After Becoming an Alpha, I Became a Charmer (GL) - Chapter 7

To Xia Zhiyu’s surprise, she didn’t see any further action from Ruan Wu for the rest of the day.

Ruan Wu usually worked until at least 7 p.m., but perhaps because she was tired from yesterday, she left on time today.

After Ruan Wu left, Xia Zhiyu tidied up the CEO’s office. In a corner of the coffee table, she found the empty takeout containers. Xia Zhiyu guessed that Ruan Wu had left them there for the cleaning lady to throw away in the morning, so she wouldn’t be seen.

But she found them anyway.

Xia Zhiyu smiled as she left the office. On her way out, she simply nodded at the people she passed, which surprised the employees who had been trying to avoid her.

After taking the subway back to her rental, the first thing Xia Zhiyu did was look for the IOU.

The original “Xia Zhiyu” was a little unlucky. In the three years she had been working, her six-figure salary had all gone to paying off debt. After graduating from college, “Xia Zhiyu,” an orphan, suddenly came into a large sum of money. A lawyer hired by a distant relative found her and asked if she wanted to inherit the relative’s estate.

The relative had no children and left behind a property worth 30 million yuan. After a long search, the lawyer found “Xia Zhiyu,” a distant relative with a trace of a blood connection, and flew all the way from S City to A City.

At the time, “Xia Zhiyu” had just graduated from college. She had no job prospects, no savings, and was living on a shoestring. Her dream was to find a partner who would take care of her. She had always wanted to work for a big company to find a high-class partner, and the highest-class partner in A City was, of course, the only daughter of the city’s richest man, Ruan Wu, the current head of the Ruan Group.

With an unrealistic hope, “Xia Zhiyu” submitted her resume to the Ruan Group. Just after passing the first round of interviews, she met Attorney Fang.

“Xia Zhiyu” was overjoyed. The property was worth 30 million yuan—a sum she might never earn in her lifetime.

However, during their meeting, Attorney Fang told her that to inherit the property, she also had to inherit the distant relative’s debt. The relative had exactly 27 million yuan in debt. After selling the property to pay off the debt, there would be 3 million yuan left. “Xia Zhiyu” nearly spit up blood.

But she quickly came to terms with it. Three million yuan was still a lot, so she urged Attorney Fang to complete the inheritance process.

The process of inheriting the property went smoothly. Attorney Fang completed his work and returned to S City. After receiving the property deed, “Xia Zhiyu” immediately hired a real estate agent in S City to sell the house. It was at this moment that she received a shocking piece of news: selling the inherited property would incur a 20% tax.

This meant that after selling the house to pay off the debt, she wouldn’t get the 3 million yuan; instead, she would be 3 million yuan in debt.

“Xia Zhiyu” was furious. Attorney Fang had never mentioned this to her. When she tried to contact him, she couldn’t reach him.

The 27 million yuan debt was due soon. “Xia Zhiyu” had no choice but to sell the house, tearfully taking on the 3 million yuan debt. Luckily, she passed the three rounds of interviews at the Ruan Group and successfully got the job. With an annual salary of 300,000 yuan, including interest, it would take her ten years to pay off the debt.

In the past three years, she couldn’t afford a house, so she rented. She couldn’t afford a car, so she took the subway. With the company’s meal subsidies, she never spent an extra cent, all so she could pay off her debt as soon as possible.

This was also why “Xia Zhiyu’s” desire to find a partner to pay off her debt became more urgent. But the more desperate she got, the more people looked down on her.

“Xia Zhiyu” rented a one-bedroom apartment in a non-remote area of a first-tier city. The rent was 3,000 yuan a month, or 36,000 yuan a year. Including clothes, makeup, and skincare products, even with her extreme frugality, she had only paid off 600,000 yuan plus interest in three years, leaving her with 2.4 million yuan in debt.

Xia Zhiyu found the IOU in a hidden compartment of the bedside table drawer. After confirming it was real, she put it back.

This was also why she hadn’t immediately resigned and distanced herself from Ruan Wu. She was new to this world and didn’t know the situation. She had no family or friends, so how could she give up such a high-paying job to find a new one?

Besides, there was another crucial reason. In this world, all the big companies were connected to the Alphas who coveted Ruan Wu. She couldn’t escape them no matter where she went. And if those Alphas found out she and Ruan Wu had a romantic night together, she would be mercilessly retaliated against.

From this perspective, staying with Ruan Wu was relatively safe, as long as she didn’t anger her.

This was the world of a novel, not a normal one. Xia Zhiyu didn’t want to gamble with her luck.

The most important thing right now was to pay off the debt. Maybe she had come to this world to pay off “Xia Zhiyu’s” debt, and once she was done, “Xia Zhiyu” would return.

Meanwhile, Ruan Wu, who had invited her friends over, was in the kitchen cooking.

Omegas generally didn’t have big appetites, so she hadn’t made much. As soon as she finished and plated the food, her friends arrived.

After welcoming them in, the outspoken Pang Jingyi asked, “It’s not our usual weekly get-together time. Why did you suddenly call us over? Did your parents force you to go on another blind date? I thought they had given up already.”

“No, it’s something else,” Ruan Wu said.

The four of them went straight to the dining table and sat down.

Jing Yan sniffed the food and exaggeratedly said, “This smells so good. I feel like I’m going to be so full tonight.”

Song Yourui sat next to Jing Yan and said, “You were the top student in our Omega school. Your cooking and needlework were the best. It’s been a long time since I’ve tasted your cooking. Whatever you have to say tonight must be a big deal.”

Pang Jingyi, Jing Yan, and Song Yourui were all friends Ruan Wu had met in Omega school. The four of them lived in the same dorm and were inseparable for almost ten years. When Ruan Wu expressed her disgust for Alphas, only her three friends understood her. Ruan Wu cherished their friendship, and even though the other three were now married, they still met up once a week to chat and share their lives.

In the past, Ruan Wu preferred to listen to them complain about their Alphas or Betas, but today it was her turn to talk.

Ruan Wu sat down across from the three of them. After looking at each of them in the eyes, she dropped a bombshell. “I slept with an Alpha last night, and she gave me a temporary mark.”

“What?!” Pang Jingyi immediately stood up. “Did someone set you up? Did you call the police? Aaaaah, which damn Alpha bullied you?”

Jing Yan quickly pulled the impulsive Pang Jingyi down. “Let Ruan Wu finish first.”

Song Yourui observed Ruan Wu’s expression and asked, “It seems like you don’t dislike that Alpha. Who is she? Do we know her?”

Ruan Wu’s mind conjured up Xia Zhiyu’s face. She frowned. “I wouldn’t say I dislike her, but I don’t really like her either.”

“So? Do we know her or not?” Pang Jingyi asked impatiently.

“You should have seen her before. She’s my secretary,” Ruan Wu said, lowering her gaze.

“Your secretary? Xia Zhiyu? I remember she’s quite good-looking. But isn’t she a Beta? Or did you get a new Alpha secretary?” Song Yourui was more analytical. “Since you’re willing to hire an Alpha as your secretary, it means you don’t dislike her. She must be a very special Alpha.”

Ruan Wu said, “No, I didn’t get a new secretary. I’m talking about Xia Zhiyu.”

“What happened?” Jing Yan was even more curious. “Did she, like in novels, love you so much that she got an illegal pheromone suppressant to pretend to be a Beta to be near you? Then her suppressant suddenly wore off last night, and you two… did that?”

“Jing Yan, there’s no such thing as a pheromone suppressant that can completely bypass a hospital checkup. To get into the Ruan Group, you have to have at least three physical exams. They can’t possibly get the gender wrong,” Song Yourui said helplessly. “Let’s not interrupt and just listen to Ruan Wu.”

“Okay, Ruan Wu, you tell us.”

Ruan Wu decided to tell the story from the beginning. She organized her thoughts and said, “I took Xia Zhiyu to a business dinner last night, and everything was normal. Someone offered me a toast. I was afraid of getting too drunk, so I had Xia Zhiyu drink the wine for me.”

“After the banquet, Xia Zhiyu and I went back to the hotel where the event was held to get something. As soon as we entered, Xia Zhiyu suddenly underwent a secondary differentiation. Her pheromones were so aggressive that they triggered my heat early…”

“And then? She attacked you?” Ruan Wu had stopped, and Pang Jingyi couldn’t help but urge her to continue.

“Ahem,” Ruan Wu blushed a little. “Actually, I had a pheromone suppressant on me, but I don’t know why I didn’t take it out. Xia Zhiyu had just become an Alpha and wasn’t used to it. If I had taken the suppressant and left, nothing would have happened last night. It was me… who hugged her, and pressed her nape down to bite my scent gland.”