◎She even shook his neck and called, "President Yu?"◎
The Yu family villa was brightly lit in the distance. Jian Youyou fished her phone out of her clutch—it was a little past three in the morning...
The main problem was, Jian Youyou had no idea which day’s "three in the morning" this was. When she left the world, she had forgotten to check the date in the book’s timeline.
Recalling the plot at this point, after the drunken confession, the next part was her—the overambitious supporting female character—being kicked out of the car, walking until her feet were blistered, and returning to the villa, only for Yu Hekun to coldly order her upstairs.
Yes, before coming back, she had specifically reviewed the plot and memorized that the male lead’s name was Yu Hekun, not He Yukun or He Kunyu.
She had also carefully read the upcoming plot several times—all the clichéd, melodramatic conflicts where she, as the supporting female, would clash with various cannon-fodder rivals for the male lead’s attention. But right now, the real issue was how to smooth over the current situation.
However, since she had decided to return, and the plot had assured her that dying in this mission world would simply mean waking up in reality, Jian Youyou felt much more confident. So, without lingering outside for too long, she "slightly" adjusted her appearance and pretended to limp into the Yu family villa.
Logically, this kind of villa shouldn’t just let anyone waltz in. Jian Youyou had even prepared an excuse in case she was stopped. But the security guard at the gate took one look at her and reacted as if he’d seen a ghost. He didn’t even step out of the guard booth, just stared at her through the glass before rapidly speaking into his walkie-talkie.
In any case, Jian Youyou slipped into the villa with surprising ease. She was so puzzled by the lack of resistance that she forgot to keep up the limp halfway down the path and practically sprinted to the villa’s entrance before remembering.
She pulled out her phone, checked her reflection in the camera, and deemed her appearance flawless before finally pushing the door open and stepping inside.
Before entering, Jian Youyou had peeked through the floor-to-ceiling windows and hadn’t seen anyone in the living room. She figured that even if Yu Hekun had sent people to look for her after her sudden disappearance, it would’ve just been a bunch of bodyguards. The original plot had let the supporting female character trudge back in the dark with bleeding feet—how much importance could a paid "lookalike" really hold?
Besides, Jian Youyou hadn’t forgotten Yu Hekun’s terrifying expression earlier, or how he’d told the driver to run her over. In her mind, Yu Hekun now equaled a deranged murderer.
The only difference was that she wasn’t as scared anymore—because she was an unkillable cockroach.
But of all the scenarios she had imagined upon opening the door—being ignored by the servants, Yu Hekun sneering at her in disdain—nothing could’ve prepared her for what she actually saw.
The moment the door swung open, she was met with a room full of people, all sitting in darkness, and what felt like countless heads whipping around to stare at her.
Jian Youyou was reminded of that viral internet joke about sunflowers suddenly turning their heads. Faced with so many pairs of eyes, she instinctively pulled her foot back and slammed the door shut.
In the two seconds she spent hesitating between running and staying, she had already made up her mind. But the moment she turned to flee, two men burst out of the living room, grabbed her, and hauled her back inside—straight to Yu Hekun.
Yu Hekun had spent an entire day and night searching for Jian Youyou. His emotions had spiraled from fury and panic to sheer worry. That very afternoon, he—someone who never asked for favors—had even filed a police report. Tonight was the last critical window for finding her, and he had started suspecting that her sudden disappearance might’ve been orchestrated by one of his rivals.
He had already begun investigating, even drawing up a list of suspects. When Jian Youyou opened the door, he had been instructing his bodyguards to stake out the homes of those suspicious individuals...
And now, this woman who had vanished into thin air suddenly reappeared in the dead of night—looking utterly disheveled. The rage Yu Hekun had been bottling up to its breaking point instantly morphed into horror when he took in Jian Youyou’s messy hair, the grass clinging to her clothes, and the nearly torn dress that barely covered her armpits.
Of course, the disheveled look was entirely Jian Youyou’s own doing. She had wanted to appear pitiful, as if she’d fallen into a ditch and gotten scratched up. She had only meant to tear her dress a little, but who knew this high-end gown would be less durable than her household rags? One wrong tug, and the slit shot up way too high. The moment she was set down, her first instinct was to clutch at the fabric, trying to cover her blindingly pale legs.
What she didn’t realize was how badly this could be misinterpreted—and in the worst possible way.
A woman, dressed to the nines, disappears late at night after putting on quite the show. Then, a day later, she reappears in the same outfit, looking like she’d been through hell, her dress torn to shreds—how could anyone not jump to conclusions?
Yu Hekun had been running on fumes for over a day. His face was ghostly pale, and the eye that had been hit by the button earlier was bloodshot, a red blotch making him look even more terrifying. But the moment he saw Jian Youyou like this, the air around him turned icy. He shot up from his seat, stormed over to her, and demanded in a voice that promised violence, "Who was it?!"
Jian Youyou, acutely aware of the room full of men staring at her, hunched slightly as she tried to adjust the handmade slit in her dress. Yu Hekun’s outburst made her flinch backward, her shoulders hunching even more—making her look even more pitiful.
Seeing this, Yu Hekun’s eyes darkened further. The fury burning through him was so intense that he bared his teeth in a grim smile, biting his tongue just to stay rational. He truly hadn’t expected anyone in Zhouning City to dare lay a hand on a woman belonging to Yu Hekun!
"Everyone, out!" he barked.
The bodyguards silently filed out of the room. Yu Hekun stood a short distance from Jian Youyou, taking a deep breath. The veins at his temples pulsed visibly as he exhaled slowly before repeating, "Who was it? Where did he take you?!"
Jian Youyou was completely baffled by the questions. "He took you"? Who was "he"? The plot hadn’t mentioned anything like this!
And the way Yu Hekun spoke made her shrink back even further. He looked genuinely terrifying. Sure, she might be an unkillable cockroach, but she could still feel pain. The way Yu Hekun was glaring at her, like he was seconds away from strangling her, was impossible not to fear.
"Speak."
Just give him a name—any name—and Yu Hekun would make sure that person wished they were dead.
His voice was low, restrained, but that only made it sound even more menacing.
The two questions had turned Jian Youyou’s brain into a bubbling cauldron of confusion. This wasn’t in the plot—was it some kind of hidden storyline?
"Where did he take you?" Did the original supporting female character have a secret lover behind Yu Hekun’s back?
There was no way she could admit to that. The character she was playing was supposed to be hopelessly devoted—if she confessed to some mystery "he," the game would be over before it even started.
The two people with completely opposite thoughts exchanged glances, their expressions unreadable. Jian Youyou gritted her teeth, ignoring Yu Hekun’s almost ferocious glare, and charged at him like a stubborn calf. She knocked him back onto the chair, then threw herself onto him, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face in his shoulder as she fake-sobbed dramatically.
"Wuwuwu... Boss Yu, I-I... I was so scared," she wailed. Yu Hekun’s tailbone ached from the impact, and his head buzzed from exhaustion after a day without rest. Being ridden like a donkey by someone who had just rolled around on the ground—now as filthy as a lump of dung—was unbearable for his severe mysophobia.
Yet, after his face cycled through several shades like a chameleon, he let her continue bawling on his shoulder. He raised his hands, not to push her away, but to hesitantly hover near her head, recalling her supposed misfortune. He even steeled himself to pat her head in comfort.
Overwhelming guilt flooded his heart. He shouldn’t have let her out of his sight, even for a moment. Now, seeing her like this, he couldn’t bring himself to hurt her pride further.
"It’s alright..." he said softly, in a tone he’d rarely used in his life. "You’re back now. Just tell me who did this, and I’ll—"
"I fell into a tree pit, wuwuwu!" Jian Youyou cut him off, launching into her premeditated lie. "I hit my head and passed out... It was so dark! When I woke up, I crawled out desperately. Boss Yu, I was so scared, wuwuwu!"
Yu Hekun’s comforting hand froze just 0.01 millimeters from her head. After a stiff pause, he asked, "You’re saying... after running away last night, you fell into a tree pit and only crawled out today?"
Jian Youyou nodded vigorously, inwardly cheering—great, now she knew she’d only been gone for a day!
"I was drunk, Boss Yu. Don’t be mad at me," she said, forcing her eyes to redden slightly (though not a single tear fell—she even dabbed saliva on her fingers as a substitute). She looked up at him and tossed the blame far away. "Whatever I did while drunk doesn’t count! I have terrible drinking habits—I black out! Boss Yu~"
The last two lines were unmistakably coquettish. Wasn’t there a movie that said a woman who acts cute has the best luck?
Jian Youyou had no idea how forced her act was, nor how atrocious her acting skills truly were. Yu Hekun’s temple twitched violently as he leaned back in the chair. His gaze dropped to her fair, unblemished face and neck, then to the long legs straddling his lap—so dazzling they practically burned his retinas.
Not a single mark. No signs of the supposed "assault," nor even the scratches one would expect from tumbling into a tree pit.
Then he noticed the unnatural wetness around her eyes. His intelligence was being ground into the dirt.
"Get off," Yu Hekun said, his tone eerily calm.
Jian Youyou thought she’d succeeded and couldn’t help but smirk. Novel CEOs really did trade brains for looks—Yu Hekun was so handsome and even smelled nice, but clearly, he wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed. How fair the world was!
Encouraged, she wriggled a little and whined, "Boss Yu... I’m so hungry. I haven’t eaten all day—my organs are practically sticking together!"
Truthfully, she’d just worked up an appetite from all the acting. Plus, the food here was incredible. She even gulped audibly at the thought, blinking up at him.
His face had settled into tranquility—but Jian Youyou didn’t realize it was the calm before the storm.
She shook his arm. "Boss Yu?"
"GET THE HELL OFF ME!" Yu Hekun’s patience snapped. He roared so loudly that Jian Youyou recoiled, instantly releasing his neck and leaping off him with the agility of a startled cat. She scrambled several steps back, putting a safe distance between them.
See? Life’s hardships had their uses. This lightning-fast reflex was a gift from her dear mother, Shuiyue, and her relentless "broomstick-and-tiger-claw" discipline!
Yu Hekun stood, his finger trembling as he pointed at her. All the fury he’d suppressed, thinking she’d been harmed, now surged back with tsunami force, obliterating every rational thought in his brain. The slit of her dress, gaping open to her armpit, made his eyes twitch helplessly. He jabbed his finger at her and bellowed, "GET YOUR ASS UPSTAIRS BEFORE I STRANGLE YOU RIGHT NOW!"
Jian Youyou hunched her shoulders and chirped, "On it!"
She darted past him and bolted up to the second floor, Yu Hekun’s furious shouts chasing her all the way. His voice was laced with venom: "I should’ve let the driver run you over last night! A tree pit? There’s only one crooked tree in the yard—at dawn, I’ll have you hanged from it and turned into a damn swing!"
With Yu Hekun’s megaphone-like voice ringing in her ears, Jian Youyou fled like a terrified rabbit into her room.
Downstairs, Yu Hekun stood in the vast, empty hall, muttering curses under his breath. The fluorescent lights stabbed his eyes, and his head throbbed dully. He hadn’t slept in nearly two days, oscillating between rage and worry the entire time. Now that Jian Youyou was back, he glanced up at where she’d disappeared, licked his cracked lips, and sighed, squeezing his eyes shut in exhaustion.
It had been years since anything—or anyone—had stressed him out this much.
Other people’s kept lovers were docile, coming and going at their beck and call, sweet and attentive. But him? He’d only wanted a pretty face to occasionally take to banquets. Instead, he’d ended up with this walking disaster. For the past two days, he’d nearly turned Zhouning City upside down searching for her.
A day’s absence from work had left a mountain of tasks. Tomorrow, he’d have to return to the office and notify everyone he’d troubled that she’d been "found." Checking the time, he decided sleep was pointless and slumped onto the sofa, massaging his temples.
By the time dawn tinged the sky, he retreated to his room for a shower, hoping to freshen up. Then he switched off the blinding hall lights and sipped coffee in the dark.
Half-conscious, his head nodding, he suddenly jerked awake when his arm slipped. A glow from the kitchen caught his eye—someone was rummaging through the fridge.
At this hour, it couldn’t be a servant. They knew better than to emerge while he was still in the living room.
That left only one possibility. Yu Hekun had planned to ignore the little rat, but the clattering and her muttered complaints grated on his nerves. His anger, never fully extinguished, flared anew. After a moment’s struggle, he gave in and stalked toward the kitchen.
Jian Youyou rummaged for a while but couldn’t find any tasty snacks. She took a bite of a carrot and put it back—utterly unappetizing. She was genuinely starving, used to midnight snacking at home, but the original owner of this body in the story had no such habit. So, the fridge in her room was completely bare, not even a single feather to be found...
Too hungry to bear it, Jian Youyou tiptoed downstairs. She assumed Yu Hekun would still be asleep at this hour, and the servants hadn’t risen yet, so she swaggered down without a care—completely missing the figure curled up on the sofa.
"Such a huge villa, and not even a single bag of chips..." Jian Youyou grumbled under her breath. Left with no choice, she reluctantly grabbed a large carton of milk, twisted off the cap, and tilted it straight into her mouth, determined to fill herself up with milk.
But after just one sip, the fridge door suddenly shut right in front of her. A shadowy figure stood beside her like a ghost, murmuring eerily, "What are you doing?"
Startled, Jian Youyou turned her head—and sprayed a mouthful of milk everywhere. Perfect. The dark figure was now a milky white silhouette.
