Damn It! I Fell for the Hated Villainess Again! - Chapter 5

First, the “Café Incident,” then the “School of Economics and Management Triumph.” By the time Jiang Yao settled into her seat at the library, she felt like she’d transformed into a completely different species, something indescribably off.

Distractedly sketching competition drafts, she heard two short beeps through her Bluetooth earbuds.

Jiang Yao glanced down and saw the WeChat notification. Finally, she understood what felt so wrong. It was all because she’d been too indulgent with Yu Tanning all along!

From caring for her at the campus clinic to delivering coffee this morning, Jiang Yao had been led around by the nose by that scheming woman!

Recalling Yu Tanning’s seemingly gentle and considerate tactics—which were actually a series of manipulative moves to take advantage of her kindness—Jiang Yao regretted her initial leniency. She immediately began typing a triple-threat warning message.

Just as she was about to type, “We’re just roommates, Yu Tanning. Show some restraint!” she noticed the message in the chat wasn’t the intimate tone she’d expected. In fact, it was utterly devoid of emotion.

Yu Tanning has invited you to join the group chat “A6 Girls’ Dormitory Management Notices.”

[Image]

Not a single word. Even the invitation to join the group was a screenshot of her conversation with the dorm manager.

Compared to her smooth-talking charm in front of the Department of Finance classroom, the icy tone in the chat made Jiang Yao briefly wonder if this was some customer service representative Yu Tanning had hired.

The tenderness from the past few days had all been a smokescreen, obscuring the warm sunlight outside the window and stirring up her chaotic emotions.

Jiang Yao’s fingertip hovered above the screen, her eyes fixed on her phone, stubbornly waiting for something. But there wasn’t even a “typing…” indicator on the other end.

Her lips trembled with anger as she furiously set her phone to focus mode, locking it for two hours.

Fine, fine, playing hard to get, are we?!

If I ever acknowledge you again, I’m a dog!

During the break after her 8AM class at the School of Economics and Management, Yu Tanning opened her phone to reply to a batch of messages.

Her message list was perpetually overflowing with 99 unread notifications, but the pinned conversations remained strangely pristine.

She tapped into Jiang Yao’s chat, which looked like the account had been deleted. After confirming her internet connection was working, Yu Tanning silently backed out.

With her personality, she probably just hates replying to messages by nature, Yu Tanning thought with a wry smile, before moving on to address the other red notification dots.

Zhang Ke was unusually chatty today, bombarding Yu Tanning with messages about the upcoming spring sports festival.

[Zhang Ke: Tanning, are you busy?]

[Zhang Ke: The teacher mentioned we should collaborate more for this festival. Which organizations is your external relations department planning to invite?]

[Zhang Ke: I have an idea! Since Beijing is hosting a tech expo soon, we could leverage the hype and invite Wen Du Tech to participate.]

[Zhang Ke: I’m not pushing my own agenda, I swear!]

[Zhang Ke: Besides the expo’s buzz, inviting companies could also create internship opportunities for our classmates, right?]

Wen Du Tech.

Yu Tanning lowered her gaze, concealing the amusement in her eyes as she typed a reply.

[Yu Tanning: That’s a good idea.]

[Yu Tanning: I’ll ask the teacher about it. We should also invite the engineering university next door.]

Zhang Ke hadn’t expected Yu Tanning to agree so readily. Overjoyed, she spammed four “old man” style emoji.

[Zhang Ke: That’s fantastic!]

[Zhang Ke: Oh, have you seen the promotional materials the publicity department released? The festival logo and mascot?]

[Yu Tanning: No.]

[Zhang Ke: Wait, I’ll send them over.]

[Zhang Ke: I’m not really feeling the logo design. Do you think we should get some input from the Fine Arts College students?]

[Zhang Ke: Oh, and the person you just added to the dorm group—was that Jiang Yao? Is she interested in the sports festival?]

[Zhang Ke: I think Jiang Yao has great taste. She could help with the logo design.]

[Zhang Ke: Hey, I noticed Jiang Yao has her WeChat set to block friend requests from group chats. Tanning, could you send me her WeChat contact? I want to invite her to help.]

Heh, this is quite the elaborate setup.

A cold glint flashed in Yu Tanning’s eyes as she casually fabricated a response.

[Yu Tanning: I’m afraid that won’t work. Yaoyao’s contact card is set to block friend requests too.]

Zhang Ke’s jaw dropped. They’ve only been living together for a few days, and she’s already calling her “Yaoyao”!

Seeing Yu Tanning’s ambiguous attitude and the use of “Yaoyao,” Zhang Ke realized she was likely being played. Regret gnawed at her insides.

The power dynamics for the upcoming student council elections were now clear:

 “Whoever wins Jiang Yao wins the world.” 

Those old foxes in finance really knew how to play their cards, quietly amassing power behind the scenes!

But now that her true intentions were exposed to Yu Tanning, she had no reason to cling to pride. She would go all-in on shamelessness and destruction—after all, no one was getting out of this world alive.

[Zhang Ke: Tanning, do you have her phone number?]

Yu Tanning: Uh… [Wipes sweat]

[Zhang Ke: If she doesn’t like phone calls, what about her email?]

[Zhang Ke: If she doesn’t have an email, we could meet in the Rift.]

[Zhang Ke: Or NetEase Cloud Music] [Pleading emoji]

Yu Tanning didn’t even bother reading Zhang Ke’s desperate barrage of messages. She simply replied, “Class is starting,” and cut off contact.

[Zhang Ke: Damn it!]

********

Completely oblivious to the fierce power struggle within the Student Union, Jiang Yao furiously scribbled on her draft paper, sparks practically flying from her pencil. The originally ethereal, flowing floral-bud dress in her competition sketch now carried a distinct dark gothic battle armor vibe.

Her wrist aching from drawing, Jiang Yao held up the draft, examining it from every angle. Still dissatisfied, she mentally cursed Yu Tanning again before packing up to head to class.

This morning’s History of Fashion Design lecture was taught by Professor Peng, Jiang Yao’s competition advisor and mentor. Professor Peng was the one who had guided her to pursue her dreams, and she was the most genuinely kind person Jiang Yao knew at Beijing University.

Before class, Jiang Yao made a special trip to the professor’s office to show her filial respect and share her freshly completed design draft.

Though elderly, Professor Peng’s thinking remained remarkably in sync with her students. She chuckled as she reviewed Jiang Yao’s sketch, then feigned heartache. “It seems my beloved disciple is about to turn to the dark side.”

Jiang Yao pursed her lips. “I’m just not in a good mood. Nothing I draw feels right.”

“What’s got you down? Did you quarrel with your new roommate?”

Jiang Yao denied it, her words betraying her true feelings. “We’re barely acquainted. What would we even argue about?”

“Oh-ho-ho! Barely acquainted, yet you’re buying her coffee? Even your teacher doesn’t get such treatment!” Professor Peng clicked her tongue twice.

Jiang Yao was exasperated. “I was just worried she’d get trapped in the classroom and I’d get blamed! And Professor, you’re being unfair! I have brought you coffee before, and mine was way better than hers!”

“Oh, little Jiang Jiang’s afraid of taking the blame now? I thought you’d be used to it by now, after carrying so many burdens,” Professor Peng chuckled, turning to pick up a colored pencil. He slowly began sketching on Jiang Yao’s draft, his tone turning serious.

“Emotional depth is good, but this dark style doesn’t suit you. The light, refreshing style you sent me earlier lacked substance too. Your technique is solid, but your work lacks soul. Remember what I said in class last week?”

Jiang Yao answered quickly, “Good design isn’t just visually pleasing; it’s a soul-to-soul conversation with the audience.”

“Exactly. All those participation points weren’t for nothing. If you’re just freelancing for commissions, this ‘jack-of-all-trades’ approach is fine. But if you want to win major competitions and make a name for yourself in fashion design, you need to find your niche and master it.”

Jiang Yao listened intently, asking humbly, “Professor, what style do you think suits me best?”

Professor Peng pondered for a moment, his gaze lingering on Jiang Yao’s slightly youthful face. After a long pause, he smirked. “Don’t ask me. We’re not that close.”

Jiang Yao nearly committed academic treason on the spot.

“Just teasing you! Look at that temper—you’re like a pufferfish about to explode,” Professor Peng chuckled, handing back Jiang Yao’s draft. He sighed, “Honestly, I can’t answer that question for you right now. After all, no one knows you better than yourself.”

“The final submission is due in two months. What if I still can’t figure out a style that suits me?” Jiang Yao asked, her anxiety creeping in.

“Then you wing it. What else can you do?” Professor Peng remained unfazed. “If you’re stuck, go out and have some fun. Art comes from life, you know? Look at our Fine Arts College students. They’re always having a blast.”

“Weren’t you living it up every day when you first transferred here? Your work back then had so much more spirit than this draft.”

Jiang Yao felt a lump in her throat. Back then, her live streams had been raking in cash—of course she’d been living it up!

Now that her financial superpower was gone, indulging in such extravagance would mean scavenging for fabric scraps in the trash just to make her competition outfit.

Professor Peng remained unaware of Jiang Yao’s precarious financial situation. After all, the girl had always carried herself with the air of a pampered princess, unwilling to compromise on even the smallest comforts. She certainly didn’t look like someone short on cash.

Jiang Yao possessed an iron will; after her family’s financial sanctions, she’d rather work herself to exhaustion than deny herself even a single luxury. Combined with her fierce pride and refusal to ask for help, no outsider would ever suspect her financial straits, no matter how little they knew her.

Jiang Yao tried to play it cool, saying, “It’s boring to just party all the time.”

Professor Peng cut right to the chase: “That’s because you’ve numbed yourself with mindless fun. I suggest you find someone to hang out with—someone who enjoys eating, drinking, and having a good time. Your new roommate seems perfect. She’s pretty and has a gentle personality, which might suit a prickly character like you.”

Jiang Yao’s defenses crumbled. “Why does everyone think Yu Tanning is so great?”

“Everyone?”

Jiang Yao quickly backtracked. “I mean, she’s pretty popular. But just because she’s popular doesn’t mean I have to like her too, right?”

Professor Peng spoke earnestly, “Most relationships are based on mutual benefit. Popularity doesn’t mean people genuinely like her; it means they can gain something from her.”

“Similarly, the reason so many people online hate you is because they can’t take advantage of you.”

Jiang Yao’s eyes lit up. She immediately adopted Professor Peng’s words as gospel, her anger toward Yu Tanning vanishing completely. Instead, she began to feel a strange pity for the woman.

Seized by a sudden wave of compassion, Classmate Jiang finally decided to reply to Yu Tanning with five minutes left before class.

Ugh.

What should I even say?

[ Joined the group. ] —What a pointless message.

[ What’s this group for? ] —No, that’s just plain stupid…

[ Thank you. ] She sent the message, unsure if it sounded sarcastic even to herself.

Jiang Yao’s head throbbed with anxiety. It had been ages since she’d typed a casual chat with anyone. Back when she first started streaming, her keyboard was only used for flaming people.

Now, it seemed like sending reaction images was the trendy way to communicate without words.

Forget it, forget it. She couldn’t risk scaring Yu Tanning into the psychiatric ward with her arsenal of nuclear-grade reaction images.

The surrounding classmates settled into their seats, their laughter gradually subsiding.

As Professor Peng entered the classroom with her small bag, Jiang Yao’s mind raced. She typed “Okay” into their chat.

Her phone’s operating system had updated without her noticing, and the input interface now suggested reaction images based on her typing.

With the class starting, Jiang Yao decided to go with the flow. She casually selected a cute kitten emoji from the suggestions and sent it.

Five hundred meters away in the School of Economics and Management, Yu Tanning received Jiang Yao’s message. Surprised, she opened it and stared thoughtfully at the “KO, I’ll kill you” reaction image.

Support Damn It! I Fell for the Hated Villainess Again!