After Transmigrating into a Book, I Was Marked by the Beautiful Mad Villain - Chapter 29

Su Mi remained extremely calm, as if nothing had happened, quickly shifting her gaze toward the highway outside.

She muttered under her breath in a small voice, “I remember, I remember. I’m just passing through.”

She walked straight past Li Zhao, who was standing at the entrance of the pavilion, managing to look straight ahead without a single glance, walking very fast.

Behind her, Li Zhao’s voice came, sounding caught between laughter and tears.

“Shen Han, are you guarding against a thief?”

Shen Han’s voice was indifferent: “She just graduated.”

Li Zhao said lazily: “Isn’t this whole mountain full of fresh graduates? Fine, let’s not talk about it… Nanqiao, shall we go?”

Xu Nanqiao had just caught up from behind and only heard the last sentence.

Hearing this, she gave an “En” and said, “Alright.”

Su Mi slammed on the brakes.

She had heard that “Nanqiao.”

Li Zhao—calling Xu Nanqiao—Nanqiao?!

She came stomping back.

Behind her was Shen Han first, and then Xu Nanqiao and Li Zhao walking side by side.

Before Su Mi passed Shen Han, she looked at her; once she passed Shen Han, her eyes were glued to Xu Nanqiao.

She didn’t give Li Zhao even a speck of her peripheral vision.

“Nanqiao, I have something to discuss with you.” She nervously grabbed Xu Nanqiao’s arm and, without a second word, pulled her toward the other side of the road.

Li Zhao, who was left behind, took a couple of quick steps to catch up to Shen Han and made a shrugging gesture.

Li Zhao: “Your sister is quite obedient.”

Shen Han glanced at her and said, “She’s afraid of you.”

Li Zhao: “I’m smiling all day long, who would be afraid of me? They’d be more afraid of you.”

Shen Han didn’t speak.

Li Zhao pursed her lips and pinched her throat to mimic Su Mi’s sweet, chirping voice, “Sister Li Zhao…”

While she was still imitating her, Shen Han quickened her pace and walked ahead.

Li Zhao stopped her voice, not knowing whether to laugh or cry: “Hey!”

By the time they reached the mountaintop, Su Mi’s legs were incredibly weak.

When Li Zhao passed her, she commented: “Nanqiao’s stamina is even better than yours.”

Su Mi nearly lost her breath.

Why call her Nanqiao!

They found an empty spot in the camping area. Shen Han and Li Zhao went to get the tent and picnic supplies. The two of them pitched the tent while Xu Nanqiao organized the cooking utensils and ingredients for the picnic.

Su Mi sat to the side resting for a long while before shuffling over to Xu Nanqiao’s side as well.

She sent a few messages to Ren Yue, but the other party didn’t reply. She didn’t know what she was up to.

Hearing this, Xu Nanqiao felt it was fine: “This scenic area is full of people from our academy, and the security is very good. She’s probably out playing with classmates.”

Su Mi thought that made sense.

She helped Xu Nanqiao skewer the barbecue sticks. Once Shen Han and the others finished pitching the tent, they walked over.

Li Zhao helped them skewer meat, while Shen Han unbuttoned her shirt cuffs and leaned over to start the fire.

Su Mi watched for a moment and secretly nudged Xu Nanqiao to look.

“How is it? Doesn’t my sister look very… human right now?”

She still remembered Xu Nanqiao’s previous evaluation of Shen Han.

Xu Nanqiao looked over. The usually distant and cold woman was leaning over the grill spreading charcoal, her movements steady and unhurried.

It was as if what she held in her hand wasn’t a pair of tongs, but a pen for signing a contract worth hundreds of millions.

Xu Nanqiao sighed: “Even like this, she doesn’t exactly look ‘human.'”

Su Mi: “…”

Was it too late to go over and smear two lines of charcoal on Shen Han’s face?

She lamented: “That’s not what I meant… at least she’s not mysterious anymore, right?”

Xu Nanqiao thought about it: “True.”

Su Mi immediately got excited: “Exactly! She’s just a bit of a slow starter and doesn’t talk much, but actually, she’s a particularly good person. She can do everything and is very reliable!”

Xu Nanqiao said quietly: “…Is that so? Why do I feel like what you’re saying is a bit strange.”

Li Zhao happened to come over to grab some iron skewers and froze upon hearing this.

She put down the items in her hand and crouched next to Su Mi, “What are you two talking about?”

Su Mi didn’t dare speak.

Li Zhao looked at Xu Nanqiao, who was seriously skewering vegetables, and then at Su Mi.

Facing Su Mi, she mouthed: “Are you promoting your sister?”

Su Mi’s eyes paused, and she shot her a glance.

Li Zhao pointed at Xu Nanqiao, then at Shen Han, raising one broken eyebrow with a questioning expression.

She continued to mouth: “Are you serious?”

After these two meetings, Su Mi had realized that Li Zhao’s personality was somewhat self-centered and erratic. If she let her know something, the variables of the situation would become very large.

She flatly denied it, whispering: “Don’t guess blindly, there’s nothing going on.”

Li Zhao had actually only heard the last sentence or two clearly. She was a bit suspicious and said, “Sister, you’d better not.”

Su Mi kept a stiff face: “You’re the one who shouldn’t. Don’t ruin people’s AO (Alpha/Omega) reputations.”

She took a plate of skewered meat, stood up, and said to Li Zhao crouching beside her: “Excuse me, move aside.”

Li Zhao gave a snorting laugh and sat down in Su Mi’s original spot.

The group slowly enjoyed a barbecue meal on the mountaintop. As the sky began to dim, there were probably only one or two hours left before sunset.

A huge bonfire was lit in the square next to the clubhouse. Su Mi looked at the activity manual for a bit; it seemed there would be performances and a gathering there later.

As soon as Li Zhao had free time, she wanted to tease Xu Nanqiao and Su Mi, but was pulled away by Shen Han for a walk.

Su Mi felt a bit of a pity. Although Shen Han couldn’t have a private space for two with Xu Nanqiao, with Li Zhao here, the two of them still couldn’t be alone.

She went to the bonfire square with Xu Nanqiao. In the gradually thickening crowd, they finally found a place to sit, and she complained casually.

“I don’t know why my sister invited Li Zhao over.”

When Su Mi first saw Li Zhao, she guessed that Shen Han might have felt awkward coming alone, so she brought a friend.

But didn’t this block the chance for her to be alone with Xu Nanqiao?

Xu Nanqiao, beside her, asked: “Hmm? Did President Shen also invite Doctor Li?”

Su Mi: “Huh?”

She looked at Xu Nanqiao in confusion.

The latter said: “I also asked Doctor Li if she wanted to come along.”

Su Mi was stunned.

Her brain short-circuited for a moment as she asked, “Why?”

Xu Nanqiao smiled and said frankly: “Wasn’t it said during the hotpot that I should bring an adult my mother knows? After calculating it, the one my mother is most comfortable with is probably Doctor Li. Sure enough, as soon as I said Doctor Li was going, my mother agreed immediately.”

Su Mi: “…”

She wiped her face and said, “Does Doctor Li really look reliable like that?”

Xu Nanqiao burst out laughing and said, “In terms of professionalism, Doctor Li is still very reliable. Lately, it seems my mother has been asking Doctor Li some health questions, and they’ve all been very helpful.”

Su Mi muttered: “…Fine.”

Right at that moment, her optical computer chimed.

It was actually Ren Yue, who hadn’t replied for several hours.

She sent a crying emoji.

Ren Yue: Sorry QAQ, I didn’t notice the message just now. I’m at the western stream path here. The scenery is beautiful; do you want to come and see?

Su Mi checked the location she sent; it wasn’t far from here.

It was the small path along the stream that they hadn’t chosen when they climbed up.

Su Mi showed the message to Xu Nanqiao.

Xu Nanqiao: “Then why don’t you go pick her up? It’s getting more and more crowded here; I’ll save a spot for you two.”

Su Mi thought that made sense, so she stood up and followed the navigation.

This time, she very cautiously called the system out.

She had the system confirm the direction of the navigation the whole way.

After the system corrected her direction several times, Su Mi finally stepped onto the path by the stream and began walking down the steps.

After only a few steps, Su Mi: “…My legs are so sore.”

She had only climbed up and rested for two hours.

Fortunately, Ren Yue’s location wasn’t very low. Before long, she could see that she was getting closer and closer to the sent location.

The place Ren Yue marked was a flat pebble beach in the middle of the mountain path. It was a small scenic spot where the stream was quite level and the water flow very shallow. One could wade through the water or walk across the wooden bridge to the pavilion on the other side to rest.

From quite a distance, Su Mi could see Ren Yue standing on the pebble beach in a white dress.

Ren Yue saw her too and jumped up to wave.

Su Mi also waved happily and hurried down toward the target.

As she neared the pebble beach, looking down from the heights, she suddenly noticed three or four people surrounding Ren Yue.

There were men and women, all of them quite tall.

Ren Yue was being forced to back away by them and was saying something while standing at the edge of the stream.

Su Mi froze for a moment, then quickly picked up her pace, ignoring the soreness in her legs.

“What are you doing?”

She shouted from afar.

At the same time, she quickly sent the location to Xu Nanqiao on her optical computer, saying it seemed someone was bullying Ren Yue.

There didn’t seem to be any handy weapons nearby. Su Mi was afraid of something happening like the previous time thugs surrounded Xu Nanqiao, so she didn’t hesitate and ran over.

When those people heard her voice, they all turned around, practically clearing a path to let Su Mi squeeze in and reach Ren Yue.

Su Mi immediately checked Ren Yue’s condition and found she was okay.

She seemed a bit scared, her small face pale, with tears still shimmering in her eyes.

These people looked wealthy and influential, wearing brand names with large logos.

The leading boy had a roguish handsomeness, looking like a school bully. He gave an “Oi” to Ren Yue.

“Your friend?” he asked.

Ren Yue held Su Mi’s arm, her voice trembling: “Y-yes.”

Su Mi immediately felt a surge of responsibility: “What do you want?”

A person nearby smiled: “Don’t be nervous, we just want to make friends with your friend.”

Another laughed: “That’s right, our Brother Zhang is very protective of the fairer sex.”

The leading boy had his hands in his pockets as he stepped forward two paces: “I don’t have any other requests, I just want a contact method. Won’t you even give that?”

Ren Yue was clearly frightened. She gripped Su Mi’s arm tighter, her soft body pressing against Su Mi’s arm with a detectable tremor.

“I… I don’t add strangers…”

She said quietly but firmly.

In a second, Su Mi thought of how she had added her and then deleted her contact.

Her guilt deepened, and at the same time, her sense of responsibility rose.

If they were thugs, Su Mi would have directly called the management’s contact number.

But these people were probably just students from the academy with a bit of money. Since they mingled in the high society of the capital, they would definitely know Shen Han’s name.

Su Mi had backing, so she wasn’t afraid at all.

She frowned and said, “Didn’t you hear? My friend said she doesn’t want to add you.”

The leading boy smiled wickedly: “This is getting boring. What’s wrong with adding a contact? Everyone’s graduated now; more friends mean more paths.”

“Exactly, our Brother Zhang is an A-grade Alpha; you’re even getting the better end of the deal.”

“The one in front is a Beta, she doesn’t understand.”

Ren Yue shook: “No…”

These people were too shameless, so Su Mi had to pull out her background: “Are you sick? She said she’s not adding you. Haven’t you studied the Omega Protection Law? I’m warning you, our backer is Shen Han. Think carefully about the weight of the Shen Group.”

To her surprise, the leading boy was actually indifferent: “Shen Group? Several people at our school say their backer is the Shen Group. Who believes that kind of bragging? I advise you not to mind other people’s business. Hey, little girl, if you won’t add my contact, that’s fine too, just let me touch your face.”

“Yeah! What are you shy for?”

“Beta, don’t come and join the fun. Letting our Brother Zhang touch your face is your good fortune.”

The boy didn’t care about Su Mi at all. He went around Su Mi and reached out to harass Ren Yue beside her.

Ren Yue couldn’t seem to dodge in time; she was touched once and immediately let out a crying sound, screamed, and hid behind Su Mi.

The group surrounded them, seeming to want to pull Ren Yue away by force. Su Mi was outnumbered and blocked them while Ren Yue stepped back bit by bit.

Amidst the noise, the area behind these people also became chaotic for some reason. In the panic, Ren Yue behind her seemed to be pushed, pulling Su Mi’s clothes as she fell backward.

Su Mi instinctively reached back to protect her.

Behind them was the clear, shallow stream. Accompanied by Ren Yue’s startled cry, Su Mi almost hugged Ren Yue as they fell into the very shallow water. Her hand was padded beneath Ren Yue, and a sharp, dull pain came from her hand.

The stream wasn’t deep. The two of them fell flat; the cool water instantly soaked Ren Yue’s clothes, and the hem of Su Mi’s clothes also got a bit wet.

Ren Yue cried out urgently: “Su Mi! Are you okay!”

She was held by Su Mi and was completely unharmed, but her tears were about to fall as she clung to Su Mi’s embrace, trembling all over.

Su Mi’s hand was in pain; it was probably cut by a sharp stone in the stream.

But in front of Ren Yue, she still endured the pain: “I’m fine.”

Just as the two were about to get up, before they even turned their heads, the people on the shore also let out cries of pain, seemingly kicked hard to the ground.

Footsteps drew near. Looking back, behind them was Shen Han, who had just retracted her foot, and behind her was Li Zhao, holding someone by the collar.

The boy who had been leading the harassment of Ren Yue was now clutching his stomach, groaning and wailing on the side.

The group was scattered all over the ground.

Against the still-bright sky, Shen Han slightly knitted her brows, standing on the bank. She looked down at the messy sight of Su Mi holding Ren Yue in the stream.

It was hard to describe.

With a gloomy expression, Shen Han pressed her tongue against her cheek, trying hard to suppress her irritation, and let out a breath.

“Saving the damsel in distress again?”

Su Mi: “…Um, yeah.”