Damn It! I Fell for the Hated Villainess Again! - Chapter 30

Confessing was out of the question!

Even if the other person was Yu Tanning, Jiang Yao would rather die than make the first move.

Meeting Yu Tanning’s wet, expectant gaze, Jiang Yao steeled her heart and lied through her teeth: “W-we’re not at the romantic part yet! We’re just friends for now!”

“Oh, so this novel’s more complicated than I thought,” Yu Tanning said with a helpless smile. “When does the romance start?”

Jiang Yao glared at her. “Why?! Are you trying to date Su Xiao?!”

“It has nothing to do with her. I’m just curious,” Yu Tanning said, a mischievous glint in her eyes. “Curious about what it’s like to have you desperately wanting me.”

“Yu Tanning! We just made up, and you’re already showing your true colors!”

Yu Tanning feigned hurt. “I’m genuinely curious! No one’s ever liked me like that before…”

“Liar! You’ve got suitors lining up!”

“Oh? Who? I haven’t noticed.”

“Just keep pretending!”

Jiang Yao refused to list them. The more she thought about it, the angrier she got!

This woman is a magnet for trouble!

First there was Yu Weixi, and now there’s the potential Su Xiao. And the internet is flooded with people calling her “wife”!

“Someone did confess to me once,” Yu Tanning said softly. “But they didn’t truly know me. They were in love with an idealized version of me, not the real me.”

“Besides, their so-called ‘love’ never lasted more than a week.”

Jiang Yao stared at the sardonic smile playing on Yu Tanning’s lips, her heart sinking like a stone into a lake, ripples spreading across her chest. Hidden feelings stirred with each wave.

“Then what’s the real you like?” Jiang Yao blurted out, her cheeks flushing and her heart racing. “I… I’m just curious.”

She wasn’t sure if she was seeing the most authentic Yu Tanning right now. But she wanted to know every facet of Yu Tanning’s true self. She wanted to love every part of her.

Yu Tanning glanced over leisurely, a smile playing on her lips as she smoothly changed the subject. “Someone who holds the script should know everything about everyone around them, right?”

Jiang Yao choked, then retorted indignantly, “I don’t have an omniscient perspective! If I knew everything about everyone, would I still be getting roasted all over the internet?!”

Seeing Jiang Yao’s spacey expression, Yu Tanning couldn’t help but laugh and cry at the same time. “Boss, tell me honestly. Were you born clutching a script?”

Jiang Yao replied truthfully, “Not from birth. I only awakened my character consciousness after falling down the stairs.”

So she really did hit her head too hard! Yu Tanning pressed a hand to her forehead.

But Jiang Yao saw nothing wrong with her statement. “Hey! What’s with that look? I’m only telling you this because I consider you a friend!”

“No, no, no, I believe you,” Yu Tanning quickly assured her, eager to avoid upsetting her. She adopted an expression of complete agreement. “When you told me about it at the hotel before, I was already convinced. I just didn’t realize… your awakening was so limited.”

Jiang Yao said earnestly, “Maybe it’s because I’m not the main female lead.”

“Why don’t you go fall down the stairs again?”

The corners of Yu Tanning’s lips twitched. “That’s way too dangerous.”

Jiang Yao realized how ridiculous her suggestion had been, and her face flushed with embarrassment. “Aaaah! Don’t take that seriously! I was just joking. If you actually got hurt, it would be terrible!”

******

The Online Consultation:

Yu Tanning shook her head, saying she didn’t mind, but after finishing dinner and returning to the Student Union office, her fingers began tapping incessantly on the keyboard.

She painstakingly described Jiang Yao’s symptoms in the search bar, and the screen flooded with dense medical information. Frowning, she scanned terms like “schizophrenia” and “post-traumatic stress disorder,” recalling Jiang Yao’s earnest expression when she said, “I’m telling you this because I consider you a friend.” The more she read those words, the more they stung, her fingertip hovering over the mouse, unable to click.

For a moment, Yu Tanning couldn’t tell if she was being rational or simply distrustful.

Perhaps love makes the heart grow blind.

This is pointless.

As she aimlessly scrolled, her peripheral vision caught a paper on “Delusional Beliefs in Fictional Characters.” When her eyes landed on the description—”Patients firmly believe they exist within a fictional world and hold preconceived notions about the characters’ fates,”—her chest tightened.

She meticulously read the abstract, staring blankly at the screen for a long time. In the end, she couldn’t bring herself to see Jiang Yao as a mentally ill patient.

Yu Tanning, her mind a tangled mess, closed the webpage and opened Baidu Tieba. She organized her thoughts on this absurd crisis of trust and anonymously posted a thread.

What began as a casual attempt to vent her stress quickly spiraled into something unexpected. Within an hour, the thread had grown into a towering skyscraper of over three thousand replies, with several comments racking up over ten thousand likes.

Post 1: Don’t doubt it—both of you are clearly out of your minds.

Post 4: OP, you’d better be asking for help, not just bragging about your relationship!

Post 9: Is it possible she’s just read too many novels and gotten carried away? Try taking her to an anime convention. Maybe she’ll run into a relative who’s cosplaying as the Evil King’s Eye user.

[Post 80: OP, don’t be so blindly in love. If she claims to be the Queen Mother of the West, would you start picking peaches for her?]

[Post 200: Just play along with her script! Maybe she’ll suddenly pin you against a wall, steal a kiss, and then you’ll get your happy ending.]

[Post 1529: If these symptoms appeared after a head injury, it could be a temporary delusional disorder. Don’t force her to go to the hospital and risk agitating her further. Instead, try to follow her logic and avoid escalating the situation. My team has treated similar patients before. Feel free to DM me if you need help.]

Yu Tanning clicked on the user profile for post #1529 and saw that their bio included a location tag for “Wei Yu Psychological Clinic.” All of their posts offered treatment advice for related conditions. After a moment’s thought, she clicked on the paid consultation option.

She entered the final digit of her transaction password, and a one-on-one video call connected almost immediately.

Clutching her phone, Yu Tanning hurried to the hallway and answered the call.

The scratch of a pen across paper came through the speaker. A doctor in a white coat adjusted their glasses and asked, “Hello. I just replied to your post. Is that patient your—girlfriend?”

Yu Tanning paused, then didn’t deny it. “Yes, Doctor. She now firmly believes she’s a supporting character in a novel, insists I’m the main female lead, and claims I’ll fall for someone else and come to hate her. Does this situation require medication?”

The doctor smiled, a hint of amusement in her voice.

 “It seems your girlfriend has been reading quite a few melodramatic novels. First, she needs a brain CT scan and a psychiatric evaluation to rule out any organic causes. After that, we can consider psychological intervention or medication.”

“In my experience with patients with delusional disorder, head injuries are rarely the cause. You mentioned she fell down the stairs?”

Yu Tanning nodded, feeling deeply guilty. 

“Yes, she fell down the stairs. It was my fault, really. There was a loose tile I should have fixed sooner. I never imagined my negligence would lead to this…”

“A fall down the stairs alone wouldn’t typically cause delusional disorder. Has your girlfriend experienced any other traumatic events recently? Excessive stress or emotional shocks, perhaps?”

“Would being subjected to a massive online hate campaign count as a trigger?” Yu Tanning’s eyes darkened.

The doctor tapped her fingers lightly on the desk, her gaze fixed on the screen. “A large-scale online hate campaign constitutes severe psychological trauma and could very well be a triggering factor. When real-world pressures exceed one’s psychological coping threshold, the brain activates defense mechanisms, using ‘fictional narratives’ to reconstruct reality.”

“For example, identifying with a ‘supporting character’ role and rationalizing real-world harm through ‘script logic’ is essentially a form of psychological compensation.”

Yu Tanning gripped her phone tightly, recalling the baseless rumors Jiang Yao had endured, the malicious closure of her live streams, and the hostile glares from all sides. Her heart felt pierced through; each breath was a painful reminder.

“So, her so-called ‘Character Awakening’ and ‘Script’ are actually ways to escape the malice of reality?” Yu Tanning heard her voice tremble.

She had always thought Yaoyao was an invincible little sun.

How could she have been so naive? How could she have overlooked the wounds hidden beneath that tough exterior?

She was such a terrible friend, yet Yaoyao had been foolish enough to seek reconciliation.

The doctor pulled up a research report. “Clinically, patients with Delusional Disorder often transfer their stressors through ‘narrative frameworks.’ For example, her insistence that ‘female supporting characters are destined to be unloved’ might be a projection of her own internalized feelings of being unworthy, stemming from real-world attacks.”

“Interestingly, the fictional worlds of patients with Delusional Disorder are typically fragmented. Yet in the ‘novel’ she’s constructed, you remain the central figure. This suggests her subconscious is trying to draw closer to you, not push you away.”

Yu Tanning froze, remembering Jiang Yao’s flushed ears and stubborn denials. A sudden warmth spread through her throat.

“Doctor, I want her to get better. How can I help her?”

“Based on your description, your girlfriend is still functioning normally in her studies and daily life, so her condition isn’t severe. However, we shouldn’t rush her to the hospital. Psychological defense mechanisms are like scabs on a wound—forcibly peeling them off will only cause further harm.”

“The most important thing now is to build her trust in reality. The support and guidance of family and friends are crucial. If guided properly, someone at her stage can easily heal on their own.”

“Don’t dismiss her narrative logic,” the doctor said, drawing two intersecting circles on a piece of paper. “Think of her ‘worldview’ as a parallel universe. Approach her with an attitude of, ‘If this were true, let’s change the ending together.’ This will both maintain her sense of security and encourage real-world interaction.”

“As she accumulates enough ‘evidence of being loved’ in reality—such as your continued acceptance and recognition at work—the psychological scab will naturally fall off. In the meantime, just let her know that no matter what she believes, you’ll always be on her side.”

The doctor closed the file, his tone gentle. “The fact that you came to consult me shows how deeply you care for your girlfriend. I believe that with your efforts, you can guide her back to a loving reality.”

“This is my business card. You can take a screenshot. If you encounter any difficulties in the future, please don’t hesitate to call me.”

“Thank you, Doctor.”

After hanging up, Yu Tanning leaned against the window, staring blankly at the ceiling. Sunlight streamed diagonally through the corridor, casting alternating patterns of light and shadow across her face.

The doctor’s words echoed in her mind: “You’ve always been the core. This proves her subconscious is trying to draw closer to you, not push you away.” The phrase reverberated through her thoughts, sending ripples of emotion through her heart.

It was like a key unlocking a hidden switch within Yu Tanning’s soul.

Warm evening light streamed through the glass window at the end of the corridor, stretching her shadow long across the floor. As Yu Tanning gazed at her silhouette, she recalled Jiang Yao’s trembling, earnest gaze when she had said, “I want to know the real you.”

A gentle, relieved smile spread across Yu Tanning’s face.

So, in that fictional world, Jiang Yao had already cast her as the sole protagonist, pouring all her effort into writing a subplot of “drawing closer to her.”

Then, guiding Jiang Yao to draw just a little closer to her couldn’t be considered too despicable, could it?

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