Rebirth: After Becoming the Villainess-Chapter 247: It Is My Fortune

"Ugh... COUGH COUGH..."

"Hehe~ Madam, please eat a little slower. You’re just so adorable~"

A piece of meat got stuck in Song Lianhe’s throat. Her face turned beet red as she pointed at her neck, unable to breathe.

The male escort put down his chopsticks and raised a hand to pat her back.

A wine cup came whizzing through the air and smashed right into the male escort’s shoulder.

"Ouch!"

The powerful impact knocked the escort half off-balance. His shoulder felt as if a hole had been burned through it, and the pain made him break out in a cold sweat.

At the same time, Xuan Mei gave her back a sharp pat. Song Lianhe coughed violently, dislodging the object from her throat, and finally felt like she could breathe again.

She looked up at the table across from them, her face still red. Although the man was in disguise, she recognized him at a glance. It was his eyes, especially—they were like two shards of frigid ice, looking at everything as if it were lifeless.

And yet, at that moment, the man was chatting and laughing with his companion, as if he hadn’t been the one to throw the cup at all.

"Madam~ Something hit my shoulder just now, I don’t know what it was. It hurts so much. Could you rub it for me, please?"

"No need to rub it... Y-You’ll be fine..."

Song Lianhe nearly buried her head in her chest.

Xuan Mei shook her head from the side.

’Women,’ she thought.

"Madam~"

Thinking she was just being shy, the male escort leaned in and whispered in her ear, "Here at Huaxu Square, we have private rooms for our distinguished guests, as well as some fun little toys to enhance the mood, and also..."

Song Lianhe gasped. ’They get *that* wild here?’

A sinister gaze, faint yet palpable, drifted over from the opposite table. Song Lianhe instantly sat bolt upright and pushed the man away. "What is all this nonsense? I’m not interested!"

Noticing the escort’s loosely-worn collar, she quickly reached out to straighten it for him. "If you’re going to wear clothes, wear them properly! Aren’t you afraid of catching a cold?" With that, she pulled out her coin purse, gave each of them a silver ingot, and waved them away. "You two can leave now."

"Did we do something wrong to displease you, Madam?"

The two men didn’t want to leave. The woman was simply too beautiful, and her body had an innocent yet alluring appeal.

With a prize like her, they weren’t just willing to work for the money—they would have even paid for the privilege!

Xuan Mei frowned. Without a word, she stepped forward, grabbed one man in each hand, and "escorted" them out with a kick.

When she returned, Xuan Mei couldn’t help but chide her, "Young Madam, you should act more prudently in the future. Don’t make any missteps. I may indulge you, but His Lordship will not."

Song Lianhe gave a sheepish "Oh."

’The only reason I came here was to confirm whether that Zhen Niang had any dealings with Zhou Cangyan.’

’But since I’m already here, wouldn’t it be a waste of this vibrant mortal world not to try something new?’

And so, she had dared to do something here that she never would have in modern society.

Who would have thought that just as her "red apricot blossom" was about to peek over the wall, it would be snipped off at the root?

Song Lianhe looked across the room again, and her gaze sharpened.

The woman drinking with Zhou Cangyan was none other than Zhen Niang!

’No, that’s not right!’

’According to the plot of the book I transmigrated into, he’s not supposed to have fallen for the female lead yet! If he hasn’t, why would he be paying special attention to Zhen Niang?’

A wave of panic washed over Song Lianhe.

An inexplicable anxiety rose in her heart, along with a flicker of irritation she couldn’t quite place.

The two of them were chatting happily. It was undeniable that even in disguise, Zhou Cangyan had an air about him that, no matter what his face looked like, screamed "handsome."

Even with an ugly face, he was still ruggedly handsome in his own way!

As for Zhen Niang, the adoration in her eyes was practically overflowing as she subtly closed the distance between them, until half her body was nearly nestled against Zhou Cangyan.

Song Lianhe’s brows were practically tied in a knot. She poured herself drink after drink, and when that wasn’t enough, she pulled Xuan Mei down to sit with her. "Drink!"

’I was just playing around with two male escorts, and he gives me that look!’ 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

’And look at him! He gets to have fun with the female lead’s stand-in!’

’How can someone have such a double standard?’

Xuan Mei was on duty and needed to remain highly vigilant at all times; it was not appropriate for her to drink.

"Alright, that’s enough. Don’t drink any more."

Xuan Mei knew her tolerance for alcohol. Seeing her cheeks flush and her gaze grow hazy, she reached for the cup in her hand.

"Hey~ Don’t be a buzzkill! You come to a place like this to have fun! You wouldn’t let me have fun with the men, so what’s wrong with having a few drinks?" Song Lianhe slurred, swatting at Xuan Mei’s outstretched hand.

A rare look of helplessness appeared on Xuan Mei’s usually expressionless face.

Across the room, behind a gauze curtain, Zhen Niang’s eyes twinkled flirtatiously. She chuckled sweetly, "Has Young Master Fu Yao taken a fancy to that young lady?"

Zhou Cangyan lowered his gaze, neither confirming nor denying it.

"Hehe, it’s no wonder Young Master Fu Yao treats her differently. That young lady is indeed exquisitely beautiful. I wonder why she deliberately conceals her face."

Zhou Cangyan glanced at the dazed woman across the way. "Perhaps it is precisely because she is so exquisitely beautiful."

Zhen Niang gave a soft laugh. "I didn’t realize Young Master Fu Yao was such an observant man." Her smile faded, and she sighed. "If the one you admire is such a peerless beauty, then I suppose I must accept it. If only I were as beautiful as she is..."

Her gaze toward Song Lianhe gradually deepened into something dark.

Zhou Cangyan’s cold eyes swept over her. He was smiling, but there was no trace of mirth in his eyes. He said slowly, "I cannot speak for other men, but if I love someone, it is because I love *her* that she becomes the most uniquely beautiful person in the world. No matter how much anyone else resembles her, they will never be her."

He spoke as if it were a casual remark, yet it made Zhen Niang’s face turn deathly pale. She couldn’t help but raise a hand to her own cheek.

’No matter how much I resemble her... I will never be her...’

The words stabbed into Zhen Niang’s heart like a dagger.

In truth, even if Zhou Cangyan hadn’t said it, she knew. Her deliberate imitation was nothing more than a clumsy copy, something that could never be presented in high society.

The root of it all was that one time when he was drunk and mistook her for the woman he loved...

From then on, Zhen Niang seemed to have found a way to get closer to him. She began to imitate that woman, intentionally or not, until she became nothing but a shadow of someone else.

She had once thrown caution to the wind and come to Ling’an City to find him. She followed him all the way to the National Guardian General Mansion, and there, she saw Song Xilan.

That day, Song Xilan was to meet Zhou Junlin for a poetry gathering. He came to the mansion personally to pick her up. Surrounded by a retinue of maids and matrons, she was as noble as a vibrant peony.

Standing beside him, they made a perfect pair—a picture so beautiful it could move one to tears.

However much hope Zhen Niang had arrived with, she left with an equal measure of shame and inadequacy.

Even now, the memory of her feelings that day was agonizing...

She suddenly realized she had lost her composure and quickly covered it with a laugh. "Any young lady who earns your favor, Young Master, would truly be fortunate for three lifetimes."

"The fortune would be mine." Zhou Cangyan looked up, his pupils dark as ink. He cast a faint glance across the room, his voice low, but every word seemed to trample on Zhen Niang’s heart.

She lowered her gaze, quickly hiding the complex emotions in her eyes. "Zhen Niang truly envies that young lady."

She said no more, made an excuse, and left.

Just as she stepped out, a male attendant followed her and said in a cold voice, "That man’s identity is suspicious."

"Mm."

Zhen Niang seemed distracted.

The man frowned, grabbed her arm, and dragged her to a deserted spot. "Have you fallen for that pretty boy?" he demanded.