Picked Up the Female Lead When She Was Young (GL) - Chapter 4

The system’s shriek almost sent Xia Wanshuang flying. It was like a thunderclap had gone off in her head.

Xia Wanshuang kept walking forward, and the system began wailing.

[System]: Host, you really can’t! If you interact with her before you’re twenty-four, won’t it mess up everything afterward? What about the plot?

[Xia Wanshuang]: So I should just let her eat garbage? Look, her clothes are soaking wet, and she’s only six years old. She’s going to get sick.

[System]: But she’s the female lead! Nothing will happen to her.

Xia Wanshuang’s expression was a little cold. She understood the system’s concerns, but it was giving her a headache.

[Xia Wanshuang]: The moment I showed up, a mistake was already made. I’m not going to live for years off a neighbor’s charity like the original owner, and I’m not going to just stand by and watch this.

[System]: Why not?

The system couldn’t understand. Wasn’t it better to just follow the original path? That way, the host wouldn’t have to worry about how to make a living.

[Xia Wanshuang]: Because I’m a person, not an NPC.

Xia Wanshuang calmed down and was no longer angry.

In her eyes, the system was like a child, carrying out what it believed was the right thing based on its own logic. There was nothing wrong with that.

But Xia Wanshuang felt that to be human was to have a sense of propriety, a conscience, and one’s own thoughts. If she just carefully followed the original path, wouldn’t she be living like a puppet?

[Xia Wanshuang]: System, I know what you’re afraid of. Let me ask you: from what you know, will the system be punished if the host breaks the plot?

[System]: No.

[Xia Wanshuang]: Since it won’t be a threat to you, don’t worry too much. I’ll still follow the plot. Look, I’m supposed to be the female lead’s love rival, right?

[System]: Right.

[Xia Wanshuang]: So when the two of them fall in love, I’ll just act as the love rival at that point in the timeline, ensuring the female lead goes to Haicheng to start her plotline. What’s the difference?

[System]: But that’s not right…

[Xia Wanshuang]: What’s not right about it? The plot is that they fall in love because of work. And falling in love based on a foundation of childhood companionship… both are “love,” so what’s the difference?

[Xia Wanshuang]: Even if the cause and process are different, the result is the same.

The system was dizzy from the word “love.”

[System]: I guess that’s right.

[Xia Wanshuang]: Of course it is. How could it not be? Do you trust me? We’re one. Do you trust me? Can you not trust me?

[System]: I can’t.

[Xia Wanshuang]: Good boy.

The system was a bit dazed, feeling like something was wrong but also feeling that nothing was wrong at all.

Having successfully convinced the system, Xia Wanshuang hurried toward the female lead.

Zhou Qinglang had just found half a piece of bread in the trash can when she heard footsteps. She looked up warily at the person running toward her.

It was a girl with a fair face and clean clothes. The contrast made Zhou Qinglang feel even more wretched and dirty. She subconsciously picked at her grimy palms, wanting to run away.

“Wait, don’t go.”

Xia Wanshuang called out, afraid she would run and get lost.

She looked at the small girl in front of her with a heavy heart. Although she was supposed to be six or seven, she looked tiny due to malnutrition. Her hair was messy and dirty, and the exposed eyes were full of wariness and vigilance, without a trace of childish innocence.

“Here, have these. Do you want them?”

Xia Wanshuang rattled the bag in her hand. Zhou Qinglang clutched the piece of bread she had found and didn’t reach out.

“Then I’ll leave them here. Will you take them?”

Xia Wanshuang placed the buns and steamed dumplings on the ground and took a couple of steps back.

Zhou Qinglang hesitated, then quickly walked over, bent down, grabbed the bag, and held it tightly.

“Thank you.”

Her voice wasn’t as clear as a child her age should be. It was hoarse and mumbled.

“You’re welcome. And if you don’t mind…”

Xia Wanshuang held up her half-finished cup of soy milk and saw Zhou Qinglang nod.

“Here, take it. If you’re still hungry, I can buy you a few more.”

Xia Wanshuang’s maternal instincts were overflowing. She carefully extended her hand, a warm smile on her face.

Zhou Qinglang reached out and took it without touching Xia Wanshuang’s hand, eating in silence.

“Do… do you want to come home with me? I’m alone too. We can keep each other company.”

Xia Wanshuang knew this was a bit presumptuous, but she wanted to establish an initial connection and test the other’s guardedness.

As expected, Zhou Qinglang became suspicious. Her previously relaxed body tensed up, and she even took a few steps back, looking ready to run at any moment.

“Don’t be scared. My home is just over there.”

Xia Wanshuang pointed toward her residential area, not getting closer to Zhou Qinglang to respect her personal space.

“My name is Xia Wanshuang. Xia from summer, Wan from evening, and Shuang from ‘good things come in pairs.’ What’s your name?”

Zhou Qinglang opened her mouth as if to say something but closed it again. She glanced at Xia Wanshuang, then turned and ran.

[System]: Hey, hey, she’s gone! She’s gone!

“It’s fine, watch this,” Xia Wanshuang whispered to the system, then yelled to the distance, “Come to my house for lunch, and I’ll bring you some food!”

Xia Wanshuang noticed the girl’s footsteps falter and smiled.

[System]: Shuangshuang, what if she doesn’t come?

“She will.”

Xia Wanshuang said with certainty, because Zhou Qinglang was desperate for food.

Xia Wanshuang walked around, committing the street to memory. As she passed a fruit stall, she thought for a moment and went in to buy a bag of strawberries and a few oranges.

The strawberries were about six yuan, and the oranges were cheaper, adding up to just over ten yuan.

With the one and a half yuan she spent on breakfast, she had spent a total of twelve yuan. She had left with twenty-five, so now she only had thirteen yuan left.

While buying fruit, Xia Wanshuang also saw a very familiar type of fruit but didn’t plan on trying it yet. She just gave it a quick look.

She carried the fruit home. Just as she came in and took a sip of water, there was a knock on the door.

Xia Wanshuang ran to open it and saw the person standing there. A smile spread across her face.

“Aunt Jiang!”

Aunt Jiang was the neighbor, the male lead Zhao Tianhang’s mother. She was a very kind person. She actually had a spare key to the house for emergencies, but she always knocked. She was also the one who told the original owner to always look through the peephole before opening the door. From her memories, she was a very gentle woman, and Xia Wanshuang had a good impression of her.

“Shuangshuang, you’re already awake. I brought you some breakfast.”

Jiang Wan looked a bit tired, but she smiled when she saw Xia Wanshuang.

“Thank you, Auntie. Did you just get back?”

Xia Wanshuang didn’t mention that she had already eaten. She accepted the kind gesture and looked at Aunt Jiang with concern.

“Yeah, the rain was too heavy yesterday, so I stayed at the office. Were you scared yesterday? Did your brother Tianhang come over to keep you company?”

“Brother came over to stay with me. I’m all grown up now. I’m not scared anymore.”

“That’s my brave Shuangshuang. I’m going home now. Come over to my house later to play and watch TV with your brother.”

“Okay, Auntie.”

Xia Wanshuang waved as Jiang Wan left. She touched her stomach.

She had only been half-full before. She opened the takeout box Aunt Jiang had brought and found a serving of rice noodle rolls.

Xia Wanshuang’s eyes lit up. She loved this food. There used to be a stall downstairs from her old home, and she ate it every day.

The rice noodle roll skin was thin and chewy, filled with egg, ground meat, and fresh vegetables. The sauce was delicious. Xia Wanshuang liked to add a spoonful of chili, but since a child couldn’t eat spicy food, Aunt Jiang had brought a non-spicy version. After eating, Xia Wanshuang patted her belly and went to the kitchen.

A juicer was in the kitchen. The original owner’s mother had bought it but only used it a couple of times. Because her mental state was unstable—sometimes normal, sometimes not—it had just been sitting there.

Xia Wanshuang moved a small stool, stepped on it, and carefully cleaned the juicer. Then she washed the fruit and put it in a container in the refrigerator to keep it fresh.

After all that, Xia Wanshuang was a little out of breath and wiped the sweat from her forehead. She found the paper cups she had seen while cleaning yesterday. There was still a large half-bag left.

The cups were medium-sized clear plastic cups. Xia Wanshuang took them out, washed them one by one, and counted them. There were twenty-seven. That should be enough.

She arranged the cups on the dining table to dry. Then, she took two extra-large cups from a drawer in the living room. They were cups the original owner’s father had bought for hiking. By the time Xia Wanshuang finished her back-and-forth tasks, more than forty minutes had passed.

Xia Wanshuang washed her face, grabbed the keys, and went to her neighbor’s house, knocking on the door.

Zhao Tianhang ran to open it and pulled Xia Wanshuang inside by the hand.

“Shuangshuang, guess which hand has something in it. If you guess right, I’ll give it to you.”

Zhao Tianhang held both hands behind his back in a fist, waiting for Xia Wanshuang to guess.

“This one.”

Xia Wanshuang pointed to Zhao Tianhang’s left hand, and the boy smiled.

“You guessed right! Shuangshuang is so smart. You always guess correctly.”

Zhao Tianhang turned over his left hand to reveal a milk candy in his palm.

“Thank you, brother.”

Xia Wanshuang took the candy but noticed that Zhao Tianhang had quickly shoved something else into his pocket.

It was probably another candy, so no matter whether she guessed left or right, she would have gotten a candy. It was so cute how the boy acted like it was a serious game.

Xia Wanshuang almost let her maternal instincts take over again. Seeing Aunt Jiang walking toward them, she quickly hid her expression and gave a simple smile.

“Shuangshuang is here! Go watch cartoons with your brother.”

“Okay! Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf is about to start. Hurry, Shuangshuang!”

Xia Wanshuang sat on the sofa and watched Pleasant Goat. She saw how the boy was so happily engrossed in it and realized how simple a child’s happiness was. The cartoon was actually quite good.

After Pleasant Goat ended, Xia Wanshuang continued to watch Tutu, the Big-Eared Boy and then SpongeBob SquarePants.

When Jiang Wan called them for dinner, she saw the two children sitting side-by-side, their eyes glued to the TV, and her expression became even more gentle.