Transmigrated into the cannon fodder younger sister of the uke in a BL novel

She was walking while looking down at her phone, a casual smile playing on her lips.

When Su Yilan ran into Lin Zhiyan in the corridor just now, her expression and tone were completely normal, and she greeted and chatted with him in a very natural and open manner.

Would she react like this if she really liked someone?

Wen Qing thought for a moment, then asked in a casual tone, "Su Su, are you very familiar with Mr. Lin?"

"Brother Lin?"

Su Yilan didn't even look up; her fingers were still typing on the screen.

"We're quite familiar with each other. He and my uncle are good friends. He's often come to our house since I can remember. He even tutored me in math when I was little, but I was terrible at math. He explained for a long time, but I still couldn't understand a single question. My uncle laughed for a long time in frustration."

"So what do you think of him as a person?"

"He's great. He's mature and steady, handsome, and has a really good relationship with his uncle," Su Yilan replied casually. "And I think he and his uncle are the same type of people. They're both the kind of people who have a lot of ideas but don't say them out loud. Anyway, they're really capable people."

He looked tenderly into her clear, amber eyes.

When those eyes mentioned Lin Zhiyan, there was not a trace of the shyness or evasiveness a young woman would show when talking about her sweetheart, nor was there any deliberate attempt to conceal her composure. It was simply a pure appreciation and closeness towards an elder.

When she said her last words, her tone even carried a touch of childlike admiration.

Wen Qing could tell that she didn't like Lin Zhiyan.

At least for now, she hasn't fallen for Lin Zhiyan.

Wenqing withdrew her gaze, but she was not completely at ease.

So, is Su Yilan's affection for Lin Zhiyan in the original novel just a plot device?

……

Wen Qing and Su Yilan arrived at the second-floor lounge, pushed open the door, and sure enough, they saw Su Jiqing.

He changed into more comfortable loungewear, leaned back in a recliner by the window, and still had the thin blanket draped over his shoulders.

Su Yi'an was sitting on a small stool next to him, gesturing with her hands and chattering away, it was unclear whether she was talking about school or complaining about today's guests.

Su Jiqing listened to him with her head slightly tilted to the side, a faint smile in her eyes, and occasionally nodded in response.

The scene looked strangely harmonious and warm.

Hearing the door open, Su Jiqing looked up and saw Su Yilan and Wen Qing. His smile deepened.

"You've arrived, come and sit down."

Su Yilan pulled Wen Qing's hand and quickly walked to Su Jiqing's side, plopped down on the soft stool next to his recliner, and then pressed Wen Qing down to sit next to her.

The spot where Su Yi'an's sketchbook and phone were originally placed was now occupied by his sister, Su Yi'an, who watched helplessly as his things were swept aside by his sister. He opened his mouth as if to make a silent protest, but Su Yilan didn't even give him a glance.

He gritted his teeth, and finally just muttered under his breath, "It's always like this," before reluctantly picking up his things, hugging them to his chest, and sitting down again on the other side of the recliner.

Watching the siblings' daily banter, Su Jiqing couldn't help but chuckle softly.

His smile was different from usual; the sickly look in his eyes was softened by the smile, and he looked much more vibrant, giving a glimpse into what a charismatic person he must have been when he was healthy.

With Su Yi'an and Su Yilan, two lively characters, standing beside her, Wen Qing, sitting quietly next to Su Yilan, appeared exceptionally well-behaved.

Su Jiqing shifted his gaze from the siblings to Wen Qing.

He looked at her for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Why did you decide to paint dark clouds in the first place?"

Wen Qing was stunned for a moment, but then realized that he was referring to Su Yi'an's painting.

Upon hearing this, Su Yi'an and Su Yilan fell silent at the same time, their gazes falling on Wen Qing.

Su Yi'an's expression was particularly subtle. He didn't say it that day, but he did admire Wen Qing's repair skills to some extent. Now that his uncle brought it up, he couldn't help but prick up his ears to hear her answer.

After thinking for a moment, Wenqing spoke earnestly.

"I think that bluish-black paint, although it looks terrible, is already part of the painting. Erasing it will leave marks, and covering it up will make it look heavy, so let's just let it become part of the painting. Besides, in my opinion, dark clouds and sunrise don't conflict. A sunrise with clouds actually has more depth, and..."

She paused, then added somewhat shyly.

"Restoring someone else's painting is different from painting your own. I can't just change it according to my own ideas. I can only follow the original brushstrokes. If I were painting it myself, I probably wouldn't have painted such a bright sun in the first place."

As Su Jiqing listened to her words, the smile in his eyes gradually became more genuine.

The previously superficial gentle smile finally gained a real texture at this moment.

He sat up slightly, developing an unexpected interest in this quiet and well-behaved girl whose eyes held a certain steadfastness when she spoke.

"Yi'an," he turned to Su Yi'an, "go to my studio and bring me that painting, the one on the top shelf of the left cabinet, you know which one it is."

Su Yi'an responded, put down what she was carrying, and quickly walked out.

A few minutes later he returned, carrying an oil painting panel covered with plain linen.

Su Jiqing took the drawing board, removed the burlap covering it himself, and then turned the drawing board around for Wen Qing to see.

It was an unfinished painting.

The canvas depicts a dark forest.

The dark brown and dark green tree trunks are arranged in layers, with branches intertwined and woven into a dense net above the picture.

The fallen leaves on the ground were a mixture of dark red and withered yellow, and a faint light shone through the depths of the forest, but the light was so weak that it seemed as if it would be swallowed up by the surrounding darkness at any moment.

The entire painting depicts only a dark forest; there are no birds, no beasts, and no trace of any living creature.

The only thing that gives a sense of "life" is a few inconspicuous patches of newly grown moss on the tree trunk, drawn in great detail that you would almost miss if you didn't look closely.

The style is gloomy and oppressive, but you can tell from the brushstrokes that the artist has put a lot of effort into it.

The painting was only about two-thirds complete when it was stopped. In the lower right corner, you could still see the unfinished base color, as if someone had suddenly put down the brush halfway through and never picked it up again.

Su Jiqing looked at the painting, a faint, complex emotion flashing in his eyes, which was quickly replaced by his usual gentleness.

"I was never satisfied with this painting, so I stopped working on it. It's been sitting in the cabinet for months. If I hadn't heard what you just said, I probably would have forgotten about it..."

He paused, then looked up at Wen Qing.

"Warmth, could you help me complete it?"

Wen Qing looked at the dark forest and didn't answer for a moment.

Su Jiqing seemed to sense her hesitation, then smiled slightly and added.

"Of course, you don't need to know what I originally wanted to draw, you don't need to guess my intentions, and you don't need to consider my style. You can draw it entirely according to your own ideas, and it can be drawn however you like."

Wenqing met his gaze and had a vague feeling that this was not an ordinary request.

Su Jiqing is a painter, a painter who has held solo exhibitions and is quite famous.

He showed his unfinished old work to a girl he had only met once, and asked her to complete it "completely according to her own ideas".

The matter itself carries a certain meaning, as if he were asking her something through the painting.

Looking at the gloomy black forest, at the intertwined branches and the dark depths, she suddenly realized that this painting held a much heavier weight in Su Jiqing's heart than he could express.

The words he didn't say are probably hidden in these unfinished brushstrokes.

She wasn't sure what she could draw, but she was sure she wanted to try.

"Can I draw anything?"

"Yes, anything is fine," Su Jiqing said. "There's no time limit for this painting. Give it to me whenever you finish it. No need to rush."

Wenqing nodded and took the painting, holding it in her arms.

Su Yi'an watched this scene from the side, her mouth slightly open, a barely perceptible hint of bitterness flashing in her amber eyes.

Uncle had been working on this painting for a long time, but he couldn't achieve the effect he wanted. He thought his uncle had given up on the painting, but now his uncle not only took it out on his own initiative, but also let Wenqing take it back and paint on it as she pleased.

He pursed his lips, finally swallowing back the sarcastic remark that was about to come out.

The three of them didn't stay in the lounge for long.

Su Yilan noticed that Su Jiqing's fatigue deepened significantly after speaking for a while. Although he didn't say anything himself, she understood her uncle.

So she immediately stood up and said, "Uncle, you rest first, we'll go downstairs to get something to eat."

Wen Qing also noticed that Su Jiqing's spirits were not as good as before. She carefully picked up the painting and stood up with Su Yilan.

Su Yi'an lingered at the back, glancing back before leaving. Su Jiqing nodded slightly to him, and only then did he close the door.

……

When Wen Fan arrived near the Su family villa, his rationality suddenly returned somewhat.

He stood under the sycamore trees outside the villa area. Not far away was the brightly lit three-story building of the Su family. He could vaguely see the figures of people gathering behind the floor-to-ceiling windows and the sparkling crystal lights.

A gentle breeze carrying the scent of gardenias blew over, coolly brushing against his face and pulling him out of his feverish, blank state.

Looking at the villa not far away, a strange question suddenly popped into Wen Fan's mind.

How did he know the location of the Su family villa?

As he rode along, he seemed to have a map in his head, knowing exactly which intersection to turn at and which traffic light to go straight at. The answer would automatically appear at every fork in the road.

This feeling was so strange, as if someone had secretly stuffed a bunch of memories that didn't belong to him into his brain when he wasn't paying attention.

He took out his phone again and stared at the text message; it was from a completely unfamiliar number.

At first, he subconsciously thought it was from his sister's friend, Miss Su, since his sister had gone to the banquet with her that day.

But now, after calming down and looking at it again, he realized that there was a big problem with the text message.

He clicked on the green bubble and was surprised to see that Wen Qing had sent him two messages more than an hour earlier.

"Brother, what are you doing?"

"Brother, have you eaten?"

She spoke in a relaxed tone and even used an emoji, making it seem like nothing had happened.

He was asleep on the sofa at the time, so he didn't see it in time.

The text message came after these two messages.

Wen Fan's fingers tightened slightly as she gripped her phone.

He stood under the sycamore tree for a moment, the wind ruffling his hair.

Reason told him he should call and confirm first, but emotionally, the image he was worried about just wouldn't leave his mind.

Wenqing collapsed to the ground, suffering a heart attack. Surrounded by a group of strangers, no one knew how to save her and could only let her lie there...

He took a deep breath, gripped his phone tightly in his palm, and strode towards the Su family villa.

Regardless, he needed to see her safe with his own eyes to feel at ease.

……

Meanwhile, in a lounge on the second floor of the villa, Wen Qing was hiding in a solid wood wardrobe, peeking out through the crack in the door, her heart filled with unbearable sorrow.

How did she end up in this state?

The wardrobe was dark and filled with the mixed smell of wood and camphor.

She curled up at the knees under a row of neatly hung clothes, her nose almost touching the hem of a coat.

The wardrobe door had a very thin crack, just enough for her to press one eye against it and see a small area of ​​the room outside.

A man was sitting on a sofa not far away, his suit jacket casually tossed on the armrest, and his tie loosened, hanging crookedly at his collar.

He leaned casually against the back of the sofa, crossed his long legs, and rested one hand on the armrest, a burning cigarette between his fingers.

Smoke curled from his fingers and slowly diffused under the light.

His glasses were taken off and tossed onto the coffee table beside him. Without the lenses covering his face, his features were fully exposed to the light.

With high brow bones, deep-set eyes, and a nose bridge that looks like a straight line carved by a knife, without the softening effect of glasses, this face exudes an aggressive aura, with sharp, angular features.

His eyes, long and dark beneath his brow bone, were half-closed, exuding a nonchalant indifference.

At first, Wen Qing thought she had misjudged the person.

She stared at that face, confirming it several times. The features were familiar; it was indeed Lin Zhiyan.

But she was completely different from the Lin Zhiyan she knew.

Lin Zhiyan wore glasses, had a gentle smile, and an elegant demeanor, like a piece of warm, smooth jade.

But the man in front of me didn't have that social mask that made everyone feel respected.

He just sat there casually, legs crossed, smoking, with a kind of indifferent weariness in his eyes.

This sight subconsciously reminded Wen Qing of Gu Qin.

That inherent arrogance and indifference also appeared in Gu Qin.

These cousins ​​do look remarkably alike at times.

So all the Lin Zhiyan she had seen before was wearing a mask?

Is this the real him now?

But for the time being, she couldn't control how many faces Lin Zhiyan had.

Her most pressing problem right now is that she's stuck in this closet, feeling a bit trapped.

Outside the wardrobe, Lin Zhiyan was on the phone, and what she was saying made her heart skip a beat.