41: Chapter 41 My Roommate is the Female Lead (1)

As noon approached, the sun climbed to its zenith, and the clamor of cicadas swelled amidst the dense foliage.

Jiang Wan walked along the shaded path, her steps measured and even, as if keeping time to an invisible rhythm.

She wore a beige cotton-linen shirt, its sleeves casually rolled up to her forearms, the exposed skin gleaming faintly under dappled sunlight.

In the artificial lake by the roadside, pink lotuses swayed gracefully, an exquisite sight.

Jiang Wan's gaze swept over the blooming lotuses, a slight curve touching the corner of her mouth before she continued on her way.

This was a new world. After completing the last one, she had rested well before Xiao Lingdang tossed her here.

In this lifetime, she was once again a girl with a troubled fate: her birth mother died early, and her father remarried in haste.

As the saying goes, with a stepmother comes a stepfather.

She was only three years old then. Going hungry was commonplace. When neighbors, unable to bear the sight, spoke up for her, her stepmother would berate them, saying anyone who couldn't stand it could take the child home to raise.

How could that be? Everyone's wages weren't high, and they could barely afford to raise their own children. Who had spare money to raise someone else's?

Did they think raising a child was easy? Food, clothing, shelter, transportation—which didn't require money?

So, gradually, people stopped daring to say much.

Just when Jiang Wan thought she would starve to death, her Aunt Jiang descended from the heavens and rescued her from that living hell.

Her mother had married far away. Aunt Jiang was passing through the area and wanted to visit her younger sister who had eloped for love.

However, from what Jiang Wan later learned, it wasn't much of a marriage. They hadn't even gotten a marriage certificate; it was more like running away together!

Her maternal grandparents had disapproved. Her mother thought that once a child was born, the deed would be done, and her parents would have no choice but to accept it.

Unfortunately, she never lived to see her parents' approval, passing away from illness.

Utterly foolish.

It was the 1990s then, and transportation wasn't very convenient. After some inquiries, Aunt Jiang finally found the destination, only to be told her sister was already gone!

For Aunt Jiang, this was a bolt from the blue. She caused a huge scene at the scoundrel's house, berating him thoroughly. Seeing the flesh and blood her sister had left behind, abused to such a state, she nearly wished she could knife the despicable man.

So, when Aunt Jiang left, she took Jiang Wan with her. After all, Jiang Wan hadn't even been registered on the household register yet and wasn't officially part of that family.

Before leaving, Aunt Jiang also made the scoundrel pay up, extracting two thousand yuan from him, threatening to report him to the Public Security Bureau for child abuse otherwise.

To avoid the authorities, the scoundrel reluctantly paid the money but declared that since she took the child, Jiang Wan would have nothing more to do with them in the future.

If she couldn't raise the child, she shouldn't send her back, because he wouldn't acknowledge her then.

And so, Jiang Wan was taken home by her aunt. Aunt Jiang's family ran a small eatery, making a decent living. With only two sons of their own, they had long wanted a daughter.

Uncle Jiang agreed, and the two sons were willing too. Thus, Jiang Wan was registered under Aunt Jiang's household, took her mother's surname, and was named Jiang Wan.

Aunt Jiang said Jiang Wan was her sister's only flesh and blood left in this world and should bear the Jiang surname.

Aunt Jiang raised Jiang Wan but always had her call her 'Aunt,' never 'Mom.'

Aunt Jiang was quite busy and couldn't attend to Jiang Wan much, so once Jiang Wan was old enough, she was sent to school.

She was now eighteen, a freshman at Shencheng University.

With her scores, she could have gone to Beijing, Shanghai, or Guangzhou, but not wanting to be too far from home, she chose a university within the province.

How wonderful! A provincial university offered scholarships, was close to home, and allowed her to return every weekend for a good meal.

Thinking that tomorrow was the weekend and she could go home again filled Jiang Wan with joy.

Having just finished military training, Jiang Wan felt she had lost quite a bit of weight and needed to go home for some proper nourishment.

Jiang Wan was very satisfied with her current situation. Being a student was great!

Especially a freshman—no life worries, no study pressure like in high school. What a wonderful time!

'Xiao Lingdang, you finally did something right, choosing a good start.'

She had arrived early. The plot hadn't begun yet, so she could enjoy her student life to the fullest.

Her Aunt Jiang and Uncle Jiang were impressive. Their former small eatery had now grown into a large restaurant.

They owned the land, and the restaurant was several stories tall.

Both Aunt Jiang and Uncle Jiang doted on Jiang Wan.

Back home, Jiang Wan always received the highest allowance. Later, when her two older brothers started working, they would slip her money from time to time. Thus, Jiang Wan had accumulated a considerable sum in savings.

So, Jiang Wan didn't need to worry about living expenses now, unlike other students who had to take part-time jobs in their spare time.

As for finding a job after graduation, Jiang Wan believed things would work out when the time came. She'd cross that bridge when she got to it!

For now, she felt enjoying her university life was more important.

Xiao Lingdang was also surprised. It hadn't expected Jiang Wan's luck to be so good.

'This is your own luck; it has nothing to do with me. The plot hasn't started yet, so go ahead and have fun. I'll appear when it's time.'

The system only knew this world revolved around Jiang Wan's roommate.

Jiang Wan's roommate, Liu Yiyi, was the female lead of this world.

But Jiang Wan's mission target hadn't appeared yet, so the system didn't know the specific plot of this world.

It only knew the approximate time: the mission target would appear during Jiang Wan's sophomore year.

Jiang Wan was only a freshman now; it was still early! So, it could go off and play for a while, reappearing when the time came.

Jiang Wan nodded. 'Alright then, Xiao Lingdang. Don't get too carried away playing. Remember I'm here; don't forget about me.'

Xiao Lingdang replied cockily, 'Don't worry, I definitely won't forget. If you need anything, you can call me anytime. The movie's about to start; I'm off now, Wanwan. Bye.'

Xiao Lingdang said her roommate was the female lead, which instantly set off alarm bells in Jiang Wan's mind.

Based on her experience, female leads were generally harbingers of trouble.

Getting too close would inevitably lead to getting entangled.

Therefore, Jiang Wan always adhered to this rule, reminding herself to keep her distance from the female lead.

It was still early in the semester, the phase where everyone was getting acquainted. Not wanting to get too friendly wouldn't seem strange.

It would just make people think you were a bit aloof.

Of course, being too obvious wasn't good either. Later, as everyone gradually became more familiar, she could simply avoid going out alone with the female lead.

They weren't even in the same department anyway. If the female lead had free time, Jiang Wan certainly didn't. She could just find any excuse to decline.

Tomorrow was the weekend. Jiang Wan had no afternoon classes and didn't plan to stay on campus today. She wanted to return to her dorm to pack and then take the bus home.

Keeping away from the main characters starts now.