The Fallen Film Queen’s Possessive Alpha - Chapter 23

If Zuo Yang were to live to 80, she would undoubtedly regard September of her 28th year as the great turning point of her destiny.

From a very young age, Zuo Yang knew her family was different from others her father was rarely home. As a child, she thought it was because he was very busy with work, which was how her Omega father explained it. That was until middle school, when she came across a news article.

Song Haoyin, daughter of renowned director Song Yu, won Best Actress at the Warren Film Festival and the Golden Phoenix Award for her role in “Wild Cat.” In the photo, Song Haoyin had her arm around her younger sister Song Ange, while their father took their picture, and Director Song Yu captured the moment of her husband and daughters.

Had that father in the photo not been Zuo Wangxun, Zuo Yang’s own father she might have wholeheartedly blessed this happy family.

Discovering she was an illegitimate child during her adolescence dealt Zuo Yang a severe emotional blow. She couldn’t understand why her Omega father had chosen such a fate. She cried, she raged, but her Omega father remained passive, content as long as he received money from Zuo Wangxun and didn’t have to work.

As for Zuo Wangxun, all he hoped for was that Zuo Yang would differentiate into an Alpha or an Omega. Who could have guessed she’d end up a Beta?

How laughable the man who betrayed his family ended up with a Beta daughter, just like himself. On the first day after her differentiation, Zuo Yang gleefully told her two absurd fathers, “You’re not that old yet, especially as an Omega. People in their 40s can still have children. Hurry up and have another one.”

Zuo Wangxun stormed out, slamming the door, while her Omega father began to realize his future depended entirely on his daughter. He relentlessly pushed Zuo Yang to join Top Advantage Group. No matter how stubborn Zuo Yang was, she eventually succumbed to her father’s tears and entered the company after graduating from university.

But what did joining Top Advantage really change?

Top Advantage would one day belong to Zuo Xingyu. Even though their uncle often scolded Zuo Xingyu out of frustration over his incompetence, Zuo Yang knew the truth. If she did her job well, it was expected. If she exceeded expectations, she might earn a passing compliment. Her promotions weren’t slow, and she was aware she still benefited from the Zuo name, but that was it.

If she was lucky, she might one day take charge of a subsidiary. For now, she focused on building connections and learning the ropes, ensuring at least a stable future for herself and her father.

But this predictable fate was completely overturned in September of that year.

Zuo Yang was working late at the office that day. With hostile takeovers looming externally and internal shareholder unrest, she was swamped. Zuo Xingyu had been unusually absent lately, but she assumed he was handling business. She continued sending him meeting notices as usual, though he rarely attended.

At noon, during a project meeting, Zuo Yang received a call from her third uncle, Zuo Wanggong. Bewildered, she followed him out, only learning on the way that Zuo Xingyu and Qu Jinghan’s Alpha son, Wei Yu, had provoked Song Haoyin at a restaurant and Zhou Qiwei had caught them red-handed.

What kind of food chain horror story is this? Zuo Yang thought. Those two thought they were big fish preying on small fish, never expecting a great white shark lurking behind them.

“Thinking he’s so great, but in reality, he’s just stubborn. He never learns.” Zuo Wanggong spoke of his unlucky son with obvious indifference, sending chills down Zuo Yang’s spine.

The estranged relationship between uncle and nephew was known, but Zuo Yang never imagined it had reached this point. Why was this?

In the families around her, no parents simply loved their children unconditionally. Parent-child relationships were always tangled with things beyond affection. No wonder Zuo Xingyu had always harbored hostility towards the Song Haoyin sisters it was probably jealousy, envy that they at least had a mother who loved them.

When Zuo Yang arrived at the scene, she couldn’t find Zuo Xingyu, and Young Master Wei was also missing. Hotel staff informed them: Wei Yu had been taken away by Assistant Qu, while Young Master Zuo’s whereabouts were unknown.

Zuo Yang was shocked had her cousin really run away so irresponsibly? In this situation, regardless of what followed, he should at least stay to give an explanation!

Yet Zuo Wanggong quickly accepted reality. This was his son after all, with such limited capacity for responsibility. Though he postured as the “Dingyi heir,” he was actually terrified of accountability. The moment he realized real consequences might follow, he’d bolt faster than a rabbit.

In the past, he’d thought the boy was still young and could be taught gradually. But Zuo Xingyu was already thirty. As elders, neither he nor Zuo Wangshao could keep deceiving themselves anymore.

Having been a university lecturer for years, Zuo Wanggong knew one truth well: education wasn’t a universal solution. If someone was inherently cowardly towards the strong while bullying the weak and shirking responsibility, no educational method could change their nature only minimize the trouble they caused.

Hoping he’d follow in his father’s footsteps? Might as well stop dreaming. Zuo Wanggong looked at Zuo Yang it seemed she was the only hope now. But if they chose her, would Zuo Wangxun stay quiet?

After all, they were both Betas. If Zuo Yang was selected, Zuo Wangxun might demand to take over first.

Zuo Yang had no time to dwell on her uncle’s concerns. All she knew was that from that day until the scandal eventually broke, she never saw Zuo Xingyu again. Whatever her uncle discussed with her eldest uncle upon returning, Zuo Yang’s workload increased dramatically. Beyond her current projects, she now had to handle stock issues and communications with the Elden Group. Within ten days, she made four international trips, often crawling exhausted from the bathtub to bed after showers.

Though physically drained, she felt mentally exhilarated. Zuo Yang faintly sensed this busy period was different this time, she was calling the shots, her authority expanding. Only one thing puzzled her: why did no one in the Zuo family mention Song Haoyin when this matter involved her? She hoped this restraint would continue she truly didn’t want to face Zuo Wangxun’s legitimate daughter. The awkwardness would be unbearable.

With family relationships this messy, whoever sought power next would have their hands full managing the Zuo clan. Not that it concerned her, Zuo Yang thought.

No calls, no texts, no emails.

Song Haoyin checked her phone again still no word from Zhou Qiwei. Since that day when she’d taken her away from the hotel, escaping Zuo Xingyu and that Wei family scoundrel, they hadn’t been in contact.

There was no news about Zhou Qiwei in the media, not even any updates about Rubik’s Industries. It was as if she had vanished from the face of the earth. Even when Song Ange was asked, she said she hadn’t seen Zhou Qiwei recently. Song Haoyin considered calling Du Xin but felt awkward about it. Ever since learning that Du Xin was Zhou Qiwei’s aunt, she couldn’t help feeling strange whenever she thought of her old classmate.

It dawned on Song Haoyin that Zhou Qiwei could completely cut off contact with her unilaterally, and there was nothing she could do about it.

So, was Zhou Qiwei giving her the cold shoulder now? No meetings, no calls, and… no more interest in her pheromones either?

That day, after helping her out of trouble, Zhou Qiwei had made up some flimsy excuse about a toothache and slipped away so blatant that Song Haoyin hadn’t even processed it at the time. She genuinely felt guilty. Over the past few months, she had noticed how accommodating Zhou Qiwei had been toward her.

Apart from their last argument, their relationship had been stable. But why had Zhou Qiwei suddenly gotten upset that day? Was it really just because of the joke she’d made?

Honestly, Song Haoyin was frustrated with herself. She wasn’t usually a harsh person, but something about Zhou Qiwei always managed to rub her the wrong way.

She hated it when Zhou Qiwei carried someone else’s scent without it, her mood would improve. She despised the version of Zhou Qiwei portrayed in the media, loathed how indifferent Zhou Qiwei seemed toward scandals, and detested even more when Zhou Qiwei actually cared about them!

Thud!

Song Haoyin slammed the documents in her hand onto the desk. The theatrical run of The Fuse had ended, grossing 420 million at the box office a resounding commercial success given its budget. She had already started planning the celebration banquet and wanted to invite Zhou Qiwei, only to realize her options were limited to either contacting Du Xin or personally staking out Rubik’s Tower or the research institute with no guarantee of success.

When Yuan Zhi walked in, she found Song Haoyin glaring daggers at the documents. The director couldn’t help but marvel some people could make even scowling at inanimate objects look cinematic. Just the sight of Song Haoyin’s arched brows and sharp phoenix eyes was enough to inspire the first 500 words of a script.

“What’s up?” Yuan Zhi bounced over cheerfully, ready to share good news. Wei Yu had officially been disinherited by his mother, and as an apology, Qu Jinghan had invited Song Haoyin and Yuan Zhi to tonight’s Luo City auction. She had prepared small gifts for her daughter and her best friend to celebrate their film’s success.

Music to her ears. Song Haoyin had never found Yuan Zhi more agreeable not because of Wei Yu, but because it suddenly struck her: wasn’t Yuan Zhi also Zhou Qiwei’s childhood friend? She could ask Yuan Zhi to try calling. If Zhou Qiwei picked up, Yuan Zhi could extend the invitation. If she didn’t even answer Yuan Zhi’s call, then she was deliberately avoiding her.

In that case, Song Haoyin would have no choice but to storm into the research institute and confront Zhou Qiwei directly.

After hearing Song Haoyin’s request, Yuan Zhi burst out laughing and said smugly, “Why bother calling? Zhou the Tyrant will be at the auction tonight too!”

Before Song Haoyin could respond, Yuan Zhi added, “This auction is hosted by Pan Rock Culture under Jiuzhou Group. They’ve invited several renowned auction houses there’ll be plenty of good stuff.”

Zhou Qiwei had two large dark circles under her eyes. She hadn’t been sleeping well lately, often plagued by nightmares throughout the night frequently dreaming of the incident in the submarine. The oxygen in her lungs gradually depleted until the final moments, when many were clutching their own throats, faces turning purple, unsure whether they hoped for a quick death or were trying to control their breathing to survive.

Beside her, comrades used their last breaths to desperately maneuver the submarine upward, only to die in the control room. Zhou Qiwei, lying next to the corpses after being knocked down by an impact, was pulled up by a fellow soldier. When the submarine surfaced, the soldier opened the hatch, only to be met with enemy gunfire and killed instantly.

The purple of oxygen deprivation and the bright red of blood these were images Zhou Qiwei would never forget.

Of the 148 people in the submarine, 51 perished a third of the crew lost. The casualty rate sent shockwaves through military circles. Now, when people spoke of the incident, they often said it led to improvements in submarine design, enhanced the use of artificial pheromones, and drew attention to the psychological state of Alpha submariners during prolonged missions.

But the dead were still dead. They would never return, and for them, nothing held meaning anymore.

The auction was set to begin at 7 p.m. at the Luo City Convention Center, but Zhou Qiwei arrived two hours early. Her condition had been so poor lately that she hadn’t even dared to visit the lab. Coming here seemed like a better option. Unexpectedly, she stumbled upon something remarkable a collection of items, including famous paintings, rare books, and even vinyl records bearing a familiar red seal. These were Song Haoyin’s belongings.

Upon inquiry, she learned these were items Song Haoyin had previously sold to an auction house. Zhou Qiwei committed them to memory.

“Weiwei, you’re here so early.”

A woman’s surprised voice came from behind. Zhou Qing, arm in arm with her wife Du Ning, looked over with a warm smile. “The whole family’s here today.”

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