When The Harem Novel’s Heroine Meets The Tragic Heroine - Chapter 8

Bei Qiuqiu’s sudden movement was something Bei Miaomiao had never anticipated. She stared with wide eyes and a gaping mouth, unable to speak for a long while.

Bei Qiuqiu tossed the dirty plate into the sink, shouldered past Bei Miaomiao, and headed upstairs without a second glance.

Bei Miaomiao staggered back two steps. She was trembling with rage, yet she forced herself to suppress her resentment, desperate to twist the knife in Bei Qiuqiu’s heart. “Sister knows you’re angry with me, but Qiuqiu, Young Master Qin loves me! Not you. You can’t force matters of the heart.”

Bei Qiuqiu found it incredibly annoying. What was she supposed to do? How could she completely shake off that scum Qin Anjue without triggering the system’s punishment?

In her state of agitation, Liuliu popped up again. “Host, why did you pour out the heart-shaped dinner you made for the male lead?”

Bei Qiuqiu pursed her lips and screamed in her mind: Because he doesn’t deserve it, obviously!

“Didn’t you hear Bei Miaomiao? She planned to take the dishes I worked so hard on to gain favor with the male lead. Of course, I couldn’t let her succeed.”

Liuliu felt something was off, but upon further thought, she couldn’t find a flaw in that logic.

After locking her bedroom door, Bei Qiuqiu went out onto the balcony. She slumped exhausted into the soft sofa and kept refreshing her social feed. New comments popped up from time to time, but none were from the person she was waiting for.

She didn’t know that Yu Qingling, located under the same starry sky in the same city, was also checking her phone periodically, waiting for a new video call to come in.

As for when Bei Qiuqiu would discover the actual purpose of the WeChat Moments feed… that remained unknown.

The next day, the weather forecast predicted light rain starting in five hours.

As if she were preparing for an awards ceremony, Bei Qiuqiu woke up as soon as the sun peeked over the horizon. Breaking her habit of sleeping in, she scrambled out of bed and sat before her vanity to do her makeup.

Every meeting had to be a “mini-spectacle” for the “Sister,” providing a little visual shock.

A beauty in the rain, holding an umbrella and looking back.

Just thinking about it was beautiful. However, she had to put extra effort into the makeup.

Biological clocks are a terrifying thing.

Yu Qingling woke up at dawn before the sky was even bright. After practicing a set of boxing moves in her small apartment, her gaze instinctively drifted to her phone.

The screen remained grey and silent. Yu Qingling picked it up, unlocked it, and after a moment’s hesitation, tapped the little green icon with the two speech bubbles.

The original owner of this body was an orphan with no relatives, so the contact list was pitifully short. Aside from eight colleagues and the male lead, Bei Qiuqiu was the only other contact.

She tapped into the chat with Bei Qiuqiu; there were no new messages.

Yu Qingling pressed the lock button expressionlessly and turned back to continue her boxing.

After repeating this cycle several times, the silent phone finally showed signs of life.

Her slightly furrowed brow relaxed. She let out a soft breath to ease the slight shortness of breath from the intense exercise, and her slender finger tapped the green circle.

This time, Bei Qiuqiu didn’t place a video call, but a voice call.

Having spent over four hours dressing herself, Bei Qiuqiu spoke in a playful tone, “The sun is hitting your backside! Is Sister awake yet?”

Yu Qingling stared at the screen, which showed no image, and knitted her brows. “Mm.”

“Then I’m coming over now to return your jacket, is that okay?”

“Okay.” She glanced at the sky outside. “It’s going to rain. Remember to bring… an umbrella.”

“Thanks for the concern, Sister. I’ll contact you soon.”

The call ended. Yu Qingling was in a good mood. She tugged at the white shirt soaked with sweat and then took a change of clothes into the bathroom.

Bei Qiuqiu folded Yu Qingling’s jacket neatly and placed it in her backpack. Unluckily, she ran into Bei Miaomiao again on her way out.

It was a narrow confrontation. When Bei Miaomiao saw her, her pupils constricted in shock. Her gaze lingered on Bei Qiuqiu’s face for a long time, unable to look away.

It was clearly still the same Bei Qiuqiu—the features hadn’t changed—yet she looked like a completely different person, making it even harder to look away. Even though she had always viewed Bei Qiuqiu as an enemy, for a split second, she was dazed and captivated by her.

Alarm bells rang in Bei Miaomiao’s heart; the defensiveness and hatred in her eyes could not be hidden.

Bei Qiuqiu, however, didn’t give her a single glance. She brushed past her as if she were thin air, then wrinkled her nose and fanned the air with her small hand; the overly thick perfume was pungent.

Bei Miaomiao spun around just in time to see the gesture, and her blood pressure spiked.

“Bei Qiuqiu!” she shrieked.

The person ahead continued walking with a composed pace, having no intention of acknowledging her.

Bei Miaomiao ran up aggressively to block her path, intending to interrogate her. “You—”

She wanted to ask where she was going, looking so beautiful, but as her gaze fell on the other girl’s face—which looked like it had no makeup at all, showing no trace of effort—her words got stuck in her throat.

Bei Qiuqiu stepped to the side. “Is something wrong?”

“Where do you think you’re going? I’m telling you, all the cars at home are being used today. No driver will take you!”

Bei Qiuqiu gave a noncommittal “Oh” and remained calm. “If there’s nothing else, I’m leaving.”

Bei Miaomiao followed closely behind her, unable to suppress her nervousness. “Are you going to find Young Master Qin?”

Bei Qiuqiu pulled a bicycle out of the garage and answered unhurriedly, “No.”

Then, with her backpack on, she pushed off and pedaled out of the Bei family courtyard.

Watching her figure grow distant, Bei Miaomiao stamped her foot in hatred and pulled out her phone to make a call.

Halfway through the ride, light rain began to fall. Bei Qiuqiu remained unfazed, holding an umbrella in one hand and steering with the other. She arrived outside the residential complex where Yu Qingling lived.

She had been very careful along the way, not letting a single drop of rain touch her face.

After finding a prominent spot to park the bike, Bei Qiuqiu held her umbrella with one hand and took out her phone with the other, looking down to place a voice call to Yu Qingling.

Yu Qingling had already finished washing up and changing. After waiting for a while without the phone ringing, she had rummaged through her apartment to find an umbrella and walked straight to the entrance of the complex.

The voice call was picked up instantly. Before the other person could speak, Yu Qingling spoke first. “I see you.”

“Eh?” Bei Qiuqiu let out a surprised sound and quickly looked up to search for her.

Through the transparent surface of her umbrella, she saw a familiar figure in the distance walking toward her under an umbrella.

As Bei Qiuqiu turned her head and offered Yu Qingling a smile as bright as a flower, she felt Yu Qingling’s footsteps falter almost imperceptibly for a moment.

It seemed those four-plus hours hadn’t been wasted.

Bei Qiuqiu called out sweetly, “Sister.”

She wondered if “Sister” was stunned by her beauty. To leave a deep impression on Yu Qingling, she had carefully applied a “scheming” natural makeup look and had straightened her long, slightly wavy hair, so it flowed down.

Paired with a white, waist-cinching dress, she exuded an ethereal, fairy-like aura.

Unexpectedly, Yu Qingling’s brow furrowed, her eyes flashing with a hint of sharpness and seriousness. “Your clothes are wet.”

Bei Qiuqiu: “…”

Her smile froze. She looked down and saw that the hem of her white dress, which reached just past her knees, had been soaked by the rain at some point. As a gust of wind blew, the damp fabric clung to her skin, faintly revealing the flesh beneath.