After taking Bai Jin around the bustling downtown area and personally buying a pile of gifts to load into the trunk, Ji Xiaoyun finally returned to the driver’s seat in satisfaction.
Yet throughout the entire trip, Bai Jin never once got out of the car. She simply sat silently in the passenger seat, staring out the window.
Seeing that she was completely unmoved despite how attentively he had treated her, Ji Xiaoyun felt a flicker of irritation.
No matter what, he was still the “second male lead,” wasn’t he? Did she think being a transmigrator made her so superior?
If this were the real world, Ji Xiaoyun was certain that Bai Jin might not even be able to find a man as outstanding as him.
Of course, Bai Jin could not hear his thoughts. No matter how wronged he felt, it was nothing more than his own self-directed tragic drama.
On the road, Bai Jin appeared calm as she looked out the window, but inside her mind, she had already sorted out the upcoming plot perfectly.
[Tsk, who would’ve thought that just days after transmigrating, I’d be forced into marriage by the male lead Sheng Muchen and then dragged by the tragic second male lead to meet his parents? Why is my character’s fate so miserable?]
[For a role like mine, once I step into the Ji family, I’ll just be ridiculed by the wealthy in-laws, and in the end I’ll still end up as a tragic supporting character.]
[Whatever. I’ll just accept whatever comes. Since I can’t go back to the real world anyway, I might as well treat this like experiencing a different life.]
As these inner thoughts poured into his head, Ji Xiaoyun realized—Bai Jin was surprisingly philosophical.
Just like famous scholars said: accept whatever life gives you; everything is destiny.
It seemed this woman had begun to accept her fate rather than struggle against it.
When they arrived at the Ji family’s old residence, Ji Xiaoyun’s parents did not come downstairs to greet them.
Instead, once Bai Jin went upstairs, Ji Xiaoyun’s mother, Liu Yinghong, sized her up from head to toe with obvious disdain.
“Son, your taste is even worse than your father’s. Since when can a wild chicken fly into our Ji family?”
That single sentence instantly angered Bai Jin.
Even if she was just a supporting character in the book, she was still a transmigrator—how could she let fictional characters humiliate her like this?
Seeing his mother start mocking Bai Jin right away, Ji Xiaoyun quickly tried to smooth things over and pulled Bai Jin in the opposite direction.
He had finally built up some goodwill with her—he didn’t want it ruined by his mother’s sharp tongue.
But Liu Yinghong refused to let it go.
Wherever her son led Bai Jin, she followed, constantly speaking sarcastically and belittling her.
At first, Bai Jin felt uncomfortable, but after a while, she became strangely calm.
According to the original plot, this scene was supposed to happen to the female lead Su An’an. Yet by mistake, she had become Liu Yinghong’s new target.
Seeing his mother going too far, Ji Xiaoyun finally snapped:
“Mom! This is my first time bringing Jin’er home—can you at least save me some face? Do you want your son to stay single forever?!”
“You little brat! There are plenty of women in the world—why are you hanging yourself on just one tree?”
For once, Ji Xiaoyun dared to talk back, which only fueled his mother’s anger, and the two began arguing.
Bai Jin could only shake her head helplessly.
As expected, characters in novels never truly change. Liu Yinghong was destined to be the classic “vicious mother-in-law.”
To distract herself, Bai Jin casually glanced toward the staircase—
[Huh? That… isn’t that Su An’an…?]
That single thought instantly grabbed Ji Xiaoyun’s attention.
Since he could hear Bai Jin’s inner voice, he already knew his tragic fate from the “novel.”
In the story, he was nothing but Su An’an’s loyal dog—appearing whenever she needed him, only to end up betrayed and destroyed.
This time, he had chosen to get close to Bai Jin precisely to escape that destiny.
So why was Su An’an in his house?!
Was destiny truly unavoidable? No matter how much he struggled, would he still be tied to her?
“Mom, isn’t that woman Su An’an? Why is she in our house?” Ji Xiaoyun pointed at her back and asked.
“Oh, her?”
Liu Yinghong’s sharp expression softened immediately when she looked at Su An’an.
“Today when I was out shopping, I sprained my ankle. No one around helped me—except An’an. She not only helped me up but even drove me home personally!”
Then she turned to compare her with Bai Jin again.
“Son, look at An’an—good background, beautiful face. Isn’t she much better than some country bumpkin?”
Compared to Su An’an, Bai Jin really did look ordinary.
Having gotten used to Liu Yinghong’s attitude, Bai Jin was no longer as affected by the insults.
But she was still shocked by Su An’an’s appearance.
[So this is what the book calls ‘destined connection.’ Su An’an truly has the protagonist halo…]
[This tragic second male lead beside me has clearly tried to avoid her, yet she still manages to appear in the Ji family—and even win over the mother-in-law…]
“An’an, come back up! My Xiaoyun is home—don’t you want to meet him?”
Liu Yinghong, clearly fond of Su An’an, hurriedly called her back before she finished going downstairs.
Exactly what Bai Jin feared happened.
When Su An’an returned, she acted shy, gentle, and elegant in front of Ji Xiaoyun. If he hadn’t been “enlightened” by Bai Jin’s inner thoughts, he might have fallen for her again.
Liu Yinghong beamed.
“Since everyone is here today, why don’t you stay for dinner, An’an?”
Bai Jin’s inner voice immediately rang out:
[Ugh… you want me to sit and eat dinner with this green-tea b*tch? I might puke up yesterday’s food!]
Hearing this, Ji Xiaoyun couldn’t help but suppress a laugh.
Meanwhile, Su An’an pretended to be hesitant:
“Oh, Auntie, it feels inappropriate for me to stay for dinner on my first visit…”
Perhaps because he had been “brainwashed” by Bai Jin’s thoughts, Ji Xiaoyun suddenly found Su An’an’s behavior extremely fake and irritating.
Since Bai Jin also clearly didn’t want to stay, he casually made an excuse and declined his mother’s invitation.
In the next moment, the two of them practically fled the old mansion as if they had just escaped prison.