After Transmigrating as a Scumbag Alpha, I Marked the Crazy Hotshot – Chapter 54
by Little PandaCheng Jiqing sat with her legs slightly crossed, wearing a dress Bai Xin had found for her in the afternoon—a dark green, waist-cinching dress.
It reached above her knees and had an excellent drape. Her skin leaned towards a cool white, and the dark green made it even harder for people to look away.
Cheng Jiqing sat on a high stool, facing the transparent glass window. Passersby inevitably glanced her way.
It was the same when Bai Xin arrived.
She stood not far away, not even needing to ask which shop Cheng Jiqing was in; she spotted her at a glance.
Cheng Jiqing was on the phone, her elbow resting on the wooden countertop. She took a sip of orange juice before responding to the person on the other end.
“The tenth of next month? Is it some special day ma?”
Cheng Jing paused. “You… don’t remember?”
Her tone was somewhat low.
Cheng Jiqing fell silent for a moment. The usable memories in her mind were limited, let alone dates. Speaking of which, she suddenly remembered that the original owner had crossed out several dates on the calendar in her room at the old mansion.
“It’s my birthday,” Cheng Jing said.
Cheng Jiqing: “…Ah.”
She didn’t know what to say for a moment. Hearing Cheng Jing’s tone—if it were the original owner, she probably would have remembered.
“So make sure to keep that day free.” Cheng Jing, likely afraid she would refuse, added, “I know you don’t like me controlling you, and I’m trying to change. Even if you sell the shares, even if you want to go into acting, I’m willing to support you. So please don’t rush to refuse, okay ma?”
Cheng Jiqing actually hadn’t planned to refuse. For someone of Cheng Jing’s status to call and remind her half a month in advance, she felt a bit sorry for her.
She wasn’t an emotionless person.
Besides, to find out about the fire, she had originally planned to meet Cheng Jing anyway.
This way, she wouldn’t have to find another suitable time.
Cheng Jiqing readily agreed, “You’re my older sister, I’ll go to your birthday.”
Before the call ended, Cheng Jiqing could clearly hear the relief in Cheng Jing’s voice.
Just as she hung up, she felt warmth from behind. Someone pressed against her shoulder. She was about to physically push the ‘attacker’ down when, in the next second, she heard a familiar and teasing voice: “Who were you talking to on the phone so seriously?”
People were coming and going. Cheng Jiqing shifted her shoulder. “Aren’t you afraid of being seen?”
Bai Xin sat down beside her, her eyes moving slightly, remembering what Zhou Yushu had said—You couldn’t be more obvious.
It seemed that when Cheng Jiqing was around, her sense of caution always diminished significantly.
“It was Cheng Jing’s call. What do you want to drink? I’ll go order,” Cheng Jiqing asked.
Bai Xin glanced at the cup on the counter. “What are you drinking?”
“Orange juice.”
“Is it sour?”
“A little, but it’s okay.”
Bai Xin wasn’t very fond of sour drinks. Cheng Jiqing got her a taro milk tea.
“It’s Cheng Jing’s birthday next month, she asked me to keep a day free,” Cheng Jiqing continued what she was saying earlier.
Bai Xin said, “Oh, Bai Corporation received the birthday invitation two days ago.”
Usually, for such birthday banquets, the company’s events department and business department would include them in the fixed annual activities. Therefore, invitations would be sent out half a month to a month in advance.
For the birthday of the Cheng Corporation’s president, most of Beicheng’s socialites would attend.
Cheng Jiqing thought, the original owner seemed to have stopped attending after Cheng Lan’s death… or perhaps after hearing that conversation between Cheng Jing and Fu Rongjun.
“Then you should be going too?” Cheng Jiqing asked.
Bai Xin: “I will.”
Not only would she go, but Bai Zhaoliang and Zhou Yushu would also go. Anyone with dealings with the Cheng family would receive an invitation.
Cheng Jiqing nodded. “I’ll find a chance to ask her.”
Hearing this, Bai Xin looked at her for a few seconds and suddenly asked, “Do you have deep feelings for the Cheng family?”
“What do you think?” Cheng Jiqing asked back with a smile. Fu Rongjun aside, regardless of whether she was the original owner’s biological mother or not, she wasn’t a good person in her eyes.
If there was a next time, she would pay her back with interest2.
As for Cheng Jing, she was very good to her, so good that it sometimes felt like a burden. However, because there were too many secrets, she couldn’t be trusted.
Bai Xin’s expression inexplicably softened. Cheng Jiqing keenly noticed this and asked, “What’s wrong?”
Bai Xin shook her head, took a sip of her milk tea. Fifty percent sweet, just right.
Cheng Jiqing thought, Such a cold face, yet when she lowers her head to drink milk tea, it actually makes me feel a bit sweet.
The two had only had congee at four o’clock, so neither was hungry now. They had bought tickets for an early movie screening, but there was still half an hour before it started.
So they wandered around and, before they knew it, arrived at the clothing section on the fifth floor.
Cheng Jiqing was the first to spot the lingerie store ahead. She instantly remembered she still owed something, but with Bai Xin beside her, it seemed rather inconvenient for both of them to go in.
So she pretended not to see it and was about to lead Bai Xin around a corner. “Want some ice cream?”
“Cheng Jiqing.”
“En?”
“Let’s go there.”
Bai Xin pointed ahead.
Cheng Jiqing: “…”
The last time she came shopping, she had gone into the lingerie store alone—because Bai Xin’s hand had been injured by Zhou Ping the day before, and she couldn’t wash those things.
She had told Bai Xin to throw them away and said she would compensate her.
But last time, she hadn’t been able to buy them, and even when she left, her ears were red.
It wasn’t shyness; it was seeing that piece of fabric and thinking of Bai Xin that made her thoughts impure.
Cheng Jiqing followed Bai Xin into the luxury lingerie store. There was a dedicated SA3, but Cheng Jiqing waved her hand, indicating she didn’t need anyone to follow them.
All sorts of splendors, all kinds of styles.
Cheng Jiqing’s eyes were dazzled. She usually didn’t care about styles, opting for the simplest ones, mostly in black and white.
Cheng Jiqing asked, “What kind are you looking for?”
Bai Xin parted her lips: “The softest.”
A sentence inexplicably flashed through Cheng Jiqing’s mind: Aren’t you the softest?
It passed in an instant, and she replied properly, “They all look pretty soft to me.”
“I said, I want the softest.” Her tone was surprisingly impatient.
Bai Xin walked to a rack, a single piece, snow-white. Holding it in her hand, one could clearly see the color of her skin.
“You feel it, is it soft or not?”
Cheng Jiqing reached out: “I can’t tell. Most people can’t tell. Only you…”
Bai Xin placed the item in her hand: “Only I what?”
Cheng Jiqing saw other customers approaching. She lowered her head slightly and whispered the words “delicate darling”4 for Bai Xin to hear.
Previously, Bai Xin didn’t like hearing it, but today, for some reason, she seemed to quite enjoy it. The corners of her mouth curved into an imperceptible arc, and her eyes lifted to glance at Cheng Jiqing’s face.
Bai Xin looked at the rack and asked:
“Let’s get another color, which one should I choose?”
Cheng Jiqing: “If you like them, just take them all, bei.”
She could still afford to buy these few things.
But Bai Xin insisted: “Which color?”
Cheng Jiqing looked seriously and said, “Pink, ba.”
After she spoke, Bai Xin took several pieces of each color and placed them all in Cheng Jiqing’s hands. Cheng Jiqing only felt a soft bundle in her hands.
“…Then why did you still ask me to choose.” Cheng Jiqing smiled helplessly.
Bai Xin tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. Her voice was hoarse from her recent illness, her tone light: “Weren’t you trying to understand? To see which one Little CEO Cheng likes, can’t I?”
This statement, combined with that gaze, made Cheng Jiqing’s heart tingle.
It was a double entendre5—to see which color she liked, to see which color she liked Bai Xin to wear.
Cheng Jiqing thought to herself, Not only a delicate darling, but also a fox spirit.
In any case, this debt was considered repaid.
Cheng Jiqing carried the items, and after a moment’s thought, found the matter rather amusing. She said, “But I threw away one of yours, and yet I’m returning twenty. Miss Bai, you’re not losing out on this deal.”
Bai Xin leaned closer: “You can look at every single one I wear. Little CEO Cheng, your deal isn’t a loss either.”
Cheng Jiqing: “…”
Toxic, I can’t win a verbal spar!
The ticket checking time for the movie arrived. As they walked towards the cinema, Bai Xin saw a couple pass by holding popcorn. “Cheng Jiqing, buy that.”
Cheng Jiqing glanced over and nodded. “Wait here.”
With that, she walked back.
Two minutes later, Cheng Jiqing returned with a medium-sized portion of popcorn. Her gaze paused as she saw two girls, both quite pretty, standing in front of Bai Xin.
She walked out, her steps quicker on the way back than when she left.
When she was still a few steps away, she heard Bai Xin’s indifferent tone: “I’m married.”
“Really? You don’t look like it.”
“Aiya, she already said she’s married, why are you bibi-ing6 about wanting her WeChat.”
Cheng Jiqing strode over, lightly put her arm around Bai Xin’s waist, and said, “Is there something wrong?”
She looked up at the two, her gaze not cold, yet it made people afraid to look directly at her.
S-class Alphas were extremely rare even in the ABO world. Even when their pheromones were hidden, due to their natural hierarchical advantage, when she deliberately revealed displeasure and threat, others would feel pressured.
“Sorry, my friend didn’t know she had a wife.”
Cheng Jiqing smiled faintly. “It’s okay, she knows now.”
Seeing this, the two girls had no intention of trying to hit on them anymore.
After they left, Cheng Jiqing’s hand loosened from Bai Xin’s lower back. She handed the popcorn to Bai Xin. “Let’s go, time for ticket check.”
Bai Xin didn’t take it, but instead gently pinched Cheng Jiqing’s waist. “What does she know now?”
Cheng Jiqing looked around, didn’t push her hand away, and smiled. “Alright, let’s watch the movie.”
She knew Bai Xin wanted to lead her to say the second half of the sentence.
Knows she has… a wife.
When Cheng Jiqing genuinely smiled, those fox-like eyes were so clean, without a trace of worldliness. Bai Xin often felt that gaze was like the sun, shining on her often-dirty heart.
It didn’t even spare the dust in the corners, sweeping it clean for her.
Thus, because it was too rare, she went from curiosity to exploration, and now she began to crave that warmth.
Walking into the screening hall, there was only the light from the large screen.
Their seats were in the third to last row, the best position in the middle.
Cheng Jiqing placed the popcorn in her hand. Bai Xin said, “You’re not eating?”
After asking, she seemed to remember that Cheng Jiqing indeed didn’t eat many sweets.
Cheng Jiqing nodded. “You eat.”
Bai Xin said no more.
The movie began. 《Addicted to Her》 was a Republican-era romance film. Cheng Jiqing had only read the movie description and some reviews; the ratings were also very high.
It roughly told the story of a military officer’s wife who, on a snowy night, discovered her husband had a lover outside. On this snowy night, the wife followed the car carrying the lover out of the city, but unexpectedly, they encountered a snowstorm on the way.
The wife and the lover, these two mortal enemies, became companions in dire straits, relying on each other on that snowy night. And in a dilapidated wooden hut under the wind and snow, they did the craziest thing of their lives.
One review said that this movie almost didn’t pass censorship.
Most evaluations said it was an art film.
The censorship settings in the ABO world were much more lenient than in reality, not so strict.
Cheng Jiqing had seen quite explicit scenes on Star Channel several times.
So this was indeed a novel world.
Cheng Jiqing watched very intently. It was only around the middle that she gradually realized what the director was trying to say.
The director was analyzing humanity’s true instincts and madness when facing life and death, and desperate situations.
It was when the wife and the lover were confiding in each other in the dilapidated wooden hut that Cheng Jiqing seemed to feel the cold from the snow-filled screen.
“I’ll say something, perhaps you won’t believe it.”
“What?”
“I love you.”
The lover said to the wife.
Hearing these words, Bai Xin glanced sideways at Cheng Jiqing. She was indifferent to romance films and also found words like ‘I love you’ too bland.
After the three words were spoken on screen, the lover leaned over and kissed the wife.
The night was heavy, the blizzard fierce.
All the spring colors of the city seemed hidden in that one place.
Actually, the explicitness wasn’t very high, no nudity, no explicit points, just that the atmosphere and sensuality blended extremely well, and the camera angles were particularly clever. One sound up, one sound down.
Therefore, it sounded and looked like they were doing it for real7.
Even that feeling was more… alluring than a pornographic film.
Cheng Jiqing listened to the sound of lips meeting, and unconsciously wanted to look beside her. The next second, her lips touched something uneven, and a trace of sweetness flowed between her teeth.
It was popcorn.
Bai Xin had placed a piece of popcorn on Cheng Jiqing’s lips, pushed it in slightly, and just as Cheng Jiqing was about to open her mouth, her finger coincidentally went in a little.
Wet, soft, hot.
Cheng Jiqing raised her hand to take it. Bai Xin pulled back a bit, then leaned close to Cheng Jiqing’s ear, her voice a low murmur, “Cheng Jiqing, kiss me.”
“…” Cheng Jiqing’s throat moved, her temperature instantly rising.
Feeling that finger pressing against her lower lip, she used a bit of force this time to remove it, her voice husky, “Don’t mess around, we’re watching the movie.”
Bai Xin said, “No one can see.”
Like a patiently guiding teacher.
Bai Xin said, “Just once.”
Cheng Jiqing: “…”
In the darkness, Cheng Jiqing’s gaze was as deep as ink. The hand no one could see curled slightly.
As Bai Xin pulled back, she raised her hand, held Bai Xin’s chin, and kissed her.
Originally, she only intended to kiss once, but Bai Xin reacted extremely quickly, prying open…
Cheng Jiqing tasted milk tea, sickeningly sweet, intoxicatingly fragrant.
A few seconds later, Bai Xin pulled back.
Looking at the captivating snow scene in the movie, she licked her lips with pleasure. The aroma of popcorn was still mixed with the faint, fresh scent of orange juice from those lips…
Coming out of the cinema, it was eight o’clock in the evening.
They chatted idly on the way, talking about the movie.
“It’s a pity they both died in the snowstorm in the end, never able to get out,” Cheng Jiqing said. “Quite lamentable.”
“But they are together forever.”
“That’s true, it counts as an alternative HE8, la. Actually, the final shot of the snow melting was a metaphor. The lover could have gotten out. It’s just that the wife died, so she chose to stay.”
Bai Xin turned from the window to Cheng Jiqing’s side profile and said, “You don’t think it’s good?”
“Not really, it’s just that I feel a bit down after watching it,” Cheng Jiqing said. “When we came out just now, someone also said that lover was a bit crazy.”
Bai Xin gave a light, low laugh. “Crazy? I don’t think so.”
The lover in the film died holding the wife’s hand.
If it were her, she would die on top of the wife.
They were both a bit hungry. After discussing, they planned to go back to Nanjing to cook. As the car drove back, there was a small stall selling wontons9 by the roadside.
Bai Xin said she wanted to eat some.
Cheng Jiqing then parked the car.
The stall owner looked to be in her sixties or seventies, with a full head of white hair, but she was quite energetic. She greeted them and had them sit at a worn-out small wooden table.
Looking out, one could see the neon lights of the Beicheng Grand Bridge not far away.
“Two young ladies, any dietary restrictions?”
Cheng Jiqing said, “One bowl without chili.”
Bai Xin added, “And no coriander either.”
Cheng Jiqing: “I thought you only avoided chili.”
“It’s alright, if I can avoid eating it, I will.” Bai Xin paused, then said softly, “Popo10, the other bowl without shrimp.”
Hearing this, the corners of Cheng Jiqing’s eyes curved. She was just about to say it; she was allergic to seafood.
Although some small dried shrimps come from freshwater and aren’t considered seafood, she usually avoided eating them.
“Alright, alright, aiyo, you young couple get along so well, ah.”
The stall owner Popo poured the plump, white wontons into the pot, turned around and asked, “Married, ba?”
Cheng Jiqing, for some reason, felt an unusual emotional fluctuation, as if at this moment, she and Bai Xin had truly become a family.
Before she could speak, Bai Xin said, “How did you know?”
The stall owner laughed, the corners of her eyes full of the ravines of time. “I can tell at a glance. How long have you been married, la?”
Cheng Jiqing looked at Bai Xin, her eyes filled with a smile, letting her answer.
Bai Xin also looked at her and replied, “Not long.”
The Popo said, “Oh, you look about the same age as my granddaughter, early twenties, ba?”
“Me? Almost 30. She’s in her early twenties,” Bai Xin said calmly, looking at Cheng Jiqing, that person like a flower bud, as she spoke.
“Oh, I couldn’t tell. Then you haven’t had children yet, ba?”
Bai Xin and Cheng Jiqing exchanged a glance, both pausing slightly. Cheng Jiqing coughed lightly. “Popo, how old are you this year?”
The stall owner Popo: “Me, ah? Seventy-three. My granddaughter just gave birth to a big, chubby boy this year. So I’m out here to supplement the family income.” After speaking, she brought over two bowls of steaming hot small wontons.
Cheng Jiqing nodded. “You work really hard.”
She didn’t continue the rest of the conversation.
Have children with Bai Xin, ma? She hadn’t thought about such a thing… at least not before today.
After finishing the wontons, they prepared to pay and leave.
The stall owner Popo suddenly said to Cheng Jiqing, “It’s still early to have children in your early twenties, but the earlier you have them, the easier it is to recover.”
Cheng Jiqing: “Ah, okay.”
Bai Xin ‘puchi’11 burst out laughing. This was the first time she had laughed out loud.
Completely unable to hold it in.
Cheng Jiqing looked at her with surprise and confusion. “?”
What’s so funny?
Cheng Jiqing hadn’t thought about the issue of having children, so it was only after Bai Xin laughed that she reacted, her expression unnatural. “That Popo, ah, I’m not the one who gives birth…”
Don’t I look like a dominant Alpha, Popo!! Cheng Jiqing grumbled inwardly.
The age difference Bai Xin had mentioned spanned about ten years. People of the stall owner Popo’s age still held onto inherent old ideas, subconsciously considering the younger party as the ‘0’ (Omega/receiver).
Leaving the wonton stall, Cheng Jiqing looked at the person beside her whose lips were curved in a smile. “Miss Bai, I’m very happy to make you laugh, but perhaps you could restrain yourself a little.”
“Little CEO Cheng, why don’t you try it?”
“…”
Cheng Jiqing glanced at those dimples, then suddenly reached out mischievously and poked one. “Don’t get complacent.”
The two walked to the car. The late September evening breeze brought a long-lost coolness.
Cheng Jiqing’s gaze suddenly fell on the large bridge not far away. She said, “Want to go for a walk?”
Bai Xin looked at the bridge. Why not?
She had even silenced her phone.
Actually, Cheng Jiqing had too. Her phone, silenced before the movie, hadn’t been turned back on yet. Perhaps she forgot, or perhaps she simply wanted to spend some quiet time with Bai Xin.
The distance wasn’t far; it was only a ten-minute walk to the bridge.
It was just that Bai Xin’s stamina was poor. By the time they were on the bridge, her legs were already too sore to move. Cheng Jiqing reached out, took her hand, squeezed it gently, and walked towards the center of the bridge.
“It’s prettier over there.”
Cheng Jiqing had a pursuit of beauty, living exquisitely, patiently, and gently.
Bai Xin occasionally had this feeling, that Cheng Jiqing seemed to possess an artist’s mindset—she loved life deeply, saw through life, accepted life, yet was not tainted by life’s filth.
So Cheng Jiqing was clean, both in mind and body.
Reaching the center, Cheng Jiqing stopped.
“Tired?”
“Legs are sore.”
After the walk, Bai Xin’s coolly beautiful features showed a faint weariness. She leaned directly against Cheng Jiqing. The sky was dark by then, and they were unlikely to encounter anyone at this hour. Cheng Jiqing put her arm around her slender waist.
Under the bridge was a wide canal, the river water calm, with boats in the distance.
If it had been a bit earlier, when the Golden Crow12 was setting, it would surely have been a beautiful scene of sky and water merging into one color.
Cheng Jiqing took a deep breath. The wind carried the damp smell of river water. A gentle breeze caressed them, the beauty in her arms soft and fragrant.
This was the epitome of peaceful and beautiful years.
Cheng Jiqing suddenly asked, “Bai Xin, are you happy today?”
Bai Xin looked sideways, asking back, “And you?”
At certain times, Bai Xin wasn’t the proactive one.
So Cheng Jiqing smiled and said, “Happy, ah.”
An indescribable joy, although it seemed nothing particularly special had happened between them today.
Bai Xin looked at the dark boundary line, her dimples shallow, and slowly said, “I’m happy too.”
A long-lost ease, a long-lost sense of belonging.
Her hair, like her skirt hem, swayed in the gentle breeze, as if it had come alive.
It made one want to hold onto the beauty of this moment.
Cheng Jiqing’s lips curved upwards. A sudden idea struck her: “Take a photo, ma?”
Bai Xin was taken aback. She never took photos, let alone a photo with someone else. But meeting Cheng Jiqing’s eyes, she felt that it wasn’t impossible to take one.
Cheng Jiqing took out her phone, skillfully positioned it at a suitable angle. Their cheeks drew close. As she was about to take the picture, Bai Xin turned her head and kissed her on the cheek.
The image in the phone froze at that moment.
Later, Cheng Jiqing thought, this day itself was special.
This day existed in the last week of September.
This day, she learned that besides chili, Bai Xin didn’t like sour things, nor did she like coriander.
This day was her first date with Bai Xin, their first time watching a movie together, their first time eating small wontons together.
Their first photo together.
Their first kiss on the Beicheng Grand Bridge…
For many years thereafter, it remained unforgettable through time.
The author has something to say:
Chengcheng: Sweet dog food13 for everyone.
Footnotes
- 经久不忘 | jīngjiǔ bùwàng | Lit. “enduring for a long time and not forgetting” | Fig. unforgettable, lasting.
- 连本带利 | lián běn dài lì | Lit. “together with principal and interest” | Fig. to get back everything owed, plus more; to get full revenge.
- SA | N/A | Abbreviation for Sales Associate, a staff member in a retail store.
- 娇气包 | jiāoqì bāo | Lit. “delicate air bag” | Fig. a pampered or overly sensitive person; a crybaby; often used affectionately or teasingly.
- 一语双关 | yī yǔ shuāng guān | Lit. “one word, double meaning” | Fig. a phrase with a double meaning; a pun.
- 哔哔 | bībī | Onomatopoeia/Slang: to talk nonsense, to nag, to drone on. Often used like “blabbering” or “yammering.”
- 假戏真做 | jiǎ xì zhēn zuò | Lit. “fake play, real action” | Fig. what starts as pretense becomes real; reel love becomes real love.
- HE | N/A | Abbreviation for “Happy Ending,” a common term in fiction, especially webnovels.
- 馄饨 | húntun | Wonton; a type of Chinese dumpling, typically served in soup.
- 婆婆 | pópo | Grandmother; also a polite term of address for an elderly woman.
- 噗呲 | pūchī | Onomatopoeia: sound of a snort or suppressed laugh.
- 金乌 | Jīn Wū | Lit. “Golden Crow.” A mythological three-legged crow associated with the sun in Chinese mythology; a poetic term for the sun.
- 狗粮 | gǒuliáng | Lit. “dog food” | Internet slang for public displays of affection (PDA) that make single people feel envious, like they are being fed ‘dog food’.
got me, single dog smiling ah
THEY’RE SO PRECIOUS 😭😭😭