Lin Weiwei looked up at Su Qingyu, who stood against the light.
The light from the wall lamp outlined her blurry silhouette from behind. Her cold face was shrouded in shadow; only the crimson flicker in her eyes and her tightly pressed lips were exceptionally clear.
Scared?
The original novel's descriptions of "Lin Weiwei's" hysterical fear and despair after being sent to a mental asylum flashed through Lin Weiwei's mind. She then contrasted that with her own current demeanor of having fatty beef in her left hand and mahjong tiles in her right.
Uh, it seemed a bit out of character.
She opened her mouth, her throat a little dry. The spicy hotpot she'd just eaten was starting to kick in, burning her chest. Subconsciously, she licked the corners of her mouth, which might have been greasy, and gripped the "one of bamboo" tile in her hand even tighter.
"I..." She uttered a single syllable, then froze.
What could she say? Should she say, "I know you're the female lead, I know the plot, I know I'll have my kidneys and heart dug out later, so I might as well throw caution to the wind and enjoy a few more days first?"
Su Qingyu would probably just label her truly insane and lock her up forever.
In a flash of lightning, enlightenment struck Lin Weiwei. She forced out a dazed yet eerily sweet smile, one she believed perfectly suited a "mental patient," and her voice drifted:
"Scared? Why be scared? Here... here is quite good. Food and drink, no one forces me to learn etiquette, no one calls me stupid... Gu Chen... Gu Chen can't find me here either..."
She deliberately brought up Gu Chen, the man the original owner was infatuated with and for whom the female lead currently harbored hidden feelings. She aimed to muddy the waters, attributing her "abnormal" behavior to the official reason of "going insane from lovesickness."
Sure enough, upon hearing the name "Gu Chen," Su Qingyu's pupils imperceptibly contracted.
But she didn't show the disgust or offense Lin Weiwei had expected. Instead, she took another step closer.
The distance between them instantly shortened. Lin Weiwei could even smell her faint, cool perfume, mixed with the cool night air from outside, powerfully overpowering the lingering hotpot smell in the ward.
Su Qingyu bent down, her gaze level with Lin Weiwei, who was sitting on the floor.
Too close.
Lin Weiwei could clearly see her curled eyelashes, her straight nose, and those eyes that were even more breathtaking up close. The layer of ice in them seemed to crack, and something scalding surged beneath, almost scorching her.
"Quite good?" Su Qingyu repeated her words, her voice a low, almost whisper, laced with dangerous mockery, "Food and drink? Playing mahjong? Eating hotpot?"
Her gaze swept over the "one of bamboo" tile in Lin Weiwei's hand, then returned to her face, as if trying to bore two holes into it.
"Lin Weiwei, are you taking me for a fool?"
A layer of cold sweat instantly broke out on Lin Weiwei's back. The heroine was too perceptive!
She forced herself to maintain that dazed smile, her gaze intentionally unfocused, staring into a vacant corner, muttering to herself: "Self-draw... All one suit... One of bamboo... Two of bamboo... Hehe..."
Act, keep acting! As long as I act convincingly enough, you won't be able to tell I'm faking it!
Su Qingyu watched her, the emotions swirling in her eyes intensifying. She suddenly reached out, not to strike, but to firmly grip Lin Weiwei's wrist, the one holding the mahjong tile!
The force was astonishing. Lin Weiwei felt her wrist bone might shatter, and she hissed in pain. The "one of bamboo" tile fell to the floor with a crisp clatter.
"Stop pretending." Su Qingyu's voice trembled, suppressed to its extreme, her crimson eyes locked onto her. "You're not her. Who exactly are you?"
All the blood in Lin Weiwei's body seemed to freeze at that moment.
She knew?
How did she figure it out?!
The original novel didn't mention the female lead having fiery golden eyes that could see through transmigrators!
A huge panic gripped her, even more so than when the door was kicked open just now. This was a direct challenge to her biggest secret!
"I... I am Lin Weiwei..." she struggled, her voice weak, tears welling up involuntarily from the pain in her wrist.
"No, you're not." Su Qingyu stated firmly. Her other hand suddenly rose, and icy fingertips abruptly touched the side of Lin Weiwei's neck. There, a tiny red mole, which the original owner had been proud of, should have been.
Now, it was completely smooth.
A "boom" sounded in Lin Weiwei's head! It's over! Details! She had forgotten the physical details!
The original novel did indeed mention that the villainous female supporting character, Lin Weiwei, had a charming little red mole on the side of her neck! But when she transmigrated, she hadn't paid any attention to that!
Su Qingyu's fingers still rested on the side of her neck, the cold touch sending shivers down her spine. The female lead's gaze became incredibly deep and profound, as if she had finally confirmed a certain speculation. The emotions swirling within were so complex that Lin Weiwei couldn't interpret them at all — there was shock, scrutiny, disbelief, and even... a faint trace of something akin to... ecstasy?
Ecstasy? Lin Weiwei wondered if her eyes were playing tricks on her.
"She had a mole there," Su Qingyu's voice was low and hoarse. Her fingertips pressed slightly, almost embedding themselves into Lin Weiwei's skin. "Tell me, how can someone whose physical features have changed be that same foolish person?"
Lin Weiwei was speechless, cold sweat trickling down her temples.
The path of feigning madness and foolishness was completely blocked.
Su Qingyu looked at her pale face, at the unconcealable panic in her eyes. The grip on her wrist, however, strangely loosened a little. She leaned closer, her warm breath almost brushing Lin Weiwei's ear.
"Tell me," her voice was alluringly low, yet contained an undeniable dominance, "Where do you come from? And what do you intend to do here?"
Lin Weiwei's heart pounded, her brain racing. Denying it was meaningless; Su Qingyu clearly believed she wasn't the original owner. So, confess? Confess that she was a transmigrator? From another world?
That sounded even more unreliable than being mentally ill!
Just as her lips trembled and she didn't know how to speak, Su Qingyu seemed to lose her patience.
Or perhaps, she didn't truly need Lin Weiwei's answer.
She looked at Lin Weiwei's eyes, wide with terror, stripped of their usual arrogance and domineering nature, leaving only pure panic. She looked at her slightly parted lips, still a little greasy, and the last layer of rational ice in her eyes completely shattered.
She suddenly lowered her head and fiercely kissed Lin Weiwei.
"Mmmph!"
Lin Weiwei's eyes instantly widened to their extreme, her mind as blank as if an atomic bomb had been dropped.
A warm and soft sensation came from her lips, carrying Su Qingyu's cool scent, and an almost predatory dominance. This wasn't a gentle kiss; it was more like a declaration, a possession, with a punishing force, grinding against her lips, prying open her teeth, conquering territory.
Lin Weiwei completely froze, forgetting to breathe, forgetting to struggle, able only to passively endure this sudden, utterly absurd kiss.
Su Qingyu... the heroine... was kissing her?
This realization terrified her even more than being sent to a mental asylum.
She didn't know how long it had been, but just as Lin Weiwei felt she was about to suffocate, Su Qingyu abruptly released her.
Their foreheads rested against each other, breaths mingling, both a little ragged.
Su Qingyu looked at Lin Weiwei's flushed face, hazy eyes, and lips swollen from the kiss. The surging undercurrents in her eyes seemed to subside a little, replaced by a deep, almost stubborn possessiveness.
She raised her hand and gently brushed her thumb across Lin Weiwei's moist lips, a gesture of eerie tenderness, completely different from the kiss just now.
"No matter who you are, or where you come from."
Su Qingyu's voice was low and clear, every word striking at Lin Weiwei's confused heartstrings.
"Since you've come, since you're not following the plot..."
She paused, her fingertips resting on Lin Weiwei's jaw, subtly lifting her face, forcing her to meet her eyes.
"Then I won't pretend anymore either."