After Teasing the Villain and Running Away - Chapter 9

To be precise, Jiang Ruosheng didn’t snitch. Instead, she meticulously filled out the medication record form on the desk and left both her and Ruan Xin’s names clearly written.

When the school doctor lectured her sternly, Ruan Xin was still somewhat dazed.

“How could you take medicine so carelessly? Ruan Xin, you know your own constitution. Taking the wrong medication will only make you suffer in the end.”

“Don’t tell me you know what you’re doing and won’t take it recklessly.”

“All medicine has its side effects. Some can only be taken after I’ve examined you, and even then, the dosage must be controlled.”

“Don’t take your health lightly at such a young age. You’ll understand when you’re older.”

The school doctor had a natural tendency to ramble, harping on the matter endlessly. And to Ruan Xin’s disbelief, Jiang Ruosheng stood beside her, nodding seriously in agreement.

Who do you think you are? The beacon of righteousness?

“I don’t know what’s going through students’ minds these days. Instead of focusing on their studies, they waste their energy on… ahem… Anyway, you’d better be more careful next time. My infirmary isn’t a place for you to come and go as you please.”

A student had been hospitalized due to an allergic reaction to nutritional supplements, and since the infirmary was missing some, the school doctor naturally bore some responsibility.

Jiang Ruosheng asked, “Is Su Qi doing alright?”

The school doctor twirled a pen in her hand and sighed. “She was unconscious when she was sent to the hospital, but it’s not too serious. She’ll probably just need an IV drip and some rest there. Her symptoms should subside soon. She’s always had a weak constitution, but don’t worry—she’ll likely be back by tomorrow.”

Finally free from the school doctor’s nagging, Ruan Xin turned to Jiang Ruosheng and said, “I didn’t expect you to care so much about Su Qi. How does it feel to play the hero this time?”

Jiang Ruosheng gritted her teeth at Ruan Xin’s teasing, recalling how Ruan Xin had thrown her under the bus.

It wasn’t hard to guess why Ruan Xin had done it. Yang Yi’s original plan had been to frame her . By pushing the blame onto her enemy, Ruan Xin had killed two birds with one stone—a move so clever it deserved applause.

But since Yang Yi was the one behind everything, Ruan Xin had probably just… tipped her off?

Though a bit underhanded, it was understandable. There was still hope for redemption.

Blame it all on Yang Yi!

Yang Yi: ??? That’s not true! I didn’t—most of the plan was her idea!

Yet, as if viewing Ruan Xin through rose-tinted glasses, Jiang Ruosheng quickly convinced herself not to hold it against her.

She was remarkably forgiving.

“Being a hero isn’t something just anyone can do,” Jiang Ruosheng said with a regretful shrug before adding, “But, Ruan Xin, we can walk home together now.”

Ruan Xin was momentarily stunned—what did those two statements have to do with each other?

Looking at Jiang Ruosheng’s unchanging gentle smile, she even felt the urge to pry open Jiang Ruosheng’s skull and see what was inside.

Even after knowing Ruan Xin had sided with Yang Yi to set her up, Jiang Ruosheng could still smile at her like that.

What was going through her mind?

For a fleeting moment, Ruan Xin thought Jiang Ruosheng might be the biggest variable she’d encountered since her rebirth.

Of course, she dismissed the thought just as quickly.

What did Jiang Ruosheng matter? She hadn’t been reborn just to waste time on insignificant people.

St. Thomas Noble Academy was the city’s most prestigious high school, with tuition fees so exorbitant that only the wealthy or influential could afford it.

Before the final bell had even rung, the school gates were already lined with luxury cars, waiting in clusters.

Several well-trained security guards were expertly directing traffic at the entrance. The road leading to the school was specially built by the institution—only registered vehicles for student drop-offs and pickups were permitted entry, while all others were strictly prohibited.

This measure served two purposes: ensuring student safety and preventing traffic congestion by avoiding the use of public roads.

Each car had its own unique flair, gleaming with the unmistakable sheen of wealth.

Jiang Ruosheng observed the spectacle at the school gate, which resembled a luxury car exhibition, and couldn’t help but marvel inwardly.

Truly befitting a prestigious private school, truly befitting a fictional world, truly befitting St. Thomas Academy.

The Jiang family’s driver pulled up perfectly beside a plane tree in a dazzling fire-red supercar, its hood adorned with pink glitter decals.

“[Heart] Jiang Ruosheng [Heart].”

The text was so large it was clearly visible even from four or five meters away.

Jiang Ruosheng cringed so hard she could practically dig a hole with her toes. Scanning the area, she realized only the Jiang family had such an eye-catching—and embarrassing—display.

Ruan Xin, seemingly accustomed to this, walked straight to the car and exchanged a few quiet words with the driver before bypassing the flashy red supercar and heading across the street.

Since the start of the semester, the Jiang family driver had been responsible for picking up both Jiang Ruosheng and Ruan Xin. However, the original “Jiang Ruosheng” had adamantly refused to let anyone know Ruan Xin lived with her, forcing Ruan Xin to take the bus home every day.

Now, Jiang Ruosheng had suggested they go home together, hoping to mend their relationship and foster some goodwill. Unfortunately, Ruan Xin wasn’t cooperating.

Slightly disheartened, Jiang Ruosheng got into the car and asked the driver, “Uncle Chen, what did Ruan Xin say to you just now?”

Uncle Chen replied, “Miss Ruan said she’s going back to her own home and won’t be staying at the Jiang residence tonight.”

This “home” was clearly the one she had shared with her mother.

Watching Ruan Xin’s slender figure disappear down the street, Jiang Ruosheng felt a pang of melancholy.

In the years after losing her only remaining family, Ruan Xin had curled up alone in that small but warm apartment, clinging to memories of the past.

The cabinet beneath the TV held the few photos of mother and daughter together. The wardrobe still stored old clothes. The sugar jar sat tucked away in the back of the kitchen’s second-tier cabinet…

Though Jiang Ruosheng had never actually seen these things, the brief descriptions in the novel had painted a vivid picture of Ruan Xin’s most cherished—and painful—memories.

Her mother’s death had been the final straw that broke Ruan Xin, leading to her eventual downfall as the story’s antagonist. If Jiang Ruosheng could prevent that tragedy, the future villain might never emerge.

She had considered this from the moment she received her mission. Ruan Xin’s mother died in a car crash two years later, just before the college entrance exams. The exact date was unclear, so there was no need to rush just yet.

The journey from St. Thomas Academy to Ruan Xin’s home was considerable—an hour by bus, followed by a twenty-minute walk. Only then could one spot the old apartment building, its balcony adorned with delicate pink apple blossoms.

Lush green leaves framed clusters of pale pink-and-white flowers, their plump petals slightly concave at the center, swaying gently in the breeze.

As Ruan Xin pushed open the door, the rich aroma of home-cooked food wafted from the kitchen. Hearing the sound, someone inside hurried out to look.

“Why are you back today? It’s not the weekend.”

Ruan Xin didn’t answer, merely bending down to remove her shoes. Her long hair fell forward, completely obscuring her tear-streaked face.

The voice she hadn’t heard in so long rang in her ears—not a dream, but undeniably real.

She clenched her jaw, struggling to hold back her emotions, but scalding tears still dripped onto her shoes.

Perhaps heaven had taken pity on her, granting her this chance to start anew.

This time, she would change her fate at all costs.

Seeing her daughter silent, the woman slightly furrowed her brows. Her fair and smooth complexion only bore a few faint wrinkles at the corners of her eyes, making her look seventy percent like Ruan Xin.

Yet those almond-shaped eyes, unlike Ruan Xin’s shimmering pools, appeared somewhat weary and dull.

She was already accustomed to her daughter’s habitual silence and didn’t press further. “You should’ve told me you were coming. I didn’t cook for you, so I can only make you some noodles.”

Suppressing the lump in her throat, Ruan Xin said, “I forgot something at home and came back to get it.”

On the table were two simple cold dishes, clearly thrown together hastily. Ruan Xin’s eyelashes trembled slightly. “Is this all you’re eating? Didn’t Aunt Jiang help secure the subsidy before?”

“Cold dishes are quick to eat and clean up. I have to go out to work soon—no time to cook.”

Ruan Xin frowned. “Shouldn’t you have been off work by now? Where else are you going?”

“Helping Old Jiang across the street mind his shop. More money is always better.”

In less than ten minutes, a bowl of egg noodles was placed on the table.

Sitting across from each other, Ruan Xin gazed at the person so close yet felt strangely distant.

“Has anything happened at your school recently?” Ruan Ying suddenly asked.

Ruan Xin’s chopsticks paused. She knew exactly what Ruan Ying was really asking about.

Lowering her eyes to the poached egg resting on the noodles, she replied softly, “Xin Ran had a fever and went home on leave these past few days. Su Qi… Su Qi had an allergic reaction today and was sent to the hospital, but it wasn’t serious. She’ll be back tomorrow.”

“The Luo family moved to the new northern district. Lin Xi’s sister returned from abroad…”

All trivial matters. Ruan Xin spoke slowly, and Ruan Ying listened attentively.

“What about Jiang Ruosheng?” Not hearing the name mentioned, Ruan Ying asked thoughtfully, “Has she been bullying you again?”

Ruan Xin hesitated, then looked up at the woman through the faint steam. “Yes, she called me out during P.E. class…”

“Xin Xin, you know how hard we’ve fought to get here. How many times I begged the Jiang family just to get you into St. Thomas. Ruosheng’s temper… isn’t the best, but since we’re living under their roof now, we have to endure what we must.”

“In two more years, once you get into university, once you turn eighteen—then we won’t have to endure anymore.” Ruan Ying’s tone was earnest, yet her stern, rigid expression held no warmth.

The same old attitude, the same message to keep enduring. Ruan Xin wanted to retort—that it was her living under someone else’s roof, her treading carefully around others, her being bullied.

Not “we.”

Even without St. Thomas, she could have gotten into Beijing University. But Ruan Ying wanted to be closer to that circle, ever closer.

As if it were within arm’s reach.

Before Ruan Ying could continue persuading, Ruan Xin nodded numbly. “I know.”

“Good that you know. After dinner, go back to the Jiangs’. Don’t keep running over here.” Ruan Ying nagged on.

“And remember to buy new shoes. Those are too old. You’re with the Jiangs now—supporting you is nothing to them. Why save for their sake?”

Ruan Xin: “I just feel… it’s better not to owe them too much.”

Ruan Ying glared. “What’s there to owe? We’ll repay them someday.”

Women are always so blindly confident, and this very confidence might have been one of the reasons for her death in her previous life.

But Ruan Xin couldn’t dissuade her—this was the one thing she couldn’t do.

Ruan Ying had been stubborn her entire life, refusing to give up even unto death. Even if told that the path ahead led to certain doom, she would charge forward like a moth to flame, walking the dark road to its end.

In a way, the obstinacy in their personalities was strikingly similar.

“The main reason I came back this time is that my heat cycle is about to start.”

As if she had touched upon some forbidden topic, the atmosphere at the dining table suddenly grew tense.

Ruan Ying closed her eyes for a moment and set down her chopsticks. “Didn’t it just pass half a month ago? How… is it coming again?”

Ruan Xin: “Side effects of the medication. It’s been getting irregularly frequent.”

She had already felt it during P.E. class in the afternoon—her stamina was severely drained, her face pale.

An omega frequently injecting synthetic pheromones to masquerade as an alpha always came at a cost.

Hormonal imbalance was just the minor issue; when heat symptoms became severe, her body would collapse, and no amount of suppressants could help.

Ruan Ying stood up and carefully retrieved a small box from beneath the living room cabinet. Inside was a full stock of suppressants.

She took out two and placed them on the table. “The intervals are too short—you can’t take too many. If you build up a tolerance, your omega identity will be easily exposed. Take a few more days off this time. Once you get through it, I’ll figure something out.”

After finishing her noodles, Ruan Xin picked up the suppressants from the table and put them in her backpack. She glanced at the woman tidying up in the kitchen, then pressed her lips together and left.

Night had already fallen. Ruan Xin crouched under a streetlamp, watching the lit windows of the residential buildings, occasionally catching snippets of noise.

A drifting soul with nowhere to return.

She hesitated, as if in both her past life and the present, she had always been alone.

After crouching for a long while, Ruan Xin finally lowered her head, braced her knees, and slowly stood up. Her legs had gone numb, and moving felt like an electric shock. She stumbled slightly, her body lurching forward.

Her forehead bumped against something soft, and a vaguely familiar scent filled her nose.

Along with the warmth of arms tightly encircling her waist.

This damn sense of déjà vu.

Ruan Xin looked up expressionlessly and met Jiang Ruosheng’s smiling face.

Ruan Xin: “You? Haunting me now?”

Jiang Ruosheng tilted her head, pretending not to hear. “Free escort home service—would you like it, Ruan?”