I'm Not Playing This Vicious Female Supporting Character Anymore! - Chapter 17

“No,” Liang Xuzhou shook his head, sensing something amiss in Qin Yuzhen’s eyes.

Qin Yuzhen sighed. “Not having my desk partner’s contact information is inconvenient, isn’t it?”

“Do we really need to be in contact?” Liang Xuzhou asked sincerely.

“Didn’t you promise to help me deal with my troubles last time?” Qin Yuzhen sighed again. “So you’re scared now, huh? That’s understandable.”

Liang Xuzhou: …

“Do you think your provocation tactics will work every time?”

“I’m just feeling a bit sentimental. I’ve only been here a short while and know so few people. The few girls I do know all seem so delicate, I wouldn’t dare involve them in trouble.” Qin Yuzhen glanced at Liang Xuzhou. “I’ll just ask them for help. Even though they’re all thin and delicate-looking, I know they wouldn’t abandon me.”

Liang Xuzhou pulled out his phone. “Fine, fine, I accepted. Ugh, this is so annoying.”

“What’s the point of adding me as a friend? You can’t make me follow you around.”

“Oh, I’m planning to lure the trouble out. When that happens, you just follow me.” Qin Yuzhen smiled sweetly.

Liang Xuzhou observed her expression and couldn’t help but think she was more likely to cause trouble for others.

“Follow me when I go to pick up my uniform today, but keep your distance. Just tail me from afar. I’ll text you when he takes the bait,” Qin Yuzhen instructed.

“Got it,” Liang Xuzhou replied. It didn’t sound like much; the task seemed simple enough.

Qin Yuzhen used an Item Card to send a message to Zhao Pàohuī, informing him that she would be picking up her uniform during their physical education class.

“Host, what if he doesn’t show?” the System asked.

“If he doesn’t come, we’ll let him off for now.” Qin Yuzhen twirled her pen. “But I think he will.”

In these types of scripts, minor antagonists tend to be foolish when they turn to the dark side. This is just a modern romance, not some ancient political intrigue. Once we bait the hook, he’ll likely take the bait.

“Come here.”

Qin Yuzhen, lost in thought, jumped in surprise. She turned to see her math teacher standing behind her. She glanced at the English teacher at the podium. Can they really call students out during morning reading like this?

Qin Yuzhen followed the teacher to the office. As she approached the desk, she saw the test paper lying there.

“How did you do it?”

“I did it myself,” Qin Yuzhen said, standing to the side.

“It’s not that I doubt you,” Old Qian said, pulling out another test and circling three questions. “But your test results don’t match the academic records your previous school provided. Go over there and complete these.”

“Okay,” Qin Yuzhen nodded.

“Just write your scratch work in the blank spaces on the test.”

“Got it.” Qin Yuzhen sat down at a nearby desk.

“Host, I told you to keep a low profile. Look at this,” the System sighed.

Qin Yuzhen ignored it, glancing at the test. The questions were noticeably more difficult than the previous one, but still manageable.

In twenty minutes, Qin Yuzhen had finished everything.

When she handed in the test, Old Qian looked up at her. “You couldn’t do it?”

“I’m done.”

“That fast?” Old Qian took the test and saw another pristine sheet, devoid of scratch work or corrections.

He fell silent, glancing at Qin Yuzhen several times. Even more astonishingly, all the answers were correct.

“Such impressive mental arithmetic skills?” Old Qian scanned the answers.

“Not bad,” Qin Yuzhen replied.

Old Qian inexplicably sensed a mischievous undertone in her voice.

“If you’re so good at math, why were your grades so poor before?” he pressed.

“Teacher, can you please stop probing my past? Everyone has things they don’t want to talk about,” Qin Yuzhen retorted.

Old Qian: …

“Alright, you can go now,” he waved dismissively.

After Qin Yuzhen left, Old Qian went to find the homeroom teacher.

Back in class, Qin Yuzhen had barely sat down when Liang Xuzhou beside her sighed dramatically. “You got all the math homework wrong yesterday, didn’t you?”

“Are you dreaming?”

“Otherwise, why would he drag you to the office first thing in the morning?” Liang Xuzhou said gleefully, relishing her misfortune.

“Actually, I got it all right,” Qin Yuzhen shook her head. “Mortals like you can’t possibly understand my feelings.”

Liang Xuzhou: …

“Desk partner, speaking of the monthly exams, they’re going to weed out the weak. You won’t get kicked out next time, will you?” Qin Yuzhen asked worriedly.

Liang Xuzhou ignored her.

When class ended, Rong Xi approached. “What did Old Qian want with you?”

“I accidentally got too many math problems right.”

Rong Xi: …

“Are you being sarcastic?” Rong Xi asked earnestly.

“Sister, do you really think I’m that bad?”

“Usually, teachers call students who haven’t done well…”

“Then you’re probably not good enough,” Qin Yuzhen retorted.

Rong Xi pursed her lips. “I never said you weren’t good enough.”

Liang Xuzhou, standing nearby, glanced at Rong Xi, then at Qin Yuzhen. “So you attack everyone indiscriminately?”

“Don’t talk nonsense. I never attack anyone,” Qin Yuzhen snapped.

Liang Xuzhou: …

Rong Xi: …

“Isn’t that obvious, Sister? We’re just having a friendly exchange. You don’t understand,” Qin Yuzhen said, linking arms with Rong Xi.

Rong Xi forced a fake smile.

“Heh.” Liang Xuzhou chuckled derisively.

Pei Jingyue observed the entire scene. Though she disliked Rong Xi, she could still read the word “agony” on her face. She glanced at Qin Yuzhen, and the phrase “a villain deserves to be ground down by another villain” popped into her head.

The Item Card always delivered reliable results. During class, Qin Yuzhen received a notification: Zhao Pàohuī had learned through legitimate means that she would be retrieving her school uniform during afternoon activity class.

At lunchtime, when Qin Yuzhen mentioned she would be picking up her uniform alone, Rong Xi was taken aback.

“You don’t need me to accompany you?”

“No,” Qin Yuzhen replied. “It’s just to pick up a uniform.”

Rong Xi glanced at Qin Yuzhen. “What if you get lost?”

“I won’t get lost.”

Rong Xi poked at her food.

Qin Yuzhen couldn’t understand what had upset Rong Xi.

“Zhenzhen, let me go with you,” Gu Si interjected. “I have a secret hideout on campus I want to show you.” Noticing Rong Xi’s glare, her smile widened.

“No need. I’ll go alone. You can show me the hideout another time.”

Gu Si hadn’t expected Qin Yuzhen to refuse, and she was surprised. In her mind, adding an extra incentive should have made rejection unlikely. “Do you have plans this afternoon?”

“Mm,” Qin Yuzhen nodded.

“What’s wrong?” Rong Xi frowned, looking at Qin Yuzhen.

“Children shouldn’t worry about adult matters.”

Rong Xi: …

She’d never heard such a dismissive answer.

“We’re the same age,” Rong Xi retorted.

“In my heart, you’ll always be a child.”

“I’m just asking! I’m not interfering with anything.” The more Qin Yuzhen refused to talk, the more curious Rong Xi became. Part of it was because she still feared Qin Yuzhen might do something reckless—after all, the girl was notoriously unreliable.

“No,” Qin Yuzhen said firmly. “Don’t even think about it. I won’t tell you.”

This time, Gu Si didn’t follow Rong Xi in her relentless questioning. Having already been rebuffed once, she had no desire for a second rejection.

During physical education class, Rong Xi tried to tail Qin Yuzhen, but fell behind after just one turn in the hallway. She knew Qin Yuzhen was deliberately ditching her. Before she could catch up, other students dragged her to the library.

“Host, someone’s waiting for you near the storage room,” the System announced. “It’s confirmed to be Zhao Pàohuī.”

“I knew he’d come,” Qin Yuzhen said with a smile.

During the physical education class, most students were concentrated on the playground, in the library, activity rooms, or at the snack shop. The office building was usually deserted, and now it was even quieter.

“Three surveillance blind spots confirmed. Audio feed is now muted.”

“Good.”

“Host, be gentle.”

“Right.”

The moment Qin Yuzhen entered the storage room, someone grabbed her hair and yanked her back.

System: This is bad.

Qin Yuzhen grimaced, screaming as she grabbed the person’s arm. It looked like she was struggling, but in reality, she was guiding him into a surveillance blind spot.

Her screams echoed through the empty corridor, no need for a message. Liang Xuzhou heard the commotion and rushed over immediately.

Zhao Pàohuī still had a grip on Qin Yuzhen’s hair. “You dare bully Rong Xi? I…”

Liang Xuzhou saw the scene and quickly kicked out at Zhao Pàohuī.

But Zhao Pàohuī, trained in combat, released Qin Yuzhen, swiftly dodged the kick, and turned to punch Liang Xuzhou in the face.

Qin Yuzhen straightened her hair, glaring at Liang Xuzhou, who was clearly losing the fight. “Brother! Where’s the big shot you promised to be?”

Liang Xuzhou: …

Feeling exasperated, Qin Yuzhen grabbed Zhao Pàohuī by the collar, slammed him to the ground in a perfect judo throw, then swiftly twisted his arm, eliciting a scream that echoed down the corridor.

She freed Liang Xuzhou, whose face now sported a bloody cut.

“You dare to stalk me?”

“You think I bullied Rong Xi? Which of your eyes saw me bullying her? And you sicko, how long have you been following her?”

“Sneaking around, stalking her, watching her. You’re just a maggot, you know that?”

“I’m a member of the Zhao family!” Zhao Pàohuī gasped, his voice weak, betraying the pain he was in. “Just you wait! My parents won’t let you get away with this!”

Qin Yuzhen rolled her eyes, stepped on his hand, and flicked her hair. “That hand was grabbing my hair earlier, right? Do you have any idea how precious this hair of mine is?”

“I’m a member of the Zhao family.”

“I’m a member of the Rong Family,” Qin Yuzhen said with a smile. “You attempted to assault me at school, but Ninth Middle School’s top dog, Liang Xuzhou, stopped you. Prepare for your parents to apologize to me personally, or I won’t let this go. The surveillance cameras probably recorded you yanking my hair.”

Liang Xuzhou felt dazed, staring at Qin Yuzhen. He had a nagging suspicion she was mocking him, but his mind was blank, unable to process the situation.

Hearing the words “surveillance cameras,” he instinctively looked around, his brow furrowing slightly.

“Relax, this area is a surveillance blind spot,” Qin Yuzhen said.

Liang Xuzhou: …

“Someone’s coming,” Qin Yuzhen said, then abruptly collapsed to the floor, curling into a corner and trembling violently, tears streaming down her face.

Liang Xuzhou finally understood his role in Qin Yuzhen’s scheme: he was merely a scapegoat. She probably never expected him to actually act.

The commotion they caused eventually drew the attention of others.

Originally, all three were supposed to go to the teacher’s office, but since Zhao Pàohuī was sprawled on the ground, unable to stand, it ended up being two students accompanying the homeroom teacher to the principal’s office while Zhao Pàohuī was immediately taken to the hospital.

Before the principal could even speak, Qin Yuzhen began sobbing, her words tumbling out in a jumbled rush. “He terrified me! I was just picking up my uniform, and he… he grabbed my hair and dragged me out… I don’t even know him! I don’t even know his name!”

Qin Yuzhen’s incoherent account of her fear painted the picture of a vulnerable, wounded woman.

“Rong Xi and I are close because we live together. These past few days… these past few days, I’ve been walking with Rong Xi. I’ve always been very sensitive, and I could feel him stalking Rong Xi. Because I was scared, I told Rong Xi…” Qin Yuzhen took a deep breath. “He threatened me, saying if I told Rong Xi again, he’d have his parents cause trouble for me. He even told me to stay away from Rong Xi.”

Liang Xuzhou felt numb. If he could, he would have clapped in disbelief.

“Student Liang, helping your classmates stop school violence is commendable, but you went too far. Stopping the violence was enough,” the principal said, sounding weary. “All three families involved are either wealthy or influential.” He added, “The hospital just called. Student Zhao has two broken ribs and a fractured arm.”

Liang Xuzhou: ???

Liang Xuzhou: !!!

He instinctively wanted to look at Qin Yuzhen, but the pain in his foot made him stop.

“I’m willing to cover the medical expenses,” Qin Yuzhen said. “Student Liang was just dragged into this by me. Teachers, please don’t blame him. At the time, Student Zhao was truly terrifying. He might have been high.”

Liang Xuzhou felt completely numb.

Soon, representatives from all three families arrived—assistants and lawyers, none of the parents themselves, all busy figures. They gathered to review the surveillance footage.

The footage was sparse, and the system had even altered the recordings. The original scene of Qin Yuzhen struggling to guide Zhao Pàohuī had been replaced with Zhao Pàohuī deliberately dragging her into a surveillance blind spot. Then came three minutes of an empty corridor, filled only with Qin Yuzhen’s screams. When Liang Xuzhou finally appeared, sprinting wildly, three minutes had already passed.

The surveillance footage was already damning, and to top it off, teachers had heard from other students about Zhao Pàohuī asking about Qin Yuzhen’s whereabouts.

Filing a lawsuit was out of the question, and no one wanted to involve the police. The families could only settle privately, none of them wanting this unsightly incident to make the headlines.

As the family of the female protagonist, the Rong Family naturally carried an aura of prestige. While the Zhao Family was respectable, they couldn’t possibly compete with both the Rong and Liang Families simultaneously.

“I don’t want to be in the same school as that creep anymore!” Qin Yuzhen exclaimed during the negotiations, looking traumatized. “When I was walking with Rong Xi before, people warned me that he threatened anyone who got close to her. I didn’t take it seriously. I thought we lived in a society governed by law, and such things couldn’t happen.”

“Now he’s even gone so far as to physically assault me. Who knows what he’ll do next…”

The Zhao Family’s lawyer’s expression darkened.

Qin Yuzhen’s beauty was striking, even when she was crying. Her pale complexion and tear-streaked face painted a picture of pitiful misery. The onlookers couldn’t help but feel sympathy for her, except for Liang Xuzhou.

“I don’t want compensation,” Qin Yuzhen declared. “I want him to apologize publicly to the entire school. I also want his parents to apologize to the Rong Family, to me, and to Rong Xi. And then he should transfer.”

“That’s not possible,” the Zhao Family’s assistant replied with a dismissive smile. “This is just a childish dispute. Miss Qin, you can propose other demands, and we’ll do our best to meet your financial expectations.”

“If this is just a childish dispute, why did you even bother coming?” Qin Yuzhen demanded, her voice trembling with anger. She wiped away her tears and gasped, “Besides, the Rong Family isn’t short on money. Are you implying we’re too poor to handle this?”

Rong Xi had rushed over upon hearing the news. As soon as Qin Yuzhen saw her, she rushed forward and clung to her waist.

Rong Xi startled, her body stiffening.

“Sister, the Zhao Family is bullying me!” Qin Yuzhen wailed, her voice full of grievance. “My head hurts so much—he hit me!”

Rong Xi frowned slightly, unsure if Qin Yuzhen was putting on an act or not. Still, she patted her back and turned to the Zhao Family, her expression cold. “Did my sister make some unreasonable demand?”

“No, Miss Rong only wants an apology,” a Rong Family assistant replied tactfully.

“So our Rong Family member was publicly humiliated and beaten, yet they can’t even get a simple apology?” Rong Xi asked, her voice icy. “Has our family’s dignity fallen so low?”

Qin Yuzhen remained clinging to Rong Xi, her face pressed against her shoulder. She was somewhat surprised; she hadn’t expected Rong Xi to be so impressive when she took charge.

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