The Cannon Fodder Stole the Male Lead’s Script GL - Chapter 24

Jiang Yun thought to herself that as long as she chose to avoid the villainess plotline, the next part of the story should not unfold. However, unless her earlier suspicion was correct, the plot might instead compensate by shifting elsewhere.

She glanced from the corner of her eye at Li Yue, who was trailing behind the group. Then she took Zhan Rao’s hand and said, “Stay close to me.”

Zhan Rao looked down at their joined hands. A wide smile bloomed on her face, and her eyes narrowed from the joy. She nodded quickly and replied, “Okay. Don’t worry. I’m right behind you.”

Behind them, Xin Keke, who had been watching the pair closely, whispered to Li Yue, “They seem really close.”

When Jiang Yun solved the previous puzzle, her thinking had been clear, careful, bold, and logical. The team had no shortage of smart students, yet no one had thought of the solution until Jiang Yun did.

Someone like that did not seem like the type who would force others to copy lessons for her.

Xin Keke began to reflect on her earlier assumptions. “Maybe Jiang Yun is not that unreasonable. Was I too quick to judge her before? Perhaps she just struggles with studying. Li Yue, could it be that you also misunderstood her? Zhan Rao is impressive, and she clearly likes Jiang Yun. Doesn’t that mean Jiang Yun might not be such a terrible person after all?”

Li Yue turned sharply to glare at Xin Keke. “Just because she solved one puzzle, now you think she is a good person? Weren’t you the one who disliked her before?”

Li Yue’s voice was not loud, but it was sharp.

The people walking ahead heard her voice and turned around in surprise.

Tong Xue gave a light snort and tugged on Cai Minhao, whose eyes were wide with disbelief. “What are you staring at? Focus on finding clues.”

Cai Minhao scratched his head and muttered, “So Li Yue can raise her voice after all.”

Tong Xue smirked. “It was all an act.”

Cai Minhao said nothing.

Li Yue clearly heard Tong Xue’s mocking words. Her face turned red, then purple.

She turned to look at Xin Keke, who still seemed stunned by her sudden outburst.

“What now? Do you also think I have been faking everything? That all the things I said about Jiang Yun were just lies and slander?”

Xin Keke jumped and quickly shook her head. “No… I didn’t think that.” Although, only a second earlier, she had indeed had her doubts. But she had known Li Yue for a long time. If Li Yue had been pretending, she would have had to act constantly. That kind of deception would be far too advanced…

No, she concluded that Li Yue could not be that kind of person.

“Li Yue, don’t yell like that. You are scaring me.”

Li Yue pressed her lips together, glanced at the group ahead, and then suddenly stopped walking. She pulled Xin Keke to the side, making sure no one could overhear them.

“Li Yue, what are you doing? If we separate from the group and run into a trap, what will we do?”

“We won’t run into one,” Li Yue said firmly. She steadied Xin Keke, who had tried to pull away. Then she leaned closer and pointed to the mark on her face. “This is what your so-called not-so-bad Jiang Yun and your sweet and kind Zhan Rao did to me.”

The slap mark on her face was stark and unmistakable. Earlier, Li Yue had covered it with her hand, making it hard to notice. But now that her hand was down, it was impossible to miss.

“They hit you!” Xin Keke exclaimed with wide eyes, startled by the revelation. “When did that happen?”

She had been with Li Yue almost the entire time. How had she missed that?

She immediately felt regret. If only she had stayed by Li Yue’s side the whole time, she might have prevented it.

Tears welled in Li Yue’s eyes. Her large eyes now held only pain and hatred. “Weren’t you hiding out of fear? While everyone was searching for clues in the last stage, Jiang Yun called me over. She confronted me and asked if I liked Yan Kuo. I didn’t want to argue with her, so I tried to walk away. That was when Zhan Rao pinned me down and slapped me multiple times.”

As she spoke, tears streamed down her cheeks.

“I may be just an ordinary girl from a regular family, but that doesn’t mean I deserve to be bullied. Just because I am poor, does that give Jiang Yun and Zhan Rao the right to treat me like this?”

Li Yue was crying so hard she could barely breathe. Xin Keke clenched her fists.

“They really did that to you?”

Li Yue glared at her. “Do you think I’m lying? Have you ever seen me lose control like this before? Even if I come from a poor family and wear knock-off clothes that people mock, I have never broken down in front of others. I have never shouted at anyone. If they hadn’t pushed me so far today, why would I be like this?”

“It is Jiang Yun who likes Yan Kuo. Now she thinks everyone wants to take him from her. Don’t you think that is outrageous? And now you’re defending her? Xin Keke, are you really my friend?”

Li Yue’s face was filled with sorrow, as though she had just been betrayed.

Xin Keke instantly felt overwhelmed with guilt.

“I am sorry, Yueyue. I really didn’t know. Please don’t cry. I misunderstood you. I didn’t realize Jiang Yun was so cruel. And Zhan Rao must be pretending to be nice. Don’t worry, I will get revenge for you,” Xin Keke said through clenched teeth.

Li Yue wiped her tears and asked quietly, “How will you get revenge? We can’t do anything.”

Xin Keke frowned and looked around carefully. “Just wait and see.”