The Five Heartless Scumbag Alphas Turned Against Each Other Because Of Me - Chapter 55

Tan Hua wore an expression that was both conflicted and full of regret, as if completely lost in her own thoughts.
“Why do you resemble her so much?” she murmured, eyes lifting in quiet confusion.
“Is it because you two were friends?”

“Maybe after spending so much time together, you started picking up each other’s habits without even noticing.”

Lu Huaixu said nothing. She simply watched Tan Hua talk to herself, silent until the final question hung unanswered in the air.

Then she slowly curled her lips into a faint smile and let out a soft laugh.
“Not bad. That performance was much better than the last one.”

No—very good, actually. So convincing that, even knowing full well that it was all fake—a story Tan Hua had made up to make her jealous—Lu Huaixu still felt a flicker of fury in her chest.

For a split second, she genuinely had the urge to destroy everything.

“I knew I didn’t misjudge you,” Lu Huaixu said, casting Tan Hua an appreciative glance. Then added, “But it’s not enough. And your story came in too suddenly—at first, I wasn’t even sure what you were getting at.”

She paused briefly to think, then calmly gave Tan Hua several critiques.

Tan Hua listened quietly, watching Lu Huaixu dissect her performance with calm precision, and couldn’t help but smile.
She rested her chin lazily on one hand, reached for her phone, unlocked it, and then slid it across the table toward Lu Huaixu.

“President Lu,” she said with a smile, “are you sure you don’t want to take a look at what’s in my photo gallery?”

Lu Huaixu’s expression flickered.

After a moment’s hesitation, she finally lowered her head. Her eyes landed on the screen—and on two vivid red marriage certificates displayed side by side. The second image clearly showed the names and details.

There was no denying it.

She slowly looked back up. After a beat of silence, she said flatly,
“Nice Photoshop.”

So it seemed Tan Hua had come prepared—probably expecting she’d need it.

“Thanks,” Tan Hua said with a bright, innocent smile. She took the phone back and added offhandedly,
“Real things never need editing. Just one shot and it’s flawless.”

Her voice was casual, unbothered. But as Lu Huaixu stared at her calm expression, a sliver of doubt slipped into her thoughts.
Could she be telling the truth?

But that made no sense.

If this were real—if Tan Hua had really married Zheng Jinyu—how could Zheng Jinyu have kept it from her? Even if it was a secret marriage, was that necessary? With her status, was she not in control of her own personal life?

Lu Huaixu didn’t want to believe a single word Tan Hua had just said.
And yet, she couldn’t stop the questions creeping into her mind.

If it was true…
Then had she really been nothing more than a substitute? Some disposable comfort for Zheng Jinyu’s wife, there to fill in the emotional gaps when Zheng wasn’t around?

That idea nearly made her laugh out of disbelief.
All her life, she’d been the one paying others to play stand-ins—not the other way around.

Tan Hua’s expression remained calm, untouched by the storm beginning to stir across the table. But the longer Lu Huaixu thought about it, the more she couldn’t shake her unease.

Her face went still. Her gaze deepened as she fixed her eyes on Tan Hua, unblinking.

Tan Hua knew that someone like Lu Huaixu—who had spent her entire career surrounded by clever, manipulative people—wasn’t the type to blindly trust a stranger’s words.

But she also wasn’t someone who completely disbelieved either.
She was cautious, suspicious by nature. What Tan Hua had said would definitely roll around in her head, be dissected, analyzed, turned over again and again until every word had been broken down.

Whether Lu Huaixu believed her now didn’t matter.
What mattered was that Tan Hua had already planted a seed of doubt.

And that seed, once watered by Lu Huaixu’s future investigations, would begin to take root—until one day it grew into a towering tree, impossible to ignore.

By that point, even if Lu Huaixu hadn’t originally thought of herself as Zheng Jinyu’s substitute, she wouldn’t be able to rule it out anymore.

Because people are emotional, suspicious creatures. No one is immune to that kind of manipulation—subtle, insidious, quietly destructive.

Now, the relationship between Tan Hua and Lu Huaixu was like a mirror with a crack.
Even if it was patched up later—even if things seemed fine on the surface—that crack would always be there.

It would never go back to how it was before.

For someone like Lu Huaixu—so calm, so rational—just getting her to feel the slightest hint of jealousy was enough for Tan Hua to claim victory.

But that only worked if Lu Huaixu did care.
If she really minded the idea that someone like her—aloof, proud, and untouchable—was nothing more than a substitute in someone else’s story.

Tan Hua picked up the water glass on the table, casually took a sip, and lowered her gaze.

She didn’t say another word.
She didn’t need to.

The room had fallen into a heavy silence—so quiet it was almost suffocating.
Tan Hua, completely at ease, set down her water glass and scrolled through her phone as if this were her own home.

Lu Huaixu glanced at her, her expression unreadable. But she didn’t press further—not even questioning whether Tan Hua and Zheng Jinyu were actually married.

“You planned that whole act last night, didn’t you?” Lu Huaixu asked calmly. Then added, “Not bad. Keep it up—do it like that going forward.”

Her tone sounded neutral, but Tan Hua’s eyelid twitched. What is wrong with these people?
Why are they all the same? First Wen Chuan, now Lu Huaixu…

She raised an eyebrow, curiosity bubbling up. Do you all just love torturing yourselves in these dramatic, impossible love stories?

Still, since the main character herself had given the green light, Tan Hua figured she might as well give it her best.

She smiled politely and answered, “No, I didn’t plan it.”

When Lu Huaixu gave her a puzzled look, Tan Hua added with a soft smile,
“I just thought maybe it’s time we start being honest with each other.”

“It was wrong of me to lie to you before, and I want to apologize for that.”
She lowered her head slightly, her tone serious and sincere.

Lu Huaixu had never seen Tan Hua this formal. For a moment, she fell completely silent.
Her gaze deepened. Her eyes were so dark they were impossible to read, and when she stared directly at someone like this, the pressure was intense.

Tan Hua gave a quick, symbolic shiver—then straightened her back again with dramatic confidence.

Her behavior only deepened Lu Huaixu’s suspicion. She casually offered an excuse to get Tan Hua to leave, but Tan Hua insisted she was tired and needed a break before heading out.
Before Lu Huaixu could agree or disagree, Tan Hua had already sprawled out on the couch, phone in hand, completely unbothered.

Lu Huaixu couldn’t drive her out, and for some reason, she didn’t really want to.
And after that little speech from Tan Hua, she found herself too distracted to keep working.

After hesitating briefly, she stood up and walked into the next room, took out her phone, and dialed a number without hesitation.
“Look into someone for me.”

Tan Hua couldn’t hear the details of the conversation, but the moment Lu Huaixu made that call, she knew—she’d already won.

A satisfied smile tugged at her lips as she lay back on Lu Huaixu’s couch and casually replied to Zheng Jinyu’s text:

“No, I have plans today.”

Zheng Jinyu had invited her to dinner again, acting as if nothing had happened.
Tan Hua rejected her without hesitation. Compared to Zheng Jinyu, it was clear that Lu Huaixu was now the more entertaining option.

After that, Zheng didn’t message her again.

Tan Hua scrolled mindlessly through social media, waiting. Eventually, Lu Huaixu returned.

She hadn’t been gone long, but when she came back, the look in her eyes had clearly changed.

“How did you and Zheng Jinyu meet?” she asked, standing tall in front of Tan Hua, her tone sharp and direct.

Tan Hua looked up with a bright smile. “Same way I met you.”

Same way?
Lu Huaixu frowned slightly. Don’t tell me… was she pretending to be Cheng Yuan for Zheng Jinyu too? Was the marriage some twisted version of a fake role turned real?

She had thought Tan Hua was just bluffing, trying to provoke her.
But the phone call she’d just made had crushed that assumption completely.

The results were clear: Tan Hua and Zheng Jinyu had indeed been married. And they had, just as truly, gotten divorced.

At only twenty-three years old, Tan Hua had managed to go from impulsive marriage to legal separation in under a year—completing a cycle that took most people years, even decades.

Lu Huaixu didn’t know what to say.

She sat down in the single armchair across from Tan Hua, phone still in hand. Her expression remained blank, but her voice left no room for argument.

“Why did you two get divorced?”

Tan Hua didn’t answer directly. Her face tightened, smile gone. “That’s a private matter, President Lu.”

And that was that.

Their relationship was purely transactional. Tan Hua owed Lu Huaixu nothing—especially not something as personal as the story behind her divorce.

If Lu Huaixu had any tact, she would’ve stopped asking questions right there.

But of course, she didn’t.

Though she didn’t push further directly, she still couldn’t help speculating aloud,
“Was it because Cheng Yuan found out? Or because Zheng Jinyu got tired of you?”

Tan Hua smiled. “If Cheng Yuan had found out, do you really think things would still be this calm right now?”

So it’s the latter, Lu Huaixu concluded silently.

Still, Zheng Jinyu never struck her as the type to be irresponsible or easily bored.
Lu Huaixu leaned on her hand, eyes dark and thoughtful as she studied Tan Hua from head to toe.

She’s definitely hiding something, Lu Huaixu thought. There’s more she’s not telling me.

But what could that be? She’d just shared something as personal as her divorce—what else could she possibly be keeping to herself?

It didn’t make sense.
Why even bring up the divorce? All she’d asked was for Tan Hua to find a way to make her fall in love.

Was this meant to gain sympathy? To soften her up?

Lu Huaixu found herself unable to read Tan Hua’s intentions anymore.

Despite her dominance in the business world, despite her reputation for shrewdness and clarity, she was—when it came to relationships—naïve.
According to Tan Hua’s read of the original plot, Lu Huaixu had only ever truly liked one person: Cheng Yuan. That meant—when it came to love—she was a complete novice.

And to Tan Hua, that meant something very important: easily manipulated.

With that in mind, a small smile curled on her lips.
If Lu Huaixu was slow on the uptake, then Tan Hua had all the time and space in the world to lay her traps and disappear before the dust even settled.

Her voice softened with feigned sincerity.
“Whether I’m still married or divorced—it doesn’t really matter, does it?”

But Lu Huaixu didn’t buy it. “Of course it matters,” she said, sharp and clear.
“If you weren’t divorced, that would make me… the other woman.”

Tan Hua was momentarily speechless. Then, with a smirk, she said,
“Well… looks like the timing worked out perfectly, doesn’t it?”

The way she said it made it sound like they were having an affair.
Lu Huaixu had taken plenty of risks in business, but in this arena, she was almost comically conservative.

A strange ripple moved through her chest—but it was fleeting.
She kept her expression steady, but couldn’t quite find the words to respond. So instead, she changed the subject.

“Does Zheng Jinyu know about us?”

Tan Hua blinked at her. “Of course not. What kind of question is that?”

“If she knew, I’d be stirring up drama between you two. You wouldn’t want that, would you?”

“Besides,” she added lightly, “I’m already divorced. Anything I do now has nothing to do with her. That’s how it works, right?”

Technically, yes.
But something about the way she said it didn’t sit right with Lu Huaixu.

She couldn’t put her finger on what exactly was off—but she felt it.
And she had a sneaking suspicion that if she kept talking to Tan Hua, she’d soon find herself completely outmaneuvered.

So she stood up, phone in hand. “Do whatever you want.”

Right now, she needed space—time to process everything.

But Tan Hua wasn’t about to let her leave that easily.

She got up and followed, catching up quickly. “Can’t you just put work aside and stay with me a little longer?”

Lu Huaixu glanced at her without replying.

Tan Hua wasn’t fazed. She leaned in, voice low and tempting, breath warm against Lu Huaixu’s ear.
“President Lu… didn’t you used to love doing… certain unspeakable things with me?”

She reached out to touch her—

But Lu Huaixu flinched and pulled away almost instinctively.

In the moment of silence that followed, Tan Hua’s expression fell. The light in her eyes dimmed instantly.
“You’re avoiding me because I’ve been married, aren’t you?”

Lu Huaixu: “…”

“I’m not,” she said, exasperated.

“Yes, you are.”
Tan Hua sat up straight, suddenly furious.
“You used to be nothing like this! You used to jump at the chance to touch me—to do all those things you now act disgusted by!”

“But now? The second you find out I was married, you won’t even lay a finger on me!”

Lu Huaixu genuinely couldn’t understand why the Omega was being so unreasonable. She opened her mouth to explain—

But Tan Hua was already on her feet, flushed with anger.

“Fine. Got it. You’re tired of me, right?” she snapped.
“Great. Then I’ll go. Right now. I’ll disappear from your sight—just like you clearly want.”

And with that, she stormed off—grabbing her bag and phone without giving Lu Huaixu the chance to say a single word.

She was out the door in a flash.

Lu Huaixu stood frozen, staring blankly in the direction Tan Hua had stormed off.
“…?”

Tan Hua didn’t hesitate. She drove her sports car straight out of Lu Huaixu’s world—and just to keep things neat, she expertly deleted and blocked every one of Lu Huaixu’s contacts.

Maybe Lu Huaixu wouldn’t even bother reaching out, but Tan Hua was the kind of person who committed fully to her performance. A clean break means full immersion.

Tan Hua didn’t expect Lu Huaixu, who was always busy with work, to come chasing after her.
What she was concerned about, though, was one very specific thing:

Why on earth is the system still upgrading? It’s been ages.

Frowning, Tan Hua fell into deep thought.
What the hell are it and the main system scheming behind my back?

After returning to the bar and parking her car, Tan Hua was heading inside when she unexpectedly ran into someone. She stopped in her tracks, surprised to see—
“Zheng Jinyu? What are you doing here?”

Zheng Jinyu walked toward her slowly, a soft smile on her face. There was nothing threatening in her expression, but her words still put Tan Hua on edge.
“Did you go see Sheng Yiheng? Or was it Wen Chuan?”

She smiled lightly. “Did you go tutor Wen Chuan again?”

Tan Hua wanted to say, you didn’t guess a single one right, but she bit her tongue.
“Wen Chuan has her own tutor. What would I be doing there? I’m not that bored.”

Her tone wasn’t particularly warm.

Zheng Jinyu’s smile faltered for half a second but quickly returned.
“Then it was Sheng Yiheng,” she said quietly.

“So you rejected me today… because of her?”

There was something very off about Zheng Jinyu’s demeanor today—she seemed on the edge of spiraling, like she was about to snap but was holding it in.

Tan Hua didn’t want to get dragged into anything messy. She slung her bag over her shoulder and tried to walk past her toward the apartment entrance.
But Zheng Jinyu reached out and grabbed her, yanking her back firmly.
“Hua Hua… why won’t you answer me?”

She stared at Tan Hua, wide-eyed and unblinking, as if she wouldn’t let her go without a clear answer.

Tan Hua stumbled slightly from the sudden pull. Once she regained her balance, she frowned, her expression tinted with irritation.
“And why exactly should I answer you?”

“What I do, where I go, who I see—do I owe you a detailed report now?”
She met Zheng Jinyu’s eyes head-on. “Zheng Jinyu, we’re not wives anymore.”

She said it plainly, with no room for misinterpretation.
Anyone else would’ve gotten angry at that kind of bluntness.

But Zheng Jinyu just chuckled softly. “Sorry… I guess I’m just worried about you.”

Then, as her eyes swept over the busy bar behind them, she added casually,
“I already bought you a place. It’s under your name. When do you want to move in?”

Tan Hua raised an eyebrow. “Where?”

Seeing that she wasn’t outright rejecting the offer, Zheng Jinyu’s eyes lit up with something dangerously close to hope.
“Next door to me,” she replied, smiling faintly.

Tan Hua gave her a long look—somewhere between incredulous and speechless.

Zheng Jinyu explained gently,
“I just don’t feel safe letting an Omega live alone. What if you ran into someone dangerous?”

“But if you’re living right next to me, I can always look out for you.”

She made it sound noble, even thoughtful—but Tan Hua could see right through it.

This wasn’t concern.
This was surveillance.

What Zheng Jinyu really wanted was to monitor her—watch when she left, when she came back, who she met up with, who she had dinner with. Every move, tracked.

Living next door to Zheng Jinyu would mean Tan Hua had zero privacy.

Her first instinct was to refuse. She opened her mouth, ready to turn it down outright—
But then she paused. A thought struck her.

“…Sure,” she said instead, nodding. “I’ll move in a couple days.”

Zheng Jinyu was clearly surprised. After all, Tan Hua had been one breath away from rejecting the offer. It had been obvious—even hard to ignore.

So her sudden change of heart made Zheng Jinyu’s gaze deepen with curiosity. Still, she smiled and continued inviting,
“Then how about staying at my place tonight?”

Her eyes briefly swept over the drunken patrons slumped near the bar’s entrance. Her perfectly arched brows knitted subtly in distaste.
“I’m meeting Sheng Yiheng tomorrow for work. I can drop you off at the bar on my way.”

It wasn’t exactly an irresistible offer. Compared to Zheng Jinyu’s home, the bar felt way more comfortable to Tan Hua.

Still, staying over… wasn’t completely out of the question.
Especially if it meant figuring out why Zheng Jinyu had gone out of her way to wait for her tonight—so eager and proactive.

Tan Hua nodded in agreement.

Zheng Jinyu’s face lit up. She immediately reached for the bag on Tan Hua’s shoulder.
“Let me carry that for you.”

“Oh—do you need to grab anything before we go? I can help you pack,” she offered kindly. Then, with a casual shift in tone, added,
“Actually, there’s probably no need. I’ve already prepared everything—skincare, makeup, clothes, shoes, bags, accessories. All brand new, delivered to my place.”

“Just take your pick when we get there.”

Before Tan Hua could react, she was practically pushed into the car. Zheng Jinyu got in too, slammed the door, and hit the gas—speeding them off into the night.

Tan Hua: “???”
Why does this feel like a trap?

She gave Zheng Jinyu a quick, suspicious side-eye, but the woman only smiled—gentler than ever. Unreasonably gentle. Suspiciously gentle.

Tan Hua’s gut feeling grew stronger. Can someone really be this nice? She knew she couldn’t.

The moment they arrived, she practically sprinted into her old room with the excuse of needing to wash up first.

Zheng Jinyu stood there watching her flee, still smiling, but slowly… very slowly… the corners of her lips began to fall.

Back in her room, Tan Hua was still reeling from the whole encounter when—

Ding!

The system’s voice finally returned:
“Host! Upgrade complete!”

“…Did you miss me?” it asked reflexively.
Then immediately regretted it. Why would she miss me? Without my constant nagging, she probably felt like a free woman, living her best life.

Tan Hua didn’t answer that. She simply stared the system down.
“So… what exactly got upgraded?”

“A lot!” the system replied. “Now that you’ve completed the [Right-Hand Support] side quest, the main system has granted you access to re-read the original text!”

“Oh—and a new real-time quest has been issued—”

[Lonely Nights, Crowded Roads]
Being alone is hard, host. But more friends mean more paths. And every path leads somewhere new.
Mission: Enemies aren’t always enemies. Become the heroine’s best friend—talk about everything, build trust, and form an inseparable bond.

Tan Hua: “?? You want me to befriend the female lead?”

“…What if I don’t?” she asked, raising a brow. “You gonna shock me or something?”

The system cleared its throat nervously.
“No, no! The main system reviewed that method and decided electrocution wasn’t exactly… ethical. It’s been retired.”

“Oh?” Tan Hua leaned in. “So what’s the new punishment?”

The system paused dramatically.
“Sharing is the foundation of friendship. So now, if you fail to meet task milestones—”

“You will literally experience everything the heroine goes through. Her pain, her trauma, every moment of betrayal and heartbreak… even dying young.”

Tan Hua: “…”

The system pressed on enthusiastically,
“So, for the sake of the heroine—and yourself—please take this seriously.”

Tan Hua blinked. Then, slowly, a smile crept across her face.
“Got it.”

With renewed energy, she made an “OK” sign with her hand.
“I’ll make the heroine fall for me in no time. We’ll be best friends forever, share sunsets and tea, and spend a lifetime laughing together.”

She beamed.
“Because no one on this earth knows how to cherish the female lead better than me.”

System: “?”

System: Oh no… I think the heroine’s actually doomed.

Heroine: “???”

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