When the Female Lead Becomes Obsessive – Chapter 18

Volume One: Those Years I Was a CEO

Fulfilling a Promise

Jinxiu Zhuang¹ is a nationwide hotpot chain renowned for its affordable prices, wide variety of dishes, and attentive service.

The Jinxiu Zhuang near the Film and TV Base was packed² almost every day; not only were there no private rooms left, but even the main dining hall had no available seats.

You Jiayi hadn’t had hotpot in a long time either. When the server told her they only needed to wait about twenty minutes for a table, she was immediately tempted, blinking her eyes cutely as she looked at Xu Wen Nuan.

It was hard not to soften when those large, bright and clear eyes were gazing at you.

Wen Nuan took the menu. “Let’s order out here first, then we can eat right away when we get seated.”

You Jiayi said excitedly, “Okay, okay!”

After all, they had been trending recently. You Jiayi and Wen Nuan, sitting there ordering food at Jinxiu Zhuang without masks or hats, acting carefree and behaving intimately and sweetly, were photographed by many people who uploaded the pictures to Weibo.

By the time the two were seated inside Jinxiu Zhuang and had started eating, Weibo’s trending topics were already filled with pictures of You Jiayi and Wen Nuan looking sweet and happy while eating hotpot at Jinxiu Zhuang.

Her phone buzzed. Wen Nuan took it out and saw it was the Old Master.

Ever since going public with her relationship with You Jiayi, she had been deliberately avoiding the Old Master’s inevitable calling her to account³.

The Old Master was also persistent, calling almost three times a day. Various friendly greetings via text message and WeChat were all ignored by Wen Nuan as if she hadn’t seen them.

It wasn’t until yesterday that the Old Master issued an ultimatum: if she continued to deliberately evade him, he would charge directly into the Xu Corporation headquarters, and while he was at it, pay You Jiayi a visit too.

At this thought, Wen Nuan looked at the incoming call and felt her head throbbing.

Seeing Wen Nuan not answering, You Jiayi chewed on her chopsticks and asked doubtfully, “What’s wrong? Is it urgent company business? Maybe we shouldn’t eat, you should hurry back.”

“No, but it’s even harder to handle than company business.” Wen Nuan turned the phone screen towards You Jiayi.

Seeing the contact name 【Grandpa】, You Jiayi instantly sat up straight and proper⁴.

“Um… should I make myself scarce?” You Jiayi asked worriedly.

Wen Nuan shook her head. “It’s fine, you eat. The Old Master and I have to have this out eventually.”

With that, she answered the call.

A tremendous roar instantly came from the other end: “Damn girl⁵, you’ve got some nerve, daring to reject my calls and ignore my WeChat messages! Are you asking to be beaten to death by me!?”

You Jiayi was so scared she didn’t dare breathe loudly. “….”

Wen Nuan gave You Jiayi a reassuring glance, held the phone further away, and said resignedly, “It’s just that it’s the end of the year recently, company affairs are busy, I really couldn’t get away.”

“Bullsh%t! Damn girl, you’re always spouting nonsense! Company affairs are busy, yet you f%cking have time to eat hotpot with your girlfriend?!” Grandpa Xu roared. “Do you think I’m old and don’t know what the internet is?! Still trying to fool me! Damn girl, just watch if I don’t come over and skin you alive!”

Hearing Grandpa Xu threaten to skin Wen Nuan alive, You Jiayi trembled all over and whispered, “Wen Nuan, maybe I should explain to Grandpa?”

“It’s fine, I’ll handle it.” Wen Nuan sighed. “Grandpa, stop yelling, your blood pressure will shoot up again in a moment. Just say it, why did you call? Give me a straight answer, life or death!”

“Damn girl, you f%cking @￥@#￥@￥#@￥….” Grandpa Xu treated them to an exquisite performance of the “national essence,” the entire segment delivered with impressive vigor⁶, truly commanding admiration.

Wen Nuan took a deep breath and abruptly hung up the phone.

The world fell silent.

You Jiayi: “……”

She felt a little scared afterward, asking apprehensively, “Maybe… we should call back? Even if we get yelled at, it’s… it’s probably deserved?”

After all, they were the ones in the wrong.

“It’s fine, eat first,” Wen Nuan placed a piece of beef tripe⁷ in her bowl. “My grandpa just talks like that, don’t take it to heart. He just has an explosive temper; he’ll be fine once he cools down on his own.”

You Jiayi was still a bit worried. “Will we make Grandpa sick with anger? Maybe we should call back? Or maybe you should go back and check on him first?”

“It’s alright,” Wen Nuan glanced at her phone and smiled. “See? Isn’t it fine now?”

She handed the phone to You Jiayi. You Jiayi looked and saw it was a WeChat message from 【Grandpa】.

-Grandpa: Damn girl, when you have time, bring the person home for a look. Regardless of whether it’s a man or a woman, they have to enter the family door⁸, understand?

You Jiayi’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Grandpa… is this… acknowledging me?”

Wen Nuan smiled. “What else? Why else would he ask you to come home with me?”

You Jiayi pouted, the corners of her eyes reddening. “Grandpa is too nice.”

Wen Nuan pulled out a tissue and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes. “Crying again? You little crybaby. What? Only Grandpa is nice, I’m not?”

“No, you’re nice too, Grandpa is nice too, you’re both especially nice.” You Jiayi held Wen Nuan’s hand and smiled.

“Alright, eat first.” Wen Nuan added an order of bingfen⁹ for You Jiayi. Seeing her about to reach her chopsticks into the spicy broth, Wen Nuan said sternly, “You dare try putting them in there?”

You Jiayi obediently retracted her hand. “…..”

They ate hotpot until past eight in the evening. Wen Nuan took You Jiayi back to the hotel for the film crew.

“Go on up,” Wen Nuan said.

You Jiayi looked at Wen Nuan. “Um… are you going straight back to the company later or home?”

Wen Nuan glanced at her phone; it was already nine o’clock.

“Going home to rest. What’s wrong?” Wen Nuan saw You Jiayi looking like she wanted to say something but was hesitating. “Is there something you want to say? Or something you want me to do?”

You Jiayi nervously picked at her fingers, took a deep breath, and said, “Do you still remember that… that punishment?”

The two hadn’t had time to meet before, and several times You Jiayi had wanted to bring it up with Wen Nuan, but the words got stuck when they reached her lips.

Finally, this time, Wen Nuan was standing right in front of her. If she didn’t say it now, she might not get another chance later.

Since she was going to take the initiative, she might as well go all the way!

She took out her phone, pulled up the chat history, pointed at it, and said firmly, “The punishment! You still haven’t fulfilled your punishment!”

Only then did Wen Nuan realize what punishment You Jiayi was talking about.

A kiss.

Wen Nuan suddenly felt somewhat at a loss, but also felt that this matter couldn’t just be left unresolved.

Seeing Wen Nuan remain silent, You Jiayi’s mind raced, afraid Wen Nuan would refuse. She quickly added, “It… it doesn’t have to be the face, the back of the hand is okay too, if you don’t mind it being dirty, haha…”

Wen Nuan looked at You Jiayi like this; just moments ago, she had taken the initiative like an enemy-slaying warrior, but in the blink of an eye, she had reverted to her previous timid and shrinking manner.

“Since it’s a punishment, I certainly can’t break my promise¹⁰.” Wen Nuan moved closer to You Jiayi under her limpid gaze.

Those crystal-clear almond eyes stared intently at her, making Wen Nuan’s heart suddenly skip a beat.

She raised her hand to block those captivating¹¹ eyes, her breathing a bit unsteady. “Don’t look at me, close your eyes.”

You Jiayi obediently closed her eyes, her hands clasped together, a thin layer of sweat forming on her palms.

Her palms felt a little itchy. You Jiayi’s long eyelashes trembled constantly, revealing her current excitement and nervousness.

Her gaze lowered. You Jiayi’s nose bridge was high-set yet delicate. Her lips looked soft, pale pink, like cotton candy. They should taste pretty good, right?

【I think so too. Why don’t you have a taste, Host?】the System suggested.

Wen Nuan snapped back to reality. “….Get lost!”

【Okay!】The System scurried away quickly.

Interrupted like that by the System, Wen Nuan only then realized what she had just been thinking.

This was practically asking for trouble¹².

Pulling her gaze back from the lips, Wen Nuan let out a long breath.

You Jiayi waited for a long time, but nothing happened. She felt a little disappointed, wondering if she had been too forward, too proactive, catching Wen Nuan off guard.

She should have taken it slowly, not progressed too quickly, otherwise it wouldn’t be good if she scared Wen Nuan off.

Just as You Jiayi was about to open her mouth to say “forget it,” she felt a gentle pressure on her brow.

That kiss seemed to carry tenderness and affection, lingering on her brow for a long while before slowly moving away.

Wen Nuan felt You Jiayi’s entire body stiffen. She lowered her hand, revealing You Jiayi’s moist eyes.

“Goodnight.” Wen Nuan wiped away the tear bead from the corner of her eye, stroked her cheek, and smiled gently. “Rest early, I’m leaving.”

You Jiayi gave a gentle smile. “Okay, goodnight.”

Wen Nuan took one last look at You Jiayi, then turned and left.

System: 【Ehehe, I’ve rolled back! The female lead’s current Blackening Value is 2!】

Wen Nuan touched her chest; her heartbeat was somewhat abnormal. “Oh.”

【Host, I suggest that to make the Blackening Value decrease faster, we go back and kiss the female lead again!】

Wen Nuan pressed her cheek. “…Get lost!”

【Okay!】The System immediately went offline.

Wen Nuan called Wei Cheng, asking him to pick her up at the intersection bus stop. While waiting for Wei Cheng, Wen Nuan sat on the station bench, smoking.

The slim cigarette didn’t last long; two deep drags and it was gone.

Fortunately, the stock the System had prepared for her was plentiful, enough for her to smoke for several hundred years.

Her fingertips held the slim cigarette; the lit ember flashed in the darkness. Her deep peach blossom eyes were hidden in the smoke.

Intermittently visible, hazy and dim.

Making it impossible to clearly see the complex emotions within those eyes.

【Something on your mind?】

Wen Nuan had this quirk: whether happy or annoyed, she would smoke a lot—starting at five, with no upper limit¹³.

Luckily, the cigarettes they produced were harmless to the body; otherwise, Wen Nuan would have long since died from poisoning.

“No.” Wen Nuan stubbed out the sixth cigarette, exhaling smoke. “Just tired.”

【Tired?】The System checked Wen Nuan’s physical condition and nodded. 【Indeed, the Host’s current body is in a state of fatigue, but…】

Wen Nuan raised an eyebrow. “But what?”

The System checked again: 【Host’s physical condition is very tired, but her mental state is very agitated, and her adrenaline is also rising. Why is that?】

“…..” Wen Nuan’s movement to pull out a seventh cigarette paused, a trace of discomfort flashing across her face. “Did you f%cking catch a virus? What’s with all these issues lately? Clear your memory¹⁴ if you’ve got nothing better to do!”

The System scratched its head: 【My storage is huge. Even if I downloaded a lot of software, it wouldn’t affect my operation. It was just a basic body check; it’s impossible for there to be an error!】

【How about this, I’ll clean the storage space again. Host, get ready. I’ll clean it right away and then check you again.】The System clicked ‘Clean Memory’.

Wen Nuan slowly exhaled. “Check then.”

The System performed a scan, saw the results, and immediately smiled: 【Okay, okay, it’s normal this time! Host’s current physical condition and mental state are both very tired and need rest. Plus, the adrenaline is stable too. Aside from some fatigue, the Host’s body and mind are completely normal.】

“….Oh.” The corner of Wen Nuan’s mouth twitched slightly, her eyes shifting unnaturally. “Clear your memory more often in the future. Downloading all sorts of junk software—who else would get poisoned if not you?”

The System nodded humbly: 【Okay, I’ll do a deep clean later.】

Wen Nuan held the cigarette between her lips and smiled with satisfaction. “Mm, be careful next time, ha.”

【Mm-hmm.】

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