After Transmigrating into a Book, I Had a Flash Marriage with the Beautiful Crazy Villain - Chapter 36.3

A wave of relief washed over Chu Ling. The less she had to interact with the female leads, the better. She certainly wasn’t looking for trouble.

Song Qingyi glanced at her, her gaze inscrutable, and said nothing more.

Yet neither of them expected to run into two familiar figures right outside the cafeteria the moment they stepped out of the elevator.

“Hey~ What a coincidence! You’re here for lunch too?”

Ye Zhiyin was still smiling brightly, waving at them from a distance.

Both Chu Ling and Song Qingyi froze.

Weren’t they supposed to be gone already?!

“I thought you said you left!”

The same thought flashed through both their minds simultaneously.

Ye Zhiyin found it amusing but pretended not to notice their expressions. “Oh, what a coincidence running into you here! Let’s eat together. I figured it’d take a while to go back, so I might as well grab a meal at your cafeteria. President Song isn’t that stingy, right?”

Song Qingyi’s face stiffened, and she practically forced the word “No” through gritted teeth.

Chu Ling was lost in her thoughts, still reeling from the terrifying realization that she had to interact with the female leads again. She completely missed the undercurrents between the other two.

Qin Xinyi remained as aloof as ever clearly, Ye Zhiyin had dragged her here.

The question was, why had she indulged Ye Zhiyin like this?

Song Qingyi sneered inwardly. So much for being cold and untouchable, what a facade!

She hoped these two would keep each other occupied. Not for any particular reason, just that good things took time to unfold.

With a blank expression, Song Qingyi led the two extra “third wheels” into the private dining room, then informed the kitchen to add two more dishes.

The four of them walking together was nothing short of eye-catching.

The employees silently watched, exchanging rapid glances, only bursting into gossip once the group had entered the private room.

In no time at all, rumors had practically spread throughout the entire company.

Unaware of the commotion, the four of them sat in an awkward atmosphere.

Song Qingyi’s face was unreadable, while Qin Xinyi continued radiating icy vibes.

The only exception was Ye Zhiyin, who was perfectly at ease, even smiling warmly like sunshine.

Chu Ling now thought the female lead was genuinely wonderful, who wouldn’t love a personality like that?

She swallowed nervously, trying to make herself as inconspicuous as possible.

As expected, this kind of situation was way too intense.

Just look, Song Qingyi’s emotions were practically spilling over.

Ye Zhiyin was whispering to Qin Xinyi, and though Qin Xinyi’s expression remained unchanged, Chu Ling noticed a faint spark in her eyes.

Meanwhile, Song Qingyi watched them with a blank stare, clearly displeased.

Chu Ling sighed inwardly and shrank further into herself.

Why did she, a mere cannon fodder character, have to witness the female lead and the antagonist sharing the same space?

Admittedly, the dynamics in this room were a bit too complicated.

Beads of sweat formed on Chu Ling’s forehead as she kept her mouth shut, terrified of getting caught in the crossfire.

But perhaps because everyone still cared about saving face, aside from the strange atmosphere, nothing unbearable happened.

And the food was delicious!

It wasn’t just that Song Qingyi was a great cook even the chefs she hired made dishes that suited Chu Ling’s taste perfectly.

Earlier, Chu Ling had worried that eating with the female leads might kill her appetite.

Yet, out of the four at the table, she was the one eating the most enthusiastically.

The mere thought of Ye Zhiyin being here gave Song Qingyi a headache. She alternated between observing Chu Ling and Ye Zhiyin, too preoccupied to eat.

Qin Xinyi had never had much of an appetite to begin with, and the dishes weren’t to her liking either, so she only picked at her food, her attention fixed on Ye Zhiyin.

Ye Zhiyin, meanwhile, was also observing, she wanted to see how far Song Qingyi and Chu Ling had progressed.

Inviting her to the company already? They must be inseparable in private.

At least, that’s what she had initially thought.

However, upon closer observation, she noticed that the two didn’t seem to be at the stage of being overly clingy, which immediately piqued her curiosity.

Among the four at the table, Chu Ling was the only one earnestly focused on her meal, completely oblivious to the undercurrents swirling around her.

Song Qingyi and Ye Zhiyin were subtly observing each other, while Qin Xinran frowned slightly at the dishes she disliked. Only Chu Ling kept her head down, eating without pause.

The meal could be considered a “joyful gathering for both host and guests.” Chu Ling, stuffed to the brim, now sat with a dazed expression, too lethargic to move, simply wanting to slump where she was.

When she finally heard someone calling her name, Chu Ling snapped out of her stupor, her eyes wide with innocent confusion. “Huh? What’s up?”

Ye Zhiyin didn’t mind her absentmindedness and continued with a cheerful smile, “Well, earlier we mentioned hanging out together next time. I was thinking, why wait? How about this Friday? With the weekend added in, two days should be enough for a fun trip.”

Chu Ling blinked slowly, baffled. What was happening? Why were they suddenly planning an outing?

Why did she always struggle to keep up with the female lead’s train of thought?

Perhaps her bewilderment was too obvious, because Song Qingyi finally spoke up in a low voice, “If you don’t want to go, just say no.”

Ye Zhiyin raised an eyebrow. “Oh? I don’t see any reluctance from Chu Ling.”

She batted her eyelashes and adopted a coaxing tone. “We’ll start with horseback riding on the first day, then hit the slopes on the second. There’s a natural ski resort right by the snowy mountain, doesn’t that sound amazing?”

Truth be told, Chu Ling was indeed tempted. A place where she could both ride horses and ski?

She had never experienced anything like it, and curiosity tugged at her.

Her shifting expressions were far too transparent, making it impossible for Song Qingyi to pretend she hadn’t noticed.

With a quiet exhale, Song Qingyi relented. “Go if you want to.”

Chu Ling’s eyes brightened further, but then, as if remembering something, she cautiously asked, “Just the few of us?”

Ye Zhiyin immediately responded warmly, “You’re welcome to invite friends along! The more, the merrier!”

Chu Ling did want to bring Qiu Shuang safety in numbers. As a mere cannon fodder character sandwiched between the female lead and the antagonist, the pressure was overwhelming!

On top of that, she genuinely had no idea how to refuse Ye Zhiyin.

Was the plot forcing her hand?

Chu Ling hesitated, the thought sending a chill down her spine. Yet the sensation wasn’t strong enough for her to discern whether it was the narrative’s influence or simply Ye Zhiyin’s naturally persuasive charm.

After all, as the female lead, Ye Zhiyin’s beauty was unparalleled. Both she and Qin Xinran were stunning, standing together like a perfect match.

Add Song Qingyi into the mix, and the trio could debut as an idol group on the spot.

Truly a feast for the eyes.

Chu Ling marveled inwardly, and just like that, the outing was settled.

In the past, Chu Ling would never have imagined being invited on a trip by the female lead, she had always been too busy trying to stay out of the way.

But now, though she remained wary, she also wanted to see if the plot could truly be altered.

Because she had noticed deviations in the storyline. If her suspicions were correct, then that meant…

Both she and Song Qingyi might be able to escape their fates as written in the book.

Even if they didn’t become friends with the female leads, as long as no conflicts arose between them, they could coexist peacefully.

With this thought in mind, Chu Ling waited until Friday.

It was clearly supposed to be a fun outing, something to look forward to, but Song Qingyi hadn’t seemed very happy these past few days.

Chu Ling noticed but didn’t understand why she was upset, so she quietly made herself less noticeable.

Then she realized Song Qingyi’s mood had worsened even more.

With an inward sigh, Chu Ling wasn’t sure how to face Song Qingyi and could only continue to observe.

On Friday afternoon, Ye Zhiyin left work two hours early and even dragged Qin Xinfan along with her.

This was probably the first time Qin Xinfan had left work early since taking over the Qin family business.

Ye Zhiyin declared with righteous conviction that Qin Xinfan had been working too hard, her body under too much strain, and that a balance of work and leisure was the healthy way to live!

Qin Xinfan knew she just wanted to go have fun, but she didn’t call her out on it. Instead, she obediently wrapped up work early.

The meeting point was at Song Qingyi’s company. When Ye Zhiyin and Qin Xinfan arrived, only Song Qingyi was there, the others hadn’t shown up yet.

But soon, a second person arrived, and Ye Zhiyin was surprised.

“Hongmian? You’re coming too?”

Ning Hongmian greeted them politely, then nodded. “Mhm! I want to go too.”

She had just happened to find out about the trip, and since it was a chance to see Sister Chu Ling, of course she had to come!

Ye Zhiyin had no objections the more, the merrier.

By the time Chu Ling’s group arrived, their party had grown quite large.

Chu Ling was momentarily speechless at the unexpected crowd.

But perhaps because of the numbers, the atmosphere instantly felt like a proper trip.

For some reason, Chu Ling found herself looking forward to it.

The group was all young people, so the mood was lively and harmonious.

Ning Hongmian glanced at the pairs of sisters around her, then at her own lonesome self, and with exaggerated sadness, she flung herself at Chu Ling.

“Sister Chu Ling, I want to fall in love too!”

Chu Ling patted her head, amused. “Good girl, wait until you’re an adult. If you date now, it’ll be called puppy love, and your parents will get called in.”

Ning Hongmian’s cheeks flushed pink, but she wasn’t actually upset. Her little brain was too busy thinking.

Ahhh, Sister Chu Ling smells so nice! I’m gonna nuzzle!

She rubbed against her like an affectionate puppy, only to suddenly feel a deathly glare.

Ning Hongmian slowly looked up and met the eerie stare of her aunt.

“…”

So stingy!

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