Oops, I’m the Scumbag Ex in Her Storyline - Chapter 7

Bei Lanlan pressed her lips together, then stepped away from the window.

Xu Suyu remained where she was, still gazing at the figure standing outside downstairs. She spoke again, “Obsessive people never change. Everything she gives you now… is what Jing Chu didn’t want.”

“In the past, to her, you were just a visible painting. A painting isn’t supposed to have feelings, so naturally, she wouldn’t care about your feelings. But now, she started to see you as a person. Lanlan, do you think that person… is really you?”

Bei Lanlan was silent for a long time before she finally replied, “Professor, I’m not stupid.”

Xu Suyu turned her head to look at her, chuckled lightly, and said, “You’re right. You’re the most talented student I’ve ever taught.”

Glancing toward the door, Bei Lanlan’s speech quickened, tinged with apology. “I’m sorry, Professor. I didn’t know she would come today. You should go now. Don’t talk to her.”

Xu Suyu had only been here for less than an hour. After a moment of thought, she nodded and headed downstairs.

Bei Lanlan didn’t see her off.

By the time Xu Suyu reached the ground floor, Xin Yan had been waiting there for a while.

Of course, Xin Yan had no idea Xu Suyu was here—it was the housekeeper who told her. Like Bei Lanlan, the housekeeper hadn’t expected Xin Yan to return so soon. He’d known Bei Lanlan for four years, and though he’d gone from indifferent to sympathetic over time, as long as it wasn’t anything too serious, he would turn a blind eye and not report things back to the original owner. But a face-to-face meeting like this—there was no covering it up.

The first thing Xin Yan saw was a pair of eight-centimeter satin black heels. Then came the elegant, slender legs, and above them, a perfectly tailored form-fitting dress.

Naturally, it was black too.

Just like how the novel described her—serious, restrained, a walking portrait of seductive authority.
…

There were many women entangled with Bei Lanlan, but five of them were particularly prominent. The author had given each ample attention, and the readers loved them all. Each had her own unique charm—some owned business empires, some were both frail and beautiful, some dominated the academic world, some basked in the spotlight, and some lived recklessly, defying all rules.

Xu Suyu was one of the five. Arguably the most “normal” and least dangerous one of them all.

But that depended on the comparison. Compared to those lunatics, sure, she seemed harmless. Yet this “harmless” woman had hacked into the original owner’s company, stolen technology and plans worth billions, pushed senior shareholders to the brink of suicide—and didn’t leave a single trace.

Xin Yan stared curiously at Xu Suyu’s head, wondering what her brain was made of to be that clever. She’d just glanced at a few documents herself and already felt mentally exhausted.

Xu Suyu: “…”

She’d been stared at countless times in her life, but this was the first time someone wasn’t focused on her face or figure—just her forehead.

A couple of years ago, some bored college students had organized a national university beauty contest among professors. Out of 40,000 candidates, Xu Suyu had taken first place with 300,000 votes. The runner-up had barely 50,000. That’s how deeply her beauty had taken root in the public imagination.

Back then, Xu Suyu scoffed at the results. She despised being reduced to her looks. Yes, she was beautiful—but that was hardly the most important thing about her.

And yet now, someone wasn’t being shallow, and somehow, she found that even more annoying.

She couldn’t tell if it was Xin Yan’s behavior she disliked… or Xin Yan herself.

After quietly sizing her up for a moment, Xu Suyu walked up to her.

Just earlier, she’d promised Bei Lanlan she wouldn’t speak to Xin Yan—but she changed her mind.

“President Xin, I hear you’ve finally decided to let Lanlan return to school. The university was thrilled to hear the news. True talent shouldn’t be buried.”

Xin Yan blinked and nodded with exaggerated agreement. “Exactly what I was thinking.”

Xu Suyu: “…”

After two seconds of silence, Xu Suyu smiled faintly. “Lanlan mentioned that you’ve decided to forget a certain someone.”

This time, Xin Yan caught the subtext. She paused for a moment, then nodded. “Yes. I won’t hurt Lanlan again.”

So please, don’t unleash your hacker skills again, alright? It took her forever to understand what “immune probe technology” even meant. If that’s the tech Xu Suyu ends up stealing next, she might actually have a heart attack.

Xu Suyu had no idea what Xin Yan was thinking. But watching Xin Yan’s distracted expression only confirmed her suspicions.

And made her feel that Bei Lanlan deserved better.

Four years of mistreatment had been all too real. And now, just when things were starting to look up—this was the illusion?

If it was her, if she were Bei Lanlan, her heart would’ve gone cold long ago.

Xu Suyu sighed softly, looking toward a corner of the living room. Her voice seemed wistful, but the sarcasm was unmistakable.

“Seeing is believing. President Xin truly lives up to the rumors—what you see is what you get.”

With that, she turned and left without a backward glance. Xin Yan, utterly baffled by the sudden jab, looked in the direction Xu Suyu had glanced at… and froze.

Honestly, if not for that look, Xin Yan wouldn’t have even noticed that huge grand piano sitting there.

Everything in this house felt foreign to her. Even the dining table that morning had stunned her. Compared to that, the piano almost seemed… normal.

Xu Suyu had been gone for a while. Xin Yan slowly walked over to the piano, gently running her fingers along its glossy surface.

A Steinway concert grand piano, released in 1864. Only a handful of them remain in existence. Musicians worldwide would kill for one. Jing Chu had a similar one at home. The original Bei Lanlan had tried to buy the same model for years but could never get it—until she heard about a Danish pianist’s estate being auctioned off after his death, and this piano was among the items.

Xin Yan couldn’t remember all the details, only that this piano was probably worth more than the entire house.

Realizing that, she silently crossed off “sell the piano” from her mental to-do list.

She had been standing there for quite some time. When she finally turned around, she saw Bei Lanlan had come downstairs without her noticing. She was dressed far too formally—a strapless floor-length evening gown that trailed behind her. She looked like she was about to attend some event.

But Xin Yan knew she wasn’t. Unless absolutely necessary, Bei Lanlan never left the house.

Just like the piano, the dress most likely had something to do with Jing Chu too. Xin Yan fell silent, stepped aside, and asked, “Do you play the piano?”

Upon hearing that, the last glimmer of light in Bei Lanlan’s eyes—so faint it was almost invisible—flickered out completely.

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Author’s note:

Don’t worry—this isn’t a tragedy. Our heroine will change. Turning from Antarctic permafrost into a warm sticky rice ball only takes one Ah-Yan.