Chapter 3: Part 3

5

After a few days of living in indulgent luxury, I suddenly snapped back to reality.

No.

I couldn’t go on like this anymore.

My mission was to follow through with the original plot.

But now, the plot was so messed up that even the author wouldn’t recognize it!

In the original story, after Xie Huai Yan had a one-night stand with Shen Li and got taken advantage of, he already hated her to the bone.

Why was it now that I was sleeping with him and taking advantage of him every day, yet Xie Huai Yan still smiled at me all the time!?

Was it because my mission was set to hard mode?

I couldn’t live like this anymore!

Just then, Xie Huai Yan’s overly handsome face suddenly came close, and he gave me a kiss on the cheek:

“Why are you upset, baby? Who made you unhappy?”

“I bought you a whole room full of the limited edition bags you couldn’t get at the last auction. Want to go check them out together?”

My face instantly lit up with joy:

“Sure!”

Fine.

This life… was actually kinda still worth living.

…

“Ahhhhh!”

That night, I was woken up by a sharp, ear-piercing shriek as I slept alone.

I rubbed my eyes groggily: “Who’s yelling? What’s going on?”

The familiar electronic voice sounded on the verge of a breakdown: “It’s me, Host! I’m the system!”

Oh?

Hearing this, I suddenly perked up, sitting up excitedly:

“You’re finally back! Without you, I couldn’t even check my progress. Hurry and tell me how my mission is going!”

The system fell into an eerie silence.

After a long pause, it finally spoke in a soft, hesitant voice:

“I have good news and bad news. Which do you want first?”

I was taken aback.

But I’d always liked to take the sweet before the bitter: “Let’s hear the good news first.”

System: “The good news is, Xie Huai Yan’s affection for you is at one hundred percent—mission accomplished.”

Xie Huai Yan actually liked me!

Was my charm really that strong?

I was instantly overjoyed, my heart bursting with pride. “And the bad news?”

“The bad news is,” the system practically sobbed, “what’s the use of capturing him!”

“Your mission is to find the male lead and follow the storyline, but you haven’t even met the male lead so far! And now you’re asking me about mission progress!?”

Me: ?

My brain practically overheated: “What do you mean? Isn’t Xie Huai Yan the male lead?”

"Not only is he not the male lead, he’s not even an ordinary person. He’s the biggest lunatic villain in the entire story! A ruthless, evil mastermind who’s committed countless atrocities!"

Me: ???

How could those words have anything to do with the Xie Huai Yan who was so kind to me?

I took a deep breath, rubbing my aching temples:

“No way. I clearly remember you telling me before I entered the book that the male lead’s name was Xie Huai Yan…”

“No!” The system retorted righteously. “Don’t you slander me. I said the male lead’s name was Xie Huai Yan (谢淮燕), and the villain’s name was Xie Huai Yan (谢怀宴)! How could you mix that up?!”

Me: …

Dude, they literally have the same pronunciation.

How could I not mix that up!?

Too lazy to argue with this unreliable system, I asked the most important question at hand:

“What do I do now?”

System: “What else can you do? Run!”

Its voice shrank timidly. “Do you know what ‘biggest villain’ means? It means he’s far crueler and more vicious than you can imagine.”

“If you fall into the male lead’s hands, it’s just one bullet. But if you fall into the villain’s hands, who knows how you’ll die!”

“Hurry and escape while you still can!”

The system’s shouting gave me a headache. Subconsciously following its advice, I climbed out of bed and turned to run.

But the moment I looked up, my blood froze.

At the darkened doorway, Xie Huai Yan stood there quietly, who knows how long he had been listening.

His face was expressionless, but hidden in the shadows, there was an inexplicable, chilling darkness that made me shiver in fear.

“Baby, who are you talking to?”

“Where are you trying to escape to?”