR strategy will she follow?”

“I’ve already spoken to Xu Su. She works for you and answers to you!”

Song Haoyin was genuinely amused by her now. “Zhou Qiwei, in your own company, would you discuss professional boundaries with executives like this?”

Zhou Qiwei’s overloaded brain hadn’t fully recovered, but the young genius, as if guided by some divine whim, blurted out: “Song Haoyin, if we were just business partners, just some godforsaken investor-investee relationship, would you even talk to me like this?”

Of course not.

Zhou Qiwei wasn’t entirely wrong, but the way she framed it made it seem like Song Haoyin was exploiting their unspoken feelings for personal gain.

Trembling with anger, Song Haoyin fumbled with her coat, buttoning it wrong in her haste. She didn’t care grabbing her bag, she turned to leave. Zhou Qiwei’s overheated brain finally cooled down, belatedly realizing she’d said something awful. She leapt forward, catching Song Haoyin’s wrist, desperate to speak but only managing incoherent mumbles. Unwilling to let go, her grip only tightened.

“Let go!”

Song Haoyin’s voice rose sharply, enunciating each word: “If you’re unhappy, you’ll just keep me here by force? Zhou Qiwei, don’t be so insufferable.”

Her fingers slid helplessly from Song Haoyin’s wrist. Zhou Qiwei bit her lip, face burning with shame.

It was just like years ago, when her grandmother had discovered the nanny’s neglect. The nanny had retorted in front of the whole family: “This child is unlikable no one in this house even glances her way. How can you blame me for not caring?”

Zhou Qiwei still remembered their expressions flustered pity, mockery. She didn’t need anyone’s pity.

Maybe she was meant to be the villain. Zhou Qiwei crossed her arms, adopting a flippant tone as she smirked at Song Haoyin: “Miss Song, take care on your way out. Don’t forget our pheromone arrangement See you next time.”

Song Haoyin stormed off, leaving Zhou Qiwei alone in the late-night bar. She slumped onto the table, idly poking at her glass. Each tap against the rim sent ripples through the liquor, threatening to spill over.

Wasn’t this just like people?

A slight external force could send the contents of a glass into turmoil. Zhou Qiwei understood Song Haoyin’s concerns perfectly.

Back when Rubik’s Industries was preparing for financing, Kyushu Group also wanted to participate but was explicitly rejected by Zhou Qiwei. She’d rather drink with investors until her pheromone disorder frequently acted up than take the Zhou family’s money. Xuan Tinglu even advised her that even if there were conflicts with her family, normal investment channels shouldn’t be an issue, why fight against money?

Du Xin stopped Xuan Tinglu, telling her: The Zhou family is like a camel on a winter night, while the current Rubik’s Industries is just a small tent. If they believe the nonsense about “let me warm up a bit” and allow the camel to stick its paw in, the camel could drive them out and claim the tent whenever it wanted later.

So-called prestigious families always think they’re the sun, and everyone should revolve around them. Their immense influence only needs to lightly flap its wings, and the world of the weak will be destroyed by the ensuing storm.

In their relationship, Zhou Qiwei was the sun the very intensity of that sun being the root of all Song Haoyin’s reservations and fears.

This wasn’t Song Haoyin’s fault, nor was it Zhou Qiwei’s. She believed that subjectively, she never intended to control Song Haoyin it was just a slight miscommunication. So who should be responsible for their unhappiness and Zhou Qiwei’s bad mood today?

When the sensitive period ended, Du Xin and Xuan Tinglu returned to work. The gossip about them had already faded. These past few days, the entire company had been tormented by Zhou Qiwei’s antics, leaving no energy for idle chatter. Seeing Du Xin return felt like a godsend.

“Director Du, please make President Zhou stop her divine torment!” The entire secretarial office wailed in the work group chat.

Du Xin looked through the documents in her hand summaries of recent meetings with CEO Ms. Zhou. She demanded the company liquidate all liquid assets and completely restart the personal pheromone sensor project. Not just restart, but publicly announce that Dr. Zhou Qiwei believed the current personal sensors couldn’t overcome the technical hurdles in gland sensing and pheromone capture in the short term.

As an authoritative expert in the field, Zhou Qiwei’s announcement directly caused related stocks to plummet.

This wasn’t right. Assistant Xuan held a document with information completely different from what she knew. Meeting each other’s eyes, the two wordlessly turned and headed for the CEO’s office, only to be told Zhou Qiwei wasn’t there.

Then at the research institute?

That was also a no. Zhou Qiwei’s secretary informed them the CEO had gone abroad yesterday to attend a nudist parade.

“Before leaving, President Zhou asked me to tell you that daily operations remain under your direction, while Assistant Xuan should oversee the research institute. She’ll be back in about a week.”

Xuan Tinglu nearly jumped in fright, but Du Xin, who should have been the most worried remained perfectly calm, which steadied her. Having known Zhou Qiwei since boarding school for over a decade, Xuan Tinglu knew that while Zhou had a bad temper and many flaws, her greatest virtue was never acting recklessly though she loved talking recklessly!

Du Xin checked her private inbox and found several emails from Zhou Qiwei for her and Xuan Tinglu to review. After skimming through them, they understood. Xuan Tinglu chuckled foolishly: “Who provoked her like this? TopProfit is done for this time.”

Assistant Xuan’s silly grin didn’t last long. She noticed Du Xin’s serious expression and before she could ask her girlfriend what was wrong, Du Xin told her: “Do as Qiwei says. I’m going out for a bit. Call me if anything comes up.”

Song Haoyin found herself at Caesar Hotel once again. The press conference for her new film the one that had nearly been banned from release was being held here today.

Before the event, Song kept checking her phone. Two days ago, she’d sent Zhou Qiwei an invitation to the premiere, but the woman seemed to still be angry, no replies to texts or emails, and her calls went unanswered.

Who would have thought she’d ever experience a day when “there was no door for apologies”? Song stared dejectedly at her silent phone when Yu Miao informed her from behind: “Vice President Du from Magic Cube is here.”

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