The Supporting Female Character Was Pampered by the Aloof Heroine - Chapter 5

“Um…”

Tang Yiling pressed herself against the back of the sofa and continued shrinking away.

“W-Wait. Let’s talk first.”

Li Lan remained unmoved.

When her hair brushed across Tang Yiling’s cheek, Tang Yiling felt as though her breathing stopped for an instant.

Then Li Lan straightened up.

She pulled a document out from behind Tang Yiling and stuffed it into her hands.

“You can take your time reading it.”

Tang Yiling clutched the papers.

She suspected that her ears were probably red enough to drip blood right now.

Li Lan poured two glasses of water and brought them over.

She sat down on the sofa beside her, opened her laptop, and continued working.

It was an agreement.

It concerned the arrangement Tang Yiling and Li Lan had discussed yesterday.

Li Lan was willing to pay her a fixed salary.

Tang Yiling would not only serve as Li Lan’s work assistant, but would also be responsible for buying household supplies and cooking.

When she turned another page, it was packed with important clauses.

Every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, Tang Yiling was required to stay here.

Li Lan had the right to ask Tang Yiling to do anything that did not violate the law.

From Monday through Thursday, Tang Yiling had to work at Li Lan’s company whenever she was not attending class.

In addition, whenever Li Lan needed her, she had to come when called.

There were many other minor details, which Tang Yiling quickly skimmed.

After reading the entire document, she summarized it in three words:

“A kept canary.”

Li Lan wanted her to become her kept canary.

The unattainable white-moonlight heroine of a novel was inviting a cannon-fodder supporting character to become her kept canary!

Was this right?

Could this possibly be right?

Tang Yiling pursed her lips.

She rapidly flipped toward the end, searching for the part she cared about most.

How much was Li Lan going to pay her?!

Li Lan looked up and effortlessly guessed what she was doing.

“If you have any requests, we can negotiate.”

Tang Yiling looked over cautiously.

She gently named an outrageous price.

“One hundred thousand?”

Li Lan had just raised her glass and nearly took a drink.

She hurriedly set it down and looked at Tang Yiling.

Oh.

That meant no.

Tang Yiling tried again.

“Sixty thousand?”

She was going to be a kept canary, and Li Lan’s kept canary at that.

Wouldn’t naming too low a price make it seem as though she were looking down on Li Lan?

Li Lan still said nothing.

Her gaze moved away from Tang Yiling and turned toward the door.

Still no.

Being exceptionally considerate, Tang Yiling lowered her demands again.

“Then… how much are you offering?”

“Six thousand in salary.”

Li Lan picked up her glass again.

“Living expenses will be calculated separately.”

Six thousand.

Wasn’t that just the salary of an ordinary employee?

Although it was enough for a student’s expenses, considering the amount of work she had to take on, wasn’t it a little too low?

Li Lan did not speak.

She seemed to be giving Tang Yiling plenty of time to consider.

Had there been any other option, Tang Yiling would never have come begging Li Lan.

She took a small breath and forced a smile onto her face.

“How about eight thousand, Sister?”

The corner of Li Lan’s lips curled upward.

Just as Tang Yiling thought she had agreed, Li Lan extended a hand toward the door and made an inviting gesture.

“Fine, fine!”

“I agree!”

Tang Yiling snapped out the words in a huff, picked up the pen, and turned to the final page.

She felt that Li Lan was exactly like the boss at her old company.

Both were wicked capitalists.

There were not two copies of the contract, and Li Lan was in no hurry to sign it herself.

The agreement had turned into an unequal treaty that only restricted Tang Yiling.

Before reopening her laptop, Li Lan tapped around on her phone.

A notification immediately appeared.

Tang Yiling saw that Li Lan had transferred four thousand yuan to her.

“What does this mean?”

“Living expenses.”

Li Lan deliberately emphasized, “Yours and mine.”

The smile that had just begun to rise on Tang Yiling’s face immediately disappeared.

If that amount was not enough, would she have to pay out of her own pocket?

“I don’t have anything else for you to do here. You may do as you please.”

After saying that, Li Lan returned to work.

It was obvious that she really was quite busy.

Tang Yiling sat awkwardly on the sofa for a while before speaking, somewhat embarrassed to interrupt her.

“Um… how do I get back to the university?”

Li Lan raised her head and looked over.

Her expression was complicated as she carefully studied Tang Yiling’s features all over again.

“This complex is behind the university’s rear gate.”

“Once you go downstairs, you’re practically on campus.”

Tang Yiling tried to keep her voice calm as she said, “Oh.”

She had only arrived a few days ago, so it was perfectly normal that she did not know.

Still, she absolutely did not dare tell Li Lan that directly.

“Wait.”

Li Lan stood and took down a keychain with a small rabbit charm from the shoe cabinet by the door.

She attached a new key to it and pushed it into Tang Yiling’s hand.

“Don’t lose it.”

Li Lan paused.

“If anything happens, call me.”

Tang Yiling nodded and carefully put the key away.

She went downstairs, opened the navigation app, and felt her way back to the dormitory.

The room was very quiet.

Everyone was probably taking an afternoon nap.

Tang Yiling was not sleepy. She sat at her desk, fiddling with the keychain Li Lan had given her while contemplating her life.

Given her current situation, she thought she could take on another part-time job.

Once she had some savings, she would no longer be controlled by anyone.

Just as she was thinking, her phone suddenly rang.

Startled, she hurriedly pressed the decline button, afraid of waking her roommates.

A moment later, He Wenwei sent her a text.

Mianmian, come back when you have time.

There are too many people watching at school. We can’t keep going over there.

Tang Yiling was about to reply when the bed curtain beside the window was suddenly pulled open.

A girl in a white nightgown climbed down from the upper bunk. When she saw someone below, she paused slightly.

Tang Yiling remembered this girl.

On the day she had been locked in the storeroom, this girl had appeared at the door with Tang Geyun.

Could she be Chang Yurou?

The novel’s other heroine?

Chang Yurou gave Tang Yiling a friendly smile.

She pointed toward the upper bunk.

“Anqi and I were watching a movie. We had earphones in, so we didn’t know you were back.”

Tang Yiling nodded at her.

She lowered her voice.

“My phone rang just now. I thought I’d disturbed you.”

“You didn’t.”

Chang Yurou smiled again and walked toward the desk opposite Tang Yiling’s.

It seemed that was actually her place.

A short-haired girl poked her head out from the bunk Chang Yurou had just climbed down from.

She first glanced at Tang Yiling, then called to Chang Yurou.

“Come back up. We haven’t finished watching it yet.”

“No, let’s finish it tonight.”

Chang Yurou sat down at her desk.

“We’ll have to go to class soon.”

Anqi lowered her eyes, looking slightly disappointed.

She retreated back into the bed.

“All right, then.”

The dormitory became quiet once more.

Tang Yiling checked the timetable and searched for the textbooks she needed for her afternoon classes.

About ten minutes later, Chang Yurou stood from her seat.

She walked over to Tang Yiling and softly called, “Yiling.”

Tang Yiling looked up.

“Mm?”

Chang Yurou was not wearing any makeup. Her complexion was pale and clear, and her eyes naturally curved with a smile, making her look gentle and innocent.

The two heroines truly were completely different.

Compared with Li Lan’s cold aloofness, Chang Yurou was incredibly approachable. She made people instinctively want to draw closer.

Chang Yurou bent down slightly and asked in a quiet voice, “Um… are you having some kind of difficulty?”

Tang Yiling answered honestly, “My family threw me out.”

If there were two powerful thighs available to cling to, there was no reason to settle for only one.

She lowered her eyes, looking fragile and heartbroken.

“I suppose no one loves me. But it’s fine. I can manage on my own.”

As expected, pity and concern appeared in Chang Yurou’s eyes.

“If you need a part-time job, I might be able to help you find one.”

Tang Yiling remembered that the novel had described Chang Yurou’s family circumstances as rather poor.

She had grown up relying on her maternal grandmother, and she had come from a small town after earning admission to the university.

“I found a weekend job.”

Tang Yiling paused.

“It’s… tutoring.”

She felt a little sorry for Chang Yurou and reached out to hold her hand.

“I’ll try to handle things myself first. If I need help later, I’ll ask you.”

Chang Yurou murmured in agreement.

She comforted her, “It’s all right. We’re roommates, so we should look after one another.”

It was almost time for class, so Anqi and Qian Xueqing both climbed down.

Tang Yiling and Chang Yurou exchanged smiles before packing their bags.

Their entire afternoon was filled with classes.

The four of them left together and also sat beside one another in class.

Anqi had brought some snacks and passed them around during the break.

When she reached Tang Yiling, she hesitated slightly, but still placed some on her desk.

Anqi appeared cheerful and straightforward.

Tang Yiling guessed that she probably had not liked the former Tang Yiling very much.

But that did not matter.

She had replaced the original character now.

She was confident that she would soon become good friends with everyone.

After class, the four of them continued moving together.

They ate dinner in the cafeteria and then walked back as a group.

Tang Yiling carefully put away the meal card she had topped up, feeling much more secure.

Although her salary had not met her expectations, she finally no longer needed to worry about food and shelter.

Chang Yurou and Anqi walked ahead, holding hands.

Tang Yiling and Qian Xueqing followed a short distance behind.

Looking at the two in front, Tang Yiling could not restrain herself.

“Qingqing, have they always been this close?”

That afternoon, Tang Yiling had developed a profound understanding of why Qian Xueqing had not wanted to watch the sunrise with Chang Yurou and Anqi.

The two of them seemed to have some sort of barrier surrounding them. Anyone standing near them looked like an unnecessary third wheel.

For example, during dinner just now, Anqi had said the beef on her tray was delicious.

She picked up a piece with her chopsticks and naturally fed it to Chang Yurou.

The sight left Tang Yiling completely stunned.

Had she not known that Chang Yurou was one of the heroines, she might have suspected that the two of them shared some special relationship.

“Actually, no. They used to be even closer.”

Qian Xueqing shook her head.

“This semester, Aruo seems to have fallen for someone, so they aren’t as close as before.”

“Fallen for someone?”

Tang Yiling’s radar instantly activated.

“Gu Feng?”

Qian Xueqing nodded.

She lightly bumped Tang Yiling with her shoulder.

“I didn’t expect you to be so interested in gossip.”

Tang Yiling laughed awkwardly.

Interested?

This was a matter of life and death. The story had literally angered her to death.

After spending several days in this world, this was the most relaxed evening Tang Yiling had experienced so far.

Anqi and Chang Yurou climbed into the same bed again to finish the movie they had left unfinished at noon.

Qian Xueqing turned on her computer and started playing a farming game.

Tang Yiling sat at her desk and opened her textbooks.

They were studying a humanities subject, so with enough effort, she should be able to keep up with the coursework.

Feeling more reassured, she borrowed some toiletries from Qian Xueqing and went into the bathroom to shower.

Unexpectedly, not long after she went in, someone knocked on the bathroom door.

Qian Xueqing stood outside.

“Yiling, your phone has been ringing for a long time. Do you want to answer it?”

Tang Yiling rinsed the foam from her hands and shouted toward the door, “Qingqing, could you please pass it in to me?”

Qian Xueqing responded and turned to retrieve the phone.

When she knocked again, her voice had become quieter. She stammered with obvious awkwardness.

“Y-Yiling, here you go.”

Tang Yiling thanked her and opened the bathroom door a crack.

The moment she saw the phone screen, she finally understood why Qian Xueqing had reacted like that.

The phone was still vibrating and ringing.

Displayed on the screen was the contact name Tang Yiling had given Li Lan.

Sugar Mommy.