Song Hailan sneered.
Become the Empress?
Is she even worthy?
Song Haiming was still mentally exhausted. Every time he saw Zhaodi, he felt tired.
At that moment, he was just glad she was no longer looking at him with those pitiful eyes.
Otherwise, he would have had to cheer himself up and comfort her again.
He had no idea that, in Zhaodi’s mind, he had already been labeled as “a useless man.”
Especially after Song Hailan had sternly scolded her just now.
He spoke firmly and decisively, just like Song Yannian.
Meanwhile, Song Haiming did not dare say a single word.
A foster son is still a foster son.
He only has the title of the eldest young master.
He has no real authority at all.
Zhaodi looked down on Song Haiming even more.
…
At that moment, a system window suddenly appeared in Song Li’s mind.
[Spirit Pet System Activated.]
[Current Luck Value: 5%]
[You may now nurture one low-level spirit pet.]
[A: Fly]
[B: Village Dog]
[Please choose your spirit pet.]
Song Li was speechless.
She was too surprised to put it into words.
After living in this world for so many days, she had thought this was all there was.
She never expected to receive a special cheat ability.
She looked at the two choices—flies and dogs—and thought about them for a while.
When she focused her mind on Fly, another screen appeared.
Attack: 0.5
Health: 0.7
Loyalty: 50
Intelligence: 50
Skill: Infinite Reproduction (Its lifespan is only seven days. It produces one hundred offspring each time it reproduces. If the entire swarm is wiped out, it can no longer reproduce.)
Song Li’s eyes lit up.
There’s no way the whole swarm would be wiped out.
If I breed a large group of flies and release them around Zhaodi, they’ll certainly keep her entertained.
But…
Flies reproduced far too quickly.
And they were impossible to control.
What if the entire Song residence ended up full of flies?
She opened the information for the Village Dog.
Attack: 10
Health: 1000
Loyalty: Unlimited
Intelligence: 250
Skill: Bark
Song Li rubbed her forehead.
In the end, she chose the village dog.
Looking at its attack power alone, she could tell it was a lazy dog.
And all it could do was bark.
But…
It was loyal!
Flies chased after anything that smelled bad.
What if they abandoned her for a pile of poop?
Even worse…
What if they licked the poop and then came back to her?
No.
Absolutely not.
Song Li shook her head furiously.
Village dogs are the best!
I love village dogs!
…
That evening, they stopped to rest in a mountain valley.
Song Li used the excuse of going to relieve herself and walked alone into the woods.
When she came back, she was carrying a small yellow puppy with a black muzzle.
It looked about three months old.
Its body was sturdy, its legs were strong, and its fluffy golden fur made it especially lovable.
Song Haiming’s eyes immediately lit up.
He walked over and touched the puppy’s soft paw pads.
“Where did you find it?”
“Should I go find one too?”
“Woof!”
“I’m afraid there’s no more,” Song Li said with a smile.
“I already searched around. This was the only one.”
“But Young Master, you’re welcome to look.”
She pointed him in a direction.
Song Haiming immediately sent his men to search.
Song Hailan also liked dogs very much.
He took the puppy from Song Li and weighed it in his hands.
“Not bad.”
“It’s nice and chubby.”
“This will grow into a fine dog.”
“I used to have one in the army too…”
As he spoke, his eyes suddenly dimmed.
Song Haiming patted him on the shoulder.
“Don’t think about it anymore.”
“It’s all in the past.”
Song Li blinked.
The original novel had never mentioned anything about a dog.
But judging from Song Hailan’s sadness…
His old dog had probably died while saving someone.
It had become the unforgettable white moonlight in his memories.
“Second Young Master, can we keep this puppy?”
After all, it’s a spirit beast.
It can take the place of the old dog without being an insult.
A faint smile appeared on Song Hailan’s face.
“Of course.”
Song Li quietly relaxed.
She had prepared many ways to persuade him.
She had never expected his old memories to do the work for her.
“What should we name it?” Song Haiming asked as he fed the puppy a piece of dried beef.
Song Li thought for a moment.
“Since it’s completely golden, why don’t we call it A-Huang?”
(“A-Huang” means “Little Yellow.”)
Song Hailan and Song Haiming froze at the same time.
“Good.”
“That’s a great name.”
“Woof!”
The two men and the dog answered together.
Song Li immediately understood.
Their old dog must have also been called A-Huang.
This replacement really was perfect.
The nearby guards gradually gathered around.
Even Old Zhuang came over to pet the puppy.
Only Zhaodi stood proudly by herself.
Looking at the mountains, she recited a poem.
“Purple clouds wrap around the mountain peaks,
Golden light fills the sky…”
“Why don’t we call it Jinyun?”
…
“A-Huang! Come here! Here’s a bone!”
“A-Huang! Bark for us!”
“Woof!”
“A-Huang! You’re back!”
“Woof! Woof!”
…
Everyone crowded around the puppy, talking one after another.
No one even heard what Zhaodi had said.
She stood there alone for a while.
After realizing that nobody was going to respond, she walked away angrily.
Song Li!
It’s Song Li again!
One day, I’ll make her disappear.
…
After dinner, Song Li immediately gave A-Huang his first mission.
Follow Old Zhuang and learn traditional medicine.
She couldn’t let that intelligence score of 250 go to waste.
A-Huang obediently followed Old Zhuang everywhere.
Whenever Old Zhuang dug up a medicinal herb, A-Huang only needed to look once before understanding.
He quickly dug up another herb of the same kind and carried it back to Old Zhuang.
“Oh my goodness!”
“My precious little fellow!”
Old Zhuang was so delighted that his eyes nearly disappeared from smiling.
He rewarded A-Huang with a sweet medicinal pill.
After tasting the reward, A-Huang worked even harder.
Old Zhuang’s eyesight was poor.
But A-Huang’s dog eyes were incredibly sharp.
Before long, he had dug up a whole pile of medicinal herbs.
Many of them were even high-quality, mature plants.
Old Zhuang kept saying he had found a treasure.
From then on, he took A-Huang with him everywhere.
Song Li was happy to see it.
She had once taken an IQ test in her previous life.
Her score had only been 97.
There were many things she simply couldn’t do.
Having A-Huang help her was wonderful.
…
The next day, they arrived at Liang City.
The capital was only one day’s journey away.
At noon, they stopped at an inn.
Song Yannian gathered everyone into the courtyard.
“Deputy General Liang.”
“I’ve written a new military rule.”
“Any woman who enters the military camp without permission…”
“…will be executed immediately.”
“After we return tomorrow, have the strategist add it to the military regulations.”
“Then announce it to everyone.”
Deputy General Liang was puzzled.
What woman would be foolish enough to enter a military camp full of soldiers?
Still, he accepted the order.
Zhaodi suddenly became nervous for no reason.
The military camp had nothing to do with her.
Yet she felt as though some important opportunity had just been cut off.
It felt as if something inside her heart had suddenly become empty.
The strange feeling vanished in an instant.
But it still left her heart aching.
“Haiming.”
“Hailan.”
“You two will return to the military camp the day after tomorrow.”
“Do not neglect your training.”
“Yes, Father.”
“And Zhaodi.”
“You must master the ancestral worship ceremony.”
“After you’ve learned it, I’ll gather the entire clan, open the ancestral hall, and officially change your name.”
Zhaodi’s eyes brightened.
This was exactly what she wanted.
She had long grown tired of the name Zhaodi.
She had even wondered why Song Yannian hadn’t changed it yet.
Now she finally understood.
In a noble family, changing a name required opening the ancestral hall.
At that time…
She would definitely change her name to Song Churan.
That had been the name of one of her high school classmates.
The girl had been beautiful and lucky.
Using her name couldn’t possibly be wrong.
“Thank you, Father!”
She looked at Song Yannian with admiration.
Once the clan officially acknowledged her and added her name to the family genealogy…
Her position would finally be secure.
Song Yannian nodded.
Song Li was right.
Since Zhaodi enjoys sweet promises…
Then I’ll give her even more.
…
After everything had been arranged, lunch was still being prepared in the inn’s kitchen.
The three Song siblings agreed to visit an ancient temple behind the mountain.
Zhaodi immediately pulled Song Yannian over to support her.
She insisted that the three of them take her along.
They had no choice but to agree.
Her mood improved.
She stretched out her hand toward Song Li.
“Help me climb the mountain.”
Song Hailan immediately pulled Song Li away.
“Why don’t we find a sedan chair and have someone carry you instead?”
Zhaodi’s face instantly turned pale.
Song Hailan’s gaze was so sharp that it felt as if he could see through every layer of her disguise.
Song Haiming nudged Song Hailan with his elbow.
“What’s with that attitude?”
“Cousin has been studying etiquette for several days.”
“Can’t she relax for a while?”
“Besides…”
“Cousin cries whenever she thinks about Song Li working as a servant.”
“Do you really think she’d order Song Li around?”
“They’re only joking.”
Zhaodi forced an awkward smile.
“…Cousin understands me.”
【Big Brother understands me!】
【But Big Brother has been acting strangely lately. He doesn’t keep pleasing Zhaodi anymore.】
【Zhaodi is strange too. She doesn’t cling to Big Brother anymore.】
【What’s going on with those two?】
【Could it be… Big Brother made a feminine orchid-hand gesture in front of Zhaodi?】
Song Haiming silently took note of that.
Then, while Song Li wasn’t looking, he secretly tried making the elegant hand gesture.
Sure enough…
The moment Zhaodi saw it, disgust flashed across her face.
Song Haiming finally felt satisfied.
Along the way, he kept making graceful feminine gestures toward Zhaodi.
He even copied the way young ladies gently dabbed sweat from their faces with handkerchiefs, as if he were afraid of smudging his makeup.
Zhaodi was completely speechless.
I actually tried to win over someone like this before?
What utter humiliation!
She stopped paying attention to Song Haiming.
Instead, she deliberately slowed down and walked beside Song Li.
She raised her eyebrows and smiled knowingly.
“Song Li.”
“I already tested him for you.”
“My brother really likes you.”
“Who knows?”
“Maybe one day…”
“…you’ll become my sister-in-law.”