I Quit Being This Female Lead (GL) - Chapter 5

After returning from the hotel, Mang Ke  saw a piece of gossip news. She recognized the protagonist, who was none other than her love rival encountered at the hotel—Yue Yin.

[Explosive News! Yue Yin Lingers in Hotel for Long Time, Later Assisted by Assistant into Car!]

[Yue Yin Leaves Local Hotel in Evening, Face Flushed, Appears to be Exhausted!]

These were the nicer versions; the more malicious ones were full of speculation and heavy pixilation.

In response to this, Yue Yin’s studio immediately released a statement overnight, claiming Yue Yin was merely drunk and urging irresponsible media not to spread rumors. Yue Yin herself also posted on Weibo with a strong attitude, replying with just two words: [Bullsh*t!]

Netizens exploded, and Weibo crashed several times. Mang Ke was lying on the sofa at the time. When she scrolled past the news, she took a closer look, noting that Yue Yin’s legs were indeed wobbly when she left the hotel, and her assistant had to support her several times.

Recalling Yue Yin’s appearance lying on the bed, Mang Ke could guess that someone with ill intentions had tried to harm her. Fortunately, Yue Yin’s assistant was observant, noticed her condition was wrong, and quickly got a room to take her to. After that, she encountered the versatile female lead (herself), who helped resolve the crisis.

Thinking of this, Mang Ke was smug. When she tried to scroll on her phone again, she found the app had crashed…

“Miss Mang Ke, it’s time to eat.” Aunt Liu (劉姨) carried a bowl of soup, telling Mang Ke, who was playing on her phone: “You are always on your phone. That’s not good for your eyes. I’ll brew some Cassia Seed tea for you this afternoon; it’s good for the eyes.”

Mang Ke smiled and climbed off the sofa: “Thank you, Aunt Liu. I’d be happy for that.”

When she sat down at the dining table, she noticed only her and Aunt Liu’s bowls and chopsticks were set; the lady of the house was absent again today.

Aunt Liu noticed her gaze and couldn’t help but smile: “Miss Xun (荀小姐) is very busy and hasn’t been around much recently. If you miss her, you could go visit her company.”

Mang Ke thought for a moment, then pouted: “Forget it. What would I go looking for her for when I have nothing to do…”

She said that, but Mang Ke was indeed idle. Since the Qi family sold her—the adopted daughter—off, they had completely cut ties. And Xun Fangyun (荀妨藴) was busy flirting with her first love, leaving no time to interact with Mang Ke. After much thought, the person she had the most contact with in this world was still Aunt Liu.

Mang Ke looked at the kind-faced Aunt Liu, who was in her fifties, and sighed. If only I could choose my partner freely! Aunt Liu cooked well, was diligent with housework, and had a gentle temper. Apart from being a bit old, she was a dream lover!

Her train of thought didn’t last long. Aunt Liu eventually handed Mang Ke a bag containing a pair of Xun Fangyun’s gloves.

“It’s getting colder these days. Driving without gloves will be very cold,” Aunt Liu smiled: “Miss Mang Ke, please help deliver this. I have lots of laundry left, so I’ll trouble you.”

Mang Ke took the bag, saw some dried fruit snacks inside, and knew she had to make a trip to Xun Fangyun’s company. Taking a taxi from the gate was inconvenient. Which rich area doesn’t have private cars? So, many taxis didn’t pass through here. Mang Ke didn’t want to drive, and no one picked up her taxi request, so she could only obediently take the blue bus that passed by the gate.

She sat on the two-million-yuan bus heading downtown, taking out her phone to scroll aimlessly through the news. As she scrolled, she saw another trending topic—

Yue Yin: [Thank you to the colleagues and friends who helped me that day. I always talk nonsense and stumble when drunk. For my recreation after work, I ask those media reporters not to talk nonsense. Life is not easy; who can’t get drunk a few times? However, that drunken episode did let me see who truly loves and cares for me. There is always someone who appears during difficult times to light up my world.]

Looking at the ambiguous statement, Mang Ke guessed that the studio might have been concerned about her previous reply of ‘Bullsh*t,’ deleted it, and re-posted a more standard statement to downplay the issue.

However, who was the person who appeared during the most difficult time and lit up her world?

Mang Ke propped up her head, unable to figure it out. She simply turned off her phone and stopped thinking about it. Why should she care so much about her love rival? In the end, Yue Yin was going to try and steal Xun Fangyun from her.

Getting off the bus, Mang Ke walked toward the company located by the GPS. In the lobby, the beautiful-faced front desk staff offered a polite smile, asking Mang Ke: “Hello, Miss, who are you looking for?”

Mang Ke looked at them, feeling a little shy: “I’m looking for Xun Fangyun.”

“Alright. Do you have an appointment, please?”

“Appointment?” Mang Ke thought about it. Aunt Liu probably wouldn’t have made an appointment for her, so she shook her head: “I don’t have an appointment.”

“I apologize, President Xun is very busy. If you don’t have an appointment, we can’t arrange a meeting here.”

“But I’m just here to deliver something to her.”

The front desk staff glanced at the bag Mang Ke was holding. It was a bag from a convenience store near the villa district, woven with rough hemp rope for environmental reasons, and had the convenience store’s logo on it. Aunt Liu was frugal and diligent, and the bag was clean, perfectly fine for holding gloves, so she let Mang Ke use it. However, standing in front of the reception desk now, it appeared just a tiny bit… cheap.

“I’m truly sorry,” the front desk staff still smiled as she apologized: “Without an appointment, you won’t be able to see President Xun.”

Mang Ke held the bag, looking troubled. She said helplessly: “Well… can I sit nearby?”

“Please do. I’ll get you a cup of tea.”

“Thank you.”

Sitting on the sofa next to the front desk, Mang Ke placed the bag on her lap, took out her phone, and dialed Xun Fangyun’s number. The other party didn’t seem to hear it and didn’t pick up. Mang Ke gave up after calling twice.

At the same time.

On the 24th floor, Xun Fangyun had just finished a meeting. Her assistant followed her, holding documents, and said: “President Xun, this afternoon…”

“Cancel all appointments for this afternoon,” Xun Fangyun said as she walked toward her office: “Meeting with those idiots is simply a waste of my time.”

“Uh, alright. Miss Yue Yin is scheduled to have lunch with you at noon. The restaurant has been booked. What do you think?”

“Yue Yin?” Xun Fangyun looked back at her subordinate, recalling the woman, and said: “I know. Is there anything else?”

The assistant thought for a moment. She wanted to mention the girl downstairs carrying a convenience bag looking for her, but then she mused: So many people come looking for President Xun every day. If she met everyone, wouldn’t she be exhausted? So, she said: “No, President Xun.”

Meanwhile, Mang Ke on the sofa was playing a connection game. She finally cleared a level that she had struggled with, and she smiled happily as the screen erupted with animated birds.

Satisfied, she put her phone away and checked the time. It was already past 1 PM. Many employees were returning after lunch. Is Xun Fangyun not coming down to eat? Mang Ke pouted. She thought Xun Fangyun would come down for lunch and purposely waited here to catch her. It seemed that paper characters really didn’t need to eat, use the restroom, or sleep.

Just as Mang Ke was murmuring to herself, a commotion suddenly erupted at the entrance. The employees who had just returned and hadn’t yet taken the elevator all turned around, standing to the side, looking nervous and excited toward the door, as if waiting for someone.

Mang Ke’s area also filled with people. She couldn’t see clearly, blocked by the people in front, so she stood up and asked a short-haired employee next to her: “What’s wrong? Why are you all gathered here?”

The short-haired employee’s eyes sparkled as she said: “The big celebrity is coming!”

“A big celebrity?”

“It’s Yue Yin!” The short-haired girl told Mang Ke: “She is President Xun’s first love girlfriend. They grew up together; they’re a perfect match!”

Mang Ke blinked her eyes: “But isn’t President Xun about to get married?”

“Oh, you mean that fiancée! It’s this day and age, and they still have arranged marriages! Free love is the current trend!”

“Oh…” Mang Ke felt a little unhappy for some reason. She looked toward the entrance, wanting to see the newcomer.

Just then, a silver sports car stopped at the entrance, and Yue Yin appeared before everyone, wearing silver high heels. A houndstooth-patterned long dress wrapped around her waist. Her slender, fair calves looked graceful. Her long hair flowed as she walked into the lobby, looking radiant, like the protagonist. Even Mang Ke couldn’t help but applaud.

Unlike when they met in the hotel, Yue Yin looked much more energetic and even a little arrogant now.

“It really is Yue Yin!”

“She looks so much better than on TV!”

“Oh my god, she’s so thin! Did you see her waist? My goodness, is it even a foot wide?”

Mang Ke was grabbed and shaken by the short-haired girl next to her. The girl’s eyes were full of a fanatical fervor, clearly making her a die-hard fan of Yue Yin.

“Calm down, calm down,” Mang Ke was hurt by the grip. She struggled to shake off the girl’s hand, but accidentally used too much force. Her arm came free, but she stumbled forward a few steps.

She only heard a ‘CLANG—’. Mang Ke knocked the water glass on the table in front of her to the floor, where it shattered loudly.

Oops! I caused trouble!

Mang Ke was startled. She quickly squatted down to pick up the broken pieces, carefully wrapping them in tissue paper to avoid cutting her hand.

Just then, she sensed someone standing right behind her. The short-haired girl who had just grabbed her now had a face that was flushed deep purple, looking extremely excited.

Mang Ke: “???”

She turned her head curiously and saw Yue Yin standing right behind her, looking at Mang Ke with an amused expression.

“What a coincidence to run into you here,” Yue Yin said: “I didn’t get a chance to properly thank you last time.”

Mang Ke stood up, looking at Yue Yin: “It’s nothing. I’m happy to have helped you.”

Yue Yin smiled, her red lips parting: “Have you had lunch yet? How about… we go eat something?”

Mang Ke: “…Huh?”