The Five Heartless Scumbag Alphas Turned Against Each Other Because Of Me - Chapter 32.1

The schadenfreude on Tan Hua’s face didn’t escape Sheng Yiheng’s notice.

Sheng Yiheng shot her a warning glare.
“Don’t say a word.”

“I get it, I get it,” Tan Hua said, her expression full of suggestive meaning.
“Don’t worry—from this moment on, I’m mute. Not a single peep.”

She even made a zipping-motion across her lips, which made Sheng Yiheng’s brow twitch.

You better be.

Sheng Yiheng turned away and walked over to the floor-to-ceiling window of her office. She carefully answered the call.
“Yuan Yuan? Are you off today? What made you call?”

She spoke cautiously, like she was terrified Tan Hua might overhear her conversation with Cheng Yuan—as if Tan Hua were some kind of eavesdropping bandit.

Tan Hua, unimpressed, grabbed a water bottle and took a leisurely sip. Her movements were light, but Sheng Yiheng still turned to glare at her—another silent warning to behave.

To avoid scaring off her incredibly generous (and naïvely sweet) sugar mama, Tan Hua obediently flopped back onto the couch and played with her phone.

The system couldn’t hold back any longer.
“Host, shouldn’t you be preparing right now?”

“That’s not just any phone call—that’s from the female lead!”

“Prepare for what?” Tan Hua tilted her head, completely innocent. “What do you mean?”

The system huffed, frustrated.
“Clearly, someone told Cheng Yuan what just happened. That’s why she called—she’s marking her territory.”

“This is your chance to prepare for whatever move she might make next! You’re supposed to be completing your conquest mission!”

Tan Hua nodded slowly. “That makes sense.” Then paused.
“But honestly, I just don’t see the point in fighting over a woman like Sheng Yiheng.”

She looked up, genuinely puzzled.
“Are all the gentle, kind, emotionally stable Alphas in this world extinct?”

System: “…”
Do you even care about your mission anymore?

Trying to stay calm, the system reminded her,
“Host. This is your assigned mission. Have you forgotten? Wasn’t it YOU who said you wanted to see those five scumbag Alphas fall madly in love with you and suffer for it?”

What, was that just a fart in the wind now?

The system felt its processor overheat from existential despair.

“I didn’t forget,” Tan Hua replied without looking up, scrolling casually through her phone.
“But it’s just a phone call. It’s not like Cheng Yuan’s flying back tomorrow. Why are you panicking?”

The system practically short-circuited.
Are you planning to wait until she’s back in the country to do anything?! By then it’ll be too late!

It spiraled into silent panic as it watched Tan Hua relax like she had all the time in the world. There was nothing it could say to move her, and it couldn’t force her either. All it could do was retreat to its little digital corner and stew in quiet dread.

Tan Hua didn’t go out of her way to eavesdrop on the phone call, but the system dutifully transcribed every word for her.

Every time Sheng Yiheng’s voice softened into something sweet and indulgent, Tan Hua grimaced like she’d eaten something sour.

The system seized the opportunity.
“Host, wouldn’t you love to be the one Sheng Yiheng treats so gently and affectionately? If you can win her over, you could have anything you want in this world—power, wealth, security—permanently.”

Tan Hua: “…”
You’re seriously overreacting.

The system continued rambling. Tan Hua, now thoroughly annoyed, finally snapped,
“If I can get Sheng Yiheng’s money into my pocket, I’ll have everything I want anyway. I can have wind when I want wind, rain when I want rain, live comfortably and luxuriously for the rest of my life.”

“…Isn’t that, right?”

That soul-piercing rhetorical question effectively shut the system up.
Because it knew—Tan Hua really would do it.

And if things went too far, and Sheng Yiheng actually ended up broke and homeless because of her… The system shuddered at the thought.

For the sake of its own sanity, it chuckled awkwardly and muttered,
“Host, carry on scrolling… I won’t bother you anymore.”

Finally, with her ears no longer assaulted by chatter, Tan Hua tried to refocus. But it was impossible not to be drawn back in by Sheng Yiheng’s voice.

The Sheng Yiheng in front of Cheng Yuan sounded nothing like the cold, calculating Alpha she normally was. No longer aloof or untouchable, she now spoke with a softness that warmed her features. Her expression relaxed; the smile at her lips and in her eyes was gentle, almost tender.

Combined with her sharp, elegant looks, it made her dangerously attractive.

Any normal Omega, witnessing such a rarely seen side of Sheng Yiheng, would probably be dazzled into speechlessness.

But Tan Hua was never what you’d call “normal.”

She sat up straighter, ears perked. She tried to catch even a fragment of Cheng Yuan’s voice through the phone, but couldn’t hear a thing. Sheng Yiheng had clearly kept her distance on purpose, determined not to let Tan Hua catch even a sliver of the conversation. She was guarding Cheng Yuan like a treasure, as if afraid Tan Hua might get curious… and then dangerous.

Tan Hua blinked, disappointed. She had hoped to use this chance to learn something useful about the female lead.

But no matter—Cheng Yuan would return to the country soon enough. They’d have plenty of chances to meet face-to-face. And besides, there was always Mu Wanyi, that notorious two-faced informant who played both sides in the original story. Even if Tan Hua wanted to avoid Cheng Yuan entirely, news would still trickle into her ears through Mu Wanyi’s mouth.

Over by the window, Sheng Yiheng’s voice had softened considerably. Holding the phone close, she listened to Cheng Yuan’s bright, cheerful tone through the receiver:

“No, not really—I’ve just been pulling all-nighters with my advisor on a project. I finally got a little time to myself.”

“How have you been? Are you working too much? Are you eating on time? You know your stomach’s sensitive—you should always carry your medication, and don’t skip meals!”

The flood of caring words made Sheng Yiheng’s eyes warm with affection.

She chuckled lightly.
“Work’s not too busy. I’ve been eating properly.”

She added gently,
“Stop worrying about me. You’re the one all alone over there. If anything comes up, promise me you’ll let me know, okay?”

Clearly still uneasy about Cheng Yuan being overseas, she couldn’t help offering,
“I’ve got a few apartments over there. Why don’t you stay in one? Everything’s already set up—there’s even a housekeeper.”

Cheng Yuan laughed lightly and turned her down.
“No way. If my parents found out I moved into an Alpha’s apartment without a second thought, they’d absolutely freak out.”

Hearing that, Sheng Yiheng gave up the idea and didn’t press her.

“Besides, I’ll be back soon,” Cheng Yuan added, her voice full of excitement. “Then we’ll be able to see each other all the time—no more calls across oceans!”

“Oh! And I picked out a gift just for you. I visited so many shops before I found the perfect one. You have to wait for me to come back!”

As she spoke, Sheng Yiheng’s cold expression melted further. The corners of her lips curled into a radiant, almost childlike smile.

Tan Hua casually glanced over—and was stunned.
Damn. That smile’s prettier than a blooming flower.

She stared, fascinated, carefully studying every inch of Sheng Yiheng’s face… right as the Alpha turned back around and caught her staring.

Their eyes met for less than a second before Sheng Yiheng’s smile disappeared—gone without a trace.

Wow, Tan Hua thought, that was faster than a Sichuan opera mask change.

Sheng Yiheng frowned, clearly annoyed at being watched, and turned her body back toward the window. She didn’t speak to Cheng Yuan for much longer after that. When the call ended, she quietly slipped her phone back into her pocket and leveled a sharp stare directly at Tan Hua.

Tan Hua propped up her chin with one hand, lazily ignoring her.

But after a few moments of being silently glared at, she finally sighed and stood up.
“I guess I should get started on that reflection letter.”

She smiled faintly.
“If there’s nothing else, I’ll be heading out.”

It wasn’t a question—it was a declaration. And without waiting for a reply, Tan Hua turned and left without hesitation, disappearing completely from Sheng Yiheng’s space. Graceful, composed, and very considerate.

Sheng Yiheng didn’t stop her. She stood rooted in place, her expression unreadable.

The system, meanwhile, was starting to panic.
“Host! The female lead’s coming back soon!”

It couldn’t hold back any longer.
“How did this happen so fast? You haven’t even made any real progress with Sheng Yiheng yet!”

“If Cheng Yuan returns now, you’re definitely getting kicked aside. After that, it’ll be much harder to get close to her again.”

“That’s true,” Tan Hua said, nodding thoughtfully.

That did get her attention. The female lead’s return was imminent—and time was running out.

She walked slowly, muttering to herself,
“Guess I’d better think of a way to cash in on the other Alphas before she comes back.”

The system: “???”
This is like watching that old man on the subway stare at his phone in disbelief.
Lady, you’ve got some nerve! The plot is burning and all you care about is squeezing money out of your targets?!

The system was so shocked it almost glitched. But as it cooled down and thought about it, it realized:
If Tan Hua wanted to profit off the Alphas, she’d have to stay close to them and win their favor.

Which, in turn, would help complete the mission.

Suddenly, it wasn’t so worried.

As long as the mission succeeded, it didn’t care how she pulled it off.

Having come to terms with the situation, Tan Hua immediately returned to her office and—completely unbothered—wrote a long, flowery 3,000-word reflection and posted it in the company’s massive group chat.

The chat was silent.
So silent, it was suffocating.

Xiao Yu stared at Tan Hua’s lengthy self-criticism post, eyelid twitching. For a moment, she couldn’t tell if Sheng Yiheng was punishing her, or if Tan Hua was.

Now that Tan Hua had made her own reflective statement public, if Xiao Yu didn’t follow up with something equally fast and well-written, wouldn’t she look weak by comparison?

While Xiao Yu was anxiously drafting, Tan Hua even posted a few formal remarks, clearly taking the “lesson” very seriously—though no one replied.

Not until Sheng Yiheng herself appeared in the group chat did others begin to echo her tone, casually brushing the whole thing aside like nothing happened.

With some time left before the workday ended, Tan Hua sat watching a livestream, uneasy. She wanted to close it… but couldn’t bear to. She kept watching, but with tension simmering under her skin—so it became nervous livestream-watching.

Through the office surveillance feed, Sheng Yiheng observed her from another room. That pretty Omega face, looking just slightly anxious, completely glued to her screen—
“…”

Did this girl not feel any sense of crisis?

She’d just sat there watching while Sheng Yiheng had an intimate, affectionate call with Cheng Yuan—and she wasn’t even a little afraid that once Cheng Yuan returned, she’d be discarded on the spot?

Arms crossed, chin resting on one hand, Sheng Yiheng stared at Tan Hua’s surprisingly calm expression, thoroughly baffled.

Or maybe… was she confident for a reason?

Images of Lu Huaixu and Zheng Jinyu flashed through her mind.

…Unlikely.

Then again, those two were sly and calculating. If they had actually handed Sheng Yiheng such a critical weakness, it would be out of character.

For the first time, Sheng Yiheng seriously considered that young Alpha with the clean-cut look and calm demeanor.

About the same age as Tan Hua, and… arguably a good match in appearance. Sheng Yiheng remembered how the Alpha had shown up that day to personally pick Tan Hua up from the office.

She narrowed her eyes slightly. Could that kid be Tan Hua’s real target?

Despite being young, the Alpha’s clothes and accessories were clearly expensive. And she went to one of the top-tier private schools in the city—no doubt from a wealthy family.

Putting all the clues together, Sheng Yiheng concluded it was very possible.

Good, she thought, relaxing a little.

If Tan Hua already had someone else in mind, things would be easier when it was time to part ways. Less drama, fewer entanglements. No risk of being blackmailed with a pricey “break-up fee.”

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