After Marrying the Villain with Seven Personalities [Transmigration into a Book]) - Chapter 26

“You learn everything so quickly; of course you’re a genius.”

It had to be said that Yi Chenqing found these words quite pleasing. She turned her head slightly and saw Xu Linqiu approaching with a smile. “Don’t force yourself,” Linqiu added. “Ordering takeout is perfectly fine too.”

“I’ll give it a try.” Yi Chenqing turned back, cleared her throat softly, and walked toward the kitchen, silently rolling up her sleeves.

Yi Yanbai and Xu Linqiu exchanged a look before both followed her. Even Shi Ji, who had been lounging on the sofa, quickly put down her phone and hurried over.

Standing in the kitchen, Yi Chenqing looked at the integrated stove and the array of condiments on the counter, momentarily unsure of where to begin.

Yi Yanbai spoke up, “Sister, just make some egg fried rice. I remember there’s leftover rice from last night in the fridge.”

Shi Ji: “…” Isn’t this life a bit too pathetic?

“I’ll look up a recipe.” Xu Linqiu stood in a blind spot, pulled out her phone, and tapped the screen. “First, we crack the eggs into a bowl and stir them evenly.”

She turned to the fridge, took out six eggs and a large bowl of cold rice, and handed them over. Spotting a plate of braised pork, she pulled that out as well. “It’ll taste great if we add the preserved mustard greens from this.”

Xu Linqiu leaned in close to Yi Chenqing. She watched as Chenqing took a bowl, placed it on the counter, and picked up an egg, looking completely at a loss as to how to proceed.

Behind them, Shi Ji nudged Yi Yanbai and led her back to the living room. “Why are you making your sister cook? She clearly doesn’t know how.”

“All her personalities are actually derived from her subconscious to protect herself,” Yi Yanbai explained seriously. “The skills those personalities possess were actually learned by her after her split, but she has no memory of that part of her life. In other words, she actually knows how to do these things—she’s just forgotten.”

“We need to help her perform these skills subconsciously to slowly integrate the personalities and restore her memory. I explained all of this to Sister Linqiu in a message, including the backstories of those personalities. Those ‘backgrounds’ are just delusions my sister came up with to deceive herself after suffering a trauma. Each personality is complex and represents a specific trait of hers, so I asked Sister Linqiu to go along with them as much as possible.”

“Wait, traits?” Shi Ji felt like she had walked into a trap. “Like what? Like Boss Hong?”

“For Yi Chenhong, it should be ‘Courage.’ Before my sister lost her memory, she was quite timid… she didn’t even dare to confess her feelings.” Yi Yanbai paused. “Of course, that’s just my perspective. The other personalities have simply magnified certain traits.”

Shi Ji asked, “What about the personality from the amusement park?”

“I haven’t figured that one out yet…”

Shi Ji: “…”

“Well, I’ve figured something out,” Shi Ji said with certainty. “Does your sister have a crush on Linqiu? Otherwise, why would she view Linqiu as a ‘scumbag woman’ and see me as a romantic rival?”

Yi Yanbai: “…”

“No,” she denied, not wanting any drama between Shi Ji and her sister.

Shi Ji merely clicked her tongue and walked back toward the kitchen. She was absolutely certain Yi Chenqing liked Linqiu. Even if this “novel world” had gone a bit off-script, the character settings wouldn’t change easily. Just as Linqiu had inevitably developed feelings for Chenqing, all Shi Ji could do now was watch and hope nothing disastrous happened.

Back in the kitchen, Xu Linqiu had shown Yi Chenqing several videos on how to crack eggs. Now, it was time for practice.

As the others approached, they saw Yi Chenqing with a wooden expression, tapping an egg against the rim of the bowl. She was too stiff and used too much force; the shell shattered into tiny pieces. When she tried to pry it open with both hands, her grip crushed the remaining shell, sending bits of it falling into the bowl along with the yolk.

Shi Ji couldn’t help but chuckle. She grabbed Yi Yanbai’s sleeve to drag her away, calling back over her shoulder, “We’ll leave this to you two. We’ll do the dishes later!”

“Alright.” Xu Linqiu suppressed her own laughter. She leaned down slightly, giving Chenqing a soft, encouraging smile. “You did great. We just need to pick the shells out. Here, try the next one.”

Seeing her smile, Chenqing’s heart fluttered. Xu Linqiu’s fluttering eyelashes seemed to dance upon her heartstrings.

Yi Chenqing’s expression relaxed significantly, and her heartbeat quickened. She took the next egg. Recalling something, she said, “I haven’t officially mentioned my narcolepsy to you. I developed it after starting university. I’ll be proactive about my treatment from now on…”

“It’s okay.”

Xu Linqiu’s gentle voice lingered in her ear. At that moment, Yi Chenqing’s heart rate spiked, and her vision blurred. She braced her hands against the table, losing consciousness instantly.

The moment Xu Linqiu realized something was wrong, she reached out to catch her. But Chenqing simply swayed as if exhausted before standing straight again. A second later, she briskly cracked an egg against the bowl and deftly emptied it.

The yolk was perfectly intact. No shell.

Xu Linqiu: “…”

The woman turned around. Her usually stoic face now wore a faint smirk, her willow-leaf eyes curving beautifully. She picked up the remaining eggs and began cracking them one by one. The rhythmic sound of the eggs hitting the bowl seemed to beat against Xu Linqiu’s heart. Then, a lazy, nonchalant voice spoke:

“Why did you take advantage of my absence to drag another personality off to get married? You played all those games with her, held her hand, and hugged her.”

“You even married her so quickly and tricked her into putting her name second on the registration.”

“Were you afraid I’d show up again and force you to marry me?” Yi Chencheng (the orange personality) finished the last egg and turned to look at Linqiu with a mocking smile. “What a clever calculation.”

“And didn’t you reject me? You said you wouldn’t marry me. What, do you like Yi Chenqing that much? You agreed the moment she asked?”

Xu Linqiu reacted quickly. She licked her dry lips, her eyes shimmering, and stepped forward to pull the woman into a hug.

“The one I love is you.”

“When I heard about your condition from your mother, do you know how much my heart ached?” Her voice carried a hint of suppressed sorrow as she held her tighter. “I’ve regretted it all these years. I think about you every moment—about the happy times we had.”

“Everything I’ve done is for you. I only play along with those other personalities to stabilize their emotions. It’s the only way to help your condition and eventually cure you so we can be together forever…”

Wait, Linqiu thought, did I say that wrong? The other personalities can probably hear me!

She decided to double down to keep “Orange” calm. She pushed back slightly, looking into her eyes with an expression of utter sincerity.

Meeting that shimmering gaze and tender smile, Yi Chencheng was undeniably moved. As long as she wasn’t betrayed a second time…

“You know the consequences of lying to me,” Chencheng whispered, her eyes flashing with a dangerous light. Then she smiled again. “And you should know that the order of names on a marriage certificate doesn’t change anything. You are living under my roof now; you can’t leave me.”

Xu Linqiu nodded and pulled her back into a light embrace, tucking a stray hair behind her ear. She leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to her lips, her voice turning sweet. “I’m hungry~”

“You want egg fried rice?” Yi Chencheng looked up, a slight smirk playing on her lips. The tips of her ears were turning red; she was clearly weak to this treatment.

Just as Xu Linqiu breathed a sigh of relief, Chencheng wrapped her arms around Linqiu’s waist. Under the kitchen lights, her eyes glowed with a hazy light, and her red lips looked incredibly vivid.

“Do you want to eat?”

“Yes.”

Hearing the response, Yi Chencheng closed her eyes and nuzzled against Linqiu’s cheek. Her warm breath brushed against her ear as she whispered, “Then tonight, let me be on top, and you can be the one moving underneath~”

Xu Linqiu’s eyes widened. She met Chencheng’s playful, mocking gaze. She immediately forced a smile and nodded. As if that’s happening!

“Okay~”

In a much better mood, Yi Chencheng released her and turned back to the stove to whisk the eggs.

Xu Linqiu retreated to the corner to watch. Chencheng’s movements were expert; she added salt, chopped the green onions, and stirred with the practiced grace of an artist.

The stove roared to life. Oil was poured in. Her stir-frying was sharp and elegant. She even found the breath to boast, “Go ahead and play along with them. None of them can match my skills.”

“Tonight, I’ll show you that I’m the only one who can make you truly comfortable.”

She was brimming with confidence as she finally plated the food. As she stepped away from the stove, the rich aroma of the rice and preserved mustard greens filled the kitchen.

Xu Linqiu crept over, swallowing hard as she saw the golden grains of rice. Suddenly, Yi Chencheng—still smelling of fried eggs—leaned into her arms. Her cool cheek pressed against Linqiu’s neck, her entire body radiating exhaustion.

Just as Linqiu reached out to stroke her hair, she heard a faint murmur: “If only you hadn’t betrayed me… if only I hadn’t gotten sick…”

“Why did you do that to me? I loved you so much…”

Her voice trailed off as she fell asleep in Linqiu’s arms. Xu Linqiu supported her weight and gently lifted her into a bridal carry.

As she walked out of the kitchen, she ran right into Shi Ji, who had been leaning over to eavesdrop. Yi Yanbai stood properly behind her.

Shi Ji grinned shamelessly and gave a thumbs-up. “Nice crisis management! You even managed to score us a meal.”

“Stop being a brat. If I catch you eavesdropping again, I’ll knock your front teeth out,” Xu Linqiu joked as she carried Chenqing toward the sofa. “Besides, ‘Orange’ is still Qingqing. It’s just a split personality; there’s no ‘scam’ involved.”

“Her voice was so low, I couldn’t hear anything anyway!” Shi Ji walked into the kitchen, sounding mock-aggrieved. “And you’ve never been mean to me before! Now you’re doing it for that woman! Our twenty years of friendship can’t beat her? Waaah!”

Despite her crying, her eyes lit up as she began scooping the fragrant rice into bowls. She was starting to like this personality too—she’d have to try to get more free meals out of her.

Yi Yanbai watched Shi Ji silently, her eyes full of heartache. Marrying the person she loves in a fake marriage, only to be bullied and watch her show affection for someone else every day… Why put yourself through that?