Accidentally Pursued The Female Lead (GL) - Chapter 2
Shen Mian gazed at Shen Zhixing, her footsteps slowing to a leisurely pace.
Upon realizing she was a character within a book, Shen Mian also gained knowledge of every word written in it.
The things she had heard before her death were true; Shen Zhixing was dead.
The book only briefly mentioned Shen Zhixing’s death, but it was enough to wrench Shen Mian’s heart.
Lu Jingchen’s men had tampered with Shen Zhixing’s car, causing him to die in a car accident due to brake failure…
What would normally take a few dozen seconds to walk downstairs took Shen Mian a full minute.
Shen Zhixing had noticed Shen Mian when she came downstairs, but he didn’t turn his head to speak to her.
Because he rarely interacted with Shen Mian.
Although they lived under the same roof and saw each other daily, in the past few years, the number of words they exchanged in a week wouldn’t exceed ten.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to talk to Shen Mian, but that Shen Mian would avoid him whenever she saw him.
Over time, they had become what others often described as familiar strangers.
Shen Mian had once instructed Wang Feng that whenever she was eating alone, Wang Feng should call her downstairs when he was almost finished eating.
So, was her lingering on the stairs because she saw he hadn’t left yet?
The food Shen Zhixing was chewing tasted bland. He put down his chopsticks, buttoned his suit jacket, and turned to leave.
Shen Mian, who had just come downstairs, hadn’t expected Shen Zhixing to leave so soon after she appeared.
Seeing Shen Zhixing about to reach the entrance hall, Shen Mian called out weakly, “Elder brother.”
After calling out, Shen Mian subconsciously swallowed, her hands twisting the fabric of her pajamas by her sides, a visible nervousness on her face.
Her whole demeanor was like a primary school student who had made a mistake at school and had their parents called in.
There was no way around it, because Shen Mian had always been afraid of Shen Zhixing since she was little. When she was younger, Shen Zhixing’s temperament wasn’t as cold and stern as it was now, and she could still talk to him.
But as she grew older, the aura around Shen Zhixing became increasingly unapproachable, especially when he stared at her without saying a word. Every time, Shen Mian felt like she was being watched by a wolf.
Hearing the rabbit-like voice from behind, Shen Zhixing stopped in his tracks.
When was the last time Shen Mian had called him in such a tone?
Shen Zhixing’s brows furrowed. A few seconds later, his eyebrows twitched slightly, and Shen Zhixing gave up trying to remember.
The memory was too distant; he simply couldn’t recall.
Seeing Shen Zhixing stop, Shen Mian quickened her pace and ran towards the entrance hall.
At this moment, she just wanted to hug Shen Zhixing.
When she was taken to the police station, she had only seen Shen Zhixing. It was then that she learned her parents had been so upset by her actions that they were hospitalized and were being cared for by her second elder brother.
The police had given her and Shen Zhixing a few minutes alone together.
At that time, her mind was blank, and she babbled explanations, but no one listened. Only Shen Zhixing believed her. Her brother had held her in his arms, giving her his last warmth…
So, the moment Shen Zhixing turned around, a small figure in pink rabbit pajamas crashed into his arms.
When the rabbit looked up, her eyes were red-rimmed, and glistening tears welled up in the corners.
Shen Zhixing’s body stiffened.
“Wh…”
Shen Zhixing didn’t know where to put his hands, so he subconsciously placed them on Shen Mian’s fluffy head. He asked softly, “What’s wrong?”
Shen Zhixing didn’t realize that his voice at this moment was as gentle as water.
Feeling the weight on her head, Shen Mian stepped back from Shen Zhixing’s embrace and shook her head, “Nothing.”
Following Shen Mian’s movements, Shen Zhixing then noticed that his sister wasn’t wearing shoes. Dismissing the sudden hug and the tears in her eyes, he immediately switched to a parental tone and said sternly, “Why aren’t you wearing shoes?”
The floor was cold; he still knew some common sense.
A girl’s feet shouldn’t get cold.
Shen Mian followed Shen Zhixing’s gaze and looked down.
The rebirth and the fact that she was in a book world had come too suddenly, so she hadn’t paid attention when getting out of bed. Plus, hearing Wang Feng say that Shen Zhixing was downstairs had made Shen Mian so excited that she hadn’t had time to put on shoes.
Her toes curled up shyly under their gazes.
Just as Shen Zhixing was about to go to the entrance hall to get shoes, Wang Feng happened to come down from upstairs.
Wang Feng was holding Shen Mian’s cotton slippers. Shen Zhixing walked over, took the slippers, bent down, and placed them in front of Shen Mian. “Lift your foot, put them on.”
Wang Feng, seeing the two people who usually didn’t even exchange a word actually standing together, was surprised but even more gratified. She smiled and went to the kitchen to get breakfast for Shen Mian.
Shen Mian glanced at Shen Zhixing and quickly slipped on the slippers.
When Wang Feng brought the food to the table, she suddenly asked Shen Zhixing, “Young Master, will you be back for dinner tonight?”
“Brother, where are you going?” Shen Mian asked.
Hearing Shen Mian’s question, Shen Zhixing only shook his head at Wang Feng and then met Shen Mian’s gaze. “There’s a banquet.”
Banquet?
Upon hearing this, the expression in Shen Mian’s eyes became ambiguous. “Is it hosted by the Lu family?”
Shen Zhixing nodded.
It was a charity gala hosted by the Lu family. Actually, he didn’t have to go, but considering the company’s reputation, he still needed to make an appearance.
Shen Mian raised an eyebrow. “Elder brother, I want to go too.”
Shen Zhixing looked at Shen Mian, thinking: So, was today’s unusual behavior just to get me to take her to the banquet?
The warmth that had just bloomed in Shen Zhixing’s heart quickly froze over.
“What for? To see Lu Jingchen?”
As soon as the words left his mouth, the surroundings fell silent.
Shen Zhixing regretted his words the moment they were out.
His sister had finally been willing to talk to him. Had he pushed away the relationship that had just gotten a little closer by retorting like that?
But he really didn’t like his sister paying too much attention to that Lu fellow…
Shen Zhixing pursed his lips, preparing to nod in agreement when he heard Shen Mian say:
“Brother, don’t worry, I don’t like Lu Jingchen anymore.”
Shen Mian smiled at the bewildered man opposite her and said, “I had a dream last night. In the dream, Lu Jingchen’s character wasn’t very good; he did all sorts of bad things. Then, when I woke up this morning, I realized that when looking for a boyfriend, I should use you and second brother as the standard – strong work ability, filial piety, kindness…”
Shen Mian frowned. “Moreover, Lu Jingchen is too ugly! I’ve decided that the boyfriend I find in the future will either be more handsome than you or more beautiful than second brother.”
“I just want to go with you to have some fun and see the world.”
Shen Mian’s string of words pleased Shen Zhixing.
Regardless of whether Shen Mian’s words were true or false, his eyes held a gentleness he rarely showed. He said softly, “I’ll come back to pick you up tonight.”
As he was about to leave, he couldn’t resist ruffling Shen Mian’s hair until it was even fluffier before finally letting go and leaving.
Turning his head to look at Shen Mian as he went out, he saw her waving goodbye to him.
Shen Zhixing smiled. Shen Mian’s now fluffy head looked like a little lion with its fur standing on end.
••••
After Shen Zhixing left, Shen Mian sat at the dining table, eating breakfast.
Looking at the white porridge in her bowl, Shen Mian let out a long breath.
She hadn’t expected the plot to move so quickly.
Tonight’s banquet was the first time Xie Qiaoyu and Lu Jingchen would meet, and it was also the scene described at the beginning of the novel.
“Xie Qiaoyu felt weak all over. The tightly wrapped evening gown made it hard for her to breathe, and the places her fingertips brushed against were burning hot. With the last bit of clarity in her mind, Xie Qiaoyu knew she had been drugged with an aphrodisiac…”
“Just as Xie Qiaoyu took out the small knife she kept in her bag, wanting to cut herself to stop the dizziness, the tightly locked door was suddenly opened from the outside. Besides Xie Qiaoyu’s low gasps, a second sound echoed in the room – the crisp sound of men’s leather shoes stepping on the floor…”
“The man threw her into a bathtub filled with cold water, grabbing Xie Qiaoyu’s hair and saying, ‘Woman, don’t even think about seducing me.’ After saying that, Lu Jingchen left the room without looking back.”
Xie Qiaoyu, the female lead of the novel. The person Lu Jingchen loved deeply, and also the woman Shen Mian hated the most in her previous life.
But with her own consciousness now, Shen Mian affirmed in her heart that Xie Qiaoyu was a person who possessed both beauty and talent.
She was a surgeon.
But besides being a doctor, Xie Qiaoyu had multiple undisclosed hidden identities, even a secret identity that the male lead only found out about later: the nationally renowned hacker lpo.
After reading the entire novel, Shen Mian had only one thought besides disgust for Lu Jingchen: Why had she ever thought Xie Qiaoyu was a soft, delicate flower?
Computers, medical skills, firearms knowledge, and Xie Qiaoyu had even studied finance…
Everything Xie Qiaoyu knew, she didn’t!
Why had the author made her dislike Xie Qiaoyu, finding fault with everything she did? After looking at Xie Qiaoyu’s resume, Shen Mian only wanted to be her fan!
However, no one knew about Xie Qiaoyu’s abilities except her maternal grandfather. In other people’s eyes, Xie Qiaoyu was just like how Shen Mian had seen her in her previous life: a weak and easily bullied young lady from a family that didn’t value her, with nothing commendable except her medical skills and appearance.
She was also a tool used by her father.
The aphrodisiac incident at the beginning was orchestrated by her father, in order to use Xie Qiaoyu to seduce Lu Jingchen and marry into the Lu family to help his company’s development.
Shen Mian: “…”
When did Xie Qiaoyu ever want to seduce you?! It was clearly Xie Qiaoyu’s father who drugged Xie Qiaoyu and then led you to the room.
So… it was clearly her father who wanted to seduce you, okay? Lu Jingchen, you’ve got the wrong target!!
Recalling the content of the first chapter, Shen Mian couldn’t help but complain.
“Miss, Miss?”
Wang Feng’s voice interrupted Shen Mian’s endless inner to complain.
Shen Mian looked up at Wang Feng, who asked with a smile, “I saw you staring at the porridge without eating it. Doesn’t it suit your taste? Should I make you some eight-treasure porridge?”
“No need, Aunt Wang. It’s just a little hot. I want to let it cool down before eating.” Shen Mian stirred the porridge and said, “Go ahead and do other things; don’t worry about me.”
Hearing this, Wang Feng said to call her if needed and then went to the laundry room to start washing clothes.
After Wang Feng left, Shen Mian quickly finished the porridge in her bowl.
After eating, Shen Mian returned to her bedroom, sat in the walk-in closet, and chose an evening gown to wear tonight while thinking about things.
There was a purpose behind asking Shen Zhixing to take her.
She wanted to prevent Lu Jingchen and Xie Qiaoyu’s meeting this time. As long as she stopped the main plot of the first chapter from happening, she could change the novel’s storyline and prevent many plots from unfolding.
Wouldn’t that make the author furious enough to vomit bl00d?
Her hand paused on a black evening gown, not because Shen Mian had chosen it, but because she suddenly realized that when she thought of Xie Qiaoyu, her heart felt an unprecedented calmness.
That shouldn’t be the case.
If it followed the concept of her heart fluttering when she thought of Lu Jingchen, then when she thought of Xie Qiaoyu, shouldn’t she want to slap her?!
After all, the author’s setting for her in her previous life was to hate Xie Qiaoyu. Every time they met, she would sneer and ridicule her, and she would also pretend to be a white lotus in front of Lu Jingchen to slander Xie Qiaoyu…
Moreover, the main reason Lu Jingchen had targeted her was because she had hit Xie Qiaoyu later in the story.
Shen Mian looked down at her right hand.
How had she managed to raise her hand and slap Xie Qiaoyu’s face back then?