Today I Will Also Be the Male Protagonist’s Rival - Chapter 44

The Su household was busy all through the night, but in the end, Du Xue still couldn’t be saved.

At nine in the morning, Su Yudong finally rushed back.

“You actually remember to come back?”

Su Xia looked at him with red-rimmed eyes, her voice hoarse beyond recognition. “Besides chasing women all day, is there anything else you’re capable of doing?”

“Have you ever truly cared about Mom?”

“When she was being resuscitated, do you know how many times I called you? Why didn’t you answer? Why— sob sob sob sob—”

Su Yudong’s face darkened, and his temper surged. “Is this how you talk to me?”

“What did I say that was wrong?”

Tears streamed down Su Xia’s face as she let out a bitter laugh. “Wasn’t I right? While Mom was fighting for her life, you were out fooling around. A man like you doesn’t deserve to be a husband—nor does he deserve my respect.”

Su Qi lowered his voice and quickly tried to calm her. “Xiaxia, what’s the point of fighting with Dad?”

“Dad was dealing with company matters last night. Something happened at work—he was busy the whole night.”

Su Xia abruptly shoved him away and sneered, “Busy the whole night? You mean busy with a woman all night!”

“Unfilial daughter!”

Enraged, Su Yudong slapped her hard. “I raised you all these years just so you could talk back to me like this?”

Su Xia gritted her teeth, glaring at him. “Hit me! Go on! Might as well beat me to death today!”

Su Yudong’s face darkened, and he raised his hand again with a swish.

Su Qi quickly blocked him and whispered, “Dad, Aunt Du just passed away. Don’t stoop to Xiaxia’s level. She’s still young and doesn’t understand.”

Su Yudong snorted coldly. “For your mother’s sake, I won’t argue with you today. Step aside. I want to see her.”

“Get lost!”

Su Xia blocked his way, sneering. “Take your precious son and your little mistress and get out! Don’t dirty my mom’s eyes!”

Su Yudong abruptly reached out. “Su Qi, move! Today I will beat this ungrateful girl to death!”

“Dad…”

Su Yu stood up and nudged her brother. “Ge, just take Dad out first.”

Su Qi responded and managed to drag Su Yudong out by force.

“Su Yu! Get out of here!”

Su Xia clenched her fists, her voice full of hatred. “If it weren’t for you, my mom wouldn’t have died. It’s all your fault! All your fault!”

Su Yu chuckled softly and said slowly, “Su Xia, you know better than anyone how your mom really died, don’t you?”

If she hadn’t casually asked Iron Hammer, she truly wouldn’t have known—Su Xia had actually gone so far as to push her own mother down the stairs.

At those words, Su Xia’s body stiffened. Her face turned visibly uneasy. “What… what are you talking about?”

She couldn’t have found out!

There was no way!

She had already deleted all the surveillance footage. And Su Yu was asleep at the time—how could she possibly know?

Across from her, the girl leaned against the window, her beautiful, glistening peach blossom eyes seeming to see straight through people’s hearts. “Nothing really. Just sighing that your mom raised such an ungrateful little wolf.”

“What do you know?!”

Su Xia shouted and backed away, tears streaming uncontrollably. “I didn’t mean to! Sob sob sob It was Mom who didn’t catch herself. That’s why she fell down the stairs. It wasn’t my fault—it wasn’t!”

She had just been angry and went to mess with Su Yu in the middle of the night.

Who would’ve thought her mom would see her?

She tried to stop her, didn’t want her to go. She only gave her a little push, and then… she fell.

It wasn’t her fault! Not her fault!

Su Yu leaned down, her voice low and deliberate, each word sharp: “It was your fault. You killed your mother.”

Though she didn’t speak loudly, the words pierced right into the heart.

Su Xia clutched her ears and shook her head violently. “No! It wasn’t me!”

“Guess what…” Su Yu said lightly, “If I go out there and tell everyone that you killed your own mother—knowing Dad’s temper—don’t you think he’d kick you out of the Su family?”

“That’s impossible. Dad wouldn’t be that cruel.”

“He wouldn’t have been in the past. But now…”

Su Yu paused, then smiled faintly. “Now that he has a well-behaved and obedient daughter, the troublemaking one is naturally just a thorn in his side.”

“Tell me… do you think he’ll show you mercy?”

Su Xia froze completely.

She was right. Ever since Su Yu came to the Su family, Dad’s attention toward her had been fading.

If he ever found out, then…

No! She absolutely couldn’t lose everything. If she was no longer the young lady of the Su family, then she would truly have nothing.

She gritted her teeth and said hatefully, “What do you want?”

“Just help me with one thing.”

“What thing?”

Su Yu lowered her gaze, smiling nonchalantly. “Sleep with Jin Licheng.”

Su Xia froze, looking up in disbelief. “What did you say?”

Su Yu repeated it again.

“You… why are you doing this?”

“That’s none of your business.”

Su Yu’s tone shifted, and she added, “This afternoon I’ll invite him over to the house. When the time comes, I’ll bring him to your room. What to do after that—I don’t need to teach you, right?”

Plans never keep up with changes.

She had originally planned to get married and then dig up evidence of his crimes. But who would have thought Du Xue’s unexpected death would completely derail everything?

However…

At the funeral of the Su family matriarch, if the heir of the Jin family took advantage of the second daughter of the Su family—what a good show that would be. She imagined a lot of people would enjoy watching it.

And then there was Jiang Shengzhou…

She lowered her gaze, the corners of her lips curving slightly.

Su Xia wasn’t completely stupid. She vaguely understood Su Yu’s meaning, and a chill ran through her body.

The girl leaned against the door, dressed in a loose, pale green long dress. Her slender brows were slightly raised, and her eyes—like peach blossoms—seemed both captivating and careless, yet strikingly beautiful like a painting.

This… was the woman she wanted to go against?

Was she planning to ruin Jin Licheng’s reputation?

“Oh right, don’t even think about playing any tricks.”

Su Yu leaned in and patted her cheek. “It’d be very easy for me to kill you. Just your part in your mother’s death would be enough to make you unable to stay in Xiangjiang.”

“But…”

She paused, drawing out her words, “If you behave and follow orders, I might be willing to offer you some benefits.”

Su Xia stared hard at her. “What kind of benefits?”

Su Yu sat down and coaxed her patiently. “If you end up pregnant with Jin Licheng’s child and he goes to prison, then you’ll be the Jin family’s matriarch. From then on, everything in the Jin family will be under your control. You can do whatever you want, and no one will be able to stop you.”

“As for Su Yudong, will you still need to care about what he thinks?”

Su Xia’s heart thumped. Even though she suspected Su Yu might just be drawing a pretty picture, she was still tempted.

What Su Yu said made sense. If she stayed in the Su family, she’d just be married off to that fat pig. But if… she had Jin Licheng’s child, then… then she could rely on the child to rise in status and secure her position as the Jin family’s matriarch.

She took a deep breath and looked up. “Why should I listen to you? I could go to Jin Licheng myself and tell him everything you just said.”

“You think he’d believe you?”

“Besides me, have you ever seen any other woman by Jin Licheng’s side?”

Su Yu laughed softly and pointed to her own face. “He loves me. I’m the only exception he’s ever made. You can go to him if you want, but maybe check how the other women who approached him ended up.”

Su Xia clenched her fists.

That’s right—Jin Licheng was always cold toward women. It wasn’t that no women had tried to approach him, but he gave all of them away to his subordinates. Word was, their endings were miserable.

Just thinking about those women made her shudder.

“I’ll do it.”

“Thought it through?”

“Yeah.”

Su Yu raised an eyebrow and smiled lightly. “Good. If Jin Licheng actually ends up in prison, that’s great. If not, you’ll be the first one he comes after.”

Su Xia’s heart jumped. “What about you?”

“You think he’d lay a finger on me?”

Su Xia: ……

She clenched her fists tighter and said viciously, “I’ll definitely make sure he goes to jail! Definitely!”

Seeing the determination in her eyes, Su Yu smiled again and extended her hand. “Then… let’s work together?”

Su Xia grasped her hand in return. “Let’s work together!”

When she left the hospital, the sky was gray and overcast, like it was about to rain—heavy clouds hanging low.

Su Yu had arranged to meet Jiang Shengzhou at a café, and she hailed a taxi on the roadside.

Leaning back in the seat to rest, she took the opportunity to call Jin Licheng.

“Hello…”

On the other end, the man sounded like he had just woken up.

“It’s me.”

Jin Licheng sat up. “Yuyu?”

“Our wedding might need to be postponed.”

“You wouldn’t dare!”

“Aunt Du is dead.”

“What’s that got to do with me?”

Jin Licheng lit a cigarette, his tone harsh and menacing. “Su Yu, if you think you can escape tonight, then you’re being too naive.”

Su Yu lowered her voice. “Su Yudong’s wife passed away in the early morning.”

Jin Licheng was stunned for a moment. “What happened?”

“An accident.”

“I’ll come find you now.”

“In the afternoon. I’m at the hospital helping with the aftermath. Come later.”

The girl sounded tired for once, her voice softening unusually.

Jin Licheng wasn’t quite used to it and was silent for a long moment before saying, “Okay.”

After hanging up, Su Yu leaned back, and the sadness on her face vanished instantly. She let out a faint scoff.

About twenty minutes later, she arrived at the café.

Jiang Shengzhou was sitting in the innermost window seat. When he saw her, he waved. “Over here.”

Su Yu paused, then walked over quickly.

“What would you like to drink?”

“Anything’s fine.”

“Waiter, two glasses of plain water.”

“Okay.”

“See if there’s anything you want to eat.”

Jiang Shengzhou handed her the menu, resting his folded hands on the table. “What did you want to see me about?”

“The plan has changed.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Hmm?”

“The Su family matriarch has passed away.”

Jiang Shengzhou was shocked and quickly asked, “When did it happen?”

“Around four or five this morning.”

“Then what about today?”

Su Yu lightly shook her head, waved him closer, and leaned in to whisper the revised plan.

“Actually, that works too. I haven’t been idle these days either. I contacted a group of foreign mercenaries and got you a little something fun.”

Jiang Shengzhou wrote two words on the table.

Su Yu was momentarily stunned. “It’s for Jin Licheng?”

“Smart!”

“Are you crazy?”

She frowned slightly and said in a low voice, “If anything goes wrong, the one who gets into trouble will be you—and the Jiang family behind you!”

“I just don’t want him to keep bullying you.”

Jiang Shengzhou paused for a moment, then smiled. “Besides, it’s not just me. Sister Huo has helped a lot too.”

Su Yu’s expression changed. “Huo Shu?”