The Plan to Save the Villainess Supporting Actress [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 24.5

Tang Keyue, Nan Zhi, and Xia Lan had initially tried to lighten the mood, but Shen Jiaying’s group acted as if they’d suffered some great injustice.

Their words were either dripping with passive-aggression, laced with sarcasm, or just plain silence.

Mu Siqiong was mentally exhausted.

Oddly enough, Shen Jiaying seemed completely unaffected, even occasionally trying to mediate with Shao Xiling, making it hard for Mu Siqiong to confront her directly.

This was tough. Too tough.

At this rate, they’d lose even if they didn’t deserve to.

And then there was the other team when she and Nan Zhi had returned earlier, their practice room had been filled with laughter and harmony. The contrast was painfully obvious.

Mu Siqiong silently wept with envy. Yu Yulin had it so easy.

Noticing Mu Siqiong’s struggle, Nan Zhi thought for a moment before leaning in to whisper something to Xia Lan.

Xia Lan nodded after listening and suggested,

“Captain, it’s almost lunchtime. How about we call it a day and let everyone practice on their own this afternoon? We can regroup when everyone’s in a better mood.”

Shao Xiling sneered, “If you have something to say, why not say it yourself? Having someone else relay it, do you hate your own teammates so much you can’t even talk to them? Some ‘team spirit’ that is.”

Seriously? Even this was a problem?

Mu Siqiong felt like her head was about to split in two.

But Nan Zhi just shook her head lightly and replied with a breezy smile, “Well, I was afraid our esteemed Miss Shao wouldn’t deign to listen to a sinner like me.”

Two could play at passive-aggression.

Who didn’t know how?

Before Shao Xiling could retaliate, Mu Siqiong quickly stepped in to mediate, “If no one has any objections, let’s go eat. Free practice this afternoon, and we’ll regroup tomorrow morning.”

Shen Jiaying added softly, “Sounds good, Captain. We’ll do our best to cooperate. Lingling’s just upset today she’s usually very easygoing. I hope no one misunderstands her.”

Tang Keyue turned away and rolled her eyes.

“Everyone’s emotions are running high today, so a break might be good. By tomorrow, everything will blow over. See you all then.” Shen Jiaying continued, “Oh, Nan Zhi, I’d like to talk to you. When would be a good time?”

Nan Zhi froze.

Now that was unexpected.

Not just Nan Zhi everyone else was equally stunned, unsure what Shen Jiaying was up to.

“I just want to clear the air with Nan Zhi. I feel like she’s misunderstood me because of what others have said. We’re teammates now, it’s not good to keep clashing like this, right?” Shen Jiaying smiled sweetly.

Her words were strange, subtly undermining Zhu Ran yet again.

Nan Zhi raised an eyebrow. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. No one mentioned you to me before I joined this group. We weren’t even in the same class before, and my friends are all focused on themselves they don’t gossip about others. You must have misunderstood something. Besides, I have no issue with you, so I don’t know why you keep getting this wrong impression. If I came across as too blunt or rude and upset you, then I apologize first.”

Shen Jiaying’s expression stiffened.

The phrasing felt familiar, and hearing it from someone else’s mouth made her feel sick.

She narrowed her eyes slightly, forcing her smile wider.

“Oh, is that so? Then maybe I did misunderstand. After all, you chose our group later, and we got off on the wrong foot right away. I thought you might have heard something and joined specifically because of me.”

“Oh, no way! I’m just a lowly F-class member, right? I didn’t have much choice, the other options were too hard, so picking this song was natural. Look, Shao Xiling chose this group too, just like me.”

Nan Zhi smiled, her grin even brighter than Shen Jiaying’s.

Beside them, Shao Xiling’s face instantly darkened.

She was also F-class and had chosen even later than Nan Zhi.

Mu Siqiong glanced between the two, seemingly debating whether to interrupt this unexpected showdown.

Fortunately, Shen Jiaying took a deep breath and finally dropped the strained smile, her words speeding up.

“Then when do you have time to talk with me?”

“How about now?” Nan Zhi tilted her head with a smile. “Let’s get it over with. I have plans to eat with someone later.”

Shen Jiaying nearly lost her composure.

Who else could she be eating with? Wasn’t it obvious?

“Fine, let’s go now. The rooftop?”

“The stairwell’s fine. Saves us the climb.”

Shen Jiaying paused briefly, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear before smiling sweetly. “Alright.”

In the stairwell, Nan Zhi leaned casually against the railing, raising an eyebrow as if prompting Shen Jiaying to speak.

After confirming there were no cameras around, Shen Jiaying turned off her microphone and gestured for Nan Zhi to do the same.

Nan Zhi scoffed. “Really necessary?”

“I think you wouldn’t want others to hear what comes next.”

Shen Jiaying smiled. Once Nan Zhi’s mic was off, her voice turned icy.

“Do you really know Zhu Ran?”

Nan Zhi: “…”

She had planned to ignore Shen Jiaying’s nonsense, but for some reason, she recalled that rainy day on the rooftop Zhu Ran softly recounting her past.

Nan Zhi had always felt Zhu Ran had left much unsaid that day.

Could it be that Shen Jiaying was willing to reveal what Zhu Ran hadn’t dared to say?

The mocking words on her tongue were swallowed back, replaced by a dry question:

“What are you trying to say?”

Shen Jiaying smirked disdainfully, lifting her chin slightly, her gaze cold.

“You don’t understand Zhu Ran at all, so don’t even try to change her.”

Nan Zhi frowned. “What gives you the right to say that? In what capacity?”

“Capacity?”

Shen Jiaying suddenly laughed, shaking her head as if mocking Nan Zhi’s naivety.

“Anyway, Zhu Ran isn’t something you can just take.” She curled her lips. “I’d advise you not to get too close to her.”

“Speak clearly if you have something to say. Don’t be so cryptic. If you’re just repeating the same warnings over and over, then I’m afraid I’m not interested. I’ll take my leave now.”

“And one more thing Zhu Ran is a person, not some object. The way you talk about her is downright disgusting.”

Nan Zhi had no patience left to listen further. With those words, she turned to leave.

Shen Jiaying’s saccharine voice slithered after her like a venomous snake.

“Didn’t you just ask me what gives me the right to warn you?”

A light chuckle.

“Because I’m the heroine of this world, and Zhu Ran is just a supporting character.”

Nan Zhi’s footsteps froze mid-stride.

So she knew.

“Are you wondering how I know?” Shen Jiaying suddenly burst into loud laughter.

It was a rare sound from her twisted, malicious, eerie.

Nan Zhi stiffly turned her head, finding that sweet face now utterly terrifying.

“I also know, Nan Zhi, that you don’t belong to this world.”

Shen Jiaying lifted her chin haughtily, eyes gleaming with strange excitement, as if she’d finally found the perfect plaything.

She wore the demeanor of a victor.

“And I know you don’t truly understand Zhu Ran. You can’t see her past. From the very beginning, you never knew what she’s done before.”

As if exhausted from laughing, Shen Jiaying finally stopped her shrill voice.

“I’m giving you friendly advice leave this place as soon as possible.”

Nan Zhi couldn’t hold back anymore. “Why?”

“Because Zhu Ran has killed many people before, and in the end, she’ll kill you too.”

An explanation of Ran-jie’s emotional fluctuations:

First, because she’s been controlled for too long, she unconsciously falls into these emotional states something even she struggles to control.

Second, Ran-jie hasn’t been trying to break free from her past for very long, and with unresolved matters still lingering, her psyche experiences uncontrollable relapses.

For over a decade before Nan Zhi appeared, she’d been trapped in this mental state. Breaking free in such a short time is incredibly difficult.

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