Chapter 58 Cannon Fodder Substitute Lover 6 Where is he? ...
The sun was shining brightly outside, making Xu Luona's smile in the corridor even more radiant.
Li Qingran reached out and ran her hand through her hair. Her light brown pupils reflected the person in front of her, showing their face, and she tried to discern whether the protagonist in front of her was Xu Luo or 'Xu Luo'.
It should be 'Xu Luo'.
After all, Xu Luo, who was behind them, didn't seem like the kind of person who would suddenly have such a silly idea.
Moreover, given the mission's objectives, the other party probably wouldn't want to have much contact with a mere cannon fodder like him.
Even last night, the other party insisted on drinking the cup of tea that was poured for him first.
Li Qingran blinked, and then, under Xu Luo's expectant gaze, asked only one question softly.
Why are you looking at this?
Xu Luo was stunned.
Li Qingran continued, "So what if they saw it?"
He won't leave Gu Qingyan on his own initiative; at least not until the mission ends or he gains full control of the storyline.
So why should he waste his time looking at what his white moonlight looks like? It has nothing to do with him. After all, his white moonlight didn't have any scenes with him in the original story. The two of them never met from beginning to end, so there's no need for him to add unnecessary scenes just because he's temporarily bored.
Moreover, he is currently under the surveillance of the main system and the world rules, and his activities are not as free as Xu Luo's.
Li Qingran leaned against the doorframe, yawned, then smiled at Xu Luo, who was staring at her blankly, and said:
"I think I'll pass. I'm too tired. I'd rather stay in my bedroom and sleep than go see a stranger."
"But aren't you worried?"
Xu Luo stared wide-eyed at Li Qingran, his already round almond-shaped eyes becoming even rounder.
"He's back. What if Gu Qingyan suddenly has a brain fart and kicks us all out?"
"..."
Li Qingran was amused by Xu Luo's thought process. "So, if we go see him now and find out what he looks like, will that stop Gu Qingyan from having a brain fart?"
Xu Luo paused for a moment after hearing this, then blinked. "At least, by then we won't be driven away without knowing why. As the saying goes, you should die knowing the truth!"
"Ranran~ Please come with me, okay? I beg you..." Xu Luo said anxiously, seeing that Li Qingran had a calm expression and seemed to have no interest in her white moonlight.
“It’s not impossible.” Li Qingran ignored Xu Luo’s affectionate way of addressing her and looked at him with a smile, saying, “But can you tell me why you want me to go with you so much?”
The fact that the protagonist is so eager to have him, the cannon fodder, and his white moonlight, Jia Nian, must mean more than just wanting him to die knowing why.
[It could also be that they want to nip your feelings for Gu Qingyan in the bud.] 888's intelligence rarely kicked in, as they analyzed the situation for Li Qingran.
Li Qingran asked in confusion: "[I don't think falling in love with Gu Qingyan was one of my tasks.]"
[No, there isn't, but there's a line in the original plot: 'Those who were dismissed as substitute lovers didn't want it, after all, during their time with Gu Qingyan, they had already fallen in love with this noble and aloof man...' The word 'all' most likely includes you, the host.]
[But in the original story, the cannon fodder character never even interacted with Gu Qingyan, so how could she have fallen in love with him...] Li Qingran was even more puzzled.
[There are no cannon fodder characters, but you did have some yesterday, didn't you, host? I think that's probably why the protagonist wants you to accept reality early and give up those unfounded feelings for Gu Qingyan.]
As 888 spoke, to prevent Li Qingran from having any further doubts, it added, "Host, you may not realize it, but in the original story, Gu Qingyan does have a bit of a charmer quality."
The world of "Substitute Lover" is inherently a bit like a story of torturing the protagonist and then chasing after his wife – the protagonist suffers for 99 episodes plus 50 minutes, while the protagonist wins over his wife in 10 minutes and finishes the ending.
Based on this setting, in the original story, almost everyone who has seen the protagonist (gong) or has any connection with him, especially his mistresses, likes him and even targets and frames the protagonist (shou) because of this.
Even the "white moonlight" is set up this way, and the other party is even the biggest villain in the original plot. In the process of vying for Gu Qingyan, he tirelessly sets traps and trips up Xu Luo, and even forces Xu Luo to go abroad. This is also the point at which Gu Qingyan realizes that he has fallen in love with Xu Luo.
However, these plot points have nothing to do with Li Qingran. 888 is saying all this so that Li Qingran can better understand the plot and the little thoughts of Xu Luo, the mission participant who has already been possessed.
[I guess his mission is related to the revenge against the main character, and nipping your feelings for Gu Qingyan in the bud is to have an ally when he gets revenge on Gu Qingyan later.]
Of course, it could also be simply to prevent Li Qingran from falling for Gu Qingran, after all... this mission taker seems genuinely interested in its host.
888 was also desperate. It didn't know if it was just its imagination, but its host was really popular with the main characters...
Is there some explanation for this? Or does its host possess some kind of magic that attracts the main characters? Otherwise, why would these people be crowding around him one by one?
Because of this question, 888 also didn't really want Li Qingran to go out and meet some white moonlight with Xu Luo.
The impact on the plot is secondary; the main concern is what if she accidentally encounters her white moonlight, and the other person falls in love with her at first sight like the villains or supporting characters in the previous world? How can the plot of this world continue?
The main character has already betrayed half of the relationship, so please don't let the white moonlight (the male lead) make any more mistakes.
However, just as 888 was pondering how to make Li Qingran reject Xu Luo, a notification popped up in his inbox with a "ding-dong" sound, indicating that he had received a special notification.
It's the main system!
Could it be that its host and the protagonist chatted for too long, and the main system detected this and judged them to be disrupting the plot, so it had to punish them?
888's heart clenched suddenly, and even the little hand that clicked to receive the data began to tremble.
As a result, just as 888 was nervously preparing to face the wrath of the main system, what it saw was...
Let him go.
This short sentence sparked a great deal of doubt in 888's mind.
Let him go?
Who should go?
Could it be that Li Qingran is to go see her white moonlight?
But...why?
Isn't this breaking—
[From your perspective, persuade him to go, but don't let the mission leaders find out that I instructed him to do so.]
Before 888 could finish pondering the main system's intentions, the other party sent another message.
This means... let it pretend to be a playful fool and take the blame.
888 was somewhat helpless, but since the big boss had already spoken, even if it had a lot of doubts in its heart, it could only bite the bullet and do as it was told.
Then, just as Xu Luo was racking his brains to come up with a plausible reason that would make Li Qingran want to go see Jiang Ming with him, he heard a soft sigh from above, followed by a boy's helpless but still gentle voice.
"Okay, I'll go with you."
"Huh?" Xu Luo blinked, somewhat bewildered. "But I haven't told you why you absolutely have to go."
"So, do you want me to go or not?"
"Yes, I do," Xu Luo answered honestly.
“That works then.” Li Qingran’s eyes crinkled into a smile. “I allow you to use this as a reason to invite me.”
I went because you wanted to.
Xu Luo blinked twice, staring blankly at the door that had closed again, then suddenly jumped up and down a beat late in the middle.
[Holy crap! Little Liu, did you hear that? You heard it, right? He said he'd allow me to use wanting him as a reason to persuade him to come with me, is he flirting with me? He's flirting with me!!!]
Xu Luo paced back and forth in the corridor, her heart pounding with excitement at this new experience.
The Little Six system was also very excited. After all, it had always seen its host flirting with others, and this was the first time it had seen someone actively flirt with its host. Although it might just be an unintentional act, flirting was flirting. Seeing Xu Luo's blushing face, Little Six also screamed.
[Of course it is, Host! And his voice is so gentle, like he's coaxing a child, both doting and flirtatious. Plus, he's handsome. How could such a perfect character be cannon fodder?]
Moreover, he was just a cannon fodder character who was only briefly mentioned in the original storyline.
The author is wasting a lot of talent!
Xiao Liu felt sorry for Li Qingran.
Xu Luo, however, did not think so.
So what if he's cannon fodder? Cannon fodder is good! That way, Li Qingran won't have much contact with others, and he can win over boys faster and better.
Now, as long as he gets to see his white moonlight and nipps his feelings for Gu Qingyan in the bud, he can start his conquest plan without any worries!
【But……】
Xiao Liu was excited, so excited, when he suddenly remembered the instructions his other host had given him before falling into slumber. He immediately pulled Xu Luo back from his wandering thoughts and said:
[Host, don't forget our mission! Our target is Gu Qingyan! Protagonist is the dominant one!]
It's not this cannon fodder behind the door!
It's okay to flirt a little outside of missions, but you can't lose sight of the main focus, otherwise when the other host comes online, it'll be the one getting scolded!
Xiao Liuzi tried his best to shift Xu Luo's focus from Li Qingran to Gu Qingyan, but the latter was completely uncooperative.
[What does it matter? Jiang Ming is returning to China today. Gu Qingyan is probably at home right now choosing which suit to wear to meet his "white moonlight" tonight. There's no part of my storyline there.]
Don't worry, I know what I'm doing. I'll definitely complete the mission!
But certainly not now.
At this moment, Xu Luo's main task is to take Li Qingran to meet Jiang Ming, to let him know what kind of womanizing and cowardly scumbag Gu Qingyan is, and to nip the possibility of her falling in love with Gu Qingyan in the bud.
He had even planned out what the two of them would say when they met Jiang Ming. He was just waiting for his white moonlight to appear, and then he would drag Li Qingran to a dark corner and make Gu Qingyan feel like he was less than a dog.
However, no matter how much Xu Luo planned, he didn't expect that just as Li Qingran had changed her clothes and rushed to the airport with him, about to meet Jiang Ming, he suddenly fell into a deep sleep—another Xu Luo had taken over his account without any warning.
"...Where am I?" Xu Luo, who had just woken up, looked at the bustling airport in front of him, a clear look of confusion flashing across his eyes.
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Author's Note: I've been having a lot of migraines lately, and I'm planning to go to the hospital if it doesn't get better tomorrow. Sorry for the inconsistent updates these past few days; I'll definitely try my best to get back to a six-day-a-week schedule! And don't forget to send red envelopes in the comments section of this chapter, my little darlings! Love you all! [heart emojis]
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