【If that’s really the case, then he won’t treat you like a brother anymore. Sigh, aren’t we too miserable?】
“Can’t you change the assessment target? The Male Protagonist has already been reborn. Just report it as a bug.”
【It’s not that I don’t want to. The proctor teacher is too scary. I’m resistant to teachers.】
“…Alright, I understand you.” Mu Jing sighed. Students were naturally afraid of teachers. Even a System couldn’t escape that.
She stopped chatting with the System and instead looked at Xu Ge beside her.
Ever since she realized that his favorability toward her had reached 25, Mu Jing felt a little strange whenever she looked at Xu Ge.
But after thinking about it carefully, she could understand. It was easier for brotherly loyalty to change when the gender was switched.
For example, when a man would stab himself in the ribs for another man, it was brotherhood. But if a woman stabbed herself in the ribs for a man, anyone would see it as love.
Not to mention that Xu Ge had never been in a relationship before.
So pitiful.
“Xu Ge, how old were you when you died in your previous life?”
Xu Ge immediately became cautious. “Twenty-eight… what, do you think I’m old?”
“No.” Mu Jing smiled helplessly. “I just want to understand you a little better.”
“I died at twenty-eight.”
“Mhm. Then in this life, are you still going back to the Zhou Family?”
The Zhou Family was one of the great families of The Federation, second only to the Mu Family. It was Xu Ge’s mother’s original clan.
Back then, his parents’ story had been one of those melodramatic romances— a wealthy family’s eldest young lady breaking with her family for love. The ending afterward was predictable: she had trusted the wrong man.
In his previous life, Xu Ge had been taken back to the Zhou Family—something he had been unwilling to do.
After going through a series of events such as being suppressed by his brothers, his maternal grandfather’s death, taking on the heavy burden of the family, and eventually revitalizing it, he had not only become the Zhou Family’s Family Patriarch but had also incidentally brought about the downfall of the Mu Family.
Now, whenever the Zhou Family was mentioned, Xu Ge’s brows would knit tightly.
“I still remember Zhou Yongwang pursuing you… pursuing Mu Jing.”
Mu Jing was speechless. Was that really why she had brought up the Zhou Family?
Xu Ge sneered. “I’m not going. You should know why they want to drag me back.”
“I remember it was because your maternal grandfather was seriously ill and distributed part of his property to your mother. The others disagreed, so they dragged you over there.”
“That’s right. The others disagreed.” Xu Ge’s voice was calm now, as if he were narrating his past experiences from the perspective of an observer.
Compared to the Zhou Family, those suitors had actually been more troublesome for him.
“I really feel like killing someone,” he suddenly remarked with emotion.
Mu Jing immediately felt question marks popping up above her head.
Their trains of thought were completely different. Mu Jing thought he meant the Zhou Family members.
“You should think carefully. Two fists can’t beat four hands. Even if you’re strong, you can’t fight so many people from the Zhou Family.”
“If I want to fight, I can win. But I didn’t say I wanted to fight them.”
“Oh… I see.”
Xu Ge glanced at her. “The most important thing is that Zhou Yongwang pursued you.”
“I’m not Mu Jing. Besides, I don’t even know him now.”
“Don’t get fooled by other people’s sweet words so easily. Don’t act like an idiot.”
“…I already said I’m not Mu Jing.”
Brother Value: -27.
Mu Jing sat in her dormitory chair contemplating life when her roommates, who had been in classes all morning, pushed the door open and walked in, each holding their own lunch.
When they saw Mu Jing sitting there like Rodin’s The Thinker, the three of them froze for a moment at the doorway.
Su Linlin was the first to speak. “Mu Jing, are you feeling better? You didn’t look well this morning.”
Chen Yiyun placed a cup of porridge on Mu Jing’s desk. “Drink some porridge. You sounded weak this morning.”
“Thank you.” Mu Jing was pleasantly surprised. After explaining that she had a fever, she asked with concern, “Did they take attendance this morning?”
“No. But someone asked for your Federation contact number. I think his name was… uh… Zhou Yongwang or something.”
Su Linlin scratched her hair casually. “He’s a handsome older brother. But without your permission, we didn’t give it to him. Still, he insisted that I ask you.”
Mu Jing hadn’t expected that just after mentioning the Zhou Family to Xu Ge, Zhou Yongwang would come looking for her.
She waved her hand. “I have a boyfriend. In the future, don’t give my contact information to anyone.”
“Alright.” Su Linlin waved her hand and began eating her lunch.
Mu Jing then took out her phone, found Chen Yiyun’s account, and transferred the money for the porridge to her.
Mu Jing had already experienced university life once before. She knew that when it came to relationships with roommates, it was better to keep financial matters clear.
Chen Yiyun didn’t refuse and simply accepted the payment.
But soon Su Linlin remembered something else.
“Oh right, Zhou Zhou, your surname is also Zhou. Do you know Zhou Yongwang? I feel like you’re a little afraid of him.”
Mu Jing froze for a moment and also turned to look at the quietest and most well-behaved girl in the dormitory, Zhou Zhou.
There had been no such character in the book, and Mu Jing had always assumed that Zhou Zhou’s surname had nothing to do with the Zhou Family.
Zhou Zhou poked at her rice. “He’s one of my older brothers. Our relationship is distant. I only see him once a year during the New Year.”
“Oh~ That makes sense. I also have an older brother like that. It’s so awkward when we meet at school.”
Mu Jing picked up her phone.
Mu Jing: Do you know Zhou Zhou?
Xu Ge: Who?
It seemed he didn’t know her. Mu Jing explained briefly before remembering a more important question.
Mu Jing: By the way, when are you going to cure me?
Xu Ge: When I have time.
Mu Jing: …I don’t have classes this afternoon.
Xu Ge: Then this afternoon.
A few hours later, Mu Jing saw Xu Ge again.
He stood downstairs from the dormitory building, his expression cold enough that it looked like he might kill someone the next second. Mu Jing checked the time. It was five minutes earlier than the agreed time, so it wasn’t because she was late.
Ignoring his expression, Mu Jing said, “Where are we going for the treatment? We need to find a place, right?”
“Zhou Yongwang came to see me at noon.” Xu Ge’s first sentence carried a biting chill, though that chill wasn’t directed at Mu Jing.
Mu Jing frowned. “Why did he come to you? The Zhou Family shouldn’t have found you so quickly.”
“He told me to break up with you.”
“Huh?”
“But I dragged him into the restroom and beat him up.” Xu Ge snorted. “Let’s go.”
Mu Jing remembered that Xu Ge had previously mentioned wanting to kill someone and immediately felt nervous.
“You didn’t beat him to death, did you?”
“Almost. But afterward I healed him. There’s not a single injury left.”
“…That…” Such an operation was extremely cautious. Sure enough, when someone had many abilities, they could basically do whatever they wanted.
After walking with Xu Ge for a while, Mu Jing saw the school gate ahead.
“Where are we going?”
“To sell you.”
“How much per pound?”
Xu Ge suddenly stopped walking and stared at Mu Jing for a moment, worried that this idiot might actually believe him.
“I’m joking. You believe everything.”
Mu Jing, who had actually just made a casual joke as well: …
In truth, she hadn’t believed it at all. But she felt that if she said that now, Xu Ge would think she was just making excuses.
After taking a taxi for more than ten minutes, they finally stopped at the entrance of a residential complex.
Xu Ge walked around to the other side of the car and reached out to open the door for Mu Jing. However, the young lady opened the door herself this time.
Without hesitation, Xu Ge closed the door she had opened. While Mu Jing stared at him with a head full of question marks, he reopened it.
“Get out.”