1.
System: “Host, what are you talking about?”
I mockingly repeated myself.
The System was furious. “Host, I’m trying to heal Thịnh Minh Kì! And you’re deliberately rubbing salt in his wounds! What you’re doing is going to make him turn dark even faster!”
“But why should I heal him?”
I was genuinely confused.
“What does it have to do with me if he turns dark?
“What do I care if the world ends?
“Even if ten thousand people die and we all go down with them, I’m no saint.”
The System was struck speechless by me.
This was too funny. Before I transmigrated, I was a villainess myself.
It was a blessing if I didn’t say something infuriating.
The boy in front of me had just been beaten. He leaned helplessly against the wall.
His eyes were closed; he was probably about to pass out.
I reached out and felt all over him.
The System was touched. “Host, are you going to take him to the hospital? You’ve finally come to your senses! Thịnh Minh Kì will definitely thank you when he wakes up!”
“You’re reading too much into it,” I cut it off. “I’m just checking whether he has anything valuable on him.”
System: “?”
This villain’s pockets were way too clean.
I didn’t believe it, so I rummaged through his back pockets.
In the end… I kept searching until he woke up.
Thịnh Minh Kì opened his eyes and asked hoarsely:
“Giang Thanh Nguyệt, what are you feeling around for?”
2.
Thanks to you, I learned that my name was Giang Thanh Nguyệt.
It was exactly the same as my real name.
Thịnh Minh Kì swallowed.
“Don’t touch me.”
Without batting an eye, I lied. “You’re hurt. I’m checking you over.”
“Giang Thanh Nguyệt, are you trying to humiliate me?”
“What?”
“You called me worthless. I heard everything.”
Thịnh Minh Kì lowered his head, no longer showing any trace of a boy’s vitality.
He looked listless and pale.
“Don’t you usually hate me the most? You even said that if I ever showed up in front of you again, you’d find someone to break my legs.”
Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, drawing out a wretched, bitter smile.
“Go ahead. Hit me.”
“I’m worthless anyway. It doesn’t matter if you beat me to death.”
His eyes flickered, as if he were begging me.
He looked so pitiful.
Too bad I was a villainess.
I could smell one of my own.
“Thịnh Minh Kì, don’t put on an act with me. I know what you’re plotting. If I beat you to death, you’ll be free, but I’ll be criminally liable and end up in prison. Tell me, is trading your life for my misery worth it to you?”
Thịnh Minh Kì hadn’t expected me to expose my own dark thoughts so bluntly. He stopped pretending, and his expression turned cold.
He braced himself against the wall and limped away.
Once he was out of the alley, he called to me again:
“Giang Thanh Nguyệt.”
“Let go.”
Thịnh Minh Kì suddenly came close to me, his breath brushing my ear.
It tickled.
“Thanks for checking me over.
“I really like this feeling.”
3.
The System shouted, “Host, your chance is here! Hurry, he’s flirting with you!”
“???”
What flirting?
System, could you be serious for once?
Couldn’t you tell he was just trying to disgust me?
From what he’d said, Giang Thanh Nguyệt and he had a terrible relationship.
Maybe the original host had bullied him before.
If the original host were here, she would’ve already screamed at him and called him a pervert.
Thịnh Minh Kì wanted to see Giang Thanh Nguyệt lose her temper.
Too bad he’d picked the wrong opponent.
I leaned toward his ear and shot back:
“No need to thank me, puppy.”
Thịnh Minh Kì froze.
He watched me walk away and stood there motionless for a long time.
When I got home, I couldn’t help thinking about my situation.
I was inside a sweet romance novel with all the tropes: the groveling ex, the second-chance romance.
My name was Giang Thanh Nguyệt. I was the school beauty and the heiress of a wealthy family.
Wasn’t this obviously the heroine’s role?
But Giang Thanh Nguyệt was only a disposable female supporting character.
The original host looked down on everyone, was arrogant and willful, and was in love with the novel’s male lead, Thịnh Ninh Dạ (Thịnh Minh Kì’s older brother).
Using her family’s influence, Giang Thanh Nguyệt forced Thịnh Ninh Dạ to get engaged to her, driving a wedge between the hero and heroine.
Oh, and Giang Thanh Nguyệt often bullied the heroine.
Thịnh Minh Kì was the villain of the whole story. He also had a secret crush on the heroine, so he hated Giang Thanh Nguyệt.
Later, Giang Thanh Nguyệt died in a car accident, and the readers cheered.
But that car accident… had something to do with Thịnh Minh Kì.
To avenge the heroine, he didn’t hesitate to get blood on his hands, killing the people who had once bullied her.
In the end, Thịnh Minh Kì…
He was handsome, but had a tragic fate.
He was the illegitimate son of the Thịnh family.
His mother was beautiful, but had been forced to become another man’s mistress. After giving birth to Thịnh Minh Kì, she learned the man was already married.
Unable to bear the blow, she jumped to her death.
Thịnh Minh Kì inherited all his mother’s beauty. He was stunning, like a celestial being.
The man who became his stepfather flew into a rage whenever he saw him and often beat and berated him.
Even the household servants dared to walk all over him.
Growing up in circumstances like that, it was no wonder Thịnh Minh Kì became twisted.
On top of that, the heroine didn’t like him.
Of all people, the heroine had to fall for his older brother.
That was the male lead, Thịnh Ninh Dạ, who was doted on and whose fate was the complete opposite of his.
So, driven by jealousy, Thịnh Minh Kì turned dark and became a madman.
After I understood the whole situation, I lay back on the bed and enjoyed myself.
The System asked, “Host, why are you lying down?”
“Come on, I’m a wealthy heiress. Round that up, and I’m some kind of princess! I’d have to be out of my mind to get involved in their love lives!”
The System said, “But…”
“Shut up. If you say another word, I’ll self-destruct just to show you. Neither of us will get out alive.”
The System was so frightened that it clamped its mouth shut.
Maybe the plot was beyond my control, too.
One morning, my parents suddenly said to me:
“Get dressed up, dear. We’re going to the Thịnh family’s house today to get you engaged.”
4.
Engaged?
My eyes went wide.
My so-called mother pointed at me and said, “The clothes are ready. Make sure you look beautiful when you get dressed in a little while. Make Thịnh Ninh Dạ fall for you, for me.”
What?
Wait, something wasn’t right.
“We’re getting engaged already? I’m not even old enough yet. I still have to take the college entrance exams…”
“So what? By the time you’re done with your exams, someone else will have snatched Thịnh Ninh Dạ away.”
“Mom, I don’t want to get engaged—and I definitely don’t want to get engaged to him.”
“What kind of nonsense is that, young lady?”
My so-called father scolded me sternly.
“The Thịnh family’s assets are growing rapidly. If they join forces with someone else, it’ll hurt our family’s interests.
“Let me ask you: What’s the best way to cement a relationship? That’s right—marriage.”
“Marrying the Thịnh family’s eldest son is the most advantageous option. Then you can keep studying, and your position will be secure.”
The whole thing reeked.
They went round and round, but every word came back to money.
Were these really my biological parents?
When I didn’t move, Dad Giang prodded me. “What are you standing there for? Hurry up.”
I rolled my eyes, then put on a docile smile. “Yes, Mom and Dad. I’ll be sure to complete the mission.”
Heh, I’m a villainess, after all!
There was no way I’d let them get what they wanted!
5.
To welcome me, the Thịnh family had decorated their mansion beautifully.
It was clear they took this “business relationship” very seriously.
I spotted the male lead, Thịnh Ninh Dạ.
He had the appearance of a perfect gentleman.
I had no interest in handsome men like him.
The adults were making small talk.
Thịnh Ninh Dạ suddenly came over to me and lowered his voice.
“Giang Thanh Nguyệt, I’ve already told you I’m not interested in you. Why do you keep clinging to me?”
I stared at him in surprise.
Thịnh Ninh Dạ’s face was full of disgust.
“I know what you’re up to. You want to be with me, but I refused, so now you’re using your family’s power to force me. Do you like me that much?
“Honestly, Khổng Tử said, ‘Only women and petty people are hard to deal with.’”
Me: “?”
Buddy, do you think you look cool suddenly quoting famous sayings?
Thịnh Ninh Dạ waved a hand and gazed into the distance, his eyes deep.
“I will never marry you.”
After saying that, he paused for two seconds, apparently hoping to see me looking delighted.
But my face looked as if I’d just swallowed a dead fly.
“It’s not that I couldn’t marry you. Because of family pressure, I’ll get engaged to you, but I hope you understand this: a woman who reeks of money like you is beneath me. I, Thịnh Ninh Dạ, would never look twice at you!”
Me: “Idiot.”
“What did you say?”
I couldn’t be bothered with him. I turned away and suddenly noticed the second floor of the mansion.
At a small window.
Thịnh Minh Kì was looking down at me, his gaze cold.
6.
We moved to the living room to formally discuss the marriage.
The Thịnh family took this very seriously. Everyone present was someone of standing.
The spacious living room was nearly packed with people.
Thịnh Ninh Dạ sat beside me, wearing a haughty, cold expression.
He was the star of the day.