After Dumping the Female Lead, It's My Turn to Cry - Chapter 13

Anyone who reads cliché novels knows that where there’s a male lead, there’s a female lead, and where there’s a female lead, there’s a male lead. Even if they were at the North and South Poles a second ago, the author can instantly teleport them to the equator. And compared to the destined pair of male and female leads, cannon fodders have only one path—being discarded—even if they cling to the protagonists.

Ruan Yubai was a classic, devoted female supporting character.

However, at the moment, she certainly wasn’t bothered by this. Excitedly, she ran toward Nan Zhu Di, her eyes darting toward the direction he had come from. “Did you just come out of that lab?”

Ruan Yubai still remembered this part of the plot.

【Nan Zhu Di had concealed his true abilities and even fabricated a minor blood clotting disorder to avoid standing out. Of course, this was nothing but a deceptive smokescreen, but Qing Ling had taken it to heart. She stayed up all night alone in the lab, tirelessly analyzing the traces of blood he had left behind during his intense battles. The once-empty lab was now filled with countless reagents.】

Although this part of the plot was originally supposed to unfold later in the story, and Ruan Yubai didn’t understand why it had suddenly been moved up, now wasn’t the time to dwell on it. She stood in front of the male lead, but her eyes absentmindedly drifted past him.

However, in Nan Zhu Di’s eyes, such behavior could only be described in four words:

Playing hard to get.

Nan Zhu Di narrowed his long, narrow eyes. The dim sunlight reflected off his glasses, casting stark black-and-white shadows. He thought with some annoyance that this soft, idle girl was perhaps a bit too clingy. Even though he had deliberately avoided her by coming to the lab building, she had still managed to track him down.

Heh. He curled his lips into a roguish smile.

And she claimed to like Qing Ling? This little thing was clearly jealous. On the surface, she acted indifferent toward him, but who knew how uneasy she must be feeling inside? Coming to this building to find the young lady of the Qing family could it be that she wanted to confront her love rival head-on?

How admirable.

Taking a closer look at the girl’s delicate and beautiful face, even the usually arrogant Nan Zhu Di couldn’t help but sigh. He changed the address that was about to leave his lips. “Little Sister Ruan, I know you’re head over heels for me, but feelings aren’t something you can earn through effort. I’m not interested in someone like you. I prefer someone like Qing Ling.”

Ruan Yubai: ?

Nan Zhu Di was actually quite tall, though for some reason, he always liked to hunch over. But this posture happened to leave the slightly ajar lab door behind him unobstructed. A sliver of cold light seeped through the gap, spilling onto the dull gray floor and casting an inorganic, stark brightness.

There was someone in the lab.

Ruan Yubai had been spacing out and hadn’t caught a word of his rambling. She responded with a purely puzzled interjection, a beat too late, and was about to say “excuse me” and brush past the male lead when the usually aloof man grabbed her arm.

“But since you like me so much, if the gender-transformation potion is successfully developed later and you can become an Omega for me, I might reluctantly mark you and give you a child.”

Ruan Yubai, belatedly processing what the male lead had said: Overthinking is a disease that needs treatment.

The Alpha before her was unconsciously emitting a hint of pheromones. Her brother, Nan Zhuge, had the pungent scent of cigarette smoke, while the male lead carried a sharp, musky odor that was almost eye-watering with just a sniff.

Ruan Yubai finally understood why, whenever the male lead entered his special sensitive period as an Alpha, any girl who encountered him would end up teary-eyed.

It was purely because they were being assaulted by a geometrically intensified concentration of that bizarre fragrance!

What enchanting, rich pheromones? This was clearly a walking biochemical weapon!

And he even talked about giving her a child didn’t he know that musk could cause infertility?

However, Nan Zhudi had no idea what she was thinking. He continued to press closer, the thick, musky scent drawing near until it coiled directly into her nostrils. Before Ruan Yubai could furrow her delicate brows and push him away, the silent laboratory door not far away suddenly swung open. The sliver of light that had been seeping through the crack now spread wide, instantly illuminating the dim, long corridor.

The hand that opened the door was still clad in latex gloves, and the pristine white lab coat outlined its owner’s clear, perfect silhouette. Qing Ling hadn’t yet removed her protective goggles; the transparent lenses made her already cool eyes seem even more distant. Her expression was detached, and when she wasn’t smiling, her face was entirely impassive.

“Is there anything else?”

To most Alphas, this would be the ultimate uniformed allure of a stunning beauty.

But in the eyes of a Beta like Ruan Yubai, it was exactly the four-word description Nan Zhuge had slandered her with:

“Serial killer.”

Still, a serial killer was ten thousand times better than the male lead. Without caring whom the female lead’s question was directed at, Ruan Yubai slipped past Nan Zhudi like a nimble loach and scurried behind the young woman in the white coat.

Even with the lingering scent of chemical reagents, standing this close, Ruan Yubai could still catch the faint fragrance of freesia on her.

It was subtle, but at a moment like this, it was just what she needed to soothe her poor nose, which had been assaulted by the male lead’s odor. She took several deep, relieved breaths, inhaling until the previous smell had completely dissipated, and only then did she relax and calm down.

Nan Zhudi was arrogant and domineering in front of Ruan Yubai, but in the early stages of the story before the female lead developed feelings, he still maintained a reserved and cautious demeanor. Flustered, he shook his head, neither having the time to bother Ruan Yubai nor the courage to do so. Like a rat, he quickly scurried out of sight.

Only when the male lead’s figure disappeared at the end of the corridor did Ruan Yubai withdraw her gaze and turn her attention back to Qing Ling. Curiously, she asked, “Are you really making medicine for Nan Zhudi?”

What’s so great about the male lead, anyway? Ruan Yubai grumbled inwardly.

By now, Qing Ling had already removed her disposable gloves and tossed them into the medical waste bag, revealing her fair, slender fingers. She gently pried Ruan Yu’s grip from her clothes and led her to the sink to wash up.

The sound of running water filled the air. Just as Ruan Yubai thought the other woman wouldn’t respond, Qing Ling suddenly spoke.

“Do you like Nan Zhudi?”

Her voice was light and carried no discernible emotion. Yet, to Ruan Yubai, it sounded like the most terrifying and shocking news. She yanked her hand back from the water so abruptly she nearly gave herself a double chin in fright. “Don’t you dare accuse me wrongly!”

The question was so utterly bizarre that Ruan Yubai shook her head frantically almost without thinking. However, when the female lead’s subtly probing gaze landed on her face, the girl lifted her head like a proud, strutting white goose. “So what if I like him? Are you jealous?”

In that instant, Ruan Yubai’s mind took a sharp turn. How had she not thought of it before? What could be a more effective villain than the female lead’s romantic rival?

The annoying female side character who pops up unexpectedly when the male and female leads are deeply in love, she’s practically a top-tier detestable cannon fodder! If she couldn’t survive until the final chapter of the novel, she’d be unworthy of the notorious title of “vicious female supporting character”!

Although Ruan Yubai couldn’t possibly bring herself to make a move on the male lead, deceiving Qing Ling was definitely no problem.

…Probably.

Just as Ruan Yubai was about to boldly and shamelessly issue a challenge to Qing Ling, she shrank into a timid little quail under the other’s beautiful gaze, curling up into a pitiful ball.

The still-running faucet continued to gush water. Just as Ruan Yubai couldn’t stand the tense silence any longer and was about to turn it off, Qing Ling suddenly grabbed her hand and held it under the running water again. Her voice was colder than the sterile water in the lab: “Miss Ruan, don’t forget we still have an engagement.”

Did the female lead really need to remind her of that?

Ruan Yubai’s fingers ached from the rough handling, her face scrunching up in discomfort. She didn’t dare say another word, but inwardly she was cursing furiously: What a brilliant move hurting the enemy a thousand while damaging yourself eight hundred! Is this some kind of mutually assured destruction tactic, like “If I can’t have him, neither can you”?

No need for that, female lead! Calm down!

The novel’s plot was already progressing quickly, but no matter how you looked at it, at this early stage of the school year, the female lead shouldn’t have developed any feelings for Nan Zhu Di yet.

So why was her possessiveness kicking in so soon? Was it because, compared to a slacker like Ruan Yubai, even the mediocre male lead started to seem handsome and intelligent?

That was just too much! Who was she looking down on anyway?

Ruan Yubai’s face flushed red with frustration. When Qing Ling coldly tossed her two tissues to wipe her hands, she felt utterly wronged. Even though she knew it was pointless, she couldn’t help defending herself: “So what? I’m quite adorable too.”

Even if she wasn’t going to fall for herself, there was no need to speed up the romantic progress with the male lead just because she found Ruan Yubai annoying!

She was even worse off than the original clueless cannon fodder, who at least got a “good friend” card from the female lead.

Meeting Qing Ling’s faintly disdainful eyes, Ruan Yubai’s temper flared. Her usually soft and indifferent eyes widened into round, angry orbs as she stubbornly tried to salvage her dignity: “Don’t you believe me? Lots of people have confessed to me, saying I’m their dream Beta.”

This wasn’t entirely a lie. Aside from some Alphas who had ulterior motives toward her, many Betas and Omegas adored her gentle, easygoing personality. She never got angry, no matter what anyone said, and with her sweet and cute appearance, she was indeed the perfect choice for a peaceful, ordinary life.

Qing Ling had already stepped away, but upon hearing this, her fingertips twitched slightly. She discarded the half-finished reagent in her hand without a second thought. Before Ruan Yubai could process what was happening, she started counting on her fingers: “For example, just last week. Mmph! Qing Ling, what are you doing?!”

Slender, pale fingers pinched the girl’s cheeks, kneading and stretching them like the softest dough.

Though the sight was quite comical, Qing Ling didn’t show even a hint of a smile. It wasn’t until the girl’s delicate skin began to flush faintly with red that she finally released her grip.

Ruan Yubai stared at her in disbelief, her eyes blazing with fury, tears threatening to spill. “Ms. Qing, you have no sense of honor!”

Sure, they were rivals in love, but did it have to come to physical attacks?

At this, Qing Ling suddenly leaned in closer, the soft, lingering scent of freesia enveloping Ruan Yubai’s senses. She let out a cold, mocking laugh. “Isn’t this just me verifying your words?”

Ruan Yubai was baffled. “What words?”

“You are quite adorable.”

So adorable it made her teeth itch. Qing Ling irritably pulled off her goggles, revealing eyes that shimmered with a hint of turbulence.

Truly, there was no one more adorable, so adorable that she couldn’t help but want to flip Ruan Yubai over and give her a good spanking. That fair, soft skin should be tinged with the delicate hue of peach blossoms, and she should be weeping softly, begging for mercy, promising never to act like this again.

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