After Being Marked by the Popular Female Lead O (GL) - Chapter 20

Deng Yue still couldn’t grasp Zhou Que’s true intentions. Compared to the Bai family, he was more worried about Zhou Que’s body; he wasn’t sure if she could hold out until tomorrow.

Unless she was willing to let her pheromones fall into total disorder.

But Zhou Que was unwilling to talk, and Deng Yue had no other way to investigate. Inadvertently, a photo was pushed to his feed—it was of Xie Qingshu and Zhou Que.

The traces of it being a forced composite were all too obvious.

[Why is this topic trending again? I already said stop forcing the CP!]

[The two of them are actually a great match. I’ve officially switched sides; it’s so good!]

[Putting everything else aside, I am genuinely drooling over these visuals.]

[Ahhh, did everyone see the one where Xie Qingshu shields Zhou Que? There used to be more, but they’ve been deleted until almost nothing is left.]

Deng Yue’s finger paused. A trace of suspicion arose, only to be dismissed the next second.

Xie Qingshu and Zhou Que? If Zhou Que could accept anyone getting close, it would be Xie Qingshu. He felt a bit of disappointment in his eyes—if only Xie Qingshu were an Omega.

Although he didn’t discriminate against AA relationships, given Zhou Que’s current physical condition, finding an Omega was safer and more appropriate. He also hoped Zhou Que could forget some things.

Though he felt the possibility was negligible, Deng Yue couldn’t help but feel a bit anxious.

The Bai Family Residence.

The entire house was brightly lit. Every face carried a weight of gravity; the atmosphere was so tense it almost felt like blocks of ice were falling. Since the Bai family rose to power, they had never faced such a scandal. While there were surely many dirty secrets in the shadows, they at least hadn’t been aired on a public stage.

Now their reputation was in ruins. Everyone knew the Bai family had an unacknowledged illegitimate daughter.

Bai Siran was terrified of her grandfather. Her legs were literally trembling. “Grandfather, please rest assured, I will do my best to suppress the news of the plagiarism. It will absolutely not have any lasting impact on the Bai family.”

However, her career was essentially over. Thinking of this, she gritted her teeth in hatred.

Sitting in the redwood chair at the head of the study, Old Man Bai’s face was flat, making it impossible to read his joy or anger. His overwhelming aura was impossible to ignore. He slowly picked up his tea for a sip. “Plagiarism is just plagiarism. What I want to know is why your relationship was exposed in public.”

He only had one expectation for this Omega: don’t cause trouble. Yet, the most unexpected thing had happened.

“Dad, aren’t you being a bit harsh? Siran is your granddaughter too, you can’t talk like that,” Zhong Shang couldn’t help but interject, but a glare from Old Man Bai made her voice trail off. She took a deep breath. “Chengming has been recovering in the hospital since his accident. It’s fine that you won’t let Ting’er enter the board of directors, but why are you still…”

Zhong Shang snapped back to her senses, realizing she had misspoken. “Sorry, Dad. I was just too impulsive.”

Old Man Bai flicked his eyelids. “Accident? Why would there be an ‘accident’?”

To the outside world, Bai Chengming was said to be recuperating due to poor health, but in reality, it was a pheromone riot. If this got out, it would be a devastating blow to the Bai family.

Zhong Shang dared not speak further and shrank to the side.

“In the future, you are not allowed to initiate provocations against Zhou Que,” Old Man Bai commanded, his gaze sweeping across the room. His tone was so direct that no one dared to question him.

Bai Siran lowered her head, unwilling but forced to accept.

A commotion was heard outside. Auntie Su, who had worked for the Bai family for nearly fifteen years, saw the person approaching and immediately broke into a kind smile.

“Xiao Que is back?”

She loved this child from the bottom of her heart. Life in this house was too bitter. If it weren’t for Bai Siran, she would have shown it more clearly, but she could only watch helplessly, fearing the girl would end up like her mother.

Zhou Que smiled; she was flawless in her social graces. “Just back for a visit. I have to go back to film in a bit.”

“Good, good.” Auntie Su nodded repeatedly. She was happy to see the girl escape the Bai house. Although not obvious, she felt a change in Zhou Que this time—she seemed more… emotional. “Tell Auntie, are you dating an Alpha?”

Zhou Que was stunned. She wanted to deny it, but a voice suddenly echoed in her mind. She raised an eyebrow. “I suppose so.”

Auntie Su’s face instantly lit up with joy.

By the time Zhou Que went upstairs, Bai Siran and Zhong Shang were leaving, casting only disdainful glances her way.

“You’re here?”

Zhou Que gave a hum of affirmation, her demeanor turning somber. “Grandfather.”

Old Man Bai’s gaze was piercing, as if he could see through a person’s heart. “Zhou Que, you have quite a bit of skill. I underestimated you.”

“Grandfather, don’t tease me. How could I have such skill?” Zhou Que’s expression didn’t look faked; her tone even sounded surprised by the turn of events.

Old Man Bai snorted, though it was unclear if he believed her. He changed the subject. “Your father is in the hospital. Find time to visit him. After your seductive mother died, he’s still technically your kin.”

Zhou Que’s smile stiffened for a split second before she recovered, nodding in agreement.

She was as obedient as an exquisite doll.

Old Man Bai lost interest and waved his hand, dismissing her.

Only Zhou Que knew how much effort it took to keep her steps steady until she was completely out of Old Man Bai’s sight. She later realized she had pinched her fingers red from tension.

Inside, Old Man Bai sighed. He actually couldn’t figure her out. If Zhou Que wasn’t involved, it made no sense; but if it really was her, then she was far more dangerous than she appeared.

As steam rose from his teacup, a trace of disappointment appeared in the old man’s eyes. Whatever the truth was, it was a shame she was of illegitimate birth—and more importantly, that she was an Omega.

Zhou Que’s mother was regarded by the Bai family as a social climber who deliberately seduced her way into a pregnancy. She was given money to go away, but she found it insufficient and tried to sue the Bai family. Her real goal was to enter the household, but her plans fell through.

Zhou Que had heard such comments until she was numb. Since she started living here, she had never been far from these overt and covert insults.

She had thought about arguing, but it only brought intensified abuse. Gradually, she chose to stay silent. She, however, knew a different version.

An Omega forcibly marked by a high-ranking Alpha during his rut, stripped of all rights.

Zhou Que left without looking back.

The Bai family reacted quickly. The PR teams they kept managed to minimize the impact of the scandal as much as possible, while also being forced to officially acknowledge Zhou Que’s identity.

It was a total bombshell. Countless voices emerged in debate, but one thing was certain: Zhou Que didn’t have a shadowy “sugar daddy” as a background—her background was the Bai family itself.

This resulted in a massive surge of new fans.

Xie Qingshu used her alternate account to constantly shoot down anti-fans. During this time, she had become quite skilled. When facing doubts, she could even shout things like “Sister is too beautiful!” or “Fly high, Sister, we’ve got your back!”

She had successfully infiltrated the inner circle. Had she not turned down the offers, she might have become a major fan leader. At least now, if anyone clicked on her profile, they wouldn’t doubt her authenticity.

[Heh, she just has a pretty face. Who knows how many people have marked her.]

Xie Qingshu sneered, her fingers flying across the screen. Just as she sent her retort, she suddenly realized that she truly had never seen Zhou Que go through a heat. She rarely even saw her use an inhibitor; usually, she just wore a barrier patch to cover her scent gland.

Xie Qingshu later searched online and found that those were only used to block pheromones, not to suppress a heat.

While she was lost in thought, the scent of blue water lily wafted from behind. Her body instinctively took a breath.

“Sister, what are you looking at? The conversation seems so passionate.”

Xie Qingshu’s screen was still on a “Sister, your future is bright” page. She reacted violently, slapping the phone face down. She said expressionlessly, “Nothing. Nothing at all.”

A slight darkness—almost a hint of red—flickered in Zhou Que’s dark eyes. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw what looked like a chat interface with at least five or six messages. For someone like Xie Qingshu, this was practically inconceivable. An indescribable emotion surged in Zhou Que’s heart.

Was it Zhong Shan on the other end? Or some other “lovable and sweet” Omega?

Zhou Que momentarily felt as if she had shot herself in the foot.

Xie Qingshu was desperate to hide it. The more nervous she was, the colder she looked. A flash of inspiration struck her: “An Omega. It’s an Omega.”

Just get through this.

Xie Qingshu saw Zhou Que smile, though there was something else hidden in those phoenix eyes.

“Let’s stop chatting, Sister. Let’s look at the script.”

Xie Qingshu let out a sigh of relief, completely unaware that her behavior had been fully observed by Zhou Que, who subsequently licked her lips.

The exhibition had been quite fruitful. After returning, Xie Qingshu noticed that Zhou Que no longer avoided her as before. They had returned to the state they were in when they first started collaborating, but with something extra—a sense of appropriate distance that was intimate without being uncomfortable.

Xie Qingshu attributed everything to her standing up for Zhou Que, and her gaze toward the other girl became even more pitying.

This is nothing; the kid is too easy to coax. Who knows who will end up tricking her in the future.

Xie Qingshu temporarily treated the incident on the rooftop as a moment of impulsiveness caused by Zhou Que drinking too much—everyone has those moments.

As for the aftermath of the exhibition, it went exactly as Xie Qingshu expected. The Bai family, who had once rejected Zhou Que in the original book, were now desperate to acknowledge her.

Zhou Que, however, remained silent, her attitude a mystery.

This made Xie Qingshu even more curious about the “Z” behind the scenes. Stripping everything else away, it appeared Zhou Que was being bullied, but in reality, she was the biggest winner, biting off the toughest bone without spending a single cent of effort.

“Sister, you’re spacing out again,” Zhou Que suddenly spoke, breaking Xie Qingshu’s train of thought.

Are you thinking about that Omega again?