After the Scummy Alpha Marked the Crazy Beautiful Heroine (GL) - Chapter 24.2

Even so, Pei Jiuyao couldn’t stop herself from asking, recklessly:

“Then what about you? That night you let me do whatever I wanted, didn’t resist at all. I thought there wasn’t any… ‘liking’ between us?”

Chi Yang went quiet.

Soft symphonic music floated in from the hall, masking their unease.

Finally, Chi Yang answered slowly,

“Just returning the favor.”

“The contract said you would help me through my heat. It also said you weren’t allowed to go to any other Omegas. So helping you back—well, it’s just fair exchange.”

She paused for a second, then added:

“We’re both adults. No big deal.”

“No big deal,” Pei Jiuyao echoed, lowering her gaze and quietly tearing apart her chicken br3ast with her fork.

“Do you think the agreement is a burden?” Chi Yang asked suddenly.

Pei Jiuyao looked up.

“Not really.”

If anything, the agreement was her only chance to get close to Chi Yang.

She thought she noticed a slight shift in Chi Yang’s posture—as if the tension had eased just a little. Maybe it was her imagination.

________________________________________

After the meal, Chi Yang left first.

As the event wound down, Pei Jiuyao called her assistant and waited in the private parking area, watching other celebrities trickle out.

Chi Yang must have already left.

Pei Jiuyao hadn’t gotten any useful answers all night. Every time she brought up the agreement, Chi Yang would deflect, as if she had some kind of PTSD around the topic and didn’t want to engage at all.

It was probably over.

She remembered what Chi Yang had said before: “Just this once. Let’s part on good terms.”

So she’d wanted to tear up the agreement back then. Pei Jiuyao just hadn’t taken it seriously.

Now what? Should she return to her patron’s home or her own apartment?

From the sound of it, Chi Yang had no intention of going back.

Maybe she should just—

A black van suddenly pulled up and stopped in front of her.

The door slid open.

It was Chi Yang inside.

She looked at her and asked,

“Your driver’s not here?”

“He had something urgent, took the night off. I asked Jiang Tian to come pick me up.”

Chi Yang gave a soft “Oh,” went quiet for a moment in thought, then shut the door without another word.

Pei Jiuyao didn’t know why she hadn’t asked Jiang Tian to come earlier.

Maybe, deep down, she had still been hoping—like when they were filming that variety show—that Chi Yang would say, “Want to ride back with me?”

What a ridiculous fantasy.

She had already decided to treat this like a business deal. So why couldn’t she keep her boundaries clear?

Pei Jiuyao, you weren’t like this before.

She let out a long sigh and nudged the toe of her shoe against the ground.

Could it be that she really… liked Chi Yang?

Her second mission reward was “acting skills,” and the time window ran from the end of the variety show to the airing of Chi Yang’s new drama—which was about to end soon.

If she failed to complete the mission by then, she would be done for.

And now, on top of that, she’d hit a susceptibility period and pissed off Chi Yang.

Pei Jiuyao, can you please figure out what actually matters?

Your life is what matters. Your ability to survive in this world on your own is what matters.

Love? Feelings? Pheromones?

They have nothing to do with you.

You’re not planning to stay here forever… are you?

She didn’t even know why she was being so sentimental all the time.

Might as well play nice, act a little vulnerable, and focus on gaining favorability points.

Pei Jiuyao pulled out her phone, hesitated for a moment, then dialed Chi Yang’s number.

It connected quickly, but the other end didn’t say a word.

Pei Jiuyao knew this was just how Chi Yang was—always waiting for her to speak first, always expecting her to take the initiative.

So aloof and prideful.

And ever since her heat ended, she’d become even colder, more distant.

But Pei Jiuyao didn’t mind. If she wasn’t willing to lower her pride, there were always emergencies to force her hand.

Besides, she’d already made the call. Playing coy and acting soft? No big deal.

After a beat, she asked softly, “Xiao Li, did you drive far?”

“What do you want?”

“Jiang Tian had something come up and can’t make it… Can I hitch a ride with you?”

“Aren’t you getting cozy with Chu Si? Take her car back.”

Beep beep—

The call ended.

Pei Jiuyao pursed her lips, stunned.

They’d clearly fallen out, and Chi Yang knew that. Why was she still upset?

Was it because of Song Mo?

She didn’t get it.

Maybe now that their contract was over, Chi Yang couldn’t be bothered anymore.

But what was she supposed to do—walk home?

Sighing, Pei Jiuyao opened Jiang Tian’s contact again.

Poor Jiang Tian, being dragged around all night by her.

Just as she was about to make the call, her phone rang—it was Chi Yang.

She answered immediately.

Chi Yang’s voice was cold: “Stay where you are. Don’t move.”

Then she hung up again.

A moment later, a sleek black van pulled up in front of her.

The door opened, and to her surprise—it was Chi Yang.

Pei Jiuyao’s eyes lit up. She quickly climbed in and sat down beside her.

“You came?”

She acted all fierce, but deep down, she still couldn’t bear to leave her.

Pei Jiuyao was secretly pleased.

“So you wouldn’t parade around in my dress and attract attention,” Chi Yang said, eyes straight ahead, lounging in her seat.

Just admit you care already—why make up excuses?

A soft-hearted fox with a sharp tongue.

Pei Jiuyao grinned, eyes curving, “Thank you, sugar mommy~”

Chi Yang snorted and turned to look out the window.

“Pei Jiuyao.”

Chi Yang didn’t move, but suddenly called her name.

Pei Jiuyao tilted her head against the seat, “Mm? What is it?”

“Sometimes, I really can’t see through you.”

Funny, Pei Jiuyao thought, I can’t see through you either.

Chi Yang slowly turned to her and said quietly, “It feels like you’re using me, but I can’t tell for what.”

“Is it just s3x? Or… are you planning to use that to threaten me? To get more out of this?”

Her gaze darkened. “Or… are you eyeing the Chi family?”

“What?! Of course not!”

Pei Jiuyao immediately sat up straight. “Who am I to aim for the Chi family? President Chi would have me buried alive.”

“Good. Keep that in mind.” Chi Yang gave a faint snort. “She’s not someone you can afford to mess with. If you’ve got other plans, you better drop them now.”

Seeing Chi Yang drop the topic, Pei Jiuyao slowly relaxed and leaned back into her seat.

But Chi Yang didn’t let her off that easily.

“So what do you want, exactly?”

The calm version of Chi Yang carried a natural pressure—something Pei Jiuyao had always known.

It was just that until now, Chi Yang had never turned that energy on her, so she’d never truly felt its weight.

Now she demanded a clear answer. And if Pei Jiuyao didn’t give her one, she would only become more suspicious.

Maybe even take drastic steps.

So Pei Jiuyao could only answer honestly, “I do like you… I just don’t know how much.”

Chi Yang gave a cold laugh. “You don’t know how much?”

“I don’t know how much of it is real… and how much is just because of your pheromones.”

Chi Yang searched her face, hoping to find signs of deception.

But frustratingly, there were none.

All she saw was confusion. And pain.

Pei Jiuyao was being genuine.

Chi Yang almost found it laughable. “You can’t tell the difference between pheromone response and actual feelings?”

Pei Jiuyao knew she didn’t believe her.

You guys were born Alpha or Omega. But I wasn’t! I was a Beta! The first time I got overwhelmed by pheromones, I thought someone had slipped me something!

During sensitivity periods, it felt like I was going to rut myself to death!

What the hell did I do to deserve getting thrown into a world like this?

But none of that could be said aloud.

Instead, Pei Jiuyao just shook her head and asked, “But if I only like your pheromones… and I just want to mark you… does that count as liking you?”

“That just means we have a 100% compatibility rate,” Chi Yang replied, clearly irritated.

“You seriously don’t know how to control your pheromones?”

Pei Jiuyao blinked. “I… maybe not.”

Chi Yang looked at her like she was an idiot. “You really weren’t a Beta who re-differentiated?”

Pei Jiuyao’s lashes fluttered. “…That could be possible.”

The background check on Pei Jiuyao had already come back. According to Ye Ci, barely anyone had ever heard her sing, and those who had were just a bunch of drinking buddies—not reliable sources.

They could only ask Wen Li. Even though doing so risked news leaking to Chi Qing.

But if Chi Qing wanted to know, there was no way Chi Yang could hide it anyway.

So she had Ye Ci ask.

Turns out, Pei Jiuyao had indeed been tone-deaf before.

Chi Yang stared at her for a long time, eyes meaningful. When Pei Jiuyao awkwardly looked away, she finally averted her gaze.

“Try releasing your pheromones.”

Pei Jiuyao mumbled an “Oh,” and reached toward her nape, but Chi Yang stopped her.

She suddenly remembered—Pei Jiuyao always rubbed her nape with her fingers when trying to mark her.

So she really didn’t know how to control it.

“Don’t use your hands. Relax. Let them come out naturally.”

The driver gave them a suspicious glance in the rearview mirror.

An Omega teaching a 23-year-old Alpha with a scandalous dating history how to release pheromones—this Beta was probably stunned.

Truly, a sight for the ages.

Pei Jiuyao closed her eyes and focused all her will on the back of her neck, trying hard to squeeze something out.

And somehow… she actually managed to.

Sweat slowly beaded on her forehead.

Chi Yang adjusted her smart bracelet. “Good. Now slowly retract it.”

Pei Jiuyao followed the sound of her voice and withdrew her pheromones.

“You’ll feel something like a closing mechanism back there. Three thin flaps, like fish fins. Slowly seal that opening shut.”

Pei Jiuyao focused carefully. There really did seem to be three tiny, nearly invisible membranes under her gland.

She slowly closed them.

Suddenly, all that wild restlessness drained from her body.

The world returned to calm.

“All done?” Chi Yang asked.

Eyes still closed, Pei Jiuyao nodded. “Yeah… I think it worked. That was kind of amazing.”

Chi Yang gave a helpless sigh. Her look shifted from idiot to utter moron.

Then, her fingers tightened abruptly around Pei Jiuyao’s wrist and yanked her forward.

Pei Jiuyao flinched, eyes flying open. She found herself barely an inch from Chi Yang’s nose.

Her heart thudded—thump-thump—twice.

Chi Yang’s pale eyes stared straight into hers, unmoving. “What are you feeling now?”

“My heart… it’s beating kind of fast,” Pei Jiuyao whispered, her cheeks flushing. Tiny beads of sweat formed on her nose.

“Kind of fast?” Chi Yang asked, expression unreadable.

“Mm… just a little.”

Just a little.

Chi Yang’s gaze darkened. She let go of Pei Jiuyao and shoved her back into her seat.

Pei Jiuyao was stunned.

Wasn’t a fast heartbeat proof that I liked her? Why is she mad now?

What, is it only love if my heart doesn’t beat?!

If it doesn’t beat, I will be dead!

She leaned over to sneak a peek at Chi Yang. But Chi Yang suddenly turned, glaring coldly as a chilling smile curled her lips.

Pei Jiuyao immediately froze and sat up straight.

“We’re here. Get out.”

Pei Jiuyao paused at the door, one hand on the frame. “So… what are we now?”

“Is this the end of us?”