After Transmigrating into a Book, I Was Marked by the Beautiful Mad Villain - Chapter 3

Su Mi struggled to pull her gaze away from that skin, which was as cold and white as ice.

Her heart was thumping strangely. It had to be because she was too nervous; being overwhelmed by the villain’s aura during their very first meeting was only natural.

Consistent with the descriptions in the original plot, the villain was indeed… indeed quite good-looking, so much so that it was almost dazzling.

The back of her neck felt a faint heat. Something seemed to be pulsing beneath the skin, almost trying to telegraph a message through the scent-blocking patch.

But as that icy temperature drew near, the gland suddenly calmed down, as if it had been sprayed with a high-potency suppressant.

Shen Han passed by them and walked toward a bookshelf against the wall. She picked out a book and a vinyl record, placed the record into the gramophone in the corner, and then approached the two of them, handing the book to Xu Nanqiao.

“Thank you for your hard work,” Shen Han said, her tone restrained and polite.

Shen Han returned to sit behind the desk, turning up the brightness of the lamp facing them.

She sat alone in the shadows. There was a slight creak of leather as she seemingly leaned back against her chair, watching them. She sat there quietly, like the continuous mountain range behind her, waiting in repose.

In short—

Xu Nanqiao, clearly accustomed to this, flipped the book open and briefly scanned the table of contents. Accompanied by the melodious strains of an unknown track, she began to read softly from Chapter One.

Su Mi: “…”

She tried her best not to look up at Shen Han sitting opposite them. She turned her head to watch Xu Nanqiao read, her heart filled with irrepressible bewilderment.

To be fair, the sight of the quiet, well-behaved Omega sitting before the high-backed sofa chair, spine straight and uniform neat, voice incredibly gentle—it was a scene as beautiful as a painting.

A powerful ruler whose fleeting glance betrayed a hidden danger paired with such an obedient schoolgirl—it was a very fitting “CP” (couple pairing).

But… really?

You two—an Alpha and an Omega—spend time alone together every week just to… read books?

Xu Nanqiao read for about thirty or forty minutes, finishing one chapter of the book.

There was no clock in the study, but by the time Xu Nanqiao closed the book, the view outside the floor-to-ceiling window was pitch black.

Xu Nanqiao was evidently very familiar with this routine. She placed the book on the desk in front of Shen Han, turned around, and prepared to take Su Mi with her to leave.

Shen Han suddenly spoke: “I’ve considered the matter you mentioned last time.”

Her voice was different than before—lazy, as if she were already satiated by something.

Xu Nanqiao’s footsteps paused.

Su Mi instinctively held her breath as well, looking toward Shen Han’s direction.

In the darkness, Shen Han’s face remained indistinct. The light reflected by the floor-to-ceiling window only caught the silhouettes of the standing Xu Nanqiao and the seated Su Mi.

She spoke indifferently: “I have no intention of forcing or interfering with your choice of school. Capital University is also an excellent choice. Just study hard; you don’t need to worry about anything else.”

Su Mi quickly looked up, met Xu Nanqiao’s eyes, and gave a small, secret fist pump.

The look meant: See? I told you Shen Han would soften for you.

Xu Nanqiao’s expression was still somewhat tense. She thanked Shen Han and turned to leave.

Su Mi wanted to follow her out, but then she heard Shen Han say: “Su Mi.”

Su Mi: “…” Detention.

She obediently sat back in her original spot, resting both hands neatly on her knees.

Xu Nanqiao closed the door. Silence returned to the study, and the record on the gramophone had long since reached its end, leaving no sound.

Shen Han said: “Congratulations on completing your differentiation. I’ve had Secretary Zhuang order a new Sadura sports car; it will be delivered to your house later this evening. If you don’t like it or want something else, let me know.”

Su Mi: “…”

Her round, puppy-like eyes widened, her pupils shrinking in surprise.

Wait, this ‘overbearing CEO’ segment shouldn’t belong to me, right…?

As expected.

Shen Han continued: “Xu Nanqiao has a simple personality. Although she won’t have trouble getting into Capital University, I’m afraid her life there won’t be as peaceful as it is at Loran, where you and I are present. Do you have any preference for your university choice?”

Su Mi: So that’s the catch.

In the original novel, this was likely the starting point for the original host’s jealousy toward Xu Nanqiao.

Previously, the original host knew that Shen Han always kept Omegas at a distance. Although she treated Xu Nanqiao specially, she had always remained indifferent and unaffected.

But regarding this school choice, Shen Han—who never changed her mind for anyone—had compromised for Xu Nanqiao for the first time. Moreover, to ensure Xu Nanqiao wouldn’t be bullied at Capital University, she directly asked the original host to apply there as well.

One had to understand that the original host’s goal had always been to climb the social ladder. While Capital University was the country’s top academic institution, it lagged far behind Holy Cross Academy—where Shen Han was—in terms of networking and student class status. Furthermore, as Shen Han’s lackey, she intended to go wherever Shen Han went.

Therefore, the original host had never considered any possibility other than Holy Cross Academy.

Not only that, the original host’s differentiation result was an Omega. Facing the interaction between Shen Han and Xu Nanqiao, she couldn’t help but think: I am an Omega too. If Shen Han can favor the delicate Omega Xu Nanqiao, why not me?

She had suppressed the jealousy in her heart and agreed to Shen Han’s request, but she immediately turned around and began her first instance of secret bullying against Xu Nanqiao, which ultimately triggered the first meeting between the male and female leads in the original story.

Su Mi answered sincerely and thoughtfully: “Capital University is also my dream school.”

Her gaze was incredibly devout as she looked toward the villain’s direction.

Shen Han let out a very soft chuckle.

“That’s good,” she said. “Secretary Zhuang will arrange the details for you. Don’t worry.”

The atmosphere in the heavy study seemed to circulate instantly. Su Mi breathed a soft sigh of relief and suddenly realized that, at some point, the surrounding temperature was no longer as icy as before.

Shen Han: “It’s late. You should head back early too. Don’t worry your parents.”

Su Mi agreed, stood up slowly, glanced behind the desk, and walked toward the door.

“Su Mi, can you smell anything special in the air?”

Shen Han asked suddenly.

“Huh?” Su Mi was startled. She then pretended to be curious and sniffed the air vigorously a few times before shaking her head. “No.”

Shen Han didn’t say anything. Su Mi turned back and gave a sweet, obedient smile. Her eyes looked into the void of the darkness, as if she could see those ice-blue eyes and the striking tear mole beneath one of them.

Su Mi reached up and twirled a lock of her slightly curly short hair. The golden strands wound around her fingertip as she said calmly, “Sister, I’m a Beta.”

Shen Han gave a hum and said lazily, “Alright, go on.”

Su Mi didn’t close her eyes until she stepped out of the meeting room door and saw Xu Nanqiao waiting outside.

Trying to piece together and glimpse the villain’s personality through the summary-like plot of the original book and the blurry, fragmented memories in her head was indeed impossible.

But… it was very interesting.

Like a double exposure, the image of the tall woman’s cold, beautiful face and those arresting eyes merged with the memory of the heavy study and the murmuring sound of the violin music.

Belatedly, her heart began to race violently.

Xu Nanqiao came over and took her arm, asking, “Su Mi, are you okay?”

Su Mi looked at the concerned Xu Nanqiao and calmed down.

She weighed her options and felt that telling her right now about going to Capital University might be counterproductive.

She shook her head and said, “She just asked a few things about my differentiation.”

The two of them walked downstairs together and returned to the living room. Secretary Zhuang was sitting on the sofa tapping away at a light-brain. Su Mi had no intention of lingering. After being stopped by the butler to drink a cup of floral tea, she took Xu Nanqiao to the car and left.

Once back in the car, the climate control system began to operate. The interior quickly warmed up, and Su Mi breathed a sigh of relief.

Su Mi remembered her previous sensation.

She asked casually, “Is it because there are so many mountains around? It always feels a bit cold inside the villa.”

“It’s not cold, is it?” Xu Nanqiao said. “Is it because you just finished your differentiation period? It’s normal for your constitution to be a bit weaker.”

Su Mi gave an “un-huh,” looked at Xu Nanqiao with a bit of confusion, and reluctantly accepted the explanation.

Xu Nanqiao asked, “Hey, I took you up there today—any thoughts?”

Su Mi: “Do you want the truth?”

Xu Nanqiao: “Of course.”

Su Mi said, “Well, I didn’t expect you were actually just reading books to Shen Han.”

Xu Nanqiao reached out and pinched Su Mi’s arm. “So you think you can do whatever you want now that you’ve differentiated into a Beta! How can you say something like that?”

Su Mi said with a smile, “I think you two are quite a match… Alright, stop pinching me, I won’t say it anymore.”

She made a gesture of zipping her lips.

After dropping Xu Nanqiao off at her building, just as she was about to get out, Su Mi called out to her: “Wait a second, can I ask one more curious question?”

“What does Shen Han’s pheromone smell like?” Su Mi asked with genuine sincerity.

Xu Nanqiao froze. Her face suddenly flushed a deep red. She hoisted her backpack and said, “You… did you sleep through culture class and skip all the common sense classes too! I’m going to hit you with my bag!”

Su Mi shut the car door and fled quickly.

On the way home, the system finally provided Su Mi with some background knowledge.

In this ABO world of the book, technology was advanced and pheromone masking was perfected. Almost no one would leak their pheromone scent in public. Furthermore, between an Alpha and an Omega, knowing the other’s pheromone scent was equivalent to having had very intimate, uncontrollable physical contact.

Therefore, Su Mi asking Xu Nanqiao if she knew Shen Han’s pheromone scent was essentially asking if she had slept with Shen Han.

No wonder Xu Nanqiao was so embarrassed and annoyed.

Then, was the question Shen Han asked before she left a way of testing her?

Su Mi couldn’t figure it out.

Her gaze flickered to the top right corner. The dim percentage number suddenly glowed because it received attention.

80%.

It dropped by 10%? Just by meeting the female lead once and reading for half an hour, the effect was this strong?

The system couldn’t give specific factors influencing the blackening value, but the only known factor so far was the female lead. It seemed that to complete the task, she had to start with her.

She had to try her best to prevent the development of the relationship between the male and female leads, and try to keep her own relationship with the two of them on good terms…

Su Mi rubbed her temples and sighed.

Back at the Su residence, the car automatically parked in the garage. Su Mi saw the sports car Shen Han had mentioned as a gift—it was a bright, tender yellow with smooth lines, brand new inside and out, fully equipped, and clearly exorbitant.

Su Mi searched online, and sure enough, the price was followed by a long string of zeros.

The interior was likely top-tier as well. Su Mi walked around the car once and opened the trunk, only to find that there were several other gifts inside.

The largest item was a golf bag. Su Mi unzipped it to find several custom clubs inlaid with gold and diamonds. Next to it were various luxury bags and accessories.

Perhaps if Xu Nanqiao hadn’t insisted on attending Capital University, the original host’s differentiation gift would have just been the items in the trunk.

But with the change in university plans added to the mix, the villain had added the sports car as a bonus.

Rich.

The original plot mentioned that the female lead disliked “charity” wealth, so the villain almost never gave her expensive things.

But a vain little cannonball like herself could benefit from the spillover.

The villain not only wanted to send her to the country’s top university as a “study companion,” but also gave her a luxury car.

Giving away so much money so casually—no wonder the original host preferred to risk pretending to be a Beta just to remain a follower.

Su Mi knew the meaning behind these gifts. Aside from being impressed, she didn’t have much of a reaction.

She took a few photos of the car and sent one to Shen Han first.

Su Mi: Sister, I received the car. It’s beautiful. Thank you! ^^

Shen Han replied quickly, though it was just a single word: Good.

Su Mi then selected a few photos and, following the original host’s habits, posted a Moment on her social feed with a caption that flaunted it slightly: A differentiation gift from Sister [heart][cute]

Taking the private elevator from the garage back into the house, her younger brother Su Yi was already asleep. After peeking at him through the door, Su Mi returned to her room, took a shower, and put on a new scent-blocking patch.

The new post on her light-brain already had over a hundred likes. The comments were lively, mostly schoolmates chatting. The most frequently mentioned term was “President Shen.”

Private messages were also popping up. Su Mi clicked on a four-person group chat the original host frequented. The girls inside had already sent over a hundred messages, all about makeup, fashion, and gossip.

This was likely the group of “besties” the original host was closest to.

The latest message tagged her: Susu, is your differentiation period over? Someone said they saw your car at the school gate this afternoon.

Su Mi replied: Mhm.

Friend A: What was Susu doing at school? There are still a few days left of the break, right?

Friend C: Did you go see President Shen today? The new car is so pretty, and it’s Susu’s favorite yellow. President Shen is so good to Susu~

Friend Y: By the way, what was the result of Susu’s differentiation?

Su Mi: I’m a Beta.

The pace of the chat paused.

Then the three of them began talking over each other to comfort Su Mi. The content included, but was not limited to, flattering Su Mi as the only sister Shen Han pampered, and saying “so what if Xu Nanqiao is an Omega,” blah blah blah…

If it were the original host, she would be feeling both smug and satisfied right now.

Then, spurred on by the group of friends, she would have had one of them contact some thugs to corner the female lead in an alley the next day, facilitating the “hero saves the beauty” encounter with the male lead.

Finally, Friend A asked tentatively: Susu, how do you feel about Xu Nanqiao now?

Su Mi: Hmm? No particular feelings.

Just as Friend Y typed out something like “Susu is so kind-hearted,” Su Mi followed up with:

Su Mi: I just simply view her as my sister-in-law