Striving for Harmony After Transmigrating as an Alpha Female Supporting Character - Chapter 9

Ai Xiaoyu discovered that, lately, Cheng Wang had been paying extraordinary attention to Jing Nianxun.

In the original novel, Cheng Wang fell in love with Jing Nianxun at first sight. He became her seatmate, and through their daily interactions, feelings gradually blossomed, leading naturally to a confession.

However, in this version, Ai Xiaoyu had forcibly occupied the seat next to her. Furthermore, Jing Nianxun was typically taciturn and rarely spoke to others. Under these circumstances, the fact that Cheng Wang could still fall for Jing Nianxun made Ai Xiaoyu wonder if it was the sheer force of the plot at work, or if this supporting male lead was simply a complete blockhead.

As a student athlete, Cheng Wang had a straightforward personality; once he was interested in someone, he couldn’t hide it. During class, he would borrow an eraser just to strike up a conversation or steal a few extra glances at Jing Nianxun. After class, he frequently ran to the back row, finding any excuse to chat for a few minutes.

As the “thigh-clinging component” of the heroine—no, as her considerate “quilted jacket” and guardian Ai Xiaoyu naturally could not allow anyone to come sniffing around her precious cabbage.

“What are you borrowing? Pencils, pens, fountain pens? Red, black, or blue? I have them all. I have various styles for you to choose from.”

When Cheng Wang turned around once again to borrow something from Jing Nianxun, Ai Xiaoyu forcibly straightened his head, pushed her own pencil case in front of his eyes, and gave a sharp snort. Her meaning was unmistakable.

Cheng Wang, seemingly unable to take a hint, persisted, “Nianxun’s pens are better to use.”

Nianxun? Who gave you permission to call her that?

I don’t even dare to call the heroine that yet!

Ai Xiaoyu rolled her eyes. “Her pens are all my leftovers. Whatever she has, I have too.”

From some previous gossip, Cheng Wang had heard that Ai Xiaoyu and Jing Nianxun did not get along and that Ai Xiaoyu often mistreated her cousin. He had not quite believed it before, but now that Ai Xiaoyu had personally admitted to giving Jing Nianxun leftover pens, what was that if not mistreatment?

At this thought, Cheng Wang’s expression grew solemn. When he looked at the fragile girl beside him, his gaze shifted.

She is truly too pitiful!

He vowed to rescue Jing Nianxun from this sea of bitterness and keep her away from a vicious woman like Ai Xiaoyu!

Unaware of the burning fighting spirit and protective desire within Cheng Wang, Ai Xiaoyu saw that he was not moving, so she simply pulled a few pens from her case and threw them at him. Then, she kicked his chair and ordered him to turn back around.

In Cheng Wang’s eyes, this behavior was even more egregious. He was already imagining the kind of life Jing Nianxun must lead in the Ai household. He secretly clenched his fists.

At lunch, Cheng Wang headed to the cafeteria, his mind still preoccupied with the idea of Jing Nianxun being mistreated. He searched around and, sure enough, saw the girl sitting alone in a corner, eating silently without drawing any attention.

In contrast, at a central table, Ai Xiaoyu and her best friend Ning Xi were chatting happily. Ning Xi’s loud voice occasionally erupted into cheerful, hearty laughter, startling those nearby.

Cheng Wang gave Ai Xiaoyu a fierce glare before walking to the corner table and sitting down across from Jing Nianxun.

Ai Xiaoyu had noticed Cheng Wang the moment he walked in. Sure enough, he went to find Jing Nianxun. He is going to cause trouble again.

Across from her, Ning Xi was having a grand time talking to herself; she could create the atmosphere of a noisy crowd just by monologuing.

“Xiao Yu, what is wrong? What are you looking at?”

“Nothing,” Ai Xiaoyu replied. “You keep eating. I am going over there for a bit.”

Ning Xi followed her gaze and saw Jing Nianxun in the corner. She immediately became excited. “Are you going to scold Jing Nianxun? Spill her soup? Flip her tray? Xiao Yu, you are finally back to normal! I almost did not recognize you, sob sob…”

Ai Xiaoyu: “…” Sorry to disappoint you.

She left Ning Xi behind and went to the table in the corner.

At that moment, Cheng Wang was sitting across from Jing Nianxun, eagerly picking up a piece of braised pork and trying to put it into her bowl.

Ai Xiaoyu thought, Supporting lead, you are no good. Don’t you know the heroine hates braised pork most?

The reason was that on the day the heroine’s parents died in a car accident, their last dinner had been braised pork. This had left the heroine with a severe psychological shadow regarding the dish.

As expected, Jing Nianxun hesitated and did not take it. Instead, she resistantly moved her bowl backward. Cheng Wang, showing his “straight man” personality, persisted in trying to give her the food.

“What is wrong? The school’s braised pork is very delicious.”

A pair of chopsticks forcibly snatched the braised pork away. Cheng Wang widened his eyes as he saw Ai Xiaoyu standing behind him.

Ai Xiaoyu leisurely set her own tray down, placed the braised pork into her bowl, and did not forget to nod at Cheng Wang with a look of immense triumph.

Cheng Wang: “…” Truly too vicious!

Ai Xiaoyu popped the braised pork into her mouth. It tasted quite good. She looked up at Jing Nianxun’s tray; it was mostly vegetarian dishes and a small bowl of free soup. It looked incredibly meager.

Jing Nianxun consumed a lot of energy daily on her studies; such a diet definitely could not provide enough sustenance. Ai Xiaoyu felt a pang of sadness seeing this, as this was entirely the doing of the original host.

Father Ai gave Jing Nianxun and Ai Xiaoyu the same amount of living expenses, but Ai Xiaoyu would deduct most of it every time, leaving only a tiny amount in Jing Nianxun’s meal card. This meant Jing Nianxun’s card always had very little money.

Seeing Ai Xiaoyu staring at the tray, Cheng Wang assumed she was thinking of a new way to bully her. He warned, “Ai Xiaoyu, what are you trying to do now?”

“Stopping you,” Ai Xiaoyu replied flatly. “You do not even know what she likes to eat, yet you want to get close to her?”

“And you do?”

Amidst their arguing, Jing Nianxun picked up her tray and left, moving to an empty table further away.

The next day at the cafeteria, Ai Xiaoyu arrived early. She lingered by the service window, occasionally glancing at the entrance.

In her pocket was Jing Nianxun’s meal card, which she had secretly taken from the desk the day before without her noticing. Ai Xiaoyu had checked it at the card reader; it had only a few pathetic yuan left—it was practically obsolete.

After a while, Jing Nianxun entered, holding a supplementary textbook. She placed the book at a seat and went to the window, ordering her usual two vegetarian dishes.

When it came time to pay, she reached into her pocket but could not find her card. The cafeteria lady was waiting, and the people in line behind her began to stick their heads out in confusion.

“What is going on?”

Jing Nianxun grew anxious, turning her pockets inside out but finding nothing. Did I leave it in the classroom? But when she had left her seat, she clearly checked once; there was nothing on the desk, and there would not be anything in the drawer.

Just then, a card was extended from the side. Jing Nianxun looked up and saw it was Ai Xiaoyu.

Ai Xiaoyu ordered several more dishes: steamed egg custard, eggplant with minced meat, sweet and sour fish. The food at this noble school was indeed lavish. Ai Xiaoyu could not help but sigh; back in her school before she entered the book, one could hardly find a few edible items in the cafeteria.

With a beep, Ai Xiaoyu swiped the card and then handed it to Jing Nianxun.

Jing Nianxun hesitated to take it, but the person behind them was already urging, “What are the people in front doing? Hurry up!”

Jing Nianxun had no choice but to take the tray and return to her seat. Ai Xiaoyu also got her food and sat down across from her.

“These…” Jing Nianxun looked at the dishes and fell into deep thought. These were all her favorites. They were even the dishes her mother used to make often. Seeing them again brought back memories of past warmth.

But how could Ai Xiaoyu know what she liked to eat? Was Ai Xiaoyu observing her regularly? Although Jing Nianxun wanted to deny the possibility, the facts before her were a constant reminder.

At this moment, Ai Xiaoyu was immersed in the joy of [Entropy +50].

She found that the Entropy was increasing faster and faster. Could it be that the heroine’s attitude toward her had changed? Perhaps it would not be long before she could break free from the shackles of OOC.

As for how she knew what the heroine liked? Simple—it was written clearly in the original novel! The book had even gone into detail describing those specific foods. Later in the novel, there was a plot where the male lead made her favorite foods every day to win her heart. Although Ai Xiaoyu did not know why she was doing the male lead’s job, as long as the Entropy increased, it was fine.

The more Ai Xiaoyu thought about it, the happier she became, and she even flashed a smile at the heroine.

System: “OOC +5. Host, why are you smiling at the heroine for no reason?”

Fine, she could not even smile anymore.

Ai Xiaoyu immediately switched to a serious expression and said to Jing Nianxun, “Use my card from now on. Swipe it as much as you want. I, Ai Xiaoyu, am not a stingy person. Do not let others say I mistreat you!”

After saying this, she felt like a “domineering CEO” taking care of a “little wife,” throwing a stack of cards in front of her and saying, “Woman, swipe as you please! There is nothing in this world I, Long Aotian, cannot afford!”

Thinking about it, she could not help but laugh out loud again.

System: “OOC +5.”

“…”

System, go to hell!

Jing Nianxun had been quietly eating her rice, but she could clearly feel the gaze from across the table. Ai Xiaoyu seemed to be smiling constantly, and it was a very silly smile. Jing Nianxun felt even more perplexed. Why was Ai Xiaoyu smiling foolishly at her for no reason?

Cheng Wang refused to give up. He managed to get two movie tickets from somewhere and quietly handed them to Jing Nianxun after class.

He asked expectantly, “Are you free this weekend? This is a new release with very high ratings. It should be quite good.”

Jing Nianxun was stunned, then shook her head. “Thank you, but I cannot take them…”

“Aw, give me a chance,” Cheng Wang pushed the tickets forward, nearly reaching her eyes. He persisted shamelessly. “Can’t classmates go see a movie together?”

Usually, it would not matter between classmates, and a boy inviting a girl to a movie was a normal way of pursuing someone. But for Jing Nianxun, no classmate or friend had ever invited her to do anything. Cheng Wang’s smiling face made her feel uneasy and uncomfortable all over. But she did not know how to refuse; her lips parted, but she did not know what to say.

“Then it is settled. See you Saturday afternoon.” Cheng Wang placed the tickets on her desk and left.

When Ai Xiaoyu returned from outside, the first thing she saw were the movie tickets on Jing Nianxun’s desk.

“Hmm?”

She looked at Cheng Wang’s retreating figure and realized that there was indeed a segment like this in the original novel. Cheng Wang was a very stubborn person and spared no effort in pursuing Jing Nianxun, giving her all sorts of things daily and going through every possible dating scenario.

In the original story, Cheng Wang confessed to Jing Nianxun at the cinema!

Naturally, the heroine did not agree, but the incident later reached the ears of the female supporting characters who liked Cheng Wang, adding another layer of conflict between them.

So, Ai Xiaoyu did not want this to happen. Furthermore, there were some suggestive descriptions in the cinema scene in the original book Cheng Wang intentionally released some pheromones to attract Jing Nianxun. Ai Xiaoyu could not imagine how the fragile girl before her should face behavior that was practically sexual harassment.

She intended to stop this fruitless date, but as soon as she was about to say something, the System began a frantic bombardment in her mind: “Host, the cinema script must be followed, otherwise Entropy will decrease by 100!”

That works too?

Ai Xiaoyu thought for a moment and asked the System, “Does this script have to follow the original novel exactly? Can it be modified?”

The System replied, “The requirement for the check is that Jing Nianxun must go to the cinema.”

“Oh!” Ai Xiaoyu’s mind raced. If Jing Nianxun could not be moved, then would it not be fine if Cheng Wang simply didn’t go?

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