The Cannon Fodder Alpha Who Made the Heroine Pregnant - Chapter 4

4:

The moment Zhou Lan realized it was Chu Zhao who had plunged into the pool, she surged forward without hesitation.

Water resistance slowed her movements, but luckily, Chu Zhao had landed nearby. In just a few strides, Zhou Lan reached her, wrapping an arm around the omega’s waist to pull her up—only to be met with a look of shock that swiftly twisted into revulsion.

“Get off me!”

Chu Zhao shoved her away violently. The brief contact had sent another wave of heat coursing through her body, so intense that even the chilly morning pool water couldn’t quell it.

Zhou Lan didn’t protest. Now that the initial panic had passed, it was clear Chu Zhao hadn’t fallen accidentally.

She’d jumped.

The realization struck like lightning: Chu Zhao was trying to cool the fire in her veins. And Zhou Lan, by touching her, had only fanned the flames.

Chagrined, Zhou Lan took a step back—then abruptly remembered the suppressants.

According to the novel, Chu Zhao spotted them right after jumping in. They must be close.

Diving down, her fingers brushed against a small emerald crystal case—heavy enough to sink like a stone, precisely where the original Zhou Lan had tossed it.

Got it.

But when she surfaced, triumphant, Chu Zhao was gone.

Then she saw the ripples.

Chu Zhao had submerged herself entirely, knees drawn to her chest beneath the water’s surface. Even in summer, the dawn chill was biting—yet it barely dulled the heat between them.

Especially with Zhou Lan nearby.

Every breath drew in more of that maddening alpha pheromone, making Chu Zhao’s skin prickle with something far worse than anger.

Addiction.

Her body, traitorous and weak, craved what her mind abhorred.

Just physiological, she told herself. Once the suppressants kick in—or this damned heat passes—I’ll be free.

She’d already called an ambulance. But until then, survival meant distance.

Meanwhile, Zhou Lan—oblivious in her single-minded hunt for the suppressants—finally emerged with the crystal case.

“Chu Zhao! Found them—”

Her voice died as she scanned the empty pool.

Then she saw it: a shadow beneath the water.

In three frantic strides, she hauled Chu Zhao up again.

Instinctively, Chu Zhao swung a fist—then a kick, aiming to maim.

If it’s Zhou Lan, show no mercy.

But Zhou Lan, well-acquainted with dodging blows by now, stumbled back and brandished the syringe like a white flag.

“Suppressants!”

Chu Zhao froze mid-lunge.

Her eyes locked onto the familiar case in Zhou Lan’s arms.

“What’s your game?” Distrust dripped from every syllable.

The fact that her first instinct wasn’t to grab the suppressants, but to question Zhou Lan’s motives, spoke volumes about how low Zhou Lan ranked in her esteem.

“Just take it,” Zhou Lan pleaded, extending the syringe. “I won’t—”

A kick to the ribs sent her sprawling.

By the time she hit the water, the case was already in Chu Zhao’s hands.

Of course. Zhou Lan watched bitterly as Chu Zhao discarded the offered syringe and drew a fresh one from the case.

She thinks I tampered with it.

The suppressants took effect swiftly. Chu Zhao’s shoulders relaxed as the feverish tension drained from her limbs.

Thank god. Without these, a heat cycle in public would’ve been catastrophic.

All thanks to Zhou Lan’s scheming—

Wait.

Where was Zhou Lan?

Chu Zhao’s gaze snapped back to the pool.

The alpha hadn’t resurfaced.

At first, Chu Zhao assumed she had swam off. But the longer the water remained undisturbed, the more suspicion gnawed at her.

Drowning?

A living body sinks; only corpses float.

If Zhou Lan died here, now—

The implications crashed over her.

No witnesses. The Zhou family wouldn’t care about evidence, they’d destroy her in their grief. And she wasn’t ready to fight them yet.

Not when so many still needed to pay.

Gritting her teeth, Chu Zhao waded toward the motionless figure—just as the villa’s front door burst open.

Security.

Acting fast, Chu Zhao grabbed Zhou Lan’s collar and dragged her toward the edge, putting on a convincing show of rescue.

By the time the medics arrived, Zhou Lan was being pumped back to life with frantic CPR, while Chu Zhao—exhausted and ignored—collapsed onto the tiles.

Only a junior nurse glanced her way.

Of course. Everyone knew: if Zhou Lan died today, they were all doomed.