I Don't Want to Be the Villainess Anymore - Chapter 10

The system didn’t want to deal with her.

Because of Qin Yuzhen’s actions, Rong Xi spent the entire class in a state of confusion, completely unaware of what the teacher was saying.

As soon as the physics teacher left, Rong Xi quickly slipped over to Qin Yuzhen’s side. “Why…?”

“Why what?” Qin Yuzhen gave her a blank look.

“When we came back at noon… why was it so fast?”

“Because we sprinted here. Human potential is limitless,” Qin Yuzhen said nonchalantly.

Rong Xi stared at Qin Yuzhen, at a loss for words. She pursed her lips. “Can I really run that fast?”

“Why not?”

“Because I usually take four minutes to run 800 meters…” Rong Xi muttered. She felt like she was already pushing herself hard during those runs.

Qin Yuzhen propped her chin on her hand. “Then, according to your logic, how did we get here?”

She waited for Rong Xi to answer.

Rong Xi opened her mouth but couldn’t come up with any other explanation—after all, the alternatives were far too unbelievable.

“Stop overthinking things. You’re not a kid anymore,” Qin Yuzhen said, rubbing her neck.

“Oh.” Rong Xi returned to her seat.

The system sighed silently.

“Host, the third period is P.E. There’ll be a plot point involving the male and female leads,” the system reminded her.

“What does that have to do with me?” Qin Yuzhen asked.

“According to the original plot, you’d fall in love with the male lead at first sight.”

Qin Yuzhen scoffed. “Then it has nothing to do with me.”

“Mm.” The system had intended to warn Qin Yuzhen not to interfere with the leads, but judging by her expression, it decided it was better to stay quiet.

P.E. class required them to head to the field early, and Rong Xi automatically positioned herself beside Qin Yuzhen again.

“When there’s no test in P.E., we just do warm-up exercises, and the rest of the time is free play,” Rong Xi explained as she walked alongside Qin Yuzhen.

As the system put it, she was acting like a dutiful little wife.

“Oh.”

“Usually, I go back to the classroom to do homework,” Rong Xi said. “But if you want to do any sports, I can join you.”

Qin Yuzhen glanced at her. “What kind of sports can someone who takes four minutes to run 800 meters even do with me?”

Rong Xi: “…”

“Some people in our class take five or six minutes. I’m actually pretty fast…” she muttered.

“So you’re proud of that?”

Rong Xi shot her a look. “Then how fast can you run?”

Qin Yuzhen thought for a moment. “About three minutes.”

Noticing Rong Xi’s stunned expression, she couldn’t resist adding, “Isn’t that normal?”

Rong Xi: “…”

By the time they reached the field, most of their classmates had already lined up. Rong Xi returned to the formation, while Qin Yuzhen quietly took her place at the end of the line. Among the girls in their class, her height was above average, so standing at the back wasn’t unusual.

“Host, the male lead has appeared,” the system announced, helpfully activating his halo in case Qin Yuzhen couldn’t spot him.

The male lead walked amidst a group of side characters and extras, the glow above his head particularly dazzling.

“That protagonist halo is seriously blinding,” Qin Yuzhen remarked, turning her head away.

“Well, he is the male lead. Rong Xi’s female lead halo is just as bright.”

“What’s this male lead’s name again?” Qin Yuzhen asked.

The system fell silent for two seconds. After all this time, she still hadn’t bothered to remember the male lead’s name.

“Ye Yunchen.”

“Oh.”

The warm-up required running two laps around the track, each lap being 400 meters. Before the teacher could even finish speaking, the class erupted in groans of despair.

Qin Yuzhen glanced at Rong Xi. Though Rong Xi didn’t complain, her face was ashen. For the next two laps, her focus remained solely on running, and she didn’t spare a single glance at the male lead as she passed him twice.

Though plenty of other girls sneaked peeks at him, Qin Yuzhen took a look as well.

He was quite handsome—the standard male lead look. She usually had a soft spot for good-looking people, but those with protagonist auras were an exception.

So, at the moment, her only thought was to strip that halo right off his head.

Ye Yunchen, who was in the middle of talking to someone, suddenly felt a chill run down his neck.

After finishing all the warm-up exercises, Rong Xi immediately plopped down on the ground, hands braced behind her. If not for her image, she probably would have sprawled out completely.

Many of the girls had already left the field, and the boys were calling out to each other to play basketball.

Only Rong Xi remained seated on the ground.

“Tired?”

“Yeah.” Rong Xi nodded. “I don’t usually feel this exhausted.”

Qin Yuzhen stood beside her, watching. “There are people playing soccer over there. Sitting here isn’t safe—let me pull you over to the side.”

“I don’t want to move. I’ll just sit here for a bit,” Rong Xi shook her head. “I’ll be fine in a moment…”

No sooner had she spoken than a soccer ball came flying toward them. A boy sprinted over, trying to intercept it, but Qin Yuzhen was faster. She dashed forward and kicked the ball back with force, sending it straight toward the goal.

The goalkeeper leaped to catch it, clutching the ball as he crashed heavily onto the ground.

“Holy sh1t!” The boys on the field shouted. “That was insane!”

The boy who had tried to intercept the ball slowed to a stop nearby. Unsurprisingly, it was the male lead. Qin Yuzhen briefly met his gaze before looking away, then walked back to Rong Xi, pulling her up and leading her off the field.

Rong Xi, who had just witnessed Qin Yuzhen’s kick in its entirety, was awed. “You’re amazing.”

“Amazing? It was just kicking a ball back,” Qin Yuzhen said flatly. “I told you not to sit on the field. If I hadn’t kicked it back, you would’ve been hit for sure.”

Rong Xi nodded in agreement. “Thank you.”

She hadn’t even noticed the third person present earlier.

System: That was clearly the male lead.

System: I knew this person would ruin things 100%!!!

“Host, that was supposed to be the meeting between the male and female leads,” the system said, exasperated.

“Oh.”

“Host, did you do that on purpose?”

“No.” Qin Yuzhen muted the system. It was getting more and more talkative.

“Are you going back to the classroom?” Rong Xi asked.

Qin Yuzhen shook her head decisively. “Don’t want to.”

She didn’t even feel like doing the homework the teacher had assigned—why would she go back to study?

Rong Xi looked around. “Then do you want to play badminton or tennis? Those are the only two I know.”

“Let’s go with badminton,” Qin Yuzhen said, eyeing Rong Xi. “Should I go easy on you?”

“Don’t underestimate me! I’ve had a coach for badminton!” Rong Xi protested. “We haven’t even started yet, and you’re already talking about going easy on me. Don’t end up losing later.”

“What if you lose?”

“If I lose, I’ll make you silver-stuffed bean sprouts,” Rong Xi said.

Qin Yuzhen raised an eyebrow. “So confident, huh?”

“Mm.” Rong Xi nodded. “If I win, you can’t talk back to me or bully me ever again.”

“When have I ever bullied you?”

Rong Xi stared at Qin Yuzhen expressionlessly, not saying a word, but her meaning was clear.

The system also let out a perfectly timed cold laugh.

The two went to borrow equipment. It had to be said, they were fairly lucky—there was one last spot left on the badminton court.

It was obvious Rong Xi was taking this very seriously this time, sparks practically flashing in her eyes.

“Host, just go easy on Rong Xi. Don’t make her cry.”

“She’s trying so hard. If I go easy on her, wouldn’t that be disrespectful?” Qin Yuzhen laughed.

Since the female lead was playing, quite a few people gathered around, packing the badminton court to the brim—a scene that hadn’t happened in the original novel.

Gu Si also squeezed in, letting out a shriek at Qin Yuzhen: “Go, Zhenzhen!”

Rong Xi shot a glance at Gu Si and snorted inwardly. She had originally thought that if Qin Yuzhen couldn’t keep up, she’d go easy on her to save her some face—but now, she had no intention of holding back at all.

“Here.” Qin Yuzhen tossed the shuttlecock to Rong Xi. “You serve first.”

Rong Xi went all out from the very first serve, showing no mercy whatsoever. Qin Yuzhen raised an eyebrow, effortlessly sidestepping and returning the shot. The two went back and forth, the shuttlecock not touching the ground for a while.

At first, Rong Xi thought they were evenly matched, but as time passed, she realized Qin Yuzhen was just toying with her.

This person wasn’t even trying.

“Qin Yuzhen! Didn’t I tell you not to go easy on me?” Rong Xi shouted.

The shuttlecock fell to the ground.

Qin Yuzhen looked at Rong Xi—the girl’s eyes were slightly red, looking like she was on the verge of tears.

Qin Yuzhen: “…”

Qin Yuzhen served again, this time not holding back at all. It was a straightforward serve, but the sheer force behind it made the shuttlecock fly much faster. Unsurprisingly, Rong Xi failed to return it. She stared at the fallen shuttlecock, took a deep breath, trying to hold back—but in the end, tears still spilled over.

“See? You just look down on me!” Rong Xi said, picking up the shuttlecock. “I’m done playing.”

“Why are you crying?” Qin Yuzhen sounded exasperated.

Rong Xi sniffled, wiping her tears, looking utterly wronged. “I’m not crying. You’re seeing things.”

“Dry your tears first, then tell me I’m seeing things.” Qin Yuzhen pulled out a pack of tissues and shoved them into Rong Xi’s hands.

“Zhenzhen, you’re so amazing! I want to play with you too—can you go easy on me?” Gu Si walked over, glancing at Rong Xi. Though she had clearly seen her crying earlier, she feigned surprise with a soft “Huh?”

“Rong Xi, why are you crying?” Gu Si frowned at her, lowering her voice. “If you stand here crying, people might think Zhenzhen bullied you.”

Rong Xi finally wiped away her tears. “You play with her. I’m done.”

With that, Rong Xi turned and walked away, racket in hand.

Qin Yuzhen called after her, “Wait a second.”

Rong Xi snorted inwardly, just about to shoot a smug look at Gu Si when Qin Yuzhen added—

“Why are you taking the racket?”

Rong Xi: “…”

System: “…”

Gu Su almost laughed out loud: “Rong Xi, just give me the racket. Zhenzhen and I can return it later.”

“Then I’ll just wait here,” Rong Xi reluctantly handed the racket to Gu Su.

Taking the racket, Gu Su felt the resistance from the other end and gave it a tug: “Rong Xi?”