After Transmigrating as the Villain’s Scummy Alpha "Dainty" Wife, My Escape Failed (GL) - Chapter 13

After everyone had finished voting, Gu Ning picked up a marker and began tallying the votes on a whiteboard. Every time he opened a slip of paper, he called out the name written on it and drew a stroke next to that person’s name on the board.

As several names were called in a row, everyone watched Gu Ning with a hint of nervousness. Although this was just a game for a variety show, electing the “Village Head” was, in reality, a popularity contest among the guests. Getting the most votes meant having a high likability rating—being the most popular villager in the “Home of Peaches and Plums” and enjoying the perks of leadership.

However, as Gu Ning continued reading, he suddenly noticed something strange. “Wait, why is there a blank one?”

He unfolded the paper and showed it to everyone, looking perplexed. “I don’t think the rules mentioned blank abstentions. Did someone forget to write a name?”

He scanned the room, but no one responded. If it was intentional, it meant someone didn’t want to vote for anyone else and preferred to abstain. Such an act could easily draw criticism, so whoever left the blank slip certainly wasn’t going to admit to it.

Gu Ning cleared his throat, set the slip aside, and picked up the next one. But the next one… had Gu Ning’s name on it.

Chi Yuan frowned. “The Cloaked Man said Gu Ning doesn’t count as a candidate. So this vote is also void?”

Nine people, two void votes—that left only seven valid votes. On the whiteboard, Momo and Chi Yuan each had two votes, while Jiang Wan and Jiang Ci each had one. There was only one slip left in the box.

Seeing that the tide had turned against her, Jiang Wan was incredibly unwilling. She had wasted a vote by writing Gu Ning’s name specifically to void it. But now it was too late to ask the System to swap the result; even if the last vote had her name on it, Momo’s bonus vote would still put her in the lead.

This situation was a far cry from the smooth sailing she was used to!

The Female Lead Rising System sighed helplessly in her mind: [Please keep your feet on the ground and take the variety show seriously, Host. Your points are officially bankrupt.]

Jiang Wan fumed: It’s all the crew and the director’s fault! What kind of garbage pilot episode did they edit? I only had a few seconds of screen time, while all the hype went to Chi Yuan and Jiang Ci’s accidental kiss.

Jiang Wan: They kissed yesterday and I had no idea! Judging by their reactions, everyone else knew except me!

The System rolled its eyes internally. Who told you to double down on the “pure, innocent, and introverted” persona? People won’t come to you for gossip with a vibe like that.

The System consoled her: [The show has only just begun. There will be other opportunities.]

Gu Ning opened the final slip. It wasn’t void. He breathed a sigh of relief and added a stroke next to Jiang Ci’s name.

Gu Ning: “The final voting results are in. Momo, Teacher Jiang, and Sister Chi are tied with two votes each. But since Momo has the bonus vote, she leads with three.”

Now, it all came down to the Red Team’s bonus vote.

Gao Yaohui picked at the cushion of the sofa, looking at the blank space next to his name on the whiteboard. His emotions were complex. He instinctively looked toward Jiang Wan across the table, but noticed she was intentionally averting her gaze—a clear sign of avoidance.

Momo turned curiously to Chi Yuan. “Who do you think your Red Team’s bonus vote will go to?”

Chi Yuan glanced at Jiang Ci. “I think Jiang Ci. Between the supermarket shopping and the beach volleyball later, she helped our Red Team win a lot.”

Gu Meng: “Sister Chi’s explosive power was also strong! That punch was invincible!”

Wang Wen: “But without Jiang Ci, we would’ve been stuck at the supermarket for ages. We need someone smart as the Village Head so we can actually have some meat to eat.”

Harsh truth, but accurate.

The TV turned on once more. This time, the Cloaked Man held a nameplate with the Home of Peaches and Plums logo.

“The voting results are in. Currently, Momo has the highest count. Now, I will announce the Red Team’s bonus vote recipient. She played a strong leadership role in the supermarket procurement, leading the team to victory. In the volleyball segment, she utilized advantages rationally and strengthened team collaboration, showing me her potential as a Village Head.”

“Congratulations, Jiang Ci, on receiving the Red Team’s bonus vote.”

Chi Yuan grinned and clapped. She didn’t want to be the Village Head anyway, and she had voted for Jiang Ci because she felt the woman truly had the ability to lead.

Jiang Wan offered insincere congratulations, unable to stand the sight of Jiang Ci no matter how she looked at her. She blamed all her recent misfortunes on Jiang Ci; every time they were in the same place, she ended up unlucky. Was it a feng shui thing? Once she saved up more points, she’d have the System perform a divination.

Cloaked Man: “The two tied guests will serve as Village Head candidates for a one-day trial. Based on your performance, everyone will cast a second vote. Good luck to both of you.”

Late that night, after bathing, Chi Yuan lay flat on her bed watching Jiang Ci, who had just returned from a phone call. She suddenly asked, “Are you confident about the runoff against Momo tomorrow?”

Jiang Ci was bending over, rummaging through her suitcase. Her pink silk slip nightdress hung loosely on her frame, revealing her delicate collarbones and a glimpse of her proud curves. After a while, Chi Yuan saw her pull out a tube of allergy ointment.

Chi Yuan sat up, took the ointment, and pulled the woman to the edge of the bed. Jiang Ci didn’t refuse and sat down obediently.

Jiang Ci’s jade-like arms were currently covered in dense red spots. During the filming, she had used cooling sleeves and long-sleeved jackets to hide them. Chi Yuan hadn’t expected it to be this severe; in the afternoon it was only on her forearms, but now it had spread to her upper arms. She frowned, her eyes full of heartache.

Jiang Ci diverted her attention seemingly casually. “So, do you think my chances are good?”

As Chi Yuan applied the medicine, she analyzed for her: “In the voting tonight, two people picked Momo. I guess it was Jiang Wan and Gao Yaohui, since they were teammates.”

Jiang Ci shook her head with a light laugh. “Wrong. Guess again.”

“Then it must be Zhao Zhenzhen and Gu Ning?”

Chi Yuan pouted stubbornly. “It was an anonymous vote, how do you know who voted for whom?”

Jiang Ci tilted her head. “It was so obvious, you couldn’t tell?”

Chi Yuan shook her head.

Jiang Ci didn’t answer directly, asking instead, “Then who do you think wrote the blank slip and the void vote with Gu Ning’s name?”

Chi Yuan still shook her head.

“Momo is very determined to be the Village Head and successfully got the bonus vote. No matter who she voted for, she would just be creating a competitor for herself. So, the easiest way was to abstain.”

Jiang Ci continued: “The crew didn’t say we couldn’t abstain, and since it’s anonymous, no one knows who did it.”

Chi Yuan: “But… it could have been someone else.”

Jiang Ci: “Did you consider abstaining?”

Chi Yuan: “No, I didn’t want to be the Village Head anyway.”

“Today’s task ended, and I observed everyone. People’s enthusiasm clearly isn’t as high as it was on the first day. Being the Village Head gives you the power to make rules, but it also means being at the forefront of everything—meaning the dirty work might fall on you. After weighing the pros and cons, everyone made their choice. Sister Zhenzhen and Wang Wen looked a bit disappointed when the results came out, but mostly relieved.”

Chi Yuan suddenly remembered. After the voting, she had heard Zhao Zhenzhen say that the Village Head position should go to the young people; she was simply too tired. She must have been exhausted by the fruit-picking task.

As for Wang Wen… she hadn’t noticed anything…

Jiang Ci seemed to see through her confusion. “Wang Wen is the comedian type who wants to stick his nose into everything. He probably wanted to join for the fun of it. During the task today, he, like Gu Meng, didn’t show much desire to stand out—he just cooperated actively. So, the most likely person to abstain was Momo.”

“You said the two votes for Momo were Jiang Wan and Gao Yaohui. Then let me ask you: who did Jiang Wan’s one vote go to?”

“It was…” Chi Yuan thought through everyone close to Jiang Wan but couldn’t find a certain candidate. Originally, Momo was a high possibility since they were roommates. But according to Jiang Ci’s analysis, if Momo abstained, she couldn’t have voted for Jiang Wan.

That left… Wang Wen and Gao Yaohui? They were both hovering around her yesterday, but given Wang Wen’s attitude today, he likely voted for Jiang Ci.

“It was Gao Yaohui.”

Jiang Ci snapped her fingers with a “teachable student” look. “Bingo. That’s the only way it’s logical. Plus, he looked quite disappointed after the vote and kept staring at Jiang Wan.”

“So they agreed to vote for each other?” Chi Yuan felt she had found the key point. “But Jiang Wan broke the promise. She voted for someone else, or rather… she didn’t vote at all. She abstained!”

That was exactly the kind of thing a “Female Lead” would do.

Having finished applying the medicine, Chi Yuan put the ointment away. Jiang Ci laughed and lay down beside her, signaling for her to continue.

Chi Yuan: “Jiang Wan’s vote came from Gao Yaohui. Your votes were from me and Wang Wen. Momo and Jiang Wan abstained. That leaves the twins and Sister Zhenzhen. Gu Meng has high survival instincts, so he definitely voted for me. That means Momo’s two votes must have come from Gu Ning and Sister Zhenzhen.”

Chi Yuan felt her logic was perfect.

“Wait, wait,” Jiang Ci suddenly called a halt, squinting at her. “Are you so sure I voted for you? You’re a bit overconfident, aren’t you?”

Chi Yuan froze, clearly not expecting that. She scratched her head. “I mean, if you didn’t vote for me, who else would you vote for?”

“I vote for whoever performs well.”

Chi Yuan leaned in with an innocent look. “Do you not think I performed well?”

Jiang Ci reached out and pushed her back onto her own bed. “Think about it some more.”

“You really didn’t vote for me?!” Chi Yuan’s tone was full of disbelief, as if this were some tragic injustice.

Jiang Ci ignored her and clicked off the bedside lamp. In the darkness, she listened to the sound of Chi Yuan tossing and turning beside her, the corners of her mouth curling slightly upward.

Meanwhile, in the next room.

Jiang Wan lay on her small bed, closing her eyes in frustration. Recalling the various encounters over the past two days, she felt so wronged she even thought about quitting the show. She didn’t get to be the Village Head—the role with the most screen time—and now she had to do back-breaking manual labor here. If she had this much free time, she’d rather go film a drama.

Suddenly, she felt an itch on her face, as if hair were drifting across it.

When she opened her eyes—

“Ah—mph! Mmmph!”