Accidentally Marking The Vicious Female Lead After Transmigrating Into A Period Novel - Chapter 22

Li Can was a natural social butterfly. Before long, she was chatting warmly with Uncle Huang, the two of them laughing so hard they didn’t even notice when Li Yan had stepped outside.

When Li Can finally glanced toward the exit, she saw her sister standing there with Sister Yishu, though she couldn’t tell what they were discussing.

The two stood close together, sharing a single umbrella amidst the falling snow. It was a strikingly beautiful sight.

Uncle Huang, standing beside her, shared the sentiment. “Little Li Can, your two sisters look quite well-matched standing there together.”

Li Can scratched her head, feeling something was slightly off. “Is ‘well-matched’ the right way to use that word?”

Uncle Huang chuckled. “Well, you get the gist of it anyway.”

Li Can laughed along and stopped fussing over the vocabulary. After bidding Uncle Huang goodbye and grabbing their things, she hurried outside.

As she approached, words began pouring out of her. “Sis, when did you come out? I didn’t even see you. Luckily, Sister Yishu was here waiting for you. Look at all the things we, well, not me. I didn’t buy anything, it was all Sister Yishu! She bought so much! And there are gifts for us, too…”

Li Yan’s impulse to vent her grievances was instantly interrupted by her sister’s enthusiasm. Her gaze followed Li Can’s to the large pile of items cradled in the girl’s arms.

She quickly reached out to help carry some, her surprise outweighing her other emotions. She couldn’t help but turn to the person beside her. “Why did you buy so much?”

Lin Yishu answered nonchalantly, “It’s not much, just a few things.”

Then, she peered at Li Yan as if to confirm something. “Are you alright now? Is your mood better?”

Li Yan didn’t dare meet her eyes. A delayed surge of shame washed over her.

What should I do? I think I just acted like a spoiled brat to Lin Yishu! Ahhh!

She pulled the bundle of fabric in her arms higher to block her own vision and mumbled a reply: “I’m fine now.”

Lin Yishu noticed her shyness and felt a sudden urge to laugh.

This person’s face changed faster than her own, one moment she looked pitiful and aggrieved, and the next she was overwhelmed by embarrassment.

Still, at least she was okay.

Lin Yishu glanced toward the gates of the slaughterhouse and then spoke to the two sisters. “Let’s go home then.”

Knowing they had an agreement with the other women from Xili Village, the three of them headed toward the state-run restaurant first.

Along the way, Li Can’s excitement showed no signs of fading. she chattered away without a break.

First, she talked about the novel things she had seen in town. Then she asked Li Yan about the factory’s New Year benefits. Hearing that there were two extra catties of meat and a bag of apples this year, she heaped praise on the factory leadership.

Eventually, her thoughts drifted back to the scene she saw at the factory gate, and she couldn’t help but praise them again.

“By the way, Sis, Sister Yishu, when the two of you were standing at the gate earlier, you looked so good. Against the snow, it was especially beautiful and harmonious. It was like… like…”

Lacking the vocabulary and struggling to find the right words, Li Can squeezed out a phrase: “Biren (a matchless couple)! Like a matchless couple! As beautiful as a painting!”

Li Yan didn’t know why, but when her sister had asked earlier, the words “movie tickets” had been on the tip of her tongue, yet she hadn’t said them. She was just wondering how to bring it up naturally when she heard those startling words.

She nearly choked on her own saliva, coughing until her neck turned red. Her eyes darted frantically toward the person beside her. “Li Can! I told you to study hard, but you never listen! Don’t use words if you don’t know what they mean! What kind of nonsense is that? Is that even how you use that word?”

Li Can stuck her tongue out and brushed it off with a laugh. “Oh, whatever, you get the meaning! As long as you and Sister Yishu understand, it’s fine. I just couldn’t think of any other way to describe it. Sister Yishu, you definitely understand what I mean, right?”

Li Yan couldn’t help but look over as well.

Lin Yishu’s expression hadn’t changed; she remained as calm and composed as ever, though the slight curve of her lips suggested she wasn’t offended. “I can understand.”

Li Can immediately turned back to her sister. “See? See, Sis? Even Sister Yishu understands, and yet you’re making such a big deal out of nothing…”

Li Yan didn’t hear the rest of the sentence. Her mind was stuck on a loop of that one phrase.

Making a big deal.

Yes, she was the only one making a big deal out of it. Lin Yishu clearly had no reaction at all.

Li Yan’s heart felt as though it were bouncing along the bumpy road.

She wasn’t sure what was happening to her.

Could I really have fallen for Lin Yishu?

During work over the last few days, Li Yan had been obsessing over this question.

Perhaps it was because she had never been in love in her past life but had read countless novels, but Li Yan felt deep down that “liking” someone should be a serious, deliberate matter.

For her, falling for someone was difficult. After all, in twenty-one years of her previous life, she hadn’t even had a single crush. She had only known Lin Yishu for about ten days, could she really have fallen for her so easily?

If it were love at first sight, she should have realized it sooner. If it were a gradual process, the time they’d spent together seemed far too short.

Li Yan couldn’t figure it out.

Yet, to say she didn’t like her… she definitely cared about Lin Yishu.

Finally, Li Yan could only attribute it to the “marking.”

It must be because of these damn pheromones.

After all, their pheromones were mutually attracted, and they had shared such intimate contact. It was only natural to have a bit of possessiveness, right?

When Lin Yishu had asked her that day if she wanted to mark someone else, she was essentially warning her not to mark anyone else, wasn’t she?

Thinking this way, Li Yan felt everything finally made sense.

Humans are easily influenced by hormones. Since pheromones are a type of hormone? it was perfectly normal for them to affect one’s mind.

Yes, she nodded to herself, that’s it.

Li Yan successfully convinced herself. Then, comparing her reaction to Lin Yishu’s earlier behavior, she set a higher standard for herself.

No, I should learn from her. Be more composed. Don’t make a big deal out of every little thing.

After saying goodbye to the other women in the village, the three of them finally made it home.

When Li Chunmei saw the items they were carrying, she wanted to scold them for the extravagance, but upon hearing Lin Yishu had bought them, she forced herself to swallow the words.

She merely said, “It’s not that I’m forbidding you from buying things, it’s just that this is a bit too much.”

But who doesn’t love a gift? Especially when the gifts were exactly what she liked.

Li Chunmei couldn’t stop touching the pale pink corduroy fabric. “This material is good. It has a nice texture and feels soft. I’ll make a coat with it, and maybe two waistcoats to wear underneath. They can be worn on the outside when the weather warms up.”

She then pointed to the bright red and soft yellow wool yarn. “And I’ll knit a few sweaters. The red one for the New Year, and the yellow one for when spring arrives.”

When Li Can placed the Vanishing Cream on the kang table, Li Chunmei beamed with joy. “Oh my, is this the Vanishing Cream? I’ve only heard people mention it before but never seen it. Now we have two tins in the house!”

Li Can brought out her own skin oil too, chirping in, “Sis and I have some too! One tin for each of us. No, wait. Sis has two! Sister Yishu even bought her a tin of clam oil for her hands!”

Li Yan felt her face heat up for some reason, but Li Chunmei took it in stride. “Your sister’s hands hold a knife every day, she should put some oil on them to protect them.”

Then she glared at her youngest daughter. “Don’t you go stealing your sister’s oil!”

Caught in her intentions, Li Can gave a cheeky grin and promised, “I won’t, I won’t! Don’t worry, Mom.”

The family organized the purchases and then carefully counted the items Li Yan had brought back.

In the end, Li Yan still didn’t take the movie tickets out of her pocket.

Having missed the best opportunity to present them, it felt awkward to bring them out now.

Around four o’clock, a visitor suddenly arrived.

It was Li Can’s good friend, Er Ya.

Er Ya ran in panting, gesturing excitedly with her hands and feet. “Li Can, you’re finally back! I’ve been looking for you all day! Quick, they’re slaughtering pigs at the brigade today. Come and see!”

Er Ya’s courage was “Schrödinger’s courage.”

When she was with others, she was very timid, but whenever she was with Li Can, she was fearless and willing to try anything.

Other classmates had called for her today, but the thought of the blood during the slaughter made her nervous. She insisted on bringing Li Can along before she dared to go.

Li Can clearly knew what she was thinking and rolled her eyes, but she went with her anyway.

Since Li Yan was off duty early today, Li Chunmei told her to go take a look as well, instructing her to lend a hand if the brigade needed help.

Slaughtering pigs for the New Year was a major event for every household. Li Yan nodded and followed her instructions.

As she was leaving, she asked Lin Yishu, “Do you want to go see?”

She figured Lin Yishu might not want to witness something so bloody and wouldn’t force her.

To her surprise, the other woman agreed readily. “I’ll go.”

So, the four of them set off together.

Since Er Ya had been gathering firewood on the mountain with Li Can and Lin Yishu over the last few days, they were somewhat familiar with each other, and the conversation along the way was lively.

Once the four of them reached the brigade, the festive atmosphere of the New Year hit them instantly.

In the brigade courtyard, stoves were built and pots were set up. A group of children surrounded the pots, staring hungrily at the boiling meat, their faces turning red from the steam.

The adults were gathered on the other side, all craning their necks to see what was happening in the center.

“Hold it down! Quick, hold it down!” someone in the crowd shouted excitedly.

Li Yan was wondering what was happening when someone in the crowd spotted her and yelled, “Li Yan is here! Quick, make way!” The crowd parted to form a path.

Only then did Li Yan see the cause of the commotion.

The village chief, the secretary, and several others were struggling to pin down a massive pig. They were all drenched in sweat, and the pig was thrashing so violently it was nearly escaping their grasp.

“Li Yan, girl, quick, quick! You’ve come at the perfect time. You’ve got the strength; help us pin this fellow down. We’ve been at it all afternoon, and this is the last one.”

The village chief waved her over.

Li Yan stepped forward and grabbed the pig’s front legs. No one knew exactly how she did it, but the crowd saw the pig suddenly lose its strength and stop thrashing.

The others were overjoyed. They let go of their aching hands and praised her. “It had to be you! This fellow wore us out all afternoon. We old uncles aren’t as good as you. Quick, bring the knife! Let Li Yan show us her skill.”

Before he could finish, the pig, sensing its impending doom, gave a final desperate struggle. It kicked its hind legs with all its might, hitting the caught off guard Li Yan squarely. With a thump, she landed hard on her backside.