How Could a Scumbag Alpha Possibly Love His Wife? (GL, ABO) - Chapter 1

The weather in April and May was rarely this clear. Sunshine poured over the land like gold.

It was just after 9 a.m., and most families in the villa community were still basking in the joy of a rare, peaceful weekend.

Except for the Cheng family.

In their spacious, sunlit living room, three to five people sat quietly. No one spoke. The atmosphere was heavy, as if they were all waiting for something.

When a dark-colored Cayenne pulled into the yard, every pair of eyes turned to the car.

Including Cheng Wan, who sat silently in the corner.

The car stopped, but no one got out right away. The Cheng family exchanged glances, confused about what the delay meant.

Inside the car were two people. The driver, Assistant Xiao Li, was responsible for driving today. Since it involved President Bai’s personal matters, he parked carefully and then remained still, not daring to make a sound or even breathe too loudly.

In the back seat sat a woman in a white trench coat, reclining against the leather seat with her eyes closed, resting.

“President Bai,” Xiao Li said quietly when he noticed the front door of the Cheng house open. A middle-aged woman, likely a housekeeper, peeked outside toward the car. “Someone from the Cheng family is at the door.”

Knock, knock, knock.

The housekeeper gently tapped on the car window. Xiao Li didn’t dare to roll it down. Instead, he turned to look at Bai Juntang, waiting for her response.

Earlier that morning, he had received a call from her, asking him to pick her up immediately. She had even sent him her location.

Normally, last-minute weekend work from the boss wasn’t unusual. But when Xiao Li saw the address, his heart tightened.

Of course, Bai Juntang had heard the knocking. To her, it sounded less like a knock and more like death tapping on her window. No—that was giving the Cheng family too much credit. Comparing them to death was an insult to death itself. The Chengs were nothing more than rotting fish, foul and decaying to the bone.

She still remembered waking up in that hotel bed and seeing Cheng Wan, the eldest daughter of the Cheng family, sleeping next to her. She had known then that things wouldn’t be so easy to untangle.

The Chengs had delivered their daughter to Bai Juntang’s bed, securing a major project in the process. And now, two months later, they had invited her to their home. No matter how you looked at it, this was a trap.

Inside the car, the scent of cold fir—Bai Juntang’s pheromone—grew stronger. Xiao Li, also an Alpha, could easily sense just how angry she was.

Seeing how nervous the housekeeper looked, Xiao Li braced himself and said, “President Bai, since you’re already here, are you really not going to go in?”

Bai Juntang gave a cold smile and replied, “You’re right. I’m already here. What’s there to be afraid of?”

She retracted her pheromones, opened the car door, and stepped out. The housekeeper froze the moment she saw her. She had never seen an Alpha as stunning as Bai Juntang.

Bai Juntang was tall and striking, her whole presence sharp and intense. Even Betas who couldn’t sense pheromones would be drawn to her beauty.

But she was clearly in a foul mood today. Her expression was dark and cold, and she didn’t spare the housekeeper a glance as she walked straight into what was clearly a carefully arranged ambush.

The moment she entered the house, every person inside turned their eyes on her. She paused and scanned the room, quickly spotting the woman sitting quietly in the corner.

This was only the second time Bai Juntang had met Cheng Wan. Today, Cheng Wan wore a white dress and sat calmly on the edge of the sofa. When she heard the sound of the door opening, she looked up.

Their eyes met, but all they saw in each other was unfamiliarity.

Bai Juntang slipped her hands into the pockets of her coat, shot Cheng Wan a cold glance, then looked away and walked over to a chair. She sat down and crossed one leg over the other with ease.

“Boss Cheng, just say what you brought me here for,” she said calmly. “Last time, you traded a scandal for a big deal. What are you offering this time?”

Her words were sharp and completely lacking in warmth. The Cheng family’s expressions shifted, but no one dared to speak up.

Cheng Jiajian, the head of the family, forced a smile and stepped forward. “President Bai, don’t be like that. We’ll be family soon. Why speak like strangers?”

“Family?” Bai Juntang gave him a cold smile. “So this is what today is about—you want me to take responsibility for your daughter?”

She shifted slightly in her seat but remained composed and in control. “We agreed: you got the project, and that night was to be forgotten. It’s only been a few months, and you’re already trying to bring it back up?”

Cheng Jiajian’s face paled. “That’s not fair, President Bai. Wanwan is our daughter. She’s pregnant. You should take responsibility.”

Bai Juntang froze for a second. “She’s pregnant?”

“Yes, exactly,” Madam Cheng said, quickly stepping forward with a medical report in hand. “Look here. She’s ten weeks along. If you count the days, it lines up with that night. I’ve seen plenty of Alphas like you—thinking they can just throw some money at the problem and walk away. But you don’t get to do that. You have to take responsibility.”

Those last words—“you have to take responsibility”—finally struck a nerve.

Bai Juntang stood up, walked over to Madam Cheng, and snatched the report from her hands. A quick glance confirmed it: Cheng Wan was ten weeks pregnant.

She turned and walked straight over to the woman who had sat quietly in the corner the entire time.

Cheng Wan hadn’t expected her to come closer. She looked up, her face pale and tired.

“Pregnant?” Bai Juntang gave a cold, mocking smile. “And it’s mine? Are you sure you didn’t just find some random Alpha and try to pin this on me?”

Before Cheng Wan could speak, Madam Cheng’s voice rose sharply, piercing the room like a siren. Her yelling filled the space, loud and chaotic, leaving no peace for anyone.

Bai Juntang didn’t look at her again.

Cheng Wan lowered her head. She was the one in the middle of it all, but no one seemed to care what she thought.

Two months ago, Madam Cheng had taken her to a hotel. Before they got out of the car, she handed Cheng Wan a cup of water.

Cheng Wan had never been treated kindly in that home. Her mother had always looked down on her. But that night, she acted unusually gentle, asking if she was cold and promising that life would get better.

Cheng Wan woke up the next morning to raised voices. It was the first time she met Bai Juntang—and the first time she saw her completely lose control.

Through the yelling between Bai Juntang and her parents, Cheng Wan realized what had happened. She had been marked. And the woman who had marked her clearly didn’t want to take responsibility. Her parents knew everything. Right there in the hotel, they settled the price: her body in exchange for a project the Cheng family had wanted for years.

Bai Juntang never looked at her—not then, not now.

Cheng Wan looked around at the people in the room. Her heart sank deeper and deeper.

It felt like she was trapped in a crumbling spiderweb. All it would take was the slightest breeze, and everything would fall apart.

Bai Juntang couldn’t be bothered to argue with this group any longer. While Xiao Li stepped in to smooth things over with Cheng Jiajian, Bai Juntang simply returned to her seat. Her gaze drifted toward Cheng Wan, who sat quietly to the side, as if none of this had anything to do with her.

For a moment, Bai Juntang thought she looked like a prisoner waiting for her sentence—eyes lifeless, expression numb.

“No matter what, we need an answer today,” Cheng Jiajian said firmly.

Bai Juntang actually let out a small laugh—more from frustration than amusement. She looked around at the room full of men and women, calm and composed despite being surrounded by people she considered enemies.

“Fine,” she said. “Let Cheng Wan come with me for a paternity test. Let’s see if that child she’s carrying is really mine.”

She glanced at Cheng Wan, then looked at the others.

“If it is, I’ll take responsibility. If it’s not… get ready for a court summons.”

Cheng Jiajian hesitated for a second before replying, “Alright. A test, then. I’ll make the appointment—”

“No need,” Bai Juntang cut him off, eyes fixed on Cheng Wan. “We’ll go to the hospital I use. Their genetics department is the most trusted. We’ll have results by tomorrow. What do you say, Miss Cheng?”

Cheng Wan looked at her, startled that she was finally being spoken to directly. After a long pause, she gave a small nod.

“Okay.”

It was the first word she had ever spoken to Bai Juntang.

And it was to confirm whether the child in her womb belonged to her.

Cheng Wan sat in the back seat of the car on the way to the hospital. Bai Juntang clearly didn’t want her anywhere near and had made her ride alone in the back.

That was fine. Cheng Wan stared quietly out the window, thinking to herself that maybe it was better this way. At least she could feel less guilty.

No matter how she looked at it, it was the Cheng family—and herself—who had trapped this Alpha. No matter how cold or distant Bai Juntang was toward her, it was completely justified.

She could still smell the faint scent of cold fir in the back seat. Her heart sank again.

It was a lovely scent.

Cheng Wan could even sense that her compatibility with Bai Juntang’s pheromones was unusually high—at least 90 percent.

A match like that was rare, no matter how you looked at it.

But what was the point of compatibility?

Cheng Wan watched the scenery pass by outside the window. She was just an Omega with no power, no voice. From the very beginning, Bai Juntang had never once looked at her as an equal.

Up front, Bai Juntang sat in the passenger seat, arms crossed, stewing in silence. Xiao Li drove quietly, sensing the tension in the air. The whole car was quiet, heavy.

Then Bai Juntang caught a faint scent of white peach in the air.

She frowned slightly.

The scent was light and sweet, with a freshness that tugged gently at her senses. She knew it came from the Omega sitting in the back seat. Still, she forced herself not to turn around.

A woman who’s trying to use a baby to rise in status can’t possibly be a good person.

Feeling increasingly irritated, Bai Juntang lowered the car window slightly. The cold November wind rushed in, hitting Xiao Li in the face.

He winced and said carefully, “President Bai, it’s cold…”

“Stop complaining. Just drive,” Bai Juntang snapped. But she did raise the window back up a little.

Through the rearview mirror, she saw Cheng Wan still looking out the window, her expression distant and sad. One hand had unconsciously rested on her stomach. Who knew what she was thinking?

The sweet scent of white peach lingered faintly in the air.

And Bai Juntang couldn’t shake the growing irritation in her chest.