After Being Marked by the Popular Female Lead O (GL) - Chapter 3

The sensation on her scent gland lingered. To be treated this way was intolerable, even for a person of Xie Qingshu’s self-control.

“You!”

Xie Qingshu gritted her teeth, her beautiful eyes reflecting anger, which quickly transformed into surprise.

This was the protagonist O—Zhou Que.

The original text didn’t give many specific details about her: a rising young star whose looks captivated countless Alphas. She came from a humble background, but Xie Qingshu knew she was the illegitimate daughter of the Bai family who had been living outside and had a difficult life before entering the entertainment circle.

Zhou Que’s features were bright. The upturned corners of her eyes, laced with tears, made her look delicate and alluring. This beauty was fully exposed in the strong light. Her red lips were slightly parted, making it impossible to imagine that such lips had enveloped her scent gland.

A head of curly hair was restlessly draped across her back, with some strands caught on the buttons of Xie Qingshu’s shirt.

“You’ve hooked my hair.”

Even without her saying it, Xie Qingshu had noticed the issue while struggling. Her gaze was complex as she reached out to untangle her hair, showing no emotion on the surface, but a raging storm inside.

Xie Qingshu in her previous life, due to the plot, often opposed Zhou Que, suppressing her resources and running humiliating press releases. Coupled with her relationship with Mo Xun, she couldn’t stand the sight of Zhou Que. Later, when she was oppressed by the several scum Alphas who liked Zhou Que, and the Xie family was destroyed, she didn’t have time to hate Zhou Que, let alone take her seriously.

However, everything was back to the beginning now. Putting all that aside, Zhou Que indeed possessed an overwhelmingly beautiful face.

Xie Qingshu lost herself for a second, then suddenly remembered that the current plot should be progressing to where the protagonist Omega was drugged with a powerful aphrodisiac by one of the scum Alpha’s subordinates and encountered the main male lead while hiding.

What a coincidence. She… had taken the place of the main male lead’s scene.

No, she had to set the plot straight.

Freed from restraint, Xie Qingshu didn’t have time to ponder how Zhou Que had easily restrained her. She lifted her leg to leave, but her wrist was caught. The grip wasn’t strong; a gentle tug would allow her to leave.

“Sister, can you please help me…?”

The voice was as light as the force of the retention, airy and faint.

Xie Qingshu’s innate refinement told her that leaving an Omega in such a situation would lead to unimaginable consequences. However, the darker side of her thought warned that if she didn’t leave, the cost would be equally unimaginable.

The two were locked in a stalemate, stuck in between.

Zhou Que’s ink-like eyes gradually darkened from their bright shine. She actively released her hand. “You… leave if you must.”

She gave a self-mocking smile. “Anyway, I can’t deal with these people, and it wouldn’t be good to drag you down, Sister.”

“Drip—”

The sound of the residual water dripping from the faucet into the basin echoed in the air, swirling back and forth, lingering.

Xie Qingshu’s inner discipline won out. Naturally, she didn’t take the ‘Master Bai’ the men spoke of seriously; the so-called main male lead was just another piece of trash.

None of the Alphas around Zhou Que in the original book were good people. Even the main male lead, upon seeing Zhou Que speaking with another Alpha, had the thought of removing the Omega’s scent gland, wanting to keep her forever.

“Fine, come with me,” Xie Qingshu turned her face away. She really couldn’t bring herself to just let it go. She admitted defeat.

Upon second thought, the chances of the two meeting were slim, this was the only time, and it shouldn’t mess things up too badly.

Where Xie Qingshu couldn’t see, a strange light flashed in Zhou Que’s pupils. Her teeth felt incredibly itchy, and her fingers touched her lips, which seemed to still carry the warmth of Xie Qingshu’s scent gland.

She had been drugged, but nowhere near the point of losing all reason.

She had recognized Xie Qingshu the moment she walked in.

The cold and aloof Xie Qingshu, who had always given her a bad attitude.

Zhou Que ground her teeth, suppressing her nature. She hadn’t wanted to use this method to escape, but when she thought of Xie Qingshu and clearly saw a trace of surprise and disgust in her pupils, she gave in.

Under the influence of the drug, she indulged her instinctual reaction. However, the biggest gain this time was probably finding out that Xie Qingshu’s pheromones were actually… milk candy flavored.

Even Xie Qingshu herself probably didn’t know how sweet that scent was.

How could an Alpha be so sweet?

Zhou Que wondered doubtfully, but the coldness in her eyes was bottomless, only revealing a hint of amusement if one looked closely.

It wasn’t amusement directed at a person, but rather the discovery of something fun.

Xie Qingshu’s peripheral vision involuntarily glanced at Zhou Que. She appeared obedient and well-behaved, yet Xie Qingshu felt an inexplicable sense of annoyance, a feeling that things were slipping out of her control.

“Hurry up. Are you waiting to be found?!”

“…Okay,” Zhou Que lowered her eyes. Even with the milk candy scent, Xie Qingshu was still Xie Qingshu.

Hotel.

Xie Qingshu couldn’t take Zhou Que back to the Xie family, so she had to find a room nearby. Of course, she didn’t forget to put on sunglasses and a mask, wrapping herself up so no one would recognize her.

If the media caught anything at this critical juncture, as long as the headline was sensational enough, she and Zhou Que would be essentially bound together. This would only be troublesome for Xie Qingshu, who wanted to quickly return to her original track.

“Here we are. It should be safe here,” Xie Qingshu said.

Zhou Que was much more obedient than she had expected, possibly due to the drug. She looked listless, but even so, she was breathtakingly beautiful.

Having been in the entertainment circle for many years, Xie Qingshu had to admit that Zhou Que was indeed handsome, exquisitely alluring.

Calling her the dream lover of all Alphas was not wrong.

“Do you want an inhibitor? I’ll buy you one.”

Xie Qingshu turned to ask. She wasn’t sure about the drug’s effect and was afraid something might happen if she left her alone.

The language in the original book was overly dramatic, and Xie Qingshu mostly skimmed it, only remembering the key points. She stopped reading after the Xie family’s downfall, let alone the later plot. It was probably just about which new person the protagonist Omega was loved by, and she didn’t care about the future direction, as long as it didn’t involve her.

Zhou Que shook her head, her voice containing a subtle plea. “Sister, could you stay with me for a little while?”

After saying that, as if afraid of rejection, she hastily added, “If you’re busy, you don’t have to stay. I’m much better now…”

The same trick wouldn’t work a second time.

Yet, Xie Qingshu couldn’t see through it. Cold and aloof as she was, no one had ever tried to scheme against her. Her gaze rested on the protagonist O’s dark eyes. “Just for a little while.”

She’d see the Buddha all the way to the west.

The corner of Zhou Que’s lips curved into a slight arc, as if a scheme had succeeded.

Xie Qingshu forgot to contain her pheromones. The scent of milk candy was exactly like the flavor she couldn’t reach on the shelf as a child and could only imagine. It was identical.

She wanted her to stay a little longer.