Shift! The Side-Character Heroine

Zhao Youyue’s request had been very simple. She did not need things like extra club fundings that were usually a highly sought-after commodity. She was rich, and she was resourceful. She could single-handedly fund her club if she wanted. Her previous “achievements” in her Food Research Club had proven this. All she wanted was to enter the Student Council and claim her spot as Vice President. That was enough.

Of course, Zhao Youyue would not blatantly express her desire of being a Vice President. Anyone with half a brain could see through her plans if she did. She only expressed some interest in joining the Student Council. By default, a Club President would automatically be a Vice President of any department in the Student Council.

Zhu Yongnian probably stooped the most when it came to visiting Zhao Youyue. He was already in his 4th year. He might have to leave school for his internship in the next semester. This was probably his last chance for the Student President position…

Under such circumstances, he had pulled out all stops to his pride. He did not even mind being a puppet. All he wanted was the title “Student President.” He only needed this thin layer of gold plating, and his future would most definitely be secured.

Zhu Yongnian wanted a bright future, not this ridiculously stressful position that would only last him a short half of the semester.

As a result, he had been highly respectful to Zhao Youyue, whose influence was not only limited to within the campus, but also as a Lady with vast network of contacts in the world. He accepted her “small request” without any qualms.

And so, the deal was set. Zhao Youyue first got her club members to vote for Zhu Yongnian. Her power was absolute. No one dared disobey her.

Since Lady Zhao had made such a statement, fans from outside the club did not want to be left out. One after another, they voted for Zhu Yongnian. Celebrities were terrifying entities. Their will would somehow imprint itself upon their fans. They only needed to make a vague statement, and fans would follow blindly.

Zhao Youyue observed this joke of a “democratic election” silently. During the process, three had already given up after knowing that they could never win the election. In the end, only the fatty Zhu Yongnian and a short-haired Year 3 female senior lasted until the finale.

This Year 3 senior was Qiao Fei. She was the head of the Student Council’s Discipline Inspection Department. She was highly capable and widely known throughout the campus. Most of her fame actually came from one particular trait. She was constantly looking out to get Zhao Youyue in trouble!

Qiao Fei had always pretended to be fair and rigorous. Her facade was one that fooled even the sharpest of eyes. As long as she had the title “fair and rigorous,” she could punish evil in the name of justice.

Zhao Youyue had never been the best of friends with rules. As usual, she weaved her way around the rules, such as not returning to her dormitory at night. She might only stay in the dormitory twice a week at most, having lights-off bed talks with her roommates.

On other days, she did as she pleased. Wasn’t it way more fun dating Su Li?

Moreover, she also produced a live stream or two every week to maintain her popularity and get some rewards. There would always be those inexplicably self-confident tycoons who confidently threw money at Ah Yu, hoping to touch her heart. If her heart was not touched, they simply had to throw more cash…

Qiao Fei had a beef with Zhao Youyue’s minor offense of not returning to the dormitory at night. As a member of the Discipline Inspection Department, Bai Yunshan had repeatedly warned Zhao Youyue, saying, “The head of my department has an eye on you. You’ll have to watch yourself, she really wants your head”

Zhao Youyue had always channeled these warnings through her ear canals. In one ear, out the other. This was of no concern to her. She had even ignored Qiao Fei’s request to meet in private. Apparently, she wanted to make some sort of deal.

It was very apparent that no one was truly fair and rigorous in this world. The thing was that, facades sometimes made things convenient. These individuals also despised general favors. They wanted huge, great favors. If not, they would never be willing to take off their fair and rigorous, excellent guise…

Unsurprisingly, Zhao Youyue had been aware of Qiao Fei from the beginning. This was a highly ambitious, ferocious woman. She clearly intended to be the mighty type of Student President who had the authority to handle matters that enabled her to win multiple elections. In addition to that, she had the capabilities to maintain her guise for an extended period, if anything. Otherwise, it would have been impossible for her to be the Head of a Department that was as important as the Discipline Inspection Department in her Third Year. She received scholarships every year, earned many titles and was also one of the top 10 university students within the province.

Allowing such a figure to wield absolute authority posed a major threat to Lady Zhao’s plans. Zhao Youyue would rather have Zhu Yongnian take the position instead, as he only intended to don a thin plate of gold and stay the heck away…

After Qiao Fei realized that this Lady Zhao Youyue had no intentions of meeting her at all, she became more relentless than ever. Her “fair and rigorous” style shone out, attempting to blind those around her. A Lady? So what? You will not get away from breaking campus rules!

Also, look at your Food Research Club. Eating and drinking the entire day, yet expecting to receive funds from the Student Council. This was a joke! Abolish! It had to be abolished!

Unfortunately, Qiao Fei was not the Student President yet. She could only shout out slogans that called for the abolishment of clubs that were just there to earn academic credits, scam the Council of fundings. They should be abolished so that the fundings could be put to better use!

Such a slogan would still touch the hearts of those big clubs who claimed to be earning glory for the university through prizes. In their eyes, they considered themselves as superior, and the existence of those small clubs was not necessary at all.

Of course, Lady Zhao’s Food Research Club was too powerful to be abolished at the moment. Famous chefs came on a weekly basis to make extremely delicious cuisine. If students were fortunate enough, they might just get a taste of their food. Lady Zhao also played an active role in preparing dishes for her club. It may not stand up to the standards of those famous chefs; it was still far more delicious than what people normally took…

Most importantly, those were dishes that Lady Zhao had prepared with her own hands. That was most certainly worth mentioning!

Therefore, after Zhao Youyue boldly expressed her support for Zhu Yongnian, even expressing fear of getting her Food Research Club getting abolished, those melon-eating audiences who did not originally concern themselves with the Student President quickly got themselves involved. They rallied to Lady Zhao’s call, supporting Zhu Yongnian – who could barely even keep his campaign afloat.

Finally, the two candidates faced each other in a final debate. It was Qiao Fei’s complete victory, as she had once participated in the campus debate team. She had been particularly critical about Zhu Yongnian’s slogans of “Keep the status quo stable,” and “Harmonious development.” She had been barely able to hold herself back from accusing Zhu Yongnian of being a waste of oxygen, like a rubber stamp[1].

Finally, the results were released. Zhu Yongnian won by 64.8% and became the Student President.

Translation Note:

[1] Rubber stamp – Refers to a person who agrees, approves, and deals with (documents or policies, etc) without judgment for the best of his interests.