When the Villain Falls Madly in Love with Herself - Chapter 11

Jiang Le! A loud shout exploded in her ear.

Jiang Le’s thoughts snapped back to reality. ……

Come watch the meteor shower with us during the National Day holiday! It’s a once-in-a-century event! Li Yan clasped her hands together, her eyes shining with excitement. With you, we’ll have six people, enough to rent a comfortable seven-seater car!

Jiang Le had been a late bloomer. It wasn’t until high school that she began to develop a graceful, slender figure. Her sharp, defined features carried an air of aloofness, yet her cheeks still retained a hint of baby fat, creating a contradictory aura of coldness and naivety.

She was folding the last few test papers, slowly tucking them into her backpack. The words of refusal were already on her tongue when Jiang Congyue’s constant nagging about making more friends suddenly echoed in her mind. She pressed her lips together and finally nodded slightly. Who’s going?

Li Yan rattled off several names familiar to Jiang Le.

Jiang Le preferred solitude and had little interest in making friends. As a result, her classmates were mostly nodding acquaintances, and she often struggled to match faces with names.

Call me tomorrow before we leave. Jiang Le slung her backpack over her shoulder and stood quietly to the side, waiting for the dawdling Li Yan.

After the two became close, Jiang Congyue had the driver pick up Li Yan along the way, calling it having a companion on the road.

Li Yan cheerfully thumped the table, but her eyes darted around nervously.

Jiang Le could have guessed her thoughts even with her eyes closed, let alone with the clear stream of her inner voice flooding her mind.

Is Xiao Kexin really up to this? If it were Jiang Le…

The name made Jiang Le pause. A corner of her memory stirred, dredging up a boy from her class. He’d apparently contributed to that stack of forgettable love letters she’d received.

She wouldn’t have remembered him at all, except he’d hidden his letter in such a devilishly clever spot that Jiang Congyue discovered it before she could dispose of it.

Even now, the memory of Jiang Congyue’s teasing smile made Jiang Le’s ears burn. The woman hadn’t just laughed she’d solemnly lectured her on the 108 dangers of early romance, nagging her so relentlessly that Jiang Le couldn’t sleep soundly for days.

As a result, she’d etched the letter writer’s name deeply into her memory.

I’m not going tomorrow, Jiang Le said, her expression suddenly darkening.

The love letter alone had already caused chaos. If Jiang Congyue found out they were going out together, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Huh?! Li Yan wailed, her face falling. Why the sudden change of heart? You were fine just a moment ago!

Jiang Le’s brow furrowed even deeper, her voice urgent and cold. Hurry up and pack.

Watching Li Yan pout and mumble under her breath with a look of wounded innocence, Jiang Le finally caught a crucial piece of information from her jumbled thoughts. The silly girl wanted someone to give her courage to confess, but was too embarrassed to say it directly.

How had she missed this entirely?

…Never mind, Jiang Le said, pretending to check her phone. She swiped randomly across the screen, then changed her mind with slightly exaggerated acting. Tomorrow… I’m free again.

Oblivious as ever, Li Yan instantly believed her. Her eyes lit up, and she grabbed Jiang Le’s hand, shaking it excitedly. Really?! That’s amazing! Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you…

On the way home, Li Yan spun around Jiang Le like an overexcited top, circling her again and again, her words caught in her throat.

Only after they were seated in the car, and Li Yan noticed the parents in the front seats, did she finally pull out her phone and type furiously I have something important to tell you when we get home!

When Jiang Le pushed open the front door, a faint smile lingered at the corners of her lips, a trace of Li Yan’s teasing. But the moment her gaze landed on the familiar figure lounging on the living room sofa, the smile vanished without a trace.

Jiang Congyue, draped in a blue-and-white dress, leaned languidly against the sofa armrest, her fingers idly flipping through the pages of a book resting on her lap.

Hearing the door open, she turned her head slightly. The golden rays of the setting sun streamed through the window, casting a soft, golden halo around her refined profile.

Over the years, time seemed to have reversed its course for her. The fine lines at the corners of her eyes had faded, and even the newly grown roots at her temples gleamed with a dark luster, intertwining with her silver hair to radiate an astonishing vitality.

Is this the benefit of not having to work?

Ever since Jiang Congyue had deliberately introduced her to the company, Jiang Le had grown to love the carefree life of a hands-off manager, too lazy to worry about anything. If Jiang Le hadn’t still been in high school, her mother would have fully embraced retirement.

Lele’s back? Jiang Congyue put down her book, her smile as warm as ever. Go wash your hands. Dinner’s ready.

Jiang Le nodded and picked up her slightly cooled bowl of rice.

At the dining table, Jiang Le’s movements were calm and elegant, flawless in every respect. The refined manners Jiang Congyue had meticulously cultivated over the years had become ingrained in her very being. Every gesture and movement radiated the poise of someone raised in a wealthy, cultured household.

After dinner, I’ll take you somewhere, Jiang Congyue said casually, placing a piece of sweet and sour spare ribs into Jiang Le’s bowl.

Jiang Le lowered her gaze and quietly chewed her food, not pressing for details. Yet, a small stone seemed to have been tossed into her heart, sending ripples of unease through her. At least she won’t sell me off, she thought.

After finishing her bowl of rice at a leisurely pace, Jiang Le set down her chopsticks and looked at Jiang Congyue.

Let’s go. I’ll take you to meet your parents. After the meal, Jiang Congyue draped an arm around Jiang Le’s shoulders, her tone as light as if discussing the weather, even tinged with amusement. Hmm? Our Lele seems to have grown a little taller again.

Parents?

Jiang Le’s entire body stiffened. Her bl00d seemed to freeze instantly, her mind going blank. Why so suddenly? Has she grown tired of me being a burden? Or has she found a more suitable heir? Overwhelming panic and icy suspicion seized her.

In the car, she unconsciously clenched her fists, propped her chin on her hand, and stared helplessly out the window.

Jiang Congyue tilted her head, taking in Jiang Le’s tense and worried expression without interrupting or offering an explanation. The smile in her eyes deepened.

The car glided smoothly forward, the twilight scenery blurring past the window. When the solemn white stone memorial arch finally came into view, the taut strings of Jiang Le’s heart snapped with a sharp ping.

It was a cemetery.

She followed Jiang Congyue silently through rows of silent tombstones, finally stopping before two adjacent graves.

The man and woman in the photos were young, their features strikingly familiar. The woman, in particular, shared nearly seventy percent of Jiang Le’s facial features. The cold inscriptions etched into the stone recorded their brief lives Jiang Yunling and Ji Qing, both died in their prime.

The oppressive heat of the day was shut out by the cemetery’s cool shade. As they walked, Jiang Le’s heart had already begun to settle. Yet when she saw the photo of the woman who looked so much like her, her first reaction wasn’t grief, but a silent sigh of relief.

Her parents were already dead.

They were a devoted high school teacher couple, Jiang Congyue said softly, gently placing two bouquets of white chrysanthemums before the graves and lighting the paper money.

The flickering orange flames danced, casting a warm glow on her serene profile. Her voice was barely a whisper, like a sigh. A car accident. You were less than two months old. They were rushing back to their hometown for the Lunar New Year…

Jiang Le crouched down and mechanically accepted a stack of paper money. Kneeling on the cold stone slab, she fed the sheets into the fire one by one. The flames devoured the paper, emitting faint crackling sounds.

I have no other relatives? Her voice was dry.

They were all only children. Your grandmother… Jiang Congyue paused, her tone softening, The shock was too much for her. She passed away just a few days later. Her body wasn’t discovered by neighbors until days later. As for you, perhaps a kind-hearted person took you to the orphanage.

In the firelight, Jiang Le’s lowered eyelashes cast deep shadows beneath her eyes, and her fingertips trembled almost imperceptibly. A massive, icy question slammed silently into her heart She’s lying.

If her grandmother’s death wasn’t discovered for days, how could she, as a baby in swaddling clothes, have been promptly delivered to the orphanage’s doorstep?

But she didn’t press the matter. When someone is determined to conceal the truth, further questioning would be futile. She simply tossed the paper money into the fire more quickly.

Suddenly, she lifted her head, her gaze burning like a torch as she stared directly at Jiang Congyue. My surname was Jiang from the beginning. You… you’re also a Jiang. Her voice carried an eerie calm. Was this part of the ‘fate’ you mentioned before?

Jiang Congyue slowly knelt before her, her gaze meeting Jiang Le’s. The firelight reflected in her deep eyes, illuminating Jiang Le’s pale face. She gently shook her head, her voice unwavering It doesn’t count.

Hearing this, Jiang Le forced a strained smile and lowered her head, her voice muffled. Why didn’t you tell me sooner? Why bring me here only today? Don’t tell me you just found out now. I don’t believe you.

You were too young when you were little. I couldn’t bear to tell you. And when you got older, I thought… perhaps it wasn’t necessary. Jiang Congyue reached out, her warm, dry palm gently resting on Jiang Le’s head, the gesture full of tenderness.

Her voice was as soft as a feather, yet carried a heartbreaking weight. But Lele, you’ve never truly considered me family, have you?

Under Jiang Le’s shocked gaze, Jiang Congyue slowly rose, massaging her leg. In a voice so gentle it seemed to melt the air, she continued You’ve only ever seen me as a benefactor. But Lele, you’re an orphan, and I’m alone in this world too. Neither of us needs a benefactor or someone indebted to us. What we need is family, isn’t that right?

I don’t want you to feel lonely after I’m gone, yearning for family, only to find yourself facing three cold gravestones.

I wish you could still be spoiled by me while I’m here. But what will my darling do when I’m gone?

She opened her arms and gently pulled the stiff girl into a hug, resting her chin on the crown of her head. With a sigh, she murmured, At least for now, you can cry your heart out in my arms.

Scalding tears surged forth without warning, instantly soaking through the fabric of Jiang Congyue’s chest.

Family… How could Jiang Le not yearn for family?

No one longed for a mother’s embrace, a complete family, more than she did.

Jiang Le clutched Jiang Congyue’s sleeve tightly, her knuckles white with strain. Her body trembled uncontrollably, like a child who had finally found shelter from a storm but remained terrified. Suppressed sobs escaped her in muffled bursts.

Jiang Congyue sighed again, gently patting her back.

I wasn’t… deliberately abandoned, was I? My parents loved me, didn’t they? Jiang Le asked repeatedly, her voice muffled against Jiang Congyue’s shoulder.

Jiang Congyue only chuckled softly, offering no direct answer. But the truth was unspoken, yet clear.

On the way back, Jiang Le sat stiffly beside her, like a wooden doll. Her eyes, rimmed with red, darted uncertain glances at Jiang Congyue.

You never really seemed to consider this place home, Jiang Congyue said, as if sensing her gaze. She opened her eyes, smiled, and drew Jiang Le close, resting her head on her shoulder. Her tone was playfully reproachful. Were you always thinking about finding your birth parents someday? And abandoning this old woman?

No! Jiang Le sat up abruptly, her voice still thick with tears as she vehemently denied it. Realizing her outburst, she lowered her voice, her words thick with a nasal tone like the faint buzz of a mosquito. I… I consider you family…

Hahaha, good, I believe you. In this world, you only have me as family. Who else would you be close to? Jiang Congyue’s laughter deepened the wrinkles on her face, clearly amused by Jiang Le’s words.

The driver in the front seat couldn’t help but chuckle. Lele is the most filial and sensible girl. Boss Jiang, stop teasing her.

Jiang Le lowered her head in embarrassment, her cheeks and ears flushing crimson. She didn’t know what to say.

Naturally, she missed the fleeting glint of cunning satisfaction in Jiang Congyue’s eyes.