I Am More Paranoid Than the Villain – Chapter 21

Help Her Apply Medicine

She slowly hooked down her collar

Lin Shu held the medicine, opened Shen Man’s schoolbag, threw the medicine inside, and then closed the schoolbag.

She glanced at Shen Man and said in an arrogant yet awkward manner, “I will not help you apply the medicine.”

Shen Man smiled, slung the schoolbag over her left shoulder, and slowly walked outside.

Lin Shu stood for a moment, then chased after her and supported Shen Man.

Meeting the smiling expression in Shen Man’s eyes, she awkwardly turned her head away and said, “I just don’t want to go out and be lectured by Tan Kai.”

Shen Man, beaming with a smile, nodded in agreement.

The two walked outside.

From a distance, Shen Man saw Tan Kai with a furious expression; the male lead was still indifferent as usual, and Yin Ruxu was sandwiched between the two, her delicate and pretty face full of weakness, seemingly trying to mediate the fight.

Hearing their footsteps, Tan Kai was the first to walk over, asking with concern, “Shen Man, are you okay? What did the doctor say?”

“It’s just a small injury, I’ll be fine after resting for two days,” Shen Man replied with a smile.

Tan Kai breathed a sigh of relief, reached up to scratch his hair, and said apologetically, “I’m sorry, I accidentally injured you this time.”

“It’s fine, you don’t need to be so guilty,” Shen Man said, glanced at the male lead, and then added, “Thank you for your concern, I’m already fine. If you have things to do, you can go first.”

Shao Qi nodded slightly and turned to leave.

Yin Ruxu looked at Shen Man and revealed a gentle smile, “I’ll be going first, I wish you a speedy recovery.”

After speaking, she hurriedly went out the door.

Lin Shu let out a light sneer, her eyes filled with mockery, and said idly, “Certain people just like to flatter themselves; they are just using you as a stepping stone, do you really think they genuinely want to be friends with you?”

Shen Man smiled with a calm expression, her face showing neither anger nor surprise.

As if she had known all along, or as if she didn’t care in the slightest.

A nameless fire suddenly flared up in Lin Shu’s heart; she let go of her hand and walked to the side.

“What stepping stone?” Tan Kai asked, not understanding.

“It has nothing to do with you,” Lin Shu said irritably.

“Oh, oh,” Tan Kai smiled good-naturedly, glanced at the two of them, and said, “I’ll go drive the car over, you two wait for me here.”

Shen Man nodded and found a chair to sit down.

Lin Shu stood, her small face filled with anger.

For a moment, it became quiet between the two of them.

Shen Man’s fingers rhythmically tapped on the schoolbag’s shoulder strap, the slight dada sound echoing in her ears.

She stopped the tapping motion, the corners of her lips hooked up slightly, and looking at the leaves outside that had already begun to turn yellow, she said with a smile, “Shushu, are you angry that Yin Ruxu is getting close to me? Or are you angry that she is getting close to Shao Qi?”

Lin Shu froze, paused for a moment, and then replied in a fierce tone, “Where am I angry? Which of your eyes saw me get angry? Why should I be angry?”

A series of three rhetorical questions, her speech getting faster and faster.

Shen Man gave a calm smile, her jet-black eyes seeming to see through everything, and said knowingly, “I was mistaken.”

“You were mistaken in the first place,” Lin Shu said quickly.

After these words were said, they were once again met with mutual silence.

Tan Kai’s car stopped at the hospital entrance.

He saw Lin Shu run over with a furious expression, her huffy expression making her look like she had been wronged.

He asked, not understanding, “Lin Shu, what’s wrong with you? Shen Man’s shoulder is injured, you should go help her.”

Lin Shu pouted her lips and didn’t move.

Tan Kai looked up and saw Shen Man sitting with a tranquil expression, and persuaded again, “In any case, Shen Man was injured trying to save you, you can’t just leave Shen Man alone like this.”

Hearing this, Lin Shu wanted to retort, but a bellyful of angry words rose to her lips, and she fell silent, knowing she was in the wrong.

She snorted, opened the car door, and walked towards Shen Man.

Shen Man gave a faint smile, as if she had predicted this scene.

The anger in Lin Shu’s heart grew even stronger.

But her mind was in a chaotic mess, not knowing what she was angry about.

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Returning to the Lin family home.

Lin Shu supported Shen Man, and as soon as they entered the door, she immediately let go of her hand and said to Auntie He, “Shen Man’s shoulder is injured, you take care of her.”

After speaking, she strode towards her room, “I’m not eating dinner.”

Auntie He was surprised and worried, and quickly supported Shen Man, “Manman, how did you get injured? Is it serious?”

Shen Man smiled lightly, looked at Lin Shu’s back which had paused, and said, “It’s nothing, just a small accident.”

Hearing this, Lin Shu lifted her foot again, and a moment later, closed her bedroom door.

“It’s good that it’s nothing, you must be careful in the future,” Auntie He said with concern.

Shen Man smiled and withdrew her gaze.

Auntie He brought over a meal.

Shen Man endured the pain and slowly finished eating.

Auntie He noticed the problem and said with concern, “Have you been to the hospital to have it looked at?”

Shen Man nodded.

“Did the doctor prescribe any medicine? Do you need my help?” Auntie He said.

Shen Man smiled and shook her head, saying, “You can go attend to your work.”

Auntie He saw the insistence in her eyes and had no choice but to turn and go to the kitchen.

Shen Man carried her schoolbag, returned to her room, opened the bag with one hand, and took out the ointment from inside.

After carefully looking at the instructions, she took the ointment and went out.

Arriving at Lin Shu’s door, Shen Man knocked.

When Lin Shu heard the sound, her heart immediately ‘thumped’, she pursed her lips, and walked over to open the door.

Seeing the ointment in Shen Man’s hand, Lin Shu immediately put on a posture of refusal, “Don’t expect me to help you apply the medicine, if you need help, go find Auntie He.”

Shen Man’s lips curved, she extended her slender index finger, and slowly hooked down her collar, revealing the patch of bruised skin.

It looked a bit frightening.

Lin Shu was startled and quickly turned her head away.

“Shushu, if you don’t help me apply the medicine, this spot will get more and more swollen, and it’s possible this arm of mine will become crippled,” Shen Man said with a light laugh.

The serious consequence was spoken by her as if it were a joke.

Lin Shu bit her lip, stared at Shen Man for a while, and snatched the ointment.

Her small face looked unwilling, yet also as if filled with anger, and she said through gritted teeth, “I’ve never waited on anyone before, if I hurt you, you better not cry out.”

Shen Man smiled, walked into the room, and leaned comfortably on the sofa.

Lin Shu sat to the side, her eyes flickered a few times, she pursed her lips, reached out her hand, and carefully pulled open Shen Man’s collar.

That patch of bruise was still shocking to the eye.

Lin Shu’s heart shook, she lowered her eyes, opened the ointment, and directly squeezed the tube against the bruised area, but no ointment came out at all, instead, it hurt Shen Man.

Shen Man hissed in pain, turned her head to glance, and reminded, “You haven’t broken the seal yet, first squeeze the ointment onto your hand, then use your fingers to apply it to the shoulder.”

Lin Shu pouted her lips and did as she was told without a word.

She was heavy-handed, unable to control the strength of the application, causing Shen Man’s brows to wrinkle in pain.

Shen Man endured the pain without making a sound, turning her head to look at the young girl’s tender, pink, and pure face.

The girl’s long eyelashes fluttered with the frequency of her fingers’ massage, the expression on her small face was very serious, not looking like she was deliberately retaliating.

After Lin Shu finished applying the medicine, she herself let out a sigh of relief, placed the ointment to the side, and said in a cold tone, “Alright, you can go now.”

Shen Man didn’t move, she leaned over closer, lowered her voice, and said with a smile, “Shushu, are you still angry?”

“I am not angry at all!” Lin Shu retorted loudly, looking at the beautiful face that was so close, her heart skipped a beat, and she quickly turned her head away.

Shen Man smiled, understanding the limits of her teasing, stood up and said, “Thank you, Shushu.”

Lin Shu snorted, and looking at Shen Man’s figure about to leave, she said haughtily, “I will help you apply the medicine for the next few days, and when your injury is healed, we will be even.”

Shen Man smiled and did not speak.

---

After several days of application, Lin Shu’s technique got better and better, and Shen Man also suffered a little less.

The bruise on her shoulder faded bit by bit, and after a week, it finally disappeared completely.

Shen Man moved her injured shoulder, a satisfied smile on her face, and said, “Thank you for your care these past few days, Shushu, that’s why I was able to recover so quickly.”

Lin Shu ignored her, lying on the sofa playing with her phone.

Suddenly, she sat up abruptly and shouted happily, “Next Saturday is Shao Qi’s birthday, I must dress up beautifully¹ to attend the birthday banquet, it would be best if I can become the first girl to dance with him.”

Listening to this, the smile on Shen Man’s lips paused, and she took out her phone to check the date.

A message popped up on her phone, she glanced at it, then looked up at Lin Shu and said with a smile, “Shushu, you want to dance with Shao Qi that much?”

“Of course,” Lin Shu answered without thinking, the smile on her face growing even more brilliant, she glanced at Shen Man and said, “With your status, you won’t be able to attend this banquet.”

“Is that so?” Shen Man’s lips curved, she walked to Lin Shu’s side and showed her the message from just now, “Shao Qi personally invited me to his birthday banquet.”

“You…” Lin Shu was astonished, a jealous expression appearing on her face, “Damn it, why would Shao Qi personally invite you?”

Shen Man shrugged and said with a calm smile, “I don’t know either.”

Lin Shu gritted her teeth in anger, and walked back to her room dada in her slippers.

The smile in Shen Man’s eyes turned cold, she leaned comfortably against the sofa, holding her phone in one hand, and typed out the word ‘Okay’.

Her fingers tapped on the screen, her eyes half-closed as she gazed at Lin Shu’s room.

A moment later, she pressed send.

The male lead’s birthday banquet this time is an important turning point in the book’s plot; the male and female leads dance amidst a sky full of romantic flower petals, accidentally kiss, and share their first kiss.

Shen Man caressed her lips.

She seemed to still be able to feel the delicate softness of the young girl’s lips from that night.

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