The Real Daughter Needs Saving by This Vicious Female Cannon Fodder? - Chapter 12

“Oh, Xiaxia, are you talking about that seaside café?”

“The owner’s pour-over coffee is really good. I always ask her to reserve some beans for me.”

Leaning back in her chair, the girl mused thoughtfully as the waiter brought over her orange juice.

Gu Xia’s eyes lit up immediately—she knew her chance had come.

“So, does that mean you have the owner’s contact info?”

This was the advantage of having wide connections!

“Of course. In Qingshui City, I, Yu Yingying, have already explored all the best spots for food and fun. I know everything.”

“What, Xiaxia, have you started loving coffee now? Didn’t you hate bitter things before? Last time I bought you an iced Americano, you said it tasted like dishwater.”

Gu Xia didn’t plan to hide it from them. After all, her main goal today was to make sure they wouldn’t trouble the female lead on her behalf anymore or deliberately make things difficult for her.

“No, Ning Anran works at that café. I want to get the owner’s contact info to send her a red envelope and ask her to give Ning Anran a raise.”

Gu Xia could clearly see the transactions in her bank account. Aside from a payment to the Imperial Capital University, Ning Anran hadn’t spent a single cent.

She knew that if she tried to persuade Ning Anran directly, it wouldn’t work.

So, Gu Xia came up with a roundabout plan—she’d ask the café owner to quietly slip Ning Anran some extra money.

This way, Ning Anran wouldn’t know.

But seeing how exhausted Ning Anran looked, Gu Xia couldn’t help but worry.

Yu Yingying immediately nodded in understanding.

“I get it. You must hate Ning Anran and want the owner to make her life harder, right?”

“In that case, I’ll just contact the owner right now and have her fire Ning Anran—”

As soon as she pulled out her phone, Gu Xia stood up and snatched it from her hand.

She pressed down on the screen and shook her head.

“That’s not what I meant. I was being foolish before, which is why I gave Ning Anran a hard time.”

“Now, I’ve turned over a new leaf, seen the error of my ways, and decided to be a better person.”

She placed the phone back on the table and slid it over.

“From now on, don’t make things difficult for Ning Anran either. She’s really struggling.”

As Gu Xia spoke these words, she sighed inwardly—it felt so good to finally have the water drained from her brain!

She really could start anew!

The two of them froze. Gao Fei, who had been sipping her juice, nearly choked and quickly grabbed a napkin to cover her mouth.

“Cough, cough… Xiaxia, are you serious?”

“Don’t tell me this is just another whim where you say you’ll let Ning Anran off the hook.”

Seeing Gao Fei’s disbelief, Gu Xia nodded solemnly.

“Dead serious.”

“Yingying, send me the owner’s contact info. I’ll transfer 20,000 yuan to her.”

Though Gu Xia’s bank account had been nearly empty, she had canceled all her pre-orders for designer bags and the latest autumn collection.

Instantly, her balance jumped back up by over 100,000 yuan.

Now, she could still play the rich girl convincingly!

The two across from her fell silent. Yu Yingying stared blankly for a full four seconds before forcing an awkward smile and picking up her phone to copy and paste the owner’s social media account to Gu Xia.

“Xiaxia… you’re not developing feelings for Ning Anran, are you?”

Gao Fei pushed her orange juice further away, just in case she absentmindedly took another sip.

“I mean, sure, Ning Anran is good-looking, but… you’ve never told us you were bi before.”

What kind of nonsense was this?

Does giving Ning Anran a little kindness mean she has a crush on her?

Well, thinking about it, given how brain-dead she used to act, it’s no wonder her two best friends would think that way.

“Why are you overcomplicating things? I just think she’s had a hard time.”

“Recently, my sister visited a Taoist temple and said I’ve done too many shady things. I need to treat everyone around me well, or else I’ll get struck by lightning the next time I step outside.”

Spouting nonsense with a straight face, Gao Fei and Yu Yingying nodded repeatedly, completely buying Gu Xia’s explanation.

“Xiaxia, I never thought about it before, but now that you mention it, I do feel like I’ve done a lot of shady stuff…”

“Is the AC turned up too high in here? I keep feeling a chill down my spine.”

Gao Fei chuckled. Though, Gu Lindong really was a devout temple-goer—devout in the sense that she worshipped at every shrine and donated to every temple she saw.

The other party has successfully added you as a friend.

Seeing the notification on her phone, Gu Xia didn’t immediately transfer a hefty sum. Instead, she sent a greeting first.

She chatted with the café owner about coffee, and after about ten minutes—

Just as the owner was introducing the third type of coffee bean, Gu Xia casually brought up Ning Anran.

Young lady? Are you here to pursue Anran too?

Wait—something’s not right here!

Why did the owner say “too”?! Aaaaaah! There’s definitely something fishy going on!

I—I’m not!

Gu Xia’s face burned red as she buried her head in her scarf, fingers trembling as she typed back.

Oh, I get it. I know what you young ladies are thinking. I’m not some fossil from the Qing Dynasty, you know ^^

But, I’ve asked for other girls before. Anran said she’s not interested in dating, so you might as well give up~

The owner was clearly used to dealing with customers—rejecting people with a gentle yet firm hand.

Gu Xia’s fingers turned cold. Great. She hadn’t even transferred the money yet, and the owner had already seen right through her intentions of caring for Ning Anran.

“What’s wrong? Did the owner turn you down?”

Yu Yingying smirked mischievously, tapping her fingers on the table as terrible ideas started spilling out.

“Honestly, Xiaxia, why don’t you pull that domineering CEO move from the novels? Just slap the money in front of Ning Anran, smirk, and say, ‘Woman, if you don’t spend this money today, you’re not going home.’”

Gu Xia: “…”

Gu Xia: “No way. That’s so cringey.”

“So cringey it could fry eight dishes!”

“Yu Yingying, stop consuming that brain-rotting content.”

“I swear your mouth looks a little crooked now.”

Gao Fei, who had been listening, chimed in with her own suggestion.

Though, hers was far more sensible than Yu Yingying’s nonsense.

“Hasn’t Ning Anran always been tight on money? Last time I saw her, the sleeves of her coat were patched up and wrinkled.”

“Why don’t you just pay her tuition for her?”

“Imperial University’s tuition isn’t cheap, and the scholarships keep getting cut. What she gets probably only covers her meals.”

Gu Xia propped her cheeks in her hands and sighed.

“I gave her a card with 100,000 yuan. She only took 20,000 to pay her tuition and hasn’t touched the rest since.”

“Last time, I practically forced the clothes I bought for her into her hands, but I haven’t seen her wear them much these days.”

“Does she not like them?”

“Was I too direct? Did I hurt her pride by not being more tactful?”

Gu Xia sighed, seriously reflecting on it.