Lin Ruoxuan widened her beautiful eyes, looking at the string of numbers floating in the void before her. Her heart raced uncontrollably, as if she were harboring ten thousand excited rabbits.
Has Daddy System finally decided to show his power? Is he going to take me flying?
(TL: "Take someone flying" is gaming slang for a highly skilled player carrying a weaker player to victory.)
She firmly suppressed her excitement and, like a thieving little cat, stealthily slipped into the slightly worn lottery shop on the street corner.
With fingertips trembling from excitement, she picked the numbers while comparing them to the ones given by the "System," asking quietly:
"Daddy System... is this, is this really the jackpot number for the next draw? Why are we only buying one ticket? Shouldn't we buy a few more?"
Xu Yunzhou maintained the mystery and profundity a System should have:
"Conservation of energy; going too far is as bad as not going far enough. The operation of your world has its rules. Investing too much easily attracts unnecessary attention, and might even produce deviations, affecting the final result. A steady stream flows far; do not be greedy."
His tone was indifferent, but in his mind, he was calculating rapidly.
Making money was his overwhelming priority right now!Let alone cultivating a future female business emperor, just the most basic body shaping, clothing matching, and skincare maintenance, up to the deeper accumulation of knowledge, nurturing of temperament, and broadening of horizons... which of these isn't a bottomless pit that burns money?
The realism of this game was so abnormal that the economic system had to be no different from reality; without money, it would be difficult to take a single step.
In the afternoon, he continued to play the role of the ruthless "Electroshock Tyrant," ordering Lin Ruoxuan to conquer the boring freshman pre-study courses, especially that towering mountain named "Advanced Mathematics."
The complex calculus symbols and abstract concepts were like heavenly scripture.
It made Lin Ruoxuan dizzy, and it didn't take long before she turned into a boneless salted fish, wailing as she collapsed onto the large, soft bed to act shamelessly.
She rolled back and forth hugging a pillow, letting out cries of despair:
"Daddy System... making me study this, you might as well just shock me directly, it would be more straightforward... at least a shock is over quickly... Ahhh! You're really shocking me! Stop, stop, stop! I was wrong! I suddenly feel... feel that Advanced Math is actually quite interesting, logically rigorous, wonderfully beautiful, and fascinating. I love math, and math loves me!"
With a long face, she reluctantly wriggled and climbed back up, picking up the textbook that looked like heavenly scripture again, her eyes full of resentment.
During her break, Xu Yunzhou had her follow a video tutorial on the computer to do yoga stretches to improve her figure and temperament scores.
While trying her best to imitate the inhumanly flexible movements of the instructor in the video, twisting herself into all sorts of bizarre shapes, Lin Ruoxuan couldn't help but complain softly, her breathing ragged from the exertion, her small face completely flushed:
"Aiya... this posture is so awkward, I feel like my waist is going to break... It's not in the right position at all! Without someone correcting the movements from the side, I'll injure myself practicing, Daddy System! You are abusing an innocent young girl!"
Xu Yunzhou looked at the unpretentious youthful charm she naturally revealed on the screen from the strenuous stretching and replied:
"Fine, stop for now. Once the lottery wins the prize and the funds are in place, you will go sign up for the most professional body-shaping class and hire the best personal trainer for one-on-one guidance."
"Can I really... win the prize?"
Panting, Lin Ruoxuan's tone still carried seven parts expectation and three parts doubt. After all, the idea of a meat pie falling from the sky always sounded a bit unreal.
After exercising, she was dripping with fragrant sweat, humming an out-of-tune song as she walked into the bathroom.
Accompanied by the sound of splashing water, she lathered thick, dense bubbles onto her body, half-jokingly and half-coquettishly complaining toward the direction of the camera:
"Daddy System, if only you had a physical body, you could even help me pass a towel and wash this soaking wet hair, it's so troublesome... Or, can you perform some magic and make it dry?"
At this moment, however, Xu Yunzhou had no time to carefully appreciate this fanservice of almost "meeting each other honestly," his heart filled with extreme astonishment and doubt.
(TL: "Meeting each other honestly" is a euphemism for seeing each other naked.)
The physics engine simulation, environmental rendering, and especially the smart interaction in this game were so delicate and realistic it was simply outrageous, far exceeding the scope of those "study materials" pieced together with shoddy video footage.
Just what kind of divine team was behind this?
After showering, Lin Ruoxuan wrapped herself in a bath towel. As she used a hair dryer to blow dry her thick, long hair, she turned her head and pleaded softly to the empty air:
"Daddy System, let me rest a bit tonight, okay? I want to go watch Kung Fu Panda, I heard it's really funny. Let's watch it together, I'll buy a ticket for you too..."
Xu Yunzhou was amused by her childish idea, and following her words, he asked:
"In your eyes, what do I look like?"
He was actually a bit curious. He had tried looking in the mirror before, and there was nothing there; Lin Ruoxuan had also tried to take a picture with a camera, but nothing showed up in the photo either.
Lin Ruoxuan tilted her head, her wet hair sticking to her cheeks, and thought seriously.
Suddenly, a flash of inspiration hit her. She ran to her desk, took out a paintbrush and drawing paper, looked at the camera, and with a few swift strokes, quickly sketched the outline of a young man.
Xu Yunzhou took a closer look, and his heart stirred slightly. The person in the drawing, with handsome and clear features, was impressively himself!
He subconsciously glanced at his webcam. The indicator light was on. His image information was probably "projected" into the game world just like that, and where he appeared in the footage seemed to depend on the perspective he adjusted.
But on second thought, he couldn't help but laugh; this was just a game after all, so how could he really appear inside it?
The program must have been set up to make the character answer the question this way.
That night, he still "accompanied" Lin Ruoxuan to the movie theater. After all, one must strike a balance between work and rest, alternating tension and relaxation.
He couldn't really cultivate an Abbess Miejue who only knew how to study and get shocked, right?
(TL: Abbess Miejue is a famous character from Jin Yong's wuxia novel "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber," known for being rigid, ruthless, and devoid of romantic feelings.)
Lin Ruoxuan indeed bought two consecutive seats, and even deliberately patted the empty seat beside her, whispering to the air:
"Tyrant, your throne is right here~"
Xu Yunzhou smiled; this girl's forms of address for him were truly whatever she pleased, one moment "Daddy System," the next "Tyrant," all depending on her mood.
Lin Ruoxuan seemed to guess what he was thinking and explained softly, her cheeks turning slightly red:
"Calling you Tyrant outside makes me feel... especially secure! It's like having a super awesome bodyguard right next to me, nobody dares to mess with me!"
Before the movie started, a later-arriving audience member walked over, pointed at the empty seat beside her, and asked:
"Classmate, is there anyone in this seat next to you?"
Lin Ruoxuan immediately nodded, her tone resolute and decisive, carrying an inviolable posture:
"There is! This is my boyfriend's seat! What, can't you see him?"
After saying that, she even turned her head toward the empty seat as if it were a serious matter, and asked in a sickeningly sweet tone:
"Right, my dear Electroshock Tyrant?"
The audience member asking for the seat was clearly stunned for a moment.
Looking at her talking to the empty air, he couldn't help but shudder, muttering in a low voice, 'Looks quite pretty, what a pity, her brain seems a bit abnormal...' before quickly walking away as if afraid of being infected.
Covering her mouth, Lin Ruoxuan laughed so hard her shoulders shook, like a triumphant little fox after a successful prank.
The movie started, and playing impressively on the silver screen was the animated blockbuster that swept the global box office that year, Kung Fu Panda.
Xu Yunzhou marveled silently once again. The game's production was absurdly rigorous, perfectly restoring the era's authentic feel right down to the movie playing in the theater, without a single corner cut.
However, he naturally didn't have the patience to actually sit through a movie whose plot he already knew, so he used the fast-forward function to skip ahead.
Playing this "Goddess Nurturing" game, he spent most of his time in fast-forward mode from a god's-eye perspective, occasionally pausing to supervise Lin Ruoxuan's study or training progress, teasing her with sharp-tongued remarks, or administering a ruthless "electroshock of love" or a symbolic "encouraging caress" depending on his mood.
In-game time slipped away rapidly during the fast-forward. The scenes jumped ahead quickly, finally arriving at the day of the lottery draw.