After Teasing the Heroine and Running Away, I Was Forced into Love - Chapter 9

Shi Qing blinked slowly, showing no objection to He Roushuang’s suggestion. She nodded.

“Whatever makes you happy.”

There it was—the classic, self-deprecating line of a substitute protagonist in a substitute romance novel. He Roushuang was momentarily at a loss for words.

She shook her head gently.

“I gave you money to provoke my brother, but that doesn’t mean you have to obey my every command.”

He Roushuang cupped Shi Qing’s face, feeling a surge of satisfaction as she squeezed and pinched the beautiful features. Others might not know, but she knew—this was the female lead, after all.

Yet the thought of the miserable fates that typically awaited those who bullied the female lead made her withdraw her hand halfway through.

I should probably avoid planting too many flags on my back, she thought.

“But you gave me so much…”

Shi Qing’s meaning was clear: having spent so much money, she felt obligated to reciprocate with equal effort.

Too bad I can’t be like the female leads in dramas and pay off my debt to the sugar daddy by saving up.

Shi Qing truly spent every penny she had.

“Tsk.”

He Roushuang poked Shi Qing’s cheek again, her tone tinged with impatience.

“What’s a hundred thousand to you is just a dollar to me. You don’t need to do this.”

To be fair, this line finally had a bit of that domineering CEO vibe. If He Roushuang had heard someone say this before, she would have mentally rolled her eyes and thought, What a show-off!

But she never imagined…

She’d become the show-off herself.

“I still want to,” Shi Qing said, her voice soft. “It’s just a few photos, nothing much… But could you not post all of them?”

Shi Qing reached out and gently tugged at the hem of He Roushuang’s shirt, her eyes pleading.

For a fleeting moment, He Roushuang wondered if being with Shi Qing might turn her into the dominant one.

Ahem… getting ahead of myself. Way ahead of myself.

She had no intention of developing genuine feelings for a straight female lead. Her only goal was to help Shi Qing escape the male lead’s clutches.

He Shanjian was a raging inferno. If Shi Qing jumped in, she’d be burned to a crisp, leaving nothing but bones.

“Why not?” He Roushuang asked, her curiosity piqued.

Without hesitation, Shi Qing revealed her reason: “I don’t want my mother to see. The doctor said she can’t handle any more stress right now. If it’s made public… the whole world will know.”

Though Shi Qing knew she didn’t have many followers, He Roushuang was a public figure, and her mother wasn’t in a private room.

Someone would inevitably tell her mother.

If her mother found out about this absurd act she was doing for money, she would be furious, wouldn’t she?

He Roushuang nodded.

“You do have filial piety,” she remarked, without dwelling on it. If the female lead didn’t want to take the photos, so be it. After all, the reason she had chosen to help Shi Qing was simply to avoid a tragic fate and save Shi Qing from her own circumstances. There was no physical desire involved.

“Alright,” He Roushuang said, pulling Shi Qing over to the sofa. She wasn’t particular about photography, especially since Shi Qing had requested that her full face not be shown.

However…

After taking several shots, He Roushuang remained dissatisfied.

The two women’s poses were too awkward.

How to describe it?

They didn’t look like lovers, but rather like close friends—and the kind who had only known each other for a few days, the fake kind.

Though, to be fair, that was exactly their current situation.

“You’re standing too far away. Put your arm around me,” He Roushuang instructed. For someone like her, seducing a straight woman into doing something like this felt almost criminal!

Shi Qing reached out and draped her arm around He Roushuang’s shoulder. The distance was now too close; both women could feel the other’s tense body.

But it wasn’t enough.

They had merely advanced to being slightly more intimate close friends.

He Roushuang thought to herself.

Gritting her teeth, she resolved to demonstrate that they were the closest of lovers, with He Shanjian merely a clown and an accident.

An arm around the shoulder was far from enough.

“Around the waist, you idiot,” He Roushuang said, turning her head to press close against Shi Qing. Her hot breath burrowed into Shi Qing’s ear, leaving her defenseless.

The fine hairs on Shi Qing’s ear stood on end.

Her trembling fingers reached down to finally rest on He Roushuang’s waist.

Shi Qing had checked He Roushuang’s age; she was a few years older, her body more mature, completely different from Shi Qing’s own intern-like physique.

The scent of a mature woman was intoxicating, like the difference between the taste of a ripe fruit and a green, unripe one.

Wait…

What am I thinking?

Shi Qing felt a pang of annoyance. He Roushuang was the one paying her; what right did she have to admire her figure like this?

Obediently, Shi Qing wrapped her arm around He Roushuang’s waist, pressing herself almost completely against her. To avoid the camera, she tilted her head, her soft cheek resting against He Roushuang’s neck.

Her long black hair cascaded down, leaving only a flushed ear peeking through the dark strands.

She looks too much like a good girl, He Roushuang thought to herself. But the other woman was hiding too well, revealing nothing but that single ear and the faint glimpse of her pale neck.

Still, He Roushuang wasn’t one to be picky.

She snapped several photos in quick succession, the camera clicking rapidly.

After taking the photos, He Roushuang tossed them to her assistant. She had no intention of posting them herself; with her petty temper, she’d likely spend the entire day locked in heated arguments with netizens.

At that point, survival strategies and work plans would become irrelevant.

Even typing made her tremble with anger.

You’ve seen the trending topic, right? I want to rewrite it. The headline should read: “He Shanjian is the sinister third party who coveted another man’s girlfriend.”

When his attempts to steal her away failed, he bribed reporters to expose my sister’s private affairs.

Oh, Assistant Wang, retouch the photos carefully. Don’t reveal any of Shi Qing’s personal details. And if the retouching is too obvious, you understand what I mean, right?

He Roushuang sent an emoji of a mischievous little devil wielding a knife and fork, clearly intimidating her assistant.

In the novel, as the male lead’s sister, He Roushuang’s beauty was undoubtedly striking, even possessing a gentle, refined air. However, her fiery temperament often overshadowed her softer qualities.

Thus, He Roushuang wasn’t afraid to post the original photo.

What worried her were those netizens with eyes sharper than Sun Wukong’s Fiery Golden Eyes after his forty-nine days in the alchemical furnace.

They could deduce someone’s appearance by analyzing reflections in mirrors or pupil reflections—a terrifyingly effective technique that could even assist the police in solving cases.

Understood, understood.

Assistant Wang replied promptly, a testament to his competence after surviving over a dozen rounds of culling by the original owner. He was remarkably perceptive and understanding.

Having resolved the matter, He Roushuang smugly switched off her phone. Turning her head, she noticed Shi Qing was still clinging tightly to her.

“Ahem, ahem…”

“You don’t need to hug me anymore,” He Roushuang said softly.