After Transmigrating into a Novel, I Became the Female Lead's Stepmother (GL) - Chapter 1

“Professor Xu, I think my boyfriend is cheating on me.” Yu Sui’an’s voice trembled as she spoke, her eyes reddening. “When he’s with me, he spends more time on his phone than talking to me, often ignoring what I say while smiling happily at his screen.”

“I haven’t seen him smile at me like that in months.”

“On Qixi Festival a few days ago, he used the tired excuse of being busy with work to cancel our date. He had no idea how much I’d prepared for this special day, I even spent two months’ salary on a luxury bag I’d never buy for myself!”

“But him? Not only did he get me nothing, he didn’t even come home that night. It’s like he’s forgotten he has a girlfriend. I’m starting to wonder if he even likes me anymore, how could someone who cares about me show so little concern?”

“So last night after he came home, I checked his phone while he slept… and found the other woman who’s been occupying his thoughts. She’s got a slender waist, long legs, fair skin, beautiful face and comes from money. I can’t understand why a woman like that would compete with me for my boyfriend. Are there no other men left in the world?” Yu Sui’an’s voice broke off abruptly. “Professor Xu, what do you think?”

Her gaze settled on the woman across the table raven hair neatly tied up, exquisite features enhanced by elegant makeup, yet carrying an air of gentle grace. Xu Chun lived up to her name (“Pure”), with skin as flawless as first snow. Her privileged upbringing and refined manners made her stand out from the crowd like a crane among chickens.

Faced with such a near-perfect romantic rival, Yu Sui’an felt both inferior and hopeless.

Xu Chun listened quietly, her fingers cradling the coffee cup. At these words, her thick lashes fluttered slightly before she looked up. “Men don’t need reasons to cheat. You know I always advise breaking up.”

“But if I just walk away, wouldn’t that be letting them off too easily?” Yu Sui’an pressed bitterly. “Why should I bear all this betrayal and pain while they face no consequences? They might even celebrate my breaking up with him, then happily get together without any punishment.”

“Why?” Yu Sui’an unconsciously tightened her grip on something inside her bag, repeating the question in a whisper.

Yu Sui’an was one of Xu Chun’s students not particularly close, but not distant either. Seeing the struggle in the young woman’s eyes, Xu Chun prepared to offer gentle comfort when Yu Sui’an interrupted, “Professor Xu, I think they should pay for what they’ve done.”

“Both my boyfriend, and that woman who knew he had a girlfriend yet still got involved with him.” Pausing, Yu Sui’an repeated, “Professor Xu, what do you think?”

A strange feeling rose in Xu Chun’s heart, but it came and went too quickly to grasp. Releasing her coffee cup with pale jade fingers, Xu Chun could only nod in temporary agreement with this emotionally distraught girl. “While I don’t condone such actions, if this will bring you some peace of mind…”

Before Xu Chun could finish speaking, Yu Sui’an forced a faint smile at the corner of her lips. “I understand, Teacher Xu.”

The air fell into silence for a long moment. Under the table, Yu Sui’an’s hand slowly unzipped her bag as she spoke with a hint of excitement, “Teacher Xu, aren’t you curious about who the third party interfering in my relationship is?”

This was someone else’s private matter, and Xu Chun wasn’t particularly interested. But since Yu Sui’an had asked, she played along. “So… who is it?”

Yu Sui’an’s smile widened. “It’s you, Teacher Xu.”

Xu Chun stared at Yu Sui’an in shock. What nonsense was this?! She was so busy spinning like a top every day that she had neither the time nor energy to meddle in other people’s relationships. Besides, she had no interest in such things. She was a morally upright citizen with principles.

Still reeling from the shock, Xu Chun didn’t snap back to reality until a sharp pain pierced her chest. She looked down at Yu Sui’an’s face, now terrifyingly close, and the crimson blade embedded in her chest. She could feel something inside her rapidly draining away.

Screams erupted as the café descended into chaos.

Before losing consciousness, Xu Chun saw a glowing book floating before her eyes. Her fingers moved uncontrollably toward it. The moment her fingertips touched the book, a flood of information rushed into her mind.

After processing the book’s contents, Xu Chun was utterly stunned.

It turned out she was the female lead in an old-fashioned, melodramatic romance novel, one who suffered both physical and emotional torment. After the male lead appeared, her family was driven to bankruptcy, buried under mountains of debt, and lost everything overnight. Faced with relentless creditors, her parents finally broke down and abandoned Xu Chun, committing suicide together in the dead of night.

Left alone, Xu Chun had to work tirelessly to support herself while enduring harassment from the male lead’s numerous admirers, especially his deranged childhood sweetheart, Yu Sui’an. In the novel, 35% of Xu Chun’s suffering came from Yu Sui’an and the other female rivals, while the remaining 65% was entirely the male lead’s doing.

The male lead treated Xu Chun with the utmost malice. When Yu Sui’an feigned illness and was hospitalized, he even had Xu Chun’s kidney forcibly removed and given to Yu Sui’an just because Yu Sui’an casually remarked, “Why not use Xu Chun’s?”

After the surgery, Yu Sui’an glowed with health, while Xu Chun died on the spot from massive bl00d loss due to her weakened body. Only after her death did the male lead have an epiphany, realizing his love for Xu Chun ran bone-deep. But it was too late nothing could undo the past.

In the end, the male lead had Xu Chun’s ashes made into a ring. He spent the rest of his life staring at it, consumed by regret.

Xu Chun: “…”

What a vicious plot! What grudge did the author have against her? She had done nothing wrong just for being the female lead, she had to meet such a tragic end, losing her family and her life?

Furious, Xu Chun felt a headache coming on. Just as she was about to abandon her refined manners and curse aloud, the glowing book vanished, replaced by an ancient black tome. Hesitantly, Xu Chun touched it, and a prompt immediately appeared in her mind: “Enter this world? Note: This is a story of yuri in a collapsed order…”

“Yes, yes, yes! I want to enter that world!” Xu Chun nodded eagerly. Whoever wanted to be the female lead of this trashy romance novel could have it, she was done playing along.

As soon as the words left her mouth, the weightlessness gripping her body intensified. Then, in an instant, her consciousness was yanked away, bringing with it an indescribable sense of relief, as if she had finally been freed.

In the last moment before all sensation vanished, Xu Chun thought she heard Yu Sui’an’s voice, tense and anxious, calling out the male lead’s name. It dawned on her then, she had already been entangled with that damn male lead from so early on. What rotten luck.

Xu Chun felt as though she had been trapped in a long, long dream.

Outside the dream, someone kept talking near her ear, the noise grating on her nerves. Then, a light touch brushed against her, and the moment physical contact was made, her eyes snapped open.

A face appeared right in front of her. The person looked to be in their early twenties, with delicate, fair features, skin as pale as snow, and a perfectly oval face framed by large, glistening almond eyes that shimmered with vulnerability. They looked like a fragile little white flower trembling in the wind, and Xu Chun couldn’t help but feel an urge to protect them.

At that moment, the little white flower’s lips parted, and a soft voice murmured, “Sister… I’ve been feeling so awful lately. To escape this pain, I tried meeting new people. But then I found out… the sister I’ve grown fond of seems to be sneaking around with another woman…”

Hearing these eerily familiar words, Xu Chun’s scalp prickled, and she nearly stopped breathing.

She froze for a long moment before forcing out a strained reply under the little white flower’s intense gaze, “Don’t tell me… the one sneaking around with the sister you like, the one trying to steal her from you… is me?”

The little white flower’s expression faltered, their face unreadable.

So it was true. Xu Chun thought grimly to herself: Was this little white flower about to pull a Yu Sui’an and, in the blink of an eye, whip out a knife and stab her right back into that outdated romance novel?

No. She wasn’t going back.

The little white flower shifted slightly, as if discreetly reaching for something in their bag. A chill ran down Xu Chun’s spine, and sheer survival instinct made her grab their slender wrists with near-brutal force, slamming their hands onto the table and clutching them tightly. With utter sincerity, she blurted out, “Don’t you know?”

Yu Sui’an, wait, no, the little white flower, paused. Know what?

“The truth is, the one I’ve always liked is you. Only you. In fact, the only reason I got close to the sister you like was so I could naturally and without you noticing get closer to you.”

…Wait. The sister the little white flower liked? Xu Chun belatedly realized the glaring inconsistency. She wanted to dwell on it, but the current situation left no room for deep thought. Instead, she scrambled to muster every ounce of her eloquence to soothe the little white flower’s emotions before they did something rash. “The moment I first saw you, I fell for you completely. You’re beautiful, gentle, and you shine so brightly in a crowd that I couldn’t look away.”

“But you already have someone you like. I can’t bring myself to break up someone else’s relationship, so I can only watch you from afar in the shadows. Even if I can’t have you, as long as you’re happy, that’s enough for me. Let me bear the pain of unrequited love alone. I don’t want you to be troubled by my presumptuous feelings. Your happiness is all I care about.”

“Even when I toss and turn sleeplessly at midnight, missing you terribly, I’m still overjoyed. Because I’m so lucky, fate actually brought an angel like you into my life, proving to me that angels truly exist in this world.” After pouring her heart out in one breath, Xu Chun subtly caught her breath and continued, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to get close to the sister you have feelings for.”

“I just… couldn’t control how much I like you, nor could I stop my heart from longing to see you.”

“Forgive me,” she apologized sincerely.

Both the air and the barrage of comments fell silent for a moment.

After the brief pause, an overwhelming flood of comments erupted: 【Is Xu Chun out of her mind?! Does she even realize what she’s saying? Did she forget this is live?!】

【I’m begging Xu Chun to leave our Suisui alone. Suisui finally found true love and moved on from heartbreak, why is she getting entangled again? There are other women in the world besides Suisui.】

【Don’t believe a single word from this cheater’s mouth. Suisui, don’t you dare forgive Xu Chun or look back! Everything today is Xu Chun’s own fault! She never truly loved Suisui, she’s only putting on this act now because her career and income took a hit after her affair was exposed. She’s just scheming to salvage her image by apologizing live.】

【Suisui, don’t you dare soften your heart!】

Amid the barrage of frantic comments, Yu Sui’an finally reacted. She tilted her head slightly, her expression puzzled, and spoke so softly only the two of them could hear, “Sis, tone down the acting you’re overdoing it.”

Xu Chun opened her mouth to speak, but Yu Sui’an cut her off, “Sis, you haven’t forgotten that you’re my ex-girlfriend, have you?”

Xu Chun: “…???”

Ex-girlfriend? Her? And me?