After The Cannon Fodder Died, She Became The Female Lead’s White Moonlight (GL) - Chapter 16

No one knew that Che Gulai had once nearly died at the hands of her father.

Her parents divorced when she was very young. After the divorce, she was raised by her mother. Her mother was promiscuous and an alcoholic. Too lazy to care for her child, she often locked her in the room and ignored her.

At first, she cried and banged on the door, begging her mother to open it, but the house was always empty.

Che Gulai curled up on the bed, staring intently at the door, often fantasizing that her mother would open the door and let her out, but every fantasy ended in disappointment.

Slowly, she stopped fantasizing. She knew the small room was her cage.

Several times she nearly starved to death before her mother finally arrived late.

She actually knew her mother disliked her, finding her troublesome to raise. She tried her best to minimize her presence, not daring to eat too much, and not even daring to tell her mother when she needed thick clothes in winter.

She was afraid her mother would see her as a burden and abandon her.

Later, her mother died from alcoholism, and she was raised by her father. Her father already had a new family, and the woman of the house was powerful and arrogant. Her father’s money and career depended on this woman.

The woman naturally disliked her. Unable to directly say anything harsh to a child, she took out her resentment on the father, openly and secretly mocking the father and daughter as useless people who lived off others.

Over time, her father also grew resentful, believing that Che Gulai’s presence was the reason the woman disliked him.

He was weak and incompetent, blustering but cowardly. Once, after the woman deliberately sabotaged his project, he came home drunk, grabbed Che Gulai, dragged her to the car, and took her to the seaside.

Che Gulai didn’t know what he was going to do, only that her wrist was being painfully dragged along the beach.

She sensed what was about to happen and couldn’t help but be afraid.

Che Gulai at that time, being dependent on others, was overly precocious and often expressionless, emotionally numb. But a child of barely six could not overcome her fear of what was coming.

Her head was submerged in the sea. Salt water rushed into her nose and mouth, a bone-chilling pain.

Her father’s voice rang in her ears.

“You worthless thing, why didn’t you die earlier? Your mother died and just dumped you on me, without even asking if I wanted you!”

“It’s all because of a burden like you that my family is ruined! Should have known not to let your mother give birth to you! Why are you my child? Why didn’t you die at that awful woman’s hands!”

Che Gulai couldn’t hear clearly anymore. She felt like she was dying, but she didn’t want to die. Why did she have to die?!

The man was drunk and very dizzy. He quickly ran out of strength, stopped moving, and passed out.

Che Gulai’s consciousness was slowly fading. She wanted to escape but had no strength. She could only drown in the seawater, slowly waiting for death.

Fortunately, some fishermen came to collect seafood and spotted Che Gulai.

Che Gulai narrowly survived.

Her father, however, hadn’t given up. He no longer wanted to raise this daughter.

He decided to abandon her.

He tricked Che Gulai into going to an amusement park in another city, a very far city, far away from her home.

Then her father lied, saying he was going to the restroom and told her to wait.

Che Gulai watched her father’s retreating back, her eyes empty and cold, without any expression on her face, dull and gloomy.

She knew her father didn’t want her anymore.

Just as she knew her father wouldn’t take her to an amusement park specially—he had intended to abandon her from the start.

She just watched her father’s back, watching her last remaining relative leave her.

She didn’t go looking for her father. She just sat on a bench in the amusement park for a whole day, like a broken puppet.

Later, her father’s returning plane crashed, and he died.

After that, she became an orphan.

She no longer had many feelings for her parents. She only remembered the night she almost died.

Therefore, she hated the sea.

Shen Sijin suddenly remembered the female lead’s past. She recalled that Che Gulai’s past was also far from good.

Nearly drowned by her father, abandoned three times after being sent to an orphanage, harassed and oppressed by the male lead and the second male lead—all these were sources of pain.

For a moment, she felt that she and Che Gulai were the same kind of person.

“Che Gulai,” Shen Sijin suddenly said. “Have you ever thought about dying?”

“What?”

“Uh… I mean,” Shen Sijin quickly waved her hand, asking in a panicked confusion, “Do you ever have that… thought of wanting to end things?”

“No,” Che Gulai replied coldly. The wind blew her long hair. “I would never have that thought.”

“Not even once?” Shen Sijin seemed surprised. “But there’s always so much pain in life. It’s inevitable to want to give up, isn’t it?”

Che Gulai glanced at her, then coldly withdrew her gaze, saying flatly, “That’s for you people, not me.”

Her eyes were cold and resolute. “They all want me dead, but I refuse to die. Living is a person’s right, and I am in control of that. No one can dictate me.”

“…Is living a person’s right?” Shen Sijin murmured to herself.

She remembered long ago when that person told her to die. She had naively believed she didn’t have the right to live. Even though she desperately wanted to live, that woman always told her to die, so she genuinely tried to die once, but failed.

For years, she had always doubted whether she truly ought to die, but she wanted to live. The two thoughts fiercely pulled at her mind, causing her immense suffering.

She wanted to die, and she wanted to live.

She knew she was useless. What good was a failure who constantly hovered between life and death?

She had just thought Che Gulai was like her, but she wasn’t. Che Gulai was much stronger than her.

She possessed a resolve and vitality that Shen Sijin lacked. Shen Sijin was indecisive, while Che Gulai was consistently strong.

She envied a woman like Che Gulai.

Extremely envious.

If she could become a woman like Che Gulai, perhaps that woman wouldn’t be able to affect her anymore.

But she knew she couldn’t become that kind of person.

Che Gulai was different from her. She was strong and indifferent, never troubled by trivial things, nor was she weak and useless like herself.

She was truly a remarkable woman. Shen Sijin had never met anyone like her, like an insect encased in amber—mysterious and beautiful.

She made her envious and captivated.

An unprompted stirring rose in Shen Sijin’s heart, like a sudden rainstorm on a clear day, taking her by surprise, carrying a moist, contrary impulse.

The sea wind was strong, blowing Che Gulai’s dark hair across her face, obscuring her beautiful, indifferent eyes. Shen Sijin just stared foolishly at Che Gulai’s beautiful, delicate profile.

For several seconds, she gazed at Che Gulai’s profile, forgetting to speak.

White daisies swayed in her hand. Shen Sijin’s palm felt itchy. Suddenly snapping out of it, she realized she had been staring at Che Gulai.

She quickly averted her gaze, unsure why she had been staring at Che Gulai.

The sea wind was strong, but her face felt unexpectedly hot.

She covered her cheeks, embarrassed by her lapse in composure.

Che Gulai glanced at her. “Are you hot?”

“Ah—no, I’m not.”

“Then why are your ears so red?”

Shen Sijin tried to cover her ears to hide her flush, saying vaguely, “I don’t know…”

Che Gulai: “…”

“Let’s go back,” Che Gulai stood up.

“Oh.”

The two returned home, only to find the front door open. Shen Sijin assumed there was a thief and rushed inside.

Then, she was stunned.

A group of people stood inside. At the head was a handsome, tall man, looking down and smoking a cigarette.

Che Gulai also entered.

One of the girls wearing glasses spotted Che Gulai and immediately ran up. “Ms. Che.”

Che Gulai: “Xiao Xu?”

“Ms. Che, it’s me. Are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” Che Gulai said, surprised that her people had already found this place.

If her people had found her, then…

She looked up and saw the man. Her eyes instantly darkened.

Zhou Zi put out his cigarette and walked up to her. His voice was gentle. “Gulai, I’m sorry. I only found you now. Come back with me.”

Seeing him reach for her hand, Che Gulai raised her arm, dodging him. She said coldly, “What are you doing here?”

Zhou Zi smiled. “I missed you, so naturally, I came looking for you. I’ve been searching for you for a long time since you went missing these past few days.”

Shen Sijin looked at these people, her entire body stiffening. She felt completely out of place.

Did the male lead find the female lead this quickly?

She remembered the ensuing outcome, and her hands began to tremble. According to the plot, right after the male lead found the female lead, the female lead broke the original owner’s legs and sent her to a mental hospital.

She didn’t know if the female lead hated her now. She felt completely uncertain.

She just trembled, her face pale.

Zhou Zi saw Shen Sijin standing nearby and asked Che Gulai, “Was it her who did this to you?”

Before Che Gulai could answer, Zhou Zi kicked Shen Sijin in the stomach.

“Thud—”

Zhou Zi’s strength was considerable. Shen Sijin was kicked to the ground, coughing violently, clutching her stomach in pain, curled up in a ball.

Zhou Zi’s tone was cold and disgusted. “I remember warning you to stay away from Gulai. No matter what you do, I will never like a psycho like you.”

Shen Sijin was in too much pain to speak. She could sense everyone around her looking at her with eyes full of contempt, like trash. She lay there like a mouse.

A tremendous sense of shame engulfed her. She tightly curled up, trying to shrink into a ball to escape those hateful gazes.

Che Gulai looked down at her. Seeing her suffering, a ripple of emotion stirred within her, but it quickly froze over, returning to a cold, still lake.

Seeing that Zhou Zi was about to kick her again, she stopped him. “That’s enough.”

Zhou Zi withdrew his foot.

Hearing Che Gulai’s voice, Shen Sijin instinctively wanted to reach out, just like when that lunatic kicked her in the yard before. She wanted to touch Che Gulai.

Che Gulai walked up to her and crouched down.

“Shen Sijin, do you want me to help you up?”

Shen Sijin’s head was too muddled from the pain to fully register what Che Gulai said. She only said weakly, “…Che Gulai, it hurts so much.”

It hurts so much. Please save me.

Che Gulai seemed to give a faint smile. She had originally planned to just walk away, but she figured she still wanted to slowly torment Shen Sijin later, so it didn’t hurt to wait a moment. Her current miserable appearance had already pleased her, so giving her a small bit of sweetness wasn’t a bad idea.

She took Shen Sijin’s hand and helped her up.

Zhou Zi looked utterly confused, as did Xiao Xu.

Everyone knew Che Gulai and Shen Sijin were enemies. What on earth was this situation?

Shen Sijin’s body was weak. Her head was already dizzy from the sea breeze. Zhou Zi’s kick had sent her falling to the ground, and her head had hit the floor hard, giving her a mild concussion.

She couldn’t hold on and collapsed into Che Gulai’s arms.

Che Gulai lowered her eyes and called out to Xiao Xu.

“Take her back to her room,” Che Gulai said. She didn’t want to touch her and pushed Shen Sijin toward Xiao Xu.

Xiao Xu took hold of Shen Sijin.

“Oh, right,” Che Gulai added. “Help her clean and bandage her up casually, and leave a note in her room for me.”

“What should I write?” Xiao Xu asked.

Che Gulai: “Just write some comforting words.” A cruel smile curled her lips. “Something that would make a person cry with gratitude.”

She had more or less figured out Shen Sijin’s personality by now—naive, easily fooled, and quickly moved.

So, she would let her feel grateful toward her, giving her the illusion that everything was going her way, before tearing it all apart. That would surely be interesting.

Che Gulai’s beautiful phoenix eyes were utterly cold. She turned around and walked out.

Zhou Zi only had eyes for Che Gulai and couldn’t be bothered with Shen Sijin. Seeing Che Gulai leave, he followed her.

Xiao Xu followed Che Gulai’s instructions, quickly scribbled a sentence, and signed the note.

When Shen Sijin woke up, it was already evening. She first clutched her stomach, groaning a few times, then looked around.

This was her and Che Gulai’s room.

Che Gulai wasn’t there.

Perhaps she had left.

The room was empty.

A damp sense of loneliness washed over Shen Sijin, encircling her. She hugged her knees, resting her chin on them, her expression filled with a desolate, lonely emptiness.

Che Gulai would leave eventually.

She knew that.

But now that the day had come, Shen Sijin only felt forlorn.

She still had things she hadn’t had time to say to Che Gulai.

She wanted to ask her if she still hated her, and if she would seek revenge.

And…

Would she still remember her later?

Shen Sijin genuinely wanted to ask her.

She looked at her hands. The scraped parts had been bandaged. Did Che Gulai do it?

In the moment before she lost consciousness, she remembered Che Gulai holding her hand. Her hands were always warm and soft, seemingly capable of melting the icy temperature of her own palm.

Looking at it this way, Che Gulai probably didn’t hate her. But why didn’t she wait for her to wake up before leaving?

Shen Sijin felt dejected.

She left without even saying a single word.

So cold.

Shen Sijin suddenly covered her mouth and coughed. She wanted to drink some water but then abruptly noticed a piece of paper on the table.

[I have left. Take good care of your wounds and look after yourself. – Che Gulai]

Just a short sentence, but Shen Sijin pursed her lips and smiled.

Her eyes were crinkled with happiness, looking like a child who had been fooled but was overjoyed.

Author’s Note:

It’s a happy ending (HE). I only write sad endings (BE) for short stories.

Thank you for reading 😀