The Cannon Fodder Alpha Who Made the Heroine Pregnant - Chapter 12

12:

The novel’s plot revolves around Chu Zhao, with extensive details written about her. The main character’s team is also described to some extent, while antagonists like the Zhou family receive less attention.

After reading the novel, Zhou Lan roughly understood that the primary reason for the Zhou family’s downfall was the collapse of their political backing. Without their mountain of support, those who relied on it couldn’t withstand the enemy’s fierce attacks.

Apart from losing their backing, the Zhou family’s collapse in the novel was mainly due to Chu Zhao obtaining evidence of their crimes. Otherwise, the Zhou family would have at most lost their leading position in Jiangning City, ending their monopoly over it.

But the Zhou family had committed crimes—tax evasion, bribery, securing Jiangning City’s projects at minimal costs, and producing counterfeit suppressants. As Jiangning City’s authorized distributor, the Zhou family had limited quotas for suppressants. To meet demand, they mass-produced counterfeit versions in their own factories.

In China, suppressants are monopolized by two pharmaceutical companies, both ranked among the country’s top 50 and the world’s top 500. When these companies discovered the Zhou family’s counterfeit suppressants, they naturally took action against them.

Zhou Lan suspected that Chu Zhao might have connections with these two pharmaceutical giants. Given their influence, crushing the Zhou family would be effortless.

While the technology to produce suppressants isn’t complicated, manufacturing them without a license is illegal. This further highlights the pharmaceutical companies’ power, something the Zhou family couldn’t resist.

The monopoly on suppressants made them unaffordable for ordinary people, which was already a problem. The Zhou family’s actions, before the market opened up, violated the law and infringed upon the interests of those two pharmaceutical giants.

These crimes were committed after Zhou Xianling resolved to reform the Zhou Corporation. The family’s earlier offenses were even worse, each one severe enough to warrant the death penalty for Zhou Xianling, with his father’s corpse likely to be exhumed and posthumously punished.

After the Zhou family was investigated, many of the older crimes lacked evidence due to the passage of time, so Zhou Xianling was only sentenced to life imprisonment.

It must be said that Zhou Xianling was sharp. He realized that the times were changing and that their past actions were digging their own graves, so he tried to wash his hands clean.

Unfortunately, the Zhou family was in too deep. Extricating themselves completely in a short time was impossible. Even after over a decade of effort, Zhou Xianling only managed to erase some of the evidence, leaving one foot still stuck in the mud.

The Zhou family had stepped on too many people’s toes. With their backing gone and under deliberate suppression, they had no choice but to be devoured.

Surrounded by a pack of wolves, the Zhou family didn’t last long before collapsing entirely.

Zhou Lan decided to accelerate this process. The sword hanging over their heads had to be removed.

—

Chu Zhao was curious about what Zhou Lan actually knew, so she suppressed her disgust and got into her car.

Her body was inexplicably drawn to Zhou Lan’s scent—their compatibility was too high, an unavoidable fact. But the more her body reacted, the more repulsed she felt inside.

“Speak. What do you want from me?”

Aside from business, she didn’t want to exchange another word with Zhou Lan.

Zhou Lan didn’t answer immediately. She stepped on the accelerator, and as the car left the Zhou family villa, she finally spoke:

“Your investigation is heading in the wrong direction.”

Her very first sentence made Chu Zhao frown.

What does she mean? How much does Zhou Lan actually know? No—it feels like she knows everything.

“Don’t get angry yet.”

Seeing Chu Zhao’s expression, Zhou Lan tried to placate her before continuing:

“In recent years, the Zhou family’s growth has been restricted. Only four projects remain profitable:

1. Real estate—which has been declining, with modest profits.
2. Suppressants—a guaranteed moneymaker, but profits are split too many ways, so Chairman Zhou started cutting corners.
3. E-commerce—Jiangning City has a thriving e-commerce sector. The Zhou family even built a small commodities market, which, while not comparable to the major hubs, is still quite successful.
4. Entertainment—The entertainment industry has long been divided between the north and south, with most resources concentrated in the big cities. Jiangning had nothing—until the Zhou family tapped into the livestreaming and influencer economy. Now, a quarter of the internet’s hottest influencers are under the Zhou Corporation’s banner. Livestream sales and PK battles have become their most lucrative venture.”

“So what?” Chu Zhao interrupted impatiently. “Are you trying to flaunt the Zhou family’s power? I already know how formidable they are. If this is all you brought me here to say, you can stop the car now.”

All she wanted was to know Zhou Lan’s true intentions, whether they would interfere with her plans.

But Zhou Lan’s knowledge suggested she wasn’t the useless, good-for-nothing heiress she appeared to be.

As far as Chu Zhao knew, Zhou Lan had never been involved in the Zhou family’s affairs—in fact, the family had always kept her at arm’s length.

So how does she know all this? What else does she know?

Has she been planning to fight for the family fortune all along? Then why did she refuse to join the Zhou Corporation earlier?

Or is it as I suspected—the Zhou family is about to collapse, and Zhou Lan wants out before it happens?

More and more questions swirled in Chu Zhao’s mind as she tried to decipher the hidden meaning behind Zhou Lan’s words.

Listening to Chu Zhao’s internal monologue, Zhou Lan smirked.

On the surface, Chu Zhao was calm and collected, but her thoughts were surprisingly lively.

And even now, she still hadn’t openly admitted her plans to take down the Zhou family—everything was kept deliberately vague. She was very cautious.

“Let me continue.”

Zhou Lan adjusted her words as she drove:

“These four projects are the Zhou family’s most profitable, bringing in billions annually. But their real moneymakers were the ventures they abandoned.”

Those shadowy, untraceable operations had once been lucrative, but as times changed, Zhou Xianling realized they would become the family’s downfall. So, he began shifting their focus.

Chu Zhao’s expression remained indifferent—until Zhou Lan turned a corner and dropped a bombshell:

“You’re investigating those abandoned projects, aren’t you? Trying to find evidence that can topple the Zhou family for good.”

Every one of Zhou Xianling’s discarded ventures could send the Zhou Corporation plummeting into ruin.

The entertainment establishments of the past were nothing like today’s regulated, compliant businesses. A simple investigation would reveal countless violations.

To sever all ties, Zhou Xianling sold off what he could and repurposed the rest. Buyers were required to renovate and repurpose the properties. Over a decade later, all traces had been erased.

Which meant Chu Zhao’s investigation was essentially futile.

“All that evidence was destroyed long ago. You won’t find anything.”

Zhou Lan’s words sent another jolt through Chu Zhao.

She knows far too much. If she’s aware, does that mean Zhou Xianling knows too? Or their political backers? If so, all our efforts so far would be wasted.

Zhou Lan parked outside a small noodle shop and said, “Chairman Zhou doesn’t know.”

She had no intention of hiding the truth from Chu Zhao. In a partnership, sincerity was key. Besides, she didn’t want Chu Zhao to suffer any more than necessary.

—

The Chu family’s marriage alliance with the Zhou family had turned Chu Zhao into a pawn.

Growing up in a household riddled with favoritism, she had faced nothing but disdain and suppression from her so-called family. The only one who ever treated her kindly was her mother.

To escape, she worked tirelessly. During college, she founded her own company.

Though her family was neglectful, her mother’s love ensured she never struggled financially. With savings from part-time jobs, she started a small studio called Chu Yue, recruiting talented students to teach beginner-level arts to children.

Studying in the capital, she based her studio there.

Over time, the studio grew, hiring more professional instructors and expanding its team.

Soon, a major corporation took notice and made an acquisition offer. Since Chu Zhao had no long-term plans in this field, she sold it for over 20 million—her first major windfall.

For most people, 20 million was a fortune. But in business, it could vanish overnight.

So she needed the right project.

After extensive research, she found a failing film studio preparing a movie. Their investor had gone bankrupt and fled, leaving them with two choices: sell off their assets and disband, or find new funding to continue.

No one was willing to invest, except Chu Zhao.

She sought out many struggling but promising teams, and this studio stood out. Their script was solid, but the stigma of their investor’s bankruptcy scared others away.

Chu Zhao bought the studio outright and financed the film herself, investing 10 million upfront. The returns were five to six times that—a resounding success.

With her earnings, she expanded Chu Yue Studio into Chu Yue Entertainment Co., Ltd., producing films, nurturing talent, and gradually making a name in the industry.

Her roster now included one A-list male actor and two B-list actresses, enough to headline web dramas and low-budget films.

In just a few years, Chu Yue had come far. But the best resources were still controlled by major players. Breaking into the inner circle required an A-list star to attract top-tier projects.

Just as Chu Yue was flourishing, her family intervened.

They gave her an ultimatum: return to Jiangning and marry into the Zhou family, or attend her mother’s funeral in three days.

Chu Zhao would never let her mother die, but she refused to be a passive victim.

The enemy of her enemy was her ally—and the Zhou family, with its history of corruption, had no shortage of adversaries.

As Jiangning’s dominant force, many wanted to see the Zhou family fall. Marrying into it made Chu Zhao the perfect pawn. Plenty were willing to collaborate, but initially, she seemed to be merely scouting for partners, biding her time.

This was all from the novel. Chu Zhao was undeniably exceptional—building Chu Yue from scratch and poised to take it even further.

But she faced too few allies, too much family interference, and constant setbacks that hindered her progress.

Forced to use herself as a bargaining chip, she sought the fastest way out.

That was why Zhou Lan’s blunt revelation shook her so deeply.

Chu Zhao couldn’t afford to lose. She could flee Jiangning, but what about her mother?

Without toppling the Chu family, she couldn’t take her mother with her.

She needed outside help to dismantle both the Zhou and Chu families while exploiting the Zhou family’s ambition to swallow the Chus, sabotaging their alliance.

The path was fraught with obstacles, but at least there was hope.

If Zhou Lan had uncovered their plans, who else might know?

If the scheme failed, the consequences would be catastrophic—her only family might not survive. That was a risk Chu Zhao couldn’t take.