After Dumping the Female Lead, It's My Turn to Cry - Chapter 26

For a moment, the atmosphere in the dining room froze, as if even the dust particles floating in the lamplight were suspended in that instant.

Ruan Yubai deliberately lowered her head, avoiding Qing Ling’s gaze. Her spoon scraped slowly against the fine porcelain bowl, and after a long pause, she murmured softly, “Even so, can I have another bowl of egg fried rice?”

Even a death row inmate gets a good meal the day before execution.

Besides, her dream was to become a tyrant, how could she simply yield to the female lead’s gaze?

So, Ruan Yubai lifted her head with righteous indignation, holding up a finger to emphasize, “Just one bowl.”

What does it mean to speak the most cowardly words in the most domineering tone? For a detailed reference, look no further than the slacker Ruan.

Her skin was an exceptionally delicate white, and having warmed up from the cold indoors, her cheeks flushed with a tender pink, like a freshly picked peach in early spring. Her eyes deliberately avoided looking up, and her eyelashes trembled slightly from nervousness, like a butterfly caught in the palm of a hand, cautiously fluttering its wings and casting a faint grayish shadow beneath her eyelids.

Even Qing Ling was amused by her timid demeanor, yet she unceremoniously cleared the tableware in front of the girl. As Ruan Yubai hurriedly tried to stop her, Qing Ling sneered coldly, “Have you ever heard of anyone serving egg fried rice to their love rival?”

What landed heavily in front of Ruan Yubai was a bowl of pitch-black substance, emitting a pungent, medicinal odor reminiscent of a witch’s brew. Her nose wrinkled at the bitter, spicy smell.

Ruan Yubai: Miscalculation! As expected of the female lead, she really knows how to strike at her love rival!

But why did she still want to eat even though she was full?

As everyone knows, a slacker has two stomachs: one for egg fried rice, and the other for another bowl of egg fried rice. Different bowls of egg fried rice have different flavors, especially when the substitute is a witch’s potion, which fails to satisfy the other picky stomach in terms of appearance, color, or taste.

Having lost her chance, Ruan Yubai was so enraged she lost all reason. In that brief moment, she evolved from a slacker into a pufferfish, puffing up with anger and thinking only with her gills.

Ruan Yubai blurted out, “You don’t even like Sister Lin Yi, so where does this ‘love rival’ come from?”

The moment she saw Qing Ling halt in her tracks, Ruan Yubai tightly shut her troublesome fish mouth.

Ruan Yubai: Oh no, this is bad. Has my hidden stash of worm-shaped candy been discovered after all?

“Lin Yi?”

“Ha, President, you must be too busy and misheard. I said if you want to take a shower, you can use my shower gel and shampoo.” Ruan Yubai blatantly lied with her eyes wide open. “As for the egg fried rice, I think you’re right. One shouldn’t eat after eight to avoid indigestion.”

To prevent further questioning from the female lead, Ruan Yubai swiftly downed the cold medicine in front of her in one gulp, not even needing a plum candy to help it go down. With agile speed, she scrambled upstairs and waved obediently at Qing Ling from the staircase landing. “Goodnight, Madam Qing.”

Qing Ling didn’t move, still standing by the dining table, merely watching her with a faint, ambiguous smile and asking no further questions. The dim lighting perfectly crafted a hazy, filtered atmosphere as the dark-haired, dark-eyed beauty lazily tilted her chin and said, “You too.”

And so, Ruan Yubai lost sleep.

It would have been abnormal not to lose sleep.

She lay in bed, viciously tugging at her own hair, cursing her Beta mouth for always being connected to her stomach failing her at the critical moment by accidentally revealing the secret answer.

Ruan Yubai internally: Hahaha, you thought I was on the third level, but I’m actually in the basement. Didn’t see that coming, did you?

Even by the next morning, she wasn’t particularly cheered up when her father returned from clubbing with her favorite O-Bubble Fruit Milk. Listlessly, she sat at the dining table and inserted the straw, but the half-yawn she was in the middle of froze the moment she saw the person emerging from the hallway, leaving her mouth agape in stunned disbelief.

The butler, who had accompanied Ruan’s father to the club, couldn’t bear to watch and turned away, inwardly sighing at how utterly embarrassing his young lady was.

Ruan’s father, however, remained oblivious. He warmly greeted the approaching figure, saying, “Xiao Qing, you came back to stay last night? I saw the news about Laureus this morning. Those Alpha scumbags are truly disgusting. You should stay at home from now on. If you need anything, just tell Xiao Bai. This kid might seem unreliable, but her IQ and EQ are generally passable, she’s not particularly dull.”

Even if he exhausted all his imagination, Ruan’s father would never guess that the back-view sensation who set the entire interstellar network abuzz was his “not particularly dull” Beta daughter.

Of course, if it were the old Ruan Yubai, she would have indignantly muttered: The one backstabbing me can’t be my real dad!

But now, she was completely stunned, dumbly watching the young lady who had caused her sleepless night elegantly take a seat and converse with Ruan’s father with a gentle smile.

Ruan Yubai internally: This isn’t good.

However, Ruan’s father remained completely unaware of the undercurrents beneath the rocky coast, excitedly showing the two girls the chat logs he had sent to Ruan’s mother. “It’s really a giraffe that glows green! So amazing, you don’t even need to turn on the lights when you look at it at night.”

Ruan Yubai unconsciously glanced at it and widened her fish-like eyes in disbelief: No reply, she still hasn’t replied!

What garbage planet did Ruan’s mother go to? She knew the signal would be bad, but this is just a little too bad.

After showcasing the joyful scenes of Omega nightlife, Ruan’s father cheerfully said to Qing Ling, “Next time there’s a chance, Xiao Qing, let’s go together without Ruan Yubai. This is an exclusive Omega gathering.”

At that point, he suddenly slapped his forehead, remembering something he had forgotten. “Look at my memory, I was so caught up in the excitement. Wait, let me get you another bottle of fruit milk. Xiao Bai really loves this drink.”

Just then, the butler’s voice drifted over faintly, “No need to trouble yourself, sir.”

Hearing this, Ruan’s father’s brow furrowed instantly, never expecting his own butler to believe the rumors and look down on Qing Ling. He was about to raise his head and scold him sharply, but the moment he saw the scene before him, he too froze in place.

His daughter, the one who loathed Qing Ling to death, the one who loathed Qing Ling to death yet constantly buzzed around him muttering, the one who loathed Qing Ling to death yet constantly buzzed around him muttering about her determination to break off the engagement was now eagerly handing over a freshly prepared O-Pao fruit milk, her face scrunched up like a brilliant fish flower, her voice sweeter than the first scoop of honey: “Ms. Qing, would you like to try this drink and see if it’s tasty?”

If it weren’t for the fact that Ruan Yubai had looked exactly like her usual listless self when she first returned home, Father Ruan would have thought his daughter’s core had been swapped out by someone else.

What earth-shattering changes had occurred in the world after just one day away from home?

Good grief, what in the world? Could all this transformation be because of last night’s fluorescent green?

Butler: Who murdered my eyes!

Father Ruan: So heartwarming, it seems my daughter has the potential to be a thoughtful and considerate “top”!

After breakfast, each lost in their own thoughts, it was time for Ruan Yubai to head to Laureus Academy.

With yesterday’s scandal still buzzing heatedly across the star system, Qing Ling, as the student council president, naturally had a mountain of matters to handle. Before she even reached the school gate, she was urgently whisked away by other student council members. Meanwhile, Ruan Yubai, who remained detached from the situation, was immediately dragged aside by her friend Bi Bi Ba as soon as she entered the classroom.

Bi Bi Ba, her face full of gossipy curiosity, asked, “I just saw you walking into school with the young lady. Spill it has your relationship progressed?”

Struggling to set down her backpack, Ruan Yubai replied expressionlessly, “I saw you kissing an Alpha senior last night.”

“What nonsense are you spouting!”

“You know it’s just a rumor too, right?” If it weren’t for the risk of looking undignified, Ruan Yubai would have rolled her eyes all the way to the back of her head. “Can’t you think in a more wholesome, healthy way? Like caring more about your parents, or watering that nearly withered desert cactus at your house.”

A classmate from the back row chimed in at just the right moment, “What are you two talking about?”

Bi Bi Ba: “Old Bai is advising you to care more about your parents.”

Because the topic shifted so seamlessly, Ruan Yubai completely missed Bi Bi Ba’s slightly off expression and the strange flush on her cheeks in late autumn.

Back-row classmate: “Speaking of caring about parents, Bai Bai, I actually have something about your mother. I’m not sure if I should mention it.”

Ruan Yubai: Why does this sound so familiar?

Beside her, Bi Bi Ba’s curiosity was piqued: “Old Bai’s mom went on a business trip to Gray Mang Star, right? What big deal could it be? Did they discover that Gray Mang mutated into a black spider?”

The back-row classmate shook her head, then hesitantly slid a screenshot over, whispering, “I saw this while browsing my kindergarten classmate’s profile photos. I’m not entirely sure, but it looked a bit similar. Bai Bai, don’t get too worked up.”

Why is she beating around the bush?

Compared to Ruan Yubai, her friend Bi Bi Ba was far more impatient. She immediately snatched the back-row classmate’s phone and began anxiously scanning through it.

This was a perfectly standard tourist photo. In the back row, a kindergarten classmate pinched the last fallen leaf on the tree and sighed sorrowfully. The filter was a warm yellow tone full of autumn sentiment, imbuing the entire photo with a faint melancholy. The accompanying caption read: “It’s not that I don’t know your cruelty, but my empty heart is too lonely. I’d rather pretend to be indifferent than let you go.”

The top comment underneath said: “You’re so stubborn it’s moved me, girl. Why are you so unwilling to admit you like me?”

Yet at this moment, no one felt like mocking the situation.

Behind the kindergarten classmates stood two people side by side, one was a figure in black and white stripes facing away from the camera, barely visible, while the other was a handsome yet slightly haggard-looking man.

Ruan Yubai didn’t recognize the man, but that black-and-white-striped silhouette was all too familiar to her.

Wasn’t this the very same Ms. Ruan who claimed to be on a business trip to Gray Mang Star?

The sky collapsed, the galaxy shattered, ice and fire merged, and salted fish split open.

Ruan Yubai was bizarrely enraged. All thoughts of the female lead, male lead, and melodramatic novel plots were tossed to the winds of Java. She roared silently in her heart like a furious dragon: Divorce! Dad, get a divorce!

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