When Qin Ran was 19, she once again found herself as Yu Shuman's junior, maintaining a close connection with her. Qin Ran never quite understood how Yu Shuman managed to keep their conversations going. Qin Ran was a homebody with a rather gloomy disposition, often needing Yu Shuman to comfort her with her own experiences. Qin Ran's ties to the world were shallow, so she had few friends.
As for relatives, she didn't have even half a one.
Qin Ran wasn't the most enthusiastic person when it came to replying to messages, but Yu Shuman's persistent efforts in keeping in touch eventually wore her down. Yu Shuman would share all sorts of things with her, to the point where Qin Ran sometimes felt like she was Yu Shuman's personal diary. Still, she didn't find it annoying, because every time she read Yu Shuman's messages, she could vividly imagine her smiling face.
At this point, Qin Ran had to admit that she had fallen in love with Yu Shuman at first sight. And it was the kind of love that had taken deep root, impossible to uproot.
Qin Ran often wondered how she ended up falling for Yu Shuman. She didn't believe she was naturally inclined to like women. In her previous life, although she had never been in a relationship or had strong feelings for anyone, she didn't think of herself as gay. As a fan of anime, she enjoyed watching yuri (girls' love) anime, but she had never felt that way toward real women.
Yet now, just receiving a message from Yu Shuman would make her heart soften as she thought of Yu Shuman's smile. If this wasn't love, Qin Ran didn't know what was.
Looking back, she realized that it probably started on that day they first met, during that sunset when the warm yellow light bathed Yu Shuman, making her smile look so radiant. That was when Qin Ran's heart was irrevocably lost.
Despite recognizing her feelings, Qin Ran didn't make a move. She wasn't someone who would actively pursue a relationship. Moreover, they lived in the real world, where Yu Shuman had a sick mother to care for. For Qin Ran to suddenly confess her feelings and try to enter into a romantic relationship with another woman could be a burden for Yu Shuman.
There's nothing more difficult than realizing that your love might be a burden to the person you care for.
In this situation, Qin Ran could only bury her feelings deep in her heart, content to remain Yu Shuman's junior and savor the bittersweetness of unrequited love.
Even so, she followed in Yu Shuman's footsteps and attended the same university. On the day she arrived, she waited at the school gate for Yu Shuman to pick her up, as they had arranged. Yu Shuman had promised to take care of her as her senior.
Qin Ran, with her disheveled hair and round glasses, dressed in a dowdy outfit, was someone easily overlooked by others. She stood there with her luggage and a laptop bag, blending into the background of the bustling school entrance.
But Yu Shuman was different. She was even more radiant and captivating than she had been three years ago. Always beautiful, she had become even more striking after entering university. Dressed simply in a white T-shirt, denim shorts, and white sandals, she embodied youthful energy. Her hair, once tied neatly in a ponytail, was now styled in a casual bun with a few strands falling loosely, perfectly framing her already stunning face.
A small mole below the corner of her mouth added a touch of maturity to her youthful features.
Just raising her hand to wave at Qin Ran was enough to draw everyone's attention.
Yu Shuman's brilliance made Qin Ran's heart flutter, but her glasses concealed all her emotions. When Yu Shuman reached her, she smiled and said, "Who would've thought, three years later, you're still my junior!"
Three years ago, Yu Shuman was in her third year of high school, and Qin Ran was in her first. Now, Yu Shuman was in her third year of university, and Qin Ran was a freshman.
Their time together had been limited, as Yu Shuman graduated just one year after Qin Ran started at the university. Besides their phone conversations, they had little interaction. But even after two years of separation, Yu Shuman was as warm and vibrant as ever. During the holidays, they could have met, but Yu Shuman was always busy working to pay for her tuition and living expenses, as well as to repay the "anonymous donor" who had helped her.
Knowing that Qin Ran had no family, Yu Shuman was determined to help when she heard that Qin Ran had been accepted to the same university. As her senior, Yu Shuman skillfully navigated the campus, helping Qin Ran settle into her dorm, make her bed, collect her student ID card, and load money onto her meal card.
She knew Qin Ran's financial situation and quietly asked, "Do you have enough money?"
"Yes," Qin Ran replied, though she thought to herself, Thanks to you and the system's cashback.
Qin Ran loaded 1,000 yuan onto her card. Afterward, Yu Shuman showed her where the campus store was and pointed out which cafeterias had the best and most affordable food. At lunchtime, she took Qin Ran to the third floor of the first cafeteria, treating her to a meal. Even though it was just the two of them, they ordered two meat dishes, two vegetables, and a soup. Qin Ran protested, saying it was too much and too expensive, but Yu Shuman waved her off, insisting that it was a rare occasion and that if they couldn't finish it, she would take it home for dinner.
From that day on, Yu Shuman would visit Qin Ran on weekends and take her along to her part-time jobs. As a third-year student, Yu Shuman had fewer classes, so she also worked part-time on weekdays, handing out flyers or dressing up as a mascot in the city's shopping districts to earn some extra money.
Qin Ran often worried about Yu Shuman, fearing that her beauty might attract unwanted attention. Yu Shuman was like a fairy accidentally dropped into the human world. Even after sweating in a mascot costume, she could still captivate people with her smile when she removed the headpiece. Even the beads of sweat on her forehead seemed to sparkle in the sunlight.
Yu Shuman often returned late from her part-time jobs. Although the city was relatively safe, there was always a risk of encountering someone with ill intentions. Living as a woman was already difficult enough, and if something happened, there would be no going back. When Qin Ran expressed her concerns, Yu Shuman simply said, "You used to work late shifts at a convenience store in middle and high school. Don't worry about me."
Yu Shuman was right. Nothing ever happened to her, and she even had a stroke of luck—she was scouted by a talent agent. With her outstanding looks, even while handing out flyers on the street, she caught the eye of an entertainment company's manager. This left Yu Shuman conflicted, and she spent a long time discussing it with Qin Ran. Qin Ran quickly realized that Yu Shuman's hesitation stemmed from the fact that she was genuinely interested in the opportunity.
Qin Ran's advice was simple: "Follow your heart."
A few days later, Yu Shuman messaged Qin Ran, saying she had decided to go for it.
The entertainment company wasn't a big one, and they didn't have many resources. After much effort, the best opportunity they could offer Yu Shuman was a spot on a talent show. Qin Ran felt uneasy when she heard the name of the show. It was called "Debut, Girls!"—a title that struck her as oddly familiar. Her concern grew, prompting her to dig deeper and purchase some insider information.
The system had a loophole in its spending rules. As long as Qin Ran could justify her expenses as being for Yu Shuman's benefit, she could spend freely. The system's ultimate goal was for its host to become a tycoon, and it was designed to make the host's journey enjoyable. It wouldn't be too restrictive.
Under this loophole, Qin Ran could theoretically spend as much as she wanted.
But Qin Ran had never been inclined to exploit the system—until she read the information she had obtained.
Her brows furrowed as she sat in her dorm room, a look of confusion on her face. She couldn't share this discovery with anyone because she had just realized that the world she was living in was actually the setting of a novel. She wasn't just reincarnated or transported to another world—she was a character in a novel she had read in her past life.
And to her surprise, she had become a completely insignificant background character, someone not even mentioned in the story.
Yu Shuman, however, was less fortunate. She was a supporting character—the villainess who served as a foil to the protagonist. Though her role was minor, she existed only to be compared unfavorably to the heroine. Her appearances were brief and scattered throughout the story, mostly to emphasize how much she had fallen from grace.
As for the beginning of the story, it centered around the talent show, "Debut, Girls!"—the very show that marked the protagonist's rise to fame in the entertainment industry. The protagonist shone brightly, while Yu Shuman, as her foil, was trampled into the dust.
As Qin Ran's memories of the novel came flooding back, she struggled to understand why she had been transported into a book she had barely even read. She hadn't even stayed up late to finish it.
But now, she could only rely on her memory to recall the plot. This was a story about the heroine's triumphant journey through the entertainment industry. The protagonist was a multi-talented genius with numerous hidden identities—a top fashion designer, a renowned traditional singer, and even an expert in traditional Chinese medicine, having trained under a famous master.
Not only that, but this was also a group-pampering novel. The protagonist had three doting older brothers and a childhood friend who grew up to become a powerful CEO. The protagonist entered the entertainment industry just for fun and naturally rose to stardom. With the childhood friend CEO's constant support, she became the industry's top star and eventually lived happily ever after with him.
And Yu Shuman? She was merely the stepping stone that the heroine trampled on at the start of her journey.
Qin Ran hadn't paid much attention to the minor villainess when she first read the novel. All she remembered was that "she degenerated into a hostess, serving drinks at seedy parties."
Qin Ran clenched her fists. What a joke! Who dares to push her beloved senior into such a situation?