The Beautiful, Strong, and Tragic Female Lead is Mine [Transmigration Into a Novel] - Chapter 4

Xie Zhitian’s words stunned everyone in the room.

Even Luo Yang, who had been focused on her noodles, put down her chopsticks and looked up.

Previously, Xie Zhitian had made a huge scene just because she had spoken a few words to Xiao Wen. Why had she suddenly changed her tune, not only showing concern for her but also acting very repulsed by Xiao Wen?

Could it be that she had a falling out with Xiao Wen?

Luo Yang wondered.

She couldn’t guess the thoughts of a spoiled young lady who had been sheltered even during the apocalypse.

Xiao Wen was about to say more, but he saw Xie Zhitian pull out the basement key from her pocket and dangle it, a clear warning.

She was serious.

Xiao Wen’s heart skipped a beat. Although he didn’t know what had gotten into the young lady, he was very savvy and quickly said goodbye politely before leaving the room.

The counter-strategy system panel showed that Xiao Wen had another 5 points deducted, leaving him with 850 points.

Xie Zhitian found this a bit strange. It had just shown that Xiao Wen’s points were at 864, so after deducting 5, it should be 859. But she quickly realized that Xiao Wen must have used points to exchange for something.

However, Xiao Yi had mentioned to her before leaving that Xiao Wen’s system could only exchange for supplies and some normal consumables, so she wasn’t worried.

At this moment, Luo Yang finished the last of her noodles and was about to take the bowl to the sink to wash it. When Xiang Nan saw this, he quickly stopped her. “Miss Luo Yang, I’ll take care of such a small matter later. Your injuries haven’t healed yet, please go and rest.”

Xie Zhitian also chimed in, “Luo Yang, take your medicine first, and then come with me to my room to treat your wounds.”

With that, she poured a cup of hot water and took a pre-prepared blister pack of fever medicine from her pocket, pressing it into Luo Yang’s hand.

Luo Yang looked down at the medicine, her surprise no longer hidden.

She said, “No need, I don’t need it.”

In the current society, only a few large districts had the ability to produce medicine. Even their own district couldn’t. Therefore, fever medicine was a rare commodity—every pill used was one less, and if they ran out, they could only be exchanged at a high price with other districts.

Luo Yang had endured a lot of hardship and had long been accustomed to it. A small illness like this wasn’t worth taking medicine for. It wasn’t that she couldn’t afford it, but rather she felt she wasn’t worth it.

“Just take it, think of it as helping me out.”

Xie Zhitian had a flash of inspiration and made up an excuse. “It’s about to expire; otherwise, it would be a waste.”

Luo Yang’s eyes immediately showed a look of regret. After a moment of hesitation, she took out two pills, swallowed them with the hot water, and carefully put the rest of the pills into her pocket.

Xie Zhitian’s heart softened at the sight, and her tone became gentler. “Let’s go, come back to my bedroom with me.”

Perhaps because she had accepted a favor, Luo Yang didn’t refuse. She followed behind Xie Zhida, head bowed, holding her cat, without saying a word, lost in thought.

Xie Zhitian’s bedroom was a suite on the second floor. As soon as she pushed open the door, she was plunged into a tasteless sea of pink, an aesthetic that screamed “tacky” from every angle.

Xie Zhitian saw Luo Yang frown, seemingly questioning her taste.

She rubbed her forehead, trying to salvage the situation: “I’ve been thinking about changing the style of the bedroom recently…”

Luo Yang didn’t respond but instead asked, “What exactly do you want from me, Miss?”

Her expression was stubborn, with a hint of guardedness. Although they were standing face to face, they seemed to be separated by an invisible, transparent barrier.

Xie Zhitian thought for a moment and replied, “Actually, I do have a favor to ask of you.”

She realized that Luo Yang’s impression of her was so poor that it would be difficult to completely change it in a short time. So, it was better to just make up a reason and admit that she had an ulterior motive, which might make the other person feel more at ease.

As expected, as soon as she said it, Luo Yang’s tense expression relaxed a bit. “Go on.”

Xie Zhitian spoke nonsense: “We have intelligence that this area might become unsafe soon, so I want to help you recover quickly so you can protect our district.”

Luo Yang’s eyes flickered slightly, and then she lowered her head. “Of course.”

Everyone had told her that protecting humanity was her mission. What was the meaning of her existence if she didn’t fight?

This was what she often told herself, but for some reason, thinking about it today brought a sense of loss.

Perhaps Xie Zhitian’s gentle demeanor had given her the fleeting illusion of being cherished.

Now that she was awake from that dream, there was naturally a sense of disappointment.

“You don’t need to do any patrol work for now. Get your body well first. I’ll find someone to coordinate things.”

Seeing that she was no longer resistant, Xie Zhitian tentatively suggested, “Can I take a look at your wounds now?”

When Luo Yang nodded in agreement, she smiled, “Then I’ll go to the inner room to get the first aid kit. Wait for me here.”

In reality, she hadn’t had a chance to look at what was in the original owner’s room yet. She said this just to find a private place to take things out of her personal space. After all, her first aid kit was quite large, and it would be strange for it to appear out of thin air.

Having lived through several years of the apocalypse, Xie Zhitian was familiar with basic medical procedures and was more than capable of treating simple wounds.

She checked the medicines and tools in the kit and then carried the box out.

As she stepped out of the inner room, Xie Zhitian’s steps faltered.

While she had been gone to get the supplies, Luo Yang had taken off her coat and nightgown. On her fair, jade-like skin, several deep red wounds crisscrossed, already scabbed over.

Thinking that she was still running a fever and must be cold, Xie Zhitian closed the window and approached to observe her closely.

Luo Yang’s overall condition was okay, but the wound on her left shoulder was quite severe. The surface had cracked open and was stained with fresh blood. Because it hadn’t been treated properly, it even showed signs of becoming infected.

While feeling a pang of sympathy, Xie Zhitian was also a bit confused. The system had said that Luo Yang was a super fighter. What kind of creature could have injured her so badly?

“It might sting a little, just bear with it.”

Xie Zhitian first took a clean towel, dampened it with drinking water, and gently wiped down Luo Yang’s body. Then she took out iodine from the kit, dipped a cotton ball in it, and carefully disinfected the wounds.

While she worked, she asked casually, “How did you get injured?”

Luo Yang let her work, not making a sound. Even when the bleeding wounds were touched, she didn’t even flinch.

When she heard Xie Zhitian’s question, she was silent for a moment before replying, “My condition wasn’t good.”

Ever since Xiao Wen arrived, Xie Zhitian had been subtly making things difficult for her, cutting her pay and food, and giving her a heavy workload—making her do the work of five people.

During the day, Luo Yang was so busy she couldn’t even eat. Only at night after work could she eat a few hasty bites. She would have to get up again at dawn to work. This lack of food and sleep had gradually exhausted her physical strength, which led to her making a mistake during a battle.

Their district was large, and Xie Zhitian’s parents were so busy that they were rarely seen, so they had no idea about Luo Yang’s situation. Even if others knew, they wouldn’t dare to offend the spoiled young lady.

Later, when Xie Zhitian’s parents left for a trip, Xiao Wen happened to arrive in the district. While being favored by Xie Zhitian , he would also show subtle affection towards Luo Yang. This made Xie Zhitian green with jealousy, and she started treating Luo Yang even worse, finding an excuse to kick her out to the basement, which led to her current state.

Luo Yang felt that Xie Zhitian should understand all this. Her current questioning was probably just part of a show for their collaboration. But she knew that arguing with the young lady was pointless, so it was better to just move on.

After all, her fate had never been in her own hands.

Xie Zhitian saw that Luo Yang suddenly seemed a little down, as if she was thinking about something unpleasant. So she didn’t press for more information and instead pointed to the little white cat comfortably curled up on the sofa. “By the way, what’s its name?”

Luo Yang said, “It doesn’t have a name.”

Given the current situation, she and the cat probably wouldn’t live long. What was the point of giving it a name? It would only make the loss more painful.

Xie Zhitian paused for a moment. “How about I help it come up with a name?”

Luo Yang asked, “What?”

“Let’s call it Xiaoxiao (Smile).”

Xie Zhitian curled her lips, her eyes also showing a hint of a smile. “With Xiao xiao by your side, you can also smile more every day and be happy.”

Luo Yang couldn’t quite understand. It was one thing for Xie Zhitian to have the leisure to name a cat, but to also start caring about her emotional state felt very strange.

However, she then thought of Xie Zhitian’s words about things “not being peaceful,” and a sense of relief came over her. It seemed that there would be turmoil again soon. Why else would the young lady suddenly change so much?

Once the matter was resolved and she lost her value, everything would return to how it was.

Luo Yang thought this and said with neither arrogance nor servility, “I understand.”

Xie Zhitian spent over an hour meticulously cleaning and treating all of Luo Yang’s wounds, then found a clean, loose nightgown for her to change into.

She reached out and felt Luo Yang’s forehead, and found that her fever had gone down a little, which made her feel relieved.

She said, “You rest here in my room for now. I’ll have Xiang Nan prepare a new bedroom for you. You can move in once it’s ready.”

Luo Yang almost thought she had misheard.

Even if there was a mission, it seemed excessive for Xie Zhitian to be this kind to her.

She couldn’t hold back anymore and spoke directly, “Miss, you really don’t have to do this. Protecting humanity is my mission, and I will do my best.”

“I’m not just being good to you because I want you to protect the district.”

Xie Zhitian instinctively retorted, her brain racing. “Luo Yang, I’ve been reading recently and have come to understand many things. It was wrong of me to treat you that way before, and I promise it won’t happen again.”

Luo Yang looked at her. “Reading? What kind of book?”

She was practically saying, “You? Reading? What kind of book could possibly save you?”

With a firm resolve, Xie Zhitian took out the original book that Xiao Yi had left for her from her personal space and held it out to Luo Yang from behind her back. To make it easy to access, she had kept the book in a very accessible spot within her space.

Xiao Yi had said that to others, this book would appear as a normal book, and she was curious to see what it looked like, so she decided to let Luo Yang have a look.

Luo Yang took it, her surprise deepening. “Miss, you carry this with you?”

Xie Zhitian nodded calmly. “A good book, of course, must be read repeatedly.”

No matter what Luo Yang saw, she could just casually make up some profound lesson from it. It wasn’t hard.

“The Self-Cultivation of a… Cold and Glamorous… Woman.”

Luo Yang held the book, reading the words on the cover with great seriousness, stumbling a bit because she didn’t know how to phrase it correctly.

She blinked. “What does this mean?”

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