Chapter 15: Grape

Dedicated to Charm. Thank you for the ko-fi 🫰

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Lu Qingzhuo practically fled in a panic, clutching her neck. As she stepped outside the set, she immediately spotted a car parked nearby—Fu Yumian’s personal vehicle. Without hesitation, she opened the door and slipped inside.

The driver was Han Tian. Noticing Lu Qingzhuo’s breathless and sweaty state, she glanced at her through the rearview mirror.

Betas weren’t particularly sensitive to pheromones—some couldn’t even detect them at all. However, Han Tian could tell from Lu Qingzhuo’s anxious expression that she must have been affected by an Omega.

Boss, oh boss, you flirt with someone and then just run away, leaving me to clean up the mess.

Silently reciting a Buddhist mantra for inner peace, Han Tian shifted her gaze to the Rolex watch on her left wrist—a holiday gift from Fu Yumian. After a moment of contemplation, she firmly nodded to herself. 'Wherever President Fu goes, I’ll follow. After all, there’s no such thing as a free lunch—or a free Rolex.'

The car pulled up at the entrance of a resort hotel. Feeling dizzy and lightheaded, Lu Qingzhuo got out, took the room card from Han Tian, and entered room 102. The moment she shut the door behind her, her legs gave out, and she sank to the floor.

Back at the hotel, she finally felt at ease. She took a hot shower, washing away the stickiness on her skin, then sank into a warm bath.

Han Tian had already delivered the inhibitor patches, leaving them at the door for Lu Qingzhuo to retrieve.

Lounging in the bathtub, Lu Qingzhuo yawned, nearly drifting off. Just as her body started to slide underwater and bathwater filled her nose, she jolted awake.

Cough, cough…

She had almost drowned in her own bathtub.

After her bath, the tea-scented pheromones that had enveloped her were significantly weakened—barely detectable within half a meter.

She opened the door to find a plump little service robot standing there, holding a tray with the inhibitor patches. Curious, Lu Qingzhuo patted the robot’s head before taking the box.

The robot rolled down the hallway, but as it turned a corner, it seemed to forget to accelerate—or maybe it just underestimated its own rotund size—because it failed to stop in time and tumbled forward, rolling several times before finally being helped up by a passing hotel staff member.

Lu Qingzhuo: …

Oddly adorable.

She wrapped herself in a bathrobe, tore open the packaging, and pressed the transparent inhibitor patch onto the back of her neck.

The patches she used were a gel-like transparent film—colorless, scentless, and pleasantly cool on the skin.

After changing into her pajamas, she sat on the bed, recalling that Fu Yumian had injured her hand earlier. Wondering how she was doing, she decided to send a message to check in.

Lu Qingzhuo: President Fu, is your hand feeling better?

Lu Qingzhuo: I’m really sorry about earlier. I didn’t realize my strength would break the bowl.

Lu Qingzhuo: I hope I didn’t scare you 😁😁.

After sending the messages, Lu Qingzhuo suddenly felt she might have said the wrong thing. Breaking the bowl had been part of the director’s instructions and was written in the script, but when dealing with someone as influential as Fu Yumian, it was always wise to offer an early apology and be extra polite.

Nearly ten minutes passed. She kept an eye on her messages while simultaneously watching her gossip group chats, which had over 999 unread messages. She had forgotten when she even joined these groups—places filled with entertainment industry gossip enthusiasts.

[Chat Messages]

User 1: Hey, have you guys noticed Lu Qingzhuo has been really quiet lately?

User 2: Maybe she finally decided to work on her acting. She’s terrible at it anyway.

User 3: I heard from an inside source that Lu Qingzhuo is in Hainan shooting a movie.

User 4: Hainan? If I remember correctly, isn’t Shen Shijun’s new movie filming there?

This message instantly stirred up the idle gossipers.

User 5: Do you really think Shen Shijun would cast someone like Lu Qingzhuo? The minimum standard should be someone like Ye Ran, an award-winning actress.

User 6: True, but it’s possible she got in through connections.

Lying on her stomach with a juice box in hand, Lu Qingzhuo continued lurking in the chat. More and more people were chiming in, and she was actually surprised at how much buzz her name generated. She had to admit—being famous for the wrong reasons still meant being famous. Even when she wasn’t on the big screen, stories about her continued to spread.

Oh well. Fame is fame. Popularity is unstoppable.

Comforting herself, she felt drowsiness creeping in. Just as she was about to close her eyes, her phone screen lit up.

A message from Fu Yumian.

Fu Yumian: Come over.

Come over?

Where?

Lu Qingzhuo’s mind, which had just started to clear, was once again muddled.

It was already late—why was Fu Yumian calling her over now? It was either for a romantic rendezvous or a serious reprimand. Taking a deep breath, she put on a nightgown and stood in front of the full-length mirror to check her appearance.

Perfect. Flawless.

But the moment she reached Fu Yumian’s door, hesitation gripped her.

What if it’s an industry unspoken rule?

What if Fu Yumian actually has her eye on me?

Her palms were sweaty from nerves. Biting her lip, she steeled herself, wearing an expression as if marching to the execution grounds before gently knocking on the door.

Knock, knock.

The crisp sound of her knocking echoed like a drumbeat, striking straight into her heart.

“President Fu...”

The door opened from the inside, and Fu Yumian glanced at her indifferently. Her tone was just as detached. “Come in.”

“President Fu, is your hand feeling better? Does it still hurt?”

Lu Qingzhuo closed the door behind her and followed Fu Yumian, her gaze fixed on the woman’s right hand, which hung by her side. The pristine white bandage was still wrapped around her palm. Judging by the still-intact bow, it seemed to be the same dressing Lu Qingzhuo had applied that afternoon.

Fu Yumian hadn’t changed it yet.

“It’s fine now.”

Fu Yumian lifted her chin slightly, signaling for her to sit. Lu Qingzhuo obediently took a seat across from her, her eyes lingering on the bandaged hand.

Fu Yumian reached for a grape from the fruit platter on the table with her left hand. She lowered her head slightly, seemingly trying to peel it, but her injured right hand made it difficult. A hint of frustration flickered across her face.

“I’ll do it.”

Lu Qingzhuo took the translucent purple grape from Fu Yumian’s hand, deftly peeling away the skin to reveal the sweet, juicy flesh. She then held it up to Fu Yumian’s lips.

Fu Yumian glanced at the grape being offered to her, looking rather reluctant to eat it.

Thinking she was being rejected, Lu Qingzhuo sulked and started to pull her hand back. But just as she did, Fu Yumian lowered her head and took the grape into her mouth.

The sticky sweetness of the grape juice clung to Lu Qingzhuo’s fingers, trailing down her palm, sliding past her wrist, and finally dripping onto Fu Yumian’s calf.

Lu Qingzhuo instantly knew she was in trouble. She stiffened, maintaining her posture, unsure of how to explain. Her eyes met Fu Yumian’s gaze, and she slowly retracted her hand, subtly loosening her tense shoulders.

Fu Yumian was a neat freak. Surely, she wouldn’t be upset over a mere drop of grape juice on her leg, right? President Fu wasn’t that petty.

“Wipe it off.”

Lu Qingzhuo: “...”

This kind of thing...

Wasn’t it a bit inappropriate for an alpha like her to do?

She hesitated, staring at Fu Yumian with pleading eyes before reluctantly pulling out a tissue. She crouched down, gently grasped Fu Yumian’s ankle, and carefully wiped away the nearly dried grape juice.

Fu Yumian lowered her eyes, silently observing the obedient alpha. Her gaze fell upon Lu Qingzhuo’s focused, troubled expression.

She watched as the other woman’s long, curled eyelashes trembled slightly. When those slender fingers encircled her ankle, she felt the scorching warmth from Lu Qingzhuo’s palm slowly seep into her skin, as though it might melt her ankle altogether.

“All done.”

In the end, she was the first to yield, shifting her gaze away as if nothing had happened.  

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Translator's Note:

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