When the Female Lead Becomes Obsessive – Chapter 3

Volume One: Those Years I Was a CEO

Burning the Heart

Wen Nuan looked at the emaciated female lead, her face pale and lacking blood, her cheeks so thin they were almost concave, her lips dry and chapped, her hair a mess. She looked just like a rice-begging child on the street.

“How did she get like this?” Wen Nuan looked at her sweater collar; the female lead was so thin that her collarbones were protruding.

She raised her hand and smoothed out You Jiayi’s tightly furrowed brow.

The doctor came over with the IV drip and sighed, “The patient fainted due to malnutrition and overwork. We’ll hang two bottles of fluid first. After she wakes up, she should eat some porridge to recuperate. Her stomach is weak, and her diet has likely been irregular recently, coupled with a lack of sleep, causing her weight to drop rapidly. She’s almost 1.7 meters [≈ 5’7″] tall, and her weight is down to 70 jin [斤 | jīn | ≈ 35 kg ≈ 77 lbs].”

Wen Nuan frowned. “Okay, thank you, doctor.”

After setting up the IV drip, the doctor left. Wen Nuan looked at You Jiayi’s hands; the tendons and blood vessels were prominent, withered-looking.

She pursed her lips and grasped You Jiayi’s hand. It was ice-cold, like a corpse.

Wen Nuan sighed again, murmuring as if complaining, “How did she get like this?”

Wen Nuan checked the time; it was almost 10 PM.

You Jiayi’s phone rang several times. It was her mother. Afraid of waking her, Wen Nuan replied to the messages, reassuring her mother.

The nurse came to remove the IV. Wen Nuan covered You Jiayi with the blanket and decided to go downstairs to buy some porridge.

The People’s Hospital’s cafeteria was open all night. Wen Nuan ordered a bowl of plain rice porridge and some light side dishes, asking the cafeteria lady to pack them up.

“Give me a cigarette,” Wen Nuan said. Ever since she left the ward, she felt a tightness in her chest.

The system placed the cigarette in Wen Nuan’s pocket. 【Alright.】

Wen Nuan took out the slim cigarette. It was a custom-made brand that cost her tens of thousands of points.

Unlike the strong, pungent smell of ordinary cigarettes, this special cigarette had its own unique fragrance and smoothness.

It wasn’t harsh to smoke, and even inhaling it into the lungs wouldn’t cause any residue or blockage. Instead, it gave a refreshing sensation throughout the body.

Seeing Wen Nuan smoking with an empty look in her eyes, the system asked, 【What are you thinking about?】

Wen Nuan exhaled a puff of smoke, which lingered around her eyes, making them appear hazy.

She said softly, “I thought she could… be alright.”

But ultimately, everything had gone against her wishes.

She really hadn’t expected things to turn out this way. She had arranged everything so meticulously. Where did the problem lie?

Wen Nuan went through the entire plot in her mind, and suddenly, her nerves tensed.

She asked the system, “That night, after I drugged the female lead and sent her to the male lead’s room, didn’t they… do it?”

If the female lead and male lead had slept together, given the male lead’s deeply affectionate persona, he wouldn’t have let the female lead fall into such a miserable state.

Therefore, the fundamental problem with the current situation might lie with what happened that night.

The system was silent for a moment. 【See for yourself what happened that night.】

It sent a video to Wen Nuan.

Wen Nuan clicked it open. She saw herself throwing the drugged female lead into the male lead’s room. When the male lead returned to his room after the banquet, he encountered the female lead in the throes of the drug’s effects.

The male lead already had feelings for the female lead. Seeing her tormented by the drug, he initially intended to seize the opportunity and confess his love. However, the female lead resolutely rejected his advances.

To resist the drug’s powerful effects, the female lead spent the entire night soaking herself in ice water. Sometimes, unable to bear it, she cut her arms with glass shards, attempting to use pain to distract herself from the agonizing desire.

Seeing this, the male lead understood her resolve. He wasn’t one to take advantage of someone’s vulnerability. Since the female lead wasn’t willing, he didn’t force her. They both endured the night.

However, the next day, paparazzi caught them. The male lead truthfully stated that they hadn’t had any intimate relations, hoping the public wouldn’t overthink it. But the public wasn’t so easily fooled. They checked the hotel’s surveillance footage and discovered the female lead’s unusual state.

Haters and marketing accounts started releasing announcements, claiming the female lead had sold her body and used such vicious and despicable methods as drugging Qi Helian to get close to him.

This led to the female lead being cyberbullied. Her unscrupulous company, having already squeezed her dry of her remaining value, immediately abandoned her, using the public opinion to promote a newcomer.

After watching the video, Wen Nuan was speechless.

She asked in bewilderment, “This… why?”

The male lead had already confessed to the female lead. All she had to do was nod, and they could have gone with the flow. Even if the paparazzi had caught them, the male lead would have openly admitted to being in a relationship with her. None of what happened afterward would have occurred!

The system was also puzzled. 【I’m not sure either. According to the previous plot trajectory, after you drugged the female lead, the two of them should indeed have rolled together, which would have also helped the male and female leads achieve future harmony. However, the female lead didn’t follow the plot we provided.】

Wen Nuan watched the female lead enduring the drug’s effects in the video, sitting in a bathtub full of cold water, drenched and shivering, looking pained, desperate, helpless, and lost.

She picked up sharp glass shards and mercilessly cut her arm to resist the encroaching desire.

That fierce gaze, the crimson corners of her eyes, and the unstoppable tears made Wen Nuan’s heart sink for no apparent reason.

You Jiayi suddenly opened her eyes, looking at the bright light overhead, somewhat disoriented.

Her mind was like mush, her consciousness chaotic.

She pressed her aching head and slowly sat up, finally realizing where she was.

A high-end ward, with “VIP” written on the door.

Empty IV bottles were on a nearby stand, and there was a bandage on her hand where the IV had been.

All of this made You Jiayi’s mind go blank, clueless.

After recovering slightly, You Jiayi suddenly remembered the medicine she had picked up and the payment slip before she fainted. Looking around, she found only her phone on the bedside table; everything else was gone.

Panicked, You Jiayi was about to get out of bed to look for them when she heard the ward door open.

Then, a voice that made her shudder echoed in her ears.

“Awake?”

Lost memories instantly flooded her brain. You Jiayi remembered the voice and the person she saw before she fainted.

She leaned weakly against the bed, afraid to look back.

When the person didn’t get a response, they walked towards her step by step.

Although the footsteps were light, they felt like they were treading on her heart, heavy and oppressive.

Wen Nuan placed the porridge and soup on the table beside her. Seeing You Jiayi keeping her head down, clearly avoiding her, even fainting earlier to avoid her, Wen Nuan sighed inwardly.

The doctor said her fainting wasn’t just due to overwork but also from extreme stimulation.

Stimulation?

Obviously, from her.

Her presence had frightened the female lead.

It seemed that drugging the female lead that night had left an indelible scar on her, making her terrified when she saw her, causing her to faint.

The system agreed: 【I think so too.】

Wen Nuan: “…..”

【The urgent matter is to try to make amends.】 the system suggested.

Wen Nuan nodded: “Indeed, amends need to be made.”

You Jiayi watched as the white sneakers, identical to the ones in the airport photo, stopped in front of her. Her body trembled uncontrollably.

Seeing this, Wen Nuan sighed inwardly several times.

She said softly, “Since you’re awake, have something to eat. I bought porridge and soup. The doctor said you fainted from overwork and malnutrition.”

You Jiayi remained silent with her head down, seemingly reluctant to see her.

Wen Nuan was self-aware and understood You Jiayi’s resistance. “In that case, if you don’t want to see me or talk to me, that’s fine. I’ll leave soon. Finish the porridge and soup, and have a good rest after. I paid for this ward, so don’t worry about the expenses.”

After explaining, Wen Nuan turned and left.

You Jiayi watched the white sneakers disappear completely from her sight, followed by the sound of the door closing, as if her fingers had been caught in the door, bringing tears to her eyes.

On the table was the porridge and soup Wen Nuan had packed for her. The porridge was plain rice porridge, very light. The soup was seaweed and egg drop soup, her favorite.

As always, Wen Nuan seemed to have never forgotten her preferences.

Tears splashed into the porridge, and the originally bland porridge suddenly became salty.

Wen Nuan stood at the door, smoking, and hearing the suppressed sobs from inside, the tightness in her chest worsened.

Her phone rang incessantly; it was her grandfather summoning her to return home quickly, forbidding her from staying out overnight.

Wen Nuan replied with “Right away,” glanced at You Jiayi who was still eating, and turned to leave.

After finishing the food, You Jiayi’s cramping stomach felt much better, and her head wasn’t as dizzy and achy as before.

She threw away the trash, grabbed her phone, and walked to the nurse’s station. “Excuse me, have you seen my payment slips and my medicine? The medicine was for Zhu Liya in room 3002 on the third floor of the inpatient department.”

“One moment, I’ll check.” The nurse got up and searched the shelves behind her, then returned with a medicine bag. “Is this it?”

You Jiayi saw the familiar medicine box and breathed a sigh of relief. “Yes, thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Here you go.”

You Jiayi noticed the payment slips were missing; there were only medicine boxes in the bag. “Excuse me, have you seen Zhu Liya’s payment slips? There were five of them, together with these medicine boxes.”

The nurse shook her head. “No, there’s nothing else, only these. If the payment slips are missing, you can go to the window and get new ones. It’s no problem.”

“Okay.” You Jiayi thanked her and turned to leave, preparing to go to the second floor to reissue the payment slips.

As the elevator stopped in front of her, You Jiayi realized she was on the tenth floor of the inpatient department, the business VIP ward area. No wonder the nurse was so polite to her; the attitude was completely different from the nurses on the third floor.

She gave a silent, bitter smile, entered the elevator, and pressed the button for the second floor.

The elevator was surrounded by mirrors. You Jiayi looked at her reflection: messy, pale complexion, chapped lips, disheveled hair, like a madwoman.

What was Wen Nuan’s mood when she saw her like this?

Wen Nuan had already left when she came out, leaving swiftly and decisively, just like that night.

B City People’s Hospital was a nationally prioritized hospital, so even though it was almost midnight, there were still staff on duty at each window.

You Jiayi went to the window, gave her mother’s name, and asked the staff to reissue the payment slips. However, she was informed that all outstanding fees had been paid.

You Jiayi froze, surprised. “All paid?”

The staff member checked the computer again and nodded. “Yes, everything has been paid. There are no outstanding fees under Zhu Liya’s name.”

The missing payment slips, Wen Nuan’s appearance, and the full payment of the fees.

Even if You Jiayi didn’t want to admit it, she had to face reality.

Wen Nuan had paid all her debts.

She clenched the medicine box tightly in her hand. Even the sharp edges digging into her palm couldn’t make her ignore the pain in her heart.

Wen Nuan, as her name suggested, was warm and comforting, burning the heart.

If she got any closer, she would be burned to ashes.

And she, was burned to a bloody pulp…

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