Ruan Ning shivered, confirming her previous decision was correct. If Liang Fu had succeeded, she would have been sold to a brothel before she could even try to conquer him.
The most important thing now was to protect her body and prevent him from violating her. Once he lost interest after having his way, he would sell her, making escape even more difficult.
“Jiao Jiao, I clearly completed the mission well, so why did you throw me into such a terrible plot?” Ruan Ning couldn’t find water or medicine, so she tore off a piece of curtain to wipe the blood, feeling utterly frustrated.
“This is a necessary test for upgrading to a third-level equal relationship,” the standard female voice explained. “The yandere in this text is dark-themed and capable of killing at any moment, which requires higher psychological quality and adaptability from the host. Keep going, and once you successfully pass this text, you can enjoy more Jinjiang benefits!”
“Give me a healing auxiliary, I’m in so much pain,” she said through gritted teeth.
The standard female voice sounded regretful: “Because this is an upgrade test, all pain-reducing auxiliaries are unavailable. The host must endure it herself.”
Ruan Ning: …
Come out, and I’ll make you unable to take care of yourself!
Liang Fu didn’t come again for the rest of the day. Ruan Ning discovered this was probably his former bedroom, with old clothes still inside. She found something to wear and later realized the door was locked.
Hungry, she cursed the system and Liang Fu, spending her first night with a rumbling stomach.
Just before dawn, hunger woke her. After puncturing the window paper, she saw snow falling outside. Finding no one around, she removed the window bolt through the hole and opened the window.
Trembling, she climbed out. Before she could jump, Liang Fu’s gloomy voice rang out behind her: “Trying to escape?”
Startled, Ruan Ning trembled, falling backward. Liang Fu could have caught her but didn’t move, hoping she would fall and get injured, as long as she didn’t die.
But Ruan Ning grabbed his arm. Although it was too late, she held on tightly, reducing the impact and preventing serious injury.
“Good morning,” she said, disheveled and lying in the snow, awkwardly smiling at him. “I was just coming out to enjoy the snow.”
Liang Fu was stunned. In his memory, she had never smiled at him, nor had she looked down on him with a proud expression. The more strongly she had despised him, the more he had wanted to trample her.
But now she was actually smiling at him, a beautiful smile that seemed genuine.
In the next moment, Liang Fu reacted, bending down to grab her collar and tearing her clothes, saying coldly, “You dare wear my clothes!”
She tentatively reached out to grab his hand, calling him softly by his courtesy name: “Chongsi, I was young and proud in the past. I’m sorry. Although I made mistakes, we were still engaged. My embarrassment might cause people to gossip about you. Scholars’ reputations are most important. Why harm the jade vase while catching mice?”
Liang Fu was surprised. She had never called him by his courtesy name, always addressing him formally, showing her disdain. But her words now sounded pleasant. He had never seen her this humble and gentle before, and he couldn’t help softening.
However, he quickly realized that her submissiveness must be an act to escape, as she had just tried to flee through the window.
This woman was still as heartless towards him as before.
Liang Fu flew into a rage, tearing his old clothes and throwing them away. Ruan Ning curled up in the snow, hugging her arms to cover her exposed parts.
She felt that continuing to act submissive was appropriate, lowering her eyes, which made Liang Fu feel like he was bullying her, increasing his shame and anger. Wasn’t she the one who had wronged him?
Liang Fu bent down, picked up the torn clothes, and threw them in Ruan Ning’s face, cursing, “Stop playing the victim! Get back inside now!”
Finally, he was letting her go. Ruan Ning sighed in relief and hurried inside. Her tattered clothes couldn’t hide her waist and figure, making Liang Fu feel incredibly thirsty as he licked the snowflakes on his lips.
The door was locked. Ruan Ning hesitated and looked back: “The door… it’s locked.”
These words stirred Liang Fu’s conflicting emotions. He quickly walked over and pinned her against the door, whispering a curse: “Damn, I’ll stop you from escaping!”
His hands tore at her ragged clothes. Ruan Ning cried out, “Ouch,” and crouched by the door frame: “I… my stomach hurts so much…”
She bit her lip and covered her stomach, deliberately making her voice hoarse. In the cold weather with little clothing, her cheeks were pale. Seeing this, Liang Fu assumed she was in pain, reminding him of her menstrual period.
He stepped back, coldly watching her. Committed to her performance, Ruan Ning pressed her stomach and squeezed out a few tears. “It hurts so much. I’m so cold. Chongsi, am I about to die?”
Liang Fu sneered, “I’ve never heard of a woman dying from this!”
“But it really hurts,” she timidly touched his fingertip. “Are you sure I won’t die?”
This submissive attitude reduced Liang Fu’s anger. He walked forward, unlocked the door, and said coldly, “Go inside.”
Ruan Ning entered the room, covering her stomach and continuing to squeeze out tears. She sensed he responded better to softness than hardness. Liang Fu quickly left, closing the door and window. Ruan Ning felt he was also worried about her catching a cold.
Curled up on the bed with a thin blanket, she gritted her teeth: “Jiaojiao, you’re too unfair.”
Not suffering physical pain, starvation, or freezing was my bottom line. This world has completely crossed that line. I’m about to starve to death!
“Host, please be patient. Only by enduring hardship can one rise above others!” the standard female voice responded calmly.
Ruan Ning laughed in anger, “What do you mean by rising above others? I’m just a dead-end web novelist. What could I possibly rise to?”
The female voice confidently replied, “Host can climb the rankings. Our Jinjiang writers are impressive.”
Ruan Ning’s eyes lit up. “So you’re saying I might make it to the gold rankings? How much am I earning in manuscript fees now?”
A transparent panel appeared, showing numbers racing. Ruan Ning’s eyes widened, but the numbers stopped at 11.425.
Ruan Ning: …
If the decimal point moved three places to the right, that would indeed be impressive.
“Host hasn’t checked your achievements in a while. Actually, you’ve received fewer negative reviews recently,” the female voice consoled her. “It shows you’ve improved.”
The panel’s numbers rolled again, negative reviews decreasing from 5 to 0. But before she could feel happy, she noticed the click count had also drastically dropped.
Ruan Ning: …
This isn’t improvement. It’s because no one’s reading, so there are no negative reviews!
The standard female voice remained confident: “Quick transmigration stories are difficult when incomplete. Host must persist. Maybe you’ll ascend after completion!”
“Ascend my ass!” Ruan Ning exploded. “I just want to eat!”
The door was kicked open with a bang. Liang Fu walked in with a stern face, throwing something on the table with a clang and growling, “Eat!”
Ruan Ning almost burst into tears. Who would have thought she’d end up in such a situation?
The meal was cold porridge with pickled vegetables. Ruan Ning didn’t care and was about to eat, but Liang Fu pushed her hand away: “Wait!”
He brought over a kettle, added hot water and brown sugar, then coldly glanced at Ruan Ning: “Eat!”
The brown sugar and hot water ratio was standard. Ruan Ning’s stomach didn’t hurt, but if pretending could bring benefits, she didn’t mind continuing the act.
