The Frail, Alluring O Always Wants Me to Mark Her (GL) - Chapter 16: 016

Zhu Lexing’s original intention was just to get some fresh air. After cooling down for a while, she’d go back and the whole thing would be over.

She never expected that just by passing a corner, she would see Jiang Yue and Yan Mian again.

Even though the Omega deliberately lowered her voice, with the system’s help, Zhu Lexing was able to hear the whole story.

Zhu Lexing slowly typed out a question mark in her mind.

Where did this psychopath come from?

Jiang Yue’s words first put herself down, describing herself as a tool to pave the way for Yan Mian. Then, with a consistently gentle tone, it all sounded like it was for Yan Mian’s own good.

But if she really was doing this for her own good, how could Yan Mian have ended up in her current state?

If the original work hadn’t already ruled out a dramatic backstory, Zhu Lexing would have genuinely suspected that Yan Mian wasn’t her biological daughter.

While she was indignant, Jiang Yue also sensed the change in Yan Mian’s tone. Her voice softened: “Xiaomian, you’re still young. You’ll understand later. But believe your mother, I would never harm you.”

Yan Mian didn’t know how to respond.

The woman’s tone sounded gentle, but it was more aggressive than before, making her want to back away.

“I—”

“What are you guys muttering about again?”

An impatient voice suddenly rang out, startling both of them. Around the corner, Zhu Lexing’s trench coat was backlit, making her look like a normal passerby, but her expression was unmistakably cold.

Jiang Yue quickly reacted: “Your father sent me to—”

“Sent you to find me?” Zhu Lexing said without hesitation. “Do you even believe that yourself?”

Jiang Yue instantly realized that all of Zhu Lexing’s “friendliness” earlier was a facade.

Without Zhu Lin in sight, Zhu Lexing had returned to her true self.

But this was the Zhu Lexing she was familiar with.

Jiang Yue was about to say something nice, but Zhu Lexing didn’t give her a chance. She strode over, her gaze fixed on Yan Mian’s face: “And you.”

Being stared at like this, Yan Mian felt both mortified and a subtle sense of “release.”

At least at this moment, she didn’t have to listen to her mother and imagine herself as Zhu Lexing’s “thing.”

But Zhu Lexing was right in front of her.

Yan Mian couldn’t describe her feelings. She bit her lip, thinking Zhu Lexing was about to say something nasty.

But the girl just stared at her for a few seconds and then let out a cold laugh: “What are you doing standing here? Let’s go back.”

Although her voice still sounded a bit cold.

Compared to before, it could be called a different kind of “gentleness.”

With those words, Zhu Lexing didn’t stop, heading straight back to the private room.

Jiang Yue looked at Zhu Lexing’s back, her brow unconsciously furrowing.

She was annoyed by Zhu Lexing in her heart, but Zhu Lexing was born with a different status.

No matter how annoying she was, Jiang Yue could only flatter and praise her.

She also remembered Yan Mian’s earlier complaints.

She was about to offer some comfort, but Yan Mian avoided her gaze: “I’ll go back now, too.”

The dinner ended in a rush.

No one explicitly showed their anger, so Zhu Lin naturally didn’t notice the tense atmosphere. He was still engrossed in the pride he felt for Zhu Lexing finally doing something right.

Two cars were parked outside. Jiang Yue still hadn’t given up. She wanted to arrange for Zhu Lexing and Yan Mian to ride together to continue getting closer.

Zhu Lexing was worried that she would continue to brainwash Yan Mian on the way back, so she didn’t refuse.

Only Yan Mian started to speak, but then stopped and fell silent again.

The moonlight was like ink. The car was quiet. After a long time, Zhu Lexing finally said, “When we get back, you—”

Yan Mian paused, thinking she was about to warn her again. She subtly frowned and was about to respond, but then she heard Zhu Lexing say, “If you need anything, just talk to him directly.”

After she spoke, Zhu Lexing seemed to have more to say, but she stopped. In the end, she only managed a dry, “Also, about the watch, no one cares.”

This reminder made Yan Mian remember that during dinner, Zhu Lin’s gaze had been on Zhu Lexing the whole time.

Even when he was talking to her, Zhu Lin was more concerned about Zhu Lexing. It was only because Zhu Lexing hadn’t spoken that he actually said a few words to Yan Mian.

No one cares.

Zhu Lin didn’t care. The driver didn’t care.

Zhu Lexing didn’t care either.

What didn’t they care about? The watch?

Or the person “Yan Mian”?

Her living environment forced Yan Mian to constantly overthink and analyze.

She couldn’t figure out the meaning of the words and avoided the answer that would humiliate her. She didn’t respond.

The rest of the way was silent. When they got home, Zhu Lexing had planned to go straight to her room, but she stopped on the stairs and said casually, “Yan Mian’s watch was broken. I had someone buy her a new one.”

The sudden sound made everyone in the living room pause.

Zhu Lin was stunned for a while before he remembered the incident.

Even though it was said to be an accident, coming from Zhu Lexing, it was a sure sign that Zhu Lexing herself had probably broken it. She must have said something because she couldn’t hide it anymore.

What’s with her today?

Jiang Yue’s face changed. She immediately scolded, “Xiaomian? How could you break the gift that Uncle Zhu gave you—”

“I broke it,” Zhu Lexing interrupted Jiang Yue. “Who said it had anything to do with her?”

After she said it, Zhu Lexing was annoyed with herself. The thing belonged to Yan Mian!

Of course it has something to do with her.

Zhu Lin quickly said, “It’s fine, it’s just a watch. We can just buy a new one. Xingxing, you should be more careful next time. It’s late. Everyone should go rest.”

With all the servants watching, Jiang Yue could only grit her teeth and say, “Still, Xiaomian should have taken better care of it.”

Zhu Lexing said, “In the Zhu family, if I want to break something, it doesn’t matter where she puts it. Instead of blaming her, Auntie, you should put away your little schemes.”

“The more you plan, the more unlucky you’ll be.”

With those words, Zhu Lexing didn’t hesitate and went straight upstairs.

Being called out in front of Zhu Lin, Jiang Yue’s face turned pale.

Zhu Lin thought it was just their usual bickering—after all, Zhu Lexing had always openly scolded Jiang Yue for her delusional plans of marrying into a wealthy family.

He didn’t think much of it and just consoled her, “Lexing’s temper is just like this…”

Jiang Yue’s lips trembled. She quickly said, “It’s fine, I know. I don’t blame her…”

She turned back to look for Yan Mian, only to find that Yan Mian had already returned to her room.

…

At the desk.

Yan Mian had been doing homework for an hour. Before turning off the timer and going to sleep, she remembered the phrase, “No one cares.”

It turned out that it wasn’t that no one cared about “Yan Mian.”

It was that the incident itself was insignificant to them.

But… if that was the case, why did Zhu Lexing bring it up on her own?

If she hadn’t said anything, Zhu Lin would most likely never have remembered.

Yan Mian looked at the book cover, falling into a long silence.

The guess deep in her heart was something she couldn’t even admit to herself.

Others didn’t care, but Yan Mian did.

So Zhu Lexing had to prove it for her, to solve it.

And this way, Yan Mian wouldn’t care anymore either.

…

The next day.

Seven in the morning, seven souls.

When the servant woke her up again, Zhu Lexing had gradually gotten used to the routine.

Even though it’s painful! I’m used to it!

After a numb washing up, she went downstairs. Zhu Lin was sitting at the long dining table, but there was only a bowl of noodles on it.

“…” Zhu Lin said cautiously, “Xingxing, did you ask the chef to change the menu?”

Zhu Lexing remembered the extravagant display from before and thought Zhu Lin had arranged it. He was probably asking because he was unhappy that the food was gone. Her scalp tingled as she said, “…There was so much food, we couldn’t finish it all. It’s a waste.”

Zhu Lin let out a long sigh of relief: “I thought it was a waste, too. But you used to like it, so I never told them to change it. It’s good that you changed it—”

The reality was beyond Zhu Lexing’s expectations.

She immediately thought of the extravagant decor—Could the original owner have liked that, too?

Zhu Lexing was about to ask as a test when Yan Mian came out of her room. Their eyes met. Yan Mian first said to Zhu Lin, “Uncle, I’m going to class now.”

Zhu Lin looked at Yan Mian’s back and sighed, “Xiaomian is a really good student.”

As soon as he said it, he remembered Zhu Lexing was sitting across from him. Afraid she would be upset, he was about to praise her, too, but Zhu Lexing said as a matter of course, “She really is.”

Zhu Lin: ?

He remembered what the driver had said about their relationship improving.

…Could it really be getting better?

This was an unexpected surprise.

Zhu Lin was about to ask her something, but Zhu Lexing had already finished her bread and was leaving with her bag.

Before she left, she didn’t forget to wave goodbye, full of politeness.

Compared to before, when she wouldn’t leave until the last minute and would scold everyone with a scowl on her face, this was a world of difference.

Zhu Lin was momentarily dazed, but his conviction quickly strengthened.

This is how my daughter should have been all along.

Tomorrow was the school anniversary, so today’s rehearsal was the last one.

Afterward, Zhu Lexing was quite satisfied with the results. Although there were still a few characters slacking off, it was much better than yesterday.

She casually mentioned a few things but didn’t go into detail—

The performance was tomorrow. Some people had “fish memory.” If she told them something now, they would forget it in a second.

It was better to tell them tomorrow so they would remember more clearly.

Zhu Lexing thought she would be free after tomorrow, but when she returned to the classroom, Zhu Xing came to find her again. He told her that there was a student representative speech for the school anniversary, and the second-year representative had suddenly gotten sick, so she had to fill in for them.

The timing of this illness was too coincidental. Zhu Lexing subconsciously asked, “Did my dad pay you to choose me to speak?”

This kind of impulsive decision was very much in line with her impression of the Zhu family.

Zhu Xing was speechless for a few seconds and said, “No, not at all. That student has already been hospitalized.”

Zhu Lexing: “…Fine. But I still don’t want to go.”

First, why should “Zhu Lexing” be the representative speaker? She doesn’t do anything well. Second, Zhu Lexing didn’t like speaking at official events.

But Zhu Xing coming to her also suggested that the school leadership wanted to show some respect to Zhu Lin.

After pondering for a few seconds, Zhu Lexing suddenly said, “You can go find Yan Mian.”

Zhu Xing was stunned: “You—”

“You also know my relationship with her,” Zhu Lexing said. “Choosing me and choosing her are the same.”

Zhu Xing was still a bit hesitant.

He knew their relationship, but Zhu Lexing had a bad record. Her suggestion might just be a trick to prank Yan Mian.

Zhu Lexing pouted: “My dad will be there in person. Don’t overthink it.”

With her words, Zhu Xing’s attitude softened, and he began to seriously consider it.

Seeing that there was nothing more for her to do, Zhu Lexing returned to the classroom. Bored, she was twirling her pen when she saw Song Yingying browsing the forums next to her.

Like in modern times, campus forums were also popular in this world, but most of them were anonymous. However, since the forums were managed by the school, most people’s posts were relatively friendly.

The posts on the homepage were mostly about school gossip, celebrities, and were similar to regular social media platforms.

Zhu Lexing watched her for a while and then downloaded the forum herself.

For the username, Song Yingying seriously suggested, “You can only register once with your student ID, and the name can only be changed once a year. You have to think carefully.”

This is something to think about? Zhu Lexing thought.

Anyway, she only planned to be an anonymous user. She raised her hand and typed: [Mianmian’s fan].

It showed off her noble status as the protagonist’s fan.

The name “Mianmian” was also very low-key, and it didn’t directly refer to anyone!

Perfect!

The more Zhu Lexing looked at it, the more satisfied she was. She was completely engrossed in the online world.

Song Yingying looked at the name [Mianmian’s fan], which showed that they were now mutual followers: “…”