“No matter what, I absolutely cannot marry Shen Siyuan.”
Hearing her call from behind, Shen Siyuan curled his lips into a cold smile.
The absurd thought that had briefly surfaced in his mind was instantly suppressed again.
Hah. She’s still the same as always, desperate to cling to me. How could she possibly be unwilling to marry me?
His dark eyes narrowed, a flash of irritation passing through them.
This woman was truly a talented actress. He had almost believed the nonsense she had just said.
With that thought, he unconsciously quickened his pace.
“Chuchu, where are you going?”
Seeing her about to chase after him, Zhao Qiaoyun hurriedly stepped forward and blocked her path.
She was afraid her daughter would run off and say something foolish to the Shen family’s boy again.
What if he actually believed her and gave up the idea of marrying her?
If that happened, her daughter would have nowhere left to cry.
Looking at her mother standing in front of her, He Ruchu sighed helplessly.
“Mom, listen to me. I really can’t marry Shen Siyuan…”
Otherwise, not only would she die a miserable death, she would drag the entire He family down with her.
In the novel, Shen Siyuan left after this incident and never appeared again.
A few days later, however, he simply tossed the He family a marriage certificate.
So according to the plot, this was supposed to be her last meeting with Shen Siyuan before their wedding.
She had to seize this opportunity and make him abandon the idea of marrying her.
After hearing her words, Zhao Qiaoyun held onto her even more tightly.
“You silly child, what nonsense are you talking about?”
Things had already developed to this point.
If she didn’t marry Shen Siyuan, then who else could she marry?
Besides, among all the young men around, Shen Siyuan’s character was far better than most.
Entrusting her daughter to him would at least give her some peace of mind.
“Come on, Chuchu. Be good and come home with Mom first.”
Beside them, He Yaoguang also spoke up.
“Ruchu, listen to us. Let’s go home first.”
Without giving her any room to argue, the couple led He Ruchu away.
Having no other choice, she followed them home for the time being.
The moment they entered the house, He Yaoguang and Zhao Qiaoyun prepared to interrogate their daughter.
Seeing their determined expressions, He Ruchu felt her already throbbing head ache even more.
Raising a hand to rub her temple, she said,
“Mom, Dad, let me rest for a while first. Whatever it is, we can talk about it after I’ve had some rest.”
On the way home, she had already thought things through.
The reason she had transmigrated into this body was probably because the original owner had accidentally hit her head while struggling with Shen Siyuan.
Even now, the large bump on the back of her head hadn’t gone down.
The countless questions on her parents’ lips were instantly swallowed back.
Looking at their exhausted daughter, how could they bear to press her further?
Zhao Qiaoyun said gently,
“Alright. Go get some rest first. We can talk about everything else later.”
“That’s right,” He Yaoguang agreed.
He reached out and patted his daughter’s head.
“Daughter, don’t think about anything. Just rest peacefully.
Even if the sky falls, your father will hold it up for you.”
Warmth spread through He Ruchu’s heart.
She obediently nodded.
“Okay.”
The He family genuinely loved the original owner.
She had been spoiled and cherished by them since childhood.
One could say she got whatever she wanted and lived an exceptionally happy life.
Returning to the original owner’s bedroom and lying down on the bed, He Ruchu finally felt the tightly wound string in her mind loosen slightly.
There were two reasons she had rushed back to her room.
First, she wanted to sort through the original owner’s memories and the plot of the novel.
Second, she wanted to avoid the original owner’s parents for a while.
Honestly, during the walk home with them, she had been nervous the entire time.
She was terrified she might accidentally reveal some flaw and expose the fact that she wasn’t their real daughter.
If possible, she really didn’t want too much contact with the original owner’s family just yet.
Thinking this, He Ruchu couldn’t help sighing.
She shook her head, pushed those worries aside, and began reviewing the novel’s plot.
In the story, all of the original owner’s tragedies began after marriage.
It wasn’t exactly that the male lead was a bad person.
Rather…
How should she put it?
He Ruchu felt that the fate of female supporting characters was a common problem in this type of romance novel.
They were forced to become stupid, vicious, unlucky every negative trait imaginable.
All the bad things in the world seemed to be piled onto them.
They existed solely to serve as stepping stones for the heroine’s rise and success.
Back when He Ruchu had read the novel, it had infuriated her countless times.
The supporting female character should have been the one blessed with overwhelming good fortune.
Yet the author had somehow written her into a brainless fool.
Those absurd and illogical plotlines forced onto her had been enough to make readers grit their teeth in frustration.
And then there was the heroine.
She was even more irritating.
Pretending to be the supporting character’s best friend.
Always acting as though she was doing everything “for her own good.”
A supposedly perfect, kind-hearted saint.
It was honestly disgusting.
“Alright, I’m getting off track.”
He Ruchu muttered to herself, reining in her thoughts.
The most important issue right now was figuring out how to untangle this ill-fated relationship with the male lead.
The novel’s portrayal of him wasn’t bad.
At the very least, he had a proper sense of right and wrong.
But to avoid ending up like the original owner and dying a miserable death, she absolutely could not marry him.
Marriage was out of the question.
There was also the matter of his injury.
Although the original owner had caused it, He Ruchu had inherited her body and should therefore bear the responsibility.
In the novel, the male lead never fully recovered.
Even after ending up with the heroine, he was never able to become her husband in the complete sense of the word.
The heroine never despised him for it.
Nevertheless, he carried guilt over it for the rest of his life.
He Ruchu felt that she had to cure him.
Otherwise, she would be burdened with guilt for the rest of her own life as well.
The more she thought about it, the less she could stay lying down.
She wondered how serious his injury really was.
The novel hadn’t provided many details.
It had only mentioned that he went to the hospital and learned the diagnosis after an examination.
Medical conditions in this era were still relatively underdeveloped, especially in sensitive specialties like andrology and gynecology.
Many patients were unwilling to seek treatment for such issues, which often meant doctors in those fields weren’t particularly experienced.
He Ruchu couldn’t help feeling that, while his injury looked serious, it surely shouldn’t be severe enough to leave him disabled for life.
After all, in her previous world, even severed body parts could sometimes be surgically reattached.
His wasn’t even severed.
Surely there was hope.
The more she thought about it, the more restless she became.
“No, I need to go take a look…”
Muttering to herself, she got up, grabbed a dress from the wardrobe, put it on, and headed out.
The male lead’s condition couldn’t be delayed.
If she could discover something early and cure him, she’d be free of this burden as well.
Meanwhile, in the living room, He Yaoguang and Zhao Qiaoyun were still discussing their daughter’s situation with Shen Siyuan.
When they saw her hurrying downstairs, they both fell silent.
Together, they looked at her.
“Ruchu, why are you in such a hurry? Did something happen?”
It was Zhao Qiaoyun who spoke.
Seeing her daughter rushing toward the door, she quickly stood up and walked over.
He Ruchu waved her hand dismissively.
“Mom, it’s nothing. I’m just going out for a bit.”
After saying that, she stepped outside.
But after only a few steps, she suddenly remembered something and turned back.
“Mom, Dad… how did you know I was at that abandoned warehouse on the west side?”