Transmigrated as the Villainous Love Rival of the Abusive Novel's Heroine [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 38

Chapter 38: Quarrel

With Zhe Yu around, the burden on Yun Qianxue’s shoulders was significantly lightened. Tasks like washing clothes and organizing supplies were unceremoniously dumped onto Zhe Yu by the two of them. And, of course, there was the matter of washing the dishes—a task that had plagued Yun Qianxue for a very, very long time.

It wasn’t that she didn’t know how; she was just lazy to do it for a certain “three-year-old.” Seeing that woman’s leisurely attitude always made her blood boil.

“But I did wash them during the day, okay?” Yin Shaoqing restated her innocence.

“Out of ten days, subtract five rainy days, and then subtract the four days you crushed the iron bowls flat—you calculate for yourself how many times you actually washed them properly!”

Yun Qianxue had originally been too lazy to bring this up again, but this woman insisted on bickering with her.

“Alright, alright, I’ll do it, I’ll do it. You two go get busy.” Zhe Yu, seeing the two childish ghosts hogging the water basin without washing a single dish and seriously hindering her work progress, felt utterly speechless. She directed her own children to pull the two away. Please, you four kids go play somewhere else, I beg you.

Scenarios of children bickering like this happened every day. Although it was sometimes exasperating, Zhe Yu loved these days; they were safe and happy. It felt as if she had returned to her flower shop before the apocalypse. She didn’t have to worry about zombies popping out, nor did she need to fret over water and food.

“Ah-Xue, I want BBQ,” the woman sitting on the roof on guard duty shouted, swinging her sunglasses and pushing her luck.

“Keep dreaming,” Yun Qianxue retorted crossly. “The meat is almost gone, what else do you want?”

“If it’s gone, we’ll just hunt more~” Yin Shaoqing shrugged nonchalantly. As long as she was there, none of them would go hungry. What was there to fear?

“Ah-Xue, just make it for her,” Zhe Yu chimed in from the side. “Only when Xiao Yin is full will she have the energy to hunt, right?”

“Forget it, Zhe Yu, don’t spoil her. Did she stop hunting on the days she didn’t have BBQ?” Even as Yun Qianxue’s mouth complained, her body was already honestly pulling out the meat. She glared at the woman preening on the roof and grumbled under her breath, “High-maintenance!”

“Hmph hmph hmph~” As long as there was good food, Yin Shaoqing would accept the “high-maintenance” label.

“Unseal your ability.” Yun Qianxue tapped the frozen meat; the ice was frozen too solidly.

“No problem.” Yin Shaoqing melted the ice with a snap of her fingers and lit the fire while she was at it.

Watching her look so smug, Yun Qianxue shook her head. Except when it came to food, she would never have imagined how powerful this woman’s ability truly was. The meticulous control, using the ability as if it were an extension of her own body—she even possessed both water and fire abilities.

But no matter how powerful she was, she would reveal a fatal weakness whenever it was a rainy day or nighttime.

“Not much further until we reach a small town. Zhe Yu, do you want to go in with us to gather supplies?” Yun Qianxue took out a map. Several places worth searching in Town A7a were circled, with detailed labels for pharmacies and commercial buildings. There were also red markings where Yun Qianxue predicted zombie swarms would be located.

“I’ll go too.” Zhe Yu gritted her teeth and decided to bring the children along. She didn’t feel right leaving them in the car, and they couldn’t truly rely solely on these two girls to provide for them. Moreover, her eldest son, Qi Ming, needed to consume the “cores” found in the zombies’ heads. She hadn’t told anyone about this because she feared people would view Qi Ming as a monster and kill him.

“Hey, Ah-Xue, come here.” Yin Shaoqing, clutching her candy bag and wearing sunglasses, beckoned to Yun Qianxue, who was organizing the gear. The gesture made Yun Qianxue a bit angry. Was she beckoning a dog?

“What?”

Yun Qianxue, ever the one whose “mouth says no but body says yes,” walked over reluctantly to see what “important” thing she had to say.

“Stay behind me in a bit. When I kill the zombies, you take out the crystal cores from their heads.”

“Crystal cores?” Yun Qianxue widened her eyes in surprise and asked in confusion, “What are those?”

Good heavens, she’s acting just like it’s the first time she’s heard of it. The fat cat licked its paws, thinking that this female lead was truly a black-sesame-filled rice ball (sweet but dark inside).

“It’s a core about this big, transparent and very hard. Hidden in the zombie’s head—you’ll find it if you cut it open.” Yin Shaoqing gestured, leaving Yun Qianxue seemingly lost in the clouds.

“Are those things precious?” Yun Qianxue continued her act.

“Of course. It can rapidly increase your ability level. That way, you won’t have to absorb external energy every midnight.” Yin Shaoqing frowned and complained with a bit of displeasure: “Every time you mobilize energy, it really affects Shaoqing’s sleep.”

Her current body’s capacity and perception of abilities were too strong. Every time Yun Qianxue upgraded her power, her body took advantage of the situation to frantically absorb that gathered pure energy. If it were daytime, she would wish for more of such energy to save her the trouble of killing high-level zombies for cores later. But for “nighttime Shaoqing,” a night where she couldn’t sleep was better off being destroyed!

Yun Qianxue fell silent for a long time before suddenly asking: “You knew?”

“Of course.” Yin Shaoqing hid nothing; she had known for a long time that Yun Qianxue had an ability.

“Then why didn’t you say anything?!”

Yun Qianxue didn’t know how to describe her feelings. The secret she had been carefully guarding and concealing for so long turned out to be no secret at all from the very beginning. She didn’t even know who to vent this burning rage at!

“You didn’t know your own ability? Why… uh…” No matter how slow Yin Shaoqing’s brain was, seeing Yun Qianxue’s “death stare” after saying that made her decisively change her tune. “You didn’t ask either…”

Look at her, acting all aggrieved.

Yun Qianxue laughed out of anger. “You really are a Best Actress. You acted so well I couldn’t even tell—just like you truly didn’t know!”

Why? It was this person who had sent her to the experimental table to be tortured to death because of that damned ability. And it was also this person who had saved her in this life and given her a very good period of time. She just wanted to keep it hidden—hidden until they reached Base S, no, hidden until she saw Yu Yinglang. Was that too much to ask? Why was her ability discovered? Why did she have an ability at all?

“Are you going to send me back to the experimental table to be dissected?” Yun Qianxue looked up, staring coldly at the woman whose expression had also changed. “Just like you did before.”

“My God, what are you talking about?” Yin Shaoqing was utterly speechless. She had never been so wrongly accused. When had she ever harmed the female lead? So, Yun Qianxue had never trusted her from the start?

“You’re the Best Actress here. No need to talk about me—didn’t you act just as convincingly? Hiding the fact that you have an ability—what’s so hard about telling me that? Are you afraid of me, or do you just not trust me?”

Yin Shaoqing really, really wanted to ask: So everything I’ve done is just “acting” in your eyes?

The sky darkened at an inopportune moment, and the irritability in Yin Shaoqing’s heart surged. She began to speak without thinking: “Do you think my saving you was an act too? In your eyes, I’m just an unscrupulous person, aren’t I!”

Shaoqing wasn’t always childish; she could also get angry, become irritable, and look loathsome. “Then why did you keep following me? Don’t you find it disgusting?”

Pretending to be best friends with someone you think is a liar—acting friendly on the surface while secretly wishing for the other’s death. Was there any need for that? Shaoqing hated people like that; she found it disgusting herself.

The fine rain fell on her hair and eyelashes, making it look as though she were crying. Yun Qianxue’s fingertips turned cold, and her heart trembled at the question.

“Host…” The fat cat instinctively stood up, saying helplessly, “Host, calm down a bit.” If she said any more hurtful things, the two of them might really break up.

“If we don’t break up, what am I keeping her for?” Yin Shaoqing’s face was cold. She didn’t even know where she’d thrown her sunglasses as she turned alone into the rain. This time, she didn’t call for Yun Qianxue, nor did she wait for her.

Fine, let’s just split up. Anyway, I don’t like this person, I don’t like the current world, and I especially don’t like this mission.

“Don’t be like this, Host. Something will go wrong if you continue like this.” The fat cat had never seen Yin Shaoqing like this, nor did it expect the “misanthropy” would have such a severe impact on her.

Yin Shaoqing wiped the water droplets from her face and let out a snort. “Then let me die.”

“Host!” The fat cat materialized its body and jumped onto Yin Shaoqing’s shoulder. Ignoring its fur getting wet, it rubbed its cheek against hers forcefully. They say petting a cat relieves stress. I’ll let you pet me, just be a bit happier, okay?

“Ah-Xue…” Zhe Yu, who had witnessed the sudden quarrel but hadn’t dared to step forward, now pulled out a coat and held it over Yun Qianxue’s head. “It’s raining. Go back to the car first. I’ll go check.”

The rain was getting heavier. It was worrying for Yin Shaoqing to just run out like that.

“No need, you go back to the car.” Yun Qianxue shook her head, lowering her head to organize her backpack. She picked up the miao dao and whispered instructions: “Stay alert. If there’s real danger, just run. Forget the supplies, but you must keep your lives.”

After speaking, she took a deep breath and smiled at the worried Zhe Yu. “Sorry, I can’t take you out today.” She wasn’t in the right state and truly couldn’t protect Zhe Yu.

Knowing she couldn’t persuade Yun Qianxue, Zhe Yu could only urge her with concern: “Then be careful and come back early.”

Yun Qianxue nodded and left. She had to find that woman. A rainy-day Yin Shaoqing was a person seeking death. She was afraid something would happen to her.

“Tsk…” Yun Qianxue gripped her longbow irritably. Why did I argue with her then? That wasn’t even what I wanted to say. She didn’t trust Yin Shaoqing, but it wasn’t that she didn’t trust… damn it, to hell with “trust”!

The little girl, who had been spoiled into having a temper by Yin Shaoqing, slashed a zombie to death, dug out its core, and stuffed it into a bag with disgust. Since this thing could enhance abilities, Yin Shaoqing could use it too. She’d get more—consider it an apology to her.

Meanwhile, Yin Shaoqing, who had left first, was truly acting crazy. No matter how many zombies were on the road, she charged straight toward the large hospital without dodging. The fat cat was initially terrified, but seeing that she wasn’t injured, her ability hadn’t weakened, and her energy wasn’t depleted, it relaxed.

The priority for the search remained the medicine for the wounds on Yun Qianxue’s face. Yin Shaoqing quickly searched through several hospitals. The fat cat watched as she passed candy shop after candy shop. She, who loved candy whenever her misanthropy flared up, even stepped on a bag of sweets but didn’t bend down to pick it up. Because just two or three steps further was a pharmacy.

Even though she had just quarreled with the female lead and left on bad terms, and even though she was determined to break up with her, her host still put the female lead first.

The fat cat, who was also observing the female lead, slowly lay down. It discovered that the girl—who had lived in the apocalypse for three years and knew which supplies were most precious and should be prioritized—had cast aside her calm and rational analysis. She was just non-stop digging for zombie cores. And… she went to one candy shop after another. She found clean, well-packaged candies and collected them, wrapping them in plastic bags to prevent them from getting wet in the rain.

The two of them, with no coordination at all, searched from opposite ends of the city. Ultimately, Yun Qianxue reached the city center first—the gathering place for zombies. Dense swarms of zombies, at least a thousand, were gathered inside and outside a commercial building. Yun Qianxue, her vision obscured by the rain, didn’t realize she had stepped into the swarm until it was too late.

She swung her long blade, fighting while retreating to high ground. She dodged the pouncing zombies but ended up trapped on a long pavilion. The rain soaked her hair; she brushed her bangs up and thought with a mocking smile that quarreling really does affect one’s mood. To think she could make such a rookie mistake—she really shouldn’t have.

The only saving grace was that these low-level zombies couldn’t climb the pavilion. She just needed to wait quietly for the swarm below to disperse and then take the chance to escape. But the worsening rain not only soaked her clothes but also seeped through the plastic wrap around her head, touching her wounds. She crouched there in the rain, trying her best to endure the pain on her face while clutching a backpack full of candy to her chest to keep it dry.

Crack… Rapidly spreading frost sealed the entire square, and the zombies were turned into ice sculptures.

Yin Shaoqing stood at the other end of the square, soaking wet, her tall frame hunched over pitifully like a puppy. She didn’t speak; she just stood there waiting.

Yun Qianxue tightened her grip on her backpack, jumped down from the pavilion, and walked over.

Neither spoke. When Yun Qianxue was about a meter from Yin Shaoqing, Yin Shaoqing turned and walked away. Yun Qianxue paused, her lips, pale from the cold, pressed tight. But this time, when she stopped, Yin Shaoqing didn’t turn back to find her.

“Roar!” The snarling of zombies continued, as did the sound of freezing. Yin Shaoqing was clearing the way; she was going to send Yun Qianxue to safety. Sharp ice blades shot backward, piercing the zombies near Yun Qianxue. But this madwoman paid no attention to her own back. A zombie with half its face rotted away lunged through the rain, aiming for Yin Shaoqing’s neck.

One meter, two meters… This woman was still clearing the zombies around Yun Qianxue, completely disregarding herself!

The miao dao shot out, piercing heavily into the zombie’s skull and crushing its brain. The force was so great it knocked the zombie back several meters. Only after she charged into the zombie horde behind Yin Shaoqing did that woman finally spare a glance for the zombies at her own back. She began to kill them with ease.

Throughout this, her face remained expressionless, cold, as if nothing mattered.

Yun Qianxue stood in the rain, shaking all over, her teeth chattering. Looking into Yin Shaoqing’s calm eyes, a wave of immense terror washed over her. It turned out her misanthropy really was life-threatening; it would make her die—it wasn’t just talk. The “Shaoqing” she had known all this time made her indifferent to the symptoms of her condition. She thought she knew this person well enough; she used to say with great confidence: Yin Shaoqing has misanthropy, I know, it’s fine, it’s not a big deal.

But now…

Yin Shaoqing just gave her a look, said nothing, and turned to keep walking.

Dread, fear, and complex emotions combined with a wave of towering rage to cloud Yun Qianxue’s mind. She took two steps forward, grabbed the tall woman, and spun her around forcefully. Her roar was louder than the splashing rain: “Do you want to die?!”

Why didn’t you dodge, huh?! WHY DIDN’T YOU DODGE!

She had worked so hard—no, so many people were struggling so hard just to survive in this hopeless apocalypse. “You have such a powerful ability, why don’t you want to live?”

Because of the illness. Yes, because of the misanthropy. Yun Qianxue knew she couldn’t blame her for it. But now, whenever she closed her eyes, she saw the image of that zombie biting toward Yin Shaoqing’s neck. Over and over and over again!

“Fine, I’ll tell you. I was reborn! Three years ago, you, Yin Shaoqing, sent me to an experimental table for dissection and tortured me for one hundred and seventy-three days. I died in that hellhole. Am I not allowed to be angry? Am I not allowed to doubt you?”

In Yun Qianxue’s trembling shout, there was a sob that couldn’t be hidden. The heavy rain washed away her tears; one could only see the crimson around her eyes and the undisguisable grievance on her face. What if she quarreled? What if she was angry!

“You… don’t cry.” Yin Shaoqing panicked. She froze entirely; she was at a loss, not even knowing how to comfort someone.

“Take it!” Yun Qianxue shoved the backpack into Yin Shaoqing’s hands with all her might, crying, “Why should I find candy for you? Why should I—sob…” She was the one who had been hurt; why did she have to be the one feeling aggrieved?

“I… I’m sorry.” Yin Shaoqing was frantic; her clumsy mouth couldn’t say anything nice. She could only pull out a backpack full of medicine and hold it out to Yun Qianxue—clumsily and sincerely laying her whole heart bare before her.

She had been angry before too, but she had still collected the things Yun Qianxue needed most. She remembered the wound on Yun Qianxue’s face; she knew it was inflamed. She could smell the odor—it didn’t smell good—but she, who loved cleanliness, could fall asleep facing that face. Even the fastidious “Shaoqing” wouldn’t say a word.

“What are you doing…” Yun Qianxue broke down. She was crying so hard she couldn’t stand and crouched on the ground, hugging her knees, laughing and crying, feeling both aggrieved and happy. Every defense in her heart collapsed, opening the gates completely and letting this woman inside.

“What are you doing… why…” Covering her eyes and repeating those words, Yun Qianxue didn’t even feel the cold of the rain hitting her anymore. Because Yin Shaoqing had taken off her own coat and crouched to hold it over her head, while she herself stood in a thin shirt in the heavy rain, so stupid she didn’t even know to shield herself.

Yun Qianxue felt this woman’s “level” was too high; she always made it impossible for her to give up on her. Even if it was just the concern for an older sister, she couldn’t let go of her. (Right, this person was three years older than her.)

She stood up and pulled the dazed Yin Shaoqing toward an abandoned clothing store. This time, Yin Shaoqing wasn’t stubborn; she obediently changed into the clothes Yun Qianxue handed her. Changing into an apricot-colored shirt finally gave her a touch of warmth.

When Yun Qianxue had finished changing and turned around, Yin Shaoqing was already waiting for her with medicine and bandages. For some time now, Yun Qianxue hadn’t let Yin Shaoqing help her change her dressings. Who would be willing to reveal their ugliest side to others? She wasn’t willing.

But now, on this afternoon where the rain obscured heaven and earth, she sat before Yin Shaoqing and let her carefully remove the bandages. Being soaked in rain made the bandages easy to remove, but the covered wound was even more hideous and terrifying. In fact, the moment the bandages fell away, Yun Qianxue herself smelled the odor.

She wanted to lower her head and hide her face, but a slender, strong hand propped up her chin. It held her firmly, not letting her hide. There was no disgust on Yin Shaoqing’s face, no pity, no sympathy, and no lamentation. She was just very, very seriously cleaning Yun Qianxue’s wound.

This allowed Yun Qianxue to relax instantly. Like a patient facing a doctor, she had a feeling of, Ah, I’m saved.

“Host, you’re not fastidious about blood being dirty now?” The fat cat hiding in the depths of Yin Shaoqing’s soul teased her. Who was it that even found their own blood disgusting before?

“This is different,” Yin Shaoqing argued in her mind. “Ah-Xue is like my sister. How could I be disgusted by her?”

“Sister?” The fat cat froze instantly and shrieked, “Are you sure your feeling for her is just as a sister?!” Dammit, in anyone else, in a heavy rain, a hero saving a beauty would have already reached the confession-and-kiss stage. If her emotional intelligence were even slightly present, she’d know her feelings for the female lead exceed a sisterly bond, right?

“No, Host, what is wrong with you???” The fat cat was worried to death. What a great atmosphere! And look at the female lead, she’s going to speak, she’s going to speak! She must be about to confess! Just watch!

“During this time, I actually started to think of you as my good sister.” Yun Qianxue, her bandages finished, lowered her eyes, expressing herself with a bit of embarrassment. “It’s not that I didn’t believe you; it’s just that my previous experience made it hard for me to give my all to anyone else.”

Fat Cat: “…” Sisters… sisters? Still sisters?!! To hell with “sisters”! You two pieces of trash can stay single for the rest of your lives!

“I know.” Yin Shaoqing was also concerned about the “rebirth” she mentioned. The system hadn’t told her any of this. Although she had just asked the fat cat and that fellow said it didn’t know—whether it truly didn’t know or was faking—she preferred to learn everything from Yun Qianxue’s own mouth.

Since Yin Shaoqing wanted to know, Yun Qianxue told her; she didn’t want to hide anything anymore. The consequences of hiding things this time had been far too severe and had taught her a harsh lesson. If it happened again… Yun Qianxue shuddered; she was afraid she would never be able to find this person again. That punishment was too much; she couldn’t bear it.

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