The Beautiful, Strong, and Tragic Female Lead is Mine [Transmigration Into a Novel] - Chapter 15

Xiao Wen clutched the book, his knuckles turning white from the force.

The blurb on the cover was even more outrageous, with a line of bold red letters stinging his eyes.

“A man with no self-respect is like a rotten cabbage.”

Not only that, but right after the bold line, smaller text elaborated, “Chastity is a man’s best gift. Yet, scumbags constantly betray male virtue, fantasizing about building a harem with a wife on one arm and a lover on the other. Little do they know, karma is a bitch.”

“The Space-Time Administration has decreed that all scumbags must face brutal, inhumane punishments. The heroine of this story has taken on this mission, traveling through different timelines to shatter their harem dreams and make them pay the price, which includes, but is not limited to, chemical castration, physical castration, and being drowned in a pig cage…”

A hand reached out and forcefully snatched the book from his grasp.

Xiao Wen looked up resentfully, meeting Xie Zhitian’s mocking eyes.

Xie Zhitian handed the book to Luo Yang, saying pointedly, “I love this book. Let’s read it together after dinner.”

Luo Yang took it, carefully dusting off the cover. “Okay.”

Xiao Wen was fuming. What kind of awful book was this? It was pure nonsense!

Since ancient times, which powerful man didn’t have a wife on one arm and a lover on the other, conquering more women? This was a man’s nature. How could it be wrong?

Where did this book come from? Why was Luo Yang reading something like this? He hoped she wouldn’t be corrupted and turn into a “bad woman.”

Xiao Wen’s face darkened. Just as he was about to say something, he heard Xie Zhitian say, “What are you gawking at? Hurry up and take us to the restaurant.”

Sensing Xie Zhitian’s impatience, he quickly adjusted his expression. “Yes, miss.”

Xiao Wen walked ahead, hearing the two girls behind him chatting softly and laughing lightly from time to time, sounding very happy.

What was Xie Zhitian’s deal? Not only was she cold to him, but she was also constantly showing favor to Luo Yang?

For a moment, Xiao Wen was confused, but as the arrogant protagonist of a typical male-focused webnovel, he naturally believed that all his potential love interests would fall for him. He quickly came up with a plausible explanation.

Xie Zhitian was showing Luo Yang this book to make her think all men were bad and to lower her opinion of him.

She was being friendly to Luo Yang to play the sympathy card and become her friend. Luo Yang was an upright person and definitely wouldn’t steal her best friend’s boyfriend.

As for being cold to him, that was obviously because she was still jealous and playing hard to get.

In short, everything Xie Zhitian was doing was just to have him all to herself.

Heh, a woman’s jealousy is truly terrifying.

But even if Xie Zhitian was doing all this for him, he couldn’t just let her be so willful. Once he had fully won her over, he’d have to give her a good talking-to and teach her to be more sensible.

Xiao Wen slowed his pace, shortening the distance between himself and the two girls. He opened his mouth, ready to voice his opinion, but remembering Xie Zhitian’s recent temper, he stopped himself and decided to try a more roundabout approach.

“Luo Yang, have you started reading lately?”

Xiao Wen tried to move naturally to Luo Yang’s side. “Where did you get that book?”

Luo Yang frowned and instinctively moved away from him. “Miss lent it to me.”

Xiao Wen’s tone was sincere. “If you like reading, I have a few good books. You can check them out sometime.”

He planned to use his points to exchange for a few books on traditional female virtues and some harem-building novels from the system store to correct their “wrong” ideas. In his eyes, Luo Yang was simple-minded, and Xie Zhitian was brainless; they would both be easy to win over.

Wait, Xie Zhitian had been acting a little strange recently… Could she have suddenly gotten smarter?

No, that’s impossible. How could a person suddenly become smart? He must be overthinking things.

Seeing the calculating look on Xiao Wen’s face, Xie Zhitian said coolly, “No thanks.”

Seeing her expression, Xiao Wen didn’t dare insist. He smiled, speaking as if it were nothing. “That’s fine. Actually, it’s good for girls to be a little more traditional; they don’t need to know so much.”

Xie Zhitian also smiled. “Exactly. The more they know, the harder they are to deceive.”

Her narrow eyes slightly narrowed, a hint of danger in them.

His intentions exposed, a shiver ran down Xiao Wen’s spine. He quickly explained, “Miss, that’s not what I meant. Please don’t misunderstand.”

Xie Zhitian looked away, her tone light. “I was just joking. Why are men so sensitive?”

Ahead, the restaurant sign was visible. Xie Zhitian stopped paying attention to Xiao Wen, simply holding onto Luo Yang’s arm and walking forward.

When they arrived at the restaurant, three or four staff members were already eating. Ren Meng must have notified them in advance, as the staff didn’t seem surprised to see Xie Zhitian and greeted her naturally.

The restaurant wasn’t very big, with only about ten tables. The food was also relatively simple: a large-pot dish with one meat and one vegetable, and everyone received the same meal.

As she served herself, Xie Zhitian pulled up the anti-conquest system panel to check.

After their back-and-forth on the way, she had successfully frozen another 8 of Xiao Wen’s points. He now had 805 points remaining.

Xiao Wen’s point consumption had accelerated. He was probably under pressure from her words and had exchanged for a lot of sesame candy.

Xie Zhitian’s lips curved into a smile. She led Luo Yang to an empty table by the window.

Today’s lunch was chicken stewed with potatoes and stir-fried cabbage, with white rice. In the post-apocalyptic world, it was a balanced and hearty meal. However, Luo Yang seemed to have no appetite, lowering her head and slowly picking at her food.

She had said she was hungry just a moment ago. Why didn’t she want to eat now?

Xie Zhitian was confused. “Is the food not to your liking, Luo Yang?”

Luo Yang replied softly, “Xiao Xiao is so little. I wonder if she’s eating well.”

After saying it, she felt a little shy. “Xiao Xiao” was the name Xie Zhitian had given the cat, and this was the first time she had used it.

Xie Zhitian, however, was in a good mood. She had named the cat “Xiao Xiao” to make Luo Yang happy, and hearing her say it felt like an acknowledgment of that intention.

She said, “I told Xiang Nan to feed it on a schedule. Don’t worry.”

Only then did Luo Yang’s expression relax, and she began to eat her food in earnest.

Halfway through the meal, a voice sounded from the side. “Miss, can we share your table?”

Xie Zhitian looked up to see a man and a woman in uniform, both in their early twenties, standing by the table with their trays.

She nodded. “Of course.”

The prison rarely had visitors. The cafeteria had limited seating and often required people to share tables. With four extra people today, seating was even tighter.

Xie Zhitian didn’t mind. As long as she wasn’t at the same table as Xiao Wen, anything was fine. She glanced at where Xiao Wen and Bai Yang were sitting. They had already finished their meal and were getting up to leave, making space for others.

She moved her tray and sat next to Luo Yang, letting the two newcomers sit opposite them.

“Miss, why did you suddenly come all the way here?”

The boy sitting opposite Xie Zhitian asked curiously. They had just introduced themselves. The boy’s name was Ding Yu, and the girl’s name was Tian Shanshan. They were both staff members here.

Xie Zhitian answered truthfully. “I’m here for Jasmine’s case.”

Ding Yu was even more surprised. “Oh my god, so it’s really for work?”

He was immediately glared at by Tian Shanshan beside him. “Do you know how to talk? If not, just shut up.”

Ding Yu then realized his mistake and looked horrified. “Sorry, sorry, I didn’t mean that Miss doesn’t work.”

He was just making things worse. Tian Shanshan had a headache. She shouldn’t have agreed to eat with this simpleton.

She said to Xie Zhitian, “I’m so sorry. He’s new and doesn’t know any better. Please don’t mind him, Miss.”

Xie Zhitian didn’t mind at all. What Ding Yu said was just the truth. With the original owner’s unreliable track record, she would probably be more concerned with convincing her parents to grow dandelions than with Jasmine’s case.

These two were quite lively and talkative. Then again, if they weren’t extroverts, who would dare to share a table with her?

Xie Zhitian smiled at them. “It’s fine. I haven’t done much for the district before, so I want to help now.”

Tian Shanshan had braced herself for the young miss’s anger and was surprised by her response. After a pause, she said, “That’s very kind of you, Miss. But even though nothing usually happens here, you should still be careful, especially don’t wander off. It’s not safe.”

Xie Zhitian’s heart skipped a beat. “Why isn’t it safe?”

Tian Shanshan said, “This area holds the most heinous criminals, as well as transformed people like Jasmine. Most importantly, this place is very close to the district’s border. You could say we’re just one wall away from the aliens.”

Ding Yu added seriously, “Although most of the aliens have been wiped out, who knows what’s happening on the other side of the wall? It would be terrible to run into one. The salary here is higher than in other districts, but there are still fewer people, just because of the fear of being the first to be affected if the aliens invade.”

Xie Zhitian nodded thoughtfully. “How far is the wall from here?”

She had read in the book that the outermost city wall of the district was ten meters high and very strong, and most aliens couldn’t break in. She was just asking to be prepared, just in case.

She had awakened her ability, and her physical condition had improved significantly. Even if she wasn’t as strong as a top-tier enhanced human like Luo Yang, killing a few stray aliens shouldn’t be a problem.

Tian Shanshan looked a little anxious. “Miss, you’re not thinking of going out, are you? This isn’t a joke. You’ll be eaten by the aliens.”

Just as Xie Zhitian was about to explain that she wasn’t trying to court death, she heard Ding Yu mutter under his breath, “What’s wrong with everyone today? They all want to go out.”

Her mind stirred, and she asked the boy, “Who else wants to go out?”

“That guy who came with you… what was his name… oh, right, Xiao Wen!”

Ding Yu said casually, “He was asking me all morning where the wall is, how high it is, and how many aliens are in the area, which area has the most alien sightings… what else could he be planning besides going out?”

Seeing the changing, slightly displeased look on Xie Zhitian’s face, he quickly added, “But don’t worry, Miss. We’ve already given him a stern warning. He wouldn’t dare do anything crazy. And what normal person would dare to go outside the wall? That’s just a death wish.”

“You did a great job.”

Xie Zhitian praised them. She thought for a moment, then pulled out a stack of tokens from her pocket and placed them in front of the two. “Here’s a little reward. You can split it.”

Ding Yu’s eyes widened. “Miss, that’s what we’re supposed to do. You don’t have to be so generous.”

He was a new employee and didn’t have much money. The stack of tokens in front of him looked so very sweet.

Xie Zhitian smiled, a hint of mystery in her expression. She lowered her voice. “I have something I need you to help me with.”

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