After the Cannon Fodder A Accidentally Marked the Paranoid Female Lead - Chapter 45

Ming Sian couldn’t describe He Yining’s madness; perhaps it was a “heat period limited edition” behavior.

For the next three days, He Yining would not step out of the house because she didn’t intend to use suppressants. She wanted to know what would happen during her heat without them.

It was like testing one’s own alcohol tolerance—only by doing so would she know her limits when she went out in the future.

She had actually tried it before, only injecting the suppressant at the very last moment, just to find out where her breaking point for endurance lay.

That evening, Ming Sian connected her phone and sound card to her laptop, preparing to start the live stream.

Earlier today at school, she and Cheng Cheng had already done a test broadcast—the kind visible only to themselves—and the results were quite good.

Just before the stream started, she said to He Yining, who was sitting on the sofa handling work: “Lawyer Ning, I have work to deal with tonight; it ends at ten o’clock.”

He Yining heard the underlying meaning: she simply hoped He Yining wouldn’t disturb her during the broadcast.

“Fine. Before ten o’clock, I won’t look for you,” He Yining spoke with eyes like silk, as if saying: I’ll wait for you.

Ming Sian shifted her eyes uncomfortably, her heart tickled by the flirtation.

She knew this wasn’t something He Yining did intentionally; it was just the heat period. Her body was experiencing abnormalities, and without suppressants, she couldn’t suppress it on her face.

This was the precursor to the impending heat; usually, using suppressants at this time yields the best results.

She immediately reminded her: “Did Lawyer Ning use the suppressant?”

He Yining raised an eyebrow. “You don’t want me to use it?”

“No.” Ming Sian hurriedly denied it; she clearly meant to remind He Yining to use the suppressant.

“Mm-hmm.”

He Yining didn’t seem to want to hear her explanation. She appeared to accept the denial, but in reality, she didn’t believe it at all.

Only the person who wrongly accuses someone knows how much that person has been wronged.

The most frustrating part was that on the surface, He Yining acted like you were right, but her eyes said: Look at you, getting impatient again.

But she had never been impatient!

Ming Sian was at a loss for words and sighed inwardly. “Then I’ll go get busy.”

“Mm.”

Ming Sian hesitated several times before silently returning to her room. Seeing that it was eight o’clock and the preview had already been sent out, she would rather be two minutes early than two minutes late.

If she looked back once more, she would find He Yining taking out her tablet and clicking on her YinFu avatar, looking as if she were waiting for the broadcast to start.

Ming Sian sat at the desk and glanced around. Upon clicking to start the live stream, hundreds of people instantly poured in. She was stunned for a moment, and the comments section began to explode.

[It’s the living Lawyer Xiao Ming.] As if there could be a dead Lawyer Xiao Ming.

She was amused by her own thought and then answered: “It’s me, but I’m not a lawyer yet, just a law student.”

[Oh my god, Lawyer Xiao Ming looks even better when she smiles. My heart has been snatched away; take responsibility.]

[It shouldn’t be illegal if I call her ‘Wife,’ right?]

[It’s not illegal, but it’s an offense against the public.]

[Congrats to Lawyer Xiao Ming on her first live stream! You have to meet us more often in the future.]

[Heh! Just another person wanting to be an influencer.]

[Is the person above sick? If you don’t want to be one, why is your jealousy overflowing the screen? Besides, Lawyer Xiao Ming is doing a good thing. With so many science pops out there, why do I only watch hers?]

[Exactly, hers is a legitimate science pop; she just uses a few small tricks to make it watchable.]

[After watching, the knowledge stays in my mind. Of course, what’s also deeply engraved in my mind is Lawyer Xiao Ming’s beauty.]

Regarding the comments, Ming Sian didn’t feel much. Even Liu Yifei has people calling her average, and even $100$ bills have people who don’t like them. Moreover, she wasn’t as lovable as a $100$ bill.

Seeing the followers in the live room hit $5,000$, it quickly approached the $7,000$ mark before temporarily stopping around $8,000$.

She hadn’t bought followers; all $200,000$ were organic. For an organic following and a first broadcast, she had researched that a 10% attendance rate of total followers was standard.

She had only been live for a few minutes and $8,000$ people had entered—many must have been waiting for her. She was actually quite happy.

Ming Sian smiled and introduced herself: “Hello everyone, I am Ming Sian, currently a law student at Hong Kong University. Thank you all for your support.”

[Will the live stream content be call-ins? We can come on the mic to ask for advice.]

[Call-ins would be great! I really want to talk to Lawyer Xiao Ming on the mic.]

[Wait, lawyers charge consultation fees. If it’s free consultation, how will Lawyer Xiao Ming set her prices later?]

Ming Sian quickly spoke up: “Today is a pure chat session. If you have any questions, you can type them in the public chat. I’ll answer when I see them to clear up doubts in another way.”

She wasn’t a lawyer yet. Provided she didn’t involve professional qualification requirements, she could share legal knowledge, such as common legal sense and interpretations of stories behind recent cases.

Like the short stories she submitted to internal journals—she couldn’t submit to the professional column yet, but through the polish of a story, there were no platform restrictions at all.

When she applied for the live stream, she realized that live streaming legal science pops was completely different from filming videos. Live streaming science pops involves professional qualifications, so she could only do sharing and interpretations.

The line in the middle was hard to control, so regarding call-ins, she would wait until she understood YinFu’s live streaming rules.

Ten minutes later, people were still entering the room.

Ming Sian just glanced at the numbers, focusing her gaze on the public chat to read the content.

[Is it illegal for a parent to skip a parent-teacher meeting?] Wait, you’re a parent already—how is that skipping class?

Ming Sian smiled and read the comment out loud: “You were probably the one skipping class as a kid, weren’t you?”

[Lawyer Xiao Ming, I was assigned an internship by my school but there’s no salary. They say it’s a teaching course. How can I protect my rights? By the way, our work content is the same as formal employees. I’m only a junior.]

“First, you have to prove that this internship is for employment purposes.” There were some things she couldn’t say too much about; that was the limitation of not having a lawyer’s license. Therefore, until she got her license, her live stream still had to be based on chatting.

[What should I do if I’m cursed at every day? Is the other party breaking the law? Oh, she’s my mom.]

“I’m cursed at every day too.” Ms. Chen sent her messages to curse her every day; how did that not count?

[Today at school, a senior student demanded property from my daughter. What should I do? The other party is over sixteen years old.]

“If the amount is sufficient, age is not a problem.” Was the hint obvious enough?

Ming Sian casually scanned the chat. There were some comments she couldn’t even read; this group of people loved teasing her too much.

[When will Xiao Ming marry me?]

“Xiao Ming says she doesn’t know either.”

After broadcasting for forty minutes, she finally saw Cheng Cheng’s comment.

She glanced at the private message Cheng Cheng sent— [Read my comment quickly! I’ve sent a hundred of them; my tendonitis is about to flare up.]

But she really hadn’t seen them!

Ming Sian smiled and read Cheng Cheng’s comment: [Lawyer Xiao Ming, I have a question. My scholarship was taken by my family, leaving me with no tuition or living expenses. Even with a part-time job, I can’t make ends meet. How can I get my scholarship back? I am an adult, in university, and negotiation has been ineffective.]

“I actually encountered this kind of thing as well. If negotiation fails, you can only take legal action, but you need to consider carefully whether to sue your parents and the costs involved, such as time and money.”

Ming Sian thought for a moment. “Before suing, you can also look for third-party mediation—school, community workers, etc. If they are people who value their reputation, the probability of you getting your scholarship back in a short time is relatively high.”

While she was talking, she kept an eye on the direction of the comments.

[What kind of people are they, not even giving the child tuition and living expenses?]

[Did you hear Xiao Ming say she also encountered this kind of thing?]

[What does that mean? Xiao Ming also has parents who don’t give tuition and living expenses?]

[Probably. Ask Lawyer Xiao Ming.]

[Is she playing the pity card just to get us to give gifts?]

[Well, did you give any? How much?]

Ming Sian was silent for a while. “Alright, let’s not talk about my matters; you guys continue.”

However, the comments wouldn’t stop, all saying they wanted to know.

Although this was her goal, after seeing so many people in the chat standing up for her, she was still very moved in her heart.

“It’s nothing much. It’s just that after my Gaokao results came out back then, Hong Kong University promised me a large scholarship. My family agreed for the sake of the scholarship. I am currently studying in Hong Kong. At the beginning, my family gave two thousand yuan a month. If their expenses were large that month, they wouldn’t give it. It’s considered good if they gave living expenses three times a semester. Logically, two thousand yuan is enough for university life, but at Hong Kong University, you need to pay a dormitory fee. One semester is $15,000$, which means two thousand yuan isn’t even enough for the dorm fee, let alone food and other costs. The cheapest meal set in the canteen is only provided in the morning—the ten-yuan set I eat every day. I’ve calculated the catering costs; even if you eat all three meals on campus, it costs at least around $100$ per day on average, and you won’t get anything very good.”

“Transportation costs, daily necessities, buying books, and so on—there are no entertainment activities at all. It costs about two thousand yuan a month, plus some other miscellaneous expenses and possibly monthly unexpected consumption. As for me, I negotiated with my family to give me a portion of the scholarship, including my tuition and daily expenses. Because of this proposal, my family has stopped giving me living expenses entirely.”

Speaking of this topic, she sighed. “Because the family believes I can work part-time to cover all my expenses during university—not only cover them but also supplement the family.”

Hong Kong University gave her $800,000$ in scholarships. Even if her annual expenses were $200,000$, it would be enough for two and a half years of study, with a surplus.

But who could have thought that Ms. Chen only took money in but never let it out? Having taken the money, even the two thousand yuan monthly living expenses were given sluggishly or not given at all.

Ming Sian took a deep breath, appearing resigned. If she didn’t have this job at Anning Law Firm, her life would only be harder.

Even though she was deliberately saying this to her fans on the live stream, what she said were facts without any exaggeration.

[Are costs at Hong Kong University that high?]

[It’s not that HKU costs are high, it’s that Hong Kong costs are high. Last year I went to Hong Kong with friends on a budget trip; a week cost twenty thousand. Is it mainly because accommodation is high? A noodle set costs fifty yuan—and that’s a normal street shop. In a slightly better tea restaurant, a casual meal averages one or two hundred per person. So Xiao Ming isn’t exaggerating.]

[Really? Any Hong Kong locals here to confirm?]

[Yes, I’m here to say that what Xiao Ming and the person above said are both true. Costs are really high.]

[But Hong Kong salaries are high too; even a waiter earns over ten thousand.]

[Xiao Ming is a student; she has classes every day. Where would she have time to go to work? A part-time job earning over ten thousand would be more like it.]

[Hey! Don’t get sidetracked. Xiao Ming is so excellent; HKU was willing to give her $800,000$ in scholarships, yet she didn’t get a penny of it.]

[That money was given by HKU for Xiao Ming’s studies, but Xiao Ming didn’t get the money at all.]

[Xiao Ming is so excellent. If she were my daughter, I’d sell everything to support her. What kind of parents still covet their child’s scholarship? If they think it’s unsafe for the child to hold the money, they should at least give enough living expenses!]

[Then Xiao Ming, how did you survive? Did you sue?]

Ming Sian took a sip of water and said softly: “Part-time jobs. As for suing…”

She gave a sigh. “One, my studies are too busy. Two… alright, let’s not chat about this; let’s chat about something else.”

Currently, there were over $20,000$ people in her live room. She didn’t know if anyone would record and clip the video. Was it possible for the videos they posted to be known by Ms. Chen?

It didn’t matter; since she dared to broadcast, she wasn’t afraid of it being known.

Besides, she turned off the recommendation to the same city and possibly familiar people. Coupled with her follower count, the probability of her being stumbled upon was very low. Even accounts with tens of millions of followers aren’t necessarily seen by everyone.

Moreover, this was her first broadcast; many were there for the novelty and the fans were quite active. After a month or two, it would be very impressive if the number stabilized at seven or eight thousand—unless her followers kept growing.

For those who have been broadcasting for a long time with content that isn’t as attractive, it’s good if they have a few thousand people for a million followers.

Of course, it isn’t calculated that way either. She had also seen accounts with only $20,000$ followers having three or four thousand people online; it’s mainly about the live effect.

As for her, she had no “live effect” and wouldn’t broadcast frequently—once a week at most.

The time quickly reached 9:20. She had finished what she wanted to say, and it was almost time to end this live stream.

Ming Sian’s gaze remained on the comments. A small portion of people didn’t believe what she said, but most were feeling heartache for her.

She smiled and waved her hand. “Don’t feel heartache for me. I want to give everyone a sentence: since we can’t choose our birth, let’s choose our future.”

The future might be bad, but for people with a family of origin like hers or even more terrifying families, the future at least won’t be worse than before.

In the remaining time, she briefly answered questions from the chat regarding her days of not being favored as a child and some of Ms. Chen’s remarks. Everything she said had evidence on Jianxin; Ms. Chen’s words could not be considered rumors she made up.

In the last few minutes before the end of the stream, she said: “Ending the stream at 9:50. A preview will be sent before the next broadcast.”

[What? You’re not broadcasting every day?]

“No, I still need to prioritize my studies.”

[It would be great if Xiao Ming broadcasted every day. When is the next one?]

“Not sure, because I don’t have any special talents. Live streaming is just chatting with everyone.”

[What do you mean no talents? You can sing, play guitar, and you’re good at gaming. What can’t you broadcast?]

Ming Sian: “?”

She quickly typed a few words to Cheng Cheng— [What are you saying in the chat!]

Cheng Cheng— [I feel that with your popularity, if you broadcast every day, why even go to work? Just broadcast for two hours a day.]

Ming Sian— [No, I can’t over-exhaust the account. Otherwise, when I get my graduation certificate and can do professional knowledge call-ins later, no one will watch.]

Cheng Cheng— [Alright, but I think we can start another account.]

Ming Sian thoughtfully replied— [Okay.] and prepared to end the stream.

In the few minutes before she ended the stream, He Yining, who was already in the room watching the broadcast, also sent out a few messages.

— [Control the spread range of Ming Sian’s account. Block Hong Kong and Yuexing.]

By blocking Hong Kong, the He family wouldn’t know. As for Yuexing, that was Ming Sian’s birthplace; for now, it was better not to let Ms. Chen know about Ming Sian’s YinFu account.

He Yining was never stingy, especially toward her own people. She had always been very generous. Ming Sian was one of her own people whom she acknowledged; spending money to pave the way for her own people was a normal thing for her.

There was one prerequisite: the person had to be worth it.

So, in He Yining’s heart, Ming Sian was someone worth spending money to pave the way for.

She could understand what this live stream of Ming Sian’s was for, so on that basis, she would give Ming Sian a helping hand.

Ming Sian just clicked to end the stream. She leaned back against the seat and didn’t move for a long time. One live stream session was too tiring; the brain had to keep working to prevent her from saying the wrong thing.

She reviewed her broadcast content: the first forty minutes were chatting, the middle ten minutes were about her interaction with Ms. Chen, and the remaining time was spent chatting.

Some things don’t need to be said too much; just revealing a bit is enough. As for her, it was only for the recording to make clips later, not to play the victim.

She brought it up suddenly while reading comments, and then the comments were all asking her to speak about it. She didn’t take the initiative to complain, and the time used was short, so the effect was quite good and didn’t cause fan resentment.

After finishing the review in her mind, Ming Sian found her clothes and went to the bathroom to wash up. She came out wearing a white short-sleeved shirt and three-quarter shorts. Her fair, long legs were slender with smooth lines and faint muscles.

Wiping her hair as she stepped out of the bathroom, her heart suddenly skipped a beat.

“Lawyer Ning.”

He Yining was leaning sideways on her bed, her eyes as soft as water. Seeing her greet her, a trace of a smile curled on her lips. “Work finished?”

“Mm.” She nodded, feeling that the current He Yining was incredibly alluring, completely different from her usual self.

She weighed her words for a moment. “Does Lawyer Ning have something for me?”

“What did you call me at the He manor?” He Yining countered.

The underlying meaning was: she didn’t like Ming Sian calling her Lawyer Ning. It was fine for professional settings, but their relationship was so intimate—especially given what she wanted to do next, there shouldn’t be such distance between them.

Sensing the hint, Ming Sian hesitated for a while. “Ning… Sister.”

She still felt that outside of acting, “Sister” was easier to say than “Ningning.”

He Yining tilted her head and didn’t correct her. Instead, she lay face down on the bed. “Apply the medicine for me.”

She just lay there, her beautiful and graceful lines caught in Ming Sian’s sight. The dryness in Ming Sian’s throat was real; she looked very “delicious” like this.

Who could have known that the cold and noble He Yining was naturally so charming in private, occasionally even with a bit of cuteness? Anyone who saw it would praise her for “eating well.”

Wait, no one would see He Yining in private except her.

Of course, Ming Sian wasn’t sure if this He Yining was the real her.

What Ming Sian could be sure of was that besides herself, no one else had seen this side of her.

Walking to the bedside, Ming Sian looked at the wounds on He Yining’s back that had begun to heal. She breathed a sigh of relief; from now on, she only needed to apply the ointment, no more disinfection.

This ointment had a very good effect; it could stop pain and speed up healing.

She had specifically researched wound healing videos. Normally, wounds wouldn’t heal to this extent in just a few days. After asking a doctor, she found out just how incredible this ointment He Yining was using was—everything mentioned before was under normal circumstances. Most importantly, it wouldn’t leave scars. Otherwise, it would be quite sad for He Yining’s beautiful back to have scars.

The price of the ointment was also very high, and it was in a state of being hard to find; it couldn’t be bought on the market at all. The doctor she asked even pressed her about having a channel to buy it at a premium.

Only then did Ming Sian realize how sought-after this tiny tube of ointment was.

She didn’t dare waste it at all, gently applying the ointment onto He Yining’s wounds. It dissolved as soon as it was applied, light and odorless.

“It’s done.” She placed the ointment on the bedside table and was about to get up when she found He Yining’s hand grabbing her hem.

“What’s wrong?”

He Yining turned sideways, her gaze wandering over her. Her fingertips lightly climbed onto Ming Sian’s hand, silently hooking their pinky fingers together.

“My heat period has arrived.”

With just this one sentence, Ming Sian became completely hot. She knew what He Yining meant.

What made her feel frustrated was that she actually didn’t have a shred of rejection in her heart; all there was was expectation and fantasy.

The moment their gazes met, rolling images appeared in her mind—like that saying: It’s clearly the first meeting, but I’ve already imagined both of us in wedding dresses.

Ming Sian smiled, suddenly wanting to tease this arrogant little kitty. “Do you need me to help you with the suppressant?”

However, He Yining was not one to let herself be teased. “Aren’t you my suppressant?”

Hearing this sentence, Ming Sian’s heart came to a sudden halt. A tingling sensation spread from her heart like a rippling circle.

Seeing a trace of crimson appear on her neck, He Yining redoubled her efforts, her fingers slowly climbing upward until they hooked the back of Ming Sian’s neck, applying a little pressure to force her to lower her head.

When the distance between them was less than ten centimeters and their breaths were intertwined, Ming Sian’s nose was filled with the familiar pheromones and the scent of wine.

“Drank wine?”

“A little.”

True—without the addition of alcohol, He Yining might not have been able to go this far.

“Why drink wine?”

He Yining let out a light laugh. “You don’t like it?”

Ming Sian shook her head. In fact, she really liked the tipsy He Yining—bold, alluring, and unrestrained.

She knew she was a “fake prude,” appearing very restrained on the surface. When she saw this version of He Yining, her heart had already pounced over, so infatuated that only instinct remained.

“Shaking your head means you don’t like it?”

Seeing He Yining deliberately misinterpret her, Ming Sian lowered her eyes, her gaze falling on her lips. She leaned down to kiss her and only spoke after a long while: “White wine.”

“Mm-hmm,” He Yining hummed softly, satisfied with Ming Sian’s initiative.

It showed that Ming Sian had already gotten used to it—at least she had begun to think she should be proactive and please her when she was in heat.