I Became the Female Lead’s Current Obsession - Chapter 43

“I don’t agree with what you’re doing.”

“How can I not be anxious when I don’t know what they’re doing in there?”

“With all due respect, this feels a bit forced.”

“What’s wrong with bringing a gift? I just forgot to give it to her earlier. And seriously, two girls alone in a room this late—it doesn’t feel appropriate.”

“They’re like sisters. They’re both minors. You’re overthinking it.”

“You think I don’t know better? Hou Xue is completely into girls, and that stepsister of hers has abnormal emotional readings. Who knows if they’ll get together before I even have a chance?”

Jiang Yan stood outside the door, pressing her right ear against it to listen in.

There was no one else beside her. Other than her recent conversation with Jiang Qing, she hadn’t made another sound, let alone interacted with anyone.

System 043 “shrugged”—at least in theory. She didn’t have a physical form to actually do it; it was all in her imagination. But 043 thought that if she were physically next to Jiang Yan, she probably would have shrugged by instinct.

“Suit yourself,” 043 said. “But you should really focus on interacting with Jiang Qing. I need more of her data.”

“Yeah, yeah, I got it,” Jiang Yan replied. “They’re about to open the door.”

Sure enough, the one who opened it was Jiang Qing—exactly what 043 had hoped for.

“Perfect timing. Didn’t you want to see her?” Jiang Yan said to 043.

043 didn’t respond. She was busy scanning Jiang Qing with full concentration.

Jiang Qing had only come to open the door. She stood to the side, arms crossed. Behind her, Hou Xue appeared, her expression indifferent. She looked at Jiang Yan and asked flatly, “What is it?” Her tone was cold and detached, as usual. Even Jiang Qing, used to her aloofness, felt a little uneasy.

And then, quite out of place, she realized the spot where Hou Xue had kissed her earlier was still warm.

The way Jiang Yan showed up now felt almost like she was catching them in the act of doing something “bad.”

“I finally got a chance to see you, and I forgot to give this to you earlier.” Jiang Yan extended the bag in her hand. “Welcome to the family.”

“My mother hasn’t married into this family yet,” Hou Xue replied bluntly, without the slightest pretense of politeness. “And it’s too extravagant. I can’t accept it.” Then she pulled Jiang Qing back by the hand, clearly intending to close the door.

Jiang Qing didn’t have any strong feelings about Jiang Yan one way or the other, but she appreciated Hou Xue’s subtle gestures of care. So, she let herself be led away without saying a word.

“Hey—” Jiang Yan grew increasingly suspicious of their behavior. Now she absolutely didn’t want Hou Xue to close the door. “You didn’t even look. How do you know it’s too extravagant? Besides, it’s late.

Shouldn’t everyone be heading to bed?”

As she spoke, her gaze landed on Jiang Qing.

Hou Xue’s motion to close the door was interrupted. Her lips pressed into a line, and she said impatiently, “We’re studying. Please stop interrupting us.” She added force to her pull, forcing Jiang Yan to let go of the door, which then slammed shut, cutting her off from the two girls.

It was the first time Jiang Yan had been stonewalled like that, and it didn’t sit well with her. Even though she hadn’t expected much from the start, Hou Xue’s attitude—and her subtle protection of Jiang Qing—made her heart sink. Her frustration turned to resentment, directed at Jiang Qing.

“What did you manage to scan?” Jiang Yan asked once she returned to her room. Technically, her room was closer to Hou Xue’s. There were four kids in the house: Jiang Qing lived on the west end, then Jiang

Xing, then Jiang Yan herself, and finally Hou Xue on the east end.

After a brief pause, 043 replied, “A bunch of encrypted, corrupted data.” Then she added, “By the way, Hou Xue’s affection score is still zero. It hasn’t budged.”

Jiang Yan had entered the novel Waiting for the Snow to Stop just one day ago.

She was bound to a fast-transmigration romance system.

“Fast-transmigration” meant jumping from one story to another, completing short arcs. The mission was simple: get the target character’s affection level to 100.

Waiting for the Snow to Stop was her second novel.

She’d cleared the first one quickly and eagerly dived into this one—only to hit a wall.

In theory, early-stage novels weren’t supposed to be difficult or complicated. But even 043 had never encountered this kind of data anomaly before. Jiang Yan, inexperienced and unrefined in her methods, was bound to act out from frustration.

“I’ll report this to headquarters,” 043 finally said.

“What about the timeline you gave me? Is it still usable?” Jiang Yan asked.

“Lay low for a few days. Wait until HQ gives us a solution before resuming the mission,” 043 advised.

“Alright,” Jiang Yan replied.

Then, the voice in her head fell silent.

“Why were you so cold to her?” Jiang Qing couldn’t resist teasing.

Hou Xue looked at her with a touch of helplessness in her eyes. She didn’t respond immediately. Just as Jiang Qing thought she wouldn’t answer, Hou Xue said, “Because I only want to be good to you.”

Jiang Qing froze.

“What about you?” Hou Xue took a step closer, closing the distance between them.

It was Jiang Qing’s first time being confronted so directly—she short-circuited.

“Uh… as a big sister, of course I should treat my little sister well.”

“You know that’s not what I meant.” Hou Xue’s voice wasn’t loud, but every word hit Jiang Qing square in the chest.

Jiang Qing rubbed her nose and avoided eye contact.

“Honestly, Jiang Yan wasn’t wrong. It’s really late. I should wash up and go to bed.”

Fortunately, Hou Xue wasn’t one to push. She averted her gaze. “Then good night.” Then, as if changing her mind, she looked back and smiled. “Good night, Qingqing.”

“Good night.” Jiang Qing rushed to the bathroom, afraid she’d give herself away if she lingered even a second longer.

Once the bathroom door shut, she exhaled.

If she hadn’t stopped herself just now, she probably would’ve confessed everything.

But she didn’t want to.

She didn’t want Hou Xue to know she liked her. She didn’t want to shatter the fragile balance between them.

Their identities, their relationship, their age difference—even the fact that Jiang Bin had just tried to “marry her off”—none of that was resolved yet. Jiang Qing didn’t want to recklessly define their relationship too soon.

And more than anything, she had a strong feeling: if it was Hou Xue… she wouldn’t be able to break up with her.

Strange, really. She hadn’t even dated Hou Xue, but was already thinking about breakups. Her concern wasn’t how deeply they liked each other, but whether this love should exist at all.

Love hadn’t made her lose her mind or plunge headfirst into romance. And she hadn’t forgotten she was inside a book. Hou Xue was the female lead. This wasn’t a typical relationship—something she could start or end on a whim.

Until the very end of the original story, Hou Xue never had a romantic arc.

Now that the timeline had gone off-track and an arranged marriage subplot was thrown in, Jiang Qing couldn’t take the risk of dragging Hou Xue into a love story.

But, it was Hou Xue.

The person she liked.

And Hou Xue liked her back.

The sound of hot water echoed in the bathroom, masking the sound of Jiang Qing’s heartbeat.

She thought, if this wasn’t a book, if Hou Xue weren’t the protagonist… she would’ve kissed her just now.

After showering, Jiang Qing logged onto Snowman.

Her heart was full of bittersweet emotions with nowhere to go. So, she turned to the only person who might understand—her “net friend,” the female programmer.

Ever since the programmer’s identity was revealed, Jiang Qing found it much easier to talk to her. Knowing the other person was human made her more candid, and the programmer always replied instantly—like a

24/7 friend. The ideal kind of online companion.

“Sister, sister.”

“Today was absolutely wild.”

“?”

“What happened?”

As expected, instant reply. Jiang Qing lit a candle for the programmer’s health.

“You’re still online? It’s late.”

“Not that late.”

Hou Xue no longer overthought how to sound “older.” She typed quickly:

“Aren’t nights just getting started for people your age?”

“The fun’s theirs. I usually go to bed on time.”

Jiang Qing had always lived a regular, healthy life. No night outings. Early to bed, early to rise.

“So, what happened to you today?”

Hou Xue steered the conversation back.

She really wanted to know what Jiang Qing thought about the mess of a day, about the moment she couldn’t help but blurt out nonsense at the sight of a heartbreakingly beautiful Jiang Qing.

She tightened her grip on her mouse.

Inside the second drawer of her desk was a small jewelry box.

It held a ring—her Christmas gift for Jiang Qing. Though “Christmas” was really just an excuse. She just needed a reason to give a gift.

She had already given Jiang Qing a diamond necklace. But the ring wasn’t diamond—it was a modest pearl. She didn’t even know why she’d bought it. Maybe, like the aquamarine necklace, it was simply because she thought Jiang Qing would look beautiful wearing it.

No deeper meaning. Just a feeling.

But now she wasn’t sure if Jiang Qing even wanted things like that from her.

“It sounds kind of dumb when I say it out loud…”

“It’s fine. Whatever you say, I’ll believe you.”

Jiang Qing smiled at that.

“My dad arranged an engagement for me today. Without asking me.”

Engagement?

Hou Xue’s eyelids dropped slightly.

She hadn’t been told this.

Was that why Jiang Qing rejected her today?

Because… she was about to marry a man?

“This is a lawful society. You can sue him.”

“Haha, sacrificing justice for the greater good?”

“It’s outrageous, but not that outrageous. Still, it’s complicated…”

“I met the guy today. He was polite enough, but I didn’t feel comfortable at all.”

“And they never told me anything. I need to talk to my dad soon.”

“You’re still young. Why is your dad so worried about your marriage?”

Hou Xue’s calculations began. She probed gently:

“If you had someone you liked, he probably wouldn’t be rushing to arrange your marriage, right?”

“He’s not doing it to rush me.”

“And I don’t have a partner.”

“But.”

Jiang Qing hesitated, then typed.

“I do like someone.”

Hou Xue frowned, uncertain if she wanted to know the answer.

What if it wasn’t someone she could accept?

She was a lesbian.

She had known since childhood that she liked women. But she’d never liked anyone—until Jiang Qing.

She had always wondered: what if Jiang Qing liked men?

Like Nie Rui, for instance.

Her former stepsister had liked Nie Rui and even watched his games.

So why wouldn’t Jiang Qing like a man too?

Maybe it had all been one-sided—just her queer imagination misreading things. Maybe all the ambiguity and tension were just sisterly affection. Maybe Jiang Qing’s possessiveness was just concern from an older sibling.

Maybe Jiang Qing would never like her. Might even find her disgusting.

After all, she had rejected her today. Even if it was subtle, it had crushed her. She no longer had the courage to take even half a step forward.

But then—Jiang Qing sent another message:

“Sigh. It’s my first time liking someone, but the relationship is really complicated…”

Hou Xue’s fingers moved faster than her brain.

“She?”

“Yeah. Her.”

“Actually, I like girls.”

“But I guess I shouldn’t say it like that.”

“I’ve never really been into anyone—male or female. I used to think something was wrong with me.”

“Even figuring out whether I liked her took me forever.”

“Honestly, it’s kind of stupid. We’re not even together. What’s there to overthink?”

“Why are you so quiet? Do you think I’m a freak?”

“No.”

“I like girls too.”

Jiang Qing was stunned. Just a little.

Before she crossed into the book, Jiang Qing had rarely interacted with the LGBTQ+ community. Now, by sheer coincidence, she had randomly added a stranger online—only to stumble right into this?

What are the odds? she thought. “Do you have a girlfriend?”

“No.”

“I also like someone.”

Lying side by side, Jiang Qing felt like they were a pair of innocent high schoolers, whispering their adolescent feelings in the quiet of the night.

“Do lesbians usually fall for people they can’t have?”

“Have you and she gotten that far?”

“Maybe,” Jiang Qing replied quietly. “I dropped a hint today but she turned me down.”

Hou Xue’s hands trembled slightly.

Jiang Qing likes girls. And she already has someone in her heart.

Who is it? Could it be… But if it was, why did she reject her? Her reaction had clearly been panicked—like she was avoiding something.

“She rejected you?”

Jiang Qing felt her heart sink. She had also turned someone down today—the very person she liked.

“Maybe she doesn’t like girls?” Hou Xue ventured.

“Maybe… she just doesn’t like me,” Jiang Qing murmured.

“What kind of person does your ‘sister’ like?” Hou Xue asked, her tone light but her heart tight.

“We haven’t met in real life,” Jiang Qing said. “But I just know she’s a really good person. She’s gentle, patient, very capable… someone who’s definitely popular.”

Jiang Qing always spoke differently when she talked about this ‘sister’—soft, warm, unlike her usual guarded self.

Hou Xue was quietly jealous of this version of Jiang Qing—this gentle tone, this rare openness—because it wasn’t meant for her. Her lips twitched upward, then down again.

You think so highly of me… and yet, you don’t like me?

“I’m not easy to get along with,” Hou Xue said quietly. “I’m quiet and kind of moody. Most people don’t like being around me.”

“But she treats me really well.”

That caught Hou Xue off guard. She’d meant to lead Jiang Qing into opening up more, maybe even admitting something. But somehow, she ended up being the one to confess first.

Still, she wasn’t ready to back down entirely.

After a pause, she asked, “And you? What kind of person do you like?”