Turns Out I’m the Villain They’re Supposed to Redeem? [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 52

Over a month had passed in the blink of an eye since Huo Yuwan returned to Nanyu University. Rubbing her tired eyes as she stepped out of the library, she noticed the streetlights flickering on and realized she had spent yet another entire day buried in her studies.

Currently apprenticed to Dean Zhou, her schedule was specially tailored, covering all core courses from freshman to senior year, as Dean Zhou had explained. In addition to her physics coursework, weekly literature classes were interspersed, ostensibly to provide a mental break and cultivate artistic sensibilities, lest she become a bookworm in her youth.

Though it was the weekend, Huo Yuwan still had several papers to write. She had arrived at the library early in the morning with notebooks and reference materials, unknowingly working from dawn till dusk.

Slinging her crossbody bag over her shoulder and stretching lazily, she decided to check if the cafeteria still had food available.

These days, she and Li Xuzhi only managed to see each other briefly in the evenings after returning home, Huo Yuwan kept busy by Dean Zhou’s arrangements, while Li Xuzhi was occupied with writing.

On their first weekend back in Nanyu City, Huo Yuwan had been watering plants on the balcony while reading the morning newspaper. Her eyes fell upon a short sci-fi story in the literature section, penned by an author using the pseudonym “He Xu.”

She was immediately captivated, not only was the writing exquisite, but the plot was utterly compelling. Most impressively, the story incorporated profound principles of physics, suggesting the author had a deep understanding of the subject.

Later that morning at the university, she overheard several professors in the lab discussing the same story. Even in the cafeteria line, students were eagerly debating its content with their friends.

Realizing she wasn’t the only one enamored with the piece, Huo Yuwan eagerly carried her tray to the seat opposite Li Xuzhi.

After returning to Nanyu City and explaining their situation to the dean, Li Xuzhi had been permitted to resume her studies at Nanyu University. However, their class schedules differed, leaving meal times as their only opportunity to meet.

Pulling the carefully clipped newspaper article from her pocket, Huo Yuwan placed it in front of Li Xuzhi, excited to share this remarkable work.

“Sis, you left in such a hurry this morning, you probably didn’t get to see today’s paper. This story…”

Without even touching her food, Huo Yuwan poured out her thoughts and interpretations of the story, enthusiastically urging Li Xuzhi to read it. She knew reading was Li Xuzhi’s greatest passion, she devoured books of all genres, and it was her influence that had cultivated Huo Yuwan’s own reading habits.

Li Xuzhi listened quietly until Huo Yuwan finished, then nodded faintly and calmly pushed the bowl of rice soup in front of her toward Huo Yuwan.

“Eat now.”

Her reaction was unusually subdued. Though Li Xuzhi was typically reserved, Huo Yuwan sensed something amiss. This wasn’t the response of someone unfamiliar with the article, nor did it suggest disagreement with its ideas. Instead, it carried the calm composure of someone who already knew everything.

Suddenly remembering something, Huo Yuwan quickly glanced at the two small characters printed below the article: He Xu.

The author’s pen name was He Xu.

A sudden realization dawned on her, and she couldn’t help but feel a surge of delight. She first glanced around cautiously before leaning in closer to Li Xuzhi.

“Sister, you wrote this article, didn’t you?”

Her furtive, almost thief-like demeanor brought a hint of helplessness to Li Xuzhi’s expression.

“Yes, I submitted it to the magazine a few days ago.”

She had started writing the piece long ago, around the third month after she’d moved to the countryside.

Life in the rural area was exhausting, but for Li Xuzhi at the time, it offered a rare sense of tranquility. The temporary liberation of her mind and spirit sparked a desire to create, so she began writing during her spare moments.

While in the county town, Li Xuzhi hadn’t considered submitting her work to magazines. But since returning to Nanyu, her days were filled with either studies or free time, greatly increasing her opportunities to write. Moreover, with both her and Huo Yuwan now attending school, the household had lost its source of income, this was the primary reason driving Li Xuzhi to submit her work.

Since they had met, Li Xuzhi couldn’t even begin to count the ways Huo Yuwan had helped her, whether financially or emotionally.

Li Xuzhi didn’t know what the future held for the two of them, but at least for now, when Huo Yuwan said she wanted to cling to her for a lifetime, Li Xuzhi felt no reluctance, only a secret joy.

So, since they were going to live their lives together, it was only natural to plan everything properly.

She knew Huo Yuwan had savings, but as a member of the household, she felt she should contribute as well.

With this mindset, Li Xuzhi began serializing her novels in the newspaper.

Walking all the way to the cafeteria, Huo Yuwan first washed her face at the outdoor faucet. After staring at books all day, her mind felt somewhat dazed.

As she dried her face with a handkerchief, Huo Yuwan considered visiting her grandparents after dinner to chat with them.

Suddenly, she felt a tug from behind. Puzzled, she turned around and realized her backpack strap had caught on a protruding rusty nail at the edge of the sink.

The nail, seemingly shoved carelessly into a brick crevice by someone, had its head exposed just enough to snag Huo Yuwan’s bag strap.

“I thought I’d run into a pickpocket again,” she muttered to herself as she freed the strap, internally addressing the fox spirit.

Since the little white dog couldn’t accompany her on the train to Nanyu, she had left it with Wu Xiao for the time being, forcing the fox spirit to abandon its physical form.

Losing its physical body had put the fox spirit in a sulky mood lately, so even though it heard Huo Yuwan’s words, it merely snorted arrogantly and refused to speak.

Shaking her head in amusement, Huo Yuwan wasn’t angry. Instead, she pondered finding another physical vessel for the fox spirit when she had some free time in the coming days.

The trees beside the cafeteria stood tall and straight, occasionally shedding pale pink petals during the summer, creating a beautiful contrast with the green leaves.

Just as Huo Yuwan turned to climb the steps, her bag was tugged again.

“Stop right there, you pervert!”

A sharp, clear soprano voice rang out behind her.

Huo Yuwan turned around, bewildered. Confirming that the girl was indeed speaking to her, she frowned slightly.

“Who’s the pervert? Don’t slander people recklessly.”

“Ha, slander? I’ve still got evidence on my clothes!”

The girl glared at her furiously, gripping Huo Yuwan’s bag tightly without loosening her hold.

“Which department are you from? I’m going to report you to your dean, you definitely deserve some disciplinary action!”

Huo Yuwan looked at the girl’s face, still wet with water stains, then shifted her gaze to the girl’s clothes, trying to find the so-called evidence that proved she was a pervert.

“You still dare to look! Come on, let’s go find a teacher right now!”

The girl tugged at Huo Yuwan’s bag with one hand and grabbed her arm with the other.

Standing her ground, Huo Yuwan broke free with a few annoyed movements.

“Come on, I’m a girl too, not some pervert. And you said there’s evidence on your clothes, where is it?”

She had looked all over but couldn’t see any so-called evidence on the girl’s clothes. Huo Yuwan was now starting to feel like she was dealing with a troublemaker.

The girl, having been pushed away, grew even angrier. She eyed Huo Yuwan’s clean face and sneered coldly.

“So, what if you’re a girl? Haven’t you heard there are female perverts too?”

Huo Yuwan fell silent for a moment, unsure how to refute that.

“The evidence is this small tear in my skirt. There are only two of us by this pool, if it wasn’t you sneaking around tearing my skirt, then who was it?”

Zhou Yeruo pointed to a hole about the width of her little finger on her floral skirt, then, while Huo Yuwan was lost in thought, suddenly grabbed her backpack and began rummaging through it without another word.

“Li Xuzhi?!”

She stared at the name written on the notebook’s title page, momentarily stunned, before her anger flared up again.

“Well, well! Not only did you harass me, but you also stole something! How did Xuzhi notebook end up with you?”

She had originally intended to find out the name of this female pervert, but now, with the evidence right in front of her, she had unexpectedly discovered that this person wasn’t just a pervert, she was also a thief!

Seeing her belongings snatched away, Huo Yuwan immediately grew irritated.

She snatched the notebook and her bag back from Zhou Yeru, her expression icy as she looked at the creases left on the notebook’s cover.

“This notebook was given to me by Teacher Li. I’m not a pervert, and your skirt was probably torn by a nail on the edge of the pool, it wasn’t me!”

With that, Huo Yuwan turned to leave.

“Oh! And someone like you is studying at Nanyu University? I wonder what underhanded method you used to get that recommendation! Come with me, I’m reporting you!”

Zhou Yeruo blocked her path, grabbing the collar of Huo Yuwan’s shirt and pulling her toward the administration building.

She didn’t believe a word about a nail tearing her skirt. The pool was built with bricks, where would a nail come from? Even if there was one, it must have been left there deliberately by this female pervert, specifically to snag girls’ skirts!

It was summer, and aside from her short-sleeved shirt, Huo Yuwan only had a thin undershirt on underneath. Zhou Yeruo was gripping so tightly that Huo Yuwan worried her buttons might pop off.

To avoid exposing herself, she had no choice but to follow along with Zhou Yeruo’s pull.

Holding onto her collar with one hand, Huo Yuwan couldn’t hold back her frustration and snapped back.

“Are you even reasonable? Even if I were a female pervert, I wouldn’t target someone like you!”

“What do you mean by that? Are you saying I’m ugly?”

Zhou Yeruo glared at her with eyes wide in fury.

“You’re not just ugly, you’re an idiot too!”

Huo Yuwan gritted her teeth and grabbed the ponytail tied at the back of her head.

She had already explained it was caught on a nail, yet this girl just wouldn’t let it go.

“Ah!”

A piercing shriek echoed across the entire campus.

…

Ten minutes later, the Physics Department dean’s own granddaughter and the newly admitted prodigy of the Physics Department appeared together in the dean’s office.

“Go take a look in the mirror and see what a mess your hair is! It looks like it’s been blasted by a cannon!”

Listening helplessly as his granddaughter recounted the incident, Dean Zhou silently took a sip of tea.

“Grandpa, did you even hear what I said? She harassed me! A student like her must be punished!”

Zhou Yeruo pointed at Huo Yuwan with a pitiful expression, pretending to wipe the corner of her eye where there wasn’t a single tear.

Huo Yuwan’s lips twitched at the accusation, and she sneered, “Stop making false accusations. With your looks, tsk.”

Seeing that his granddaughter was about to lunge at Huo Yuwan again, Dean Zhou quickly stood up and pulled her aside.

“This must be a misunderstanding. I believe Yuwan, she’s not that kind of person.”

Glaring at Zhou Yeruo, Dean Zhou turned and gave Huo Yuwan a kind smile. “How’s your thesis coming along?”

Huo Yuwan, who had been quite confident earlier, now felt too embarrassed to stay angry. “It’s finished. I was planning to submit it to you tomorrow.”

As she spoke, she took several copies of her thesis from her backpack and handed them to Dean Zhou.

“So fast? It seems you must have spent the whole day in the library.”

He flipped through the pages briefly and nodded in satisfaction.

“Grandpa! Why are you taking her side like this? Am I not your granddaughter anymore?”

Zhou Yeruo, seeing the two chatting and laughing as if she weren’t even there, spoke up in disbelief and frustration.

A vein throbbed on Dean Zhou’s forehead as he lightly tapped her forehead with the thesis in his hand.

“I’d almost prefer a silly girl like you weren’t my granddaughter!”

Zhou Yeruo, “???!!!”

…

A week before summer break, Huo Yuwan finally had some free time. She had completed all her experiments and finished writing her required papers. Considering her young age and her diligent work over the past few months without slacking off, Dean Zhou decided to grant her an early summer vacation.

Early that morning, after Li Xuzhi had finished breakfast and returned to school to review his lessons, Huo Yuwan infused spiritual energy into the flower at home, which had already sprouted three buds. Feeling bored alone, she decided to take a stroll to the campus as well.

The morning summer sun wasn’t too harsh. Walking on the shaded side of the path, Huo Yuwan breathed a relaxed sigh.

“It feels like being back in the cherry blossom forest.”

Her gaze drifted to the distant lake. In the southwest corner of Nanyu University lay a natural lake called Siyuan Lake. In summer, the lake was covered with blooming lotus flowers, making the scenery particularly beautiful for a leisurely stroll.

“Just missing someone, though.”

The fox spirit, who knew her thoughts all too well, snorted sarcastically.

It had been months since she promised to find it a physical form, yet here it was, still bouncing around in Huo Yuwan’s mind.

Busy with studies or chasing after her crush every day, it clearly didn’t take the fox spirit seriously. The disrespect was unbearable!

“Alright, alright, I’ll take you to the dog market in the northern suburbs this afternoon, okay?”

Knowing she was at fault, Huo Yuwan guiltily tried to soothe it.

Gazing across the lake, beneath a towering parasol tree, a figure sat upright on a wooden bench, their profile while reading a book strikingly familiar.

“Sister?”

After a moment of surprise, a smile instinctively surfaced in her eyes, and Huo Yuwan jogged over.

“Always ditching friends for a pretty face!”

Huling muttered under her breath.

Noticing someone sitting beside her, Li Xuzhi, who had been absorbed in her book, paid it little mind. But minutes later, a faint, familiar fragrance wafted from the side, disrupting her thoughts.

She glanced sideways and saw Huo Yuwan sitting quietly beside her, gazing at the lake.

“Weren’t you supposed to be resting at home?”

“I got bored staying home alone, so I thought I’d come for a walk.”

Looking at her cool, jade-like face, Huo Yuwan curved her lips into a smile.

“I thought you’d be studying at the library. Didn’t expect to run into you here.”

Li Xuzhi turned her gaze to the lotus pond opposite. “The scenery here is nicer, and it’s quiet too.”

Flattering herself that the two were in sync, Huo Yuwan nodded in agreement, her eyes crinkling like crescent moons.

A gentle breeze rustled the leaves of the parasol tree overhead, while the lotus flowers and leaves on the lake swayed softly.

Huo Yuwan nearly lost herself staring at Li Xuzhi’s pale, serene cheeks, quickly averting her gaze just as Li Xuzhi was about to turn her head.

“Am I disturbing you by being here?” she asked, pursing her lips in an attempt to cover her distraction and casually changing the subject.

Li Xuzhi gave her a deep look and closed her book.

“No.”

“I’ve already memorized the material. Reviewing before exams is just a habit.”

Huo Yuwan lowered her eyes and smiled silently, inexplicably finding Li Xuzhi’s earnest, confident demeanor utterly endearing.

“Shall we sit here and enjoy the lotus flowers together?” she tentatively suggested.

“Alright.”

Li Xuzhi nodded slightly.

“Last time at Grandma’s, you really liked her sweet osmanthus lotus root dish, right? I’ll go buy some fresh lotus roots at noon and try making it for you. I asked Grandma for the recipe, it’s pretty simple.”

Though they were supposed to be admiring the lotuses, Huo Yuwan’s thoughts raced ahead, from the flowers to the leaves, then to the lotus roots and seeds at the bottom of the lake, she had them all on her mind.

“Let’s also buy a fish. I wonder if there are any in this lake… Never mind, maybe we should get some ribs instead. Fish isn’t that good this season. Ribs stewed with lotus roots would make a nice soup too,” she added thoughtfully.

“Okay.”

A smile unconsciously touched Li Xuzhi’s lips as she watched Huo Yuwan unconsciously swallow while talking, shaking her head silently.

“We could also buy some lotus seeds and cook them with rock sugar for a sweet soup, it’s cooling and reduces internal heat.”

Following Huo Yuwan’s train of thought, the two of them pretty much covered every edible part of the lake.

“What were you two just talking about?”

A harsh voice shattered their warm, pleasant atmosphere.

“Thinking about fishing in Siyuan Lake? This is the school’s lake, not some country ditch! Have you no morals?”

A girl in a blue floral shirt jumped off her bicycle, pushing it to the roadside without turning her head as she scolded angrily.

“The school is like our home! We should cherish and protect it, not act recklessly. Do you understand?”

“I’m so annoyed by you couples sitting here chattering away, constantly doing childish and brainless things.” The girl continued her rambling criticism.

A few steps away, Huo Yuwan stared at the girl’s back, her ears still filled with that familiar magnetic soprano voice. The corner of her mouth twitched, she had already recognized who this person was.

Zhou Yeruo.

An eccentric college girl who never listened to reason.

“Who said anything about fishing in the lake? If you’re going to eavesdrop on others’ conversations, at least listen to the whole thing, will you?”

Huo Yuwan shot her an exasperated glance.

“Who’d want to listen to you lovey-dovey couples whispering sweet nothings? If I hadn’t been passing by, maybe…”

Mid-sentence, Zhou Yeruo finally finished parking her bicycle. She turned and caught sight of Huo Yuwan’s irritating face, abruptly cutting off her words.

“Who’s being lovey-dovey?”

Although the phrasing secretly pleased her, Huo Yuwan did her best to suppress the smile tugging at her lips.