The Villainous Sister-in-law Mistakenly Marked as the Heroine (Transmigration) - Chapter 42.1

In the middle of the night, Rong Jing woke up, restless due to her pregnancy. The bed was empty except for her. She sat up and noticed a thermos on the table with a note tucked beneath it: Drink more warm water.

A smiley face was drawn beside the words.

She paused for a moment before reaching for the thermos. When she opened it, the water was still hot.

After taking a few sips, she tested the temperature of the other side of the bed with her foot, cold.

Frowning, she got up and left the bedroom.

From a distance, she could see the study door slightly ajar, light spilling out from inside.

She approached quietly.

Peering through the crack, she saw Lin Qile sipping coffee while reviewing notes: “Complications of mitral valve replacement surgery…”

Rong Jing’s lips curled into a faint smile before she turned and headed back to the bedroom.

Lying back down, her gaze lingered on the thermos.

Did I put too much pressure on her? She thought. She’s actually pulling an all-nighter to study!

She hadn’t intended to bring up the Lin family’s debts, but seeing how Lin Qile acted so grateful for a few borrowed books while treating her with nothing but hollow flattery had made her lose her temper and spill everything.

“Lin Qile, you don’t have to work so hard. Just stay by my side obediently.”

Morning.

When Rong Jing woke up, Lin Qile was still nowhere to be seen.

“Did she study all night?”

She got up and walked out of the bedroom.

Lin Qile was in the living room, eating breakfast while watching the morning news. Spotting Rong Jing, she grinned and waved. “Morning! I was just about to wake you before heading out.”

“You didn’t stay up all night, did you?”

“Of course not!”

Lin Qile picked up her cup and downed the soy milk in one go before standing up. She headed to the kitchen and soon returned with Rong Jing’s breakfast. “I studied a bit late and didn’t want to disturb you, so I slept in the guest room. I found a soy milk maker in the cupboard and made some. It’s pretty nice to have a cup in the morning, want some?”

Rong Jing walked over, took the cup, and took a sip. Surprisingly, it tasted quite good.

“Weren’t you confident you’d graduate without a problem? Why the all-nighter?”

Lin Qile rubbed her nose awkwardly. “No need to tease me. I’ll work hard. I can’t drive you to the company today there’s a top professor giving a public lecture at school this morning, and I need to get there early to grab a seat. Clinical experience sharing is invaluable.”

After thinking it over last night, she decided that instead of wallowing in self-pity, she’d channel her old study drive.

With no time to mend things with her roommate, she had resorted to lurking in student groups under a fake name, gathering the latest intel.

“Come here.”

Rong Jing crooked a finger at her.

Lin Qile walked over with a grin. “Yes, Your Highness? What’s the order?”

“The soy milk is good. I’ll reward you with a car, go pick one from the garage.”

“Huh?”

Rong Jing leisurely sipped her soy milk, raising an eyebrow. “If you get photographed squeezing onto a bus, it’ll reflect poorly on me.”

“Wow, thank you, thank you!”

She grabbed her bag, slipped on her shoes by the entrance, and turned back to look at Rong Jing, who was lounging on the sofa. With a bright smile, she said, “Let’s both do our best, Rong Jing!”

Then she opened the door and left.

Only after the door closed did Rong Jing snap out of her daze from Lin Qile’s radiant smile. Lowering her head, she chuckled softly. “Idiot.”

Before her smile could fade, her phone rang. Seeing the caller ID, her expression slowly turned serious as she answered. “Mother.”

“Rong Jing, come home tonight.”

She straightened her posture, her eyes now pools of endless darkness. “Mother, if you also think I’m wrong and want me to go back to apologize, I don’t want to go back.”

She didn’t want to face Bai Jiao she was afraid she wouldn’t be able to stop herself from exposing Bai Jiao’s affair in public!

“Your mother was wrong, but she is still your mother after all.”

“Mother!”

She couldn’t take it anymore and irritably interrupted her mother’s attempt to mediate. “Mother, have you ever considered how Mom is shielding Qi Song and Ji Zhao.”

As soon as the words left her mouth, she bit her lip in frustration.

Almost just almost, she had said something she shouldn’t have!

“Ah Jing, the Rong family has many collaborations with Qi Song not the Lin family, but Qi Song personally. Did you know that? Over the past few years, Qi Song has frequently found excuses to remove certain projects from the Lin family and instead partnered with us through third parties. I never imagined she was hollowing out the Lin family. Now, I too find Qi Song terrifying, she’s not someone worth befriending.”

“Mother, then why do you still associate with her?”

“Because our businesses are too deeply intertwined. It’s not something that can be severed in a single day. Ah Jing, you’ve grown up immersed in the company’s affairs under my guidance. Now, from an outsider’s perspective, considering the bigger picture, tell me, what should we do?”

Rong Jing’s brow furrowed deeply, her grip on the phone tightening. “We should cut ties step by step.”

“As long as you understand, I’m sorry to put you through this.” Rong Yihua paused, then reassured her, “Endure the small grievances to avoid disrupting the greater plan. Don’t stoop to your mother’s level tonight. Your Aunt He is hosting a dance party, you should come too!”

“I… will go.”

She reluctantly agreed.

After hanging up, she looked at the soy milk in her hand, her appetite completely gone. She hurled the cup to the ground with force, her eyes now filled with nothing but coldness.

…

Lin Qile drove to the university and hurried into the large lecture hall for the public class. The room was nearly full, and she silently thanked Rong Jing for her foresight. Had she taken the bus, she probably wouldn’t even have found a seat by the door.

People around her recognized her, whispering among themselves.

“Is that Lin Qile? She looks so much like Lin Qile!”

“Looks like? That is Lin Qile! My god, she actually came to a public lecture!”

“She never shows up for specialized courses, does she even understand this class?”

“Didn’t you hear? My uncle said her family went bankrupt. They can’t buy her a diploma anymore, so she has to attend classes now.”

“After skipping classes for over four years, does she really think she can make up for it in these last few weeks? What a pipe dream!”

Lin Qile lowered her head and opened the materials she had prepared overnight, sighing quietly. The original owner’s reputation was so tarnished that she didn’t even know where to begin trying to turn things around.

The professor entered, and the room fell silent.

Wang Jinnan, thirty years of clinical practice, with extensive expertise in tricuspid atresia, pulmonary valve atresia, aortic coarctation, and aortic coarctation combined with mitral stenosis. He had mentored hundreds of outstanding doctors.

“Class, before we conclude today’s lecture, I’d like to pose a question: If a patient has congenital mitral and aortic valve stenosis but is not significantly affected in daily life in the short term, how should we proceed?”

Many students raised their hands.

The professor pointed at one. “This student, go ahead.”

“If it doesn’t affect daily life, conservative drug therapy should be the primary approach.”

Wrong!

Lin Qile silently refuted the classmate’s answer in her mind.

She thought to herself: For someone with congenital mitral and aortic valve stenosis, their profession and living environment must be taken into consideration. Conservative drug treatment has too many uncertain influencing factors you can’t just rely on the patient’s subjective feelings. You need to examine the left atrial curvature along the left heart border, the pulmonary vein enlargement, and even the shadow of the vaginal orifice.

The professor on the podium shook his head with a smile. “Your judgment isn’t wrong, but bodily functions have a lag effect. If you opt for conservative drug treatment, the patient might assume it’s just a minor issue. By the time the illness flares up again, it might no longer be a simple surgery. Doctors need foresight, we can’t let illnesses fester.”

Lin Qile grinned excitedly, she had been right!

After the public lecture ended, she slung her bag over her shoulder and headed straight for the study room, ready to revisit her pre-graduation exam preparations.

She spent the entire day in the study room, only leaving for lunch at the school cafeteria.

This kind of routine had once been second nature to her, but her current body seemed unable to tolerate prolonged sitting. After just a few hours, her back and legs were already sore.

At six in the evening, just as she finished a practice test and was about to check the answers, Xu Jiao called. “What are you up to?”

“Studying in the school library. Graduation exams are coming up.”

Xu Jiao’s voice immediately rose in pitch. “Damn, since when did you start studying so hard?”

“People have to grow up sometime. I think waking up early for classes and filling my brain with knowledge feels amazing.”

She chuckled and stretched backward.

Xu Jiao was speechless: “…”

“What’s up? Why the call?”

“I’ve been back for almost two months, and my dad’s kicking me out to go back to school. I wanted to hang out properly before I leave unlike you, heartless as ever. If I don’t call you, you never reach out first.”

Come to think of it, that was true. Xu Jiao was always the one initiating contact; Lin Qile hardly ever reached out first.

Feeling guilty, she rubbed her nose and laughed awkwardly. “When are you leaving? I’ll see you off!”

Xu Jiao set down her wine glass and walked out of the private room. “We’ll talk about that later. I just got word that my goddess is attending a cosplay gathering tonight. Come with me, I’ll show you the alpha I’ve got my eye on.”

“So you’re making your move?”

“Not sure yet. But since I know where she’ll be, I definitely have to check it out. You’re at school, right? I’ll come pick you up!”

Before Lin Qile could refuse, the call ended abruptly.

Lin Qile sighed at her phone, packed her things, and left the study room.

Xu Jiao was impulsive once she set her mind on something, she wouldn’t back down.

She texted Rong Jing: Hanging out with Xu Jiao tonight. I’ll come home as soon as I can. Are you off work yet? What time will you be back? If you’re ordering food, pick from the restaurants on that note.

After two minutes with no reply, she sent another message: Are you working overtime?

Still no response. Just as she was about to call, Rong Jing finally replied.

Mn.

Just “Mn”?

She had typed so much, and all she got was a single syllable? But then she remembered that Rong Jing wouldn’t have to be this busy if she herself had been more competent. If she had been capable enough, Rong Jing wouldn’t have had to shoulder the burden of managing the Lin Corporation. The thought instantly extinguished any right she had to feel disappointed.

Don’t forget to eat, no matter how busy you are.

After sending the message and knowing a reply was unlikely, she put her phone away and sat on the lawn near the school’s main entrance, continuing to study where she could easily be seen.

Half an hour later, Xu Jiao drove straight onto campus.

Lin Qile was sitting on the lawn reading a book when a shadow fell over her. She looked up to see a figure clad in black leather, with short hair and smoky eye makeup. Surprised, she asked, “Are you planning to join a gang or something?”

“The sun’s already set, and you’re still studying? So diligent?”

“No choice, I fell behind too much before,” she replied, packing her book into her backpack as she stood up to follow Xu Jiao. “But your outfit…”

“It’s cosplay. Come on, let’s give you a makeover too. You’ll stun everyone tonight.”

Lin Qile asked, “Is the alpha you fell in love with a cosplayer?”

“Probably.”

Xu Jiao’s vague answer stunned her. “You fell for someone, but you know nothing about her?”

“It was love at first sight at a bar. Besides, once I win her over, I’ll get to know her better… in bed. Hehe.”

Lin Qile: “…”

They arrived at a cosplay styling studio.

Under Xu Jiao’s direction, Lin Qile was transformed into the cold, brooding protagonist of an anime, sporting a short black wig, a tight leather outfit matching her friend’s (so tight she could barely squat), and a gothic-style choker around her neck.

“Qile, don’t make any expressions. Tilt your face a little.”

She obediently struck the pose as instructed.

“Lower your head a bit, tuck your chin in. Yes, yes, just like that hold still!”

Xu Jiao snapped a few photos. “Oh my god, if you weren’t my childhood friend, I’d totally fall for you! You’re like an angel-devil hybrid utterly intoxicating!”

“Come on, is it really that exaggerated?”

Lin Qile walked over and peeked at the photos, then froze. It actually looked,  really good!

In the picture, she was dressed head-to-toe in black, her leather-clad figure exuding an icy aloofness, yet her eyes held a vacant, lost expression as if she didn’t know where she was.

The perfect mix of cold and alluring.

Wow, she never knew she could look this cool!

“Send me one too.”

“See how good my photography skills are? You’ve been dressing all wrong, dark aesthetics suit you so well! How did I never notice before? Come on, the cosplay gathering starts at 7:30!”

They drove to a five-star hotel.

On the tenth floor, a grand banquet hall had been transformed into a dark-themed party.

As soon as they entered, Lin Qile was stunned. The place was filled with costumes she could recognize and many she couldn’t. There was even someone covered head-to-toe in tentacles… a tree spirit?

Batman, Frankenstein, vampires, werewolves, Edward Scissorhands…

Some she recognized, others were completely unfamiliar.

It was Lin Qile’s first time at such an event, and she marveled at the crowd.

“Qile, look, my goddess!” Xu Jiao pointed excitedly.

A woman dressed as a queen descended from the stage in towering high heels, commanding reverence from everyone in her path.

A powerful pheromone hit Lin Qile, making her frown uncomfortably.

Alpha pheromones naturally clashed, but since arriving in this world, she’d only been challenged once by one of Rong Jing’s admirers at a bar.

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