Damn it!
She had finally come up with an excuse to fool the system, not to mention all the mental preparation she’d done throughout the day—only for it all to be completely ruined by Meng Wange’s breezy “I was being presumptuous.”
But at this point, she couldn’t exactly say, “No, I insist on drinking from your bowl, hurry up and feed me.” That didn’t sound like villainous bullying—it sounded more like a clingy girlfriend pouting for attention…
Forced to stick to her role as the villainess, Su Wanli had no choice but to swallow her frustration, her voice laced with genuine shame and anger.
“…Hmph. Glad you understand. As if I’d ever drink your leftover soup! Are you trying to humiliate me?”
She hastily threw out the villainess lines she’d rehearsed, then took a deep breath, pulled back from Meng Wange’s ear, and stomped back to her seat.
There, she tore into the chicken leg that Meng Wange had brought her, practically gnashing her teeth.
‘Damn it, what a waste!’
‘If only I’d been a little more decisive earlier—maybe I could’ve unlocked the legendary “fed soup by a beautiful girl” life achievement!’
It was like watching a character banner flash rainbow in a gacha game, only to accidentally close the app and have it all reset when you reopen it.
‘Ugh, my heart hurts…’
‘Whatever, what’s done is done. As long as my villainess rating stays in the safe zone, it still counts as a win.’
Meng Wange, on the other hand, looked calm and composed.
Where on earth did she get nerves of steel like that? Even with a menacing villainess glaring at her from across the table, she could still gracefully stand up, ladle out a bowl of soup, and casually place it in front of Su Wanli.
“Hmph.”
Su Wanli shot her a fierce glare, grabbed the bowl of soup with a flourish, and—skipping the spoon entirely—downed a huge mouthful straight from the rim.
‘Damn it! Why is this actually so good?! If Meng Wange had fed it to me herself, who knows how delicious it would’ve been…’
It looked like Su Heng wasn’t coming back anytime soon, and the system had gone silent for now, so Su Wanli decided to take matters into her own hands.
She picked up her plate and started making her way around the massive, ten-meter-long dining table, grabbing anything that caught her eye.
No helping it—she had to channel her heartbreak into food.
Even if she missed out on being fed by a beautiful girl, wasn’t she a beautiful girl herself? Feeding herself was practically the same thing!
‘What’s this? Tea-smoked chicken? I’ll try a bite.’
‘And this? Buddha Jumps Over the Wall? One spoonful, coming up.’
‘Hamburger steak? Gimme the whole thing…’
Back at her seat, Meng Wange watched thoughtfully as Su Wanli piled her plate high like a mountain, then returned to her seat with a face full of pent-up resentment.
Feeling the weight of Meng Wange’s gaze, Su Wanli arched an eyebrow.
“…What are you staring at? Go get me a glass of the same red wine you’re drinking.”
“Of course, Miss Su.”
Meng Wange nodded obediently, picked up Su Wanli’s wine glass, and walked off.
***
A moment later, she returned with a glass of dark red liquid, gently placing it beside Su Wanli.
‘Hmph, this feeling of ordering the heroine around isn’t half-bad. It’s definitely a villainess perk…’
Su Wanli felt a little better.
She picked up the glass, mimicking Meng Wange’s earlier elegant manner, and took a delicate sip.
No surprise—the number one noble family in the South City really knew their stuff.
Even before the wine touched her lips, it released a rich fruity aroma.
Once it was in her mouth, it tasted… sharp and refreshing, almost like—
‘Huh? So sour!?’
“Pfft—blegh! What kind of wine is this?! Why is it so sour?!”
This wasn’t acting anymore—Su Wanli slapped the table and stood up in genuine outrage, glaring at Meng Wange’s innocent face.
“Meng Wange, did you give me spoiled wine on purpose?!”
But Meng Wange simply lifted her own glass, gently swirling the liquid inside as she smiled.
“No, Miss Su. This is the same hawthorn and sour plum tea I’m drinking. Uncle Su doesn’t allow underage drinking.”
“…Then why didn’t you say so earlier!? And why the hell did you serve that in a wine glass?!”
“Apologies. I thought ‘red wine’ was just a nickname you and Uncle Su used. As for the glass—it was already set on the table when we arrived.”
Meng Wange looked Su Wanli directly in the eyes as she spoke, her pale irises betraying no hint of sarcasm or mockery.
“Would you like me to order a bottle of non-alcoholic red wine for you instead?”
Seeing her act like this, all of Su Wanli’s pent-up frustration was forcefully swallowed back down.
She could only wave her hand tiredly.
“…Forget it. Just go get me a drink.”
“Yes, Miss Su.”
Meng Wange obediently stood up and walked once again to the table with soups and drinks.
She brought back another beverage for Su Wanli.
“Ew, what is this drink? Why are there two sticks floating in it?”
“This is water chestnut tea, prepared specially by Uncle Su to help nourish your body. It has sugarcane and goji berries in it.”
Su Wanli silently stared at the tea, where a few goji berries and plant roots floated on the surface.
“…Forget it. Just get me a glass of plain water.”
This time, nothing went wrong.
Meng Wange smiled gently as she handed over a glass of water and placed it next to Su Wanli.
For some reason, she just kept smiling like that—letting Su Wanli order her around without complaint, showing no sign of anger.
‘How strange. Was her bullying not intense enough?’
But right now, Su Wanli couldn’t bring herself to do anything more aggressive than just walking up and yelling at the heroine.
And since the [Villainess Points] hadn’t changed—neither dropping nor increasing—she figured she might as well leave it at that.
She didn’t feel like stirring up more drama.
Instead, she planned to enjoy this welcome banquet that Su Heng had prepared for Meng Wange.
“…Why are you still standing there?”
“Hmm? I was just wondering if you might need anything else, Miss Su.”
Meng Wange stood beside her obediently, gazing directly into Su Wanli’s eyes.
“…There’s nothing else! Go back to your seat and eat your own food!”
“Okay.”
Now that she had received such a direct instruction, Meng Wange finally nodded.
She slowly walked away from Su Wanli’s side, mimicking her earlier movements—taking a bit of each dish from the table onto her plate and eating at her own pace.
‘What a difficult heroine to deal with…’
Su Wanli couldn’t figure out what Meng Wange was thinking at all, and it was impossible to predict her next move.
Normally, heroines should avoid someone like her—the designated villainess—and stay at a distance, putting on a cold, pure act and waiting to be bullied. Right?
So why did Meng Wange keep hovering around her so willingly?
Su Wanli took a sip of the plain water from her goblet and snuck a glance at Meng Wange.
She was resting her chin on one hand, eyes open and steady, staring straight at Su Wanli without flinching.
When Su Wanli happened to look back, Meng Wange even smiled and gave her a playful wink.
Cough, cough, cough, cough!
Thank goodness she didn’t have water in her mouth at the time—otherwise she might’ve accidentally spit it right in Meng Wange’s face.
Su Wanli patted her chest to calm down, then slowly turned her eyes away, pretending to admire the white lilies on the table.
‘No, seriously—what is with that reaction? Did I mess up my villainess persona somehow?’
She had tried so hard to play the role of the mean girl, and it’s not like Meng Wange seemed like someone with Stockholm Syndrome…
That smiley, serene stare of hers felt more like a weird form of emotional warfare!
***
Fortunately, before things could escalate any further, someone stepped in to interrupt the silent standoff between the heroine and the villainess.
“Miss Meng—”
A gentle-looking woman in her fifties stood at the entrance of the banquet hall, knocking lightly on the doorframe.
The crystal chains hanging from the top jingled softly at the touch.
“Mr. Su said that once you’re finished eating, I should take you around the house. Let me know when you’re ready, and I’ll show you around.”