After Transmigrating as a Scumbag Alpha, I Marked the Crazy Hotshot – Chapter 91

Give an Inch, Take a Mile

“She hit me.”

The woman’s tone was light, but her expression and posture radiated grievance.

The moment Bai Xin spoke, Qi Xiaoran’s eyes flew wide with disbelief. She nearly choked, as if she had never seen someone who could act so well.

Just a moment ago, she looked like she was about to eat someone alive!

“What are you pretending for? You were clearly the one who hit me!”

Though they had only spent two days together, no one was blind. It was obvious who was more likely to stir up trouble. They had already taken Qi Xiaoran’s words with a grain of salt, but after Bai Xin’s three simple words, the scales of opinion in everyone’s hearts had already tipped in Bai Xin’s favor.

Qi Xiaoran had been putting on an act, but seeing this, she lost her composure. “I was just on the phone, and she came right up and attacked me! Don’t be fooled by her act!”

Cheng Jiqing’s gaze was fixed on the bloody scratch on Bai Xin’s neck, and her eyes darkened. “Even if others can’t see it, don’t you know enough to treat your own injury first?”

Bai Xin blinked but didn’t argue.

A moment ago, Qi Xiaoran had been making such a huge scene that everyone’s attention was on her.

Now, Cheng Jiqing’s words served as a rebuke to all the onlookers. Only then did the others notice Bai Xin’s injury, and comparing it to Qi Xiaoran’s, Bai Xin’s was clearly more severe.

Qin Yufu took a step forward. “Go get that treated quickly.”

Against Bai Xin’s fair skin, the bloody mark was exceptionally stark. Director Yuwei also frowned. “Hurry up and go.”

She didn’t want a guest getting hurt on her show.

In Qi Xiaoran’s eyes, their reactions were a clear sign that they believed Bai Xin and were taking her side.

She rushed forward, stopping a meter away from Cheng Jiqing and Bai Xin. “You can’t just leave like this!”

Seeing this, Bai Xin immediately hid behind Cheng Jiqing, looking for all the world like she was frightened.

Cheng Jiqing felt a light pinch on her waist. She knew there was no way Bai Xin was actually scared, but her arm still moved reflexively to shield her.

She looked coldly at Qi Xiaoran. “You want to try again? How about you try me?”

Seeing Bai Xin’s current act, Qi Xiaoran recalled the vicious expression from just moments before and felt like she was about to vomit blood. “You! You explain yourself clearly before you go! She was clearly bullying me, and now she gets to be the victim? Is there any justice in this world?! Or are you all ganging up on me?”

Qi Xiaoran sniffled, looking like she was about to burst into tears at any second.

Cheng Jiqing took a breath and sneered at her words. “Bullying?”

Her eyelids lowered, revealing a sliver of cold light in her brown eyes. “The scratch on her neck—who did that?”

Qi Xiaoran’s heart faltered under her gaze. “She pulled my hair first! I was just defending myself…”

“And why would Bai Xin pull your hair for no reason?” Zhou-jie, who had been silent all this time, suddenly cut in.

Qi Xiaoran blurted out, “She was outside the door, eavesdropping on my…”

This time, no one interrupted her. Qi Xiaoran stopped on her own.

The pressure from Cheng Jiqing was heavy. “Why did you stop? If you don’t want to say it, it means you’re lying. You were the one who attacked Bai Xin.”

Her cold gaze drifted downward, and the sight of the blood made her anger flare up again.

“I attacked her?! Why would I hit her?! You don’t believe me when I say she hit me, but you believe her when she says I hit her?!” Qi Xiaoran roared.

That was, admittedly, a fair point.

Without evidence, everyone thought, it’s just one person’s word against another’s.

The scene fell silent for a moment.

“I believe her,” Cheng Jiqing said.

Bai Xin’s heart stirred. She looked at Cheng Jiqing’s profile, and this time, her nose truly began to sting.

Qi Xiaoran saw that no one around was even looking at her. They clearly believed it too.

She instantly exploded with rage. “This is unreasonable! Fine, you’re all siding with Bai Xin, is that it? Director Yuwei, are you just going to stand there and do nothing?!”

Cheng Jiqing had lost her patience. “She can’t do anything about it.”

Her voice was heavy.

It was a tone that brooked no argument.

No one was going to interfere.

Ignoring everyone else’s expressions, including the director’s, Cheng Jiqing grabbed Bai Xin’s wrist and turned to leave.

Qi Xiaoran knew that if she didn’t clear this up now, Bai Xin might immediately leak the story or post photos claiming she was the aggressor.

“Stop! Explain yourself before you go!” Qi Xiaoran reached out directly to grab Bai Xin.

Before she could touch her, Cheng Jiqing seized her arm in a vicious grip.

Qi Xiaoran let out a howl of pain. “You, let go!”

Cheng Jiqing was already furious. Bai Xin’s skin was delicate; even a little too much force would normally leave a mark. Now there was a long scratch from a fingernail, with beads of blood that couldn’t even hold on.

And she still wants to try something?

Cheng Jiqing didn’t hold back at all.

She twisted Qi Xiaoran’s arm behind her back, forced it down hard, and then kicked the back of her knee!

With a loud thud, Qi Xiaoran fell to her knees, the impact on the floor shockingly loud.

Qi Xiaoran shrieked in pain, “Cheng Jiqing! You just wait… Ah!”

The sound of a bone dislocating once again echoed clearly in everyone’s ears. The others finally snapped out of their shock and hurried forward.

However, the moment they moved, they felt an overwhelming, powerful pressure wash over them…

S-class Alpha pheromones, and from a furious Cheng Jiqing at that. Even Lu Xi, who was also an Alpha, broke out in a cold sweat.

They only heard Cheng Jiqing say in a frigid tone, “I’ll be waiting.”

---

Cheng Jiqing pulled Bai Xin into the room. The medical team had already brought over the first-aid kit, left the supplies, and were sent away.

The door was locked.

Bai Xin sat in the chair at the dressing table.

Cheng Jiqing was in a foul mood. She took out a cotton swab and iodine from the kit and met Bai Xin’s gaze in the mirror. “What are you looking at? Turn around.”

Bai Xin watched her for two seconds, then tilted her head, sweeping her hair to one side to reveal her long, swan-like neck.

Cheng Jiqing stared at the mark. The beads of blood had dried, and where her hair had brushed against them, they left faint, smeared traces on her skin.

The instant the iodine touched her, Bai Xin’s breath hitched, her collarbones deepening. Cheng Jiqing’s gaze shifted from her collarbones back to the wound.

As she gently dabbed the swab, she could see the faint pulse of a vein in her neck, beating, again and again, stirring a strange itch in one’s heart.

“I started it just now,” Bai Xin said.

Cheng Jiqing’s movements paused. “I know.”

Qi Xiaoran was such a green tea b#tch¹. Aside from her first day on set when she was quite brazen, all her subsequent schemes were low-level, backstabbing tricks.

In other words, she wouldn’t dare to get physical here.

But Bai Xin—

There was nothing in this world she didn’t dare to do.

She looked at the wound, and her tone inexplicably softened. “You’re honest, at least.”

“I told you I’d never hide anything from you again.”

Cheng Jiqing’s hand paused again. She didn’t reply, but her heart stirred.

The room was filled with warm air from the heater. Cheng Jiqing was leaning over, her coat still on. The anger from before hadn’t fully dissipated, and she was starting to feel hot.

From the mirror, Bai Xin could see Cheng Jiqing’s focused face—smooth contours, deep-set features, exquisite in every detail. She could occasionally feel Cheng Jiqing’s breath on her neck, and with each sensation, the rise and fall of her chest grew more pronounced.

The pulsing of her gland also grew more intense.

She let her breathing deepen without restraint and murmured, “Cheng Jiqing, it hurts…”

Cheng Jiqing dabbed carefully, her voice softening. “Just bear with it.”

“If you blow on it for me, it won’t hurt anymore.”

“…”

Cheng Jiqing glanced at the person in the mirror. Those peach-blossom eyes were staring at her intently. She bit her tongue. “Bear with it.”

She dabbed a few more times.

Bai Xin’s voice grew softer with each cry. “It hurts…”

Cheng Jiqing: “…”

Cheng Jiqing desperately wanted to cover that mouth, but when she looked down at the blood-stained cotton swab, she couldn’t bring herself to be harsh. Torn between two conflicting emotions, she said irritably, “Stop crying out…”

Then, she bent lower and blew gently on her neck.

Cheng Jiqing’s breath was warm and cool, carrying the scent of peach blossom wine. Bai Xin closed her eyes, lifted her chin slightly, her eyelashes trembling.

Then, she let out a sigh-like, “Mmm.”

The tips of Cheng Jiqing’s ears turned red. She swallowed, her hand nearly becoming unsteady.

The next second, Bai Xin opened her eyes.

The atmosphere suddenly changed.

It was like a gust of spring wind blowing through the dead of winter, throwing one’s heart into disarray.

Cheng Jiqing broke the silence, her voice a little deeper. “Why did you get into a fight with Qi Xiaoran? Is someone like her even worth it?”

Bai Xin said, “She’s not. But I don’t like people talking about you.”

Bai Xin remembered that comment, and a gloominess clouded her eyes. “Cheng Jiqing, it makes me angry seeing those people judge you so casually.”

Cheng Jiqing was silent for a moment. “But I’m in an industry where I’m constantly judged.”

Bai Xin said, “So I’ll be here to protect you.”

You can go out and conquer the world. I’ll guard your back for you.

Whoever targets you, I will pay them back a hundredfold.

Whoever wants to hurt you, I will leave them with no way out.

Cheng Jiqing’s long lashes lowered, and she remained silent for a moment.

Her gaze was on the neck. The blood had looked frightening earlier, but after cleaning it, it wasn’t bleeding anymore, so it didn’t need a bandage. Still, it would take about a week for the scab to fall off and for it to heal completely.

Cheng Jiqing lowered her eyes and said softly, “Don’t get it wet tonight.”

Cheng Jiqing left the necessary supplies and took the first-aid kit to return it.

Stepping out, she stood at the door, took out her phone, and sent a message to Cheng Jing: “Do as you said.”

She originally hadn’t wanted to push Qi Xiaoran into a corner, but now that Bai Xin was hurt, things were different.

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“Director Yuwei! Bai Xin ripped my scalp until it bled, and everyone saw Cheng Jiqing attack me! Isn’t your show going to give me an explanation?”

Yuwei rubbed her forehead. After listening to Qi Xiaoran curse and shout, her ears were ringing. She couldn’t help but feel annoyed.

“What kind of explanation do you want?”

“Make Cheng Jiqing and Bai Xin withdraw from the show!”

“What?”

“That’s my only demand. If you can’t agree, I won’t let this go!” Qi Xiaoran’s arm had just been set back in place. Still shaken, she caressed it, her dislike for Cheng Jiqing having morphed into hatred.

She had to make Cheng Jiqing and Bai Xin pay.

“I’ve already taken photos of my injuries, Director Yuwei. If this isn’t resolved properly, my only choice is to blow this up,” Qi Xiaoran said hatefully.

It’ll probably blow up no matter what, Yuwei thought.

Those hot searches could fool netizens, but anyone who had been navigating the industry for years had a keen sense of smell. Even if she agreed to Qi Xiaoran’s demand, Qi Xiaoran would most likely use this as a stepping stone.

A stepping stone using Cheng Jiqing, Bai Xin, and the show itself.

At the time, she must have had lard clouding her judgment, thinking that Qi Xiaoran’s recent popularity could generate some buzz.

It was too late for regrets now.

Just as she was about to say something, her phone suddenly rang.

Seeing the caller ID, she saw it was the show’s biggest investor, a person who also had connections with the variety show approval boards. For her to call at this time… She straightened her back slightly and said to Qi Xiaoran, “You rest first. I have to take this call.”

Yuwei walked outside and answered the phone.

“President Zhong, why are you calling at this hour? President Cheng? Which President Cheng are you referring to?”

Hearing the voice on the other end suddenly grow louder, Yuwei’s expression changed.

…

The call ended.

Yuwei stood in place for a while, feeling her temples throb violently.

Before she could even take a breath, the assistant director rushed over. “Director Yuwei, Qi Xiaoran posted on Weibo.”

Yuwei frowned and took the phone.

Qi Xiaoran: ‘Something unacceptable happened. I was beaten up on the show. Bai Xin and Cheng Jiqing violently assaulted me one after another. A large patch of my scalp is injured, and so are my knees. I don’t know how I offended them for them to treat me like this.’

Below were several accompanying photos.

“She’s finished.”

“What?” The assistant director didn’t understand.

Yuwei handed the phone back. “Qi Xiaoran. She’s finished.”

When Yuwei returned, Qi Xiaoran was still sitting on the sofa, legs crossed, with an unyielding look on her face.

“It’s only been a few minutes, Teacher Qi. You work fast with that Weibo post,” Yuwei said flatly.

It was just as she’d thought. From the very beginning, Qi Xiaoran had been determined to make this a huge issue.

Qi Xiaoran said, “Director Yuwei, I didn’t want to make things this ugly, but I have to stand up for myself…”

“Fine.”

Yuwei cut her off directly. “You’re a free person. And you probably always will be.”

Qi Xiaoran looked at her with a puzzled expression, guessing that the director was upset because she had posted on Weibo. But so what? In this industry, you had to take risks and maybe offend some people.

She had a premonition that this incident would make her truly famous.

Once she was famous, what was losing this one gig?

Just then, the assistant director walked over again and handed the phone to Yuwei.

Yuwei looked at it for a while, then raised her head and sighed at Qi Xiaoran.

“Xiaoran, there are indeed many people in this industry who climb their way up through various means. But generally speaking, they don’t last long. Do you know why?” Yuwei said. “Because no matter how rotten this industry is, it’s still full of people. And those with good character won’t have a hard time even after their fame fades. On the other hand, those who are a flash in the pan will never have a chance to rise again after they fall.”

“And one more piece of advice for you: never step on others to get ahead, because you never know who you’re stepping on.”

Yuwei stood up.

“You just said you wouldn’t let Cheng Jiqing go. Take a look at Weibo. Now, you should be thinking about whether Cheng Jiqing will let you go.”

With that, she said no more and turned to leave.

Only a bewildered Qi Xiaoran was left in the room.

It wasn’t until her phone rang and she saw the caller ID that she composed herself. She answered, but before she could even start crying:

“Qi Xiaoran, you b#tch! You f#cking told me the heiress of Cheng Group was some nobody extra?! Do you f#cking know who you had me sink money into trying to mess with?! Huh?!”

What heiress of Cheng Group?

Qi Xiaoran: “Honey…”

“Who’s your honey! I’m telling you, if I go down, don’t you think you’ll get off easy! F#ck!”

The call was abruptly hung up.

Qi Xiaoran finally had a bad feeling. Her hand was still trembling from her dislocated bone as she opened Weibo.

Hot searches that weren’t there five minutes ago were now lined up at the top.

#ChengGroupHeiressChengJiqing#

#ChengGroupOfficialWeibo#

#XMFirstOfficialWeiboPost#

#ChengJiqingBackgroundIsInsane#

Just reading the hashtags made Qi Xiaoran suck in a cold breath.

She tapped on one with a trembling hand.

Cheng Group: ‘Our Miss @ChengJiqing is not someone just anyone can afford to keep.’

The comments below:

‘Holy sh#t, holy sh#t!!’

‘A real-life rich beauty! What a shocking plot twist?’

‘??? How has a bombshell like this never been dug up before?’

‘Replying to the post above, my friend in the industry said her family sent out notices to everyone to keep their mouths shut.’

A chill ran down Qi Xiaoran’s spine. She coughed a few times, her heart pounding as she scrolled down. The next trending topic was from XM’s Weibo.

XM’s official account had directly reposted: ‘We’d like to keep her. //@Cheng Group: Our Miss @ChengJiqing is not someone just anyone can afford to keep.’

The comment section was just as explosive as the last one.

‘LMAO, the ‘sponsor’ has come to claim her.’

‘Two sponsors, one from her own family and one knocking at the door. I’m just like, wow!’

‘Help, why am I kind of shipping the two companies?’

‘So all you haters, open your eyes and see. This is a real top-tier celebrity. With a background like that, she’s just in the entertainment industry for fun.’

There was another one further down.

‘So even if she has a background and the sponsorship rumor is fake, the bullying on set is real, right?’

However much Qi Xiaoran had wanted this story to blow up before, she now desperately wanted it to disappear.

She knew better than anyone that the bullying, the dirt—it was all fake.

How could she have been so stupid?! And how could she be so unlucky… the Cheng Group from Beicheng, and even XM was connected to Cheng Jiqing.

Either one of them could crush her more easily than an ant.

Her phone buzzed. Qi Xiaoran finally snapped out of her panic, her voice trembling.

Before she could speak, she heard her manager say, “Qi Xiaoran, are you insane?! Do you have any idea who you’ve offended?!”

Qi Xiaoran’s voice was now laced with real tears. “Jie², help me, just help me this one time…”

“Help you? Look who you’ve offended—the heiress of Cheng Group! You can go ahead and prepare the contract termination fee yourself. As a final favor for having managed you, I’ll give you a heads-up.”

Qi Xiaoran could only catch the last sentence: “The President of Cheng Group has already given the word. Your career is over. You’re on your own now.”

Hearing this, Qi Xiaoran collapsed to the floor.

---

Qi Xiaoran had intended to go upstairs to find Cheng Jiqing, but when she tried to get up, she was stopped by several staff members.

Director Yuwei walked over. “I just received a notification. I’m sorry, Miss Qi, but I’m afraid you can’t stay here tonight.”

“What are you doing? Where will I go?” Qi Xiaoran asked in a panic.

“We’ll arrange a place for you to stay tonight, but tomorrow, you’ll have to figure it out yourself,” Yuwei said flatly. “This way, please.”

She felt no pity for the woman who had nearly ruined her career.

Struggling and shouting, Qi Xiaoran was ‘escorted’ out.

After she left, the villa temporarily returned to a state of tranquility.

The assistant director came over, following Yuwei to the doorway. They each lit a cigarette.

“Should I go up and ask if that person needs anything?”

“Let’s not disturb them tonight,” Yuwei said. “I just sent her a message on WeChat. Cheng Jiqing isn’t like Qi Xiaoran. It’s that person from Cheng Group… Capitalists are always ruthless.”

After all, the whole storm had erupted on her show.

The assistant director understood. “So what’s next?”

Yuwei exhaled a puff of smoke. “If you don’t want to go from being a director to a gopher, you’d better hurry up and post a clarification on Weibo.”

The assistant director asked, “What should I say?”

Yuwei replied, “The truth.”

Following the posts from Cheng Group and XM, the show’s production team took the initiative to issue a clarification, releasing the high-definition airport video to prove that no one had bullied Qi Xiaoran and that the whole thing was a drama she had orchestrated herself.

Subsequently, a staff member from the show also made a clarification, stating that Qi Xiaoran had made the first move and Bai Xin had acted in self-defense.

And Cheng Jiqing had acted purely out of kindness to help her roommate.

In just one hour, the tide of public opinion online had completely turned.

Cheng Jiqing went from being a kept woman who bullied other guests to the beautiful, wealthy heiress of Cheng Group.

All previous rumors were shattered, and the rich heiress persona clearly attracted a great deal of attention.

Cheng Jiqing’s Weibo follower count shot up from a few thousand to over thirty thousand.

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The protagonist of all this, Cheng Jiqing, was in her room, looking at the news on Weibo with no emotional reaction.

To be precise, her mind wasn’t on Weibo.

The sound of trickling water came from the bathroom. Even though the bathroom door was closed, the milky scent of body wash still wafted out.

She took a deep breath, tried to focus her thoughts elsewhere, and remembered the message Cheng Jing had sent her earlier.

【XM was already handling it before I made a move.】

Cheng Jiqing gripped her phone. WeChat messages were flooding in, but she didn’t look at them. Instead, she clicked back on the post XM had just made.

‘We’d like to keep her. //@Cheng Group: Our Miss @ChengJiqing is not someone just anyone can afford to keep.’

Those three words definitely didn’t come from anyone else.

Cheng Jiqing looked at those words, and the corners of her lips slowly curved up, a hint of pleasure in her eyes.

“Cheng Jiqing.”

Bai Xin’s voice, muffled by the sound of running water, came through the door.

Cheng Jiqing walked to the bathroom door. “What is it?”

The water stopped abruptly. Bai Xin said:

“I forgot my comb. It’s on the table. Can you get it for me?”

“…” Cheng Jiqing looked down, her eyelashes casting a pale shadow. “You can comb it when you come out. It’s the same.”

“Then I’ll come out and get it myself? Don’t look.”

“…”

Cheng Jiqing turned, slid her feet into her slippers, grabbed the black comb, and stood at the door. “Come to the door and get it.”

“Bring it in.”

“Don’t give an inch and take a mile.”

“I’m not asking you to come into the shower. What are you afraid of?” Bai Xin said slowly. “I’ll drip water all over the floor.”

“Then I’ll mop the floor. I’ll mop it for you.”

Standing in the shower, Bai Xin put down the loofah and laughed in exasperation.

She glided her foam-covered palms over her collarbones, her chest, her limbs, and then said, “Little CEO Cheng, do you have that little confidence in your self-control? If you’re scared, just say so. I won’t make you bring it in.”

Cheng Jiqing: “…”

She wasn’t one to fall for reverse psychology, but she was definitely provoked.

But then she thought about it. The bathroom had a separate wet and dry area, and the shower door was frosted glass. It was just delivering a comb. Hand it over and leave.

She wasn’t Tang Sanzang³, was she? It’s not like she could be snatched away by a demoness.

And this weak-looking Omega, Bai Xin, didn’t have the skill for that anyway.

“Miss Bai, don’t be so confident in yourself.”

Cheng Jiqing pushed the door open directly. A warm, fragrant scent rushed into her nose, and her body temperature rose with the steam.

She took a deep breath and turned sideways.

She couldn’t see anything through the frosted glass, but she didn’t look toward the shower anyway. She slowly sidled over and passed the comb inside.

“Here.”

She heard the shower door open from the inside.

The thick, milky fragrance and scorching steam from within instantly enveloped her.

Cheng Jiqing felt a damp hand land gently on hers, a ticklish sensation.

She subconsciously lowered her gaze, and her breath caught—on the smooth section of arm extending from the shower, dotted with fine, milk-scented bubbles, fair and tender, it was enough to make one’s breathing unsteady and heart tremble.

Her palm felt like it was being scratched by a kitten’s paw, and the sensation spread, making her whole body feel numb. Cheng Jiqing’s heart skipped a beat, and she tried to pull her hand back.

The next second, a warm, damp hand gripped hers tightly.

“Chengcheng, smell it… Does it smell nice?”

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The author has something to say:

Chengcheng: I’m a fake Tang Sanzang, but she’s a real demoness

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