Why Did the Top Alpha Suddenly Stop Acting Out? - Chapter 7

[Fang Xin: Doesn’t Ye Shuyi like cilantro? Ask her for help.]

Yi Qian stared at the message, lost in thought. In the past, she would have immediately picked the cilantro from her bowl and placed it into Ye Shuyi’s without hesitation.

Though she absolutely despised cilantro, whenever she ate with Ye Shuyi, she never asked the restaurant to leave it out of her dish. Instead, she’d request extra because she knew Ye Shuyi loved it. And every time their food arrived, she’d transfer every last bit of cilantro from her bowl to Ye Shuyi’s.

Each time she did this, Ye Shuyi would smile and say, “You don’t have to do this every time. It’s too much trouble. Next time, just ask them not to add cilantro to yours.”

And every time, Yi Qian would firmly refuse. “No way. If you like it, it’s no trouble at all.” She’d push the bowl piled high with cilantro toward Ye Shuyi. “One day, I’ll plant an entire garden of cilantro for you at home.”

Ye Shuyi smirked and teased, “Just cilantro?”

“No, I’ll plant all the vegetables you love with my own hands.” Yi Qian gently gathered Ye Shuyi’s loose hair, securing it with the hair tie she always wore around her wrist. This small gesture never failed to draw quiet gasps of admiration from nearby diners.

Ye Shuyi covered her eyes with one hand, her delicate, now-exposed earlobes flushing a captivating shade of red. “Stop doing things like this in public,” she chided.

Yi Qian leaned in close, whispering by her ear, “Then who’s the one who always forgets to bring a hair tie?”

“Because I know you’ll have one for me.” Peeking through her fingers, Ye Shuyi stole a glance at Yi Qian before quickly covering her eyes again, playfully sticking out her tongue.

Yi Qian’s gaze lingered on the soft pink lips barely visible beneath Ye Shuyi’s fingers. She swallowed hard, inching closer until their breaths mingled, their lips nearly touching. But at the last moment, she turned her head and pressed a kiss to Ye Shuyi’s burning earlobe, her voice husky. “If you’re this cute next time… I won’t stop at your earlobe.”

Ding-dong, ding-dong…

A rapid series of message alerts snapped Yi Qian back to reality.

Fang Xin:
[Just tug on her sleeve and act a little spoiled, hurry!]
[Hello? What are you grinning about? Move it!]
[You’re not imagining her volunteering to eat it for you, are you?]
[Hey, stop daydreaming and go for it!!!]

Yi Qian glared at her phone before typing back: [You know exactly what things are like between us now. And what’s with the “act spoiled” nonsense? Stop giving terrible advice. It’s not like I have to eat this dish.]

Fang Xin shot her a pointed look and rapidly typed: [Do you not understand the concept of a wingman? This cilantro could be the first step in repairing your relationship with Ye Shuyi. Learn to bend when you need to sometimes, you’ve got to soften up. Don’t you know that women who act spoiled have the best luck?]

[Most importantly, you can use this to test how Ye Shuyi feels about you now. Come on! Trust me on this.]

“Miss Fang, are you busy with work?” Song Kechi suddenly spoke up. “You’ve been typing nonstop.”

Fang Xin glanced at her guiltily before flashing a bright smile. “Yep, just scolding a very disobedient student.”

No sooner had she spoken than one of the so-called “very disobedient” students shot her a death glare as cold as ice.

Glancing at the message on her phone, Yi Qian frowned slightly. In a way, Fang Xin had a point, Ye Shuyi had always responded better to honey than vinegar. If she softened her approach, she might get a better reaction. But she still had her doubts. What if Ye Shuyi refused? That would mean…

She stole a sidelong glance at the person beside her, who was eating with single-minded focus, then looked across the table at Fang Xin, who was devouring her meal with gusto.

Fang Xin, cheeks puffed with food, lifted her head and shot her a look that screamed, “Hurry up and do it!”

Yi Qian clenched her fists on her lap, took a deep breath, and after a moment of steeling herself, slowly reached toward Ye Shuyi.

“Shuyi, have some more. These are all your favorites,” Song Chichi said, piling food into Ye Shuyi’s bowl.

“Thanks,” Ye Shuyi replied.

Yi Qian yanked her hand back in alarm, narrowing her eyes at Song Chichi. Her usually charming, peach-blossom eyes now brimmed with danger, but the other woman merely smiled and continued eating, utterly unfazed.

Spurred by this, Yi Qian didn’t hesitate this time, she grabbed Ye Shuyi’s sleeve and gave it a stiff little tug when the other woman turned to look.

Ye Shuyi glanced at the hand clutching her sleeve, then up at Yi Qian, who was staring straight ahead as if nothing had happened, though the tension in her jaw betrayed her nerves.

So this was what they’d been plotting all that time?

Her gaze shifted to Fang Xin, who kept sneaking glances their way, then she picked up her chopsticks and resumed eating, ignoring the hand still clinging to her sleeve.

On the second day of their shared meals, Yi Qian and Ye Shuyi’s names topped the trending list together for the first time.

#Yi Qian scowls nonstop with new agent Ye Shuyi [Explosive]

The gossip accounts had posted footage of Yi Qian and Ye Shuyi leaving the mall that day. In the video, Yi Qian’s face was stormy, yet she trailed closely behind Ye Shuyi before they got into the same car.

[Damn, already? Wasn’t this new agent just announced yesterday? Is Yi Qian cursed to have terrible relationships with her agents?]

[These paparazzi are slacking didn’t even catch them arguing. [doge]]

[Honestly, Yi Qian looks like a puppy scared of being abandoned. [lol]]

[I’m obsessed with Ye Shuyi’s icy beauty vibes!!! Gorgeous, come be my personal assistant instead dump that trash Alpha Yi Qian, I’ll treat you right, I swear T_T]

Yi Qian’s face darkened instantly at the last comment. “Who do they think they are, trying to poach from me?” she grumbled. “They should take a good look in the mirror first and see how delusional they are.”

She tossed her phone aside, not bothering to address the rumors. These kinds of trends weren’t new, and by tomorrow, netizens would be distracted by the next piece of entertainment news. The hype would die down on its own.

By evening, Yi Qian brushed her teeth while staring at her phone, which had remained silent all day, her expression growing increasingly resentful.

Even if today’s incident wasn’t urgent at all and wouldn’t cause any real negative consequences, as her manager, didn’t Ye Shuyi have any intention to explain? Was she really so willing to admit their strained relationship?

Yi Qian’s toothbrushing movements accelerated her cheeks puffing out on the right one second, then shifting to the left the next, her hands moving at lightning speed like a squirrel rapidly stuffing its cheeks with food.

Her previous managers would at least hypocritically ask if she needed clarification or go through the motions by taking a couple of photos together to post on Weibo when such things happened.

But Ye Shuyi? Not even a pretense of concern.

After finishing her routine, Yi Qian lay stiffly on her back staring at the white ceiling. Her mind involuntarily replayed yesterday’s scene of Ye Shuyi laughing and chatting happily with Song Kechi during dinner. Rolling onto her stomach, she buried her face in the pillow before suddenly propping herself up and pounding the pillow with her fists, muttering, “If you had no intention of reconciling, why come back? Why become my manager again? Are you doing this deliberately, or…”

Her energy suddenly drained away as she smoothed the indented pillowcase and hugged it tightly, murmuring to herself, “Or was it just because her manager’s salary was higher?”

Ding-dong.

The vibration of her phone shattered the room’s silence.

Yi Qian sprang up to grab her device. The message was indeed from Ye Shuyi but merely a schedule for upcoming work.

After staring at the screen, she finally exited the page and checked Weibo’s trending topics. The hashtag about her and Ye Shuyi already lingered at the bottom of the rankings, not even needing until tomorrow to disappear entirely.

Another ding-dong brought a notification:

[Ye Shuyi from Yi Family: Remember to prepare early for the movie premiere ceremony the day after tomorrow. I’ll pick you up.]

Yi Qian blinked at the message several times, rubbed her eyes, and confirmed it wasn’t an illusion. Gripping the blanket’s edge, she rolled excitedly across the bed only to tumble onto the floor from overenthusiasm. Ignoring the pain, she scrambled up against the bedside to reply: [Okay.]

On the day of the premiere, the weather was unexpectedly pleasant, with temperatures slightly warmer as accumulated snow began melting after several days.

At exactly 8:00 AM, Ye Shuyi appeared punctually at Yi Qian’s doorstep. Stepping out of the car, she immediately spotted Yi Qian sitting on the sofa through the floor-to-ceiling windows.

The lazy winter morning sunlight draped her in a fuzzy golden glow, a scene that should have been warm and beautiful, yet her brows were tightly knitted together.

Leaning against the car door, Ye Shuyi watched as the other woman checked her phone and frowned even deeper, her lips curling slightly. Taking out her phone, she dialed Yi Qian’s number.

Observing through the window as the caller’s face instantly brightened upon seeing the incoming call, Ye Shuyi’s smile widened. When the call connected, her first words carried undisguised amusement: “Were you waiting for my call?”

The figure inside froze momentarily before turning toward the window.

Their gazes met and blended in the warm sunlight as Ye Shuyi waved her phone playfully, her tone lilting: “What are you spacing out for? Time to go.”

The words seemed to carry a burning heat, startling Yi Qian so much that she instantly sprang up from the couch, quickly saying, “I’ll be right out.”

Watching Yi Qian dash out of the house into the sunlight, Ye Shuyi felt a momentary daze. Back in the days when she used to wait for Yi Qian outside her dorm in the evenings, the other girl would always come running out of the building. Without a care for the passing students, she would throw her arms around Ye Shuyi, nestling against her shoulder to softly whine, “Studying was so exhausting today. Don’t be shy, let me hug you for a recharge. My precious Shuyi is the best.”