A Scummy Divorcee Alpha: Ex-Wife’s Top-Tier Soothing Agent - Chapter 10

The fire at the hotel had started under suspicious circumstances. It first spread from an empty room and quickly spiraled out of control. Later, someone discovered that smoke bombs had been intentionally placed in the hallways.

While many weren’t injured by the flames, the panic during the evacuation led to several crowding accidents. Consequently, the emergency center at the City Central Hospital was exceptionally busy tonight.

Chai Tingyan rushed into the hospital. Seeing a temporary cot in the hallway covered with a white sheet, her imagination immediately conjured a tragic scene, and her legs went weak with fear.

“Waaaaah… I only lost sight of you for a moment, how could you…”

The person on the bed suddenly sat bolt upright. The white sheet slid down, revealing a face as pale as a plastered wall.

Chai Tingyan nearly lost her soul on the spot: “AAAAAGH!!!”

Du Wan, her arm wrapped in gauze, spoke gloomily: “I’m not dead yet.”

After hearing the tale of Du Wan’s “heroic deed,” Chai Tingyan calmed her hammering heart. Suddenly remembering something, she pulled a pair of sunglasses out of her bag: “Quick, put these on.”

Du Wan leaned back to avoid them. “Is that really necessary?”

An eighteenth-tier artist with a tiny fan base but a huge ego.

“There are too many eyes here. Just in case,” the assistant insisted firmly as she forced the glasses onto Du Wan. “You must always remember you’re an actress. Stop grinning!” She then gave a shy, pursed-lip smile. “I’ve learned a lot from Sister Jiang Ni recently. How was my performance just now?”

Learning the bad habits instead of the good ones.

“Not bad.” Du Wan pushed up the sunglasses.

“Oh, by the way, how do you know Zuo Yijia?” Chai Tingyan had recognized Secretary Liang’s people immediately. She’d been curious all night, unable to figure out their connection. “Zuo Yijia of the Zuo Group. The mermaid.”

Du Wan didn’t notice the familiar tone Tingyan used when mentioning the mermaid. She had almost forgotten about that detail, but her excuse was ready: “A chance encounter. We met at a gala.”

Chai Tingyan was instantly relieved. “I heard she prefers Alphas with faint pheromone scents. I thought for a second she’d taken a liking to you.”

Du Wan squawked, “How is that possible!”

She’s more likely to take a liking to murdering me!

So Zuo Yijia has that preference? No wonder she picked the original Scummy Alpha.

Du Wan continued, “She could never be into me. We’re from completely different worlds.”

At this, Chai Tingyan—the former fan turned assistant—became unhappy. She began counting on her fingers: “You aren’t so bad yourself. You’re beautiful, you can act, you’re open-minded and cheerful, carefree…”

Du Wan: “…”

Stop, stop. The original host is going to laugh herself back to life in her grave.

Zuo Yijia walked out of the treatment room.

She didn’t take the doctor’s warnings to heart. This incident required cleanup, and a mountain of work was waiting. She couldn’t just take a leave of absence because of unstable pheromone levels.

“Organize all the evidence. Show no mercy…”

Zuo Yijia looked up, and her brisk footsteps faltered.

Secretary Liang: “President Zuo?”

He followed his boss’s gaze. Du Wan was chatting and laughing with that young assistant. He cautiously tried to gauge his boss’s thoughts and asked tentatively, “President Zuo, shall I go greet Miss Du?”

Zuo Yijia squeezed out a soft “Mm” from her throat, her expression flat and seemingly indifferent.

While Chai Tingyan was still comforting Du Wan, Secretary Liang walked over and stopped in front of them.

“Miss Du, will you be heading back on your own, or coming with us?”

Chai Tingyan: “???”

Tingyan looked as if she had just heard the gossip of the century, her eyes darting back and forth between Du Wan and Secretary Liang. Once they were gone, she couldn’t help but whisper, “What’s going on? I thought you guys weren’t close!?”

Du Wan remained calm, showing no embarrassment despite her lie being exposed. She sighed and said, “It’s exactly what you’re thinking. I’m being forced.”

Chai Tingyan: “!!!”

Du Wan grabbed her hand and pleaded: “You must keep this a secret for me.”

So the ‘Golden Thigh’ is Zuo Yijia!

Chai Tingyan had swallowed a massive piece of gossip and was struggling to digest it. She nodded in a daze.

In the distance, Zuo Yijia took in the whole scene. As Du Wan walked over, Zuo Yijia let out a cold sneer and shot her a glance: “Back to ruining people’s lives again, I see.”

Her phoenix eyes tilted up slightly at the corners, lashes low. Her sapphire pupils, appearing like frozen ice crystals, held a distant, untouchable quality. Her full, crimson lips were slightly pursed; the slight plumpness of her philtrum softened the coldness in her eyes, making the accusation sound almost like a sulk.

She was truly a sight to behold.

Du Wan frequently fell into these beauty traps. She offered a forced laugh. “Boss Zuo, I’m a respectable person.”

Zuo Yijia didn’t look back, heading straight for the lead car. Du Wan tried to follow but was blocked.

Bodyguard: “The Miss says she doesn’t want to see you.”

It’s fine. I’m flexible.

Du Wan hid most of her face inside her coat, her muffled voice coming from underneath: “Is this okay now?”

“…” The bodyguard gave a thumbs up in admiration and pointed behind him. “The Miss wants you to ride in the other car.”

One lie requires a hundred more to cover it.

Du Wan hadn’t expected her casual nonsense to be taken so seriously. Jiang Ni notified her that she’d be signing a performance contract in a few days. She asked about Du Wan’s alcohol tolerance, told her to prepare a few “special talents,” and insisted she dress fashionably to “stun the crowd.”

It didn’t sound like acting; it sounded like she was being sent to a hostess gig.

While Du Wan was nursing this headache, Assistant Chai burst in with a “Superstar Plan” that jolted her awake from her air-conditioned slumber.

Lead a drama in six months. Win ‘Best Actress’ in a year. Step onto the international stage in three years.

Even “pulling sprouts to help them grow” isn’t this aggressive.

“And is this even part of an assistant’s job?” Du Wan was aghast. “Did you discuss this with Sister Jiang Ni?”

“What is there to discuss? Of course she’ll agree,” Chai Tingyan said dismissively. “Du Wan, I will definitely help you work hard, make money, and get away from that mermaid! I’ll rescue you from this sea of bitterness!”

If the sea of bitterness pays 200,000 a month, it tastes like sweet soup to me.

Du Wan wanted to argue that aside from the fish being a bit grumpy, the job was actually quite good.

Chai Tingyan didn’t give her a chance to speak: “By the way, I’ve added extra acting classes for you. Once you finish, you’ll be a rising star in the entertainment industry…”

“Wait a minute. You’ve played too many idol-training games. This ‘career plan’ is just a pipe dream!” Du Wan called for a timeout, pointing at herself. “Look at me—”

Du Wan stood with her hands in her pockets, turned to the side, pulled a hand out, turned the other way, then turned her back and threw a ridiculously over-the-top, coquettish wink.

Du Wan was indeed well-proportioned and attractive, but such traits were a dime a dozen in the industry. She was better than some but worse than many; an overnight explosion wasn’t realistic. Being able to get any work at all was a blessing. If she weren’t “borrowing the tiger’s prestige” from Zuo Yijia, she’d still be at home kicking her heels waiting for a call.

Assistant Chai massaged her forehead but quickly rallied: “Never mind that! The most important thing now is to improve your acting. I’ve prepared a secret weapon for you!” She winked at Du Wan.

“…” Du Wan had an intuition that it wasn’t anything good.

When she brought the waist-high cardboard box home and opened it, she realized she had still underestimated Chai Tingyan’s imagination.

[Assistant Chai: With this, you can practice your scenes at home! ~]

She was speechless for a moment, then began pulling the various limbs of a mannequin out of the box to assemble them.

Slap!

Slap-slap!

A man was incessantly slapping his own face. Each strike left a red, swollen mark. His facial muscles twitched uncontrollably as he begged for mercy.

“President Zuo, I was wrong…”

Zuo Yijia sat in a rattan chair, resting her eyes. There were faint dark circles under her lower lids. She was still in her black trench coat, though the jade hairpin had been replaced with a metal one that gave off a cold, hard glint.

“I’m not here to listen to your nonsense.” She crunched on a sea-salt candy, her jawline tensed into a merciless arc. She raised a hand.

Secretary Liang placed a stack of papers on the table and said slowly, “Mr. Shen, we suggest you turn yourself in.”

Man: “I can’t…”

With a loud crack, Zuo Yijia bit through the candy. She loosened her necktie, stood up, and kicked the man over.

The sky was dimming, a sliver of blue smoldering like the edge of a flame. Zuo Yijia walked out and asked the secretary beside her, “Is Du Wan’s file updated?”

Secretary Liang respectfully presented the report.

Zuo Yijia compared two reports but saw no anomalies. She pinched the bridge of her nose and asked, “Is it possible the equipment made a mistake?”

“You mean,” Secretary Liang spoke carefully, “that Miss Du’s drastic change in personality might have a hidden reason… or perhaps her identity was swapped?”

Zuo Yijia closed the report irritably.

No matter how many lifetimes passed, she would never forget the filth and secrets hidden under Du Wan’s glamorous skin. Her feud with Du Wan was irreconcilable.

Zuo Yijia took the car back to the Zuo residence. As she got out, she instinctively looked up. The light was on in Du Wan’s window, and the curtains showed the blurry silhouettes of two figures.

It was as if a string snapped in Zuo Yijia’s mind. She ripped off her necktie, threw it in the car, and marched upstairs in a fury. Her stiletto heels made sharp clack-clack sounds on the floor.

Du Wan was almost finished with the assembly. She had one hand on the mannequin’s shoulder and was bent over, rear in the air, trying to attach the elbow joint.

The door was suddenly kicked open. She looked back.

Zuo Yijia’s pupils constricted in disbelief. She stood there, stunned.

“Boss Zuo, you’re off work.” Du Wan flashed her professional fake smile and waved at her while holding a severed mannequin arm.

Zuo Yijia’s face was like a thundercloud. She closed the door, then opened it again.

Du Wan’s eyes moved back and forth, watching in confusion as the other woman swung the door open and shut.

Du Wan: “What’s wrong?”

Zuo Yijia’s tensed nerves relaxed, only then realizing what a foolish thing she’d just done. She stood there dazed, a flush slowly rising to her cheeks, her eyes shimmering with moisture.

At this critical moment, Du Wan’s professional sensitivity kicked in. A warning blared in her mind, and she had a realization—the mermaid was about to have an episode.

High status, thin-skinned, doesn’t want to show weakness first.

Anyone who’s survived the corporate world has some ability to read the room. I get it.

Thinking it was her turn to perform, Du Wan gave Zuo Yijia a “don’t worry” look and began unbuttoning her shirt, quickly revealing her slender neck. She was already familiar with the “treatment” process. In a casual tone, she asked: “Your room, or mine?”

Zuo Yijia: “…”

Zuo Yijia found herself unable to defend herself.