Paranoid Girlfriend [Transmigration into a Book] - Chapter 3

The cold wasn’t too serious but lingered for three full days. Using her illness as an excuse, Dai Shi Yuan took the opportunity to learn more about the villa.

Her brother (the male lead) was busy with company matters every day and had no time to come home.

His parents were traveling abroad and wouldn’t be back for at least a month.

In the huge villa, only she and the female lead remained.

Well… there were also the housekeeper and servants, but the person she interacted with the most was still the female lead.

During her illness, only the male lead’s father called to ask about her condition. On the phone, he repeatedly reminded her of many things she needed to pay attention to.

Although he was a bit long-winded, it made her feel very warm.

She had lost her father at a young age and was raised single-handedly by her mother through many hardships.

After she graduated from university, her mother fell ill and passed away.

She became a true orphan. Her daily life consisted of going back and forth between the company and home. Occasionally, she would go out with colleagues or friends.

If not for this accident, she would probably still be living an ordinary life.

Nothing earth-shattering—just steady, simple happiness.

Dai Shi Yuan sat at her desk, left hand supporting her head, her gaze unfocused somewhere in the distance. Her right hand held a pen and kept tapping the same spot on the paper.

The black ink gradually expanded from a small dot into a large circle, even soaking through to the next page.

After a long time, Dai Shi Yuan suddenly snapped back to her senses. Seeing the large black mess on the paper, she groaned in frustration and hugged her head.

She had ruined the volunteer form she had just filled out. Now she would have to fill it in again.

Dai Shi Yuan sighed and rewrote everything.

Looking at the new application form, her mood improved again. Her bright, sparkling eyes were filled with beautiful expectations for the future.

Her top three choices were all out-of-province universities. This way, no matter which school accepted her, she could stay far away from the female lead.

Just as she was feeling delighted about this decision, a knocking sound came from outside the door.

Dai Shi Yuan’s heart tightened. The smile on her face froze instantly, and she subconsciously hid the application form.

These past few days, the female lead had been frequently entering her room, saying she wanted to take care of her.

In truth, Dai Shi Yuan felt that without the female lead’s sudden bouts of “concern,” she would probably have recovered faster.

Every time the female lead appeared, her poor little heart would receive another fright.

Dai Shi Yuan stood up. The door opened right then, revealing a beautiful, gentle face.

She didn’t know if it was her imagination, but she always felt that the moment the door opened, the female lead’s eyes were ice-cold, carrying a chilling aura.

Dai Shi Yuan felt an inexplicable fear. She braced her hands on the desk behind her, her fingers nervously tapping the surface one after another.

To prevent the female lead from noticing anything, she forced out a small smile and asked softly, “Sister-in-law, is something the matter?”

“Dad just called me to ask about your illness and your college application. He specifically urged me to come check on you,” Shan Yaxin said with a gentle smile as she closed the door behind her.

The “click” of the door closing sounded like the lock of a cage. Dai Shi Yuan’s heart jolted, and she nearly failed to maintain the smile on her face.

Being alone with this female lead always gave her a dangerous illusion.

In the early stages of the book, the female lead was gentle, kind, and could even be described as a saintly Mary Sue. She endured and tolerated all kinds of difficulties without any resistance.

But after spending these few days with her, Dai Shi Yuan hadn’t felt any of that supposed gentleness or kindness from the female lead at all.

Shan Yaxin seemed unaware of her inner turmoil. She walked over, sat down, and asked, “Xiao Yuan, the deadline for submitting your application is in the next two days. Have you decided which schools you want to choose?”

“I…” Dai Shi Yuan blinked instinctively and quickly thought about whether she should tell the truth.

Her hesitant appearance looked just like a student who couldn’t answer the teacher’s question in class. Paired with her still somewhat youthful face, it was especially obvious.

Seeing this, Shan Yaxin smiled reassuringly and said softly, “If you don’t know how to choose, Sister-in-law can help you review your options.”

As she spoke, she reached out as if to take the application form.

“No need!” Dai Shi Yuan suddenly shifted her body and raised her voice. She nervously snatched the form and hugged it tightly to her chest like a treasure.

The reaction was overly intense. Dai Shi Yuan quickly realized it and forced out a smile to ease the situation.

Shan Yaxin lowered her eyes. A trace of coldness flashed in them. When she looked up again, her beautiful face was full of surprise. After a two-second pause, she asked, “Xiao Yuan, do you think Sister-in-law is being too nosy?”

“No…” Dai Shi Yuan answered quickly. The smile on her face became even more sincere.

Their eyes met for a few seconds. From those gentle eyes, Dai Shi Yuan saw a hint of hurt.

The female lead’s fragile appearance was indeed somewhat pitiful, but she could not soften her heart.

For some reason, she instinctively didn’t want the female lead to know about her school choices.

Dai Shi Yuan hugged the application form even tighter, failing to notice that a piece of paper had slipped out from inside.

Shan Yaxin, however, immediately saw it. She bent down to pick up the paper. When she saw the top three choices, a flicker of deep thought and confusion crossed her eyes. She quickly concealed it and asked in confusion, “Xiao Yuan, why did you only choose schools outside the province?”

“Uh…” Dai Shi Yuan’s mouth twitched. She wanted to snatch the form back but didn’t dare act too obviously. She quickly tried to come up with an excuse. “Because… I want to go out of the province and see more of the world…”

“But the universities here in our province are the best and most suitable for you,” Shan Yaxin continued, her brows slightly furrowed, clearly showing disapproval.

As a teacher, her expression naturally carried a hint of seriousness.

Dai Shi Yuan suddenly felt the same awkwardness she used to feel in university when a teacher called on her and she couldn’t answer. She stood there thinking for a long time but still couldn’t come up with a rebuttal. She kept mumbling the word “because.”

But no matter what, she couldn’t produce the words that should come after “because.”

Shan Yaxin kept a faint smile at the corner of her lips as she waited patiently. Her slender fingers pinched the thin paper, occasionally shaking it.

This action made Dai Shi Yuan even more nervous. Cold sweat began to form on her temples.

After stuttering for several minutes, she finally thought of a reason. She smiled and answered quickly, “Because I want to live independently.”

She said this very firmly.

“You want to live independently?” Shan Yaxin frowned, repeating the words. The smile on her gentle face disappeared, replaced by a look of deep thought.

From the question, Dai Shi Yuan sensed doubt and a trace of disdain, as if the other party was saying she wasn’t capable of living independently at all.

This character was a wealthy young lady, so perhaps she wasn’t.

But Dai Shi Yuan had already worked for two years and had enough life experience. Handling these things was not a problem for her.

Although local universities were indeed more suitable, she had to stay away from the female lead to protect her own life.

“Yes,” Dai Shi Yuan nodded firmly. The smile on her face grew even more resolute.

Upon hearing this answer, Shan Yaxin narrowed her eyes. Her slender fingers folded the application form, leaving a crease.

If she used just a little more force, the paper would probably be torn apart.

Her sister-in-law had always lived a pampered life and had never suffered any hardship. It was truly surprising that she would want to study out of province.

The corners of Shan Yaxin’s lips curved slightly. A hint of contempt appeared in her eyes as she gently advised, “Studying out of province will come with many challenges. More importantly, it won’t be as convenient for your family to take care of you. What if you get bullied? No one will be there to help you.”

“It’s fine. This is exactly the kind of experience I need,” Dai Shi Yuan replied calmly, her eyes still firm.

Because of her single-parent family background, she had been bullied quite a lot since childhood.

But she was not a weak person. If someone bullied her, she would fight back.

Moreover, she had already experienced university life once. She understood all the little tricks and complexities involved.

She hadn’t been bullied badly last time, and now she had even more social experience. How could she possibly be schemed against by kids who hadn’t yet entered society?

Seeing that Dai Shi Yuan had made up her mind, the doubt in Shan Yaxin’s heart grew. She continued smiling as she advised, “University is collective living. You often have to integrate into the group and can’t be as willful as you are at home. Besides, the food and environment in other provinces are very different from here. You’ll feel very lonely being alone out there.”

“If you stay locally, you can come home anytime. If you suffer any grievances, Mom and Dad will be here to support you.”

Hearing this, Dai Shi Yuan blinked. A flicker of longing flashed through her heart.

In the past, when she was bullied, she never dared to tell her mother. She endured everything silently by herself.

To support her studies, her mother worked multiple jobs and already had it very hard. She didn’t want to add more trouble to the family.

Although she had always wished that when she was bullied, someone would stand up for her and protect her.

She couldn’t say she wasn’t envious when she saw other people’s fathers protecting them. But envy was all she could do.

However, none of that was worth risking her life. She couldn’t throw away her life for that little bit of warmth.

“I still want to go out of province,” Dai Shi Yuan said, staring straight ahead with exceptional determination.

Upon hearing this, a trace of coldness surfaced in Shan Yaxin’s eyes. Her fingers tightened, and she directly tore off a corner of the thin application form.

The rest of the paper fluttered weakly to the ground, face up.

Dai Shi Yuan caught a glimpse from the corner of her eye and immediately straightened her posture.

Was the female lead angry?

She didn’t quite understand this anger.

According to the original plot at this point, the relationship between the little sister-in-law and the female lead was actually quite good.

When the mother and brother made things difficult for the female lead, this character had always helped her. However, their relationship wasn’t close enough to be considered family-like.

If she wanted to leave, the female lead should only feel regret and reluctance. Why would she get angry?

“Xiao Yuan, think about it carefully. Don’t act on impulse. Sister-in-law is doing this for your own good,” Shan Yaxin said as she bent down to pick up the paper from the floor, aligned the torn corner with the rest, and placed it on the table.

Dai Shi Yuan looked at the obvious tear and shook her head firmly.

This concerned her future and her life. She couldn’t be persuaded by just a few words from the female lead.

She was definitely going to study out of province. Only by staying far away from the female lead could she protect her life.