After Becoming an Alpha, I Became a Charmer (GL) - Chapter 9

“Uh…” Xia Zhiyu stuttered when Ruan Wu asked her. “Something like that. I currently have some external debt.”

Xia Zhiyu decided to tell the truth. If the female lead caught her in a lie, she would definitely face severe consequences. Besides, the original “Xia Zhiyu” concealed her debt because she was afraid it would prevent her from finding a partner. Now, Xia Zhiyu was in this body, and she didn’t want a girlfriend, so she didn’t have that concern.

Hearing Xia Zhiyu’s answer, Ruan Wu’s misty dark eyes seemed to deepen even further. Xia Zhiyu grew uncomfortable under her gaze, and her heart rate sped up.

Just as Xia Zhiyu wondered if Ruan Wu was about to do something to her, Ruan Wu slowly said, “As it happens, I have an opportunity for you to earn some extra money. I wonder if Secretary Xia is interested.”

An opportunity from Ruan Wu?

Xia Zhiyu’s eyes brightened. “Of course, Ms. Ruan. I’m very interested.” An opportunity Ruan Wu brought up herself certainly wouldn’t be simple, and the pay would be significant.

“Mhm. Let’s start work now. We can talk at noon,” Ruan Wu said, then lowered her head to deal with her documents.

Xia Zhiyu: “…” It was so hard to figure out an Omega’s heart.

She showed interest, but Ruan Wu suddenly decided to be mysterious. Xia Zhiyu felt that in the future, she needed to be more reserved when talking to Ruan Wu so she wouldn’t be led on.

The busy morning ended, and it was finally lunch break.

“Ms. Ruan.”

Ruan Wu looked up and rubbed her temples. She glanced at the time, assuming Xia Zhiyu was eager to ask about the opportunity she mentioned earlier. Leaning back in her chair, Ruan Wu looked at Xia Zhiyu with a somewhat condescending air. “What is it?” Her heart beat a little faster, but she didn’t show it, acting as if she had completely forgotten what she had said.

Seeing this, Xia Zhiyu smiled slightly. “Ms. Ruan, if you don’t have any other work for me, I’m going to the company cafeteria now. I wanted to ask if you need me to bring you anything.”

Ruan Wu’s eyes narrowed slightly, and a flash of annoyance crossed her mind because Xia Zhiyu didn’t react as she expected. “No, I don’t eat lunch.”

“Okay, Ms. Ruan. I’ll be going now.”

Xia Zhiyu didn’t try to persuade her and left the CEO’s office.

Ruan Wu: “…” Why did Xia Zhiyu suddenly stop being so eager?

HR finally got Xia Zhiyu’s medical certificate today. When they updated her file in the morning, the entire department gathered to watch, marveling that Xia Zhiyu had undergone a secondary differentiation into an Alpha at the “old age” of twenty-six.

The HR staff spread the news through the WeChat group, and within one morning, almost the entire company knew about it.

OrangeOrange: No wonder that fish suddenly changed yesterday.

LemonHead: Does personality have anything to do with gender?

Wanderer: There’s some connection, but it definitely wouldn’t cause someone to completely transform overnight.

SisterZhang: We need to observe her at the cafeteria at noon. I bet a lot of people will approach her out of curiosity, and she might slip up if she gets too cocky.

Wanderer: Sister Zhang’s suggestion is good.

“Speaking of which, Alphas are the elite of the elite. No wonder Secretary Xia was able to beat out a crowd of competitors to become the CEO’s secretary.”

“Some people even guessed Secretary Xia had connections and used back channels. Now it seems our Ms. Ruan had a keen eye and spotted Secretary Xia’s potential.”

Xia Zhiyu suddenly heard people discussing her as she approached the elevator.

But the subject of the discussion wasn’t mockery or ridicule; it was praise. These clever people were praising Ruan Wu while complimenting her.

No, you’re all wrong, Xia Zhiyu thought. The original ‘Xia Zhiyu’ was hired not because she was better than an Alpha, but because she wasn’t an Alpha.

As Xia Zhiyu stood next to the elevator, everyone’s attention was immediately drawn to her. They stared at Xia Zhiyu curiously.

Xia Zhiyu nodded and smiled, said “Good afternoon,” and then fell silent.

For some reason, everyone became timid and didn’t feel comfortable starting a conversation.

The elevator doors opened. As people walked in, they deliberately kept a distance from Xia Zhiyu. Before, they avoided her because they disliked her; now, they were a little too shy to stand close.

A circle of empty space still formed around Xia Zhiyu.

When they reached the top floor, the elevator opened, and Xia Zhiyu walked out. The cafeteria fell silent for a few seconds. Everyone had been waiting for Xia Zhiyu, their eyes fixed on the elevator, so they spotted her the moment she appeared.

Xia Zhiyu was unfazed by the gaze of hundreds of people from all directions. She calmly nodded. Instead of going to the food counter, she walked to the self-service machine to top up her meal card.

One of the bolder employees pretended to stand in line behind her and stood on tiptoe to see how much money she loaded.

As soon as Xia Zhiyu entered the number, the peeking employee immediately covered their mouth in surprise and sneaked away, sitting down and frantically typing on their phone to share the gossip with their group chat.

CuteTurtle: Breaking news! That fish came to the cafeteria and charged fifteen hundred onto her meal card. That’s a huge expense.

The message startled everyone in the group chat.

Misty: Fifteen hundred? You didn’t misread that?

ForestFollower: You don’t mean one yuan and five jiao, do you?

SisterZhang: One yuan and five jiao is too low. One hundred and fifty is possible.

CuteTurtle: What one yuan and five jiao, one hundred and fifty? It’s fifteen hundred. I have my glasses on. I definitely didn’t misread it.

Wanderer: That fish went from one extreme to the other. No one in the company has ever charged that much money.

Misty: Can secondary differentiation make a poor person rich? I’m crying. I want to differentiate, too.

SisterZhang: You’re an Omega. Why would you differentiate? Stop dreaming.

Misty: Waaah.

ForestFollower: Speaking of which, that fish isn’t gross anymore and is acting really generous. If she’s not faking it, she’d actually be a great marriage prospect. The single people in our group should consider her.

LemonHead: I don’t believe someone can change that quickly. It’s safer to keep observing for a while.

Wanderer: Everyone keep watching.

With the entire company as their eyes and ears, they were confident they would find a flaw in Xia Zhiyu’s performance.

Xia Zhiyu loaded the entire 1,500 yuan Ruan Wu gave her onto her meal card. After eating her lunch, she went to a different counter to buy a few dishes for Ruan Wu.

Xia Zhiyu chose a different counter this time. She wasn’t a masochist; she wasn’t going to go back to the same cafeteria lady just to get an eye roll.

On her way back, a few employees got into the elevator with her.

They were bolder this time. Looking at the food in Xia Zhiyu’s hands, they curiously asked, “Secretary Xia, didn’t you already eat? Who is that food for?”

Xia Zhiyu said, “Ms. Ruan is still busy working. She asked me to bring it to her.”

“Oh, so it’s for Ms. Ruan.”

The junior employees exchanged subtle glances, feeling like they understood something now.

When the elevator reached their floor, Xia Zhiyu stepped out, and the employees immediately pulled out their phones.

SilentWatcher: I have a reasonable suspicion that the money that fish loaded was given to her by her sugar mommy!

When Xia Zhiyu returned to the office, Ruan Wu deliberately didn’t look up when she heard her footsteps. She was on her phone, messaging Song Yourui.

RuanWu: I don’t want to develop any kind of relationship with her.

SongYourui: Then that’s fine. She needs money badly, right? This is an opportunity. It’s okay if you bring it up first, but you need to make her role as a tool crystal clear. Don’t give her a chance to cling to you. It’s best to sign a contract.

RuanWu: I understand.

Ruan Wu looked up only after sending the message. The first thing she saw was Xia Zhiyu’s slightly mischievous smiling face and the takeout food she held in front of her.

From the outside, the food looked much more elaborate than yesterday’s.

This caused the words Ruan Wu had planned to say to get completely stuck.

“You…”

Xia Zhiyu held up the food. “Ms. Ruan, I’ll put the food on the coffee table for you. Regarding the opportunity you mentioned this morning, would you mind discussing it while you eat?”

“…Fine.”

The two sat down across from each other on the sofa. Xia Zhiyu opened the packaging for Ruan Wu, pushed the food toward her, and personally handed her the chopsticks.

Ruan Wu had recovered her composure. She took the chopsticks, gave Xia Zhiyu an unreadable look, and received a bright smile in return.

Ruan Wu said, “My body has had some issues. The temporary mark from the day before yesterday eliminated those problems, so I would like to purchase your pheromones.”

Ruan Wu was being too vague. Xia Zhiyu didn’t understand and asked in confusion, “What do you mean by ‘purchasing pheromones’? Ms. Ruan, do you want to extract my pheromones?”

Ruan Wu had to be explicit. “No. It means giving me temporary marks, just like the night before yesterday. I have germaphobia, so while you are giving me temporary marks, you cannot have any intimate contact with anyone else. I will put this in a written contract. If you can accept this, I will pay you 10,000 yuan for each temporary mark.”

Ruan Wu finally finished speaking, but when she looked up, she saw Xia Zhiyu spacing out. “Xia Zhiyu, what are you thinking about?” Ruan Wu asked, displeased.

Xia Zhiyu snapped back to reality, her cheeks slightly flushed. “Ms. Ruan, I was thinking about whether I should accept.” After all, “just like the night before yesterday” means doing the full set.