Arc 1.13
The Wicked Child of the Stepmother
In the evening, Xia Yanjing came to pick up Nian Zhen and take him back to the villa.
Although Nian Zhen was thrilled to have just witnessed such a captivating drama, he kept those thoughts to himself.
This visit hadn’t been a waste—Aunt Du had already taken the opportunity to give him a list of tasks.
Mother and son had finally managed to put their wicked plans into action, each secretly scheming their own way.
Xia Yanjing, with an ice-cold expression, seemed to carry a tense aura.
Nian Zhen could only glance at him out of the corner of his eye, worried that he might catch Xia Yanjing’s piercing gaze.
Hey, big brother, what’s with the mood?
Are you upset about something?
Who made you unhappy?
Just let me know, and I’ll take care of it for you!
How dare anyone anger my big brother like this.
Xia Yanjing turned to look at Nian Zhen, who was sitting with his head down, feigning sadness.
The tense air around him softened.
Hey, big brother, don’t stay mad.
Look at me—I’ve been slandered, and I’m still perfectly fine.
If it weren’t for the fact that I have to act like a pure-hearted white lotus and that we’re on the same side, I’d tell you the whole story myself.
Today, I cried like the world was ending, and Aunt Du was so shocked she dropped her sweet facade.
Her face was hilarious.
Honestly, aside from her charms and a bit of cunning, Aunt Du can only pull off petty tricks.
She’s a little too dense to achieve anything grand.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t be too afraid to act around Old Man Xia.
Then again, being the villain she is, a good ending is likely out of her reach.
Nian Zhen savored the dramatic thoughts playing in his mind, staring out the window as the luxury car sped along.
No one spoke inside the vehicle; the atmosphere was so tense it felt suffocating.
If he didn’t keep himself entertained with inner monologues, he thought he might actually die of stress.
When I went to Aunt Du, crying my eyes out, and showed her that school blog post, as she finished reading, she was furious—face red and everything.
Big brother, I wish you’d seen her expression; I bet you would’ve enjoyed it.
When the housemaids saw Aunt Du so angry she was about to faint, they all rushed over to surround her.
One was calling the doctor, and another rang up Father Dearest, aka Chairman Xia.
Meanwhile, I was sitting there, red-eyed, munching on snacks while they put on their little play.
By the time they were done, I was full.
Wait, that’s not it.
The awful man, Chairman Xia, arrived just in time.
Xia Yanjing looked down, a slight smirk playing at his lips.
Xiao Zhen’s storytelling was so vivid, he could almost see the scenes unfolding.
Big brother, let me tell you something.
If you thought Aunt Du and I were invested in our roles, well, someone else was even more into it—and that someone was none other than horrible father, Chairman Xia!!
The moment he arrived and saw Aunt Du crying and bemoaning her fate, his face twisted with rage.
He didn’t look handsome at all, just furious, like he wanted to chop the entire Meng family into pieces.
Aunt Du was so shocked she nearly forgot to keep crying.
I couldn’t help but wonder if the Xia and Meng families had some old grudge I didn’t know about.
And that’s not all—I watched as Chairman Xia ordered people to dig into the Meng family’s entire lineage and history.
He even instructed his staff to gather intel on their company.
He looked like a tyrannical dictator.
Big brother, when you grow up, make sure you don’t let your temper flare up like that.
You have to stay composed, control every situation, and avoid falling for anyone’s tricks, man or woman.
Just look at Chairman Xia; if you don’t want to end up like him, don’t act like him.
As Nian Zhen thought through his plans, he grew increasingly absorbed.
Big brother, today, Aunt Du and I finally succeeded in plotting something truly wicked.
The Meng family is doomed, and next in line is you, my dear brother.
Aunt Tu is waiting to see how to deal with the Meng family, and if there are any loopholes that can be used to frame you.
But let me guess, if anyone’s going to be framed, it’s going to be you, big brother, for masterminding the Meng family’s exposure.
I think in the next few days, you should go visit that old man, Xia.
[…] The system, listening to all of its host’s evil schemes laid out directly to the main character.
Oblivious, Nian Zhen continued thinking to himself. This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
When the time comes, I’ll have to play the pitiful white lotus and accidentally uncover the truth.
Then, I’ll act all disappointed in my dear brother, which will surely enrage Chairman Xia enough to punish him.
That way, Aunt Du will have the perfect excuse to bring me back to the Xia family mansion.
Old Man Xia won’t be able to object.
And you, big brother, will be left to rot in the villa.
From then on, the Xia family mansion will be fully in the hands of this devious mother-son duo.
The plan is brilliant—three birds with one stone.
One, they eliminate the Meng family.
Two, they drive a deeper wedge between father and son.
And three, Aunt Du regains a reliable ally.
his scheme is all for Aunt Du’s benefit.
Truly impressive villain work; I should really study up and learn from her.
[…] The system felt utterly hopeless for its host’s journey as a white lotus.
Finally, they arrived at the villa.
Nian Zhen, who had been playing the emotionally wounded character, was about to hurry upstairs when Xia Yanjing grabbed his arm.
“Xiao Zhen.”
Nian Zhen put on a sad face, his eyes a little red, and turned back to see Xia Yanjing placing the chubby rabbit into his arms.
“Let Xiao Pang keep you company tonight.”
“…Thank you, brother.”
It’s not going to gnaw on my head, right?
Brother, you’re not secretly mad at me, are you?
Xiao Pang is an impressive nibbler.
I know I’m good-looking, but if this thing goes for my head, I might not survive.
“…If Xiao Pang dares to bite you, I’ll have the chef prepare roasted rabbit tomorrow.”
“…”
Xiao Pang, lying peacefully in Nian Zhen’s arms, suddenly trembled.
Goodness, big brother, that’s so cruel.
How could you eat something as adorable as Xiao Pangpang?
But…
it is pretty chubby, full of meat.
I read in some survival novels where the characters get lost in the forest, and they all say rabbit meat is quite tasty.
(His thoughts ended with a slight hesitation.)
“…Glutton.”
Xia Yanjing muttered, tapping Nian Zhen’s head gently before heading back upstairs.
“…” Nian Zhen.
I was only thinking it.
How did Xia Yanjing manage to respond as if he’d heard me?
I was even giving him a shocked look after what he said.
[…]
To Nian Zhen’s surprise, Xiao Pang was far better-behaved than expected.
Whether it understood Xia Yanjing’s words or not, it stayed sound asleep without a single twitch all night.
The little chubby rabbit, whose life consisted of nothing but eating and sleeping, had it so easy Nian Zhen couldn’t help but feel a bit jealous.
You lazy lump.
Maybe roasting you isn’t such a bad idea after all.
“…” Xiao Pang.
The slanderous rumors against Meng Zhenzhen turned out to be more serious than anyone expected, and today Nian Zhen was granted indefinite permission to skip classes, as Chairman Xia was worried his “fragile heart” wouldn’t be able to handle it.
Hee hee, those Meng family members really did me a favor.
Nian Zhen, dressed in his light blue pajamas with a cute duck pattern, strolled down the stairs, carrying his chubby white rabbit to join a leisurely late breakfast.
But as he reached the dining area, he found Xia Yanjing sitting there, casually dressed, sipping hot tea and reading a magazine.
What the—my brother isn’t going to school today?
Nian Zhen took three steps back immediately, turning his back on the scene to compose himself.
Big Brother, I’m exhausted from pretending to be sad and emotionally scarred.
I’m actually in an amazing mood—better than I’ve been in ages.
But with you here, I have to bring out all my top-tier acting skills.
Usually, I can just look a little down, and it’s fine, but if you’re around, your sharp, piercing gaze will see right through me.
Ugh, I need a mirror; does my face look sorrowful enough?
Yeah, this’ll work.
Just need to make my eyes a bit redder.
[…]
The system had countless thoughts but dared not reveal itself, fearing that the Host might think about it or the mission while in front of Xia Yanjing.
If that happened, this world would be unsustainable.
If the main character caught on, both it and the Host would certainly be rejected by the world’s consciousness.
The system itself wanted to warn the Host, but controlling someone’s thoughts was the hardest thing of all.
For now, aside from the mission being off-track, nothing too severe had happened.
So for now, it was better if the main character simply misunderstood and assumed the Host was just overly invested in some fictional drama.
At least that way, other secrets could still remain hidden.
Go, Host.
The system is cheering for you (though it could only encourage you in its mind).
Baby Xiao Pang, wait for Dad to finish his act, and I’ll take you for a bath.
Nian Zhen turned back again, his eyes slightly red.
The atmosphere of sadness radiated from his body.
Wearing long pajamas, his small and fragile figure looked even more delicate.
At least this image triggered the butler’s sympathy.
“Good morning, big brother,” Nian Zhen greeted softly, managing a weak smile and looking just a bit surprised, as though it was the most natural reaction.
“Aren’t you going to school today?”
Brother, you’re skipping?
Isn’t Old Man Xia going to flip out?
“…No.”
Xia Yanjing gestured for Nian Zhen to sit beside him.
Nian Zhen obediently followed.
Who told him to be a good white lotus?
The butler soon brought out an array of breakfast dishes—Nian Zhen’s favorites, all of them.
Seeing the food in front of him, Nian Zhen shouted in his mind,
Big Brother, let’s get married!!
Xia Yanjing immediately choked on his tea.
[…] The system let out an inward scream for the millionth time.
“Are you alright, big brother?”
Nian Zhen, startled by Xia Yanjing suddenly choking on tea, hurriedly grabbed a cloth to wipe his face while looking at him with concern.
Xia Yanjing glanced at Nian Zhen’s innocent face, lowered his eyes, and said,
“I… I’m fine.”
That damn tea!
You’re bullying my brother, aren’t you?
Otherwise, why would my brother suddenly choke?
Or maybe the butler made it too hot.
He really should know better.
Nian Zhen shot a brief glance at the luxurious teapot before quickly looking away.
“…” Xia Yanjing, hearing Nian Zhen’s thoughts:
Can someone really be at odds with a teapot?
Since Xia Yanjing seemed fine, Nian Zhen turned his attention to the breakfast before him.
Across the table, the butler was busy feeding Xiao Pang.
Dear lord, Brother, you’ve raised my standards too high.
If I can’t find a partner as good as you, I’ll probably end up single for life.
Xia Yanjing thought to himself that it was a good thing he wasn’t drinking tea at that moment.
Though Nian Zhen’s face looked somber, the amount of food he was eating didn’t decrease in the slightest.
his was in stark contrast to the image he was showing.
Yet, no one pointed it out.
In fact, the butler even snuck over to add another round of desserts.
Breakfast today felt more like a heavy, indulgent feast than a typical morning meal.
Brother, you’re taking too good care of me.
If I keep eating like this every day, what’ll I do if I start gaining weight?
“Thank you for breakfast, Brother.”
Nian Zhen smiled politely, one hand discreetly rubbing his full stomach.
Fortunately, the oversized pajama shirt concealed his food-laden form.
“Go freshen up. I’m taking you out today,” Xia Yanjing announced, reaching over to ruffle Nian Zhen’s hair.
“I already told Father.
I said I was worried about you being left alone, that you might overthink things.
So he told me to take you out to distract you.”
“…Okay.”
That shady father with the surname Xia really spoke reasonably to Xia Yanjing?
Doesn’t he have any doubts?
He seems to have forgotten that my brother really hates that Aunt Du, so how could he suddenly care about me?
Ahem, or maybe my brother was fooled by my superb acting skills, thinking I’m really a good person?
No way, Brother, are you really this easy to fool?
Xia Yanjing, inwardly: He’ll find out soon enough who’s really fooling who.
[…] It decided it was better off tuning out the Host’s thoughts altogether.
“Don’t overthink it. Go on, hurry up.”
Xia Yanjing tousled Nian Zhen’s hair and nudged him out of the dining room.
Nian Zhen was left wondering, Why did it seem like Xia Yanjing sighed with exasperation just now?
I haven’t even done anything yet.