After the Scumbag Alpha Heard her Inner Thoughts (GL) - Chapter 27

In Beicheng, there were easily eight hundred to a thousand clothing brands worth mentioning. Lanqing wasn’t even close to being among them.

S.G.’s marketing was performing exceptionally well. Various labels such as “rising star of fashion” and “the dark horse of the season” were trending, and the hired online promoters pushed S.G. swiftly into the spotlight.

As S.G. gradually gained recognition, Lanqing remained virtually unknown.

However, Su Wanqing wasn’t anxious. She continued to steadily prepare for the summer launch.

Three main designs were finalized: a set of casual wear, a faux two-piece dress, and a strapless short skirt.

The skirt was designed without complexity—the hemline just barely passed the knees. It was perfect for outings: convenient, stylish, and photogenic.

Even after settling on these three sets, Su Wanqing felt something was missing.
Sun Xiaoxiao’s brand mainly produced luxury designs—high-end and sophisticated. Lanqing, on the other hand, had always positioned itself as affordable fashion. But in Beicheng, if one wanted to truly make money, luxury fashion couldn’t be ignored.

This was Su Wanqing’s weak point. Partly because she didn’t like it and hadn’t studied luxury fashion seriously, and partly because, as an ordinary person, she had had little exposure to upper-class life.
Even after transmigrating into this novel, her understanding had only slightly improved.

As the deadline for submissions loomed closer day by day, Su Wanqing, feeling stuck, called Ji Yu into her office to explain the situation and see if she had any ideas.

Ji Yu laughed.
“I thought it was something serious.”

Ji Yu, in contrast to Su Wanqing, had a best friend in the entertainment industry—a childhood friend who had started as a child star and was now a top-tier celebrity.
Because they had grown up together, Ji Yu had been exposed to countless luxury brands through her friend’s red carpet events and endorsements, picking up a lot of insight along the way.

“I’ll handle the design draft,” Ji Yu said confidently.

It was like finding something you had searched high and low for.

Delighted to have the problem solved, Su Wanqing readily agreed.
“Then I’ll trouble you.”

“But…” Ji Yu added, “Since I’m handling it, why don’t I design it based on my celebrity friend? Then, we can ask her to endorse it for us.”

Su Wanqing had heard of that celebrity—frequently featured on billboards, boasting a massive fanbase. Just thinking about it made Su Wanqing shake her head vigorously.
“Absolutely not. I can’t afford her. Our salaries for the next quarter are depending on these designs.”

If the sales figures were poor, they’d practically be living on thin air.

“She wouldn’t dare charge me an endorsement fee,” Ji Yu pouted.
“If the company does well, I’ll benefit too.”

That wasn’t a bad idea. They could decide on the endorsement later if needed.

With the biggest problem resolved, things on Sun Xiaoxiao’s side seemed to quiet down as well—her marketing efforts had halted, and no hired promoters had been spotted recently.
If Ji Yu really could secure that celebrity, it might completely offset the momentum generated by Sun Xiaoxiao’s aggressive marketing.

Ji Yu worked with remarkable efficiency, completing a draft within three days.
After finalizing the details together, Ji Yu continued refining the design while Su Wanqing managed other tasks.

One advantage of throwing herself entirely into work was that Su Wanqing seldom thought of Chu Muqing anymore—or perhaps she was forcing herself not to think of her.

And the longer time passed, the more effective it became.
However, there was a side effect: whenever she did think of Chu Muqing, the longing hit her twice as hard, nearly overwhelming her.

Since that phone call, Chu Muqing hadn’t called again.
She had sent a few messages—short, nothing special, perfectly in line with her usual style.

The night before the summer launch—

Lying in bed, Su Wanqing reviewed the next day’s schedule in her mind, scene by scene like a movie.

The bedroom was silent, yet for some reason, her heartbeat was loud and erratic, making her feel inexplicably uneasy.
It had been a month since Chu Muqing had last sent her a message.
She opened their chat history; with so few words between them, she could reread it all in mere moments.

It should be morning on Chu Muqing’s side now.
Should she send a message?

Su Wanqing hesitated. She typed a few lines, felt they weren’t appropriate, deleted them, typed again, and deleted them once more.

After several tries, she grew frustrated.
What was Chu Muqing thinking? Why had she started a conversation only to leave it hanging? Such an attitude!

Grumbling silently for a while, she accidentally sent a random sticker—a plain, expressionless cat meme.

Since it was sent, she didn’t bother retracting it.

She waited for two minutes. Still no reply.

For some reason, Su Wanqing felt uneasy.
Chu Muqing, though few in words, had never left her messages unanswered.

Su Wanqing realized that if she didn’t hear back from Chu Muqing tonight, she wouldn’t be able to sleep.

Realizing how deeply this affected her, she sent a message to Xu Chengke.

Strangely, Xu Chengke didn’t reply either.
Su Wanqing, growing worried, directly called him.

On the other side, Xu Chengke stared at the sudden message on his phone, his heart skipping a beat. Gripping the phone tightly, he didn’t know how to respond.

Normally, if she didn’t get a reply, Su Wanqing wouldn’t chase after it. Xu Chengke thought maybe he could just wait it out—until the phone started ringing.

He had no choice but to answer. With a bitter expression, he pressed accept.
“Hello, Madam? Why are you still awake so late?”

In his panic, he forgot to correct his usual way of addressing her—but at this point, Xu Chengke couldn’t worry about that.

“Where’s Chu Muqing?” Su Wanqing asked.

“She’s sleeping,” Xu Chengke glanced at his boss, still lying unconscious on the bed, and tried to keep his voice as calm as possible to avoid raising suspicion.

“When she wakes up, ask her to call me back—anytime will do.”

Thinking of what the doctor had said yesterday, Xu Chengke felt helpless. It would take at least a week before Chu Muqing might regain consciousness—how could she possibly call back?

“Boss has been really busy lately,” Xu Chengke said carefully,
“She pulled an all-nighter yesterday. She’s been quietly handling a few operations over here and might not have time to call.”

Su Wanqing thought about it.
Based on Chu Muqing’s character, it was true that she wouldn’t just idle abroad. That would explain why she hadn’t sent any messages for nearly a month.

Was she really planning to develop her career overseas—and never return?

“Assistant Xu, is work abroad really that busy?”

“A little,” Xu Chengke answered.

“Has she decided to stay and develop there permanently?”

“Not necessarily,” Xu Chengke said, stammering a little.

He was terrified that Su Wanqing would misunderstand. If she mistakenly believed they were planning to settle abroad and give up on returning, and lost hope, Chu Muqing would skin him alive when she woke up.

Xu Chengke’s hesitant tone clearly revealed something was wrong.
Maybe Chu Muqing really had decided to build her future abroad, but he didn’t dare say it outright.
Or maybe it was something else entirely.

“You don’t have to be like this, Assistant Xu,” Su Wanqing said calmly,
“I’m not desperate to cling to your boss. If she doesn’t want to keep in touch, that’s fine. Just pretend I never made this call. I wish you both success in your new ventures.”

Without waiting for a response, she hung up.

She had considered this possibility before—Chu Muqing recovering her health, then choosing to stay overseas, cutting ties with them.

It was just that, because Chu Muqing had occasionally sent her a message or two, she had thought maybe Chu Muqing didn’t see it that way—that maybe, once she was ready, she would return to Beicheng.

But now, it was clear she had been mistaken.

Su Wanqing had never been one to drag things out when it came to feelings.
If Chu Muqing had no such intentions, she wouldn’t cling stubbornly.

On the other end, Xu Chengke stared at the disconnected call, feeling his heart sink.
“I’m doomed. Completely doomed.”
The way Su Wanqing spoke sounded so much like a farewell—he couldn’t let this misunderstanding stand!

Before he could think of a solution, he immediately called her back.

Su Wanqing hadn’t intended to sever ties completely. After all, Lanqing was still a company Chu Muqing had helped establish for her.
Sighing, she looked at the caller ID flashing on her screen and answered.

“Assistant Xu, is there something else?”
Her tone was cold and businesslike.

“Madam, Boss just underwent surgery. She hasn’t woken up yet,” Xu Chengke said quickly.
“Please don’t be angry. I wasn’t trying to hide it from you on purpose—Boss specifically warned me not to say anything.”

Before the Chu family changed hands, Su Wanqing had rarely refused Chu Muqing’s temporary marking requests. After so many markings, Chu Muqing’s heat cycles had become extremely stable, almost indistinguishable from a normal Alpha’s, so Su Wanqing hadn’t thought much of it.

Before Chu Muqing went abroad, Su Wanqing had asked Cheng Zhuo about her gland issue.
Cheng Zhuo had told her that overseas procedures for glands were more advanced, and given Chu Muqing’s physical condition, the surgery shouldn’t pose much of a problem.

She had also checked online, and the information matched almost exactly with what Cheng Zhuo had said.
So, she had never once considered that Chu Muqing’s health might become an issue.

“Why didn’t you tell me earlier!” Su Wanqing’s voice grew anxious.

“Boss didn’t let me,” Xu Chengke said, sounding aggrieved.
He had been so worried about Chu Muqing’s condition that he couldn’t even think straight—there was no way he could trick Su Wanqing with shallow excuses.

“Last week?” Su Wanqing pressed. “Then why hasn’t she woken up yet?”

“The doctor said that her two glands had fused too closely. Separating them caused massive trauma to her body. Ever since the surgery, she’s only been awake for a few minutes each day.”

“……”

“Send me your location,” Su Wanqing said immediately.
As she spoke, she started searching for flight information.
Without a moment’s hesitation, she booked the earliest available flight.
“I’ll be there tomorrow.”

“Madam, you can’t come over. Isn’t the company about to launch the summer collection?”

“Cut the nonsense.”
Su Wanqing hung up before he could say another word.
Trying to understand everything over the phone was useless—it was better to fly there and see for herself.

No longer sleepy, she threw off the covers, got out of bed, and began packing.
She moved quickly, managing to finish in half an hour.
Climbing back onto the bed, she checked her phone.

Xu Chengke didn’t say much.
He simply sent two messages: one with the hospital’s name in English, and another sharing the location directly.

There was nothing else she could do for now.
Su Wanqing stared blankly at the suitcase sitting in the bedroom, thinking of the next day’s launch event.
She drafted a message to Ji Yu.

Since it was Ji Yu’s first time handling such an important event, and fearing she might lack experience, Su Wanqing wasn’t entirely at ease.
She also messaged Cheng Zhuo, knowing he wouldn’t leave Ji Yu to struggle alone.

By the time everything was settled, it was already 2 AM, but she still wasn’t tired.

She pulled an all-nighter until dawn, then dragged her suitcase downstairs and hailed a taxi to the airport.

Before boarding, Su Wanqing sent a quick message to Xu Chengke.
Xu Chengke simply replied: “Stay safe.”

It was a thirteen-hour flight.
By the time she landed in Country M, it was already 7 PM local time.
Stepping out of the airport, the lights twinkled everywhere. At first glance, it didn’t look much different from Beicheng.

But Su Wanqing had no time to take in the scenery.
She immediately hailed a cab to the hospital, repeating the hospital’s name twice to the driver just to be sure.

In the car, she pulled out her phone and sent Xu Chengke her location coordinates, along with a photo of the taxi’s license plate.

Chu Muqing was currently in the intensive care ward.
Although she didn’t require constant supervision, Xu Chengke stayed close, waiting for the rare few minutes each day when Chu Muqing might wake up—to be there and talk to her.

Calculating the estimated arrival time, Xu Chengke threw on his jacket and went down to the hospital entrance to wait.

About ten minutes later, spotting the matching license plate, he waved enthusiastically from a distance, jogging over with quick steps to help with her luggage.

After months of not seeing her, Xu Chengke found that Su Wanqing looked very different—not so much in appearance, but in her aura.
There was something about her now—an air of steadiness and reliability that hadn’t been there before.

It was clear she had been truly putting her heart into managing Lanqing.

“Madam, are you tired?” Xu Chengke asked.

“I’m alright.”

“I’ve booked a hotel nearby for you. You can rest there if you get too exhausted.”

“Has she woken up today?”

“Not yet.”

They headed upstairs together.
As they walked, Xu Chengke updated her on Chu Muqing’s condition.
Su Wanqing listened quietly, occasionally asking a few questions when something came to mind.

The inpatient department was on the seventh floor.
It was around 7 PM, and the elevator was packed with people—mostly family members coming and going with dinners for their loved ones.

The elevator stopped at almost every floor. Each passing second felt excruciating.
Su Wanqing stared at the numbers rising slowly, counting each one silently.

Finally, the elevator doors opened. Xu Chengke led the way.

The intensive care unit had individual rooms—spacious and private.
Xu Chengke placed her suitcase just inside the door.

Inside the room, a nurse was monitoring the data.
Xu Chengke asked in broken English, “Did she wake up recently?”

The nurse frowned slightly at his awkward language, then shook her head.

While they spoke, Su Wanqing’s gaze fell on the hospital bed.
Chu Muqing lay there, attached to two tubes, unable to wake up, relying solely on intravenous fluids for nutrition.

She hadn’t changed much—still wearing that cold, detached expression even while unconscious.
But her complexion was pale, her cheeks sunken in, and she had become noticeably thinner.

“Would my pheromones help?”
“Our pheromone compatibility is pretty high, isn’t it?”

Hearing that, Xu Chengke raised his eyebrows.
He had never considered this. The doctors hadn’t mentioned it either, only briefly asking if the patient had an unmated Omega.

“I’ll go ask the doctor,” Xu Chengke said.

He immediately jogged out of the room.

Su Wanqing moved a chair closer and sat by Chu Muqing’s side.
She wasn’t sure if her pheromones would be effective and didn’t dare release them recklessly.

She carefully controlled herself.

In recent days, Chu Muqing’s consciousness had been fragmented, with scattered memories that couldn’t piece together into a complete story.

Her body felt light, almost weightless.
When she occasionally woke, she could barely manage a few words with Xu Chengke before an overwhelming drowsiness overtook her—an exhaustion she couldn’t resist.
Within minutes, she would fall back into a deep sleep.

But today, in her hazy half-dream, she faintly caught the scent of atami flowers—Su Wanqing’s scent.

The moment the thought surfaced, Chu Muqing instinctively denied it.
She must be really sick.
Su Wanqing was far away in Beicheng—how could she possibly smell her pheromones?

【Chu Muqing, wake up.】

A voice echoed in her mind, achingly familiar.
Not only did it carry Su Wanqing’s pheromones, but she could also clearly hear her speaking.

【Chu Muqing…】

That voice… it sounded so sorrowful.

Chu Muqing desperately wanted to get up, to tell her not to worry, that she was fine.

But it was as if her limbs had been severed from her brain—she couldn’t move at all, couldn’t even open her eyes properly.

In the early morning, after pulling an all-nighter and enduring over ten hours on a plane, Su Wanqing had fallen asleep near the hospital bed from sheer exhaustion.

When Chu Muqing next awoke, she could only move her eyes slightly.
She spotted someone lying nearby—long hair covering their eyes.
It wasn’t Xu Chengke.

Thinking of the fragmented dreams from the night before, she still couldn’t quite believe it.
She lifted her hand with great effort and gently touched the long hair.

Su Wanqing had been sleeping lightly.
The touch startled her awake, and she immediately sat up, dazed with sleep.

She looked at the hand in front of her, then slowly shifted her gaze toward its owner.

Their eyes met.