When The Harem Novel’s Heroine Meets The Tragic Heroine - Chapter 20

Inside the car, Yu Qingling specifically instructed Bei Qiuqiu to find a secluded spot.

Drawing on her sharp intuition regarding surveillance, Bei Qiuqiu found a short stretch of road by the riverbank that lacked cameras and pulled the car over.

Bei Qiuqiu’s heart was a tangle of emotions. She desperately wanted to know why her “sister” wanted to find such a place. Was it to make it easier to do… something?

With doubt clouding her mind, she stepped out of the car. She watched as Yu Qingling walked directly toward a small grove of trees by the river.

In the pitch-black, deserted night, under the dim and mournful moonlight, the jagged, crisscrossing branches in the grove looked like demons dancing in a frenzy.

Bei Qiuqiu hesitated on the spot, locked in a mental struggle. She was filled with dread for places like this; they triggered an insurmountable psychological trauma within her.

Xiao Qingtian parked his motorcycle. From out of nowhere, he produced two bottles of liquor and walked over with a fawning smile. “Little sister, your name is Bei Qiuqiu, right?”

Bei Qiuqiu rolled her eyes. Who’s your sister?

Xiao Qingtian brandished the whiskey in his hand, flaunting his wealth. “These two bottles cost me over three million. Do you want a sip, little sister?”

Bei Qiuqiu shook her head. “No. I’m driving.”

The man wore a flippant, smirking expression. “It doesn’t matter. We can just find a designated driver. Such good wine—if you miss out now, you might never get to taste it again in your life.”

Well aware of her “one-cup-and-out” constitution, Bei Qiuqiu moved two steps away. She pulled her coat tighter around herself, wanting nothing more to do with this annoying love rival.

Yu Qingling returned from scouting the terrain just in time to hear Xiao “Radish” Qingtian’s scummy attempts to coax a naive young girl into drinking. Her face instantly darkened.

She spoke with a chilling tone, “Do you need some ‘resistance training’ to go with that wine?”

Xiao Qingtian turned around with a sheepish laugh. “Qingling, where did you go just now? I didn’t see you.”

Yu Qingling ignored him and went straight to Bei Qiuqiu. Seeing the girl huddling her neck, she asked, “Are you afraid?”

Bei Qiuqiu thought about how Yu Qingling had just fearlessly entered the pitch-black woods alone. If she acted too cowardly, would her sister laugh at her?

She shook her head.

Yu Qingling didn’t doubt her. “Then let’s go. We’ll sit by the edge of the woods.”

Suppressing the timidity in her heart, Bei Qiuqiu followed closely behind Yu Qingling.

Xiao Qingtian rummaged through the storage box of his motorcycle for a while but couldn’t find anything to serve as a glass. He jogged to catch up, still clutching the two bottles.

By the edge of the woods, there happened to be a rock large enough for one person to sit on. Yu Qingling had Bei Qiuqiu sit down while she stood beside her, observing the surroundings for any movement.

Swirling the bottle in his hand, Xiao Qingtian asked, “Qingling, you don’t need to drive. Want to have a drink together?”

Yu Qingling considered it. If she got him drunk, the likelihood of the assassin striking would be higher.

Thus, she took the bottle, opened it with her bare hands, and took a heroic, large gulp straight from the mouth of the bottle before looking back at Xiao Qingtian.

Xiao Qingtian hurriedly looked down to open the other bottle, but lacking Yu Qingling’s martial prowess, he couldn’t get it open for a long time. It was incredibly awkward.

Bei Qiuqiu watched from the side and burst out laughing, her face full of mockery for her rival.

Yu Qingling let out a scoff—the same brand of ridicule as Bei Qiuqiu’s. She took the bottle, opened it, handed it back, and commanded with narrowed eyes, “Drink up. Fast.”

Under her unspoken intimidation, Xiao Qingtian took three large gulps in a row, the sting of the alcohol making him gasp for air.

With half a bottle down his throat, the alcohol quickly went to his head. Xiao Qingtian began to act recklessly, constantly leaning toward Yu Qingling. “Qingling, I’m not that poor boy anymore. I’ve made something of myself.”

Yu Qingling gave a casual “oh” and used a finger-thick tree branch to press against Xiao Qingtian’s chest. “Stay away from me.”

Xiao Qingtian immediately didn’t dare to act up again, staying perfectly still as the branch poked at his solar plexus.

She tilted her head, listening intently to the movement behind her.

In the quiet woods, the breeze blew with a faint rustling sound, but amidst the sounds of nature, there was the sharp crack of a branch being accidentally stepped on.

An ordinary person would have noticed nothing.

The source of the sound was within ten meters behind them. It seemed the person was preparing to move.

Yu Qingling appeared motionless, but every muscle in her body was coiled and ready.

The drunken Xiao Qingtian was drowsy, looking as if he might collapse at any moment.

Bei Qiuqiu was staring boredly at the river surface, resting her head on her hand. She was privately fuming over the fact that her crush was drinking with a love rival right in front of her.

What’s so good about men! Especially such a fickle, rotten man! Sister actually dropped her previous disgust to drink with him!

In the woods, a figure gradually emerged—it was the middle-aged man from the food stalls earlier.

He approached rapidly and silently.

His hand reached out from his pocket, his fingertips reflecting a flash of white under the moonlight as he reached for Xiao Qingtian’s neck.

Just as the blade was about to slash violently across Xiao Qingtian’s carotid artery, a tree branch shot out of thin air. The immense force of the impact knocked the dagger straight out of the man’s hand.

The man was shocked, but he recovered quickly. He curved his hand into a claw and lunged for Xiao Qingtian’s throat.

The change happened too fast. Xiao Qingtian was still in a daze when a massive force constricted his throat. The pain and the feeling of suffocation instantly jolted him somewhat sober.

The man wanted to snap Xiao Qingtian’s neck with his bare hands. That way, even if he was exposed, the mission would be complete, and he could flee abroad to squander the huge commission.

However, he didn’t expect that Yu Qingling would decisively dislocate his arm the moment he grabbed Xiao Qingtian’s neck.

The killing move was thwarted once again.

He bent down to use his other hand to pick up the fallen dagger, but the branch lunged toward his eyes with fierce momentum.

He was forced to dodge to the side, and he failed to retrieve the dagger.

In just a few moves, he realized he was absolutely no match for Yu Qingling. He blamed himself for not thoroughly investigating the people around Xiao Qingtian before rushing to act.

Normally, he would never strike without absolute certainty. It was this “perfect” opportunity for an assassination that had tempted him.

Looking back now, the opponent had likely discovered him long ago and intentionally set a trap for him.

Now that there was no longer a chance to succeed, the man turned and fled. If he didn’t run now, he might be the one getting caught.

Yu Qingling watched him scramble into the woods with all his might. She didn’t give chase, turning instead to look at Bei Qiuqiu.

The assassination attempt had lasted less than half a minute. Bei Qiuqiu hadn’t fully processed what happened until the man was gone. Now, seeing the dagger reflecting the cold moonlight on the ground, she finally understood what had just occurred.

This wasn’t acting. This was a real attempted murder happening right before her eyes.

Bei Qiuqiu felt a wave of intense terror after the fact. She clenched her hands in front of her chest, the panic in her eyes unmistakable.

Yu Qingling pursed her lips, feeling a hint of regret.

If she had known Bei Qiuqiu would be this frightened, she never would have let her get involved.

After a moment’s thought, she placed her hand on the girl’s back and patted it gently. It was her first time comforting someone, and the movement was inevitably stiff.

Her hand was quickly grabbed by another, ice-cold hand.

Bei Qiuqiu wanted to make one final confirmation. “Sister, that person… was he trying to kill…?”

Yu Qingling nodded calmly, but the girl across from her could not remain calm. She could feel the girl’s fear growing even stronger.

The task was complete. Yu Qingling completely ignored the man behind her, who was coughing violently.

“I’ll take you home.”

Perhaps leaving the scene of the incident would help Bei Qiuqiu recover. Thinking this, Yu Qingling let the girl hold one of her hands tightly while placing the other on her shoulder, walking together toward the car.

Watching the two of them leave him behind, Xiao Qingtian’s drunkenness completely vanished.

When that rough hand had tightened around his throat, he had felt the sheer terror of death.

With trembling hands, Xiao Qingtian picked up the dagger from the ground, his teeth clenched in rage.

In the past few days, there was only one person he had offended. He didn’t even have to guess who had hired someone to harm him.