Stand Out from the Crowd

"Right, actually, that was a novel I wrote when I was little."

Han Juyou said, tilting her head to glance at him.

The moment their eyes met, Liu Muye's heart skipped a beat.

Han Juyou began recounting her past to Liu Muye:

"My mom told me that before I was born, our family wasn’t doing too badly. Back then, my father worked as a senior technician in a factory. In those days, he earned ten to twenty thousand a month—a comfortable middle-class life."

"But then, the year after I was born, his factory went bankrupt."

"Later, he used his savings to start a business, only to lose everything. After that, he never recovered. He even picked up gambling, selling off our house and car."

"My father thought I was a curse. He believed my birth was the reason our family’s fortunes turned. When I was very young, he once tried to sell me, but my mother and grandmother refused vehemently and protected me."

"After Grandma passed away, only my mother cared for me. She wasn’t in good health but still worked to support us. Every time my father lost money gambling, he’d come home and argue with her. My mother had a fiery temper too, and their fights always escalated into violent clashes, leaving the house in shambles. I’d huddle in a corner, watching it all unfold..."

"My childhood was spent in the endless cycle of their arguments."

"As for school, I wasn’t a good student at first. I was the most invisible kid in class. I knew I wasn’t smart, but I refused to accept it. Why did my life have to be so miserable? If I couldn’t keep up, I’d study ten, twenty times harder than anyone else..."

"My efforts paid off. After fifth grade, I never fell below the top ten in class. No one knew how much I’d sacrificed for those rankings."

"But no matter how well I did, it never made my father happy. The fights at home didn’t stop just because I excelled in school."

"And because of my family situation, I was withdrawn. I hardly had any friends. Even the few classmates who got close to me seemed to have bad luck because of me."

"From then on, I started to believe my father was right. Maybe I really was a 'jinx,' destined to bring misfortune to others. My life was nothing but misery."

"Sometimes, I’d wonder—would the world be better off if I’d never existed?"

"After graduating high school, the older girl next door gave me a stack of books, including a few romance novels. That’s how I fell in love with reading. Every time my parents fought, I’d hide in my room and lose myself in those stories."

"Liu Muye, do you know? Back then, I really wished I was Cinderella, waiting for a prince to rescue me from that suffocating 'home.' So I picked up a pen and wrote down the story in my heart..."

【A gambling father, a sick mother, a deceased grandmother, and a broken girl.】

When Liu Muye first created Han Juyou’s backstory, it was to justify her later descent into villainy—how she’d seduce the male lead and frame the female lead out of greed.

He never imagined those casually typed words were someone’s real, tragic life.

As Han Juyou spoke, Liu Muye’s thoughts drifted to his own childhood...

His early years were spent in a cramped, rundown shantytown where the sky was barely visible overhead, and the ground crawled with pests. His clearest memories were also of his parents’ fights.

Poverty bred resentment. His parents, burdened by daily struggles, bickered endlessly over the smallest things.

Back then, his favorite escape was the newsstand. After school, he’d linger for half an hour, flipping through new comic issues and romance novels—especially when his parents fought.

Romance novels back then leaned toward a female perspective—maybe why he later chose to write female-centric stories for a living. But regardless of the viewpoint, he always imagined himself as the wealthy male lead.

The old man at the newsstand was kind to him. After learning about his home life, he’d offer snacks, cheer him up, and tell him stories whenever he showed up in tears.

Later, in middle school, the newsstand closed. Rumor had it the old man passed away—no one knew for sure. But his own mother did die of cancer.

They couldn’t afford treatment.

After that, his father became a shell of himself, drifting through life like a zombie.

Liu Muye grew increasingly introverted and guarded, wary of everyone.

Dissatisfaction with life fueled his desperation to escape their small town. He worked harder than anyone else.

Eventually, he got into Sunan University.

Without those four years of college joy, he might’ve remained that withdrawn boy, hiding in his room and fantasizing about being the "male lead."

Now that he thought about it, his life and Han Juyou’s were eerily similar...

No—

Wait.

Wasn’t Han Juyou’s story a reflection of his own reality?

"Saving the villainess"...

Was that what it meant?

At that moment, Liu Muye finally understood.

He bolted upright, locking eyes with Han Juyou.

"W-What’s with that look?"

Noticing his strange expression, Han Juyou quickly sat up from the sand.

Instead of answering, Liu Muye asked solemnly, "Han Juyou, do you believe in fate?"

"Fate?" She pressed her lips into a cold smile. "No. At least, I refuse to believe I’ll be unlucky forever. I, Han Juyou, will rise to the top!"

"Yes, rise to the top!"

Liu Muye stood, dusting the sand off his pants before pulling Han Juyou up.

Pointing at the sky, he declared with fiery determination, "We will rise to the top!"

"We?" Han Juyou stared at him, momentarily stunned.

Unaware of her reaction, Liu Muye turned to her after his outburst. "Han Juyou, no matter what happens from now on, tell me, okay?"

"...You." She hesitated, searching his eyes. "Liu Muye, who are you? Why are you so kind to me?"

With a sunny, confident grin, he replied, "I’m someone heaven sent to help you!"

"Don’t lie to me."

"I’d never lie," Liu Muye said firmly. "With me by your side, you’ll definitely rise to the top!"

The boy's words struck like a powerful hurricane, instantly stirring the girl's once-calm heart into rippling waves that refused to settle.

His bright, luminous eyes shone even more brilliantly than the moonlight tonight. The girl tried to peer into his soul through them, but the harder she looked, the more elusive he became—and the deeper she fell...

After a long silence, the girl finally spoke: "Alright."

...

["Stephen Chow once said he’d become a household name—and he did. So I swore too: I’d make something of myself!" —Liu Muye’s Notes]

...