The Cannon Fodder Alpha Who Made the Heroine Pregnant - Chapter 6

6:

Ling He’na left in a fury after Zhou Lan’s defiance, delivering a final ultimatum before storming out:

“Your accounts are frozen effective immediately. Reflect on your behavior. When you’ve come to your senses, you may come find me.”

Zhou Lan remained unfazed by the financial threat. Severing ties with the Zhou family had always been her first step toward freedom.

What truly unsettled her was Ling He’na’s callous disregard for Chu Zhao’s autonomy—treating her as little more than a breeding vessel to cement the Zhou lineage.

“Chu Zhao has her own life,” Zhou Lan had countered coldly. “As her partner, my duty is to support her, not imprison her.”

The original Zhou Lan’s memories painted Ling He’na as a tragic figure: a once-promising heiress who willingly surrendered her family’s assets to Zhou patriarch Zhou Chaosheng, only to spend decades as a glorified housewife battling his endless infidelities.

Stripped of her family’s backing and having failed to secure any safeguards during the merger, Ling He’na had quickly learned the cost of her naivety.

Now, hollowed by regret, she sought to control her daughter’s marriage with the same toxic grip that had suffocated her own life.

Zhou Lan’s words had struck a nerve, hence the financial retaliation.

Good. This accelerated her exit strategy.

While bl00d ties couldn’t be severed, financial and social ones could. Ling He’na’s outburst provided the perfect pretext for partial emancipation.

Her plan crystallized:

1. Exploit Ling He’na’s fear of abandonment (the woman wouldn’t risk reporting this to Zhou Chaosheng, lest he disinherit Zhou Lan entirely).

2. Leverage her academic credentials to secure a teaching position abroad.

3. Rebuilt through freelance composing, her past-life skillset remained intact.

A quiet life, far from Zhou theatrics.

—

Knock knock.

The Zhou family’s private physician, Dr. Gao Anying, entered with clinical detachment.

Young, accomplished, and striking—Gao was a rising star in Jiangning’s medical circles. Rumor claimed even Zhou Chaosheng harbored inappropriate interest, though Gao (wisely) kept her distance.

She performed her duties with cool efficiency, removing Zhou Lan’s IV.

“Two days’ rest should suffice.”

“Thank you.”

Gao’s eyebrow arched. The original Zhou Lan had been notorious for her arrogance, even attempting to flirt with Gao during past consultations. Gratitude was unexpected.

Zhou Lan seized the opening: “How is Chu Zhao?”

Gao hesitated. Medically, she knew the two had been intimate—yet no mating mark marred Chu Zhao’s scent gland.

Peculiar. Given Zhou Lan’s reputation, why show restraint?

“Ms. Chu stabilized post-suppressants,” she said carefully.

Relief flooded Zhou Lan’s features, so genuine it gave Gao pause.

Could the rumors be exaggerated?

Before she could reconsider, Zhou Lan pressed: “Did my mother… confront her?”

Gao’s lips thinned. Ling He’na’s vitriol had been audible through the walls.

“Ms. Chu endured unpleasantness. If you care, comfort her.”

With that, she left.

—

Zhou Lan stared at Chu Zhao’s closed door.

Comfort her?

As if Chu Zhao would accept solace from the architect of her misery.

Yet Ling He’na’s cruelty gnawed at her. How easily women blamed other women for alpha’s failings.

Her legs still weak, Zhou Lan shuffled to the kitchen. Cooking wasn’t her forte, but hunger demanded action.

Tomato egg noodles—simple, foolproof.

She prepared two portions, leaving one outside Chu Zhao’s room with a text:

[Noodles on the table if you’re hungry.]

No response came.

—

Dusk found Zhou Lan on the balcony, airing her thoughts—when movement below caught her eye.

A shadowy figure lurked near the villa’s gate.

Intruder?

She activated the security alarm, just as Chu Zhao’s door clicked open.

Through the twilight, Zhou Lan watched as Chu Zhao strode toward the stranger…

…and was swept into an embrace.

Zhou Lan blinked.

Well.

This complicates things.