Chapter 2: The Female Lead

Chapter 2: The Female Lead

The deserted back hill, an unmonitored area, a young man and woman.

At first glance, Xiao Hua immediately thought it was a romantic encounter and decided to stay out of it.

Xiao Hua silently slipped away, but their conversation still caught her ear.

"Mo Mo, I like you. Be my girlfriend," the boy said earnestly.

"I'm sorry, Qian Hao, I don't like you," the girl replied firmly.

She seemed hesitant and, after a moment of silence, continued, "While at university, I just want to focus on my studies. I came here today to clarify things with you."

She stopped talking, and she appeared ready to leave, but the boy seized her wrist.

The boy yelled in a fit of rage, "Why?! I've pursued you for a month. Are you looking down on me?!"

Xiao Hua sensed something was amiss and turned to see the boy gripping the girl's wrist tightly, pushing her against a tree and tearing at her clothes.

He also shouted, "There's no surveillance here. What can you do?!"

Frightened by the boy's sudden actions, the girl tried to evade him and was close to tears.

Xiao Hua immediately rushed over, yanked the boy away, and kicked him several meters back.

The whole process was smooth and fluid, a sight that would make women cheer and men shudder.

The boy, kicked to the ground, wanted to lose his temper when he got up but felt a sharper pain in his stomach when he saw Xiao Hua.

He could only bluster, "We were kissing as boyfriend and girlfriend, what are you butting in for?!"

Xiao Hua turned to look at the girl, who quickly shook her head and denied, "We're not a couple. He was sexually harassing me!"

"Sexual harassment, huh." Xiao Hua looked at the boy with a mocking smile and suddenly lunged forward, kicking him again before he could react.

"Bang—" The boy was kicked over again and, as he got up, trembling, he stuttered, "I'll call the police on you!"

Xiao Hua replied with the same words, "There's no surveillance here. Who would believe you?"

She was just a delicate young girl in a long dress, after all.

The boy's face turned green.

Feeling refreshed after taking down the scum, Xiao Hua waved her hand and was about to leave without a care in the world.

The girl glanced back at the boy, then turned to follow Xiao Hua.

Having just experienced sexual harassment, the girl's plight stirred Xiao Hua's sympathy, and she wanted to offer some comfort.

"Uh... are you alright?"

Xiao Hua struggled but could only manage this sentence. Her mouth was more suited for sarcasm, and comforting a distressed girl was really not her forte.

The girl, understanding Xiao Hua's difficulty, gave her a bright smile and thanked her, "I'm alright, thank you very much."

"You're welcome." The infectious smile felt oddly familiar to Xiao Hua, so she casually asked, "What's your name?"

The girl replied, "My name is Su Mo. And you?"

Xiao Hua: "..."

Xiao Hua: "!!!"

Su Mo.

A girl with a pure appearance, cheerful personality, and an infectious smile, named Su Mo—who else could this be but the female lead of the book?!

Xiao Hua's mind waged an internal battle for what felt like ages until it became a jumbled mess. She responded calmly, "Xiao Hua."

Meanwhile, her internal monologue was incessant:

Meeting the female lead on the first day; what rotten luck is this?

What am I going to do now?

Avoid the main characters, face the challenges head-on, or eliminate the problem once and for all?

Suddenly meeting the living female lead, Xiao Hua hadn't figured out how to deal with it. She wanted to leave immediately but couldn't bring herself to abandon the pitiful-looking female lead.

Xiao Hua comforted the female lead for a while. Upon learning that she was heading to a part-time job at the campus supermarket, Xiao Hua decided to accompany her, as it was on the way.

C University, Campus Supermarket.

Despite being called a campus supermarket, what Xiao Hua saw was essentially a large shopping mall.

In addition to snacks and daily necessities, the supermarket offered outdoor goods, fresh fish and meat, and various clothing.

Indeed, the book had everything.

Xiao Hua headed straight to the snack section.

Chocolate, meat jerky, candy, chicken legs, and instant noodles—anything high in calories and compact in size went into her cart.

The dusty packs of compressed biscuits on the shelf were a treasure to Xiao Hua, and she swept them all into her shopping cart.

Xiao Hua thought the tens of thousands of yuan in the original owner's card shouldn't go to waste.

She then moved to the outdoor goods section, selecting a large-capacity and sturdy hiking backpack, a pair of hiking boots, and a pair of gloves. She also grabbed a rope and grappling hook, which could serve as weapons.

Next, she went to the clothing section and picked out two sets of durable work clothes.

With the apocalypse looming, Xiao Hua didn't want to fight zombies in a skirt; that would shatter her composure.

After selecting everything, Xiao Hua went to the checkout counter and, while fiddling with her payment app, said, "Could you please pack all these into the bag?"

At the checkout counter, Su Mo's words caught in her throat, and after a few seconds, she stammered, "All of these?"

Su Mo, eyeing the fully loaded shopping cart, couldn't help but remind her, "Some of these items have short shelf lives; buying so much might lead to them going bad."

Seeing only high-calorie snacks and recalling Xiao Hua's earlier beatdown of a hoodlum, she suspected Xiao Hua was coping with a breakup by binge eating.

Unaware of Su Mo's strange assumptions, Xiao Hua wore a natural expression that was almost infuriating. "Don't worry; I have plenty of money."

Su Mo: "..." (Ellipsis)

That damn stench of money.

Su Mo stopped wasting time and swiftly began organizing the items.

Xiao Hua watched Su Mo, then vaguely reminded her, "It's been rather unsafe lately. You might want to carry a weapon for protection."

Su Mo, thinking Xiao Hua was referring to the previous incident, smiled and said, "Thanks, I'll be careful."

"Hmm," Xiao Hua responded, not wanting to say more. She was like a clay Buddha trying to cross a river, barely able to save herself.

Back in her dorm room, Xiao Hua, without hesitation, immediately shut the doors and windows tightly.

She picked up the water cup on the desk with her left hand, her right hand hovering over it, and then, as described in the book—

She concentrated, channeling the energy within her body to her palm.

Then, she watched as water the thickness of a hose flowed out of her right palm, filling the cup within seconds.

Despite this phenomenon that defied human and socialist norms, Xiao Hua found it slightly amusing.

In the original story, the water flow from the female supporting character was only as thick as a thumb, hardly a stream. Did this mean her talent was stronger and more impressive than the supporting character's?

Recalling something, Xiao Hua took off her backpack and retrieved the grappling hook from inside. She infused it with energy and then struck it against the table.

A small hole appeared in the tabletop.

Xiao Hua felt satisfied.

Now that her powers had awakened prematurely, Xiao Hua's secret fear of lacking powers after her reincarnation disappeared.

At 8 PM, Xiao Hua had a hot shower, changed into the work clothes she had bought that afternoon, and lay down in bed, beginning to recall the strange events of the day.

Reflecting on this, Xiao Hua's thoughts returned to the original story.

In the early days of the apocalypse, the male lead, Xiao Zui, relied on his military status and strength for protection.

After all, they were nominal siblings, and the male lead would definitely come looking for Xiao Hua. It wouldn't be easy for her to get rid of him.

However, Xiao Hua differed from the original character. She had no feelings or designs on the male lead, and she wouldn't plot against the female lead. So there was no need to avoid him like the plague.

She should take the initiative.

With that thought, Xiao Hua immediately sent a message to Xiao Zui:

"Bro, I have a bad feeling."

"If something happens tomorrow, I'll come home. Just wait for me."