What? My Husband Is the Big Villain?!

Qiao Chengyu spent half her life doing good deeds and accumulating virtue. Then she transmigrated into a book, only to land squarely in the role of the story's most vicious female villain.

The original owner had fallen hopelessly in love with the book's villain, Ye Jingsi. Driven by love turned to hate, she poisoned him and forced him to marry her.

Who would have thought the villain would fight fire with fire, turning the tables and making her marry a nameless passerby from the book instead?

Qiao Chengyu: Got it. Going by the usual transmigration-into-a-book formula, my mission is to redeem the villain!

She looked up and saw her new groom.

He was strikingly handsome, with an air of elegance. His features seemed touched by snow that had never melted, and the tiny mole on his nose caught the eye. He was like frost and snow atop a high mountain, almost otherworldly.

Qiao Chengyu stared blankly before coming to her senses. Was the average passerby in this book really this good-looking?

The next moment, the young man gave a soft cough. A few spots of blood appeared on his handkerchief. He smiled apologetically. "I'm Jiang Bohuai. It's a hardship for you to marry me, Miss Qiao."

Qiao Chengyu's heart melted under his gaze.

*

As someone familiar with the usual transmigration-into-a-book tropes, Qiao Chengyu threw herself wholeheartedly into the task of saving Ye Jingsi.

Medicinal herbs from secret realms? Give them to him!

Competition rewards? Give them to him!

Sword manuals? Give them to him!

Fortunately, Jiang Bohuai was understanding and cooperative enough to play the devoted husband in public with her.

That night, the rain fell in fat drops.

Jiang Bohuai's lashes trembled as he asked her with a frail, pitiful look, "Are you going to see Fellow Daoist Ye again, my lady?"

Qiao Chengyu felt guilty. He coughed a few times as he spoke, and she hesitated, torn. After comforting him with a few words, she still went out with an umbrella.

*

Jiang Bohuai loved anything interesting, but after going through dozens of cycles of reincarnation, he had become intimately familiar with everything in this world.

His life had become dull again.

Then one day, out of nowhere...

He realized that his wicked-hearted wife, whom he was supposed to kill early on, suddenly seemed like a different person.

Jiang Bohuai lowered his eyes, hiding the excitement dancing in them.

He pretended to be frail and obedient, doing whatever she asked.

He watched her struggle to choose between him and someone else, hoping she would feel so guilty she couldn't bear it, and then never leave him again.

*

Ye Jingsi had been agonizing over something these past few days.

Should he tell Daoist Friend Qiao, who had been so kind to him, that the trick with the poison that forced her into marriage had actually been carried out by her current husband?

But Jiang Bohuai was crazed and vindictive. He had beaten Ye Jingsi down countless times already. What if he came after him for revenge?!

*

At last, one day, Jiang Bohuai accidentally let his mask slip.

The long sword in his hand caught the light in a beautiful gleam. His white robes were stained with blood, and the hand holding Qiao Chengyu's was cold but steady.

Amid the raging fires of karma and endless wails, his voice was soft. "Watch closely, my lady. If the sword tip is crooked, it won't hit the heart, so the victim won't die right away."

Qiao Chengyu: ...Wait. Something's not right here.

Qiao Chengyu had vaguely suspected that Jiang Bohuai was no ordinary person. After all, he was so skilled with a sword and had such profound spiritual power. He was nothing like an ordinary passerby. She didn't mind. Beautiful things were always poisonous, so it was only natural for Jiang Bohuai to have a few secrets.

Until the day the System, dormant in her mind, woke up.

It lamented in anguish: How did you get entangled with the Great Demon Lord when I didn't even give you a mission?!

Qiao Chengyu asked, still clinging to a faint hope: How bad is this demon?

System: Trust me, you don't want to know.

"..." Qiao Chengyu promptly packed her belongings and ran for it.

She had barely managed to get by while hiding and moving from place to place. Afraid Jiang Bohuai would catch up, she was just about to move again when...

A long sword stabbed into the ground in front of her, blocking her way.

Jiang Bohuai lifted his eyes to look at her. His expression was impossible to read, though his beautiful eyes curved into a smile. "I've found you, my lady."

[One-on-one romance, both leads' first love]

Coming soon: [The Moonlight Refuses the Redemption Route]

Yun Shuyue had diligently cultivated for half her life and spent twenty years as a cultivator.

Then one day, a "System" claiming it could take her home suddenly appeared in her mind.

According to the System, the world she lived in was just a book. She had been pulled into it by an accident decades ago, and had spent twenty years as the eldest daughter of the Yun family, becoming one of the story's important characters.

The book's ending: after enduring eighty-one trials, the three protagonists, who had been humiliated and ground into the dirt, each became a formidable force in the cultivation world.

To return to the real world, she had to complete her character's mission. When the protagonists were humiliated, she had to save them, show them the world's warmth, and become the moonlight that gave them the strength to keep going.

The Yun family heiress, who had always had people trying to please her: ...

Her lips pressed into a thin line. She immediately wanted to quit.

After much coaxing and persuasion, Yun Shuyue finally relented. She could be their moonlight, but she wouldn't redeem them. All three were going to be humiliated, and they had no power or influence. Why should she bother associating with them?

However, she discovered that the three protagonists were, respectively, her childhood friend whom she had disliked since they were kids, a cold-faced youth from the Demon Realm, and an aloof Immortal Venerable who kept everyone at a distance.

Yun Shuyue: ...Great. The world might as well end.

Fortunately, they were all still favored children of heaven.

*

Rule Number One for being someone's moonlight: Make your target genuinely fall for you.

Yun Shuyue had never tried to please anyone, but she had read plenty of romance stories. She knew that making someone like you required at least a million percent sincerity.

She couldn't offer her genuine feelings, but she could pretend.

From then on, she fussed over the three of them and was always first to stand up for them (and make things worse for them). Even when she happened to pick up a flower bud, she would think of taking it back to placate them.

Rule Number Two for being someone's moonlight: Give your target attentive, devoted care.

That was easy, Yun Shuyue thought. As usual, she rounded up a bunch of underlings to make life difficult for her childhood friend, Wei Yu, then watched with satisfaction as he sprawled in the mud in a sorry state.

His hair was soaked by the rain and clumped into strands. When he looked up, he saw Yun Shuyue trying to hide her laughter behind a show of sympathy. "A-Yu, are you all right?"

Wei Yu: ...

Rule Number Three for being someone's moonlight: Die in a grand and glorious fashion.

Being a perfect moonlight was so hard. Yun Shuyue counted the days on her fingers, and at last the perfect time to "die" arrived.

*

Wei Yu was a genius of the cultivation world, an elegant and extraordinary talent.

Then one day, he realized that his childhood friend, who loved making trouble for him, was acting strangely.

She still caused trouble, then pretended it hadn't been her doing. With a pitiful expression, she held out tea hot enough to scald him and told him to drink it to warm up.

Wei Yu: ...Is she insane?

Yun Shuyue was also cursing Wei Yu in her heart. This tea was hot enough to scald her. Why wouldn't he take it already?

The young lady of the Yun family claimed to like him, but Wei Yu just thought she had come up with a new game. He pressed his lips together and lowered his eyes, deciding that Yun Shuyue was beyond help. He became even more hostile toward her.

Until that day.

Flames devoured everything. Even the little corner of the roof was swept away by the leaping fire and reduced to ash.

Wei Yu could barely breathe from choking on the smoke. His fingers clung desperately to the stone wall Yun Shuyue had sealed up. His eyes were red, and blood seeped from his fingertips, yet someone still dragged him out of the fire.

His whole body stiff, he fell to his knees before the flames. The firelight scorched the corners of his eyes. Then, as if he could no longer hold it in, he coughed up a large mouthful of blood.

*

Yun Shuyue couldn't get home. The "System" in her mind seemed to have lost contact, as if it had never existed. Fortunately, she found a handsome husband who was supposedly a fellow transmigrator.

He was gentle, considerate, and attentive. Life was at least bearable.

Then, one day...

She opened the door, and someone was suddenly standing outside.

Wei Yu's lips were pressed tightly together. The knuckles of the hand gripping the door were red. He called her "Shushu."

Yun Shuyue was so frightened she hardly dared breathe. The next moment, someone grabbed her by the shoulder and pulled her into a warm embrace.

Her husband smiled and asked pleasantly, "Is there something you need with my wife?"

Then, while the other person stared at them, he affectionately brushed the tip of his nose against Yun Shuyue's. "Oh, right. Two people came looking for you a few days ago, too. They didn't look like good people, so I sent them away. Were they old acquaintances?"

Yun Shuyue: ...

With two pairs of eyes on her, she struggled to swallow.

[Content warnings]

1. Rival suitors and a melodramatic everyone-loves-the-heroine setup.

2. Wei Yu is only one of the male leads. The synopsis is limited in length, so only his part is included.

3. It isn't tagged as "transmigrate into a book." You can probably guess things aren't that simple, haha.

4. The heroine may be a villainess. I've never written this sort of character before, but I think a silly little villain can be cute, and I want to give it a try. If that's not your thing, please don't read!

Theme: Look beyond appearances to see the truth.