After Knowing the Plot, I Ended Up with the Female Supporting Character - Chapter 6

Ye Chuxia had never met anyone who loved cats as much as Yi Nanyan. Lying on her comfortable bed, she used the Wi-Fi to download a few cat emoticons, picked one, and sent it: 

[Young Lady, I still don’t know your name.]

Then she followed up with: 

[I’m Ye Chuxia.]

Yi Nanyan’s social circle was quite narrow, so she immediately received a notification when Ye Chuxia sent her a message. However, she was driving and didn’t check it until she stopped at a traffic light. By then, she had already received 99+ unread messages.

Yi Nanyan: “…….”

She gritted her teeth, annoyed by the red notification dot on the profile picture. She tapped in and scrolled through the messages from the most recent to the oldest.

Apart from the initial question, the rest was mostly chatter. Having received no response, Ye Chuxia asked why she wasn’t replying, then started talking to herself, complimenting the cats in Yi Nanyan’s feed with surprising familiarity and tactlessness. After sending several messages, she finally asked if Yi Nanyan was busy, said she wouldn’t bother her anymore, and ended with an emoji.

Yi Nanyan stared at the slyly peeking cat emoji, let out a soft scoff, and put away her phone.

She didn’t retrieve it again until the next intersection, where she leisurely typed her name.

Yi Nanyan didn’t find it strange that Ye Chuxia didn’t recognize her. After all, aside from that inexplicable online ranking, she kept a low profile. She wasn’t some big star, so it was natural that not everyone would know her. In fact, even during the height of her popularity, there were bookworms who remained oblivious to her.

The other party seemed to be waiting by their phone, responding instantly to her message with a barrage of flattery.

Flatterer! Yi Nanyan scoffed inwardly, refusing to respond further. She tucked her phone away, feeling slightly cheered.

The troublemaker might be a bit annoying, but her taste isn’t bad.

Unfazed by the lack of response, Ye Chuxia tapped the screen. The groundwork was laid. Now the only question remained… how could she use a kitten to naturally involve Yi Nanyan in her internet celebrity ambitions?

Ye Chuxia had considered why a kitten was necessary. In this day and age, “raising” content was all the rage—just look at how many celebrity fans were “mommy fans.” The same principle applied to pets: cloud parents who watched a kitten grow up were less likely to lose interest.

Moreover, kittens are undeniably more charming than adult cats.

For Ye Chuxia, who is driven by self-interest, naturally she wouldn’t choose to adopt an adult cat. Instead, she hopes to find a kitten, preferably one she discovers with Yi Nanyan, which would make it easier to recruit her.

Though the thought of manipulating Yi Nanyan, that kind-hearted person with a sharp tongue but a soft heart, pricks her conscience—just a little, about the size of a fingernail—she can easily ignore it with a bit of willpower.

At worst, she’ll just give Yi Nanyan a larger share of the profits once she starts making money.

Thinking about it this way, her conscience doesn’t bother her anymore, but the thought of giving up profits does sting. Even though the alluring red bills haven’t even materialized yet, and she’s not even sure if they will.

In the end, having grown accustomed to putting herself first, the idea of sharing profits with someone else still pains her.

After all, even though she approached Yi Nanyan under the guise of a legitimate reason, she hasn’t wasted a single moment. The classes she’s been attending happen to align perfectly with her future needs; otherwise, Ye Chuxia would have preferred to wait for a better opportunity to approach her.

After all, she’s a master of time management.

*****

Over the next few days, Ye Chuxia confidently chatted on WeChat as if speaking to herself, even though Yi Nanyan had initially resolved to ignore her.

The internet is a fascinating thing. Since you can’t see the person, it’s easier to imagine them as you wish. In Yi Nanyan’s mind, Ye Chuxia was essentially a weepy nuisance. This meant that whenever Ye Chuxia’s messages seemed slightly melancholic, Yi Nanyan couldn’t help but imagine her crying again. Despite her original intention to ignore her, she found herself unable to resist responding.

Someone who can’t even muster a convincing retort naturally can’t be expected to firmly maintain her original stance.

Ye Chuxia had anticipated this, which is why she shifted their contact from in-person to online. While it seemed like they were growing further apart, in reality, they were getting closer.

She was adept at this tactic. Back when she was short on money, she had used the internet to both manipulate emotions and swindle funds. Though immoral, it had genuinely helped her through the toughest times. Ye Chuxia still remembered the skill she’d developed back then: using a sausage and tissue to create a fake leg photo, enhanced by lighting and filters.

But that was from a time when her legal awareness was weak. After realizing the gravity of her actions, she stopped, fabricated a story about having a terminal illness, and deleted the account in one fell swoop. She never logged into it again, and even now, when the memory occasionally surfaced, Ye Chuxia still felt a twinge of guilt.

But it was only a little.

She seemed to have been born with a weak sense of morality. If not for the teachings of her family, which had forced her to apply her cleverness to the right path, she might already be eating prison meals.

Ye Chuxia stopped reminiscing about her childhood and typed out her planned message: 

[Sis Nanyan, are you free this weekend?]

[?]

Ye Chuxia sat on her bed, typing expressionlessly:

 [I want to treat you to dinner and return your clothes!]

[Has Sis Nanyan forgotten already, QAQ?]

Yi Nanyan stared at the “QAQ” for a few seconds before slowly typing her response, her tone icy and clearly reluctant.

Ye Chuxia took a sip of water to moisten her throat and spoke in a deliberately saccharine and affected tone: “Okay then, Sis Nanyan, can you wait for me at the school gate tomorrow at 6 PM?”

This was the first time Ye Chuxia had sent a voice message on WeChat. Judging by the length of the message, Yi Nanyan assumed Ye Chuxia was too lazy to type everything out.

She scooped a spoonful of ice cream into her mouth and casually tapped the voice message. Then, her hand trembled, sending the ice cream tumbling onto her knee. It rolled in a circle before falling off her lap.

Ye Chuxia’s voice had always been pleasant, reminiscent of a naive, innocent girl. It evoked images of a pure high school girl, her natural beauty shining through even the ugliest, baggiest school uniform.

Generally, women are best at discerning whether another woman is putting on an act or being her genuine self. However, some straight women are naturally clueless; even the most obvious “green tea” (a term for women who feign innocence) could dance right in front of them, and they’d still think the other woman was pure and genuine.

Ye Chuxia believed Yi Nanyan was exactly this type of person—no, to be more precise, a “cute thing” enthusiast who couldn’t resist a good act of cuteness.

And Ye Chuxia’s voice was indeed incredibly sweet and soft, the kind that could make people dazedly obey her every word.

Yi Nanyan stared blankly for a long moment before snapping back to her senses, too distracted even to wipe the ice cream from her skirt. She tapped the voice message again.

After listening silently to it over and over, Yi Nanyan smirked coldly, her tone dripping with venom: “So it was you all along!”

*****

Back in her youth, Yi Nanyan had an online crush.

At the time, she was in her rebellious phase and adept at using QQ (Tencent QQ). However, since her profile picture was a selfie, she kept getting friend requests from creepy old men. Grossed out, she changed her gender to male in her profile and switched to a male avatar, successfully disguising herself as a boy.

Her QQ space was filled with game screenshots, and since she played male characters, no one suspected she was actually a girl.

Meeting Ye Chuxia was unexpected. At the time, QQ Speed and QQ Dance were all the rage. Yi Nanyan encountered Ye Chuxia, a newcomer to QQ Speed, and was immediately impressed by her raw talent. Ye Chuxia, awed by Yi Nanyan’s skills, begged to become her disciple.

Initially annoyed by the persistent requests, Yi Nanyan eventually relented, accepting Ye Chuxia as her apprentice and adding her on QQ. For a month, Ye Chuxia followed Yi Nanyan around like a devoted shadow. Then, without warning, she announced she was quitting the game, citing a broken computer she couldn’t afford to fix.

To Yi Nanyan, the few hundred yuan needed for repairs was no different from a few dollars. Accustomed to solitude, she found herself unexpectedly reluctant to lose this little disciple and covered the repair costs.

Later, Ye Chuxia confessed her feelings to Yi Nanyan. Panicked, Yi Nanyan logged off immediately. After a restless night of contemplation, she reluctantly agreed the next day.

However, knowing Ye Chuxia still believed she was male, Yi Nanyan spent money on a voice changer. They would chat daily before bed, and sometimes Ye Chuxia would fall asleep mid-conversation, leaving Yi Nanyan to hear her soft breathing and the muffled sounds of her turning in bed.

Haunted by her secret, Yi Nanyan never agreed to a video call, though Ye Chuxia never asked. Still, Yi Nanyan had seen the photos Ye Chuxia posted online.

Back when they were still master and disciple, Yi Nanyan’s partner would complain about spending too much time at home playing games, even mentioning her legs were getting thicker.

Yi Nanyan still remembers the photo of her partner in a white dress, revealing her fair, slender legs. Apart from the poor image quality that slightly distorted the picture, she looked absolutely stunning. That night, the young and naive Yi Nanyan dreamt about her all night, suddenly realizing she might be a little different from ordinary people.

However, their sweet romantic relationship came to an abrupt end when summer vacation ended. Her partner revealed she actually had leukemia and just wanted to indulge in her final days. She never expected to encounter such a beautiful surprise in the game.

But now she was dying and couldn’t hold Yi Nanyan back. She apologized for the deception and hoped Yi Nanyan could forget about her.

Then Yi Nanyan discovered her partner had sold her game account, deleted her QQ contact, and blocked Yi Nanyan from re-adding her. But apart from online, she had never known any of her partner’s real-life information. Now, even if she wanted to find her, there was no way.

Too afraid to tell her parents, Yi Nanyan turned to her cousin, who was rumored to be skilled with computers—and turned out to be quite nice in person.

Her cousin looked at her sympathetically and told her she’d been scammed.

Yi Nanyan’s naive heart shattered into pieces.

Looking back, the excuse Ye Chuxia had given was downright laughable. Leukemia? Who with terminal leukemia would stay up all night playing games instead of staying put in a hospital bed?

Yi Nanyan thought about all the in-game items she’d bought for her, and the money she’d transferred for food and clothes. The words “give it back” automatically appeared in the chat window.

But in the next moment, she deleted them.

No, she couldn’t let Ye Chuxia off that easily! She had to get her money back!

Support After Knowing the Plot, I Ended Up with the Female Supporting Character