As a system that had graduated with top marks from the Central Intelligence Factory, 001’s energy level was visible, a neat, glowing bar in the upper right corner of Ning Sui’s vision.
Sure enough, what was always a steady 100% was now cut cleanly in half. Only 50% remained.
“Why is it like this?” Ning Sui asked, frowning slightly. “Has this ever happened before?”
“Not really,” 001 murmured weakly. “But… we’ve been bound for three years. I haven’t gone back for a single maintenance check in all that time. Parts wear out eventually. Don’t worry, it just needs a recharge…”
Seeing how faint its voice had become, Ning Sui decided not to ask further for fear of making things worse.
001 curled up in the quiet corner of his consciousness, patching itself together bit by bit.
Outside, the drizzle had turned into heavy rain. The temperature dropped sharply, and the room felt colder. Ning Sui shut his book, slipped off his jacket, and crawled under the covers.
“Get closer to Ji Yucheng,” 001 said softly. “It’ll help me recover.”
“Alright.”
Without hesitation, Ning Sui scooted over, his fingers began to wander over Ji Yucheng’s body.
He found a comfortable position to lie in, lifted Ji Yucheng’s cotton sleep shirt, and ran his hand over the man’s abdomen.
The person beside him didn’t move a muscle. His eyes were tightly closed, his handsome face still pale as snow.
Propping his head on one hand, Ning Sui gazed at him for a long while… Doing this in broad daylight really made him feel like a pervert.
But then again, so what? His comatose husband wasn’t going to wake up anytime soon.
As soon as he pressed close, 001’s power bar began to rise rapidly 60%, then steady.
Seeing that, Ning Sui finally relaxed.
After a while, though, touching the same place got a little boring. He yawned, rolled over onto his stomach, one hand still resting under Ji Yucheng’s shirt, while the other reached toward the candy jar on the nightstand.
He tore open an orange flavored lollipop, looked sideways at Ji Yucheng, and drifted into thought.
Poor Young Master Ji, two years without tasting sugar. Day after day of bland nutrient fluids.
“Here, have a taste,” Ning Sui said kindly.
He pressed the lollipop lightly against Ji Yucheng’s lips, rolling it across his dry mouth twice before popping it into his own mouth and sucking softly, the sound crisp in the quiet room.
Ji Yucheng: “…”
009 nearly covered its nonexistent eyes. “Your little spouse doesn’t actually think the candy tastes sweeter because it touched your lips, does he?”
“Ha.” Ji Yucheng tried to sound irritated, but the tips of his ears betrayed him, glowing faintly red. “Mind your own business.”
…
The rain drummed harder outside. Inside, the air was quiet, two people lying close together, looking for all the world like an affectionate couple.
If not for the soft beeping of the monitor, no one would have guessed that one of them was a “vegetable.”
009 had gone quiet, tinkering away at something. Then suddenly, it jolted and shouted in Ji Yucheng’s mind:
“Host! Look! I… I’ve got a power bar now!”
For two years, 009 had been nothing but a glorified life-support add-on, doing the bare minimum to keep Ji Yucheng’s body from atrophying.
Other systems could run missions, manipulate data, grant skills, 009 had none of that. The only thing it had in excess was noise.
Ji Yucheng had long stopped caring about what the useless system did. Still, he glanced at the corner of his vision and there it was: a tiny rectangular energy display, like a phone battery icon.
Except… the bar was gray and it read: 0%.
Ji Yucheng immediately lost interest and looked away.
009: “…”
It had worked so hard to fix that display!
After absorbing that strange burst of energy earlier, most of its damaged wiring had finally reconnected.
It had spent ages soldering its circuits together and now, for the first time in its miserable existence, it actually had an energy meter.
“Don’t look down on me!” 009 huffed. “I’ve always been useless only because I was broken and had no power! Once I reach 10%, I can activate my base functions. And if I reach 100%, I can even help you wake up!”
Tempting words but Ji Yucheng wasn’t buying it. “I’m a vegetable,” he said coolly. “Where am I supposed to find power for you?”
But as soon as he finished speaking, he and 009 both watched the impossible happen…
As Ning Sui’s hands continued to wander over his abdomen, soft and lingering, the gray battery bar flickered then filled one tiny sliver.
1%.
009: “…”
Ji Yucheng: “?”
009 squeaked, shocked. “Host! Feel your body again!”
Trying not to show his surprise, Ji Yucheng obeyed.
After Ning Sui’s earlier kiss, he’d been able to twitch only his left index finger. Now, with 1% charge, his middle finger moved too.
It was almost imperceptible, invisible under the blanket but to Ji Yucheng, trapped in darkness for two long years, it felt like a miracle.
If the system was telling the truth, then maybe just maybe.. when the bar filled completely, he could really wake up.
He’d waited two years. He could wait a few months more.
Still, one question remained.
“Will this… affect my little spouse?”
“Of course not!” 009 said quickly. “He’s been touching you like this every day since your wedding. Has he shown any symptoms? None! Perfectly healthy!”
Though often useless, 009 wasn’t a liar.
Reassured, Ji Yucheng let himself relax slightly. He’d been touched by many people these past years, his grandfather, doctors, even that idiot younger brother but never had anyone stirred a reaction like this.
Feeling the warmth of Ning Sui’s body pressed against his own, Ji Yucheng’s calm heart rippled, like a stone dropped into a still lake.
Still…
“Isn’t your charging speed a bit too slow?” he said dryly.
His little wife had been clinging to him all afternoon, yet 009’s battery had crawled up by a pathetic 1% then stopped.
No way it was Ning Sui’s fault. It had to be that the system was trash.
009 coughed weakly. “That’s… perfectly normal. Very normal! I’m actually charging quite fast by system standards!”
Ji Yucheng didn’t bother to expose the lie.
He’d drawn the short straw with this defective junkyard system anyway.
“What’s this ‘10% base function’ you mentioned?” he asked. “If 100% takes forever, at least tell me what happens at ten.”
009 perked up instantly, its voice full of misplaced pride. “Oh, that! That’s a long story…. ”
Ji Yucheng’s forehead throbbed. “Spare me the essay. Just the main point. Talk too much, and I’ll scrap you myself.”
009: “…”
“Fine! I’ll keep it simple. The system world has many categories, Desire Systems, Mission Systems, Function Systems, Life Systems… I’m one of the Function types.”
As it spoke, 009 couldn’t help recalling the one system that had outshone them all before it was thrown away, 001.
The model student. The teacher’s favorite. The legend every broken system hated to hear about.
009 puffed up a little, deciding to borrow a bit of that glory for itself.
“I used to be just like that top-ranking 001…. ”
(T/N; sorry for the disturbance but I couldn’t help but to snort… Top ranking like 001…if only 001 found out what happened to his 50% energy suddenly…)
Ji Yucheng suddenly let out a short, icy laugh.
Seeing his host’s face turn ashen, 009 shivered and quickly abandoned his attempt at bragging.
“Actually, my abilities are mainly data access and remote control. I was in a half-finished state before, so I couldn’t use them at all. But once my power reaches at least ten percent, I should be able to barely activate something.”
…
Completely unaware of what was going on inside the head of the “vegetative” husband lying beside him, Ning Sui’s phone buzzed twice on the pillow.
He glanced at the screen, two new messages from Ji Zhilin.
…Still sending him messages? Hadn’t the things he’d blurted out in front of the old master been enough for him to digest?
[I don’t believe it.]
[Do you… have some kind of reason for doing this?]
It wasn’t surprising that he didn’t believe it. Anyone who’d dated someone for three years wouldn’t easily accept that their lover had fallen for another person overnight, let alone that the relationship had been fake from the start, just to get close to his older brother.
Especially someone as proud as Ji Zhilin.
Ever since he was born, he’d been overshadowed by Ji Yucheng in everything. But in front of everyone else, he was still the dazzling second young master of the Ji family.
It probably had never occurred to him that Ning Sui didn’t care about him at all.
Those two short messages felt like a last struggle, the punctuation even off, as if he’d typed them with trembling hands.
“I don’t care if you believe it or not…” Ning Sui muttered around a piece of candy.
If he really believed Ning Sui had some hidden reason, he wouldn’t have gone and made a scene in front of the old man, would he? That kind of outburst would only make things worse for his “lover.”
Even though Ji Yucheng couldn’t see, hearing the little spouse mumbling beside him, he could easily guess who was blowing up his phone again, that stupid younger brother.
That kid still hadn’t given up on his wife?
Ji Yucheng’s mood instantly darkened.
[Believe it or not.]
Ning Sui fired off the reply, short and to the point.
In the car, Ji Zhilin sat drenched, the window still open, rain splattering across his face, the cold sinking into his bones.
[A’Sui, does Ji Yucheng have something on you? Tell me. We’ll figure it out together]
So that was it, Ji Zhilin just couldn’t accept that he’d lost even to a man lying unconscious.
Hearing Ning Sui say he liked Ji Yucheng had not only panicked him, it had crushed his pride.
Ning Sui sighed. Looks like the story he’d spun back at the villa hadn’t been detailed enough, that’s why Ji Zhilin had gone and made a fool of himself in front of the old man.
One outburst he could handle. But if Ji Zhilin kept this up, even the old master might start reconsidering whether Ning Sui should stay in the Ji household once the “contract period” ended.
And leaving the Ji household meant leaving Ji Yucheng, absolutely not.
Ning Sui’s fingers flew across the screen:
[ I didn’t finish last time. The truth is, two years ago on the day of the ribbon-cutting, I only agreed to go with you because I knew Ji Yucheng would be there.]
[That day, he wore a dark suit with an Earl’s hexagram brooch, and over it a black coat.
His driver’s suit had a blue checkered shirt underneath.]
[At the banquet, he didn’t eat much, just drank a glass of orange juice. He frowned seven times in total.]
[If I hadn’t liked him from the start, how would I remember all that?]
He really did remember what Ji Yucheng wore that day because the man had been dazzling beyond reason, and as a certified face-connoisseur, Ning Sui’s gaze hadn’t strayed from him once.
Everything else, though, he made up on the spot but Ji Zhilin would never remember the details from two years ago anyway.
Ji Zhilin fell silent on the other end.
No reply? Still not convinced?
Ning Sui lay down, took a quick selfie of himself and Ji Yucheng on the same bed, and sent it over.
[ I’m lying in bed with him right now. If you dare make a scene in front of the old man again and ruin my good thing, I won’t let you off]
Cutting off someone’s livelihood was worse than killing their parents and in this case, much more unforgivable.
Ji Zhilin stared blankly at the photo, eyes bloodshot.
On the very first day of their wedding, he’d personally ordered a new bed delivered to Ji Yucheng’s room, and Ning Sui still slept with him?
All this time, they’d been sleeping together?!
When the typing indicator kept flashing on screen, Ning Sui rolled his eyes and ignored it.
Ji Zhilin was just too unpredictable. At least his “vegetative” husband was well-behaved, always lying still and letting him do whatever he wanted.
Resting his chin on one hand, Ning Sui gazed at Ji Yucheng’s face. The longer he looked, the more pleasing it was. He couldn’t resist reaching out to lightly pinch the man’s handsome cheek.
“Like a life-sized figurine…” he murmured with a grin.
After 009 relayed the entire conversation between Ning Sui and Ji Zhilin, the stormclouds in Ji Yucheng’s heart finally lifted.
That ribbon-cutting two years ago had been for a branch office. His assistant had chosen the outfit; he didn’t even remember what he’d worn. Yet his little spouse remembered every detail.
His mood instantly improved, even his soul’s lips curved upward.
009 said slyly, “So your little spouse just likes this type, huh? The kind that can’t move, completely under his control… He said you’re like a figurine!”
Ji Yucheng ignored the “figurine” part, all he heard was that he said I’m good-looking.
A smug smile ghosted across his invisible face.
009: “…”
When dinnertime came, Ning Sui reluctantly left the bedside and went downstairs. He didn’t take his phone.
A few moments later, the phone buzzed again, message after message flooding in.
009 peeked: “It’s your dumb little brother. He’s sending selfies of himself running in the rain. Guess he’s trying to act pitiful.”
Ji Yucheng frowned.
When did that kid learn so many tricks?
Even though he knew his spouse only had eyes for him, he couldn’t help feeling sour.
After all, he couldn’t even see Ning Sui, while his brother could freely text him.
The phone was lying right there within reach.
Ji Yucheng struggled, moving the only two fingers that could still twitch.
Even with his beautiful features, the motion made him look a little eerie like a handsome stroke patient, stripped of all the effortless grace he once had.
Fortunately, no one was in the room to see. For once, the great young master could drop his idol façade.
It took him ten painstaking minutes to drag the phone closer, inch by inch, until it was finally within reach. He tapped the screen once, it lit up.
009 reported, “Your spouse just left; the screen’s still unlocked.”
Ji Yucheng groped for the top corner of the phone with those two fingers, slowly feeling his way and then,
Block. Delete.
Job done, the great young master calmly returned his hand to its original position, the picture of innocence as if nothing had ever happened.
Meanwhile, Ji Zhilin stared at the red exclamation mark on his screen in disbelief.
Three years of knowing each other and Ning Sui really blocked him just like that?
✦ ✧ ✦
[Translator]
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ChaptersChapter 1 · The WeddingChapter 2 · New Target!Chapter 3 · Moved OnChapter 4 · Personal Information of Ji YuchengChapter 5 · Liked Ji Yucheng for 3 Years?!Chapter 6 · Love Rival?!Chapter 7 · Domineering PossessivenessChapter 8 · Obviously Very CuteChapter 9 Part 1 · Can’t be SeperatedChapter 9 Part 2 · Can’t be SeperatedChapter 10 · A blonde Guy…Chapter 11 · Dangerously Close to love?Chapter 12 · Confrontation with Ji ZhilinChapter 13 · Accidental DiscoveryChapter 14 · System 009 upgradedChapter 15 · Battery charging!Chapter 16 · Young Master was MiserableChapter 17 · Did Ning Sui treat you like this before?Chapter 18 · Was this what happened last night before you went to bed?Chapter 19 · He really got to the bottom of thisChapter 20 Part 1 · Don’t look at him, he was shocked too!Chapter 20 Part 2 · Don’t look at him, he was shocked too!Chapter 21 · Because I like it so muchChapter 22 Part 1 · Pull up your pantsChapter 22 Part 2 · Pull up your pantsChapter 23 · Why does it sound like he’s jealousChapter 24 Part 1 · I will protect himChapter 24 Part 2 · I will protect himChapter 25 · He’s quite gentleChapter 26 · Young Master Ji suddenly started to stutterChapter 27 · Ning Sui’s timeChapter 28 Part 1 · They ran away as soon as they were scaredChapter 28 Part 2 · They ran away as soon as they were scaredChapter 29 Part 1 · Are you looking for death?Chapter 29 Part 2 · Are you looking for death?Chapter 30 · Hurry up and say your last wordsChapter 31 · Ji Yucheng collapsed into his armsChapter 32 · Mr. Ji, I never expected you to be such a good person.Chapter 33 · He’s so well-behaved when He sleeps…Chapter 34 · His expression was incredibly varied in an instantChapter 35 · How could it be Ning Sui?Chapter 36 · Does the young wife only like people in a vegetative state?Chapter 37 · State-based controlChapter 38 · The young master was so happy he dropped his phoneChapter 39 · You were 37 minutes lateChapter 40 · I don’t plan to get a divorce.Chapter 41 · Otherwise, would it be your turn?Chapter 42 · Both perverted and cuteChapter 43 · If they sneak away again, I’ll hold them even tighterChapter 44 · I sprained my ankle tooChapter 45 · A cat jumping on a lion’s head to play with fire.Chapter 46 · Your young master has fainted!Chapter 47 · Sui Sui, come downChapter 48 · Are you going to lock me in there?Chapter 49 Part 1 · I love you, Ning SuiChapter 49 Part 2 · I love you, Ning SuiChapter 50 · Give the snowman a heartChapter 51 · Miss you.Chapter 52 · To hold in one’s mouthChapter 53 · You are in the cloudsChapter 54 · Ning Sui hugged him for the first timeChapter 55 · Can you sit on my lap?Chapter 56 · It’s either you or it’s not.Chapter 57 · From this moment on, I am your vegetableChapter 58 · Young Ji YuchengChapter 59 · They kiss tirelessly.Chapter 60 · RipplingChapter 61 · You want to compare this?!Chapter 62 · It’s 001!Chapter 63 · I like everything about it.Chapter 64 · It seems to have been filled up a little more.Chapter 65 · Wedding rings should be exchanged between the couple.Chapter 66 · Love-struckChapter 67 · Why can’t we even be apart for a day?Chapter 68 · PerfectChapter 69 · A lifelong contract was madeChapter 70 · Extra 1Chapter 71 · Extra 2Chapter 72 · Extra 3Chapter 73 · Extra 4Chapter 74 · Extra 5Chapter 75 · Extra 6Chapter 76 · Extra 7Chapter 77 · Extra 8Chapter 78 · Extra 9Chapter 79 · Extra 10Chapter 80 · Extra 11Chapter 81 · Extra 12Chapter 82 · Extra 13Chapter 83 · Extra 14