In the resplendent grand hall, people sang and danced with abandon. Liang Sheng had arranged for Young Miss Lu Ziqing and Su Ze to take to the dance floor together, and Young Miss Lu Ziqing was grinning from ear to ear with delight.
Off to the side, Liang Sheng chatted with Gu Yuqi. Getting straight to the point, she asked, “So, what’s the deal with you and Wu Qian?” All she knew came from the original story: Gu Yuqi had confessed to Su Ze, only for Wu Qian to secretly overhear it. Wu Qian had been nursing a crush on Gu Yuqi for ages, and that scene had sent her into a complete rage.
This time around, something had set Wu Qian off, driving her into such a fury that she tried to jump off a building ahead of schedule.
Gu Yuqi let out a sigh, tilted her head up, and slowly recounted the whole story.
Wu Qian was always tailing Gu Yuqi in secret—snapping covert photos or spying with a drone—which left Gu Yuqi thoroughly annoyed.
Once, while Gu Yuqi and Liang Sheng were goofing around on the walk home from school, acting all chummy, Wu Qian caught the whole thing while shadowing her. Wu Qian nearly lost it right there. The moment she got home, she called Gu Yuqi and demanded they meet immediately. Thinking something dire had happened, Gu Yuqi rushed over without a second thought.
When she arrived at Wu Qian’s house, Wu Qian threw her arms around Gu Yuqi in tears. Gu Yuqi didn’t know what to do; she looked this way and that but couldn’t spot any injuries.
Then, out of nowhere, Wu Qian confessed her feelings. Gu Yuqi was stunned and couldn’t accept it, so she turned her down gently.
Wu Qian poured her heart out—her endless hardships, her deep love for Gu Yuqi. Gu Yuqi felt sorry for her but stood firm in her refusal. And that’s when Wu Qian pulled her rooftop stunt.
“I was convinced I’d driven her to it, so I had to save her,” Gu Yuqi said with a faint sigh. “Of course, I thought you were heartless at first, Liang Sheng. But looking back, you were just worried about me. My own notions were childish—totally unrealistic.”
Liang Sheng fell silent. It took her a long moment to speak. “I used to really like pure, kind-hearted people. But they’re the ones who suffer the most. Who’s to say bad guys get what’s coming to them? Nah, they have all the fun.” The sparkle vanished from Liang Sheng’s eyes, replaced by a fathomless darkness.
“Liang Sheng…” Gu Yuqi’s mouth opened and closed, but no words of comfort came. She had no idea what Liang Sheng had been through.
“Hey, it’s okay!” Liang Sheng said brightly, dabbing at the tear in the corner of her eye. “Live and let live. Just don’t be the type to repay evil with kindness!”
She flashed a smile, but bitterness clung to it. Even the bright lights shining on her face seemed to dim a little.
Silence hung between them. Not knowing Liang Sheng’s past, Gu Yuqi couldn’t offer empty reassurances. The most she could do was lift a hand to Liang Sheng’s forehead.
“A-Sheng!”
The heavy mood shattered as Song An’an bounced over. She shot Gu Yuqi a sour look before grabbing Liang Sheng’s hand. “A-Sheng, let’s grab some desserts! There’s a ton of yummy stuff!”
Liang Sheng smiled and tugged Gu Yuqi’s hand. “Come on, Senior Sister Yuqi.” Gu Yuqi nodded, offering Song An’an a smile whose meaning escaped her.
Tch, what’s she so smug about? Song An’an seethed with jealousy, green with envy. Why did A-Sheng care about her so much? It had to be this scheming vixen luring Liang Sheng in. No way was she letting that happen—Liang Sheng couldn’t get too close to her!
So whenever Liang Sheng and Gu Yuqi exchanged a word, An’an would butt in. Any accidental brush of hands? She’d wedge herself between them. And if Liang Sheng so much as glanced at Gu Yuqi? An’an would yank her arm hard.
Liang Sheng was utterly baffled. What had gotten into this little lass?
She felt like the cream filling in an Oreo, with Gu Yuqi and Song An’an as the relentless cookies squishing her from both sides until she could hardly breathe.
“Young Miss! Young Miss Lu Ziqing, over here!”
With no other options, Liang Sheng called in reinforcements—the young miss herself.
Young Miss Lu Ziqing turned at the sound, spotting Liang Sheng beckoning her. A million protests bubbled up inside her. Why drag her away now, when she and Su Ze were having such a blast dancing? Well, okay, only she was actually enjoying it.
Fine then. Lu Ziqing was nothing if not righteous. Young Miss Lu Ziqing sighed, excused herself from the dance floor, and stepped into the Shura Field surrounding Liang Sheng.
“Heh heh, Young Miss, gotta hit the restroom real quick. Cover for me, yeah? Thanks! Sayonara~”
With that, she bolted like a wild horse breaking free, sprinting toward the bathroom as if ghosts nipped at her heels.
And just like that, the three girls were left stranded.
Lu Ziqing ground her teeth. So that’s it—you’re using me like a tool?
Swish~ Favorability dropped.
“Lu Ziqing’s Favorability Toward Liang Sheng: 55”
Whatever. Let it drop. Saving her own skin came first. Liang Sheng didn’t so much as glance back.
The moment she pushed open the bathroom door, she spotted a girl with purple twin tails standing by the sink, sobbing her heart out.
Hey, come on—not even the bathroom was safe from damsels in distress? What was this Protagonist Halo?
Liang Sheng wanted no part of it and tried to slip past unnoticed. But her soft spot kicked in at the sight of those tear-streaked cheeks on such a pretty face.
“Hey, you okay?” Liang Sheng stepped up and gave the girl’s soft shoulder a gentle poke. The twin-tailed girl turned, rubbing her puffy red eyes, sniffling pitifully. Liang Sheng’s heart melted on the spot.
The girl’s voice hitched with sobs. “Daddy… Mommy… they don’t want me anymore…” Liang Sheng frowned, inwardly cursing the parents. How could they ditch such a cute kid?
She patted the girl’s shoulder comfortingly, handed over a tissue, and murmured, “Don’t cry. How about I take you in?”
She could swear on her life—that was just a comforting slip of the tongue.
“You… you really want me?” The girl jerked her head up. Amid the tears, a smile flickered in her eyes, lending an eerie edge to her expression.
Liang Sheng nodded frantically. “Yes! Yes!”
“What’s your name?”
“Liang Sheng. The ‘liang’ from bleak and chilly, the ‘sheng’ from music.”
The girl broke into a smile. Tears still clung to her cheeks, but it was disarmingly sweet—nothing like the heartbroken wreck from moments ago. Somehow, that made it even creepier.
Liang Sheng shivered. Something was off about this girl. Her woman’s intuition screamed that this innocent-looking twin-tailed cutie was trouble. Still, powerless against adorableness, Liang Sheng resolved to see it through.
“So… wanna tell me what happened?” she coaxed, her voice dripping with gentleness.
“Sure! Sure!” The girl’s mouth split into a grin. Her eyes bulged as she seized Liang Sheng’s hand and launched into her tale. “Daddy called me a money pit ’cause I’m a girl. Mommy yanked my hair and beat me silly. Then she got pregnant again—with a little brother.”
“But nope! Daddy and Mommy have me—that’s plenty, right? So I slipped her some abortion pills. Daddy lost it and tried kicking me out. Said I’m just some feral orphan from the home and to get lost.”
Liang Sheng’s eyes widened. This story rang way too familiar!
The girl pressed on. “I wouldn’t budge, so Daddy came at me with a knife. I was devastated, so I stabbed him with a paring knife. Seeing him hurt broke my heart even more, so I chucked the knife. Then Mommy sicced the servants on me, tied me up, and planned to ship me off to the psych ward.”
No… no freaking way. This plot! Liang Sheng reeled—it was that blackening yandere!
Her eyes narrowed as a panel of data popped up.
“Name: Hana
Age: 17
Height: 167 cm
Weight: 48 kg
Appearance: SSS
Favorability toward Su Ze: 0
Favorability toward Liang Sheng: 99″
This… this! Was she about to get stalked by a yandere?
Hana sidled up close, clutching Liang Sheng’s hand and pressing it to her chest. Blushing furiously, she intoned like a chant, “Sheng-chan~ Feel the burning love I have for you?”
“N-no, y-you, hold on…” Liang Sheng babbled incoherently, desperate to ditch this walking disaster.
“Sheng-chan, you know how crushed I was when Daddy and Mommy ditched me? But then you showed up! You said you wanted me! I love you so much—way different from how I loved them. This is hotter, more intense, one-of-a-kind love!” Hana leaned in, her big pretty eyes brimming with adoration.
She was done for. Disaster from the mouth strikes again! Liang Sheng wanted to shred her own loose-lipped tongue. She’d meant to steer clear of this yandere, only to waltz right into her web.
A warm kiss brushed the corner of Liang Sheng’s mouth. Hana pressed against her, cheeks aflame. “Sheng-chan, promise you won’t abandon me~”
As if I would! You’d murder me! Tears pricked Liang Sheng’s eyes.
“Hey, Sheng-chan—take me home.”
Hana’s face beamed with that same sweet smile.
“Sheng-chan, was that your first kiss?” she pressed, still flushed.
Liang Sheng was too freaked out to think straight, her mouth hanging open. She hadn’t caught the question. Hana took it the wrong way.
Her expression darkened in an instant, her voice dropping low. “Who?”
“Wh-what who?” Liang Sheng blinked back to reality, confused.
Hana’s eyes flew wide, pupils exploding outward as she shrieked, “WHO STOLE SHENG-CHAN’S FIRST KISS?!”
Liang Sheng’s legs buckled; she nearly hit the floor. In a panic, she blurted, “It… it was Hana!”
She barely breathed after yelling it.
Besides, it was just the corner of her mouth—not a real kiss. Her first kiss had been a pacifier, for crying out loud.
Hana froze. Seconds later, her face softened into a beaming, bashful smile, like winter snow melting in the sun. “Really? Sheng-chan! I’m so happy!”
Ding~ Favorability rose.
“Hana’s Favorability toward Liang Sheng: 100+”
Sure, you’re thrilled—but you almost scared me to death! Liang Sheng worked her mouth but stayed mute.
“Wait… Sheng-chan, how do you know my name?” Hana tilted her head, suspicion dawning.
Crap… What if she thinks I stalked her? Cold sweat beaded on Liang Sheng’s forehead. She was doomed. Time for the cleaver!
