Chapter 21.1
Ye Muyan knew little about online fiction and hadn’t read the synopsis, so she paid especially close attention as she began reading.
The story took place in a fictional setting somewhat reminiscent of the Republican era.
The protagonist was neither a wealthy young lady nor a sheltered girl from a respectable family, but a mute girl born into poverty. One year, a terrible drought struck her hometown. Many villagers starved to death, and soon there was barely any tree bark left to eat.
There was no helping it. Under such conditions, her family could no longer feed her.
The plot was fairly predictable. The female lead was sold, took the opportunity to escape, and through a twist of fate was rescued and adopted by a kindhearted couple. They gave her a new name: Qingyun.
It was a standard setup. Naturally, it was now time for the villainous supporting female character to appear.
This girl was the biological daughter of Qingyun’s adoptive parents. She was around the same age as Qingyun and was named Wanfeng.
Even more predictably, Wanfeng was arrogant, spoiled, and willful from a young age—every bit as troublesome as Ruan Xin.
In short, she was a noisy little brat whose every word and action made people want to smack her.
The moment Qingyun arrived at her new home, Wanfeng tried to establish her authority. She assumed that Qingyun was greedy and had deliberately targeted her wealthy family in order to steal her parents’ affection.
Although the female lead continued treating her gently, gradually softening Wanfeng’s attitude, Wanfeng soon began regarding Lu Qingyun as her private property. She refused to let Qingyun speak to anyone else and wouldn’t allow others near her.
One passage in the novel read:
Her greed threatened to devour her entire heart. This was no longer childish possessiveness, but a desire to claim another person completely.
Yes. She wanted Lu Qingyun all to herself.
In Ye Muyan’s opinion, Wanfeng was a complicated character.
Calling her evil didn’t seem right when she was willing to sacrifice her life for the female lead. Yet calling her good wasn’t accurate either, since she delighted in tormenting people.
By this point, Ye Muyan had already read a third of the novel. Just as she began wondering when the male lead would appear, time passed within the story and the two girls grew up.
At last, a male character appeared.
However, before the romance could develop, Wanfeng charged in and interfered, bringing the relationship to an abrupt end…
Amid the pouring rain, Lu Qingyun questioned her soundlessly through sign language.
Wanfeng remained as haughty as ever.
“That’s right. I’m going to steal him from you. Every time you find someone, I’ll take him away! Do you have any idea how happy it makes me to see you angry?”
Tch. Different world, same kind of sisters.
Ye Muyan shook her head at the melodramatic plot. The supporting female character’s words also sounded strangely familiar.
Wanfeng clearly cared about Lu Qingyun, so why did she keep stealing her sister’s love interests?
The answer? Ye Muyan would simply have to keep reading.
Just as she assumed the two women were about to turn against each other over a man, Lu Qingyun fell ill after being caught in the rain and suffering an emotional shock.
“You’re awake?”
Wanfeng returned late that night, reeking of alcohol.
Lu Qingyun turned to look at her. Wanfeng wore a long white lace dress with a pale teal shawl draped over it. A delicate snowflake bracelet set with tiny diamonds encircled her fair wrist.
Dressed like that…she had clearly just returned from meeting someone.
“Are you feeling better?”
Wanfeng smiled at her and tucked a lock of curled hair behind her ear. Her steps were unsteady, and her gaze remained fixed intently on Qingyun.
Lu Qingyun sensed that something was wrong. She found herself unable to meet that gaze.
Wanfeng silently removed her shoes, lifted the covers, and sat directly astride her.
Lu Qingyun stared at her in disbelief, unable to understand what kind of drunken madness had possessed this spoiled girl.
As if sensing her confusion, Wanfeng tilted her head and looked at her.
Lu Qingyun endured her gaze for several seconds before anger finally rose inside her, prompting her to turn away. She had a gentle temperament, but even the gentlest person had a temper.
“What is that supposed to mean?” Wanfeng’s expression changed. She turned Qingyun’s face back toward her. “Is this my fault?”
Lu Qingyun’s eyes were filled with bitter disappointment.
She hated the feeling of being betrayed.
They stared at each other. The stubbornness gradually vanished from Wanfeng’s face. Her eyes reddened, and her expression became both angry and aggrieved.
“You… You don’t understand anything!” The words sounded painfully weak coming from her.
Lu Qingyun turned her head away again, though her chest tightened.
As she grew older, she could no longer face Wanfeng with the same openness she had possessed as a child.
In truth, she wasn’t as good as everyone imagined. She wanted to escape from feelings that could never be fulfilled, yet Wanfeng kept sabotaging every attempt she made.
“Look at me!” Wanfeng’s drunken temper flared. She gripped Qingyun’s shoulders and demanded shrilly, “Who do you think I did all this for? Tell me! Why can’t you—”
Her words suddenly caught in her throat.
In the end, she buried her face against Lu Qingyun’s neck, her voice trembling with tears.
“Why can’t you just fall in love with me…?”
Wait—what?
Ye Muyan stared blankly at the screen. Only now did she realize that she had fallen into a trap.
Her hands froze over the keyboard while the laughter of the other two idiots echoed through the study.
She remained motionless for several seconds before mechanically reading through the scorching scenes that followed. One moment, the story had been about sisterly devotion; the next, it had become Fast and Furious: Girls’ Love Edition.
Beep.
On the other side of the room, Ruan Xin heard the system notification.
She paid it little attention, knowing her Little Devil score had probably risen again.
Yu Qiaotian was still laughing. “Holy crap, you drew your sister way too ugly! Hahahaha!”
Ruan Xin smacked him on the head. “Shut up, you rotten little brother!”
Yu Qiaotian continued laughing, but he picked up his pencil and eraser to help her fix the drawing.
Ruan Xin held up one of his sketches. “Are these character designs for Mr. An’s story?”
Yu Qiaotian nodded. Heaven only knew why he had agreed to draw for someone else that day.
As a child, he had often been scolded over his painting and calligraphy. Those experiences had made him deeply reluctant to display his work in front of others.
It wasn’t that he disliked drawing. He simply hated having other people restrict his ideas, and he didn’t want to be surrounded and praised like some performing monkey.
“Is this the protagonist?”
Ruan Xin pulled out a character design depicting a woman with a high ponytail, dressed in a Tang-style robe.
Yu Qiaotian glanced at it. “One of them.”
Ruan Xin frowned. Holding the drawing beside Ye Muyan for comparison, she immediately grabbed Yu Qiaotian by the collar and lowered her voice.
“Don’t tell me you still have feelings for her.”
“Get lost.”
Yu Qiaotian cursed and arched his sharp brows. “Do you think I’m the kind of man who breaks his word? I just thought your sister’s face suited the character.”
Only then did Ruan Xin release him. “Fine. Big Sister will give you an extra drumstick next time.”
Yu Qiaotian straightened his clothes and stared at her incredulously. “You rotten brat! I just don’t understand why you care so much about your sister’s business.”
“You think I want to?”
If she had a choice, she would stay far away from every major character in the novel. She had no desire to get involved with them, much less become one of Ye Muyan’s henchmen.
“You’re seriously strange.” Yu Qiaotian was beginning to suspect that something was wrong with her head. Her words and actions never matched.
Ruan Xin, however, became serious. “But Yu Qiaotian, I genuinely advise you not to fall for her.”
Yu Qiaotian’s lips moved, but he said nothing. His gaze drifted toward Ye Muyan.
She was beautiful and had a distinctive personality. Perhaps someday she would meet someone far more exceptional than him…
But if he were choosing someone to spend his life with, she wouldn’t be his choice.
“Little Ruan, Little Ye, Little Yu.”
An Chen called out to them.
“Ye Muyan, the noodles are ready,” Ruan Xin shouted as she stood.
Ye Muyan closed the page and shut down the computer. Her expression remained perfectly calm, as though nothing had happened.
…
That afternoon, the two returned home.
Ruan Xin glanced at Ye Muyan, wondering why she had been so quiet today.
Sensing her gaze, Ye Muyan asked, “What is it?”
“Nothing.”
“Did you have enough fun today?”
Ruan Xin frowned. “Why does that sound so weird coming from you?”
Ye Muyan said nothing. Her pale tea-colored eyes remained fixed on her.
“What are you doing?” Goose bumps rose all over Ruan Xin’s skin, and she instinctively stepped backward.
If she had been a cat, every hair on her body would have been standing on end.
Ye Muyan still didn’t speak. Her gaze slowly swept over Ruan Xin from head to toe before meeting her eyes again.
“What are you staring at?” Ruan Xin looked away. Like a defeated lion, she turned around and muttered, “Honestly… I’m going to take a shower.”
“Oh.”
Ye Muyan watched her leave, confusion gradually appearing on her face.
She suspected that Ruan Xin didn’t like An Chen at all.
Instead…she liked her.
It wasn’t entirely baseless. An ordinary person naturally wouldn’t fall in love with her own sister.
But was Ruan Xin an ordinary person?
She was sensitive, prone to tears, violently temperamental, and possibly suffering from a split personality.
When Ye Muyan considered everything Ruan Xin had said and done, the situation seemed both pitiful and tragic.
Besides, if Ruan Xin liked An Chen, she wouldn’t have snuck out in the middle of the night to follow her. She wouldn’t have flown into such a rage after discovering that a pervert was stalking her. She wouldn’t have warned An Chen away, nor would her expression have abruptly changed whenever she saw Ye Muyan with him.
Therefore, the person Ruan Xin liked…
Was actually Ye Muyan herself.
No wonder Ruan Xin had told her to figure it out, claiming that she would understand someday…
Ye Muyan had barely begun to feel relieved before her heart tightened again.
She was glad that Ruan Xin didn’t like An Chen, but what was she supposed to do if Ruan Xin liked her? Was she supposed to trample on Ruan Xin’s heart again and drive her into becoming even more extreme?
She had spent a long time thinking in front of the computer at An Chen’s house.
If she treated Ruan Xin better and gently guided her away from these misguided feelings, wouldn’t that change things?
“I’m going to bed.”
While Ye Muyan was lost in thought, Ruan Xin emerged from the bathroom.
“Do whatever you want. It has nothing to do with me.”
Ye Muyan looked up, then slowly rose to collect the laundry.
Ruan Xin glanced back at her and muttered, “What a weirdo,” as she shut her bedroom door.
She kicked off her shoes and flopped onto the bed.
Lying there like a salted fish, she opened her status screen.
Checking it had become a habit since she arrived in this world. If she didn’t look, she felt strangely uneasy.
Her points had been rising at a decent rate over the past few days.
Black Heart Points: 37.
Little Devil Points: 3000/9999.
She was another tiny step closer to her goal. What wonderful news!
“What’s this?”
Ruan Xin’s attention shifted away from the numbers. A tiny envelope was flashing in the lower-left corner.
The system explained, “You triggered a story event. Since it wasn’t convenient for you to view it during the day, the system saved it for you.”
Oh. How considerate.
Ruan Xin opened the two envelopes. “There are two story events?”
“That’s right. By the way, sweetie, are you unable to access all of the original host’s memories?”
“Yes.”
Ruan Xin nodded. After entering this body, she had essentially become Ruan Xin herself.
Their information was merging and altering one another. It was gradually mutating while simultaneously assimilating, yet even with such compatibility, there were still strange blanks and uncertainties.
She could use the body exactly as the original Ruan Xin had. She knew what kind of person the original had been, roughly what her past was like, and what sort of personality she possessed.
But most of the time, memories belonging to the original host—or to the people around her—were automatically inserted into her mind. She didn’t truly remember them herself.
She really was like a mere tool.
“Given the original host’s personality, she would never let someone else profit so easily. Once you accumulate enough Black Heart Points, her memories will be released through triggered story events.”
All right. Ruan Xin understood.
In other words, it operated through the same damn mechanism as her mission.
She silently cursed the original host countless times.
“Which story would you like to view first?”
Ruan Xin thought briefly. “The original host’s.”
“Certainly.”
As soon as the system finished speaking, familiar darkness surrounded her.
When Ruan Xin opened her eyes and looked down, she saw a pair of small, chubby hands soaking in a little basin.
The hands felt around in the muddy water and touched something round. When they picked it up, she saw that it was a crystal ball.
Ruan Xin stared at it, finding the sensation deeply peculiar.
She was experiencing the memory from a first-person perspective and could feel the body’s memories and emotions, yet she had no control over it.
The crystal ball had been won from another child. It had fallen into a muddy ditch and become filthy, so the original Ruan Xin was diligently washing it clean.
“Ruan Xin, how many times have I told you not to play with water?”
A young Ruan Tao grabbed her from behind and pulled her upright.
“Mommy, I have a ball.”
The words emerged from Ruan Xin’s mouth, slurred and babyish.
The young original host turned toward her mother. Only then did Ruan Xin realize how youthful Ruan Tao had been at the time. She was still a young woman herself.
Ruan Tao stared at the crystal ball with a complicated expression. Silently, she took a rag and wiped up the filthy water on the ground.
“Your aunt will be here soon. Remember to greet her.”
“Why has she never visited before?” the young Ruan Xin asked.
Ruan Tao’s gaze dimmed. “Mommy…made a mistake.”
Ruan Xin knew that the so-called mistake had been getting pregnant with her.
Perhaps Ruan Tao had genuinely loved that man and couldn’t bear to terminate the pregnancy.
But did she regret it?
If she did, she wouldn’t have worked so hard to build a good life for herself and her daughter.
The word heart was so simple, yet it could contain countless emotions.
“Tao’er.”
While they were speaking, Ruan Xin’s aunt arrived.
“You’re here, Sister-in-law.” Ruan Tao hurriedly poured out the dirty water and went to open the door.
Ruan Xin followed her.
Outside stood a plump, fair-skinned woman. She carried a bag in one hand and held the hand of a little girl in a princess dress with the other.
The colors of that dress…
What a fashion disaster.
The layers of gauze came in so many fluorescent colors that Ruan Xin’s eyes practically hurt.
The original Ruan Xin, however, was too young to understand good taste. Her mouth fell open, undisguised envy gleaming in her eyes.
She wanted a puffy princess dress covered in layers of tulle too…
No, original Ruan Xin. You did not.
Ruan Tao gently nudged her.
The child returned to her senses. “Hello, Auntie!”
“Hello. What a good girl.” Her aunt looked warm and friendly, her smile full of enthusiasm.
But through the original host’s eyes, Ruan Xin could see the coldness beneath that smile. When the woman noticed Ruan Xin’s dirty hands, the corner of her eye even twitched.
The young Ruan Xin knew nothing about reading people. Seeing her aunt’s smile only filled her heart with warmth, and she happily smiled back.
Her aunt turned to her daughter. “Say hello.”
The little girl said nothing. She lifted her round face, her lips pursed so far that an oil bottle could have hung from them.
Her mother feigned anger. “Honestly, this child!”
Ruan Tao smiled and smoothed things over. “She’s never met me before. Children always need time to adjust.”
“That’s true. My daughter isn’t nearly as well-behaved as our precious Little Xin.”
Her aunt nodded and followed Ruan Tao inside.
Ruan Tao poured two glasses of water. “It wasn’t easy coming all the way from the city. Have some water, Sister-in-law.”
Her aunt glanced at the water but didn’t touch it. Instead, she went straight to the point.
“Tao, how have you been lately?”
Only then did Ruan Tao smile. “Not bad. I earned a little money picking tea the day before yesterday.”
“Oh, that’s good. But…” Her aunt paused, regret appearing on her face. “What a shame. You have such a beautiful face, and even after having a child, you still have a wonderful figure. Why bury yourself in this miserable little town? Haven’t you considered working in the city and finding yourself a good man?”
“Well…” Ruan Tao laughed awkwardly.
The problem was that the man would have to accept Ruan Xin too.
Her aunt sighed and spoke earnestly. “I actually came today because I need to ask you for a favor. Your brother and I are traveling out of town to purchase stock, so we’d like you to look after our daughter for a few days.”
“That’s no trouble,” Ruan Tao replied. “We’re family. Your child is no different from mine.”
Her aunt continued, “Besides, this will give you a chance to get used to life in the city. Who knows? You might even encounter a good opportunity there. You can’t stay here forever, can you? Once your daughter grows older, she’ll have to attend school. Your brother and I are both in the city, so at least you’d have someone looking out for you. Why not move there?”
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