Turns Out I’m the Villain They’re Supposed to Redeem? [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 49

Before the start of the school term, Li Xuzhi informed Huo Yuwan of his decision to teach at the city middle school as well, so she could settle comfortably at the school without having to commute daily from the village to the city, enduring early mornings and late nights.

Huo Yuwan was naturally delighted by the news, but upon learning that Li Xuzhi planned to stay at Principal Cheng Lian’s home, she felt a stirring of concern. She promptly suggested renting a place in the city, so Li Xuzhi wouldn’t have to live in someone else’s house, and she herself could avoid sharing a crowded dormitory at school.

Her mind was preoccupied with the thought that staying in another’s home would inevitably feel like living under someone else’s roof, an uncomfortable experience. Subconsciously, she placed herself in the category of those closest to Li Xuzhi, where boundaries between them blurred.

Now that she had learned to ride a bicycle, she immediately acted on her idea, taking Li Xuzhi around the city to search for a suitable rental. Sitting sideways on the back of the bicycle, Li Xuzhi held onto the hem of Huo Yuwan’s clothes at her waist, listening as she meticulously analyzed the pros and cons of the houses they had just viewed. A rare sense of peace and tranquility filled his heart.

He no longer wanted to dwell on the future or worry about when his illness might take his life.

For now, at least, he wanted to accompany Huo Yuwan as she grew, watch her study, attend school, and gradually realize her dreams.

…

In the end, the two rented a house near the city middle school for seven yuan a month. Huo Yuwan paid for three months upfront, agreeing with Li Xuzhi that they would reassess the arrangement after she graduated from high school.

As the competition approached, Huo Yuwan took a few days off from school and set off with Yang Nanjun, carrying her backpack, heading to Nanyu City.

The day of departure fell on a weekend, and several of her close friends from school came to see Huo Yuwan off, cheering her on and bringing snacks, sweet pears, candies, and even sunflower seeds, to help pass the time on the train.

Holding the assortment of snack bags in her arms, Huo Yuwan smiled gratefully and thanked them.

Although she had been studying at the city middle school for less than a month, her diligence, cheerful personality, and willingness to patiently explain and help classmates with their questions had already made her well-known. Unfazed by trivial matters, she generously brought the simulator she had made to school for interested students to study and play with.

Most students were curious and playful, and individuals like Sun Chuanlu, with ill intentions, were few and far between. Thus, Huo Yuwan quickly gained popularity and made many friends her age.

As the students cheered her on, one girl glanced around and, recalling something, reminded Huo Yuwan, “I heard Sun Chuanlu is also participating in this competition. If you run into him there, be careful and don’t let him cause trouble again.”

Sun Chuanlu was in their class and had taken a long leave of absence the previous week, originally citing illness as the reason. However, the girl lived on the same street as him and had overheard his family discussing the matter on her way home yesterday. Remembering past incidents, she felt compelled to warn Huo Yuwan.

Nodding in acknowledgment, Huo Yuwan recalled the previous time she had been schemed against. “Don’t worry, I’ll be cautious.”

Yang Nanjun stood nearby, holding his bag with an impassive expression, waiting until it was almost time before reminding them to leave.

“It’s time to go. Boarding is about to start, stop dawdling.”

“Alright.”

Huo Yuwan waved to her classmates, then got into the three-wheeler with Yang Nanjun. As she glanced out the window, she pursed her lips and looked back at the road behind them but still didn’t see the figure she had been hoping for.

Li Xuzhi had left early that morning, and Huo Yuwan guessed she had probably taken Hu Ling out for a walk again. On rest days, the two of them always seemed to vanish, either reading by the lake or watching elderly people do their morning vocal exercises in the park, enjoying their carefree leisure.

Huo Yuwan would have liked to join them. Li Xuzhi didn’t mind, but Hu Ling, that troublemaker of a dog, had somehow switched sides. He’d bark and bark, refusing to let Huo Yuwan tag along.

When asked why, he straightforwardly admitted that he wanted to let loose. With Li Xuzhi, he could be just a dog, running around freely, rolling in the grass, and most importantly, socializing with other dogs without constantly reminding himself that he was originally a fox.

Huo Yuwan found it oddly amusing, but upon reflection, she realized she had been neglecting Hu Ling’s need for friends. So she stopped insisting on following and, on this rare day off, diligently stayed home to study.

Today was no different, Li Xuzhi had taken the dog out again, not even bothering to see her off before her long trip.

Feeling like she ranked lower than a dog, Huo Yuwan let out a deeply aggrieved sigh.

Just as the three-wheeler was about to start and Huo Yuwan had closed the door, she suddenly heard a familiar, excited bark from outside. The enthusiastic barking drew the attention of several people on the street.

Instinctively, Huo Yuwan opened the door and stepped out. Before she could steady herself, Hu Ling rushed over and bumped into her shins, nearly knocking her off balance. Smiling, she steadied herself against the vehicle and reached down to pat his furry head.

Li Xuzhi, holding the long, light-brown leash in her pale hand, came to a slow stop behind him. Catching her breath, she walked up to Huo Yuwan.

“Sister.”

Seeing that Li Xuzhi had come to see her off, Huo Yuwan grinned, her eyes crinkling with happiness.

Beneath the morning light, just being quietly watched by Li Xuzhi’s gentle gaze filled Huo Yuwan’s heart with a deep sense of contentment.

“Is that Teacher Li from the first-year division? So, Huo Yuwan knows Teacher Li too…”

“Didn’t you know? Huo Yuwan studied with her at home. After just a short time, she skipped three grades straight into the graduating class.”

“That’s incredible… Why can’t I grasp things like that…”

…

A few students nearby whispered among themselves, but Huo Yuwan paid no attention. Her focus was entirely on the person in front of her. She thought to herself that she must hold a pretty high place in Li Xuzhi’s heart, after all, she’d even cut her dog walk short to come see her off!

Wasn’t that a form of caring?

Li Xuzhi, of course, had no idea what she was thinking. If she had known, she’d probably just smile and say Huo Yuwan was still so childlike.

Handing over the black leather bag she was carrying, Li Xuzhi said gently, “Just do your best.”

Huo Yuwan automatically reached out to take it, about to say something more, when Yang Nanjun tapped on the window from inside the vehicle and pointed at his watch.

If they didn’t leave now, they’d miss the train.

Tugging lightly on the leash, Li Xuzhi signaled Hu Ling, who gently tapped Huo Yuwan’s shoe with his paw before obediently returning to Li Xuzhi’s side.

“Go on.”

She looked at Huo Yuwan and spoke softly in a light voice.

Nodding firmly, Huo Yuwan responded, “I will work hard.”

Carrying her bag, she turned with determined steps and got into the vehicle. The three-wheeler sped along the road and soon disappeared from sight.

While sitting in the car, Yang Nanjun glanced at the leather bag she was holding.

“She moves fast, I haven’t even managed to buy that bag yet.”

The newly released Haiqi brand leather bag, stylish in design and made of high-quality material, was in such high demand at the department store that the bag counter had long queues every day.

Yang Nanjun, always on the cutting edge of fashion, had lined up three times without success. He had planned to buy one on this trip to Nanyu and give it to his niece as a gift, but who would have thought Li Xuzhi would beat him to it again?

Hearing this, Huo Yuwan looked down at the bag in her hands with delight, almost unable to put it down. She hadn’t had time to examine it closely earlier, but now, as she unzipped the bag, she noticed there were items inside.

An aluminum lunchbox and a colorful ceramic thermos.

The lunchbox was filled to the brim with rice and meat, while the thermos contained chilled rock sugar water.

“Tsk.”

Beside her, Yang Nanjun leaned back in his seat and let out an ambiguous, soft click of his tongue.

…

During the six- to seven-hour train ride, Huo Yuwan ate her meal and sipped the sugar water, smiling happily all the while. Sitting across from her, Yang Nanjun hadn’t been hungry at first, but the aroma of the food kept wafting into his nostrils. Unable to resist any longer, he ended up buying a boxed meal on the train to make do.

They arrived in Nanyu in the afternoon. Professor Jiang, whom Li Xuzhi had contacted for them, had arranged for one of his students to pick them up.

At the exit, when Huo Yuwan saw the female student holding a sign with their names on it, she was momentarily stunned. She hadn’t expected it to be such a coincidence, the person sent to meet them happened to be Qian Wanwan, whom she had met before.

But the other girl was quite enthusiastic. Qian Wanwan had participated in the competition last year and was now volunteering to help out this year. When she heard Huo Yuwan’s name from her teacher, she immediately volunteered for the task without hesitation.

Having witnessed Huo Yuwan’s skills firsthand before, she was even more eager to see how she would perform in the competition.

The official competition was scheduled for the next morning at eight. Qian Wanwan took the two to a hotel near Nanyu University, advising them to rest well and recharge so they could give their best performance the following day.

After Qian Wanwan left, Huo Yuwan organized her belongings in her room. Remembering something, she went to knock on Yang Nanjun’s door across the hall.

“What’s up?”

The door opened after just one knock, clearly, Yang Nanjun had been about to go out.

“What about our other teammates? Shouldn’t we discuss our plans for tomorrow’s competition?”

She hadn’t thought much about it before coming, assuming that someone as particular as Yang Nanjun would have chosen teammates from among his former classmates or friends and that they would naturally gather once they reached Nanyu.

But from the station to the hotel, Yang Nanjun hadn’t mentioned any other teammates, and Huo Yuwan began to have a sinking feeling.

Sure enough, Yang Nanjun glanced at her upon hearing her question.

“No other teammates. It’s just the two of us. I’m the team leader, and you’re the member.”

With that, he turned and closed his door, then started to walk away. “Two people are more than enough. Have some confidence in yourself, you’re plenty capable.”

Caught off guard by the unexpected praise, Huo Yuwan hesitated to speak, but as she watched his confident retreating figure, she decided not to voice any objections.

Two people it is, then. After all, her uncle had such faith in her.

…

Early the next morning, the two followed Qian Wanwan into Nanyu University and met Professor Jiang in front of the physics department building, which served as the competition venue. Professor Jiang was a silver-haired scholar with a spirited demeanor.

During their conversation, Huo Yuwan learned that the instruments and materials she had used earlier were also arranged and sent with the professor’s help. She hurriedly expressed her gratitude, but Professor Jiang waved it off, showing no concern. Instead, she inquired about Li Xuzhi’s recent situation.

Professor Jiang was a close friend of Li Xuzhi’s father and had also been Li Xuzhi’s esteemed mentor. However, due to the circumstances at the time, she had been unable to assist when the Li family faced difficulties. The next time she heard about Li Xuzhi was when she had gone to the countryside as an educated youth.

The first time Li Xuzhi contacted her teacher again was to help her own student find materials. When Professor Jiang received the call, she felt both heartache and helplessness. She knew Li Xuzhi had avoided contacting her all this time to avoid implicating her. The fact that she was now willing to call meant Huo Yuwan held significant importance in Li Xuzhi’s heart.

After learning in detail that Huo Yuwan had helped Li Xuzhi out of a difficult situation when she first went to the countryside and had taken good care of her, Professor Jiang felt somewhat relieved. She immediately promised to arrange for the matter and urged Li Xuzhi to reach out if she encountered any difficulties in the future, assuring her that she would help however she could.

And… Li Xuzhi’s father had passed away half a month ago. The Li family now…

At this thought, Professor Jiang shook her head helplessly.

By the time Li Xuzhi returned, everything might have changed beyond recognition.

Knowing that Professor Jiang genuinely cared for Li Xuzhi, Huo Yuwan shared some of Li Xuzhi’s experiences since going to the countryside. When Professor Jiang learned that Li Xuzhi had recently moved to the city and was teaching at a local middle school, she visibly relaxed.

Subconsciously, she had assumed that rural living conditions were poor and that daily farm work was exhausting. With Li Xuzhi suffering from asthma, life there must have been particularly tough. Moving to the city and taking on a lighter job was undoubtedly for the best.

Seeing this, Huo Yuwan didn’t elaborate further. Although she didn’t think her own living environment was bad, her sentiments aligned with Professor Jiang’s.

In short, she couldn’t bear to see Li Xuzhi suffer either.

After the competition officially began, Yang Nanjun, as the team captain, went to the front to select the model theme. There were six themes in total, ranging from simple to complex, and participants could choose freely.

When Yang Nanjun brought back the selected task sheet and handed it to Huo Yuwan, she silently scanned the words “Fighter Jet Theme” written on it, her lips twitching slightly. Then, with a trembling finger, she pointed to the small note specifically marked at the end of the theme:

“Extremely high difficulty, choose with caution.””

As she read through the detailed requirements for the finished model, she felt a chill run down her spine for the first time.

Yang Nanjun, however, seemed as calm as ever. He glanced at his wristwatch and remarked casually, “If everything goes smoothly, we can finish in ten hours and still make it in time for dinner.”

Then, he glanced at the task sheet in Huo Yuwan’s hand and added, “First, determine the maximum takeoff weight and fuel capacity. Then calculate the combat radius and payload weight. Finally, figure out the range, that’s all.”

Yang Nanjun deliberately chose the most difficult topic, the only team throughout the entire competition brave enough to select it. After all, fighter jets were a model independently developed domestically only in recent years; before that, they were imported from abroad, and very few students could grasp their principles.

But Yang Nanjun didn’t care about any of that. Coming to Nanyu was a rare opportunity, and they had to seize this chance to leave a deep impression on the professors.

Huo Yuwan took a deep breath, feeling that she was eighty percent doomed.

If only she had chosen the topic herself, critical decisions like this really shouldn’t be left to someone as reckless as Yang Nanjun.

Silently sitting down and picking up a piece of scratch paper, Huo Yuwan furrowed her brows and began pondering the structure in her mind.

Just as she started preparing to sketch a draft, a voice suddenly came from beside her.

“What a coincidence.”

Sun Chuanlu walked over from the adjacent area, followed by a few men who looked relatively mature.

When Yang Nanjun saw him, a flicker of darkness passed through his eyes.

Huo Yuwan frowned at the sound of his voice. She glanced at Sun Chuanlu and replied dismissively, “Quite a coincidence indeed.”

Seeing her look of disregard, the smile vanished from Sun Chuanlu’s face.

At school, he hadn’t dared to target Huo Yuwan again out of respect for Cheng Lian, but how could he easily let go of the public humiliation of having his hair set on fire?

He let out a silent, cold laugh and turned his gaze to Yang Nanjun, who stood behind Huo Yuwan. If he remembered correctly, this guy had helped Huo Yuwan last time.

Stepping forward, Sun Chuanlu looked Yang Nanjun up and down. His attire didn’t seem like that of someone short on money, but educated youth, what they cared about was always the same thing.

“Must be tired of staying in the countryside, right? What a waste of time for a promising young person like you.”

Huo Yuwan’s ears twitched slightly. She turned to observe the scene, already having an inkling of what Sun Chuanlu was about to say.

Shaking her head, Huo Yuwan silently continued conceptualizing the draft in her mind without speaking.

Seeing Yang Nanjun remain silent, Sun Chuanlu pressed on with his hints.

“My dad is an official in town. Every year, he has a quota to recommend someone for university. If you’re interested…”

He glanced meaningfully at Huo Yuwan beside them and signaled to Yang Nanjun, “You know what I mean, she can’t win this competition.”

His eyes shifted back and forth between the two, and for a moment, Sun Chuanlu felt puzzled. Why did these two look somewhat alike the more he stared? How strange.

“Why bother asking him to go easy? With such a difficult topic, there’s no way they can solve it!” one of the men behind Sun Chuanlu sneered.

“Anyone capable of designing a fighter jet would already be in a research institute, not here.”

“Let’s go, Chuanlu. No need to bother with these people. We should get back to working on our own model.”

“Yeah, let’s go, Chuanlu.”

These men were all skilled hobbyists Sun Chuanlu had hired. Though lacking formal education, they were passionate about studying physical models. Sun Chuanlu had paid them to help him secure a ranking in this competition, so his father would have a legitimate reason to recommend him for university this year.

As for what he had just said to Yang Nanjun, it was all a bluff. There was only one quota, and he wasn’t foolish enough to give it to someone else.

Yang Nanjun shot them a cold glare, his eyes brimming with suppressed fury.

“Get lost! All of you, trash.”

The chill in his gaze was truly terrifying. Seeing that his deception had failed, Sun Chuanlu didn’t dare to confront Yang Nanjun head-on any longer. Thinking that the two of them wouldn’t be able to accomplish much anyway, he slunk back to his own team’s position.

Seeing that he had left, Huo Yuwan looked up and offered a few words of consolation.
“Calm down. It’s not worth letting someone like that ruin your mood.”

At her words, Yang Nanjun glanced at her and composed himself. “We are bound by blood ties, and that will never change, no matter what.”
His tone was unusually solemn, which inexplicably made Huo Yuwan tense up as well.

“I know.”

She had come to realize that this guy was tough on the outside but soft on the inside. Although he could be as unpredictable as a madman at times, his actions were always rooted in wanting what was best for her. So, Huo Yuwan didn’t dwell too much on their past arguments and fights. After all, family should be more understanding of one another.

“Just knowing it isn’t enough,” Yang Nanjun said, lifting his chin. “From now on, when we’re out in public, you must always call me ‘Uncle.’ That way, everyone will know you’re under my protection, and no one will dare bully you.”

He wore an expression of immense pride, making him seem less like a student in his early twenties and more like a gang boss under strict crackdown by society.

“I’ll think about it,” Huo Yuwan replied, feeling somewhat awkward. Calling someone who looked barely older than her “Uncle” was a bit embarrassing.

Seeing Yang Nanjun’s expression darken again and mindful of the ongoing competition, Huo Yuwan had no choice but to lower her voice and relent.
“Alright, alright, Uncle! You’re my uncle, okay?”

Satisfied, Yang Nanjun raised an eyebrow and glanced at the professors who were already making their way over.
“As the elder, I won’t steal your thunder. You can handle the preliminary calculations and sketches for the model yourself.”

With that, he crossed his arms, closed his eyes, and assumed an air of complete nonchalance.

Huo Yuwan was utterly stunned, staring at him in disbelief.
She had to do all the brain-intensive work alone? Was Yang Nanjun even human?!

Cursing this ill-tempered lunatic inwardly, Huo Yuwan checked the time and, not daring to delay any further, immediately bent her head and began scribbling and sketching rapidly on the draft paper.

Hours passed without her ever looking up. The desk was already piled high with filled draft papers, and the pencil in her hand felt like it was about to combust from overuse.

Several professors paused behind her to observe her work carefully, but Huo Yuwan remained completely unaware, her mind wholly occupied with the next steps of the model’s calculations and derivation process.