Chapter 5: The Tag-Along "Bestie"
Shen Xi remained unfazed and let out a cold laugh.
"Hah, it’s not like I can’t survive without the Shen family. I married into the Gu family for the sake of Shen Corporation’s business. Haven’t you all benefited enough from it?"
"Pull over. I’m getting out."
Shen Wanru gritted her teeth in frustration but had no comeback. As soon as the light turned green, she stomped on the gas in anger.
The sudden acceleration pushed Shen Xi back into her seat, making her a little uncomfortable. She glanced at Shen Wanru and spoke casually,
"Shen Wanru, if I remember correctly, this sports car was part of my dowry. Technically, it belongs to me. If you crash it, can you afford to pay for the damages?"
The original host had no idea about this, but the current Shen Xi had the advantage of knowing everything.
Shen Wanru was completely caught off guard. The Shen family had gone to great lengths to keep this a secret. In the past, Shen Xi would always take whatever benefits she could get from the Gu family and send them back to the Shen family, trying to earn their acceptance.
But now, why wasn’t she desperately clinging to the Shen family anymore, the way she had clung to Shi Jingyan before? Wasn’t she afraid of losing her status as the Shen family's daughter?
Could it be that the Gu family's young master has really fallen for her? Did he tell her about the dowry? After all, with that face, seducing men wouldn't be an issue for her...
The car came to a stop by the roadside. Shen Wanru eyed Shen Xi warily.
"What do you want?"
Shen Xi didn’t answer. She simply opened the door and stepped out. Before closing it, she spoke without looking back,
"Nothing. I just don’t want anything you’ve touched. You can keep it."
It wasn’t that she really didn’t want the car. The truth was, in her past life, she had only ever ridden electric scooters, never owned a driver’s license, and had no idea how to drive...
With a loud slam, the car door shut. Inside, Shen Wanru seethed with anger and embarrassment. She slammed her foot on the gas again, and the roar of the engine echoed as the car sped off.
Shen Xi, who had never known parental love in her past life, had once hoped that coming to this world would let her experience it through the original host’s memories. But now, she was utterly disappointed.
Judging by Shen Wanru’s attitude, her mother and stepfather were probably just as awful as they were in the novel.
The original host had been ruthless to her romantic rivals but desperately sought approval from a family that treated her terribly.
When she was younger, Shen Xi’s father and mother were always busy with business, so she spent most of her time with her younger brother, until she left for overseas studies. That younger brother was probably the only person in the Shen family who genuinely cared for her. He would go to any lengths to protect her.
That phone call to the police before… it must have saved him. If the story had followed the original novel’s plot, his fate would have been a life sentence in prison.
Next time she saw him, she needed to make sure he stayed out of trouble. Picking fights with the male and female leads was not worth dying for.
But that wasn’t the problem right now.
The real issue was, where was she supposed to go now?
She had only 100 yuan in her pocket. Her phone balance? Nowhere to be found.
"It’s already late… going back to the Gu family’s villa now would be so humiliating."
If she remembered correctly, the original host had her own place. Problem was… she had no idea where it was. Just as she was stressing over it, her phone rang.
"Hello? Who’s this?"
"Eh? Xixi, it’s me! Su Kexin!"
Hearing that name, Shen Xi instantly knew who it was. Her so-called bestie, more like a loyal lackey. Su Kexin had done plenty of dirty work for the original host, especially when it came to targeting the female lead.
"Oh, Keke! Sorry, I didn’t check the caller name."
"Hey, can you come pick me up on XX Road? I… kinda forgot how to get back to my own place."
Su Kexin was momentarily stunned.
In her memory, Shen Xi had never spoken to her this affectionately before.
Her heart fluttered with unexpected joy.
She had always known that Shen Xi saw her as nothing more than a convenient errand girl, but for Su Kexin, Shen Xi was her only real friend.
"Xixi, wait right there! I’m coming right now!"
After hanging up, Shen Xi looked up at the starry night sky. It wasn’t any different from her previous life. She felt the crumpled 100-yuan bill in her pocket and sighed.
"That 200-million payout takes two years to come through… That’s not gonna help right now. I need to find a way to make money fast."
In her past life, she had always dreamed of owning her own advertising design studio, but that required startup capital.
Other people who transmigrated into novels would either have the emperor fall in love with them at first sight or be pampered by an overbearing CEO, soaring straight to the top of life. But her? She ended up as the unloved villainess, rejected by both her grandfather and grandmother.
Well, whatever. She was just venting, she had no interest in being "loved" by a man. Or experiencing any kind of pain for that matter.
Just the thought of it sent chills down her spine, making her hair stand on end.
As she was lost in her thoughts, a Mercedes-Benz G-Class suddenly screeched to a stop beside her.
The car door swung open, and out stepped a tall young man, around seventeen or eighteen, with dyed blond hair and a trendy, rebellious outfit.
[Straight-up West Coast vibes… If you don’t get it, I’ll make sure your knees do.]
[The Black Tiger Heart Strike or the Monkey Steals the Peach?]
Shen Xi eyed the guy warily. He practically had a dangerous background music playing around him, definitely not someone good. She instinctively scanned her surroundings. The street was deserted.
The blond youth frowned slightly, looking puzzled.
"Sister? It’s me, Zekai."
"Why do you look like you don’t recognize me? Are you still mad at me?"
Shen Xi was momentarily stunned before realizing. Oh~ So this is the original host’s younger brother, Shen Zekai…
She coughed awkwardly.
"Ahem, it’s dark. I didn’t see clearly."
Shen Zekai rubbed his nose, looking like a wronged little puppy, then grabbed Shen Xi’s wrist with both hands.
"Sister, I just got bailed out. The family’s holding a welcome-back dinner, why didn’t you come? I know, I messed up and made you unhappy."
His expression darkened in an instant, turning vicious and cold, sending a chill down anyone’s spine.
"I don’t know which damn bastard called the cops, but if they hadn’t, everything would’ve gone smoothly. If I ever find out who it was, I swear I’ll kill them!"
Hearing that, Shen Xi’s mouth twitched slightly.
"Let go of her!"
Just then, a white sedan pulled up beside them.
A girl with shoulder-length hair, a slightly round face, and a sweet, adorable vibe rushed toward them. She was dressed in a JK uniform and looked nervous yet determined.
"Who are you… Let go of Xixi!"
The streetlight wasn’t bright enough, and all she saw was a fierce-looking young man grabbing Shen Xi’s wrist. Thinking she was being bullied, the girl, despite being scared, ran straight toward them without hesitation.
Shen Zekai was baffled by the sudden outburst. He turned to look at the newcomer, and when their eyes met, the girl gasped.
"Ah… It’s Young Master Shen…"
Zekai frowned, clearly impatient.
"Jeez, you scared me. Thought it was someone important. Turns out it’s just my sister’s little errand girl."
"Thunk!"
A knock landed on his empty skull.
"Ow! Sister, why’d you hit me?"
"Show some respect. Keke is older than you, call her ‘Sister.’"
The girl who had rushed over was none other than Su Kexin.
Shen Xi had never seen her before, but after comparing her to the novel’s description, it was a pretty close match, so she figured this must be her.
Both Zekai and Kexin were caught off guard by Shen Xi’s words.
This wasn’t how she usually acted at all… It was like she had turned into a completely different person.
Zekai clearly didn’t want to, but under Shen Xi’s authority, he begrudgingly mumbled,
"Kexin… Sister."
Su Kexin awkwardly waved it off, signaling that he didn’t have to, but her gaze lingered on Shen Xi.
A warm feeling spread through her chest. This was the first time she had ever been treated with respect.
At that moment, Shen Xi almost laughed.
The infamous villain trio from the novel was finally gathered in one place.