After the wicked villainess awakens, the whole world comes to kiss her.
* A battle of men vying for her / rival enemies pulling each other's hair / five or more male leads. The blurb doesn't cover everything.
* A slow-to-catch-on, self-proclaimed clever and wicked, universally adored woman x a bad dog
* It's perfectly normal for the heroine to have some fun >.<
Xia Zhiying had always thought herself fairly lucky.
A dependable home, a grandmother who doted on her, an older brother who was as elusive as a dragon, Changjin University, which she only got into after performing far beyond expectations, and a future she could see stretching ahead, one she was reasonably happy with.
At a school where even a gust of wind could sweep up a row of rich kids, Xia Zhiying kept her head down, until she discovered she was living inside a novel where readers bet on the male leads.
Her brother was cannon fodder who gave the heroine a golden finger, only to be kicked aside.
And she was the villainess with the fewest scenes and the cruelest fate: jealous of the heroine, she picked fights with her, only to be toyed with by the male leads who adored her, and ultimately lose all dignity and scrape by for a living.
In a dream.
Her brother abandoned her and their grandmother, vanishing without a trace. The company she wanted to work for rejected Xia Zhiying, but just as she was desperate, she received an offer from Shengshi Group.
Her delight at discovering that her direct senior from university, Qi Duchen, was her boss vanished the instant the man grabbed her chin.
His thumb ground against her cheek, and a scoff drifted down from above.
"Xia Zhiying, didn't I warn you?"
"Before coveting someone else, take a look at whether you're even worthy."
She barely managed to leave the Shengshi building, only to run into Pei Zhan, who had been waiting for ages at the intersection.
The rich second-generation fool who was always grinning wore a blank expression on the half of his face hidden by sunglasses.
He lowered them, his tone casual. "You really are stupid as they come..."
"How did you..." Xia Zhiying's smile froze on her face. "...get here?"
Her phone buzzed a few times. The number was unfamiliar.
"Miss Xia, there's still time to say yes."
But the story had only just begun. There was still time for everything.
Day One, Changjin University Library.
She stood beside Qi Duchen and forcibly slipped a note into his hand.
"Hello, fellow student. I've liked you for a long time."
Qi Duchen froze for a moment, met her gaze for several seconds, then packed up and left.
Day Two, Qi Duchen wasn't there.
Xia Zhiying tried the same trick, and this time the note ended up in Pei Zhan's hands.
"Hey, I really like you. I've been secretly watching you for ages. How about we become friends?"
Xia Zhiying blinked slowly at him.
Pei Zhan froze, then turned and ran as if a dog were chasing him.
Xia Zhiying went to great lengths to connect with them before the heroine could, and then things started going wrong???
Qi Duchen, who was "cold and unfeeling" in the original plot, rolled down his car window outside the office. "Get in. I'm going your way."
Pei Zhan, who had been at the heroine's beck and call and causing trouble around Xia Zhiying all day, was suddenly nowhere to be seen. Only large portions of "tonics" and "threats" written in chicken scratch showed up at her door on time.
She had no idea what was going on.
Xia Zhiying instinctively ducked into the library she knew best. Before she could breathe a sigh of relief, someone suddenly sat down on either side of her.
"Xiao Xia." Qi Duchen opened a book.
"Yingying." Pei Zhan draped an arm over the back of her chair.
Then someone behind her touched her ponytail, speaking gently, but emphasizing every word.
"Xia Zhiying, you've got some nerve."
Theme: Self-reliance and strength
