After Backstabbing The Villain, The System Allowed Me To Enter The Book Again - Chapter 16
Shen Chumo heard the sound of her turning off the light, and he followed suit, leaving only the screen illuminated. On the glowing screen was that pale yellow flower icon. Since entering the school, he had heard about the so-called “Campus Beauty Rivalry.” Everyone said that Shen Huaixin held hostility toward Su Zihan and that the two were rivals, but from Shen Chumo’s perspective, that wasn’t really the case.
His sister cared too much about Su Zihan—and it was a positive kind of care, not the jealousy others assumed. The evidence was clear: her small account’s profile picture was always of Zihan, and almost every photo in her friend circle featured Su Zihan prominently.
Su Zihan was drawing away some of Shen Huaixin’s familial affection for him. This was the conclusion Shen Chumo had reached through observation, and he believed it wholeheartedly. Therefore, his attitude toward Su Zihan wasn’t exactly friendly.
“Are you asleep?”
Huaixin’s gentle question pulled him from his thoughts. He glanced at the avatar, which shone too brightly in the dark room.
“Yes,” he replied. Seeing he didn’t answer further, she said, “Sweet dreams.”
“You too.”
Shen Chumo placed his phone beside his pillow. In the quiet bedroom, the screen gradually dimmed, leaving only the steady rhythm of their breathing.
It gave him a sense as if they were lying side by side on the same bed. Across the pillow, there seemed to be a small indentation forming, rising and falling with her breath. The girl’s light, even breaths penetrated the night, strangely calming and reassuring him.
He closed his eyes, and his mind no longer dwelled on those irritating, troubling thoughts. He could feel the warmth of sunlight seeping through the bedclothes, as if the maids had followed Shen’s mother’s instructions to sun the balcony. It could make one lazy enough to not lift an eyelid. He could also feel the residual heat around his ears, mingled with her faint, orchid-like exhalation, making him feel even warmer.
Shen Huaixin turned over, facing him. He dared not breathe heavily, kept his eyes tightly shut, and pretended to sleep, even mimicking the rhythmic snoring seen on TV.
Her breathing gradually deepened, indicating she had fallen asleep. He exhaled in relief, nudged the phone’s volume button, and rested with her breaths as his pillow.
A dreamless night followed.
The day of the school arts performance arrived.
Although she knew it was just a normal school-level performance, Shen Huaixin still got up early, hired a professional makeup artist to draw her eyebrows and eyes, applied powder and blush—spending over an hour perfecting her makeup.
Their performance outfits were custom-made for four people. Backstage, they helped each other change into the costumes.
Fang Xiao Zheng kept her eyes closed while getting her makeup done, hands sweating nervously. “Huaixin, is this really necessary? We’re not performing on the Spring Festival Gala.”
“I feel like I’m suffocating… ah, my stomach hurts…” The baby-faced girl’s fingers were already cold and trembling, even though the formal performance was still half an hour away.
The twin-tailed girl remained silent, calmly taking a sip of water, then began coughing in a composed manner.
From a distance, Su Zihan glanced at Shen Huaixin and froze. Even though she didn’t particularly like her, she had to admit that Shen Huaixin’s beauty was objectively stunning. Under the hands of a skilled makeup artist, her features were perfectly highlighted. The overall look was pure and charming, yet the slightly red-tinted eye makeup was bold and daring, like a wildflower blooming to its fullest, strong and vibrant.
…So beautiful that it made Su Zihan feel inferior.
Looking at her own performance outfit, provided by the school after the program list was published, Su Zihan regretted underestimating the situation. She shouldn’t have rejected Qi Yi’s offer to customize her costume and chosen the school-provided outfit instead.
She suspected that as soon as Shen Huaixin stepped on stage, the outcome of the “Campus Beauty Rivalry” would already be decided. Su Zihan didn’t like feeling powerless, but at this moment, she had no choice but to maintain her composure.
Luckily, her performance was scheduled earlier in the middle of the program, providing a warm-up without tiring the audience, while Shen Huaixin’s act came later—by then, some classmates might have left, and attention wouldn’t be as focused.
“Are you nervous?” Qi Yi, wearing a white loose shirt, tight pants, and a long dark green coat reaching his feet, gave off a European Renaissance-style artistic vibe. It made Su Zihan, used to the plainness of school uniforms, take notice.
She smiled. “The ones who should be nervous are someone else.”
External appearances meant little; she trusted the hard work and rehearsal effort wouldn’t deceive her.
Qi Yi’s lips curved slightly as he was about to speak, but his gaze was drawn to Shen Huaixin. His eyes flickered when he saw her casually flowing, yet elegantly stylish hair, and her uniquely designed top and skirt. Her vitality instantly reminded him of a song he had once heard—it fit perfectly.
A glimpse, nothing more.
He remembered searching for the song for a long time but never finding the original singer. Then a bold thought crossed his mind—could Shen Huaixin herself be the author?
The troublemaking, uneducated Shen Huaixin?
He withdrew his gaze, shaking his head, rationality suppressing the dangerous thought.
Meanwhile, Shen Huaixin kept encouraging her mischievous trio, patting Fang Xiao Zheng’s back firmly. “Relax, Xiao Zheng. If the sky falls, I’ll take the hit. It won’t land on your head.”
The baby-faced girl cried softly, “Huaixin, I’m so afraid of dragging you down. I know the Campus Beauty Rivalry is important, so…”
Fang Xiao Zheng quickly corrected herself: “Huaixin is the campus beauty. We don’t need to compete. At worst, we sing softer and leave more space for her to shine.”
“What do you mean sing softer? This song needs passion!” The twin-tailed girl jumped and shook Fang Xiao Zheng’s shoulder, making her headpiece jingle. “The essence of this song is all about overflowing energy. Haven’t you noticed?”
“Wait,” Shen Huaixin was confused. “Campus Beauty Rivalry? What’s that?”
For a moment, time seemed to freeze. The three stopped competing and stared at her, eyes wide in disbelief.
Not only that—it turned out the person at the center of the so-called “frenzied campus-wide beauty rivalry” didn’t even know about it!
After a pause, the three exchanged glances, silently reading each other’s expressions: “This is absurd,” “unbelievable,” and other unspeakable frustrations. They confirmed with their eyes—they were on the same team.
“This is a long story; we’ll explain later,” Fang Xiao Zheng scratched her head and laughed awkwardly to brush it off.
Shen Huaixin nodded, guessing it was probably just a rumor spread by some busybodies—a small-scale campus gossip, not a serious matter.
After about ten minutes, the audience gradually arrived.
The school’s backstage was cramped. She quietly passed through and peeked through the door gap at students taking their seats. Suddenly, she noticed a middle-aged woman in a brand-new outfit. She was neatly put together, brows lowered, looking a bit tense. Her face seemed older than other parents, with the traces of time evident.
But once seated, her eyes brightened, and she chatted with the parent next to her, a look of anticipation on her face.
Shen Huaixin felt she looked familiar but couldn’t recall where she had seen her, no matter how hard she thought. The feeling of “something is right here but I can’t grasp it” made her uneasy.
“What are you looking at, Huaixin?” Fang Xiao Zheng came over, curiously following her gaze. Her face stiffened for a moment.
Shen Huaixin glanced at the middle-aged woman, then at Fang Xiao Zheng, and suddenly understood—it was because the woman looked very similar to Xiao Zheng!
No wonder she couldn’t recall where she had seen her; indeed, she hadn’t seen her before. Shen Huaixin finally let go of her face-blind anxiety.
“Xiao Zheng, she is…” Shen Huaixin paused, recalling the story in the book, and didn’t continue.
Fang Xiao Zheng disliked her mother, thinking she was embarrassing. When classmates asked during parent-teacher meetings, she always said it was the family’s housekeeper, standing in for her mother. In the original story, Fang’s mother didn’t attend the arts performance. Apparently, Xiao Zheng’s performance had caused a butterfly effect.
Fang Xiao Zheng hesitated, opening her mouth to speak. The twin-tailed girl stepped forward, completing Shen Huaixin’s sentence:
“Oh, she’s Xiao Zheng’s housekeeper. I’ve seen her before.”
“….” Fang Xiao Zheng didn’t object.
Shen Huaixin raised an eyebrow, pressing: “Really?”
“What’s up? Doubting my memory?” The twin-tailed girl tilted her head. “I should be right, right Xiao Zheng?”
After a long pause, Fang Xiao Zheng mumbled, “Yeah.”
Shen Huaixin sighed, saying no more. Seeing Fang Xiao Zheng looking a little guilty, she felt it wasn’t irredeemable; youthful vanity was understandable. Moreover, this child had already made great progress in her eyes. With some guidance in the future, it would be fine.
As time passed, the seats gradually filled. Shen Huaixin watched students settle in, some familiar, some strangers, but still missing one “villain” who had promised to attend.
Could she have missed him? With so many people and no time to check one by one, it was possible. Shen Huaixin thought for a moment, took out her phone, sent a message to Shen Chumo from her small account, and kept an eye on it, waiting for a reply.
One minute passed—no reply. Five minutes—still none. The host had already taken the stage, yet Shen Chumo neither picked up nor replied. It was as if he had vanished into thin air. His phone was usually always with him, and he would respond immediately.
Seeing the time, with plenty of time before her performance, she decided to go check on him. She left a few words with the trio and slipped out, heading to Shen Chumo’s classroom.
That morning, she had seen Shen Chumo, so he should still be at school. The most likely place was his classroom. However, when she ran there while calling him, the room was empty—every classmate had gone to watch the performance.
Catching her breath, she called home. The butler answered, saying Shen Chumo hadn’t returned.
Her worry intensified; a bad premonition grew stronger. She trusted Shen Chumo to keep his promises. The only possibility was that something had happened to him.
Shen Huaixin ran from the classroom to the cafeteria, then to the sports field. Just when she was about to give up, she finally saw his figure in a small alley behind the library.
Precisely, he was fighting with several other boys.