Chapter 3
2066 Words
Xu Mei stood still for a moment. Fu Shuyang had fallen silent and showed no intention of bothering her again.
Only then did her tightly strung nerves begin to relax.
“Thank you,” she whispered and quietly stepped into the nearby bathroom.
She wanted to splash her face with cold water, try to calm down. But the moment she looked in the mirror, she startled herself.
The girl in the reflection had blinding neon green hair, fire-engine red lipstick, and thick, over-the-top false lashes. It was… intense.
Maybe it was something about this body, but Xu Mei could feel the resentment and defiance the original owner had poured into this look.
No wonder Fu Shuyang instinctively recoiled at the sight of her, even drunk.
No wonder the property staff had looked so stunned when they first saw her.
Xu Mei’s heart ached for the girl who’d lived in this body before her, but… this really wasn’t her style.
The hair color couldn’t be fixed right now, but she could at least wipe the makeup off and reveal the original face underneath.
A pale, delicate little face with naturally upturned phoenix eyes—sharp on the inside corners, winged at the edges. Her irises were so dark they looked like obsidian. When she wasn’t smiling, her eyes were a bit cold. But when she did, her eyes curved sweetly, framed by soft eye bags and dimples. She was stunning.
Such a lovely girl, forced to become a rebellious delinquent.
Staring at this unfamiliar face, Xu Mei took a deep breath.
It’s going to get better.
When she stepped out of the bathroom, Fu Shuyang was already sound asleep on the sofa.
Not daring to provoke him again, Xu Mei tiptoed upstairs and locked the bedroom door behind her.
It had been an exhausting day. Despite the strange house, the uncertainty of the future, and the man sleeping downstairs… exhaustion eventually claimed her.
But her sleep was restless, full of fragmented dreams. Sometimes she was herself, sometimes she became the original owner.
When she opened her eyes again, it was already morning, and sweat clung to her skin.
The unfamiliar ceiling reminded her—this wasn’t a dream.
She pinched her arm, hard. It hurt. Nothing had changed.
She had really transmigrated.
After washing up, Xu Mei crept to the top of the stairs and peeked into the living room.
The couch was empty.
She let out a long breath.
Looking back, she couldn’t believe how reckless she’d been—leaving such a dangerous man in her house.
Too bold. Far too bold.
Fu Shuyang was gone. No note, no goodbye.
Xu Mei was relieved. Hopefully, that would be the end of their contact.
But the future loomed ahead, and she began to worry.
The original Xu Mei was eighteen, fresh out of high school. She had been an arts student with terrible academic scores, but her exceptional talent had earned her a spot at a local arts university.
Xu Mei, on the other hand, had no dance experience. Her limbs were stiff, her balance terrible—completely unqualified.
Going back to high school wasn’t an option either. She’d been an orphan in her past life and had never attended formal high school.
There was no choice but to bite the bullet and go to university.
It was early August—school started in a month.
Her head throbbed again from the bump.
She had a month to learn at least the basics of dance from scratch. Otherwise, the university might reject her before classes even started.
No matter how hard the road, she had to walk it.
First things first—food. Xu Mei decided to buy groceries. Takeout was too expensive, and she’d heard art colleges cost more than regular ones. Better to save where she could.
Also, she needed to fix this green hair ASAP.
Thankfully, she had grabbed two hats while packing.
She picked a black baseball cap and tugged it on. It couldn’t cover everything, but at least she didn’t look like a walking traffic light anymore.
At the front gate, she asked the security guard, “Excuse me, is there a vegetable market nearby?”
The guard stared at her for a beat, then frowned. “Sorry, you are…?”
There weren’t many residents here—he knew every one of them by face.
Now a stranger had shown up. Naturally, he was suspicious.
Xu Mei awkwardly adjusted her cap and pulled out a lock of green hair. “Recognize me now?”
“Oh! You’re… Miss Xu?” The guard looked sheepish. “My apologies. It’s early—I’m still waking up. Didn’t recognize you.”
“It’s fine.” Xu Mei rubbed her nose. “So, about that market?”
“There’s no market, but there’s a chain supermarket. Just go left about 500 meters. Need someone to take you?”
“No need, thanks.”
She walked to the store. The area had few residents, and the supermarket was nearly empty.
The prices, however, were through the roof.
She quickly picked out some vegetables and a bottle of hair dye. Her heart ached a little as she paid.
But at least it was convenient.
“Meimei!”
Just as she stepped out, a familiar voice called out.
Xu Mei frowned, sped up her steps, and pretended not to hear.
“I’m talking to you! Are you deaf?” This time it was a male voice.
Suddenly, someone tugged on her grocery bag.
She’d bought quite a lot, and the bag was heavy. Being pulled like that, she had no choice but to stop and turn around.
A teenage boy, maybe seventeen or eighteen, stood behind her.
His face was shiny with oil and riddled with pimples.
Xu Mei quickly scanned her memory. That name… Liu Lechi. They’d gone to middle school together.
Ironically, before Xu Lang appeared, Liu Lechi had treated the original Xu Mei quite well.
But after Xu Lang came into the picture, Liu Lechi had become her lapdog, constantly scolding Xu Mei for being ungrateful.
A typical simp—with a miserable ending, too. He ended up offending the male lead because of his obsession with Xu Lang.
“What do you want?” Xu Mei asked coldly.
“Meimei!” Xu Lang finally caught up, panting. She grabbed Xu Mei’s arm like she was afraid she’d run off. “Why are you out shopping by yourself?”
In their family, they had maids—none of them ever needed to do chores.
“I’m a broke student kicked out of the house. You think I still have a maid?” Xu Mei said impatiently. “If you have something to say, say it. Don’t waste my time—I’m busy.”
Xu Lang looked hurt. Her eyes turned red.
Before she could speak, Liu Lechi jumped in angrily. “What the hell’s wrong with you, Xu Mei? She’s your sister! She stayed up all night worrying about you, and this is how you treat her?”
Great. Now even he thought he could scold her.
Xu Zhongya was bad enough—at least he was blood.
But Liu Lechi? What gave him the right?
“And who the hell are you to lecture me?” Xu Mei sneered. “Since you’re so concerned about her, why not marry her and keep her in your home? That way she won’t have to bother me ever again. I’ll be so grateful I’ll treat you like royalty. How’s that, brother-in-law?”
Liu Lechi’s face turned beet red. “Y-You—what nonsense are you saying?!”
“Oh? So you don’t like her?” Xu Mei smirked.
Liu Lechi looked ready to explode. Denying it would hurt, but admitting it would be worse.
“Meimei, don’t say things like that,” Xu Lang said, her face also flushing. But she was more composed. “You’re a young girl—you can’t talk like that. People will misunderstand you.”
“Stop lecturing me. If you’ve got something to say, say it,” Xu Mei snapped, yanking her arm away. “If not, I’m leaving.”
“Don’t!” Xu Lang grabbed her harder, speaking quickly, “This place is remote, barely anyone lives here, and there are rumors of ghosts. It’s not safe for a young girl to live here alone. Come back with me. Apologize to Dad properly. He’s your father—he won’t stay angry.”
Her tone alone made Xu Mei’s blood boil. “And why exactly do I have to apologize? What did I do wrong?”
Xu Lang froze, momentarily speechless. “Well… regardless, you’re the younger one. Even if Dad was wrong, you—”
“Enough!” Xu Mei cut her off. “Go back to your wonderful father. The moment he betrayed my mother, he stopped being my dad.”
She didn’t give Xu Lang another chance to speak and pulled her arm free, walking away.
Xu Lang looked up at the sky, but the tears still fell silently.
Liu Lechi’s chest heaved. He suddenly rushed forward and grabbed Xu Mei’s bag again.
The bag wasn’t sturdy to begin with. After all the tugging, it finally gave out—everything spilled to the ground.
Xu Mei’s face darkened instantly.
Liu Lechi froze, awkward and speechless.
Xu Lang wiped her tears and squatted to help pick things up.
But Xu Mei blocked her with a hand. “Out of respect for the fact that my mom once saved your life, can you please just stay out of my life?”
Xu Lang went pale and sank to the ground.
Liu Lechi lunged forward and grabbed Xu Mei’s wrist. “You’ve gone too far!”
He had a strong grip. Xu Mei winced from the pain and kicked at him, but he dodged.
Just then, a pale hand reached out from the side and grabbed Liu Lechi’s wrist.
The hand looked thin and elegant, but the grip was strong. Liu Lechi let out a scream like a dying pig and instantly let go.
Xu Mei rubbed her wrist and stepped back, only then looking up.
She froze.
Fu Shuyang.
He was dressed in all black, face expressionless, eyes full of menace. He spat out a single word:
“Scram.”
Liu Lechi sized him up. He looked thin and not very threatening. That scream earlier had just been because he was caught off guard.
Now was his chance to regain face in front of Xu Lang.
“And who the hell are you? Mind your own business!” Liu Lechi snarled. “Are you with this b***h—”
Fu Shuyang had already let go, but the moment that slur left Liu Lechi’s mouth, his eyes narrowed.
His hand, still hovering mid-air, clenched into a fist—and flew into Liu Lechi’s face like lightning.
Blood sprayed from his nose, cutting off whatever he was about to say. He stood there, stunned.
But Fu Shuyang didn’t stop. His punches rained down faster and faster. Within seconds, Liu Lechi’s face swelled like a pig’s head, and he started sobbing, falling to his knees.
But Fu Shuyang had seen red. He raised his foot, ready for more.
“Stop!” Xu Lang cried, trying to pull him back.
Fu Shuyang sidestepped her hand, voice cold enough to freeze:
“Don’t touch me. Get lost.”
“Meimei—Xu Mei!” Xu Lang had never been treated like this by a man before. Panic crept into her voice. “Make him stop! He’ll kill someone!”
Even Xu Mei was a little stunned.
No wonder Fu Shuyang was the novel’s final boss. That murderous aura was real.
“Fu… ge,” she said, trying to sound calm. “Maybe that’s enough? You don’t want to kill anyone.”
She secretly dug her nails into her palm, silently praying he’d give her face.
It wasn’t for Liu Lechi’s sake.
She could tell his injuries were just superficial.
But if Fu Shuyang let it go for her, then Xu Lang would think Xu Mei had someone powerful backing her—and might stop pestering her.
Fu Shuyang glanced at her, then slowly lowered his foot.
Xu Mei’s lips curved in a small, satisfied smile.
Borrowing a tiger’s power—successfully done.
- Writer
