I'm a Villain! Why Are You Trying to Date Me? - Chapter 19

Chapter 19: Is This Guy Even the Male Lead? Did I End Up with the Wrong Script?!

The way the story unfolded completely took Lin Tian by surprise.

Jiang Yifeng’s current situation looked nothing like that of a fated male protagonist. On the contrary, he seemed more like the main villain.

Scheming against others, getting exposed, and then furiously demanding to know where he went wrong…

Wasn’t that the classic villain arc?

Lin Tian almost thought he had transmigrated into the wrong novel.

…

Down below the stage, Jiang Yifeng didn’t actually show much fear. In a way, his trump cards wouldn’t be completely exhausted just because of a single failure. After all, a Child of Destiny doesn’t go down that easily.

His face darkened for a moment, but then he quickly regained his calm and indifferent expression.

Since his scheme had already failed, Jiang Yifeng no longer bothered to keep up appearances. He now had the audacity to completely fall out with both the Zhao and Bai families!

On stage, upon hearing Jiang Yifeng’s question, a trace of confusion flashed through Zhao Dongyun’s eyes.

Just two hours ago, he hadn’t known a thing about any of this…

Zhao Dongyun had never imagined that the Bai family, Jiang Yifeng, Zhao Dongshan, and the others were harboring such malicious intentions.

He had always assumed that, while his two younger brothers were foolish, they couldn’t possibly be this foolish.

After Shang Chan gave Zhao Mengmeng a signal to briefly explain the situation to Zhao Dongyun, he immediately sent people to investigate. And what the investigation uncovered was enough to make him—the man who had led the Zhao family for over a decade—break out in a cold sweat.

But with how carefully hidden all of this had been… how did Shang Chan find out in the first place?

Zhao Dongyun looked toward Shang Chan. It was clear that only she could answer that question.

Of course, whether she chose to explain or not didn’t matter much now. After all, the Zhao family hadn’t suffered any real damage from this affair. In fact, from a certain perspective, punishing Zhao Dongshan and Zhao Dongshui had unified the family’s power even further—turning this into something of a blessing in disguise.

Shang Chan stepped forward, meeting Jiang Yifeng’s aggressive gaze with a calm expression and a voice as cool as ice.

“Jiang Yifeng, you probably thought your plan was flawless, but you overlooked one truth—no matter how watertight, every plan has a leak. And your biggest flaw was cooperating with Zhao Dongshan and Zhao Dongshui.”

The corner of Jiang Yifeng’s mouth twitched slightly.

So those two were the problem?

He sighed inwardly, helpless. His choices hadn’t actually been wrong. If one wanted to infiltrate the Zhao family, the most logical targets would naturally be those with high status and ambition for power. Zhao Dongshan and Zhao Dongshui were the perfect picks.

It wasn’t like he could’ve infiltrated Zhao Dongyun, right?

Yet what he hadn’t expected was that these two, supposedly prestigious figures within the Zhao clan—Second and Third Masters—could actually be this stupid!

What Jiang Yifeng was thinking was exactly what everyone else was thinking.

And this was the very outcome Shang Chan had hoped for.

Lin Tian didn’t want to expose himself—he preferred to stay hidden in the shadows. Naturally, Shang Chan would play along with his act.

Redirecting the blame vaguely toward Zhao Dongshan and Zhao Dongshui had always been part of Shang Chan’s backup plan. As for the fact that she could hear Lin Tian’s inner voice—Shang Chan would never tell a soul. That was a secret she reserved for herself.

…

But really, all everyone needed was a vague direction to point fingers at.

You can make the plans, but heaven decides the outcome.

Even if Zhuge Liang himself were reborn, he probably couldn’t guarantee absolute success in every scheme. After hearing Shang Chan’s explanation, Jiang Yifeng accepted it without resistance. After all, that father and son had just given him a vivid demonstration of what “stupidity” looked like.

“Shang Chan, this matter… won’t end so easily.”

Jiang Yifeng’s expression was calm. His voice, just as composed.

The powerful trump cards at his disposal gave him all the confidence he needed. Right after he finished speaking, a squad of black-clad, fully armed individuals suddenly stormed into the banquet hall. The defensive forces Zhao Dongyun had arranged were completely overwhelmed in front of them.

However, the black-clad intruders didn’t kill anyone. They simply dismantled the defenses and then moved to Jiang Yifeng’s side, surrounding him in a protective formation.

“I admit, I underestimated you. I underestimated the Zhao family. But now that the masks are off, let’s rely on strength from here on out. I, Jiang Yifeng, though not exceptionally gifted, will now go all in against the Zhao clan.”

Jiang Yifeng spoke those words, calm as ever, even as they carried the stench of blood.

On stage, Shang Chan suddenly broke into a smile.

“So this is the man you were so wary of? Just a sore loser who can’t even accept defeat.”

Everyone was baffled by her comment, unsure who she was speaking to—but only Lin Tian, hidden in the corner, understood. She was talking to him.

Hidden behind the blue haze of his cigar smoke, Lin Tian let out a faint sigh.

Shang Chan, is this the gift you’ve prepared for me?

You really guessed right. This gift was far too sudden—and I don’t like it.

Someone like Jiang Yifeng… once provoked, if you don’t beat him to death in one blow, the storms he’ll stir up later will only grow worse.

And now, clearly, many things have gone far beyond the original plot’s control. Even Lin Tian, who knew the plot inside and out, could no longer guarantee his own safety…

But as he looked at Shang Chan, proud as a swan and radiantly dazzling on the stage, Lin Tian suddenly felt that maybe—just maybe—this ending wasn’t so bad after all.

He hadn’t been exposed.

Shang Chan wasn’t taken into Jiang Yifeng’s harem.

Bai Bing’er had broken ties with Jiang Yifeng.

As the villain, Lin Tian’s greatest threat had always been the male lead—Jiang Yifeng.

The weaker the male lead’s power, the safer Lin Tian would be.

Even though things had spiraled out of his control and expectations, at least Jiang Yifeng had been weakened—wasn’t that a win?

“Looks like I’ll need to find a way to hide myself even deeper,” Lin Tian murmured, deep in thought.

Now, he actually didn’t want to resign anymore. The plot was shifting too quickly. If he didn’t stay and keep an eye on how it all played out, he’d feel uneasy.

And now that both the Zhao and Bai families had become Jiang Yifeng’s enemies, a small fry like him probably wouldn’t be in any real danger.

“Shang Chan said earlier that I should decide whether to resign after seeing this ‘gift’… How did she know I hated Jiang Yifeng?”

Lin Tian pondered for a moment but couldn’t figure it out.

Little did he know, all his inner thoughts had already been overheard by Shang Chan. In a way, Jiang Yifeng’s entire downfall had been orchestrated by her—with Lin Tian unknowingly playing a crucial part.

……

Jiang Yifeng instinctively felt something was off when he heard Shang Chan’s words, but no matter how hard he thought, he couldn’t figure it out.

The only thing he fully understood was that line—”A sore loser and nothing more.”

His fists clenched tightly. For a moment, he had the impulse to give the order and wipe everyone in the banquet hall off the face of the earth.

But the black-clad troops wouldn’t follow his command, and without unlocking the Heavenly Sacred Body, he couldn’t even fully wield his strength.

“Shang Chan, you’ll regret everything you did today,” Jiang Yifeng said coldly, casting her a deep glance before turning to leave.

Shang Chan chuckled coolly, her voice laced with unwavering resolve.

“Jiang Yifeng, the Zhao family isn’t something you can touch. And I, Shang Chan, am not someone you can touch either.”

“Let go of those filthy, dirty thoughts in your mind. From this day on, the Zhao family will direct all of its strength against you. Are you ready for that?”

Since Lin Tian didn’t want to reveal himself, and since he deeply feared Jiang Yifeng, Shang Chan was determined to eliminate this threat for him!

What she hadn’t realized yet was that her every move had long since stopped being cold and calculated—she was constantly thinking on Lin Tian’s behalf.

Jiang Yifeng gritted his teeth. Even with all the trump cards he held, facing the full force of a giant like the Zhao family was a tremendous burden.

Most importantly, he could already tell—Shang Chan’s words now were the will of the Zhao family.

Neither Zhao Zhong nor Zhao Dongyun had voiced a single objection.

Was he ready?

Even Jiang Yifeng himself wasn’t sure. To suffer such a defeat the moment he stepped into the fray—he couldn’t help but feel lost about what direction he should take next.

……

Jiang Yifeng was escorted out under the protection of the black-clad men, and the Zhao family, knowing they couldn’t keep him, simply let him go.

On the surface, Jiang Yifeng left with his dignity intact.

But being slapped, verbally abused, and humiliated in front of more than three hundred of Licheng’s most influential people was a wound far worse than losing a hand for Jiang Yifeng.

Shang Chan had finally accomplished what she set out to do.

In front of Lin Tian, she made it perfectly clear to Jiang Yifeng that she, Shang Chan, was not someone anyone could just set their sights on!

As the crowd fell into silence, Shang Chan quietly glanced toward the corner, where a man was obscured by the smoke.

In her heart, she silently asked, Lin Tian, now that this is done, do you still want to distance yourself from me, distance yourself from Xinghai?