She Used to Be Very Polite

It was absolutely shocking—truly, absolutely shocking.

Song Weishi wasn't just taken aback; she couldn't understand why this RV cost so much more than her space and even the gun. It was so expensive that she simply couldn't afford it.

If narrowly escaping with her life to snag a pistol had been one thing, she'd have to die twice over just to get this RV.

She felt like her dream of owning a home had just shattered.

Song Weishi buried half her face in the water and blew a few bubbles to relieve the pressure building inside her.

"System, how many points do I have now?"

Her voice was heavy and cold. Remembering how stingy the System had been with her before, she felt like punching the world to pieces.

This time, the System didn't dawdle. It answered promptly: "869. Counting the previous scattered tallies, that's 965 points in total."

That was barely a fraction of the RV's price. After buying the pistol, she'd slowly accumulated points through odd tasks here and there. The last big mission had granted a hefty sum, and her mind raced as she considered where else she could squeeze out more.

"I unlocked my main storyline earlier—shouldn't that have come with some reward?"

"Your gift packs have not been opened yet, so I cannot access them to tally."

Song Weishi let out a sigh of relief. There were still several gift packs sitting unopened in the System's mail, so she selected the one-click claim option.

After a flash of golden special effects, 600 points dropped.

She exhaled again. With those added, she now had 1565 points. She wondered if the RV would go on discount like the pistol had.

She'd much prefer a discounted price; buying it at full price would make her look like a fool.

At any rate, the RV wasn't going anywhere, unlike those limited-time items that would vanish.

She glanced at the mall and saw a few things she had no use for, plus a space expansion that she didn't need right now either.

After clearing out the junk in her space, she had a huge empty area again, more than enough for her needs. The items stacked nicely together, and since everything inside was frozen in time, once she put something in, she never had to worry about it again.

The only goal now was clear: she had to get that RV.

Song Weishi soaked in the bath a little longer until it was time for dinner, then got dressed and headed downstairs.

With new members joining, everyone was busy preparing a nice meal to welcome the two of them.

She got to enjoy cabbage buns stuffed with pork belly, mixed with seasoned mashed potatoes and peanuts to make several big hearty buns.

She ate hotpot while chomping on the big buns, feeling a genuine happiness from being full and content.

The aunties' cooking skills were too good; she always ended up eating until she couldn't take another bite.

With nothing to do that evening, everyone quieted down to their own business, except for those taking turns watching over Xie Huiqing.

Song Weishi was also thinking about how to earn those points. First, she'd have to actively seek out monsters to rack up points—that was inevitable. Then she thought of the giant squid in the sea.

It clearly had unusual intelligence, smarter than most creatures in the ocean, and it was larger, with incredible regenerative abilities.

It probably had no natural predators. A squid that big could only be eaten by a giant shark or a whale, but it had chosen the shallows, likely to avoid that danger entirely.

If not for its arrogance and underestimating her—a mere human—Song Weishi might never have escaped its grasp.

Anyone else who had seen it was dead, except her.

She racked her brain for a way to kill the squid, but found none. It was undoubtedly a tempting prize; if she could take it down, her points would skyrocket.

After all, that monster she killed in the hospital had already netted her a good chunk of points. There was no reason this squid wouldn't.

Maybe the System was giving her a hint by dangling the RV like a carrot in front of her, pushing her to keep moving forward.

Song Weishi thought for two hours, but still couldn't come up with a plan to deal with the squid. She really wished she could just roast it, but her strength didn't allow for that.

"System, why don't you assign me tasks like other systems do?"

She'd had this question in her mind for a while, but now she came right out with it.

The System's little finger pointed to the red mark in the mission status bar, as if to say, "Isn't this it?"

Song Weishi shook her head: "I mean, why don't you keep assigning me quests like other systems do, like guiding me through the main story?"

She was trying to hint that the System should act as her guide, ideally telling her the types and locations of monsters, and then she'd naturally take care of the problems—earning points while honing her strength. It was killing two birds with one stone.

Ever since she'd arrived in this world, all the main and side missions had been triggered by Song Weishi herself. The System hadn't provided any help; sometimes when she asked—no, most of the time—it would just play dead.

The System didn't answer directly. Instead, it threw a question back at her: "Host, what kind of system am I?"

Song Weishi: …

She understood the implication in an instant. She'd been so desperate for points that she'd lost her mind, actually hoping the System would help her.

The whole "cannon fodder fakes death" plot had failed from the start. After she'd declared she wanted to stay in this world, the communication between her and the System had become increasingly sparse. Lately, the System seemed to have entered a dormant state of sorts, rarely speaking and barely using any energy.

It had all been her own choice. Song Weishi had nothing to say about that.

"Fine, I'll go find trouble on my own then."

She stretched and turned her gaze toward Xie Yi. Who would've thought that one day she'd willingly get close to the female lead on her own?

Her plan was simple: as long as she stayed by the female lead's side and finished a few big jobs, she could happily disappear and live a life with a house and a car.

She'd just opened the RV's description earlier. It came with water and electricity, requiring only an energy card. The System was currently dormant to save energy, since there wasn't much it could help with anyway.

The kinetic energy would also come from the energy card. It was practically tailor-made for her—she even had a space expansion card that could enlarge the RV's interior to feel like a real home, super cozy. And that was just what the description covered; more practical features would unlock once she actually bought it.

She was already hooked, itching to get her hands on that RV.

Song Weishi shuffled over to Xie Yi's side. The other woman noticed her movement, tilting her head slightly to glance at her, but said nothing and didn't back away.

Song Weishi figured the female lead's impression of her wasn't bad, or else she wouldn't have saved her multiple times.

She clenched her hands and put on an adorable smile. She had to admit, her smile was incredibly disarming, and she noticed Xie Yi's posture visibly relax.

"Thanks for saving me back then."

True friendship was forged in adversity—Xie Yi was a genuinely good person, holding onto her hand even in that moment.

Xie Yi nodded without a word, sitting up straight again, her expression unchanged.

Song Weishi was a bit puzzled. Wasn't this person just genuinely concerned about her before? Could it be that because she'd helped Xie Yi once, the other was just returning the favor, and now that the debt was paid, everything was done?

She leaned in a little closer, trying to get a better read on Xie Yi's expression.

But she noticed Xie Yi's body involuntarily lean back, as if pulling away from her.

Song Weishi: ?

She drew back and quickly pulled out her phone to check herself. What was going on here?

Was her face really that terrifying?

The smile on her face stiffened a bit. She tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear and furrowed her brows, completely baffled.

Aunt Huang came over with a plate of washed fruit and set it down in front of them: "Have some fruit—hey, Xiao Yi, what's wrong? Why are you gripping the sofa like that? If you're uncomfortable, go sit somewhere else, don't force yourself…"

Before Aunt Huang could finish, Xie Yi shot to her feet and strode away.

Leaving behind a thoroughly confused Song Weishi and Aunt Huang holding the fruit. The fabric sofa was wrinkled, as if it had been yanked hard, noticeably different from the rest.

"What's up with her?"

Aunt Huang glanced at Xie Yi heading upstairs, utterly puzzled, then sat down with the fruit. Song Weishi shrugged, having been jostled a bit herself; she straightened up and sat properly. The sofa was soft and comfortable, and she'd felt nothing when she sat down.

But she had a nagging feeling that something had just been pulled out from beside her.

"No idea. Maybe she's in a hurry to use the bathroom."

"Little Yi was never like this before. She's always been a bit cold, but she's very polite. Don't mind her, Xiao Song. She's probably just tired…"

The two chatted for a while downstairs, completely unaware that Xie Yi, standing on the pitch-dark staircase, was gripping her hand that had been sat on, the fingers burning hot.

She looked down, clenching the fingers that had just been sat on, barely managing to keep her calm expression from cracking. She took two deep breaths before slowly steadying her emotions.

Then she relaxed her reddened fingertips and shoved her hands into her pockets, rubbing them absently.

Behind her, the air conditioning blew cold, but her face burned as if she were on fire. She closed her eyes and leaned against the corridor wall, then opened them again. She descended the stairs silently, soft light falling across half her face as she cautiously watched the back of the figure still talking with Aunt Huang.

She wore a bun on her head, her snow-white neck looking fragile, a small canine tooth peeking out when she smiled sideways, and her eyes sparkled—utterly adorable.

When she'd first seen those lively, cunning eyes in the snow, a strange feeling had taken root in her heart, an urge to get closer to this person.

But the closer she got, the more the other seemed to push her away, as if they could never truly approach.

She could hardly believe the day would come when Song Weishi would initiate contact, just like just now. For a moment, she didn't know how to handle it and ended up running away.

What kind of feeling was this? It was strange, so strange that she wanted to try it again, to feel it once more.