After Becoming a Cannon Fodder Side Character, I Became the Group’s Favorite (GL) - Chapter 6

Xu Chacha once had a happy and complete family, but unfortunately, it was too brief. The happy sounds and warmth in her memory felt like soap bubbles, ready to burst with a single touch.

After her parents passed away, she stayed in a welfare institution for a while. It was the first time she ate and slept with so many children her age.

Wearing old clothes and eating watery porridge—Xu Chacha didn’t mind these things. She even thought that having someone other than family willing to take her in was the greatest gift from heaven.

She still remembered the day she was holding a book as usual, sneaking out to the rooftop during nap time, only to be followed by a group of children who formed a gang and looked much older than her.

Initially, Xu Chacha didn’t know what she was about to face, but soon she heard the iron door of the balcony being slammed shut. The creaking sigh it let out seemed to pity her in five minutes’ time.

First, a boy grabbed her collar and used his hand to forcefully pull her cheeks wide.

“Pretend, pretend! What’s so good about pretending to be a good student! Get out of here right now! This is our territory!”

“Counting on being younger and having a pretty face, thinking you can get more attention from the director by acting cute. Just wait, when I complain about you, she’ll hate you soon, hahahahahahaha!”

Xu Chacha’s parents were hardworking and genuinely good people, so the education she received from a young age was to be humble and kind, and to learn to be more tolerant of others.

So, laughably, her first reaction wasn’t to blame the children who hit her, but to wonder if she had done something wrong to make them unhappy.

“Why does a newcomer get extra food? Kneel down properly for me! Say ‘I’m sorry, Brother and Sister, please forgive me’!”

The book in her hand was thrown aside and stomped on a few times out of spite. Xu Chacha’s gaze fell on it, and she listened to those people’s words blankly.

Then she suddenly remembered, Ah, it seemed she had scored first place in the last academic test, and according to the rules, her lunch was rewarded with an extra chicken leg and ham and egg.

So, was this why she had to be treated this way?

After that, Xu Chacha never scored first place again, nor did she sneak out during nap time, but the others’ actions escalated.

One day after morning exercises, the director called her into the office with a stern face. She pulled out a ruby-encrusted pendant and told Xu Chacha it had been found under her pillow.

Xu Chacha shook her head and denied it. “I didn’t take it.”

“Are you sure it wasn’t you?” The director’s expression looked less kind than Xu Chacha remembered. “Didn’t you even compliment how pretty this necklace was?”

Young Xu Chacha froze. Looking at the director’s cold and severe gaze, she felt the warmth draining from her body, her muscles stiff, unable to speak.

She didn’t understand why no one was willing to believe her.

“See? You’re just unwanted trash.” Xu Chacha was taken out by the group again that day during the lunch break.

She still remembered how those young faces squeezed out sinister expressions, their wide eyes filled with curses toward her. “Go die. You’re not welcome here.”

The malice of children is often the most direct and heartbreaking. Just as an adult might hesitate for a moment and consider the consequences when wielding a knife, they won’t.

Her time in the welfare institution was not long, but Xu Chacha felt it was the longest and most difficult period of her life.

“Chacha?” Wen Mubai’s voice pulled her out of her memory. She raised her hand and gently wiped under Xu Chacha’s eyes. “Don’t cry.”

Xu Chacha lifted her stinging eyes and met Wen Mubai’s gaze. She saw worry and tenderness in the other’s eyes.

She just stared quietly, neither of them speaking. Those dark, ink-like eyes seemed to become the only window through which Xu Chacha could breathe. She stretched her neck and took a long breath, clutching Wen Mubai’s hand.

“I wish I had met you earlier, Sister.”

Wen Mubai couldn’t ignore the fleeting vulnerability on the little sweetheart. She lowered her head and asked, “You don’t want to go to the welfare institution, do you?”

“No.”

“Sister promises to visit you every day.”

Xu Chacha shook her head and forced a smile. “No, Sister, really. Chacha loves playing with little friends. There should be many children at the welfare institution, right?”

Wen Mubai’s gaze lingered on her face. The forced smile the little girl put up couldn’t fool her eyes.

For the first time, she felt such deep resentment toward herself. Why was she eighteen and not twenty-eight?

If she were older, she could give this child more.

…

Xu Chacha must have been truly exhausted. After bathing and listening to Wen Mubai tell a story for a while, she was so sleepy she drifted off.

Wen Mubai carried her to the bed, tucked her in, and walked out to the balcony with her phone.

Her finger hovered over the word “Father” in her contacts, but in the end, she scrolled up and dialed the female police officer.

“Hello? Is there a problem with the child? I’ll come over now.”

“No, she’s fine. She’s already asleep.”

“Then you want to talk about the welfare institution matter?”

“Not exactly.” Wen Mubai shook her head. “I wanted to ask if you know about the missing person case of the Xu family’s eldest daughter in City A four years ago.”

“The Xu family… I vaguely remember.” The case was on the social news at the time. The police department took it very seriously, and missing person flyers were posted in cities near City A. It was broadcast repeatedly on television, but as time passed, like most missing children cases, it faded into the millions of unsolved cases.

“The Xu family’s daughter was three years old when she disappeared, and she had a butterfly birthmark on her back.” Wen Mubai paused here, seemingly to give the other person time to think. “When I helped Chacha bathe tonight, I saw a similar birthmark on her, and according to the neighbors’ description, she was about three years old when the couple first took her home.”

“Hold on.” There was a rapid clatter of keyboard keys on the other end. After a moment of silence in the receiver, the female police officer’s voice rang out again. “Not only that, but I found that the couple used to work in City A, but they both quit and returned to the countryside four years ago, as if they were deliberately hiding from something…”

Wen Mubai sensed the importance the police officer placed on the matter from her tone, and the tension in her heart eased slightly. “So, could I trouble you to contact the Xu couple? To my knowledge, they should not have given up hope of finding their daughter.”

“Of course! I’m heading back to the police station now.”

“Thank you.”

“It’s nothing. It’s my job. Get some rest, and take good care of the child.”

“Mhm, I will take good care of her.”

Hanging up the phone, Wen Mubai stood on the balcony and felt the wind for a while.

From where she stood, she could see an old tree in the guesthouse’s front yard. Its leaves were lush, and the crickets hidden within were chirping happily.

She stared at the tree, her thoughts seemingly extending along its branches. She began to fantasize: if Chacha was indeed the lost child of the Xu family, and if she hadn’t been lost, would she now be wearing a beautiful princess dress, being led by her mother to various parties and banquets?

“See, this is our Chacha. She’s a little shrimp, but she has the sweetest mouth and is terribly clingy.”

Wen Mubai could even imagine Mrs. Xu’s tone, her petty complaints that were actually subtle boasts.

Unfortunately, there were no such what-ifs.

Otherwise, her first meeting with Xu Chacha wouldn’t have been in this small town, a place filled with tears and scars for Xu Chacha.

Perhaps it would have been at some evening gala, where the little princess, the star of the show, would be led to her.

“Chacha, this is Grandpa Wen’s eldest granddaughter. She even held you when you were little. Quick, say ‘Auntie.'”

Wen Mubai drank the last sip of water in her glass, and her thoughts retracted. Then, she frowned and whispered softly.

“It’s better to call me Sister.”

She got up, returned to the room, and took out her sketchpad to practice. It was her habit to practice at least ten sketches before going to bed every day.

In school, the daily coursework alone was enough to keep her busy until midnight, but she would still continue, often drawing until three or four in the morning.

However, Wen Mubai kept this a secret from her family. Their hope was for her to study business and eventually inherit the family business, so they had paved her path from childhood, not allowing her to stray even half a step.

“Crack—” The pencil broke after a heavy stroke on the paper.

Wen Mubai expressionlessly tore off the page, then picked up a freshly sharpened pencil.

She shook her head to clear the distracting thoughts, then tilted her head and saw Xu Chacha curled up in a ball on the bed. The pencil in her hand moved instinctively.

A few quick strokes outlined a human shape, a thin, small body. Wen Mubai started to sketch her face.

Faint brows and a upturned nose, long, thick eyelashes like crow feathers. Finally, she moved her finger and added a spontaneous smile to the innocent, sweet face.

The final stroke was completed, and the entire drawing instantly came to life.

Wen Mubai’s hand didn’t stop. Holding the pencil, she scratchily wrote a line of text in the lower right corner of the drawing.

—May light forever cover your being.

Once she started drawing, Wen Mubai found it hard to stop. By the time her hand felt sore and she put down the pencil, the sky outside was almost dawn.

She got up, poured herself a glass of water, and opened her phone intending to check the time, but instead, she saw a message from the female police officer.

[We’ve contacted the Xu family. Because this birthmark is quite rare, they are taking it very seriously. They will send someone tomorrow to take Chacha’s DNA for testing. They can rush the results, and they should be available within a day. We will discuss the welfare institution matter after the results are out. You and the child can rest easy.]

Wen Mubai slowly swallowed the water and, with a quick action, typed and sent a “Thank you.”

Before the clock hand reached “5,” Wen Mubai was finally ready for bed. She washed up, took out the ointment from her bag, and applied a thick layer to her face and neck, which had been badly sunburned during the day. Then she picked up another thin blanket and sat down by the bed.

As soon as she lay down, the little sweetheart, who had been curled up in a ball, stretched out and snuggled toward her.

Her soft, delicate cheek rubbed against Wen Mubai’s arm, and she mumbled groggily, “So fragrant… Sister, hug.”

Wen Mubai tilted her head and sniffed her body, unable to smell anything other than the guesthouse’s standard shower gel.

However…

She reached out, placed her hand on Xu Chacha’s back, and pulled the girl into her embrace, gently patting her fine, soft hair. “I’m hugging you. Go to sleep.”

The little person in her arms smacked her lips, seemingly hearing her words. Her breathing gradually became regular, and she slipped back into a deep sleep.

Wen Mubai rested her chin on the top of the girl’s head, listening to the sound of her breathing. Her mood felt like a balloon gradually inflating, floating up lightly.

She hoped that after tomorrow, only good things would happen to this child.

She, who never believed in God or deities, prayed this.

…

Xu Chacha woke up early the next morning. She had been conditioned to wake up before dawn to work when she was at the couple’s house, and her biological clock was set.

When she opened her eyes, she realized she was hugging Wen Mubai in a completely shameless posture, taking advantage of her. She held her breath and glanced at the sleeping Wen Mubai, then slowly retracted the foot that was propped up on the other woman’s waist.

She scooted her bottom back a little distance, and when she wasn’t so close, Xu Chacha lay down again, turned onto her side, rested her head on her palm, and admired Wen Mubai’s sleeping face with wide, round eyes.

She didn’t know when Wen Mubai went to sleep last night, but there were faint dark circles under her eyes. Her skin was already fair, and now it had a slight, unhealthy paleness. Her long hair was scattered across the pillow behind her head, possessing an aesthetic beauty that a film stylist might try to achieve for hours.

In truth, Wen Mubai’s appearance was very gentle. Her eyebrows and lips carried the delicate grace of a Jiangnan woman, but her eyes held too much sharpness, and a single cold glance could instantly extinguish any fierce passion.

But she was too radiant. Even knowing the outcome would be unfavorable, large flocks of moths would still rush toward her flame.

Xu Chacha started working as a child model at five years old in her past life and remained in the industry until the moment before her death. She had seen countless beautiful women, regardless of nationality or race.

Honestly, none were as outstanding as Wen Mubai. She could spot her in a crowd instantly, and once seen, she couldn’t look away.

Suddenly remembering Jiang Panpan’s sarcastic comment about Wen Mubai’s admirers, Xu Chacha laughed self-deprecatingly. She might have a bit of that mentality herself.

The more someone ignored her, the more she wanted to get close.

After all, no one could resist the rare tenderness of a high-mountain flower.

“Does this count as cheating?”

If it weren’t for this body of a little kid, Wen Mubai probably wouldn’t even spare her a glance if they bumped into each other on the street. She certainly wouldn’t be able to shamelessly call her “Sister” and beg for hugs as she was doing now.

It’s good. Being shameless is good.

Xu Chacha did not reflect on her actions at all.

She maintained this position, admiring the beauty’s sleeping portrait for about half an hour before finally being unable to resist getting up and moving.

Her feet still hurt when she stepped on the floor. Xu Chacha softly hissed and searched the room barefoot for a pen.

After finding one, she casually grabbed a promotional flyer from the guesthouse off the table, knelt by the coffee table, and gripped the pen tightly to write on it.

Afraid of arousing suspicion, she deliberately made her handwriting clumsy and scrawled.

After writing, Xu Chacha neatly folded the flyer and quietly tucked it into Wen Mubai’s suitcase.

Having done all this, she tiptoed back to the bed, inching closer to Wen Mubai, though this time she was very restrained. She just grabbed a corner of her T-shirt, held it firmly, closed her eyes, and cherished what she believed to be their final moments together.