Chapter 81

The cold wind stung, but Yan Qingqiu's mind was clear. No more living in fear, no more weighing every word against the System's punishment.

She could even tell them now—when they asked, "Qiuqiu, Qiu Bao, where did you come from? What was life like there?"—she could say she'd grown up in an orphanage, that she'd been independent since eighteen, that she'd taken care of herself well enough.

She could also say, "Give me a little more time. I remember a lot. Once I sort it all out, I should be Miss Yan."

I'm back.

Yan Qingqiu's eyes grew hot. Her view of Song Qingre blurred, and realizing she was about to cry, she raised a hand to cover her eyes.

Luo Xi was stunned. She quickly searched her conscience: did I say something upsetting?

Luo Xi scrambled for tissues. Xia Chunnong had a dry sheet mask in her pocket; she ripped it open and handed it to Yan Qingqiu.

"Don't cry, don't cry. When the time comes, I'll get a group of people to drag Fu Ye and Fu Sang into an alley and beat them senseless."

Yan Qingqiu said she was fine, wiping her eyes. But Luo Xi was still frantic, thinking of calling Song Qingre or Su Xingjie over. She took two steps forward, didn't watch her footing, slipped, and landed on the ground—her rear end meeting the icy snow.

So cold.

Yan Qingqiu also sat down on the ground without getting up, her hand covering her face, tears welling in her eyes.

Luo Xi and Xia Chunnong didn't know what to do. Yan Qingqiu's crying was so sudden, yet it also felt natural—with everything she'd been through, it would be stranger if she didn't cry.

Xia Chunnong crouched down to comfort her, hearing the sobs. "Don't be sad, don't be sad. If someone's got it out for you, listen to Xiao Xi! We'll go gang up on him and beat him black and blue."

Yan Qingqiu's palm was wet. She said, "No one's bullying me."

There isn't.

But you're crying so bitterly, it really breaks hearts.

These past few days she'd been all smiles and laughter. They'd privately discussed it and decided not to bring it up, so as not to hurt Yan Qingqiu.

Yan Qingqiu must be deeply wounded inside. She just pretended to be strong and never said anything.

The wind stirred Yan Qingqiu's golden hair.

Like a little sun fallen into the snowfield.

Luo Xi and Xia Chunnong called for Song Qingre to come comfort her. Song Qingre said, "It's fine. Let her vent a little. She'll feel better after crying."

Yan Qingqiu really wanted to cry. She felt a kind of suffocating pressure. Her life had been monitored by the System; her mind was a bottle cap screwed on too tight. She'd never been free. Except for some relaxation in matters of the heart, she was watched every single day.

Even when she woke up in the morning, she'd forgotten the System had been removed.

Yan Qingqiu wiped her face. The tears that slid down turned icy, and her palms were icy too. After several passes, her cheeks were soaked.

Su Xingjie stood nearby for a while, then couldn't hold back and walked over. Yan Qingqiu's excited shriek earlier—she hadn't understood the words, but she could feel it was her battle cry, their victory.

Shadows concealed her tears.

Yan Qingqiu didn't want anyone to see her crying either. She sensed someone crouch down beside her, blocking the cold wind from the north.

She lowered her hand and saw Su Xingjie's worried eyes.

Her heart ached.

"I'm... I'm almost okay," Yan Qingqiu choked out, then corrected herself. "No, I'm already okay. I'm fine."

Su Xingjie nodded. "Mm."

Yan Qingqiu stood up from the snow, patting her pants. "My clothes are soaked. I'm going to change."

"Mm." Su Xingjie helped steady her.

Yan Qingqiu brushed past Song Qingre, her nose stinging. She walked to the small cabin, then turned to look back—and found Song Qingre looking at her too.

Half a minute later, Song Qingre took a step forward and followed behind her.

Yan Qingqiu went into the bedroom and took off her pants. Song Qingre helped her find a new pair of padded trousers.

They were pink, with a leather exterior, decorated with little rainbows and strawberries.

Yan Qingqiu said, "I had a pair like this when I was little."

Back then, she probably hadn't even started school.

After changing, she went next door to find Song Qingre.

"Mm. Back then you wore a little pink vest on top. You thought you looked so cool, so you waited at my door first thing in the morning with your hands in your pockets. Your face got frostbitten, but you still wouldn't reach out to ring the doorbell."

"I was too short to reach it back then," Yan Qingqiu said.

Song Qingre said softly, "That's exactly what you said back then too."

Yan Qingqiu had been vain about it as a child. When the butler opened the door for her, she'd run inside with her hands in her pockets, walking laps around the whole house, just to hear people praise her pants. Then she'd run to Song Qingre's bedside and tell her to get the same pair.

Yan Qingqiu nodded. She finished changing, tugged at her waistband, and swapped her black down jacket for a pink one—black with pink leather pants would've looked too weird.

She looked at Song Qingre. Song Qingre's fingers fell on her hair, gently stroking.

Yan Qingqiu looked up at her.

Song Qingre said, "I was excited too, just now. Before this, I was only trying, but succeeding was really, really hard."

Yan Qingqiu could feel it. Song Qingre forcibly pulling the System out must have hurt her. She could only be cautious, probing carefully again and again.

"If it hadn't come out this time, I would've kept trying. One way or another, I'd get you out safely..."

"Don't." Yan Qingqiu cut her off. She sat on the edge of the bed, looking up at Song Qingre, and said seriously, "I don't want you to do that. It hurts you too."

The System had said 9,125 times, and even it couldn't take it. So how could Song Qingre? Not once more. Not even once.

She ached for Song Qingre.

She stood up and walked over to her.

Song Qingre was three centimeters taller. Yan Qingqiu could reach her with just a slight raise of her hand. She touched Song Qingre's head. "Neither of us is sad anymore."

Song Qingre said okay.

After saying that, she looked at Song Qingre again—and Song Qingre's eyes were red too. Yan Qingqiu pressed a kiss to her brow. Song Qingre closed her eyes, and Yan Qingqiu's breath slowly warmed her cheeks.

Song Qingre bowed her head slightly, and their four lips met.

Mixed with tears, their kiss wasn't all that sweet.

A gentle kiss, like snowflakes landing on the ground.

Yan Qingqiu held her waist, melting into the light softness, breathing in that fragrance, sinking and indulging in the rich tenderness.

Yan Qingqiu was pushed onto the bed. Song Qingre pressed over her and kissed her.

A long while later, when they parted, their gazes were both hazy.

Song Qingre pressed against her chest. "Does it hurt?"

Yan Qingqiu shook her head. It felt fine. "The band-aid didn't come off."

"Does it hurt?"

Yan Qingqiu felt embarrassed, biting her lip. "It hurt a little at first, but then it was fine. Don't press too hard."

Song Qingre hummed, her eyes fixed on her. But Yan Qingqiu didn't dare look back—being worked over all day yesterday had been exhausting.

"Will it bind me again?" she asked softly.

Song Qingre said gently, "Don't worry. As long as I'm here, nothing will happen."

She said it with certainty to ease her mind. "Next time, we'll be the ones catching it."

Yan Qingqiu tilted her head up to look at her. She nodded, trusting Song Qingre.

Song Qingre also wanted to catch the System and see for herself—where Qiuqiu had gone before, what Qiuqiu's life had been like.

The twenty-four years Qiuqiu had lived again—she'd been truly brave.

Braver than she'd imagined.

Of course.

Song Qingre wasn't interested in the outside world. She wasn't an adventurer, had no spirit of exploration. She just loved being wherever Qiuqiu was.

She only wanted to stay with Qiuqiu. As for the outside... it would be best if it could be destroyed.

That would give her a sense of security. She'd actually wanted a System, but the System never came to her, never bound her either.

Kill it, then.

She also closed her eyes, feeling the embrace.

Song Qingre smelled the clean scent of cedar on her. The pheromone made her throat swallow involuntarily. If this went on, she was afraid she wouldn't be able to hold back.

"Get up. Su Xingjie is still worried about you."

Yan Qingqiu hummed. She got up, straightened her clothes, walked out of the room, and gave Su Xingjie a big hug. "Thank you, my best Xing Xing."

Su Xingjie staggered back from the impact. Seeing her smile so happily, her heart finally settled. She snorted. "You scared me half to death."

"Sorry, sorry." Yan Qingqiu apologized.

"But I'm not mad at you," Su Xingjie said. "Because I'm happy."

The three of them shared a little secret. The other three outside didn't know what was going on and kept worrying, pacing by the door. When they came out, they rushed over. "What's wrong? What happened?"

"Nothing. Just saw the morning news and got pissed off. Then I thought about how good you've all been to me, and the pent-up emotions just burst out."

They all understood. The internet was indeed a mess. Luo Xi, in her loud voice, said they'd use their video accounts to help trash Fu Sang.

Xia Chunnong directly pulled out her phone, saying generously, "I'll call my dad and mom later and have them cut ties with the Fu family."

Luo Xi unconsciously nodded along, only realizing what she'd agreed to after nodding. She stopped overthinking it and lined up with them. "Right, right! I'll call too!"

Song Qingre said, "No need. Company matters can't be decided by impulse. You can't just cut ties with this one or that one because of a word from you all."

As she said that, the others who couldn't help just fretted. Song Qingre said, "Don't worry. When I need you, I definitely won't be shy."

Luo Xi said, "You'd better."

Song Qingre glanced at Ye Sichun beside her. "If you don't believe me, ask her." She smiled, the hair at her temple stirred by the wind.

Song Qingre said softly, "Let's go eat. My treat today."

Ye Sichun tugged at her. "Let me treat. Consider it comforting Miss Yan."

Xia Chunnong also felt awkward—eating at their place, wearing their clothes, staying at their place. She wanted some participation too and hurriedly said she'd do it.

Yan Qingqiu figured she didn't need to treat anyone. She linked arms with Su Xingjie and left first. Su Xingjie kept watching her, confirming several times that she was fine before letting out a heavy breath.

The tears on Yan Qingqiu's face had dried. She smiled gently, took a deep breath, and felt especially light.

When the others finished talking, they quickly caught up.

"Are we walking?"

"The ground's slippery today and the car doesn't have chains. Not safe."

Just then—bang!—Xia Chunnong took a solid fall on the ground. The others turned to look at them.

They bickered and laughed as they walked to a nearby hotel to eat. They didn't book a private room, just ordered their favorite dishes and went all out. After all, who knew when they'd be back this way—even getting sick of the food would be fine.

Yan Qingqiu was curious about what they'd done yesterday. Luo Xi said they'd gone skiing and even entered a race. Su Xingjie had gone too but returned to the company in the afternoon. Luo Xi showed off that she'd won first place. Song Qingre and Su Xingjie chimed in, asking if she'd gotten the golden gourd prize.

Luo Xi was baffled. "What? There's a prize?"

"We have one." Su Xingjie fished around in her pocket and pulled out the gourd Yan Qingqiu had bought her yesterday.

Yan Qingqiu stifled a laugh. Luo Xi, seeing they had prizes, felt a bit aggrieved—why hadn't she gotten one yesterday? She planned to go ask for one after eating.

Ye Sichun laughed. "What are you asking for? That was just a casual race, no official organizer. Where would a prize come from? If you want one, I'll buy you one later."

"..." Luo Xi looked at Yan Qingqiu, who was laughing uncontrollably, and realized she'd been tricked.

So mad.

Without the System's interference, Yan Qingqiu was relaxed. After eating, she went wild outside—skiing, snowball fights. Song Qingre stood by and watched. Yan Qingqiu ran back and forth, her golden hair blowing. Seeing Song Qingre wasn't moving, she deliberately grabbed a handful of snow and threw it at her. Unfortunately, she didn't hit her.

Instead, Yan Qingqiu was taken down by Luo Xi's snowball. She landed chest-first on the ground and hissed softly—pressing on it like that really hurt.

Luo Xi ran over to check on her, afraid she'd injured her. She was about to reach out to help her up when she looked at the ground, then at her chest pressed against it. "Is it really that big? Getting hit once is this... intense."

"You wouldn't understand the troubles of big chests." Yan Qingqiu snorted. She didn't want Luo Xi to know she had a flesh wound underneath with a band-aid on it. That impact just now—she didn't know if the band-aid had come loose.

Luo Xi looked at her expression, hesitating, and asked, "You think this is good?"

"Look how full it is. Don't you envy it?" Yan Qingqiu shot back.

Luo Xi did envy it. Yan Qingqiu had just the right fullness—a solid D, close to E in a nice bra. Not overly big, but looking soft, firm, and springy. Like you just wanted to pounce on it.

Logically, at her current height of 175 centimeters, she shouldn't grow that big.

So jealous. So jealous.

Luo Xi played a bit more, then they went to buy swimsuits. They said they were going to another island tomorrow, where they could swim, so they needed new gear.

Luo Xi didn't want to go buy swimsuits with them.

They didn't drag her along either, letting her go find Ye Sichun. Xia Chunnong said, "Hehe, she's going to buy one with Ye Sichun. She'll pick the style Ye Sichun likes best. How sweet."

Yan Qingqiu's heart skipped—why was she thinking she also wanted to buy a style Song Qingre liked?

Ahhh, have some shame, Yan Qingqiu!

Black or pink, though?

Luckily, Song Qingre was on the phone and hadn't come in.

Luo Xi ran to Ye Sichun and picked up a craft item from a nearby street stall.

"What were you all talking about?" Ye Sichun asked curiously. But she knew they'd gone to buy swimsuits.

Luo Xi was too embarrassed to tell her, so she picked up a wooden doll from the stall. She thought it was pretty and didn't answer Ye Sichun.

Ye Sichun asked, "Got body image anxiety?" She took the doll from Luo Xi's hand, squeezed it, and said, "There. Don't worry. I think you look great."

Luo Xi looked up at her, a little moved. "They all say my chest is small..."

"Mm?" Ye Sichun narrowed her eyes.

Luo Xi said, "That shameless Yan Qingqiu even said something like, just find an alpha to rub them bigger! How shameless! I think she's the one who's thinking about it. No shame at all. I'm embarrassed for her! Morally bankrupt!"

"...Uh." Ye Sichun's gaze wandered slightly, landing on her. "I think what she said has some merit."

Luo Xi was speechless.

She felt uncomfortable, fidgeting. "You just said I shouldn't have body image anxiety, and now you've changed your tune. How fickle are you?"

Ye Sichun said, "I'm not saying you should have body image anxiety. I'm saying that method might have some merit. I think since her family does product stuff, she probably knows a thing or two."

"You're so, so high-sounding. You're, you're a beast." Luo Xi said indignantly.

Ye Sichun's thin lips twitched. She tried to retort several times, but it got stuck in her throat.

Then she said, "Liking someone can turn a person into a beast. I'm not a platonic love enthusiast."

Luo Xi blushed to her ears, turned her back, and ignored her.

Ye Sichun's fingers poked her shoulder, and the two kept walking until they saw Yan Qingqiu and the others.

Ye Sichun handed her the little plush she was holding. "This is for you."

Luo Xi didn't take it. Ye Sichun teased her a few more times, until Luo Xi said, "Fine, I forgive you."

They didn't go join Yan Qingqiu's group—mainly because it would be too embarrassing. The two walked elsewhere; there was plenty to see and do around here. When they saw Yan Qingqiu come out of the swimsuit shop, Luo Xi snuck in with Ye Sichun to buy some.

· ·

By the time they got back, it was late at night. Yan Qingqiu tossed her purchases onto the bed. She'd meant to shower first, but seeing the person coming in behind her, she bit her lip and didn't move.

Song Qingre hadn't played with them all day and hadn't bought anything either.

Yan Qingqiu didn't mind the extra effort—she'd bought everything in pairs.

Yan Qingqiu took off her shoes, sat on the edge of the bed, and asked, "What are you doing? Work?"

Song Qingre finished dealing with what she had in hand and put down the tablet. "Confirming whether that trash can is bound to Fu Sang."

Trash can... so she knew she'd named the System that.

It made Yan Qingqiu curious too. If the System was bound to Fu Sang, what was Fu Sang like? Could she see a reflection of her past self in her?

"You want to know too?" Song Qingre asked.

Yan Qingqiu nodded. "Mm, I do."

The light in the room wasn't bright—warm, ambient tones that fell on Song Qingre's sweater like a layer of warm honey.

Song Qingre took out her tablet, ran her fingers across the screen, and it switched to another interface. She searched through a folder for a moment, entered a password, and opened it for Yan Qingqiu to see.

Yan Qingqiu leaned over curiously. "This is...?"

"Surveillance." Song Qingre handed her the tablet.

Yan Qingqiu couldn't believe it. She didn't take it, needing a moment to process.

The last time she'd searched the house, she hadn't found any surveillance from Song Qingre.

"I cleaned it out once, then put it back up." Song Qingre's tone was calm. "I thought you knew. Didn't you hint at me before?"

Yan Qingqiu definitely didn't know. Any hints she'd made were blind guesses; she'd never found solid evidence. She said, "I thought you'd only do it once, then stop."

Song Qingre just smiled, saying nothing. The smile said: "How could that be? You always have to keep watch. See how convenient it is now."

Song Qingre didn't bother making excuses. A tiny expression made an unkind thing seem perfectly reasonable, as if it made all the sense in the world.

Yan Qingqiu stared at the surveillance with complicated feelings. Naturally, she was most curious about her own room, wanting to see what it looked like from the camera's angle.

She tapped on her room. The camera was hidden somewhere, but it could clearly see every corner.

The room was empty, though the layout had changed slightly.

Song Qingre said, "Fu Sang tried to move all your things out, but Dong Shu and the others stopped her."

"Poor Dong Shu and the others." Yan Qingqiu fiddled with the tablet, tapping around until she switched to the living room. The maids were tidying up. She was about to back out when Fu Sang's car pulled into the courtyard.

Song Qingre leaned over and tapped the screen once. Faint sounds could be heard.

"It even has audio? I'm shocked." Yan Qingqiu said.

Song Qingre offered a rare explanation. "The audio isn't mine. That one's Uncle's surveillance. He had someone hijack the network and connected it to your house's cameras. The cameras in the rooms are mine."

She said it gently, like an explanation. But it was like pouring a glass of fresh water into the ocean—utterly useless.

So what? Isn't it all still surveillance?

Yan Qingqiu felt dumb and lost, completely in Song Qingre's hands.

Song Qingre was a taotie—an appetite so huge it would devour anything.

No, that's wrong. She was the taotie—she'd even devoured Song Qingre.

"Scared?" Song Qingre asked.

Before Yan Qingqiu could answer, Song Qingre gave her ear a light, meaningful bite. "What can we do? You've just escaped the tiger's den only to walk into the wolf's cave."

Yan Qingqiu elbowed her away, tired of sitting, and lay face-down on the bed. She continued watching, seeing how Fu Sang behaved at home.

She asked casually, "When are we going home?"

It was close to Chinese New Year now.

"When do you want to go?"

Going back didn't seem like a good idea—right now she was supposed to be dead.

Song Qingre said, "It's fine. You can go back. You'll just need me to hide you away like a kept treasure."

Yan Qingqiu felt like needles pricking her back. Her mind started to spin, and she couldn't focus on the video anymore.

She turned her head and glared at Song Qingre. "It's all your fault. You've made me not feel like myself anymore." But the idea of being kept secretly felt thrilling.

Song Qingre sat on the edge of the bed. "Having you this way and that every day? Like it? Can we do what we did yesterday a few more times?"

Yan Qingqiu remembered what the System had said—Song Qingre had absorbed several wives, and her spiritual space could transform. She snorted. Song Qingre lowered her head and bit her ear. She hummed and continued watching the surveillance. "Stop it."

Always trying to tempt her.

But it worked. Soon, Yan Qingqiu was stirred up again.

She wasn't scared or panicked anymore. She kept watching.

Fu Sang came home and started making a scene. She changed her shoes herself, slammed the shoe cabinet shut, and snapped at the maids to clear away Yan Qingqiu's things.

"How many times do I have to say it? Why haven't you cleared this stuff out yet? There are still her shoes in the cabinet."

"Miss Fu Sang, it was the master who told us not to clean them up."

Fu Sang sneered. "She's gone. Isn't it bad luck to keep her stuff around?"

She clearly meant Yan Qingqiu was dead, but the maid didn't catch the implication and defended herself. "These shoes cost four or five hundred thousand a pair. It'd be a shame to throw them out. Maybe we should wait until the master comes back to deal with them. Otherwise he'll be angry. He'll scold you too."

Fu Sang said, "With that tone of yours, you sound like the young lady of the house. Should I tell the master to take you in as my adopted sister?"

The maid bit her lip and said nothing more.

Fu Sang glared at them, and the atmosphere in the house was suffocating.

When Yan Qingqiu was home, it wasn't this tense.

So this was the atmosphere when Fu Sang was home. No wonder everyone thought Yan Qingqiu had a bad temper when she'd first arrived. Yan Qingqiu cursed at her silently, wondering how her father was doing now.

The people in the living room were driven away, leaving only Fu Sang sitting there.

The System had always said Yan Qingqiu was disobedient and kept slipping up. Fu Sang was the same. She sat on the sofa rubbing her temples, brow furrowed, looking deeply uncomfortable. Her lips moved from time to time.

Fu Sang's voice was too soft to hear what she was scheming.

Song Qingre told her not to rush. Once Fu Sang went back to her room, they'd be able to hear.

Fu Sang sat in the living room for over ten minutes. Since there was no sound, Yan Qingqiu got a bit tired. She kept treating the surveillance like a video and wanted to fast-forward.

Finally, the butler came in, holding a red invitation card. His voice was clear. "Miss Fu Sang, this is an invitation from the Fu family, along with things you'll need for the wedding. See if there's anything else you need?"

Fu Sang glared at him. "You're so happy when it comes to marriage. Why weren't you this enthusiastic before? So eager to marry me off?"

The butler maintained his composure. "Miss, if you respect me, I'll respect you. I'm the butler of this house, not a servant. You don't hold my contract, so there's no need to humiliate me like this."

Fu Sang said, "You were pretty groveling to Yan Qingqiu. Now you treat me differently."

The butler thought for a moment. "Maybe because the young lady knew how to act cute. She always spoke in a soft voice. Even when we helped her put on her shoes, she'd act embarrassed."

That sounded like praise to Yan Qingqiu's ears, but Fu Sang would definitely be upset—it was blatant favoritism.

Fu Sang rose in a huff and went upstairs.

The view switched to her bedroom. Yan Qingqiu felt a bit of shame spying on someone else.

Song Qingre said, "Uncle told her not to stay in that room. She insisted. Who's she to blame? Didn't she have any mental preparation, not afraid of being watched?"

Yan Qingqiu agreed. She was only embarrassed for herself—she used to run around naked a lot. Yan Qingqiu felt that having pity for the System or transmigrators would be absurdly naive. This ABO world and its nation were a whole; outsiders who came to change their world, to destroy and constrain them, were invaders. Treating them as human would be as stupid as a pig.

Yan Qingqiu had been controlled by the System. She didn't want others to be controlled like she had been, their lives turned upside down.

Fu Sang was looking at something on her phone, muttering to herself.

The recording wasn't clear. They'd have to convert it to text later. But Yan Qingqiu could see Fu Sang's phone screen clearly.

It was Su Xingjie's Weibo page.

Fu Sang gritted her teeth. "I'll confirm whether she's dead or not."

Meaning, if Yan Qingqiu wasn't dead, she'd kill her.

Then she kept staring at her phone, sometimes typing.

Fu Sang truly hated her, personally smearing Yan Qingqiu online, wishing she were dead.

She said Yan Qingqiu was a fake, a child her parents had specially swapped. That she, Fu Sang, was the real one. She even made up a whole story—that Yan Qingqiu knew she was fake but shamelessly refused to leave, that Fu Sang had lived a pitiful life, that Yan Qingqiu had always targeted her after learning her identity, and that Yan Qingqiu had ruined Fu Sang's life.

She told it with such emotion that Yan Qingqiu was almost moved.

Was Fu Sang talking about herself?

A magpie occupying a dove's nest—knowing she was a fake, yet calmly taking the world's resources and wrecking another family's home.

Sure enough, those who do evil know exactly how evil they are.

Her story won sympathy, but there were also skeptics.

Netizen: 【From what's been leaked online, isn't Fu Sang the one retaliating against Su Xingjie? Su Xingjie never wronged her, right? Even if she was taken away, her adoptive parents treated her well. Fu Sang is just inherently wicked. Evil will be repaid with evil.】

No matter how Fu Sang played the victim, it didn't work.

The internet trend now was to slap both sides equally. Even if she painted Yan Qingqiu as the worst, Fu Sang was already tarnished in people's eyes.

Yan Qingqiu was rotten, but Fu Sang wasn't any better.

Besides, even if she was bad, she was good to Su Xingjie—they were a wonderful pair of sisters.

Fu Sang, you're still taking over Fu Ye, that eunuch? Your brain really doesn't work, does it? You sick or something?

Another netizen replied: 【Is the poster the actual person? If so, I can only say 666. You're not a good person yourself. Objectively speaking, Yan Qingqiu is way better than you. She helped her dad sell products to save the company, then joined her best friend's team and helped her through the model-stealing crisis. In terms of character, she's much better than you. And about the swapped child thing—it wasn't her who went and swapped. It was her parents' doing. What does that have to do with her? And these years she was completely raised useless, but now she's woken up and stopped chasing after Fu Ye. She didn't even cling to your family. I heard she moved straight to Song Qingre's house. How can you say she took your life and stole your position? Maybe she'd do just fine on her own.】

Netizen: 【Anyway, I don't buy the swapped-at-birth theory. Fu Sang and Yan Qingqiu look pretty similar, and Yan Qingqiu looks a lot like Yan Fu. You can tell she's his biological daughter at a glance. Saying she's a fake has no basis at all. I think it's Fu Sang spreading rumors online to secure her position in the Yan family, trying to erase the original Yan Qingqiu's memory. If that's the case, Fu Sang is terrifying—like an outsider trying to take someone else's identity and seize all the resources. Her ambition is huge. I've never understood why Fu Sang is the Yan family's daughter. She's mixed-race, but look at her. Her face changes every day. Could she be getting subtle plastic surgery?】

Netizen: 【Yeah. Now that you mention it, I never noticed. She really does have a daily-flip face. I wonder if she's getting surgery. Thinking deeper, it's terrifying. Her old face was pretty, like a proper mixed-race look. Now she just gets uglier. No comparison with Yan Qingqiu—hers is natural. The current one is basically a failed product. 9125 is a real pervert.】

Fu Sang slammed her phone down with a crack. "What do you mean I triggered the awakening? Those netizens guessed it themselves. What does that have to do with me? And isn't this face something you adjusted the data for? Fine, I asked you to change it. But these netizens... look, are they scolding me for the hype? Your control is broken."

Yan Qingqiu thought to herself—Fu Sang was in the same state she'd been.

She didn't need to guess much to figure out what was happening. The System couldn't control the netizens' malicious speculation, so they'd accidentally exposed the truth. The System wouldn't admit it, so it blamed Fu Sang.

Controlling one person was doable, but tens of thousands, hundreds of millions of netizens—how could the System handle that?

Now the System and Fu Sang were at each other's throats—dogs fighting dogs.

In the end, Fu Sang stopped talking aloud and just sat there blankly. Yan Qingqiu finally understood what it had been like when she communicated with the System.

Eyes vacant, body stiff.

Song Qingre had never called her out on it, staying calm as if she'd noticed nothing. It showed how patient she was, and how extraordinary.

After watching, Yan Qingqiu handed the tablet back to Song Qingre.

Yan Qingqiu lay flat on the bed, processing the information she'd just absorbed. "How are you going to deal with them?"

"If you met an alien that wanted to hurt you, what would you do?"

Yan Qingqiu answered without hesitation: "I'd grab a frying pan, smash them flat, and send them to the government for research."

"Tsk." Song Qingre narrowed her eyes. "That's not a bad idea. It's just not feasible right now."

Because Yan Qingqiu was the heroine of this world—what if they wanted to research her instead?

Yan Qingqiu said, "It's weird. Why didn't the System have Fu Sang call the police? If you killed me, they could've had the police arrest you."

Song Qingre said, "It's best for Fu Sang and Fu Ye to get married first—married using your identity."

Yan Qingqiu bit her lip. "Didn't we already get our marriage certificate? So they'd have to divorce you?"

"No need."

"Why?"

Song Qingre just smiled. "You'll know when the time comes."

"You smile so sinisterly." Yan Qingqiu thought—based on what the System had said about Song Qingre guessing the tasks correctly, Fu Sang was supposed to go through heat with Fu Ye and have a child. Would Fu Sang really be willing? Fu Sang liked her Xing Xing. Wouldn't these tasks make her sick? Yan Qingqiu couldn't help but wonder—had she been tricked by someone?

Yan Qingqiu probed, "So do I not have to do the tasks anymore?"

Song Qingre looked at her. "I think you still should."

"Why?" Yan Qingqiu said. "Didn't you say that as long as I'm with you, the System won't bind me again?"

Song Qingre's brow furrowed. When she'd comforted her earlier, she'd been so certain, telling her the System wouldn't come back and wouldn't dare bind her. Now it was hard to explain.

"Why aren't you saying anything?" Yan Qingqiu asked.

Trying to figure out how to trick you.

Song Qingre sat on the chair, crossing her long legs, narrowing her eyes. She hummed. How to make something up?

"How about this, Qiuqiu. Let me test you."

"Think about why I asked you to do the tasks. I'll give you a chance—think deeply. Go deeper. Why did I want you to think about it yourself?"

"Huh?" Yan Qingqiu was lost.

Song Qingre got on the bed, moving close. Yan Qingqiu cowered, backing up against the headboard.

"Did you forget something?" Song Qingre pinched her chin.

Yan Qingqiu was still wondering why her brain wasn't turning, why she could only see the head and not the tail—surely she couldn't be blaming her because she herself couldn't figure it out.

She was about to say "what," when Song Qingre reminded her: "Band-aid. Bunnies. Two of them. Squeeze them for me."

"..."

Yan Qingqiu reminded herself: think about serious things, think about serious things. She glanced at Song Qingre. Song Qingre waited patiently. Yan Qingqiu said seriously, "I bought two very skimpy swimsuits today. One pink, one black. Which one do you want to see?" A bit embarrassed, she blushed and added, "They're both... very sexy."