Faced with all this, Luo Xizhi didn’t speak directly. Instead, she began recalling everything that had happened today. Logically speaking, apart from the evening period, Hua Lian had never left her sight. Every door in the Hua family’s house was equipped with an electronic lock. If someone had entered the room, she should have received a notification. So the question remained: how exactly had the other party taken the Chinese textbook?
The more Luo Xizhi thought about it, the more confused she became. She had been using her own power to remotely control the situation, so how had Hua Lian managed it?
“Little Black, are you unhappy?”
Seeing that Luo Xizhi remained silent, Hua Lian first comforted the mother and daughter gray wolves before sitting down beside Luo Xizhi, seemingly unable to understand the system’s silence.
“I’m happy, Host is very impressive… but I was basically with you all day today, so I don’t understand how you managed it?” The more Luo Xizhi thought about it, the more tangled she felt. Remembering that she was still disguised as the system, she thought she might as well use this opportunity to ask for the correct answer.
At this mention, Hua Lian showed a slightly embarrassed expression. “It’s really nothing much. I didn’t go myself I had Ping Fan use a master key to unlock the door. I didn’t know about this method at all. I just wanted to get the Chinese textbook, and then Ping Fan told me about this approach.”
It was precisely because of the enthusiasm shown by the maid named Ping Fan today that Hua Lian had tentatively asked her for a method, and in return, she received various suggestions from Ping Fan. What Hua Lian had used was the gentlest among them effortlessly replacing the other party’s Chinese textbook with her own.
“So, Little Black, this counts as me passing, right?” Seeing that Luo Xizhi was still silent and even seemed a little unhappy, Hua Lian grew even more uneasy. The rules hadn’t specified that Hua Lian had to steal the book herself, so she naturally assumed she could ask for help. She hadn’t expected it to make the system so displeased.
“It counts as you passing. It’s also my fault for not stating the prerequisite clearly. But next time, you must do these things yourself for it to count as a success.” Luo Xizhi pursed her lips. Even though the movement wasn’t very noticeable in her black cat plushie form, the slight twitch of the cat’s mouth could still be seen.
But Hua Lian’s attention wasn’t on Luo Xizhi’s micro-expressions. As soon as she heard there were more tasks, her face immediately fell. “There’s more? Can’t such a difficult task keep you here for a hundred years? Do I really have to keep doing this?”
Hua Lian began acting spoiled and unreasonable again, treating Luo Xizhi the same way she treated the mother and daughter gray wolves. But from the perspective of the gray wolves, Hua Lian seemed to be acting crazy toward thin air.
Luo Xizhi felt a bit disgusted, especially since Hua Lian was still damp, making the contact rather uncomfortable. It was at this moment that Luo Xizhi once again realized how terrifying habits could be. After being spoiled by Hua Lian just a few times, she had already grown accustomed to this kind of touch.
“Getting the Chinese textbook only allows me to move for one hour.” Luo Xizhi had originally intended to say one week, but it felt too long, so she drastically shortened the time.
Hua Lian’s expression turned displeased. “Stealing the Chinese textbook only gives you one hour? Does that mean future tasks will be even harder?”
Hualian grew more despondent the more she spoke, and Luo Xizhi nearly fabricated a reward system just to cheer her up. But she never acted without preparation. Since Hualian had completed her task, she would also have to create a set of fake system tasks for Hualian to carry out. And she believed that no matter how skilled Hualian was at pretending, she would eventually slip up.
“Yes, but Host, there’s no need to worry. I will guide you perfectly to ensure the female lead’s downfall.”
“Please don’t. I don’t think I can handle anything else. How about you just end me now, Xiao Hei?” Hualian sank even deeper into despair. If she hadn’t still been wet, Luo Xizhi might have suspected she would throw herself to the ground and throw a tantrum. That look of utter hopelessness resembled a salted fish, and she seemed to have lost all desire for life.
Every encounter with Hualian seemed to refresh Luo Xizhi’s understanding, and this time was no different such bewildering behavior had surfaced again. But what was different was that Luo Xizhi had already regained her necessary heart of stone.
“Host, there’s no need to worry. All tasks will progress step by step and won’t cause you too much trouble.” As she spoke, Luo Xizhi wrapped her arms around Hualian, who was clinging to her.
Hualian was startled. She had never dreamed that one day she would be princess-carried by the system. But Luo Xizhi’s embrace was completely different from the mechanical voice it felt exceptionally warm. By the time Hualian realized what was happening, Luo Xizhi had already brought her to the bathroom door.
“Alright, Host, you should continue your bath now. I wish you pleasant dreams.” At that moment, Luo Xizhi set Hualian down again, polite and gentlemanly. For a moment, Hualian’s expression was complicated. Seeing Luo Xizhi about to leave, she quickly asked, “By the way, System, are you a male cat or a female cat?”
Luo Xizhi raised an eyebrow subtly and looked back at Hualian, trying to determine if she had any peculiar preferences. For example, some people weren’t interested in the living but preferred corpses. Or some were only interested in animals, and Hualian’s various behaviors seemed to hint at such a suspicion.
“The system has no gender.”
Luo Xizhi replied quietly, only to see Hualian’s expression relax. She smiled, but this smile was completely different from the forced ones she usually wore. Her eyes were deep and affectionate, captivating anyone who looked into them.
“That’s good. That’s what makes me feel most at ease.” As she spoke, the bathroom door closed. Luo Xizhi didn’t understand the meaning behind those words and glanced back at the mother and daughter gray wolves in confusion. Unfortunately, the wolves couldn’t possibly answer such a question. They couldn’t see Luo Xizhi; they just stared in her general direction, alert and patient.
Luo Xizhi couldn’t help but look at them a few more times, unable to comprehend what was happening. Even though the mother and daughter gray wolves had only known Hualian for a day, they seemed to share a friendship that transcended time, making Luo Xizhi feel a twinge of envy. After all, despite living for so long, she had never experienced friendship.
With this subtle feeling in her heart, Luo Xizhi left the room. The sound of the shower continued until, after a while, Hualian hurriedly emerged. When she looked around, her disappointment was unmistakable.
The big gray wolf remained motionless at the sight, but the little wolf pup wagged its tail and approached instead, as if trying to convey something. Hua Lian chuckled softly, picked up the little wolf pup, and gave it a few deep sniffs. The pup stayed completely still, seemingly unaware of what Hua Lian was doing to it, only gazing at her blankly.
Yet after a day together, Hua Lian realized the big gray wolf’s intelligence was even higher than she had imagined so much so that it felt unreal, surpassing what one would expect from an animal.
“This feels wonderful,” Hua Lian thought as drowsiness washed over her, but she couldn’t rest yet because her hair was still wet. The mother wolf and her pup, however, reacted strongly to the hairdryer, retreating to a corner a sight that looked quite amusing.
As the long day came to an end, Hua Lian had never felt so satisfied in a single day before. She finally understood why some people always yearned for lives that weren’t their own. This luxurious lifestyle was addictive, but not enough to make Hua Lian obsessed or reluctant to let go.
“Oh, by the way, that creature earlier was called Xiao Hei. She’s my friend. If you smell her scent in the future, don’t be too afraid she won’t harm me,” Hua Lian mumbled sleepily before drifting off. The mother wolf and her pup seemed to half-understand, and as Hua Lian fell asleep, they quietly settled around her, soon passing a day that felt entirely different for them.
Morning arrived, and the door was knocked. Hua Lian groggily opened her eyes to find herself nestled in the big gray wolf’s embrace, with the little gray wolf curled up in her own arms. They looked like a family, and just the sight of it made Hua Lian feel deeply relaxed. After all, if it were two older sisters sleeping beside her, she’d probably have nightmares for a long time.
The knocking continued. Hua Lian wanted to get up but worried about waking the little wolf. She took out her phone and used an app to unlock the door.
As the door opened, the maid Ping Fan appeared.
“Miss, it’s time to wake up,” the maid said with a perfect smile, but her feet remained planted. Behind her, the big gray wolf watched warily, as if ready to bite at any moment.
“Gray Gray, don’t worry. She’s one of us,” Hua Lian said, feeling a bit bolder now that she had the big wolf as her protector. The wolf seemed to understand, wagging its tail slightly as a greeting.
The maid grew excited and took a step inside, but the little wolf pup let out a soft cry and rubbed against Hua Lian’s leg. Its possessiveness was intense, and the scene, combined with Hua Lian’s appearance, exuded an indescribable, lavish beauty.
The maid felt she shouldn’t be admiring this, but everything before her was truly pleasing to the eye. It was precisely because of the wild beasts that the beauty stood out even more.
But remembering she had only just earned Hua Lian’s trust, the maid tried hard to push away any distracting thoughts and reminded her again, “Miss, today is Monday.”
Hua Lian grew more alert. Monday a day both students and office workers found torturous. But as she stirred, the little wolf pup clung to her like a coquettish Daji, refusing to let her go.
Hua Lian felt her resolve waver. After a few seconds, she made the first formal decision of her life in this world.
“Have the butler call in sick for me, say I need to educate my pet.” Thinking that life in Class A wasn’t as comfortable as staying at home, Hua Lian decided to skip school outright. The female lead, Luo Xizhi, would definitely attend class, so Hua Lian could easily avoid her daily visits. Moreover, Luo Xizhi would surely notice during class that Hua Lian had swapped her Chinese textbook. Hua Lian truly felt she lacked the courage to face the female lead’s wrath.
In short, for various reasons piled together, coupled with the oppressive aura emanating from the big gray wolf, the maid didn’t try to persuade her further and simply left. Hua Lian collapsed onto the bed again, as if seeing a blissful life of staying at home waving at her. Perhaps her previous life had been too miserable, so this heavenly existence before her was just a fantasy before death.
Hua Lian closed her eyes once more, intending to sleep until she woke naturally, but the door outside automatically opened.
“Whimper whimper.”
The normally imposing big gray wolf, like a mouse seeing a cat, let out a timid sound. Hua Lian didn’t want to open her eyes; she knew only one person could make the big gray wolf sound so fearful. But why, as the antagonist, wasn’t she causing trouble for the female lead? Instead, Luo Xizhi seemed to appear even more frequently.
Reluctantly, Hua Lian opened her eyes and indeed saw Luo Xizhi. But this time, she was up close. The little wolf pup seemed to sense her terrifying presence but stubbornly stood guard in front of Hua Lian, emitting a threatening growl.
Luo Xizhi paid no attention, her gaze fixed intently on Hua Lian as she said coldly, “Miss, the master said that no matter what you usually do, you absolutely must attend class.”