After I Picked Up the Movie Queen Who Was Pretending to Be an Alpha - Chapter 1

1:00 AM, the 13th floor of the Qijiang Hotel.

The entire floor, including the banquet hall upstairs, had been booked by the production crew of the web drama The CEO Alpha’s Little Sweet Wife Runs Away with His Baby. They were currently filming the only major climax of the series.

In the scene, the CEO Alpha and the heroine Omega attend a cocktail party. The Omega is drugged and, in a moment of desperation, finds the CEO. After a night of passion, the CEO discovers that this Omega is actually the sweetheart he lost years ago.

The party scenes were finished; all that remained was the scene where the two recognize each other in a hotel room. By this point, the heroine is no longer the delicate little girl of the past. She now works for the CEO’s rival, and the drugging was actually a scheme by the rival to take advantage of her.

After the leads recognize each other, the rival is supposed to barge into the room and threaten to expose a video of their encounter to force the heroine to be with her. This rival is a sinister and cunning female Alpha.

However, the “recognition scene” was dragging on. Pei Suyuan, who played the female Alpha antagonist, had finished her party scenes long ago and was stuck waiting outside.

At this moment, her eyes were misty with exhaustion, and she had yawned seven or eight times. In this low-budget web drama, her character—the second female lead—was the biggest villain of the show, having the most screen time after the leads. Yet, the character felt like mere cannon fodder. Her only purpose was to drive the leads together and then be exposed, dying in a car crash while fleeing justice to serve as a sacrificial offering for their love.

Pei Suyuan had memorized the script long ago. She could even recite the CEO’s nauseatingly cheesy line better than the male lead: “Sui Sui, for all these years, you are the only one who has lived in my heart. No one else.”

But the rookie actor, Qin Dong—who had been pushed into the role by an investor—simply couldn’t get it right. He was either expressionless or stumbling over his lines. It was a total mess.

Pei Suyuan didn’t know how much longer she’d have to wait. Having only one scene in an entire day wasn’t common, but when it happened, it was agonizing. But for the sake of making a living, she had to endure.

Another half-hour passed. Pei Suyuan’s sleepiness had faded. The male lead’s lines were finally getting smoother, but now the female lead couldn’t manage to cry. Bored, Pei Suyuan found her attention drifting to the gossip between Qin Dong’s assistant and a crew member.

“Did you know? The crew of The New Path is holding their wrap party right upstairs!” the staff member said excitedly.

Qin Dong’s assistant was equally energized, her voice high: “Really? The New Path is wrapping up here?”

Qijiang Hotel was close to the film studio and owned by the same company. Besides regular guests, it was mostly rented out to film crews. Pei Suyuan listened in, figuring that since The New Path was filming nearby, it made sense to hold the celebration here.

“That means…” Qin Dong’s assistant, a young Beta girl with a bob cut, grabbed the staff member’s hand with sparkling eyes. “That means Wei Jinzhi is right above me! I’m right under her!!”

Pei Suyuan wasn’t sure if the assistant meant that to sound so suggestive. It sounded… inappropriate. However, the staff member didn’t seem to care; in fact, she felt the same way. She shook off the assistant’s hand and said wistfully, “No way, I’m the one under Jinzhi! Ahhh!”

The staff member, a female Omega, actually blushed. She whispered to the assistant, “An Alpha as cool and dreamy as Jinzhi has to be with an Omega!”

This comment clearly annoyed the Beta assistant. Pei Suyuan had been with this crew for over a month and knew these two usually got along well. Pei Suyuan wasn’t much of a talker, but she loved listening to gossip—listening without participating. Their daily bickering was her main source of entertainment, but this was the first time they had actually fought. And it was over Wei Jinzhi.

Pei Suyuan chuckled to herself, secretly admitting that Wei Jinzhi’s charm was indeed immense.

In terms of achievement, Wei Jinzhi had won the Tianchi Award for Best Actress with her debut. Now, nearing thirty after ten years in the industry, she had swept numerous domestic and international awards. She was a powerhouse actress.

In terms of looks, her features weren’t as sharp as a typical female Alpha’s. She had “peach blossom eyes” that looked shimmering and misty, giving her an incredibly soulful gaze. Paired with her well-defined brows, the effect was striking. There were plenty of “cool” female Alphas in the industry, but few had that unique blend of Wei Jinzhi’s—a hint more “allure” than an Alpha, and a bit less “softness” than an Omega.

The only thing people could criticize was her height. The average height for a female Alpha was 171.3 cm; Wei Jinzhi was just barely over 170 cm. Her few anti-fans always used her height against her. To Pei Suyuan, a centimeter or two was nothing—Pei herself was 174 cm, well above average, and it wasn’t like people were lining up to love her for it. It was just nitpicking.

Furthermore, Wei Jinzhi had high seniority. Rumor had it that even the director of The New Path, Lian Bin, had to call her “Senior Sister.” Both had studied under the legendary Hong Xunqi.

The movie The New Path had been under the spotlight since its announcement. Wei Jinzhi played the female lead’s childhood crush and teacher—a confusing, forbidden relationship that affected the protagonist’s entire life.

Though some fans were wary of the “Double Alpha” romance in the film, once the posters were released—showing Wei Jinzhi in gold-rimmed glasses, looking lazy and captivating—the fans went wild. They compared her to her role in The Crossroads fourteen years ago. Back then, she was a teenager: bold, domineering, and unintentionally flirtatious. Her co-star then, a female Alpha named Zhou Yan, was rumored to have been unable to “get out of character,” remaining drowned in her forbidden love for Wei Jinzhi long after filming ended.

While Wei Jinzhi’s career skyrocketed, Zhou Yan faded into obscurity after a few years. This rumor had grown so persistent that even Pei Suyuan had believed it at one point. After all, Wei Jinzhi on screen was too magnetic. Pei Suyuan herself was a bit of a fan, so much so that her friends used to tease her, asking if she actually liked Alphas.

Back then, Pei Suyuan had remained silent for a long time before replying: “I don’t know.”

2:30 AM. The late summer night was a bit chilly as Pei Suyuan left the hotel in a thin jacket.

By 2:00 AM, the leads still hadn’t finished the scene. Eventually, the actress Jiang Yin threw a fit and walked off after an argument with Qin Dong. Fortunately, the director declared a few days off for everyone to reset.

Being a “flop” with no other schedules, Pei Suyuan wasn’t worried about the delay. She planned to enjoy the rest. She walked to the parking lot, hopped into her second-hand VW Polo, and headed home.

The studio was in the suburbs, about an hour’s drive from West Beijing. If it weren’t for the break, she wouldn’t have wasted the gas money to commute.

Pei Suyuan was a former idol from a hit survival show. She had been famous for a fleeting moment, but she was quiet and had a “restless/displeased” face that the cameras didn’t soften. She was often criticized for looking grumpy and was the least popular member of her group.

Her biggest claim to fame was a same-sex scandal after the group disbanded. While AA (Alpha x Alpha) relationships were legal and normal now, two or three years ago, they were still a hot topic for gossip.

The other member involved was the 5th place finisher (Pei was 7th). They had stood next to each other on stage, leading to a popular “ship.” But shipping is only fun when it’s ambiguous; once it became “real”—specifically, once the other member claimed Pei Suyuan had been harassing her—the fans turned on her. After the group disbanded, Pei Suyuan hit rock bottom. Now, she was relegated to supporting roles in web dramas.

Even so, she was desperate for money. Maintaining the image of an actress required funds, and she preferred to keep her songwriting hobbies to herself rather than sell her soul. Most of the money she made from her idol days had gone into her small one-bedroom apartment and her car; she hadn’t seen much of it since.

She swiped her card to enter her residential complex. The neighborhood had great privacy and was home to many celebrities, but the prices were astronomical. Pei Suyuan had agonized over the purchase but ultimately chose safety, given her number of anti-fans. Buying the apartment meant she could only afford a used car.

After parking, she grabbed her luggage from the trunk and hummed a tune as she walked toward her building. Her parking spot was about a five-minute walk from the entrance. Just as she was about to turn the corner, she heard a soft, thin sound.

It sounded like a cat’s whimper, mixed with a sob.

It was the dead of night. The lush greenery of the complex rustled in the wind, sounding eerie. Pei Suyuan swallowed, lightened her steps, and followed the sound.

She realized the noise was coming from right in front of her building unit. Since she had to go home anyway, she braced herself and walked faster.

Beep…

As the electronic lock opened, she heard a voice so seductive it felt like it reached her bones. At the same time, a sweet scent drifted through the air. It wasn’t cloying; it was a sweetness that reached deep into the soul, triggering a flutter in the heart.

As the scent grew stronger, Pei Suyuan’s instincts kicked in: this was an Omega’s pheromone. Sweet, pure, and alluring.

She dropped her luggage and stumbled toward the source. Under the dim streetlights, a female Omega with wavy hair covering half her face sat on the ground. She wore a black V-neck dress, her chest heaving with every breath.

The soft, flirtatious whimpers stimulated Pei Suyuan’s nerves. She forced herself to stay conscious, pressing down hard on the scent-blocking patch on the back of her own neck, fearing it would fail after a long day. She pulled a universal suppressant from her bag and grabbed the woman’s arm to administer it.

But the woman was clearly delirious. The moment Pei Suyuan touched her, she began to writhe restlessly.

The sweet scent intensified. Pei Suyuan couldn’t worry about the woman yet; she had to save herself first. An Alpha facing an Omega in heat… she had to maintain her sanity.

Once she regained some focus, she held the woman down again. Before injecting the new suppressant, she steadied the woman and whispered: “Don’t move.”

But as soon as the words left her mouth, she froze. Her own voice was deeper and raspier than usual, and her breath was scorching hot.

Taking advantage of her daze, the woman on the ground reached up with her pale, slender arms and hooked them around Pei Suyuan’s neck. Their breaths tangled. The sweet scent flooded Pei Suyuan’s nose, blurring her vision and intoxicating her heart.

Her fingers instinctively steadied the woman’s slender waist. The woman took the opportunity to bury her face in the crook of Pei Suyuan’s neck. Pei couldn’t see clearly, but she could imagine how tempting the sight was.

When she felt a wet, soft touch on her skin, Pei Suyuan shuddered and tried to push her away. Sensing the rejection, the woman clung tighter.

“Mm… help me…”

The enchanting voice whispered in her ear, followed by a soft, wet sensation on her neck. A tongue flicked against her skin, again and again. Pei Suyuan’s hard-won self-control shattered instantly. Alpha instincts took over, and she gripped the woman’s waist tightly, wanting to claim her.

Pei Suyuan’s gaze became distant and intoxicated. She whispered a name she had held in her heart for years.

“It’s Sister Moon…” she murmured.

The voice was tiny. The woman didn’t hear it clearly, only catching the word “Sister.” She tightened her grip on Pei’s neck, kissing the area behind her ear, and whispered wetly:

“Help Sister… okay?”