What to Do, I've Been Targeted by the Villain Again [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 19

Ji Ying wanted to die, her eyes vacant.

“Why? Why do these two have zero connection? Shouldn’t they already be in the ambiguous stage, even starting to kiss by now?”

“Huh? Huh? Huh?”

“Whatever. Let it be. If the plot’s ruined, it’s ruined. I’ve made my peace.” Ji Ying slumped back in her chair.

System: The plot’s derailed. What about Xu Sangning?

Ji Ying exhaled sharply. “Fine, I’ll put in some effort.”

After a few seconds of silence, she added, “But… in what direction?”

System: I’m just an auxiliary system. Please don’t ask me, thanks.

“Is there any item that can make people lose their minds?”

System: There is, but those items are expensive. You can’t afford them, and they can’t be used on main characters. So stop scheming.

Ji Ying banged her head heavily against the table.

System: You’re already dumb enough—don’t make it worse by smashing your head.

“Shut up!”

——

The upcoming charity banquet was scheduled for the day after tomorrow.

Xu Sangning was definitely going. In the original plot, she was supposed to discover the unusual relationship between Feng Xingwei and Xu Qiexing at this event.

But… she had asked Feng Xingwei, who already had plans to go hiking with friends that day.

Xu Sangning propped her chin on her hand and sighed.

This plot point had officially collapsed.

At the banquet, Xu Sangning ran into Ji Ying, who smiled at her—though the smile seemed slightly guilty.

“Sangning, long time no see.” Ji Ying naturally linked arms with her. “How’ve you been feeling lately?”

“Pretty good.” Xu Sangning smiled, and it was genuine.

With the safety net in place, she might have gone crazy otherwise. But since the “company” compensated for all mistakes, what was there to be unhappy about?

Ji Ying relaxed—but not entirely. After all, Xu Sangning was an excellent actress.

Her real personality was quite different from this character’s… Maybe she was secretly fuming right now?

Ji Ying glanced at Xu Sangning again.

Xu Sangning didn’t miss the caution in Ji Ying’s eyes. Though she had no idea what the other was imagining, she pretended not to notice.

This character wasn’t that perceptive. A young lady raised surrounded by love wouldn’t carefully monitor others’ emotional shifts.

That evening, Ji Ying seemed ready to treat Xu Sangning like royalty.

If Xu Sangning raised her hand, Ji Ying handed her a glass. If Xu Sangning tilted her head, Ji Ying leaned in to listen. If Xu Sangning glanced at a dessert, Ji Ying brought it to her lips.

Xu Qiexing sat nearby, watching the two of them intently.

Something was off. Really, really off. Or was this just how girls acted?

Thinking back, Xu Qiexing had seen girls behave even more intimately before. But the vibe between Ji Ying and Xu Sangning was… strange. Especially Ji Ying—she reminded him of that lesbian couple from his study abroad days.

As for Xu Sangning, he couldn’t spot anything unusual yet.

Ji Ying noticed Xu Qiexing’s gaze and looked back. Their eyes met. Xu Qiexing scrutinized her, while Ji Ying rolled her eyes unapologetically before quickly flashing a smile and leaning in to whisper something to Xu Sangning.

Xu Qiexing: “…”

When he saw Ji Ying wipe cream from Xu Sangning’s lips, he averted his gaze.

The more he watched, the weirder it got. Seriously.

“President Xu, your fiancée and your sister really get along well.”

The executive sitting next to Xu Qiexing sighed with admiration. “My wife and my younger sister have constant conflicts—they bicker every day, giving me a headache.”

Xu Qiexing couldn’t even force a smile.

This executive probably hadn’t chatted with anyone in a while, as his words came out rapid and endless.

“I don’t even know what they’re fighting about. It’s not like our family is short on money—my mom even bought my sister a luxury apartment. But my wife, ah… Your family probably won’t have to worry about such issues in the future.”

Xu Qiexing let out a dry chuckle. He had already been hinting to his family about dissolving the engagement, but his parents were pretending not to understand. He wasn’t sure if Ji Ying had made any progress on her end either.

“Four hundred thousand.”

Ji Ying, sitting nearby, raised her bidding paddle. Xu Qiexing glanced over—the item up for auction was a necklace with a youthful, lively design, clearly not Ji Ying’s usual style. Most likely, she was bidding for Xu Sangning.

The necklace was eventually won by Ji Ying for six hundred thousand and, as expected, ended up in Xu Sangning’s hands.

The neighboring executive couldn’t help but sigh again. “How wonderful…”

Xu Qiexing: “…”

After that, Ji Ying went on to win a bunch of other items, all of which were gifted to Xu Sangning, making the neighboring executive increasingly envious.

Xu Qiexing, meanwhile, grew increasingly speechless. To demonstrate his “affection” for his sister as her elder brother, he also bid on a few items. Noticing Ji Ying’s displeased glare from the side, he ignored it.

Finally, when Ji Ying stood up to leave, Xu Qiexing followed.

Originally, Ye Sangning had intended to go after them, but seeing that Xu Qiexing seemed to have something to say to Ji Ying, she sat back down.

She frowned slightly.

Surely these two wouldn’t start a fight in a place like this…

——

“What do you want?” Ji Ying had noticed Xu Qiexing following her after just a few steps but didn’t stop until they reached the restroom entrance. “Are you some kind of pervert?”

Xu Qiexing: “…”

He had just been lost in thought and hadn’t paid attention to where he was going.

“I have something to ask you.” But Xu Qiexing had weathered far worse storms—this little incident wasn’t enough to embarrass him.

“Then do me a favor and wait over there.” Ji Ying rolled her eyes again.

Xu Qiexing still didn’t understand what he had done to provoke Ji Ying. Though the two of them had never gotten along, Ji Ying’s disdain hadn’t been this severe before—otherwise, they wouldn’t have gotten engaged in the first place.

Xu Qiexing stood at the end of the hallway, letting the breeze cool him as he waited. Ten minutes later, Ji Ying finally sauntered over.

“Well?” Ji Ying leaned lazily against the railing.

Xu Qiexing studied her with confusion. It was rare to see Ji Ying so unguarded—she was usually a master of pretense, always presenting her best face to the world.

For Ji Ying to disregard appearances like this…

There were likely two possibilities: one, she was comfortable enough around him, or two, she didn’t see him as worth the effort.

Xu Qiexing strongly suspected it was the latter.

“You and my sister…” Xu Qiexing frowned at Ji Ying. “What exactly are you planning with her?”

Ji Ying took a deep breath. “Is it that obvious?”

Xu Qiexing: ???

He had only thrown out the question casually, never expecting to actually catch her off guard.

Xu Qiexing blinked hard twice. “You like my sister?”

Ji Ying stared at him expressionlessly. “Yeah.”

Xu Qiexing inhaled sharply—Ji Ying had actually admitted it, just like that!

“Where’s my sister?” The winter wind was bitingly cold, chilling him to the bone—or perhaps it was just his thoughts turning icy.

“She doesn’t know.” Or maybe she did, but Ji Ying knew that Xu Sangning would never respond to her.

Xu Qiexing pressed his lips together, rubbing his temples as he glared at Ji Ying with frost in his eyes. “Our engagement has to be called off. Don’t even think about using me to—”

“Obviously. And don’t get the wrong idea—when I agreed to this engagement, it wasn’t because of Xu Sangning. I do have some morals,” Ji Ying cut him off. “I don’t want anything to do with you either. At most, I’d just call you ‘brother’ like Sangning does.”

“Dream on,” Xu Qiexing hissed. “My parents would never agree.”

Ji Ying shrugged. “You’re a Xu, and so is she. If it’s about an alliance between the families, who says it has to be you?”

“Ha. You don’t exactly look like someone who wants an alliance with our family right now.”

“Whose fault is it that you’re tangled up with your female employee?” Ji Ying turned the blame on him, thinking this plot point was worth playing up.

Xu Qiexing stared at her in confusion, wracking his brain but coming up empty. “Who?”

“I’ve seen the photos. You gave her your umbrella, went out for desserts with her…” After months of mental preparation, Ji Ying could now say these things without a hint of shame.

“Don’t slander me.” This time, it was Xu Qiexing who interrupted. “Where are these so-called photos?”

“Destroyed. That kind of filth—if it got out, it’d be humiliating for me. So we should find a way to amend the engagement as soon as possible.”

“My sister wouldn’t agree either,” Xu Qiexing said flatly. “Let me make this clear—I don’t discriminate against same-s3x relationships. But if my sister isn’t into that, what’s the difference between your behavior and harassment?”

“So if your sister agrees, you won’t oppose it?”

“I don’t think my sister would agree.”

Ji Ying’s composure cracked slightly, her lips pressing into a tight line.

“And one more thing—stop spreading rumors. There’s nothing between me and any of my colleagues.” Xu Qiexing eyed her warily, suspecting she was trying to leverage this for more concessions when dissolving the engagement.

Ji Ying leaned against the railing. “Who knows?”

The conversation was doomed to end in discord.

Xu Sangning sat in her seat, watching as the two returned one after the other, their faces darker than storm clouds.

In the half-hour they’d been gone, she had received a warning: the plot was collapsing.

Noticing Xu Sangning’s gaze fixed on Ji Ying, Xu Qiexing reached out and forcibly turned her head away.

Xu Sangning: ???