Villain Strategy Rules [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 33

Wen Zhixu quickly snapped out of her thoughts. Qin Nanxi stood at the door, her hair tied up in a high ponytail, talking to a teacher in what seemed like a pleasant conversation.

It was midsummer, and Wen Zhixu stared outside, but Qin Nanxi never turned around. The two appeared to be engrossed in their discussion. The sun hung like a blinding incandescent lamp, bright and harsh. More and more students gathered outside, and Wen Zhixu’s nerves tightened. Her fingers brushed against the pages of her book, leaving faint marks.

When Qin Nanxi finally returned, Wen Zhixu’s vision had blurred from staring too long. She closed her eyes, rolled them a few times, and when she opened them again, Qin Nanxi was already standing right in front of her.

“Yaoyao!” Wen Zhixu blurted out instinctively, leaning unconsciously against Tang Mo. Her heart warmed.

But… what was going on here? Sneaking behind her girlfriend to romance other female leads in different worlds, only to find out the one she was supposed to pursue was still her girlfriend?

How was this any different from getting caught red-handed?

The surroundings fell into silence. She watched as Qin Nanxi’s pupils dilated, her slender frame looking as if it might topple over in the wind. The blue-and-white school uniform only accentuated the pallor of her face, the ends of her hair tinged with a faint gold from malnutrition.

Wen Zhixu’s chest tightened. So, in every world, it was the same person she had to pursue—though their personalities, identities, and emotions might differ.

“Yaoyao?” Tang Mo asked, puzzled. “A new girl you know? How come I’ve never heard of her?”

Qin Nanxi let out a soft laugh, her expression icy as she tilted her head slightly. “I’d like to know too… Who is this ‘Yaoyao’ you’ve gotten close to now? Especially since we just broke up.”

Her tone sounded calm, but Wen Zhixu sensed something beneath it—resentment?

Wen Zhixu stammered, “It’s just… it’s you… never mind.”

“Oh, really?”

Oh god, please shut up. Are you trying to make her hate me even more? Do you want me to watch her end up with some zombie archenemy in a burning building?

Qin Nanxi returned to her seat. “You don’t need to explain anything to me.”

Tang Mo grinned curiously. “Why do I feel like you’re extra scared of her today? Oh~ afraid she’ll report you to the teacher, who’ll then call your parents, huh?”

Wen Zhixu replied slowly, “If… you… say so.”

The bell rang.

Tang Mo tugged at Wen Zhixu. “Come on, let’s go play badminton.”

Wen Zhixu shrugged. This young miss truly loved sports. She felt an inexplicable surge of energy—maybe youth played a part in it.

Back in her own student days, life had been miserable—up at six, studying until eleven, with no extracurricular activities to speak of. Well, except for that ten-kilometer hike in senior year. That counted as exercise, right?

But now that she was in a fictional world, she was determined to make the most of high school life. All those novels had lied to her—real life was never as idyllic as “peaceful days with summer cicadas singing.”

As she stood up, Wen Zhixu instinctively glanced at Qin Nanxi. Their eyes met, and she flinched, but Qin Nanxi’s cold stare remained fixed on her, sending chills down her spine despite the sweltering heat.

“Um…” Wen Zhixu whispered, “It’s P.E. class… Do you want to come with us?”

Qin Nanxi: “?”

Tang Mo: “???”

What is this young lady up to now? Could she be planning something mischievous again? She really isn’t afraid of being reported.

Tang Mo steeled her heart. For the sake of her best friend having a happy weekend, she grabbed Wen Zhixu’s hand. “Qin Nanxi has been granted special permission to skip PE classes. Let’s not make things difficult for her.”

Special permission? With so many newly implanted memories and her original memories still intact, Wen Zhixu hadn’t fully processed everything yet, missing some finer details.

Wen Zhixu wanted to ask why, but Tang Mo was in a hurry and simply pulled her outside.

Once outdoors, Tang Mo asked suspiciously, “Didn’t you tell her to pretend she didn’t know you for the rest of her life? Didn’t you forbid her from speaking to you at school?”

Wen Zhixu: “…”

What a mess.

“That’s right…” she stammered. “But I was the one who approached her this time. She didn’t come to me.”

Tang Mo: “…”

“Fine.”

Wen Zhixu took the opportunity to access her memories. It turned out Qin Nanxi couldn’t participate in PE because she had severely injured her foot while saving Jiang Qingyue, only recently removing her cast and still in recovery.

This was also why Jiang Qingyue had pursued her so relentlessly—she thought the girl who saved her was breathtakingly beautiful.

But as a top student focused solely on academics from a modest background, Qin Nanxi seemed rather plain. The young lady couldn’t stand it and broke up with her.

Not content with just ending things, she felt her first romantic experience had been too dull and brief, so she threatened Qin Nanxi to keep it secret.

Wen Zhixu: “This is bad…”

“What’s bad?” Tang Mo produced two pink rackets their parents had custom-made for them, with diamonds encircling the base that glittered in the sunlight. “Let’s play badminton. We’ve been sitting all morning—my back is stiff.”

Wen Zhixu took the racket and walked onto the court preoccupied, immediately getting hit in the head by the first serve.

Tang Mo shouted, “What are you doing? Your head’s not in the game!”

Wen Zhixu snapped back to attention. “I was distracted. Let’s start over!”

Thankfully it was badminton. If the young lady had been into basketball, soccer, or table tennis… that would have been disastrous.

After playing for a while, they took a break. Wen Zhixu, wearing a white headband with her hair in a high ponytail, sat on the stone steps. With her long, toned legs and casually placed hands, she was the center of attention wherever she went.

“Huh?” Tang Mo pointed into the distance. “Isn’t that Qin Nanxi? And isn’t that the class monitor next to her?”

The class monitor, Song Shuya, was second only to Qin Nanxi academically, came from a wealthy family, and had sweet features. Seeing Song Shuya standing beside Qin Nanxi unexpectedly stirred jealousy in Wen Zhixu.

It felt like the wife she’d worked so hard to win in her past life was now being eyed by someone else in this second life because she’d forgotten her.

She tossed her racket aside, wiped her sweaty face with a towel, and marched straight toward Qin Nanxi.

Tang Mo was shocked. “Where are you going?”

When Wen Zhixu reached Qin Nanxi, she grabbed her hand and asked, “Why are you here?”

Qin Nanxi froze, amusement flashing in her eyes before her lips curled subtly. “Young lady, what are you up to now?”

Song Shuya pulled Qin Nanxi behind her, saying seriously, “Jiang, everyone saw you two break up. Since you didn’t cherish Nanxi, don’t bother her now.”

“Nancy?” Wen Zhixu frowned. “Are you two close?”

In her memories, Qin Nanxi was the quiet type—so quiet that Jiang Qingyue had lost interest.

Qin Nanxi suddenly laughed. “Jiang Qingyue, it seems we never cleared things up. Remember your own words—stop bothering me.”

With that, she took Song Shuya by the hand and walked off the field.

Tang Mo quickly caught up. “Qingyue, what’s going on? Didn’t you say you didn’t like Qin Nanxi anymore?”

Wen Zhixu’s heart tightened. She couldn’t shake the feeling that she and Qin Nanxi were somehow deeply familiar—intimately so.

Yet this was their first meeting.

Wen Zhixu: “It’s nothing… I just suddenly, well, kind of… like her again.”

Tang Mo: “…”

“Miss, this isn’t like you. Or is she your first love? Still hung up on her?”

The bell rang, signaling the end of class. Wen Zhixu tugged off her hairband and trudged back to the classroom in a sulk.

Qin Nanxi was already seated. Despite the summer heat, she still wore her autumn uniform jacket, her complexion pale and her energy drained.

Seeing this, Wen Zhixu knew Jiang Qingyue had been in the wrong. But the disconnect between their worlds left her unsettled. What was she even doing?

“006, is the previous world truly frozen now?”

Host, since you completed the mission, the previous world has achieved its optimal ending and is now in stasis. Their memories remain fixed at that moment, preserved in their happiest state.

Maybe that was for the best. At least no one would suffer nightmares. In that final moment, their eyes held only each other.

“Then… is Chaoyao still in that world?”

Host, I can no longer access any information about the previous world. But according to the mission parameters of the conquest worlds, the person you pursue each time is the same. However, once you truly leave a world, your connection with that individual is severed.

The same person? Wen Zhixu’s eyes widened. So she hadn’t been unfaithful—she’d always loved the same person, only to forget her in each new world?

“I get it now!”

Her heavy heart suddenly lightened. The cicadas outside no longer felt noisy, and her uniform no longer felt restrictive. Even the sky seemed bluer.

Qin Nanxi was still working on her homework when Wen Zhixu leaned halfway over. “Wow! This problem looks so hard. How are you this good? But studying all the time isn’t healthy. Let me take you out for some sunshine.”

Tilting her head, Wen Zhixu half-closed her peach-blossom eyes, the corners lifting slightly as if brimming with spring water. She brushed a strand of hair past Qin Nanxi’s ear, soft as a kitten nuzzling against someone it adored.

Qin Nanxi didn’t look up, her pen never pausing. “This is the homework your mother assigned you,” she said flatly. Then she lifted her gaze, frost filling her eyes. “You told me to finish it all for you before school ended today.”

Her light-colored pupils held no tenderness, only the icy flow of glacial water, leaving just the tiniest space for herself.

Wen Zhixu: “…”

Jiang Qingyue, if you don’t know how to love someone, then stay single for life. Stop bothering other girls.

Wen Zhixu let out an awkward laugh before snatching the homework away and stuffing it into the drawer. Softly, she added, “Of course I should do my own homework. How could I trouble you with that? Your foot must be feeling better now—would you like me to take you outside for some sunshine?”

Qin Nanxi replied, “It’s summer.”

Wen Zhixu hesitated, “Uh… then how about I take you to get some snacks?”

“No need.”

Wen Zhixu tried again, “Then maybe I could keep you company for a chat?”

Ding ling ling…

Qin Nanxi said, “Class is starting.”

Wen Zhixu: “…”