Luo Tiantian’s current appearance caused the destructive urge that Shen Xixi had just suppressed to stir once more.
She was determined to make her smile.
Shen Xixi raised both hands, pinched Luo Tiantian’s soft cheeks, and pulled them slightly toward either side. “Then I shall help you.”
“Mmph… Your Majesty… it hurts…” Luo Tiantian’s mouth was pulled into a pout by the tugging.
How was this helping? This was sheer torment!
“It is supposed to hurt. Remember what you said: in the future, when I tell you to smile, you must smile for me. A smile alone is not enough, though. Come, meow for me.”
Luo Tiantian: “…Meow?”
Shen Xixi raised an eyebrow. “Not delicate enough, not charming enough. Again.”
Luo Tiantian steeled herself, softened her voice, and drew out the tone. “Meow~~~”
Shen Xixi nodded with satisfaction. “Passable. Remember that tone; the next time I want to hear it, you must meow.”
Luo Tiantian: “…Yes.”
‘What a perverted NPC, mie.’
“That is all for today. Rest well.”
The next second, Shen Xixi vanished from before Luo Tiantian’s eyes.
[King You has temporarily departed]
“Phew… it is finally over.”
Before Luo Tiantian could even catch her breath—
[King You has appeared]
“By the way, my beloved consort, since you do not like to smile, next time I will take you to see something funny.”
Shen Xixi was back online, patting Luo Tiantian’s head.
[King You has temporarily departed]
Luo Tiantian curled her lip, rolled up the quilt, and turned herself into a silkworm cocoon.
‘This “funny thing” better not be the story of lighting the beacon towers to fool the feudal lords.’
She rolled around on the bed until her physical exhaustion finally passed, then stood up unsteadily. Her Assistance Points stood at only one, and the logout function remained locked.
Previously, she had been too busy dealing with King You and earning money to study the game system carefully. Now was the perfect time to explore.
[Character: Bao Si (Special Assistance Character – Beta Version)] [Constitution: Soft, delicate, and easily overpowered] [Wisdom: ?? (Limited by character setting and current cognition)] [Special Attributes: Mie (Activated), Pure Love (Beta Privilege – Bound)]
Hmm? What kind of attribute was Pure Love?
[Beta Privilege Attribute. Details are not visible. Effects will trigger automatically in specific situations. Please explore on your own.]
‘What the mie?’
Luo Tiantian lay on the bed, speechless. Was this game truly about Pure Love?
[Nighttime has arrived. To accommodate the Assistance Character’s emotions and rest, a one-time logout function is provided.]
Luo Tiantian’s vision went black, and her consciousness was gently bounced back to reality. She took off the helmet and let out a long, deep breath. After resting for a good while, she picked up the phone by her bedside.
The screen lit up with several unread messages on the lock screen, all from the same newly added contact—Su Xiao.
[Tiantian! Are you home? Are you feeling any better?] [[Image] Look! I cooked dinner myself tonight, the taste is actually quite good!] [Are you free tomorrow? I know a super delicious dessert shop, shall we go together?] [[Cat peeking emoji]] [Tiantian? Are you asleep?]
Luo Tiantian looked at these messages with complex emotions. On one hand, Su Xiao had indeed helped her greatly today by paying the expensive examination fees; that kindness was real. On the other hand, she was not originally a girl. She had deceived Su Xiao and truly lacked the energy to deal with a stranger who seemed emotionally unstable.
She thought for a moment and replied: [Just fell asleep, still a bit tired. Goodnight.]
At the other end of the city, inside an apartment.
Su Xiao sat cross-legged on the carpet of the guest bedroom. This was her own house.
“Asleep so early? She must be exhausted from today… but she said goodnight to me!”
She clutched her phone, her heart feeling as if it had been scratched by a kitten’s paw—tingling and sweet. This secret joy of monopolizing something beautiful desperately needed an object for boasting.
Su Xiao opened her chat window with Shen Xixi.
[Su Xiao: Image.jpg (A candid side-profile shot of Luo Tiantian)] [Su Xiao: [Screenshot: The “Goodnight” message from Luo Tiantian] Look, the new little beauty I met. She is so sweet and soft, and she even says goodnight to me. She is ten thousand times more caring than your cold, fake game doll~] [Su Xiao: Some people can only satisfy their cravings with a fake person in a game. How pathetic.]
Ten seconds later, Su Xiao retracted the side-profile photo of Luo Tiantian. She was only boasting; she wasn’t about to provide “side-dish” material for someone else.
In Shen Xixi’s apartment.
She had just finished showering. Her hair was still wet as she picked up her tablet to check the game forums, only to see the messages from Su Xiao.
“Heh.”
She gave a cold laugh and tossed the tablet onto the sofa. She couldn’t be bothered to deal with that lunatic. But Su Xiao had no intention of letting her off the hook.
[Su Xiao: Why aren’t you talking? Feeling outdone? It makes sense; a real person is obviously more interesting than data.] [Su Xiao: She wasn’t feeling well today, and I even accompanied her to the hospital. I was with her the whole time; she really relies on me.] [Su Xiao: Sigh, some people can only swipe at a model on a screen. Truly pitiful.] [Su Xiao: Even if those fake people say they love you or have curvy bodies, your screen is still flat.]
Message after message popped up. Shen Xixi’s brows furrowed tighter and tighter. The anger she had just suppressed was reignited by these texts. She grabbed the tablet.
[Shen Xixi: Su Xiao, did you get your head caught in a door? Why are you acting like a freak in the middle of the night? Is some neurotic woman you met out of nowhere worth barking at me for?]
Su Xiao replied instantly: [Su Xiao: You’re mad! You’re totally mad! Did I hit a sore spot? Haha!] [Su Xiao: She is just better than your fake person! Stay mad! Go play with your game and your toys! Real lips and fingers are way better than your gadget!]
The veins on Shen Xixi’s temple throbbed. This Su Xiao was getting better and better at pushing her buttons. She pressed the voice message button.
“Su Xiao, I am warning you: shut your mouth and go have your fever dreams! If you bother me again with your nonsense, I won’t mind personally contacting a psychiatric hospital to find you a much quieter room to stay in! Do you hear me? You neurotic woman!”
After sending the voice note, Shen Xixi threw the tablet aside, out of sight and out of mind. That “little beauty” Su Xiao spoke of was probably just a hallucination from her worsening paranoia. What she possessed was the unique, fully controllable Bao Si, whose state she could even adjust at will.
‘Right, isn’t it just about photos? I can just spend money to take photos in the game!’
‘Su Xiao, who do you think you are?!’
‘I’ll take dozens or even hundreds of photos to shut you up.’
Thinking of this, the irritability in Shen Xixi’s heart was replaced by a sense of superior anticipation.
Listening to Shen Xixi’s anger-filled voice note, Su Xiao didn’t get angry. Instead, she rolled around happily, clutching her pillow and shaking with laughter.
“She’s mad! She’s actually mad!”
The more frustrated Shen Xixi became, the more vindicated Su Xiao felt. This was the perfect revenge for Shen Xixi refusing to help her settle the score with that damned delivery person earlier today!
Hmph, so what if she had a game plaything? Su Xiao had met a living, breathing, beautiful, and fragile little beauty in reality!
Speaking of that delivery person… she hadn’t found them yet! The owner of that fast-food shop was clearly protecting them and refused to tell the truth. There should be a way to contact the rider directly on the delivery platform, right?
Su Xiao sat up, grabbed her phone, and opened the delivery app. She had been so blinded by rage earlier that she forgot she could confront the rider directly, even though she had their number from the order. Now, she was going to call and interrogate that sticky-fingered thief.
How dare they steal her beef enoki mushrooms and soft-boiled egg, and cause her to be looked down upon by Shen Xixi?
Ring… ring…
After a few rings, the call was answered.
“Hello?” A soft, sweet voice came through the receiver.
Su Xiao froze for a moment. Why did the voice sound a bit familiar? It didn’t sound like the greasy, sleazy delivery guy she had imagined.
However, she was currently in a fit of rage and couldn’t care less. she immediately spoke aggressively:
“Hey! You’re the rider who delivered the Toyokawa Sakiko order this afternoon, right? I’m telling you, I’ve got my eye on you! Don’t think you’re off the hook just because you quit; this business with you stealing my food isn’t over!”
The other end of the line was silent for two seconds.
Luo Tiantian had just been logged out of the game and was about to fall asleep when she was woken up by a stranger’s call. Hearing the barrage of accusations, her mind was a bit dazed.
Toyokawa Sakiko? Stealing food?
Ah… it was that customer who gave the negative review this afternoon and caused twenty yuan to be docked from her pay?
Luo Tiantian suddenly felt a surge of headache and grievance. She had delivered the meal properly and taken a photo for proof. If the meal was lost, she got blamed, and now they were calling to harass her?
She had already quit!
“Yes, I’m the one who ate it! Hit me if you have the guts! You anime-obsessed shrew! Hit me, mie!!”
“If you ever order Pin Hao Fan again, I’ll dump the bowl over your head, mie!!” Luo Tiantian shouted back furiously.
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