Qiao Yu felt a subtle sense of satisfaction.

The system, observing her gloating yet hypocritical demeanor, remained unmoved. "Host, if you want to laugh, then go ahead and laugh."

Qiao Yu hailed a taxi on the spot, and with graceful movements, she folded her long umbrella. "Do you think I can laugh right now?"

That's true.

Qiao Yu placed the long umbrella aside and pinched the bridge of her nose, hoping that nothing unexpected would happen to Jiang Mei.

The taxi quickly disappeared into the heavy rain. Jiang Mei stared blankly in the direction Qiao Yu had left, and when she turned away, her heart ached as if it were being torn apart.

The scene before my eyes gradually blurred, and the sound of rain in my ears gradually disappeared, replaced by a bright, sunny midday. That day, a transfer student suddenly joined the class, wearing a spotless white shirt and a pleated skirt, simple yet exuding an air of noble elegance, a world apart from Jiang Mei, who worked hard to support herself.

The existence of the transfer student seemed to be a way of proving to her that everyone has their own destiny, and that fate is predetermined.

Some people are the apple of their family's eye from birth, cherished and protected by the whole family.

Jiang Mei thought that someone like Qiao Yu would never cross paths with her, but as soon as she returned from outside the classroom and sat down, the person in front of her turned around timidly and said in a soft voice, "Hello, my name is Qiao Yu, it's nice to meet you."

The outstretched hand had slender, smooth knuckles and snow-white skin, with a faint hint of nervous trembling.

Jiang Mei subconsciously looked up to examine the other person. Her black hair was casually tied back with a pink hairband, and she had carefully tied it into a crooked bow. It didn't look funny at all, but rather a bit cute and charming.

Perhaps because he hadn't replied for a long time, or perhaps because he had been staring at her so brazenly, the hand she was holding in front of her bent slightly, looking somewhat embarrassed.

Those raven-feather-like eyelashes drooped down in unison, and Jiang Mei could read a hint of embarrassment on her face, as if she wanted to disappear into the ground immediately.

The two of them were so close that Jiang Mei could even see the fine downy hairs on her cheeks and the tiny beads of sweat on the tip of her nose.

Jiang Mei didn't quite remember how she replied to her at the time. She only remembered that she had become intimate with the other person in a daze. Jiang Mei came from a poor family, and most of the students in her class were people who got in through connections. They were all rich or powerful and looked down on others.

But Qiao Yu is completely different from them.

She would only pretend to be spoiled and willful, sharing her lunch with Jiang Mei while frowning and pinching Jiang Mei's waist, complaining, "How come you're so thin? I look so fat standing next to you! I'm going to lose weight today. Here, you eat all of this for me, not a single grain of rice!"

Jiang Mei didn't move, so she forcibly scooped up a spoonful and fed it to her, pretending to be angry and glaring at her, "Don't you consider me a friend anymore?"

Helpless, Jiang Mei had no choice but to gently put the food into her mouth using her hand and spoon.

No one had ever been so kind to her before. Jiang Mei had to admit that at that moment, her feelings became exceptionally complex and nuanced. She couldn't quite describe the feeling, but it wasn't bad; in fact, she even felt a greedy desire to possess it all to herself.

However, she deliberately ignored such thoughts as soon as they arose.

Jiang Mei came from a poor family and had always been used to wearing only one or two thin layers of clothing throughout the year. After differentiating into an alpha and gaining stronger physique, she became even less afraid of the winter cold. But Qiao Yu felt extremely distressed seeing Jiang Mei's hands red from the cold.

She remembered that Qiao Yu stared at her hands for a very long time that day, so long that Jiang Mei couldn't help but call out to her. The moment the other woman looked up, Jiang Mei saw glistening tears welling up in her red eyes, trying her best to compose herself, but her voice was still choked with emotion, "I'm sorry."

Jiang Mei looked completely bewildered.

"If I had appeared by your side sooner, you wouldn't have suffered so much."

Hearing those simple words, Jiang Mei's heart skipped a beat, and her heart began to burn uncontrollably. Jiang Mei opened her mouth, and saw the other person quickly pull a pair of gloves out of their bag and carefully put them on her hands with a look of heartache.

The other person was very careful, afraid of hurting her. Only after the gloves were completely on did she breathe a sigh of relief and proudly boast, "See, I have great taste, don't I?"

Jiang Mei knew that the items the other person was using were not cheap. Almost the instant she put on the gloves, she felt a warm and soft sensation on her fingertips. For a moment, Jiang Mei couldn't tell whether the temperature of her fingertips was hotter or the temperature of her heart was hotter.

Her heart skipped a beat. She hurriedly took off her gloves and threw them on the desk, then walked out of the classroom without looking back. "Keep them for yourself, I don't need them."

She didn't turn around, but she could imagine the other person's aggrieved and bewildered look.

That winter, Qiao Yu never wore gloves again. Instead, she wore heat packs all over her body every day. She would always sneak things into Jiang Mei's purse or quietly stick them on her body when Jiang Mei wasn't looking. Every time, Jiang Mei would notice immediately, but she would always pretend not to know anything. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she could always catch a glimpse of Qiao Yu's innocent and charming smile, tinged with a hint of slyness, after her little scheme had succeeded.

Who could resist being attracted to a girl like that?

Her gaze gradually shifted from unfocused to focused, and a bitter smile played on Jiang Mei's lips.

She's so wonderful; I'm not good enough for her.

Qiao Yu rushed back to school, but Jiang Mei was nowhere to be found in the dormitory. She even asked everyone in the school, but no one had seen Jiang Mei. Qiao Yu's expression gradually turned sour. It was already very late, and Jiang Mei had been soaked in the rain. Moreover, she had just come of age and was a girl. What if she encountered bad people outside of school?

Undeterred, she took out her phone, but after a single beep, she was quickly told that the other party's phone was switched off.

Qiao Yu walked out of the dormitory with a cold face, and had no choice but to use her connections outside the school to help find someone. "Find someone for me, and I'll give you 100,000 yuan."

After the photo was uploaded, someone popped up and asked, "Did you and Jiang Mei have a fight?"

Qiao Yu, her face expressionless, tilted her head back and spoke with a barbed tone, "Are you going to make this money or not?"

"Make money? Of course you make money! You wait, I'll personally bring him to see you in less than an hour."

Qiao Yu's expression softened a bit. As she put her phone in her pocket, she didn't notice the screen light up—"Jiang Mei is angry, and Yu Yu gets angry too. If you can't appease Jiang Mei, Yu Yu gets even angrier. Is this guy secretly dating someone behind our backs?"

Qiao Yu opened her umbrella, preparing to return to Heaven and Earth, when a gust of cold wind blew by, and she immediately sneezed twice.

The system popped its head out and said, "Host, be careful not to catch a cold in this cool weather."

Qiao Yu didn't take it seriously. "It's okay. I'll be the number one A in the capital in the future. I'm strong and healthy. This little cold won't do anything to me."

She genuinely didn't take the awful weather seriously, but as soon as she returned to the Heaven and Earth nightclub, she felt a bit unwell. She casually took two packets of cold granules, and sure enough, within an hour, there was a new message in the group chat. After learning that Jiang Mei had returned to her relatives' house, Qiao Yu's tense nerves finally relaxed.

Although she didn't know if Jiang Mei would see her message, Qiao Yu still sincerely apologized to her and expressed her desire to make up.

Qiao Yu placed her phone on the bedside table, hugged her pillow, and asked the system, "Can we go back?"

The system couldn't guarantee anything either, saying, "I'll try my best."

Qiao Yu narrowed her eyes, "Try your best?"

However, she didn't dare to have too much hope, because the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment. She couldn't help but roll around on the bed a couple of times, burying her face deeply in the pillow. What kind of fate did she have in this life? She had actually offended the female lead of this world right from the start.

Is it possible that she could only live to be a hundred years old because she offended the female lead?

Qiao Yu couldn't stop sighing, "Should I hurry up and find a powerful backer?"

She began to seriously consider the feasibility of this method and quickly listed all the well-connected unmarried omegas in the capital. The female lead needed to be appeased, but she also had to live her own life. Before Jiang Mei became wealthy, she needed to find herself the strongest backer to protect her.

As she was thinking, Qiao Yu fell asleep. When she was woken up by the alarm clock the next day, she had a splitting headache and wished she could twist her head off and throw it away on the spot.

She tried to speak, but found her voice to be terribly hoarse.

Qiao Yu, clutching her schoolbag with a pitiful expression, squatted on the ground, sobbing as she put on her shoes. "System, I'm going to die."

The system's calm voice was slightly trembling, "Host, you just have a cold."

Qiao Yu pursed her lips and stared at it with her watery eyes. The system shuddered and quickly changed the subject, "Host, after you fell asleep last night, I helped you compile information on all the eligible omegas in the capital."

Qiao Yu's attention was indeed diverted. She spent the whole way looking at the materials, but she wasn't satisfied with any of them. Just as she reached the classroom door, she stared at a name that seemed particularly familiar. After asking her deskmate Meng E, she learned that the name was Song Wanzi, a currently very popular female celebrity.

Meng E was a fan of Song Wanzi, and she immediately took out her phone to enthusiastically promote her, saying, "Look how beautiful my Sister Song is!"

Qiao Yu nodded. "Beautiful."

Meng E was very satisfied with her reaction, and said with great pride, "Putting everything else aside, just in terms of beauty, my sister Song has never met a competitor in all these years in the entertainment industry."

As soon as Jiang Mei walked in, she saw Qiao Yu staring at the glamorous woman on her phone with eyes gleaming green.

She glanced at him; he was beautiful, but extremely aggressive and threatening. He was clearly a top-tier alpha with excellent genes, the kind of omega who could circle the capital a hundred times over.

Qiao Yu became more and more satisfied with Song Wanzi, and almost wished she could consummate their marriage right there and then. "My wife is so beautiful!"

Meng E was shocked and exclaimed, "?"

I treat you like family, but you want to sleep with my idol?

Upon noticing Jiang Mei's arrival, Meng E hesitated for a moment. Yesterday, everyone was saying that Qiao Yu and Jiang Mei had quarreled and were about to break up, but Meng E recalled how anxiously Qiao Yu had searched for Jiang Mei last night, and felt that such rumors were not very credible.

So Meng'e greeted her warmly as usual, "Jiang Mei, good morning."

At the same time, Qiao Yu, staring at Song Wanzi's photo, suddenly remembered—

Isn't this Jiang Mei's official love interest?