The Beautiful, Strong, and Tragic Female Lead is Mine [Transmigration Into a Novel] - Chapter 23

Xie Zhitian rubbed her tired eyes and looked out the window.

The sky was gloomy, heavy, purplish clouds hung low, and the air was filled with a damp chill, as if a storm was about to break.

It had been almost two weeks since she was transmigrated, and she was gradually getting used to life in the district.

For the most part, her days were peaceful and simple. Without much entertainment or complicated social relationships, Xie Zhitian went to bed early and woke up early. She occasionally helped Ren Meng manage district affairs, becoming a true administrative assistant.

Xie Zhitian was worried that Xiao Wen might cause trouble again and secretly had someone watch him. But she soon found her worries were unnecessary. Ever since he became a volunteer for the drug experiment, Xiao Wen’s life had been a living hell. Plagued by various side effects, every day was a torment. His only wish was for the experiment to end so he could get a break. He had no energy for anything else.

Sometimes, Xie Zhitian would deliberately walk past him, making him think he finally had a chance to earn some points. But each time, not only did she not let him get any advantage, but she also argued with him and froze some of his points. Coupled with the expensive cost of buying aphrodisiacs, Xiao Wen’s usable points were now down to just over 600. At this rate, they would soon be zeroed out.

In her free time, Xie Zhitian reread the original book Little One gave her many times, paying attention to every detail until she knew the content by heart.

Molly’s incident made her realize that the book likely contained a lot of hidden information, like an undercurrent lurking beneath a calm surface. Any piece of existing information could unfold into a complex story. She didn’t want a tragedy like Molly’s to happen again, so she had to be extra careful.

But something was a bit strange. She distinctly remembered putting the book on her bedside table this morning, but when she came back just now, it had fallen on the floor.

Xie Zhitian’s fingers rested on the book’s cover, deep in thought.

“Meow~”

“Meow~ Meow~”

Accompanied by soft meows, a ball of white fluff darted in through the door and expertly jumped onto her lap.

Xie Zhitian suddenly understood. She stroked the cat’s soft fur with her slender fingers. “Xiaoxiao, were you the one who did it?”

Xiaoxiao meowed a few more times, without a clear yes or no. Lately, it had been living a life of luxury and had gotten a bit round, like a fluffy ball.

Xie Zhitian, of course, knew what it wanted. She got up, opened a can of food, and placed it on the floor. Xiaoxiao immediately perked up and began to eat bit by bit.

Xie Zhitian smiled at the little fluffball and put the book into her personal space. She was about to go see what Luo Yang was doing when a gentle, sweet female voice suddenly sounded in her ear.

“Host, are you looking for me?”

That voice was… Little One?

She actually came back?

Xie Zhitian was stunned, then she gritted her teeth.

She leaned back in her chair and communicated with Little One in her mind. “Why did you come so soon? Wouldn’t it have been better to just come visit my grave in a hundred years?”

Little One whined, “Host, don’t be sarcastic. I’m very busy too, QAQ.”

Thinking of Little One’s “working-class” persona, Xie Zhitian’s tone softened a bit. “How busy?”

Maybe being a system wasn’t so easy either. All those evil capitalists should be hung from lampposts.

Little One said, “I have to help several hosts solve problems. Lately, I’ve been working more than two hours a day, sometimes even three. I’m so tired, boohoo.”

Xie Zhitian: …I should hang you from a lamppost.

Her mouth twitched. “So why do you have time today?”

Little One explained, “We usually work one day on and one day off, but recently we’ve had a lot of work, so it’s become three days on and two days off. The work hours have been extended, so it’s your turn sooner. Host, what’s the situation on your end?”

Xie Zhitian resisted the urge to ask if they were hiring and got to the point. “You gave me the original book before, but I found that a lot of the content in reality isn’t in the book.”

She gave Little One a detailed account of Molly’s story and Xiao Wen’s dark intentions, then concluded, “The book spends a lot of time on courting girls and mindlessly slapping faces and accumulating wealth, but it glosses over a matter of life and death like this. The male protagonist played such a big part in pushing it forward. If we hadn’t acted in time, Molly would be dead now. The original text doesn’t mention it at all. That’s really strange.”

Little One said, “It is a bit strange… Host, please wait. I’ll check for you!”

After a flurry of keyboard clacking, Little One’s voice came back. “I found it, Host! This book was heavily abridged for publication because the male protagonist’s thoughts were too dark and couldn’t pass censorship, so they had to gloss over it.”

Xie Zhitian was dumbfounded. For a publishing house to be interested in and publish such a book, the original author’s world must be a terrible place. But she didn’t have time to care about other worlds; she just asked, “Then can you get me an unabridged version?”

Little One replied, “No, Host. I can’t afford it, QAQ.”

Xie Zhitian was confused. “Is the book very expensive?”

Little One answered, “Host, my world is different from yours. Everything costs money, especially things related to hosts; the price is even higher. For example, I just used a search engine, which cost 2 points. And the book you want costs more than 10,000 points.”

“My salary depends on the performance of the hosts under me. If they do well, my income is high. If they mess up, I might even lose money. Even if you perfectly complete the mission in this world, the reward is only 5,000 points. I can’t just pay out of my own pocket; how would I live?”

Xie Zhitian roughly understood. It was like a game: if you wanted an easy time, you had to spend a lot of money; otherwise, you had to grind it out yourself.

She pondered, “Okay, then if I run into a critical problem in the future, I’ll ask you to help me check with the search engine. Is that alright?”

Little One was straightforward. “No problem, Host. All host summons are logged, and I’ll solve them in order during my work hours. But I can only help you with one cheap question at a time, and not everything can be found. You still need to make full use of your own initiative.”

Xie Zhitian: “…Got it.”

She remembered something else and her tone became accusatory. “By the way, do you know that the book you gave me looks like The Self-Cultivation of a Cold and Beautiful Person to Luo Yang?”

Little One was taken aback. “Ah, I know. What’s wrong with the book?”

Xie Zhitian: “…Can’t you change it? Don’t you feel embarrassed?”

Little One was self-righteous. “I can’t change it. They’re all randomly assigned. What’s so embarrassing about it? Host, don’t be so surprised. There was a host who transmigrated into a CEO, and the book he got looked like The Postpartum Care of a Sow to others, and he didn’t say anything.”

Xie Zhitian: “…Fine.”

After sending Little One away, Xie Zhitian fell into deep thought.

She didn’t expect the book to be so heavily abridged because of the male protagonist’s dark thoughts. Then Xiao Wen must have done more than just this one terrible thing, and there must be other traps later on. She had to be extra careful.

“Knock, knock.”

A knock on the door broke her train of thought.

Xie Zhitian came back to her senses. “Come in.”

The door opened, revealing Luo Yang’s delicate face. Today, she was wearing a pure white dress with a soft bow at the chest. Her fluffy dark hair draped over her shoulders, making her look even more slender.

She said, “Miss, it’s time for lunch.”

Xie Zhitian stood up and smiled at her. “Okay.”

After a simple negotiation with the district staff, Luo Yang officially became her personal bodyguard. The two of them lived under the same roof, seeing each other every day, and their relationship had grown closer—at least, that’s what Xie Zhitian thought.

Luo Yang’s wounds had fully healed after some care. The recovery ability of the reformed human was astonishing. The previously shocking, scabbed-over bloodstains had vanished without a trace, and her skin had become smooth and delicate again.

Lately, life had been calm, and Luo Yang, as a bodyguard, had nothing to do. Most of the time, she helped with district affairs. But because Xie Zhitian had helped the reformed human a lot in Molly’s case, she insisted on preparing three meals a day for Xie Zhitian as a way of repaying her kindness.

Xie Zhitian knew Luo Yang was stubborn and didn’t want to owe her, so she let her be.

However, when Luo Yang wasn’t looking, she would fill the refrigerator with fresh ingredients from her personal space to ensure the two of them had a balanced diet.

Today’s lunch menu was: braised pork, oyster sauce lettuce, and tomato and egg soup.

Xie Zhitian picked up two pieces of braised pork and placed them in Luo Yang’s bowl, then took one for herself and put it in her mouth. The braised pork was tender and rich, fatty but not greasy.

Luo Yang was very smart and learned everything quickly. For example, she had almost no cooking experience but had become quite good at it just by following recipes.

As she ate, Xie Zhitian remembered something. “How about we make some cat food for Xiaoxiao this afternoon? I bought some fresh chicken liver.”

Luo Yang nodded. “Okay.”

A soft smile appeared in her eyes when she mentioned Xiaoxiao, and she complained softly, “Xiaoxiao is going to be spoiled. She’s so picky now; she won’t eat ordinary cat food if she has cat treats or cat food.”

“What’s wrong with spoiling her? Kitties are so cute; they’re meant to be spoiled. Besides, how much can it eat? It’s not like we can’t afford it.”

Xie Zhitian laughed. “But Xiaoxiao has been really mischievous lately. I was only gone for a little while today, and it knocked the book I had on my bedside table onto the floor.”

Luo Yang’s hand, holding the chopsticks, paused slightly. “The book…”

She lowered her head and shoveled a few mouthfuls of rice into her mouth as if to hide her discomfort, mumbling, “Indeed. Yesterday, it secretly drank water from my cup, and when I caught it, it tried to run away and knocked over my mirror. Luckily, it didn’t break.”

“As long as you weren’t hurt, that’s what matters. Hey, don’t just eat rice.”

Xie Zhitian didn’t notice Luo Yang’s unease and gave her a few more chopsticks full of vegetables, smiling. “Eat more. The food has been so good lately, but you don’t seem to have gained any weight.”

Just then, a knock on the door interrupted their conversation.

Lunchtime, who could it be?

Xie Zhitian got up and went to the door, hearing Xiang Nan’s voice from outside. “Miss, it’s me. I have an urgent matter.”

Xie Zhitian’s heart skipped a beat, thinking Xiao Wen had caused some more trouble. She immediately opened the door. “What’s wrong? Is something happening in the district?”

“The district is fine, but you might be in trouble, Miss.”

Xiang Nan had become quite familiar with Xie Zhitian lately, and his speech was more blunt. “I just heard from Bai Yang that your parents contacted Miss Ren Meng and said they’re coming back tonight.”

A chill ran down her spine, and Xie Zhitian involuntarily rubbed her arms. In her time in the district, she had heard multiple times about her parents’ seriousness and strictness. If she had to describe it, she felt the kind of nervousness an employee feels when they have to meet their boss.

She chose her words carefully: “To meet them… Is there anything I should be aware of when I meet my parents?”

“You don’t need to worry too much, Miss. Miss Ren Meng has already spoken highly of you.”

Xiang Nan answered honestly, “But I heard that your parents somehow found out you weren’t nice to Luo Yang before, and they want to ask Luo Yang about it.”

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