After Transmigrating Into A Book As The Protagonist’s Cannon-Fodder Lackey - Chapter 2

Several boys were gathered around someone whose face could not be seen, punching and kicking them. Hearing her voice, they turned to look over.

That murderous, hostile look made Su Linye unable to stop herself from taking half a step back.

One of them snapped viciously, “Something the matter?”

Su Linye smiled with the perfect harmony of peace and prosperity. “No, no, no, no. You guys keep busy, keep busy.”

In her panic, she stepped straight back around the corner.

Then she quietly poked her head out to observe.

Through the gap, she could vaguely make out that the person being forced into the corner was a thin, weak-looking girl.

She was curled up, her arms protecting her head, occasionally letting out broken whimpers.

Su Linye thought for a moment, took out her phone, and called the police.

After she was done, she flattened herself against the wall like a gecko, sneakily revealing one eye to peep.

Watching fist after fist land on the girl, her brows twitched along with each blow, as if those punches were landing on her own body.

She murmured to herself, “Too cruel. Is everyone in this world this ruthless?”

“Dumbass, hand over the money!”

A very small voice came over, mixed with sobs. “I don’t have any money left. I already gave you everything…”

Another loud slap rang out. “My dad saw you buying water. You can afford drinks and you’re still saying you have no money? You trying to fool your father?!”

With a vicious kick, Su Linye saw the girl crash into the wall and drop to both knees.

One boy grabbed her by the hair, revealing a miserable face, then struck her with another slap. The girl’s head was knocked to the side.

All the blood in Su Linye’s body rushed to her head. Her face flushed crimson, and she leapt out from around the corner like a hero.

“Stop! I’ve already called the police!”

Everyone in front of her stopped and looked at one another.

“Damn it, are you stupid? Watch it, or we’ll beat you up too!”

Su Linye came back to her senses and slapped herself in her heart. But even though her calves were trembling from fear, she still worked hard to straighten her back and bluff her way through.

“The police will be here soon! Just you wait!”

A broad, thick-waisted boy glanced back and shouted angrily, “Are you fucking sick? Why are you sticking your nose into other people’s business?!”

Su Linye estimated the distance between the two sides. Feeling that if they rushed at her, she would still have a chance to escape, she fired back, “I’m sticking my nose in! What are you going to do about it?”

Several of them looked at one another. The buzz-cut boy raised his fist and was about to charge at her.

Su Linye took half a step back, checked the routes on either side, and tensed her legs, ready to run at any moment.

Light footsteps came from around the corner, accompanied by a voice.

“Old Jiang, who pissed you off again? Why did you run off to the boxing gym again? That cheap little sister of yours was asking me about you just now. I laughed it off and muddled through, but who knows, she might go tattle to your mother again. Be careful. Better not go home for now.”

Su Linye had no time to care that the name sounded a little familiar. The moment she heard the words “boxing gym,” she immediately dropped her ready-to-run posture, let out a howl, and fell to the ground, clutching her head. “Don’t hit me, don’t hit me! I’ll never meddle again!”

The boy was baffled for a moment. “What the hell are you—”

Before he could react, he only felt a gust of wind. Then his stomach hurt, and his entire body flew out.

That clear, bright voice sounded above her head.

“Dumbass. What kind of skill is bullying the weak? Come fight me one-on-one if you’ve got the guts.”

The boy lay on the ground, retching nonstop. Eyes blurred with tears, he looked up and saw a tall figure, hair flying.

The girl seemed to notice something. She stepped over his head and walked inside, then bent down to look at the person who had been bullied.

She clicked her tongue lightly. “Look what you beat her into. You think you’re so good at fighting, huh?” After saying that, she kicked the person on the ground again, sending him flying two meters away like garbage.

Of course, the others did not escape either. Some had broken bones, some vomited blood. They were more than twice as miserable as the girl in the corner.

Su Linye watched the entire thing and shouted “so satisfying” in her heart.

The little thugs were sprawled all over the ground, no longer a threat. The girl crouched down to look at the person in the corner. “Hey, are you okay? Are you still alive?”

There was no response. The girl thought for one second, then muttered, “Beaten to death?”

Su Linye, who had just climbed up from the ground and walked closer: …

“She’s probably just fainted.”

The girl turned back in surprise. “She’s not dead?”

Su Linye: “…Was she supposed to be?”

The girl saw her reaction and gave an “oh.” “I just thought she seemed to have been beaten pretty badly.”

As she spoke, she brushed aside the person’s hair to show Su Linye. “Look.”

Before Su Linye could see clearly, the girl let out a surprised sound first. “Why is it her?”

Su Linye was delighted. “You know her?”

Great. Since they knew each other, the girl definitely would not just leave her lying here, which meant Su Linye would not have to pay for an ambulance.

“Helped her a few times,” the girl said to herself. “Why is she being bullied every time I see her?”

Seeing the bruises all over the person’s body and her faint breathing, Su Linye suggested, “Maybe we should call an ambulance.” Otherwise, in a while, she might really die.

The girl nodded casually. “You call.”

Su Linye did not react. She just stood there blankly.

Seeing that she did not move, the girl asked, “What?”

Su Linye said tactfully, “I remember you seem to know her.”

The girl raised a brow. “You don’t know her?”

Su Linye doubted herself for a second. “Am I supposed to?”

The girl put away the smile she always seemed to wear. Her gaze swept inch by inch over Su Linye’s face, then moved away before Su Linye could feel too baffled. Smiling, she said, “You don’t know her, and you still dared to save her? Aren’t you afraid you’ll get dragged into it too?”

Su Linye pretended to be modest. “I couldn’t just watch someone get beaten to death, could I? No helping it. I’m just too kindhearted. No need to praise me.”

The girl laughed. “You really don’t stand on ceremony.”

She reached out and wiped the blood and dirt from the injured girl’s face, revealing a delicate, pale face. Tilting her head, she studied her for a while and muttered, “She looks much cuter asleep than awake.”

Only then did she answer Su Linye’s question. “I do know her, but my phone broke.”

She gestured in a certain direction on the ground.

Su Linye followed her gaze and saw what appeared to be the remains of a phone.

Su Linye: ?

The girl stood up and coughed awkwardly. “When I fight, I have this habit of throwing whatever’s in my hand first.”

Su Linye was convinced. “Seriously, you rich people are too much. I’m going to fight all of you.” As she complained, she took out her old phone and called 120.

The girl’s gaze fell on it, her brow lifting slightly. “Is that a family heirloom antique? Won’t you get beaten for taking an antique out to use?”

Su Linye was caught off guard, as if several knives had stabbed into her heart.

She nearly spat out a mouthful of blood. “Is there any chance that I just don’t have the money to buy a new phone, so I can only keep using this ancient fossil?”

“Ah. Sorry.”

After Su Linye reported the address, she hung up.

The girl suddenly asked, “Do ambulances cost money?”

Su Linye said, “Yes, yes, Young Miss. Are you going to give me the money?”

The other girl’s phone was gone, so Su Linye did not expect this young miss to conjure cash out of thin air for her.

The girl pointed at the person on the ground. “Her name is Meng Tao. She’s not short on money. You saved her, so she’ll definitely repay you.”

Su Linye thought about it and was certain that this person had not been mentioned in the original novel. She was probably a side plot automatically filled in by the broader world.

She had just gotten a sum of ill-gotten money, and she did not really plan to quibble over two hundred yuan with an injured person who had fainted. “Fine. I know.”

The girl could see how perfunctory she was. With a soft snort of laughter, she thought this newly transferred girl was actually rather interesting.

The little thugs who had been knocked down earlier recovered a little strength and, while the two of them were talking, tried to sneak away.

The girl’s gaze turned sharp. With one sweep of her eyes, she said, “Still trying to run?”

She looked around, then swiftly, accurately, and ruthlessly pulled the ancient fossil out of Su Linye’s hand. Using a clever flick of force, she threw it out. It struck the leader’s leg with perfect precision, and the person cried out, dropping to his knees.

The remaining lackeys’ legs went weak, and they collapsed beside their boss.

Su Linye looked at her empty hand, then looked at the broken fragments on the ground.

She slowly lowered the hand she had been holding up and stared motionlessly at the girl.

A poor person’s resentment was too strong. So strong that the other girl could not ignore it even if she wanted to. Slowly, the girl turned her head and raised a brilliant smile. “I’ll compensate you.”

Su Linye lifted the corners of her mouth in a smile that did not reach her eyes.

In the end, there was still no time to buy a phone. First, the two of them took Meng Tao to the hospital, and then they were taken by the police, along with those thugs, to the station to give their statements.

Because Su Linye was the one who had called the police, and because she had seen more of what happened, she was kept there longer. By the time she came out, the sky outside was completely dark.

A police officer on duty called out to her. “That friend of yours had something urgent come up and left first. She left this for you.”

Su Linye thanked him and accepted it.

It was an envelope. Inside were a note and several bills.

As she walked out, she opened the note. An address was written on it.

Originally, she had planned to go straight home. But right now, Su Linye did not know where the original owner’s home was. She had no phone, no money, and no ID. She could not even stay at a hotel.

So she could only take these things and get into a car.

This area was the city center, a prime location where every inch of land was worth gold.

At night, the skyscrapers were brightly lit, and neon flickered along the streets.

Su Linye got out in front of a unique-looking residential compound.

Following the instructions on the note, she searched her way in and smoothly stopped in front of the door to a large flat.

She rang the doorbell.

Su Linye was still constructing how she should greet the person in her mind when an unexpected figure appeared behind the door.

Her smile froze on her face. “Lu Jiang?”

Lu Jiang lifted her eyes. Deep in her black pupils, a flicker of scrutiny flashed by and disappeared. Very quickly, she returned to normal, businesslike as she handed over the bag in her hand. Her tone was indifferent. “Qin Yu asked me to give this to you.”

Su Linye accepted it and swallowed all the apologies she had been about to say. Puzzled, she asked, “Qin Yu?”

Wasn’t that the protagonist’s sworn enemy, the protagonist top of this story? So the girl she had met today was Qin Yu?

Were these bickering rivals on such good terms?

“Mm.” Lu Jiang’s features beneath the shadow looked dark and vivid, her eyes so black they were almost detached. “She had something to deal with, so she asked me to give this to you.”

Su Linye came back to herself. “Thank you.”

“No need.”

Seeing that Lu Jiang was about to close the door, Su Linye had no idea where the courage came from, but she grabbed the door panel.

Lu Jiang frowned almost imperceptibly. “Anything else?”

Seeing her expression, Su Linye froze for a moment, but quickly reacted. With a completely serious face, she said, “I’m really sorry about what happened today. I…”

She wanted to say that she had not done it on purpose. But from Lu Jiang’s perspective, this was a completely self-directed, self-acted staged accident scam from beginning to end. Even if Su Linye said that she had accidentally transmigrated over and had no idea what was going on, the other girl would never believe her.

Su Linye took a deep breath and said sincerely, “Whether you believe me or not, I really didn’t do it on purpose. I probably can’t return the money to you right away, but I’ll work hard to earn money and give it back as soon as I can.”

While she spoke, Lu Jiang quietly looked at her the entire time. Her eyes, like cold stars, seemed calm and rippleless, yet she patiently waited until Su Linye had finished before replying in a lukewarm tone, “Suit yourself.”

“It’s late. I’m going to sleep.”

Su Linye sharply sensed the shift in the other girl’s attitude. She paused, then raised a smile and let go. “Sweet dreams.”

It was the beginning of autumn, the tail end of summer. The temperature at night was still very high, but a gentle breeze blew, bringing a hint of coolness.

Su Linye looked up and suddenly wanted very much to see the stars.

But the city was noisy, the lights flickering, illuminating the sky into a deep, inky blue. The starlight seemed to know it could not compete with the city lights and quietly hid itself away.

The wind lifted Su Linye’s loose strands of hair. She blinked, then slowly smiled.

Forget it, forget it. She would take things as they came.

Right now, the most urgent thing was to go home and sleep. After being busy all day, she was about to die of exhaustion.

Taking out the phone from the bag, which looked expensive at a single glance, Su Linye fiddled with it for ages and finally found the original owner’s address.

She very extravagantly hailed a ride.

By the time she got home, it was already the second half of the night. The original owner’s home was a dangerous old building in an urban village, with dim, filthy corridors, deep blue windows from the last century, and a narrow, cramped room like a haunted house.

And it truly was not easy for such a tiny room to still be divided into one bedroom, one living room, a kitchen, and a bathroom.

Fortunately, however, the original owner had kept the place very clean. There was no strange smell and no garbage.

Su Linye looked around briefly, quickly washed up, and went to rest.

The next day, she was woken by the ringing of her phone.

Yesterday, she had logged into the chat account. Early this morning, the class group was chattering nonstop.

Still bleary-eyed, Su Linye opened it. After figuring out what had happened, she instantly woke up completely.

—Little Potato Chip had posted yesterday’s video!!