Chapter 528

Wang Haoran had classes today, so naturally, he got up early.

Yang Jingwan didn’t want to get out of bed. It wasn’t that she was lazy, but rather because she was simply too exhausted from last night.

“There’s a breakfast spot in the community,” she said lazily while wrapped in the covers. “Go eat something on your own, I’m not going with you.”

“Alright then, I’ll head out first. I’ll visit you again when I get the chance.” Wang Haoran smiled and nodded before leaving the suite and heading downstairs toward the breakfast hall she mentioned.

Although it was a new area for him, there were signs everywhere, so it wasn’t hard to find the place.

A few minutes later, he walked into the breakfast restaurant that Yang Jingwan mentioned. Half the seats were already occupied, but the place was quiet. No one was being loud or disruptive. Even those chatting spoke in hushed tones.

Some of the people who had finished their meals pulled out laptops and began tapping away seriously on their keyboards, looking like they were writing something.

And it wasn’t just one or two—there were quite a few doing this.

He remembered Yang Jingwan telling him that this community was mostly home to writers and content creators. Now that he saw it with his own eyes, he understood.

He casually ordered a few things and found an empty seat to sit down.

Not far from him, a woman had just finished her breakfast and was now working on her laptop. She wasn’t wearing any makeup—just a bare face with fair skin and delicate features. Her looks were above average, at least a solid ninety-two out of a hundred.

At the moment, she was scrolling through a batch of scripts submitted to her email inbox. One script, sent in the middle of the night, immediately caught her eye.

From her professional point of view, the script was excellent. Both the characters and the plot were first-rate. If it could be adapted into a film, there was a high chance it would become a hit. She silently admitted that even if she pushed herself to her limits, she might not be able to write something this good.

According to the sender’s note, it came from a female university student majoring in literature and linguistics who simply wanted some feedback. That meant the writer was still a student, not even graduated yet.

Realizing that made her feel a little jealous.

How could a rookie be this good?

She sulked for a bit but then composed an email in reply, expressing her interest in meeting this girl in person.

After hitting send, she closed her laptop and got ready to leave. But just as she stood up, her eyes drifted toward the next table—and landed on the side profile of a strikingly handsome man.

Just seeing his sharp features made her heart skip a beat. Her cheeks flushed without her realizing it, and her gaze lingered longer than it should have.

The more she looked, the deeper she fell.

【Ding! Host is impersonating a female lead novel’s male protagonist. Side plot triggered for female lead character Gu Yurou. Female supporting character (villain) Lu Xinyi has fallen in love at first sight. Favorability +50 (Budding Affection).】

Wang Haoran was quietly eating when he suddenly heard the system’s voice, and blinked in confusion. He looked around and quickly noticed a beautiful bare-faced woman at the neighboring table staring straight at him.

Their eyes met. Caught red-handed, the woman immediately looked guilty. Her cheeks turned even redder, but she was determined to seize the chance.

Gathering her courage, she softly spoke up, “I haven’t seen you around before. Are you new here?”

“I don’t live here,” Wang Haoran replied coldly, not knowing what was going on.

【Ding! Host is impersonating a female lead novel’s male protagonist. Side plot for female lead Gu Yurou has progressed. Gained 100 Villain Points!】

Wang Haoran blinked again.

All he did was respond indifferently to Lu Xinyi. That counted as plot progression?

Then it clicked.

In female-oriented romance stories, the male lead always treated every other woman coldly—his heart only had room for the female lead. When other women tried to flirt or approach, the male lead would respond with indifference or even cruelty. In essence, he was the female lead’s exclusive simp.

He responded coldly to Lu Xinyi earlier, just like a typical female lead male protagonist. So naturally, the system rewarded him.

This Lu Xinyi was probably one of Gu Yurou’s love rivals. Although calling her a rival might be a stretch since she had no real chance.

She existed to make Gu Yurou shine.

Lu Xinyi loved the male lead obsessively, but he only had eyes for Gu Yurou. So, she’d end up hating Gu Yurou and become her enemy.

That’s why the system marked her as a “villainess.”

If Lu Xinyi saw him getting close to Gu Yurou later, her role would upgrade from supporting character to full-blown antagonist. Then the side plot would become part of the main storyline—another long, dramatic mess filled with conflict.

Seeing his cold attitude, Lu Xinyi was startled by how aloof and distant he was. But it didn’t discourage her. Smiling politely, she continued, “I’m Lu Xinyi. May I ask your name?”

“Scram.” Wang Haoran, fully leaning into his fake female lead male protagonist persona, spat out the word coldly.

【Ding! Host is impersonating a female lead novel’s male protagonist. Side plot for Gu Yurou has progressed. Gained 200 Villain Points!】

Wang Haoran smiled to himself. That earned him another reward.

“You… you’re so rude.” Lu Xinyi’s face turned pale, and she lowered her voice in frustration.

“I don’t talk to strange women. Before I get angry, leave.” Wang Haoran kept playing the role of the cold male lead, his tone distant and domineering.

【Ding! Host is impersonating a female lead novel’s male protagonist. Side plot for Gu Yurou has progressed. Gained 300 Villain Points! Gu Yurou’s Protagonist Halo -15, Host’s Villain Halo +15!】

Wang Haoran was inwardly amazed. Farming villain points like this was oddly fun.

What was even stranger was how Lu Xinyi didn’t storm off in anger after being treated like garbage. Instead, she seemed even more intrigued by him.

Wang Haoran was honestly speechless.

Do female characters in these romance stories really fall for cold, overbearing types this easily?

If this was a normal woman—even if you were drop-dead gorgeous—telling her to get lost twice to her face would get you slapped or cursed out on the spot. Who the hell puts up with that?

But Lu Xinyi didn’t show any of that.

Or rather, when facing a fake female lead male protagonist like him, she had zero backbone.

“I don’t think I’ve done anything to offend you. Why are you treating me like this?” she asked timidly.

Wang Haoran fell silent.

Honestly, he was out of lines. He couldn’t just keep telling her to scram again, right? That would be overkill.

Now what would a cold, overbearing male lead do in this situation…?