After Backstabbing The Villain, The System Allowed Me To Enter The Book Again - Chapter 14

Suddenly, Shen Huaixin fell into an embrace. Their wet bodies pressed closely together, and she could feel the restrained trembling of the other, sensing his unease and fear.

“You…” she heard Shen Chumo’s hoarse voice, made even wetter by the water, carrying an indescribable stickiness. “Why… did you save me?”

Shen Huaixin also wondered why she had saved him. After all, he was just a character in a book. She hadn’t only suffered herself but had nearly sent someone to their death. Still, it was fortunate she had saved him—she had only faced near-death once, experiencing such overwhelming despair. If Shen Chumo endured it repeatedly, even the sanest person would go mad.

He wouldn’t die, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t feel pain. Besides, reducing his darkening value was part of her task.

Shen Huaixin snorted and pushed him away. “How should I know? If I had time to think, not a ghost in the world would’ve saved you.”

Shen Chumo froze. After a moment, disregarding her resistance, he held her tighter, burying his head in her neck and letting himself calm by the rhythm of her breathing—symbolizing a young girl’s life.

He couldn’t understand language like humans, grasp Romeo and Juliet, or read a girl’s inner thoughts, yet he felt that her answer was truer and more touching than any verse.

At a moment even she hadn’t consciously realized, instinct had overridden reason, compelling her to abandon weighing the pros and cons and unhesitatingly choose him on the other side of the scale.

That voice was wrong. Humans were not all shameless, evil, and pitiful. There were people who truly cared, just as he cherished family.

“Thank you,” he said.

“….”

Shen Huaixin muttered something, which he didn’t catch—seemingly a complaint. But he already understood: Shen Huaixin wore a mask, her true self hidden like a flower seen through mist. Only by observing the minutiae could one catch glimpses of the petals’ real form.

So, at this moment, what was her true self thinking?

Shen Chumo tilted his head and saw her face tensed with disdain. Listening carefully, he heard her scoff through her nose, full of scorn. Finally, noticing the fabric of her clothes stretched and torn at the back, he drew a conclusion:

—She was frightened too, just like him.

Worry, concern, fear… all hidden in every crease. Only when he closed his eyes and sincerely felt it could he truly perceive it. She was a complex, intricate literature, like the language he could never master. But compared to the latter, he had more patience and was willing to study her words carefully.

The autumn outing passed without incident. The two silently decided not to tell their parents, fearing worry.

Shen Chumo’s enrollment was complete, but Shen Huaixin refused to accompany him to school, insisting on separate pick-ups to avoid classmates noticing their relationship. Shen Chumo didn’t object, saying everything could follow his sister’s wishes. Seeing him so considerate, Mrs. Shen sighed repeatedly.

Shen Chumo had been placed directly into the final year of high school. Originally intended for the second year, he tested out at a third-year level.

The school’s judgment was correct: within days, Shen Chumo’s grades ranked among the top, except for Chinese. Even better, unlike in the original story, he wasn’t ostracized. Though he still seemed a bit withdrawn, his situation was far better than expected.

Shen Huaixin continued playing the “malicious sister” role while obsessively using her phone to raise his favorability, successfully increasing the deviation value to 59. She realized that coming up with mischievous ideas every day was mentally exhausting—no wonder the original protagonist worked so hard but couldn’t create anything new.

“I heard recently that Shen Huaixin is chasing Shen Chumo. Qi Yi, you’re lucky.”

Qi Yi lifted his eyes from his open textbook, raising an eyebrow, showing mild interest.

“She confessed quite romantically. She put butterflies into his pencil case, and when he opened it, they flew onto his shoulder—one even flapped on his nose, like the fragrance princess.”

“She even lit a candle on his desk during night study in case he couldn’t see. It was an aromatic candle, smelled nice.”

“Yes, I smelled it too.”

“Ah, if a girl cared so much for me, and was that pretty, my life would be complete.”

Qi Yi listened quietly, absentmindedly pressing the button on his black pen. “That’s it? Nothing to discuss. Just her new prank.”

“Qi Yi,” Su Zihan returned to her desk, curious, “what are you discussing?”

“Discussing Shen Huaixin’s change of heart, right?” a classmate teased, patting Qi Yi on the back. “Finally freed yourself from a big trouble.”

“…No change of heart,” Qi Yi explained briefly, then shook his head and fell silent.

He had only stated the facts. She was still secretly watching him, using Su Zihan as a pretext, secretly monitoring their interactions. All of her hidden thoughts were laid bare to him. Compared to before, this unobtrusive way was more acceptable.

Su Zihan blinked, and after the teasing subsided, lightly poked Qi Yi with her capped pen.

“Just now, why did you say she still likes you? Even though Shen Chumo doesn’t seem to favor me, I think they suit each other.”

“…Just intuition.”

“Qi Yi, just tell me, okay?” Su Zihan felt an inexplicable sense of crisis and couldn’t help pressing for answers.

Qi Yi glanced at her, sensing she was slightly different, but he should have felt pleased—after all, she cared. He didn’t overthink, simply giving an example:

“The charm on her backpack is a gift from me. That’s all.”

“….”

Su Zihan widened her eyes in disbelief, not knowing when he had given it or for how long. She even felt subtly excluded from their delicate interaction.

“You never mentioned it,” she forced a smile, feigning casualness.

“It’s not important,” Qi Yi paused. “If you like it, I can get one for you.”

“Forget it, she’d probably mind sharing the same one with me.”

After today’s mischief, Shen Huaixin was exhausted. While Shen Chumo rested under a tree, she untied his shoelaces.

Unexpectedly, even as the final boss, his vigilance in childhood was so lax—she remembered that in the book, Shen Chumo rarely closed his eyes. Using her metaphor, even a mayfly drifting past could be caught by him.

With his body relaxed and legs positioned just right, it was surprisingly easy to untie. She imagined the laugh she’d have if his shoes fell off while walking.

Her record of mischief was already considerable—bugs in his pencil case, cursed candles. Poor kid, it wasn’t that bad, and even Shen Huaixin felt a pang of guilt as the instigator.

Lunchtime:

“Chumo, I specially prepared this lunch for you. It’s from me, so you have to enjoy it properly,” Shen Huaixin said, handing him a substantial lunch box.

Shen Chumo felt the residual warmth from the box and his heart stirred—her personally cooked meal… he wondered about her skills.

“Thank you, sister,” he said, lowering his gaze. Sunlight cast shadows from his dense eyelashes, and the curve of his lips was soft.

Shen Huaixin thought to herself: soon you won’t be smiling. She sat down with him and opened her own lunch.

Compared to her portion, his looked luxurious and balanced in protein and vitamins. She had even considered her own dieting and made the chicken healthy yet appetizing.

Suppressing a smile, she sneaked a glance at Shen Chumo.

His box opened first, revealing burnt black rice, surrounded by spicy-sour shredded potatoes, stir-fried loofah with soybeans, pickled bamboo shoots, and preserved mustard. Except for the packaged mustard, the presentation was terrible… truly awful.

Shen Huaixin knew he loved sweet and meaty dishes, disliked sour and spicy. This lunch was a minefield for a villain. She was also curious how he’d react. From her observations, he was almost indulgent with her.

Even with family buffs, he shouldn’t have been this forgiving. Especially since she had severed ties and explicitly rejected him as a brother. He should… despise her.

She lowered her gaze but quickly steeled herself.

“Want to try?”

Before she finished, he scooped a spoonful of black rice, chewed carefully, expression unchanged.

“Delicious. Didn’t expect you’re such a good cook,” he said.

He tried the shredded potatoes. The moment he chewed, he paused, eyes reddened, tears welling from the spiciness. He didn’t chew further, just swallowed hastily.

Shen Chumo looked at Shen Huaixin, nodded, and gave a muffled “Mm,” his throat hoarse.

Lowering his head, he examined the rest of the dishes, avoiding the potatoes, and ate the fresh green loofah. At the first bite, his eyes widened, he looked more lively, repeatedly uttering “Mm,” and swallowed it.

He twisted open the bottled water and drank half, praising the water she had prepared—refreshing and satisfying.

“….”

Shen Huaixin was impressed by how resilient Shen Chumo was—even as a villain, he understood etiquette and human affairs.

After finishing the water, he calmed down. During the rest of the meal, he ate heartily, occasionally expressing admiration, making it seem delicious to anyone watching.

…If her memory was correct, the rice was burnt, the shredded potatoes made with devil peppers, the pickled bamboo soaked in vinegar for a full day, the loofah over-salted. Only the mustard was genuine, to ensure he ate something.

Had Shen Chumo become numb to taste?

Shen Huaixin cautiously asked, “Good?”

“Good,” he said seriously, aside from his hoarse throat from the spice.

“Then should I cook for you every day?”

She watched him closely for his reaction. Shen Chumo glanced at the unfinished food, paused, and said:

“You still need to study and rehearse, no need to work so hard. I’ll cook for you in the future.”

Shen Huaixin smirked sarcastically: “Then during the arts performance, remember to watch. I don’t want to rehearse hard and have no one cheer. Look carefully—though other acts won’t be as good, contrast shows my excellence.”

In reality, she meant: it doesn’t matter if he watches, but he must pay attention to the heroine’s performance.

Shen Chumo promised: “Of course.”