Shi Wei Yue’s appearance differed from most female Alphas, lacking any aggressiveness, she belonged to the delicate, understated type with exquisite features. Her complexion was flawless, striking even without makeup.
Her long eyelashes cast faint shadows under her eyes when she lowered her gaze, her thin eyelids accentuating their density under the interplay of light. Wen Ruxing was slightly shorter than her in height, and now, pinned against the wall, the close proximity magnified that difference, forcing her to look up to meet Shi Wei Yue’s eyes.
The moment Shi Wei Yue got home, she tossed her coat onto the bed. The chiffon blouse beneath had become loose from the struggle, its smooth bow tie now hooked by the woman’s fingers. Wen Ruxing looked at her with a faint, mocking smile, the emotion in her dark eyes lending the expression a hint of threat.
Slender fingers tugged at the bow tie, pulling it down until a button snapped, emitting a crisp click in the darkness. Shi Wei Yue felt a chill on her collarbone as her skin met the air, only to be quickly replaced by the heat of breath…
Wen Ruxing was clearly an Alpha, yet she insisted on maintaining this ambiguous closeness in such a situation. Shi Wei Yue could feel her rationality eroding, unable to discern Wen Ru Xing’s intentions.
The Alpha’s soft fingertips pressed against her collarbone, tracing slow circles. Shi Wei Yue’s breathing grew increasingly ragged.
This woman, she was going all out!
“What are you doing?!”
At Wen Ruxing’s startled cry, Shi Wei Yue abruptly swept her up into a bridal carry.
She had never done this to anyone before, nor did she exercise much, but fortunately, her natural strength wasn’t lacking. Combined with Wen Ruxing’s well-maintained figure, she probably weighed no more than a hundred pounds, Shi Wei Yue managed the short distance without too much strain. The only challenge was the woman’s constant struggling in her arms, nearly causing her to drop her midway.
Wen Ruxing was unceremoniously dumped onto the bed.
Shi Wei Yue’s slender wrists somehow mustered unexpected strength perhaps aided by the drugs allowing her to effortlessly pin the woman beneath her. Their fingers interlaced against the sheets, Wen Ruxing firmly restrained as their long hair tangled together, breaths mingling in ragged heat.
When Wen Ruxing lifted a leg to kick her, the smooth glide of the woman’s skin against her thigh sent a jolt through Shi Wei Yue. What had started as mere intimidation now ignited a fire in her veins, burning through every inch of her being.
As her rationality frayed, her throbbing gland could no longer hold back. An invisible surge of pheromones erupted uncontrollably, flooding the room in an instant, rich pear blossom steeped in liquor, every inhale like savoring an intoxicating pear wine.
It was too hot. Too hot to restrain. The instinct buried in her blood sharpened Shi Wei Yue’s edges. The words of the woman beneath her grew indistinct, but a last shred of reason made her lean down, tilting her head to catch Wen Ruxing’s voice.
Faintly, she thought she heard the villainess calling her name:
“Shi Wei Yue! Rein in your pheromones!”
The trouble was, Shi Wei Yue had no idea how to rein in her pheromones. After all, she wasn’t originally from this world. By this world’s standards, she had been just a Beta before, how could she possibly learn to control pheromones in an instant?
Wen Ruxing was still struggling beneath her. Shi Wei Yue tried to get up, but her bones felt weak and limp, making it impossible to muster any strength. Just as she attempted to push herself harder, a sharp pain suddenly shot through her exposed collarbone.
“Ah!”
With a startled yelp, Shi Wei Yue rolled off and tumbled to the floor, landing hard on her back. The impact sent a jolt of pain up her tailbone, but at least it jolted her back to her senses.
She remembered that in an ABO world, suppressants or similar medications should be kept in the bedroom for emergencies. After forcing herself up, she rummaged through the bedside drawer and found a Suppressant patch. With trembling hands, she tore open the packaging and fumbled to stick it onto the gland at the nape of her neck.
Her application wasn’t perfect, but it was enough to barely contain the spread of her pheromones. Seizing the opportunity, Wen Ruxing dashed to the bathroom, flipped on the light, and rummaged around until she found a bottle of air freshener, which she promptly sprayed throughout the room.
The air freshener used in an Alpha-Omega household was different from ordinary ones, it could suppress pheromone diffusion and rapidly purify the air. As Wen Ruxing worked, Shi Wei Yue sat on the floor, panting. It took her a full minute to regain some strength. Her body was still feverish, but at least her mind had cleared up somewhat.
“Here.”
She tossed Wen Ruxing a tube of Alpha suppressant, an injectable one for fast results. Despite her disheveled appearance, Wen Ruxing caught it deftly, though her tone was dripping with sarcasm:
“Are you out of your mind?”
Shi Wei Yue was about to retort when Wen Ruxing suddenly called her name, her voice sharp and laced with warning:
“I don’t have that much patience.”
Shi Wei Yue valued her life too much to pick a fight with Wen Ruxing over this.
Still, her collarbone ached where Wen Ruxing had bitten her.
Wen Ruxing seemed utterly repulsed by her pheromones. After tossing out that remark, she hurried out of the room, taking the air freshener with her. She sprayed it thoroughly at the doorway, ensuring no trace of Shi Wei Yue’s pheromones could escape.
Shi Wei Yue lay on the cold floor for a while, waiting until her body heat warmed the surface beneath her and her strength and senses had somewhat recovered before staggering to her feet and heading to the bathroom.
She turned the shower to cold, gripping the showerhead as icy water cascaded over her head. The chill helped her calm down further, steadying her emotions.
After spending an entire day with her so-called “convenience wife,” aside from their constant scheming and pranks against each other, Shi Wei Yue actually held a rather high opinion of her.
Leaving aside her outstanding looks and abilities, Wen Ruxing’s ability to adapt and her quick retaliation when wronged were traits Shi Wei Yue deeply admired.
Back in her old life, Shi Wei Yue had been born into an ordinary family in a small town. Her parents favored sons over daughters and held traditional values, going so far as to have four children despite the one-child policy. To continue her education and earn even a sliver of her parents’ attention, she had learned from a young age to read people’s moods. She might not have been universally adored, but she certainly knew how to avoid being disliked.
But deep down, she still preferred an eye for an eye. If she were Wen Ruxing, she wouldn’t just let the matter of being drugged by her newlywed wife slide so easily. Moreover, this counterattack was merely an appetizer with so much time ahead of them living together, she at least needed to make it clear that she wasn’t someone to be trifled with.
So, the days to come might not be easy for her.
Shi Wei Yue stood under the cold shower for a long time, quickly dismissing the idea of surviving by endlessly pandering to Wen Ruxing. For her, pleasing someone wasn’t difficult, but the big villain was capricious, hardly a stable personality that could be easily swayed.
In the original novel, the reason Wen Ruxing hated the original host so much was mainly because she had been drugged and forced into a group game with the male and female leads. Suffering such humiliation, it was no wonder she retaliated. But Shi Wei Yue didn’t have such bizarre preferences. As long as she didn’t cross any lines, she could just bide her time until the contract expired.
Besides, facing off against Wen Ruxing wasn’t a hopeless battle. The Wen family had demands of the Shi family, and Wen Ruxing was constrained by her family. Though she didn’t know the exact reason, it could still serve as her bargaining chip.
**
Shi Wei Yue meticulously planned her future, stepping out of the shower full of ambition, only to feel chills in the middle of the night. By the next morning, she had a fever.
Though she and Wen Ruxing lived in the same villa, they occupied separate rooms and kept to themselves. The next morning, as Shi Wei Yue dragged herself out of bed despite her illness, the cleaning lady mentioned that Wen Ruxing had already left for work.
The woman worked as a screenwriter and was currently in script negotiations, so she was often out. Once Shi Wei Yue learned of her whereabouts, she didn’t inquire further, taking a fever reducer before going back to sleep.
She didn’t wake until noon.
An Alpha’s physical resilience was extraordinary. In the past, Shi Wei Yue’s fevers usually took a full day to subside, but this time, she woke up feeling refreshed and in much better spirits.
As she debated whether to cook noodles or dumplings to fill her stomach, a system notification popped up:
[As the moody, domineering female antagonist, you sometimes put on a show for appearances. Please fulfill your role by gifting your wife something that stirs her emotions (0/1).]
Given that Shi Wei Yue and Wen Ruxing had nearly come to blows literally, the system expected resistance to such a task and tried to persuade her:
[If you complete the tasks diligently, once the plot concludes smoothly, we can grant you one wish.]
It braced for her furious refusal, but Shi Wei Yue merely paused, then broke into a smile, her beautiful face tinged with shyness.
“Oh, sure.”
Ignoring the system’s sickly sweet tone, she hummed a tune as she cooked herself a bowl of egg noodles in the kitchen, sprinkling chopped scallions on top. While letting it cool, she called her assistant.
“Arrange a meeting with Ye Jialan from Fuxing Entertainment for me.”
“Ye Jialan?”
At this point, the female lead was just a minor nobody in the entertainment industry, far from making a name for herself. The assistant had never even heard of her, but since it was the boss’s request, she didn’t dare ask questions. She simply noted down the requested time and place before politely ending the call.
As the young heiress of a wealthy family, the original owner had considerable assets, and her assistant was highly efficient. Just minutes after Shi Wei Yue sat down to eat her noodles, her assistant called.
That afternoon, Ye Jialan, dressed in a floral French-style dress, sat somewhat nervously in the private room of a café, accepting the business card Shi Wei Yue handed her.
At eighteen or nineteen, Ye Jialan was still in college, her delicate beauty befitting that of a female lead, just as innocent as described in the novel. After Shi Wei Yue briefly explained the situation, she immediately believed that Shi Wei Yue had snatched her wine glass that day to help her.
Shi Wei Yue’s explanation was that someone had tampered with the nightcap served at the hotel, and Ye Jialan, who had taken a sip, had indeed felt its effects. Grateful and remorseful, she looked at Shi Wei Yue with teary, doe-like eyes, her voice trembling slightly.
“President Shi, I really can’t thank you enough for that day.”
Shi Wei Yue quickly interrupted. With her refined features and light makeup, she looked just as gentle and unthreatening as the female lead. Facing the timid and shy Ye Jialan, she softened her tone, speaking kindly and considerately.
“No need to be so formal. You can call me Sister Wei Wei.”
Seeing Ye Jialan’s flustered reaction, Shi Wei Yue couldn’t help but recall the original plot, how the female lead would later vie for the male lead’s affection with Wen Ruxing. Like a cliché in early romance novels, the male lead would first be inexplicably drawn to the supporting female character before eventually realizing his feelings for the female lead.
Unlike herself, a wolf in sheep’s clothing or Wen Ruxing, who remained ruthless from start to finish, Ye Jialan was the quintessential naive and sweet female lead in the early stages. In other words, she was easy to manipulate.
Since Wen Ruxing would eventually compete with the female lead for the male lead’s affection, Shi Wei Yue decided to give this gullible heroine a helping hand.
She would ensure Wen Ruxing and the male lead never stood a chance.